Once Upon A Time Recap - "Poor Unfortunate Soul" (S04E16)

This episode revealed how Ursula became a villain. It starts with Captain Hook on the Jolly Rodger back in the days when he was working for Peter Pan. They hear a mermaid's song and nearly crash the ship into rocks. The mermaid stops singing just in time for the pirates to save the ship. It turns out the mermaid was Ursula. She is scolded by her father Poseidon, for not bringing the pirates to their death. Apparently her mother was killed by pirates and he is all about revenge. Ursula, on the other hand, wants to use her voice for good as her mother had encouraged. Her mom had taught her how to sing so her voice was all she had to keep her mother's memory alive. Her father gave her an ultimatum, so she went on land to live as a human.

After getting no where with August, Rumple forces him to take a potion that would kind of return him to his original state, i.e. his nose will grow if he lies. He knows Regina has the drawing with the door on it from the storybook, and when asked about it Regina informs everyone that she has already given it to Henry. Rumple questions August about the door and about the Author. As his nose gets dangerously close to the open fire. August informs them that The Sorcerer trapped the Author behind the door, but he doesn't know where the door is. Rumple decides to take Maleficent and Regina to the Sorcerer's mansion to look for the door, leaving Cruella to watch August while Ursula "stretches her tentacles".

Before leaving, Regina sends a message via the fireplace to Snow, Charming, Emma, and Hook that Rumple is back in town and that they turned Pinocchio back into August. Emma is concerned for her friend and they run to tell Belle so she can use the dagger on Rumple. Belle is confused and says she gave it to Hook who has no idea what she's talking about. They realize Rumple tricked her. Hook offers to talk to Ursula and get her to spill what the plan is. He says he is going to take a page out of Emma's book and give her her happy ending. He knows how to, because he's the one who took it. He leaves to find her.

In the flashback, Hook hears Ursula singing in a local tavern and confronts her quietly about being the mermaid. He thanks her for sparing his ship and offers to take her wherever she'd like to go and sing. Ursula is ecstatic. Hook is forced back onto his ship by Poseidon who gives him an enchanted shell and tells him to take Ursula's voice so she will have no choice but to return to the ocean with him. Hook refuses until Poseidon promises his squid ink which will paralyze anything and anyone- including Rumple. Hook considers it, but ultimately tells Ursula what happened. She offers to get the squid ink for him and she is successful.

Present day Hook and Ursula conjure up the Jolly Rodger, only to find that it is now a ship in a bottle. They take it to Belle and Will who help to restore it to proper size. On board, Hook gives Ursula the shell containing her voice, but it doesn't work and she still cannot sing. She says the deal is off and Hook nearly shoots her until she knocks him out with her tentacles and throws him into the ocean.

Emma busts into Rumple's cabin and Snow goes all Tangled on Cruella by hitting her in the back of the head with a frying pan. They free August and he is impressed by Emma and her magic, since she was still doubtful the last time he saw her. Ursula intrudes and wraps Snow by the neck with her tentacle.

Old Hook is about to take the squid ink when Poseidon shows up and tosses it. He yells at Hook and Ursula for trusting someone who is consumed by revenge. Hook freaks out and ultimately takes Ursula's voice. She is devestated and returns to the ocean. Hook refuses to give the shell to Poseidon so he can play hero and threatens to crush it unless Poseidon leave him alone. Poseidon also returns to the ocean and Ursula takes his trident. She transforms herself into a powerful sea witch like the one she was named after and is now more powerful than her own father.

As Hook drowns, he is saved by Ariel. You can tell she's reluctant to do it, but she's a good mermaid. Hook thanks her and she slaps him for almost ruining her happy ending, and thanks him for freeing her from the bottle. She tells him that Blackbeard started upsetting a lot of people with the Jolly Rodger and pissed off some royals in Arendelle who put the ship in the bottle. Hook is amazed that Elsa did that. (loved that Easter egg) He asks Ariel to help him with Ursula.

Hook arrives at the cabin just in time and tells Ursula he knows why it didn't work. The shell needs Poseidon's magic. Poseidon comes in and tells Ursula that a nice young mermaid found him and helped him get there through a portal (thanks Ariel!). He apologizes to her and they share a very sweet moment. He restores her voice and Ursula is so happy. She wants to return to the sea with him and be with her father again. It was really touching.

Hook tells Emma that he almost shot Ursula and she reminds him that he didn't and she got her happy ending because of him. He reminds her that he was also a villain so he is scared of losing his happy ending- Emma.

Ursula keeps good on their bargain and tells Hook that Rumple's plan is to give the villains happy endings and the only way to do that is to make Emma do it. Since she is the Savior, she took away all of the villains happy endings, but by making her evil forever- it will switch and the villains will get happy endings and the heroes won't.

 Cruella catches up with Rumple, Regina, and Maleficent and tells them what happened. Later Regina appears at the Charming's where August is resting. She fills Emma in as she is pretending to get the storybook page. August wakes up and is confused about why Regina is there and she briefly mentions her double life. She asks where the door is and he says he knows but she's confused as to why his nose didn't grow when he was asked earlier. August grins and informs them that he wasn't lying because he didn't know where Henry had the page and that the page is the door. The Author is trapped somewhere in the book.


Original air date 3/22/15