Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-25896389-20150509042358/@comment-24674051-20150514185641

Eskaver wrote: ChocolatEyes613 wrote: Hmcooper4 wrote: Yes, I agree that the limp is a symbolic thing. Another symbol of a past mistake. I would suggest that if Rumple is truly being given a second chance, maybe that should include the mistakes he made before he became the Dark One. Breaking his leg, did not cause Rumple to become the Dark One.... killing Zoso did. OUaT already did a similar storyline, during 4.04, when Hook got his hand back. The moral of the story was the same, one needs to learn to accept their past mistakes and grow. Agreed. Rumple's limp is a reminder of not only his cowardice, but also the sacrifice he made to be with his son. One of the very, very few sacrifices he made in his life.

Plus, Rumple knows how to wield a sword, almost even better than Hook and Charming. He just uses magic because it's his crutch and then he could stand up do bullies without paying a price.

Think if it as being bullied most of your life and having a bad childhood, but living thru it day by day, then you have the power to change that. Given the powerful magic of the Dark One and immortality, he could no longer be bullied and ended up turning into a bully himself. Hook bullied Rumple and then Rumple became a vicious bully towards Hook when he had the power to stand against him.

I understand if he doesn't want to change because....his life has been crap towards the most recent part. His son died and now everyone expected him to be happy because he married Belle. What logic is that? To me it ended up at 3b being Bae > Power/Self >> Belle. That hasn't changed and Rumple still believes that Belle could never love him. Tragic, but she needs to leave.

Rumple's redemption is pretty much to me really nothing. Every good thing he does is undone by the wrong he does.I actually consider none of the villains truly and efectively redeemed.

Rumple, obvious, Regina started this season wanting to kill Marian and then wanted to change the book. Now, she's satisfied for now and still almost gave into the darkness by wiping Zelena off existence (I believe she was actually going to do that before Zelena reminded her of Cora.) Hook hasn't done anything besides stop being a pirate....um, okay. Ingrid went a bit emotional and killed herself. Cora realized what she had as she was dying. Malcolm cared to some degree, but him above all else. Ursula didn't really do anything. Cruella was a sociopath. Maleficent was casually evil at best and still burned people alive. Lily is going with Mal to be a "scary dragon bitch." Even Snow and David aren't redeemed from Darkening and dropping Lily. Doing good things or acting as a hero isn't a test of redemption, but reforming can occur when we see how they react to certain situations. First off, let me just say that I am enjoying this debate. :)

I agree that breaking his leg did not lead to him becoming the dark one. However, it was still a mistake that he made, and a costly one at that. However, I don't think I would go so far as to call it a sacrifice. The act was still very self serving. He was selfishly thinking of himself (and maybe bae just a little), rather than what good he could have done on the Battle Field. Because he chickened out, someone else was fighting where he should have been, and quite likely died, leaving some other family without a father.

What Emma did, that was sacrifice. She did it for Regina, and the rest of the people, to protect them from the Darkness. That may be the first time in the history of the Dark one that someone willingly accepted the curse without seeking the power (Emma did not want it, nor did she need it).

As for doing a similar story in 4.04, I will respectfully disagree with that as well. Hook went looking to have his hand back, for purely selfish reasons, and with questionable methods. Gold took advantage of the situation, gave him the hand, but played with his mind. The motives here were self-centered.

What I am suggesting is Regina giving Rumple a gift, no strings attached, no expectation of anything in return, just one person showing respect to another person. Now, I will say that Regina probably would not do it without asking. And maybe the better scene is Regina offering to heal Rumple, and Rumple politely refusing, for the reasons stated above (It is a reminder of his past and his mistakes).

Now, I will agree that just doing good things is not a test of redemption. A person that has been redeemed is (hopefully) going to change, and their lives will bear the fruit of that change, which is seen, as you pointed out, by their actions.