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"The Tower" is the fourteenth episode of Season Three of ABC's Once Upon a Time. It was written by Robert Hull and directed by Ralph Hemecker. It is the fifty-eighth episode of the series overall, and premiered on March 23, 2014.
Synopsis
While Emma, David, Regina and Hook continue their search for the Wicked Witch, she, in turn, is planning a dark surprise for David, and Zelena's prisoner is powerless under her watch as she plots her next course of action against the townspeople. Meanwhile, in the Fairy Tale Land that was in the previous year, Prince Charming stumbles upon Rapunzel, who is trapped inside a tower, and must help her confront her fears in order for her to be free.[2]
Recap
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Prince Charming is baffled as he makes his way through a baby’s nursery. He’s even more confused when Emma approaches him in a beautiful gown. She speaks of going to a ball. She wants to learn how dance. Her father teaches her. The dance ends when Emma tells Charming that none of this is real. It should’ve been, but it isn’t. That’s because her father failed her. She tells him not to fail the next one before being sucked away from his embrace. This was all just a dream. Charming awakens to Snow White’s big news. She’s pregnant. They’re going to have a baby!
In Storybrooke, Emma and the others look for a way to track down the Wicked Witch. Regina offers to keep Henry safe while the others search for their elusive foe. Speaking of Zelena, she visits Rumplestiltskin in his underground cage. He’s busy with his spinning wheel trying to drive away the madness. Zelena has a dagger that holds him powerless against her. She uses it to shave his beard. Zelena lets Rumple know that she’s after something he’s spent a lifetime seeking. Luckily, she’ll be getting it soon enough.
Zelena pays a visit to Mr. Gold’s shop under the pretense of looking for a gift for Mary Margaret. She freezes Belle with a spell so she can execute her real mission to break into the safe. Zelena meets with Mary Margaret and David, who wonders if this stranger can be trusted. His wariness is with good cause. Zelena slips the potion she stole from Mr. Gold’s shop into David’s tea. She advises the couple to get their fears out into the open. David assures her that he has none.
In Fairy Tale Land, Robin Hood catches Charming sneaking a drink from a flask he keeps hidden. The two of them chat about the importance of keeping family safe. Charming says he has an overwhelming feeling of dread. He can’t let it distract him though. Robin Hood tells him of a “night root” that, if digested, will help one overcome any fear. Charming is off to a haunted section of Sherwood Forest to find it. He unearths the root, but a scream for help soon has him scaling up the side of a tower. He grabs hold of a rope. Actually, it’s long stretch of hair. David meets the resident of the tower. Her name: Rapunzel.
Rapunzel tells Charming that she, too, wanted the night root to overcome the fear of leading that haunted her after the death of her brother. A witch who kept her face hidden in a cloak chased her into the tower. She’s kept her trapped inside ever since. Charming vows he will get Rapunzel out. That won’t be easy now that the witch knows he’s there. She scales the outside of the tower. Rapunzel wants Charming to run. That’s not going to happen. Charming vows he will save her. But the witch is a powerful foe. A mighty struggle ensues. The witch knocks Charming to the floor.
In Storybrooke, Emma and Hook follow a lead on the witch. It brings them into the woods. A conversation about how Emma nearly married a flying monkey ensues. She had her heart broken yet again. This is good news for Hook. If Emma’s heart can be broken, that means it still works. Back where they started, David is trying to catch up. He doesn’t see the cloaked figure that’s standing behind him.
Much like what happened in Rapunzel’s tower, the cloaked figure of Storybrooke battles David, who pulls off the hood to discover it’s his own face that was being hidden. Back in Fairy Tale Land, Charming battles the witch, who is actually a mirror image of the very person he’s trying to help. Only Rapunzel can defeat her. Charming launches the cloaked one out of the tower. Rapunzel must overcome her fear of an uncertain future. She cuts off her hair causing the cloaked figure to fall. She returns home to her parents ready to lead. Charming returns ready to be a father.
Back in Storybrooke, David overcomes his fear and defeats his other self by stabbing the figure. The hilt of his sword disappears after he does this. Elsewhere in the woods, Emma and Hook come to a clearing where they find a farmhouse. There’s a storm cellar in the field. Hook convinces Emma that they should get Regina before heading down there. The three of them find David in the woods. He tells of how the hilt of his sword vanished. Regina believes his courage transferred into it. The Wicked Witch stole it. In essence, she stole his courage.
The group makes its way back to the farmhouse. Whoever is living there isn’t there now. Little do they know that’s because Zelena is busy gaining Mary Margaret’s trust. They move over to the storm cellar to find the lock on the top broken. Regina feels there is dark magic in this place. The group goes deeper into the cellar to find a cage. The door is open. There’s a spinning wheel inside which was used to turn straw into gold. Rumplestiltskin was there. The question is… where is he now?
Cast[2]
Starring
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Guest Starring
Co-Starring
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Trivia
Production Notes
- The title card features Rapunzel's tower.
- The title of this episode was announced by Adam Horowitz via his Twitter account on December 20, 2013.[3]
- During rehearsals for their dance sequence, Jennifer Morrison and Josh Dallas were coached by choreographer, Paul Becker.[4]
Event Chronology
- The Enchanted Forest flashbacks occur in various places of the overall timeline.
- The first part of the story where Prince Charming finds out that Snow White is pregnant occur after "The Jolly Roger" and before Belle returns to the others in "A Curious Thing".
- The second part of the story occur after Belle returns to the others in "A Curious Thing" and 8 months before the casting of the Dark Curse in "A Curious Thing".
- The Storybrooke events take place after "Witch Hunt" and before "Quiet Minds". (For more details, see the Land Without Magic timeline)
Episode Connections
- The Royal Castle and the Magic Wardrobe first appeared in "Pilot".
- How Zelena came to possess the Dark One's Dagger and the reason for the voices in Mr. Gold's head is revealed in "Quiet Minds".
- Zelena's relationship with her adoptive father is shown in "It's Not Easy Being Green".
- Emma mentions the Wicked Witch breaking into Regina's office, which occurred in "Witch Hunt".
- Both Regina and Hook allude to the events in "Witch Hunt", in which town residents began turning into flying monkeys.
- Emma recalls the lie she told Henry that their trip to Storybrooke is work-related, which occurred in "New York City Serenade".
- Belle states that Mr. Gold died, which happened in "Going Home".
- Zelena mentions meeting Mary Margaret at Granny's Diner in "Witch Hunt".
- David mentions his time working at the pet shelter, which began in "Desperate Souls".
- Robin Hood receives gold-tipped arrows for helping Regina break into her palace, which occurred in "Witch Hunt".
- Robin Hood references the death of Roland's mother, Maid Marian, which was first mentioned in "The Heart of the Truest Believer".
- Mary Margaret mentions, during her life as Snow White, how she robbed Prince Charming's carriage and he later entrapped her in a net, which occurred in "Snow Falls".
- Zelena states Mary Margaret has already been in labor once, which occurred in "Pilot".
- Zelena brings up to David the matter in which he lost his first child the day the Dark Curse was cast, an event shown in "Pilot".
- What Hook is hiding from Emma, is revealed in "The Jolly Roger".
- Hook references Emma's ex-boyfriend, Walsh, who was introduced in "New York City Serenade".
- Hook speaks of Walsh proposing to Emma and her discovery of his true identity in "New York City Serenade".
- Snow White remembers losing Emma twice, once during the day the Dark Curse was cast in "Pilot", and when they were sent back to the Enchanted Forest in "Going Home".
- Mary Margaret's desire for a second child was first mentioned in "Ariel".
Disney
- When Rapunzel's doppelganger enters the tower, the doppelganger ties up Prince Charming with Rapunzel's hair, just like Disney's Rapunzel does with Flynn Rider in the movie Tangled.
Fairy Tales and Folklore
- This episode is a rendition of the Rapunzel fairy tale, focusing on Rapunzel's entrapment in her tower.
- Also featured is Belle from the Beauty and the Beast fairytale, Evil Queen, Prince Charming and Snow White from the Snow White fairytale as well as Robin Hood from the Robin Hood ballad.
Popular Culture
- Regina makes a reference to the character Nancy Drew of the book series of the same name.
- The neighborhood of Little Italy in Manhattan, New York City is mentioned.
- The Borough of Queens in New York City is mentioned.
- There is a bicycle with a basket in Zelena's porch, which references Miss Gulch, the Wicked Witch of the West's Kansas counterpart, from the 1939 The Wizard of Oz film, who has a similar bicycle.
- When David calls Emma's phone, he receives her voice mail, in which she names her work business as "Big Apple Bails Bond". The Big Apple is a popular nickname for New York City.
Costume Notes
- The dress Emma wears in Prince Charming's nightmare has swan-like feathers.[5]
- Emma's tiara[6] is the same one worn by Emma at King Midas' ball in "Snow Drifts".[7]
- Belle is wearing[8] an alternatively colored Bow-Appliqued Lace Jersey Tee by RED Valentino[9] (no longer available).
- Emma is wearing[10] a Coach Cashmere Solid Knit Hat in Gray[11] (no longer available). She wears the same headgear in "Quiet Minds".[12]
- Rapunzel's outfit[13] is the same outfit that Guinevere wears for her birthday celebration in "The Broken Kingdom".[14]
Goofs
- David explains gaining knowledge about holly berries from previously working in the animal shelter and frequently seeing dogs track them. However, that appears to be unlikely to happen in a real life scenario as holly berries are poisonous to dogs.[15]
Filming Locations
- The set used to film Rapunzel's Tower also doubles as the dungeon where Rumplestiltskin tortures Robin Hood in "Lacey", and the Arendelle castle tower where Anna tries on the wedding dress in "A Tale of Two Sisters".[16]
- The scene with Henry and Regina by the duck pond,[17] and the scene with Emma and Hook in the Storybrooke forest,[18] were filmed in Burnaby's Central Park.
International Titles
| International Titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Language | Title | Translation |
| Finnish | "Torni" | "The Tower" |
| French | "Le Fantôme de la Peur" | "The Ghost of Fear" |
| German | "Rapunzels Turm der Angst" | "Rapunzel's Tower of Fear" |
| Hungarian | "A torony" | "The Tower" |
| Italian | "La torre" | "The Tower" |
| Portuguese | "A Torre" | "The Tower" |
Videos
