‘Once Upon a Time’ “The Apprentice” Recap and Review

Yes, a lot went on in Once Upon a Time‘s season four episode four titled “The Apprentice” but what stands out is just how incredible Hook looked in real clothes, with two hands, and extending a single red rose to Emma. Hook ditched the pirate attire for a real date with Emma and it was the highlight of a fairly jam-packed episode.

Even the introduction of the Sorcerer’s Apprentice and a showdown between Anna and Rumplestiltskin were just background noise compared to an actual romantic dinner out for the Once Upon a Time couple everyone’s rooting for.

How Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis balance all these storylines is beyond me, but this season’s seen nearly every key player take a turn in the spotlight (Regina’s a bit behind in time on screen as is Belle). Even the Frozen storylines have successfully incorporated the show’s lead characters and have further established the characters’ backstories.

Here’s a look back at Once Upon a Time‘s “The Apprentice” for those who can only remember that magical moment when Hook tells Emma to call him Killian.

The Apprentice Sweeps In:

“The Apprentice” kicked off with an elderly man sweeping up when a gold-faced man, who looks like Rumplestiltskin but isn’t, attempts to steal a jeweled gold box. The sorcerer’s apprentice declares he’s fought Dark One’s before and this one (Zoso) will also be unsuccessful. No Dark One has ever possessed what’s in that box, a warning that will play a big part in the events that transpire over the rest of the episode.

Rumplestiltskin needs a good person to be tempted by his/her inner darkness in order to get the box from the sorcerer’s apprentice. Fortunately for him along comes the sweet and innocent Anna who introduces herself as Joan (remember, she’s on a secret mission). Rumplestiltskin quickly lets her know he’s aware she’s Anna of Arendelle and that he knows why she’s there. He says he did speak with her parents but won’t tell her what was said until she agrees to his terms. If she gets the sorcerer’s apprentice to drink a potion, he’ll tell her everything she wants to know about her parents and Elsa.

Anna’s heard rumors that the sorcerer’s apprentice eats children, but she doesn’t believe they’re true after meeting the gentle elderly man. She spots a tea kettle on the fire and instead of pouring the potion in, she tosses it on the fire, breaking her contract with Rumplestiltskin.

Rumple says what he gave her was the anecdote to the poison he’d already given the elderly man, and because she threw it out, the sorcerer’s apprentice changed into a mouse. She races back to try and find the mouse, but Rumple beats her there. He doesn’t want to change him back and this was all a test to see if she’d be tempted by her inner darkness and turn away from it.

Anna claims she has no inner darkness and was never tempted. She demands he rip up their contract, pulling out a sword and threatening to kill him. Of course, she can’t go through with it, but she thought about killing him. Her tear drops onto his blade and he has what he needs. She tells him he takes the most precious thing, love, and turns it into a weapon. Rumple goes down the stairs at the sorcerer’s apprentice’s house and stands in front of the gold box.

Anna continues to demand details on what her parents were searching for, and Rumple says they wanted to take away Elsa’s powers because they were frightened of her and wished she was born normal. He says they didn’t find what they were looking for but that the gold box contains powerful enough magic to have taken away Elsa’s magical talents because it contains the hat.

The hat’s been guarded by the apprentice all these years and as Rumple continues to talk, the mouse lands on Rumple’s hand and bites him. Anna grabs the knife and quickly realizes it’s special. The knife commands Rumple so Anna demands he send both she and the box back to Arendelle, says he can never hurt her or her sister and makes Rumple turn the mouse back into a man. Rumple does all that and Anna drops the knife when she’s sent back to Arendelle.

In Arendelle, Kristoff tries to feed Sven carrots but he won’t take them, then suddenly Anna appears and Sven’s appetite returns with a vengeance. Anna says her mission didn’t go as planned and that her parents were apparently looking to take away Elsa’s powers with the gold box, something that’s possible using the gold box she now has in her possession. Anna doesn’t know what she’ll tell Elsa, but it’s tearing her up inside.

Catching Up with Storybrooke Folks:

Emma takes the big step and asks Hook out on a date, to which Hook responds by stating he’s the one who’s supposed to be doing the asking. Emma comments on his age saying that he’s about 300 years old as evidenced by his attitude, and Hook playfully replies that at least he’s retained his youthful glow. Glow? The man is smoldering hot as he tells Emma he’ll be planning the date because he knows what to do while she should stick to chasing down monsters. “I don’t pillage or plunder on the first date, just so you know,” says Emma. “Well, that’s because you haven’t been out with me yet,” replies Hook.

As he’s preparing to take Emma out, Hook visits Rumple to make another deal, still threatening Rumple with telling Belle the truth. Rumple kept his hand and Hook wants it reattached so he can hold Emma with both hands (I’m telling you, this episode is Hook at his sexiest and most charming). Rumple warns the hand belonged to Hook’s old self and could negatively influence him, but Hook thinks it’s a trick and demands it be reattached.

Elsa and Mary Margaret are pouring over tons of books filled with curses in hopes of finding out if Anna ever made it to Storybrooke. Emma emerges looking gorgeous, dressed for her date with Hook, and Mary Margaret whips out a camera to snap a picture while David expresses his displeasure over this whole Hook & Emma dating situation; they’re just like parents of a teenager dating for the first time.

Hook arrives dressed in modern attire and hands Emma a rose using his new hand. “What do I call you now, Captain Hand?” Settling on Killian, the two escape the overprotective David without having to take him along as a chaperone – which at one point looked like would happen.

Arriving at the restaurant, Emma turns down a drink because she needs to stay sober in case the Snow Queen shows up. However, their quiet dinner date is interrupted by the arrival of Will who bumps into the waiter and spills wine all over Emma. Hook’s new hand grabs the thief, but Emma tells him it’s okay. Hook barely pays attention to what Emma’s saying because he’s sidetracked by his hand’s reaction.

Back at Emma’s place (she looks cute wearing Hook’s leather coat), she invites him in for coffee knowing they’ll be hovered over by her mom and dad. They’re very flirty with each other and Hook wants to know if she’ll go out with him again. They share a long kiss, but even with the lip-lock going on Hook is still worried about his hand.

Hook leaves and Emma goes inside only to find Mary Margaret and David have waited up for her. Mary Margaret wants to know everything, but David would rather she didn’t share all the juicy details. “She seems happy,” says Mary Margaret. “I guess he really has changed,” responds David. Emma’s heading to bed but yells that she can hear them. Parents!

Hook’s heading home when he catches Will trying to break into the library. He beats him and then is ashamed of himself and his loss of control, and leaves the confused Will with the warning not to tell anyone or he’s a dead man. Now he knows the Crocodile was right and his hand has a mind of its own.

Hopping into the front seat of Rumple’s car, Hook wants his hook back and is forced into agreeing to Rumple’s terms because his leverage over his adversary is gone. Rumple claims the dagger isn’t fake anymore because he’s switched it back, and only Rumple’s magic can take the hand off and replace it with the hook. When the hand tries to bury the hook in Rumple, Hook knows his control is slipping away. He agrees to meet Rumple at the docks the next morning. There, Rumple whips out a broom (yes, the broom has arrived on the scene!) and tells Hook it’ll help them find an old friend. With that, the broom marches off.

The broom leads them to a house where the apprentice is staying in Storybrooke. Rumple has the box and the dagger and commands the box open. It does and the hat appears. The apprentice had no idea Rumple possessed the box, but the apprentice still feels safe because Rumple won’t be able to collect enough power to do what he wants. Famous last words… Rumple turns the hat sideways and sucks the apprentice into the hat where he’ll remain until he’s needed.

Hook wants his hand off now that the deal is fulfilled, but Rumple is holding what just happened with the sorcerer’s apprentice over his head as he knows Emma will be upset by Hook’s involvement. Then Rumple really messes with Hook’s head by saying the hand isn’t cursed. He says it’s all a lie and that the hand is nothing but a lump of flesh. Hook just believed the hand had power and Rumple says it’s just Hook’s ever-present dark side coming out, with the hand just being an excuse to let it emerge again. They know each other too well, and Rumple says they’re still in business together.

Meanwhile, Will is recuperating in a jail cell when Emma whips out the Alice in Wonderland book that he had on him when he was arrested. He wants out but Emma says she’s keeping him locked up because she crashed her date.

In one of Regina’s few scenes, she and Henry talk about their next step in Operation Mongoose. Regina can’t figure out who wrote the storybook and Henry suggests they need to get the answer out of Mr. Gold since somehow he’s managed to get his a happy ending by marrying Belle. Henry’s going undercover to find the info by asking Mr. Gold for a job. He hopes playing on Rumple’s heartstrings by saying he’s the closest thing he has to his father now that Baelfire’s gone will work. It does, and Henry is Rumple’s new apprentice complete with “the broom” to be used to sweep the shop.

The Bottom Line:

With all the Hook and Emma goodness going on, it would have been easy to overlook a few key elements of “The Apprentice.” First, there’s a Dark One who existed before Rumplestiltskin. Secondly, Rumple definitely isn’t done playing all sides against each other. And third, Mary Margaret has discovered that the Snow Queen didn’t come to Storybrooke via a curse because her name doesn’t appear in the town’s books.

But can we get back to the Hook and Emma hook-up? Seriously adorable and hopefully a sign of good things to come for the twosome, Once Upon a Time‘s fourth episode of season four finally provided the answer to those who were anxious to see if Emma would ever relax her guard and allow Hook to be a part of her life were waiting for. Actors Jennifer Morrison and Colin O’Donoghue have terrific chemistry and getting to see them doing something other than chase after fairy tale creatures or ice monsters was a long-awaited treat.

Overall, Once Upon a Time‘s “The Apprentice” seemed slightly less serious in tone than usual, and even Sven the Reindeer provided a few laughs.

GRADE: B+