Reply To: Emma + Baelfire = Swanfire

  I agree with RG.  The bit about how they have a story and a start and end, like CA to NY in mind is an analogy I thought of too.  ALong the way there’ll be stops in mind with various characters they never necessarily knew they’d get.  Yet they hinted that it could change things but all they really identified as major characters were Emma, Rumple and Regina.  Interesting, because you’d think Snow and Charming were in there but that’s what they said.  So those are there 3, 2 villians, 1 hero.  Anyone else? Just a city along the way.   Maybe that means SQ is the final deal for all we know, but at the moment?  It isn’t looking good for Neal and it’s not feeling like the same tongue-in-cheek-wink-wink way it didn’t look good at the end of Season 2.  On paper, it should look good for Neal.  He came back from being shot, worked hard to get to Emma and Henry, and while Emma had fears, everyone rooted for her to put those aside and realize she could be more than the savior, even if not rooting for her to be with the same person as everyone else.  Just as Rumple and Belle faced a permanent separation, the Charmings too from Emma, and Henry from one of his mothers and father, we all felt things would have to get better–it couldn’t stay that way!  Now to come back to this season and we’d be rooting very hard for the hope to start pouring in, for the good things to start happening.  Yet it sounds like they’re teeing up a Huntsman/August surprise for whatever reason, and Neal will be paying that price.   I don’t think it was their original as in “chapter 1” intention.  They talked too much about how stories change.   I think when they came up with Season 2 there was a shift mid way through the earlier episodes, perhaps after their 2nd comic con, where they realized they needed to do certain things for fans.  At SDCC, RH was a side character we shouldn’t expect to see again.   At NY CC? Regina would be getting a surprising new love story.  I just feel they realized Hook and Regina are two powerhouse characters (as is Rumple with Belle), and they have to “make them happy” to make the big fan blocks happy. So here we are, while there are a number of SQ Regina fans, there are more that are just “Regina happiness” fans and the fact Emma’s a woman isn’t a big deal to them and like any other Emma ship, she’s the protagonist, so has to be her.  Yet if a new character comes in, and is given big stories and air time, should please those people (some of them of course).   RH fits a little into Neal’s space as a good guy but still a thief, and as a father.  He also fits a little in Hook’s as a fantasy chracter in leather with a bit of sass (and some mighty good looks that we see all too well thanks to WR”s poster there :P).  I could see him stepping into the role either one plays in the cast, but ultimatley, I feel the way A&E are talking in interviews is just so devoid of excitement about Neal and full of excitement for Hook that it makes me feel doubtful about his future.  I wish it were not that way.  I adore Neal, and feel like if they’ve tugged on our heartstrings with Emma, they’ve doubly done it with Neal in how they presented him and as a fan who particpates online, with how much unnecessary hate he got.  If people all along had just said, he made mistakes, tried to make up for it, but Hook’s tryint too and I just like him on screen visually–wouldn’t have been a big deal to me.  Yet people kept trying to make Neal out as a monster, and Hook as a fluffy innocent bunny who never did a thing wrong.  I didn’t ever feel “goodness” in terms of morality conferred some advantage when it came to what did or didn’t necessarily make a good love story–take a look at Rumbelle.  No one’s pushing FrenchCricket or anything (HopperBelle?).  Being a good guy doesn’t mean you’re an interesting romantic lead.   I thought Neal’s story was interesting though, but it is angsty.   There were things they had to develop with him to make it work but if they’re not interested in it because its not as marketable a character, because they’re “fighting’ visions from writers in the writers room and fans too–maybe even the actors involved, who knows.   They certainly put a lot of clues in that they had a larger story in mind with Neal but if they’re setting up to cut him loose huntsman /august style, then none of the set-up has to pay off.