Wasn’t the initial argument in favor of Robin Hood the fact that he is humble and reminded Regina of the stable boy? On the one hand, I could actually see Regina falling for a good man like Robin who reminded her of her lost love, Daniel. On the other, Robin Hood, however iconic his legend is, has rejected the life of a landed gentry for that of a woodsman and thief, so he’s rather like Graham in that respect.
When I say he’s gotta be iconic, I mean from the audience’s point of view, on a scale of how legendary a character is. Someone who is the major hero in their story that’s known by everyone the world over. Someone who, you say their name, and everyone instantly recognises them as one of the major stars of the story. You say “Evil Queen” and it instantly conjures up a larger than life mental image. She should be paired with someone who people think of like that. To put her with a lesser character, would give the pairing an unbalanced perception for the audience.
I suspect Regina would have to give up her power, magic, and wealth for the sake of loving a bandit like RH.
She may feel obliged to give up some of the wealth to needy peasants, but the power and magic, I don’t think so. We’ve seen Robin use magic, so we know he’s not adverse to it and I don’t believe he’d make her give it up. And he’s plenty powerful, he was the valiant and inspirational leader of the Merry Men. He could show Regina that it’s possible to be a leader, to have power, and to use it to inspire and help people, instead of oppress them. It’s been a recurring theme that she wields her power and is then baffled why people don’t love her. Hansel and Gretel wouldn’t stay with her. The people didn’t worship her. It would be nice for her to eventually get a clue and realise that power can be used for good.
I just re-watched We Are Both tonight…
Rumpelstiltskin: So… Kind. So… Gentle. So… Powerful. You could do so much, if you just let yourself.
Evil Queen: And I won’t become like her?
Rumpelstiltskin: That, dearie, is entirely up to you.
Now, granted, Rumple manipulated her masterfully, so really, it wasn’t up to her…but it could have been if Rumple hadn’t gone out of his way to break her, and if Cora hadn’t weakened her in the first place.
Okay, let’s say that Robin Hood only ever heard Snow White speak in glowing terms about the kind of selfless woman Regina used to be before she went all murderous. Don’t you think he’d eventually have found out the truth though? Robin Hood lives in SB now (according to that spoiler). Upon getting his true FTL identity back, Robin will have heard about how evil Regina became up to the point of casting the curse and how she cast it to punish Snow White for marrying her true love. He’s still going to have to deal with any potential resentment there for Regina for ripping him from his homeland and the ones he loves.
All true, I wouldn’t expect him to blindly accept her and fall in love at first sight. But then, we have Belle, who was able to see through to Rumple’s good heart and she certainly hadn’t heard any soft and fluffy stories about him beforehand. So if he’s got that insight that no one else does, it may be just enough that he doesn’t judge her in the same way everyone else does, and once she’s given what she considers to be a genuine chance, maybe that will give her the kickstart she needs. Snow can give her chance after chance, but Regina’s never gonna believe that she’s genuine because there’s just too much history there. Any of the major characters, or even the recurring ones, she’s never gonna buy it if they extend a hand. Someone from outside that circle though, she might just give in a little bit. And as of right now, I can’t think of anyone else who could fit that bill, except for potentially Robin.
Regina, I think when all is said and done, needs to be with someone who is just as morally off kilter as she is. She is not Regina from Stable Boy anymore. She may want to be but part of her will always be the Evil Queen. She needs someone who can temper that in her, but also enjoys it in her.
Ya see, I think she does have the potential to go back to just being Queen without the Evil in front of it. K&H constantly drill into us that this show is about hope. If there’s no way that Regina can get back to that good person she once was when she was truly happy, then where’s the hope for her? Nothing she does in the future will be able to erase what she’s done, all of those mistakes would make up the new version of her, but at least she’d have learned some very valuable and painful lessons from it and wouldn’t make those mistakes again.
I’ve gotta laugh, because re-watching S1 over the last week, I’ve sat here thinking, “OMG now I remember why I really despise that woman,” and constantly wanted to reach into the screen to slap her. Hard. Yet here I am, the one saying she can be good again. 😆