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Honestly, I loved this episode. I just did. It had it’s weak points (and Belle only got one line) but it was -fun- to watch.
And that’s the whole point, isn’t it?
[adrotate group="5"]Keeper of Belle's Gold magic, sand dollar, cloaks, purple FTL outfit, spell scroll, library key, copy of Romeo and Juliet, and cry-muffling pillow, Rumple's doll, overcoat, and strength, and The Timeline. My spreadsheet: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6r8CySCCWd9R0RUNm4xR3RhMEU/view?usp=sharing
Regina’s redemption for me starts with the apologies we’re seeing from her–she has apologized to Henry for making him feel like he was crazy and lying to him before the curse was broken, to Emma, to Belle, and come to a sort of understanding with Snow at last.
Those moments actually mean more, coming from Regina, than the dramatic ones where she’s willing to sacrifice her life (mainly to save Henry, of course). Those are the moments when we see her really changing toward good.
Keeper of Belle's Gold magic, sand dollar, cloaks, purple FTL outfit, spell scroll, library key, copy of Romeo and Juliet, and cry-muffling pillow, Rumple's doll, overcoat, and strength, and The Timeline. My spreadsheet: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6r8CySCCWd9R0RUNm4xR3RhMEU/view?usp=sharing
Regina has been through a lot of pain, but she caused a lot more. Her idea of a happy ending was to tear families apart (Jefferson & Grace, the Charmings and Emma, Abigail and Frederick, and yes, Hansel & Gretel and their father, Geppetto and Pinocchio–all were separated by the curse for 28 years, and if she’d had her way, it would have been perpetual). She may not have killed kids directly, but she definitely orphaned Owen–and that’s a kid she liked. She also killed Snow’s father, orphaning her own stepdaughter. Her parents died, yes, but recall that she actively killed her father and sent Hook as a hitman for her mother–and then tried to kill Cora again when she discovered Cora was trying to get to Storybrooke. Yeah, her sister was taken from her, but she spent a year of her life trying to, in her own words, destroy Zelena first, and suggested that she’d happily kill the woman multiple times–including during their last meeting when she offered Zelena a second chance.
In her time as the Evil Queen, she killed rather indiscriminately. She’s hurt just about everyone in town in one way or another, many of them on flimsy excuses about their hurting her first, but many just because. (Like, her insurance policy with Belle–who never did anything to her.)
Yes, she has changed significantly and grown a lot, and the heroes who matter to our story (our main cast) have mostly accepted her as a fellow hero at this point. That’s a lot to ask of people she hurt, lied to, tried to kill, killed relatives/friends of, imprisoned, tortured, etc etc etc. Her spurts of heroism are indeed worthy of admiration, but they alone do not atone for all her evils. Redemption is a bumpy road. Obviously, reality is not much of a barrier in this world of Once and there’s no reason not to love Regina (or Rumple, whose rap-sheet is just as bad) in spite of her flaws, or even because of them. But if she were properly tried for even one of the many murders she’s committed, the death penalty would be considered quite reasonable in many real societies (and even was almost applied in her own at one point).
She’s going to have to go a lot further than a few sacrificial moments of heroism and a couple of apologies to truly atone for her crimes. And I want to see that happen. I’d like to see her really earn a happy ending. She can’t earn it by taking it from someone else, though–that was always her mistake, believing that was the only way to get one.
Keeper of Belle's Gold magic, sand dollar, cloaks, purple FTL outfit, spell scroll, library key, copy of Romeo and Juliet, and cry-muffling pillow, Rumple's doll, overcoat, and strength, and The Timeline. My spreadsheet: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6r8CySCCWd9R0RUNm4xR3RhMEU/view?usp=sharing
No, he just shorted it with an axe, so everyone would buy candles. Presumably the actual electrician (or magic) repaired it the next day.)
Keeper of Belle's Gold magic, sand dollar, cloaks, purple FTL outfit, spell scroll, library key, copy of Romeo and Juliet, and cry-muffling pillow, Rumple's doll, overcoat, and strength, and The Timeline. My spreadsheet: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6r8CySCCWd9R0RUNm4xR3RhMEU/view?usp=sharing
Should’ve voted for Mayor Belle.
But, she IS on her honeymoon…
Keeper of Belle's Gold magic, sand dollar, cloaks, purple FTL outfit, spell scroll, library key, copy of Romeo and Juliet, and cry-muffling pillow, Rumple's doll, overcoat, and strength, and The Timeline. My spreadsheet: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6r8CySCCWd9R0RUNm4xR3RhMEU/view?usp=sharing
Seriously, this is everything I ever loved about Snow. She’s back!
Keeper of Belle's Gold magic, sand dollar, cloaks, purple FTL outfit, spell scroll, library key, copy of Romeo and Juliet, and cry-muffling pillow, Rumple's doll, overcoat, and strength, and The Timeline. My spreadsheet: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6r8CySCCWd9R0RUNm4xR3RhMEU/view?usp=sharing
It’s a pretty hat, whatever comes of it. Even with freakin’ Elsa and the Beauty and the Beast dance, the hat was the prettiest thing in the episode.
Keeper of Belle's Gold magic, sand dollar, cloaks, purple FTL outfit, spell scroll, library key, copy of Romeo and Juliet, and cry-muffling pillow, Rumple's doll, overcoat, and strength, and The Timeline. My spreadsheet: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6r8CySCCWd9R0RUNm4xR3RhMEU/view?usp=sharing
The dance. I wasn’t sure how they’d make it work but oh it was lovely. I could watch that over and over and over and over…if I weren’t supposed to be packing. Ah, well, 13 hours on a plane, right?
The graveyard scene…I’m so glad that Rumple went to Bae first to tell him about the wedding. That felt right. And he followed through on his promise…if only for a little while. We know how power tempts him.
All of Arendelle. I’m actually glad they’re being very, very true to the film…it’s not the usual once “twist” from, say, S1, but I’m loving it, and Anna and Elsa are pretty much perfect so far.
I’m excited about Regina’s desire to figure out the author of the book, too. I so want her to get Belle in on that mission. Also, I’m just waiting for Belle to tell Elsa she’s not a monster…just like she told Rumple and Red.
Least favorite…yeah, I dislike the love triangle thing with Marian. It’s…kinda icky in a lot of ways. (Not as icky as SOME love triangles they’ve had, but still.) I’d like to see some more characterization for Marian, too, if they’re going to have her around for any length of time. Right now, she’s still just “Marian” without any actual personality.
Keeper of Belle's Gold magic, sand dollar, cloaks, purple FTL outfit, spell scroll, library key, copy of Romeo and Juliet, and cry-muffling pillow, Rumple's doll, overcoat, and strength, and The Timeline. My spreadsheet: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6r8CySCCWd9R0RUNm4xR3RhMEU/view?usp=sharing
I think they expected a lot of new viewers with the Frozen stuff, so the graveyard scene was more about exposition for new viewers than anything else. I think that’s why some of it felt, to those of us who know the whole story anyway, unnatural.
And I don’t think Rumple was comparing his love for Belle with his love for Bae; we’ve seen him choose Bae over Belle multiple times before. He just said “Now I have love in my life again,” which doesn’t at all mean the same thing…he’s telling Neal that he’s married to Belle now. And that seems to be the first thing he does after getting married–before his honeymoon–so he’s being true to his character in putting his son first again. That much I was pleased to see.
And at least he gave the dagger back before the dance, even if he took it back again.
Keeper of Belle's Gold magic, sand dollar, cloaks, purple FTL outfit, spell scroll, library key, copy of Romeo and Juliet, and cry-muffling pillow, Rumple's doll, overcoat, and strength, and The Timeline. My spreadsheet: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6r8CySCCWd9R0RUNm4xR3RhMEU/view?usp=sharing
I care about Neal outside of his relationship to Rumple, but Belle and Rumple are my favorite characters; what I meant was that if we’re going to tag fans by who they are fans of, you’d have to put me in the Belle/Rumple/Rumbelle corner instead of being strictly SF or a Neal fan.
So what I was saying was that fans of other characters DO have reasons to care about Neal. Not that Neal is unworthy of his own fandom or has no purpose beyond the characters to whom he is linked–I wanted to see more of Bae’s adventures in Neverland, I wanted to see Neal’s arrival to the Land without Magic, and I wanted SF to reunite. I wanted Henry to have his dad in his life–and for Neal to have a chance to bond with his son and rebond with his father.
I truly believe that Neal was the heart of this show…but I’ve got my own little mad obsessions and I admit that they might come ahead of him. I understand the anger because it makes me angry too, the wasted stories his death means. Please understand that I did not mean to belittle Neal in any way, or make it hurt worse.
Keeper of Belle's Gold magic, sand dollar, cloaks, purple FTL outfit, spell scroll, library key, copy of Romeo and Juliet, and cry-muffling pillow, Rumple's doll, overcoat, and strength, and The Timeline. My spreadsheet: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B6r8CySCCWd9R0RUNm4xR3RhMEU/view?usp=sharing
