By: Jacob Elyachar
Once Upon A Time in Wonderland (OUATIW) is one of my favorite new shows of the 2013-14 season!
In fact, I also think it is probably one of the best spin-offs that have aired in the 2010s…. so far!
Here are several of the reasons why I love (and why you should watch) this series:
Alice (Sophie Lowe) needs to come up with a game plan in order to save Cyrus from the clutches of Jafar and the Red Queen! (ABC’s Bob D’Amico)
Alice rules!
In previous incarnations, Alice has always been portrayed as this naïve girl traveling around Wonderland without a clue of common sense. Following the Once formula, series creators Edward Kitsis, Adam Horowitz, Zach Estrin and Jane Espenson have infused Alice (Sophie Lowe) with Emma’s smarts, Snow’s determination and a hint of Mulan to create one heroine that viewers will love.
The White Rabbit: Frenemy?
The White Rabbit (voiced by John Lithgow) is incredibly witty and sarcastic. But this creature is keeping a secret from Alice: he is a spy. The Red Queen (Emma Rigby) forced the Wonderland resident to become her eyes and ears in everything regarding Alice and her journey to save Cyrus. It will be interesting to see how the White Rabbit spills the beans to Alice in the future.
The Red Queen (Emma Rigby) is Wonderland’s malevolent ruler. Will she cross paths with another wicked ruler (Cora) in the future? (Photo property of ABC’s Bob D’Amico)
All hail the Red Queen
While I thought having the Red Queen would not be a good fit as one of the villains for this series (Where are you, Cora (Barbara Hershey)?), the Red Queen proved to be formidable opponent to Alice. I am enjoying Rigby’s vein and uppity take on the classic Lewis Carroll character and I think fans would be delighted to see how her uncanny alliance with this guy turns out…
Jafar (Naveen Andrews) could really be a potential threat to both Alice and the Red Queen. (Photo property of ABC’s Bob D’Amico)
Jafar: Nastier than Rumple?
In both the pilot and the sneak peek into tonight’s episode of OUITIW, Naveen Andrews proved to fans that he mastered the fan-favorite Disney villain. So far, his presence has brought the show to new heights and I think that he could take the title of the Once universe’s nastiest villain from Mr. Gold.
Utilizing Storybrooke
While Once Upon A Time has been focusing on Neverland, it was great to have Storybrooke featured in the pilot. Earlier this year, Entertainment Weekly reported that even though the shows will maintain separate identities…it does not mean that it does not stop characters from both shows from interacting with each other.
