I don't watch many TV series these days and when I do, I tend to end up watching them after they have aired... at my own pace. I had heard a lot of buzz about the new "Once Upon a Time" (by some of the people who wrote Lost yet I never saw a single episode of that one). I finally got to watch the pilot of Once Upon and enjoyed it very much so I watched some additional episodes. I must say it is a great change of pace from the usual medical / crime / law shows that are on. One of the more interesting things are the names for many characters are often coordinated with their fairy-tale counterpart.

For example:
  • Mary Margaret Blanchard (Snow White): Blanchard derives from the French word for white (blanc or blanche).
  • Regina Mills (Evil Queen): Regina is a Late Latin feminine name meaning "Queen". Mills refers to the Greek word "Milo" meaning "apple" in modern Greek, which is in reference to the Queen poisoning Snow White with an apple.
  • Mr. Gold (Rumpelstiltskin): Rumpelstiltskin spun straw into gold in his story.
  • Ruby (Red Riding Hood): A ruby is a pink to blood-red colored gemstone.
  • Ashley Boyd (Cinderella): Cinders precede ashes in the burning process. Boyd derives from the Gaelic word "buidhe" meaning yellow-haired.
  • Mr. Glass (Mirror): Because another word for mirror is glass or looking glass. Also, his newspaper is called The Mirror.
  • Archie Hopper (Jiminy Cricket): Crickets often hop to get around. Also, crickets are sometimes called hoppers.
They also weave the fairy-tale story with modern-day and the fairy-tales are not the "Disney" ones that I grew up with. Rumpelstiltskin is amazingly played by Robert Carlyle.

If you can watch Hulu... you can watch the videos online:

Once Upon a Time" (2011) - Episode list


Here is the trailer