I’ve been uncertain all day, about what I would write about this evening. Several possibles came to mind, but nothing settled. Being a double blog day, I completed the health blog post prior to the series finale of one of my favorite tv shows.
Once Upon a Time just finished its seventh, and final year. The two part finale started last Friday night and concluded this evening. I made sure I had time blocked out for the show. I have loved this series, for many reasons. However, I didn’t intend to write about it tonight. I resisted writing about it. I cast about for another story.
Guess what? I’m writing about it…
This is what’s foremost on my heart and mind at this moment, so I quit resisting and slipped back into the flow. This is not a review. It’s a farewell to a show that captured my loyalty and a group of people that won my respect and appreciation.
Once Upon a Time is based upon the fairy tales we grew up on, and the characters that told those “tales as old as time.” And because this series is owned and created by Disney, there is a distinct disneyesque quality to all of the stories. That’s okay with me. I grew up on Disney animations, and continued to view the new films with children and then grandchildren.
In this enchanting and complicated series, the people of Storybrooke are all from a fairy tale realm, heroes and villains familiar to the viewer. Initially they’ve forgotten who they are and how they are connected. Gradually, as memories return, they remember, and step back into who they really are.
There are many, MANY challenges to overcome, and new threats and curses to dispel, and relationships to discover and rebuild. It was fun, over the years, to figure out, along with the characters, who they really were. Each season new characters appeared, and disappeared, as their stories were resolved. At the core was a group of regulars who shifted from being enemies to friends and then family.
At the end of season six, many of the regular cast members left the show, after receiving their happy endings. The creators decided to reboot the series for a seventh season, with a new setting, several of the familiar characters, a host of new characters, and a new curse.
People can have a hard time with change. The fan base was split on whether this reboot was a good idea or not. Me? I’m a loyal fan. If something wins my heart, it earns my loyalty as well. I watched the new season with an open mind, and enjoyed the development of old characters, in new ways, and the inclusion of additional fairy tale characters. It was still Once Upon a Time to me, and some of my favorites had continued on from the previous seasons.
However, all good things come to an end. And the decision to end the series, brought us to a grand finale. I loved that the writers created a very powerful conclusion, and the casts of the previous seasons and the current one joined together to tell the end of the story.
It was an emotional ending! Seven seasons meant I had a lot invested in this story. My grandson Dayan and I watched five of those seven seasons together. I would have been happy if the series had gone on for another ten years. If it had to end though, it went out on a very satisfying and high note.
At its core, Once Upon a Time was a story about transformation. Those who were evil, changed, or suffered from their own destructive ways. Those who doubted themselves, learned who they were and what they were capable of. Heroes abounded. And they did good deeds. The pure of heart never lost hope. And those who felt they could never have a happy ending, found one.
Tonight, everything came full circle. I watched through teary eyes as the story drew to a close, and as one by one, the characters received what they most desired. There were sacrifices. There were reunions. There were surprises. There were new beginnings.
I appreciate this show’s messages: We are more than we think we are. Good always wins over evil. Evil is made, not born. People can change. Love and family bind people together and triumphs over all. There is always hope. Life is a story, lived one day at a time.
The series is over, but Once Upon a Time lives on, in the hearts and minds of the fandom. Thanks to Netflix and on demand viewing, the whole series can be watched again…and again…and new insights gained. In Storybrooke, and in my imagination, the characters live on, happily ever after.
