"Who's Alice" is the sixth 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
While traveling through the Black Forest to get to the recently escaped Cyrus, Alice ends up in Boro Grove where she starts to lose her memory as the Knave of Hearts tries to get her to leave Boro Grove. While Cyrus evades the Red Queen, Jafar heads to Victorian England with the White Rabbit in order to find the ones that Alice cares about. Flashbacks reveal what happened after Alice had presumed Cyrus died where it was shown that her father Edwin had remarried a woman named Sarah resulting in Alice having a half-sister named Millie.
Production
Ron Underwood was the writer for the episode, while
Jerome Schwartz
Jerome Schwartz is an American television and film writer and producer.
He is well known for his work on the ABC fantasy series ''Once Upon a Time''; as well as for its spin-off '' Once Upon a Time in Wonderland''.
Life and career
He grew up ...
was its director.
Reception
Ratings
The episode was watched by 3.53 million American viewers, and received an 18-49 rating/share of 0.9/3, roughly the same as the previous episode. The show placed fifth in its timeslot and thirteenth 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 a 6.3 out of 10, giving it a mixed review. She said "The flashback to Alice’s past made her current situation make even more sense. She’s not solely driven by her love for Cyrus, she’s also driven by a need to prove herself to her father - to show Wonderland's real. Bringing him into the mix will hopefully give things a needed shot in the arm. While this episode was interesting, it wasn’t fun. Even the lighter moments with Alice were tainted with equal helpings of untrue and creepy. For a series that started out so strong, they’ve gotten a bit mired down."
Christine Orlando of ''TV Fanatic'' gave the episode a 4.3 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 review, saying "So I’m not addicted to this heroine. I appreciated the semi-Victorian garb this week and the subtle look at what it’s like to feel abandoned by your parents—a theme scarcely investigated by ''OUAT''. Gotcha, that is the ONLY theme investigated by ''OUAT'', again and again, and again. ''OUAT'' this week was about druggie dads abandoning their kids, ''Wonderland'' was about kids escaping into drugs because of neglectful dads. Interesting, sure; entertaining? I don’t know. Go ask Alice."
References
External links
*
{{Once Upon a Time episodes
2013 American television episodes
Once Upon a Time in Wonderland episodes
Television episodes directed by Ron Underwood