User reviews

I loved the first six seasons of Once Upon a Time, and actually binged all six seasons twice and eagerly awaited the arrival of season 7. There are few shows I can recommend more highly than the first six seasons of Once but seven was beyond disappointing. I couldn't make it through the first episode. Not even Colin O'Donoghue and Robert Carlisle could save it. I hated all the new and revamped characters. They lacked the class, style, fun and imagination of the original cast and the story itself was absolutely lackluster.

If you want to continue enjoying Once Upon a Time, do yourself a favor and rewatch the first six seasons.

Seasons 1-3 were excellent! I could not stop watching. Then 4-6 came along, and I thought they were pretty decent but definitely worse than the first three. I think that the show could have just ended after season 6 but nope... They had to make a terrible 7th season

Overall though, this show is great

This show was my absolute FAVOURITE for the first few seasons, it just kept getting better and better. The way the plot lines came together was simply a masterpiece. Please at LEAST watch the first 3 seasons.

The later seasons lost me more and more, I think the writers struggled to keep outdoing themselves. At a certain point there was so much overly dramatized action, and such a complex background to keep track of, that the show became impossible to follow.

Side note: I absolutely LOVED every single actor and actress in this show, the casting was perfect. Sadly the only exception to this was the lead played by Jennifer Morrison, who did a great job with the acting but to me just didn't seem to fit the part.

to be honest i hate all that fantasy crap, like harry potter, twilight, true blood, and i also hate all the shows that nbc and abc brings to the table. But the other night I was bored and a re run of this was on and I thought what the hell, I'll give it a try. This show is mind blowing. I am officially addicted. There are some questions I have, as the whole present time vs story time doesn't make a whole lot of sense. But the end of the first episode got me so insanely hooked. This show is definitely better than grimm. I don't know how there going to make seasons out of this show, but I am very excited to see. I gave it a 9 only because I am a bit confused on who some of the present time characters are. But besides that, amazing.

I'm ignoring season 7 which was so bad it's like it doesn't belong with this series. But the previous seasons were a fun trip through myth, fairytale, and legend. You get to see characters as diverse as Mulan, Robin Hood, Heracles, and Snow White.

It's as interesting as it sounds, and it's fun to guess which character might show up next ... and they're not always the same as they've been previously portrayed! Villains might be secret heroes and some heroes might have a secret evil side, that's what makes it fun!

Loved it up to season 6, I have no idea why the hell they decided to mess all up with season 7, I literally skipped it all besides Bella and Rumple scenes.

However, all of this has to be appreciated as truth to be told it mustn't have been easy to develop this kind of story. There are a lot of characters, paths connections and realities in the series that keep changing or develop in a sense, so keeping up with all it might have not been easy.

Ok, title of the review can be a little misleading but I'm a massive fan of this show, and currently binging it for the 10th+ time, the only bit that ruins the show is the 7th series, if your like me you watch until the end of the 6th and leave it at that, the 7th just makes the whole show a joke and was probably only produced to fill out the bottom line.

Anyways, as i said... a massive fan, i love the way they take the original Grimm brothers fairy tales that we all know and love, then ad the twist and how they all interconnect, and how the show keep up with the trends buy including the newer stories from Disney, as well as other folktales and fairy tales from other great authors.

Robert Carlyle's take on Mr Gold / Rumpelstiltskin makes the show, his characters story and his acting makes him loved and hated at the same time, and most people probably side with him as you can relate to some of his struggles, snow/charming's constant optimism can get annoying as well as henrys ability to never listen, i will admit the quality does start to show some loss from season 5 onwards but in my opinion its not enough to stop watching

plus the spin off of once upon a time in wonderland is a great miniseries to fill out some of the other realms story.

I just love the show - lets hope it continues...For a very long time. The characters are very well played, and the plot exciting. Try it! If just enough people embrace it, maybe we are lucky. The show is for everyone, and you just want it to continue, and never stop. It is beautifully filmed, the colors are warm and inviting. The changes between the "times" is brilliant, and the series just make you want more. There is this underlying theme of good vs evil, and that it never is as black and white as we first think.The connections between the characters are well made, and you really get to know them. The series make you laugh and cry, and if you are in search of a series to take away the edge of an average life,- take a look! Have a nice watch!

I love watching this show, especially when I just need a little escape from the hustle and bustle of my everyday busy life.

It's like my secret indulgence that gives me that warm and fuzzy feeling and has become a staple during my quality time ..

The storylines are well thought out and somehow most of the characters end up having their stories successfully completed, with little lost narratives.

This is what makes this series so watchable. Storylines are finished nicely.

Needless to say, I've only watched up until season 6, in fear that season 7 will tarnish the wonderful ending of the prev season. Hence I'm not sure whether I will delve in the last season, lol..

The costumes are really good, especially on the magic side of things.. Cudos to the costume designers and wardrobe department. They really did a great job.

The actors and actresses really bring their all to show the magic of Storybrooke to viewers. I'd say they successfully succeeded.

This series give me a sense of nostalgia with exciting modern twists all at the same time.. It's really wonderful.

My daughter (age 11) and I just finished the last episode of this epic series. I've never felt compelled to write a IMDb review for anything before... not Game of Thrones, not Breaking Bad... nothing. So that may express how fantastic Once Upon a Time is.

Why so great? Consistency of the writing. The stories were extremely well paced and intricately interwoven. Usually by the end of seven seasons you are praying for death due to diminished quality of the script writing but, if anything, we enjoyed the slight departure of season 7 the most.

Of course the premise is ridiculous and it was a risk pitching a more mature angle of classic fairy tales but somehow it worked. I would never have started watching this myself so it was blind luck I happened to be looking for something that both myself and daughter could enjoy. In that way it was magic (with no price!) as a shared experience. It teaches comprehensive story telling and gave us hours of discussions. What impressed me most was how the script just didn't have that many infuriating plot holes which most shows have. Any it seemed to have were eventually explained or could be forgiven because the characters were so detailed.

It is that good.

Once Upon a Time is definitely the kind of show that attracts a special kind of audience. An audience that enjoys magic, curses, storybook characters who are heroes/villains, and in my opinion, a show with originality. The show follows Emma Swan, a woman who is approached by a ten year old boy claiming to be her son. He brings her to a town called Storybrooke in Maine and claims its a town full of classic fairytale characters that have been cursed by the Evil Queen (The Mayor of Storybrooke Regina Mills) and evidently two of these characters? Snow White and Prince Charming, are from Emma's past in some way (watch to find out how) I could go on and on about the plot to this show, but honestly I don't wanna spoil anything. Instead I want to explain what this show did for me. Almost 30 years ago I had a liver transplant when I was 10 months old and like anyone with health issues from the start, I've had some hills to climb. For 7 years, this show was like fuel for the car that helped me climb those hills. I watched it while I was in the hospital and while I was doing that, I wasn't there, I was in Storybrooke, the enchanted forest and other places the show took us. I was away from the hospital bed and in a world I was eager to experience, and man did it give us viewers an experience we won't soon forget. There were storylines that were flat, characters that weren't used as much as they should've been and quite frankly, missed opportunities and a few plot holes that were insulting to the audience. But overall this show was amazing. One of my favorite things was for seasons 3 to 6, the show had two storylines for each half of the season. So in Season 3A (Fall to Winter) we went one place, and Season 3B (Spring to Summer) we went to another. It really shook up the show and made it feel fresh. I can't begin to express my appreciation to the cast and crew, I have all 7 seasons on Blu Ray and I will always watch them over and over. I'm thankful to have met some of the cast and told them what it meant to me. If you want a show thats familiar but also original with great storylines and a fresh setting each season, this show is for you. Enjoy it for what it is, a true gift to fairytale/Disney fans.

***May be spoilers*** First of all, television is escapism which is exactly what Once Upon A Time (OUAT) has portrayed. Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis, who also created Lost, has done an intelligent job of re-creating a fairy tales into modern day life. OUAT has got wit, charm, romance, and adventure. They created a great storyline about a real life heroine who grew up in our world and is thrown into Storybrooke, Maine to hypothetically break a curse because her son whom she gave up for adoption told her so. It could do a little better on some CGI here and there, but for the most part it's pretty outstanding. You also have characters who you want to hate, but can't, and characters who you just are trying to figure out. You got people who are in it for themselves. People who just want to help. It's relatable (aside from the fairy tale aspect) to people who are working in their every day life, which makes it this show so intriguing to viewers around the world. If you are the kind of person that wants to escape from your world, but you have to deal with this world. Watch this show!

Once Upon A Time takes us into a new way of looking at the classic fairy tales. It is quite intriguing and most delightful for those who love fairy tales like myself. Sometimes, though not often, the writing seemed a bit off to me, as a writer. But since the story was so beautifully written and created that I overlooked it easier than I thought. Every minute of the show, every episode that seemed unnecessary, lead up to the point we are at now. Yes, some episodes at the time may seem unnecessary and able to skip but even though you may catch up by skipping, you still do not get the full effect of the show! Robert Carlyle, who play the famous Rumpelstiltskin (Mr. Gold in the human world), is one of my favorite actors so as soon as I laid eyes on him, I just knew the show would turn out terrific! A lot of good talent that I was unaware of surfaced in this show and I just loved it. The suspense, the romance, the unhealthy obsessions, it all equals up to a very good show!

Growing up with mainly Disney i was sort of happy that a new show that has all the fairy tales and Disney characters come to life was going to be on ABC. Part of me really likes what it has become and all the characters really fill their roles in a mysterious yet fantastic way.I see this show going on for a while as any one who has read these stories or seen these movies will know that good always wins and evil never stands a chance.Only thing im not sure about is how well the producers have managed to make the central protagonist (Emma) she seems a little rough around the edges but hopefully she will come around in future episodes

Once Upon a Time is a show about the residents of modern-day Storybrooke, Maine, who previously inhabited the world of familiar fairy tales before being banished by the evil queen from the Snow White story.

In the modern-day world, that evil queen goes is the town's mayor. The narrative is complex and highly confusing which is due to the fact that the plot is dictated almost entirely by Regina's 10-year old adopted son, Henry. The other characters all have amnesia and somehow he is the only one to have figured this all out.

Thus, the story is told from two conflicting perspectives and that's a very interesting scenario that the show delivers on. From the point of view of everyone else, Henry is a troubled child with a big imagination and from the POV of Henry, these are lost fairy tale characters who haven't figured out their true identity.

This also makes Henry the guy who's always right. He's also a giant exposition machine. The person who he's doing most of his expositioning to is Emma Swan (Jennifer Morrison). Swan is a cynical 30-something bounty hunter who discovers in the pilot episode that she is Henry's birth mother.

Emma's a key figure in the story, but the reasons that she impulsively uproots from Boston to Storybrooke after the pilot episode aren't particularly well hashed out. There's not really a strong case for why she's there. Emma's concerned that Regina doesn't have her son's best interests at heart but, then again Regina doesn't want her to take an active role in the kid's life ten years later and Emma has no rights to do otherwise. It's a good thing the show's fantasy, because if we looked at Emma's rationale from a realistic ethical or legal standpoint, we might not really be on her side at all.

Regina is eventually revealed to be somewhat malignant, but the show starts off with some genuine thematic confusion as we're left wondering why we should be behind a woman who voluntarily gave up her kid in a closed adoption process, and is now upending everyone's life on a hunch that the boy's adopted mother isn't all she seems. This is made iffier by the fact that Emma reconnecting with her son is one of the key conflicts in the story. If you can discount the clunky set-up (the key to enjoying much of this show), it's not such a bad story either).

Besides, the pilot at least establishes Emma's motivation, although somewhat weakly. The "why" of what Emma's doing in Storybrooke, is more of a "Why not?". One of Emma's key characters traits is that she's being rootless and having close to no support system (she's adopted herself).

The show's biggest strength is that it works both as an overarcing storyline, and as a series of entertaining one-off episodes. The fairytale land sequences are having diminishing returns with me for each episode, but it frames the story well.

Brilliant series - great idea, and I love the twists and turns in the plot. Very creative writing, with the "alternative viewpoints" of some very well known fairy tales. Many of the characters are played by little known actors/actresses, however in general the acting is very convincing. Robert Carlyle plays a brilliant "bad guy", and with Lana Parilla's evil queen, it's difficult to decide who to dislike the most! :) The "real world" cinematography is fine, but the CGI really sucks!! For such a major production, I'm amazed about how bad it is in places. The buildings are very obviously computer generated, and even the "indoor" shots, which ought to be relatively easy, are awful in places, with characters at times appearing to "float" over the "set" rather than being in contact with the ground. Skintones in CGI shots are washed out - it looks as though they put so much effort into evenly lighting the green-screen studio, that they forgot to light the actors! Fortunately the engaging storyline and well-written plot make up for the garbage computer generated scenery!

I cannot believe I didn't get into this show earlier!! Omgg! this show makes me so happy! all the characters and the stories are so amazing! I cannot say enough good things about this show. It has great acting, great adventures, and it is one of the most creative shows I have ever seen! this will always be one of my favorite shows. Ginnifer Goodwin and Josh Dallas are amazing in this show and I cannot believe that they are a real life couple!!! How cute! I love how they change the classic fairy tale stories that you have read and seen and make them so much better! Lana Parrilla has to be one of the greatest characters on this show!!! She has shown so much growth and depth and oh my gosh! I love her so much! This will always be a favorite!

I just finished binge watching this show from start to finish and I remember why I loved it. This modern adaptation of our favourite fairytales reminds us that no matter how bleak we might feel we can find happiness again. As some one who's been struggling lately with their mental health, this was a fun distraction into a fantasy world where battles between good and evil seem less complicated than in it is is the real world.

The series aims high and while it doesn't always stick the landing it's fun to go along for the ride. The cast truly gives each character an award winning performance and personality, especially the villains who find redemption. Although some characters are dealt a heavier blow than others, we are reminded about the importance of family and how good it is to allow those who love you to pull you up from the darkness, into the light.