Once Upon A Time 7.5 "Greenbacks" Review

                                                 
Victoria (Gabrielle Anwar) decides she'll raise the rent in her continuing spate of bombarding Jacinda (Dania Ramiriz) with everything she can throw at her.  Really that's the sort of example she's setting her granddaughter and yet she feigns to care.  So Sabine (Mekia Cox) gets the idea of making her Beignets and selling them cos everyone loves them.  Thus she convinces Jacinda to let her make them at the chicken shop, eeww salmonella!! Ha.  But they were all burnt and as sis pointed out, I wouldn't even buy them in that condition!! Even Victoria enjoys a burnt offering and schemes to get the business gone by hiring someone to set fire to it.  Obviously it wouldn't be an accident and especially not with the fire engine teaser in the credits at the beginning.  As Hook Rogers (well I like that name so I'm sticking with it) tells Sabine at the end when she brings the station Beignets too (yeah cops and Beignets!) that it wasn't an accident and we know who'd gain by doing this.

Jacinda wants her gone from their apartment cos she's angry after the shop burns down, when is she not, but later changes her mind cos she's always there for her when she needs someone.  Henry (Andrew J West) thinks it's a good idea to get Ivy (Adelaide Kane) on side but Ronnie (Lana Parilla) warns him against it cos she can't be trusted like Victoria and Ronnie is always right, well she's not really Reggie for nothing.  She later deletes texts from his phone when Ivy tells him she's got info for him.  Ronnie also telling him he should steer clear of her romantically and she saw the way Ivy looked at him.  Since there's a perfectly good single mother out there whom he should ask out for a date.  Erm, tried that last ep, almost.  Ronnie follows up on the lead herself and Ivy takes her to the room via the elevator where she finds two cups of 'smelly feet' tea and wonders why have tea here.  Then Ronnie finds the bait that was put there for her in the locker.  Later she shows Henry a photo of her and a boy, but she's never been there and she doesn't know who the boy is.  Henry recognizes him as himself.

Hook (Colin O'Donoghue) brings over some boxes to store at the bar with Ronnie as personal bodyguard to watch over them and mentions a black book he carries around with poetry and the like which he reads when he's feeling down.  He has pics of tats inside and he comes across a man who has a tat of a ship's wheel on his wrist.  He asks about a girl who vanished but he has an alibi.  He is in league with Victoria of course and tells her about Hook.  Ivy later reveals herself to the witch (Emma Booth) and it seems they are both in league against Victoria as she recalls she's actually Drizilla.  Making the witch hide when Ronnie was here.  You see mommie dearest doesn't like Drizilla and Anastasia was her favourite as she tells her "not all daughters are equal."

This ep however was about Tiana and how after her father died, there wasn't much they could do for their kingdom, short of Tiana marrying a prince.  So she goes in search for one, looking for a fortune teller.  Drizilla was there of course looking for some wares to buy from their sale and eyes Tiana's father's medal.  The ruby is meant to be magical.  Tiana doesn't know how it got there but it shouldn't be for sale.  Funny how Drizilla just happened to be there.  She finds the fortune teller who tells her she'll meet a prince and as she heads to the tavern, she's rescued by one Prince Marius (Kevin Ryan) at least he appears to be one.  As they watch the fireflies he tries to steal the ruby and was made to do it but the fortune teller, Dr Facilier (Daniel Francis) in return for his love whom he kidnapped and is holding hostage.  His true love being a frog and can only be cured by true love's kiss.  She takes the ruby to him herself and demands the return of the frog.  He refuses and tries to use her voodoo doll on Tiana but she draws her sword and takes the frog, with him vanishing with the ruby.  Releasing the frog Marius tells her he hasn't been honest with her, not only is he not a prince but he's also a frog.  Thus the story of the frog prince turned around on its lily pad.

Tiana's mother, Eudora (Robin Givens) tells her it wasn't money they needed but her legacy: the medal and this gave her the courage to act.  Anyway as said Hook kinda seemed smitten with her in this realm and will that be carried over to Hyperion Heights, especially as she brought the Beignets to thank him for putting Jacinda onto the impounded truck auction which they can now use for their business.  Hook telling her to clean it out thoroughly!  See like the chicken shop! Ha. 

Just more scenes setting up more questions than providing us with answers in this ep, now Rumples knows who he is, it's revealed Drizilla/Ivy also knows, which doesn't leave up much hope for Hyperion Heights lasting for long.  Was Reggie's and Henry's photo just a ploy on her part for them to rid Victoria and save her the trouble of doing it herself.  As well as Ivy getting closer to Henry.  Was the photo also for Henry to have found rather than Ronnie.  Who is this Dr Facilier, someone who Rumples may know and can use for his own purposes.

The Halcyon Series 1 Episode 6 Review

                                               
October 1940 and it's business as usual, with bombing attacks, making the most of a bad situation.  Emma (Hermione Corfield) is now part of the Woman's Volunteer Service, driving ambulances and helping where needed on the streets after bombings and Lillian (Annabelle Apsion) says she didn't think she'd last but she's proven herself.  Emma also needs to get a uniform, which she has to pay for herself and Joe (Matt Ryan) wonders why she doesn't get a pay advance from her father as he must be proud of her.  Yeah Joe hanging around the staff entrance again!!  She thinks he's looking for a story but he's already on one, she doesn't want to be 'written' about, i.e. mentioned in his radio broadcasts.  Adding "anyone would think you're incapable of finding a story."  Which he responds isn't fair.  Yeah take it back!! ha.  Well for starters would've thought he'd have much more to say than it not being fair, I mean he's more articulate than that!  Silly writers!  Actually he asks if her father's prevented her from signing up and a personal angle would be good.  Yet she and everyone else found a worthwhile job.  Garland (Steven Mackintosh) waited for her all night and he doesn't like her being out on the streets at night.  She wants to carry on with work and asks if anyone's complained about her work at the hotel.

Toby (Edward Bluemel) and Adil (Akshay Kumar) are caught out by D'Abberville (Charles Edwards) knew that was coming as Adil leaves Toby's room and forgets his watch.  Well it was pointless looking out into the hall before he left, if they didn't do that second time round and besides it could've been anyone's watch and Adil could've been there for any reason.  But D'Abberville and his mind of course, always looking for an angle knows otherwise.  So there's no point in Toby and Adil coming up with a story to put him off the scent, cos he was a bloodhound wherever and however his interest may be served.  We saw that in episode 3 with the Comte and how he stood by him until bigger and better came along in the form of Priscilla (Olivia Williams) and Toby.  As he threatens Adil at the end with deportation and being deported for "unnatural acts," how it would be humiliating for his family, seeing as only one of his brother's was born here.  D'Abberville doing his homework.  He wants Adil to get secrets from Toby about his work and Adil tells him Toby wouldn't be so indiscreet.  However Toby would be saved by his mother.  D'Abberville even telling Toby he understands him just to get him on side.  Adil tells D'Abberville Priscilla will find out sooner or later as she's not stupid.  (Episode 8 for our purposes.)

Joe's "professionally irritating" and says Emma doesn't think much of him.  That'll change as he gets to play a hero of sorts when he stays with her later in the night.  No, not in that way.  At least he's a gentlemen towards her, always. Oh heck I said that this review and she repeats that in ep 7!!  Pre-empting again on my part!

Garland buys Emma a uniform and can't believe they must pay for them.  He wants her to take good care of it as it cost a lot.  He's proud of her as he said before in an earlier episode and he tells Peggy (Liz White) he's proud of her now, but he worries waiting for Emma to come back.  When he sees her it's the last time he thinks.  But he should now understand how she feels about Freddie (Jamie Blackley) and how things turned out in the longrun.

Joe is riding with the fire crews and he manages (yeah no coincidence that for our purposes) to be where Emma is stationed and she thinks he's following her for his story.  But out of 400 stations/fire crew, it's unlikely he'd have found her.  As another raid ensues, they're told to evacuate the area  as the fire can't be put out, where a woman asks for help.  She won't leave her mother's DB, as the foxes/dogs got to other DB's and Emma promises to stay with her during the air raid, Mary Elizabeth Shaw, is her name, until they come for her.  Joe helps Lillian take the woman to the centre for treatment.  Then returns for Emma.  She refuses to leave and so he stays with her.  She tells him of her own mother and how she was there when she died, it was expected, she was only 9 but her father was at work.  Also how she grew up with Freddie and when he'd come home from school, she expected him to have the same feelings for her.  Well she and Freddie are destined to be together you see.

They talk of Freddie and how he was right to say what he did about their "different stations" and she's glad Joe did not say "I told you so."  Joe doesn't recall saying that.  Then asks what she'll do when the men come home, asking what her job was before at the hotel.  Hey he can't recall she was a receptionist.  Ahh Joe getting ideas here as he throws off his blanket (Ha and consequences be damned!!)  Joe probably thinking he's got a chance with her.  Thus the love triangle that didn't really transpire.  Especially since she and Joe are meant to be closer in "station" and Joe's more worldly.  He's seen plenty and Emma, is still rather naive.  Lo and behold, the all clear sounds and they must end their little bonding session!

Billy (Ewan Mitchell) brings Kate (Lauren Coe) an orange he managed to get, but she doesn't want to eat it now.  They'll share it tomorrow before her shift, as she kisses him on his cheek!  Heck you know what's coming next.  Forget about Emma and Freddie, or Emma and Joe, as Kate and Billy don't even get off the ground.  Peggy is staying at the hotel temporarily as Priscilla was shown the story in the paper and the picture of her house.  Peggy tells Garland that Billy thought she thought he wasn't good enough for what he did, but he understands now after almost losing Dora (Bella Padden).  Another air raid and this time, Dora finds it hard to sleep as she's been through it before.  But Peggy's with her now.  Also Garland reassures her by telling her that the sound she hears is Billy in Hyde Park, with the 'Ack Ack' guns.  Peggy adding he's protecting them, which he was.  Kate waits for Billy the next morning but he doesn't show up, as Joe and Emma return, her mentioning how he's educated.  The kitchen is deserted and she finds out Billy didn't make it.  It was a parachute mine as Garland tells the others.  Peggy is distraught and has to be alone to let her emotions out.  The same with Emma, but Joe's there for her and she actually hugs him back.

Everyone also seeing Freddie's photo on the front page of the paper earlier on as 'Heroes Of the Sky.'  Priscilla telling D'Abberville, as if he's interested that she encouraged Freddie to fly and join the RAF as she had a passion for flying.  Her father was in the navy.  D'Abberville feigning to understand her.  In the cellar, everyone sees her and D'Abberville on beds next to each other.

Sonny (Sope Dirisu) finds out about Betsy (Kara Tointon) leaving for another singing gig and she won't tell him why.  So as the air raid was ongoing he refused to leave and played piano, as did she.  Telling him she's had men from here every night, but he's good and he's had only respectable women who go to church.  He tells her he likes her, loves her.  He even recalls the date they met on 6 June 1938, she sang for him for two years now.  She can't believe he feels anything for her.  Singing "the West End is the best end."  They get together right there in that ballroom, obviously no one was going to disturb them.  Sonny telling her no one should know about them, but she "don't give a fig" if they do.

Plenty to take in this ep with their lives all intersecting with each other in some small way.  D'Abberville finding the right time to pounce and make a fortune for himself using blackmail, neither caring about his country or fellow countrymen, certified Nazi that he is.  No, so not right for Priscilla and she's just been duped into thinking he actually feels anything for her.  More feelings at play here too with Emma opening up to Joe after showing her disdain for him all this time.  Which was just a front she put up.  But Emma doesn't know who she wants as she tells Joe about Freddie showing she does have real feelings for him, cos why else mention another man to Joe.  Then again Joe did that too last ep with his admiring him in his uniform and how she was the one who said they weren't right for one another.  "Not suited!"  Though it was more or less than a 400 per cent chance that Joe would end with the same fire crew as Emma, so much for saying it, cos that's what happened.  Besides if Emma hadn't told Joe he can't find "stories outside of these walls" then he wouldn't have met her on the street and kept her company!
Oh stop calling Joe's broadcasts "cringeworthy" silly critics know nothing about cringeworthy.  I shouldn't have to defend him every ep!!

At least the emotional scenes were done well with Peggy rescuing one child, only to lose another.  One she thought would be safer at home than away.  But she was right, Billy was protecting them that night and every night like nameless and countless others.  As The Halcyon suffers its first casualty: one of their own and as Garland said it often enough "we look out for our own."  Not quite this time.

Longmire 5.8 "Stand Your Ground" Review

                                            
Walt (Robert Taylor) confides in Vic (Katee Sackhoff) about the whole Irish mobster confrontation after Knighthorse (A Martinez) shows him a stake and an IRA flag at his house reading
"Tiocfaidh ar la" meaning, "Our day will come."  With a trail of $100 chips leading to it.  Walt thinks Knighthorse is covering his back but he insists he's got nothing to do with them and now they're out to get him.  Walt thinks he may have set himself up as a target along with Knighthorse when he spoke with Shane Muldoon (Dylan Walsh) and told him to stay out of his county.  Knighthorse adamant he does not do business with Manifest Destinations and he cancelled their contracts and ended any dealings with them.  Knighthorse says Walt told him that his land is bordering in his county so that's why he called him and not Mathias (Zahn McClarnon).  Besides what can Mathias do against the mob when the drugs are affecting Absaroka, even though they did find their way onto the Res cos of Malachi (Graham Greene).  Walt tells Vic he took time out to go to Boston and confronted Muldoon to either get outta his county or he would turn him in to the FBI.  But he can't follow through on that cos there's leak in the FBI. 

Walt gets a call on Vic's phone and obviously it's about Cady (Cassidy Freeman) and the shooting.  She and Asha (Chelsea Kurtz) are taken in for questioning by Mathias.  Cady warn Asha not to speak without a lawyer and Mathias tells her they're not suspects or arrested, it's not an interrogation, they're only making a statement.  Cady asks for a phonecall and later Kevin Morris (Currie Graham) turns up, Knighthorse's lawyer.  He asks what happened and reluctantly she relays the facts to him and cos JP was a white man, as was she, white that is, not a man; then the 'king of the castle' defence will come into play.  Even though the shooting took place on the Res and the house did belong to someone else, it was still seen as a residence.  He asks if Asha will back her up and Cady says she will.  Adding she saved her life and let's not forget she saved her own life too, more than Asha's. 

Walt wants the fingerprinting and swab taking to be stopped and tells them she doesn't have to do that.  Henry (Lou Diamond Phillips) tells Mathias they went to the hospital cos Walt thought Cady had been shot and he could've told them that.  Mathias's excuse of having so many things to do.  Walt takes Cady home and isn't happy that Knighthorse's lawyer is representing her.  He says it's Knighthorse's fault this happened and if she didn't work for him and listened to Walt this wouldn't have happened.  But Cady's in no mood for a lecture after what she's been through and Walt should've just been a father in that moment and comforted her.  Morris tells Cady that the DA accepted the defence and he's that good, so she won't be charged.  Also Asha won't be a witness cos JP died.  At the office she finds a line of people wanting her help and Mandy (Tamara Duarte) takes it upon herself to act as her assistant and took $20 retainer from them all.  She shot a white man so she can't be all that bad is their thinking.  Cady can't deal with them now and walks out.  Wanting to speak with Asha who wants nothing to do with her.

Walt tells Vic and Ferg (Adam Bartley) to find any new people coming into the towns from Boston and Vic and Ferg divide the areas up after Vic loses her cool with Ferg, over not knowing if she's pregnant or not.  As they follow some men they find out about, Vic buys a pregnancy test.  Yeah could that shop keeper be any louder!!  Ain't it always the way.  They do the same thing with sanitary products, when they're the ones who get embarrassed by them also! 

Walt returns and tells them about Cady and looks at their photos.  He tells Vic he's hired Eammon (Josh Cooke) to look out for Knighthorse and he sees the photo of a man's back.  Obviously that was Muldoon and he's checked into the motel under the name of Knighthorse's business partner before he killed himself and used Knigthhorse's old name before he changed it.  He gets into Knighthorse's motel room and someone slips a note nunder the door.  Meeting Shane, he thanks him for the trout and says he should've bought lobsters with him.  He says he and Walt had an understanding, informal and he weighed it up and the profits aren't enough for him to stay in Absaroka, so he's taking business elsewhere.  Also showing him a photo of Eddie, whom he says he took care of and he can't squeal to the FBI now.  Walt mentions being the target and Muldoon says he'll leave him alone, mentioning Cady and Vic, who he says he probably left the envelope with.

Henry calls Cady and says he wants to see her and give her something if he can find it.  Stroke of genius luck, he finds the eagle feather, but also the ledger when he sees the painting is hanging crooked in the Red Pony office.  Here he finds the ledger choc full of Manifest Destinations entries and others too.  He goes to see Knighthorse and Eammon accosts him cos he won't tell him what's in his bag.  Henry tells Knighthorse, "I've been racially profiled."  He shows him the ledger and now they have Malachi where they want him.  However Malachi tries to get one better on them when he tells Walt it was all Knighthorse and although he told the mob he wouldn't deal with them, he sent Malachi back to make a deal.  Walt doesn't know what to think now and he tells Walt to meet him later at night and he'll give him proof.

As Walt confronts Knighthorse again and accuses him of mob dealings, they're shot at and Eammon is shot in the knee.  With Walt getting wt having to get him out of the pool!  Ahh a wet Walt and still with his shirt on!!  Ha.  Knighthorse pulls out his gun and he goes after the shooter.  Ferg finds bullet casings in a patch nearby.  As Walt says when Ferg was shot there were plenty of casings scattered everywhere, but here they're all in one place.  He doubts if Knighthorse is lying after all.  Henry is given a gun by Knighthorse as they confront Malachi and he tries to convince Henry it was all Knigthhorse, as he tried with Walt.  He's more Indian than the two of them put together.  Knighthorse talks of banishment from the land for wrongdoings and tells Malachi not to return here.  He cuts Malachi's face so everyone will know what he's done.  Henry finally gets him to sign the Red Pony back over to him.  As Walt gets ready to meet Malachi.  He puts on a vest and Vic follows him too, telling him he should be careful and with the mob after him, he didn't notice he was being followed.  Walt says he's doing things differently now cos the old ways and doing things the same way doesn't work anymore.  She grabs a vest and comes with him too.

Henry asks Mathias for the gun and says he's done him enough favours and wants this one in return.  Mathias adding he owes him another favour now.  He puts the eagle feather on the gun and returns it to Cady.  Saying that in his tribe feathers are handed down to families and he wants her to have it cos she's his family.  I said that, he's there for her more than Walt, as he doesn't let her be her own person.  Yes he cares and he worries but sometimes that's just not enough.  As she tells hims he wanted him to help her serve the order on JP but he didn't help her.  Vic speaks with Eammon and he's looking for other work.  She wants to know what he thinks about them and you know she wants to tell him about the baby. 

Well everything was happening in this ep and even if it seemed like things were moving too fast, you did get satisfaction at Malachi being sent packing and Henry getting his place back.  But wondering what Walt will do now as he told Henry he wouldn't wait long for this to happen.  He can't get hold of Malachi now can he.  What's the mob going to do with Malachi, if anything, since he didn't deliver on Hector and ridding him.  But can't help and think Muldoon isn't really gone like that.  Still two more eps to wrap things up for this season.  Still have Walt's lawsuit to go yet.  But Walt seems to dredge up trouble wherever he goes, even if he doesn't go looking for it, he finds it anyway.

Once Upon A Time 7.4 "Beauty" Review

                                             
Where we find what happened to Belle (Emilie De Ravin) and where it all comes together for Rumples, finally being able to be a match, or more than, for Victoria (Gabrielle Anwar) and she can no longer threaten him and have a hold over him.  Following on the heels of my last ep review, where I said he knows much more than is going on here and with the curse, which was kinda captured here in this episode, where there were still moments where you thought he actually did know.

It's Hallowe'en and Jacinda (Daniela Ramiriz) drops off Lucy's (Alison Fernandez) costume and wants to go trick and treating with her, but that's been tasked to Ivy (Adelaide Kane) who really doesn't want to go but is lumbered cos she doesn't want to face Victoria's wrath.  Of course Lucy manages to trick (no pun) her and run away from her.  Jacinda can't go find her but Henry (Andrew J West) offers to if she texts him her fave places.  Of course that wasn't the reason why Henry was there, it was to ask her out since Ronnie (Lana Parilla) gave him some words of wisdom and encouragement, dressed as Marilyn Monroe, if that don't beat all!  After Henry tells her about his family and finding their graves in the cemetery.  She says you don't forget the dead, but then again you've got to live too.

Sort of summed up this ep really especially as far as Rumples (Robert Carlyle) and Belle's story was concerned.  We find them in the other realm bringing up Gideon from a baby, to teen, to adult, as he shows his love of books like his 'scholarly' mother and heads off to find his own way in the world.  Belle telling Rumples they've go to let him go, even if Rumples wanted him around for longer.  They had him for 18 years and how those 18 years went on in years with Belle getting older and ageing, whereas Rumples staying the same, being immortal.  He tries to rid his dagger so that he too can grow old with her, but finds it returned to him .  Of course Rumples gave Belle a book of travels cos he wanted her to travel as a family and keep a record of their memories.

Back in Hyperion Heights, Weaver gives Tilly (Rose Reynolds) an orange marmalade sandwich, she wears a rabbit's mask, so tea party must be involved (treading into Paddington Bear territory.)  It's Hallowe'en and she tells him how everyone's wearing masks.  He doesn't get it or the allusion.  Tilly then does a silly thing by hiding in Victoria's car telling her the jig's up and about them not belonging in Hyperion Heights.  She leaves her backpack behind, which Victoria shows Weaver, as well as the pill she's not taking.  Pills that Tilly tells Weaver later will shrink her.  (As she shrunk when she drank the drink in Alice in Wonderland.)  Victoria wants Weaver to make sure she takes the pills otherwise he'll pay, but he says she's his informant.  Yeah well he will, but Victoria'll be the one getting payback later.

He meets with Hook Rogers (Colin O'Donoghue) who tells him he doesn't care about anyone anymore not even wanting to deal with Tilly.  She shows him the Rubik's cube which she has peeled stickers from it and she says she'll show him why they're all wearing masks.  Taking her there, he tells her to eat and she eats the sandwich which contains her pills.  Getting to the place before she's affected by her pills. She shows him the teacup which means nothing to him.  Of course it's also significant for Alice too, re the tea party.  Rumples doesn't recall and she reminds him he was the one who told her about the cup and said she should let him know about it.  It's not the chipped cup, but Chip the cup!  At least it appeared to be.

Belle says she came across something in a book about the edge of the realm where the sun sets and they go there.  This is where she wants to build her home, which they do over the years and live their lives.  Eventually Belle grows older and dies, telling Rumples he will find her again and she will wait for him.  Thus he's the way he is now as Weaver.  He tries to take her back but she pulls out the gun and shoots him.  She didn't tell him the meaning about what she found; but it wasn't to find the setting sun but the brightest sun and that was Belle herself.

Ahh Belle tells him he will get rid of the dagger one day and she'll be waiting for him.  Telling him the story of their love and how she fell in love with the Beast.  Ah, did anyone miss Rumple's long hair and Rumples as Rumples, dearie?!!  Tilly even calls him Rumpelstiltskin.  In the other realm as Gideon (Giles Matthey) returns home; he wants to take the dagger from him and become the Dark One, but Rumples knows of a guardian who can take it from him and that's who he must find.  Guardian?  Then of course Gideon did become the Dark One in Storybrooke.  Rumples leaves the realm and presumably enters the other realm, but he runs into Alice, as Henry speeds by on his bike.  That wasn't some foreshadowing moment since Rumples just mentioned the Guardian?

Ivy cries at not being able to find Lucy and how Victoria will be angry at her.  Henry telling her he's lonely too and they both find Lucy, who lets Jacinda have Hallowe'en with her and Henry too, Lucy wanting them to paint her face and Henry will help as it's a family tradition!  Funny line Ivy says to Henry about being self-published and he says he was actually paid for the book!!

Hook Rogers playing chess with Alice at the hospital and when he picks up the chess piece, another clue but he's forgotten about that.  Obviously Tilly/Alice isn't his daughter, but was just some more for us to ponder.  But hey 'Hook Rogers in the Twenty-First Century' could catch on.  Yeah my very bad joke!  I miss the way he used to say "luv and bloody hell" needed that added and said a few times.  Rumples doesn't want Tilly arrested and puts it down to an armed robber, he needs her to find Belle and he sees Belle as he lies unconscious, then waking up.  As for Victoria he calls her 'dearie' but she doesn't really react to it, either not giving herself away that she knows who he is, or more that she can't control him anymore.

Ivy buys Henry a drink at the bar and thanks him for helping her.  Henry didn't go out with mother and daughter, is there hope for Ivy or is she making a play for Henry, well, gotta ask.

So that was our fond farewell to Belle, sad but a way to get Weaver to realize who he is and find a way to get them out of the curse and away from Victoria's evil scheming.  Maybe we'll get to see what happened to Snow and Charming too as they were main characters for 6 seasons.

The Halcyon Series 1 Episode 5 Review

                                         
September 1940

Garland (Steven Mackintosh) traverses the streets.  Yay it's legal London again with Garland walking on what is Middle Temple Lane and round the corner to his left, as we see his back, is Inner Temple! To his right is Middle Temple Library.  I should take some pics of where they filmed these scenes and post them sometime.  Alas I wasn't around when they filmed this!!  Darn it again!!

Retribution for the Great War as Freddie puts it at the end: the way they were attacked during the day by the bombing and later again.  Which could sum up this episode in many ways.  We get to see Garland's past as he has flashes back to his time in the First war and how he saved a deserter from being shot by his superior.  The only thing he thought he could do.  Which coincided with this episode in particular and his day off which he chooses to spend by firstly fixing Peggy's (Annabelle Apsion) leaking sink and giving her water on tap.  That was a pointless task for the events that followed and he sees her daughter, Dora (Bella Padden).  Who shows Ada (Joann Condon) the neighbour looking after her, and Garland how she hides when there's a raid, under the table.  Though not much practical use.  Of course that was only foreshadowing of what was to come.  Garland and Peggy leave as she buys a present for Dora's birthday at the post office.  Garland's past catches up to him.  As the many faceted character we learn is actually named Sam and the man he rescued, Douglas (Tim Plester) meets him outside.  Garland denying who he is, stating his name is Richard.  Obviously Douglas wasn't going to take that from him considering he would remember the man who saved him.  As said, not a coincidence this happened in this episode the way it did.  This one clearly being a Garland episode.

There's a wedding at The Halcyon and Emma (Hermione Corfield) is left to deal with it, as well as the fall out from her own life and fall out there was, literally and otherwise.  Priscilla (Olivia Williams) feels Toby should get acquainted with Lady Teresa (Alice Bailey Johnson) as he was always awkward around girls and spelling it out, they'd be a perfect match.  As once again she dresses for the wedding, she invites D'Abberville (Charles Edwards) as her guest and even if it wouldn't be appropriate as he says people will think he's after ere money, she insists.   Especially as she has money, plenty of it.

Freddie (Jamie Blackley) is best man and he confides in Toby (Edward Bluemel) about being hit during a fight and how his plane was being downed and all he could think of was Emma, luckily he caught some wind and returned.  Now he thinks they shouldn't be together as it will only bring them hurt, especially Emma but it should've been her choice to make, whether he's part of her life in the romantic sense or not, she will still think of him and be hurt by him no matter what happens, since she does love him and that's the sort of person she is.  But Daddy Garland threatens Freddie at the end for what he's done to her and treated her that way, so if he ever comes near her again he'll deal with him, regardless of status or his position.  And you know from his past, he will put his words into practice.

Betsy (Kara Tointon) finds Sonny's (Sope Disiru) pawn shop receipt in his tux as he puts it around her shoulders as the air raid siren sounds.  He wasn't even wearing his tux so why even put it in there.  It would've been safer in his other suit instead of carrying it around, where she conveniently finds it.

Peggy decides she can't stay in the air raid shelter and needs to find Dora, he'd do the same for Emma.  Also as a way for viewers to see some of the tragedy on the streets.  But not before Douglas speaks with Garland in the shelter and asks if he still thinks about him.  The officer (Jonathan Christie) he shot, but he doesn't.  He wouldn't.  But Douglas does.  He doesn't like how his life's turned out, even if Garland saved him, he's not knocking that, but Garland's a manager and he's nothing really and he wants Garland to help him.  Why?  He saved his life, he doesn't owe him anything to live it for him or what he does with it.

As Garland passes when a bomb hits, he recalls they covered the officer with leaves and took their chances as deserters.  They'd be seen as MIA, or dead but it would be a new start for them and they had to get back.  Peggy manages to find Dora as her house suffered from the blast and she manages to free herself from under the table with Garland's help.

As the air raid sirens blast Joe (Matt Ryan) asks if Emma's not going down into the shelter, she replies anyone who wants to go can.  Joe adding it's business a usual then and she tells him of the story of the boy who cried wolf.  Joe recalls the wolves entered the village.  She sends the staff down and Chef (Gordon Kennedy) and Max (Nico Rogner) don't go.  Instead Max has a panic attack, or fit as Chef tells him he know 7 September is his daughter's birthday and he lashes out, until he gives in.  As they bond over icing the wedding cake, he thinks his family may be interned on the coast like everyone else and so he needs to find out.  Apologizing for losing it.  Toby tries to escape the advances of Teresa and ends up with Adil (Akshay Kumar) in the pantry, as Toby covers his mouth and hides behind the wall. Cue Adil kissing him.  Later he says he will resign f he wants him to, but Toby, who can't tie his tie now, says he's meant to be clever and now he understands everything, as they kiss some more.  No class distinctions there like Freddie made excuses to Emma about.

Freddie is paid a visit by Celina (Georgia Maguire) Stanislav's widow and she says he's not gone but he's dead, as Freddie uses the phrase of being gone.  Thinking what he did was worthless.  She gives him Stanislav's cross and later this makes Freddie think of the futility and uncertainty of what he does and how he can't keep Emma hanging on that way.
Freddie: "love doesn’t change.  It will last no matter what obstacles face us, because it is ours and ours alone.  We are defined by those who love us and whom we choose to love in return."

The wedding guests are perturbed at having to sit in the shelter for the reception and Lady Ashworth (Fenella Woolgar) tells Priscilla that D'Abberville is too young for her.  Also letting slip how she knew about Lord Hamilton's dalliances and didn't say anything.  Well the wife's always the last to know.  This makes her determined to 'get it on' with D'Abberville and they share a bed together, as well as a dance at the reception.

"The Emma and Joe playbook on pick up lines and dating."  No, seriously there'd be something in that especially as how she comes up with those one liners, as does he and that much more.  In the final scene with Emma as she watches Freddie drive away and Joe saying how he even thinks Freddie looks good in a uniform.  She replies it's not like that and then he mentions the disaster bit.  And her retort of how it  must be good being so all-knowing.  See it's that love/hate thang going on already.  Yet you know Emma will always have eyes and heart for Freddie.  Regardless of being worlds apart, the world was changing and especially for people who were young like her and Freddie.  As Peggy tells Garland, she envies Emma as she's got more choices to make, war aside and not just the ones of getting married and having children as soon as she was old enough.  As Joe can't believe "the bastards came back, using the fires as goddamn guidelines."  Referring to the Germans attacking again of course, not Freddie!  Ha.
Joe says she's gonna miss him.  She replies, "no, they're not suited."
Joe: "guess not, he's an aristo, you're staff it's a dictionary definition of a disaster waiting to happen."
Emma: "it must be wonderful being so wise Mr O'Hara."
Joe and the looking good in uniform remark, ha, kinda flashback to Downton Abbey and Thomas! If you get my meaning!!

No radio broadcast for Joe this episode and you'd have expected it especially since they were bombed twice in the same day/night and Joe saying it was really bad out there, terrible, even the sky's on fire."  Yet his words didn't light up the airwaves this episode particularly as he's "seen nothing like it" before.  Alas that was left to Freddie to say in some ways as he talks of  love during the best man's speech.  Yet at this point he's broken up with Emma.  Who does a lot of turning around and walking out of and away from rooms.

As for the break-up speech it's more along the lines of how their worlds are different and it wouldn't work out between them, he can't tell her the truth.  Though he could say how they have to be honest with each other.  He wasn't and she didn't do anything about it, but just accepted it and gave up.  As if it was easier to move on to bigger and better.  Not that that's a bad thing as far as Joe is concerned (my bias aside) but she should've fought for her feelings and not get trampled on by him cos he's suddenly discovered status.  That was even before Garland told Freddie he'd threaten him, irrespective of Freddie's status and boy would he, especially when he didn't have any remorse over shooting that officer.  Who also had status!

Longmire 5.7 "From This Day Forward" Review

                                                
Walt (Robert Taylor) piles Rainier cans on top of one another building a tower as he and Donna (Ally Walker) ponder the next step of their relationship, which I wouldn't really call burgeoning!  As he says the cans will warn him if anyone opens the door or breaks it down, in the throes of passion, somehow I don't think so!  As they make their way into the bedroom, he forgets the rifle and then leans it against the bed, so it falls and goes off.  He then decides he'd have more luck acting like a teenager and takes Donna to a secluded patch in the Bronco, where the view has more exciting prospects on offer.  Another awkward moment as there's not enough room and no one can get a leg over.  Guess that idea was abandoned then.  As Walt is called to a CS or potential CS.

Two treasure hunters have found a DB in the hollow of a tree and they think he was there hunting for treasure as written in a poem, which is available on line and it mentions Absaroka County.  Walt is shown the poem by Jim (Don Swayze).  As the DB is pulled out there's no treasure or ID and Walt notices the tattoo on the DB's arm, "Tizz."  Vic (Katee Sackoff) arrives eating a bagel and says they finally have a bagel shop.  Walt recognizes the name and questions Tizz, who is Elizabeth and was given that name in college.  He was her husband, Tony and her mother, Nancy (Bess Armstrong) basically says good riddance to a gold digger, as she should never have married him to begin with.  Vic feeling queasy now and somehow you know it's not cos of the bagel either!  She later gets lots of ginger ale and a pregnancy test which she throws away.  After she throws up on Spence's (Jake B Miller) sandals.  Eeww when will they stop having those scenes, I mean there was a river right behind her.

Walt does a search on the two treasure hunters, one's a professor of modern poetry, Tom (Mike Damus) and Jim is in a newspaper headlines.  His investigation leading him to some firemen, Raul (Joey )Abril who the treasure hunters mention.  He was in a gang and they're all from LA so that they keep out of trouble by learning something.  Raul says he was also part of a gang and he reformed after he came here.  Which should've sent flashing lights to Walt but didn't.  His boss, Hal (Matthew Alan) mentions Tony and he kinda knows him cos he was worthless and no good to his wife.  They had a party at the house and Raul recalls that too, the rich people.  Again it was pretty strange that they both know him but wouldn't really say much, though Raul kept giving lots away by being a little too helpful and also he knew too much about the hollow tree and how they must've lowered ropes down to put the DB in.  Just like he was giving a play by play account of something he'd dome.  So immediately you get Nancy and him as the suspects.

Walt sends Ferg (Adam Bartley) to Colorado Springs to check out Tony's house and he takes Meg (Mary Wiseman) with him, buying her a Colorado Springs watch, which she loves.  At his house he breaks the door down (show off ha!) and the place is completely empty aside from the bed and Ferg finds a mini Eiffel Tower.  He also tells Walt he should've told him about Meg but he didn't spend the County's money on her.  Walt also mentions to Vic that he's settling the lawsuit (guess his attorney hasn't broken the news to him yet - what's he doing?) and she tells him that's not like him. 

The Eiffel Tower is a charm from a bracelet and Nancy was wearing that so she was either sleeping with him, which she resents, cos she hated him, well you know what they say about love and hate being close emotions, or she got someone to do the dirty deed, which is more her style.  She tells Tizz that Tony told her he'd take her inheritance and had hired a lawyer and she couldn't let him do that, even if Tizz still loved him.  He didn't want her and Spence told Vic that Tony was nothing more than a gold digger and was having an affair, that's how he met Tizz in the first place.  He went after her.  Walt arrests Raul who says that was him all those years ago but he's changed now.  Yeah a little too late.  As for the treasure Walt tells that there's some mountains called the same, Absaroka, but they're pronounced differently, so there's no treasure in the county and the poem had more syllables in that line.

Walt organizes another date with Donna and she invites shim to her place cos they'd have more room.  Walt spills wine and she should've got beer.  He says it's corny but he and his wife waited til they got together and he'd rather just watch a movie.  So what's with the Bronco scene and re-living his teems.  Hmm so he was reckless as a teen, but when he met his wife he wanted to wait until marriage.  Well okay it would make it that much more special then.  Donna understands and he mentions she just got him here to get him drunk.

Cady (Cassidy Freeman) has her own problems with Asha (Chelsea Kurtz) and JP (Roderick Hill) and he doesn't stick to the restraining order.  As he calls her and leaves a message saying he's sorry and wants her back.  Cady gets clothes from Asha's house and under the pretence of telling him what he shouldn't do.  She then sees booze bottles around the place and he gets violent after she leaves.  He later comes for her and he shows her a pin from AA showing his sobriety.  Cady tells Asha that it's a one year pin and you don't get it until one year has passed.  What was he doing trying to fool a lawyer. 

She asks Henry (Lou Diamond Phillips) if he had a woman stashed here when Walt came to search for her and he asks how she knows that.  It was when her and Walt used to talk.  Cady wants him to look after Asha at his apartment since she wants a new start and wants to feel safe, which as Hector he would offer but he can't tell her who he is.  Later JP returns with a gun after drinking and threatens them.  He disconnects the landline and Cody manages to load the rifle Nighthorse gave her.  Yet she didn't expect trouble from an outsider rather than Natives on the Res.  She manages to shoot him once and then he comes at her again.  More shots are fired.  I was thinking Henry would've come and rescued her.  But as 911 wasn't available she should've known to call Walt before 911.

Didn't much like this ep and it ranks as my least fave out of all 5 seasons which must be saying something.  It was kinda routine case with obvious suspects and you knew JP would return and show what he's like again, which Cady should've been more observant of.  How come that kitchen didn't have another door or a window they could've gotten out of, well a window big enough, sure there was one there.  Seems like Walt and Donna aren't destined to be together since there doesn't appear to be much chemistry there any longer.  The title referring to JP telling Asha what she vowed and also kind of an allusion to Walt and Donna and yet...

Once Upon A Time 7.3 "The Garden of Forking Paths" Review

                                             
Cinderella (Daniela Ramiriz) is caught by a guard who says she's a murderer and leaves behind her slipper so she can be rescued by Henry (Andrew J West).  As her fairy godmother, Princess Tiana (Mekia Cox) arrives to save her.  She says she left her slipper behind and they make their escape on Henry's motorbike.  Tiana takes her back to their camp where Cinderella changes to more appropriate low cut attire and a man, Jeremiah (Richard Newman) comes by with a pair of boots for her as he was once a cobbler.  He is a true believer.  Henry arrives with Reggie (Lana Parilla) and Hook (Colin O'Donoghue) introducing Reggie as his mother and she assumes Hook is his father.  Hook kinda took a shine to Tiana didn't he, the way he looked at her.  Tiana's ears perking when she hears Reggie knows magic cos Victoria (Gabrielle Anwar) is amassing magic of her own.  Cinderella sneaks out to Victoria's mansion and is curious to see what is in the box there.  As Cinderella confronts Victoria over killing her father and saying what happened wasn't her fault.  Victoria opens up the coffin and shows her Anastasia inside.  She has one last breath left which she wants to use to bring her back.  She needs the heart of a true believer and this is Henry.  She enchants Cinderella's hand so that she can pluck it from his bosom.  Well I had to try and be poetic in some way!

Back at camp, Cinderella tries to take his heart but she can't.  Instead she tries to take the heart of  Jeremiah who is also a believer and Reggie stops her.  Telling her own story of how she was like that once and she learnt to overcome it.  No life is worth the sacrifice, whether innocent or not.  She tells Cinderella to forgive herself for what happened to Anastasia.  (Think Snow here and how she gave away Reggie's true love, Daniel and her mother killed him.  Similar parallels here.) Reggie warns Tiana of Victoria's trap and she's waiting them saying she used a spell to find this out and so they can't attack her.

Back at Hyperion Heights, Ronnie, Hook and Henry plot against Victoria some more.  But you know their plans will always backfire for the foreseeable future at least it seems that way.  As Hook says he will see what Victoria is doing and stake her out, after Ronnie tells him she overheard a crooked city planner talk of something Victoria is planning.  Ronnie will continue listening to her customers as is a bartender's lot and Henry's never been on a stake out and wants to go with Hook.  However Hook tells him research will come in handy.  On his stake out, he sees Victoria hand over an envelope to the man, yeah cos out in public was the best place to do this.  But it's okay for her since no one is going to challenge or accuse her of anything. 

Hook (Rogers) finds the man at the restaurant and brings him taking the envelope from his pocket.  Liked the way he flashed his badge ha!  However when he returns he sees Weaver (Robert Carlyle) giving him his card and letting him go.  Weaver tells Hook he's got him working for him now so when Victoria's up to anything new he'll tell him.  Dealing with Victoria requires some "finesse."  Hoping Hook will enjoy his day off.  So much for the 'being at court and dealing with parking tickets' story.  Still can't see if Rumples, er, Weaver is weaving some evil or not yet. 

Jacinda finds that Victoria intends to bulldoze the garden and build condos and Lucy isn't happy about it.  So Jacinda takes Ronnie's idea of seeing how they can challenge any building plans by getting a petition signed.  Noticing Henry at the bar as an afterthought.  However Victoria shows her the development and says she can have a condo too with Lucy if she gets rid of the petition, which she does.  She burns it and Lucy tells her she's a hero and is meant to act like one.  She doesn't want to be with her.  At the site, the bulldozer hits solid ground and Lucy tells Henry that Victoria must be after something more.  Jumping into the newly dug hole, Henry has no choice but to follow and she finds a piece of glass which she says belongs to her mother.  Again telling Henry about the curse. 

Lucy later gives Henry the slipper after Jacinda gets people to sign the petition all over again saying she made a mistake and now she wants to save the garden.  Lucy also telling Henry he didn't find his family at the cemetery since they're right here in front of him.  Henry later visits a cemetery and finds a grave belonging to Abigail Mills.  Victoria has the coffin here and she has a woman in chains in
the building.  That lift reminded me of the lift at the library in Storybrooke.  She's a witch (Emma Booth) and she wants her to bring Anastasia back to life.  She asks her about using Lucy to get her back and says she will still answer to her for this.  Thought hey, she can't be Hook's daughter can she?  Well the thought crossed my mind seeing as she was meant to be kept captive in chains somewhere. 

This heart mythology sure does get around doesn't it.  It's a wonder Victoria didn't rip Cinders' heart out with the magic, instead of getting her to take Henry's.  So isn't Cinders' a true believer, even if Henry is purer than her.  Missing the days when Reggie used to do that though.  Cinders now takes over as the idealistic Snow, but somehow Snow had more going for her in that department!  Reggie and Hook in colour co-ordinating tops!!