Freedom. It never comes cheap, and it always comes with a hefty price tag. That’s what this episode was all about. Is it all worth it in the end? And what is it to truly be free? With a few masterful twists and some wonderful performances, it goes without saying that ‘Fruit of the Poisonous Tree’ was another solid offering.
In 'Fruit of the Poisonous Tree', a Genie finds himself enthralled by Queen Regina, who has found herself in a loveless marriage to King Leopold, Snow White's father. Sidney Glass asks for Emma's help in uncovering corruption in the Mayor's office after he was fired by Regina.
The Genie knew the price of freedom. He said it himself, he had seen it play out countless times before, but in the face of love he was blinded by his emotions and was oblivious to the Queen’s deception and the possible repercussions of his actions. There was something so bizarre and horrific about his wish backfiring on him, trapping him in the mirror he had once given over in love. Again, the theme of freedom is given a lot of attention, and it seems Sidney will never be free from Regina’s iron grip. Even though I kind of saw it coming, his deception of Emma tore me up a little. Though she’s not short of allies, seeing what the Queen had done to him in Fairytale land just before his true motives were revealed made her hold over him all the more prominent.
Giancarlo Esposito is one of the show’s greatest supporting actors, and ‘Fruit of the Poisonous Tree’ gave him the perfect outlet to show us what he was truly capable of. A lesser actor would have gotten lost underneath all of the Genie’s outlandish costume and accessories, but a certain amount of dignity and respect resonated through, which in turn meant that all of his suffering was real and painful. Hopefully the writers can think up a nice way to keep him a part of proceedings more regularly.
In her quest to destroy Snow’s life, the Queen has gone to some serious lows to get what she needed, whether it was killing her own father, or deceiving someone into doing her dirty work for her, she’s done it all without any perception of the consequences that will be suffered later on. Emma faces that dilemma in a way Regina never could. She constantly fights her better judgement and plays dirty to get ahead of Regina, and it blew up in her face. Whether or not she’ll learn from this mistake remains to be seen, but one thing’s for certain, she’s going to have to up her game. Up until now their rivalry was beginning to stagnate, but now that Regina’s finally taken the initiative to prevent Emma from seeing Henry, there’s even more at stake.
‘7:15am’s ending didn’t seem to get much attention during this episode which was slightly disappointing, but it at least paved the way for our unspoken characters to make more of a statement which is pivotal for a freshman series with such a diverse cast.
8.5/10
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