After Merlin and the Heroes free Merida, she embarks on a mission to save her brothers. Watch a sneak peek of tonight’s Once Upon a Time, airing at 8:00pm ET|PT on ABC.
Last week, we saw Team SwanQueen in full effect as they worked to expose Arthur’s bad intentions and free Merlin.
“Dreamcatcher” began with a long-ago flashback to Camelot. Merlin, who was morning the death of his one, true love, confronted the Dark One (it wasn’t Rumple at this point). Merlin intended to destroy the Dark One with the dagger, but hesitated: his grief was too much. The Dark One seized the dagger and, using one of Merlin’s tears, cast a spell to turn him into the tree. And Emma saw all this through an enchanted dreamcatcher!
Emma was able to intercept Regina and her parents (still under Arthur’s spell) and keep them from turning over the dagger to Arthur. She told Regina about Arthur’s plan to complete Excalibur and kill Merlin, so they needed to free Merlin. Regina was concerned that Emma’s continued use of dark magic could be dangerous, but Emma didn’t believe they had a choice. SwanQueen were able to figure out that to free Merlin, they’d need a tear of lost love. They decided to use Regina’s tear from her memory of losing Daniel, her first love. Unfortunately, the grief wasn’t strong enough to propel the magic.
Meanwhile, Henry and Violet got to know one another and bonded over losing a parent (his father, her mother). At the same time, Henry faced an obstacle—Violet’s father (Sir Morgan) didn’t think a writer would be a particularly good suitor for his daughter. Henry couldn’t even properly wield a sword! He took it upon himself to practice being a knight; however, both Emma and Regina encouraged Henry to be himself. It would be enough. Henry planned a date for Violet, and though she came, she expressed only wanting to be his friend. Henry was heartbroken.
When he went to find his moms, Henry volunteered his own tear for the spell. Before Arthur could stop them, Emma performed the magic and freed Merlin. (*SIDENOTE* Merlin looked GOOD!) Merlin expressed his disappointment in Arthur and exposed the fact that Excalibur was broken. Merlin also freed Charming and Snow from Arthur’s enchantment. But could be free Emma from the darkness? Merlin said yes, but there was a caveat. Did Emma, in her heart, truly want to be free?
In Storybrooke, Henry came up with the idea to have a dance to help lift everyone’s spirits. Incidentally, this would also help Henry continue his relationship with Violet. But the heroes were also concerned with finding out Emma’s big plan, especially now that they knew Rumple was missing. While Emma was helping Henry find Violet’s missing horse, Regina, Killian, Robin, and Belle broke into her house. They found Excalibur in the stone, but had to leave before Emma returned. Killian also found Emma’s dreamcatcher, which was likely how she’d removed all their memories.
Later on at the dance/ball/block party, Henry rode in like a knight on a horse. Both Violet and Sir Morgan were very impressed.
Killian and Belle told Charming, Snow, Arthur, and Guinevere about finding Excalibur. Arthur warned that Emma probably meant to reunite the sword and the dagger to destroy the light magic.
Regina uncovered the magic in the dreamcatcher, which revealed Emma had been looking at Violet’s memories. We also saw that in Camelot, Emma had seized Violet’s heart and manipulated her to break Henry’s heart so she could have his tear of lost love. (O.M.G.) As Regina and Robin watched the memory, Henry overheard and was heartbroken all over again. When Emma came by to see Henry, we learned that she was the one who let Violet’s horse out of its stable to give Henry the opportunity to be a knight in shining armor. But obviously, this wouldn’t make up for what Emma had done in the first place.
Elsewhere, Merida tried to train Rumple into a hero. She really didn’t have a choice (Dark Emma literally held Merida’s heart), and as Rumple struggled, Merida grew desperate. What would motivate Rumple to be brave? Merida got her hands on the Book of Fairy Tales and learned of Rumple’s love for Belle. She then broke into Mr. Gold’s shop and stole the chipped tea cup. When Merida showed it to Rumple, he was incensed. Protecting Belle was the motivation he needed and Merida would use it.
Tonight’s new episode, “The Bear and the Bow”, was written by Andrew Chambliss and Tze Chun and directed by Ralph Hemecker. Sinqua Walls (Lancelot), Liam Garrigan (King Arthur), Joana Metrass (Guinevere), Elliot Knight (Merlin), and Amy Manson (Merida) will all be returning as guest stars. It seems that in both past and present, we’ll focus on Merida and Belle teaming up to overcome some daunting obstacles:
In a Camelot flashback, a chance encounter with Merlin, David, Hook and Belle gives Merida new hope in her quest to save her brothers from the usurping clans of DunBroch. Unwilling to leave anything up to fate, Merida brings Belle along on a dangerous journey that culminates with an invaluable lesson in bravery. In Storybrooke, Regina, Mary Margaret and David discover the spell that would allow one of Merlin’s chosen to communicate with him, but when Arthur fails to reach the missing sorcerer the heroes grow suspicious. Meanwhile, Emma commands Merida to kill Belle in hopes of forcing Mr. Gold’s heroic transformation. With Merida unable to disobey Emma’s orders, Gold must find the courage to fight for Belle’s life or risk losing her forever. (via ABC)
I’m so excited that we’re finally going to be learning more about Merida and her family…hopefully she’ll be able to save her brothers!
And I think the question we’re all asking ourselves is whether Rumple’s love for Belle is enough to turn him into a hero. Yet, knowing what Dark Emma plans for him, maybe it’s better that Rumple NOT become brave…know what I mean?
Thanks to ABC we’ve got two sneak peeks to share. In the first, we’re back in Camelot and Charming, Killian, Belle, and Merlin attempt to free Lancelot and Merida from the dungeons. In the second clip, we’re back in Storybrooke and Rumple and Belle are on the run from Merida and Dark Emma:
Watch what happens when Merlin meets Merida in this sneak peek from Sunday’s all-new #OnceUponATime. https://t.co/3rjPvrPEy5
— Once Upon A Time (@OnceABC) October 29, 2015
Belle is Merida’s bullseye in this sneak peek from Sunday’s all-new #OnceUponATime. https://t.co/oU4giEcwQS — Once Upon A Time (@OnceABC) October 30, 2015
Is anyone else in love with Merlin…because I really am! He has so much swagger 😉 But how in the world did we go from freeing Merlin from the tree and possibility of saving Emma, to the Dark Swan intending to snuff out all the light in the world?! Is Merlin in Storybrooke too? And I really feel bad that Merida is caught up in all this.
Take a look at these images from “The Bear and the Bow”. We get a look at Merida saving her kidnapped brothers as well as Dark Emma plotting to free Excalibur:
Tune into ABC at 8:00pm ET|PT tonight from the new Once Upon a Time and join me at @WeSoNerdy to live tweet while we watch.
