Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-25926288-20160816180823/@comment-24674051-20160817181031

I would say that, prior to the casting of the curse, most of Rumple's actions were not so much 'evil' as much as just 'self-serving'. Ok, he killed a few soldiers that were trying to take Bae to the Ogre's war, but then again David killed a few soldiers to protect Emma before he stuffed her in the wardrobe. And Rumple did have a penchant, at least early on, for killing anyone that hurt Bae, or was a potential threat to himself.

Why David, Snow, and everyone else all of a sudden (right before the curse) decided that Rumple was a danger to be dealt with is actually a mystery, other than his deal to take Ella's firstborn, and of course the ever famous plot monster. Of course, they may have figured out that if Rumple could help them, he could (and would) just as easily help their enemies if it suited his purposes, so they got smart(er) and decided to imprison him so that they could try (and fail) to control who gets to visit with him. Which, as we now know, just served to have him right where he wanted to be.

They go to Gold now because he is still powerful, he's family, and there are certain things for which he is the only answer (such as opening a way into the UW, or obtaining some artifact that is part of his collection). They don't seek his help as often now as they did previously, though. And I did not see where they forgave him for what happened in 5A. their paths barely crossed in the UW, and when they did, I felt it was more they accepted his presence because he helped them get to the UW and was stuck in the same predicament as they were. I'm pretty sure Zelena has NOT forgiven him for anything, and I'd be surprised if Killian has either.

Oh, and the Plot Monster, with his henchman Red Herring, still seem to want to try and attack SB.