CAREFUL WITH THE SPOILERS, DEARIE!!
In Camelot, King Arthur reveals the broken Excalibur sword to David. He also tells him that the missing piece is the Dagger of the Dark One. Rumplestiltskin continues to torment Emma. His latest visit has left Emma in a state. Hook and Henry take Emma somewhere to rest peacefully. David and Mary Margaret are at odds over Arthur’s credibility. Against her wife’s protest, David reveals the truth to Arthur. He also reveals that Lancelot is alive. Arthur suggests that they keep this secret from Guinevere but she has already overheard their conversation. Arthur and Guinevere tells David that the dagger is not safe with Lancelot in the kingdom. David then shows the case the dagger is kept in but it is opened, the case is empty. The dagger has been taken by Mary Margaret who meets up with Lancelot in order to hide it. They head to the Vault of the Dark One only to have been followed by Arthur. Unknown to Arthur, David has followed him and their argument was a ruse. They take Arthur back to Granny’s diner but soon it is quickly surrounded by Camelot’s knights. Guinevere organized the sting. She frees her husband and uses the sand on David and Mary Margaret. Lancelot is thrown in the dungeon where he meets Merida. Five years prior, Arthur has become obsessed with finding the Dagger of the Dark One to make Excalibur whole. Frustrated with Arthur, Guinevere goes with Lancelot to the Vault of the Dark One to find the dagger. However, Rumplestiltkin is there. He hands Guinevere a vial containing sand from Avalon that will make Excalibur appear to be mended. Guinevere returns to Camelot where Arthur begins immediately begging for the dagger. Angered that she doesn’t have it, he uses the sands on her and then his kingdom. In Storybrooke, Emma follows through with her plan to make a hero out of the former Dark One Rumplestiltskin with help from a special person—Merida.
We have all heard the tale of King Arthur. The boy who would become a noble king, a just ruler and brave knight. Probably should’ve added biggest liar to that list as well. In Once Upon a Time, Arthur is not so noble, isn’t quite just but he is a brave knight, at least. Reforming Excalibur has become a deep rooted obsession that threatened to break his marriage to Guinevere who was growing frustrated. She begins to turn to Lancelot for comfort, much like in the story. As anticipated, this take on the classic tale is gearing toward the actual Arthurian legend and its interpretations. Arthur is not the perfect king as illustrated in some adaptions, most notably Disney’s 1963 animated film “The Sword in the Stone”. He is a flawed, much like any other man. Guinevere has been portrayed as everything from a weak and opportunistic traitor to a fatally flawed but noble and virtuous gentlewoman. In early chronicles tend, she is portrayed inauspiciously or hardly at all, while later authors use her good and bad qualities to construct a deeper character who played a larger role. I have a feeling that could possibly be the case here, adding a new dynamic to an already promising script. Well, Arthur’s deception is found out by David and Mary Margaret. They stage an argument to have Arthur believe they were at odds with each other in order to capture him and expose him. But their ruse was sniffed out by Arthur who apparently had a ruse of his own. Guinevere had figured out that the Charmings were up to ‘no good’ and devised a trap for them. This displays the intelligence aspect of Guinevere’s character. Her opportunistic aspect come into play when she uses the Sands of Avalon on David and Mary Margaret to get them to believe that Arthur and Guinevere want to help them free Emma from the darkness.
I figured this wouldn’t be the last of Merida. Brought in as a minor character, she will play a bigger role in Emma’s plan to remove Excalibur from the stone. Merida was brought to Storybrooke to make Rumplestiltskin into a ‘brave’ hero so he can remove Excalibur. Back in Camelot, she has been also imprisoned by Arthur before Lancelot. Without a doubt, she sees the king as her enemy. Could Arthur have had a hand in the disappearance of Merida’s brothers? He already has shown that he will do anything to become legend. Casting a spell on his wife and kingdom were just the first steps. It would be no surprise if he would upset a foreign kingdom just so he could lessen the competition and come out on top.
