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Once Upon a Time in Wonderland - Series Finale - Episode 1.13 - And They Lived... - Review

4 Apr 2014

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Well readers, this is the end. As series finales go, I was deeply satisfied with this one. I think just about all the loose ends were tied up and while some sacrifices were made, in the end a happily ever after was achieved. And we as viewers were privileged to see our heroes journey through to the end. In this show we saw the formation of new friends,as well as the unfortunate loss old ones. And of course we saw interesting twists on old favorites. While darker in mood at times than the main Once Upon a Time show, Once Upon a Time in Wonderland did live up to the "wonder" in its title. This story started out as being a tale to exploring whether True Love could conquer all, and I think it has. More importantly however, we were able to watch these characters learn about themselves and grow. They aren't the same people they were in episode one and I'm thankful I got to watch their journey from start to finish. This show may have started out simply about romantic True Love, but in the end one can see it was about all kinds of love; that of family, friendship, and oneself.

The episode beings right as the last one left off, with Jafar and Amara completing the spell and breaking the laws of magic. As the electric boogaloo dies down, Jafar, looking a bit shell-shocked, proclaims "It is done". No flash, no reverberating poof of magic and yet the laws that govern spells have been changed. It should be noted that a triangle of power, formed by the three genie bottles, has been left on the floor, This will come into play later. Amara snaps out of the post-spell daze and runs to Cyrus's side. Apparently he is less dead than I though last episode and Alice begs the mother to help her son. Jafar assures our heroine that the sorceress can do the trick as she and he are the two most powerful magic-wielders around now. And Jafar plans on becoming a solo act, for he enchants one of the shards of glass from their previous battle and prepares to literally stab Amara in the back.

Before this can be achieved, however, the Sultan finally catches up to the action and enters the throne room, begging Jafar not to do the deed. The Sultan tries to convince his bastard son that there is more power in mercy than in cruelty. Where was this thought when you were holding your son's head under the water, Sultan? Jafar is thinking along the same lines and questions where this all-powerful mercy was when he was but a boy seeking his father's love. The Sultan proclaims that love has to be earned, but Jafar has other ideas and demonstrates just how warped the laws of magic are now by be-spelling the Sultan, turning him into a doting father who has nothing but pride for the sorcerer. Stripping the Sultan of free will like that is unsettling and turns the man into more of a single-minded puppet, caught up with a singular idea, loving his son. Jafar savors what he always craved, the approval of his father, but this moment doesn't last for long as the sorcerer decides to once again choose cruelty over mercy. Perhaps Jafar even realizes that the empty shell that was once is father isn't as satisfying has he had envisioned. He murders his father on the spot by drowning him from the inside out and we get the rather disturbing imagery of the Sultan choking and gasping for air as water burbles out of his mouth and ears. Water has always been a formidable force in Jafar's choices and we will see later on how things will come full circle in this regard.While Jafar was giving the Sultan a taste of his own bitter medicine, Amara and Alice were wisely using the distraction to make their escape. Dragging Cyrus's waning body through the corridors, Alice remarks that they can't possibly escape in such a manner. Luckily she is with the most powerful sorceress in the world, who with a flick of her wrist, summons the magic carpet to whisk them away from the palace.

Despite this momentary setback, Jafar has time to ferret out the Jabberwocky, who had been skulking around the dungeons all this time. He confronts his pet monster and asks her to read his fears. The Jabberwocky pauses and we hear the faint whisperings as she listens for what the sorcerer dreads. As she does, her face grows more concerned. And if the Jabberwocky is concerned, you know there is trouble. It appears that Jafar is afraid of nothing. This can be troublesome as our fears hold us in check. They keep up from being too daring, too reckless, and we will see just how that plays out for Jafar. As the Jabberwocky draws back, looking fearful herself, the sorcerer brandishes the Vorpal blade and enacts the Jabberwocky's worst fear, pinning her to the wall and leaving her to rot in the dungeon. Assuring the Jabberwocky that he can and will do whatever he wants with his new-found power, Jafar blows her a kiss and leaves her in the dark. Getting really cocky there, Jafar.

Sadly, this is the last time we will see the Jabberwocky and I have to say that is my one disappointment with the finale. Last episode gave us insight into the mind of the fear master. We saw flickers of her humanity and I had hoped she would play a greater role in the battle for Wonderland. Also, I had hoped she would be able to move on from this realm, but it seems that her story ends here. It's probably for the best, for at the end of the day she still feeds on the fear of others and really isn't a hero or protagonist herself. Like I said last week, I've grown to enjoy the Jabberwocky's presence on screen and would have wished for a more ambiguous ending for her.

Meanwhile, Alice and Amara have used the magic carpet to spirit the dying Cyrus away to the White Rabbit's house. Mrs. Rabbit is intent on using her herb-based hoo doo to cure the former genie, but Amara once again displays her power and quickly heals her son via magic. The White Rabbit is certainly not pleased with these uninvited guests and gets some sassy one-liners to break the tension, remarking how Cyrus's spleen on their carpet will serve as a historical monument to future generations. While Cyrus rests, Amara and Alice have a moment where the sorceress thanks Alice for finding her son. She comments on the girl's bravery, as well as Cyrus and her connection. It seems Alice has her future mother-in-law's approval. Amara then goes on to proclaim that they must now take down Jafar, a feat that's going to take the combined powers of good in Wonderland.

At the palace, Jafar is still feeling extremely smug and releases the Knave of Hearts from his bottle. Not for conversation but to display that he did indeed hold up his end of the bargain with the Knave and trots out his latest endeavor in magical rule breaking, the resurrection of the Red Queen. Oh, but he didn't really do this for the Knave's sake. No, while the Knave of Hearts is trapped within that triangle of power on the floor, Jafar shows off his other foray in bending the laws of magic and smooches the Red Queen. The sorcerer has cursed the Red Queen into loving him, just as he did his father, though this love is obviously more of the physical variety. Seriously, Jafar and the Red Queen use every opportunity throughout the episode to mack on each other and it is disturbing. I know the point is to show how shallow this spell is, that the laws of magic prevent this kind of curse for an obvious reason as the Red Queen becomes nothing more than a glorified doll for Jafar (ick), but after a while I found myself begging that they would get a room.

This is pure torment for the Knave of Hearts, but Jafar's resurrection act is far from over. With a flash of eldritch magic from his eyes, the sorcerer begins raising dead soldiers from the palace grave yard Night of the Living Dead-style, complete with arms punching through the ground. Oh, now you're just showing off. I love the detail of the chess pieces as headstones here. Jafar now has a zombie chess piece army and with it he will tighten his grip on Wonderland into a stranglehold.

Elsewhere in the woods of Wonderland, the rejuvenated Cyrus, along with Amara and Alice, are heading towards the palace. Alice want to use Amara's great magical powers to confront Jafar head on, but Amara protests, claiming that the best way to defeat Jafar is not through force, but to strip him of his new-found magic. And the only way to do this is to return the stolen water to the Well of Wonders, sacrificing herself in the process. Amara stresses that the laws of magic are there for a reason. I think Amara knows she has been existing on borrowed time. Alice protests, as undoing Jafar's magic will make it impossible to save the Red Queen, but surprisingly Cyrus pipes up, reminding Alice that she could lose the Knave forever if Jafar continues to have this ill-gotten power. The former genie knows that it is the right thing to do, especially since they have a shot in saving someone, rather than trying to undo what has already been done. He has learned from the mistake he made in trying to cheat fate and save those that are are already gone and we see how far he has come from that cocky card-player all those years ago. Also, this shows the depth of love Cyrus has for Alice. He is willing to make the hard decision, not only because it is right, but because he knows the deep sibling-like bond the Knave and Alice share.

Alice suggests they split up. Never a good idea, though here it seems to be our heroes' best bet. Cyrus will take Amara to the well while Alice and the White Rabbit gather as many loyal soldiers as possible. Alice knows that stripping Jafar of his magic will not be enough to stop the sorcerer for good. As she and Cyrus prepare to leave each other, Cyrus assures her that they will find each other again, just as they did during their strange journey through out this show. Somewhere in Storybrooke, Prince Charming's ears are burning; someone said his line. The strength and trust Alice and Cyrus display knowing that they will once again be reunited speaks of how far they have come. They are no longer seeking each other out of fear that the other is lost, but in confidence that they will always be united. It is no longer a struggle for them to be apart or reunite, but a testament that their True Love has already conquered every obstacle. With one last kiss, Cyrus sets off with his mother for the Well of Wonders.

Back at the graveyard, Jafar is giving instructions to his undead army in the form of a rousing speech. Someone has been watching Braveheart. He plays into the newly risen soldiers desire to protect their land and preserve this second chance at living and orders them to capture Amara. Seems that Jafar is quite bent on making sure he is top dog in Wonderland. He instructs his new army that any allies of Amara should be captured and brought to him immediately. My foreshadowing senses are tingling. And it seems Alice has gathered an army of her own. However, and here we see the difference between simply having power and displaying leadership, Alice chooses a different approach to motivating her troops. Instead of playing up their fear of loss, as Jafar does, Alice stresses the value in the things they will gain by fighting for Wonderland. She reminds her troops that they fight for love, not out of fear. Alice gives her army a choice at fighting instead of commanding them to blindly rip and tear through their enemies as Jafar did. Jafar's troops fight for him, but Alice's troops fight for themselves.

The battle is supposed to be set at sunrise, but Jafar's forces surprise Alice and her allies as they move closer to the palace. With all this talk of battle, you'd think we would have a huge action sequence. And we do see some fighting as the armies clash, but nothing I would constitute as "epic". I don't think that would fit in with the feel of Wonderland, where cleverness has always been seen to trump brawn in a conflict. As always, Action Alice is my favorite Alice. I do love that even after finding Cyrus, our heroine doesn't loose her edge. She has continuously fought her own battles throughout this series, not shrinking into the background and letting her man battle for her. In fact, when Alice and Cyrus did fight together they worked as a team, supplementing each others' strengths. But Alice still holds her own even without Cyrus, putting up a good fight here. Unfortunately she is outnumbered and captured by Jafar's forces.

In another part of the forest, Cyrus and Amara are having their first talk since they've been reunited. Amara admires Alice and wastes no time telling Cyrus this, giving her blessing on her son's relationship. The pair make it to the red doors that lead to the Well of Wonders, but are ambushed by a cadre of guards. Cyrus makes to fend them off, but Amara uses her phenomenal cosmic powers once more, causing all the guards to draw their swords and impale themselves. As their foes fall like dominoes, Cyrus realizes that an ambush like this would spell serious trouble for Alice as she has no magic to defeat her enemies so easily, so mother and son hurry on to their task. That is one thing I did like about this version of Alice. She used her tenacity, bravery, and wits over a simple magic solution. If she ever used magic it was the ambient kind found in the mushrooms and other flora and fauna of Wonderland. I could go on about this all day, but it's just nice to see a unique heroine on television nowadays.

Alice is dragged to the palace, where Jafar magically pulls up a chair and binds her to it. As mustache-twirlingly evil as Jafar has become, he missed out on giving a little quip like "have a seat" while doing this. Someone hasn't read their villain's handbook I see. Jafar, after a not-so-quick smooch session with the Red Queen tries to weasel Amara's location out of Alice. I have to say, Alice and the Knave's facial expression are priceless here. The mixture of "what the hell" and disgust speak to me on a spiritual level. Alice is steadfast in her silence, and as Jafar interrogates her, he once again brings up the laws of magic, or more precisely the third and yet to be broken law, that one can't change the past. With that he threatens Alice, tell her he will go back and make it so she never met Cyrus and never gets her happy ending. This is brutally cold on Jafar's part. He has become more ruthless now that he sees himself as all powerful and again, this will come back to bite him in his magical rear end. I do find a flaw in Jafar's plan here. He assures Alice that should he change the past, she will never come to Wonderland. But in coming to Wonderland, isn't that what unveiled Cyrus to the sorcerer in the first place? Without the third genie, the spell to unmake the laws of magic would not have been broken, meaning jafar wouldn't be able to go into the past in the first place. Ugh, time travel paradoxes, the bane of my existence. This just further goes to show how Jafar's hubris is clouding his judgement.

Despite these threats, Alice still refuses to reveal where Amara is. She informs Jafar that even if he does change the past and she never meets Cyrus, their love will still triumph. Alice's love for Cyrus means everything to her and she claims that the sorcerer is underestimating the power of such a love as he has never experienced something like that for himself. The love he created by cursing the Red Queen is a pale illusion. Alice hits a nerve when she points out that despite his "power" nothing Jafar has is real and why he will never truly win. They are interrupted by a pair of guards reporting that Amara and Cyrus were spotted going through the red doors. Jafar is dissatisfied that they were allowed to do so, killing the reporting guard on the spot. I'm sorry, but the way this guard just fell over like a tree being cut down got a big laugh from me. The guy just leans over until he hits the floor. But I digress. Jafar turns to Alice to learn what is behind the red doors, but the Red Queen chimes in, sounding much more like how she behaved in the earlier episodes. We once again see that haughty regal demeanor. Anyway, the Red Queen informs Jafar of the Well of Wonders and how it is a great source of power and naturally the sorcerer departs to dispatch his foes.

He leaves the Red Queen with the Knave of Hearts and Alice, who ponder out loud about Cyrus and Amara's fate, much to the queen's annoyance. The White Rabbit appears and the Knave attempts to distract the Red Queen while the rabbit unties Alice, but without much success. This leads into the Knave trying to convince the Red Queen that Jafar put the whammy on her, that the emotion she is feeling isn't real love. The Knave goes on to explain to the Red Queen that love is messy and has its ups and downs, it's not the easy fix that she is experiencing. The Knave of Hearts expresses that despite the pitfalls in there own relationship, he still loves the Red Queen and forgives her. The Knave manages to break his hand through the barrier imprisoning him to grab the queen and bring her into a kiss. And we all know what True Love's kiss does, that's right, breaks any curse. While this might feel like a quick fix to the Red Queen's enchantment to some, the emphasis of the power of love in this show, coupled with what we know about True Love's Kiss from Once Upon a Time doesn't make this solution feel like a cop out. The reaction of the two of them kissing through the barrier is wonderful looking and I think I like this visual better than their first kiss when the Knave reclaimed his heart. It's as if a mini magic sonic boom occurs right has the Red Queen's curse is broken, similar to something we'd see on Once Upon a Time. With the Red Queen more herself, she eagerly beings helping Alice and the Knave escape.

At the Well of Wonders, Amara and Cyrus approach the titular well, but before Cyrus can call its guardian, Amara stops him. Apparently the guardian can sense the presence of the stolen water and knows that they are there, rising up from the depths. Amara steps forward to surrender the water back to the well, but Cyrus stops her. Amara asks that Cyrus let her go and I'm think she doesn't just mean in a physical sense. Cyrus kept his mother alive on borrowed time because he was unwilling to let her go due to the guilt he felt at his own mistakes. But now, the former genie has learned his lesson and is ready to let the natural order of things progress. Tearfully, Cyrus watches his mother approach the well, but before she can give back the stolen water, a beam of magic stops her in her tracks. Jafar has caught up the the pair and blasts Cyrus aside before, in a flash of light, he takes Amara's life. As the sorceress dies, the stolen water trickles out of her body, collecting in a puddle at the well's edge until finally Amara liquifies completely.

Jafar, however, is ignorant to Cyrus and Amara's real intentions for visiting the well, blinded by his desire for more power. But before he can do away with Cyrus, the earth explodes beneath him and Alice emerges from the hole drawing her sword, the White Rabbit in tow. Looks like the damsel is saving her prince this time. Jafar recovers quickly, freezing Alice on the spot with magic and punts the White Rabbit out of his way, sending the hare flying several feet in the air. Alice urges Cyrus to return the water to the well and the former genie almost makes it, cupping the puddle that used to be his mother in his hands, before Jafar magics the liquid away from Cyrus and quashes it in his fist. Jafar gloats that now he can not be defeated, however the guardian of the Well of Wonders has other ideas. You see, Jafar technically stole the water and now must pay the same price Cyrus and his brothers did. The cuffs of genie enslavement appear on Jafar's wrists and the sorcerer is forced into his own bottle. I'm quite pleased that Jafar actually got the same ending here as he did the the Disney film. It's very fitting that this power mad villain was his own undoing. He had gotten more and more reckless after gaining power, more confident that nothing could touch him and that pride proved to be his greatest danger. Alice's reaction in this scene make me thing that his was her plan all along, to get Jafar to tempt the fates and anger the guardian of the well. Perhaps I'm giving our heroine too much credit, but we've seen Alice's crazy planning skills before, so this seems in line with her character.

With Jafar disposed of, Alice and Cyrus celebrate their victory with a kiss at the well. Also, we see the curse of the genies has been lifted and Cyrus's brothers are freed, along with the Knave of Hearts. And it is the Knave who realizes that all of Jafar's spells are undone... including his resurrection of the Red Queen. I have to say, when the earth shook as Jafar's magic was being undone, the shot of the queen on a nearby chess board falling was a nice touch. I'm going to miss the subtle visual bonuses these writers put into their work. There is such an attention to detail in the sets and props that can really only be appreciated with repeat viewings. Fingers crossed for a DVD release.

Cyrus reunites with his brothers after about a few hundred years of separation. The eldest asks after Amara and Cyrus informs his brothers of her passing. The eldest brother scoffs, believing all their journeys to be for nothing, but Cyrus assures him that her sacrifice was for everything, it was so they may live on in her memory. Elsewhere in the palace, the Knave is mourning over the Red Queen's body. I've lost count of how many times he's had to say good-bye to her.
Alice and Cyrus appear bearing a gift, water from the Well of Wonders. At first the Knave is skittish; he knows what trouble sticking a metaphorical toe in those waters can cause, but this water was actually a gift. The guardian told Cyrus and Alice that it wasn't the Red Queen's time, that she was meant to live on. Actually, the exact words where that "the Red Queen was meant to move on but Anastasia's path was meant to continue". I like this designation, it fits in to the idea that the Red Queen was only ever a role Anastasia fulfilled, a mask she wore, and now she is able to move past that. Again, as tempted as I am to say this is all for the sake of a happy ending (a happy ending I was rooting for, don't get me wrong) the rules of the Well of Wonders are well-established, despite that atrocious pun there, so it falls in line with the logic of the show that this event could occur. The Knave of Hearts eagerly gives the Red Queen the enchanted water and after a brief moment she gasps for air, coming back to life. She asks what happened and at the Knave's reply that it's "a long story", she assures him that she has the time to listen. I'm glad that these two got their happy ending together. Their story was filled with much more emotional obstacles than Cyrus and Alice's physical ones, but served to show that despite the ups and downs, their love shined through.

While the Red Queen and the Knave have a moment, Cyrus and Alice are alone together on a balcony taking in the Wonderland sunset. This shot mimics that beautiful silhouette from the pilot, where Alice and Cyrus had their first loving moment overlooking the Boiling Seas. And now their story has come full circle. Alice expressed that she's ready to leave Wonderland and start a new adventure. There is closure in these words as we the viewer are also about to leave Once Upon a Time in Wonderland and begin our own new adventures with whatever show catches our eye next. With closure comes a sad finality as we, like our heroes, will never see this quirky, dangerous, wonderful world again. When Cyrus asks where they are of to next, Alice suggests they go "home".

Cut to Alice, examining herself in a looking glass, made-up and wearing a white dress. This is her wedding day! What a wonderful way to wrap up the episode. Alice is quickly joined by her father, who is not only delighted to finally have his daughter home, but also thanks her for helping him believe her stories. He admits that when he first returned he thought everything he experienced when he was pulled into Wonderland by Jafar was a dream, but soon Alice helped him see the light, not only regarding Wonderland, but regarding forgiveness as well. I am pleased to see that the growth these two had together so many episodes ago remains and that their relationship was mended and their love grew.

We quickly find out how Alice's father was convinced as we see it is the White Rabbit officiating Alice and Cyrus's wedding and no one present is batting an eye. Cyrus's brothers are of course in attendance, as is the Red Queen and the Knave of Hearts. Even the loyal Tweedle made it out for the ceremony. The wedding scene is beautifully shot with the most haunting music. Our characters are speaking, but we heard no dialogue, only that music. Say what you want about the series, but you have to admit that throughout all thirteen episodes Mark Isham has worked magic with the score. I feel having only the music in this scene helps the audience concentrate on the expressions in the scene better, that the emotions we see outweigh any words. The joy and wonder on Alice and Cyrus's faces, the cheekiness of the Knave fake-objecting to the ceremony. We see the Red Queen and the Knave content and even Alice's step mother is enjoying herself, though she seems taken aback by the presence of the White Rabbit's wife a few rows back. This is what a happily ever after looks like.

When the dialogue fades back in the White Rabbit says as much, assuring those attending that he need not go over the "in sickness and in heath, for richer or for poorer" business since Alice and Cyrus have already trumped those and even more insurmountable obstacles. Later on, everyone seems to be party-ed out, with the Wonderland residents gathering for the White Rabbit to take them home. The Knave assures Alice that he and the Red Queen will visit, though for the time being there is a lot of fixing up to do in Wonderland. Alice thanks the White Rabbit for taking her down the rabbit hole all those years ago and the rabbit remarks that only a truly special few ever capture the essence of Wonderland which is finding yourself. Considering how much Alice has grown, not just from the beginning of the series, but from that small girl in the blue dress and white apron who felt unloved to the proud and happy woman she is now, I'd say Alice learned her lesson in spades. There, one last card pun for you readers.

Before they leave, the Red Queen assures Alice that it isn't "good-bye", it's "I'll see you soon" and she and the Knave turn to leave before Alice calls the Knave back for one last hug. This hug is heartfelt, a real expression of their time together. Alice jokes for the Knave to "hold on to his heart" and he bids her to do the same, only you know he means Cyrus. The Knave and Alice were each others' only allies for a long while and their stories mirrored each other in their search to regain the ones they loved. The Knave of Hearts and Alice will always be family, even if they are realms apart.

Jump to a few years later, Alice is a mother telling the stories of her time in Wonderland to her daughter out in the woods. There is a child's a tea party nearby, very similar to the one Alice abandoned when she first went to Wonderland as a girl. I like the detail that the Red Queen and the Knave of Hearts are now known as the White King and Queen in her book. Alice's daughter suggests that these tales be titled Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, which our heroine likes very much. Despite her daughter's skepticism that the things that happened in her stories aren't true, Alice assures her daughter that "anything is possible in Wonderland". Anyone else want that on a t-shirt? As Cyrus appears with the tea for their party, who should we see watching over the family but the familiar fuzz of the White Rabbit.

Well readers, for the last time, there you have it. Did you like the finale? Tell us in the comments! I am extremely satisfied with this conclusion. I like the fact that Jafar was unable to escape his fate and water ultimately was his undoing. No matter how much power he amassed, his destiny was sealed that first time the Sultan tried to take his life. Now Jafar has all the power in the world, only his punishment is he can't wield it freely and do what he wants. Very fitting.

So Cyrus and Alice proved that True Love Conquers All. I'm pleased they got their happy ending. I was less than thrilled during the episodes where they were constantly searching for each other, but once they reunited and went through their rocky stags together, I appreciated them as a couple more. I preferred the story of the Red Queen and the Knave of Hearts however. Both characters stole the show, so much so that it has been said that the Knave is to join the main Once Upon a Time cast. I'm not sure how I feel about that. I think the Red Queen and the Knave had a splendid happy ending here and I'm not sure, as much as I love the Knave, if I want to explore his story further. Also, I feel that perhaps his personality might clash too much with the regular characters on the Once Upon a Time. Our Once Upon a Time in Wonderland heroes are just as sarcastic, but they aren't wracked with as much pain as the mother show's cast, especially not now that happily ever after has been achieved.

I don't know what else I can say about this show that I haven't already in past reviews. You grow attached to the characters, to their journey, and even if you were a casual viewer, it's still sad to see all that go. I often wonder how it would have done if ABC had held on to the idea of running this show during the Once Upon a Time winter hiatus. I know this show is not for everyone and certainly not without its flaws. However, Once Upon a Time in Wonderland exceeded my expectations on the whole, giving us a fresh, interesting take on Alice and surprisingly and rightfully popular Knave of Hearts. The show gave us wonderful complexity and duality in the Red Queen, the unforgiving inky darkness of Jafar, and even Cyrus, unfortunately my least favorite of the main characters, still had moments and development beyond a simple love interest. Side characters I was determined to hate grew on me with each appearance. We were treated to beautiful visuals, stunning music, talented voice over work from an all-star cast, and all the sly nods to a story we know so well.

I've grown so accustomed to thinking and writing about this story each week, it's going to be odd not being able to tune in on Thursdays and laugh at the Knave's sass, or appreciate Alice's quick mind, or shake my fist at Jafar's nefarious doings. Like I said, I do hope Once Upon a Time in Wonderland gets a DVD release so others have the chance to discover Wonderland themselves. Of course I'll still be contributing to SpoilerTV now that this show is over (keep an eye on the Penny Dreadful reviews). I have to say though, it's been an adventure dear readers.

Thank you for going down the rabbit hole with me!


About the Author – Ashley B
Ashley is as serious as a sleeping curse when she says television is her life. Professional event planner, avid movie viewer, convention enthusiast, and resident sass master, Ashley writes reviews for ABC's Once Upon a Time, Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, and Galavant, as well as Showtime’s Penny Dreadful. She looks forward each week to the weird and wonderful world her favorite television programs provide.
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17 comments:

  1. I have to say, wonderful review. I'm glad you seemed to enjoy the finale as much as I did, I thought it was so, so satisfactory, so well done.The ending filled me with joy, it truly mirrored the notions of hope and romance and happiness that we get from fairytales, which is what Once always set out to do, right? In many ways, however, the close-ended story of this spin-off has been much better than the mother series, but that's understandable. We get the whole picture now.

    I am both excited about Will possibly moving to the original show because I love the character and the actor is very entertaining in the role, but I also believe he could clash with the main cast of OUaT (the Knave is far funnier and more sarcastic than the original mainies of the mother show) and I am worried they might ruin his happy ending in this show. He ended up with Ana and they rule Wonderland. It's perfect. How can he move on to OUaT without killing that happy ending? I guess we shall see what happens.

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  2. One thing concerns me: Ana and Will became White Queen and White King?

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  3. OMG. In first book of Narnia kids just came back to our world, when in their magical realm was everything alright so they can just change place,

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  4. More than likely Ana wanted to distance herself from the negativity that came with being the Red Queen. The guardian of the well even said that it was the Red Queen's time to die, but Ana would live on.

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  5. They must have. Go back and look at the picture of the White King in Alice's book and try and tell me that's not the Knave. If the people of Wonderland saw the pair fit to rule after both saving the realm and helping "sort it out"/put it back together, who's to stop the voice of the people?

    And in regards to "freeing up" the Knave for OUaT events, the more I think about it, the more I believe that the likeliest way we are going to see the Knave on Once Upon a Time is through regular flashbacks to the time he spent living in Storybrooke. It just makes more sense as he already has his happy ending and is so far the only Wonderland cast member said to being moving to the main show.

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  6. IMO there are too many things unresolved/unseen for a real ful fledged happy ending outside of Alice and Cyrus'. (it way they the writers also tried to gloss over this fact with the idea that there is more "sorting out" to do, because it's not really over for them) So I think having him exist only in flash backs in OUAT would be a real disservice and pointless action for that series, because they could fill that role with any given character. To me there is tons of material left unexplored with those two characters in particular (along with certain items left to the wind). We never even see when or how Ana or Will met for crying out loud!!!


    It's very possible that Will and Ana became the new royalty in Wonderland, but with out seeing them in the flesh as such, it's left to interpretation (and so many years have gone by when Alice is showing her daughter this book, who knows when 'exactly' they became the King and Queen.)

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  7. I don't agree with you at all.

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  8. Noneofyourbusiness4 April 2014 at 23:56

    "He assures Alice that should he change the past, she will never come to Wonderland. But in coming to Wonderland, isn't that what unveiled Cyrus to the sorcerer in the first place?"


    I don't think we ever learned exactly how Jafar learned Cyrus was in Wonderland. It happened sometime after Alice found Cyrus, but might have happened anyway. In fact, without Alice or another master already in place, Jafar would presumably have had an easier time capturing Cyrus and his bottle, still lying in the hedge maze.

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  9. Noneofyourbusiness4 April 2014 at 23:59

    It's also possible that Alice made up that detail for her storybook, and never actually saw Will and Ana again (which adds poignancy to her last hug with Will; maybe she had a sudden feeling/knowledge that it would be the very last).

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  10. Great point! Thank you for that!

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  11. Will makes this point to say that love is messy, so lets say this sorting out is the equivalent to cleaning up, then we can see that cleaning up is metaphorical for a time period where they have to work hard to fix their relationship via allegedly putting Wonderland together again. This is also a LOST theme by explaining that everyone's fate relies on having "work to do", as Lost ended with the idea that The FS ( an ethereal death plane between life and rebirth) was not the end of anything...We see them in a happy moment with potential for a hopeful and happy future, but do not in fact see this future and that leaves the door open a jar.

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  12. I guess I always assumed that Alice and Cyrus running around together on their adventures made them highly visible to attack, like we saw in that one episode where they were ambushed in a flashback.



    I feel like Jafar's method of tracking the genies was to look for anything out of the ordinary. In one episode he remarks on Cyrus's master living outside his means, making me think he tracked the genie through the master and the wish-granting, not the bottle.


    And that is true, the spell caster is probably shielded from any time paradox ripples. Magical loopholes worthy of Rumpelstilskin, ha ha

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  13. Perfect review!! Honestly I had my reservations about bringing knave back to OUAT before and now even more with him ruling wonderland in his happy ending with Ana.. I just can't see how they can bring him into the main cast? Especially if it's just him and not Ana

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  14. I thought I responded to this but I guess Disqus ate my comment.

    Basically,
    I always operated under the assumption that Alice and Cyrus's
    adventures made them very visible, tying into the fact that we see them
    getting ambushed in a flashback one episode.

    I figured that
    Jafar's method of tracking down the genie was to look for suspicious
    magically activity instead of hunting for the bottle itself. In a
    flashback, we see Jafar commenting on Cyrus's current master living
    beyond his means. I figured it was easier for the sorcerer to track the
    master's movements via their magical wish fulfillment over the location
    of the bottle.

    The point of my bringing up the potential for paradoxes was to show that Jafar was drunk on power and was not thinking about the consequences to his actions.

    And yes, it would make sense that the person casting the spell would be shielded from any paradoxical effects.

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  15. I don't know, Alice assures her daughter that "every last word" of her story is true. I'd like to think with the convenience of the White Rabbit's portals that such close friends as Alice and the Knave wouldn't have fallen out of touch.

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  16. One thing I can say about this story is we got a much better understanding of Wonderland and the role the Queen of hearts played.

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  17. Not sure.They say they have to go back to Wonderland continue to "sort things out", not necessarily become royalty. I think if Ana is to move away from her former role, then I think the idea would be not become royalty again, but set things in motion for someone else to be able too...I think it also makes sense for it to be this way so that they are freer to catch up to events in OUAT should they end up reoccurring or becoming main cast next season...especially since certain items of power could now be in their possession and because Ana's story with her own family also remains unresolved.

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