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Once Upon a Time Borrows From Milton To Hint At Its [Darker?] Fourth Season

Abigail Raney writes,

A fair number of things happened in Once Upon a Time's panel: Ginnifer Goodwin Skyped in from Vancouver and knocked out Michael Socha when he wondered onto camera. There was a mini mockumentary which featured the writers of the show running out of ideas, trying to call up Carlton Cuse on the red phone for ideas (he didn't take their call), and finally getting the inspiration for Frozen via a suggestion from the pizza delivery guy (played by, side note, Husband's Sean Hemeon). A preview clip showed Regina turning to her Magic Mirror, Sidney Glass, for help with her Maid Marian problem. Colin O'Donoghue suggested that he and Josh Dallas write a musical episode of the show (and confirmed that Hook will finally change his clothing).

But the most interesting thing was perhaps the voiceover that accompanied the introductory video. While the video itself was clips from the past three seasons, the voiceover hit a tone somewhere between a proclamation and an incantation, and ended with the ominous line, "Awake, arise, or be forever frozen." Those of you who were paying attention in school English, you may recognize this as a reworking from Milton's Paradise Lost, ("Awake, arise, or be forever fallen.") It's tricky to parse out exactly what this is supposed to be hinting at, but I'll wildly speculate for a moment. Here's a few guesses: The town literally goes to hell – after all, the final circle is frozen. (Though that's probably a little dark and a little biblical for Once.) Or Elsa, a bit miffed at being stuck in that jar for who knows how long, turns out to be some type of Satan-type rebellion leader, who rallies all the villains of the town to rise up and take over – meaning she, Rumpelstiltskin, and Regina form a badass triumvirate and wreak havoc. (I'm totally on board with this idea.) Or, the show will continue its exploration of what creates a villain (how a person "falls"), and whether or not someone who has done some very bad things can ever truly become good – presumably hung upon the framework of Elsa doing some bad, and cold, things in Storybrook. Not as novel as my first two guesses, but I'm always in favor of more screen time for this show's reformed villains and the wonderful actors who play them, so I'll be tuning in.

Robert Carlyle Lana Parrilla


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Rich JohnstonAbout Rich Johnston

Founder of Bleeding Cool. The longest-serving digital news reporter in the world, since 1992. Author of The Flying Friar, Holed Up, The Avengefuls, Doctor Who: Room With A Deja Vu, The Many Murders Of Miss Cranbourne, Chase Variant. Lives in South-West London, works from Blacks on Dean Street, shops at Piranha Comics. Father of two. Political cartoonist.
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