The second season of ABC’s fantastical ‘Once Upon a Time’ can’t be considered a total failure.

Sure, the show hasn’t lived up to its first season hype – but that happens to a lot of shows (The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones) and the show still rebounds and thrives.

I think the biggest mistake the show made was separating the core family from each other for half the season -- especially before they could spend time together as a unit.

 

The final slate of season two episodes kickoff Sunday – and fans have a lot of questions on their minds.

Not everything can possibly be answered in the final few episodes – but here’s what I’m most concerned about:

5. Secondary characters: The charm of ‘Once Upon a Time’ comes from the community as a whole

- -not just from Emma, Rumplestiltskin, Snow, David and Regina. While I do love the main five, I’m also attached to secondary characters , especially Ruby and Grumpy. I don’t want to see them constantly pushed to the side. ‘Once Upon a Time’ has a large cast – let’s not push all the secondary favorites aside in favor of the new characters. I think there’s room for both. Their history is just as important as the core family's history.

4. Neal and Emma: As much as I loved Graham – I’m firmly on the Neal and Emma train. I love the chemistry and history between the duo. I don’t want a happily ever after right away – I do want them to work for it – but I also want to see some bonding between the two. They share a child - -and yet Neal and Emma have never really sat down and talked about what transpired between them – or why Neal really left.

3. Snow White’s Black Heart: I love Ginnifer Goodwin’s portrayal of the strong heroine – and I

think I’m so addicted to her romance with Charming because of Goodwin herself. Although, to be fair, it doesn’t hurt that Goodwin and Charming portrayer Josh Dallas are involved in real life. That just kind of adds to the mystique. My problem with this story, though, is that Snow White suddenly having a black heart – simply because she wanted revenge for her mother’s death – doesn’t exactly ring true to me. Let’s end this story quickly.

2. Kurt Flynn: I’m betting that Greg’s father is still in town – and Regina probably hasn’t been very nice to him over the years.  Quite frankly, I like John Pyper-Ferguson as a performer – so I’m hoping he sticks around Storybrooke. I’m guessing that the reunion between the two isn’t going to be as happy as Greg/Owen hopes. And, when it happens, I think Regina is going to be in for a whole pile of retribution from Greg.

1. Pinocchio: It’s not just that I like Eion Bailey – I do, mind you – but I find the outcome of

Pinocchio’s story to be more sad than redemptive. Sure, having Pinocchio being reborn into a child again was a way to keep the character on the show – but adult Pinocchio is a lot more interesting than child Pinocchio. We need to see his ties to Tamara – and her ties to Ethan Embry’s Greg. That duo looks to be a lot of trouble for Regina – and Neal, for that matter – but I would still prefer it to play out with an adult Pinocchio.

What do you think? What questions do you want answered before the second season finale?