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Maybe the “darker realm” could be Agrabah. (a) Agrabah had disappeared so that not even Jasmine could find it without Aladin’s genie help and (b) Gideon turned the Evil Queen into a cobra of sorts. In the Disney film, Jafar transformed into a serpent and had a snake staf.
What if the Black Fairy and Jafar are an evil power couple who took over Agraban? It just seems like those two narrative threads need to come together at some point, especially since Aladin said he’d be back (or something like that) in 6×10.
[adrotate group="5"]"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
To play devil’s advocate, though, is he planning to do that?
Belle has due cause at least to be concerned, if not outright suspect her husband’s motives, given Rumple’s miserable track record.
Because he said that he could be a better man, but not different. I take that to mean he’d stop killing the peasants.
What reason does she have to think he could be a better man without giving up the curse that binds him? Rumple sucked all those magical creatures into the sorcerer’s hat. He has unleashed so many villains on Storybrooke, without any real concern for the town, and he left the heroes to defeat them: Cora, The Snow Queen, Cruella, Ursula, and Mr. Hyde. Even when he wasn’t the dark one in S5a, Rumple still found a way to become the dark one again, only the darkness was amplified 100 fold. Rumple told Baelfire that he would use the power for good to save the children from the ogres war (which he did), but then that power corrupted him. I don’t believe Rumple really would or could only use the darkness for good. Not even Emma, true love incarnate, had the strength to do that since every time she used dark magic, its lure grew stronger and her resistance became weaker until she took the darkest possible path and tethered Hook to Excalibur.
Did she give him a chance or just demand a change in behavior and when her demands were unanswered, she withheld affection, support, and acceptance.
Belle gave Rumple another chance after the darkness was forcibly expunged from him, despite how much he had hurt her, and he still found a way to become the darkest of dark ones, which he conveniently withheld from his wife and then got Belle pregnant her without her knowledge of it, which some might consider a lack of consent issue.
I think the problem is that we often have a hard time rationalizing this Belle with “I love him. All of him, even the parts that belong to the darkness.”
Some fans think that means Belle somehow condones or loves the dark deeds that Rumple does. No, she clearly doesn’t. she didn’t love it when he tortured Robin Hood or when he threatened to kill Hook. When properly interpreted, I think that line means Belle loves all of Rumple, even if he’s cursed. Belle was able to separate Rumple the good spinner and loving father from the dark one curse itself, but that doesn’t mean she loves the darkness in him (which is amoral). She has never loved the curse since she has always hoped their love would be true enough to break it. She said in Skin Deep that she might love Rumple (the man) but that something dark had taken root in him. She wanted to free Rumple of that curse.
I don’t blame Belle for wanting to protect herself and her son but she’s apparently ALWAYS known what sort of depravity Rumple could sink–torturing Robin, using a baby for his own agenda, ect–and still that never stopped her from loving him, fighting for him, advocating for him, or wanting to be with him. I don’t want to say mixed signals but…mixed signals.
Just maybe the writers have always meant for this version of Beauty and the Beast to be more of a cautionary tale.
Evil Queen: So, if I’m right, you love your employer, but you’re leaving him.
Belle: I might love him. I mean, I could, except… Something evil has taken root in him.
Evil Queen: Sounds like a curse to me. And all curses can be broken. A kiss born of true love would do it. Oh, child, no. I would never suggest a young woman to kiss a man who held her captive. What kind of message is that?What kind of message indeed? A cautionary one. Rumple kidnaps children, tortures his victims, makes unholy deals, and kills or maims whoever displeases him. Belle thought that was just the dark curse, but now Rumple has claimed that is who he really is. Belle has tried time and time again to say it doesn’t have to be that way, but Rumple has insisted he’ll never be the man she thinks he can be. He has embraced the darkness rather than fight it anymore. The curse has amplified his natural ability to sin, especially as he’s given into its lure, and it’s taken hold of him.
"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
To answer the question of whether or not Rumple is abusive, I think it depends on what a person means by abuse since there is more than one definition. Abuse can mean the improper use of something (such as alcohol or drugs), or abuse can mean cruel and violent treatment of someone.
I completely think Rumple abuses magic as a substance since he’s addicted to it; he is totally hooked on the stuff, emotionally, physically, and psychologically. As a result, his actions are driven by his addiction, which Belle sees. Belle said his true love is magic. He is actually dependant upon it, and as such, he puts power above everyone, including Belle. However, from Belle’s perspective, that just isn’t good enough. As she said, she just wanted to be chosen. She wanted to be put first before magic, which Rumple has never done for her.
The time he actually managed to overcome his nasty habit of self-preservation was when he saved his family from Peter Pan. Rumple did so knowing he’d die, so he knew he wouldn’t really have to live without the power after his final sacrifice. After he got resurrected, we Rumple chose Bae over dagger when he surrendered it to Zelena to try and save Neal after he resurrected his father. From Rumple’s perspective, his sacrifice was in vain because he still lost his beloved boy in season three. I think Rumple really doesn’t think it’s worthwhile to give up power for family since he did so and still lost his firstborn son. From Rumple’s perspective, it’s probably pointless to stop abusing magic, especially if it means he cannot protect his family.
So, is Rumple abusive to his family? In the way that an addict is abusive, yes. Does Rumple intentionally go out of his way to inflict emotional harm on his family? No, I don’t think he ever meant to harm them, but he has. It’s the direct result of choosing power over them. Every time he hides his addiction to magic from Belle (for fear she’ll disapprove, which she does), it blows up in his face. So he has dropped the charade and decided to come out in the open about his love of power. Is his behavior abusive though? Yes, since he has caused emotional harm towards Belle and Baelfire and even physical harm and death to others. He has intentionally harmed others malice or revenge (see Milha, Hook, Robin) or to meet his own ends (see Regina, Cora, Emma, Snow, etc…)
Is Belle abusive? Well, she doesn’t abuse magic, so her actions aren’t the result of an addiction the way they are for Rumple. Does she still mistreat Rumple emotionally? Well, I don’t think she ever meant to inflict harm emotionally or otherwise towards Rumple. All she has ever wanted to do was help free him from his curse, but he hasn’t wanted her to do so. Belle has the heart of a hero and cannot stand for injustice or to see Rumple mistreat others (e.g. his plan to use an innocent baby to lure the dark fairy). Belle simply doesn’t condone his evil and sinister deeds born of addiction to the darkest of magic. So, she does call him names like “beast” which might be seen as cruel to Rumple and his supporters, but is she really wrong? He does act like a monster when he indulges his addiction to dark magic and gives into his darkest impulses to harm and kill.
She has seen the good in Rumple, but she also sees the darkness. He has laid it all out in the open and indulged in dark magic. If he is going to kill people and plot to harm others, Belle setting boundaries and limiting or cutting off access to her and their child is called being responsible. To do otherwise would be to enable Rumple’s addiction to the darkest of all magic or even to be an accomplice to his evil deeds.
Belle is right to say he could still change, to say there is still a chance he could have his son in his life if only Rumple would kick the habit of dark magic. That isn’t emotional blackmail or abuse. That’s the truth. I don’t think Belle is wrong to want to protect the son from the father’s addiction to dark magic. After all, a mother who lets a father abuse illegal drugs in front of the child isn’t acting in the interests of the child. A responsible parent would try and shield the innocent child from the corrupting influence of the addicted parent.
"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
Regina, not Hook, going on a mission to save Emma from the wish cast the Evil Queen will make certain priate fans unhappy.
"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
I think he was referring to the book about defeating the dark one, you know the one from the dream. I still like your theory at this point and time I am trying to grasp on to any hope I can find. I hate the idea that a baby can hate his father even before he is born, there is something completely wrong about this. If Morpheus does end up being their child I will be completely upset.
I took the book to be a reference to Her Handsome Hero, rather than the book about how to defeat the dark one from the vision, since Belle then proceeded to name her newborn son after the book’s protagonist, Gideon.
"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
I have a somewhat crack-pot theory, but so far I haven’t seen anyone else come up with it. What if the man in Belle’s vision isn’t really Belle’s son, Gideon, but, rather, the grown up son of Jack and Jill? Something just seems off with him. After all, a changeling isn’t just a child taken by a fairy, but rather “a child believed to have been secretly substituted by fairies for the parents’ real child in infancy.”
I found it incredibly odd how the man in Belle’s vision said, “Remember the book” (paraphrase). It struck me as very peculiar since how would he know about the book? It made me wonder if he isn’t her son but is really Jack and Jill’s son from the EF flashback — the one to whom Belle read the story Her Handsome Hero when she took care of him at the dark castle. Why else would he have said “remember the book” — which doesn’t really make sense unless Belle had read it to him. Could adult “Gideon” (aka Morpheus) be an imposter?
I wonder if the Black Fairy somehow collected Jack and Jill’s infant son after Belle returned him to his parents, he grew up and now wants revenge on the Dark One for stealing him in infancy and summoning the Black Fairy in the first place.
"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
Emma in a princess dress and SB-Regina making fun of her might be one of my favorite things about this show in a very long time. As silly as it is, this could be a fun episode, especially if done right. If only they would do a musical episode like Galavant.
"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
Going back to my question then, who named Rumple if not his mom? Was it his dad? I wonder if we’ll ever see a backstory of Rumple’s parents together.
"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
It certainly wouldn’t be the first time that they lied.
"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
Since the Dark Fairy didn’t name her son, then who did? Malcolm? Whoever named him did the poor lad no favors.
Looking back, a casting call for Rumple’s mother went out in June, 2015, and she was originally supposed to appear in an early season five episode. I had forgotten all about that announcement. We had an entire thread here. Some people speculated then that Rumple’s mom would be either the black fairy or Morgana Le Fey since it was the season of Camelot.
"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
