My overarching point is not to bash any single ship but rather to help show something we all know which is our shipping bias. But more than that, once again, what the HECK IS THE MORAL OF ONCE UPON A TIME WHEN IT COMES TO LOVE AND ROMANCE?!?!?!??!?! *RG is tired*
Perhaps the question shouldn’t be what is THE moral of love and romance on Once but what is A moral of love and romance on Once? I don’t think there is any one moral of love and romance on Once. It isn’t one size fits all.
For example: Captain Swan. It is a very divisive ship. Some love it, some hate it and some aren’t bothered either way. What’s their moral? That if your persistent enough, eventually your quarry will give in to your demands? That if you continuously reaffirm your love and devotion to another, eventually they’ll reciprocate? That two people share chemistry so why not put them together?
On a thread about What’s the message of love and romance on Once, it’s impossible to completely not bring shipping into it because shipping is love. It’s the love the fans have for a particular pairing, everyone has their OTP and crack!pairings. Why do you like a particular couple but not another? Everyone takes a different message from Once.
For example, you can ask a CSer why they like CS over SF and you can ask a SF why they like SF over CS. Both will give different responses based on their interpretations and both will probably give the same answer but in opposite ways. For example, the CSer might say they love how Hook never gave up on Emma even when she was pushing him away, whilst the SFer might say that they hate how Hook continued to pursue Emma even when she told him she wasn’t interested.
Nobody is going to ship a couple that they feel have a “bad” message attached to them. We all have our own OTP on the show. What is the message YOU take away from Once when it comes to love and romance?
All magic comes with a price!
Keeper of Felix