Without a doubt, this was one of my favorite episodes of Once Upon a Time in season 1.

A Story of Independence

Meghan Ory was absolutely amazing in this episode of Once Upon a Time. The soft curls and gorgeous red cloak that Ory wore in fairytale land showed how absolutely and naturally beautiful she is.

Granny, what a big shotgun you have!

Maybe it was an arrow. But Granny was just as badass as Red! I have to say it’s a bit hard to believe that (the overprotective!) Granny has never fired Ruby before. I mean, for her outfit alone! (It’s just so damn short.)

Merging Tales

In the fairy tale world, we got to see Red help out Snow White. (Bonded instantly! But I wonder why Snow later goes to hide in the woods, does she get recognized?) Then the pair went hunting down the wolf. I enjoyed this so much because it reminded me of Rose Red and Snow White, which is a tale we’ll likely never see on Once Upon a Time, so Red shall take both roles in my mind!

Meanwhile, in Storybrooke, Ruby got to go “hunting” for David along with Emma. Ruby can still easily track and hunt, which was empowering for her. Seems like Ruby didn’t feel very independent.

The Twists

The twist! Oh, can we talk about the twist now? I did not see it coming. Red was the wolf! Everything lined up to Peter! (Peter and the Wolf, hello!) And then the show went so far as to have her kill him. Heartbreaking. (The episode did remind me a bit of the Amanda Seyfried movie “Red Riding Hood”, didn’t it?)

The other twist in this episode involved the box that Ruby found by the Toll Bridge. Inside was a heart, which we know is the Mayor’s M.O. So, intstead of figuring out whether or not Mary Margaret is guilty, it seems much more like we are meant to see how the Mayor framed her. Next week we’re also meant to see Snow’s dark side! Fun.

Jane Espenson, Writer Extraordinaire

Writer Jane Espenson did a fantastic job, with plenty of great quotes in this episode. My favorites (about fate, coming into your own, and lemurs) can be found at this link.

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