It seems as though the popular thing to do in our generation is to binge-watch episode after episode of a television show on Netflix. This summer, I decided to hop on the bandwagon and binge-watch the show "Once Upon a Time" while recovering from wisdom teeth surgery. My roommate watches it, and I thought I would watch it so we would have something to talk about. I'm really glad I decided to watch this show because I absolutely love it! I finished catching up through season four a few weeks ago, and I am very excited for the season premier. In honor of the new season that aired over the weekend, I decided to share what I learned from watching the show and hopefully to get more people to want to watch this amazing show! (Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers)
1. True love will always find a way,
One very important theme I have seen since the beginning of the show is how important love is to the characters. Emma was born from true love, which is why she is considered the savior. She would not have been able to save Storybrooke without the force of true love. Snow White (Mary Margaret) and Prince Charming (David) always find their way back to each other because of their true love. Their love is so strong that they have one heart between the two of them! The love the characters have for each other is hard to ignore.
2. Making a deal with someone always has consequences.
Every time one of the characters needs help, they go to Rumpelstiltskin (or Mr. Gold) because he is The Dark One who had the most power. But in order for them to get what they want, they have to make a deal with him. These deals usually come with consequences. When we make deals with people, they can usually backfire, as did most deals made with Rumpelstiltskin. You just need to be careful who you're dealing with (see what I did there?).
3. Have hope and everything will work out.
Another recurring theme in this show is the idea that if you have hope, things will work out. Mary Margaret is the character that pushes this the most. She always gives people, as Regina calls them, "hope speeches" when they are going through a crisis (which is pretty much every episode). This can be applied to our daily lives. If life seems crazy, and we are going through something, we just need to give ourselves our own "hope speech" and know that we will get through it.
4. Magic always comes with a price.
Magic is a big element of this show; after all, it is a show about fairy tale characters. However, as much fun as having magic can be, it comes with a price every time it is used. When Regina enacted the big curse that brought everyone to Storybrooke, she had to have the heart of the thing she loved most. She needed to rip out her father's heart in order to get everything she wanted. There were many other instances where using magic meant sacrificing something, but sometimes, it was the only way the characters could get what they wanted.
5. You never know what people's intentions truly are.
It's often hard to tell if people's intentions are true or not. In the show, Rumpelstiltskin had to make deals and do evil things simply so he could find his son. Regina only wanted to bring David back, so she did everything in her power to make sure that could happen. People may do things that seem wrong, but sometimes, their intentions are not actually all that evil. Though, this also doesn't justify what they did to hurt others. They didn't go about it the right way and paid for it in the end.
6. Let go of the past.
This is a very important lesson that many of the characters have had to learn so far in the show. One specific example I can think of is that Regina has to let go of David. When he comes back to life, he is in so much pain that the only way for him to be okay is for Regina to forget him. This causes him to disappear, but she can finally start to move on and hopefully find true love again (which she does…sort of). Living in the past causes people to dwell on it and focus on mistakes they've made. Looking to the future and letting go of the past helps move the characters forward in life.
7. Put family first.
Family is extremely important to most of the characters in the show. Mary Margaret and David don't want to lose Emma again, so they make sure they stay a family and do their best to act like one. Emma didn't have a family growing up, so she does whatever it takes to keep her family, especially her son, Henry. Henry is very important to Regina, too, because he helped her feel whole again once she enacted the curse, and she wants to make sure he is safe and protected. Henry found his birth mother because he felt neglected by Regina and wanted to feel wanted. Mr. Gold just wanted to find his son and make amends for abandoning him. All of the characters feel that family is a strong bond and they want to protect it.
8. When you find something worth fighting for, you never give up.
Emma formed a strong bond with her son Henry and wanted to do everything in her power to keep him safe. In the first season, she chose to believe him to save him from poison. In the third season, she risked her life in Neverland when Pan kidnapped him for his heart. She found something worth fighting for and will keep fighting for it. Everyone has something they want to fight for, and they will do anything they can to make sure they have it.
9. Just believe.
When Emma first got to Storybrooke, she didn't believe a word Henry was telling her about magic and the fairy tale characters trapped in the town. But, as the first season progresses, she slowly learns that Henry was right all along, and she felt bad for not believing him. If she had not believed him, she wouldn't have been able to save the town. This shows that if you believe, good things will happen!
10. You must accept who you are.
From the beginning, it's easy to see that Emma struggles with who she really is; she was an orphan who felt unwanted and just wanted someone to love her. Then, she gets thrown into this world where magic exists, and she even has some of that magic and struggles even more to figure out who she is. It isn't until the fourth season when the snow queen is trying to make Elsa and Emma her sisters that Emma realizes who she really is and embraces it. Hopefully we can all be like Emma and accept who we are.
11. Pirates can be cute!
Two words: Colin O'Donoghue. Need I say more?
