hfce

Every show the ratings get worse. They went away from what made them great from season 1. Just like I predicted they are treating this show like there former show "Lost". I avoided that show like the plague. Now it seems I am watching Lost part 2. If they keep doing this. Season three will be their last season.

IceKat055

The fact that there's now a 1 month hiatus doesn't even faze me. That's how apathetic I'm becoming towards OUaT. I hope they can fix it soon. They need to trim the fat (outside or new characters like Owen, Tamara, Neal...I have no interest in them.)

So disappointed. I really wish they'd kept the August character and utilized him more.

ring of fire

I think the last few episodes have been really good (except for August being turned into a boy). The first 9 episodes of this season were a mess and now the show is suffering from it. Some storyline were rushed because the first episodes were too slow and had too many fillers. That's when the ratings started taking big dips.

And I don't consider Nealfire to be someone who needs to be "trimmed". Baelfire is way too important for Rumpel's storyline and he is Henry's father whether people like it or not. That's not going to change. He is here to stay.
And Nealfire isn't a new character. Baelfire has been there since season one.

hfce

Last year I was dying when we had the long breaks. This year I could care less. That is bad. I always judge how well a show would get by the second season. So far I don't see this past season three. I don't care for any of the new people they have shoved down our throats this season. Neal, Tamara and Owen can go now please.

GrhmLz

Maybe not a popular opinion {also I wasn't into shipping August with anyone} but the one thing from the episode I didn't mind and I found fitting was August being turned back into a boy. He and his father, Gepetto|Marco, get a fresh start from where they left off.

I did't find it weird since it was something that both appeared to want, accept, and would be happy with. It's their happy ending.

So much for 'HER' not being anyone 'significant', hey?! See, that's why I take nothing said at face value.

Tamara. Total plot device set up imo to guarantee the eventual reconcilation of Emma and Neal. Not that I don't think the actress makes a convincing 'villain' type character, because she does, but I have to be honest that this is all conveniently contrived. The 'magical' person Tamara just happens to run into is August, who just happens to be connected to Neal, who just happens to be connected to Emma and a past. Yeah, ok aaay.

The scene where Snow slapped Marco came across a bit ... weird. I think it should have just been played off of 'emotion' ~ a mother's reaction to being seperated from her child intentionally, and then her apology, but the writing tried to force Snow going with the whole 'darkened heart' theme and I don't think it came off very convincingly if I'm honest about it.

Okay, the fact that the writing had Neal being encouraged to just essentially 'expose' magic and SB to this Outsider, Tamara, without running it by anyone else in that town was just a bit ridiculous to me. We saw what a frenzy they were all in when the "Outsider' {aka. Greg|Owen} crashed into town, yet, a very select few {aka. Neal and Emma} are willing to take a complete chance on this other stranger just because she's Neal's fiance?! Uh ... not buying that, it's inconsistent. Emma has been practically pushing Greg to get on a dodge out of town, but it's like, let's give this other newbie a shot?! Yeah, right.

I picked up right away where it was going after Tamara ran into August, I pretty much guessed after he high-tailed it with her money, she was going to go after him and this is what lead her to Neal. The only piece I didn't see coming was that she set it all up from the start, creating a kind of long con to get August to steal the money so she could track him down to find what she needed {aka. magic}. Not so sure what can be created to make her 'quest' believable at this point but whatever. I'm kind of at the cusp of not expecting many things to make sense or have rythme or reason this season.

Wasn't expecting Greg and Tamara to hook up like THAT, lol, but um, okay.

All in all, not the worst episode this season, but I can't say that I'm overly impressed either.

Well, my take from The Dragon, was already my own personal perception on it. Redemption is something that comes from within the person, it can't be dictated and it can't be forced by anybody.

Pinocchio committing back to being brave, selfless, and true was in fact his 'redemption' ~ it wasn't meant to be personalized for each and every individual. It didn't have to be, his actions were meant to speak louder than any words.

Now, as for the actual writing 'rushing it' and 'getting it over with' is a completely different story.

DigificWriter

I really don't get where the hate for this episode is coming from.

I really liked August's story and getting to see exactly what led him to come to Storybrooke in the first place. I also had no problem with him being literally being turned back into a real boy because the thing about August's story as presented in the series is that it's always been about second chances, and what the Blue Fairy did is the ULTIMATE manifestation of that concept.

Regarding Tamara, I think it's a really bold, interesting, and brilliant move to bring in a villain who's not connected to stories we're already familiar with (I know there's been some speculation that she IS in fact a fairy-tale/storybook character, but based on this ep I really don't think that's the case because she very much came across in the ep as someone who might lie to get what they want, but who will then turn around and brag and be totally open and honest about what it is that they want and what they're willing to do to achieve their goals). Giving her an accomplice - Greg/Owen - who may or may not share her intentions - whatever they might be - also adds intrigue to things.

I thought this was the best ep I've seen since Broken (granted, I've only watched a handful of eps since that ep aired, but still), and am really looking forward to seeing what they're going to do with the remaining four episodes.

ring of fire

ITA. I think it's refreshing to have a villain that it's from our world. It's realistic that she wants magic (I'm sure they will explain her real reasons later) because anyone from our world would want magic.

I don't think she's a FTL character. I think she had contact with someone from FTL when she was a child (like Owen) or maybe her Grandma was from FTL.

IceKat055

I'm the same way, I hated the hiatuses earlier this season even, but the last 3 or 4 episodes have really turned me off. It's just starting to get silly. These new characters, I assume, are supposed to add dimensions to the story, but I'm not feeling it. If Neal was anything like Bae used to be, I could care; young Bae, I thought was a great character. Bae (Neal) as he is now, bores me to tears. It's so trite and predictable, he became a cowardly runner, just like his daddy. Yay. Tamara is a bad guy, with her own agenda...oooooh, what could it be? Yawn. Owen is a grown up little victim of Regina, looking for his daddy. I Just. Don't. Care.

They gave us so many great characters in S1, and they've brushed them aside. Ruby? They wrote her one quick episode, jamming far too much into it, then wrote her off. August? Completely disappeared for this entire season. Belle has become a shell, when they bother to show her. Even Hook, who was introduced this season and was compelling right out of the gate for me, has disappeared and become pointless. I want them to get this show back on track - - but at this point, I think they've got their work cut out for them.

GrhmLz

Agreed.

I actually don't have a problem with a villain being contrived from our world, but what I do have an issue with is how it will most likely be followed through with. Many things this season have been conveniently placed in as mere 'plot devices' to further a sudden shift in direction {aka. the Archie plot} but the follow through is poor and has another agenda. No true character development is achieved. So, I do have concerns about Tamara getting proper exploration when most of our own main characters this season have been shafted. If Tamara is merely placed inside this story as an obstacle for Neal and Emma to overcome, and she's gone by season finale end with no real exploration and|or closure, that's a problem for me.

We'll wait and see but I don't have much faith in the writing to impress me at this point.

ring of fire

I think Tamara & Greg are going to have a bigger purpose a) exposing SB to the real world. Causing the characters to go back to FTL or b) they are going to go after Rumpel's magic and maybe Regina's magic as well.

I just hope we get an explanation on how Tamara became so obsessed with magic.

GrhmLz

This could be interesting if they handle it right. I'm just concerned it's going to be something cheesy and lame they give us as a throw-away answer when they have to move on for next season.

I could be wrong, maybe they plan on keeping Tamara around for awhile but I won't lie. If she's simply somebody from our world, I think the odds are stacked higher against her for staying alive.

She probably did promise to help Greg find his dad but from what I can gather, I think her motives are bit sleazier and meaner than Greg's right now. At this point, I do believe it's really just personal for Greg, he wants his dad back and what's to be believed, not thought of as crazy. But ... when all is said and done, Tamara likely doesn't care about that at all.

I'm gathering Greg might want to expose SB and the magic {because of what happened to his dad and nobody believing him as a kid} but Tamara wants the magic, so, she might not share that agenda, lol. It won't do her a whole lot of good to get what she needs if the whole world is bearing down on her in that town.

Yeah, the likely targets because of the magic they can practice are Rumple, Regina, and even Emma, although she's not as advanced in using it as the other two. But, that probably also makes Emma an easier target to try and control, I don't think Greg and Tamara will have much luck getting ahold of and forcing Rumple and Regina to do anything without some serious damage ensuing.

ring of fire

There's one theory about her that if it turns out to be right it could be awesome. I can't post it here because it's related to some season finale spoilers.

I just hope they stop ignoring important questions and start explaining things more. It's weird how easy she accepted magic so it's obvious she saw it or someone told her about it.

DigificWriter

I'm not seeing the genesis of all this backlash when it comes to the main characters, and have talked about the subject in the Spoilers threads recently. With an ensemble series, it's sort of inevitable that some characters who are considered to be main cast members are going to sometimes not be used, especially if the storyline being told evolves in a direction that doesn't give them much focus, which seems to have been the case with this season of Once.

BTW, it seems to me as if there's this perception that the writers have 'neglected' more main characters than they actually have.

ring of fire

The main characters are Snow, Charming, Rumpel, Regina & Emma. That hasn't changed and it won't change. And they haven't been neglected. Of course some of their fans aren't happy with all of their storylines this season but they are the ones who still get most of the screentime.

GrhmLz

In comparison to season 1, they have been neglected imo.

Also, to make it clearer, more screentime doesn't necessarily equate to proper or good writing treatment, which I don't feel these characters have really gotten this season when I look at the overall picture. There's been sudden shifts in direction, OOC representations for some, and the writing for them has just been choppy and all over the place. They are being used more and more to drive plot forward instead of time being taken to develop the characters more and then moving the plot around them, like S1 achieved much more successfully imo.

Obviously, alot of the general audience is thinking along some similar lines, regardless of who or what they've watched for. Our unfortunate decline in the ratings has been demonstrating that and then there are those of us still hanging on here by a thread.