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Nobody is contesting the fact that Henry is a child and that children can’t really be held to the same expectations as adults. But being a child doesn’t make you blameless. Children can and do make mistakes, and Henry has made several- and that isn’t by accident, the writers have chosen for that to happen because it is a part of their story. However, I don’t think it’s beyond the realm of expectation to say that he needs to be called out on his behavior (perhaps by one of the adults who care about him so much, except they’re all wrapped up in their own things) otherwise he’s never going to learn from his mistakes. This isn’t hate, this is just a hope that a character will change and grow, especially in a show that is full of people who are constantly learning and developing. Being a kid isn’t a free pass to do whatever and not learn from it.
Henry isn’t a real kid, obviously. He is a child character the writers have created within their story. So it’s probably about time that they had him learn a few things. We aren’t talking about real people, so when I say something like “I wish that Whale would do ____,” or “I hate that Ruby decided to ____”, it’s not quite the same as if I was talking about real people. What I’m really saying is “If this had been a real person I would have been disappointed if they behaved that way” and “I would have made other choices, there were other options” and even “I don’t agree with the way the writers handled this character, I think this was a missed opportunity”. This is why we are in a “which characters” thread, not a “which people” thread. We all know that these characters (as real and wonderful as they seem to us at times) are tools the creators and writers are using to tell a story, but it’s interesting to discuss how they are being used and whether we think it’s effective.
[adrotate group="5"]"Nothing is easier than to denounce the evildoer; nothing is more difficult than to understand him."
I don’t hate Henry, but I think the comparison to Scrappy Doo is apt.Although Scrappy was a later addition that did nothing for his show, so maybe it’s not quite accurate.
That being said- I know that children are often inconsistent in the way that they act and I’m not saying that a kid can’t have the capacity for cruelty, but Henry has been a very particular and single minded individual. He has lived and breathed nothing else besides the pursuit of goodness, whether it be breaking a curse or uniting a family. He vehemently rejects the notion of his family even *talking* about doing something he thinks is un hero-like. So it seems unfair by his standards (even though he is a child and even though he is often manipulated by adults) for him to be so…wishy washy with Regina. You’re very right, PriceofMagic, he needs to let Regina know where she stands.
Edit: Just want to double clarify, I just think of this as character/behavior critique, not hate. Every person has room to improve and grow, especially children. Maybe we’ll see Henry come to realize that he hasn’t been be best “good guy” he could be.
"Nothing is easier than to denounce the evildoer; nothing is more difficult than to understand him."
Well, if that was the case it might have done her well to have disguised herself a little more while talking to Belle. Not that Rumple needed any kind of description to jump to the conclusion that it was Regina who told Belle about true love’s kiss, but even if Belle had said “The old woman told me” or “the man I met on the road” it would have 1)Possibly made a slight dent in Rumple’s conclusion that it was a trap and 2)put responsibility off of Regina so he would have been more likely to deal with her readily in the future. Still, I think it’s safe to assume that after a few months (if we are to assume that the “promising” maid was indeed Belle) Regina could only manage fabulous highlights.
But I think it’s sort of okay that shape-shifting magic is more difficult because it tends to be a higher level skill (often employed by trickster types) in fairy tales. Plus, it is a… subtle art. (And not without limitations- in general it is impossible to change the look of your eyes) and subtlety isn’t exactly Regina’s strong suit. (Maybe her strong suit is.. hearts! Ahahaha…. I’ll stop now.) I don’t think that it’s a skill that requires more power, but more… finesse.
"Nothing is easier than to denounce the evildoer; nothing is more difficult than to understand him."
Maybe it’s because they have the tiger by the tail? The Charmings & Co think they have a handle on the situation, but it’s far more dangerous than they realize.
tiara_rose: It took me a minute but then I had a “oh. ahaha. ha. ha.” moment.
"Nothing is easier than to denounce the evildoer; nothing is more difficult than to understand him."
The things that gets me about Henry in S2 has sort of been lampshaded by Gold. People have judged her (perhaps rightfully) very harshly for slipping back in to magic use etc and not making good on her efforts to change her ways. However, even I (an admitted Gold fan with a take-it-or-leave-it opinion of Regina) was *shocked* at the way the characters reacted after the portal incident.
Regina and Gold combine magic to block the portal, which would have killed Emma and Snow. Regina’s actions open the portal, save their lives and allow the family to be reunited. When Emma lands, Henry runs to give her a hug and immediately prepares to leave with her. I know that he missed her. I know that they risked a lot to contact them. However he looks at Regina with surprise that she might expect anything in return (genuine thanks, a hug, an “I love you”) and there isn’t even a moment where he (or anyone else) seems to think maybe he should give her the time of day.
After everything, people judge Regina very harshly for using magic, but Gold all but escapes judgement! Emma more or less tells him, “Well, I understand, and it’s *you* and that’s more or less what we expect”. She’s not even angry for a moment. Talk about a karma houdini! It’s really no wonder that Regina tries to hard to exact revenge on him later in the show.
It’s sort of hard to distinguish is this just character-turned-plot-device or are the writers really just trying to make us feel for Regina. I think it’s the latter since Gold goes ahead and says “One day they might invite you to dinner”, so I think that all of this is a very conscious decision. I don’t think that the good guys really gave Regina much of a chance in this situation. It’s no wonder that even when she knew what Cora was doing and how she was manipulating the family Charming she still sided with her mother. She’d already had unprompted evidence of how they would behave, so learning the murder was staged etc didn’t really change anything.
Geez Henry, throw the lady a bone!
"Nothing is easier than to denounce the evildoer; nothing is more difficult than to understand him."
RG- The “rock star” bit is the cutest thing I’ve read all day. Ugh. That’s adorable. Pardon me while I contemplate this to a point of understanding…
… okay, better. I think that between having 250+ years of life experience and Seer abilities, there’s not a lot Rumple did at that point in his… career that wasn’t planned. No offense to Cinderella and Snow but he’s outsmarted people far more clever than they.
Phee- Heck, maybe it was *the* tree? (Is that within Storybrooke grounds?) Maybe that’s just a hot spot for baby drops. (Actually, I don’t think we have any reason to believe anywhere near there.)
"Nothing is easier than to denounce the evildoer; nothing is more difficult than to understand him."
…Oh my glob. I had not put 2 and 2 together on the highlights! That is so perfect!
"Nothing is easier than to denounce the evildoer; nothing is more difficult than to understand him."
Well, for what it’s worth the internet does seem to work within Storybrooke. This is how Henry was able to find Emma in the first place. I’m not saying Gold went to fatedchildren.net and picked out a boy, but it does stand to reason that even if the outside world doesn’t come to Storybrooke (and nobody leaves) there is some amount of communication. Now, people can wander onto the map of Storybrooke, yes? Say into some of the forests- they just don’t see the town? Or if someone tried to walk across the town line would they be blown back? (I think maybe it’s implied that they just don’t see the town? Like it’s hidden from their views?) So I guess a possible (but needlessly complicated) possibility is Gold played it all shady. Made contact with someone who had access to children and had them “make a drop” out in the woods, pick up their cash and go. Then he went and retrieved Henry? (Aw, I just had a sort of cute thought of Gold spending an hour or two with baby Henry before he takes him to Regina. D’awwww.)
The thing that gets me really pondering is how a town like Storybrooke exists without imports from outside the town. Do they grow all their own food? Was the curse just magically replenishing the stores in Granny’s restaurant over the 28 years so it seemed like no time passed? Does that mean that they’re running low on supplies now that the curse is broken? Cue post-apocalyptic scenario!
Edit: One of my pet theories (honestly, I’m like the crazy cat lady of pet theories) is Rumple was the Pied Piper in FTL. XD I just think he’d look cool in that cloak.
"Nothing is easier than to denounce the evildoer; nothing is more difficult than to understand him."
Hello, hello and welcome! 😀
"Nothing is easier than to denounce the evildoer; nothing is more difficult than to understand him."
