- Title: Once Upon a Time – Kansas
- wiki: link
While Snow White (Ginnifer Goodwin) goes into labor, Zelena (Rebecca Mader) prepares to cast her spell and sets a trap for Emma Swan (Jennifer Morrison) who is forced to choose between sacrificing her magic or watching Hook (Colin O’Donoghue) die. Not only does her choice leave her far less of a threat against Zelana, but it also leaves the fate of her newborn baby brother in those who are no match for the combined might of Zelena and Rumpelstiltskin (Robert Carlyle). Or are they?
The show has spent very little time in Oz, other than showing us Zelena defeat the Wizard (Christopher Gorham) and take control of the Emerald City. “Kansas” begins to rectify this by giving us Zelena meeting Glinda the Good Witch of the South (Sunny Mabrey) and the other witches of the realm who offer her a place among their sisterhood. Despite embracing her new start, Zelena looses her path almost immediately following the arrival of Dorothy Gale (Matreya Scarrwener) in Oz which means she has to get a little creative in carving out a destiny that doesn’t involve her being defeated by a a farm girl from Kansas.
With the baby taken and Emma Swan’s magic lost, the future for everyone seems bleak until Henry (Jared Gilmore) inspires Regina (Lana Parrilla) to embrace her role as a hero by tapping into the same light magic that brought back Henry’s memories. Where her sister failed in embracing a lighter path and new destiny Regina succeeds, but in their final scene together its obvious Regina has more than a little of her old self still brimming near the surface.
Good wins the day with the Evil Queen leading the way, but there’s still quite a few questions heading into next week’s two-hour season finale. Although Regina spares her sister’s life, Rumpelstiltskin does not, despite his promise to Belle (Emilie de Ravin), but in killing the witch he releases the magic from her pendant causing new trouble for the inhabitants of Storybrooke. Just what is that green vortez going to produce (or pull in)? Why didn’t Emma’s magic return and what happens when Henry learns his mother wants to take him back to New York? Will Belle and the others learn of, or at least guess, Rumpelstiltskin’s actions?
