List of Goofs

This page lists Once Upon a Time's various episode goofs.

"Pilot"

 * During Emma Swan's date with Ryan, her left wrist has a flower tattoo. When she opens the door for Henry Mills, the tattoo is gone.
 * After meeting Archie Hopper, Emma opens the car door to get back in and drive Henry home. On the door screen, a camera man's reflection is noticeable. The reflection of a curtain on the car window is also visible.

"The Thing You Love Most"

 * The article on the front page of the Storybrooke Daily Mirror is just the same block of text repeated three times.
 * In "Pilot", Emma has a mole on her chest. In this episode, it is gone. (In real life, Jennifer Morrison has had many moles removed from her body. The scar from this particular surgery, can be seen in a few episodes, including "Snow Drifts". )
 * Regina Mills claims to Emma that her apples are from a Honeycrisp tree. However, the apples in the basket, on the tree, and everywhere else that apples are used in this episode are Red Delicious, which have a very different shape and color from Honeycrisp apples. Honeycrisp apples were not commercially available until 1991, and must be specifically bred.
 * When Emma is walking Henry to school, at the beginning of their conversation about the curse, they are walking down the street away from Storybrooke Country Bread and Storybrooke Hardware and Paint, they are visible in the background. However, as they walk they pass the sign for Storybrooke Hardware and Paint twice. At the end of the conversation, when Henry gives Emma the pages from the storybook, they are in front of Storybrooke Country Bread. Also during this scene, when Emma pauses and stops walking, the clock tower is reflected in the window, but without the actual clock tower. (The clock and the uppermost part of the tower are CGI; they are not part of the actual building in Steveston Village).
 * During Regina's conversation with Emma in her office, she states that today is a Thursday. This is later proven incorrect. According to "The Stranger" and "Selfless, Brave and True", August woke up in pain in Phuket on October 24, 2011 at 8:15 A.M. the exact minute that Emma decided to stay in Storybrooke at 8:15 P.M. on October 23 (since Thailand is 12 hours ahead of Maine's timezone). This episode takes place the next day, but October 24, 2011 was a Monday.

"Snow Falls"

 * During the scene with the fallen trunk blocking the path of the horse carriage, a horse wrangler with a blue baseball cap is visible in the bottom's center left of the screen. It is noticeable when Abigail screams, "Please help me".
 * As the trolls search through Prince Charming's belongings, one of them finds Snow White's wanted poster. A second later, the poster is pulled out of the bag a second time.

"The Price of Gold"

 * When Henry's school bus leaves, a real-life Steveston business known as the Gulf of Georgia Cannery, which doubles as the Storybrooke Cannery in later episodes, can be seen in the background.
 * When Graham offers Emma a new job, the sign on the building behind Emma says Storybrooke Coffee Co. However, when Graham gets out on the police car, you can clearly see a circular sign on the side of the building, which says "Steveston Coffee Co".
 * When Graham offers Emma the job as deputy sheriff, as he says, "Why don't you think about it", in the background, you can see the name "Steveston" on the sign of a business next to Kisamos Greek Taverna.
 * In Mary Margaret's loft, the wall clock reads as 5:50 A.M., which is impossible considering the bright daylight in the previous scene as well as Regina's mention to Henry that she will be back before noon, which indicates the clock is set at the wrong time.
 * As Emma and Henry cross the street after leaving the apartment, in the background, you can see a real-life Steveston business called Steveston WineMakers.
 * When Henry lays on his bed, he crosses one leg over the other. In the next shot, his legs are parallel to each other.

"The Shepherd"

 * In camp, David is preparing for the journey to fight the dragon and unsheathes his sword for King Midas to see. When King Midas says, "You do this and you'll be a legend", the camera zooms for a close-up of David's face, which shows a visible scar on the right side of his chin. Before and after this scene, he has no scar.

"The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter"

 * When the Wolf walks way from Graham, a window pane in the background says "Pacific Net & Twine", the real name of the Steveston business which doubles as Atlantic Twine & Net on the show.
 * After Regina's scuffle with Emma, there is blood on the lower left corner of her lip. For the rest of the episode, the wound keeps changing appearance and position.

"Desperate Souls"

 * After the playground scene with Emma Swan and Henry, there is a shot of Storybrooke main street where you can see the clock tower building, but without the actual clock tower (the top two layers of the clock tower, including the clock, are CGI).
 * When Mr. Gold brings the town charter binder to Emma in the apartment, he puts it down on the table while taking a seat. In the next shot, the binder remains in his hands as he sits down.
 * While Regina is on the ambulance stretcher and breathing in oxygen from a mask, she has a coat draped over her shoulders. After Sidney irritates her by snapping photos, she says, "She's the competition, you fool", and pushes him away; the coat disappears in the next shot.

"True North"

 * Hansel dips a finger in the circular shaped icing on the outside of the Gingerbread House. After Gretel gives him a warning look and the camera gives a frontal angle of the house, part of the icing is missing. When Gretel climbs up to peek inside the window, the icing is fully coated again.

"7:15 A.M."

 * In the recap video, the shots of Prince Charming and Snow White are mirror-inverted versions of the shots from "Snow Falls". Therefore, Charming's scar is on the wrong side of his face.
 * The dove Mary Margaret finds in the woods is not the same one she releases to the bird flock. While the injured one has a darker beak color as well as a distinctly white feather coat with a reddish plume around its neck, the healthy one is completely powder white with a lightly colored beak.
 * As Regina is watching David and Mary Margaret, Archie Hopper's name is missing from the entrance to the building where his office is located.

"Skin Deep"

 * When Moe French steps out of his florist's van, in the background, you can see the clock tower building, but without the clock tower (the actual clock tower is CGI).
 * When Mr. Gold runs into Regina on Valentine's Day, Archie Hopper's name is missing from the entrance to the building where his office is located.
 * When Gaston knocks on the Dark One's castle door, there is a close up on Rumplestiltskin's face, in which his left eye's contact lens is missing.
 * After Belle sets down the rose on the table and talks to Rumplestiltskin and the camera shifts back and forth between the two, the rose keeps changing positions in the vase though no one is touching it.

"What Happened to Frederick"

 * Jim's car license plate is 40F5TH, which is the same as Regina's; indicating it was a reused prop.

"Dreamy"

 * After Astrid wipes off the glitter on Leroy's face, there is none on his mustache. As the camera switches to him following his climb up the ladder, the glitter is clearly visible all over his mustache.
 * Storybrooke's zip code is revealed to be 04815, which is in the right number sequence to be a Maine zip code, but it is not used in Maine, or even in the United States. 04815 is a postal code used in Spain and Peru.
 * "What Happened to Frederick" shows that the day Kathryn disappears, and the day before, is a school day. On the first day, she learns about David's affair and confronts Mary Margaret at school where students and teachers are milling about. When Kathryn decides to leave Storybrooke, she apologizes to Regina for "what happened yesterday" (when she took her anger out on Regina) while Emma seeks out Henry at school. On the same day, Kathryn departs, and Regina burns the letter. However, according to Kathryn's phone records, she disappeared on a Sunday.  In the U.S., school classes are not in session during weekends.
 * At the end of the episode, Kathryn has been missing for twenty-four hours; meaning that this episode takes place the day after she disappears. David tells Emma that he last spoke to Kathryn "yesterday afternoon" (and stresses that he is telling the truth), but also says that he hasn't spoken to her since ending their relationship. However, "What Happened to Frederick" shows that David broke up with Kathryn the day before she disappeared. In addition, Emma says to Sidney that David told her that he didn't speak to Kathryn the day before she disappeared, though, in fact, he said he did. This complicates matters even more so when Emma discovers that Kathryn did talk to David on the phone the day she disappeared, but "Red-Handed" and "Heart of Darkness" establish that he doesn't remember the phone call because of a memory blackout.

"Red-Handed"

 * While Robert Carlyle was filming scenes for this episode, he forgot to take off his own wedding ring.

"Hat Trick"

 * As the Evil Queen and Jefferson are running to escape the guards, the hedges of the maze as well as the ground are smoking and charred where they were burnt by fire magic. As the Evil Queen turns around to entrap the Wonderland guards, the floor shows no sign of having been burnt.
 * During Emma's struggle with Jefferson for the gun, the weapon is pointing in a different direction every time, although no one touched it.

"The Stable Boy"

 * In the stables, Regina's hands are touching the sides of Daniel's face and he pulls them down. As the camera pans for a close-up of her face when Daniel says, "Then if I am to marry you", her hands are once again back on his face. Then, the camera angle changes to show a side view of both of them with Regina's hands held by Daniel again.
 * At the dock, Emma reads the latest edition of the Daily Mirror with an article detailing Mary Margaret's involvement in Kathryn's disappearance. Kathryn's name is misspelled "Katherine" in the article.
 * As Emma runs through the alleyway to investigate, the back camera view shows she is wearing bright red gloves. When the camera angle switches to the front after Emma reaches past the alley, her gloves are gone.

"The Stranger"

 * When Emma and August walk down the streets of Storybrooke, a real-life Steveston business known as the Gulf of Georgia Cannery, which doubles as the Storybrooke Cannery in later episodes, can clearly be seen in the background.
 * During Mary Margaret's talk with Regina outside the school building, her fringe noticeably changes between shots.
 * In the first shot of Emma and August actively riding the motorcycle with the vehicle headlight on, it shows their stunt doubles.

"An Apple Red as Blood"

 * In the opening scene, Regina is wearing black pants. When she is being tied to the apple tree by Archie and Ruby, her pants are gray.

"A Land Without Magic"

 * The date on the monitor screen over Henry's hospital bed is "10 Nov 08", but "Selfless, Brave and True" establishes that the "Pilot" episode takes place in October 2011.
 * When Jefferson releases Belle from her cell, his neck scar from the side and back is missing.
 * Regina cries in Henry's bedroom while clutching his bed pillow. In the next scene, the pillow is gone.

"Broken"

 * The name of the real-life Gulf of Georgia Cannery can be seen on the Storybrooke Cannery as the mob goes to Regina's house.

"We Are Both"

 * Archie's license plate is 40F5TH, which is the same as Regina's in "Fruit of the Poisonous Tree" and Jim's in "What Happened to Frederick".

"Lady of the Lake"

 * After Snow White is poisoned by King George, she is disposed of on the side of the road. At the shot from her backside as she falls from the impact of being thrown, the upper right back part of her clothing is barely smudged with a light imprint of dirt. The camera angle switches to the front and then to the back again, to show the upper right back part of her clothing is now deeply coated in a heavier amount of dirt.

"The Doctor"

 * It is raining heavily as Regina is driving home when she glimpses Daniel. However, the next day when David and Henry go to the stables, everything from the road to the car is completely dry.

"Tallahassee"

 * After Emma traps the Giant in a cage, his sleeve is sticking out from under it. In the close up, the sleeve is tucked in.

"The Outsider"

 * When the Yaoguai writes "save me" in Chinese (救我, pronounced "Jiu Wo"), Belle somehow manages to read the entire message before the creature finishes writing the first symbol.

"In the Name of the Brother"

 * The date on the monitor screen over Greg's hospital bed is incorrect: It says "04 Jul 09", but "Selfless, Brave and True" establishes that the "Pilot" episode takes place in October 2011.
 * When Ruby runs toward Dr. Whale on the Storybrooke Dock, the name of the Gulf of Georgia Cannery, which doubles as the Storybrooke Cannery on the show, can clearly be seen on the building.

"Tiny"

 * While Anton is clinging onto the pipe to keep from slipping and the townspeople prepare to bring a rope, there is already a rope visibly hanging down into the hole from behind him.

"Manhattan"

 * Though the filming streets were a recreation of Manhattan, at least two Vancouver-based food eateries in the real-life neighborhood of Gastown are visible in the background; Terracota Modern Chinese and Salty Tongue Cafe.

"The Queen Is Dead"

 * Mr. Gold implies there is no chance that Cora would control him using the dagger since no one has ever accomplished that in centuries. In actuality, the dagger was in Anna's possession for a brief time in "The Apprentice".

"The Miller's Daughter"

 * When Cora holds up the infant Regina during her announcement ceremony, the baby is wearing a modern diaper.

"Selfless, Brave and True"

 * When Tamara opens the envelope of cash, the words "motion picture use only" are printed on the dollar bills, proving that they are prop money, and not real banknotes.

"The Evil Queen"

 * When Hook is speaking to Regina in her office, the back of his ear is clearly visible several times; revealing that the earring is a clip-on.

"Second Star to the Right"

 * Baelfire takes one loaf of bread and eats it, but when Wendy picks up the whole pan, all three loaves are untouched.

"The Heart of the Truest Believer"

 * As Neal and Mulan are walking in the Enchanted Forest, Mulan's hair changes with the camera. In up-close shots, some of her hair is over her shoulder. In further-off shots, all of her hair is behind her shoulder.

"Going Home"

 * When Henry is given the storybook in October 2011, he sees a picture of the scene with Geppetto, Jiminy Cricket and Pinocchio right before the Blue Fairy's arrival. However, the story of Pinocchio being sent to the Land Without Magic along with Emma was not in the book until August added it several months later.

"The New Neverland"

 * Henry's clock on his bedroom drawer cabinet reads as five o'clock, but after Pan lets his Shadow free from the sail, the clock tower proves it is almost midnight.

"It's Not Easy Being Green"

 * When Zelena is dressing up, she has green gloves on. When she puts the necklace on, the gloves are missing, but reappear when she catches the hat.

"The Jolly Roger"

 * As David and Mary Margaret are walking through Main Street, the top of the Nikka Fishing & Marine, the building which doubles as the Storybrooke Clock Tower for the show, can be seen behind a building. The top two layers of the clock tower is CGI, and the top of the real building, looks completely different from Storybrooke's clock tower.

"Snow Drifts"

 * David mistakenly calls his son's announcement ceremony a "coronation". This mistake is also present in the episode synopsis released by ABC.
 * When Emma is keeping past Hook occupied, while future Hook is skulking around the room, there is a wide shot where future Hook can be seen in the background, sneaking past a corner, and you can see the face of Colin O'Donoghue's body double.

"There's No Place Like Home"

 * Neal's announcement ceremony is mistakenly referred to as a "coronation". This mistake is also present in the episode synopsis released by ABC.

"A Tale of Two Sisters"

 * In a newspaper article about a campaign to encourage people to spend more money in their local shops, the last paragraph refers to money as British pounds, not dollars. However, another sum correctly uses dollars.

"The Snow Queen"

 * The baby used to play Alexandra Herman is the wrong age and gender.

"Smash the Mirror"

 * Hook's heart is completely pink/red. When it is returned in "Heroes and Villains", there is some black in it.

"Enter the Dragon"

 * When Regina is waiting outside the Storybrooke Library, as Cruella's car is making its way down the road, a vertical sign on the building next to the Storybrooke Cannery says "Steveston Hotel".
 * When Emma is following Cruella's car, as Cruella's car turns right, the Storybrooke Cannery can be seen in the background. However, the sign on the Gulf of Georgia Cannery, the real life cannery which doubles as the Storybrooke Cannery for the show, has not been updated properly: The first word of the real business name can still be seen on the building, and the first three letters of the fictional name are missing. The sign literally says "Gulfrybrooke Cannery".

"Best Laid Plans"

 * After Mr. Gold and his team leave the Blanchard Loft, a direction sign pointing to "Steveston  General Store - second hand goods" can be seen on a building. This is a real business in Steveston Village, the town which doubles as Storybrooke on the show.

"Heart of Gold"

 * The date on the heart monitor screen over Mr. Gold's hospital bed is "25 Dec 14"; however, according to the timeline of the show, the episode takes place in 2013. Nor could the flashback take place in December 2013, because the episode clearly states that both the scene where Robin Hood an his family leave Storybrooke, and the New York City flashback, take place nine weeks before the frame story. However, "Heroes and Villains" establishes that Robin left town shortly after Mother Superior's disappearance in "Fall", and according to the missing person form in "Darkness on the Edge of Town", Mother Superior was reported missing on November 6.

"Mother"

 * When Emma and the others arrive in Storybrooke, in the first shot of the scene, on the left side of the screen, there is a sign that says "Steveston Museum and Visitor Centre".

"The Dark Swan"

 * Rumplestiltskin said to Emma that Dark Ones don't need to sleep. However, Mr. Gold slept in episode "Lacey".

"Siege Perilous"

 * To wake Mr. Gold from his coma, Emma needs an object that touched him before he became the Dark One. When Hook tells her about how he threatened Rumplestiltskin in "The Crocodile", he shows her his sword, telling her that he took this cutlass and held it to Rumplestiltskin's head. However, the sword that Hook shows to Emma, is not the sword that he threatened Rumplestiltskin with. The sword that he used to threaten him had a golden handle. When Hook and Rumplestiltskin met again in "The Crocodile", several years later, Rumplestiltskin takes the same sword from Hook and duels him with it. When he vanishes into thin air after cutting off Hook's hand, he takes the sword with him. The sword that Hook shows to Emma, which Emma uses to wake Gold, has a black handle with a completely different design, and is the one he carried after the other sword was taken from him; this can be seen in episodes like "Queen of Hearts", "Lost Girl" and "The Jolly Roger". This means that the sword Emma uses to wake Gold from his coma never touched Rumplestiltskin at all, but the spell still works.

"Birth"

 * Hook points to one of his rings and reveals that it belonged to a man named Barnaby, who called him "One Hand Jones". Hook killed him, and took his ring. However, Hook was already wearing this ring in "The Crocodile", when he still had both of his hands. This can clearly be seen while he's gambling at the tavern.

"Broken Heart"

 * When Hook and the others are transported to Storybrooke via the Dark Curse, his costume is different from the one he wears when everyone wakes up in Storybrooke in "The Dark Swan".
 * When his memories are returned, Robin touches his right side, because he recalls getting stabbed by Percival, but the wound he received in Camelot was on his left side.

"Swan Song"

 * Prior to being teleported out of Granny's Diner by Nimue, Mary Margaret and Henry aren't wearing any jackets. However, when they emerges at Storybrooke Heritage Park, they can be seen wearing jackets.
 * Despite being given the Mark of Charon, the Dwarves do not get brought to Storybrooke Heritage Park along with the other marked victims.

"Our Decay"

 * When Zelena is taking the Scarecrow's brain, her skin is not entirely green.
 * When Belle and Robin are found by Regina and Robin, Regina is suddenly wearing a hat despite not wearing one earlier and having spent the entire day out in the woods with Robin.

"Sisters"

 * Belle French breaths during Sleeping Curse. However, in An Apple Red as Blood and in Into the Deep victims of that curse gives no sign of being alive.

Show In General

 * In in "Pilot" (through a window), "The Thing You Love Most", "Snow Falls", "The Price of Gold", "The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter", "7:15 A.M.", "Skin Deep" (mirrored in a store window), "What Happened to Frederick", as well as the flashbacks from 1983 in "Welcome to Storybrooke" and the 2001 flashbacks in "Save Henry", the blue storefront next to Granny's Diner is called Worthington's Haberdashery. It is located in the former site of Artisans Galleria on Moncton Street in Steveston Village, where Once Upon a Time films. By the time of the "Red-Handed", however, this storefront has become the Storybrooke Pet Shelter (more noticeable in "The Stable Boy") thanks to a false facade. The Pet Shelter is replaced by Any Given Sundae for Season Four. However, stock footage appears to have be used briefly in an exterior shot of the diner in "Heroes and Villains", where part of the old Pet Shelter sign can be glimpsed, and in "Lily", where the original Worthington Haberdashery is back.
 * The storefront next to the pet shelter changes as well, beginning as the actual La Tandoor restaurant (which is now closed) in "Pilot", "The Thing You Love Most", "Snow Falls", "The Price of Gold", "The Shepherd", "The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter", "True North", "7:15 A.M.", "Skin Deep", "What Happened to Frederick" and the 2001 flashbacks from "Save Henry", before becoming the Duperré & Hughes law firm in "Broken". In "White Out", Chop Shop has also moved into the same building. The original La Tandoor sign can also be seen in an exterior shot in "Lily".
 * La Tandoor and Worthington's Haberdashery can also be seen in an exterior shot in Underbrooke in "Ruby Slippers", where stock footage from the first season seems to have been used; even though previous episode have established that the storefronts next to the Underbrooke Diner are the Underworld versions of Any Given Sundae and Duperré & Hughes.
 * In the outdoor scenes filmed in Steveston Village, the buildings located across the street from Granny's Diner do not precisely match the buildings seen from inside the diner, filmed inside a studio. In exterior scenes, on the left side of Storybrooke Country Bread, there is a blue wooden building, with a gap of approximately ten meters between the two buildings. In the interior scenes in "Snow Falls", "The Shepherd", "Desperate Souls", "7:15 A.M.", "Dreamy", "Child of the Moon", "Tiny", "Welcome to Storybrooke", "And Straight On 'Til Morning", "It's Not Easy Being Green", "The Jolly Roger", "The Apprentice", "The Snow Queen", "Fall", "Heroes and Villains", "Best Laid Plans", "Mother", "The Dark Swan", "Siege Perilous" and "Only You", there is a completely different building next to Storybrooke Country Bread. This building, which is part of a set on Stage 4 at The Bridge Studios in Burnaby, is brown and made of bricks, and there is no gap between the two buildings. Also, in "The Shepherd" and "7:15 A.M.", you can see a blue/grey studio wall behind Storybrooke Country Bread. In exterior scenes, there is no such wall.
 * The wrong building also appears in the Underworld version of Storybrooke in "Labor of Love".
 * The location of the Heart Vault, changes throughout the series. For example, in "The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter", "The New Neverland" and "Kansas", there is a slope on the left hand side of the building, but in "The Queen Is Dead", a different shot from "Kansas", "The Apprentice" and "Shattered Sight", this terrain is flat. The trees around the vault, also differ between these episodes.
 * The headstones around the Heart Vault, change dramatically throughout the series. In addition, sometimes there is a statue on the right hand side of the vault, sometimes there is a statue on both sides of the vault, and other times, there are no statues there whatsoever.
 * Throughout the series, the written letters of the Dark One's name keeps switching from one side of the dagger to the other. Sometimes, the letters are right side up when the dagger is held in the right hand and facing the wielder with the first letter at the tip of the blade. At other times, the writing is right side up when the dagger is facing the wielder and held in the left hand with the first letter next to the hilt.