[surayya]

Glad everyone has enjoyed the meta 🙂

And talk about how many villains wanted them or ‘shipped them together.  Like all of Regina’s family are hard core ‘shippers. Cora was the first, then Regina herself and then Zelena.  Then, we had Pan from Rumple’s side.  When you have as many villains wanting them to be together, you know there’s something going on.

Haha, It’s so true as well as very funny lol. When the villains start pointing things out, you listen; when the villains try to pull 2 people apart, you take notice- it’s classic story telling.

SFers interpretation of those scenes (ie, outside the echo caves,  and in the diner before the “long haul” discussion just to name two) as showing Hook 1. either seeking to find a way to manipulate Emma or to break up Neal/Emma’s twue wuv relationship by interjecting himself in the scene and/or 2. his reactions to the scenes while not being part of them show him as being an outsider and therefore not a real contender for Emma’s affections. Goes to show how affective the shipping goggles are.  When you’re looking for something that your heart desires to happen, even what is clearly shown on screen can be manipulated to suit your way of thinking.

… So Hook was somehow taking ‘scene time’ when SF was on, to inject himself into another couples moment for nefarious means? … they know it’s the writers & directors filming the show o.O & that he was trying to break SF up……. What on earth was Hook was stepping back to give Neal every chance of getting another chance with Emma, for Henry’s sake & Hook implying Tink & he could ‘have been’, when Emma wanted to know…. Also what about the “good” moment….

So very true how thick & offset shipper goggles can be! So when we said it’s like they are watching another show, it was pretty accurate lol

Also I doff my hat to you, from what I’ve heard it’s super negative in there & the snark is rampant … I guess it’s true that certain types of people are far more willing to invest themselves in hate than love :/

@surayya and @Jenna_B hope you both feel better soon. Nothing sucks more than a summer cold.  Exactly how cold is it by you right now @surayya?

Thank you, it’s not that cold- around 14 degrees Celsius atm, more wet & damp. It only really gets cold when the weather blows in from Antarctica, dumping snow on the Southern Alps & Northern volcanoes or we get tropical storms hit us- like what is supposed to hit us tomorrow- we have sever weather warnings in place already (this will be big storm number 5).

Just a quickie concerning Hook “He is emotionally literate” (from the saga posted earlier ) …yup. Deeply.

One of my fav parts of the meta that 🙂

Thanks for the well wishes everyone!  @Surayya, I definitely do not have walking pneumonia – yikes!!  Rest yourself!!  We need our gifs and metas!  (What?  Of course it’s about us! )

LOL, Roger that 😉 Will be browsing for more metas tonight, during the breaks in my rewatch of S3, so wil post if I find any good ones… I’m not doing badly considering I’m not on tumbler myself lol 😛

One of the scenes I had never thought about but was touched upon in the meta – the final scene in Jolly Roger, when the Charmings are eating dinner at Granny’s.  I had never noticed the empty chair, nor Emma leaning on it.  Emma saved a seat for Hook, even though he had said he needed to be elsewhere.  One of the things I love the most about OUAT are the subtleties they include via set decoration, blocking and shots.

Yes, I totally over looked it as well & cant wait to re-watch that scene again with this new context 🙂

My problem with OQ is that Regina’s past as evil queen didn’t seem to bother Robin at all. I would’ve liked to see him be a bit wary of her at first then realise she wasn’t that bad then they develop OQ from there. Instead, Robin seemed to go straight into “you’re hot” territory upon meeting Regina. Also I would’ve liked to be shown WHY that couple should end up together not told they’re meant to be together because “pixie dust said so”.

I was a little surprise by the speed of them, but we havent seen everything that went down over that missing year- maybe they got closer than we know & it transcended cursed memories- kind of like how Snowing’s love did in curse 1.0. As for the why, I think we already know the why- soul mates (pixie dust or no pixie dust, Regina thinks they are soul mates) 😉 Regina opened herself up to the possibility & boom- done, well until Robin’s dead wifey walks into the diner lol

Once publicity team Captain Swan strike again <iframe id=”twitter-widget-0″ class=”twitter-tweet twitter-tweet-rendered” style=”display: block; max-width: 99%; min-width: 220px; padding: 0px; border-top-left-radius: 5px; border-top-right-radius: 5px; border-bottom-right-radius: 5px; border-bottom-left-radius: 5px; margin: 10px 0px; border-color: #eeeeee #dddddd #bbbbbb; border-width: 1px; border-style: solid; box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.14902) 0px 1px 3px; position: static; visibility: visible; width: 500px;” title=”Embedded Tweet” height=”440″ frameborder=”0″ scrolling=”no”></iframe><script src=”//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js” async=”” charset=”utf-8″></script>I was wrong about the villains being the most hard core ‘shippers. These guys are

They really are arent they lol

Hook definitely proved himself in season 3 especially by giving up the JR and then not mentioning it. I just hope he doesn’t blow it in season 4.

I cant see him blowing it- I do however expect him to struggle a little & back slide a few times, like he did in S3. I cant see him being Prince Charming 2.0, because he’s been a pirate for like the last 300 odd yrs & that’d be less entertaining to watch lol.

[surayya]

ugh home sick in bed…I’m very interestednin reading the meta but should probably wait until I’m not all hopped up on cold meds and it actually makes sense…hehe flocking. When you really think about it S3A was chock full of CS nuggets…I guess it turns out CSers aren’t looking for and incorrectly interpreting things that aren’t there and just have a better understanding of cinematic symbolism! (My mom would be so happy I guess that college degree in Radio/TV/Film s useful – for OUAT watching!) I’m so proud of our Smartypants Ship!

Ok, one last post…

Aww, hope you get better quickly! I can sympathize with being hoped up on cold meds- I’ve been sick for over a month now *sigh* I thought I just had a persistent cold, so kept working- out doors in winter, but it was actually walking pneumonia, which turned into full blown pneumonia- not recommended. Keep warm, drink lots of water & get lots of rest 🙂

[surayya]

While I noticed Killy’s nervous demeanor during the finale, she’s correct that in all the kazillion gif sets out there, I haven’t seen one point this out either, so if anyone knows of one, share away! 🙂

<p style=”text-align: center;”>What Is This I Don’t Even</p>
Body Language
I don’t know what it means that I put my analytical lenses on even for the mushy romantic parts. I have seen, by this point, approximately 10,000 gifs of this scene.

What I haven’t seen any of them mention is
how

Flocking

nervous

he

is

because every single one of these

is a separate break in eye contact.

And although you can only see it in this one shot because of the framing, when he does sustain eye contact, he is fidgeting.

Meanwhile, Emma’s glance shifts occasionally, but her overall physical orientation doesn’t change through this whole piece of dialog.

We never see her hands, but there’s no shift in her clothes to suggest motion. She’s leaning on her left elbow right up until the moment she leans forward. Through which then he doesn’t move at all until she is clearly in a pre-kiss position, and then it’s just to touch her hair until she’s actually made contact.

https://www.tumblr.com/thisisevenharderthannamingablog/92584928212/body-language

Here’s hoping for some juicy spoilers tomorr…… later today, holey crab apples! I did not notice the time! Yikes!

[surayya]

surayya I love this meta. Thank you.:)

Your welcome 🙂

I have one more to post before I go to bed 🙂

[surayya]

OMG, that happened so much in 3A, it’s ridiculous.  There were even a few times a SwanFire scene was overshadowed by Captain Swan.  It happened in Ariel,  Dark Hollow…I don’t understand how one can watch those scenes and not realize the Captain Swan undertones? And cinematography does not like.  I seriously think if season 3 were meant to be a build-up of a SwanFire romance, we wouldn’t need to see Captain Hook’s reaction. More often than not, we would see his reaction to see Hook’s reaction to something SF related.  Like the hug in the Echo Caves, or after Neal’s confession to Emma outside of the caves?  Why do you need to see Hook’s reaction in those scenes?  If it was the other way around, you wouldn’t need to see his reaction. It’s only relevant to see his reaction because he and Emma are the romance going forward. Like in Dark Hollow or one of the other episodes, Neal’s talking and Emma watches Hook pass through the frame. And I did notice in the street scene in 3a finale, the only time we saw Neal’s reaction was during Rumple’s actual confrontation with his father.  Camera panned to Hook’s reaction to Emma leaving more often than Neal’s.

Oh yes, 3A was almost a feast of exchanged looks & glances at or between Emma & killian, not to mention us as viewers being shown those around them, ‘noticing’ said glances & looks 😉 I mean ep3 = Regina outright calling Hook her boyfriend, so it was hardly supposed to be subtle lol 😉

Someone said the other day – sorry I can’t remember who – that you have to be looking at the second star to the right saying ‘i believe’ before the Shadow comes for you. Don’t know if that’s right though. Or maybe the boys weren’t just ‘lost’ enough for Pan and he sent them back. Who knows!

Hehe, it was a tongue-in-cheek observation  😉

[surayya]

Boom! This poor thread hasnt seen a post that long since the days of MysteryCat lol – I knew it was long, but honestly didnt think it was that long! o.O

[surayya]

Ok. Just got done reading this awesome meta- it is epic long, but I’m going to post it here because it is worth the read! (I’ve edited the F word into flocking to keep it PG rated)

Captain Swan: A Journey

In which I go into downright ludicrous detail about S3 CS evolution, poke at body language <del>some more</del> a lot, discover that Hook displays at least seven traditional knightly virtues, and laugh about that forever.

Whenever I do this kind of project, I find things that I forgot about in scenes. I think Tumblr has a tendency to reduce my memory of entire episodes to gifsets.

This is really flocking long. You have been warned.

A Brief Glance at Season 2
Their relationship had ups and downs.

Okay, it had one incandescent moment of lust, and downs.

Something I want to underline is that they were opponents but never really enemies. Hook worked for Cora as a matter of convenience with a coercion garnish. Her goals had very little to do with his, and he often gave the impression that he thought she was nuts. Ditto the situation with Greg and Tamara, as evidenced by the fact that as soon as they actually Did the Thing he noped out and switched teams.

Emma meanwhile — after that first highly fraught adventure — seemed to regard Hook as an annoyance. He did not in himself represent a problem the way Cora did. Even after his attack on Rumplestiltskin, he wasn’t on her priority list, or else she would have done something more permanent than lock him in a closet and steal his ship. Her distrust sufficed to prevent meaningful contact in “Tallahassee,” and throughout the rest of the season the subject wasn’t on the table.

A Much Longer Look at Season 3

It’s 3.01, and Killian has had an interesting day. Between the decision to return with the bean, letting Rumple on board, and his conversation with Regina on the Jolly Roger, he’s obviously reevaluating all of his life choices.

I will come back to the freedom of action question often. In Hook’s two major previous turning points, there was no “right” choice. In both cases someone in whom he had a deep emotional investment was killed. In both cases the responsible party possessed power that put them beyond the reach of conventional justice. His options were to ignore the king’s lies and Rumplestiltskin’s act of murder, or resort to private vengeance, and either way everything was going to suck forever.

In 2.22, there is a right choice. That choice has associated risks, while there is no pressure in the other direction. Hook has nothing to lose by sailing off with the last bean and leaving Storybrooke to its presumed fate. He is the only member of the rescue group who has zero obligation to be there, having no prior investment in Henry’s well-being.

He has perfect freedom of action. Setting aside a revenge quest that has always had a strong suicidal element is an active choice of hope over destruction. Taking part in the rescue effort — as opposed to just handing over the means to get there — is a choice to put the life of a stranger (Henry) above his own.

Aboard the Jolly Roger

Having made these decisions, literally the first thing Hook does is go looking for emotional contact — and yes, he’s attracted to her, but she’s also the only one of these people he’s previously connected with. He finds Emma, who is working off her anger at Rumplestiltskin and probably at life, in order to give her Baelfire’s old sword and share a drink in his memory.

Bringing up the dead ex-boyfriend is not how you flirt; this scene is about something else. Emma seems surprised by but receptive of the gesture, as indicated by her follow-up question after their toast. She’s guarded but willing to pursue this interaction.

Arriving In Neverland

The landing and Emma’s speech is where I put my stake in the ground: Killian Jones is gone on this woman. It’s been established that he finds her physically attractive. She’s smart, brave, and pragmatic about means while being unswervingly devoted to her goal. She can make Regina shut up. What is there not to <del datetime=”2014-08-28T11:40:33+00:00″>like </del>fall hopelessly in love with?

Emma has also within recent continuity punched him, engaged in police brutality while he was cuffed to a hospital bed, and gave him a concussion via fire extinguisher, so… yeah, fair to say that he likes a challenge, I think.

Their next exchange comes at a high point. Emma has succeeded in unlocking the map, a bittersweet victory, but she’s feeling confident. They share a drink and are standing quite close together.

“And just who are you, Swan?” Clear signal of interest on his part. For the first time it’s not just physical; S2 established that much immediately, but now he wants to understand her.

“Wouldn’t you like to know.” She’s smirking, her stance remains relaxed, and there is negligible space between them.

“Perhaps I would.”

You can almost hear the klaxons go off. Emma glances down and away, and shoulders past him without replying. Emma has caught herself relaxing with him, flirting back, letting her guard down, and as soon as she realizes that he’s serious, all of her defenses go up.

Whether he knows it yet or not, Hook’s got himself a quest.

Meeting the Entry Requirements

For people who come from a fairy-tale world, these guys suffer from a terrible lack of genre awareness. When you set out to win the regard of a princess, Killian, what happens?

You get tested.

I want to mention a few of the traditional knightly virtues here, and how all of these come into play in 3a.

Loyalty (“Good Form”)

The explicit parallel formed by the two parts of this episode is Hook’s turn to and then away from a path focused on revenge. Idealistic young Killian is loyal to his brother. Liam’s death leaves him without any family, and in the wake of betrayal he rejects national loyalties. In the present, he consciously attaches himself not just to Emma but to her family — even when that family doesn’t like him.

Back to the choice thing. Hook is under no pressure or obligation to risk his life for David, while defying Pan carries the overt threat of negative consequences. And although he may have helped David for Emma’s sake, he certainly didn’t do it to get points with her given that he doesn’t ever mention it. David’s the one who brings it up to the group, while Killian displays some of the “where am I supposed to look right now” discomfort that he does when Emma comes to find him in 3.22.

Emma’s not going to call her dad a liar, and maybe she figures that all’s well that ends well, even if someone is fudging. We are again at an emotional “up” beat, and Emma’s feeling confident. Everyone else has moved away while Hook tries to remember how to react to positive attention. Emma has held onto the flask a few more moments than necessary, and she’s in his way on the path, putting some space between them and the others.

This is the first time Emma has initiated an encounter. The last time Hook tried to talk to her, in Baelfire’s hideout, she was fresh off a wave of grief and anger focused on Neal, and she shut him down at light speed. I think that he expects her to roll her eyes and stalk off now. He does that nervous ear-touch thing.

Check out her body language, though: eyes up, shoulders back, directly facing him, and she stays this way when he steps into her personal space. She has all the room in the world to retreat if she wants to (or, being Emma, to punch him). Her stance is open and relaxed right up to the moment she grabs him.

At risk of stating the obvious, this is an aggressive kiss. She grabs his collar and keeps hold with her right hand throughout. Her left hand goes behind his head. Her fingers go through his hair. This position puts her very much in control; she has leverage on him from both sides.

Meanwhile, he raises his hand to touch her hair, but doesn’t appear to exert pressure for more than a moment before he drops it again. He’s definitely into the kiss but makes no attempt to take control of it or to keep after her once she stops.

Her little eye-roll and smile after he says, “As you wish,” though. His poleaxed expression after she leaves, though.

So now we know there’s some degree of mutuality here. She finds him attractive on at least a physical level, and he has to admit to himself that this is not some transient thing, that there is no “perhaps” about his degree of interest in her.

Honesty (“Ariel”)

The narrative straight-up frames this as a test – “Let’s see what kind of man you really are.” Again, there are no negative consequences for Hook if he either keeps Neal’s presence a secret, or if they fail to rescue him; Pan at least believes that the opposite holds. Hook spills to Snow and Charming immediately. Well done.

This introduces a complication from Emma’s POV after the whole traumatic say I love you while falling to your death through a portal thing. She’s already vented to Snow once about her lingering pain, love, and lack of closure.

Aside: Snow says that Emma should believe that Neal’s alive, because “happy endings always start with hope.” I will never understand why Emma’s parents are so positive toward Neal. It’s not that I think he’s evil (just kind of a flock-up), but as her parent? The guy’s a former thief who couldn’t be bothered to shoplift some condoms and got their baby sent to prison. Is him being Henry’s father the only thing that matters? They show the same uncritical shift toward Rumplestiltskin, because “you’re family”, so at least they’re consistent.

On the other hand, Snow also says to Ariel, “Open your heart to love. It is so worth the risk.” Echo Cave. (Ugh, I forgot about the “lost half my crew” there thing. You want to talk survival skills? Three hundred years dodging Pan’s idea of fun.)

Anyway. Dude, if your darkest fucking secret is that you’re ready to move on from Milah, you’ve led a pretty clean life for a pirate. This is also upping the romantic ante. I mean, can we talk about the expression on his face here?

He’s looking directly at Emma while he speaks, no avoidance mechanisms this time. I think it’s safe to say that her reaction is to be disconcerted. She was not expecting this, she does not know how she feels about it, but when they all shift position so Mary Margaret can have her turn, Emma ends up much closer to him than she was before.

How strange.

Not related to honesty but one reason why I think people have responded to Hook as a character in both strongly positive and negative ways — he’s emotionally literate. When David starts to tell his secret, there’s a gratuitous shot of Hook that serves purely to show that he knows what’s coming and it hurts. From a pragmatic stance he has no reason to care what happens to David and Mary Margaret, but he obviously does.

Emma of course frees Neal by admitting that she loves him but she wishes he was dead (who seriously thought that relationship was going to go anywhere after that?!), and there’s his counter that he’s “never going to stop fighting for” her.

WE ARE NOT DONE with honesty however, because there is a further conversation between Hook and Emma. This time it’s her who initiates, wants to know what is up. He hoped their kiss meant something, and he’s not happy that she expresses surprise at his decision to go save Neal.

In terms of the physical framing, this is a duplicate of the kiss scene. They’re positioned the same way, in the same kind of space. Her stance is similar, but she’s aware of Neal’s presence farther down the trail, glancing off in that direction, and she’s not smiling up until the “You are a pirate” line, which suggests an attempt at deflection. He does a lot of looking down in this conversation, and his response to that remark is his “kill me please” smile. But, you know — Killian Jones. Backing off is not in his nature. He steps up to her the exact same way he did before. She sways back a tiny bit but keeps her eyes on his.

Small wording things. Neal says he’ll never stop fighting for her; Killian says he’ll win. Not that he will win her, which would be gross, but win her heart. Which is to say, prove himself as someone worthy of her regard. That is not a zero-sum proposition.

She goes into denial mode, looking away and redirecting the conversation to rescuing Henry — but she doesn’t walk off the way she did after the “perhaps” conversation, and after a moment to regroup she’s back to direct eye contact. He’ll go along with her deflection, but only so far.

And when you do succeed, well, that’s when the fun begins.
Such confidence, and also a pointer to something that may be all in my head, but I think it hearkens back to the beanstalk and Lake Nostos, and we see it again in the finale: when he’s around Emma, Hook has fun. He was all smiles on that little side quest, and we didn’t see him that relaxed again for ages. Even when things are ludicrously dangerous, and even when she’s going after him with a sword, he enjoys being around her.

The next time we see the group together, Emma and Neal bring up the rear together. Hook’s up front with Tink, and he volunteers to stay behind with her and guard the Lost Boys.

Courtesy (“The New Neverland” )

This one I think is important because it follows on the Dark Hollow dumbassery and Emma’s laying-down of the law. Everyone in this story screws up once in a while; the important part is trying not to repeat it. He’ll let Neal screw up on his own.

Courage (“Going Home”)

This could seem like a freebie; even at the lowest point in his character arc, physical bravery has never been something he lacks. In this episode, however, Tink points out that the uses to which he’s putting it have changed. (It’s almost like they want to make sure we notice. Clumsy writing.) For the first time since Milah’s murder, he’s risking himself for constructive ends.

And then, of course, just when things are looking up, they have to say goodbye. She gives Neal a hug. Hook has been on the periphery — as he often is in a Storybrooke crowd — and approaches her. The writers do not go with an “I love you” there even though there is no other interpretation for what he does say. She does not at that point know that her own memories will be gone.

“Good.”

Chastity (“The Jolly Roger”)

This is the point in my original list where I started laughing and never stopped, because I’m pretty sure he can’t believe it either.

I’m convinced that Ariel surprised him so badly because he was busy thinking, Bloody hell Jones did you just do that what is wrong with you. What with curses and so forth, it’s been at least thirty years since the guy got laid, and here he is, moping over a woman he’s never going to see again.

Faith (“The Jolly Roger”, “New York City Serenade”)

Faith-as-religion is notably absent from the OUaT universe, but I think in context could be reframed as Hope. The first time around, Hook blew this test big time.

The surprising thing about this isn’t that he did it but that it didn’t really work. Killian takes things hard; always has. Hope kindled and then snuffed again in such a short time is rough. Denying even the existence of that light is tempting, and he denies the fuck out of it to Ariel, but for all that protesting, it’s not actually dead.

He doesn’t regret what he does here because of Emma — he has no reason to think he’ll ever see her again when it happens, and she still doesn’t know the specifics — but because it’s a betrayal of who he’s been trying to be. And he knows Ariel’s right even as she jumps off the ship.

That must have been a long nine months.

Fortunately, the plot sometimes gives us second chances, and this misstep is offset by him going to find Emma in New York. I have a game I like to play called, “How flocked would he have been if she hadn’t taken the potion?” and the answer is Pretty damn flocked. He is a resourceful guy, but not resourceful enough to operate in TLWM indefinitely with nothing but the contents of that satchel. In a fictional universe that rewards acts of blind optimism, going through that portal is a stand-out example.

Generosity (“New York City Serenade”)
Part of that leap of faith is what he had to give up in order to even make the attempt. Again, unforced action. Yes, he gets to see Emma again, but she won’t remember him, and even if she does, has made him no commitment. And again, there is no quid pro quo in effect here, because he never mentions it to her or to anyone else up until she directly asks.

This is the literal opposite of manipulative behavior. Manipulation would be telling her how much he’s done for her, trying to guilt her into staying, trying to bargain with her. Throughout 3b, she’s defensive and he’s unhappy, but at no point does he so much as insinuate that she owes him something, that she ought to stay for his sake.

I could go on. There have been errors along the way, and undoubtedly there will be more to come, because the writers like doing that. However, given that we are operating in a fairy tale world, I think he’s done all anyone can reasonably ask in terms of proving himself at this point.

That’s Done; Now What?

As said, being a decent human being is the entry requirement, which is why it is important that all of this happens before the present-day parts of 3b.

I also want to note that all of this season’s Storybrooke events happen in a short period of time. Seriously, this entire season takes what, a week and a half?

“New York City Serenade”

The scene in the restaurant has a couple of interesting bits. First, the fact that Hook opens with an apology which yes, is obviously not something he’s comfortable doing. Second, that even as she insists that’s he’s “a crazy person or a stalker” and threatens to punch him, Emma relaxes over the course of this conversation. She puts down her knife and sits back in her chair, a posture that communicates skepticism (while his leaning forward denotes earnestness, and also he has very neat handwriting) but not combat readiness.

I wonder if they’re going to find a way to continue working handcuffs into this relationship. Would probably mess with the PG rating.

Glancing ahead for a moment: “The only one who saves me is me.” Emma can’t be brought back to her true self without her own active participation. She is the one who makes the decision, who takes the chance with the potion. The conversation in her apartment sets the tone for the rest of the season’s frustrations and interruptions.

“There wasn’t anything for me in the Enchanted Forest. Why would I stay?” Leaning forward, sustained eye contact — obvious subtext is obvious: Would have stayed for you.

Emma’s glance moves around; she doesn’t reply, and he doesn’t push. On with the story, and Walsh shows up. She goes off to talk to her nearly-fiance, at which prospect Hook is the one who needs another drink. Right now.

“What I wanted, what I thought I could have, was not in the cards for the Savior.” As far as Emma can tell, the price of everyone else’s happy endings has to be her own. The guy she was in a serious relationship with for eight months turned out to be a monster with an unknown agenda; she’s been reduced to a pawn again. Just like in the Enchanted Forest, she feels like she can’t rely on her instincts. Everything that she didn’t like about her life has come hammering on her door, and she’s got a bad case of the I don’t wannas.

The way he’s leaning against the wall outside her apartment and then saunters in like he owns it… are you still drunk, Killian?

Back to Storybrooke, so many things are being done over — the town, the curse, lost memories. That flirty little touch of her hair with the hook reprises a moment in “Tallahassee.”

“The Tower”

Did they literally just cut from Regina telling Henry that he’ll have more family than he knows what to do with to Emma with Hook? Why yes they did. They’re walking through the woods, looking for signs of Zelena, Emma out front. Physically this is an unusual conversation because they’re so still. Emma pulls up and turns around once her lie detector goes off, and then neither of them moves at all for most of the scene.

“Yes. Okay? I was in love, so of course I was considering it. As usual, he wasn’t who he said he was, and I got my heart broken. That enough humor for you?”

There he looks down for a moment. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but I’m glad to hear that.”

“You’re glad to hear I had my heart broken?”

Now he moves in a step (he’s always the one to do that). “If it can be broken, it means it still works.”

She turns around and walks off.

Bloody hell, we are doing a reprise of 2a — with variations. This is the part where she cuffs him at Anton’s place because she doesn’t trust him, because she’s used to being betrayed.

There’s little tension, however, while they investigate Zelena’s place; on the contrary, they listen to each other’s sensible suggestions.

“Quiet Minds”

This one is of course mostly about Neal and Rumplestiltskin, but does include a notable moment of telepathy.

I would love to know what Hook and Belle talked about in the shop. I don’t think either one of them is capable of staying quiet for any length of time.

I also want to point out for the sake of keeping her state of mind in view — Emma has to kill Neal. Yes, he’s been “living” on borrowed time, and yes, he asks her to do it, but she’s the one who actually does the separation spell. This is not something that anyone can be expected to deal with easily, even if Neal had been a total stranger. And this is the second time she has had to tell Henry that his father is dead.

It is not unreasonable of Emma to want to leave all of this behind again and go back to a normal life.

“It’s Not Easy Being Green”

With Rumple captive and absent from the funeral, I suppose that Hook is the closest Neal ever had to other adult family. 🙁

One of the aspects of Hook’s characterization that still surprises me is that the guy is no kind of glory-hound. Maybe I just figured from “The Crocodile” that he was used to being the center of attention always and that he was going to end up taking over a lot. Didn’t happen. Last episode he got put on guard duty first for Belle and then for Neal; this time around he offers to literally baby-sit. It goes unremarked on-screen, but if he seems to be around a lot, it’s because he’s at least attempting to be useful, and as he points out in NYCS, “You’re the Savior, not me.” He doesn’t mind playing a supporting role, and he does want something to do.

He’s also so far into Emma’s personal space here that he has to lean out of the way when she throws another dart. She does not appear to mind. This is an intimate conversation without being about them. He feels a need to offer her advice about the utility of anger; she trusts him with Henry’s well-being, the most important thing in her world.

“The Jolly Roger”

Ah yes, the all-pain episode. First of all, “You know how much I abhor waiting” — who talks like that? Did you spend three centuries reading the dictionary out of sheer boredom? And oh, Smee. “What possible reasons do you have to stay?”

SO SUBTLE GUYS WOW.

“If you want to get close to me, you just need to ask. There’s no need to use the lad as an excuse.”

“Why am I not surprised you’re making this about you.”

I am, given that the last time he tried to, she up and walked away. She’s unsettled here; her gaze is all over the place, and she looks over her shoulder at Henry. She’s planning on leaving town after this.

Bloody hell, he steps right up to her again. “You can’t just pretend like this never happened. Trust me. I spent the last year trying to do just that. Return to the person I used to be, and it didn’t work.”

“Why? What happened over the last year that you’re not telling me?” Way to not acknowledge the issue in favor of the technicality.

“It matters not. Just take it from me, just this once, no matter how much you wish you could go back to your old life, you can’t.”

She looks down.

You could make a very large gifset of his unhappy expressions throughout this episode. But then we get this glorious flocking moment, people.

“And that makes it okay?!”

“No.”
No excuses, no rationalizations, no attempts to evade, and looking her straight in the eyes the whole time. Doing the hard thing not because it gets him something but because it’s the right thing to do, not to let her walk away grieving and wondering.

That Zelena can characterize this as self-serving underlines how little she understands people.

(It is interesting, though, that she is so wary of Emma that she goes through this very complicated strategy to remove the Savior from the board of play. And it says interesting things about how magic works. On the spot magic seems to be good for a certain limited range of physical effects. Curses almost seem to have a built-in degree of intelligent behavior. If you want to get creative or do something with a lasting effect, you need a curse.)

But there’s that confidence in Emma again. He thinks she can take on the Dark One (I’m certain that will happen someday; I’m looking forward to it, though I have the funny feeling that Killian will be bleeding and/or unconscious at the time).

“You’re out of your depth, pirate.”

Well, he’s used to that. And… did he just turn around and try to find Charming for advice? Because I think I might die.

Emma always looks so shocked when she thinks he’s done something nice. 🙁 But this is the second time in one day now that she extends toward him — first with the request to watch Henry, then the assumption — not an invitation, but as a matter of course — that he’ll be coming with them to Granny’s. Where there is an empty chair next to Emma and her arm is resting on it.

As we retrace 2a, this is him walking away from her with Cora, compromised.

“Bleeding Through”

“Where’s your sense of humor?” Now that’s he’s all of the sudden withdrawn, Emma notices something off. Same thing at Granny’s later — where they are alone, apparently, the place is closed, the two of them just… hanging out while she practices magic? What are you reading, Killian?

Normally, cheerful Emma brings out his flirty side; not now. It’s rare for him to snap at someone other than Smee (and “put up with Captain’s moods” is in Smee’s actual job description). He apologizes without looking at her and goes for the rum. Belle shows up before Emma can finish whatever she’s about to say to him.

“A Curious Thing”

Alas, the truth will out.

“Why haven’t you used those luscious lips and kissed Emma?”

“A fellow likes to be courted.”

Killian, I will be sad if you ever stop mouthing off to people who could kill you with a thought.

However. Trying to send Henry to New York? Bad call, not his call to make, panicky call. But going back to that freedom of action thing — both open courses of action carry risk, and what’s worse is that the potentially fatal consequences will fall on other people. Say what you like about Zelena, but she’s not a bad chess player.

And of course Emma, who had been loosening up a little with him, goes right back to trust no one mode.

“Kansas”

Emma’s still pissed.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to be here right now.”

She’s got a subtle motion away from him going while they talk at the hospital. The discussion ends with her turning around and walking off, to which he appears resigned until Charming intervenes. Nobody seems happy except Henry.

Whether or not Emma’s being entirely fair — and she’s not, I think, because manipulating her is the absolute last thing Hook has ever done — is beside the point; as far as she’s concerned, this is what happens every damn time. She starts to trust some guy, and then she finds out that they’re keeping some horrible secret, like being from a fairy-tale world or on a most wanted list, being a flying monkey or under a curse.

And now Henry has been put in danger, the one thing she will consistently not stand for. Back in S1 when she finally decided that Regina was dangerous, she planned to leave with him. At the start of 3.01 she states that she should have just done that; all of 3a was spent rescuing him from danger.

And then they left and everything really was fine for a whole year, even if that was based on illusion. So it does make sense that this is still her first instinct and that her defenses are firing a little preemptively.

I’m not sure if we’re supposed to find it as funny as I do that she is, in this instance, correct, and Hook probably shouldn’t have come along.

This is a classic “the many vs. the one” choice heroes are always put to, and she makes it the way they generally do — in faith that they’ll find a way to save both.

In our 2a parallel, we are at Lake Nostos. 1) They’re fighting. 2) Emma uses her magic to save the life of someone she… let’s go with “cares for” here, knowing the price she’ll pay. (I am not personally fussed about whether or not it was TLK. The idea that there should be some objectively verifiable means of demonstrating love or else it doesn’t count is appalling. She cared enough to save his life; he cared enough to be horrified by what she gave up to do it. That does look an awful lot like a curse-breaking shockwave though, doesn’t it?)

After everything seems to be over, she looks so happy — and with the crisis averted she’s done yelling at him — but she says I won’t need it in New York and walks off with a final look at him that I would categorize as challenging.

And he’s so painfully, hysterically at a loss for what to do here. You know this has never happened before. Milah fell hard for him almost on sight, and every other woman in his life has had an hourly rate. There’s been nothing like this. Emma asked him to come back to her, and now she’s going to leave, and he clearly won’t ask her to stay — either because he thinks she’ll say no, or because it wouldn’t be fair, or…?

Finale

Obviously, this entire two-episode thing is all them, so I’m going to be a little bit choosy here lest this post get even longer. The conversation scenes that bookend the finale are a continuation of the argument they were having before Zelena showed up, and they’re about Emma and her whole world, not specifically him. With the sound turned off, this looks like an earnest conversation between friends, not anything romantic. The moment that looks like it might change – Of course I care – she finds a handy distraction.

In terms of actual forward relationship motion, I think there are a few key moments.

First, the tavern scene, because I have to think Killian watched her and thought Bloody hell, it’s not me that’s the problem here. Physical attraction is still a thing.

Second, the ball. I really didn’t like this scene at first view, and I still think it went on longer than it needed to. But sheesh, just look at him. He’s having so much fun showing off for her, showing her an aspect of himself that she never suspected existed, one that he might not have had any use for since before Liam died, and not a rum bottle in sight. And Emma….

I suspect that she has denied herself a lot of things. She’s used to doing without, probably afraid to get used to having too much because she’ll just have to leave it behind. So she drives that old (stolen) car, and she’s got some nice clothes but nothing else by way of stuff. She’ll give herself little treats like whipped cream on her cocoa, but nothing big, nothing that might get taken away, nothing that might look like she’s taking more than she deserves. And she’ll fight for a modest kind of justice, a kind with a dollar amount attached. When Gold accuses her of having no imagination, well — she comes by her hard-headed ways honestly. Her entire life has been a lesson in the futility of dreams, of wanting anything at all. But for a few minutes here, she gets to to do that.

Only a few minutes, but for someone like Emma, with such hard strictures against self-indulgence, that’s not insignificant. She’s having fun, too — Emma, who skipped girls’ night out, who gets obsessed with her cases, who doesn’t really have any friends — and oh look who else is there. Has been there for a while now.

Third, Hook’s conversation with Charming. The only person he’s actually admitted his feelings to before this was, well, Zelena. He still doesn’t know how Emma feels, and at this point he seems almost ruefully resigned to that. If this is unrequited love, so be it; he’ll keep on going to the end of the world for her regardless.

Fourth, Snow’s “death” and return, because this? Is something 100% new for Emma Swan, who took the longest time to feel comfortable hugging her own child, this having someone to physically lean on in a moment of crisis.

Fifth and last, The Kiss. The moment where Emma turns her metaphorical ship around.

I did a separate post remarking on the body language early in this scene. He is bracing himself, entirely prepared for her Commitment Proximity Alert to go off, in which case he can laugh the whole ship thing off as no big deal — but he can only hold that for a couple of seconds.

Part of what makes this kiss great is that long breathless moment of is she going to run away.

Again, it’s on Emma’s initiative. This has none of the aggression or one-sided control that the Neverland kiss did, though. She’s the one leaning forward — way forward. There’s nothing tentative about her positioning, but it puts her off balance, makes her vulnerable. They both close their eyes. He feels confident about touching her this time, stroking her face as well as her hair, putting his arm around her. He leans back just a little, she follows, there’s that adorable break to breathe, and then finally he takes the lead a little when they resume kissing.

They look so contented and blissed out by each other that it’s almost unbearable.

And now? The fun begins.

https://www.tumblr.com/thisisevenharderthannamingablog/93248881817/captain-swan-a-journey

[surayya]

Just taking a moment to LMAO at the idea of a child saying “I believe” = Pan’s shadow demon thing turning up to snatch them away to NL ….. Shouldnt there be like a butt ton more kids in NL if that’s the case, I’d have thought the Island would have sunk under the weight of every boy who’s uttered “I believe” over the past 300-350 odd years lol 😛

[surayya]

LOL I never noticed Neal screaming before either! Funny!! Although in regards to Pan’s shadow, that was the shadown the inhabited the island before Pan decided to live there yeah? So it could be ‘his’ shadow in terms of being a pet shadow or something rather than his actual shadow he ripped off, a la Rumple.

Ah, yes very good point- I totally forgot about that. I think you are right.

[surayya]

Lol ellmo, yes it was wasnt it…. I totally cracked up when Neal screams as the arrow hits the wall right in front of his face- never noticed that before either (I usually FF all the EF 3A stuff lol)… also noticed Pan has his shadow when he meets Henry & flies etc… Then the significance of multiple shots of Hook’s reaction/relief to Emma being ok after she was brought back on deck- the only reactions we got to her survival were from Charming, Snow & Hook, the people who love her – no Regina 😉

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