Once Upon a Time: Sneak Peek Episode 10: 7:15 AM

Above is a sneak peek of tonight's new episode of Once Upon a Time on ABC. This one is titled "7:15 AM" which is rather intriguing.

Episode description:

ONCE UPON A TIME - "7:15 A.M." - Mary Margaret and David continue to grapple with their unrequited love, and Emma and Regina grow suspicious over a mysterious new stranger in town. Meanwhile, in the fairytale land that was, Snow White yearns to ease her breaking heart as Prince Charming's wedding to King Midas's daughter approaches, on "Once Upon a Time," SUNDAY, JANUARY 22 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network. (ABC/JACK ROWAND) GINNIFER GOODWIN, ALAN DALE

Another peek:

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Sherlock and Hansel and Gretel

Sherlock, Series Two just finished airing in the UK although it won't air in the US until May. My John is a huge fan of the series and can hardly wait for it so I am tempted to order it from the UK for his birthday. Yes, we own a Region 2 reading DVD player although most computers handle them, too. Sometimes we can't stand to wait or miss shows that don't get released here for a long time. I, in other words, am a BBC junkie. We're also Sherlock junkies and our first trip to London included time at 221B Baker Street.

But why am I posting about it here? Well, SurLaLune reader Aliza from the UK emailed me to let me know that the third episode features a Hansel and Gretel subplot. It was intriguing, so I thought I would share to inspire those who can catch it in rerun or anticipate watching it in May or whenever it appears in your area.

From Aliza:

Concerning fairy tale retellings, a British TV Modern remake of Sherlock Holmes from BBC 1 named "Sherlock" has used the fairy- tale theme in it's latest episode.

The last of six hour and a half episodes named "The Reichenbach Fall" that was released this Sunday somehow managed to add Hansel and Gretel into the plot.

James Moriarty, Sherlock's nemesis starts by warning Sherlock ominously that "every fairy tale needs an old fashioned villain."

Later, two children go missing and Sherlock finds a "Brothers Grimm Fairy Tales" Book left in their nursery by Moriarty. From different clues he devises that the children are hidden in an abandoned candy factory.

Moriarty took the two children and gave then lots of candy and sweets, but as Sherlock discovers, the wrappers are coated with mercury.

Because of this, the more candy the children eat, the more poison enters their bodies and the quicker they die.

I found the idea and the mixing of the tale in the show very interesting. I wonder if the show was following the currant trend of bringing fairy tales into everything or doing for their own personal reasons.

The show as a whole is also worth a look at. Even though Sherlock Holmes is no fairy tale, the show takes the old and well known story to a new angle by placing the characters in a modern setting.

Here is more information about the show and the episode if you are interested:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b018ttws
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01b2vl4

Hope this information was somewhat useful,

Aliza

Thanks for sharing, Aliza. I probably wouldn't have known about this until May!

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New Grimm Episode Tonight: "Of Mouse and Man"

Above is a sneak peek for tonight's episode, "Of Mouse and Man" (TV-14). "When a man is found dead in a dumpster, the investigation leads to a sly snake and a timid mouse."

And, no, I am not sure which fairy tale is the inspiration this time. I have speculations, but the pre-press isn't helpful enough to be sure. The last several weeks have been much easier to know and have even outright stated in their preview materials.

In my online world, many of you readers here seem to be equally divided between Grimm and OUAT on ABC. In my real world, no one watches Grimm but just about everyone is telling me about their love for OUAT but that Grimm is too, well, grim, especially if they know about my connection to fairy tales.

And for those of you who are Monroe fans (the best character on the show by far, the one who is keeping me the most interested, I admit), there is a Best Monroe quotes section on NBC. I think they could kill off almost any character and no one would care except about Monroe. He'd probably spur a letter campaign.

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ABC's Once Upon a Time: Episode 9 Tonight: True North

Tonight we get a new episode of ABC's "Once Upon a Time." It's the long anticipated Hansel and Gretel episode titled, "True North."

Looks like fun to me!

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Grimm Tonight: Game Ogre (Episode 8)

Now isn't it rather fitting that Grimm returns from hiatus tonight on Friday the 13th? Yes, it is. Tonight's episode is "Game Ogre" (TV-14):

A string of brutal murders lead Nick and Hank to a man who recently escaped prison.

And this promo tells us right away that Jack and the Beanstalk is the inspiration. Should be interesting...

And an extended preview:

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Top Chef Texas: Fit for an Evil Queen

Okay, now here's a reality show using fairy tales that I actually watch. Yes, John and I enjoy watching Top Chef together so this upcoming Wednesday's episode on 1/18/2012 will be a little more fun for us with the theme.

Here's the episode description from the Bravo website:

This week’s Quickfire is all about awareness in the kitchen. The chefs will have 30 minutes to create a dish of their choosing, but this is no ordinary Quickfire. Once time begins, various ingredients will start to come into the kitchen via a train. The chefs must select ingredients coming into the kitchen via train and create a dish incorporating the best of these ingredients. For the elimination challenge, the chefs embody evil on the plate and serve a gothic feast fit for a queen. This dish should demonstrate various cooking techniques, textures and flavors, but more importantly, the diners should visually see the “evil” components on the dish. Actress Charlize Theron, who plays the Evil Queen in the film Snow White & The Huntsman guest judges, along with Emeril Lagasse, head judge Tom Colicchio, and host Padma Lakshmi.

Interesting challenge. And more evidence that the promotional work and competition between the two Snow White movies is going to be fierce in upcoming months. This movie isn't even out for four more months.

Here are two more promos being show on tv put on YouTube by others, not great quality but with more previewing than the one above:

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UK: Celebrity Big Brother Fairy Tale Challenge

First off, I must issue my disclaimer. I have only seen part of a Big Brother episode once when I was visiting someone and had little control over my environment. If you love it, no judgment here. This is just to explain that I understand the concept of the show but have very, very limited firsthand experience.

But in my endeavours to show where fairy tales appear in pop culture (as where as everywhere else) I would feel remiss if I didn't mention that the UK version of Celebrity Big Brother had a fairy tale challenge this week. After all, it has had a lot of coverage this week, too, in entertainment news. I have no comments. I haven't viewed. I am rather ignorant, but still fascinated. Here goes:

From STV:

Most celebrities live a life that seems like a fairytale for us ‘normal’ people - but this week the contestants on Celebrity Big Brother have been challenged to do it for real, in order to be successful in their shopping task.

The stars – who include axed X Factor contestant Frankie Cocozza, actress Natalie Cassidy, WAG Natasha Giggs and Loose Women’s Denise Welch – must work together if they want to get their hands on money for the house budget.

They have been tasked to carry out various tasks while playing the roles of much-loved fairytale characters including Pinocchio, Rapunzel, Little Red Riding Hood and Geppetto. These include rescuing Rapunzel from the tower that imprisons her, and protecting the house from the Big Bad Wolf.

From UnrealityTV:

For this week’s shopping task, the Big Brother house and housemates have been transformed into a fairytale.

Yesterday, the housemates took part in the following challenges:

Rapunzel and The Prince – PASSED
The Prince (Gareth) managed to rescue Rapunzel (Georgia) from the tower by successfully climbing a near-horizontal ladder without falling into the deathly swamp.

Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf – FAILED
Red Riding Hood (Natalie) and the Big Bad Wolf (Nicola) failed their challenge because they didn’t manage to complete it in the 60 second time limit. The budget is taken down to 500 gold coins (£500).

The Three Little Pigs – ONGOING
The Three Little Pigs have so far managed to keep their straw house up and will continue to be tested throughout the day.

Beauty and the Beast – FAILED
In the diary room, The Beast (Andrew) had to rate how attractive he was against his fellow housemates. In the living area, Beauty (Kristina) had to decide how The Beast would rate himself against them. As Beauty had less than 10 correct matches, they failed and lost a further 100 gold coins taking the shopping budget down to £400.

Goldilocks and the Three Little Bears – FAILED
This morning, Goldilocks (Karissa) and the Three Bears (Denise) faced an eating challenge in the diary room. Presented with three bowls of horrid porridge in the diary room – cow’s urine porridge, spicy porridge and fishy porridge – Goldilocks had to decide which bowl was best for her and eat it. The Three Bears then had to eat the remaining two bowls. As Goldilocks failed to eat a complete bowl and the Three bears failed to eat two complete bowls, they failed the task and lost a further 100 gold coins.

I blockquoted quited a bit, but these were some of the best descriptions, scary as they may be, as I could find.

Wow. Fairy tales are really taking over. Are you ready? I am! Although maybe perhaps not for this...

The images came from In Pictures: Celebrity Big Brother 2012's fairy tale task!

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Once Upon a Time Ratings

From Fairytale return: ABC's 'Once Upon a Time' soars:

On a night that was dominated by the end of the Denver Broncos-Pittsburgh Steelers NFL playoff game, ABC’s new fairytale drama “Once Upon a Time” delivered its best rating in weeks.

“Time” bucked up to a 3.7 adults 18-49 rating in the 8 p.m. timeslot, according to Nielsen overnights, the show’s top outing since averaging a 3.8 on Nov. 13 and 28 percent better than the show’s last original episode on Dec. 11.

It’s possible “Time” picked up some new viewers from last Sunday’s four-episode marathon, or people who usually DVR the show may have tuned in live for its first new episode of the new year.

“Time” was the top scripted series of the night on broadcast, though not the top show overall. That honor went to what will apparently be a hugely rated Broncos-Steelers matchup.

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ABC's Once Upon a Time Returns Tonight

It's January 8th and the midseason hiatus for ABC's Upon a Time ends tonight. Above is a clip of the first 8 minutes of the new episode which has been blitzing in the media coverage along with many, many spoilers. Spoilers that ultimately say we are going to learn more about the characters in upcoming episodes. (I am really tempted to type "Duh" here, but would that be aging myself as well as too snarky? Excuse me, I've been sick for two weeks with three ailments and I am snarky right now!)

I debated sharing some of the articles, but I decided not to. They are everywhere on the web and some of them may even be true. For now, I intend to keep watching the show, enjoying the ride along the way. Overall, I am enjoying when the writers use the non-Disney versions of characters which seems to give them all more depth.

However, I obviously couldn't resist the tantalizing images that have also been creeping up everywhere for some future episodes. See what I mean though about the characters? Aren't Riding Hood and Hansel and Gretel much more compelling than the Halloweenish Cinderella we were treated to a few months ago? That costume was horrible...

And I can't praise ABC highly enough for really backing this show. The publicity is fierce. The marathon of episodes last weekend was a rarity on the big networks and even the support materials are growing, yes, in the name of marketing and commerce, but that is what it's all about anyway. If we get to be entertained along the way, it's a solid product.

(Forgive the snarkiness. Don't doubt I will be watching OUAT tonight or tomorrow at the latest. I admit Downton Abbey 2 may take precedence since I have a date to watch that with family tonight.)

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Disney Announces Princess Sofia

From For Disney, a Younger Princess By BROOKS BARNES at the New York Times:

This week the company plans to announce “Sofia the First,” a television movie and series centered on a girl princess. It’s a first: Disney’s princesses until now have all been adults (Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty and so on).

“Sofia the First” will play on both Disney Channel and Disney Junior, a channel aimed at children ages 2 to 7 that is set to make its debut in the coming months. The company’s hope, of course, is for the character to spawn all kinds of consumer products. It’s a solid business bet; the Disney Princess toy line generates about $4 billion in annual retail sales.

From Disney unveils newest princess, Sophia the First, for toddlers: Hoping youngest belle of the ball will appeal to younger kids BY Sashana Maitland at NEW YORK DAILY NEWS:

Nancy Kanter, general manager for Disney Junior Worldwide, told Reuters that “Sophia the First” will feature "plenty of pretty dresses and sparkly shoes," but with an emphasis on "what makes a real princess is what's inside, not what's outside."

And from Disney Announces New Princess:

Sofia the First, will be an animated movie as well as a TV series that will focus of this oh-so-cute purple-gowned child princess. The tiny princess adventures begin with Sofia’s mom marries the king of their storybook world. The two new royals then pack up their old lives and move into the castle, where they start their fancy new fairytale lives. In addition to gaining a step brother and sister, Sofia will also have guest encounters with existing Disney Princesses like Cinderella and the pretty fairies from Sleeping Beauty!

So this time, a corporate construct not based on any specific character. What do you think?

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At BlogCritics: Reinventing Fairy Tales: An Interview with Once Upon a Time's Jane Espenson

Here's a short bit of Reinventing Fairy Tales: An Interview with Once Upon a Time's Jane Espenson, which by the way, is a very long, newsy article and is a must for fans of the show. This is only a small excerpt from the five page article (rather short pages, but there are 5!).

I read a poll the other day on some fansite, and interestingly Rumpelstiltskin was far in the lead as favorite character. He's certainly my favorite character, but I'm not sure why that is. I don't usually find myself drawn to "villains," but is Rumpelstiltskin/Mr. Gold a real villain? After all, he did bring Henry to Storybrooke (and helped Snow White and the Prince save their baby).

We are fortunate to have two amazing villains in The Evil Queen/Regina and Rumple. And I really love how both of them can justify their own actions. Regina has a yet-to-be-revealed beef against Snow, and you're going to learn a lot more about the source of Rumple's dark energy soon. And, yes, you're onto something. Rumple's agenda is very complex. Look not just to episode 8, but to episode 12 and beyond to learn more about it. You'll have to decide for yourself if it's evil or not.

You probably won't tell me, but I have to ask: how much does Mr. Gold actually know about the curse?

Regina retains all her memories. Mr. Gold certainly seems to know something, but we won't be telling you more than that for a while.

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Spinoff Online: Once Upon a Time Creators Talk Willingham, Lindelof and Icons

From Once Upon a Time Creators Talk Willingham, Lindelof and Icons, another article you should read in its entirety if you are a fan.

But what has it been like to have that very specific base for characters and world to build on. People really know the ins and outs of these versions of things. Does that make storytelling any easier for you, or do you want to go in and reestablish a bunch of the ground rule?

Kitsis: I think it’s a mixture of both. What Adam and I really tried to set out and do was not just tell the stories you already knew but tell the ones you didn’t know. That’s why we started the pilot with the end of Snow White and then saw what took place after. It’s the perfect example in how we open on the glass coffin since it’s the most iconic image ever, but then we take you into the relationship between her and Prince Charming. There are certain stories like Cinderella or Hansel & Gretel that have such iconic elements to them, but then the challenge becomes revealing a piece you never knew before or putting a fun twist on it.

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Bill Willingham on "Fables" vs "Once Upon A Time"

   

This article has been referenced a lot this week, but I don't want to neglect it here, so here's a short excerpt from Bill Willingham on "Fables" vs "Once Upon A Time":

Is "Once" influenced and at least in part inspired by "Fables?"

My best guess, based upon the same scanty evidence is, yes, it probably is, but perhaps not on more than a "this is the type of thing that's in the air these days" level.

Why do you say that? The characters from "Fables" live in modern times, in a secret community called Fabletown, more or less hiding in plain sight, and the characters from "Once" live in modern times, in a secret community called Storybrooke, more or less hiding in plane sight. That seems pretty close to me.

That's hardly damning. Our fantastic literature is rife with "they've been hiding amongst us all along" scenarios. There were plenty of such tales long before "Fables" came along. There will be scads of them long after "Once" has aired its final episode and "Fables" shipped its final issue. If you start with the notion of fairy tale characters still alive in the modern world, the next step of placing them in a secret community seems almost axiomatic.

What about the network? Long before "Once" was aired from ABC, didn't that same network have a deal to produce "Fables" as a TV series?

Yes, but that by itself doesn't prove anything. First of all, I am and always was on the outside of any deals between DC/Warner and any studio regarding a "Fables" adaptation. DC didn't want me as part of the deal making and paid handsomely not to have me directly involved. So it was their baby all along. As such, I was never privy to the details of that supposed deal with ABC. I heard the same rumors you did, that the writers of that project weren't supposed to have made the big announcement when they did. In any case, the ABC "Fables" project went no further than creating an unproduced pilot script. I eventually got to read that pilot, and it was a far cry from anything to do with "Fables."

Willingham is, as always, wonderful. And, yes, the article is Bill interviewing himself. There's lots more and he is quite positive about OUAT, so don't fret if you are a fan. Just go to the full article and read. Yes, the fairy tale playground is big enough for us all to play in!

And while we are here, if you are curious about Fables, the compendium hardcovers are the best place to start. Try the images at the top of this post to explore them.

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Full Series of Once Upon a Time Streaming on ABC for Limited Time

I received this alert a few days ago and just remembered to post it. Sorry, crazy holiday week and all... Unfortunately, this only applies to U.S. readers, but the show should be coming to other countries based on its success!

MEDIA ALERT

ABC.COM CELEBRATES THE HOLIDAYS WITH FULL SERIES STREAMS OF PRIMETIME DRAMAS “REVENGE” AND “ONCE UPON A TIME”

ABC Entertainment is making all full episodes of two of its most popular new dramas, “Revenge” and “Once Upon A Time,” available to fans throughout the holidays on ABC.com and on the ABC Player for iPad. ABC.com regularly premieres ABC shows the day after they air, with up to 5 of the most current available at one time. This will make additional episodes available so that fans can view the entire season to date.

“For fans who missed an episode or for those who are late to discover the shows, this is the perfect way to catch up,” said Karin Gilford, senior vice president, Digital Media for the ABC Television Network. “It is part of our ongoing goal to super serve fans meaningful experiences, while also making two really amazing shows available to new audiences.”

All full episodes of “Once Upon A Time” will be live at www.ABC.com/Once and on the ABC Player for iPad after the last new episode of this year on Dec. 11 and will be available until the primetime return on January 8, 2012 at 8:00 p.m. ET.

“Once Upon a Time” stars Ginnifer Goodwin as Snow White/Mary Margaret, Jennifer Morrison as Emma Swan, Robert Carlyle as Rumplestiltskin/Mr. Gold, Lana Parrilla as Evil Queen/Regina, Jared Gilmore as Henry Mills, Josh Dallas as Prince Charming/David and Raphael Sbarge as Jiminy Cricket/Archie Hopper.

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Tonight's OUAT: The Heart is a Lonely Hunter

That's the official promo for tonight's episode of "Once Upon a Time," titled, "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter." Obviously several meanings to that one when one watches the previews and reads the official description:

One of the town's residents begins to remember their fairytale past, and Storybrooke mourns the loss of one of their own. Meanwhile, in the fairytale world that was, the Evil Queen attempts to find a heartless assassin to murder Snow White, on "Once Upon a Time," on SUNDAY, DECEMBER 11.

And two more sneak peeks--the second one is my favorite:

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Grimm Producers: 4 Things That Make a Fairy Tale Ripe for Adaptation

From a new article: 'Grimm' EPs Reveal 4 Things That Make a Fairy Tale Ripe for Adaptation (Exclusive Photos) at the Hollywood Reporter:

The EPs say there are specific characteristics that they look for in the myths that ultimately make it on to the series. Here are four things that make a fairy tale ripe for adaptation.

1. Fairy tales that include a crime.“We look for something where there could be a crime and that we can really twist it,” says Greenwalt. Being a procedural, each episode needs some foul play as its basic story line, such as in the pilot episode that adapts the classic tale, “Little Red Riding Hood.” Nick and Hank are called to investigate after the remains of a college student wearing a red hood is discovered in the woods and they realize it seems to be a part of a string of similar crimes. The EPs say there has to be a “criminal element,” such as “Hansel and Gretel,” which the series tackles next year. But not all tales have one, though that doesn’t mean a fairy tale can’t be used. That brings us to characteristic No. 2.

2. The tale lends itself to modernization.On Thursday’s special airing, the series tackles “The Pied Piper.” “There’s something fantastic [there] that can translate to our world today like how would somebody get wronged and want to seek revenge using rats? How would you modernize that story?” says Greenwalt. For example, the guys explain that their version of the story will take place in a high school and the musical element will switch between techno (which the students party to) and classical music (what they have to play while at school).

3. There’s a character or detail that stands out.“Not all the stories have crimes. But sometimes there’s a character that is interesting enough and other times it’s a setting,” Kouf tells THR. In the episode airing Dec. 16, the series takes on “Rapunzel.” And what fascinated them about the tale was her hair and how it could be used as a weapon. In another example, the guys point to a story they’re still working out.

“One story has a bunch of suitors caught in a hedge of thorns,” Greenwaltsays. “And they die and they’re caught in this hedge. And we love the idea of doing the hedge that surrounds the castle that catches all the people that try to get through it. It’s a little tough to figure out how to move that into a modern context without getting too fantastical or too magical, but we’re working on it.”

4. A story can be retold from a different point of view.Many times, the series looks to myths, including popular ones, and tries to re-imagine them from a different perspective. “The Three Little Pigs,” which appears on Friday’s episode, is one example.

“Well, everybody knows the story of ‘The Three Little Pigs,’ but this particular story is ‘The Three Bad Wolves,’” Kouf explains. “And there’s a twist in the story of pigs actually getting revenge, or trying to get revenge, on wolves that have hunted them for all this time. So, it’s the fun of turning a well-known fairy tale on its head.”

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Two New Grimm Episodes and My Thoughts on Both Shows

Don't watch that if you don't want to see autopsied rats. Really. You've been warned.

If you are a Grimm fan, don't forget that we get two new episodes this week, one tonight and one tomorrow night. Tonight's is "Danse Macabre" with a Pied Piper inspiration. Tomorrow's is "Three Bad Wolves" which I would assume draws inspiration from Three Little Pigs although I haven't confirmed that.

I am enjoying the extra content on NBC's site, such as the Bluebeard tie-in for the Lonelyhearts episode that has a slide show of real life Bluebeards, i.e. serial killers of women. I can't argue with that since I have always leaned to the belief that all of the Bluebeard tales derived more from serial killers in general than a specific historic figure. No proof either way, but there's been too much violence against women in history for it not to be a strong argument.

Also, just to let you know, Grimm has about half the viewership numbers of ABC's Once Upon a Time in the Nielsen ratings. I spent almost an hour last week trying to get the solid numbers for the post but gave up when there were too many inconsistencies. "OUAT" is safe and will most likely see a second season. "Grimm" is doing well for NBC, but to put that in perspective, NBC rarely has a show in the top 25. Grimm's numbers anywhere else would have it on the cancellation bubble and even now a second season is chancy. So watch and talk it up here and elsewhere if you are in love. Roughly, if you like numbers, OUAT gets about 10-13 million viewers while Grimm gets 5-6 million on its best weeks. That's a considerable difference.

As for me, there are many things I enjoy about both shows and I am thrilled to have both of them around with full seasons picked up for both. But I admit that as time passes I am more drawn to "Once." I know my own bias is towards strong female leads and Grimm is missing that element for me. I wish--and my friends would laugh because I am not an X-Files fan--that Nick's partner had been a woman and we'd been given more of a Mulder/Scully relationship. That said, I like Hank. It's nothing against the actor or character--I just feel something missing. For me, fairy tales are primarily the stories of the disenfranchised with much exploration of women and children's stories. If we have a hero for the lead in fairy tales, they are often beta males or noodles, disenfranchised third sons, for example. Grimm, with all of its great research and the creators' history with Buffy the Vampire Slayer, seems to forget that.

Another problem is that I am just not much into horror and Grimm is definitely delivering more and more of that. So I am not the ideal audience. If it wasn't using fairy tales, I wouldn't be there. That's taste and it doesn't keep me from appreciating what the show is doing. I have seen every Buffy episode made so I can overcome my preferences if I am entertained and engaged. And I was never a Lost fan--gave up after a few episodes--so I am rather surprised at which group of writers and creators has engaged me this round.

And don't think I don't have my quibbles with OUAT, either. I am not a Disney hater, but I am not enjoying the Disney influenced characterizations. The best characters are the ones created wholesale from the original tales, not the Disney versions. The episode about Jiminy Cricket made me swallow my revulsion because I thought it was better done than I expected. Rumpelstiltskin/Mr. Gold is a favorite for me. I want HIS story, don't you? I am very wary of the Belle/Gaston/Beast episode that is upcoming though. I haven't read much about it, just know it exists, but I am going to be a hard sell, I admit.

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Fairy Tales Showdown

I just opened up my laptop and found this tab open and realized I hadn't shared this yet. So in the theory better late than never, here is a link and excerpt from TV.com Throwdown the Results Show: Once Upon a Time vs. Grimm by Tim Surette:

Last week we asked you to tell us which new fairy tale drama does a better job of bringing the classic stories to life—Grimm and its real-world fairy tales, or Once Upon a Time and its dual universes that keep fairy tales intact and separate from our world—and boy, did you respond! Pat yourselves on the backs, guys, because the story received more than 200 comments and many of you showed real passion for the topic.

The results are obviously in favor of Once Upon a Time. The article shares some comments from viewers, too, in favor of each. Quite interesting.

So which one is your favorite so far? Is TV.com's small sample accurate to SurLaLune readers too?

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Once Upon a Time: Sneak Peek Episode 5

That's a sneak peek of tonight's "Once Upon a Time" episode on ABC. I admit I am not a fan of the Jiminy Cricket character and he gets more screen time tonight. It's not the actor or even the character as much as the borrowing of a Disney rendition of a character. I would have much preferred a different character inspiration, but I know that is petty since I really like Rumpelstiltskin. The Evil Queen is confusing with her concern over Harry when supposedly she doesn't care about him. But I am interested enough to stick around and see where are taken...

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Grimm Guide for NBC Series

It's Grimm Friday!

Well, not really, because there is no new episode tonight due to the holiday weekend. So I thought I would play catch up for anyone out there who hasn't discovered the Grimm Guide on the NBC site. The Grimm Guide is an episode guide as well as key to learning about the original tales and creatures that inspired each episode. With 4 episodes so far, I thought I would share them all for now and try to update for each upcoming episode in the new season. (Also it's a backup in case the NBC area is redesigned or the show is canceled anyway. I don't trust networks.) I will include links to the source tales in the quoted text which may be particularly helpful for more obscure tales like The Queen Bee.

Season 1, Episode 1: Pilot
Posted by NBC Community Team
Posted October 26, 2011 at 16:58

"The wolf thought to himself, what tender young creature. What a nice plump mouthful..." -Little Red Riding Hood

The original Grimm tale follows Little Red Riding Hood, who walks through the woods to deliver food to her sick grandmother. On her journey, a friendly wolf approaches Little Red Riding Hood and suggests the girl pick some flowers for her grandmother.

In the meantime, the wolf goes to the grandmother's house and gains entry by pretending to be the girl. He swallows the grandmother whole, and waits for the girl, disguised as the grandmother.When the girl arrives, she notices that her grandmother looks different. This eventually culminates with Little Red Riding Hood saying, "My, what big teeth you have!" to which the wolf replies, "The better to eat you with" and swallows her whole as well.

A hunter, however, comes to the rescue and cuts the wolf open. Little Red Riding Hood and her grandmother emerge unharmed. They then fill the wolf's body with heavy stones. When the wolf wakes, he attempts to run away, but the stones are so heavy that he collapses at once and falls dead.

The Grimm tale also features a second part, in which the girl and her grandmother trap and kill another wolf, this time anticipating his moves based on their experience with the previous one. The girl does not leave the path when the wolf speaks to her; her grandmother locks the door to keep the wolf out; and when the wolf lurks, the grandmother has Little Red Riding Hood put a trough under the chimney and fill it with water that sausages have been cooked in. The smell lures the wolf down, and he drowns.

While the premiere episode of "Grimm" does not follow the tale of Little Red Riding Hood directly, it does introduce Blutbaden, wolf-like creatures that are attracted to the color red. We notice a pattern of girls wearing red hoodies being snatched from the forest and learn that the creature responsible for this is a Blutbad. While the Blutbad does intend to eat the young girl, he first seeks to fatten her up and hold her hostage, which deviates from the original tale of Little Red Riding Hood.

Season 1, Episode 2: Bears Will Be Bears
Posted by Joe Tolerico
Posted November 5, 2011 at 02:30

"She looked in the window and then peeped through the keyhole; seeing nobody in the house, she lifted the latch." -Goldilocks and the Three Bears

In the original tale, three bachelor bears live together in a house in the woods. The bears are described as very good-natured, trusting, harmless, tidy and hospitable. Each bear has his own porridge bowl, chair and bed. One day, an old woman discovers the bears' dwelling. The old woman eats the Wee Bear's porridge, then settles into his chair and breaks it. Prowling about, she finds the bear's beds and falls asleep in Wee Bear's bed. The climax of the tale is reached when the bears return. Wee Bear finds the old woman in his bed and cries, "Somebody has been lying in my bed - and here she is!" The old woman starts up, jumps from the window and runs away never to be seen again.

The antagonist was later changed from an ugly old woman to a pretty little girl named Goldilocks. In addition, the bears changed from bachelors to a family of a mother and father bear and a bear cub. Goldilocks' fate varies in the many retellings: in some versions, she runs into the forest; in some' she is almost eaten by the bears but her mother rescues her; in some, she vows to be a good child; and in some, she returns home.

Episode 2, "Bears Will Be Bears," pulls clear themes from the original tale of Goldilocks. The young woman does escape from the home by jumping out the window after breaking in and indulging (although she's joined in "testing out the bed" by a young man, who gets kidnapped by the young male bear). However, the Jagerbar creature and the ceremony of Roh-Hatz is a concept original to the show.

Season 1, Episode 3: Beeware
Posted by Joe Tolerico
Posted November 12, 2011 at 02:30

"She'll sting you one day. Oh, ever so gently, so you hardly even feel it. Til' you fall dead." -Besty Palmer as Carol Lee Philips in the film "Queen Bee" (1955)

Episode 3, "Beeware," focuses on the role of bees in various fairy tales, particularly the reappearing Queen Bee character. The film "Queen Bee" tells the story about a family dominated by a ruthless woman, referencing our bee theme in a more figurative sense.

The episode can be connected to the Grimm world through the classic Grimm tale "The Queen Bee," in which the youngest of three princes, Simpleton, goes out to find his brothers in the forest. Simpleton finds the brothers attempting to wreak havoc on the nature they come across and stops them in their tracks, chastising their behavior. On one occasion, they come to a bee's nest, in which there is so much honey that it runs down the trunk of the tree where it is. The two brothers want to make a fire beneath the tree and suffocate the bees in order to take away the honey, but Simpleton again stops them saying, "Leave the creatures in peace; I will not allow you to burn them."

They then come across a castle inhabited by an old man, who offers them a place to stay. The old man gives the boys three tasks; if they fail to complete them, they will be turned to stone. While the older brothers fail immediately and suffer their fate, the youngest brother outsmarts the old man by using the creatures from the forest he saved earlier to complete the tasks for him.

Of particular interest is the third task, in which Simpleton must pick out the youngest princess from three sleeping princesses who look exactly alike. The only difference is that the oldest has eaten a bit of sugar, the second a little syrup and the youngest some honey. The Queen of the bees, who Simpleton had protected from the fire, comes to Simpleton's aid; she tastes the lips of all three and remains sitting on the mouth that had eaten honey. At Simpleton's success, the enchantment is broken and the brothers who had been turned to stone are brought back to life. The youngest son marries the youngest princess, and his two brothers, the other princesses.

"The Queen Bee" clearly carries a cautionary message present in the episode: don't create disruption where it isn't your place to do so.

Season 1, Episode 4: Lonelyhearts
Posted by Joe Tolerico
Posted November 19, 2011 at 01:53

"There she paused for a while thinking...but the temptation was so great that she could not conquer it." - "Bluebeard" by Charles Perrault

"Lonelyhearts" draws inspiration from the tale "Bluebeard," originally a French folktale written by Charles Perrault in 1697.

Bluebeard is an immensely wealthy aristocrat, who is feared because of his ugly blue beard. He has been married several times, but his wives continue to die off, the reason for their untimely fates unknown. Bluebeard announces to his current wife that he must leave the country for a while and gives all the keys of his castle to her. He says she may explore the rooms freely, except for one small room beneath the castle. Of course, immediately after he leaves, the young woman is overcome with the desire to see what the forbidden room holds. Despite warnings from her visiting sister, she looks inside.

The wife discovers that the room holds the murdered bodies of her husband's former wives hang from hooks on the walls. Horrified, she drops the key into a pool of blood and flees the room, but the blood staining the key will not wash off. She reveals her murderous husband's secret to her sister, and both plan to flee the castle the next day.

Bluebeard returns home unexpectedly the next morning and, noticing the blood on the key, immediately knows his wife has broken her vow. As Bluebeard is about to kill his wife for disobeying him, her brothers break into the castle and kill Bluebeard at the last minute.

There are clear parallels between the story of Bluebeard and "Lonelyhearts." Bluebeard in the tale has the ability to woo women repeatedly despite his ugly features (much like the Bluebeard in the episode, though it's the result of pheromones rather than riches). Also, both hide their victims in the basement, though the creature chooses to keep his victims alive for breeding, while Bluebeard kills his wives for reasons unknown.

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