OUAT: Making Good

I’m running out of Wicked songs to use now! That title is a song that was cut and replaced with “The Wizard and I”! If we see anymore of Oz, I may have to start recycling titles. Or move on to “The Wiz.”

Last time on “Once”: Belle ran into her former fiancé, Gaston, in the Underworld. And he was out for Rumple’s head, spurned on by Hades. Belle, though, was trying to get Rumple to use his magic for good and decided to help Gaston with his unfinished business…which turned out to be her. He blamed her for making him weak and leaving him vulnerable to Rumple. When he tried to attack Rumple, Belle ended up pushing Gaston into the River o’Souls. Hades had made Belle a deal but voided it because she didn’t follow it to the letter. So her baby was still in danger.

After a failed attempt at breaking into Hades’ lair, Emma went to the cemetery with Hook and Snow because a dream told her to. But the dream also warned her of her mother dying and she worked hard to prevent that from happening. Especially because she felt guilty for getting everyone in this situation. After she was assured she had nothing to feel guilty for, Regina joined them to seek out the creature that had ended up pursuing them. It ended up being a wolf…who Snow lays a cape over it to turn it back into Red!

Why is she there? Is she dead? Let’s find out!

We open in Oz…some time ago. This scene was one of the sneak peeks posted by ABC during the week and it original said “Many years ago,” which had confused fans since Red and Mulan were in it. By their reckoning, it should be part of the current timeline. Adam confirmed on Twitter that they were right and that ABC had screwed up the graph. Looks like he got to someone in editing in time to correct it.

Red and Mulan walk down a deserted road as Red tries to sniff out her pack. Mulan asks her about this land and Red says there’s some singing, or at least there was in the movie. We know Storybrooke showed it since everyone was familiar with it back in Season 3B. Red also points out it was a book and all I could think of was “Samantha: An American Girl” where Rebecca Mader played Aunt Cornelia, who gave Samantha “The Wizard of Oz” as a gift.

(Welcome back, you two!)

Anyway, Red smells something and hurries down the road. But it’s only Toto. Red recognizes him and tries to get him to come to her, but he barks at her. Dorothy emerges from the bushes, armed, and insists Toto only barks at witches. She demands to know which one is the witch. Red explains that neither are witches and that Toto is most likely barking at her because she’s part wolf. She goes to prove it, scaring Toto off. Dorothy is pissed and rejects Red’s offer to help. Until Red reveals that she can sniff the dog out. So Dorothy reluctantly agrees to let her and Mulan tag along.

(Is not in the mood for this)

Zelena hides out in her farmhouse, still holding her flower. Hades asks if she likes it and she tells him to sign his name next time. He then tells her that a storm brought a certain werewolf to the Underworld. Zelena panics, saying that if Regina learns about what she did then she’ll lose the ground she gained with her. Hades is like “And this is a bad thing?” He offers to help her but she refuses, saying she can’t change it. He leaves her in bad CGI.

(I know, Zelena. The CGI is really bad)

Belle continues to do research to figure out how to stop Hades without having to resort to Dark Magic. Rumple is like “You still trying to do that? Really?” She gets mad and storms out.

At the loft, Snow worries that her friend is dead. Hook points out that she’s still breathing so she’s alive. But they need to know why she’s there. Red wakes up, surprised to be surrounded by all her Storybrooke friends. They reveal she’s in the Underworld and she’s like “But I was looking for Zelena.” She explains the witch did something to Dorothy and she needs to find out what. Regina leads the party to go find her sister and found out what she did now.

(Group shot!)

Before they leave, Snow stops David and says it’s been a few days since they sent a message to Neal. He tells her to go with Red and he’ll take Hook and Henry to go haunt their baby boy.

But as the three approach the phone box, they see Cruella and Claude there getting ready to tear it up. Cruella says she’s exercising mayoral power and that’s kinda scary. David tells her she can’t do that because all the people in the Underworld rely on that to connect with their love ones. Cruella points out he’s concerned because it’s how he connects with his son. She’ll let him do it if he agrees to help her. David refuses and Claude destroys the phone booth.

(Poor David can't catch a break)

Zelena stands outside her farmhouse wearing her silver slippers. She bids her daughter goodbye before clicking her heels three times. But they are frozen as Regina leads a small party up to Zelena. Red runs ahead and demands to know what she did to Dorothy.

("Oh damn.")

We return to Oz, where it appears to always be night, as Dorothy, Red and Mulan search for Toto after spotting a funnel cloud. They find Zelena instead. Dorothy says the witch isn’t welcomed in Oz but she doesn’t care. Zelena says that she has the love of her child and she needs to get back to her daughter after Red’s friends sent her away. She asks Dorothy where her silver slippers are but Dorothy refused to hand them over. Zelena picks up a basket, revealing that she’s captured Toto. She tells Dorothy that she’ll exchange Toto for the slippers and gives her a day to do so before poofing out.

(Looks like she finally got the little dog)

Zelena holds up a mirror to show Dorothy asleep on a dais, revealing she put her under a sleeping curse. Red’s distraught, wondering how they are going to wake her up because Dorothy has no one. Zelena acknowledges it, saying that sometimes she’s too clever for her own good. She does seem remorseful though she doesn’t think she can come back from this. Regina tells her that no matter how many bad mistakes she’s made in the past, she can start making good ones now. So Zelena gives her her slippers, hoping they can figure out a way to wake Dorothy up and go back to Oz.

(Talk about your Snow White parallels)

Outside, Emma and Snow help Red try to figure out who could give Dorothy True Love’s Kiss. She recalls the woman’s Auntie Em and believes she’s dead. So they decide to find her tombstone to see if she’s still in the Underworld.

In Oz, Mulan, Dorothy and Red make something to put Zelena to sleep. Dorothy asks if it’ll work and Red assures her she’s already used it on the witch before. They just need one more ingredient to help with the sleeping part and Dorothy suggests the poppies. She says she’ll get them and Red goes with her while Mulan wonders why she’s even in this episode at all.

Red asks Dorothy if she’s still mad and then asks about Toto. Dorothy isn’t in much of a sharing mood but Red pulls it out of her. She tells Red about her first trip to Oz and what happened when she went back to Kansas. Dorothy says she told people about her trip and her family thought she was insane and tried to have her committed. Only her Aunt Em stood up for her and she took Dorothy in, giving her Toto. Auntie Em passed away a few years ago, so Toto is all Dorothy has. Though she knows it’s difficult for “Wolfie” (as she dubs Red) to understand.

(They're bickering! It must be love...)

“Wolfie” though understands plenty. She talks about how she didn’t always know she was part wolf and so couldn’t control when she turned. How during this period she killed her boyfriend and got ran out of town by her neighbors, who were a proper angry mob with torches and pitchforks. She said she then found new friends but she still feels like something is missing, which is what she’s looking for. Dorothy now sees her in a different light.


We see a tombstone for Emily Brown and Red declares that’s Auntie Em. It’s still upright and not cracked, so it seems she’s still in the Underworld. Regina, though, points out that Auntie Em won’t be able to leave to give Dorothy a TLK. Snow mentions that the Blind Witch bottled David’s breath the other day, which creeps Emma out. But the point is that maybe they can bottle Auntie Em’s kiss and then Red can take it back to Oz using the slippers.

(Auntie Em!)

David, Hook and Henry run up to the group and report the bad news—their only link to Storybrooke has been destroyed. Emma says that her parents have helped her enough and that they should head back to Storybrooke. They put up a fight, insisting they want to help her see this “defeat Hades” thing through. Emma thanks them but says Neal needs them more.

But they wonder how they would even leave. Emma suggests that they go to Oz with Red and then use the slippers to get to Storybrooke. It’s a good idea…except Regina points out Snow can’t leave because her name is on a tombstone. Snow says David’s isn’t and insists he go back to take care of Neal and Storybrooke. He’s not happy but he agrees. 

Zelena is surprised to find Belle on her doorstep and even more surprised when Belle asks for her help. Even though Zelena is still bitter about Belle running off with Peanut, she lets Belle in.
Belle explains her predicament to Zelena, who has broken out the booze. She wonders why Belle didn’t go to Rumple and Belle’s like “Yeah, can’t trust him.” Zelena starts to open up a bit more but confesses that she can’t get Hades to rip up a contract. Even if he loves her, she doesn’t know if she has that power over him.

Feeling ill, Belle rushes to the sink and gets some water. Zelena wonders if she should be insulted but Belle assures her it was morning sickness, saying she should remember what it felt like. But she doesn’t as Emma sped up her pregnancy, her finally acknowledging that she really hadn’t experienced as much as she kept claiming while pregnant. Belle then worries that Hades could speed up her pregnancy and take her baby. So Zelena offers to help her.

(An odd pairing. And look how tall Bex is!)

At the loft, Hook slams the book shut as he says there’s no clue to finding Auntie Em in it. David’s like “We just need to keep looking.” They then have a moment where David also admits that maybe he sorta kinda likes Hook. Hook is pleased.

(Look at that smile!)

In Oz, Dorothy apologizes for calling Red “Wolfie,” now that she knows the pain Red suffered. But Red says she likes having a nickname. She decides to give Dorothy one, calling her “Kansas.” Oh, you two are just so original. They arrive at the poppy fields and Dorothy warns Red to be careful because they are in Zelena’s territory. And because one whiff could put them to sleep. She picks a poppy flower and gives it to Red.

All together now:

A flying monkey descends on them and Dorothy realizes Zelena knows what they are doing. Red says she knows how to fight it and gives the poppy to Dorothy for safekeeping. She then takes off her cape and lets the moon transform her into a wolf. As she attacks the monkey, Dorothy gathers her discarded cape and watches.

They return to where they left Mulan, who is like “Why’s Red a wolf?” Dorothy explains that she chased off a monkey and Mulan covers Red with her cape. She transforms back into a woman as Dorothy hands them the poppy. She then says she’s tired and goes inside the farmhouse to get some sleep.

(Might be turned on)

Snow, Regina, Emma and Red enter Granny’s. The Blind Witch sniffs around and then announces “No dogs allowed.” Red says she won’t be talked to like that in her diner and the Blind Witch points out it’s not hers yet. Snow asks her about Emily Brown and she doesn’t want to talk about it. Regina says Red won’t take off her cape and start attacking patrons if she does. The Blind Witch says she hates Auntie Em because she’s the competition—she runs Auntie’s not too far away.

(Auntie's!)

Auntie Em welcomes them warmly and lists off some recommendations, which doesn’t include children. It does include roasted chicken and soap. Sounds nice and warm, especially since it seems the Underworld is very cold. (Most likely because they filmed in Vancouver in the winter). Red explains what happened to Dorothy and Auntie Em wants to help. But as they try to bottle her kiss, she turns into a puddle of water.

(Auntie Em! Auntie Em!)

Hades pops up and bottles Auntie Em. He reveals he put water from the River o’ Souls in her soup. So it doomed Auntie Em to an eternity of that hell. Hades then warns everyone that if they try to help the heroes, they will suffer the same fate. He says they can’t help those who don’t want to be helped, so they aren’t heroes in the Underworld. Emma looks ready to kill him.

("You've messed with the wrong leading lady.")

Back in Oz, Mulan says she brought the sleeping potion to Dorothy and says they’ll attack Zelena in the morning. Red is less than enthused and Mulan asks her what’s the matter. She says that she finally realized what she’s been looking for—Dorothy. Yes, she knows that they just met but she feels a connection with her. Mulan asks what the problem is then. Red says that Dorothy was horrified by her transformation and will never look at her as anything but a monster. Mulan takes a more positive approach and says that maybe Dorothy was realizing that she felt the same and was overwhelmed. When Red waffles, Mulan tells her not to make the same mistake she did and wait too long to tell Dorothy how she feels.

("This is the only reason I'm in the episode, so listen to me. Please.")

Red goes to talk to Dorothy but finds her bed empty. A piece of gingham lays on a nightstand and Red picks it up as she realizes Dorothy’s gone on without them.

In the back of Auntie Em’s, Snow and Red have a heart-to-heart. Red is upset that no one can wake Dorothy now but Snow thinks someone still can. Before Red can ponder if Toto can give her True Love’s Lick (kudos to the tumblr user who came up with that!), Snow says Red can give it to Dorothy. She says she can tell that Dorothy means a lot to Red but Red says Dorothy doesn’t feel the same. Snow tells her she needs to take the chance because love is risky. As Red comes to grips with her feelings for Dorothy, she decides to do it.

(Aww, the show remembered they're best friends!)

Red leaves the piece of gingham on Auntie Em’s now cracked tombstone before taking the silver slippers from Regina. Snow and David say their goodbyes and she tells him to tell Neal she’ll be there soon. David says she can tell Neal everything because Snow is leaving instead. She’s confused as Hook says he took her name off the tombstone. Emma and Regina were like “We couldn’t even do that” so David explains that they didn’t try to remove her name—they just scratched it out and wrote David’s instead. Hook’s hand was still enchanted to do that. 

(Well, no one said it had to be neat)

So David will stay and Snow can go home to their son and Storybrooke. Regina asks Snow to check in on Roland for Robin and why they don’t summon Robin to send Peanut back to Storybrooke with Snow is never addressed. Not even a half-assed reason. After their goodbyes, Snow takes Red’s hand and they leave the Underworld together as Emma comforts her father.

(Goodbye, you two!)

Zelena pays Hades a visit and shows her the remains of Auntie Em. He says no one can wake Dorothy now and he knows how much she hates that farmgirl. In flashbacks, we see Dorothy breaking into Zelena’s throne room to rescue Toto. Zelena realized Dorothy had the sleeping powder so she used a sleeping curse on her, now in easy-to-use dispensers. Dorothy went down and Zelena was free. She asks Hades what he gets out of turning Auntie Em into river water. He says he gets her happiness and one more soul for his collection. Zelena tells him that she’s going to give him a chance and they toast Dorothy’s eternal slumber.

(Still a better love story than Twilight)

Mulan and the Munchkins are creepily watching Dorothy as she sleeps, having moved her to a dais set up in Munchkinland. They also freed Toto, who hops off the foot of the bed as Red and Snow arrive. Mulan greets them and explains they found Dorothy under a sleeping curse. Red says she knows. Snow urges Red to go on.

Red approaches Dorothy and kisses her. The familiar True Love’s swoosh and pulse of light burst forth and Dorothy wakes up. Red says she left her behind and Dorothy admits that she was scared of losing Red. So Red points out that she almost lost Dorothy, who says she came back for her. Red promises to always come back for her. They exchange kisses as Mulan, Snow and the Munchkins look on.

(Are the Munchkins voyeurs?)

Henry goes downstairs and reveals that Red was successful. And then he also shows them a picture of Snow holding Neal, assuring them that she made it home safely. Now they just had to get themselves back there as well.

Meanwhile, Belle returns to the pawnshop and reveals to Rumple that she has a plan. She says that she knows Rumple will find the way to save their child from Hades but that they need time. And she has a way to get that, holding up Zelena’s sleeping curse dispenser. Rumple is concerned but Belle says she’ll stop the clock on herself…and their child. So Hades can’t do anything to them. Rumple says that True Love’s Kiss isn’t going to turn him into a good man. Belle agrees and says that he’s not going to wake her up—her father is once they’re back in Storybrooke. Before Rumple can argue further, Belle pricks her finger and falls into the sleeping curse.

(Nighty-night)

Well, that says a lot for Rumbelle. Sorry, you guys. You lot have been through a lot. Almost makes me glad Robin did not appear in this episode…again.

As for the Ruby Slippers ship…I like it, though I wish we had gotten more. In a show where Hades can fall in love with the Wicked Witch after one bike ride, this still seemed a bit rushed. But it’s a step in the right direction. Maybe one day we can have two same sex characters with bigger roles be in a relationship.

Next time: Cora’s been hiding a secret from Regina and Zelena. Shocker. 

Screen caps from here.