History Recap / OnceUponATimeS4E20Mother

* AnythingThatMoves: Remember how the Sheriff of Nottingham was smitten with Marian? And then wanted to spend a night with Belle? And then snogged her as Lacey? Turns out he does quite enjoy Regina's, err, new, low-cut dress. Right after hitting on Cora at the tavern.

* NotSoDifferent:
** Zelena notes that Regina's attempt to remove her from existence makes Regina sound much like Cora. Naturally Regina stops when she hears that.
** Also, to continue from the previous episode, see the similarities between Emma and Lily noted above under ContinuityNod.

* ParentsAsPeople: [[NotSoDifferent Both]] Emma and Lily realize this about the Charmings and Maleficent respectively, with a dose of HumansAreFlawed.

* ContinuityNod: Not only do Snow and Charming point out that the way Lily is reacting to Maleficent is exactly how Emma acted toward them back in the first season, but after Maleficent finally gets through to her daughter and convinces her to stay, it's "just for a week"--the same time period Emma initially planned to stay to keep an eye on Henry and make sure Regina was good for him.

* IgnoredEpiphany: Despite his speech to Belle last week, Gold still decides to go through with his plan. Although he justifies it by saying that although Rumpelstiltksin is dying, ''the Dark One'' will still survive and it would be better for everyone if he doesn't die.

* IronicEcho: Just before Rumpel collapses, Regina mockingly calls him "dearie" (the name he uses for people when he's manipulating them). In the flashback, she throws Cora's "love is weakness" line back in her face.

* NotSoDifferent: Zelena notes that Regina's attempt to remove her from existence makes Regina sound much like Cora. Naturally Regina stops when she hears that.

* BrickJoke: The DVD commentary for this episode reveals that the Author's seeming unfamiliarity with a bagel is actually the first half of a very subtle brick joke that finishes in the next episode. ([[spoiler: Isaac is from New York and thus would be perfectly familiar with a bagel, making the meaning of his comments in the scene change from confusion to disgust at the quality of Granny's bagels.]])

* HealingHands: Emma's light magic lets her do this with Mary Margaret ([[LikeYouWouldReallyDoIt not that anyone believed they'd really kill her]]).

* DramaticIrony: Zelena is clearly terrified by the prospect of Regina getting her RetGone along with her unborn baby, when her original plan involved erasing from existance Regina and possibly, by eliminating Snow White's line, her adopted son, Henry.

* DramaticIrony: Zelena is clearly terrified by the prospect of getting RetGone along with her unborn baby by Regina, when her original plan involved erasing from existance Regina and possibly, by eliminating Snow White's line, her adopted son, Henry.

* WhatYouAreInTheDark: Regina is very tempted to have the Author write Zelena out of existence--and the only witness would be the Author himself, thanks to the way the RetGone power of the ink works. But after being reminded of how much like Cora she is behaving, she changes her mind and takes the good ([[CruelMercy if still rather dark]]) path. Robin Hood shows up before she can finish announcing it, but the decision had already been made, and if she'd still wanted to do it she could have since Robin's memories would have been wiped, so it still counts as no one knowing but her.

* JerkassHasAPoint: Cora brings up the fact that Regina is the sole obstacle to her own happiness; while this isn't quite true, she's certainly the most ''consistent'' obstacle.

* IgnoredEpiphany: Despite his speech to Belle last week, Gold still decides to go through his plan. Although he justifies it by saying that although Rumpelstiltksin is dying, ''the Dark One'' will still survive and it would be better for everyone if he doesn't die.
* ImmortalityImmorality: Gold reveals that altough the Dark One's host--himself--can die, the Dark One ''can't''.

* JerkassHasAPoint: Cora brings up the fact that Regina is the sole obstacle from her own happiness; while this isn't quite true, she's certainly the most ''consistent'' obstacle.

** Regina does quite a bit gloating over the weak and dying Gold as she takes both the quill and Author from him. She also very much enjoys locking a de-powered Zelena up in Belle's old asylum room.

* ForTheEvulz: When Regina decides against giving Zelena a horrible fate, the Author transports himself back to Mr. Gold since he ''really'' want to screw things up just because he can.

* CooldownHug: Maleficent attempts one with Lily once she goes dragon; at first, it doesn't work, but on the second time, it does.
* CruelMercy: Rather then making Zelena an {{Unperson}} ([[IfYouKillHimYouWillBeJustLikeHim and being no better than Cora]]), Regina chooses to allow her to live, and even gives her genuine advice about not being [[HisOwnWorstEnemy her own worst enemy]]...but also intends to leave her on the outside, watching the world but never part of it, never happy. [[EvilIsPetty And with]] [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking the most strict visitation rights ever]].

* JerkassHasAPoint: Cora brings the fact that Regina is the sole obstacle from her own happiness.

* NeverASelfMadeWoman: Zelena taunts Regina that depending on Robin for her happy ending makes her this; Regina rebuffs her by saying he's just ''one'' part of the happiness that belonging to the world gives her.

* CooldownHug: Maleficent attempts one with Lily once she goes dragon; at first it doesn't work, but on the second time, it does.

* TakeAThirdOption: A variation. Regina clearly didn't want to turn Emma dark but she needed the dark Savior's blood for her plan. So she took Lily's blood instead, since some of her darkness was Emma's, it qualified as the Savior's blood of darkness.

* RevengeByProxy: Regina drinks a potion to make her unable to bear children so as to deny Cora the chance to influence the royal line and gain power (because "hurting me hurts you"). In the present, she leaves Zelena alive so that she can be tormented by watching what she can't have.

* InternalReveal: Issac reveals to Regina that the page showing her and Robin together is from some "experimenting" he did for another book he never had a chance to write.

* TheReveal:
** That dragon shown attacking the Charmings in the previews? Lily, not Maleficent, and the latter was in fact trying to save them and talk her down.