Season 5 of ABC’s fantasy-drama “Once Upon a Time” returned this March from a mid-season break. After season four’s finale, when Captain Hook met his untimely demise, Emma Swan and her friends descend into the Underworld to bring Hook back from the dead. Introducing new characters such as Hercules, Hades, and Megara, “Once Upon a Time” is working harder than ever to keep their audience’s fleeting attention. In addition to new characters, some of the fan favorite antagonists have returned to the show as they are milling about in the afterlife.

Well, the show got off to a good start back in season one. It was better paced, the characters all had a unique twist to deviate from their original personas, and there was even a message. They encouraged people to believe in happy endings and fight for better days. As with many shows go on for this long however, it seems to have lost that quality.

“Once Upon a Time” is following in the footsteps of “Happy Days”, “Heroes”, and “House”. The plotline has gotten beyond ridiculous. The writers have run out of good material and are continuing the show for the sole purpose of squeezing out profit. While the protagonist may have not literally jumped a shark, Snow White’s daughter is going into hell with the evil queen who tried to murder her mother.

It feels like they’re making it up as they go and are trying to boost their numbers. Bringing back the villains of the past seems like cheap writing. Instead of creating new interesting villains, they’re recycling the old ones. They’re cutting corners.

Their favorite way to create drama is to reveal that two characters are secretly related. At this point in the show, the family tree is more complex than the Gordian Knot. Most of the fans can’t keep track of who and how people are connected.

At the end of the day, despite its flaws, the show is still entertaining and I still watch it in spite of the ridiculous plotlines.