'Once Upon a Time' recap: Captain Hook and how he got that way

‘Once Upon a Time’ recap: Captain Hook and how he got that way

By Jevon Phillips

Oct. 22, 2012 12 AM PT

Captain Hook is introduced, and another tragic layer is peeled back from Rumpelstiltskin’s psyche in “Once Upon a Time’s” ironically titled episode “The Crocodile.”

It starts with Belle. She finds Mr. Gold practicing magic, which she told him not to do since it makes him ... cranky. Evil cranky. But magic seems to be a drug for ol’ Rumpelstiltskin, and his desire for power almost seems to outweigh his feelings for Belle. At least, to her it does.

So Belle sets out to find others and see what this strange world of Storybrooke is about. She meets Ruby at Granny’s, and is introduced to iced tea. Oh, the wonders Belle will discover. She and Ruby become fast friends, and talk soon turns to Belle possibly reopening the library. But first, Belle is kidnapped by a portly fellow with a red hat.

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Back in time, and back in fairy tale land, we see Rumpelstiltskin looking for his wife, Milah. He finds her in a tavern with a pirate scoundrel named Killian Jones. She refuses to go home with him and their son, Baelfire. Rumpel takes the child home rather than subject him to their argument, then returns for Milah. She’s been taken by the pirates! He finds them on their boat and pleads for her freedom. Killian will not let her go without a fight ... and Rumpelstiltskin is not a fighter.

Back in Storybrooke, we see that Mr. Gold is so worried about Belle’s disappearance that he asks Charming, the acting town sheriff in Emma’s absence, to help find her. With the help of Ruby’s lupine senses, they find her in no time, having been kidnapped for her father. He wanted to keep her safe, but when he realized that she’d stayed with Mr. Gold of her own free will, he decides it’s best that she go outside the city limits -- erasing her memory. Mr. Gold, Charming and Ruby find her before that happens, but as grateful as she is, she still wants nothing to do with a magically endowed Rumpelstiltskin.

In the past in the fairy tale land, calling Rumpelstiltskin magically endowed would be a major understatement. The Dark One, as Capt. Killian Jones -- incidentally back in town after years abroad -- is about to find out, is more powerful and vengeful than most. Still intent on finding out what happened to his wife, Rumpelstiltskin bests the Captain and is about to kill him when Milah intercedes. His wife had actually left him and their child to be with Killian, It was selfish, and Rumpel made her pay with her life, turning her heart to dust. Secondarily, though maybe more important literally, in our new fairy tale reality (yep, said that), Rumpelstiltskin, once called a crocodile by Capt. Jones, gets his revenge by chopping off Killian’s hand to make him suffer -- in essence, creating the terrible Captain Hook. There’s the irony I mentioned in the beginning, and the “tick-tock, tick-tock” line was great.

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Back in Storybrooke, Mr. Gold gives Belle the keys to the abandoned library -- no strings attached (or it looked that way)! He also explains to her that he wanted the magic to return so that he could find his son. But magic always comes with a price, and now he can’t leave Storybrooke. The duo may have Belle’s first hamburger together later. Awww.

But Rumpelstiltskin hasn’t gone totally warm and fuzzy. Remember the portly man with the red hat? Turns out he could have knowledge about magic beans that could transport someone to another dimension. William Sneed will surely be “in the picture” in the future. And we could be talking beanstalk land.

Now, currently in fairy tale land, evil Cora seems to have found a new friend who will help her get into the world of Storybrooke: Captain Hook. Great, another enemy.

< Previous recap: ‘Lady of the Lake’ | Next recap: ‘The Doctor’ >

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