‘Once Upon a Time’ season 5, episode 5 review: Henry’s heartache; Merlin’s arrival

Who knew that a “Once Upon a Time” episode revolving mostly around Henry could be so entertaining? It is certainly something we didn’t see coming.

Yet, Henry is the ultimate underdog and one of the most relatable characters, and Jared Gilmore has improved throughout the series to the point where he can anchor a good chunk of an hour with a love story. This is what this was. He wanted to impress Violet, but in Camelot he was perceived as nothing more than a liability. He was a writer, and in the eyes of the residents of the region, he was next to nothing in order of importance. He even had the terrible teenage rejection that basically everyone gets at one point in their lives.

Storybrooke was an entirely different story, given that he won Violet and her father over by finding her horse, which led to a fun evening of fun between the two. This was a glimmer of hope for him, something that was then dramatically turned on its head when he learned that his teenage rejection was the result of Emma tricking him, ensuring that she got a tear that she needed for a spell. This very act was a huge betrayal to him, given they had Operation Cobra and all of the trust that they’d built over time.

In other news, Merlin is around in Camelot! The importance of his arrival was mainly to ensure that Emma could be freed from the Dark One … if she was ready to be freed. That seems to be the issue she could repeatedly face this season.

In going back to Storybrooke again (yep, lots of time shifts), Emma continued to push Merida into training Rumpelstiltskin, and stood on a high moral pedestal in a tense back-and-forth with Regina over why she tricked Henry. Him turning his back on her was the final moment of this episode. It was hardly shocking, but a very solid hour as a whole. Grade: B+.

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