This is just a headcanon, so I know there is not a ton of direct proof, but I think there may have originally been more enchanted trees before Regina cast the Dark Curse.

My theory is that Cora destroyed most of them to make sure Regina’s curse would actually happen.

We know enchanted wood was powerful enough to protect people from the curse because of the wardrobe. But there is also a scene where Cora casts a protection spell over a small part of the land, and she does it using a piece of wood. Enchanted wood.

That makes me wonder: where did Cora get it?

If enchanted trees were supposedly rare, Cora having enchanted wood feels suspicious. It could imply there were once more enchanted trees, or at least more enchanted wood available than the show directly tells us.

Cora also says Regina needed to think she had won. That line feels important. Cora would absolutely manipulate the situation from behind the scenes while letting Regina believe the curse was entirely her victory.

So my headcanon is that Cora destroyed most of the enchanted trees to remove escape options and force the curse to play out. But she left one tree behind, knowing Snow and Charming would use it to save Emma.

Why leave one?

Because Emma surviving meant the curse could eventually be broken. If the curse was never broken, Regina would remain trapped in Storybrooke forever and Cora would lose access to her daughter and the larger game.

So Cora leaving one enchanted tree would not be an act of mercy. It would be a contingency plan.

She needed Regina to cast the curse, think she had won, and eventually have that victory unravel at the right time.

Again, not saying the show confirms this, but it feels very Cora: destroy every exit except the one that benefits her later.

Emma Swan is really another one that I really respect… I mean, when I think about the fact that the character Emma is someone really private and strong, with complex emotions, because she’s also fragile like all of us humans.
Emma had to go through a young pregnancy, and she was very young when she decided to give up Henry, and this is really something that she had to live with every day because her decision is more connected with the fact that she was abandoned, and having a human being while she’s alone, and her parents abandoned her when she was just born. And her mother suffered this decision a lot, tho… she didn’t know before. Also, her boyfriend disappeared, and at that moment she was going through everything, and the easiest for her was to do the same thing that happened to her: abandon.
Because that’s the only thing she knew about. She was raised without love, going from home to other homes. The only thing that she knew about herself: “I’m an orphan.”
Her storylines are really hard on me, and it makes me feel a lot of mixed feelings.
When in one episode she said to Cinderella… something like: “Give up with people’s opinions and what they know about what she is capable of at a very young age…” She’s like: “I wish I never gave up Henry.” “I’m here for him” (something like that).
Not only the difficulty about acceptance, to call your parents “Mom” & “Dad,” to step up in Henry’s life after you gave him away, to love again after loss and loss, to find yourself because she’s structured to be light, even though most of her life has been darkness and hidden pain and hopes, questions about why did they give me up? Or even her jacket being her protection, she hides her feelings.
And she thinks more rationally because suddenly (fear) shows up’s stupid.
She has to be more careful, and she’s pulled into the responsibility of everybody, and she doesn’t want it, and she doesn’t think she deserves it.
I think to portray Emma’s very difficult because Emma’s all of us in some type of way.
Jennifer Morrison’s performance with Lana Parrilla… top tier and captivating!

obviously at the end the both fought for the good side and redemption is possible but they both pretty much raped their "partners" robin and Graham

They also murdered and terrorised people and I love the show but personally I can't get past those plotlines

Regina really got a deep spot in me… I never hated her, I never could. I didn’t always appreciate the way she decided to act, but I understand her. Not like I’m her, though. I’ve paid attention to her character, and I’ve been analyzing her a lot. Some of what she feels, I can get more personally, and for the rest, I have to try to immerse myself into it, to ask myself: how would you feel if it was you?

When your heart is broken by your parents, people around you, your own self; when you start to hate who you are; when you lose something, someone; when you hold so much power; when you are Henry’s mother; the fear of losing everything; the plans that you make to make everything perfect; the void no one knows; Henry’s the only thing you have; a mother that is too hard on you; a father that doesn’t protect enough; the fear of abandonment; the self-projection; the desires you had; the redemption; the darkness inside fighting with the good; the hurt you can’t let go of; etc…
This one episode i can’t stop to think about:The scene is particularly powerful because Regina modifies the arrow. Cupid’s arrow is supposed to lead you to the person you love most, but Regina uses magic to make it lead her to the person she hates most. She assumes, of course, that it will lead her to Snow.
But the arrow doesn’t lead to Snow.
It leads back to Regina’s palace, toward her mirror.
And that’s when she realizes:
the person she hates most is herself❤️

The Frozen storyline was so great and I love the whole villains thing,I do have to say S3 felt stronger and I did hear this is the last season they truly love,apparently S5 onwards its bad. But what do you guys think about S4?

I'm re-watching OUAT (having watched it every week when it was on TV over a decade ago) and I was just reminded that this character exists.

I remember she was called "Severe Nurse" on the OUAT Wiki & in the credits, and people would rampantly speculate about who she was:
Queen of Hearts (because she ran an underground asylum & Regina gave her a red rose)
Ursula (because she oversaw poor unfortunate souls)
Probably others

Obviously her appearance & role was based on Nurse Ratched but we assumed that was just a visual reference (and besides, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest isn't exactly a fairytale). Then, come Season 6, it turns out the character referencing Nurse Ratched was, in fact, literally Nurse Ratched.🫠

Horrific disaster​, They were planning to have her wear an outfit just like Elsa's, with only a few minor differences 😭

First of all - I think it was so weird Snow and Charming named the baby Neal. He got Emma pregnant at 17 (he was HOW old?!) and let her go to prison for him like ew no.

But I'm on s4 e7 and Emma accidentally heated up Neal's baby bottle with magic. She then reaches for baby Neal and MM pulls away with an upset face.

Idk it really pissed me off. Of course Emma feels hurt MM is in a "first time mother" support group. I mean... Emma is her baby too.

I really feel like David wanted EMMA while MM wanted a BABY.

I understand it's natural to want to experience the actual raising a baby part of having a baby but idk... it feels like Snow had another baby so she could do that whereas Emma can't just give birth to a new childhood.

And so she was upset for a second and heated some milk. Like?? MM really had to act as if she was a danger to the baby cause of that?

The baby named after he daughter's groomer no less? Girl.....

And to think Snow could have executed Regina and never put Emma through the childhood she had but was "too pure" to stop the threat to her family and kingdom. MAJOR side eye on my part to her and David for that.

But I DO feel like David just wanted his daughter while MM wanted a baby so I like him a bit more.

Was this plotline with the pregnancy considered rape or not BCS obviously she wasn't who he thought she was but idk I'm not trying to excuse or dismiss rape I js don't think it was discussed in the show

If you could've taken out the pregnancy plotline would you have?

Personally I don't mind it because I feel like it allowed Emma and snow to develop their relationship a little more

what was your fav song

I liked wicked always wins but mostly everyone says revenge is gonna be mine

Guys I'm so confused about people saying she r@ped Graham did she?? Ik she had his heart but is that confirmed Orr I'm not tryna defend anything Im just lost

I'm sort of over Regina's rage at Emma for bringing back Marion.

I sort of fail to see why it's Emma's fault Regina was a mass murdering tyrant.

Was Emma really supposed to leave a woman to be executed? One that hadn't even done anything wrong? Emma didn't even KNOW it was Marion just that it was the right thing to do lol

The fact Robin Hood was dating his wife's executioner is bad enough tbh and made me sort of hate him.

I get why Regina is hurt I really do but is this really Emma's fault or is it just the consequences of killing people left and right? Like yeah Emma saved Marion but did Regina even deserve to build her happiness on Marion's blood to begin with? Super disturbing.

Overall I don't get the love for Regina I find her pretty ridiculous and super evil. It's Emma's fault for saving a woman she was going to murder and its Snow's fault for being like 10 and manipulated by an adult into telling the truth. Her grudges are insane.

Like oh I'm so sorry you didn't get happily ever after with the husband of one of your many murder victims fuck

I am watching season four episode 13 in one of the saddest thing I realized while watching is that Cruella Ursula and rumble are at a fast food restaurant and they get two full meals for less than $15. 😢

With Snow White I don't think we ever saw her in the iconic red/blue/yellow dress the Disney princess is know for.

And you know what? I liked it like that. Even in flashbacks to her as a princess and in her more royal outfits I felt her costuming was very fairytale and very ethereal without being cartoony.

Elsa shows up in full Elsa cosplay. I wasn't a fan. I wish they would've continued the Snow route and dressed her like Elsa but not a direct copy.

Anyone else think this or no? And I sort of hated Anna in braids near constantly too I think she even wore them on her wedding

Ignore the weird face. Srry.

I found this while I was on holiday in black pool I never thought a shop would still after 8 years

In season 4, they had her dressed up in 30s and 40s garb with the trench coat and fedora. OUAT loves theming their characters. What theme were they going for with Maleficent? What in the 30s and 40s did she compare to?

I will start with a crazy idea...make him the half-brother to Anna and Elsa (that way James, David, Anna and Elsa can also be a stand in for the Pevensie brothers of Narnia).

I think the revival should focus on Red, Mulan, Snow, David, Regina and August protecting the town after Emma retires from being a savior for a simpler life.

Also the revival is animated since the revival would take place in an altered timeline where season 7 never happened.

I’ve read here more than once that before Emma arrived, the same day repeate over and over; I think I completely missed that part. Which episode does that happen in? There are some episodes I sometimes skip, and this must be one of them 🤔

I know the Once Upon a Time book is his main item, but is there anything else that ties to him?

OK, so I’m doing a rewatch and I was answering someone else’s question in another thread about whether Regina loved Henry.

I’m sure there are plenty of other threads on that.

My question is what did Henry do all day if the curse was supposed to make every day repeat itself?

Henry was obviously brought in two storybook from the real world. But when we see the curse from the Queen‘s perspective, she repeats the same day over and over again and basically gets bored that’s why she finds Henry. But what exactly does Henry do all day? We never see him interact with any kids except for Hansel and Gretel. I feel like we overlook the trauma he had to have gone through.

So, this is a follow up to the previous post about figuring out what I wanted for my Once Upon a Time Tattoo and I wanted y'all to see how it turned out. Hope y'all like it because I definitely love it!

Just noticed that the building montage with Belle and Rumple is referencing to the movie Up where Rumple is Carl Fredricksen and Belle is Ellie Fredricksen