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Once Upon A Time, Ep. 2.22, “And Straight on Till Morning” – A suspenseful conclusion to a magical season

Once Upon A Time, Ep. 2.22, “And Straight on Till Morning” – A suspenseful conclusion to a magical season

2.22 Primary Pic

Once Upon A Time, Season 2, Episode 22: “And Straight on Till Morning”
Written by Edward Kitsis & Adam Horowitz
Directed by Dean White
Airs Sundays at 8pm (ET) on ABC

Once Upon a Time has closed its pages on the saga of Season Two and just like the writers planned, the season ends with a bang. Every single element you could possible need is present in the ending.

The destruction of Storybrooke by Greg and Tamara is the main focus of the episode. Everyone is on top of their scenes tonight; we find ourselves being pulled into the television set and rooting for everyone. Even the most unlikely of heroes steps up and fights to help in their own way, including Regina, Rumplestiltskin, and Hook.

The episode jumps right in with action and suspense within the first few seconds- the writers waste no time pulling us in as quickly as they can get us. It is nice to see the main players all being handed equal material for a change. Usually one character has more of a focus than the others, but this time the writers give everyone something to work with.

 2.22 Snow Charming Henry

The B storyline deals with Hook and Baelfire meeting and getting to know one another in Neverland. It’s nice to see Dylan Schmid back as Baelfire, not only for the consistency of keeping the same actor, but because he plays Baelfire quite well. Within the Neverland scenario we also discover that Peter Pan may not be the kind-hearted boy that we grew up knowing. Hook and Smee even fear him, which is an interesting twist on the classic story. Even the gang, known as the Lost Ones, is a far cry from the Lost Boys that we know; it’s a fascinating take, and a nice twist on the story.

In Storybrooke we find Regina attempting to stop the trigger that Greg and Tamara have set off. After a thoughtful moment with Emma, the two of them team up to stop and destroy it. The entire episode is very fast paced and in our faces, but the final twenty minutes feel particularly cinematic. The suspense is there, the actors are phenomenal, and the writing is exceptionally thought out and executed.

The cast and crew at Once Upon a Time know how to make a good television show and while there have been a few weaker episodes this season that felt like filler, that’s pretty standard for a 22-episode season and if one week they were a little bit off, then the next week they recovered and threw a hard curveball at us. The season finale is no different. The writers, the director, costumers, makeup artists, the entire crew come together to make a brilliant episode.

2.22 Emma Henry Snow Charming

And in typical Once fashion, the final chapter of season two closes on a pretty huge cliffhanger when Greg and Tamara kidnap Henry and jump into a portal with him, making us wonder where these higher ups are actually operating out of. The group is shaken by the loss of Henry and are trying to find a way to bring him back when Hook shows up with another magic beam. After some quick goodbyes, a group is formed of Snow, Charming, Emma, Regina, Rumplestiltskin, and Hook and they board the Jolly Roger and discover that Greg and Tamara have gone to Neverland.

The roller coaster of season two has now come to a close and all we can do is sit back for the next three months and wait for the season three premiere. However, the writers don’t leave us without questions and lingering thoughts. Who are Greg and Tamara working for? Could it be Peter Pan? How is that even possible? What are Phillip and Aurora going to do with Baelfire? Are Belle and Storybrooke going to be safe from the outside? And will all six rescuers survive the journey to Neverland in one piece? It’s definitely going to be a car ride that we won’t want to miss.

Until this September, however, I bid you all farewell. The next time I will be checking in is when the Jolly Roger arrives back in Neverland!

– Joshua bouye

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