Does Emma have a jail tattoo?
JMO: (Laughs) JAIL TATTOOS? No she has a tattoo, but that tattoo she’s had since she was probably 14. I think you’ve seen glimpses of it, it’s on her left wrist, it’s a flower on her left wrist. It hasn’t been featured in any situation yet, you’ll see it more in Episode 6. Just kind of by circumstances, but yeah, it’s definitely a youthful decision on her part but ends up being meaningful in the long run.
This interview was from Sept 28, 2012 and we did see the tattoo in 2×06 when she was arrested. So it’s definitely an Emma thing. Pretty sure JMO doesn’t have any and if Emma’s tattoo is “meaningful in the long run” AND matches Charming’s shield that’s very interesting! (Also if she was “probably 14” when she got it, it’s definitely an Emma thing on her own and not related to anything else – just a happy coincidence that she was drawn to it and it happens to be on Charming’s shield too. Wonder when we’ll learn about that finally! http://www.tv.com/news/once-upon-a-time-qa-jennifer-morrison-drops-a-few-hints-about-season-2-29691/
How 14 year olds are getting tattoos and 17 year olds are dating older men (I think most states have a 2 year rule and he’s a few years older at least – not that young thieves in love really care all that much, but she WAS concerned he might be a pervert when she first met him) but given this show’s math problems, and the fact that Ashley was drinking in Storybrooke at 19 etc, it’s a suspension of disbelief thing (seriously where does a 14 year old get a tattoo? I have none myself so not sure if it falls under getting a guardian to sign for it or what but given her track run with foster families….I think she ran away when she was 16 though I can’t remember where I’m getting that from either).
Either way, that’s the backstory that JMO has given us so far on it and she’s one that really gets into character and talks to people and asks questions of the writers about what Emma should already know (like she knew in S1 that Baelfire was Henry’s dad because it’s stuff that EMMA should know and react to, whether the audience learns it for awhile or not), so I’m assuming that this is the general backstory of how/why/when Emma got the tattoo but she doesn’t have to know yet how it ties in with Charming since she didn’t know any of that until we find out more than likely. Can’t wait to hear the story on this one though!
(It was a running joke about Lost that we have an episode many consider filler where we learn about Jack’s tattoo but it was the actor’s and it didn’t go along with typical surgeon look so a character commented on it in S1 and then got an answer about it later where they wrote it in. Since Emma’s was written in and JMO doesn’t have any tattoos herself, it must actually MEAN something and is therefore important! (Especially if it gives us Charming/Emma stuff! Imagine how touched Snowing will be if they ever actually notice/make the connection and it shows them all how linked they were with her even when she was away from them!)
I do shake my head at how much Snow knows but has seemingly forgotten, and you would THINK one of them would have noticed by now that she has a tattoo on her wrist that matches their shield (her tattoo has been MUCH more prevalent this season since she’s running around in a tank top – it was most visible to US during the kiss but it’s been there the whole time). Since Snow seems to have forgotten everything Emma ever said about Neal, even in the post-curse world with the phone call from Manhattan – which Snow immediately took as “maybe this will finally bring everyone together” instead of “my daughter doesn’t want her son around this guy, it must be for a reason let’s trust her judgment,” I’m really not sure what to make of Snow sometimes. So whether they’ve noticed or not remains to be seen. I feel like they would have tried talking about it to bond with her though…to prove that she may have grown up feeling like an orphan but they were with her all along in her subconscious or SOMETHING, but it hasn’t related YET. The fact that JMO said we should learn about it eventually though gives me hope! ESPECIALLY because it’s just an Emma thing. She needs something that’s just hers!
Keeper of Hook's Trenchcoat.