So
I’ve been watching “Once Upon a Time,” the new TV show from the producers of
LOST. (LOST, by the way, is probably the best piece of storytelling I’ve ever
seen on a TV screen, and coincidentally, my favorite TV show of all time.) It
definitely has that LOST feel to it – really character driven, and striking,
fantastical plotlines. I’m only two episodes in, and the characterization of
not only the main characters, but also of several secondary characters is so
complete that I feel like I’ve known them for much longer than 2 hours.
The
way that the show blends classic fairytales with a modern spin is peerless.
Each character has been artfully brought into the real world, with a
personality and occupation to match their literary other. They’re also given
clever names – Jiminy Cricket becomes Doctor Hopper, and Rumplestiltskin
becomes Mr. Gold. This, by the way, has a sweet added side effect that you can
try and match yourself, your friends, your teachers into who they might be;
Prince Charming, Snow White, and even the Evil Queen can be found in your own
circle of acquaintances. The English nerd in me can’t help but geek out at the
subtle changes and allusions, the way that interpretation of the fairytales
bleeds back into the real world.
For
instance, in the storybook world, the king and queen must sacrifice their child
in order to even have the hope that the Evil Queen’s curse will one day be
lifted, and so the child may have its own best chance at a good life, saved
from the curse. The way that this show begins introducing the idea of giving a
child up for adoption for the same reason – not to save a child from a curse,
but to give it a chance at real happiness – is beautiful. Just in case the
audience wasn’t able to connect those dots, they have the 10 year old in the
show figure it out (he’s a precocious little scamp).
Of
course, it’s also around this time that I started thinking about Superman being
sent to Earth in a rocket to save him from the destruction of Krypton, but I
digress.
What’s
even cooler is that the writers have given themselves a huge amount of leeway
by not sticking to merely one story. In the mythical storybook land, all
characters from every story are present, and interact with each other. The
focus is definitely on Snow White so far, but we’ve seen Geppetto, Pinocchio
and even Maleficent. There’s no
limit to what they can do or add into the mix.
From
the beginning of the show, I was curious about how they would deal with the
classic problem of fairytale villains – they always know they’re evil. Time and
time again, stories have been railed against in English classes because the bad
guys (or girls) always declare themselves evil. In the real world, this just
isn’t the case (which makes bad guys all the scarier) and a lot of writers have
tried to expand on classic villains. It goes all the way back to Wide Sargasso
Sea by Jean Rhys, a book in which we learn about the crazy woman in the attic
and how she’s not really the bad guy in the story. A more recent example is Wicked,
by Gregory Maguire. He expands the back-story of the Wicked Witch of the West
and makes her less evil because of extenuating circumstances.
The
writers have done well fleshing out the Evil Queen, making her a real person
that can be identified with. She is not nice, and not easy to dislike, but she
makes some points that are hard to deny. The writing is so good that despite
the fact that I do not like her, there are times where I catch myself thinking,
“Well, she has a point. Maybe she really is just trying to do what’s best for
her son.” Fortunately, that conflicted feeling didn’t last long because she
just does more slimy things that make me hate her again.
Final
conclusion? This is definitely a show worth watching. It doesn’t have me hooked
as hard as LOST did. Lord knows that’s going to be a difficult bar to jump. But
it definitely is a great show that’s made with a lot of thought and CGI that’s
usually pretty good. You should definitely start watching it if you haven’t
already. If you were a LOST fan, that goes double for you.
Being every bit as rabid a LOST fan as you are, I committed to watching Once Upon a Time simply because it is written and produced by some of the talent behind LOST. I have said for seven years that I believe LOST is the best-written television show I have ever seen. It was a masterfully told story. Even so, we have come to different conclusions about Once.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I am intrigued by the shift between Story Book Land and Storybrook, I am continually struck by the LACK of subtlety in showing us how they are both parallel and connected. (The troll bridge is the TOLL bridge? Puh-lese.) Like you, I have not found the storytelling as compelling as I had hoped it would be. But I also do not find the characters to be of sufficient depth or dimensionality to make me care what happens to them. I attribute that in part to mediocre writing and part to mediocre acting. I suppose the direction might improve the product if it were stellar, but so far, that hasn't happened, so I find most of the characters unbelievable.
In particular, I don't like Emma, either the actress or the character as she is portrayed. I understand she's supposed to be tough and caring -- though not nurturing -- but the actress has limited range, and hasn't convinced me Emma is anything more than tough even when the script has her saying caring things.
Mr. Gold, however, is just that. The actor has amazing range and commitment. He knows how to use his body, voice, and face to communicate a character. Probably the most talented person and interesting character in the cast.
The boy playing Henry has a pretty good handle on the part, but the writers use him to manipulate the audience -- a tactic I resent and will ultimately cause me to stop watching if it continues. To have him announce he knows Emma's code name only to answer, "I don't think you're ready" when she asks what it is, shows the writers are reduced to teasing us rather than engaging us. After all, one of the over-arching mysteries of the show is Who is Emma? and now we have a character who knows, and, for no other reason than to keep us in suspense, isn't telling. That mystery has become artificial, and it's maintained just to keep us coming back. I hate feeling manipulated.
You mention the Evil Queen. I admit she has had some moments of clarity, but for the most part, to me, she overacts. And as you say, just when you think she might really care about Henry, she does yet another evil thing and we realize she never meant the good thing. That's a result of poor writing.
The other thing this show lacks that LOST had so brilliantly in Hurley, Sawyer, and Miles, is comedy. I think that lack is what killed The Event, Flashforward, and V. Angst ridden shows just don't go over well without a comic element or two.
Then, 4 weeks into its plot line, I discovered Grimm. More cinematic, better acted, superiorly written than Once Upon a Time. It has Monroe the Blutbat. He's hilarious in ironic and unexpected ways. Each story is compelling (though it isn't in LOST's league, either). And the story on top of the stories is urgent rather than forced. Unfortunately, I am going to have to watch it online after Fringe returns in January. (Fringe is another J.J. Abrams show that has what I look for in entertaining television, but even it isn't in LOST's league.)
So I say, if you haven't started watching Grimm, please do. If you like Once, I think you'll like Grimm even more.
Perhaps you're right about the storybook land names and the real world names becoming more forced than anything, but I wrote this when I was only 2 episodes in. I'll have to watch it a little bit more in order to decide whether or not I feel the same way, but I can see how it would become a little tiresome. Toll - Troll does seem a liiiiitlle bit lame. I'll watch some more and see.
ReplyDeleteAnd I agree every bit with you that Mr. Gold plays his part excellently. Amazingly, even.
And I'll be sure to check out Grimm. I hadn't really heard very much about it before now.