Was a bit worried about "Nothing to Fear" at first. It did sound really interesting, with a few things that made it different from the previous episodes. Was also really interested in seeing how 'Once Upon a Time in Wonderland' would fare with Jabberwocky, the frightening titular character of Lewis Carroll's nonsense poem of the same name (have recently seen that poem and the rest of his work in a new light after discovering the connection between his writing style and his reported temporal lobe epilepsy).
"Nothing to Fear" turned out to be a good episode, one of the better and most intriguing ones of 'Once Upon a Time in Wonderland' due to a few things that made it different from the rest of the show. It is a big improvement in my view over the previous episode "Home", which actually disappointed me and epitomised the most of all the episodes what the show does well and its flaws, and it generally does really well with the character of the Jabberwocky.
It is not a flawless episode, none of 'Once Upon a Time in Wonderland's' episodes are. The poor special effects continue to stick out like a sore thumb. Actually liked the Jabberwocky as a character overall and the introduction to the character, the physical form leaves a lot to be desired and almost like an afterthought. Caterpillar as ever looks awful and was overall a misfire of a character, even Iggy Pop didn't work.
Again Naveen Andrews is somewhat bland as Jafar, one of the general problems with the show with a couple of excepting episodes, Jabberwocky is a lot more menacing despite less screen time. Some of the dialogue is cheesy as well.
Other than the Jabberwocky, the production values are solid and don't look drab or garish. The photography and the Red Queen's palace are especially well done. The music is not too constant or too loud, while still having a presence without being too much of a dirge. The opening titles sequence has a nice sense of magic. The decision for "Nothing to Fear" to include a re-cap to refresh the viewer of what happened in the first half of the show's run, with the risk of people forgetting what happened before, was a good one and appreciated. Also a good move was to not have flashbacks, so no dangers of too much exposition or dragging momentum that flashbacks can have, and just tell the story in a straightforward manner. Which was needed in my view after such an over-stuffed previous episode.
Knave's sass and sarcasm is still amusing, while one character exit is handled movingly and tastefully (the episode also being the first time where the character connected with me). While a good deal is set up here, namely the debut of Jabberwocky, a good deal advances as well such as Alice, Cyrus and Red Queen (whose moods aren't erratic this time). The calmer portrayal of Lizard made her rootable and despite the physical form looking cheap the Jabberwocky makes a promising first impression and the introduction is quite creepy. The performances are fine on the whole, the only exception being Andrews. Peta Sergeant's Jabberwocky is the standout.
Bottom line, good. 7/10.
"Nothing to Fear" turned out to be a good episode, one of the better and most intriguing ones of 'Once Upon a Time in Wonderland' due to a few things that made it different from the rest of the show. It is a big improvement in my view over the previous episode "Home", which actually disappointed me and epitomised the most of all the episodes what the show does well and its flaws, and it generally does really well with the character of the Jabberwocky.
It is not a flawless episode, none of 'Once Upon a Time in Wonderland's' episodes are. The poor special effects continue to stick out like a sore thumb. Actually liked the Jabberwocky as a character overall and the introduction to the character, the physical form leaves a lot to be desired and almost like an afterthought. Caterpillar as ever looks awful and was overall a misfire of a character, even Iggy Pop didn't work.
Again Naveen Andrews is somewhat bland as Jafar, one of the general problems with the show with a couple of excepting episodes, Jabberwocky is a lot more menacing despite less screen time. Some of the dialogue is cheesy as well.
Other than the Jabberwocky, the production values are solid and don't look drab or garish. The photography and the Red Queen's palace are especially well done. The music is not too constant or too loud, while still having a presence without being too much of a dirge. The opening titles sequence has a nice sense of magic. The decision for "Nothing to Fear" to include a re-cap to refresh the viewer of what happened in the first half of the show's run, with the risk of people forgetting what happened before, was a good one and appreciated. Also a good move was to not have flashbacks, so no dangers of too much exposition or dragging momentum that flashbacks can have, and just tell the story in a straightforward manner. Which was needed in my view after such an over-stuffed previous episode.
Knave's sass and sarcasm is still amusing, while one character exit is handled movingly and tastefully (the episode also being the first time where the character connected with me). While a good deal is set up here, namely the debut of Jabberwocky, a good deal advances as well such as Alice, Cyrus and Red Queen (whose moods aren't erratic this time). The calmer portrayal of Lizard made her rootable and despite the physical form looking cheap the Jabberwocky makes a promising first impression and the introduction is quite creepy. The performances are fine on the whole, the only exception being Andrews. Peta Sergeant's Jabberwocky is the standout.
Bottom line, good. 7/10.
