Once Upon a Time (Book One)

All of the classic fairy tales and other stories exist together in the same continuity, though many of the events played out slightly different to how the stories are told in our world. The structure of the show cuts back and forth between the events happening in the real world and the corresponding events that happened in the fairy tale world.

On the night of her 28th birthday, bail bonds collector Emma Swan is reunited with Henry Mills-the son she gave up for adoption ten years previous-who takes her back to his hometown of Storybrooke, Maine.

Henry possesses a large book of fairy tales, suspecting that Emma is the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming, who sent her away to protect her from a powerful curse by the Evil Queen, a curse in which the queen is the only one with a happy ending. Because of the curse, everyone in Storybrooke is frozen in time with no memories of their former selves-except for the Queen, who is Storybrooke's mayor and Henry's adoptive mother, Regina Mills. Emma, of course, considers this theory to be completely outlandish and returns Henry home, but she still decides to remain in the New England town after becoming attached to him. This action causes the clock tower's hands to move for the first time in 28 years. Henry also tells Emma that they are the only people who can leave Storybrooke, as others who try will suffer accidents.