Another character who fans have been wondering about returns to the show… and another (seeming) outsider comes to Storybrooke. More after the jump (spoilers if you didn’t see the promo at the end of the last episode):
Official description
While Mary Margaret goes off on her own in an attempt to come to grips with what she did to Cora and how her deed has affected her, she stumbles upon August …
… who has hidden himself away from the others and is completely made of wood — ashamed at the actions he has taken in life.
Emma is shocked when Neal invites his fiancée, Tamara, to come to Storybrooke.
Meanwhile, before the curse was cast, August is introduced to a man of magic who may be able to prevent him from turning back into wood …
…. but at a steep price.
Returning guest stars
Tony Amendola as Geppetto/Marco
Keegan Connor Tracy as Mother Superior/Blue Fairy
Michael Raymond-James as Neal Cassidy
Eion Bailey as August W. Booth
Ethan Embry as Greg Mendell
Sonequa Martin-Green as Tamara
Jakob Davies as Pinocchio
New guest stars
Dianne Doan as Isra
Peter Kawasaki as orderly
Rick Tae as doctor
Manny Jacinto as Quon
Tzi Ma as The Dragon
Behind the camera
Writers: Robert Hull and Kalinda Vazquez
Director: Ralph Hemecker
Promo
Questions
Do you think Neal’s fiancee could be a fairy tale character?
What kind of deal did you think August made with Rumple (I’m assuming that’s who the “man of magic” will turn out to be)?
I have an assumption that Neal’s fiance is some form of government agent. A Man(Woman) in Black sort of speak. It’s seems that a town appearing, dissappearing and then reappearing again should trip some sort of radar. I think that she is part of some “supernatural” “x-files” group who have been on this for the last 28 years. I bet Regina’s barrier was casting some sort of weird energy over that spot and with the kids report of a town in maine suddenly appearing out of nowhere probably got some FBI or the like ears perked. I think the whole outside world finding out about Storybrooke won’t just be happless strangers wandering in. I believe Greg is working with Tamara and she is using him to find out all about that town and the magic it possesses. Possibly trying to harness it for the US military or something like that. I don’t think the writers can totally isolate this event.
As for August, I believe he was visited by Merlin. We never met the wizard who Granny bought Red’s cloak from. And she has yet to acknowledge that it was Rumple. So I do believe there will be a new Man of Magic in town. He could also be the writer of the book. Merlin did possess the power to read AND travel to the future. This might also trigger Rumples obsession with Magic. Try to take it like he did with the seer. Time TRAVEL would be a great power and an evil one in the hands of the Dark One.
Great comment. I like the idea of there being another man of magic. I had jumped to the conclusion that it was Rumple, but it would be a lot more interesting if it were someone else this time. I also hope you’re right that Tamara is working with Greg. That would make her the one that Greg was calling. It seems unlikely that she is just a random ordinary person, and I like the idea that she could be something other than a fairytale character — I’d like for the show to defy my expectations.
Speaking of Greg, I’m still wondering about the significance of his name — Greg Mendell — an obvious reference to the pea-plant geneticist Gregor Mendel — but why?
You were right that there’s another Man of Magic who met with August. You can see him here in the promo photos and in the Canadian promo. I don’t think he’s necessarily Merlin — or at least he is going by another name in the promo — but he does look like he could be a wizard.
Could be. But it will probably be some identity protection thing. He was very uspet as a kid when his father was taken by Regina in a town that disappeared. It could be that that he had spent years obsessing over it and pretty much had to change his name to avoid things like ridicule or something.
I know that’s probably cheeze. He could have chosen that name because he was a fan of Mendel’s. We don’t know what he did. He could be a science teacher or a history buff.
But I feel that it is just to hide his true identity. He also could have changed his name with the forthought that he would meet these people again. And he wanted to find his dad without anyone recognizing him.
It’s funny how he didn’t flinch when he realized that Regina, or anyone else, hadn’t changed one bit, 28 yrs later.
As well, will his dad have aged? Does the curse’s time freeze work on humans or for that matter, those outside the event?
We know it never effected Greg being in so close contact with the curse.
My question is, why is he filming all the magic? And how is someone going to steal it?
If the magic came from the Lake under the Wishing well, is there something tangible there?
Maybe the Nypmh is still alive down there. How would, presumingly, a human walk away with magic? I can’t seem to wrap my head around it.
Tamara could be someone who works for an agency like on the show Warehouse 13