The Apprentice

"The Apprentice" is the fourth episode in the fourth season of Once Upon a Time, and the seventieth episode overall. It premiered on October 19, 2014. The backstory was that of Rumplestiltskin.
==Plot==
===Opening Sequence===
An anthropomorphic broomstick is shown walking in the forest.
===In the Characters' Past===
A long time ago, the Apprentice (Tim Webber) is sweeping a vault which is entered in by an unknown Dark One, later revealed as Zoso. The Dark One knocks him aside and attempts to open a box but is repelled by an enchantment placed on it by The Sorcerer. The Apprentice tells the Dark One that the box cannot be opened by someone who has accepted darkness in their heart. The Dark One vanishes and the Apprentice says that no Dark One will ever open the box.
Anna (Elizabeth Lail) arrives at Rumplestiltskin's (Robert Carlyle) tower and talks to him about the disappearance of her parents. Rumplestiltskin offers to help if she puts the contents of a vial into the Apprentice's drink telling her that he is an evil man. Anna states that she will do "whatever it takes" to find out why her parents visited The Enchanted Forest and Rumplestiltskin comments that he loves when people say they will do whatever it takes. Anna goes to the man's house and after a brief conversation she has a chance to put the vial's contents in to his tea but instead decideds to throw them in to the fire thinking that it is poison. Anna arrives back at Rumplestiltskin's tower and informs him that she gave the contents of the vial to the Apprentice. Mr. Gold says that is good because it is an antidote to a poison he was given yesterday. Anna, horrified by this, tells Rumplestiltskin the truth and says the must go back to the cottage. They look in Rumplestiltskin's crystal ball and see the man succumbing to the poison by turning in to a mouse.
They go to the cottage and Rumplestiltskin states he won't change the man back if they find him because he is protecting the box. Anna realizes that Rumplestiltskin is the person who poisoned the Apprentice. He goes on to tell her that the man is just the first line of defense. In order to open the box he needs magic from someone who faced their inner darkness and succeeded as he was planning on Anna not giving the antidote. Anna says that she doesn't have inner darkness and Rumplestiltskin reminds her that due to the contract she will spend the rest of her life in his tower. Rumplestiltskin taunts Anna by stating that Elsa (Georgina Haig) will be heartbroken since Anna left because of her and become a monster. He also states that the wedding will now be off. Anna refuses to accept this and holds a sword to Rumplestiltskin's heart demanding him to rip up the contract. He urges her to run him through with the sword but she collapses after having a thought about actually killing Rumplestiltskin. Anna sheds a tear which Rumplestiltskin collects on his dagger which allows him to open the box. Anna childs Rumplestiltskin for using love as a weapon and he replies that love is a weapon.
Rumplestiltskin emerges from the vault with the box and Anna tells him to tell her what happened to her parents since she helped him retrieve the box. Rumplestiltskin tells Anna that the King and Queen of Arendelle arrived on his doorstep seeking a way to take away Elsa's powers forever. Anna argues that her parents loved Elsa and Rumplestiltskin argues that they feared her. He tells her that they did not find what they were looking for but that the box contains a sorcerer's hat which takes away a person's powers. Rumplestiltskin states that the hat will make him unstoppable when the hat has enough power. Anna tells him that the Apprentice could stop him and Rumplestiltskin states he is not there. A mouse jumps on to Rumplestiltskin's hand and bites him resulting in him dropping the dagger. Anna picks up the dagger and realizes that she can control him with the dagger. Anna uses the dagger to force Rumplestiltskin to give her the box, saying he will never harm either of the sisters and their family and to turn the apprentice back in to his human form. He agrees and sends Anna away in a puff of red smoke.
Back in Arendelle, Kristoff (Scott Michael Foster) is talking to Sven when all of a sudden Anna appears. The two embrace and share a kiss. She tells Kristoff that her parents left Arendelle to find a way to get rid of Elsa's powers and Anna says she has no idea what to tell Elsa.
===In Storybrooke===
Mr. Gold is shown in his shop opening the box and producing the sorcerer's hat. Emma (Jennifer Morrison) arrives at Granny's diner and asks Captain Hook (Colin O'Donoghue) out on a date. Hook makes Emma promise to let him plan the date. She leaves and on the way to her car she notices a puddle underneath it that was not there when she entered. Mr. Gold arrives at his shop to find Hook sitting on a counter. Hook asks Mr. Gold to reattach his hand because Hook knows that Belle has a fake dagger. Mr. Gold does so but warns Hook that he is no longer the man that hand belonged to and attaching it may have unforseen consequences. The Charmings (Josh Dallas) and (Ginnifer Goodwin) are shown helping Elsa at their loft by going through spell books. Emma asks their opinion wearing a dress for her date with Hook and all three are breathless. Hook arrives and presents Emma with a red rose from his newly restored hand. Emma is impressed by Hook's dating clothing. Hook tells Emma to refer to him as Killian. Emma and Hook are at dinner and noticed by Will Scarlet (Michael Socha) who tries to exit without them noticing but accidentally knocks win on to Emma's lap. Hook grabs Will and tells him to apologize to Emma in a menacing voice. When Emma realizes he is from the ice cream shop Will runs from the couple. Hook looks at his hand and begins to wonder about Mr. Gold's warning.
Regina (Lana Parrilla) and Henry (Jared S. Gilmore) are going through Regina's stores of potions in her vault and cannot find something that will unfreeze Marian. Henry surmises that Robin Hood is still in love with Regina because true love's kiss did not unfreeze her. Regina says that this time Henry may be too young to fully understand everything. Hook walks Emma home and at the door to the loft they hare a kiss after Emma jokingly invites him in for coffee with her parents. During the kiss Hook notices his left hand again acting aggressively. Emma walks inside and has a moment when she seems to realize Hook's hand's actions and has a brief conversation with her parents. Hook runs in to Will Scarlet trying to break in to the library and punches him in the face when he remembers him. Hook again seems put off by his hand controlling his actions and tells Will that if he informs anyone of what happened he will be a dead man. As Mr. Gold is preparing to go home in his car with flowers Hook enters the passenger door and tells Mr. Gold to replace his hand with the hook or he will inform Belle (Emilie de Ravin) of the dagger. Gold then tells Hook that he has swapped the daggers and that Belle has the actual dagger. Mr. Gold says he will replaced the Hook once Hook does a favor for him. He refuses to give Hook a definite date or time and Hook states he can find a way to remove it without magic. Mr. Gold tells Hook that since his magic restored the hand, only his magic can take it off. Enraged Hook thrusts the hook in to Gold's chest. Mr. Gold is unharmed stating he would have thought Hook would have learned the first time he tried to kill Rumplestiltskin. Hook states that it wasn't him that did that and Mr. Gold states that the next time he may harm someone else who he cares about. Hook states he will do whatever it takes and Mr. Gold says that he loves when people say that. He tells Hook to meet him on the docks in the morning.
Emma is driving through the town when her car spins out on a small patch of ice. She chases the Snow Queen (Elizabeth Mitchell) and demands to know why she is being followed but the Queen vanishes. Belle calls Emma and tells her to meet her at the library because there is a situation. Will Scarlet is seen in the library next to a bottle of alcohol and a copy of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Mr. Gold finds Hook sleeping on the docks and wakes him. He produces a broom and tells Hook it is going to help him find an old friend. When Mr. Gold lets go of the broom it begins walking off and he tells Hook to follow it. Mr. Gold and Hook arrive at a red house in town and knock on the door. The Storybrooke version of the Apprentice answers the door and Mr. Gold tells Hook to force him in to a chair. Mr. Gold then opens the box and produces the hat. The Apprentice tells Mr. Gold that no Dark One ever succeeds with the hat stating that he will never have enough power to use. Mr. Gold then uses the hat to pull the man into the hat and increase its power.
Back at Mr. Gold's shop, he swaps Hooks hand for the actual hook and says their deal is not done. Hook says that it is done because he saw Mr. Gold use the real dagger to open the box which means he is still lying to Belle. Mr. Gold produces a video tape with a recording from the house they just left threatening to reveal it to Emma. Hook states he only did it to rid himself of the cursed hand to be a better man and Emma will understand that. Mr. Gold then reveals that the hand is not cursed but it allowed Hook to be "the man he really is." Mr. Gold states the hand allows him to be his true pirate self and embrace his darkness. Hook threatens to hurt Belle and Mr. Gold states if that happens he will hurt Emma. Emma visits the jail and talks to Will Scarlet and shows him the book he was found next to. He tries to say it has no meaning to him. Emma looks at his eye and asks what happened. Will sees Hook arrive says he does not remember what happened to his eye. When Emma asks him about his hook being back Hook states that Mr. Gold's magic wasn't what he had hoped it would be. David, going through documents with Elsa, tells Emma that the Snow Queen's alias, Sarah Fisher, is no where in any Storybrooke records stating that she did not arrive at the town via the curse. Hook, Emma, David and Elsa all look at each other wondering how the Snow Queen arrived at Storybrooke and Emma asks what she wants with her. Henry tells Regina that they need to talk to his other grandpa, Mr. Gold, about finding out who wrote the book to find the author. Regina says that Mr. Gold will not want to help her so he goes to the shop and tells Mr. Gold that he wants to work at the shop. Henry states that because his father is dead Mr. Gold is the closest link to him, Mr. Gold agrees to let Henry be his apprentice and hands him the broom he and Hook used to find the Apprentice. Henry begins to sweep the floor.
==Trivia==
*Kristoff and Anna shared their only kiss of the series in this episode.
*Emma and Hook's outfits seem to be inspired by the 1950s. Their clothing is similar to what Sandy and Danny wear in the film Grease.
*When Emma and Hook enter the restaurant, there is a Lady and the Tramp reference when a couple are seen sharing some spaghetti.
*This is the first episode to feature a dark one that isn't Rumplestiltskin.
==Goofs==
*Henry goes with Emma to Granny's so she can ask Hook out but stays in the car. When Emma leaves and goes back to the car, Henry is not in the car or near it. It's unknown what happened with Henry as he is not seen in Granny's.
==Gallery==
Georgina Haig Elsa OUAT.jpg
Once Upon a Time - 4x04 - The Apprentice - Zoso.png
Once Upon a Time - 4x04 - The Apprentice - Apprentice Sword.JPG
Once Upon a Time - 4x04 - The Apprentice - Rumplestiltskin and the Sorcerer's Hat.png
Once Upon a Time - 4x04 - Mary Margaret and Elsa.png
Once Upon a Time - 4x04 - The Apprentice - Apprentice in Storybrooke.png
Once Upon a Time - 4x04 - The Apprentice - Magic Broom.jpg|The magic broom
Once Upon a Time - 4x04 - The Apprentice - Hat Devours Apprentice.jpg
Once Upon a Time - 4x04 - The Apprentice - Gold with the Sorcerer's Hat.jpg
==External links==
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Category:Once Upon a Time episodes