Ed Kitsis and Adam Horowitz brought Jennifer Morris as a special guest to the Once Upon a Time panel at NYCC. They talked about the trip to Neverland, the search for Henry, and of course Hook and Emma.

1. On season 3

Jennifer Morrison loves season 3 because they get to go so much deeper emotionally. All the main characters are back together for a while, and it has been so fun getting to explore all the pain they are being put through.

Adam and Ed do not find season 3 easier to write. They are constantly trying to make each episode better than the one that just aired. They have to deepen and strengthen what is already there.

2. Wardrobe

When Emma is in a tank top the action is on. The tank top is Once code for action scenes. At the end of last season all the characters got on the ship with a backpack in hopes they wouldn’t be stuck in the same clothes the whole trip to Neverland. Kitsis said, “They tried to take backpacks to out smart us and they say these are our wardrobes so we have clothes for when it is cold. We said ‘that’s ok we will just send a fleet of mermaids in to destroy them.'”

3. Splintering of the group

Rumpel was many things but a team player wasn’t one of them. He wasn’t looking for his kumbaya moment. He is set on saving Henry and he thinks he can do that better by himself.

We will get a taste of Regina’s tolerance on Sunday and it is clearly wearing thin. The tolerance of Emma and Mary Margret is also wearing thin. Everyone has to be themselves and at some point that will be brought to a boiling point.

4. Storybrook

You will get to see what happens in Storybrook from the moment that the ship goes through the portal. You will get to see the spell enacted to protect the town and all the blanks will be filled in for those characters. This will occur in episode seven.

5. Charming

Charming will have to deal with facing the fact there is no cure for the dreamshade and his focus right now is saving Henry. It will be a true test of his strength and you will get to see how he deals with that. Over the next few episodes you will get to see why Prince Charming is so charming.

6. Peter Pan

Peter Pan is the villain of all villains. Adam Horowitz says, “We don’t even talk to him – he scares us! We had a cast party last week and it was the first time I had met him in person. I turned and saw him and my first instinct was to run away.”

There are definitely reasons for why Pan has just taken Henry’s heart. By the end of Sunday’s episode you will have a better understanding of him and his motivation. He is one of the nastiest villains but also the most complicated. By the end of the first eleven episodes you will know why Peter Pan is the way he is.

7. Kissing

When Jennifer was asked about her favorite episode her response was, “It’s always fun when you get to kiss someone.”

The follow up question was about her and Hook. “Hook has been surprising Emma, but she is just focused on saving Henry. I think there is a lot coming at her that she isn’t paying attention to. She is pleasantly surprised by Hook. He does seem to be really working to help and trying to prove that he is genuinely invested. Once again Emma is in a land where she doesn’t know what is going on and she is learning as she goes. He is someone who has lived there for a long time and he has proven himself as a help.”

In episode five we will get to learn why Hook became a pirate. There will be a lot to learn about Killian Jones.

8. Neal’s return

If and when Neal and Emma find each other again it’s not as simple as running into each other’s arms. As Kitsis says, “There are things you say to people when they are about to die and fall into a portal and then there are the things you say when things calm down and you actually have time to talk.”