By Julia Lawson
It’s wonderful that John Lithgow does voices for animation. Every week it is as if Lord Farquard of Shrek fame is in the room with us, royally announcing the start of another great week of Wonderland fun. But this week we kick things of in the Enchanted forest. You can’t say the Once Upon a Time franchise isn’t diverse!
It’s wonderful that John Lithgow does voices for animation. Every week it is as if Lord Farquard of Shrek fame is in the room with us, royally announcing the start of another great week of Wonderland fun. But this week we kick things of in the Enchanted forest. You can’t say the Once Upon a Time franchise isn’t diverse!
A fat man fallen off his horse in agony with a broken leg. As the coach guards rush to help a clocked figure descends from the trees grabbing the coach’s luggage and riches from the roof. Friar Tuck’s dramatic painful display was a success and the Merry Men have new valuables to add to their hoard. And the Knave was one of them. The one and only Will Scarlet! Now in Wonderland with a long list of altercations with the Wonderland police and the Caterpillar’s criminal underworld, the Knave has a high price on his head, with or without the rest of his body…
Alice (Sophie Lowe) and the Knave (Michael Socha) are continuing in their attempts to find the bottle after its unexpected removal by the White Rabbit and Red Queen. The ‘forget-me-knot’ is a viable solution to their problem – an enchanted piece of rope which allows you to see into the past. Finding it is another matter though as the caterpillar has it. The corrupt leader of the Underland (of Wonderland) he’s in constant business with the drug dealers of the magical kingdom. I’m not sure Lewis Caroll or Disney envisioned this when they penned their stories.
The caterpillar (voiced by Iggy Pop) resembles Jaba the Hut of Star Wars - in a fez. A deal is made where he tells them the location of the knot, they fetch it, use it for their own means, then return it to him. The knave’s debts will them be repaid and he’ll avoid painful beheading and becoming a screaming desk ornament – yuk. All outcomes favour the caterpillar – he either dies in the attempt or will be killed if he fails on his return.
The caterpillar (voiced by Iggy Pop) resembles Jaba the Hut of Star Wars - in a fez. A deal is made where he tells them the location of the knot, they fetch it, use it for their own means, then return it to him. The knave’s debts will them be repaid and he’ll avoid painful beheading and becoming a screaming desk ornament – yuk. All outcomes favour the caterpillar – he either dies in the attempt or will be killed if he fails on his return.
The knot is with the Grendel in the Whispering Woods. So a new adventure is set in motion with the hop of locating the forget me knot… I prefer the traditional forget-me-not flowers myself. Much less sought after by drug dealers and monsters (usually…).
Back in the enchanted forest the Merry Men, thieves for the people and humanity, are planning to move out as they have taken all they can from the nobles nearby. They take from the rich and give to the poor, but don’t mess about with magic. Will wants to rob from Maleficent and tells Robin Hood (Sean Maguire) about a hidden chest of gold in the walls of her palace – bad choice of evil queen to rob from…
Back in the enchanted forest the Merry Men, thieves for the people and humanity, are planning to move out as they have taken all they can from the nobles nearby. They take from the rich and give to the poor, but don’t mess about with magic. Will wants to rob from Maleficent and tells Robin Hood (Sean Maguire) about a hidden chest of gold in the walls of her palace – bad choice of evil queen to rob from…
He returns to his cottage in the woods to Anastasia and we learn that he only joined the Merry Men to get something from Maleficent to escape a situation… ulterior motives…
Maleficent has a wide array of decorative objects around her ‘house’: jars of eyeballs, orbs and mirrors. Arriving back at camp the thieves are marvelling at the gold when the projected voice of Maleficent fills the clearing demanding the return of an additional object which was stolen by Will. He makes a swift retreat later that night only to be caught by Robin Hood, who almost prophesises his fall even further from grace and acceptance of his thieving ways. Poor Knave…
Maleficent has a wide array of decorative objects around her ‘house’: jars of eyeballs, orbs and mirrors. Arriving back at camp the thieves are marvelling at the gold when the projected voice of Maleficent fills the clearing demanding the return of an additional object which was stolen by Will. He makes a swift retreat later that night only to be caught by Robin Hood, who almost prophesises his fall even further from grace and acceptance of his thieving ways. Poor Knave…
Making magical life worse, the Red Queen (Emma Rigby) and Jafar’s plot worsens in Agrabar as they taunt Cyrus (Peter Gadiot) with Alice and her imminent death. All the while sipping wine and snacking on a banquet in front of him. The centrepiece of which is the intercepted magic crane reply sent by Alice. They use a book of Wonderland beasts and Cyrus’s worried expressions to determine which creature of doom would force Alice to make her wishes.
They decide on a creature which founded endless nightmares for a young Alice new to Wonderland – the Bandersnatch. All the while the Red Queen and Jafar (Naveen Andrews)appear to be flirting away which I must admit I find a little odd. I guess dating prospects narrow significantly when everyone hates your evilness and arrogance; only other villains will do.
They decide on a creature which founded endless nightmares for a young Alice new to Wonderland – the Bandersnatch. All the while the Red Queen and Jafar (Naveen Andrews)appear to be flirting away which I must admit I find a little odd. I guess dating prospects narrow significantly when everyone hates your evilness and arrogance; only other villains will do.
Alice and the Knave were captured via hidden pit on their approach to the Grendel’s lair/cosy cottage and find themselves trussed up and ready for dinner in his kitchen. The only way out seems to be digestion… The monster is using the knot to reconnect with his dead wife. The only way to move on is to leave it all behind you, says the Knave, but Grendel doesn’t want to move on. And it’s dinner time…
Alice is forced to use a wish to escape – but not in the conventional way, as their ‘sharp corners come in handy’! The two try to escape, struggling with the bolt of the heavy door, only to be confronted by The Bandersnatch, a giant warthog like creature intent on catching Alice. They utilise the knot to distract the beast and catch it in the noose of the forget-me-knot, then stabbed by the Knave. Back in Agrabar, the villains delight at the destruction of the beast, signalling the use of a wish. But did they…? No.
Alice is forced to use a wish to escape – but not in the conventional way, as their ‘sharp corners come in handy’! The two try to escape, struggling with the bolt of the heavy door, only to be confronted by The Bandersnatch, a giant warthog like creature intent on catching Alice. They utilise the knot to distract the beast and catch it in the noose of the forget-me-knot, then stabbed by the Knave. Back in Agrabar, the villains delight at the destruction of the beast, signalling the use of a wish. But did they…? No.
“As long as I’m with you, I’m ready for anything.”
Cyrus indicated that the Bandersnatch would be the perfect beast to trick Alice… But in the past when Alice told him how scared she was of them he taught her everything she needed to know - dumb with terrible eyesight. Easily tricked. Like the Red Queen and Jafar it seems.
Back in Wonderland, Will returns to the cottage where he left Anastasia, only for us to discover she’s actually the Red Queen! Or at least a past form of her! They use the magic mirror, or looking glass, as a portal to get to another place.
Back in Wonderland, Will returns to the cottage where he left Anastasia, only for us to discover she’s actually the Red Queen! Or at least a past form of her! They use the magic mirror, or looking glass, as a portal to get to another place.
The pair of them, Anastasia (the Red Queen) and Will Scarlett (the Knave of Hearts), jump through the looking glass to Wonderland - where anything is possible.
If the love of his life became a villainous Queen it’s no wonder his heart is broken… But what made her like that?
Let’s hope we find out next week!
If the love of his life became a villainous Queen it’s no wonder his heart is broken… But what made her like that?
Let’s hope we find out next week!
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