View source for The Serpent (Once Upon a Time in Wonderland)

{{Infobox television episode
| series       = [[Once Upon a Time in Wonderland]]
| image        =
| caption      =
| season       = 1
| episode      = 4
| airdate      = {{Start date|2013|11|7}}
| production   =
| writer       = Jan Nash
| director     = [[Ralph Hemecker]]
| music        =
| photographer =
| guests       =
* [[Brian George]] as Old prisoner
*Anthony Keyvan as Young Jafar
*[[Lauren McKnight]] as Lizard
*[[Zuleikha Robinson]] as Amara
*Forbes Angus as Villager
*Kevin Blatch as Executioner
*Christian Bower as Drunken Guard
*[[Ben Cotton]] as Tweedledum
*Cedric De Souza as Akil
*Matty Finochio as Tweedledee
*Peter Hall as Peasant
*Haroon Khan as Blacksmith
*Marco Soriano as Gerard
*Hugo Steele as Orang
*Alicia Thorgrimmsson as Citizen
| episode_list = Once Upon a Time in Wonderland#Episodes
| prev         = [[Forget Me Not (Once Upon a Time in Wonderland)|Forget Me Not]]
| next         = [[Heart of Stone (Once Upon a Time in Wonderland)|Heart of Stone]]
}}
"'''The Serpent'''" is the fourth episode of the ''[[Once Upon a Time (TV series)|Once Upon a Time]]'' spin-off series ''[[Once Upon a Time in Wonderland]]''.
==Plot==
{{more plot|date=September 2017}}
The Knave of Hearts is kidnapped by the Red Queen (on behalf of Jafar) after saving him from Caterpillar's Collectors. Jafar wants him publicly beheaded to serve as an example of what happens to anyone who helps Alice. Alice befriends a collector named "Lizard" who helps Alice in her mission to rescue the Knave of Hearts. Meanwhile, the Red Queen is hesitant to kill the Knave since she's still in love with him and flashbacks reveal Jafar's real reasons for wanting Cyrus' power.
==Production==
Jan Nash was the writer for the episode, while [[Ralph Hemecker]] was its director.<ref name=Futoncritic>{{cite web|url=http://www.thefutoncritic.com/listings/20131021abc05/|title=Listings - ONCE UPON A TIME IN WONDERLAND on ABC|work=The Futon Critic|access-date=September 15, 2017}}</ref>
==Reception==
===Ratings===
The episode was watched by 3.55 million American viewers, and received an 18-49 rating/share of 0.9/3, down from the previous episode. The show placed fifth in its timeslot and fifteenth for the night.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/sdsdskdh279882992z1/thursday-final-ratings-elementary-scandal-the-vampire-diaries-the-voice-the-millers-sean-saves-the-world-parenthood-the-m/214283/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180615191406/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/sdsdskdh279882992z1/thursday-final-ratings-elementary-scandal-the-vampire-diaries-the-voice-the-millers-sean-saves-the-world-parenthood-the-m/214283/|url-status=dead|archive-date=June 15, 2018|title=Thursday Final Ratings: 'The Big Bang Theory' & 'The Vampire Diaries' Adjusted Up; 'The Millers' and 'Scandal' Adjusted Down|last=Kondolojy|first=Amanda|work=TV by the Numbers|date=November 8, 2013|access-date=September 15, 2017}}</ref>
===Critical reception===
Amy Ratcliffe of ''[[IGN]]'' gave the episode an 8.3 out of 10, giving it a positive review. She said "Tonight’s episode delivered some interesting backstory for Jafar and was expertly executed by Naveen Andrews, who showed he can still do nuance. The Knave/Queen story was deepened, too, and it’s nice to see things are still in a bit of play there. Alice got to be daring and fantastic. Her use of her first wish (and the shopkeeper’s last, too) shows a level of cleverness and forward thinking that is heartening to see, and engaging to me. How smart could you make your wish?"<ref name=IGN>{{cite web|url=http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/11/08/once-upon-a-time-in-wonderland-the-serpent-review|title=Once Upon a Time in Wonderland: "The Serpent" Review|last=Ratcliffe|first=Amy|work=IGN|publisher=IGN Entertainment|date=7 November 2013|access-date=15 September 2017}}</ref>
Christine Orlando of ''TV Fanatic'' gave the episode a 4.2 out of 5, signaling positive reviews.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tvfanatic.com/2013/11/once-upon-a-time-in-wonderland-review-worse-than-death/|title=Once Upon a Time in Wonderland Review: Worse Than Death|last=Orlando|first=Christine|work=TV Fanatic|date=8 November 2013|access-date=15 September 2017}}</ref>
Lily Sparks of ''[[TV.com]]'' gave the episode a mixed to negative review, saying "What to do with ''Wonderland''? It’s great hate-watching if you have that kind of time to kill and love raggin’ on sloppy green screen edge-feathering, but otherwise it is not exactly pushing me to the edge of my seat. The writers probably envisioned that audiences would respond to their characters the same way we've gotten attached to ''OUAT Original Seasoning''. But ''OUAT Original'' spent a good year laying groundwork, letting us get to know the characters before making them pull laughable stunts in 100 percent CGI environments."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tv.com/news/once-upon-a-time-in-wonderland-the-serpent-review-hiss-or-miss-138387289630/|title=Once Upon a Time in Wonderland "The Serpent" Review: Hiss or Miss|last=Sparks|first=Lily|work=TV.com|date=8 November 2013|access-date=15 September 2017}}</ref>
==References==
{{reflist}}
==External links==
* {{IMDb episode|3168900}}
{{Once Upon a Time episodes}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Serpent (Once Upon a Time in Wonderland), The}}
[[Category:2013 American television episodes]]
[[Category:Once Upon a Time in Wonderland episodes]]
[[Category:Television episodes directed by Ralph Hemecker]]