Once Upon a Time Season 7 Episode 22 Series Finale

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Leaving Storybrooke

Lana Parrilla as Regina, Ginnifer Goodwin as Snow White & Josh Dallas as Charming Once Upon a Time Season 7 Episode 22 Series Finale Leaving Storybrooke picture image

Lana Parrilla as Regina, Ginnifer Goodwin as Snow White & Josh Dallas as Charming

Wish-Rumble’s plan was to separate everyone into their own stand-alone stories, meaning everyone is all alone. Although Zelena is on the Nautilus and hates fish.  However Regina uses her love to save Henry from the darkness that would makes Wish-Rumple’s plan happen. In the process OGRumble destroys Wish-Rumble by giving his heart to Wish-Hook which cures him of the poison. Not sure HOW THIS WORKS! But methinks the creators don’t either so just go with it. Anyway Rumble dies and reunites with Belle, Happy ending for Rumbelle.  

Then Regina cast a “curse” that brings all the realms together so all the wish people, all the other story realms, all the time-travel stuff all live in Maine. Now try, TRY to figure out the timelines and who is who. For some characters there are three versions of them. For instance Henry; there is Storybrooke Henry, Wish-Henry and Adult Henry.

WAIT! If all the realms are merged that means Henry doesn’t go to the Other Enchanted forest to meet Ella and therefore Lucy shouldn’t exist. Also if all the realms are merged  would THAT mean Rumple and Belle would be back in Storybrooke since future Rumple and Belle died but technically canonically in the timeline they would have been traveling around the Enchanted Forest with Gideon? But you’re not supposed to think of about it too much, just go with it.

Another thing they added that was pure fan-service was the dialogue about Lily’s dad being Zorro. WTF! Sure, I like everyone (I assume) wanted this addressed but a one line about Zorro being a dragon feels like a diss and a tease.  

Also speaking of tease was Henry being Rumple’s undoing, since they made us recall the seer from season 2 in the last episode. I guess yes since Wish-Henry stopped Wish-Rumble’s plan but really it was OGRumble that stopped Wish-Rumble.     

Anyway let’s talk about the big ending. With all the realms united Regina is electived the Good Queen to rule them all. I guess Storybrooke takes after Naboo with electing Queens. The show teases about why Emma isn’t there only to have Emma shows up with her baby and  a meta line about how she wouldn’t miss the event. Though Hook baby-proofing his hook was cute. AND AGAIN timelines and ages on these kids makes no sense but then again JUST GO WITH IT!

Anyway this was a fine ending for Regina, she gets her happy ending or her second chance. Regina’s and Rumble endings are both great and fitting for their character but the sloppiness  of getting all that fan-service and timeline brought the series finale down.

Then again if you just go with it and not think too deeply it’s fine, it’s all fine.

Once Upon a Time Season 7 Episode 21

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Homecoming

Colin O'Donoghue as Wish Hook, Andrew J. West as Henry Mills, Robert Carlyle as Rumble & Lana Parrilla as Regina Once Upon a Time Season 7 Episode 21 Homecoming picture image

Colin O’Donoghue as Wish Hook, Andrew J. West as Henry Mills, Robert Carlyle as Rumble & Lana Parrilla as Regina

This is the penultimate episode, after this episode there is one episode left before it’s done, done, done or until  there is another reboot maybe. This episode is the ultimate example of the main issue Once has; the creators have good story talent, they are good at coming up with ideas BUT they don’t have much in the way of literary talent, they can’t execute their ideas which result in sloppy narratives.

With the timelines and mythos who  can keep up and this is the case in point with the Wish realm. Oh, the wish-realm, I hated it from the first and I still have it now. Basically Wish-Rumble (Wumble?) or New Rumple (Numble?), going with Wish-Rumble, he doesn’t want OGRumble (got that off of reddit), to get rid of the dark one powers since that would mean Wish-Rumble would lose his powers, though that doesn’t make any sense since the wish-realm people are different entities. I mean Snow and Charming didn’t die when Regina killed their Wish-realm equivalents. After this a series of manipulations and cameos ensues. Oh the cameos we have Pan, Cruella and Ariel. Aside from Ariel, the cameos don’t make sense. Like what is Cruella doing there? She was sent to The Land without Magic prior to Regina casting the Dark Curse and that when the time-line shifted so how did she get back? Then again how was Wish-Henry born in the first place?  

Wish-Rumble’s plan involves kidnapping Lucy and Jacinda to get Henry to give him the OG Dark One Dagger.

But really  Wish-Rumble wants the author’s power and has Wish-Henry on his side to exact revenge on Regina for killing Snow and Charming and taking Emma away. So that is the last plot line of the show, more Rumple being evil and power hungry. But it’s at least a different Rumble so the character progression isn’t lost.

What would have been Wish-Rumble’s plan if Henry had given Wish-Rumble the dagger?

Also Alice and Robin use the food truck and get to Storybrooke using a magic bean, which are super rare except when they are not.  They are on a mission to save Regina. New-Hook, OGRumple, Henry, Jacinda and Lucy.

None of this make contextual-sense, the only thing that makes sense is that Wish-Henry would want revenge of Regina. Is that enough for a final plot line that brings out all the cameos and ties up the convoluted plot of whatever Wish-Rumble is actually planning? Maybe and no. The wish-realm was stupid from the onset and is still dumb but now it’s all mucked up since Wish-Rumble and OGRumble’s powers are tied up together even though they are different versions that otherwise have no affect on each other?  Though given the show’s love of twists who knows what Wish-Rumble really wants. Maybe he just needs a hug.

I did like the call back to the seer from back in season 2. I wish that had been more of thing but better late than never, especially with this show.

All in all this episode is a C-.    

 

Once Upon a Time Season 7 Episode 20

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Is this Henry Mills?

Jared S. Gilmore as Henry & Lana Parrilla as Regina Once upon a Time Season 7 Episode 20 is this Henry Mills? picture image

Jared S. Gilmore as Henry & Lana Parrilla as Regina

In the end it didn’t matter who the other coven members were because they are trees or what Facilier’s plan was because Wish Dark One Rumple killed him. All your Fan theories sucked! They were all Plot-fodder.

Anyway on with the episode. Apparently everything is in a time paradox and the Hyperion Height stuff is running along with Henry’s senior year and Adult Henry talkes to his young self meaning that the curse needed to happen so Henry could a realm hopping or Lucy wouldn’t be born. Now timeline are even more meaningless then they were before because no one could figure it before and now definitely no can make sense of it so don’t try.

It should be noted that the Storybrooke people wouldn’t have known that they were missing anyway even with the time-travel plot since as far the Storybrooke people knew Regina, Henry and the others were in another Realm anyway. Or was there communication in the intervening years and they never spoke about it? Doesn’t really matter because the scene with the two Henrys was good. Just wish they explained why Henry got to keep his name and not had another pseudonym.       

Henry wakes up when after talking to Regina he calls himself in that time-paradox thing. So he wakes up and then he breaks the curse when he kisses Regina after she got knocked-out during a witch fight with Gothel.  So it WAS a reversal of the parent-child true love kiss as it’s the child kissing the parent. Good! That was a nice reversal, it did sort of happened on season 6 with Henry and Emma after the Gideon fight but that wasn’t a Dark Curse breaking.

Then Tilly/Alice very quickly turns Gothel into a tree ruining her menace. In the end it was all very simple and easy. Now they JUST have to deal with Wish-Rumple and not Facilier. But to be fair Once Upon a Time has done this type of  conclusion before, where the menace is built up and resolved very quickly or sometime not at all. Still want to know how Mulan and Aurora saved Philip’s soul from the wraith! But that is season 2 baggage.    

The acting was the highlight of this episode but the plot having so much build-up for little pay-off and with wish-Rumple no payoff, the episode felt very flat for what it was trying to accomplish.

Once Upon a Time Season 7 Episode 19

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Flower Child

Emma Booth as Gothel Once upon a Time Season 7 episode 19 Flower Child picture image

Emma Booth as Gothel

Not sure where to begin with is this one. On a semi-positive note we learn Gothel’s backstory and motivation. Turns out Gothel is a wood nymph from the Land without magic.  Gothel was a bit like Ariel and enjoyed human things but some girls go all mean girl on her and then slaughter her family. Gothel, in revenge, kills all of humanity and leaves with one other magical human who is one of the coven members. Before she leaves she tells us that humans will evolve again and she wil return to wipe out all the humans again.  Bender would be proud.

This is dumb. First off evolution doesn’t work like that! You really need to turn off your brain for this to even make a little sense and it’s asking too much. The reason for the why the sets and feel of the past scenes was just to have the twist. You think it’s set in a magic realm BUT NOPE it’s the Land without Magic, and Gothel made it that way.  Once is good at twists because they are seldom set-up.

Second from a storytelling standpoint how did the humans even get in the wood nymph’s grotto? Anytime Gothel went in she used magic? So how did they get in? Sure, Gothel’s motivation for killing all the humans ups the ante from past seasons where the threats were all localized to Storybrooke but this season use of bad guys has been so all over the place with fake outs and misdirection that it’s kind a of waste. Wasn’t Gothel also trying to revive that character from the haunted mansion ride? Did the show forget that? Or was she there amongst the  coven members. Also did that show suggest that wood nymph grove was in Seattle? So there was modern looking human structures AND fully evolved humans in Seattle millions of years ago? My mind in caving in on itself!!!

The Hyperion Heights has Gothel trying to make nice with Tilly, a.k.a her daughter, as Tilly is special. Damn right is Alice/Tilly special! She is the daughter of a wood nymph and a person created from a wish. She is one of the most magical beings in the show. Gothel reveals Rogers and Tilly’s relationship and they believe her. Then Tilly goes along with Gothel’s ritual. Also, also, the coven gets woken up with neary a problem.

The B-plot is more Henry and Jacinda related curse breaking stuff. Facilier and Lucy team up to cure Henry of curse-breaking killing poison. Turns out it was an easy fix since they find since all they need is Cinderella’s shoe WHICH was also easy to find since Jacinda had it. So Henry gets cured of plot related poison and Henry and Jacinda kiss but that doesn’t break the curse because OF COURSE IT DOESN’T. These dark curses are only broken through paternal love. The sleeping curse is broken through true love kiss. So is it going to Henry kissing Lucy to break the curse in a season one reversal? OR is it something else?

So one of the coven members is a no-one named Seraphina. No-one meaning she is not a fairy-tale story character, instead she is a million year old magic user. I bring this up because we still have the mystery of Dr.Sage. Which I only bring up because on Henry’s whiteboard there is a note next to her name that he doesn’t know how she is.  The coven plot and its members have been sloppy.

Also when Gothel offers Seraphina to join her, she extends her hand out and says join me, who else got Star Wars vibes? I might have a one track mind.  

It pains me since I enjoy Tilly story lines but this episode was a C+ at best.

Once Upon a Time Season 7 Episode 18

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The Guardian

Rose Reynolds as Alice Once Upon a Time Season 7 episode 18 The Guardian picture image

Rose Reynolds as Alice

Aside from the Henry/Jacinda ongoing tepid romance subplot, this episode was pretty great. Then again it was a Rumple and Tilly heavy episode, so of course it was just better.

In the past section Rumple tests Alice to see if she is indeed the guardian. She does pass the test but Rumple stops her taking his darkness as it would make her an immortal, I guess, they didn’t actually explain things that well. Anyway Rumple didn’t want to trap her in an immortal life and that is the reason why he stopped her from removing the darkness from him. Rumple was being noble and sacrificing. Also Nook and Rumple become friends after Nook learned what Rumple did for Alice. It was touching.

The Hyperion Height plot is the Dagger is missing! Oh No! Rumple steals Regina’s magic to find it with a locator spell. Meanwhile Tilly and Margot go on a date but Tilly is hearing voices in her head. The voices are actually from the Dagger which she was unknowlingly guarding for Rumple.

Also Samedi/Facilier is being shady, Regina isn’t happy Rumple stole her magic, Rogers investigates Nick’s weird death as well as teams up with Drew, and Henry tells Jacinda that he is the Lucy’s father.    

The only criticism is that what is the guardian’s role? It seems that they purify the dark one powers but they also become an immortal? Does this tie into the Holy Grail aspect of how the dagger was forged? Then again story aspects involving  the Dark One mythos don’t make a lot of sense, if you ACTUALLY give it thought. So just run with what the season tells and recall what the season want you to remember, THAT’s THE SECRET TO ONCE!

Also the episode had some sort of references. It had a nod to Coco with the place where Rumple talked to Belle. Also who got a Star Wars Vibe when Henry told Jacinda about being Lucy’s father? Because I did!

Anyway it was a great episode, one of the best of the season.  This episode gets an A-

Also Alice’s cloak was amazing.

Once Upon a Time Season 7 Episode 17

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Chosen

Rebecca Mader as Zelena Once Upon a Time Season 7 episode 17 Chosen picture image

Rebecca Mader as Zelena

This episode explores more of Hansel’s backstory and what wrong Zelena did to him and why he is crazy. It also explains how he woke up, it was Facilier. Facilier is like the Palpatine of this season, he’s behind it all.   

Considering Hansel’s vendetta, two counts of murder, two attempted murders and two counts kidnappings his back story is actually underwhelming.

The backstory is that the witch that kidnapped Hansel and Gretel, who was also the blind baker woman, was in OZ and Zelena didn’t want her there so Zelena goes to her candy home and they get into a witch fight. Zelena has a chance to free the children but doesn’t and goes her magic goes out from the fight. She is then nursed back by a blind man who is also the children’s father.

Zelena withholds the information from the dad but does go to try and save the children when her magic is back but they have already escaped and told their father what happen. They are all pissed at Zelena who is remorseful but she does end up purposefully burning Hansel. Hansel was being antagonistic  but he was also a child who had gone through trauma so while he didn’t deserved to get burned it does seem anti-climatic when compared to getting burned by an oven as someone trying to cook and eat him opposed to a hurt women who made a big mistake.

The Hyperion stuff is Hansel going after Zelena and kidnapping her fiancé, Zelena trying to deal with both her personas, saving Henry and Dr.Facilier’s plan. Hansel also gets the axe from Facilier since Hansel wasn’t operating toward Facilier’s goal of getting the Dark One’s dagger which seems to be Gothel’s plan. It’s also revealed that Naveen a.k.a Drew is awake. I don’t get this curse since it’s easy to wake people. Would Henry die if he was woken but the curse is still in affect?

So Hansel a.k.a the Candy killer was a Mid-Boss who did help to wrap Ivy’s storyline and Zelena though Zelena’s story also got wrapped in season 6 and according to press stuff she’ll be back towards the finale. If I didn’t know that from Reddit it would have been a nice ending for Zelena as she got back with her fiancé.  

With Hansel there have been five villains this season. Victoria/Rapunzel in the beginning, then Ivy/Drizellla,  then Gothel, then Nick/Jack/Hansel and Facilier. Is that it? Did I miss one? Also Hansel was nearly a good kidnapper except the parts where he was sloppy using his nickname with Jacinda in the text from Henry’s phone AND holding Henry at his own apartment. In the living room no less.   At least that plot-line was short.

While this episode was ok at best, I did like Zelena’s interactions with Rumple and Margot (with a T) and the fire motif.  

Overall the episode was B-.   

And I still want to know who was Dr.Sage???  Can I just BELIVE she was Esmeralda? I mean Sage is green and Esmeralda means Emerald which is green so it works in theory? She’s Esmeralda till otherwise proven like the other two ladies I suspected as being Esmeralda. 

Once Upon a Time Season 7 Episode 16

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Breadcrumbs

Andrew J. West as Henry Mills & Robert Carlyle as Weaver Once Upon a Time Season 7 episode 16 Breadcrumbs picture image

Andrew J. West as Henry Mills & Robert Carlyle as Weaver

Things got real in this episode!

The Hyperion plot has quite a bit going on. We have Henry getting a job offer to produce a podcast in New York because this podcast company liked his podcast about Hyperion Heights.

Now Tangent time.
HUH? Henry is a content creator so why would a podcast company want to hire him to produce? I mean yes this in keeping with Henry’s desire to want to have a story of his own BUT his podcast was about the residents of Hyperion Heights and their stories, so he still just in his author role. But whatever this plot point is in service to plot so it’s add drama to his dynamic with Jacinda but then Grandpa Rumple involves Henry on the case candy killer case.  

And is all seriousness,  Henry and Rumple’s conversations are super touching. Say what you want about this season, It has redeem Rumple.

Anyway Henry offers a break in the case because Hansel is a fan and Henry told all to Nick who is Hansel and he kidnaps Henry… And sends a box of chocolates to Zelena a.k.a Kelly West, I see what you did there OUAT.   

Other plots involve Kelly and Margot’s not communicating and Tilly getting a job with Sabine, more Tilly and Margot bonding and Sabine and Rogers having more chemistry than Henry and Jacinda but everyone have more chemistry than those two  so it’s not surprising. Quick question Nick has to know he’s not the Jacinda’s baby daddy right?

And now another Tangent Time,
I just thought of this, probably obvious to everyone else though but why is Henry Mills still Henry Mills? Everyone else has there second cursed name expect Lucy but she is more or less in the know but not Henry? So why does he have his original name? I’m so confused all the time!

And then there the past section, which is another life changing field trip with Nook. Nook and Henry go on a adventure to fulfill Henry’s desire for his own story and get a pretty ring for Jacinda. Nook arranges a fake treasure hunt with with his frenemy Black Bread, seriously these two should get a spin off show. But then they get to real trouble when the sea wants the ring back. Henry learns that he’d rather have a life with Jacinda than impress her will daring due for his ego.      

OH THE SEXUAL IMAGERY in this part of the episode.  There is a whirlpool that wants pirates (or sea men), Henry straddles the mast and throws the shiney ring into a magic vortex to satisfy  the whirlpool’s desire. Is my mind in the gutter or the imagery super strong here? Maybe I have been reading too many explicit Reylo fanfics,  no I haven’t, you can’t read too many.

The big question is and always shall be, How was this episode? It was fine, no glaring complaints. Henry’s in a pickle, Kelly is next on Hansel’s hit list, Jacinda is sad and Tilly and Rogers are awesome.  Anyway things are moving towards the endgame.

Regina was not in this episode. Doesn’t make it better or worse just pointing it out. Also I want to make a Zoolander Hansel joke but I shall refrain.

Once Upon a Time Season 7 Episodes 14 & 15

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Episode 14: The Girl in the Tower

Rose Reynolds as Alice & Tiera Skovbye as Robin Once Upon a Time Season 7 Episode 14 The Girl in the Tower picture image

Rose Reynolds as Alice & Tiera Skovbye as Robin Hood

Let’s get the stupid nitpick of this episode out of the way; The Death Card in a tarot card reading does not mean literal death. Granted the meaning of cards can be fluid but still.

Otherwise this was a pretty great episode. Alice/Tilly has been a highlight of this season so seeing an episode center around her is great.  

The past section revolves around how she got out of the tower and her how her Robin meet/bond. The relationship between Robin and Alice is an apology for how the show has handle Lesbian pairings before. Mulan was in love with Aurora and then she teamed up with Red only to have Red fall for Dorothy in one episode. It was unearned. Here with Alice and Robin it was set up prior. Both Alice and Robin bond and grow from each other so it more than just a physical attraction on the onset.  They feel more natural than the Red/Dorothy pairing. Still wish Mulan had found love.

The present section dealt with Tilly trying to come with an alibi. Which she does in the form of the troll statue which had a camera in it. The Troll is also the magic Alice conjured to get out her Tower.     

The B-plot was Regina/Lucy mission stuff with Dr.Facilier. His goal is to get the Dark one dagger. Regina and Facilier’s dynamic continues to be interesting.  

Good episode all around. The second half of this season better than the first.  

 

Episode 15: Sisterhood  

Adelaide Kane as Drizella & Yael Yurman as Anastasia Season 7 Episode 15 Sisterhood picture image

Adelaide Kane as Drizella & Yael Yurman as Anastasia

I will miss Drizella. This episode wasn’t bad, it moved things along in the ultimate direction. The main focus of this episode was on Druzilla and her relationship with Anastasia.

The past section involves  Drizella’s test to join the coven in which she and Gretel  bond but she is forced to kill her because there can only be one. Druzilla didn’t want to and this plays in the present where Druzilla is posed to kill Anastacia to charge up a magic bean. It was all a ploy by Faclier tio get some magic for Regina and in the end the two sister’s return to the A.E.F.

So in the present we learn the identity of the murder who is going after the coven members. Turns out it was Hansel a.k.a Nick a.k.a Lucy’s fake dad a.k.a Henry’s B.F.F. At least he has a motive. Gretel said that Hansel was changed by the experience of the child eating witch AND Gretel was murder because of the coven however how did he wake up? Or is operating under subconsciousness, like he knows to go after these women but he doesn’t.

Anyway it was fine episode, it’s a shame than Ivy’s part is done  yet Jacinda’s and Henry awkward relationship continue but it was as bad in this episode as it has been in other episodes.

Once Upon a Time Season 7 Episode 13

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Knightfall

Colin O'Donoghue as Wish-Hook (Nook) Once Upon a Time Season 7 Episode 13 knightfall picture image

Colin O’Donoghue as Wish-Hook (Nook)

I like that this episode focuses on Nook. He has been a weirdly explained highlight of the season. While the episode wasn’t bad on the whole there was some plot elements that makes you scratch your head.

For instance the whole Maui’s Hook and Nook and Captain Ahab was odd.  Basically Nook wanted to prove to Ahab that he is was still cool and deadly even though Nook had Maui’s Hook which could have busted Alice out of the tower, even though we know Alice will get out of the tower and the subsequence poison heart curse was the result of Gothel teaching Nook a lesson.  

The Hyperion Heights stuff was Gothel goading Rogers to remember, Ivy trying to find meaning and Regina and Lucy teaming up. The scene with Regina and Lucy was cute. The twist with Tilly at the end was odd but hopefully the show will offer up some reason for it.   

It was an alright episode just weird with its execution on plot points if you think about it too much, which is par for the course with this show. Like did Gothel know about Maui’s Hook? I guess she didn’t since she went the motherhood route to get out of the tower. She probably didn’t know since Nook went to the wish-realm and Gothel is from A.E.F. Remember when realm hopping was hard? It was good to see crazy imp Rumple though.     

This episode was about a B+.

Once Upon a Time Season 7 Episode 12

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A Taste of the Heights

Colin O'Donoghue as Rogers and Robert Carlyle as Weaver Once Upon a Time Season 7 Episode 12 A Taste of the Heights picture image

Colin O’Donoghue as Rogers and Robert Carlyle as Weaver

This episode is all over the place. We have the A plot which is involves more food truck shenanigans. Sabine wants to take part in a neighborhood food truck festival, is that a thing that happens? She meets up with an old guy friend from culinary school, Drew, who is really Naveen and he in the pocket of Dr.Facilier  for reasons. The Flashback part also revolves around these three and Dr.Facilier is the best part.

The B plots are Lucy is now the blocker since Henry will die from death by plot resolution should he kiss Jacinda even though romantic love is seldom the way the these OUAT curses get broken. And the other B plot is we’re still on the case with Rumple and Nook as they investigate the coven, Eloise, the death of Dr.Sage, Victoria’s death and whatever else they find along the way.  

The C plot ties into the A plot, it’s basically about how Regina had an affair with Dr.Facilier. When did that happen, show? It was when she was still “The Evil Queen,”  but when? Was it during her tryst with Huntsmen? Or After? Or Before? It’s not much of retcon but it’s just a weird development. Though Facilier and Regina have better chemistry than Jacinda and Henry BUT then again Henry has more chemistry with the mixtapes, so moot point.  

Also I do wonder if we will still learn the identities of Dr. Sage and Hilda the creepy blind baker. Because it seems like we are not going to learn who the coven members were outside of their Hyperion Height personas, which isn’t cool OUAT! You could have had Mad Madam Mim!

This episode was very middle of the road. It wasn’t god-awful but it was great either. It felt too long, like it kept going and going and  going.

I read on reddit a really great guess for how the show will end  and I hope it will come down to it. It would wrap things up very nicely. The guess who also tie into something from season 2 that should’ve been a bigger deal but there was Pan to deal with. Anyway I hope the  reddit user’s guess is right.