The Wish Realm, also known as the Alternate Universe,[1] and locally known as the Enchanted Forest,[2] is a reality featured on ABC's Once Upon a Time. It first appears in the tenth episode of the sixth season.
Description
The Wish Realm is a real, actual place that exists, and it was magically created when the Evil Queen used the genie Aladdin to grant Emma's wish of never having been the Savior.[3] As a result, a world that only consists of "an alternate Enchanted Forest"[1] was created with a history starting from the time frame of the Evil Queen's failed attempt to cast the Dark Curse. It is unknown if the events before the failed curse have actually happened with a fast timeflow or they are just fake memories in people's heads. Moreover, although the majority of the events are the same, there are also some notable differences between the events of the Wish Realm and the Enchanted Forest, whether before or after the failed curse. ("Wish You Were Here," "Tougher Than the Rest," "Eloise Gardener," "Breadcrumbs," "Homecoming")
History
Reason: Season 7
After the immediate creation of the world, Emma is teleported to the Wish Realm, a recreation of the Enchanted Forest, where the Evil Queen is left unable to cast her Dark Curse after Prince Charming and Snow White find a way to take away her magic. The Evil Queen avoids being captured by striking a deal with Captain Hook and buying herself safe passage out of the kingdom on his ship. ("Wish You Were Here," "Eloise Gardener")
Revered for saving the kingdom's people from the Evil Queen, Charming and Snow ascend the throne as King David and Queen Snow, and they are the elderly rulers of this land. The original Emma is placed in the role of their meek daughter, given fake memories and having her real ones erased so she no longer remembers being strong or fighting back. Her son, Henry, is a prince who is approaching his knighting ceremony. This realm's Robin of Locksley is also still alive; Rumplestiltskin is imprisoned underneath the ruined Evil Queen's former palace; and Geppetto has died of old age, leaving his son, Pinocchio, alone. ("Wish You Were Here")
Regina, the Evil Queen's counterpart from the Land Without Magic, visits this realm shortly after its creation to try and bring Emma back. Emma doubts her claims of a "real" world and she is soon discovered by the king and queen, who believe her to be the Evil Queen they banished. After a suggestion from Rumplestiltskin, Regina decides to disguise herself as just that and attacks as Snow and David knight Henry, hoping to awaken Emma's inherent heroism. Instead, Emma attempts to give Regina control of the kingdom, even as Regina crushes her supposed parents' hearts. His grandparents dead, Henry swears revenge on the Evil Queen and attempts to kill her, but Emma stops him and remembers who she really is. Their escape is postponed when Regina meets the Robin of the Wish Realm but they are still able to return to the Land Without Magic via an Enchanted Tree carved into a wardrobe by Pinocchio, bringing Robin along with them. ("Wish You Were Here," "Tougher Than the Rest")
After Robin is returned to the Wish Realm by Regina's evil half, the Evil Queen created by Dr. Jekyll's Serum kidnaps him to use as bait in an attempt to kill Regina. Regina thwarts this attempt by putting some of her love in the Evil Queen's heart, turning her good, and Henry of the Land Without Magic uses his Author's pen to send the Queen somewhere she can be happy: the Wish Realm. However, this falls through when Sir Henry discovers her and still blames her for his grandparents' death. As such, the Queen and Robin leave the Wish Realm to retreat to the "real" Enchanted Forest. ("Page 23," "The Final Battle Part 1")
Sometime later, Sir Henry departs from the Wish Realm for an unknown land, where he turns down a chance to make a deal with Wish Rumplestiltskin to obtain his happy ending. ("Homecoming")After Regina casts another curse, this time taking a piece of the hearts of everyone who she loves and who loves her, the Wish Realm is among one of the lands that become united. ("Leaving Storybrooke")
When the citizens of the United Realms, which includes the Wish Realm, elect Regina as their new Queen, Regina is brought to the royal castle by her family to crowned. ("Leaving Storybrooke")Inhabitants
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Locations
For detailed location information, please see the Wish Realm Locations category, or the list of minor Wish Realm locations.
Ways to Access the Wish Realm
The Wish Realm can be reached:
- By Tilly's looking glass ("Homecoming")
- Also, every other way that can be used in a magical location is possible due to the location being a magical world. (For more information, see World-crossing.)
Trivia
On-Screen Notes
- The statue of King David and Queen Snow in the Wish Realm is featured in the title card for "Wish You Were Here".[4]
- The river that Emma and Regina stop by is the same altered location where Prince Charming and Snow White first decided to "take back the kingdom". This can easily be seen from direction of the trees.[5] But it is not known if these two places are meant to be same since the latter does not have the Royal Castle behind and there seems to be no mountain. ("Wish You Were Here")
- The tavern where Regina and her serum counterpart both find Robin of Locksley[6] is the Wish Realm version of the Enchanted Forest tavern where Queen Regina and Tinker Bell found the real Robin Hood in "Quite a Common Fairy".[7] The two buildings share the same facade. ("Tougher Than the Rest," "Page 23")
Production Notes
- The opening shot of the Jolly Roger sailing at the Wish Realm sea in "Breadcrumbs"[8] is stock footage of the real Jolly Roger in Neverland from "And Straight On 'Til Morning".[9] The same shot was used in "The Heart of the Truest Believer".[10]
- A wide shot of the Jolly Roger in the scene where Davy Jones' treasure is hoisted onto the ship in "Breadcrumbs"[11] is stock footage from the scene where Hook and Liam first set eyes upon the real Jolly Roger in the Enchanted Forest in "The Brothers Jones".[12] Another wide shot from the scene, where the ship is struck by lightning,[13] is a darkened version of a shot of the real Jolly Roger sailing on the seas of Neverland in "The Heart of the Truest Believer".[14]
Props Notes
- Tilly's mirror, which is used for travelling to the Wish Realm, is cracked.[15] Hook also defines the Wish Realm as "a twisted version of the truth and a cracked mirror". ("A Pirate's Life," "Homecoming")
Set Dressing
- The workbench outside Pinocchio's home is filled with hand carved marionettes;[16] fitting for a former wooden marionette. ("Tougher Than the Rest")
Filming Locations
- The Wish Realm scene with Regina and the dwarves in "Wish You Were Here" was filmed in Burnaby's Central Park.[17]
- The Golden Ears Provincial Park doubles as the beach where Regina and Emma meet up with Rumplestiltskin and run into Robin of Locksley in "Wish You Were Here".[18] The scenes were filmed on the shore of Alouette Lake.[19]
- The scenes by the enchanted tree in "Tougher Than the Rest" were filmed in Vancouver's Stanley Park,[20] by the pathway known as the Stanley Park SeaWall.[21]
- The shootout scene with Wish Hook and Captain Ahab at the Wish Realm Port in "Knightfall" was filmed on a green-screen set at The Bridge Studios.[22]
- The scenes by Wish Rumplestiltskin's farm in "Homecoming" was filmed in Vancouver's Everett Crowley Park.[23]
- A deleted scene with Roni and the Wish Realm versions of Grumpy, Granny and the Blue Fairy by the statue of Queen Snow and King David was filmed in the same location.Cite error: Closing
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tag The rocks Rogers and Weaver were standing on were real, as were the rock Wish Ariel was sitting on. The rest of the surroundings were added digitally in post-production.
- A deleted scene with Roni and the Wish Realm versions of Grumpy, Granny and the Blue Fairy by the statue of Queen Snow and King David was filmed in the same location.Cite error: Closing
- Burnaby's Central Park doubles as the Wish Realm for the scene with Rogers, Margot and the Black Knights in "Leaving Storybrooke".[24]
Appearances
Once Upon a Time: Season Six | ||||||||||
"The Savior": | "A Bitter Draught": | "The Other Shoe": | "Strange Case": | "Street Rats": | "Dark Waters": | "Heartless": | "I'll Be Your Mirror": | "Changelings": | "Wish You Were Here": | "Tougher Than the Rest": |
Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Appears | Appears |
"Murder Most Foul": | "Ill-Boding Patterns": | "Page 23": | "A Wondrous Place": | "Mother's Little Helper": | "Awake": | "Where Bluebirds Fly": | "The Black Fairy": | "The Song in Your Heart": | "The Final Battle Part 1": | "The Final Battle Part 2": |
Mentioned | Mentioned | Appears | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Mentioned | Absent |
Once Upon a Time: Season Seven | ||||||||||
"Hyperion Heights": | "A Pirate's Life": | "The Garden of Forking Paths": | "Beauty": | "Greenbacks": | "Wake Up Call": | "Eloise Gardener": | "Pretty in Blue": | "One Little Tear": | "The Eighth Witch": | "Secret Garden": |
Absent | Mentioned | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Appears | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
"A Taste of the Heights": | "Knightfall": | "The Girl in the Tower": | "Sisterhood": | "Breadcrumbs": | "Chosen": | "The Guardian": | "Flower Child": | "Is This Henry Mills?": | "Homecoming": | "Leaving Storybrooke": |
Absent | Appears | Absent | Absent | Appears | Absent | Absent | Absent | Mentioned | Appears | Appears |
Once Upon a Time: Specials | ||||||||||
"Magic is Coming": |
"The Price of Magic": | "Journey to Neverland": | "Wicked is Coming": | "Storybrooke Has Frozen Over": | ||||||
Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | ||||||
"Secrets of Storybrooke": | "Dark Swan Rises": | "Evil Reigns Once More": | "The Final Battle Begins": | |||||||
Absent | Absent | Absent | Archive |
Other Appearances | ||||||||||
Note: "Archive" denotes archive footage.