“Once Upon a Time in Wonderland” premiered Thursday and although I had some doubts, the show was able to give me a few things to keep me watching for now. Here are three of them:
No. 1—A Villain We All Remember
The introduction of Jafar (Naveen Andrews) was impeccable. At first I was quite unsure how he was going to factor into the Wonderland story. For example, would this be an origin story into how he became the evil warlock? Or maybe he used to be a good guy and then had a change of heart. It was nice to see him appear as the biggest and baddest in all of Wonderland, just like he was in Agrabah. The show's Co-creators Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz have a propensity for using the flashback, so we could still find out how he became a warlock and whether or not he was good at one point. For now, it’s nice to see him as the big bad with his creepy snake scepter.
No. 2—Alice is All Grown Up
From what I remember as a kid, Alice was a nice little girl who simply got lost and ended up having the adventure of her life. While ABC’s version of the story features that little girl at the beginning, later on in the episode she’s all grown up and can definitely take care of herself. I’m pretty sure most of us don’t remember Alice having a serious right hook and being able to put someone in an arm bar. This Alice (Sophie Lowe) is definiftley a threat to bad guys everywhere.
No. 3—Our First Crossover
If you were looking for a Crossover between this show and “Once Upon a Time” you’ve already got one. When we first meet the Knave of Heart’s (Michael Socha) he has arrived in StoryBrooke and is greeted by Grumpy (Lee Arenberg) and a young lady as they come out of Granny's (Beverley Elliott) diner. He ends up breaking into the diner (after pick-pocketing the key from the young lady who had just locked up) and pouring himself a cup of tea before the White Rabbit (John Lithgow) requested his services to rescue Alice.
This show provides action, a love story, and an interesting take on characters many viewers grew up with. Let’s hope it lasts as long as its predecessor.
“Once Upon a Time in Wonderland” airs Thursdays at 8/7c on ABC.
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