FULL | Once Upon a Time Reaction S03E22 There's No Place Like Home

There's No Place Like Home- What an absolutely phenomenal two part finale!!! Especially this second part!! I have to say... Season three's two part finale is my favorite out of all the season finales!!! This season finale is just so beautiful, and I love both parts very much!! And they're two of my favorite episodes throughout all of season three, as well as throughout the entire show!! Thank you, thank you for another fabulous and fun reaction from you, Sora!!! Now, as for why these two episodes are the finale for season three, and aren't season four's premiere... First, Emma has struggled with finding herself and accepting who she is this entire season, while Hook has been trying to remind her of who she is. He's been trying to help her find it in herself to be the woman and Savior he already sees her as. It's one of season three's major themes. And in this two part finale... Especially here in There's No Place Like Home... Emma finally finds herself, accepts her parents as her parents, and comes to see Storybrooke as her home with Hook's help. This two part finale gives much long awaited closure to this overall theme at last, and it's so, so beautiful!! :) And second, in regards to Elsa from Disney's, Frozen, being introduced in the ending... At the time this introduction to Frozen in Once Upon a Time was meant to help boost the ratings, because if I do remember correctly, Once Upon a Time's ratings were down low at this point in time. In spite of season three being a favorite season for a number of this show's fans. So, bringing Elsa from Frozen into this show most definitely helped to boost the ratings in a way, given that Disney's, Frozen, was extremely popular at the time. Especially at the time season three ended, and season four began. And bringing in Frozen to Once Upon a Time, allowed for Once Upon a Time to be given four more seasons to come. However, unfortunately for the creators and writers, a lot of fans of this show also foolishly believed that by them bringing Frozen's characters into the storyline, was a bad idea. So, their plan sadly backfired on the show's creators and writers in a way too, because a lot of people gave up watching Once Upon a Time purely because they were angry that they chose to use Frozen's popularity upon the first Frozen movie coming out just six months prior to this finale, and season four's Frozen arc nearly a year after Frozen was in theaters. And while I too was worried about them bringing Frozen into the show's overall storyline... Not because of them probably seeking to use the movie's popularity to try to boost their ratings, but because I didn't know how they would be able to create a new and unique storyline using the characters and what we know from the Disney movie so soon, in a way that's as wonderful as the rest of the show has been so far. However, I absolutely love all that's to come!! And I should never have underestimated them. And for the fans who gave up on the show, or who have hated Once Upon a Time from here onward, because of their decision to bring in Frozen... Or those who stopped watching this show all together... They have missed out on so much. And those who hate this arc for the dumbest of reasons... Well, shame on them. I can hardly call any of them true fans of this show if they aren't willing to see past the creators' and writers' decision made in the hope of trying to keep their show alive. Happily and fortunately... I can thankfully say that all that's to come is absolutely phenomenal, and it will all hopefully surprise and please you like it has me, Tim. I'm very excited for all that's to come!!! :) As for the lack of an appearance from Zelena... Without giving away any spoilers... Rumple did in fact kill her in the previous episode, titled... Kansas. However, as we know from watching other characters being killed off in the earlier seasons, this doesn't necessarily mean that we won't ever see Zelena again. We see Neal a few times in these last few episodes since his death in the previous episode this season, titled... Quiet Minds. We've seen Graham a few times since his death way back in season one's episode, titled... The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, too. As far as Zelena is concerned... All we know for sure, is that upon Rumple killing her inside of her cell within the town's jail, her magic broke free from Zelena's necklace, because her magic no longer had a secure enough tether to keep her powers contained. So, Zelena's magic escaped and opened up the portal, almost as if it were Zelena's dying wish, and to fulfill her final act. I hope all of this makes sense for you, Timothee. We may, or may not see the Wicked Witch again. Who knows? Now, where to begin with There's No Place Like Home? First... I just have to say, I absolutely love, love, love Killian and Emma throughout this two part finale!!! They are absolutely perfect for one another! The chemistry between their actors, Jennifer Morrison and Colin O'Donoghue is outstanding and perfect!! Their acting together overall and especially in these episodes to me is perfect, and their characters' love for one another... Even though Emma might be less sure of her feelings for Hook at this point than his absolute feelings for Emma... So beautiful!! I love them!!! :) I love this finale in its entirety so much!! However, if I have to choose what my most favorite moment within it is... Hands down, it's the moment in the end between Emma and Killian when Killian at last confesses to Emma that he traded his ship in order to be able to get back to her in New York and then their beautiful kiss. And what a kiss!!! Or kisses!! :) Seeing Killian shrug off all that he's done for Emma like it's no big deal, with the belief that no one else will see all of his efforts in such a way, as well as the look of surprise on Emma's face upon realizing just how much Killian has really done for her and her alone, and a much deeper admiration for Killian in her eyes just before they kiss, and in their kisses... Absolutely beautiful and phenomenal!! This moment for me makes me cry tears of joy. And yes... Killian is no longer just Hook in Emma's eyes. This episode is really the first time Emma uses his real name out of a much deeper respect, adoration, and understanding, outside of from when Emma's had to call Hook Killian whenever Henry was around so long as he was without his memories through most of the second half of season three. Also... We know that Killian giving up the Jolly Roger for Emma is a great sacrifice for him, given that it’s been his home for centuries since his brother’s death. Like we saw in this season’s episode, titled... The Jolly Roger, his ship means so much to Killian. He made a big mistake that hurt Ariel in risking Prince Eric’s life for the sake of his ship, which Hook deeply regretted. And yet... We also see that he did so because he believed then he had lost Emma for good, and he only had his ship left. He couldn’t hand her over... least of all to one of his enemies, Black Beard, who wanted the Jolly Roger merely to try to prove to everyone that Hook has gone soft. A trait that is extremely dangerous for any pirate in their world. And yet... Killian traded the Jolly Roger for Emma the moment he learned there was a chance to be with her again. This shows just how much Killian truly loves Emma. And I love this so, so very much!!! Ooo... And now Emma is in the book too, which I absolutely love! And more so... I love that she's in the book within a picture of her and Killian dancing the waltz together at Emma's very first ball under the aliases of Princess Leia and Prince Charles. Love it!!!! So beautiful! And Emma calling herself Princess Leia in honor on Henry because she knows of her son's love for Star Wars... It's fantastic. I love it! This show us that Henry is definitely on her mind during their whole time travel adventure. But again... All of this isn't to take away from all of this episode's other events that I love either, as Emma, Hook, Snow, and Charming face off against the Evil Queen and her men, all so Emma and Hook can try to correct the timeline and bring Emma's parents back together, them nearly losing Snow to death, and finally Emma and Hook to nearly being trapped together forever within Rumplestiltskin's castle vault, which is mentioned by Belle back in the previous episode... Snow Drifts. It's all amazing in every way! :) Now... All throughout these final two episodes, Killian keeps warning Emma not to change anything at the risk of ruining something that's meant to be. He warns her several times and unfortunately, Emma keeps messing things up in spite of his warnings. Not on purpose of course, but because she is still simply naïve to the true consequences of her actions within the past. And if her mistakes weren't already bad enough before... Emma also saves Marian from being executed. Of course, I understand why she does so, because for one... Emma didn't know who she was. And two... Because it is terrible that Marian was meant to die, and the guilt would have plagued Emma if she had left Marian to die. But unfortunately, in the end of the episode we are reminded that this woman is Marian, who is Robin's wife, who was meant to die that day, and who is now no longer dead. Which creates a big mess for Emma, poor Regina and Robin, and Roland too of course. Marian's alive and Robin is now trapped between a rock and a hard place. And boy... Is Regina mad. Like mother, like daughter indeed. Yikes! But oh boy... Your reaction for this huge reveal in the end is absolutely priceless, Tim!! And I loved everything about you here in this reaction! Especially in this moment! Because what a moment!! :) I honestly didn't see this twist coming either!! Because I didn't remember Marian's face from the previous episode that she briefly appeared in, back in season two, episode nineteen, titled... Lacey. Most fans don't. The actress who plays her in Lacey is the same actress who is playing her once again. However, her role in Lacey was extremely small, so we don't really focus much on her face at all. And while Marian's arrival in present day Storybrooke is exciting and unexpected, at the same time... I couldn't help but feel upset by it too. Because not only will this cause problems for Regina and Robin, given that they've come to deeply care for one another at this point, but it has also created a dark rift between Emma and Regina, just when the two of them have become friends. Plus... I really hate love triangles, like I've said all along throughout this season with the love triangle formed between Hook, Emma, and Neal, as well as back in season one during the love triangle between David, Mary Margaret, and Kathryn too. I have been waiting very anxiously for this two part finale because I wanted you to see Emma and Killian finally together and to hopefully route for them as a True Love couple, because they are my favorite True Love couple throughout the entire show!! And I am so, so happy that you are happy to see them now as a couple. But now... A new love triangle is formed between Regina, Robin, and Marian, and while I do actually both love this twist in the end of this finale with Marian returning because it's quite the twist, as tragic as it is for us as the audience since we love Regina and Robin together so much, I also hate it too. Creating this rift between the characters with yet another love triangle to me is this episode's only real flaw I can see. And Regina possibly losing her happiness with Robin is so, so heartbreaking! In regards to Marian having been killed like Robin has been telling Regina, back in this season's episode, titled... Witch Hunt, Robin tells Regina that he has accidentally put Marian in harms way, but nothing more. He never mentions to Regina what happened to Marian, and I can't help but wonder if Robin ever knew what actually had happened to her. I doubt he would have so easily come to love Regina if he knew that the Evil Queen had killed her. So, I doubt he knows. At least not fully. But Marian being imprisoned and then executed by the Evil Queen just like what was meant to happen to her in this episode before Emma saves her, is what actually did happen to her in the past. And it's so bad. Yikes!! How twisted! But with all this being said... I absolutely love the continuation of Snow's and Charming's own love story being played out, still with a few more changes. So beautiful! I love that it's Charming who recognizes the ladybug to be Snow upon listening to her talk about the dark fairy dust and what it can do while they traveled together with Hook to the Evil Queens castle, and how he saves her from being squashed by Hook. And I love how the Blue Fairy not only flies down to save Snow upon hearing her call for her, but I love how Blue also recognizes that Emma isn't who she claims to be, and that Blue understands her secret is necessary too. I also love seeing the Evil Queen stomp on the troll she herself has turned into a bug for failing to capture Snow for her, like Charming had originally had done back in Snow Falls. I love the similarities!! Next... I also love that Snow goes back for Charming on the bridge to save him from being killed by the trolls, this time using only sand to trick the trolls into leaving them alone, until this brings them back on course at last as Snow and Charming share their lines about finding one another and Snow nearly believing that Charming would. And I love, love, love that Emma and Killian are watching their final moments together from a distance, allowing for Emma to see her parents fall in love with one another for the first time, as Killian beautifully states, "It’s okay, Swan. Not everyone gets the chance to watch their parents fall in love.", as he wipes away the tears falling down Emma's cheeks. So beautiful! Also... Mary Margaret and David name their second child... Their son Neal, after Rumple's son of course. In honor of Neal's sacrifice. And while I personally don't care as much for Neal overall like most fans do, in spite of the few things that I really do like about his character, I still think this is sweet that the baby was named after him. This is definitely the right choice for the Charmings to have made in honor of Neal, who is a hero. In spite of what are flaws in how his death is written, in my opinion. Such a sweet moment! Even though I'm still not convinced by how much I like or don't like about Neal's storyline with dying to bring Rumple back and everyone putting the blame for his death on Zelena. I especially love the look on Gold's face upon hearing that the Charmings' child is named after his son. Very sweet. Another of my favorite moments within this episode... I absolutely love between Emma, David, Mary Margaret, and Henry when Emma rushes back to them at Granny's once she and Hook return from their time travel adventure, as Emma immediately hugs her parents for real this time, announces that she's staying in Storybrooke because she's finally found her home, and having Emma finally calling her parents Mom and Dad. The only other time Emma ever called them this, was back in season two's finale episode, titled... And Straight on 'Til Morning, when Emma believes they are about to die because Storybrooke is about to be wiped out by Regina's fail safe. At last... Emma is calling her parents Mom and Dad because she finally sees them as such and loves them as such. So sweet and beautiful!! And I love how happy it makes Henry that they're staying in Storybrooke too. :) Next... I do for the most part like the scenes with Neal in the flashbacks. I really like the parallels from Emma's past and present bringing together parts of the storyline, since yes... Neal's lines about home being a place you just miss when you leave it... is exactly what Emma says to Hook in Snow Drifts. We also get a few more past appearances throughout this episode, as we see Blue, Archie, Red, and Moe again. And it's really quite nice to see each of them again. And I also like seeing Archie as he marries Belle and Gold. Yep... Belle and Rumple get married. Very sweet and beautiful, even though I too am very, very angry with Rumple and sad for Belle because their marriage is starting off under the guise of Rumple's lies. And yet, I really love Belle's line... "And sometimes the best cups are chipped." Their vows are beautiful! What I love the most about this wedding scene, is that we have a montage during their vows, showing each of the True Love couples together during their vows. David and Mary Margaret as they're holding one another with little Neal in his mother's arms while Belle talks about always finding Rumple like Snow and Charming always have, Regina and Robin walking down the street with Roland between them, and with Emma and Killian continuing to kiss outside of Granny's as Rumple talks about his past being dark until Belle brought light into his life much like Emma has done for Killian too, and like Robin has done for Regina. Absolutely beautiful. :) But with all this being said... I absolutely love the continuation of Snow's and Charming's own love story being played out, still with a few more changes. So beautiful! I love that it's Charming who recognizes the ladybug to be Snow upon listening to her talk about the dark fairy dust and what it can do while they traveled together with Hook to the Evil Queens castle, and how he saves her from being squashed by Hook. And I love how the Blue Fairy not only flies down to save Snow upon hearing her call for her, but I love how Blue also recognizes that Emma isn't who she claims to be, and that Blue understands her secret is necessary too. I also love seeing the Evil Queen stomp on the troll she herself has turned into a bug for failing to capture Snow for her, like Charming had originally had done back in Snow Falls. I love the similarities!! Next... I also love that Snow goes back for Charming on the bridge to save him from being killed by the trolls, this time using only sand to trick the trolls into leaving them alone, until this brings them back on course at last as Snow and Charming share their lines about finding one another and Snow nearly believing that Charming would. And I love, love, love that Emma and Killian are watching their final moments together from a distance, allowing for Emma to see her parents fall in love with one another for the first time, as Killian beautifully states, "It’s okay, Swan. Not everyone gets the chance to watch their parents fall in love.", as he wipes away the tears falling down Emma's cheeks. So beautiful! Also... Mary Margaret and David name their second child... Their son Neal, after Rumple's son of course. In honor of Neal's sacrifice. And while I personally don't care as much for Neal overall like most fans do, in spite of the few things that I really do like about his character, I still think this is sweet that the baby was named after him. This is definitely the right choice for the Charmings to have made in honor of Neal, who is a hero. In spite of what are flaws in how his death is written, in my opinion. Such a sweet moment! Even though I'm still not convinced by how much I like or don't like about Neal's storyline with dying to bring Rumple back and everyone putting the blame for his death on Zelena. I especially love the look on Gold's face upon hearing that the Charmings' child is named after his son. Very sweet. Another of my favorite moments within this episode... I absolutely love between Emma, David, Mary Margaret, and Henry when Emma rushes back to them at Granny's once she and Hook return from their time travel adventure, as Emma immediately hugs her parents for real this time, announces that she's staying in Storybrooke because she's finally found her home, and having Emma finally calling her parents Mom and Dad. The only other time Emma ever called them this, was back in season two's finale episode, titled... And Straight on 'Til Morning, when Emma believes they are about to die because Storybrooke is about to be wiped out by Regina's fail safe. At last... Emma is calling her parents Mom and Dad because she finally sees them as such and loves them as such. So sweet and beautiful!! And I love how happy it makes Henry that they're staying in Storybrooke too. :) Next... I do for the most part like the scenes with Neal in the flashbacks. I really like the parallels from Emma's past and present bringing together parts of the storyline, since yes... Neal's lines about home being a place you just miss when you leave it... is exactly what Emma says to Hook in Snow Drifts. We also get a few more past appearances throughout this episode, as we see Blue, Archie, Red, and Moe again. And it's really quite nice to see each of them again. And I also like seeing Archie as he marries Belle and Gold. Yep... Belle and Rumple get married. Very sweet and beautiful, even though I too am very, very angry with Rumple and sad for Belle because their marriage is starting off under the guise of Rumple's lies. And yet, I really love Belle's line... "And sometimes the best cups are chipped." Their vows are beautiful! What I love the most about this wedding scene, is that we have a montage during their vows, showing each of the True Love couples together during their vows. David and Mary Margaret as they're holding one another with little Neal in his mother's arms while Belle talks about always finding Rumple like Snow and Charming always have, Regina and Robin walking down the street with Roland between them, and with Emma and Killian continuing to kiss outside of Granny's as Rumple talks about his past being dark until Belle brought light into his life much like Emma has done for Killian too, and like Robin has done for Regina. Absolutely beautiful. :) And then... I also deeply love how Killian continues to convince Emma that her home is in Storybrooke with her family and all those who love her throughout these episodes, especially during the scene within Rumple's vault in his castle. Emma is so stubborn, I was almost afraid she'd never come to see that she truly belonged in Storybrooke. However, I love that Killian has never given up trying to convince her of such. And I love that Emma finally comes to this discovery for herself at last as well, after everything she's been through on this time travel adventure with Killian and her parents. Killian and Emma are absolutely meant to be! :) And as always... Rumple is of course amazing in his past form as Rumplestiltskin once again. I love how he smugly, almost mockingly tells Emma and Hook that there's no way to send them home without Emma being able to wield her magic, then poofs them down inside his own dark vault where there is no escape. I also love his reappearance when Emma finally succeeds in reopening the portal, as Rumple nearly stops Emma from getting back home as he pleads with her to know about what happens to his son. I love how Emma pleads with Rumple to take the forgetting potion in order to make sure everything happens as it's meant to. The pain in her eyes is so heartbreaking. Once again... Brilliant acting by Jennifer Morrison. And then... Rumple lets her go as he takes the forgetting potion, bends down to pick up the wand Emma dropped as she fell through the portal, then he states... "What the hell am I doing in here!" I love it! So Rumple. :) I love every bit of this finale, because it's so centric around finally bringing Emma and Killian together, as well as for it helping Emma find her home at last!! I love how much Killian is there for her, and that Emma calls him a hero in the end just before they share their kiss that is so much deeper than the kiss they share in Neverland. Because this time... Emma has truly come to care for Killian in return, and Killian has already come to love her so much more than Emma truly knows. And the themes and parallels throughout these two episodes are beautiful and just perfect!! As for my absolute favorite episodes from season three... I absolutely love, love, love the episodes, titled... Lost Girl, Good Form, Ariel, Going Home, New York City Serenade, The Jolly Roger, A Curious Thing, Kansas, Snow Drifts, and There's No Place Like Home!! I would love to know which episodes are your favorite too, Sora. Please let me know. Thank you so very much!! Thank you again, so much for this reaction, my dear friend!!! I absolutely loved watching both parts of this phenomenal and favorite of the finales again with you, and I'm thrilled that you enjoyed it so much too!! And I can't wait for season four to begin!!! Season four is just as phenomenal as season three! I absolutely love all that's to come for our beloved characters!! And what a great way to end this season finale! Season four is so good and I can't wait to see your reactions for every episode to come!! Until your reaction for season four's premiere, my dear friend... Thank you, thank you so much, Sora!!! Sincerely, Heidi

Heidi Elizabeth Marcum