The Jan. 20 episode of Once Upon A Time probably should have been titled Whale’s Anatomy, because the entire hour was basically a weird journey through the complex psyche of Storybrooke’s Dr. Whale (David Anders). As it turns out, his origin isn’t as black-and-white as originally thought — even though it’s literally shown to us in black and white.

In a nutshell, Frankenstein had major family issues. He was always living in his soldier brother’s shadow, and his father didn’t understand his scientific endeavors. Rumpelstiltskin (Robert Carlyle) offered him tons of gold to teach him how to bring people back from the dead, but when Frankie’s brother caught him trying to dig up a body, he ended up getting shot in the process. Regina (Lana Parrilla) delivered Frankie a heart to give to his brother, but the revival was only mildly successful. (Think Daniel — but worse.)

Haunted by those memories, Dr. Whale was uneasy this week in present-day Storybrooke. And by “uneasy,” I mean wasted. He was about to jump into the sea, but Ruby (Meghan Ory) stopped him and had a nice heart-to-heart. When she told him Regina made her eat her boyfriend, his problems didn’t seem so bad.

And no, she didn’t mean that metaphorically. Remember when Ruby literally ate her boyfriend?

Regina & Cora: Reunited & It Feels So… Awkward

Regina and Cora (Barbara Hershey) also came face to face this week for the first time in years, but their reunion didn’t exactly go as I expected it to. Instead of clashing in a fiery blaze of magical mommy issues, they actually bonded. Cora came clean to Regina about framing her for Archie’s “murder,” then reminded her that turning her over to the townspeople wouldn’t make Henry love her any more. Tears were shed — on both sides of the TV screen.

Rumpelstiltskin & Belle: Strangers In The Night

Now that Belle (Emilie de Ravin) has no idea who she is anymore — thanks a lot, Hook! — Mr. Gold is more desperate than ever before. And after failing to remind Belle of what they once had together, Gold received a surprise visit from Cora. She told him he didn’t need Belle anymore, and that she could help him track down the one person in this world who still loved him: his son, Baelfire! (Who is probably Peter Pan, but I don’t have proof… yet.)

Side note: Was anyone else weirded out when Cora and Rumple kissed like they “used to?” Were these two boning back in the day?! I can’t. I just can’t.

Who Is ‘The Outsider?’

After Dr. Whale drunkenly operated on the mysterious outsider, Emma (Jennifer Morrison) interrogated him to make sure he didn’t see anything suspicious about the town. You know, like anything. He told her he was texting and driving — insert PSA here — and that all he saw was the road, but the minute Emma left the room, he made a sketchy phone call. He does know something!

Also, his ringtone was totally the Star Wars theme song. Now that Disney owns Lucasfilm, how long will it be before we start seeing Wookies in Storybrooke?

We’ve got a three-week hiatus on our hands, so let’s start theorizing: What do you make of the mysterious outsider? Were Cora and Rumple really lovers? And do you think Baelfire could also be Peter Pan? Drop me a comment with your thoughts!

— Andy Swift

Follow @AndySwift

More Once Upon A Time on HollywoodLife.com:

1. ‘Once Upon A Time’ Recap: Another Murder In Storybrooke
2. ‘Once Upon A Time’ Preview Video: Is Archie Really Dying?
3. ‘Once Upon A Time’ Pics: Snow & Charming Celebrate Their Reunion

We’ve waited for more than a season to find out Dr. Whale’s (David Anders) fairy tale persona, and Halloween weekend couldn’t have been a more appropriate time for the big reveal. Regina (Lana Parrilla) went to the good doctor on the Oct. 28 episode of Once Upon A Time to bring Daniel (Noah Bean) back from the dead, which is when we learned that he’s really…

Dr. Frankenstein! It may not have been a very well-kept secret — most fans guessed correctly weeks ago — but that didn’t make his scenes any less awesome.

The episode began in olden-day Enchanted Forest, where Regina was receiving magic lessons from Rumpelstiltskin (Robert Carlyle). And by “magic lessons,” I mean they were killing unicorns together, which I found highly offensive. When she asked him how they could use magic to bring someone back from the dead, he dumped her as his student — apparently that’s a real button pusher for him — but the Mad Hatter (Sebastian Stan) swooped in with a solution.

He brought Dr. Frankenstein to Regina’s castle, and although Frankie was unable to bring Daniel back, the experiment wasn’t a total bust: The final loss of Daniel is just what Regina needed to tap into her dark side!

In present-day Storybrooke…

Dr. Whale’s little revival experiment was more successful than it was in the Enchanted Forest — though the results were pretty horrific. After Daniel was brought back from the dead, he ripped off Whale’s arm and headed straight for the stables, the last place he remembers being with Regina.

Unfortunately, Henry (Jared Gilmore) was hanging out at the stables — alone, for some reason — which escalated the situation pretty quickly. Though she tried to calm zombie-Daniel down with her words, Regina was forced to do what she does best: rip his heart out and watch him die. Again.

Then Mr. Gold magically reattached Dr. Whale’s arm. He’d be a huge asset on The Walking Dead, just sayin’.

Meanwhile, in the Enchanted Forest…

Emma (Jennifer Morrison) and Snow (Ginnifer Morrison) returned to their base camp, only to discover that Cora (Barbara Hershey) had killed everyone! Well, almost everyone. Hook (Colin O’Donoghue) was posing as a “blacksmith” who managed to survive Cora’s attack, but it wasn’t long before Sheriff Emma was able to get the truth out of him.

Hook explained to the gang that Cora had found a way to Storybrooke, and in order to get there themselves, they’ll need to do a little beanstalk climbing.

Here we go…

What did you think of this week’s episode? Were you surprised that Dr. Whale is actually Dr. Frankenstein? Drop me a comment with your reactions!

— Andy Swift

Follow @AndySwift

More Once Upon A Time on HollywoodLife.com:

1. ‘Once Upon A Time’ Scoop: Henry’s Father Revealed In New Pics?
2. ‘Once Upon A Time’: Ariel, Tarzan & More Are Coming To Storybrooke
3. ‘Once Upon A Time’ Recap: Hook Sets Sail & Rumpelstiltskin Kills Again

Once Upon A Time returns Sept. 30 on ABC, and it looks like it’s bringing a whole lotta drama with it! While Charming (Josh Dallas) and Henry (Jared Gilmore) manage to squeeze in some grandfather-grandson bonding, everyone else in Storybrooke is looking to pick a fight — and as always, Regina (Lana Parrilla) is at the center of the madness.

Speaking of Regina, has she promoted Dr. Whale (David Anders) to the position of right-hand stooge? I’m not complaining — John Gilbert looks damn fine in a suit — but I am a little worried about him. We all remember what happened to Graham!

Browse the gallery of season premiere pics, then drop me a comment with your take on the 23 spoiler-y shots!

— Andy Swift

Follow @AndySwift

More Once Upon A Time season 2 scoop:

1. ‘Once Upon A Time’ Season 2 Promo: Regina’s Reign Of Terror Continues
2. ‘Once Upon A Time’ Season 2 Video: Captain Hook Arrives In Storybrooke
3. ‘Once Upon A Time’ Casts Sleeping Beauty & Mulan For Season 2

John might be just what Elena needs to get herself off the ‘original’ vampires’ Most Wanted list!

UPDATE: The photo of Michael and David was taken in LA, not on the set of The Vampire Diaries as I had hoped.

Is daddy coming home soon? We told you Elena’s (Nina Dobrev) estranged father John (David Anders) was coming back to The Vampire Diaries – and now, thanks to Michael Trevino‘s compulsive tweeting habit, we’re more excited than ever!

Michael snapped a photo with David in LA and tweeted it out Dec. 28, saying, “Now for a little nightcap with my homie….. Mr. Anders!”

Though it’s still unconfirmed, we’ve been told John has the secret to killing Elijah, one of the “original” vampires currently toying with Elena’s existence.

If there’s one thing we’ve learned from The Vampire Diaries it’s that anything is possible — so get to the comments section and start sharing your theories!

— Andy Swift

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