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I hope one of the things the writers do is address some of the mysteries of Neal’s life in a way that establishes his character better. Most of us who follow Swanfire infer a lot about Neal from what we saw in Baelfire. We also look at the actor’s expressions and intonation–people can read that differently. His first adult scene in Broken has no words!
We still don’t know through dialog how he felt getting that postcard. I thought he looked upset. Upset about what, that he’d lost his chance and knew she never would forgive him? Upset that he’d proposed to Tamara and oops, Emma broke the curse that day? I just want to know what the timeline of all of it was.
It’s fine that I can make up a headcannon that he was manipulated and played by Tamara, but they left so much room for interpretation on why he was with her. So I might imagine some convoluted scenario involving Tamara faking an abusive boyfriend, an aborted pregnancy, tears and “you’re the only man I can talk to” kind of stuff, then proposing to him, but then obviously, other people can imagine the complete opposite.
[adrotate group="5"]“If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn't be. And what it wouldn't be, it would. You see?” -- Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass
Looking back I think Neal was upset because I think his engagement to Tamara was shortly before getting that postcard, like maybe a week before. I have no evidence, of course, but Tword wise:
–October: August comes back from Pukhet and sees Neal in NYC. Neal “meets” Tamara on the street
–May: Emma breaks the Curse and August sends him a postcard as a wooden man when magic comes to town (all on the same day). I’ll give the pigeon one or two days to fly to NYC from SB but it’s all in the same week at the latest.
–“November or December” (in SB only, based on it being Halloween in the Doctor and how quickly Emma and Snow returned after that and then they all went looking for Nealfire): Emma, Henry and Rumple head to NYC to find Nealfire
I think most of us agree that Neal got engaged to Tamara out of fear and thinking himself to be in love but really not. I could see him getting engaged quickly, ie: in between October and May. In my head he was already engaged when he got the postcard.
"He was a lot of things to me" "The only conclusion was love"Dunno that I’m gonna hold my breath for more of Neal and Tamara’s history. I agree it would be great to have the details filled in, but in the grand scheme of the show, their relationship is as done as done can be and they’re not likely to even see each other again, so going back to show them together again might not really fit if they’re trying to move the story forward.
Filling in Neal’s story pre-Tamara could still give some insight into what his mindset was at that time though, and I’d say it’s highly likely that we’ll get some of that.
I have to agree Phee, we probably won’t see much of how he got mixed up with her. We might learn about that 3 pc suit though, I hope!
“If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn't be. And what it wouldn't be, it would. You see?” -- Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass
I hope so too! That 3pc suit looked so good on him! In my head, he ended up doing something noble in his career. Like helping runaway children.
"He was a lot of things to me" "The only conclusion was love"Yes, we absolutely need to know what that suit was for!
Like helping runaway children.
Speaking of which, I recently amended my endgame headcanon. I previously had them living in FTL in their castle called Tallahassee. I’ve added to that that their home will be a foster home, and will be big enough to accommodate every orphaned/abandoned child in FTL, and Emma and Neal, who both grew up alone and longing for family, will end up having the biggest, most loving family there ever was. (Saw a thing on TV the other day about a couple who have fostered a couple hundred kids over the years, and naturally it got me thinking about Once.)
That is awesome on so many levels. Making Emma and Neal’s journey about more than her and him feels right for the heroes of such an epic story.
I’ve been thinking a bit about Emma’s emotional state for the start of the next season. I’ve decided she’s in a “Sarah Conner” from Terminator headspace. The scene of Emma doing pushups in the preview is very Sarah Conner in Terminator 2. It’s an iconic movie moment.
Emma put up those walls and went right back to business, which is similar to what Sarah does, turning herself into a very tough person with a goal to protect her son and wreck stuff to prevent the robotic doom ahead. She doesn’t mourn or flirt, just gets stuff done. Like Sarah does eventually, Emma is going to see the humanity in those who were previously her enemy, but I don’t think that has to be romantic. Sarah’s bond with the T-800 certainly wasn’t! Yet it IS a bond. I know Emma is going to get closer to ALL the villains through this adventure. Part of that is going to involve actors getting in each other’s personal space and locking eyes. Screwball Ninja has another awesome essay where she talks about how OUAT confuses her, as to who is supposed to be attracted to each other. She uses Ruby/Red’s reactions to various characters as an example.
I think it is going to be tough for Swanfire fans as things unfold. Most of it won’t be because of what’s actually happening plot-wise, but how it gets interpreted and played up in media and fan reactions when taken out of context of everything we know about the characters and their motivations. Context is usually complicated, and when people simplify, a lot gets lost.
Yet I do think some of what’s ahead is tough because it is meant to be tough. There’s a TV trope of the “temptress” or “vamp”. A character who gets between the hero and his lady, and tries to seduce him. I do feel the writers have that in mind when they talk about how “fun” it is for them to have Emma on a boat with “handsome” Hook. Emma is shown in the knights armor, not the princess dress. She defends, not her man. That’s who she is. So if she’s the hero, well, she’s the one who has to resist temptation from the would-be seducer in the gender flip of the trope.
Hook obviously feels things a little more deeply than a cartoon vamp, but I think given their history, and Henry’s situation, it’s hard to imagine the writers going for the Whale/”we were cursed” moment. They might though, and might even develop it further into a real love relationship. We know so little to rule things out just to keep to a false certainty and I’d rather be pleasantly surprised than supremely disappointed, by insisting I know the story and characters better than the writers. I only know the characters at the end of season 2 not how they will be after the next set of experiences.
All the same, I can’t see Emma thinking of her Happy Ending as adventuring and exploring or living in a castle. I think she wants a house on a beach, parking spot for her yellow bug, and her family, parents and Henry, and the man she loves and has her back, nearby, in SB. I think that’s going to be Neal right now. And the idea of the two of them creating a home for kids like them, lost and abandoned, that’s so beautiful.
“If I had a world of my own, everything would be nonsense. Nothing would be what it is, because everything would be what it isn't. And contrary wise, what is, it wouldn't be. And what it wouldn't be, it would. You see?” -- Lewis Carroll, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass
I’ve been thinking a bit about Emma’s emotional state for the start of the next season. I’ve decided she’s in a “Sarah Conner” from Terminator headspace. The scene of Emma doing pushups in the preview is very Sarah Conner in Terminator 2. It’s an iconic movie moment.
Emma put up those walls and went right back to business, which is similar to what Sarah does, turning herself into a very tough person with a goal to protect her son and wreck stuff to prevent the robotic doom ahead. She doesn’t mourn or flirt, just gets stuff done. Like Sarah does eventually, Emma is going to see the humanity in those who were previously her enemy, but I don’t think that has to be romantic. Sarah’s bond with the T-800 certainly wasn’t! Yet it IS a bond.
That’s an excellent way to describe her current mindset! Emma is SO Sarah Connor!
I know Emma is going to get closer to ALL the villains through this adventure. Part of that is going to involve actors getting in each other’s personal space and locking eyes. Screwball Ninja has another awesome essay where she talks about how OUAT confuses her, as to who is supposed to be attracted to each other. She uses Ruby/Red’s reactions to various characters as an example.
I think it is going to be tough for Swanfire fans as things unfold. Most of it won’t be because of what’s actually happening plot-wise, but how it gets interpreted and played up in media and fan reactions when taken out of context of everything we know about the characters and their motivations. Context is usually complicated, and when people simplify, a lot gets lost.
Agreed with all of that. Generally, patience ain’t my thing, but in the case of SwanFire, I know I’m gonna have to have me some serious patience, because it won’t be happening immediately, in fact quite the opposite will likely be happening in the immediate future.
Saw ScrewballNinja’s latest post last night. It’s so true that so much is subjective interpretation. If I watch a scene with shipper goggles on, then naturally I’m gonna interpret things differently. All through my recent re-watch of both seasons, I never saw anything between Regina and Emma that I could interpret as eye sex, but other people see it all the time. Same goes for CS, too. Some people interpret how they look at each other in a romantic way. I personally don’t see it, but I can see that they have a connection, so if they do decide to make it romantic, it won’t be completely out of the blue and out of character IMO. For other people, they don’t even see that much of a connection between them yet, so it would be completely out of the blue.
On the flipside, some people don’t see anything remotely romantically emotional in the way Neal and Emma have looked at each other. Others see it all the time. The little glances and subtle reactions. Schmacky did a great post on tumblr not that long ago, about the scene with Tamara on the beach: http://schmacky.tumblr.com/post/57640257075/maybe-i-have-shipper-goggles-on-maybe-im-looking
I look at that reasoning, look at the gifs, and to me it seems completely undeniable that there’s romantic emotion between Emma and Neal. Others no doubt think that the breakdown of that scene is reading too much into it and makes no sense.It all comes back to personal perspective and what you wanna see in a scene. I fully expect to enjoy Emma’s scenes with Hook in S3, but I’ll enjoy them from a whole different point of view to what a CS shipper will.
All the same, I can’t see Emma thinking of her Happy Ending as adventuring and exploring or living in a castle. I think she wants a house on a beach, parking spot for her yellow bug, and her family, parents and Henry, and the man she loves and has her back, nearby, in SB. I think that’s going to be Neal right now. And the idea of the two of them creating a home for kids like them, lost and abandoned, that’s so beautiful.
My thinking with them ending up back in FTL is that while neither Neal or Emma are particularly enthused by living there, and love their real world conveniences, at the end of the day, I don’t really see the rest of their family, or any of the SBers, being able to integrate into our world properly. They all fit better back in FTL. And really, neither Neal or Emma appear to have any personal connections to the real world that would influence them to stay there, especially if their family wants to leave.
Whatever kind of building they end up living in, it absolutely must be near a beach, because…
Emma: Is it near a beach?
Neal: Yeah, it’s Florida. Everything’s near a beach.
This is why I want them to build their home across the water from Snow and Charming’s castle, because there’s a little beach there, and Emma can still live near her parents. (I may or may not have thought about this a bit too much. :-P)
Speaking of which, I recently amended my endgame headcanon. I previously had them living in FTL in their castle called Tallahassee. I’ve added to that that their home will be a foster home, and will be big enough to accommodate every orphaned/abandoned child in FTL, and Emma and Neal, who both grew up alone and longing for family, will end up having the biggest, most loving family there ever was. (Saw a thing on TV the other day about a couple who have fostered a couple hundred kids over the years, and naturally it got me thinking about Once.)
This actually brought a little tear to my eye. Having either/both end up fostering children is quite fantastic. So far we’ve seen the foster system as this evil entity. It would be nice to see the positive side. Based on their background I think they’d be wonderful foster parents.
Keeper of Rumplestiltskin's and Neal's spears and war paint and crystal ball.
kfchimera wrote: I’ve been thinking a bit about Emma’s emotional state for the start of the next season. I’ve decided she’s in a “Sarah Conner” from Terminator headspace. The scene of Emma doing pushups in the preview is very Sarah Conner in Terminator 2. It’s an iconic movie moment. Emma put up those walls and went right back to business, which is similar to what Sarah does, turning herself into a very tough person with a goal to protect her son and wreck stuff to prevent the robotic doom ahead. She doesn’t mourn or flirt, just gets stuff done. Like Sarah does eventually, Emma is going to see the humanity in those who were previously her enemy, but I don’t think that has to be romantic. Sarah’s bond with the T-800 certainly wasn’t! Yet it IS a bond.
While I’ve never seen “Terminator” or any of its sequals, this description does sound very much like Emma. Not only is she used to hiding her emotions, but she’s also used to getting down to business when push comes to shove. It’s not surprising that Emma isn’t sitting around bemoaning the tragic fate of Neal’s untimely demise and Henrys’ kidnapping. Although Emma is heart-broken, she doesn’t have the luxury of time or the experience to know how to deal with these vulnerable emotions. She has always kept her head down so as not to get hurt. Emma is a survivor. The few times we’ve seen Emma let her walls down are with her parents, like just after Neal went through the portal and David comforted his daughter. Yet, now that Henry is missing, Emma once again has to close off those emotions and bring her son home so that Neal’s sacrifice won’t have been in vain. Emma can’t let Henry grow up without his parents, just as Neal said before he let go. Emma has a job to do and she’s a woman on a mission.
"That’s how you know you’ve really got a home. When you leave it, there’s this feeling that you can’t shake. You just miss it." Neal Cassidy
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