Once Upon A Time: The Verdict

Once Upon A Time has recently concluded its freshman run... and it. was. awesome. The fantasy series, from the writers of Lost, was able to give a huge twist and depth to the fairy tales we grew up in. From Snow White to Red Riding Hood, from Hansel and Gretel to the Mad Hatter, from Rumpelstiltskin to Cinderella. The show proved to all of us that these stories are not just for kids. OUAT used these as a strength and an advantage to have an unbelievably captivating premise that surely captured our hearts.

For bail bonds collector Emma Swan, life has been anything but a happy ending. But when Henry - the son she gave up for adoption ten years ago - finds his biological mother in Boston on the night of her 28th birthday, everything changes. The now 10-year-old Henry is in desperate need of Emma's help because he believes from reading a book of fairytales that she's the long-lost daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming - who was sent away from the Enchanted Forest to be protected from a curse that was enacted by the Evil Queen. Emma initially refuses to believe a word of Henry's story but soon finds that his hometown of Storybrooke, Maine is more than it seems. Because it's in Storybrooke that all of the classic fairytale characters we know are frozen in time with no memories of their former selves - except for the Evil Queen, who is Storybrooke's mayor and Henry's adoptive mother Regina Mills. Now, as the epic "Final Battle" for the future of both worlds approaches, Emma will have to accept her destiny and fight for the residents of Storybrooke, because the only way to live happily ever after is to believe in the possibility of a happy ending. 

 I have to admit that the pilot episode threw me off. I actually decided to not watch the show after seeing the first episode of this series, thinking back then that this show would be cancelled immediately. But by episode 7, my friends started praising and admiring Once Upon A Time so I decided to give it another try. The first few episodes are quite rough, but the show picked up after the fourth episode. And then, Once became an instant hit and a favourite to me. I was impressed and overwhelmed with the complex and imaginative writing. It's smart, poignant, direct to the point, yet it's touching and heart warming. How they showed different layers of the famous fairy tales we loved was outstanding. Every episode may not always be excellent, but it sure did captivate my imagination. The flow of the story, the character development, the surprising twists and turns, and the unexpected growth in terms of the plot are just some of the reasons why I love this series. 

Another thing I want to give hilight to is the original score by Mark Isham. The music explicitly defines the beauty and intelligence of the show. My favorite is the Prince Charming and Snow White score. It is perfect in every way. It adds more drama and romance to the realistic chemistry of Mary Margaret and David everytime it was played. 

The season finale which aired on May 13, 2012 was ravishing. The show left all of us hanging on the edge of our seats. That was probably one of the best season finales I've seen. It was action packed, gripping, sad, romantic, and oh-so satisfying.... but that cliffhanger literally made me scream like a maniac probably because I wasn't expecting that at all. Although some things in the episode doesn't make sense at all (Emma throwing off a sword and using a gun to beat a dragon), what happened for the rest of the episode fills so much positiveness on that matter. I guess the entire first season was summed up in the finale, and then they opened a major new twist in the story for the second season. Good job, writers! 

Now.. THE VERDICT:

Once Upon A Time, without a doubt, is a huge success. The effects might be unstable but it's still good for a network drama. Fans all over the world fell in love with these characters and are very intrigued on how the story will go on now that *spoiler alert* magic is on Storybrooke.

I give Once Upon A Time Season 1 a rating of:

4.5/5

                                                                                   Can't wait for season 2!