There Are Some Familiar Faces Coming To 'OUAT'

With only a few short weeks standing between us and the Once Upon A Time Season 5B premiere, it's time to start getting excited (or at least moderately interested) for all that lies ahead. In particular, we're marking a monumental occasion on March 6, which is Once's 100th episode. Perhaps it's telling that we're celebrating this accomplishment with a trip to hell, but to the Underworld we're heading indeed, and it's looking to be a pretty crazy trip. The whole point of the excursion is for Emma to save Hook — a harebrained plot that I seriously hope Emma fails on so that she can start to regain some semblance of self — but the fun part is that we'll reunite with some familiar faces in the Underworld, which should put a much needed pep in the show's step, however temporary.

Look, I know I've been ragging on Once lately, but it's only because I love it so much. It's kinda like when you talk sh*t on your family, but you're allowed to because they're yours, and if anyone else did it, you'd knock their lights out. I criticize because I know how great things could be — how great they have been — and I want to see a return to that. Having one of the female heroines, once so independent and no-nonsense, go blindly chasing after an abusive pirate who confuses obsession with love seems like a major step back, and I don't think having her chase follow him even to his death is particularly going to make things better, but it's happening, so let's enjoy the fun parts of this ridiculous plot line, shall we?

Laying The Past To Rest

It seems Emma is dropping dirt on a grave here. It's unclear at what point in the episode this is taking place — if it's the end and they've returned from the Underworld and she's finally coming to terms with Hook's death, which is the best possible outcome, or if this happens before they actually take their journey, which seems more unlikely — but it's clear Emma looks devastated and will need the support of her family — all of them — to get through everything that's happened.

Mother/Daughter Reunion

One of the biggest villains in Once's history had to be Cora Mills, who just so happened to be Regina's mother. In the end, it was Regina that was her mother's undoing, even though it was kinda Snow White's fault (but what isn't? Hyuck hyuck!). Regina and Cora will reunite in the Underworld, and while this is only a promo picture that could just as well be Lana Parrilla and Barbara Hershey as it is their characters interacting, it seems like they're at least trying to make peace. Is peace actually possible with Cora? Something tells me no...

It's Peter Pan! It's Rumple's Dad! It's Both!

We found out back in Season 3 that Rumple's dad was none other than Peter Pan, who basically abandoned him so that he could be forever young on an island of young boys (weird, but go with it). He also tried to kill Henry and then switched bodies with him until he was found and banished for good, but not without a few casualties. Good to see that he's looking just as evil as ever, too! This could get interesting.

The Return Of The Evil Queen

The first half of Season 5 had far too little Regina for my like, so I'm seriously hoping Lana Parrilla gets way more screen time in the second half of the season. We know that everyone has to confront their demons when they go to the Underworld, so it makes sense that we'll get to see a bit of Regina back in her Evil Queen days. Sorry, though, she's already paid her dues and come to terms with her past, so this won't defeat her. Maybe it's time to give her that hero role she's been promised all season.

Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs

This is a bit different from the good old days, it seems — just look at that terribly dark sky! The dwarfs aren't dead, nor is Snow White, so this must be just an evil flashback. Seems only natural, really, and I always love a bit of Enchanted Forest flashback, so I'll take it.

After seeing these photos, I'm actually getting pretty excited about the 100th episode. However, we'll all have to wait until March 6 to tune in, so there's still a bit longer to wait.

Images: Jack Rowand/ABC