….I thought ALL lands were frozen for 28 years? No? Uh, okay. Hmm…. Gotta admit, that makes the dark curse less threatening. I always thought that 1) the curse was inescapable and 2) Nothing could stop it and 3) every land would be effected.
I think your confusion confuses me. All lands were frozen for 28 years. Hook and Cora were inside the Bubble–frozen–which prevented them from being sucked up into the Curse and taken to SB. When Emma decided to stay in SB (the Pilot) time began to move again and the characters inside the Bubble could move as well, and apparently Hook spent that time on the JR, which also explains is quip about Smee (who WAS taken by the Curse). So this flashback takes place during S1 sometime , after episode 1 but before Emma TLK’d Henry and broke the curse.