Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-26261400-20160803213132/@comment-24674051-20160804180533

The show took a downward turn storywise after the end of Season 3 (and it kinda started in 3B, but it wasn't bad). Up to 3B, the fairy tale characters and stories included had their own back stories. Season 1 is the absolute best example, where the main backstory thread showed us elements of the Snow White story that were not included in either the original work or the Disney adaptation. It was new and interesting. The same with the other backstories shown (Red, Hansel & Gretel, Grumpy, Beauty and the Beast, The Queen of Hearts, even Peter Pan and Hook). and Rumple is not even a disney icon, he's sourced solely from the original tale and then woven into what we were given in season 1.

Season 4, and much of season 5, was 2 dimensional. The main cast really stagnated in terms of growth. and the new characters ended up being something akin to the dreaded "Live Action Disney". the brighter good points that were introduced were things like Lily in Season 4 and the LoUS in season 5, neither of which is directly disney (though Lily has a strong tie in with one disney character).

Now, I am a big fan of Disney. But I'm not looking for Disney in Once. a subtle nod (like the chipped cup) is good, but I'd like to see the characters develop and grow.