Some random facts about OUAT!

I found these on Pinterest and I'll keep searching for more!

Hummm interesting...

What's happening in that trailer Lana us Oncers wanna know about it!!!

Well Oncers looks like we have ourselves a new...

Robin Hood!

Here is the first look at the new star to play the swash buckling do-gooder!

Peering Through The Looking Glass: Five Things I Hope To See From Once Upon a Time In Wonderland

As an avid viewer of ABC's Once Upon a Time I was both skeptical and intrigued when it was announced that creators Kitsis and Horowitz would be undertaking a deeper exploration of the timeless and manic world know as Wonderland. Surely, I thought, the story of Alice had been done to death? I worried that the creators would be spreading themselves too thin and not enough attention would be paid to both the new series and the mothership, since Once Upon a Time had just announced it would be sailing off the Neverland for a third season. As the buzz grew and photos and short clips were released, I found myself growing more enchanted with the story of what became of Alice after her jaunt in Wonderland.

Now, a month away from the anticipated Once Upon a Time in Wonderland premiere, I feel confident that this companion series will do well to captivate an audience familiar with Kitsis and Horowitz's brand of mingling storybook worlds into a cocktail of drama, adventure, and humor. However, there are a few things I'd love to see this series deliver.

Unique takes on characters
The story of Alice and her adventures, both in Wonderland and through the looking glass, has been re-imagined through many different mediums. Scores of movies have been produced regarding her trip down the rabbit hole, not to mention mini series, television shows, and even video games. The off-the-wall, quirky, and sometimes frightening world of Wonderland inspires artists and writers to see how much of a unique spin they can give Lewis Carroll's well know characters, locales, and wondrous elements. The amount of effort put into this new shows begs the creators to make the characters their own. Yes, what would the March Hare be without his tea party and who would find a Cheshire Cat credible without his grin, but because the audience will be so familiar with these elements one hopes that Kitsis and Horowitz, as well as the design and writing staff of Once Upon a Time in Wonderland, strive to flesh out original takes on these timeless characters. My hopes that the tradition of rich backstories provided in Once Upon a Time will carry over to this new work and help put a new spin on an old favorite.

A full development of storylines
It has already been stated that Once Upon a Time in Wonderland with be a close-ended adventure, a single contained season. With approximately 45 minutes per episode, every moment will count in the creation of as epic a tale as true love truly conquering all. I hope that one season will provide enough time to not only get to know these characters, but a chance to study their interactions, to appreciate their relationships, and to see a conclusion to their stories. Even if Once Upon a Time in Wonderland is a smash success that begs for a second season, I believe if plans are laid for a complete story arc then perhaps well enough should be left alone and no cliffhangers or teases of second season material should be presented. Many shows fail to thrive in their second season because definitive character and plot development have been fleshed out in the first season, leaving nowhere for the story to go in the second. My Once Upon a Time in Wonderland wish list could not be complete without the honoring of what the series set out to do in the first place and that's to tell the complete story of how Alice reclaimed her lost love.

A balance of humor and love story
I understand that the crux of this portrayal of Wonderland hinges of the story I mentioned above, of how Alice lost her true love Cyrus and her journey to find him one more. I personally am not the biggest fan of strict romance, I find love stories need a balance of humor and adventure to captivate me and I hope that Once Upon a Time In Wonderland will deliver. From what we have seen in various teases and clips, there is sure to be much swashbuckling as Alice is in no way a damsel, though she may be in distress. With such whimsical setting as Wonderland, full of characters that are more than slightly left of center, I hope the opportunity for humor is not lost. That is to say, comic relief should be naturally integrated, not just thrown in to lighten a particularly heavy moment. With only a single season, a balance of heroic and humorous, love story and lightheartedness, will be difficult to achieve to prevent the adventure for taking a turn towards the saccharine.

Once Upon a Time characters being well integrated
Characters from the world of Wonderland have already been introduced in Once Upon a Time, namely the Mad Hatter and Queen of Hearts. While both fan favorites, it won't do to shoehorn them, along with other characters from Storybrooke or the Enchanted Forest, into the world being established by Once Upon a Time in Wonderland. It has been said that viewers will be able to enjoy Once Upon a Time in Wonderland without being familiar with the original Once Upon a Time, so I have confidence in the fact that the focus will be on Alice and her exploits. Just because a character is a fan favorite, I don't believe it to be proper to throw them into a storyline just because it will please the audience. Yes, I madly desire to see Barbara Hershey on my screen once more, but in a capacity supporting the main story, not taking the focus away from it. This also goes for the integration of Jafar and any other residents of Agrabah that will feed into the blending of worlds for which the Once Upon a Time franchise is know for.

A balance of tone
I mentioned about the importance of balancing a love story with more lighthearted elements. Too emotional and the story is liable to give the viewer diabetes, too wacky and the relationships and heart of the story lose power. Yet there is another element that is worth mentioning. It is often implied or outright stated that Wonderland, under its candy-coated facade, is a sinister place. Even in sneak peeks, Alice and the Knave mention that they did not leave this land on good terms. I hope that the writers do not incorporate a gritty and dark take on Wonderland just for the sake of it. Returning to an enchanted land from your childhood stories to find it in ruin has been done to the point where the audience expects to find something off about these fantastical worlds once they are revisited. Yes, there is realism in finding conflict and darkness in a land visited as a child; the shattering of nostalgia happens every day in real life. But the inherent sinister vibe of Wonderland, the unease that nothing is "quite right", should be incorporated subtly, the audience shouldn't be beaten over the head with it.

Few viewers have been privy to about 20 minutes of the series, courtesy of San Diego Comic Con and the D23 Expo, so only time will tell if this anticipated show will deliver what the audience desires. But in those 20 minutes we have seen a main character take her adventure into her own hands, supporting characters demonstrating lightheartedness in the face of insurmountable odds, and a glimpse to how Storybrooke fits into the whole equation. I feel confident that this wish list will for the most part be fulfilled, but one can only know for sure once we take that leap down the rabbit hole.
Once Upon a Time in Wonderland premieres October 10th 8/7c on ABC. I look forward to seeing you there!

Once Upon a Time - Special Episode - Journey to Neverland - Press Release

ABC INVITES NEW AND DEVOTED "ONCE UPON A TIME" VIEWERS TO TAKE A LOOK BACK AT THIS EXHILARATING DRAMA IN ANTICIPATION OF THE EXCITING SEASON 3 PREMIERE, ON "ONCE UPON A TIME: JOURNEY TO NEVERLAND," SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 29 ON ABC

ABC invites new and devoted "Once Upon a Time" viewers to take another look at this exciting drama, in "Once Upon a Time: Journey to Neverland," airing SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 29 (7:00-8:00 p.m., ET), on the ABC Television Network. The special will explore the series in a way that will bring new viewers up to date -- but which current viewers will also find illuminating - in anticipation of the exhilarating third-season premiere. The special will take a look at Emma Swan and Mary Margaret's separation from their new-found family that left them stranded in a post-curse Fairy Tale Land; Regina's mother Cora's plan to eliminate Rumplestiltskin and become "The Dark One" herself; the discovery that Rumplestiltskin's son, Baelfire/Neal, is Henry's father; Greg and Tamara's kidnapping of Henry; and the fate of Neal after falling through a portal - mortally wounded - and ending up in the Enchanted Forest in the hands of Mulan, Aurora and Prince Phillip. The backstories and secrets of some of your favorite characters will also be revealed, and the special will offer a glimpse into what's upcoming for Season 3 - the trek to Neverland to save Henry.

Nothing is more important than family, and these characters' bonds are as strong as the line between good and evil is blurry. Mary Margaret and Emma - mother and daughter reunited -- were sucked into a portal that transported them to what was left of Fairy Tale Land. It was there that they met Mulan and Aurora, who helped them evade Cora and Hook and enabled them to travel back to Storybrooke, reuniting them with Emma's father, David, and her son, Henry. But Cora and Hook found another portal into town, where Cora set about reuniting with her own daughter, Regina. Cora then attempted to find Mr. Gold's dagger in a play to take him down and become the Dark One herself. Hook had aspired to kill Mr. Gold, as well, not for power but for revenge. And Mr. Gold set out to find his son, Bae, which he did, in New York, with the aid of Emma and Henry. Much to everyone's surprise, Bae turned out to be Emma's former love, Neal, and Henry's father. Back in Storybrooke, Mary Margaret did something completely against her nature - she used dark magic to kill Cora - causing her own heart to darken. And Greg Mendell -- who saw magic in the town as a boy and believes Regina knows where he can find his father - along with his partner, Tamara, planned to eradicate magic completely from our world using a trigger that Regina had planted within her curse. During the struggle to save Storybrooke, Neal was shot by Tamara and fell through a portal to the Enchanted Forest, barely alive, where he was found by Aurora, Mulan and Prince Phillip. Although their plan was foiled, Greg and Tamara kidnapped Henry and brought him through a portal to their "Home Office," believing that they might still be able to use him to destroy magic in all worlds. With the aid of Hook and his ship, Emma, Mary Margaret, David, Mr. Gold and Regina used the last magic bean to follow Henry, Greg and Tamara... to Neverland.

First order of business in Season 3: save Henry. But Neverland is a much darker place than you remember, and in order for our heroes to accomplish their mission they will have to face a foe more powerful than the Dark One himself. What does Peter Pan want with Henry? Can our heroes put aside their differences and work together? Will Aurora, Mulan and Prince Phillip be able to nurse Neal back to health and reunite him with his family? New fairytale characters will be revealed and old acquaintances will be revisited. So think of a wonderful thought... because our Neverland's going to be a fever dream that just won't break.

"Once Upon a Time" stars Ginnifer Goodwin as Snow White/Mary Margaret, Jennifer Morrison as Emma Swan, Lana Parrilla as the Evil Queen/Regina, Josh Dallas as Prince Charming/David, Emilie de Ravin as Belle, Colin O'Donoghue as Hook, Michael Raymond-James as Baelfire/Neal Cassidy, Jared S. Gilmore as Henry Mills and Robert Carlyle as Rumplestiltskin/Mr. Gold.

Pictures Pictures and more pictures

From season 3 episode 1

3x01 'The Heart of the Truest Believer' - Synopsis

ONCE UPON A TIME - “Heart of the Truest Believer” - As Emma, Mary Margaret, David, Regina, Mr. Gold and Hook enter Neverland to search for a kidnapped Henry, they’re greeted by a school of not-to-friendly mermaids who threaten to end their search before it begins; Henry finds himself on the run from the Lost Boys with another escapee from Peter Pan’s encampment; and Neal, recovering from his wounds, travels through the Enchanted Forest with Mulan in an attempt to learn the fates of Emma and Henry, on the Season Premiere of “Once Upon a Time,” SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 29 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network. (ABC/Jack Rowand)