LizaD

Well that's because some of the viewers thought this was a Hook and Emma couple story and the end point of the story was to see how the couple went through this event together. It wasn't. I'm not saying that's not a fair or obvious expectation but.... like I said above they don't get couple stories. Hook and Emma's "character" arcs for 4A both effectively ended in Smash the Mirror and they had almost the same arc to boot, one of self-doubt. Hook boasted to Rump that he was a changed man but clearly he didn't completely believe that. The phone call he made to Emma proved that he did change. End of story. And right after that he became Rump's instrument literally and figuratively as an instrument to Rump's story. Emma's ended at the door with Elsa. Then she went on to service Frozen crew. If they were written as a soapy couple, all that would've yielded relationship drama, not personal drama. That's why the writers saw no need for Emma to get the phone call and no need for Hook to talk Emma down from the door. Those 2 things got the individuals to where they needed to be, not where the couple needed to be. And that's why they got nada with the stolen heart thing. On the flip side we saw how Rumple's story was framed. The end point was to get to Rumbelle's breakup. We never saw Rump angsting over his PTSD or whatever the hell the writers claimed. Rump is clearly the big cheese in Rumbelle but every single one of his actions was framed "how will this affect his relationship with Belle." They didn't bother exploring Rump's psyche because they were too busy worrying about his epic relationship. Everyone from Ingrid to Emma to Hook was always Rumbelle, Rumbelle, Rumbelle. Same with Outlaw Queen. Every plot was to get the couple where they needed to be, apart and struggling to get back together. And yes other people had to play plot point to those 2 couples to move them into place.

Well that's the key, FurryFurry, Once is a soap. Soaps aren't known for good writing, characterization or plot, people. But from that POV it becomes clear that in actuality the writers only care about Rumbelle, OutlawQueen and Snowing of S1. There's your classic soap couples right there, with classic soap problems. They stopped caring about Snowing as soon as they were happy. Happy means no story in soap land. Soap couples story IS the struggle to be together, not actually being together. Hook and Emma don't have a couple story. They have a personal story. I think the writers said as much recently when they said Hook and Emma's problems aren't relationship variety but personal. To be honest, since soap dramas for couples suck major balls, that's a good thing. The bad thing is these writers suck period so the character stories are equally tedious and lacking. However I still think they fare the best by virtue of the writers not caring about them as a couple. I see complaints about the support thing so maybe the couple suffers but Hook the character benefits. He doesn't need his hand to be held by Emma. He gets through crap on his own without a personal cheerleader. The cursed lips story was dumb as hell but the point was he felt guilty about Ariel on his own not because Emma guilt-tripped him and tried to make amends on his own. That's better than having Henry give him a lecture about what makes a hero or Belle telling him he has a good heart. It also allows Hook a character arc, albeit not a very good one, in a way that Charming, Belle and Hood don't. Emma's not holding his hand and making grand declarations but I still think they're equal than most. Not in the typical romantic way you think of but in context of their characters so it's more likely by accident than design. Hook doesn't need emotional support per se. What he needs/want are tangible and specific things and Emma's given it to him. And most of the time, he doesn't need to tell her, she knows.He didn't want to be alone anymore and Emma offered him the chance to join their community in the S2 finale. In S3 he didn't want to be judged and seen as a no good pirate anymore and Emma kept thanking him and called him a hero in the finale. He wanted her trust and she's given that to him. He wanted a normal date and she asked him out. He was insecure about his hook and she didn't even notice the reattached hand. The most important thing is we know what he wants. We didn't even know what Belle wanted from Rump until last episode, for him to anoint her as his Chosen One and he's not giving her that yet. Does anyone know Hood wants from Woegina besides crypt sex? What about Charming? What does he want that Snow's fulfilled besides being together?