Once Upon a Time

:

Season 1
  • Network: ABC
  • Series Premiere Date: Oct 23, 2011
Season #: 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
User Score
7.9

Generally favorable reviews- based on 522 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 420 out of 522
  2. Mixed: 45 out of 522
  3. Negative: 57 out of 522
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  1. seventhbeacon
    Nov 23, 2014
    1
    Once upon a time, ABC was in talks with an amazing creator named Bill Willingham, whose comic series "Fables" is a long line of brilliance, mature exploration of character and fairy tale tropes blended into a modern setting. It is hands down one of the best series I have ever read, and it's still going (at least into 2015 when the story comes to a close).

    At some point, those talks    Once upon a time, ABC was in talks with an amazing creator named Bill Willingham, whose comic series "Fables" is a long line of brilliance, mature exploration of character and fairy tale tropes blended into a modern setting. It is hands down one of the best series I have ever read, and it's still going (at least into 2015 when the story comes to a close).

    At some point, those talks fell through. Then, half a year later, ABC announces Once Upon a Time, based on the same basic conceit as the Willingham comic from Vertigo (DC). I'm sad it's not Fables, but I'm excited at the idea.

    Then, I watch it. I tried. I really did. It's so watered down, trying to appeal to the lowest common denominator, with annoying leads (though I liked Jiminy Cricket and I liked Rumpelstiltskin for what they were worth). It had a less-intriguing premise. It was far too soft and Disney-fied. They basically took this amazing mature story and tried to make it have mass appeal to the family audience. Already not what I wanted, but hey, I like a good family show on occasion, so I stuck it out.

    And the writing sucked. The plotting, the dialogue, the generic tropes done with a straight face, bland as could be. The kid is obnoxious. Snow's 'daughter' is obnoxious. Snow is less interesting than a bottle of Ambien (and it's sad, too, I loved the actress in Big Love).

    Jiminy and Rumpel are the only reason this review didn't get a '0'.

    If you want something that's actually good in this vein, go read Fables. Or watch Grimm.    … Expand
  2. sassielassie
    Mar 29, 2016
    1
    I thought this show started out great !! Mmm, maybe too great of an idea that was too difficult to keep up ??
    IMO, it's gone way down from where it started - I binge watched the first season on Netflix because I couldn't wait to see what was going to happen next but, these last couple seasons, especially the last one are so lame. The whole Dark Emma sequence is hard to take seriously,    I thought this show started out great !! Mmm, maybe too great of an idea that was too difficult to keep up ??
    IMO, it's gone way down from where it started - I binge watched the first season on Netflix because I couldn't wait to see what was going to happen next but, these last couple seasons, especially the last one are so lame. The whole Dark Emma sequence is hard to take seriously, especially when her family is behind her out of character Hook obsession.
    I think the writers are doing the actors and their fans a huge disservice. I came to admire Jennifer Morrison in her Emma character, but that has changed dramatically.    … Expand
  3. joshmitag
    Apr 25, 2017
    1
    I watched this show for the first few seasons and I thought it was pretty good, but once they started running out of new stuff to write they began to make crap up. They do all kinds of things to mix up the characters and the myths. There is nothing sacred. It is almost as if they have no idea where the season is going and they throw darts at a board to see what they will vomit up next. II watched this show for the first few seasons and I thought it was pretty good, but once they started running out of new stuff to write they began to make crap up. They do all kinds of things to mix up the characters and the myths. There is nothing sacred. It is almost as if they have no idea where the season is going and they throw darts at a board to see what they will vomit up next. I literally hate this show. I despise it.… Expand
  4. Evan
    Nov 14, 2011
    0
    This show just doesn't appeal to me. Maybe it's because I'm a guy or something, but I just can't watch it. The kid seems annoying to me and the concept of this whole town trying to get back to fantasyland doesn't seem interesting to me. People compare this show to Grimm, but Grimm is much more entertaining and more appealing to men, I think.
  5. B2BigAl
    Apr 23, 2017
    0
    This is one of the worst shows I have ever watched. I mean, it is shockingly bad. The writing and dialog are absolutely some of the laziest, cringe inducing garbage I have ever had the displeasure of suffering through. This is the pinnacle of awful network television trash, and the fact it's rated so highly makes me seriously question my faith in human intelligence.

    5000 characters    This is one of the worst shows I have ever watched. I mean, it is shockingly bad. The writing and dialog are absolutely some of the laziest, cringe inducing garbage I have ever had the displeasure of suffering through. This is the pinnacle of awful network television trash, and the fact it's rated so highly makes me seriously question my faith in human intelligence.

    5000 characters isn't even close to enough text for me to outline all the idiocies in this series, so I won't even try (wouldn't want to give away any spoilers to the masochists who would subject themselves to this mental torture!). The writers have written themselves into a corner so many times and then bailed themselves out with the most comical and flimsy of plot devices, it's flat out embarrassing. I can't count how many times someone has "died", only to be resurrected in the very next episode by some ridiculous means that the writers just pulled out of their rears. The plot has more holes than a block of Swiss cheese and there seem to be no consequences or repurcussions for anything that transpires. The characters are some of the most unlikable group of vapid idiots you'll ever be subjected to, and the liberties they've taken with the canon of the storybook characters is simply disgraceful. I can't believe Disney didn't shut this crap down in pre-production to protect their IP's. Don't even get me started on the absolutely godawful CGI and special effects, they look like something out of a B-rated sci-fi channel original movie from the 90's.

    There is nothing redeeming about this pile of garbage, save for the fact that it has Robert Carlyle and Giancarlo Esposito, and I'm genuinely embarrassed for them to have to participated in this dumpster fire of a show. You may be asking yourself, why in the world would I have continued to watch this mind-numbingly horrible piece of entertainment if I hate it so much. That's simple, it's like a Trainwreck you can't look away from. I can't count how many times I've burst out laughing at the absurdity of it all. I kept tuning in to see how the writers would manage to top their last act of utter laziness, stupidity and incompetence, and on that point, they have never ceased to amaze me. These are the only reason I give this show a 1 insead of a 0 rating. It is a primer on just how bad a show can be, and should be required viewing for all film students and script writers on what NOT to do.

    TL;DR: I hate this show and everything about it. The world is a worse place and my life is poored for having been subjected to this travesty of television. ABC should be should be embarrassed for having ever aired this pile of excrement. May God have mercy on their souls.    … Expand
  6. Jbiscan
    Sep 28, 2014
    0
    Worst show I have ever seen. Disney is ruining every movie they ever made with this stupid show with a bad storyline. I can't even watch one episode. The animation is poor and the show is so bad it's comcial.
  7. CosmicGeorge
    Nov 30, 2014
    0
    My wife loves this show, I am fairly certain all of the green reviews are from women/girls. For me, the plot is stale, the characters are uninspiring/unbelievable, and the whole premise of the show sort of puts a dagger in the originating stories of each character.

    Snow White is ugly, let's face it. Many people are going to get mad at this, but let's face the facts. Her part should    My wife loves this show, I am fairly certain all of the green reviews are from women/girls. For me, the plot is stale, the characters are uninspiring/unbelievable, and the whole premise of the show sort of puts a dagger in the originating stories of each character.

    Snow White is ugly, let's face it. Many people are going to get mad at this, but let's face the facts. Her part should really be recast. Much like the boy, he really hasn't aged well. I see prince charming standing next to Snow White, and I swear that his eyes wonder to Elsa constantly.    … Expand
  8. Enchantedsloth
    Dec 7, 2014
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. At first, this show was okay. The plot was a little bland, but I could stomach it. But, during season two, it started going downhill, really quickly. The plot twists became completely obvious, the main character was reduced from a hard ass, amazing character who did what she needed to and wanted to, to a character who kinda just acted on Snow and Charming's whim, and went against her gut. The acting is mediocre, except for Lana Parrilla and Robert Carlyle, who are the only reasons I stayed with the show for so long. I am also a female, so lets drop the stereotype that this show is just for women and children.

    This show had so much potential, but Adam and Eddy are afraid to take risks and can't even make a decent plot twist to save their lives. They've centered the entire show off of two romances; one with Emma and Hook, the other with Regina and Robin, both romances abusive and destructive. You have Robin, who drops Regina like a hot potato when his wife was brought back to life, only to say that he kinda sorta wants to be with Regina again. And manages to woo her by getting in her personal space and trying to act 'sexy', when I know that if a man were to do that in real life, it would be more creepy than charming. And you have Hook who locked Emma up in a cell for Cora to kill, yet everyone seems to forget about that, not to mention, he's just overall creepy and also forced himself on Emma throughout season two and three. And even Neal, who left her high and dry to have a baby in a jail cell. But you have young girls who see this and expect it to be what a real relationship should be like, when these are red flags...

    Overall, this show is stereotypical and overdone. The only good things about it are Parrilla and Carlyle. Case closed.    … Expand
  9. ElMa1587
    Mar 25, 2015
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Once Upon a Time presents an interesting concept, but the execution is a complete train wreck. The idea of seeing so many childhood stories rolled up into one monster TV show could have been great, but it seems that Disney bit off more than they could chew. Multiple characters have been introduced only to be forgotten as the story progresses. For a show founded on the idea that everyone is entitled to a happy ending, it seems that unless a character offers something significant to progress the plot they are forgotten. The seven dwarfs, Little Red Riding Hooding, the giant from Jack and the Beanstalk, Cinderella (who had a baby when the show first aired and was never heard from again)- apparently, once a character serves the purpose at hand they are not heard from again until they can contribute (conveniently) to the incredulously transparent plot. Take, for example, Ariel. The last time we heard from her she was off to find Eric, her true love, and live happily ever after. That's what everyone wanted, right? Fast forward to the current season. It seems that in an attempt to keep viewers on the edge of their seats, Captain Hook gets knocked unconscious in a fight and tossed overboard by the morally-torn-but-still-evil sea witch, Ursula. Who will save him? Well, everyone else is preoccupied, and we can't let a main character die, so it looks like its up to the long-lost Ariel to save the day! Where has she been all this time? Why, trapped in a bottle with Captain Hook's ship- not that anyone was at all aware of that until her appearance needed to be explained. It seems that she was released just in time to contribute to the plot for all of five minutes (if that) before disappearing for the rest of the episode. No heart-felt reunion with characters she once knew. Not even a goodbye.
    It is difficult to believe that Once Upon a Time was NOT intended for the now young adult group who grew up watching many of the characters the show has tried to bring together. The concepts are obviously not geared entirely toward the less than 10 crowd (for example, Queen Regina partying with three witches and getting a hangover) but roping in a new, younger audience was likely just icing on the cake. However, Once Upon a Time has taken on the role of a parent-on-the-spot with the audience being the curious child. The writers have assumed a terrible habit of giving brief, vague explanations to make up for laziness and sloppy writing, flip-flopping back and forth between past and present for what seems like convenience sake, and at times even neglecting the now-stagnant relationships between the main cast of characters. Once Upon a Time has started quests and abandoned them time and time again for no other reason than that the current path is the easiest path. The story tries too hard to incorporate as many characters as possible into the show which ultimately results in forced and awkward conversations and relationships, anti-climactic episodes, and unfulfilling endings. Each episode is riddled with questionable events like needing a particular item and always, without fail finding it- oftentimes right in the open- in Rumpelstiltskin's shop. Mixed with the bad graphics and mediocre acting (which can't be blamed entirely on the actors, given the script), this show has no substance or clear plot, and is ultimately not recommended by this reviewer.    … Expand
  10. SheilaDundee
    Apr 8, 2015
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This show started with an interesting concept and was heavily promoted as a modern, feminist fairy tale. The only thing modern about it is the plumbing. Even the technology used by the characters is 35 years out of date. It's feminist in the sense that randomly female characters declare themselves independent and rescue themselves from dungeons, but it becomes ever increasingly romance obsessed as well as employs old, sexist cliche tropes like No Means Yes. The quality of acting seriously declines over the seasons as they cast bad actors and the good ones seem less than enthusiastic about their roles.

    So far as reimagining fairy tales goes, after the first season, they don't. Instead they create entirely original characters whom they give infamous names, trading on the fan base for that character to prop up ever falling ratings for an original work that's truly uninspired. Between retroactive continuity, lazy, sloppy writing and a determination to make the characters fit the plot rather than the other way around, the story becomes incredibly convoluted, absurd and difficult to care about. At times it results in truly bizarre, and even rather gross, behavior by characters or story lines. At one point, they have Snow White tell the Evil Queen that sleeping with another woman's husband is nothing to be ashamed of without a hint of irony. By 4B, it's as if they're determined to make all the characters as unlikable as possible other than Hook, the most obvious Gary Stu I've ever seen.

    For purely mindless entertainment, it's fine, but if you can't help but notice continuity errors, this is definitely not the show for you.    … Expand
  11. Tactical69
    Jun 1, 2016
    0
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. While it started well, this became one of the worst shows I've ever seen. Bad writing, editing, directing, sound production and CGI is joined by new characters played by bad actors in cringe-inducing stories. Captain Hook, played by a mediocre actor at best, is a Creator's Pet to whom no rule applies, and the writers obsession with him derails everything with the potential to be genuinely entertaining and interesting. The mass destruction of the lead, who wasn't the strongest character to start with, in Dark Swan was agonizing to witness. By the end of the first half of season five, I not only stopped watching, I wished I'd never watched it in the first place.

    I feel like I'm both dumber and more cynical for having seen this.    … Expand
  12. Sparkle
    Jul 30, 2016
    0
    Basically, think of every bad thing about fairytales, every single thing you dislike, the things that make you hesitate to watch them, and this show is all of those things rolled up in a poorly dressed package.

    The only redeeming features this show has are Robert Carlyle as Mr. Gold/Rumplestiltskin and Lana Parrilla as Regina Mills/Evil Queen. Otherwise, unless you like cheesy,    Basically, think of every bad thing about fairytales, every single thing you dislike, the things that make you hesitate to watch them, and this show is all of those things rolled up in a poorly dressed package.

    The only redeeming features this show has are Robert Carlyle as Mr. Gold/Rumplestiltskin and Lana Parrilla as Regina Mills/Evil Queen.

    Otherwise, unless you like cheesy, poorly written, poorly acted, childish romances between unlikable characters in unlikable couples doing things for no apparent reason, stay far, far away from this show.    … Expand
  13. Broyax
    May 10, 2018
    0
    Une idée qui semble originale et audacieuse mais qui semble seulement... ça s'empêtre en effet très vite dans une niaiserie et une bêtise intolérables. Les épisodes s'enchaînent sans conviction alors qu'on s'emmerde à qui mieux-mieux au milieu de ce fatras d'improbables conneries écrites n'importe comment par des scénaristes drogués.

    On voit bien trop peu l'estimable Robert Carlyle qui    Une idée qui semble originale et audacieuse mais qui semble seulement... ça s'empêtre en effet très vite dans une niaiserie et une bêtise intolérables. Les épisodes s'enchaînent sans conviction alors qu'on s'emmerde à qui mieux-mieux au milieu de ce fatras d'improbables conneries écrites n'importe comment par des scénaristes drogués.

    On voit bien trop peu l'estimable Robert Carlyle qui a l'air de bien se faire chier là-dedans et on le comprend. Le pire est sans nul doute cette blondasse qui cumule l'antipathie, une sale gueule et une absence totale de talent : tout simplement atroce. Laissez donc les contes là où ils sont, ils n'ont pas mérité un tel traitement.    … Expand
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Awards & Rankings

68
#68 Best TV Season of 2011
7
#7 Most Discussed TV Season of 2011
15
#15 Most Shared TV Season of 2011

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
66

Generally favorable reviews - based on 26 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 26
  2. Mixed: 10 out of 26
  3. Negative: 0 out of 26
  1. Slate
    Reviewed by: Troy Patterson
    Oct 28, 2011
    40
    The series, fueling itself with folklore, proceeds as if no characterization is required.
    Read full review
  2. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Tim Goodman
    Oct 24, 2011
    50
    The show is a bold idea, and there's hope for the modern-world portions, but it doesn't quite know what it is (or maybe it does, but the audience won't).
    Read full review
  3. Zap2it (Inside the Box)
    Reviewed by: Rick Porter
    Oct 24, 2011
    60
    No other new show this fall is attempting to tell a bigger story, and we're hoping the rough patches smooth out and it fulfills the potential that's there in its very strong cast and premise.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »