Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-24593235-20171125231045/@comment-31937823-20171125235902

What Works

- The Supporting Characters - This is the first time since season 3 that I’ve been this invested in the side characters. Ivy, Alice and Tiana are very compelling, and both of the actresses play their characters impeccably. Rose Reynolds manages to steal even the scenes she shares with Colin O’Donoghue and Robert Carlyle, a testament to her acting capabilities. Ivy can hold her own compared to other villanesses we’ve had on the show and is so deliciously evil. The actress who plays Tiana brings much needed warmth to the show.

- Happy Endings I absolutely adored Beauty. It tied up the Rumbelle storyline in the best way possible, all the while setting up for new storylines. It was the perfect mix of old and new. While I wasn’t as enthusiastic about Emma’s ending, I like the idea that she is with her parents, her husband, and her child. I hope they expand more later in the season regarding Emma’s absence, though.

- Lack of Male Characters Completely agree with you, OUAT writes better for female roles, but I’m glad that Rumple and Hook are still around since they are the best out of the male characters.

- The Setting I like the idea of the city, it’s a very refreshing aesthetic. That just may be me, though.

- Lucy I’m probably the only one who thinks this, but Lucy is absolutely adorable. I don’t know why she is getting so much hate, maybe it’s because she’s a child actress. Alison Fernandez seems to be holding her own as well, and judging from the promo of “One Little Tear” she definitely has greater acting skills than Jared Gilmore.

Incomplete

- Returning Characters Regina, Hook, and Rumple all are played wonderfully. Rumple is kind of distant, and although he usually is like this, I want to see interactions between him and the new members of the cast, such as Ivy or Tiana. I like how he has befriended Wish Hook’s daughter.

- Jacinda/Cinderella and Henry this section is for both characters and their romance. Neither of them are protagonists even though they were marketed as such. To be honest, Henry is more of a side character at this point. Other than Pretty in Blue and Hyperion Heights, he really is on the sidelines. Similarly to Cinderella, who needs room to grow. We just need more for them to be better, if that makes sense. I like Jacinda more than Cinderella though, because Jacinda is a type of character not seen as often.

- Storylines with New Characters All of the new characters on the show have good storylines that have been written well. I’m engaged completely in the Ivy-Gothel-Tremaine dynamic, the crossroads that Alice is caught in between, Jacinda’s struggle to keep her daughter, and Tiana’s dreams. All of them have been done really good so far.

Doesn’t Work

- Storylines with Old Characters Other than Regina’s struggle with her memories returned, the storylines with the new characters aren’t as interesting and hinder the story. I still have no idea what’s up with Rumple, and I loathed what happened between Hook and Gothel.

- Tremaine and Gothel We still need to see more of Gothel, so I won’t talk about her. As for Tremaine, it’s not the performance (Gabrielle Anwar is doing good) but she’s just a stereotypical villainess. Nothing else to be said.