Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-3486995-20131124234755/@comment-25926288-20150207122547

I might be on some lone island, but I actually like Milah. I think Milah, even in her strained relationship, was more of a match for Rumple. Funny enough though, Milah and Belle have some similarities. Both are adventurous, want to explore the world and stuff. When their relationship was at the start (in Manhattan), they seemed like a great couple and even Milah apologized after the bar scene when they went home. Just like Milah and somewhat Belle, she was trapped by societal pressure. She likely faced a lot of stuff we weren't shown and she was even the one who begged Rumple not to join the war. She simply crumbled under pressure and allowed emotions cloud her judgment. I'm also sure Milah would have returned for Balefire. It's not like she controlled where the ship would go. She simply asked Rumple to move, which he attempted to dissuade her. Why not? It may be hard, but it would have been a bit more helpful.

Milah was almost an equal, Cora was a bit more than an equal, and Belle is definitely less of an equal.

Belle does stand up for herself towards others, though several times looks a bit foolish (what was she going to do to Zelena? talk her out of it), but not often enough towards Rumple. She left Rumple and pretty much came beck to him in the same episode, or two. She is constantly played with by Rumple. Rumple tells her what to do, she listens and constantly spouts about seeing the good in him. She almost, to me, became a gloried cheerleader.

What hurts her the most (besides lack of screentime) is that Rumple doesn't view her as highly as some think. Belle is like a flicker of light, while Baelfire is like his sun. He was almost fooled by shadow-Belle which toward the end wasn't like Belle at all. Belle is like his conscience, a small voice in him that he frequently ignores.

Milah knew the original and coward Rumple, share a son, and his longest relationship yet (at least 10-15 years). Cora connected well with his dark side and even was an equal to him, in that brief moment (a couple of months to a year) Belle sees what she wants to see, a version of Rumple that he, himself doesn't see. Rumple sees Belle as a moral center and someone who shouldn't love him. (2 years max) Truly not that long, a couple of months at the dark castle, which most wasn't even a relationship. Thought she was dead until the end of the curse, then separated for a bit, then amnesia hit, then went to Neverland, then died, then was a slave to Zelena, then false proposal and marriage for a couple of weeks, now separated. When you look at it, you can see one reason their relationship didn't last long, because its brevity.