Once Upon A Time (ABC)

[Libaax]

Snow White isn't all that pale either.

With short hair she is definitely cute enough to be Snow White.

[Greg Anderson]

Peter Pan as villain?



From an AV Club interview...

Hahaha! That's awesome!

[AdamYJ]

Peter Pan as villain?



From an AV Club interview...

If he really wanted to make Peter Pan a villian, it would make more sense to have him as a crazy assassin who treats the whole thing like some kind of game. In the original story he used to go and fight and kill pirates and then forget about them the next day. And he'd be all like "Okay, what do we play now".

Peter Pan was always more of an antihero than a hero.

Still doesn't matter really bad writing wont save them from cancellation just because they use fairy tales characters everyone knows.

I thought the show was good, so I don't know what you're talking about.

Anyway, since many of these characters belong to the common people, rather than trying to talk about "who ripped off who", it's better to make a game of it and ask ourselves what we'd do if we were going to write a story about these characters. At least, that's what I'd do.

[snarkbunny]

Hahaha! That's awesome!

It is an interesting way to look at Peter Pan, and I'm a bit sorry that we never got to see Willingham's take on it, although I quite like Gepetto as the Adversary.

If he really wanted to make Peter Pan a villian, it would make more sense to have him as a crazy assassin who treats the whole thing like some kind of game. In the original story he used to go and fight and kill pirates and then forget about them the next day. And he'd be all like "Okay, what do we play now".

Willingham has never supplied specifics on how Peter would be acting or what his motivations would have been, so who is to say whether it would have worked or not. Like any story idea, success would have been far more based on the execution.

I thought the show was good, so I don't know what you're talking about.

Anyway, since many of these characters belong to the common people, rather than trying to talk about "who ripped off who", it's better to make a game of it and ask ourselves what we'd do if we were going to write a story about these characters. At least, that's what I'd do.

I don't think it's a rip off of Fables, I think it's a case of the "same playground" like one of the writers said. (Maybe inspired from "The Charmings" only serious) I just found Emma's reluctant saviour bit annoying, and I think the other characters sitting around waiting to be rescued to be cluebat worthy. I'll probably give the show another episode or two to interest me, because I love reimaginings of fables and fairy tales but it may not be the show for me.

[Shan Bruce Lee]

Probably most famous for "Trainspotting", he recently had a lead role as the scientist in the last (now cancelled) Stargate series.

Tony Amendola (Bra'tac from SG-1) played Geppetto, too.

[AdamYJ]

Willingham has never supplied specifics on how Peter would be acting or what his motivations would have been, so who is to say whether it would have worked or not. Like any story idea, success would have been far more based on the execution.

I was just saying what I'd do if I wanted to cast him as a villian. Generally, though, I don't like casting heroes as villians and vice versa. It's something that's on its way to becoming cliche.

I don't think it's a rip off of Fables, I think it's a case of the "same playground" like one of the writers said. (Maybe inspired from "The Charmings" only serious)

I play in that same playground frequently myself, so I can understand that.

I just found Emma's reluctant saviour bit annoying, and I think the other characters sitting around waiting to be rescued to be cluebat worthy. I'll probably give the show another episode or two to interest me, because I love reimaginings of fables and fairy tales but it may not be the show for me.

Isn't it common for fairy tale characters to be waiting to be rescued? Usually by some prince who didn't even appear in the rest of the story.

Anyway, in this case it's not so much they're waiting to be rescued as they don't even know they're in trouble. They can't remember who they are. If you told the shrink that he was Jiminy Cricket, he'd think you were nuts or pulling a joke on him.

[kalorama]

Probably most famous for "Trainspotting", he recently had a lead role as the scientist in the last (now cancelled) Stargate series.

He was also in "The Full Monty."

[Tracer Bullet]

With short hair she is definitely cute enough to be Snow White.

She has kind of an elven look. Cute, but the Queen is more white than she is. She's got a healthy glow. Kind of a misnomer.

Also what was with the Catholic wedding?

[Toonimator]

She has kind of an elven look. Cute, but the Queen is more white than she is. She's got a healthy glow. Kind of a misnomer.

Also what was with the Catholic wedding?

Eh, they're fairy tales from hundreds of years ago. What else was around hundreds of years ago? The Holy Roman Empire. It fits well enough.

As for the queen being more white, maybe she cast a spell to bleach her skin to be whiter than Snow White in an effort to reclaim the mantle of 'fairest of them all'?

I worried that the sheriff would turn out to be the Big Bad Wolf just like in Fables, with his 'pounding the pavement and knocking on doors' comment (particularly coming so soon after the appearance of a wolf in the road), what with all the huffing and puffing--on doors--the wolf does when going after the pigs. But that'd either mean he knows what's going on, or that he's sleep-wolfing and wakes with no memories of his nocturnal ramblings as a canine. The Huntsman fits better, tho. And hopefully they're wise enough to realize that Fables fans would scream bloody murder if they made the wolf into the sheriff.

[boyhangover]

I read the previews for not next week but the week after's episode and apparently they are going to show flash backs of what came before. Yay

[snarkbunny]

Isn't it common for fairy tale characters to be waiting to be rescued? Usually by some prince who didn't even appear in the rest of the story.

Which is why I prefer fairy tales like Six Swans or East of the Sun, West of the Moon where the protagonist fixes the problem.

Anyway, in this case it's not so much they're waiting to be rescued as they don't even know they're in trouble. They can't remember who they are. If you told the shrink that he was Jiminy Cricket, he'd think you were nuts or pulling a joke on him.

And how is that not waiting to be rescued? They are still stuck in a passive role. Would you want to be a princess stuck in a tower? I don't and heck, even in Tangled, they had to make Rapunzel more active to make her interesting.

[Libaax]

If he really wanted to make Peter Pan a villian, it would make more sense to have him as a crazy assassin who treats the whole thing like some kind of game. In the original story he used to go and fight and kill pirates and then forget about them the next day. And he'd be all like "Okay, what do we play now".

Peter Pan was always more of an antihero than a hero.



I thought the show was good, so I don't know what you're talking about.

Anyway, since many of these characters belong to the common people, rather than trying to talk about "who ripped off who", it's better to make a game of it and ask ourselves what we'd do if we were going to write a story about these characters. At least, that's what I'd do.

I didnt say Fables owned the characters but lets not be naive to think they didnt see Fables and think do similar as its the only contemporary hit story with fairy tale characters in modern setting. Specially the same channel who tried to make Fables tv show......

Its like vampire books sell and vampire tv shows appear on tv. Not because current urban vampire books are the first ones.

I didnt say the series will suck but first ep was weak writing since it was too slow before near the end. They have to use the fairy tale characters better, the war better. To survive cancellation. Emma walking around alone in town with people who dont remember who they are is not what the premise is like. It has to become much more fairy tale.

If this first ep was good than anything is good.....

[kalorama]

They have to use the fairy tale characters better, the war better.

What war ? They weren't actually at war with the Queen. The war was already over and they'd won. That's why the Quen was pissed off and plotting revenge.

Emma walking around alone in town with people who dont remember who they are is not what the premise is like. It has to become much more fairy tale.

They may not be the premise of Fables, but this isn't Fables. Based on that one episode it's too soon to say with any real knowledge what the exact parameters of the show are.

[Libaax]

What war ?

I mean the fact they lost to the queen and they are suppose to be saved by Emma. The Evil Queen will not stand by watch that. It will be intrigue,fighting. Good vs evil thing. Depending if it will be interestingly written.

If there is no struggle between the good guys and the evil queen what the heck will the show be about when they remember ? The pilot made you think it will be struggle in the modern world like they fought the queen in their own world.

[kalorama]

I mean the fact they lost to the queen and they are suppose to be saved by Emma. The Evil Queen will not stand by watch that. It will be intrigue,fighting. Good vs evil thing. Depending if it will be interestingly written.

If there is no struggle between the good guys and the evil queen what the heck will the show be about when they remember ? The pilot made you think it will be struggle in the modern world like they fought the queen in their own world.

The pilot didn't make me think that at all. That may well be what happens, but the pilot didn't give any definitive indication of that.