In Review: Behind The Magic

Review by Gareth Hughes 

The magic of Once Upon A Time comes to Titan Books with the first official companion to the smash hit ABC fantasy series, 'Behind The Magic'.

"Must have" sums up this mighty 178 page book, which is filled to the brim with episodes guides, behind the scenes features, cast interviews and some stunning glossy images.

The behind the scenes soundbites will be of particular interest to hardcore fans of the show, including a writing room roundtable with all the major players such as Jane Espenson, Robert Hull, Daniel Thompson and other notable OUAT writers, who talk us through the way an episode evolves and their favorite episodes so far.

Series Creators Eddy Kitsis and Adam Horowitz get their own in-depth section, which explores the long term genesis of the show and really gets inside their creative minds, while Eduardo Castro guides us through the process of bringing the detailed costumes to life on a weekly basis, including some stunning sketches from his personal archive. Other interesting features include a look at visual effects and a tour through the props department.

The episode guide is also filled with handy "Did You Notice" features, which gives extra insight into the episodes, connections to Disney films and symbolism which may have been missed upon first viewing. 

Rounding up the books highlights are full in-depth interviews with all the main cast. Jennifer Morrison, Lana Parilla, Robert Carlyle, Josh Dallas, Ginnifer Goodwin, Jared Gilmore, Colin O'Donoghue and Emilie De Ravin all get a chance to talk about their characters at length, reminiscing about the original audition process among other things.

Articles and interviews featured in the book were originally published in the two magazine specials released by Titan in early 2013, however these magazines are now in short supply so if you missed their release, this is the perfect way to get hold of the material that was featured. 

All in all, 'Behind The Magic' is an essential addition to any Once Upon A Time collection and comes highly recommended. 

'Behind The Magic' is out now. Order at Amazon