At the Evil Queen's (Lana Parrilla) fortress, Captain Hook/Killian Jones (Colin O'Donoghue) kills a guard in order to reach Belle (Emilie de Ravin), who is imprisoned there.
His assignment is to travel to Wonderland via Jefferson's hat and kill her mother, Cora (Barbara Hershey), whom Regina previously banished to that land.
She explains that matters have changed and takes him to another part of the Enchanted Forest to erect a magical barrier that will protect them from the curse.
Aurora suddenly activates the mechanism that seals the enchanted cell, and Cora and Hook arrive and take the compass from them.
Blowing across the scroll, Mary Margaret is able to use the copies of Emma's name, which Rumpelstiltskin wrote with the squid ink, as a spell to destroy the cell's door.
Cora and Hook travel to the dry basin of Lake Nostos, whose waters held the power to restore that which was lost.
Mulan immediately leaves to restore the heart to Aurora, but gives her sword, which is powerful enough to deflect Cora's magic, to Mary Margaret.
He acknowledges that his plots have involved her from the beginning, but he reveals that he did not control her destiny or make her what she is, rather, he simply took advantage of his knowledge of the fact that, as the product of true love, she would be an exceptional and powerful individual.
The happy group walks to Granny's, but unfortunately, Hook's plan to use the bean had worked; his ship, bearing him and Cora, is seen heading straight towards Storybrooke.
"Queen of Hearts" was co-written by series co-creators/executive producers Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz, while being directed by Renegade veteran Ralph Hemecker.
Each plays a critical role in the episode, driving the story to its intense conclusion, setting up the narrative for the chapter of season two with Hook and Cora poised to make their entrance into Storybrooke — not through the Lake Nostos portal, but by sea.
[3] Entertainment Weekly critic Hilary Busis gave it a good review, with some reservations: "Did Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz consult a checklist of Unsolved 'Once' Mysteries while writing 'The Queen of Hearts?'
I'm glad that Kitsis and Horowitz tied up so many loose ends in tonight's winter finale, since season 1 was hurt by storylines that dragged on far longer than they should have.
"[4] Laura Prudom of The Huffington Post gave the episode a positive review: "We knew that the creative team behind Once Upon a Time had something big in store for the show's winter finale, but it was still great to see all the plot threads tied so definitively together in 'Queen of Hearts,' making for an action-packed hour.
As their fairy tale adventure dragged on, this show began to lose focus of the relationships, but this week’s installment helps get things back on track.
This episode by show-runners Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz is definitely stronger than the last few chapters of this show, but it still feels unsatisfying.
Sava also made comparisons between OUaT to another TV series (Charmed), saying that "both shows are fantasy soap operas with one foot in a world somewhat resembling reality, have a heavy emphasis on magic, and feature a cast of tough females, but there’s also an artificiality that makes everything a little bit hokey," but unlike Charmed, Sava points out that "everything is dead serious in Once Upon A Time.
"[6] Amy Ratcliffe of IGN gave the episode an 8.3, proclaiming that "the winter finale of Once Upon a Time delivers with happy endings."
She also was impressed with Lana Parrilla's performance in this episode as the conflicted Regina and added that "Cora being the Queen of Hearts was a great touch" to the plotline.