ONCE UPON A TIME There Was a Bonnie and a Clyde

Episode 2.06 “Tallahassee”

Oho! So, we finally get to find out who this guy is.

THE SIGNPOST UP AHEAD READS “SPOILERS!” (and yes, it’s late…)

This was Emma’s episode, giving us both her back story and a moment for her to find a way to fit into Fairy Tale Land. And an interesting back story it is, although I think the “Bonnie and Clyde” motif is a little played out in Hollywood by now. Really, writers need to come up with something new. This has gone well past the point of cliche and is now into groan territory.

Although this attempt at the cliche isn’t as tired as others, as it gives us a look at a completely different Emma – insecure, yes, but smiling and happy? All because she meets Neal Cassady (finally a name for Michael Raymond-James, although it doesn’t seem like he’s all everyone expected him to be). Cassady, a petty thief who had the shiny yellow Volkswagen (because he stole it), meets Emma when she goes to steal the bug.

Naturally, they hit it off. And naturally, Emma’s willing to take one for the team as she goes to help Neal retrieve some hot watches that could be worth a lot of money. Their plan is to take the cash and split to Tallahassee, where they start fresh and leave the life of petty larceny.

Alas, ’twas not to be. For a number of reasons, including one Wooden Boy who finally shows up to fulfill his promise to look over Emma. Now, it should be noted that Pinocchio has to explain to Neal just who Emma really is, which implies that Neal is not from Fairy Tale Land. Or else he would likely have stopped P-Dog with a “Dude, I’m from there. I get the schtick.” But Neal didn’t. His reaction to everything implies (there’s that word) that this is the first time he’s hearing all of this. So, odds are he’s not Baelfire. (and they ruined a perfectly good Camaro…)

But he is Henry’s father. And we get the payoff to the postcard in the season opener. Pinocchio says that he’ll send a postcard to let Neal know how things are going. Of course, the postcard said “Broken” so it’s anyone’s guess what Neal can do with that information. But he wouldn’t be affected by the curse, so he can cross the border in and out of Storybrook. Right?

All of this is told in flashbacks while Emma and Hook are climbing the beanstalk (yes, that one) to get up to the land of Giants to retrieve a magic compass that can point the way to the heart’s desire (hmm. Seems we’ve seen this kind of compass before, haven’t we? Any chance a certain pirate of the Caribbean could cameo for November sweeps?). And while it was nice to see Jorge Garcia doing something post-Alcatraz, his talent was completely wasted here.

Unless this is just introducing him for some more story later… but still.

So, we have a hint that Pinocchio is still alive, somewhere. And we have a new mystery: the red-room nightmare. Both Aurora and Henry tell of the same dream after having fallen to the sleeping curse. It’s interesting to note that when Aurora asked Snow about her dreams fading over time, Snow was quick to dismiss them. Seems to me she’s trying to deflect, which might mean that Snow still has those nightmares. And is this the introduction of a new villain to take center-stage at the end of the season? Or the mid-season break? Who is the evil presence in the burning red room?

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[Official Show Site at ABC]     [Previous recap: “The Journey Home”]