Board Thread:Rant and Rave/@comment-31592902-20170630182255/@comment-25926288-20170630185146

I believe we had a thread like this before...so, we'd likely get the same answers.

First, I'd like to say that age difference is a trivial, shallow detail in your inquiry. Not to discredit your perspective, but I find it pretty lacking to discuss appearance when people are centuries old in this show and it comes down to beauty, which is only skin deep. XD Plus, Rumple and Belle are as far apart as Hook and Emma, like a 150ish years.

I'd say that the relationship has a few problems:

1. Rumple does nothing, Belle sees the good in him.

2. Rumple does bad, Belle "knew" there was no man behind the beast.

3. Rumple does good, he gets pretty much little to nothing out of it.

Beyond the writers' insistence on making him the backup villain for every arc, Rumple's been given a short stick on the side of luck. Belle shifts, as the writers shift, on how she sees Rumple. Likewise, Rumple goes as far as whichever writer writes him. Like Adam and Eddy can say, "Rumple hasn't crossed the line...yet" when in their episodes, he's more reflective, and in others', threatening Belle, left and right. So, I'll give you the show's perspective and my own.

"How the show wants you to see things"

No. Rumple is drawn to the darkness, but Belle keeps him from going in deeper. He's failed time and time again, but the love that others have for him keeps him safe. Belle sees her imperfections as they grow together, through this tough time. Both have had their faults, and both have made it through.

"My perspective"

Like nearly every relationship/romance on the show, pretty much so. Look at a major couple, Hook and Emma, Snow and David, etc, and they have one dominant person who does whatever while their significant other cheerleads on the sideline and causes angst.