"Fall" is the ninth episode of Season Four of ABC's Once Upon a Time. It was written by Jane Espenson, and directed by Mario Van Peebles. It is the seventy-fifth episode of the series overall, and premiered on November 30, 2014.
Synopsis
As the Spell of Shattered Sight approaches Storybrooke, Mary Margaret and David rally the residents to prepare for the curse while Belle and the fairies work together on an antidote. Gold, with Hook as his reluctant servant, sets about an exit strategy of his own. Regina and Robin Hood ready themselves for the worst while, with the help of a locator spell, Emma and Elsa search desperately for Anna. In Arendelle, Anna and Kristoff awaken to find that their kingdom is once again in danger.[2]
Recap
After Ingrid's freezing spell on Arendelle wears off, Anna and Kristoff unfreeze and are trying to formulate a plan to find Elsa when Hans and his brothers arrive to imprison them for assumed treason. Anna and Kristoff manage to escape and decide to go to the pirate Blackbeard, to look for the wishing star which they can use to free Elsa, who is trapped in a magic urn that Anna unintentionally caused when she was under the Spell of Shattered Sight in the previous episode, "Smash The Mirror."
They tell Black Beard that they will pay for the wishing star with his weight in gold, but Hans and his brothers suddenly appear and tell Anna and Kristoff that this a set-up. Hans then says that Arendelle has been frozen for 30 years, which surprises the couple. As they worry about what may have happened to Elsa and what the Snow Queen has done since then, they havs their hands tied with rope and are put in a trunk, which is then locked and dumped into the sea by Hans and Blackbeard so Hans and his brothers can take over Arendelle while Anna and Kristoff prepare for their fate.
Anna and Kristoff try to escape the trunk as it fills with water. Kristoff is able to free himself from the ropes and helps Anna with hers as she grieves. Starting to lose hope, she starts reciting her marriage vows because she wants to be married to Kristoff before she dies. Kristoff stops her, saying that he will only marry her after they escape and continues to comfort her. As the trunk is almost completely filled with water, they are suddenly brought to the beach in Storybrooke because Elsa wished for Anna on the Wishing Star, which is revealed to be Anna's necklace that Elsa gave her for her wedding in the first episode.
Mr. Gold approaches Ingrid and asks that Belle and Henry are spared from the Spell of Shattered Sight, so that he can leave town with them. She agrees to this proposal.
Meanwhile, others in Storybrooke try to figure out how to escape the Spell of Shattered Sight. Emma suggests they leave town, but the ice wall is blocking every way out and when David tries to cut it down, new ice structures emerge to block his effort. However, a crack appears in the ice, which reveals Anna's necklace, and Elsa retrieves it. Belle and the fairies try to come up with a counter spell to reverse the curse effect. They can make one with either Anna's hair or her necklace, because she is now immune to the curse, as Ingrid had already cast the same curse over her. Elsa takes her sister's necklace and attempts to find Anna using a locator spell, but it leads her and Emma to a solid wall in the tunnels under the library. Emma convinces Elsa that it is too risky to blast through. After making it back to the library, at the constant urging of Regina, and eventually Mary Margaret, Emma explains to Elsa that she needs to think about saving more lives than just Anna's. Elsa finally hands over the bag containing the necklace, but when Mother Superior opens it, it is revealed that Elsa has swapped out the necklace for rocks and has gone to find Anna on her own.
Gold orders Hook to stop the fairies and take their magic with the Sorcerer's Hat, so he can gain the power to free himself from the Dagger. Hook reluctantly does so, and captures all of the fairies. Gold then takes Belle to his shop and locks her in for her own protection.
Emma has decided to help Elsa search for Anna. The necklace leads them to the beach, but Anna is not there. Emma explains that magic is not always accurate, and that she needs to accept that Anna may no longer even be alive. Elsa weeps and wishes that she could know what happened to Anna and that she could see her again. Suddenly the necklace begins to glow. The necklace is revealed to be the Wishing Star. A water-filled trunk appears in the water and Anna and Kristoff emerge and Elsa and Anna reunite and embrace, and Gerda's message in the bottle for her daughters appears ashore on the beach, but goes unnoticed.
After a brief reunion, they run to Granny's to take Anna's hair to finish the counter spell, but find no one there, since Hook has captured the fairies. The four head to the sheriff's office, where they find Mary Margaret, David, and Neal. Mary Margaret hands Emma the keys to the jail, and says to lock her and David in separate cells, as they don't want to hurt themselves or anyone else when Ingrid's curse takes effect. Emma reluctantly does so, and takes her baby brother to protect him. Hook comes in, stating that he had to see Emma one last time and the two tearfully kiss goodbye, before Hook leaves to chain himself to a dock at the marina.
In the mayor's office, Regina tells Henry to stay in her office and to not let anyone in or out. She seals the door to her office and runs into Robin, who pleads he is not afraid of her and wants to stay by her side. She replies that no one will be safe when this spell hits, then runs to her vault and seals herself in.
The spell falls upon the town, an indigo thunderstorm covers the town, and mirror shards begin to rain down from the sky as Hook looks on from the docks. Mary Margaret's and David's eyes frost over and "crack," and they let go of each other's hands and begin looking menacingly at each other.
Cast[2]
Starring
Guest Starring |
Co-Starring
Uncredited
|
Trivia
Title
- The title card features Gerda and her husband's shipwreck, and Gerda's message in a bottle.[3]
- The title of this episode was announced by Adam Horowitz via his Twitter account on October 11, 2014.[4]
Production Notes
- During the shooting of this episode, director Mario Van Peebles suggested some pebbles being used in a scene, whereupon he nicknamed himself Mario Van "Pebbles."[5]
- According to Adam Horowitz, Ingrid used all her magic powers to start the Spell of Shattered Sight, which is the reason why Arendelle defrosted after so many years.[6]
- ABANDONED IDEAS: The scene where Hook captures the nuns was originally going to be set in the Storybrooke convent.[7]
- ABANDONED IDEAS: Graphic designer Neil Westlake created concept art of a map of the Storybrooke mines for the episode,[8] but the map does not appear on-screen.
- REUSED FOOTAGE: The background plate for the moment where the shards of Ingrid's spell rain down over Storybrooke[9] was re-used for an establishing shot of the streets of Storybrooke in the Season Five episode "Dreamcatcher."[10] The two cars parked outside Marine Garage and the Encom sign sitting on the pavement are a dead giveaway; however, the time on the CGI clock tower is different. The leaves on the ground, which are being blown around by the wind when Ingrid's spell hits, are also different, indicating that the shot from "Dreamcatcher" was created from cut footage from before or after the one from "Fall."
- The shot from "Dreamcatcher" was re-used for the scene where everyone returns to Storybrooke in the Season Five finale "An Untold Story."[11] The only difference is the color hue and, once again, the time on the town clock.
Event Chronology
- The Storybrooke events take place after "Smash the Mirror" and before "Shattered Sight." (For more details, see the Land Without Magic timeline)
- The Arendelle events take place more than 30 years after "Smash the Mirror," and before "Heroes and Villains." (For more details, see the Arendelle timeline)
- The Enchanted Forest events take place concurrently with the events in Storybrooke,[12] after the scene with Ariel and Prince Eric on Hangman's Island in "The Jolly Roger" and before "The Dark Swan." (For more details, see the Enchanted Forest timeline)
Episode Connections
- The Spell of Shattered Sight was cast by Ingrid in "Smash the Mirror." It is broken in "Shattered Sight."
- The ice wall was created by Elsa in "White Out."
- The reason why Mr. Gold dislikes fairies is revealed in "The Return" and "Changelings."
- The nuns are released from the Sorcerer's Hat in "Darkness on the Edge of Town.
- Black Beard references his past encounter with Hook and Ariel. This event occurs in "The Jolly Roger."
- Hans is overthrown in "Heroes and Villains."
- The consequences of Blackbeard terrorizing Elsa's family are revealed in "Poor Unfortunate Soul."
- Elsa's quest to find her sister Anna began in "A Tale of Two Sisters."
- David's relationships with both Anna and Kristoff was explored in "White Out."
- Emma's knowledge about the dragon living in the mines was due to events in "A Land Without Magic."
- Emma mentions how her mother and father reunited once long ago thanks to a locator spell, which happened in "A Land Without Magic."
- Anna, Elsa and Kristoff return to Arendelle in "Heroes and Villains."
Disney
- This episode features Elsa, Anna, Kristoff and Hans from the movie Frozen, as well as their homeland Arendelle.
- Anna says to Hans that she sang with him; referring to their duet "Love Is an Open Door" from Frozen. Although there have been nods to Disney musical numbers previously, such as the dwarves and the "Whistle While You Work" song, this is the first time a direct reference to a Disney film's musical sequence has been made.
Lost
- There is a close-up of Mary Margaret's eye after the spell is enacted.[13] This is a recurring theme from Lost.
- This episode contains a number of other references to ABC's Lost. See the list of Lost references for more.
Fairytales and Folklore
- This episode features the ugly duckling from the titular fairytale, the titular character from "The Snow Queen" fairytale, Robin Hood and Will Scarlet from the Robin Hood ballads, and Captain Hook from the Peter Pan story.
- Will Scarlet is also the Knave of Hearts from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.
- Hans refers to the area where Anna and Elsa's parents drowned as Poseidon's Boneyard, a reference to the deity from Greek mythology.
- The shards of the trolden glass rain down from the sky and pieces of them invade everyone's eyes; a reference to the events of "The Snow Queen" fairytale, where the troll mirror falls to earth and shatters into millions of pieces, which get into peoples hearts and eyes.
Popular Culture
- This episode features Black Beard, the infamous English pirate who is the figure most often associated with the Golden Age of Piracy in the Caribbean, and has been featured heavily in works of fiction across a range of genres.
Props Notes
- BRAND INFO: Belle is carrying[14] a Kate Spade New York Cedar Street Lace Small Harmony Tote handbag[15] (no longer available).
Costume Notes
- BRAND INFO: Regina is wearing[16] an McQ by Alexander McQueen Black Cube Chain Belt[17] (no longer available).
- USE IT AGAIN: She continues to wear it when the story continues in the following episode, "Shattered Sight."[18]
- BRAND INFO: Emma is wearing[19] a Sandro Double Layer Hem Sweater[20] (no longer available). She also wears it in "Shattered Sight."[21]
- BRAND INFO: Mary Margaret is wearing[22] a Lambswool Zip Sweater from J.Crew[23] (no longer available).
- USE IT AGAIN: She continues to wear it in "Shattered Sight."[24]
- BRAND INFO: Belle is wearing[25] a Cropped Turtleneck Sweater in Latte by Sam Edelman[26] over a RED Valentino Poplin Short Sleeve Ruffle Blouse,[27] a Holly Go Lightly Plaid Skirt in Black/Ivory by Free People[28] and a pair of Rachel Zoe Chase Haircalf Buckle Booties[29] (all four are no longer available).
Filming Locations
- The Storybrooke beach scene where Elsa is reunited with her sister Anna was filmed on the Third Beach in Stanley Park[30] in Vancouver, Canada, where production for Once Upon a Time is based.
- RECYCLED SET: The Third Beach also doubles as the Storybrooke beach where Emma and Neal run into Tamara in the Season Two episode "Second Star to the Right,"[31] and the Storybrooke beach where David and Mary Margaret find "Ariel" in the Season Three episode "The Jolly Roger."[32][33][34] This beach also doubles as Hangman's Island for the scene with Ariel and Prince Eric in "The Jolly Roger."[33]
- The same beach has been featured in The Flash episode "Tricksters" and the Battlestar Galactica episode "Torn."[35]
International Titles
International Titles | ||
---|---|---|
Language | Title | Translation |
Finnish | "Vastaloitsu" | "Counterspell" |
French | "L'Étoile Filante" | "The Shooting Star" |
German | "Wenn Feen verschwinden" | "When Fairies Vanish" |
Italian | "Il crollo" | "The Fall" |
Portuguese | "Queda" | "Fall" |
Spanish | "Ocaso" | "Sunset" |