Random Thoughts

Once Upon A Time in Storybrooke

The Evil Queen

The Evil Queen in Once Upon A Time

Thanks to growing up watching Disney movies, I’m a sucker for fairytales, so I was very excited when I saw the promo for ABC’s Once Upon A Time. The premise is simple: The Evil Queen enacted a curse that took everyone from the Enchanted Forest and settled them in Storybrooke, Maine, with no memories of who they used to be.

Edward Kitsis, who co-created the show, describes it as this:

Once Upon A Time is, at its core, a story about hope. For us, that’s what a fairytale is. It’s that ability to think your life will get better. It’s why you buy a lottery ticket—because if you win you get to tell your boss that you’re quitting and you get to move to Paris or wherever and be who you always wanted to be. Adam and I just wanted to write about something hopeful that for one hour a week allows one to put everything aside and have that feeling that your dreams just may come true.

That definitely drew me to the show. I love happy endings, especially during a time in the world where there seems to be so few of them. But, don’t let the premise of the show fool you. This isn’t your typical Disney fare. The show was created by former LOST writers so you know that there will be mysteries that need to be unlocked and stories that aren’t what they seem to be at first glance. Plus, I’m loving the backstories they’ve created for the fairytale characters so far. It’s definitely different from what we grew up reading/watching.

Part of the fun of the show is figuring out who the Storybrooke residents correspond to in the Enchanted Forest. We already know some of them: the Evil Queen, Snow White, Prince Charming, Jiminy Cricket, etc. But, there are some residents that are more uncertain, like Dr. Whale.

Prince Charming and Snow White

When Prince Charming met Snow White...

Mary Margaret and David

Mary Margaret and David are drawn to each other.

Of course, each fairytale has that couple that you root for to fall in love and live happily ever after. (What can I say? I’m a sucker for fairytale romance! :P) For me, it’s Mary Margaret (Snow White) and David (Prince Charming). You know they’re meant to be and do end up together. But, because of the curse, they’re forced to live not knowing about their past lives together. It’s a bit sad sometimes because you know that in the past they were happily married and had a daughter. But, in Storybrooke, they’re just a schoolteacher and a man who awoke from a coma with no memory of who he was.

If you like LOST or fairytales or feel-good shows or just magic, I highly recommend Once Upon A Time. This show has become my favorite new show of 2011.

Believing in even the possibility of a happy ending is a very powerful thing.

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16 thoughts on “Once Upon A Time in Storybrooke

  1. I haven’t heard of this show but I never watched LOST either… since the show is finished I’ve been told by friends to watch it. It doesn’t seem like my kind of thing haha. I’m also not really into anything of the fantasy genre, though that depends too. xD I always root for a couple in most shows I watch though. So sad when couples fight or aren’t together for whatever reason… but it keeps the show interesting. Conflict keeps it going haha. You gotta have some kind of complication.

    • anne says:

      I never finished LOST. I think I gave up on the show after season 1 or 2. It got too convoluted for me and I kept missing episodes.

      I think what I like about OUAT is that there is some reality to it. All these characters are normal people and there’s no magic happening to them anymore. The magic was in the past, when they were still fairy tale characters. It’s just very interesting to me seeing these characters be put in a realistic setting when there’s not that fairy godmother or magic to save you. You have to be the one to save yourself.

  2. My sister has told me about the show. I really like mysterious shows like that.
    I never really heard what was going on in the show, I would have never guessed it was a curse by the Evil Queen. I saw some of the backstory to the fairytale in the previews, I think they are being pretty ingenious with that. But then Hollywood usually is.
    The ‘Lost’ writers? I hope they can end this series better.

    I wonder if this show is ABC’s response to Grimm. I think I would definitely prefer Once Upon a Time to the scary creatures in Grimm.

    • anne says:

      Their plan is for everyone to eventually get their happy endings, but getting there will be the fun part, I guess. There are still questions that need to be answered.

      I don’t think it’s their answer to Grimm because it’s been in the works for awhile. One of the creators let on that they’ve been planning the show since Felicity ended, but didn’t get a chance to fully realize it until now

      I watch Grimm as well, but I’m not as emotionally invested in the show and the characters. It’s enjoyable enough, but the writing needs a lot of improvement.

  3. i think i’ve watched the show once…pero di ko gaanong naintindihan kasi di ko naumpisahan. lol. would love to watch some more…

  4. I saw a commercial advertising this show the other day and I thought it looked pretty interesting, mostly because they showed a character saying, “So everyone here is a fairytale character, but they don’t know it?” I was intrigued because I wanted to know how that could possibly be the case and why they did not know it, but now that you’ve explained the premise a bit better, I have to say I’m not so drawn to the show anymore. It’s not that you made it sound uninteresting, it just doesn’t seem like something I would actually be interested in. So, I guess you DID make it seem uninteresting, but it’s the show’s fault, not yours. xD

    Anyway, that’s why there are different shows for different people!

    • anne says:

      Haha. Sorry I’ve made it uninteresting, but I recommend checking out and not solely relying on my explanation. For all we know I could totally be the one making it seem uninteresting

  5. Was that showed in the tv? or in cinema? o.O I love watching fairytales! and honestly till now. I love watching barbie. hahahah!

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