Once Upon a Time is one of those shows I was sure I would not like. You’d think after the umpteenth time I was wrong about that, I would have learned by now, but I was never going to watch this show.

Then some good friends who know me very well said, “Rumplestiltskin is so like you.” Or something like that, general idea being that Rumple and I were very similar. And when someone says that, you just have to watch the show, ya know? So I watched, and was pleasantly surprised.

First, yes, Rumple and I share many commonalities. Were I an immortal, all-powerful, psychotic dark wizard in a fantasy world, I would so act like him! His flair and flamboyance! His hilarity, concealing his conniving machinations! I mean, what’s the point of being so powerful if you can’t have a bit of fun with people?

Prince Charming needs something, and the price, “How about your coat?”
“My coat? Why do you want my coat?”
“It’s drafty in here.” As he obtains something vital to his plans, namely one of Charming’s hairs. From the coat.

Second, while things were (and sometimes still are) a little choppy, as the audience is let in on pretty much everything from the beginning, and while… many obvious liberties… are taken with our beloved childhood stories, particularly the ones told to us by Disney, still, the tale this show tells is very entertaining. It’s become better and better with each season, particularly the most recent, as they seem to be dividing the season’s into cohesive arcs these days. There was a lot going on, and it was all brought together to build up to the Neverland arc, which then led to the Wicked Witch of the West arc, and then they pulled a trick out of their hat to bring about the current Frozen arc, all while keeping as in our seats.

When I saw last season’s finale, and saw Frozen’s Elsa make an appearance, I knew that this had to have been in the works for awhile, which impressed me. Still, I was wary, uncertain of the liberties I feared they would with Frozen‘s story, and so soon after it came out. Fortunately, this turns out to be more like a continuation of Anna and Elsa’s story, rather than a rewriting. There was even a moment in Frozen where I had been certain their father had something up his sleeve, which made it all the more tragic when he and his wife both died at sea, yet it was never revealed in the movie. They have made certain hints about his intentions, and the motivations behind them, Once Upon a Time.

But that’s spoilers for another day. 😉

Overall, though there is plenty of cheesy camp-factor, and it needs some time to hit its real stride, Once Upon a Time, I enjoy the show immensely. We have complex, interweaving plots and subplots involving characters we can enjoy and relate to on some level as they go through pivotal moments and changes in their lives.

I love all the nods to Disney culture. They’re everywhere in the show, if also adapted for it. A dancing singing cup (Chip, from Beauty and the Beast) would be a bit out place, but not a chipped teacup that holds special significance to Belle and Rumplestiltskin. (and I love how they dance to the theme movie’s theme song on their honeymoon)

Being somewhat familiar with the original tale of The Snow Queen, I also appreciate the little nods they make towards the story which originally inspired Frozen. At least, until the song-writers wrote Let it Go and realized they had an entirely different story to tell, and so they rewrote the whole thing, which may be a big part of how unbalanced and disjointed the movie is, being an incessant musical singing about frozen hearts in the beginning and a complicated drama at the end. 😉

And the (enjoyable) drama continues in a frozen-over Storybrooke in Once Upon a Time.

I highly recommend it!