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Once...in Wonderland: Trust Me

“It’s hard to be happy again when you’ve lost someone you loved.”

If there’s one thing that Wonderland has going for it over Once Upon a Time, it’s humour. Once is already so ridiculous that a show that stretches that boundary is going to need some serious grounding, and the script this week felt a lot less scattered and more focused on the main themes of the show so far.

The Knave is still the greatest thing about Wonderland, and he’s still the one character bringing out the show’s humour not just through his own dialogue, but with the amazing banter he has with other characters, none more so than Alice. I’m not one to encourage a love triangle, but I hope he starts to develop something more with Alice because I really like the idea of the two of them together.

I’m glad we saw more of his softer side this week, too. Naturally he’s not going to be all quips and sarcasm, so learning about a past heartbreak (I’m guessing, anyway) gives him even more of a reason to stay around, just so we can learn more about him.

I don’t know if Cyrus has the same appeal. Obviously he can’t do much trapped in Jafar’s dungeon, but the flashbacks don’t paint him as anything more than a standard love interest. With the Knave spouting charisma all over the place we need to see him do more than pining over Alice and trading Edward Cullen-esque stares with her in flashbacks.

Jafar and the Red Queen are still not doing it for me, but the shift of power between both of them was interesting and made me more excited to see how they play off each other while trying to stop Alice. The White Rabbit is fun, but there needs to be more of a reason to justify using John Lithgow to voice such a background character. Thankfully, Alice is a much stronger protagonist than I was worried she’d be, and her plan to learn who was playing her made me like her even more.

Obviously things aren’t perfect yet, but there’s still heaps of potential. The show’s future looks questionable at best, but for the rest of it's likely to be limited run, I think the chances of things getting even better are looking up.

3.5 out of 5 pieces of magic paper

Plus

I wonder what the Red Queen is holding over the White Rabbit’s head.

I also wonder what business the Knave and the Caterpillar have with each other.

He Said, She Said

Cyrus: “I’ve lived countless lifetimes and no one has ever not made their wishes.”
Alice: “Why would I wish for anything, I have everything I could possible wish for.”

Originally posted at PandaTV.

8 comments:

  1. Now THIS was more like it. It felt a lot more like regular OUAT. Just...sillier. Still can't stand Queen Duck Lips. Naveen Andrews is phoning it in. I thought the Alice/Cyrus flashback scenes were really sweet though.

    Is it weird the Knave is constantly commenting on the weirdness of Wonderland? Didn't he live there for a long time? Wouldn't giant turtles pretending to be islands be totally normal to him?

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  2. This was fun..the Knave is still the best reason for this show..I wish Cyrus could be more interesting.
    Red Queen seemed more on the money this week as did Jafar..well maybe I'm just getting used to them.
    We'll see where it goes.
    Anna

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  3. My daughter and I couldn't even get through Ep 1. The acting was terrible. The effects were terrible. The knave was funny - but not enough to have us watch the last 20 minutes.
    Is it really getting better? There are so many other things on at the moment...

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  4. Sooze, I didn't dislike the first episode, but the second is sitting on my DVR. Part of that might be due to the fact that TV by the Numbers is already talking about cancellation. Are the TV powers that be too quick to judge these days? What they say does affect us. I often think about shows that had not that great first seasons that turned into huge favorites of mine (Buffy and Supernatural, I'm looking at you).

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  5. The tv powers that be can be that quick..they cancelled Ironside after three episodes..and have pulled it from their schedule. Poor Blair Underwood.
    I will keep watching this show cause I still like it.
    Anna

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  6. I too thought this episode was a big improvement! I like Alice's attitude and quick thinking, and I like the Knave being a three dimensional character!

    Cyrus does need to be given more to do though...

    And over the top villains is what Once is known for! At least to start off with. I'm sure we'll soon get to see behind the curtain and they'll flesh them out in an interesting way. Or at least I hope so! ;o)

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  7. The fairy's name was Silvermist. For those who don't have young kids at home, Silvermist is one of the characters from the new Tinkerbell DVD cartoon movies from the past few years. I can't decide if that's just a cheap corporate tie-in or a fun way to expand the universe. Maybe a little of both.

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  8. I'm liking this show thus far. I really cringe every time I hear Emma Rigby (Red Queen) doing her 'posh English voice'. It's like she's spending so much time doing that horrid accent that she's forgetting how to act... and seeing that her acting has always been a little questionable (ranging from bad, to great, to good-but-over-the-top)it's ruining all scenes for me with her in.

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