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S2E10 — "Once Upon a Time..."

Air date: June 25, 2023 · Director: Jack Bender · Writer: John Griffin & Jeff Pinkner

Synopsis

Donna Raines recovers Randall Kirkland from the forest; like Julie Matthews and Marielle Sinclair, he is in a coma. Sara Myers, guided by her own strange connection to the town, tells Boyd Stevens that he inadvertently released the entity when he escaped from Martin's dungeon — the music box entity that has been preying on the town — and that he must destroy the music box to end the threat. In the midst of the crisis, Ellis Stevens and the pregnant Fatima Hassan are married in a small ceremony.

Boyd returns to the ruins where he once found Martin chained. He finds himself back in the dungeon, where Julie, Marielle, and Randall hang chained and are tortured by an unseen force. He moves to destroy the music box, but a vision of his dead wife Abby Stevens urges him to stop, arguing that fighting the entity will only prolong everyone's suffering. Boyd ignores her and destroys the box. The chained prisoners awaken from their comas, and the immediate threat to the town seemingly ends.

Meanwhile, Jade Herrera searches the tunnels and has a vision of seven children chanting at an opening in the ceiling — an image that matches the symbol he has been chasing since his arrival. Victor Kavanaugh takes Tabitha Matthews to a faraway tree, which transports her to the tower where she believes the children are being kept prisoner. At the top she is met by the Boy in White, who apologizes and explains "this is the only way" before shoving her out a window. Tabitha falls — and later awakens in a hospital in the outside world, having been found on the side of a trail three days earlier. (The hospital is in Camden, Maine, as established in S3E1.) For the first time, someone has left the town alive.

Key Events

  • Donna recovers Randall from the forest; he is in a coma.
  • Sara tells Boyd that he released the entity and must destroy the music box.
  • Ellis and the pregnant Fatima marry.
  • Boyd returns to the ruins and finds himself in the dungeon, where Julie, Marielle, and Randall are chained and tortured by an unseen force.
  • A vision of Abby tries to dissuade Boyd; he destroys the music box anyway.
  • The three coma victims awaken, and the immediate threat to the town ends.
  • Jade's vision in the tunnels: seven children chanting at an opening in the ceiling, matching the symbol.
  • Victor takes Tabitha to a faraway tree that transports her to the tower.
  • Tabitha believes the children are imprisoned in the tower; the Boy in White apologizes and pushes her out a window.
  • Tabitha awakens in an outside-world hospital, found on a trail three days earlier.

Characters

New Information / Reveals

  • Sara's explanation: Boyd's escape from the dungeon released the music box entity, which then preyed on the town.
  • The music box is the entity's anchor — destroying it frees its victims from their comas.
  • Abby's vision tempts Boyd to give up, claiming resistance will only prolong everyone's suffering; he refuses.
  • Jade's vision ties the tunnel network directly to the symbol and to seven chanting children.
  • Tabitha believes the children are held prisoner in the tower.
  • The Boy in White acts deliberately: pushing Tabitha out of the tower was "the only way" to return her to the real world.
  • The outside world is reachable — Tabitha wakes in a hospital in Camden, Maine, found on a trail three days after her fall, the first confirmed exit from the town.

Locations

Deaths

  • None. Julie, Marielle, and Randall survive their comas, and the immediate threat ends with the destruction of the music box.

Lore & Mysteries