Once Upon a Time (TV series)/Tear Jerker

Everything About Fiction You Never Wanted to Know.


  • Pilot:
    • The playground scene, especially the part near the end where Emma, close to tears, tells Henry how she was left by the freeway and later rejected by her foster parents and that he's lucky to have someone who wants him never mind loves him.
      • To a lesser extent, Emma blowing out a candle on her birthday cupcake.
    • Snow White putting on a brave face for Prince Charming before he goes to deliver Emma to the wardrobe, only to break down in cries of agony for her lost baby after he leaves.
    • As he lays dying, Prince Charming's smile when he sees that Emma got away.
    • Snow White trying to wake up Prince Charming with a kiss.
  • The Thing You Love Most:
    • The Queen's struggle then ultimate decision to kill her own father. There's no going back for her after that.
    • The reveal that Regina named her adoptive son after the father she killed in the fairy tale realm.
    • Emma's face when she learns that Henry believes Mary Margaret Blanchard is Snow White (and therefore her mother).
  • Snow Falls:
    • Mary Margaret's utterly crushed look when David's "wife" swoops in after they rescue him.
  • That Small Still Voice:
    • Jiminy not only failing to put a stop to his sociopathic parents' thievery, but discovering that the Baleful Polymorph potion he'd intended to use on them was replaced, and that he had unwittingly sold it to the nice couple they had just swindled. As if that weren't enough, after finding the couple has been turned into wooden puppets, their child returns home to find them in this state. The same child who had earlier been cheerfully eager to see the puppet show Jiminy's family put on.
  • The Shepherd:
    • James saying goodbye to his mother. Not only will he never see her again, but he's being forced into the one concession he swore he'd never make by marrying for a reason besides love.
      • It gets a little better when, thanks to the magic of fairy tales, his mother's insistance of him taking their family wedding ring ultimately results in happier ending than they believe at the time.
  • The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter:
    • Sheriff Graham's death at the hands of The Evil Queen/Regina Mills.
      • Made worse by the fact that right before he died, Graham had fully regained his memories of being the huntsman. Emma realizing she had feelings for him right as he died is heartbreaking, especially considering the conversation she had with Mary Margaret about how she was rejecting romance because she was afraid of being hurt again earlier in the episode.
    • May I once again point out everything about Graham and Emma.
      • Graham's increasing desperation and fear throughout the episode are bad enough--the opening scene where he pleads with Emma to understand that he doesn't feel anything and then the later scene where he insists to her that he doesn't have a heart. And she tries to comfort him by convincing him he does.
      • "It's okay. It's going to be okay." Oh, the irony...
      • The hesitant, almost frightened way Emma approaches Graham before their second kiss. And genuine, unguarded smile on her face after he thanks her. Emma barely ever smiles so freely. Combine that with her heartbroken sobbing about a minute later...
      • Graham being able to feel again and crying with relief after he and Emma kiss.
  • Desperate Souls:
    • Rumpelstiltskin's life before getting his powers is depression incarnate: branded a coward for refusing to fight a pointless war, a wife that left him in disgust, and now fighting to keep his son from being conscripted at 14.
    • Morraine's parents screaming, pleading and crying as she is taken away by the guardsmen to be conscripted.
  • True North:
    • Hansel and Gretel awakening in the woods after The Evil Queen releases them and holding hands as they walk off to find their father. Their determination is heartwarming but the next shot shows just how little chance these two have of finding him. The implication is that they don't... at least, not in the fairy tale world.
  • 7:15 A.M.:
    • Snow White unwittingly taking the vial to forget about her feelings for Prince Charming the moment he backs out of his wedding to Abigail to find her. It's all the more crushing when Snow responds to Grumpy's news of this with, "Who?"
      • For that matter, Grumpy is smiling excitedly about the news himself. And when she says "Who?", you can see the slow horror coming across his eyes and his face fall again.
    • The death of Stealthy, Foregone Conclusion though it may be. Especially with Doc's statement of "Now we're seven."
  • Skin Deep:
    • Finding out that, despite all Rumpel's efforts to protect his son, Baelfire ran away anyway because he was terrified of him. And Rumpel still keeps his clothes.
    • Rumpel replacing the golden chalice with the chipped tea cup. And weeping.
    • The things that Gold does throughout the episode are pretty creepy, but when you learn he did it all (or at least most of it) to retrieve the only remnant he has of Belle...*sniff*
    • Good news, Belle's not dead! Bad news, Regina's held her captive for who knows how long...and Gold has no clue she's even still alive.
    • Rumpelstiltskin small Hope Spot when he hears that Belle has been shunned by her father. His first thought is "so she needs a home, then?", with a smile creeping across his face, before the Queen tells him she died (a bluff). Props to Robert Carlyle (Rump's actor) for the subtle but ever growing wide eyed look of horror as the Queen tells him that she didn't just die... she was tortured to the point of suicide because of him.
    • Rumpelstiltskin's complete freakout after Belle kisses him. At that moment, he doesn't seem that upset about potentially losing his powers, he's mostly upset because he honestly believes nobody could ever truly love him, therefore Belle must be faking everything in an elaborate ruse to kill him for the Evil Queen. Even sadder because by the time he uncovers the mirror, the proof of Belle's love- the restoration of his human form- has faded away. It gets worse later, when he realises that she does love him, and decides to stop any possibility of losing his powers (and Bael) by breaking Belle's heart and sending her away. When the Queen drops by to inform him of her fate, he obviously wants nothing more than to have her back in the castle again, because he reciprocates her feelings.
  • What Happened to Fredrick:
    • YMMV, but Mary Margaret and David breaking up and not knowing Kathryn left a note behind saying they could be together (because Regina burned it).
    • Kathryn/Abigail in general this episode.
      • Kathryn/Abigail being kept from her true love (Fredrick) in Storybrooke due to Regina's plan for no happily ever afters.
      • Kathryn calling Regina the closest thing she has to a friend, and shortly afterwards it's highly probable Regina is the one who made her disappear.
      • Kathryn having to come to terms that her marriage is over, and might have only been an illusion all along (not in the curse sense, but whatever). And that her husband has fallen love with someone else.
      • Abigail having tried to get over Fredrick but failed.
    • Prince Charming on the run with Red from King George with no idea how to find Snow White.
    • Storybrooke's treatment of Mary Margaret after they find out about the affair - especially with David seemingly not being given the same. Double Standard much?
    • No sign of Mr. Gold; either he's still in jail or THAT messed up from 'Skin Deep'.
  • Dreamy:
    • "It's Grumpy now."
  • Red Handed:
    • Red's a werewolf, she's killed and half eaten her true love Peter, the villagers are coming to kill her, she has to go on the run and leave Granny behind, and all this while she's still reeling, confused and horrified at what's happened to her.
  • Heart of Darkness:
    • Snow White's back to normal - but first she shot Charming, and now they've been seperated yet again. In the real world David has turned against Mary Margaret because his memories are returning with the wrong context entirely, and out of desperation she does a jail break and is presumably on the run.
  • Hat Trick
    • Jefferson spent years in Wonderland trying to build another world-hopping hat in the hopes that he could return to his daughter in the Fairy Tale world. It didn't work, and now he has to watch her Storybrooke counterpart live and be happy with a different family every day, without any memory of him, while he sits in the lap of luxury with full knowledge of everything that's transpired.
  • Stable Boy
    • Regina's mother has ignored all of her daughter's wishes for her own personal happiness, has killed Regina's lover Daniel, and is forcing Regina to marry the king. Then Snow comes in and reveals that, yes, she did in fact tell Regina's mother. Regina very quickly puts two and two together, and silently places the blame on Snow, formulating her revenge plot in the process.
  • The Return
    • Baelfire falls into the portal without Rumpelstiltskin.
    • And then you find out that everything Rumpelstiltskin did was to get his son back.
  • The Stranger
    • Emma's stubborn refusal to believe and manipulating her mind to see what she wants to see, despite August's pleas.
    • The realization that Emma can't let herself believe because her self-esteem is just that low and she's terrified to have people relying on her.

August: You're our only hope.
Emma: *very sincerely* Then you're all screwed.

    • The scene in the orphanage where August decides to abandon Emma.
    • Gepetto weeping over the seemingly dead Pinnochio, and reminding Jiminy of exactly why he took the job he has.
    • August seeing his father again, whom he feels he has failed, for the first time in twenty-eight years -- and his dad has no idea who he is.
  • Mary Margrets speech to Regina when she first returns to work.

Mary Margret: I forgive you. Even if you can't admit what you did, I forgive you anyway. Your life must be filled with such incredible loneliness that your only joy comes from destroying everyone else's happiness. It's so sad, Mayor Mills, because despite what you think, it won't make you happy. It's only going to leave a giant hole in your heart.

  • An Apple As Red As Blood
    • Snow and Charming's conversation through the mirror and Snow choosing to take the apple to save Charming.
      • "Then congratulations. You've won."
    • Emma's goodbye to Henry at the end of the episode. She fails to hold back tears as she insists that it's best for her to leave and that Regina will take good care of him.
      • Her defensive posture when she insists that all Regina has ever done is fight for Henry and "it just got out of hand." Emma knows that's not true (and the audience knows the full-extent of what Regina has done) so seeing her so helpless and just desperate to cling to the belief that her son will be safe is heartbreaking.
    • "You may not believe in the curse--or in me--but I believe in you."
  • A Land Without Magic
    • Seeing both Emma and Regina heavily distraught over Henry.
    • Graham/the Huntsman not only spared Emma's mother, he actively defied the Queen to save her dad. And he's the only one who's dead here...
    • Henry's Disney Death - Yeah, you could see it from a mile off. Didn't make it any less of a hit.
    • Emma breaking into August's room - to see he's turned back into wood. Not to mention August's overwhelming belief that Emma can break the curse even though he knows it will happen too late for him.
    • Regina telling Henry that no matter what, she does love him before she flees.
    • The breaking of the curse, oddly enough. It's weirdly haunting to think that all the Storybrooke personas we've gotten to know and love over the course of the season are just...gone. Good-bye, Mary Margaret the lovelorn schoolteacher. Hello, Snow White the battle princess.
    • Everyone reuniting.

Mary Margaret: You found me!
David: Did you ever doubt I would?

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