Reply To: Emma + Baelfire = Swanfire

[Slurpeez]

I…get that he’s “changed” because he doesn’t murder people anymore but this is one of the biggest problems with OUAT; because they care more about redemption for the villain that for justice the actual scales are never balanced. Hook doesn’t and won’t lose anything for making people lose the most precious thing of all (their life). And the constant affirmation by everyone that it’s okay, it doesn’t matter, because he’s “changed” really undercuts the crime in the first place. At least for me. Hook, and Regina/Zelena (less sure about Rumple) will walk away having to pay very little for their crimes. Hook gets the girl, the happy ending, the family, the love, the acceptance, and an unnaturally long life (he is like 200 years old now). Whereas Robert, a guy genuinely trying to do the right thing and make up for his past mistakes (actual atonement!) gets a knife through the heart. The moral message here is…not great.

Indeed, it’s not great. No main villain (besides King George) has really served much time nor actual punishment for his or her past crimes. Why is it that only George is serving his time in the hospital basement? Zelena hasn’t served serious time for murdering Neal, and she gets to raise her and Robin’s child (against Robin’s strong wishes). Regina has served no time for murdering Graham nor has Hook served any for murdering Merlin. Rumple has lost out on his family as a result of his own misdeeds, though he hasn’t done time since the EF. The rest get the family they wanted. Indeed, there doesn’t seem to be a lot of justice on this show. What is going on?

I’m going to quote from A Clash of Kings by GRRM here to underscore this point. King Stannis chopped off the finger tips of a smuggler named Davos, but then he made Davos a knight for his faithful service and loyalty after Davos swore allegiance. Davos keeps the finger bones in a bag around his neck to remind him of justice.

Stannis: “Why do you keep them [the finger bones]? I have often wondered.”
Davos: They remind me of what I was. Where I came from. They remind me of your justice, my liege.”
Stannis: “It was justice,” Stannis said. “A good act does not wash out the bad, nor a bad act the good. Each should have its own reward. You were a hero and a smuggler.”

King Stannis has a reputation for his justice. While I don’t always agree with Stannis or his deeds, on this point I think he’s right: a good act does not wash out the bad, nor a bad act the good. Sure, a person is capable of both good and bad. A former pirate like Davos can quit smuggling and instead serve the realm as a knight. However, King Stannis didn’t let the crime of smuggling go unpunished. While medieval justice was harsh, the point remains. Davos was both a hero and a smuggler (a bit like Hook). Yet, Hook’s misdeeds remain unpunished (as do those of Regina, Zelena and Rumple). There isn’t real justice. Even for fantasy, OUAT is far less realisitic than ASOIAF, which is a fantasy but firmly based in reality.