Longmire 4.3 "High Noon" Review

                                               
Episode opens with a man doing some digging and taking samples when Nighthorse (A Martinez) chances upon him and he introduces himself as a ranger, Bob Barnes (John Bishop) weeding out the non-native plants.  When Nighthorse tells him to clear off his land.  He reports back to Walt (Robert Taylor) who only got him the job cos it's part of the court order and tells him those yellow sunflower type flowers are growing on his property.   As Walt tells Vic (Katee Sackhoff) to get warrants to search Nighthorse's property.  He gets a call from Ruby (Louanne Stephens) about a black SUV swerving across the road.  Which just happened to be Barlow (Gerald McRaney) so he takes him home.  Though Barlow doesn't have any Rainier.

Of course there were plenty of instances of foreshadowing here indicating Barlow had a hand in killing Branch. Didn't we see that text message already on Branch's phone and they didn't find anymore messages on his phone he'd sent to Barlow, did they, other than the ones he was supposed to have sent Cady (Cassidy Freeman).  When Walt was at Barlow's house and he took his keys for the other car, nice zoom onto the gun with the pearl handle, which was relevant, cos when Walt later comes back it's missing.  Not that Walt would've noticed of course, but we were meant to.

On top of that it was just convenient for Walt to reveal to Barlow that Nighthorse probably killed Branch, which was crazy for him to do.  Know it's a small town and all that, but why give away things he has no evidence for, even if he wanted to do things the right way.  It was like painting a bull's eye on himself for Barlow to do as he pleases and come to think of it for Nighthorse too.  As for the empty can of Rainer that Vic found where Nighthorse was shot from, it didn't automatically mean it was Walt.  Really he's the sheriff, why would he leave incriminating evidence behind if he was there and on top of that she messed up on any evidence on the can, not that there would be and Walt did the same when he did who knows what with it, just threw it out?  Maybe Barlow just took an old can he found of Walt's instead.

The judge refuses to grant the warrant based on the flower cos he's got those flowers growing too and  so did Barlow and Walt refuses a burger with Vic as he drives away.  Next day Nighthorse throws a press conference stating that Walt shot at him on his property.  But not before Mathias (Zane McClarnon) pays a call wanting to check out Walt's guns.  Nighthorse doesn't live on the reservation so he hasn't any jurisdiction to investigate and also Walt refuses to show him the guns.  So the FBI will be in touch with him.  Also Vic hides out cos she doesn't want to tell him anything.  Henry (Lou Diamond Phillips) calls and Ferg (Adam Bartley) tells him he wasn't on duty so he doesn't know where Walt was.  As Walt tells Vic Nighthorse's property is now a CS and they can search it, as he arrives with yellow tape.  Nighthorse accuses him and Walt accuses him of firing the shots himself to set him up.

Walt wants Ferg to take soils samples and look for bullets, blood, anything that will show this is where Branch was killed.  The only thing Vic finds is the empty Rainier can.  Barlow asks for his phone and Walt retrieves it, was thinking those gloves with Walt's blood would've been used later on against him, but okay I was wrong.  Vic shows him the can and tells him she'll lie for him but she needs to know what's happening and telling him about Cady and the info she found.  Cady can't tell Walt anything she knows without being sued, but tells him what she talked about with Barlow, including the text messages, but Barlow doesn't have any from Branch on his phone.

Barlow thinking he had things nicely planned when he mosied on over to Walt's place ready and waiting for him.  It was like Cady gave things away and played right into his hands when she was trying to get info from Barlow about Branch and what he was working on.  Then Walt said it too, the suicide note could only have been written by someone who knew Branch and the fact that he and Cady were no longer together, which came as news to Barlow.  When he was standing there with the poker there was definitely fire in his eyes and the scent of murder in the air, cos if she'd said anything different she'd probably have been next.  That was the moment that sealed his fate though, it was confirmation Barlow was behind it all!

Other instances of foreshadowing were the scenes with Walt and the knife when he cut the belt off Barlow, then Barlow looking around at the rifle in Walt's Bronco.  Setting up Walt to take the fall for shooting at Nighthorse.  Did you see it as a reveal when Walt realizes Barlow killed his wife, had Ridges' kill her.  Kind of new that was coming a few seasons ago, even as far back as season 1, with   the implication that there might be more between Barlow and Martha.  But really Barlow killing his ow son cos he got too close to the truth and found out Barlow and Nighthorse were friends and angling for the casino to go ahead.  Or was it more for thinking Branch had found out about this and other things, thinking Branch was working for Walt.

As for telling Walt he'd have a hard time explaining the empty gun and shooting an unarmed man, well he wasn't to know that and the knife would've had Barlow's prints on it so Walt shouldn't have removed that.  Though I do think Walt got some satisfaction for shooting Barlow, a little revenge, a little closure for both Martha and Branch; but more so Barlow couldn't live with himself for killing Branch.  It came across that way and even if he wanted more money and the casino to go ahead, it would've been poor comfort to him now.  He was almost angling for "suicide by cop" cos he couldn't do it to himself.  So much for all the macho posturing about Barlow's not being able to take their own lives.

As for Cady and her job was she genuinely offered that job by Walter Mashburn (from The Mentalist ha) er, Kevin Morris (Currie Graham) or was he told to offer it to her; cos if it just came out of the blue, then it was pretty coincidental or timely for Cady to have seen all those documents with the firm working for Nighthorse against Barlow.  Yeah too convenient, but as a lawyer she should've known the best way to get information would be from somewhere else if she was bound by a confidentially agreement. She shouldn't have needed Vic to tell her.  Don't know what Cady was thinking working for the smarmy lawyer but she thought it a chance to stop waitressing and get a salary worth something. Heck I wouldn't have worked there.  Why doesn't she start her own firm.

Now comes the good part with Walt having to dodge everything under the sun, not that he hasn't been doing that already since he's been sheriff, in the Barlow investigation.  Liked Walt's story about his boots not fitting him and hurting him that he told Henry and didn't touch the beer.  Appropriate title too, though it was more of a showdown than a shootout!

Once Upon A Time 5.14 "Devil's Due" Review

                                           
As Hook (Coilin O'Donoghue) didn't do what Hades (Greg Germann) wanted in engraving the graves, he transports him to a place far worse through the River of Lost Souls and there he suspends him from chains, to be lowered into the river, eventually.  Ay me hearty, Hook was already a lost soul when we first met him, seeing as the pirate's life wasn't such a good one after all.  But anyway, yeah thought Dean in hell once again in Supernatural here, when he was all chained up and calling for help, but no help came.  Hook will be more fortunate then.  Hades was just jealous cos he couldn't stand looking at Hook's devilishly handsome features and his hair!!

In order for Hook to be rescued and for Gold  (Robert Carlyle) to get back to Belle (Emilie de Ravin) after seeing her through a crystal ball which he subsequently breaks, he had to enlist the help of Milah (Rachel Shelley).  Well hello dearie, you're now a crossing guard, making sure children cross the road safely, but you ran out on your son also!  Gold introduces her to an awkward meeting with Emma (Jennifer Morrison) who was not only with her former lover (and still is) but also with her son and there's nothing like nepotism and keeping it within the family.  Though Hook isn't related to them.  Oh and forget to mention she bore Milah's grandson too!! Rumple had found a boat to take them out of the underworld after they rescued Hook and Milah stayed behind to guard it with him.

Then appeared Hades and made a deal with Gold, get rid of the boat so they can't make it out and also revealed that he knows Belle is pregnant, no wonder Gold wanted to high tail it out of there. Especially after the flashback to where Bae was left alone whilst the two bickered and Bae was bitten by a poisonous snake as a child and they had to find a cure.  Gold couldn't kill the man with the cure, Fendrake the Healer (Aaron Douglas) but made a deal to give him his second son, cos dearie he wasn't gonna have anymore children.  Milah was angry with him cos he put a kerb on her having anymore children and ran off with Hook, whom she met in a tavern and still propositioned her to run off with him even if she was married.  "I'm in port very often, luv!"  That would've been tempting enough!  Still she could've had little Hookers with Hook!  Ha.

Gold also sent Milah into the river cos she knew his deal with Hades, as Emma was taking an awful long time bringing Hook back out, yeah have a reunion there when you're still in danger and miss all the action outside.  Hook was surprised to hear Milah was here and then was no longer around! Didn't he think she may have been here especially since she had unfinished business too and now we won't know what that was.  Gold pretending that Hades got rid of the boat and Milah too.  So no awkward meeting with the threesome and Hook having to say he loved (loves) Milah his one true lost love (who's now lost in the river of souls) and he wanted revenge for the last 300 years, but he's got  Emma now.

Regina (Lana Parilla) found Daniel's grave but she'd also learned from Cruella (Victoria Smurfit) that if a gravestone stands up it means unfinished business, if it's flat down then they're not in the underworld and if it's cracked to bits, well there's no hope!  She then helped a horse back in town and found her magic was working.  But she couldn't take Emma's heart and split it into two giving Hook the other half.  Wasn't her magic though was it, it was the underworld after all and having to prolong them being there.  Of course maybe her love for him isn't that strong after all, or his for her, okay I had to to add that in.
I'll forget about the awkwardness of writing Milah over and over then!! Ha.

They find Hades has been busy engraving the gravestones himself with the names of Snow, Regina and Emma, apparently he wanted the women to remain behind.  See Hook that's what you did when you didn't pick, he could've picked the men and left the women which he could've had all to himself in true pirate fashion!  But the worst was yet to come for Gold as Fendrake and the one he'd killed as the Crocodile had signed over his contract to Hades, thus he was going to get Gold's second born child now!

Once Upon A Time 5.13 "Labor of Love" Review

                                            
Obviously the title being in reference to Hercules and his twelve labours.  As Snow (Gennifer Goodwin) meets up with him again.  Anyway this one showcases Hook (Colin O'Donoghue) also as he steps down some steps after a fellow captive tells him not to do it cos he'll come after them.  Hook of course wouldn't listen to her and he tells her to run and escape, to find Emma (Jennifer Morrison) and tell her where he is as he saw Emma's message to him.  That wasn't immediately apparent from this scene. Huh?  Anyway Snow and David (Josh Dallas) are walking around the graves when she notices Hercule's (Jonathan Whitesell) name and then flashback.  Snow (Bailee Madison) when a girl sitting with Regina (Lana Parilla) at her throne and her people demanding help.  Snow can only reply that her father is on a diplomatic mission and is powerless to help.  See that glint in Regina's eye cos we know that she's behind the peasant's almost revolt with her thugs terrorizing them.

Oh forgot to say Snow fell into a hole and was rescued by none other than Hercules, a mere whisper of a would-be demi-god and they instantly become best pals, cos here he teaches her how to shoot a bow and arrow and train her, much the same as Mulan did with Merida!! Don't these royal children have natural skills and abilities of their own then?  He tells her about his labours and how he's only a demi-god and his first labour of killing the lion.

In the underworld Regina says she would have had plans of Storybrooke in her office and that would give them clues on where else to search for Hook, as Henry (Jared Gilmore) goes off with Robin (Sean Maguire) cos he knows her office inside and out.  Storybrooke was the product of Regina's curse and she even made blueprints and plans for the town, hmm, must've pooffed those up in a smokey mist too.  She and Emma run into the girl who's being chased by the three headed hell hound, Cerberus, cue Supernatural hellhound lore territory here!  Snow finds Hercules at the docks tasked with moving around paper mache anchors and large blocks and the heels on those shoes, Dean Winchester would be jealous, just joking, I think!  ha.  As she tells him all her life story and he can't believe she's a grandma and he hasn't aged cos obviously he's dead.  She wants him to help with Cerberus not knowing that was the labour he couldn't failed cos he was killed by it.  Obviously uncle Hades (Greg Germann) having a hand in it.  He couldn't fight three heads at once!  Hook and Hades have words about how they can't really kill each other and he continues to torment Hook with his boring comments!!  Couldn't they find a better Hades??  Not a fan of Greg Germann, he always acts the same no matter what character he's playing.  This must be a harkback to Ally McBeal: the failed comedy years!

Snow takes on the thugs and fails miserably as she can't reach for another arrow and drops them all, as well as falling to the ground in shame herself.  Needing another helping hand from Hercules.
In the underworld Emma, Snow and Regina went down the mines to find Cerberus and let Hercules take care of the hound but he gives up and runs away.  What was the problem, he was already dead wasn't he, so wouldn't die again or was it seeing his awful uncle again.  Hades having a fun time showing Emma Hook's hook.

Henry crawls into the office through the vent and finds Cruella (Victoria Smurfit) there apparently taken over from Cora, she wants him to use his author skills and write her back into the living which he can do cos even if he broke the quill, it's still a living entity and he can fix things.  Which Henry doesn't tell Robin about.  If he re-writes her death then Emma won't be a murderer anymore.  So that means Henry can do the same for everyone else, re-write everything we've seen and everyone can be good and as pure as the driven snow, including Hook not killing his father.

Regina tells Snow how she was kickass as Snow and so she drops the Mary Margaret and Snow adding there's nothing like getting help from her former enemy in Regina!  And decides she's going to help Hercules kick some hellhound heads, even roping in Megara (Kacey Rohl) to help.  As back in her land, Snow kicks the thugs asses out of her kingdom.   Hellhound gets stabbed and vanishes. Hercules and Megara later do some bonding in the diner and also get to climb the steps to Mount Olympus.  Still Snow doesn't tell David she and Hercules snogged, minor plot point, she probably went round kissing all her friends, so she shared her first ever kiss with ol' Hercs!

Hades was still tormenting Hook to the point where Hook's hair kept standing on end in despair, but no, loving Hook's hair and told him he had to engrave three names on the grave of the three people he wants to remain behind, well he could've started off with Gold!  Then Robin and anyone else who was still here who he didn't know about but could've guessed, like maybe his father.  But downside was, they had to be living!  Hook refused.  Uh oh more torturing for him then with Hades' excruciating jokes!  Emma bought her woolly hat with her, maybe she could hide Hades's blue light CGI hair under it!

Once Upon A Time 5.12 "Souls of the Departed" Review

                                            
Emma (Jennifer Morrison) has a dream about seeing Neal (Michael Raymond-James) and how he's moved on and is in a happy place now, guess he got his happy ending then and he knows she wants to get Hook (Colin O'Donohue) back.  Then wakes up in a Storybrooke which which as all red filters and the clock tower lies broken on the ground.  Finally something destructive happened to that clock seeing as everything took place there. This is the Storybrooke as seen in the underworld, or created there.

In the Enchanted Forest, Regina (Lana Parilla) tries a berry pie which has been made for her birthday and is about to wreck some more of her havoc until Snow (Gennifer Goodwin) arrives to save the day again.  The best birthday gifts were yet to come, as her father wanted Regina to stop her nonsensical quest for power and revenge and summoned Cora (Barbara Hershey) with the help of Regina's mirror, (Giancarlo Esposito) from Wonderland.  She came to make things worse for everyone and she did what no one else could do, took Snow's heart and gifted it in a box to Regina.  Regina couldn't resist crushing the heart of her rival, only one of her guards carked it instead, as daddy dear had switched hearts.  He doesn't have magic, so how was he able to do this, did he raid Regina's vault or something.  Which made her even more angry cos no matter how much she loves him, she still exacted her revenge on him by shrinking him and placing him in the box instead and then showing off her new miniature to Cora.

Regina finds a new boss in her seat, none other than Cora, only she can't be in charge of the underworld cos not even OUAT would dare change the story of the underworld and Hades.  Anyway didn't she become good or something or was that not done, after Snow crushed her heart too.  See Snow got her revenge on Cora doing that to her, well at least for taking her heart.  Not so much crushing it.
At the diner Snow looks for Hook, as do the others and meets with the wicked blind witch (Emma Caulfield) from Hansel and Gretel who now cooks there.  Er, does she serve up departed children. Was that some sort of a terrible Sweeney Todd and Mrs Lovett pie moment.  (See connection: Regina and pies, oh never mind!)   When Snow is kissed and doesn't recognize true love's kiss anymore it seems, cos she didn't realize that was James and not David!  Cue David (Josh Dallas) as he leaves and nothing else was spoken!  So he's going to be David's unfinished business perhaps, or not, since it appears everyone roaming the underworld hasn't had their chance at putting things right.

Cora wants Regina to be safe and tells her to leave otherwise she'll have to burn the one person she loves the most, that being her father, Regina having found Henry Mills' grave.  But no one had still located Hook, cos this was being dragged out as far as possible, you'd have thunk they'd have wanted to drag out him being dark, sorry that only lasted two eps, would've been good to have seen for longer.

Gold walks on over to the pawn shop and there he forlornly looks at the chipped teacup and also his father's doll!  Well Pan (Robbie A Kay) shows up.  He wants to get back home and asks Rumples to do this just by ensuring one of the people he came here with doesn't make it back, or he can piggy back on them or something.  Though they haven't really mentioned their unfinished business, isn't he supposed to get redemption, ask for forgiveness for being younger looking than his own son and move on to the light.  Guess that wasn't happening.  He gives Gold some magic potion on the house, enabling people to talk to their dead when poured onto their graves; so later on he can say there were strings attached to it and not just in the Pinocchio sense either.

This potion didn't work for Hook who was tortured to the nines, but Regina could speak withe her father and also introduce his grandson Henry (Jared Gilmore) to him.  Giving her some more of his wisdom of how she can't leave here without her friends and now she's turned that corner and isn't like Cora, she listens to him, for once.  He must've been proud.  A stairway to heaven (can I say that) appears as Cora vanishes when Regina decides she will stay and her father leaves for a better place. Well that was easy.  So if Hook hadn't done all that he did after going dark and ending up in the underworld after dying, their loves ones would have been suffering still.  Hmm so turns out they had him do something meaningful.  As Regina returned to the clock tower, the hand moves a minute thus symbolizing a soul had been taken to its rightful place with Regina smiling, she did something right.

Funny scene must've been Jimmeny Cricket popping out of Snow's corset and what prithee tell was he doing there??  Just as Regina crushes her heart! Seriously what was the purpose of this scene if not for comic effect?   That potion was "the Ale of Seonaidh from the land of Dunbroch" as Gold tells them, back there again hey.  What would they do without the wee Scots.

Then the reveal of Hades (Greg Germann) not very exciting and Cora being turned back into the peasant that she was, for failing to do her job, as if that could possibly be the worst of her worries.  I just miss the Guyliner quotes!!  It must be saying something about this show now when I only watch for Hook!! and Regina too of course, but mostly Hook!!

Once Upon A Time 5.11 "Swan Song" Review

                                                
Regina (Lana Parilla) having confronted Hook (Colin O'Donoghue) about his secret she knew when he was a pirate and when she used him as a test when she wanted her mother killed by him, reminds him here that the secret is what he needs to face.  As they stand poised at the lakeside and Hook going to send Emma's (Jennifer Morrison) whole family to hell.  In fact it was all to do with the Dark Ones alighting their ferry and going through the town marking people which meant the Dark Ones would each take over a living person's soul.  As Rumple (Robert Carlyle) explained how they'd be ferried to the underworld when the moon was full. This included Rumple too and as he gave Belle (Emilie de Ravin) her dream ticket out of Storybrooke, he said she should leave, live her dream and see the world, cos there's a whole world out there.  Well there's plenty of worlds out there in all sorts of realms.

Emma decided the only one she could save everyone was if she took all of the Dark Ones powers into the sword and then killed herself with it, making the ultimate sacrifice to save everyone.  Which was a bad idea, but she knew Regina would understand and even help her.  She decides to leave a note for her family when they're all meant to be having a farewell meal at the the diner, sort of a last family supper together and doesn't turn up, and heck they didn't even notice.  That's cos Snow (Gennifer Goodwin) decided she didn't want to stick their last moments together into a book and would rather spend it with her family.  Wondering who would look after baby Neal, well Emma would still be around, left holding the baby.  Somehow couldn't picture that.  Rumple even gave Emma the sword, no questions asked, adding she was brave (wrong film/show) and he would part with it cos he wouldn't have to make any such sacrifices.

We get a flashback to Hook when he was a wee lad by the name of Killian and how his father told him he needs to make a choice of the sort of man he wants to be.  Before deserting his two sons and basically selling them off to slave away on a ship.  As Regina takes Hook to the inn where she tells him there's a man he needs to take care of first.  Whereupon he's confronted by a tall man who she knocks down with a spell.  It's the barkeep, none other than his worthless father.  He wants revenge on him too, seems his whole life is one chapter fuelled and filled by revenge after another and it probably started the moment he was sold as a worthless piece of meat, or "soiled" goods!!  Anyway father has a sob story of how he's learned his lesson after falling foul of a sleeping curse, is a changed man and how the woman who nursed him changed him and became his wife, then succumbed to a plague.  They have a son now and Hook ensures safe passage for him and his son by getting them letters of transmit.  For a moment there I thought were magically portalled to Casablanca here!!  Ha.  "Save me Rick..." we need those letters of transit.

As Hook brings them by, he overhears his father tell his son the same thing he told Hook and also hears him call him Liam, which he says was out of honour for his brother and not a betrayal.  Hook can stand his lies no more and actually kills him!  This is the secret he and Regina shared all those years and she tells him not to do the same again.  Not to sacrifice Emma's family like that.  Anyway why did Regina need Hook to kill Cora when she had magic and could've done it herself and as I recall didn't Hook have a thang for Regina too!

In Storybrooke Regina does one final thing in ridding her sister and sending her back to Oz, using that "withered knob of that sad, old man" aka the sorcerer's apprentice, language Zelena!!  (Rebecca Mader) As she tried to cling onto the clock tower for dear life, see everything happens in that clock tower, it may as well be labelled the foreshadowing tower instead or something.

Anyway back at the lake, Hook still wanted revenge on Emma for how she changed him and for saving his life, even when she said she loved him, but that was what he used to say, not so much actually.  Hook then realizes what he's doing wrong and he decides to make the sacrifice himself by taking all of the Dark Ones into the sword and then Emma stabbed him with it.  Kind of defeating the purpose of her saving him to begin with, when all this could've been avoided and heck Merlin would still be around too.  Proving her actions to save her lost love were hasty and pointless (no pun!)  Then Emma transformed back and lost that awful hair, as the paramedics arrived and didn't wonder how he got that gaping wound in his neck which ultimately killed him!  (Again!)

Belle returns and realizes what Gold was doing in sending her away before they had a stint of making up to do.  Emma confronting Gold about what he did when he admits he took apart Excalibur with a spell and still has the dagger, thus becoming the Dark One again, cos it's always about power and never about love and no you can't have both, Gold wanting to remain the Dark One, so much for his pure heart, which he just needed to be saved so he could go back to his evil ways again.  Emma agrees to keep his secret if he takes them to hell,  so she can do a rehash of what Snow did for David (Josh Dallas) by giving him half his heart and bring back Hook to life.

It was good to see how evil Hook was as a pirate cos what's the ultimate thing he could've done to become like that (or even more darker) he got revenge on his father for deserting his children.  A little aside to how Rumple deserted Bae too in the hopes of becoming the Dark One and for power.  Hook's descent into darkness could be understood better with this flashback since he had already killed his father and on top of that we can see why it was so easy for him to have also killed Merlin when he was dark.  Consequently, it was also easy to see why he sacrificed himself, cos killing wasn't an honourable thing to do especially when he had come so far in his transition.  Thus the sacrifice was his one final act of redemption and in turn saving not only Emma but her family too.

The downside of this was that Hook didn't have to make that sacrifice after all and Gold was back as Rumple, though a tad confusing.  His descent from hero to villain once again was as dramatic and as fast as Hook becoming dark.  Hook had his reasons and Gold just wanted power cos he saw what being powerless really meant and how vulnerable he was, at everyone's mercy.

An interesting ending though Emma once again has to suffer Hook dying and as for wielding the sword, this was something she would've wanted Regina to do with the dagger, only she ended up doing that herself.

Once Upon A Time 5.10 "Broken Heart" Review

                                        
This ep shows how Emma (Jennifer Morrison) only became dark after her decision to save Hook and that's understandable as Snow (Gennifer Goodwin) did the same thing, or rather Snow says they did the same and then she gave her heart to save David (Josh Dallas).  Which was a parallel here. Though it seems Hook (Colin O'Donoghue) goes off the rails even more than Emma and so suddenly as he kind of agrees with Zelena (Rebecca Mader) about being dark and living it up.  His darkness however seemed to be more a result of Emma making him become a Dark One when he said he just wanted to die.  She gave him no choice which is what he gave her when he told Snow she'd have to make up her own mind.

Seems Hook was even more prone to darkness after he discovered Emma lied to him about the sword and that she had it all along, probably using it in an effort to control him.  Nice touch watching him emrge from the Dark One's secret lair in his cloak but apparently he didn't get the Crocodile's skin, as Nimue (Caroline Ford) did. What's more he seems to be influenced more by Nimue than Rumple (Robert Carlyle) in his mind.  Since when push comes to shove he took Merlin's (Elliot Knight) heart and he crushed it even though Emma tried to stop him.  This led them back to Storybrooke with another curse which Hook was responsible for this time.  Thus bringing all of Camelot with them and Merida (Amy Manson) too.  Have we finally seen the end of the Camelot story with Merlin's demise now!  Especially since there was no mention of where they'd all vanished too, along with Merida. Emma even warning Hook that if he crushed Merlin's heart then he'd lose his happy ending.

                                         
Eek more purple smoke!!  Curses!
In Storybrooke Hook sets out on the ultimate revenge he waited 300 years for, to kill the Crocodile and in Gold's shop, we get some of the finest acting from Colin when he emulates the mannerisms of Rumple and challenges him to a duel on his ship.  If he can defeat him, Gold'll have Excalibur. Whilst everyone tries to stop this from happening.  Hook even says he would have given up his 'soiled' love Milah if he had won him back then.  So his love is now 'soiled,' a nasty way of describing her, even if he is dark.  Loved also the hair change from his left parting when he's good, to his right parting when Hook is evil.  As well as the change of clothes from the cloak to the usual leathers which Rumple comments on how he also loves leather too.  Hook is hellbent (no pun for future eps) on exacting revenge and treating everyone cruelly, as once was in his nature, so it didn't come as a surprise that he did become dark quickly and even superceded Emma in her darkness when he discovered also that she wasn't really dark at all, but was all this to save him.

Regina (Lana Parilla) thinks Emma should have let him die too but Emma conveniently brings up how Regina saved Robin (Sean Maguire) and used Emma to do it.  As well as Hook taking their memories in the dreamcatchers which he's hidden somewhere.  Leaving Henry (Jared Gilmore) and Emma to come up with Operation Mongoose II to find them and return everyone their memories, cos Emma has a bracelet on her now to stop her magic like Zelena did and Merida's been entrusted to guard her, but she manages to get away when Hook arrives, knocking her out.  Then Hook insulting Emma some more.

As Regina headed to the hospital cos Zelena wanted to see her baby but said baby was with Robin back at the apartment and she'd get to visit her only if one of them was there to supervize.  So said baby still doesn't have a name yet either.  Henry removes Emma's bracelet cos he believes she can help them and they find the dreamcatchers at the clock tower, Hook couldn't find a better place to put them, considering everyone knows that's not such a secret hidey hole anymore.  Remember Regina used to got there a lot in earlier seasons when she was still evil, Zelena went there and even Gold had Hook hostage there when he was about to crush his heart, my how things never change.

Gold wins the duel and even has the sword at Hook's throat, after Hook gave him an even field by removing his limp.  But Hook vanishes in a poof of smoke as per usual.  Rumple heads to the well where he told Belle (Emilie de Ravin) he'd be if she changed her mind and she was there, but decided she couldn't be with him for the millionth time cos he hurt her too many times.  (Still continuing!) Ironically he says his heart is pure now and she knows he's changed.  Emma returned their memories as Hook and Rumple ended up at the lake again as the boatload of Dark Ones approached.  Emma now remembering Hook's going to open a portal to hell. With Nimue leading them as she was the original Dark One.  (And there were some thinking it was Rumple.)

Always great seeing Hook go dark, but somehow they should've fleshed it out more as they did with Emma, cos she was the Dark One for a long time and they could've got much more mileage out of it. Including getting his hair gelled into that style, very fetching it was too love!  Hey I'd like to get my vote in for Colin O'Donoghue for the next James Bond, no really, he's got the looks and he's got the personality to match.  I mean anyone's better than Daniel Craig, but actually Colin would be a good choice.  Plus he's Irish like Pierce Brosnan and those same blue eyes too!

Oh and where's Lily disappeared to, so much for her mentioning her necklace and wanting to find her father.  I say her father was the dragon from Camelot!  Well whilst Camelot is still around who knows, not like there was an abundance of dragons for Maleficent to mate with and procure said human baby!  Who knows!

Think Hook and Regina had similar thoughts when she was implying how Zelena basically seduced Robin as Marion and that was wrong cos it was verging on a criminal act, but also the way in which Hook so vilely described Milah as 'soiled'  Could've used a better word than that!  Not like he was implying she was covered in dirt or anything like that!

Anyway that's why we didn't get to see Merlin finish his voicemail to the others, cos Hook arrived and killed him.  Does he get redemption for the killing though or forgiveness and does he recall doing that, cos no mentions was made of it later.  However it is easy for Hook to go dark so easily cos he loved Emma and yet she not only lied to him and not just about Excalibur, but stealing his memories too and thinking he could remind himself that way.  So if it was so easy why didn't she do the same with her own memory and thus forgetting she was the Dark One and why didn't anyone else think of it.

Mysteries of Laura 2.3 "The Mystery of the Locked Box" Review

                                             
Laura (Debra Messing) investigates the murder of a computer genius, Zac Romero (Christopher Reed Brown) in his penthouse after he's found with several stab wounds.  The dilemma being there's no way in or out without being seen and the apartment is too high for anyone to access it.  No knives are missing and there's plenty of food in the fridge which his mother cooked for him, as well as a Popsicle stick in the bin which the maid (Karina Arroyave) emptied hours before.  He didn't have any in the freezer either.  There's also no phone which Jake (Josh Lucas) suggests Max (Max Jenkins) should trace.  Zac loved Superman and called his place the fortress of solitude.  Which it literally was.  Meredith (Janina Gavankar) has a few ideas being their computer genius and also the concierge says no one entered and Zac didn't leave his apartment as he was the only on with a key.

Santiani (Callie Thorne) wants to know what happened and sends them out on various leads.  Laura speaks with his mother, Rosalie (Linda Powell) and Billy (Laz Alonso) and Meredith talk with Shane (Gabriel Mann) his business partner, who essentially Meredith accuses of being nothing without him. Thought hey Nolan, typecasting here from Revenge, you know computer mogul and all that!  Ha.  He helped Zac move to the apartment cos he had a stalker, Abby Pollard (Rebekah Brockman).
She attacks them with a knife when they see her, registered under 'A Romero' thinking she's his wife. After good cop, bad cop between Laura and Billy, she tells Laura she and Zac had dinner at a Chinese place and they were there for around forty minutes and he always order the no 8.  She only attacked them with the knife cos she thought the killer was after her now.  Abby says a White man in his '40's wearing a baseball cap followed Zac.  Which they see on the jewellery store camera from across the   road.

Laura and Jake attend the autopsy where of course she'd be reprimanded for eating.  Renaldo (Marc Webster) tells them there aren't any prints, hairs or other fibres on the DB and that the knife is too blunt to have been used.  Max finds the stick belonged to an ice cream and that he most likely bought it from a bodega cos it only has his prints on it.  Jake and Laura head there and the owner recalls him. He was nice and he most likely returned to his apartment, Laura had to shop there and is surprised at the high prices, so why shop now then.  He had a secret passageway Zac used so that's why no one saw him come and go.

Jake forgets the conversation they just had in the bodega and Laura tells him they already discussed that.  He takes another pill and checks his heart rate.  Laura reminds him of this at the end and he says he's got a minor heart condition as a result of the shooting and his college doctor friend confirmed it for him, he has to take a pill a day to thin his blood; keeping it under the radar and away from the PD, cos he loves being a detective and being out on the street.  If they knew then they'd stop him from doing this.  Well he could get his office job back as a captain.  (More on this in later eps.)  That involved plenty of sitting around and paperwork.  She does look up memory loss but didn't get much headway with that, being disturbed by Santiani who didn't think his mother was very good if she let him alone in the city at 16.  But Laura says she's a single mother too just like her, though Santiani adds she does have Jake around.

The baseball hat man attends Zac's wake as one of his friend's, Jordan (Bubba Weiler) gives a elegy and the man runs off with Jake in pursuit.  Always a chase in every ep, be it on foot or in car!  He's Zac's father and thinks he can inherit but Jake tells him if he didn't pay any support for 21 years then he can't get any of his money.  His father told him he shouldn't sell the company for nothing which is what Zac wanted to do.  Also Shane has a meeting with a mysterious woman, which Meredith thinks is a date.  At wouldn't you guess it, the restaurant that's Laura's new favourite.  He speaks with Grace (Sejal Shah) who Laura knows cos of the boys and then they see Zac's phone with a Superman cape cover.  Jake gets the phone and Laura arrests Shane.

He has an alibi and he wanted to sell his wifi idea which Meredith gets angry at cos Zac wanted to use it to save the world.  They find Zac had plenty of unanswered e-mails and voicemail where Laura recognizes the wheezing noises were from Jordan.  He also used a drone to get into the apartment and kill Zac cos he didn't help him out and didn't care enough when he told him he was going to kill himself.

For a moment there in the bar, it almost felt like Laura was more worried about what would happen to their children than she was about Jake.  Though he tells her he's fine and he'll pick them up in the morning and drop them off at school.  Also kissing her on the forehead, as well as some hand touching.  Of course, should he be guzzling beer, no, that's not what I was going to say, I was going to say, let's hope this isn't the reason why Laura mellows with him and confronts her feelings for him, out of pity, cos that wouldn't be right, or romantic.

Jake didn't have that much to do in the ep and also Billy disappeared too after a while.  Not much of a surprise with the drone killing cos CSI:NY did something similar years ago using a remote controlled helicopter cos drones weren't that big back then in 1.18 The Dove Commission.

Once Upon A Time 5.7 "Nimue" Review

                                             

1,000 years before Arthur

Merlin (Elliot Knight) roams the desert with an extra who gets blasted into dust after he drinks from a chalice, meant for Merlin, aka the Holy Grail!!  Liberties here with timelines and the like!  He drinks from it and thus gets magical powers.  Starts to help those in need and meets Nimue (Caroline Ford) who wants to plant some flowers, known as middlemist flowers cos Vortigan aka The Dark One (Darren Moore) invaded her village and killed everyone.  She wants the flowers as a reminder of her people and that's her revenge, though she changes her tune later.  Merlin plants said flowers, helps them grow ASAP and then says she can come see them anytime.  Falling in love he says he doesn't want to be with her and then see her die whilst he's still here and he can't make himself mortal or immortal when she suggests she should drink from the grail.

Merlin tells Hook (Colin O'Donohue) he needs the sword if he wants Emma (Jennifer Morrison) to stop being dark.  As he will take Emma on a quest to find the Prometheus flame.  Merlin was also going to use the grail to make a sword and then remove his magic so he could become mortal and get his happy ending. Hook also handing one of his ring necklaces he got from some man to Emma, thought he was going to say it was mine, er I mean Milah's ha!!  Yes so confusing, in my mind, or rather my dreams, I'm his Mila!!! ha.  Okay not going there!!

Merlin forged the sword to be confronted by the Dark One hiding behind a mask cos this seemed like Phantom of the Opera barring the  music as his face was so disfigured.  Anyway he took hold of Nimue but she killed him even after Merlin's protestations and became the Dark One.  But not as pretty as the Crocodile!  After he killed her, unknown to Merlin, she had drunk from the grail so she didn't die.  Also she didn't get poofed into dust either.  Merlin tethered Nimue to the dagger and also put Excalibur into the stone.

Merlin and Emma find the pile of ash and Nimue appears urging Emma to kill Merlin but she fought against it and took Nimue's heart instead which was Prometheus's flame or part of it or something.   Whilst Arthur (Liam Garrigan) concocted a magic potion of acid and will use it on the Storybrookers, as Hook comments it was meant for them, which wasn't used.  Also Nimue put Merlin's name on the sword too.

Back in Storybrooke, Emma having gotten Gold to retrieve Excalibur from the stone, was being watched by countless Dark Ones.  I didn't know what to make of this ep, hence short review cos a lot of it really beggerd belief and had to suspend our belief too when watching.  How this show has come to this, the most boring telling of Arthur and the Camelot legend moulded into OUAT.  Why?
Regina (Lana Parilla) trusting Zelena  (Rebecca Mader) and that she'd actually help them, more like helping herself to get free and meddle some more in their plans.

Emma still making comments to Hook that he wont understand, "working my way back to you."  But he nonetheless doesn't tire of hearing them.  Am missing Hook when he was a lone pirate on the waves, not softened by true lurrve!