- Title: Once Upon a Time in Wonderland – Bad Blood
- wiki: link
As Alice (Sophie Lowe) and the Knave (Michael Socha) work on a plan to get into the floating tower, unaware that Cyrus (Peter Gadiot) has already escaped his prison, Jafar (Naveen Andrews) puts his latest plan into action by taking the form of Alice’s father (Shaun Smyth). Despite his clever ruse Alice sees through the deception, but that doesn’t stop the wizard from putting her father’s life in danger and forcing Alice’s hand to use her second wish to save his life and return him home.
The episodes flashbacks focus on Jafar as a boy (Anthony Keyvan), loosing his mother (Rekha Sharma), his role as a servant in the palace of a father (Amir Arison) who would not claim him as his own, the and the series of events that eventually led him to Amara (Zuleikha Robinson) and on his path of vengeance. The flashbacks, along with Alice’s father’s time in Jafar’s dungeon, reveal the identity of Cyrus’ former fellow prisoner (Brian George) and the crime for which Jafar can never forgive him.
Disapproving fathers and their children is the common theme that unites the two stories in the series best episode so far. Although Alice uses another wish, the episode gives her closure with her father as well as hope that Cyrus has escaped his captivity leading into next week’s mid-season finale. Despite being returned home unharmed, and apparently shaking off his experience as a fevered dream, the consequences of Alice’s wish may yet lead to more trouble for her father when the show returns after its winter break.
