"The Serpent" is the fourth episode of the ''
Once Upon a Time
"Once upon a time" is a stock phrase used to introduce a narrative of past events, typically in fairy tales and folk tales. It has been used in some form since at least 1380 (according to the ''Oxford English Dictionary'') in storytelling in the ...
'' spin-off series ''
Once Upon a Time in Wonderland''.
Plot
The Knave of Hearts is kidnapped by the Red Queen (on behalf of Jafar) after saving him from Caterpillar's Collectors. Jafar wants him publicly beheaded to serve as an example of what happens to anyone who helps Alice. Alice befriends a collector named "Lizard" who helps Alice in her mission to rescue the Knave of Hearts. Meanwhile, the Red Queen is hesitant to kill the Knave since she's still in love with him and flashbacks reveal Jafar's real reasons for wanting Cyrus' power.
Production
Jan Nash was the writer for the episode, while
Ralph Hemecker
Ralph W. Hemecker is an American director, writer, and producer. He directed episodes of the drama series ''Once Upon a Time'' and ''The Flash''.
Career
In 2000, Hemecker founded Mythic Films, a full service feature film, TV and commercial produc ...
was its director.
Reception
Ratings
The episode was watched by 3.55 million American viewers, and received an 18-49 rating/share of 0.9/3, down from the previous episode. The show placed fifth in its timeslot and fifteenth for the night.
Critical reception
Amy Ratcliffe of ''
IGN
''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
'' gave the episode an 8.3 out of 10, giving it a positive review. She said "Tonight’s episode delivered some interesting backstory for Jafar and was expertly executed by Naveen Andrews, who showed he can still do nuance. The Knave/Queen story was deepened, too, and it’s nice to see things are still in a bit of play there. Alice got to be daring and fantastic. Her use of her first wish (and the shopkeeper’s last, too) shows a level of cleverness and forward thinking that is heartening to see, and engaging to me. How smart could you make your wish?"
Christine Orlando of ''TV Fanatic'' gave the episode a 4.2 out of 5, signaling positive reviews.
Lily Sparks of ''
TV.com
TV.com was a website owned by Red Ventures that covered television series and episodes with a focus on English-language shows made or broadcast in Australia, Canada, Ireland, Japan, New Zealand, the United States, and the United Kingdom. Origin ...
'' gave the episode a mixed to negative review, saying "What to do with ''Wonderland''? It’s great hate-watching if you have that kind of time to kill and love raggin’ on sloppy green screen edge-feathering, but otherwise it is not exactly pushing me to the edge of my seat. The writers probably envisioned that audiences would respond to their characters the same way we've gotten attached to ''OUAT Original Seasoning''. But ''OUAT Original'' spent a good year laying groundwork, letting us get to know the characters before making them pull laughable stunts in 100 percent CGI environments."
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Serpent (Once Upon a Time in Wonderland), The
2013 American television episodes
Once Upon a Time in Wonderland episodes