Victor Frankenstein

"No, not magic. Science."

- Dr. Frankenstein.

Doctor Victor Frankenstein is a character on ABC's Once Upon a Time. He debuts in the fifth episode of the second season. He is portrayed by David Anders, and is the counterpart of Dr. Whale.

Dr. Frankenstein is based on the titular character of the story Frankenstein.

Before the Curse
In the Land Without Color, Dr. Victor Frankenstein is celebrating Christmas with his father Alphonse and his brother Gerhardt. Alphonse gives a gift to each of his sons. He gives Gerhardt a watch that had been his mother's, and Victor's gift is a commission to join the army as a physician. This will require Victor to abandon his scientific exploits, which have been funded by his father's money and housed in the family's summer home. Even though Victor pleads, his father no longer supports him.

Frankenstein is preparing to leave his father's home after being forced to abandon his scientific work and join the army instead. Gerhardt runs after him, and attempts to comfort him by giving him their mother's watch. Victor tells Gerhardt to keep it, and that he will find a way to complete his work. As the two depart, Rumplestiltskin spies from behind the shrubs, who has retained his color despite coming to a world without color.

Later, Frankenstein is in his lab packing up his equipment when he is visited by Rumplestiltskin. He tells Dr. Frankenstein that he is interested in the scientists work, even though he has lost his funding. Rumplestiltskin tells him that he is not interested in what he does, but how he does it, for in the Enchanted Forest, magic is very powerful but it cannot restore life. Rumplestiltskin makes a deal with Frankenstein, offering an impressive pile of gold coins in exchange for more information on reawakening the dead. Victor agrees to the deal and Igor reenters the lab. Frankenstein is about to introduce Igor to Rumplestiltskin, but he has vanished before Igor could notice him. Dr. Frankenstein then tells Igor to bring the equipment back and tells him they are going in search of a body.

Frankenstein travels to a graveyard, where he goes digging for a body. He is approached by Gerhardt, who shows a negative opinion on Frankenstein's strategies in his scientific work. They are caught by the graveyard guard, who shoots at them. The two brothers hop into the carriage, but Gerhardt is shot and killed. Victor takes Gerhardt's corpse to his lab, and prepares to experiment on him by bringing him back to life, but his heart can't handle it and burns to a blackened, charred state. Alphonse arrives and asks about the corpse that Frankenstein had brought with him. He notices that the corpse is actually Gerhardt's and becomes upset and furious, blaming Frankenstein for his death. Frankenstein explains that he wants to bring Gerhardt back from the dead so that Alphonse can have two sons again, to which Alphonse replies that now he has no sons. ("In the Name of the Brother")

Dr. Frankenstein is brought from his world by the Mad Hatter, seemingly due to his immense knowledge, his claims of being able to bring people back from the dead, and his powers beyond magic. He meets Queen Regina for the first time in the gardens of the Dark Palace. When Regina calls him the wizard, he tells her that he prefers to be known as a doctor. He requests to see his patient, and Regina escorts him to the glass coffin that contains the body of Daniel. As Jefferson and Regina look on, Dr. Frankenstein makes an incision in Daniel's hand, which draws fresh red blood, and states that Daniel's body is in a perfect state to undergo his procedure. But he requires a strong heart, as he has tried to use hearts in his own world and they have not been successful in his procedures. Regina balks at this, but Jefferson reassures her.

Regina then takes Dr Frankenstein and Jefferson to Cora's now abandoned home, and states that her mother was a collector of hearts. She tells Frankenstein to listen, and eventually he and Jefferson hear a faint and distant heartbeat in the room. Regina then goes to the fireplace and opens it, taking Jefferson and Frankenstein into the vault. She tells Frankenstein to pick out any heart, and he takes a box from the wall and opens it, seeing inside the enchanted red heart. He states it is perfect.

Outside the castle on a hill in the forest, Frankenstein sets up a tent with Daniel's body inside as a lightning storm rages outside. Regina and Jefferson stand outside the tent watching the shadows as Frankenstein moves to insert the heart into Daniel's chest. A flash of lightning hits a rod on the tent, and seconds later Frankenstein emerges. Regina is happy, but then Frankenstein apologizes, stating that the heart was not strong enough and Daniel could not be revived. Regina then enters the tent as he and Jefferson stand outside.

The next day, in the forest after the storm has past, Frankenstein and Jefferson are walking and encounter Rumplestiltskin. He inquires as to if Frankenstein is satisfied with his side of the bargain, to which Frankenstein replies that he is, and reveals the box containing the heart he took from Cora's vault, indicating he did not attempt to put it in Daniel at all. Frankenstein asks Rumplestiltskin if he is satisfied, to which Rumplestiltskin replies that Regina was different than she was a couple of days ago. Frankenstein and Jefferson then open the portal to Frankenstein's world, and jump through, with Rumplestiltskin reminding Frankenstein that any magic comes with a price.

In his castle in his world, Frankenstein enters and comes upon his assistant and a body on the table, covered with a sheet. He tells his assistant he got what he went for and pulls out the heart, glowing red. He then proceeds to insert the heart as lightning streaks down from the sky, and he and his assistant wait to see if the heart transplant was a success. Suddenly, a stitched hand comes out from beneath the sheet. Frankenstein grabs it and states that the creature is alive. The assistant states it is magic, but Frankenstein responds that it is science. ("The Doctor")

For events occurring after the casting of the Dark Curse, see Dr. Whale.

Trivia

 * The name of his Storybrooke counterpart refers to James Whale, who directed the movies Frankenstein (1931) and Bride of Frankenstein (1935).
 * Mary Shelley's Victor was inspired in her husband, Percy Shelley, who was known to be a womanizer. Victor's Storybrooke counterpart is also a womanizer.
 * When Frankenstein first appears, he is seen wearing rose tinted spectacles while sketching. This is a possible allusion to Richard O'Brein's The Rocky Horror Picture Show, a musical spoof of Frankenstein which features a song called Rose Tint My World.
 * He's a business associate of both Rumplestiltskin and the Mad Hatter.
 * Although the literary (and movie) Frankenstein is better known for reconstructing people from parts of different bodies, the Once Upon a Time version makes use of a magic heart to bring people back to life. That said, when his brother revives, he is clearly stitched together a la the classic Frankenstein monster.
 * Victor Frankenstein is the first character to appear from a work of literature not written for children.