Thanks slurpeez for posting that! This might be my favorite MRJ interview yet – I think he’s finally learning how much people read into every line anybody says about the show. I think if you really study all the interviews, each actor words things differently and some get into their characters heads and have a more filtered view because that’s what they have to do on a daily basis (MRJ is guilty of this at times as well) but I don’t think any of them are really “lying” but they just don’t know and they tell us honestly what they’re rooting for etc but sometimes it comes across as “this is definitely happening” when it’s clearly not something they’d have knowledge of at the time. (I pay attention to all of the interviews like that & take everything with a grain of salt – I’m paranoid about getting my hopes up).
I’m super excited that he was so vague this time and it puts the rest of what he’s said into perspective. His comment about not wanting to paint anybody into a corner was brilliant and should go for absolutely everything ever said by an actor.
I do agree though that SwanFire is certainly still possible (as long as done realistically so that the rest of us can understand why Emma is going back etc etc – not starting a fight here, I’m ok with it happening if done well was the point), and I like the idea that he is ultimately rooting for “happy endings” when he could easily jump on the SwanFire bandwagon vocally because that’s his character and who plays a character in a triangle and doesn’t say they want their character to get the girl? It was a refreshing take on it rather than just saying yes, I’m rooting for them to be together and getting peoples hopes up for the longrun when he’s not in charge.
To be fair, it really has nothing to do with shipping preferences and I did the same thing with Colin’s interview. Personally I see BOTH sides’ fans getting jerked around a lot and getting their hopes up one day and dashed the next with various interviews. I would hate for either side to be seemingly given promises that they can’t live up to because they don’t have S3 scripts yet to go off of etc.
I absolutely LOVE what he said about family. That Bae’s ultimate goal is to be a part of a family again. I have been 100% whether SwanFire happens or not that Bae needs to get back with Rumple (and therefore Belle, and most especially Henry and that he needs to have some kind of civil, working relationship with Emma whether they are together or not. They are all family now, along with Snowing & Regina too, so they all need to function cohesively for Henry’s sake.
I’m excited for Neal & Henry to get more time together down the line and for Bae to step up and be the dad he always wanted to have. That’s an awesome way to look at things and I can totally see that. For being new at everything he’s good with Henry (though could use a little work on noticing the little escape artist in training….he should know better, the kid is part him and part Emma!)
My happy ending for Bae is being a part of the family and feeling like he has a stable environment where he’s not going to be abandoned and betrayed again, whomever that leaves him with. Glad to hear that side of things come from MRJ as well, as I think at least at this point, that’s the main focus for Bae. (I do think regardless of whether they end up together, Emma & Neal will always have that bond and always love each other whether they are in love or not – a lot can change over a decade and they’ve got a lot of baggage that can’t be wiped away with a near-death scene. When Neal gets back they have some work to do to figure out if the people who loved each other 10 years ago are still there today. Emma’s an entirely different person because of everything she’s gone through and I want it to be realistic, otherwise I don’t see how SwanFire makes any sense for the strong character we’ve seen Emma become to go back to that so easily. I am however looking very much forward to those conversations – preferably more than in 30 second increments every once in a blue moon. If they want me to fight for this couple to happen, they need to start talking more.)
Keeper of Hook's Trenchcoat.