Last Rites

"Robin died... to protect me. That's what true love is. It's sacrifice. It's giving up everything for the person you love."

- Regina Mills to Zelena

"Last Rites" is the twenty-first episode of Season Five of ABC's Once Upon a Time. It was written by Jerome Schwartz, and directed by Craig Powell. It is the one-hundredth and ninth episode of the series overall, and premiered on May 8, 2016.

Synopsis
Emma, David, Regina, Robin and Henry are finally back home in Storybrooke and reunited with Snow, but, unfortunately, they still have to contend with Hades, who continues to deceive Zelena as he lays out his plan to use the all-powerful Olympian Crystal to take over the town. The heroes desperately search for a way to defeat Hades while Hook does the same in the Underworld, looking for those missing storybook pages. Regina and Robin take a more direct approach, which culminates in an epic showdown that will leave our heroes forever changed.

Family Reunion
A scene of Robin Hood reuniting with Little John and Roland, after leaving the Underworld, was filmed. Robin was supposed to hug and kiss Roland, who asks his father about his sister.

"Belle of the Box"
TBA.

"Two Halves"
TBA.

Starring

 * Ginnifer Goodwin as Mary Margaret Blanchard
 * Jennifer Morrison as Emma Swan
 * Lana Parrilla as Regina Mills
 * Josh Dallas as David Nolan
 * Emilie de Ravin (Credit only)
 * Colin O'Donoghue as Hook
 * Jared S. Gilmore as Henry Mills
 * Rebecca Mader as Zelena
 * Sean Maguire as Robin Hood
 * Robert Carlyle as Mr. Gold

Guest Starring

 * Lee Arenberg as Leroy
 * Emma Caulfield as the Blind Witch
 * Beverley Elliott as Granny
 * Liam Garrigan as King Arthur
 * Greg Germann as Hades
 * Amy Manson as Merida
 * Victoria Smurfit as Cruella De Vil
 * David Hoflin as Zeus
 * Eric Keenleyside as Moe French

Co-Starring

 * Raphael Alejandro as Roland
 * Kiefer Bahrich as Sad Eyed Boy
 * Jason Burkart as Little John
 * Michael Coleman as Happy
 * Faustino di Bauda as Walter
 * David-Paul Grove as Doc
 * Gabe Khouth as Mr. Clark
 * Mig Macario as Bashful
 * Michael P. Northey as Friar Tuck

Uncredited

 * Unknown baby as Robin
 * Unknown baby as Prince Neal

Trivia

 * -|Production Notes=

Production Notes

 * The title card features the Storybrooke Town Hall.
 * The title of this episode was announced by Adam Horowitz via his Twitter account on February 25, 2016.
 * The floor in Hades' Lair has a pentacle motif. The edges show the pitchfork-like motif from one of the flags in the lair. The floor of the Ambrosia Temple from "Firebird" has the same design.
 * -|Episode Connections=

Event Chronology

 * The Storybrooke events take place after "Our Decay" and before "Only You".
 * The Underworld events take place after "Firebird".

Episode Connections

 * Hades' heart was restarted in "Firebird", and he left the Underworld in the same episode.
 * King Arthur was imprisoned in "Birth".
 * Hades tells Arthur that he understands what it's like to be unjustly imprisoned; referring to the story he told Zelena in "Our Decay".
 * Mary Margaret returned to Storybrooke in "Ruby Slippers".
 * Walter fell asleep while on watch duty, just like he did in "Snow Falls".
 * Emma and her family left the Underworld in "Firebird".
 * Regina gave Robin and Zelena's child to Zelena in "Firebird".
 * Hook decided to stay behind in the Underworld in "Firebird".
 * Mary Margaret mentions that Emma and the others helped many people move on from the Underworld. This references Regina's father in "Souls of the Departed", Hercules and Megara in "Labor of Love", and Liam in "The Brothers Jones". Other souls that moved on, after Mary Margaret already left the Underworld, include Cora in "Sisters", and presumably numerous people in "Last Rites" after they received their unfinished businesses from Henry.
 * Hades' removal of the heroes' names from their gravestones, and his later attempt to trap them in the Underworld permanently occurred in "Last Rites".
 * Moe was previously abused by Mr. Gold and his cane in "Skin Deep".
 * Hook alludes to being physically tortured by Hades in his lair, and Arthur finds proof in the form of a cat o' nine tails. Hook's torture took place off-screen in "Labor of Love" and "Devil's Due", although the method used is first revealed in this episode.
 * Hades removed the pages from the storybook in "Our Decay".
 * Belle went under a Sleeping Curse in "Ruby Slippers".
 * Mr. Gold tried true love's kiss on Belle in "Firebird".
 * Robin and Regina sneak past Zelena's protection spell by using an underground tunnel, just like they did in "Witch Hunt".
 * Cruella ripped out the Underworld's haunting booth in "Ruby Slippers".
 * Mr. Gold's reason for wanting a piece of the Olympian Crystal is revealed in "Only You".
 * The last time Hook sailed down the River of Lost Souls, was when he was Hades' captive in "Devil's Due". Hook and Arthur find the Underworld storybook over the entrance to the place where Hook was held captive in the same episode.
 * As Hook flips through the storybook, there is an illustration of Snow White and Hercules in Hercules' camp from a scene in "Labor of Love".
 * The storybook page of Princess Leia and Prince Charles was an event shown in "Snow Drifts", and the actual page appeared in "There's No Place Like Home".


 * -|Cultural References=

Disney

 * This episode features Merida from Brave.

Fairytales and Folklore

 * This episode features Captain Hook from the Peter Pan story, Robin Hood, Little John, and Friar Tuck from the ballad, King Arthur from the Arthurian Legend, Hades and Zeus from Greek Mythology, Wicked Witch of the West from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz story, Cruella De Vil from The Hundred and One Dalmatians story, and the Blind Witch from the "Hansel and Gretel" fairytale.
 * The Underworld and the Five Rivers from Greek Mythology are featured.
 * Kronos, the father of Hades and Zeus from Greek Mythology, is mentioned in the Underworld Storybook. He is also completely rewritten from the villainous Titan that ate his children, was defeated by Zeus, and banished to Tartarus. Instead, he appears to be a loving father to both Zeus and Hades, and was killed by the latter.

Popular Culture

 * An early twentieth century edition of Modern Eloquence Vol XV: Political Oratory, edited by Thomas Brackett Reed and published circa 1901 - 1903, is lying on a table in Hades' Lair.
 * The inscription on archway where the Underworld Storybook is hidden reads as, "Abandon all hope, ye who enter here". This is a reference to Inferno, the first part of Dante Alighieri's epic poem Divine Comedy. In the poem, Dante passes through the gate of Hell, which bears an inscription ending with the famous phrase.

Religion

 * When Mary Margaret walks away from Emma, a cross-shaped headstone can be seen on a grave in the Storybrooke Graveyard. When Emma and Hook are reunited, a cross can be seen etched into another headstone.


 * -|Set Notes=

Props Notes

 * One of the missing pages from the Underworld Storybook reads:

Hades nodded to himself, impressed with the

leader's magic. The leader was elegantly dressed in

black, which also impressed Hades. Proper fashion was

very important to him. He noticed that much [illegible] that

whatever the leader was shouting about. It was a [illegible]

tirade about some young farm girl who had offended

the great leader. The leader believed that the [illegible]

villagers were hiding the farm girl. But instead of snap-

ing the necks of the villagers for their behavior, [illegible]

the leader merely went down the line of them, [illegible]

each one into a drooling, screeching beast. The [illegible]

of [illegible] retribution may have been satisfying to the

leader, but it wouldn't do at all for Hades. [obscured]

to somehow convince the leader [illegible]

killing. It turns out this leader [obscured]

of supplies of souls, and he [obscured]

that supply dry up. He started [obscured]

of dead he’d offer when the leader [obscured]

into a hairy beast.

Of course this [illegible] [obscured]

taken Hades for one

[illegible] [obscured]


 * Another page reads:

welling in his eyes. Only these were not tears of sad-

ness. They smoldered with rage.

"You’re wrong about me, Father. I will make a great

king."

Hades wiped the tears away as he said this, though his

voice was a vacuum of emotion. With cold determina-

tion, he approached a towering pedestal on the far side of

the bed chamber where an ornate filigreed box was left

unattended. Hades face betrayed a slight smile. He

knew this box held the prize he sought, and no one

would stop him from taking it now. He opened the box

and inside was an ancient crystal shaped like a crude

lightning bolt.

"The Olympian Crystal", he said reverently, with more

love than he had ever shown for leathery old Kronos.

"So…" a voice boomed from across the bed chamber.

Hades turned to see Zeus in the room, looking at him in

Judgment while touching the lifeless frame of their father

For one last time. "…your heart really is sickened."

Zeus stepped forward to his brother, in all his chiseled

Might. And every inch of his muscle nauseated Hades,

[obscured] maintained an even keel. For now.

[obscured] not take a moment to mourn our father?

"Who loved you?"

Zeus felt genuine compassion for his brother. And the

[illegible] branch he offered bore no hidden thorns, only the

promise of reconciliation. That Zeus was capable of such

[illegible] only stoked the flames within Hades further.

"No, Zeus", Hades spat. "He only loved you."

Hades took the crystal into his hands. It was his now,

and no one would take it from him. Not even the

[illegible] Zeus. The powerful magic within it glowed for [illegible].

[illegible] not yours to wield," Zeus warned.

"The Olympian Crystal is dangerous. It belongs to the

[obscured]

[illegible] king," Hades said, wielding the

[illegible] "And once I use this to kill you,

[illegible] kingdom I desire.

[illegible] and for a moment, Zeus

[illegible] that the crystal was powerful enough

[illegible] him. But Zeus [illegible], perhaps

[illegible] Hades raised the crystal,

[illegible] Zeus' chest, looking his

[illegible]

[illegible] Zeus' heart, when…


 * Excerpts from the fairytale of "The Golden Bird" can be seen in the Underworld storybook, and in Henry's storybook.
 * An excerpt from "Snow-White and Rose-Red" can be seen in the Underworld storybook when Hook flips through it.
 * When Emma opens Henry's storybook, you can see that she has the page with her and Hook bookmarked.

Set Dressing

 * A sign next to the Storybrooke Town Hall reads:

"The Storybrooke Improvement Society was founded by the Storybrooke Women's Institute in order to build the Town Hall. The architect was David H. Goodman cousin of Storybrooke entrepreneur Neil Westlake. The Hall was built and continues to be owned and maintained by members of the Society; men planted the apple trees on the north and women planted the apple trees to the south. The Hall has officially been designated as a Municipal Heritage Site. It serves the community as the focal and social center of Storybrooke"


 * David H. Goodman is an Executive Producer and writer for the show, and Neil Westlake is a graphic designer and production staff member on the show.
 * Neil Westlake is also listed as a complainant in a police report in "The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter".
 * He is also listed as a land surveyor on a document in "Fruit of the Poisonous Tree".
 * Neil Westlake is also credited as a photographer on the front page of the Storybrooke Daily Mirror in "The Stable Boy".
 * He is also listed as one of the reviewers on the book blurb for Isaac's novel "Heroes and Villains" in "Operation Mongoose Part 1".
 * Neal Westlake is also the name of the author of the book Robin Hood: Myth & Legend in "Only You".

Costume Notes

 * When Hook returns to the world of the living, he is wearing the exact same outfit and jewelry that he was wearing when he died in "Swan Song"; his Dark One outfit. When Emma healed his injuries in "The Brothers Jones", his outfit changed into the one he was wearing before he was a Dark One, but when he is brought back to life, he is wearing the same outfit that he died in.