Confusion arises when King Arthur's character and motives come into play
Once Upon A Time begins roughly five weeks before everyone lost their memories in Camelot. Regina (Lana Parrilla), Emma (Jennifer Morrison), Mary Margaret (Ginnifer Goodwin), David (Josh Dallas) and Belle (Emilie de Ravin) are in Merlin’s tower searching for ways to get him out of the tree. They come across a book that has the answer they’re looking for a magic mushroom. Called the Crimson Crown, it allows people to talk across magical barriers, for example, a tree containing a powerful wizard. If they can talk to Merlin through the tree, they can find a way to get him out.
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Of course the mushroom is protected by magic and is in a dangerous place. David, who has been feeling worthless, eagerly accepts the chance to go search for the mushroom. Arthur (Liam Garrigan) accompanies David on the heroic mission.
Flash forward six weeks in Storybrooke:
Regina, David and Mary Margaret are in the town’s sheriff office when Regina comes across a book; the same book with the Crimson Crown mushroom in it! The memories from the six weeks they can’t remember are so close that they can touch them. The sooner they put the pieces together, the better chance they have of saving Emma.
Arthur comes storming into the office with something urgent. Magical relics from Camelot have been stolen from the reliquary, which turns out to be a chest that holds the valuables. Amongst the magical items was a special bean that could take them back to Camelot. David ensures Arthur that he will single-handedly find the culprit.
Magic mushroom. Enchanted bean. A wizard stuck in a tree. A rose that loses petals when someone is dying. Next they’re going to come across a magical piece of grass that tells the future.
In Emma’s basement, she tries to use an axe she stole from the dwarves to bust the stone that holds the sword. It doesn’t work, of course. Nothing else works, so why did she think this would? I think the darkness has damaged some of her brain cells. The voice of Rumpelstiltskin seems to agree with me as he says, “Why don’t you quit messing around and go find the hero who can pull the sword out of the stone. I think you and I both know who that is.” My guess is the only one who can remove it is the one who, metaphorically, has her heart — Hook (Colin O’Donoghue).
Back in Camelot, before they set off on their noble quest to find the mushroom, they meet by the round table. David regrets killing •Percival •(Andrew Jenkins) at the ball, but Arthur doesn’t show resentment towards him. Arthur believes he will find a knight worthy enough to fill his seat. It’s Lancelot’s seat he doesn’t think he will ever fill.
Lancelot betrayed Arthur. He tried to get with •Guinevere ª •(Joana Metrass). Who knew fairytale characters deal with the kind of drama, too? Although Lancelot stabbed him in the back, he still wants to know how he is. David reveals that he is dead. I don’t believe this. I’m sure Lancelot is watching Camelot from afar too scared to deal with the consequences of his actions.
In Granny’s restaurant, Hook receives a take-out bag full of food with a note from Emma. Emma wants him to meet her on his ship, The Jolly Roger. Emma just wants to “have lunch and talk like old times.” Mhm. Sure. I haven’t heard that one before. Hook would be stupid to trust her. She’s the Dark One now. Obviously he can’t trust her. And he doesn’t, thank goodness.
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On their quest to find the Crimson Crown, a bromance between David and Arthur blossoms as cheesy music plays in the background. While David and Arthur talk about their pasts and how they grew up in similar households, they finally find the mushroom. In order to get to it, they have to cross a rickety, old bridge that lays on a dark, steaming bog. David volunteers to go by himself. What a stupid move. He is so adamant on being the hero that he will blindly walk into the unknown.
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Miraculously, he retrieves the magical mushroom. As he’s walking back across the bridge, a phantom knight that lives in the bog attacks him. I told you nothing good would come from going alone. David seems to be holding his own until he falls into the swampy water. The knight tries to pull him under and drown him. When all hope seems lost, Arthur saves David.
When they get back on land, David searches for the mushroom but can’t find it. David is really upset. He tells Arthur “I don’t want to be remembered as the man who kissed a sleeping princess awake years ago.” Arthur, being the true brother that he is, tells David that there is a seat for him in his court.
Five weeks in the future, David and Arthur go to Mr. Gold’s Pawn Shop to talk to Belle. They’re looking for the bean that can take them back to Camelot. When Belle informs them that there isn’t a magic bean here, David picks a chalice that possess no magical powers. What is he going to accomplish with this?
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He takes the chalice to the campground where everyone from Camelot is staying. He tells the people that whoever drinks from it will be forced to tell the truth. This is a lie. David is using reverse psychology, which is very smart. It works in his favor, for a guy rushes off on horseback. He has to be the guy that stole all of the relics.
Arthur hops in David’s old pick-up truck and they race off to follow the guy. As they approach the culprit, David hangs out the window, like in every other action scene known to man, and asks Arthur to drive. Yeah, that’s smart. Ask the dude that has never driven a car to get behind the wheel.
David climbs in the bed of the truck where a wood beam is conveniently located. He uses the wood beam to knock the guy off of his horse. A modern jousting match! This was the best part of the episode, in my mind. I mean, who doesn’t love jousting?
When they talk to •Grif •(Giacomo Baessato”, the thief, he confesses that he took the chest of relics because of the way he was ignored in Camelot. There is still an item missing—the bean. Grif claims he never saw or stole an enchanted bean. David figures it could have been stolen in the six weeks they can’t remember.
David walks over to Grif’s bag and finds the magic mushroom. He remembers seeing the mushroom somewhere. He takes it to Regina and she confirms that it’s the same one from Merlin’s book, but they can’t remember if they were successful in using it.
In Camelot, David is knighted and joins Arthur’s court. David thinks he is taking Percival’s seat, but Arthur offers him Lancelot’s former seat as the purest knight and Arthur’s right-hand man.
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Mary Margaret walks into the hallway to calm her crying baby when she hears footsteps. From the shadows emerges Lancelot! I knew he wasn’t dead! He warns Mary Margaret that “there is a terrible villain in Camelot.” She believes he is referring to Emma but he is talking about Arthur. What?! Arthur is the real villain? I don’t believe it. Arthur hasn’t done anything too evil to suggest that he is truly a villain.
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But sadly, in the next scene, Arthur and Guinevere are sitting at the round table when Arthur unveils that he has the Crimson Crown.
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I totally did not see this coming. I thought that Arthur was just trying to help. It looks like he has other motives. Why does he need the mushroom, though?
In Storybrooke, Arthur makes a trip to the sheriff’s office where Grif is being held. Grif says, “I did what you asked.” It turns out Arthur told him to lie about taking the reliquary. That’s not the only shocker; there is and never has been a magic bean! That was made up, too! It turns out Arthur wants to rebuild Camelot right there in Storybrooke and lying about all of these things was the only way to get started! Arthur, afraid that Grif will tell everyone the truth about him, makes him drink a potion that, in the end, kills him. Say goodbye to the only person in Storybrooke who had proof of Arthur’s evil intentions.
Meanwhile, Belle is at Granny’s when the rose starts losing all of its petals. Rumple is dying. But something strange happens. The petals start reattaching themselves to the rose! He isn’t dying? Belle runs to the shop to see Rumple but finds that his cot is empty.
It turns out he is in Emma’s basement laying next to the sword in the stone. He appears to be unconscious. Emma uses magic to wake him up and when she does, she makes him this promise: “I can make you into the person you never thought you would be—a hero. And not just any hero, but the purest one to ever be. Then I’ll have a job for you.” And that job must be to remove the excalibur from the stone. Why does Rumpelstiltskin have to be the one to remove the sword? Is it because he was the former Dark One?
It is hard to judge who the real villains are with all of these plot twists. When you think you know a character well enough to assume they’re good, they show their true colors and prove to be bad. Who will be the next character to turn evil? My bet is on David.
Once Upon A Time airs every Sunday at 8 p.m. on ABC.
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