Once Upon a Time (season 2)


The second season of the ABC television series Once Upon a Time was announced on May 10, 2012. It premiered on September 30, 2012 and concluded on May 12, 2013.
The season's plot follows the introduction of magic by Rumplestiltskin/Mr. Gold into Storybrooke, leaving the fate of both the real world and the Fairytale Land that was intertwined, resulting in new threats emerging. Furthermore, Rumplestiltskin locates his son, only to find he is Henry Mills' father, and outsiders Greg Mendell and a woman named Tamara arrive in Storybrooke with the intention to remove magic and the town. They eventually fail to destroy Storybrooke, though they kidnap Henry and take him to Neverland to the unknown Peter Pan, leading the main characters to follow them to retrieve him, setting the premise for the third season. New characters introduced in the season include Baelfire under his new alias Neal Cassidy - who is also the father of Henry Mills - Captain Killian "Hook" Jones, Princess Aurora, Mulan, Prince Phillip, Robin Hood, and the Darling Family.
The season premiere was watched by 11.36 million viewers, achieving an adult 18-49 rating/share of 3.9/10.0. These numbers sunk to a low of 7.08 million viewers in February 2013, but remained stable above 7 million throughout the remainder of the season with a season finale viewership of 7.33 million and a 2.3/7 adult 18–49 rating/share.

Premise

With the curse broken, the residents of Storybrooke struggle between their original and cursed memories, and are left wondering of the fate of their land. After Emma and Mary Margaret survive the trip back to the Enchanted Forest by accident, they find that part of the realm was spared from the curse which kept the remaining inhabitants frozen during the twenty-eight years. Among them are the cunning Cora and the ruthless Captain Hook, who follow Emma and Mary Margaret to Storybrooke to get even with Regina and Rumplestiltskin. People outside of Storybrooke are also allowed in, including Greg Mendell and Tamara, who both have a secretive past involving magic which leads to Henry's captivity in Neverland.

Cast and characters

Regular

Production

Development

On May 10, 2012, ABC renewed Once Upon a Time for a second season, which premiered on September 30, 2012.
Co-creators Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis spoke about the repercussions of the first season finale's events, stating, "Magic as we know always comes with a price and we are introducing it to a world where it has never been before and I think that’s going to have unpredictable results. It’s going to affect everybody this season because that’s what’s more fun." said Kitsis. On everyone in Storybrooke's memories returning Horowitz commented, "One of the things that’s interesting to us to explore is this notion that just because the memories have returned does not mean that the past 28 years did not happen. Those memories, the Davids, the Mary Margarets, the Mr. Golds, all those people, who they were existed and what they did actually happened and those are the things that will have to be dealt with."
The show still bounced back-and-forth between the fairy-tale world and Storybrooke, although there were slight differences compared to season one. It was hinted that another form of narrative was introduced during the season.

Casting

In June 2012, it was reported that season one recurring actresses Meghan Ory and Emilie de Ravin had both been promoted to series regulars for the second season. In July 2012, it was announced that Pretty Little Liars star Julian Morris would be guest starring as Prince Phillip, an altruistic hero and adept warrior, while Teen Wolf actor Sinqua Walls was cast as Sir Lancelot, a former member of the round table. In the same month, it was announced that The Tudors star Sarah Bolger and The Hangover Part II actress Jamie Chung had joined the recurring cast as Princess Aurora and Chinese warrior Mulan. On August 3, 2012, The Rite actor Colin O'Donoghue booked the recurring role of Captain Killian "Hook" Jones, the prime antagonist of J. M. Barrie's Peter Pan. O'Donoghue joined the main cast during the second half of the season. The same day, it was reported that True Blood's Michael Raymond-James had joined the season's recurring cast in an unknown role, described only as "mysterious". This was later revealed to be Neal Cassidy. Lost alum Jorge Garcia recurs as Anton the Giant, referenced from Jack and the Beanstalk. Garcia was originally scheduled to appear in only one episode, but his character was later expanded. Actor Raphael Sbarge, who portrays Jiminy Cricket, was made part of the recurring guest cast this season, as opposed to being included in the first season's main cast. The L Word actress Rachel Shelley played the recurring role of Milah, Rumplestiltskin's wife. Eureka actor Christopher Gauthier is recurring throughout the season as Mr. William Smee, Captain Hook's right-hand-man. In October 2012, Can't Hardly Wait star Ethan Embry joined the recurring cast as an unknown visitor to Storybrooke. Eion Bailey made guest appearances in episodes six and 18. Tony Perez and Alan Dale both made recurring appearances in some capacity throughout the season.
Actor Noah Bean reprised his role as Daniel, the Evil Queen's love-interest, during episode five, "The Doctor". The X-Files actress Annabeth Gish guest starred as Anita, the leader of a pack of werewolves, in Child of the Moon. The Christmas Card actor Chad Michael Collins and 24 veteran Gregory Itzin appeared in In the Name of the Brother as Gerhardt/Frankenstein's Monster, Dr. Frankenstein's younger brother and as Alphonse, the boys' father, respectively. Scream and Charmed actress Rose McGowan portrayed a young Cora in The Miller's Daughter. Lesley Nicol, of Downton Abbey fame, was cast as Johanna in The Queen is Dead which also featured Heroes vet Rena Sofer as Queen Eva, Snow White's mother. It was implicated that the role has the potential to become recurring. Caprica actor John Pyper-Ferguson guest starred in Welcome to Storybrooke as Kurt Flynn, a widower who longs to aid his son after experiencing the loss of his mother. Season one co-star Jamie Dornan also reprised his role as Sheriff Graham Humbert in the episode.
Since the first season, Kings actor Sebastian Stan had portrayed Jefferson/The Mad Hatter in a recurring role; he has since departed from the show with obligations to the Broadway play Picnic and the feature film . It was reported that ABC was set to recast the role with the potential for a possible spin-off based on the character. However, Stan's recasting was repudiated by series co-creator Adam Horowitz, saying that Stan "is a very busy man, I don't know when he will be making his way back toward us". He later confirmed that Stan would definitely not be re-appearing in 2013.

Filming

for the season began in Vancouver, British Columbia on July 16, 2012 and completed on April 5, 2013. The town of Steveston doubles as Storybrooke for the series.

Ratings

Soundtrack

Home video releases