'Once Upon a Time' Recap: Episode 5, 'That Still Small Voice'
The episode begins in the fairy tale world where a play with puppets is going on. The onlookers are enjoying it as the puppet princess goes on about wishing. As the onlookers watch the play, a young boy picks their pockets.
Shoot to a carriage. Outside the carriage., the boy gives the money he’s stolen to his parents, Harry (played by Harry Groener) and Myrna (played by Carolyn Hennesy), the ones who put on the puppet show. The boy finds a cricket and talks about how it's free to do whatever it wants. Harry and Myrna tell the boy that he is free to do whatever he wants as well. Then, the boy says that he doesn’t want to steal anymore, “Maybe I want to be good.” Harry tells the boy, who he calls "Jiminy,"’ “Good is another word for weak. You are who you are and there’s no changing it.” Jiminy agrees with Harry but looks sad.
Shoot to Henry having a therapy session with Archie (Jiminy.) Henry asks Archie if he was always a cricket. Archie asks Henry why he thinks he’s Jiminy Cricket. Henry says, “It’s because of who you are. You’re a conscience. You help people see right from wrong.” Archie then asks Henry if all the crickets in Storybrooke were once people too. Henry says there aren’t any other crickets in Storybrooke, there never have been. Archie then asks Henry if he believes that is proof of the curse. Henry says yes but he knows he needs more proof. Archie then asks Henry why it’s so important for him to believe the curse is real. Henry says simply, “It just is.” Archie asks Henry to keep thinking about the answer to his question “because I think there’s something buried there.”
Shoot to Emma and Sheriff Graham as he’s giving Emma a deputy’s coat that looks very manly. Emma protests saying that she doesn’t have to dress like a man to show authority and takes off the coat. Then, the sheriff gives Emma her official deputy’s badge “to make it official.” Then, all of a sudden, the ground shakes violently. Seconds later, the phones in the sheriff’s office ring.
Shoot to outside as the people of Storybrooke gather around a large hole. Emma and the sheriff arrive and ask everyone to move away from the hole. Emma suggests setting up a perimeter around the hole. Regina then tells Emma that the hole is “official town business” and that she’s free to leave. Emma then informs her that she’s now a town employee as a deputy for the sheriff’s office. Regina gives Sheriff Graham a dirty look then addresses the people of the town not to be alarmed and that the area will be paved to make it safe. Henry comes out of the crowd and protests paving over the hole, saying, “What if something’s down there?” Regina insists to Henry that there is nothing in the hole and asks him and the rest of the gathering people to step back from the hole. Henry wants to stay but Regina insists he stay in her car for his own safety. As he goes to the car, she then asks Emma and the sheriff to corner off the area around the hole. Archie walks by the scene, Henry gets out of the car and calls Archie and Emma over to him. He tells them the hole has to be investigated by “Operation Cobra.” Archie tells Henry that he didn’t know that he was part of “Operation Cobra.” Henry tells Archie, “Of course, you are. You know everything.” Then he tells Emma and Archie that they can’t let Regina pave over the hole because something might be down there. Emma protests but Henry insists that the hole emerged because Emma is “changing things. You're weakening the curse.” Emma tells Henry,“That is not what’s happening,” but Henry insists that it is and asks Emma if she did anything different that day that would have caused the hole to emerge. He sees Emma’s new deputy’s badge, but before he can say anything Regina interrupts, telling Henry to get back in the car and for Emma to get back to work. Emma walks back toward the hole as Regina asks Archie for a word in private. She tells Archie that he needs a new “treatment plan” since everything she does Henry thinks is “part of some horrible plot.” Archie says that Henry just has a vivid imagination and that shouldn’t be ripped away from him. Regina gets angry at Archie for not helping Henry to see reality and reminds Archie that he is her employee, she can fire him and as mayor, take his office, his home and “reduce him to a tiny little creature.” Archie asks Regina what she wants him to do. She responds, “Get that delusion out of my son’s head…and crush it.”
Shoot back to the fairy tale world where Jiminy is much older and tells Harry and Myrna again that he wants to stop stealing. Harry and Myrna, now much older as well, guilt him into continuing to steal by complaining about their aches and pains. It begins to rain as Jiminy sets up his family’s puppet show at the fair. A kid, who looks like Henry, happens by and asks Jiminy if he likes what he’s doing. Jiminy says he doesn’t because it’s always the same. The boy then suggests that Jiminy try something different. Jiminy then asks the boy what he’s doing out in the rain. He says he came to listen to the crickets. He tells the boy that he should go home before he catches cold from the rain. The boy gives Jiminy his umbrella insisting he doesn’t need it because his house isn’t far away.
Shoot back to Archie’s office during one of Henry’s sessions. Marco (Gepetto) walks in and asks Archie about having lunch. Archie tells Marco that he’s sorry he can’t because he’s too busy. Marco says he understands but he looks sad. He says hello to Henry then leaves. Henry then asks Archie if he’s “recruiting Gepetto for ‘Operation Cobra?’” Archie tries to tell Henry that he needs to stop thinking that everyone in town is a fairy tale character. Henry insists to Archie that he’ll believe him once he has proof and shows him his flashlight. Archie tells Henry that he cannot go near the hole but Henry protests that because Emma is in town and everything is changing, he has to go investigate the hole. Archie tells Henry that he has to stop his “delusions” and asks Henry if he knows what a "delusion" is. Henry says he thinks he does as Archie explains that “a delusion is something that isn’t real and isn’t safe and it can turn into a psychosis, which is when you can’t tell between what’s real and what isn’t. And then, we have to lock you away.” So, Archie insists to Henry, “This nonsense must end.” Henry stares at Archie for a second, then grabs his bag and runs out of his office. Archie looks sad that he upset Henry.
Shoot to Mary-Margaret (Snow) and John Doe/David (Prince Charming) playing a board game. John Doe is winning, which prompts Mary-Margaret to ask him if he’s played the game before. John Doe gets frustrated saying the doctors tell him that physically he’s fine but is angry he doesn’t remember anything from his past. Mary-Margaret calms him down by assuring him that his memory will return and in the meantime, he’s making new ones. John Doe replies. “Maybe I’ll like the new ones better.” They stare at each other for a moment then John Doe/David’s wife, Kathryn Nolan (played by Anastasia Griffith), walks in. Mary-Margaret moves to leave the two alone but John Doe/David watches her as Kathryn pulls out pictures to show John Doe/David to jog his memory. She shows him a picture of “their old dog, Ajax.” John Doe/David remembers him.
Shoot to Mary-Margaret’s place as she tells Emma about her feelings for John Doe/David and how she feels guilty because his wife is so “nice.” Emma tells Mary-Margaret, “Getting involved with a married guy isn’t worth the heartache…Trust me.” Then, there’s a knock at the door. Emma gets up to answer it and it’s Henry, who’s crying. Emma lets him in asking him what happened.
Shoot to Emma banging on Archie’s office door. She barges in yelling at him for doing what he told her NOT to tell Henry, that he was delusional because that would devastate him. She then asks Archie if Regina threatened him and asks him what would make him go against his own conscience. Archie tells Emma that he “doesn’t have to defend [his] professional decisions” to her. Then, Emma’s cell rings. It’s Regina who asks Emma if Henry is with her. Emma tells Regina that she dropped Henry off at her office an hour earlier. Regina tells Emma that he isn’t there. Emma says that she doesn’t know where he is but Archie interrupts and says that he knows.
Shoot to Henry approaching the hole with his flashlight.
Shoot back to the fairy tale world as Jiminy brings Rumplestiltskin some of the gold he’s stolen. Rumplestiltskin asks Jiminy if he’d like something magical in return. He tells Rumplestiltskin that he “wants to be free. To be someone else, but something keeps holding me back.” Rumplestiltskin replies, “Something or someone?” He then waves his hand over the gold Jiminy gave him. Jiminy tells Rumplestiltskin that it’s his parents that are holding him back. Rumplestiltskin then gives him a vial and tells Jiminy to sprinkle its contents onto his parents’ food and then he’ll be “free.” But, Rumplestiltskin says his fee will be Jiminy’s parents since he has nothing else of value to give him in return for the vial. Jiminy asks Rumplestiltskin what will become of his parents. Rumplestiltskin tells him not to worry about them because he’ll “be free.” He agrees and takes the vial.
Shoot to Archie and Emma at the hole calling out for Henry. Emma doesn’t think he’s there but Archie’s dog finds a candy bar near the hole, which Archie thinks means that Henry is close by.
Shoot to Henry in the hole walking down a corridor with his flashlight. He comes upon a rock covered wall. He finds something odd between the rocks. Then, the ground starts to shake again. Archie falls in the hole as Emma screams. Archie is okay and lights a match so he can see. He calls out to Henry who is happy to see him because he thinks he’s there to help him look further into the hole but Archie tells Henry that they have to get out of the hole. Henry gets mad that Archie still doesn’t believe him and runs back down the corridor with Archie yelling and running after him to come back because it’s not safe.
Shoot back to the fairy tale world where Harry and Myrna give Jiminy an “elf potion” and convince him to knock on the door of a young couple and get them to invite them all in. The young couple happily invites Jiminy and his “elderly parents” inside their home for shelter. The couple gives Jiminy, Harry and Myrna food, for which Jiminy thanks them for their kindness. Then Harry and Myrna tell the couple of the plague that hit the next town. The couple is concerned that the plague is coming their way and asks Jiminy’s parents how they escaped it. They tell them that they were immune because they took an “elf tonic.” The couple says that they never heard of such a thing and asks Harry and Myrna if they have extra. They tell them that they do and the couple offers them anything they have in their house in exchange for the extra tonic. The couple gives Harry and Myrna everything they have of value and Jiminy gives them the “elf tonic.” The couple thanks him and Jiminy and his parents leave. Jiminy then yells at his parents for stealing from such good people. They brush him off. Jiminy then says he’s sorry and throws the contents of the vial on Harry and Myrna. Nothing happens. They tell him that they switched vials and whatever he had he gave to the young couple as the “elf tonic.” Jiminy runs back to the young couple’s home. He finds the empty vial on the floor. He goes deeper into the house and finds the young couple are now puppets. Harry and Myrna laugh and say they’ll be new puppets in their act. A boy emerges and starts screaming and asking what Jiminy did to his parents.
Shoot back to Archie in the hole. He goes deeper in the hole and finds Henry who says he sees something glowing deeper in the hole and that they should investigate what it is. Archie then starts yelling at Henry that he's afraid and they need to get out of the hole. Henry asks Archie if he wants to leave because he still thinks he’s crazy. Archie says no and that he wants to leave because they are in an abandoned mine with no way out.
Shoot to above ground as workers try to find a way inside the mine. Meanwhile, the sheriff and Marco have joined Emma. Marco assures Emma that Archie will keep Henry safe until the workers can get them out. Suddenly, the ground starts to shake again. Regina appears yelling at the workers to stop digging because they’re making the hole worse. Emma yells at Regina that she’s trying to save Henry. They go back and forth accusing each other of putting Henry in such a dangerous situation.
Shoot to Archie and Henry hearing Archie’s dog barking.
Shoot to Emma saying that arguing won’t help the situation. Regina agrees. Emma then asks her what she wants her to do. Regina replies, “Help me.” Emma nods.
Shoot to Henry and Archie coming upon what looks like an old elevator in the hole.
Shoot to Regina suggesting that they punch a hole in the ground with something big. Marco suggests explosives.
Shoot to Henry asking Archie if they could get the elevator to work. Archie says, “Let’s give it a shot.”
Shoot to above ground where the workers have put explosives and everyone has moved away from the hole.
Shoot to Archie and Henry working to get the elevator moving, as, above ground, Regina orders the workers to detonate the explosives.
Shoot to the explosives detonating and Archie and Henry being shaken around.
Shoot to above ground as Emma runs into the cloud of smoke the blast produced. She runs back to the sheriff and Regina and tells them the explosion didn’t open another hole. The sheriff then asks, “Then, what did it do?”
Shoot to the hospital. Mary-Margaret is leaving but John Doe/David stops her. She asks him why he isn’t resting and he tells her the doctors told him to walk 30 minutes on the treadmill or outside with an escort. He asks her to walk with him since the hospital is short staffed because of the mine incident. She smiles.
Shoot to Mary-Margaret and John Doe/David walking by the river as he tells how he’s struggling to regain his memory of the town. She reminds him how he remembered his dog, Ajax, when his wife showed him his picture. He tells her that he lied about remembering the dog because he didn’t want to disappoint his wife. He goes on to tell Mary-Margaret that “none of it feels right. A dog named Ajax. Who would name a dog that? None of it makes sense, none of it feels real.” They stop walking and then he says that one thing DOES feel real. He turns to Mary-Margaret and says, “You. I know it sounds crazy but you’re the only thing in this whole place that feels…right.” Mary-Margaret smiles and they move closer to kiss but then John Doe/David says, “Kathryn” and they both pull back. Kathryn appears saying she needed to see him. She then hands him a basket of cranberry muffins she made telling him that they used to be his favorite. John Doe/David looks uncomfortable as does Mary-Margaret, who excuses herself and starts to walk away but John Doe/David calls after her asking if he’ll see her the next day. She smiles, nods and walks away.
Shoot back to the explosion site. Regina is yelling at the workers that the explosion could have killed Henry. Then, Marco suggests that if they knew exactly where Archie and Henry were in the tunnel, they could drill down and bring them up. Emma hears Archie’s dog barking from the fire truck. She lets him out and the dog starts sniffing in one particular spot. Emma deduces that that is where Archie and Henry must be. They dig down and find an opening covered by a metal fence.
Shoot to Archie and Henry in the tunnel. Henry apologizes to Archie for getting him trapped. Archie tells him that it’s okay and Henry tells him that he just wanted to find proof of the curse. Archie then apologizes to Henry and tells him that he doesn’t think he’s crazy and says that he thinks Henry’s “got a strong mother, who’s very clear on the path she wants you to take” and if Henry steps off that path it scares her, which Archie says is natural. But, Archie continues, saying, “It’s also natural for you to be free to think the things you want to think,” and he tells Henry that he didn’t mean the things he said to him earlier about him being “delusional.” Then, the ground shakes again and Archie looks worried.
Shoot to Marco putting a hook on the fence and Emma telling a worker to gun the engine of the truck the hook is attached to so it will unwedge and they can see inside the opening. Once the fence is unwedged, Marco, Emma and the sheriff look in the hole and Regina says, “What’s next?”
Shoot to Henry telling Archie that he thinks he can be a good person because he’s Jiminy Cricket, “who before he was a cricket was a guy who just took a long time to figure out what to do.” Archie concedes that Henry’s description does sound like him so Henry continues saying it’s hard for Archie “to hear the voice inside of you. To hear the voice inside of you. To be who you want to be” because of the curse. Then, the ground shakes again as we see Archie thinking about what Henry just said.
Shoot to above ground as Marco says that someone has to be lowered into the hole. Regina volunteers first saying she’s Henry’s mother. Emma also volunteers saying she is also Henry’s mother. “You’ve been sitting behind a desk for 15 years. I can do this,” Emma tells Regina. Regina gets close to Emma and whispers, “Just bring him to me.”
Shoot to Archie asking Henry again why it’s so important for his fairy tale theory to be true. At first Henry says he doesn’t know. Then, he says, “Because this can’t be all there is.” Archie says he understands. Henry then tells Archie he thought he could find proof in the tunnel but he “didn’t find anything.” Archie tells Henry, “That isn’t true. You found me.” Henry then asks Archie if he remembers that he’s Jiminy Cricket. Archie says he doesn’t but he remembers the kind of person he wants to be. Then, they hear rattling above them and see Emma shining a flashlight down on them. She asks Archie and Henry if they are okay. Archie yells that they are. Them, Emma lowers herself into the tunnel and she and Archie secure Henry to her harness so she can pull him up first. As Emma and Henry are being pulled up, the ground starts to shake again and rocks start falling on Archie. Emma starts screaming, “I’m sorry” to Archie who looks like he will be killed by the tunnel caving in. He yells back, “It’s okay” and then the shaking stops. Archie is okay. Then, Emma, Archie and Henry all start laughing in relief.
Shoot to above ground as Emma brings Henry up and is greeted by a slew of workers and townspeople cheering. Regina looks overjoyed as she grabs Henry and hugs him. Marco helps Archie out of the hole and they hug. Emma runs over to Henry to make sure he’s okay but Regina shoves her away and orders her to get the crowd to disperse as she fusses over Henry. Regina then runs over to Archie and thanks him. He tells her that he has something to say. He pulls her aside and says, “I’m going to continue to treat Henry but I’m going to do it in my own way.” Regina replies, “My relief at his safety doesn’t change a thing doctor. You will do as I say Dr. Hopper or I will…”Archie interrupts her asking what she’ll do. “Ruin my life? Do your worst? Because I will always do my best.” Regina tells Archie “not to test” her. He replies that he doesn’t need to then tells her to leave him alone to do his work in peace. He also warns her that “someday soon you might find yourself in the middle of a custody battle and adds, “Do you know how the courts decide who is a fit parent? They consult an expert…particularly one who has treated the child. So, I suggest you think about that and you’ll allow me to do my work and let me do it how my conscience tells me to.” Archie then walks away from a blank faced Regina.
Shoot back to the fairy tale world. Jiminy is all alone. He looks up at the sky and says, “I wish…I wish.” Suddenly, a fairy appears. She kindly says, “I hear your wish. You don’t have to wish it so loudly.” Jiminy is overjoyed until the fairy tells him his wish is impossible. “I cannot bring back the boy’s parents.” Jiminy tells the fairy that what happened was his fault. “I have to make it right. I’d trade my life to make it happen,” he tells the fairy. The fairy tells Jiminy, “What’s done is done. But, there may be another way.” Jiminy begs the fairy to tell him what he can do. The fairy then tells him, “The boy will grow up to face many challenges and hardships. Would you like to help him?” Jiminy then tells the fairy that he “can’t get away from these people. My parents are…who I am.” The fairy replies, “But, if you didn’t want to be that. What would you like to be?” Jiminy stares at the fairy and thinks for a minute. Then, the fairy replies, “I hear your wish.” The fairy sprays dust onto Jiminy and he turns into a cricket. She asks him how he feels and he chirps with happiness. Then, the fairy tells Jiminy to find the boy and that he will live as many years as he needs to help him. The fairy tells Jiminy that the boy’s name is Gepetto.
Shoot back to Emma and Henry watching Archie and Marco happily talking to each other. Emma asks Henry if Marco is Archie’s father. “No, they’re just very old friends,” Henry tells Emma. Emma then tells Henry that he really scared her. He apologizes. Marco and Archie approach Emma and Henry and Emma says she has to get Henry home to Regina. Suddenly, Henry tells everyone to be quiet and asks them to listen. Crickets are chirping. Archie says quietly, “Crickets.” Henry replies, “They’re back. Things are changing.”
Shoot to Gepetto’s parents who are now puppets.
Shoot to Mary-Margaret mailing a letter.
Shoot to Regina finding the glowing object that Henry found in the tunnel. She drops it back down into the tunnel. When it reaches the bottom, it clinks and glows even brighter.