In their hunt for the author of the story book that started it all in Storybrooke, this week our Once Upon A Time heroes turn to Pinocchio. Remember when Pinocchio and Gepetto were on this show? Remember when he went by the name August Booth? It's been two seasons since we've seen him. Gepetto's DIY son rolled into town on a motorcycle, all grown up, with a typewriter and pages to add to the book. He told Emma that he was a writer and Storybrooke was filled with the inspiration he sought.
I'm so excited that this show is focusing on the old characters now. With not one, not two, but three "Queens of Darkness" on the scene, I got worried that we'd never see the Storybrooke residents again. Returning to the story of the author will help tie everyone together.
Pinocchio is connected to the author that both our heroes and villains currently seek. It's smart of Emma to remember this and want to question him. Unfortunately, August Booth no longer has those memories and was transformed back into the little elementary school kid named Pinocchio a few years ago. How did that happen? Here's a brief history of the boy with no strings on Once Upon A Time and what he could bring to the table now.
"What Happened To Frederick"
In one of my favorite episodes in the first season (primarily because I felt bad for Kathryn), August Booth added the story of Pinocchio to the book. This was before the curse had broken and Emma Swan used to have time to curl her hair.
"The Stranger"
We later learned that the story was missing because Gepetto lied to Snow White and Prince Charming. The wardrobe he created to send Emma into the real world and escape the curse had room for two. If the Royal Family had known this, Snow would have accompanied her daughter and they would have made their way in the world together. Instead, he snuck his own son in.
After traveling through the wardrobe with Emma, Pinocchio abandoned the baby at a foster home and ran away. His father had tasked him with protecting Emma at all costs, but he gave into temptation.
"Tallahassee"
August was next seen in Portland, where he found Baelfire and convinced him to leave the teenage Emma so that she could pursue her destiny. He also made a big show of telling Neal that he knew he was the Dark One's son on a typewriter inside a mysterious wooden box on the back of his bike. We learned a few episodes later that the message simply read "I know you're Baelfire." Was August afraid of being overheard? Why the big production? Anyway, August and Neal formed an odd friendship built on roguish activities, secret names, and doing their best to protect Emma.
Little did Neal know, Emma was already pregnant with Henry at the time and would give birth to him while doing time for his crimes. I guess they weren't so great at protecting her.
"Selfless, Brave And True"
In this episode, we learned that August was in Hong Kong when Emma Swan arrived in Storybrooke. He could tell because his leg started turning to wood. However, only those who believed in magic could see — we saw that with Emma as well. In his travels, he met a magical healer called "The Dragon" and tussled with Tamara, aka Sasha from The Walking Dead. This Dragon is not connected to Maleficent, as far as we know.
Back in Storybrooke, a now fully wooden August met up with Tamara for a second time. She took him out with the taser as well. The Blue Fairy was able to revive him because he had just done a good deed. However, the Blue Fairy's spell turned him into a little boy again. That's awkward. He couldn't remember anything at the time but promised to be truthful. One day, I hope this show delves into the Blue Fairy and her weird politics.
Now What?
Here's my theory based on what we know. It appears that August met the author during his travels. How else would he know to add his story to the book? Why else would his story be missing in the first place? Why did the author want to help Gepetto cover up his lie? Since he is now a little boy again with no recollection of his world travels and prior knowledge of the book, I think there must be cryptic clues hidden in the story he does remember. Last week, the Blue Fairy did postulate that the text itself might hold the answer, and Pinocchio is a new addition to the text.
Images: Jack Rowand/ABC; Giphy (2); augbooths, speacewalker/Tumblr
