Storybrooke Sound-Off S4E19: “Lily”

Summary

• Emma and Regina leave Storybrooke in search of Lily (Maleficent’s daughter) and Zelena. They find both and the drama gets real.
• In a flash back to Emma’s childhood, she breaks her friendship with Lily when Lily starts to make dark decisions influenced by her fate.

Thoughts

We’ve said that this spring reminds us a lot of Once‘s first season. This week’s episode, “Lily,” solidifies this notion by re-introducing something we haven’t had this heavy a dose of in a long time: the ‘soap opera factor.’ As Robin Hood utters the words, “She’s pregnant,” our minds go back to the scandalous nature of David and Mary Margaret’s affair before the curse was lifted. So Zelena is pregnant with Robin Hood’s child, who was conceived when he was under the impression that Zelena was Maid Marian. Uhhhh… I dunno, guys. Too far, or just the right level of intrigue?

The majority of the episode leading up to this final scene takes the word “depth” to a new level as the story pushes deep into Emma and Regina’s most internal and challenging struggles. Whether or not the Marian subplot was thought of on the spot, it’s clear that Lily’s part in the story was mapped out since her first appearance last fall. There’s no way it could have been made up on the spot. This is reassuring.

With the oh-so-convenient Snow Queen’s scroll in their possession, Emma and Regina travel outside Storybrooke and have some of their characters’ most profound and evocative conversations yet along the way. The script reflects the growth of Regina’s integrity across the entire series, Emma’s progressing transition toward darkness, and the show’s ongoing commentary regarding the criteria that qualify a hero or a villain. Things get pretty deep, and definitely prompt real life application as the audience ponders their own personal values and how they relate or differ from those of Emma and Regina. This is all arranged through well-crafted dialogue between Emma and Regina in the calmest of moments. Simultaneously, though, this episode offers some gripping action (with the car chase particularly of note).

With just three episodes left in the season (squeezed into two weeks, with May 10 airing two episodes), there’s much still up in the air. But it’s all starting to converge. Cruella and Ursula are effectively out of the picture. This leaves the Author/the Apprentice/the Sorcerer, Lily/Maleficent, Belle/Will/Mr. Gold, Regina/Robin/Zelena, and Dark Emma (duhn, duhn, duhn) all still with question marks above their heads.

The Moments

• The What-The-Heck Moment: In the opening scene, when the Apprentice speaks with the Sorcerer (By the way… WHAT?), the Sorcerer asks a question and the Apprentice answers, “The Author.” I thought he said “Mufasa” and I was about to leave the room.
• The Magic Moment: While no individual instance stands out, one could argue that this whole episode utilized magic to win over the audience on its deeper motif. We get this through Emma and Lily’s story, which is wonderfully casted and particularly effective.
• The Whoa Moment: Zelena’s pregnancy was a shocker, but a more clever twist (and cinematically executed quite well) was when Emma and Regina found the map in Lily’s apartment. She knew all along!

Sound Off

Let’s chat in the comments!

• Do you believe Mr. Gold is finally at peace with Belle dating Will or is he acting?
• Did you think Emma would shoot Lily?
• What does Lily’s happy ending look like? Is it possible for her to have one?
• How do you feel about Zelena’s pregnancy?
• What are the odds that Zelena’s baby will be named Kiara and it will be revealed that Robin Hood is really Simba, King of The Pride Lands?
• How is Regina’s thirst for revenge against Zelena different from Emma’s toward Lily? Is it?

Edited by: Hannah Wilkes