‘Once Upon a Time’: Belle goes dark, and so does Mr. Gold

The further adventures of Rumpelstiltskin and Belle were on full display in the “Lacey” episode of “Once Upon a Time,” and despite substantial misdirection onto a Robin Hood path, it was the Evil Queen who stole the show.

It starts off with a violent dream wherein Mr. Gold kills his grandson Henry after turning him to porcelain. Heck of a dream. Back in the real world, Gold gets to be the one to tell Regina that his son is Henry’s father. The Evil Queen believes that Gold set it all up. She drops a curious fact when she says: “When I adopted him, it was you who procured him for me.” Wow, didn’t know that. Either way, she thinks he won’t be able to be part of Henry’s life. “You always choose darkness.”

The only thing to help lighten him was Belle. She’s finally accepted his help in recovering her memories and figuring out who she is — and that’s when Regina steps in. Belle is suddenly no more, replaced by the hard-drinking, billiards-playing Lacey. All a byproduct of the curse that Regina conveniently allows to wash over Belle.

TIMELINE: Snow White through the years

Back in the past, a certain arrow-slinging thief with a bow that couldn’t miss broke into Rumpelstiltskin’s castle to steal a wand. Rumpel catches him and tortures him, but Belle frees the thief before he can kill him.

Meanwhile, Mary Margaret and David take Emma to see the crop of magic beans that Anton the Giant and the dwarfs has been growing. Soon they’ll all be able to go back to the Enchanted Forest and be a family, including Henry. Emma’s not sure about braving ogres and whatever other magical mysteries are there.

Tamara and Greg. The scheming couple are still searching for Greg’s long-lost father and are apparently ready to unleash some kind of secret weapon against the magical beings.

Rumpelstilskin is going to kill the thief — though Belle let him go, he still stole the wand. Rump is going to make Belle watch as he does it. He has a run-in with the Sheriff of Nottingham, and he finally has a name for the thief he’s searching for: Robin Hood. He finds the thief and is about to kill him, but he and Belle see that Robin just used the wand to cure his ailing beloved (Maid Marion?), who is pregnant. They are spared.

In the present, after enlisting help from David (a wing man for Rumpelstiltskin?), he goes back to the Rabbit Hole bar and asks Belle out. She accepts, and they go out to Granny’s. It seems to be going well until Belle/Lacey slips out to make out with a man who was once the Sheriff of Nottingham. Belle may have loved Rumpelstilskin, but Lacey doesn’t.

PHOTOS: Movie princesses through the years

Ooooh. Emma had let it slip earlier about losing Henry, and Regina now knows that something (beans, beans, beans!) is going on. She’s been snooping around and uses a tracking spell to find the mystically-shielded field where the magic beans are being grown. Uh-oh.

Mr. Gold, a bit distraught from the Lacey revelation, decides to beat up on the guy she was making out with in the alley (happens to be the present-day Sheriff of Nottingham guy). Lacey finds him as he’s repeatedly striking the Sheriff with his cane, and instead of being repulsed is kind of turned on by it. Looks like there could be a new evil couple in town. Regina’s plan may have backfired a bit.

Lastly, Tamara and Greg bring in the package: It’s Captain Hook. Apparently, according to the promo for the next few episodes, the duo knows how to kill magical creatures — and Hook’s just the guy to help them do it.

<< Previous: ‘Selfless, Brave and True’ | Next recap: ‘Evil Queen’ >

ALSO:

‘Once Upon a Time’: Regina is drawn into ‘The Cricket Game’

‘‘Once Upon a Time’ recap: Snow White and a mother’s sacrifice

Once Upon a Time’: Charming in charge and Regina’s redemption

PHOTOS, VIDEOS & MORE:

Real places, fake characters: TV’s bars and eateries

PHOTOS: ‘The Ellen DeGeneres Show’ through the years

PHOTOS: Violence in TV shows