There are two big spoilers in this costume review, so click away now if you haven't seen OUAT 3.21 "Snow Drifts" and 3.22 "There's No Place Like Home" which premiered last night in an epic 2-hour finale. (My full review of the episodes can be found here)
Once Upon a Time has this habit of being very hit or miss with their princess gowns. Either the dress is jaw-dropping amazing or just a little 'meh'. Emma's red dress falls closer to the 'meh' side. Yes, it is extremely striking, but without a single bit of contrast decor, it seems a little too plain. Not to mention that red is a color pretty strongly associated with either 'evil villainess' or 'prostitute' in historical and fantasy settings. The only thing I can think of is that Emma has some character parallels with Elizabeth Swan, who has an iconic red dress, and since Emma is up to pirate shenanigans in this episode, the color could be connected to that character parallel. But I'm not sold on it.
Belle's wedding ensemble was a little sad, since it would have been so wonderful to see her in a gorgeous bridal gown. However, storywise, it makes a great deal of sense that she would have gone very understated, and with that in mind her ensemble is elegant, chic, and with a bit of retro French flair that is Belle's signature style.
But we all know what costume is going to be iconic next season and thankfully the glimpses we got in the last two minutes were gorgeous.
I love how they seem to have kept very true to the movie's style, but are adding some very rich beadwork embellishments in appropriate places, such as the wrist above.
I'm just drooling over that neckline! I did wonder how they would transfer it to screen, as the film version would be difficult to keep historically flavored in a live-action setting. So far it looks great!
Did you realize you inadvertently pointed out the Princess Bride reference they made in your title? Check your screencap - complete with the dread pirate Roberts, I mean, Killian. ;)
ReplyDeleteI understand the points about Emma's dress but I did think she looked lovely. I also thought Hook looked pretty dashing in that jacket!
ReplyDeleteTo me, Emma's red dress makes sense because her "signature" clothing item in Storybrooke is her red jacket. I love reading your costume posts, they make me remember why I liked the show in the first place!
ReplyDeleteI thought Emma looked nice, but it wasn't an outstanding gown. Just a really good color, nice cut. Cillian looked dapper though. ;) I liked that Belle went for the elegant chic, I thought it fit, honestly--though I would have been thrilled either way. I loved her quote during the vows though--I only saw the clips on the computer, so I haven't seen the whole episodes--but it was all so sweet. I was so excited when Rumple proposed. I've loved their love story since the beginning. It was a combo of both of my favorite stories in fairy tales--Rumplestiltskin and Beauty and the Beast. So naturally, I was over the moon that they created such an interesting take. And it was all so beautiful!
ReplyDeleteBUT--man, Elsa's gown looks AWESOME. I'M SO EXCITED!!