Welcome to Storybrooke, where a small sleepy town becomes a timeless prison for all of your beloved fairy tale characters. Snow White is a mousy schoolteacher with surprisingly short hair, Prince Charming is more Sleeping Beauty as he lies in a coma in the hospital, Red Riding Hood is a waitress, and Belle is . . . well, I won’t spoil it, but she’s certainly not reading books or swirling about a ballroom in a yellow gown.
Once Upon a Time: The Complete First Season is now available on Blu-ray and DVD, and the collection contains all 22 enchanting episodes of the hit series written by Adam Horowitz and Eddy Kitsis (Lost).
Bonus material includes conversations with the cast about their childhood memories of Snow White, deleted scenes, audio commentaries, a look into the creation of the series and “The Fairest Bloopers of Them All.”
Once Upon a Time is the story of a vengeful Queen whose revenge takes on the form of a curse that transports all the fairytale characters to Storybrooke, where the Evil Queen rules as mayor and time stands still. Only the determination of a boy named Henry helps put events into motion, bringing hope and awareness to the residents of Storybrooke.
I was a bit skeptical when the series first premiered, but I was pleasantly surprised. Nearly every episode introduces some new character from a fairytale and brings more understanding to the overall plot of the show. I don’t know how many episodes I spent wondering why Snow White’s stepmother (the Queen) is determined to destroy her, but the answer is eventually revealed. (And no, it’s not because she’s the fairest one of all. That’d be too obvious). Also revealed is how the dwarf Grumpy got his name and how Snow White and Prince Charming meet, and even Jiminy Cricket gets a backstory.
Unsurprisingly, my favorite episode is the one where Belle makes her appearance. Watch this episode (and the rest) for obvious and obscure references to their Disney animated counterparts. For example, the Belle episode shows a small cup with a chip in it. Get it? Chip, from Beauty and the Beast.
And while Maleficent makes an appearance in this first season, we can still look forward to seeing Sleeping Beauty in the upcoming season, as well as Mulan and Captain Hook. The Genie also appears in this collection, and we learn the origin story of the Evil Queen’s Magic Mirror.
The unique spin to the stories is what makes the show so interesting. They are familiar but still presented in a new and exciting way. In addition to that, there are some amazing costumes, though I really hope Emma Swan wears something besides a red leather jacket in future episodes. The heroine should have the best costumes, but I think the Queen is actually the best-dressed on the show.
You still have time to catch up on the entire story before the Season 2 premiere at the end of September, so put on your glass slippers and sprinkle some pixie dust. A land of magic and true love awaits you.