Unpopular Opinions: Happily Ever After? Yeah, Right!

[october]

I hope in 5B she gets more material to work with, especially interacting with Cora or her Evil Queen victims.

I hope so too, but I think a big part of the problem is that the writers refuse to tackle the meaty issues with regards to Regina's character and relationships, so where else is there to go? Regina has plenty of screen-time, and Adam and Eddie think she's all that and a bag of chips. However, we get plots with her that lead nowhere satisfying because they seem reluctant to really test her and have her face her past crimes. Other characters aren't allowed to get or stay mad at her (even when they have every reason to be) and instead of purposefully facing her victims to make amends we have her blaming a book for her problems and talking shit about how Emma never had her back.

 

Her relationship with Robin could've been a great opportunity to dismantle Regina's massive wealth and class privilege for example, but instead we get Marian and then Zelena and then the pregnancy storyline that disgusted pretty much every corner of the fanbase. Even her relationship with Henry was insta-fixed with a TLK rather than through hard work on Regina's part to make amends for the years of abuse he suffered under her roof. Regina is never going to get a satisfying storyline until this show stops sucking at her teat and pretending she had it worse off than her victims.

[Free]

I hope so too, but I think a big part of the problem is that the writers refuse to tackle the meaty issues with regards to Regina's character and relationships, so where else is there to go? Regina has plenty of screen-time, and Adam and Eddie think she's all that and a bag of chips. However, we get plots with her that lead nowhere satisfying because they seem reluctant to really test her and have her face her past crimes. Other characters aren't allowed to get or stay mad at her (even when they have every reason to be) and instead of purposefully facing her victims to make amends we have her blaming a book for her problems and talking shit about how Emma never had her back.

 

Her relationship with Robin could've been a great opportunity to dismantle Regina's massive wealth and class privilege for example, but instead we get Marian and then Zelena and then the pregnancy storyline that disgusted pretty much every corner of the fanbase. Even her relationship with Henry was insta-fixed with a TLK rather than through hard work on Regina's part to make amends for the years of abuse he suffered under her roof. Regina is never going to get a satisfying storyline until this show stops sucking at her teat and pretending she had it worse off than her victims.

 

Robin was always a waste considering what they could've done with the character but never did, he's barely even Robin Hood at all at this point, just him and his bow/arrows and even then he doesn't actually do anything.

[Arnella]

 

This show should've been one season.

So much this Ikki!  I would still be wistfully thinking about Grumpy and Astrid, Bandit Snow and an interesting Charming, and periodically replaying a dvd of Skin Deep.  I'd still respect the writers as well...

[maryle]

I lost all interest in any hero Rumple with his last gimmick!

The minimum for this show to have some integrity is for him to stay at grey. Surely not having some kind of farytell ending with Belle and a baby this year.

But it is this show.... So Rumbelle will be together and Rumple will have a Last big hero moment and will be Rumple the White again!!

[Free]

I lost all interest in any hero Rumple with his last gimmick!

The minimum for this show to have some integrity is for him to stay at grey. Surely not having some kind of farytell ending with Belle and a baby this year.

But it is this show.... So Rumbelle will be together and Rumple will have a Last big hero moment and will be Rumple the White again!!

 

The show keeps trying to make him DO because otherwise they don't know what to do with him after Neal died and he was reunited with Belle.  See Snow/Charming/Belle/etc. to what happens to characters they're not interested in if they're not villains that have magic plot convenient reset at hand.

[DigitalCount]

So I guess my UO is that I'm more than happy to lay Neal's death at Zelena's feet. I've seen a lot of people question how much direct control she had over his actions, but for me it's like Firefly's YoSaffBridge; she may not have intentionally killed him, but she certainly put him in a position to die eas(il)y. She intended for him to die, set him up to die, and benefited greatly from his death which occurred in accordance with her plan. That's all I need.

[Amerilla]

I second your UO, DigitalCount. I think it's been so often repeated around here that Neal knew that he was walking into a trap and did it anyway that it's become forum gospel, but that really wasn't the way it played out.

 

Belle got Lumiere to confess that Zelena wanted them to "bring back the Dark One so she can control him with his dagger." That's it. The risk presented isn't to Neal or Belle, but to Rumpel, with Belle arguing that they need to find another way because Rumpel wouldn't want to return to "to be a slave to evil" and Neal arguing that Rumpel's "the king of loopholes" who would figure out a way to deal with Zelena. There were any number of reasons Zelena would want someone other than herself to open the vault that had nothing to do with a life-for-a-life curse. Zelena then saying 'I thought it was rather obvious" does not mean it was obvious, since she was the one controlling the flow of information.  

 

The plot point is still completely contrived, since it requires Zelena to know too much about Rumpel and Bae's history and to know how both Neal and Rumpel would react in the moment. There's nothing about the entire episode that holds up to too much scrutiny. But Zelena deliberately led Neal to that moment and put him in the position to be killed. Without her manipulations, Neal would probably not have tried to resurrect Rumpel and would arguably still be alive.

[KingOfHearts]

Despite its flaws, back in Season 2, I felt that almost every episode had some nice moments or a subplot that I really enjoyed. The number of these scenes for me have decreased in the recent seasons. Snow and Charming in particular have ceased to be actual people. They are treated as plot devices or exposition fairies. A&E&J will no doubt point to their screentime and number of centrics, but for me, they have been the biggest casualties of these later season.

Personally I don't think S2 gets enough credit. Most of it is miles above 3B, S4 and 5A. In some ways, I find it more enjoyable to watch than some S1 episodes. The character balance is usually on par, which I really can't say for what's happening nowadays. More importantly, the story is much closer to what the show is about and the "magic" is still there. It introduces new tales while following up on old ones. Overall it's much better this rewatch than I remembered it to be.

I'm not sure why it gets all the flack it does after all the crap that's happened since. It does have three major flaws - Woegina, the lack of Snowing/Emma payoff, and the Greg/Tamara plot. All of that comes into play in 2B, though. I don't see how 2A could have been any better in following S1. Everything just starts to fizzle after Emma and Snow come back, then after Cora leaves a bad episode or two becomes a bad arc. 2x17 and 2x18 are really awful, but 2x19-2x22 are pretty decent. However, it's the main plot (Greg/Tamara, the failsafe) that taints the individual quality of each of them.

Don't get me wrong - there is a lot to gripe about. The Cricket Game is my least favorite episode of the entire series and its in S2. But I still put a good portion of S2 above a lot of future arcs in terms of quality.

[Mari]

I know I expressed my dislike of the Hercules movie before, but I will say that I hated it.  I truly hated it. I found all the characters annoying, and have a giant, ranty list about all the things they got wrong--because it's worse than the hatchet job they usually do on the source material to cheerify it.

 

I fully recognize that Megara was arguably underdeveloped, and that Hercules (which should be Heracles, and Hera is not his mother) was arguably underutilized.

 

I don't care.  I'm glad they're gone, hopefully for the rest of the season.  We've got enough stars and guest stars to deal with, and it's better they're gone than we end up with another Merida situation.

[maryle]

It is Probably not a uo here but out there a lot of person see Snowing as boring and useless and it is correct that they are so underuse that these days mostly the only time we see Snow on screen is as personnal Regina cherleader.

But if we could see Snowing looking for their own parents grave and have real scene with their daughter and each others about their family pas like Regina got since the beginning of this arc we could appreciate Their Journey more and Emma's journey too.

I like Regina this season but I want to see all of them have this kind of emotionnal scene.

Maybe Snowing could meet her old nanny and Charming mother who died saving them

I would certainly loved it more than a random horse and I love horse.

[rainbowstickers]

That horse scene in "Devil's Due" was so out of place and was the most disjointed out of all of Regina's scenes in the episode. If she had recognized the horse as Rocinante (the one whose heart she attempted to sacrifice for the dark curse), maybe that would have made more sense. 

[YaddaYadda]

I thought Regina's scenes about her magic not working properly made no sense. I guess they cut a scene somewhere, probably in 5x13 when they had Emma poof herself, Regina and Meg to the loft. The whole my magic isn't working great came out of the left field.

[Mari]

I do not care whether or not Emma and Hook have had sex. If they have, oh, well. If they haven't, I assume at some point in their lives they will.

How much of fandom's concern with this is due to the show's soap operaish nature, and the random pregnancies they toss out into the storyline?

[KingOfHearts]

The epic love story they're trying to sell in S5 takes away a lot of the nuance for Captain Swan. I like how they were having a more realistic dating relationship against the backdrop of True Love fantasy in S3/S4. There you had Captain Hook dating this woman from the real world. Unlike Snowing, Rumpbelle or Outlaw Queen, they weren't pronounced soulmates from birth. They're original to the show and they've grown into a relationship through organic development. Even though you could tell they cared about each other, it was still casual and relatable.

 

In S5, the writers put them in extreme circumstances that stretch them to an unbelievable amount. I'd say its stilted, but their development was done so well that I do believe they love each as much as what is being portrayed. However, it has morphed into this big, dramatic fantasy romance like all the other couples. (Then scaled up x10) The more grounded characters don't get to neutralize the extra drama like they've done in the past. Emma hasn't been able to bring things down to earth and Hook hasn't been able to lighten the mood with flirting or snark. Meanwhile, everyone else is given heavy emotional things to do with their dead loved ones. I'm okay with Captain Swan being on ice for a while for angst, but it just keeps going relentlessly.

[YaddaYadda]

I don't know if it's necessarily an unpopular opinion, KingOfHearts. I miss some of the lightheartedness that Captain Swan had. But this show insists so much on not giving the characters or the couples any breathing room, that everything gets lost in the crisis of the moment, and the angst. Even as someone that enjoys angst a lot, I find that this season has been too much.

 

I find myself going back to 5x04 with the horse back riding, or the ball in 5x02 which still ended in a complete disaster. There have barely been any light moments this season. 

 

It's too much. I'm hoping for light moments in the UW, but the way things are looking, I doubt it's happening.

[KingOfHearts]

 

I don't know if it's necessarily an unpopular opinion, KingOfHearts. I miss some of the lightheartedness that Captain Swan had.

I believe there are some Captain Swan shippers who actually do appreciate the notch the couple has been taken up to. While I definitely ship it, it's for different reasons. It was mostly for the nuance and good quality writing. I'm afraid they've gotten sucked into the vortex of magical shenanigans.

[YaddaYadda]

I believe there are some Captain Swan shippers who actually do appreciate the notch the couple has been taken up to. While I definitely ship it, it's for different reasons. It was mostly for the nuance and good quality writing. I'm afraid they've gotten sucked into the vortex of magical shenanigans.

 

I'm not saying I don't appreciate it. I definitely like the implication of all of this, and what it all means for the couple. I like where Emma sees herself because as a character she truly has emotionally evolved since season 1. I love that they fight for each other. It's just gotten extremely heavy. I was glad when 5A was over. I felt as though I had ran a marathon. 

 

I'm here for all of it. It would be nice to go to bed on Sunday night not feeling as though I've been put through the wringer right alongside Emma and Hook.

 

I just want the writers to allow the characters and relationships to grow without having the sword of Damocles hanging over anyone's heads, you know. Growth for characters and couples outside of a crisis is a good thing too.

 

I did like that they tried to give them those moments the writers are so fond of talking about in the middle of mayhem. 

Edited March 26, 2016 by YaddaYadda

[Camera One]

These Writers can only write crises, so their characters only ever "grow" in a crisis.  And more often than not, they don't grow even in a crisis.  This is already considered "good" treatment, and it's only because A&E likes Emma and Hook.  Imagine if he disliked them, and they would get what the other characters on this show minus Regina, Rumple and Shiny Toys get dished.

[KingOfHearts]

A&E believe tragedy + peril = compelling story. As much as I care about these characters from precedent, they become more like robots when there's nothing but constant turmoil. How can I believe these are real people when we're never shown they live normal lives? Wouldn't they have nervous breakdowns from their lives always hanging in the balance?

Edited March 26, 2016 by KingOfHearts

[Rumsy4]

I agree A&E are drawing the angst out way too much wrt Hook/Emma. I'm at the point where I'm ignoring any anvils or hints about huge relationship moments. I definitely think they are endgame (as far as it is possible to state in a TV Show), but I don't expect even a TLK kiss this season. In fact, I could care less about it. Once the gang rescues Hook from the Underworld, the next crisis is going to hit. None of them have space to even take a breath. 

 

The relentless jumping from crisis to crisis is extremely wearying. Plus the writers keep adding more characters and babies into the show. Soon, the number of babies will get bigger than the main cast! Have any of these characters sat down to watch a movie together? Talked about books other than the Storybook? What are their favorite colors? It makes it hard to believe any of these relationships have the time to deepen. I can't even imagine what Snowing might talk about casually, and they are most long-standing couple in the Show. 

[rainbowstickers]

I do not care whether or not Emma and Hook have had sex. If they have, oh, well. If they haven't, I assume at some point in their lives they will.

How much of fandom's concern with this is due to the show's soap operaish nature, and the random pregnancies they toss out into the storyline?

Don't forget about the rumor floating around in some circles where people actually speculated Emma might be pregnant. LOL. 

[Writing Wrongs]

I do not care whether or not Emma and Hook have had sex. If they have, oh, well. If they haven't, I assume at some point in their lives they will.

How much of fandom's concern with this is due to the show's soap operaish nature, and the random pregnancies they toss out into the storyline?

I'm to the point where I don't care about Hook and Emma at all. I'm sick of everywhere I look about the show online, it's all about CaptainSwan. What is so great about them? I don't particularly "ship" any couples, but if I had to, I prefer Snow and Charming. I think they've earned some attention. 

[InsertWordHere]

I prefer Snow and Charming. I think they've earned some attention. 

Not from the writers, unfortunately. I'd love to talk about Snow and Charming, as they are the reason I got into this show in the first place, but their storyline this season hasn't really given us much to talk about other than to wonder why the writers decided not to have Snow and Charming interact with their daughter in Storybrooke for like 7 episodes. More recently, I do think Charming partly played along with Cruella as a response to finding out that James had kissed Snow. 

 

My unpopular opinion is that even if the writers didn't focus on CS, they still wouldn't focus on Snowing. There's always going to be some shiny new toy for the writers to play with. If I can't have Snowing, I would rather have CS over some shiny new toy. 

[Rumsy4]

 

More recently, I do think Charming partly played along with Cruella as a response to finding out that James had kissed Snow.

 

I think so too. Taking this to the Charming thread.

[KingOfHearts]

Just thought I would share some unpopular opinions I've bottled up for a while...

 

Regina is the best character on the show. She's deep, has so many complex characteristics, and has had the most dramatic difference from her character development. In a way, she's a role model for people who are evil but want to seek redemption. For nearly five seasons she has worked her butt off to discover her inner hero. Whenever she's kicked down, she gets right back up again. It's no wonder Zelena called her heart "resilient". Not only do we get a strong, independent female lead, but also a sexy wardrobe and delicious snark. The marketing department isn't stupid for making her the headliner. There's just so much appeal there.

 

Speaking of which, the way this show handles villains is unique and has a lot of nuance. Rumple's been on the show since day one and we've seen his humanity time and time again. He's not some two-dimensional mustache twirler. You can tell, deep inside, that Belle is his True Love. Another example of a cool villain is Zelena. Her monologues have so much gravitas and they make her so intimidating. But behind the crazy eyes, she's a hurting person in need of someone to love her. I hope some day she finds that, child or spouse, just like Rumple did.

 

On the other side of things, there's the heroes. Blech. Emma is their ring leader and she's unbelievably boring. She constantly whines about her womanizing boyfriend and her oh-so-hard job as Savior. Sure she's got a tragic backstory of being an orphan, but others like August grew up just fine. Maybe if she was abused by her own flesh and blood or saw her first love killed in front of her eyes, then maybe I'd buy her early life as harsh. But thank goodness Regina is there, who does have an actually sad past btw, to tell her to get over it. Emma is only 30 but Regina has decades and decades of wisdom and experiences. I'm so glad they're friends, even if it's one side pulling the weight.

 

But alas, Emma isn't the only (huge) problem on the "good" side. Hook used to be funny, but now he's just a glorified boy toy. He hogs the screen time, mistreats people, and somehow gets rewarded for it. It makes me sick. He gets a free pass to hero just because he's in love with a secondary character. Meanwhile Regina is still accused of being the Evil Queen, even after saving the day time and time again. Hook, I suppose, is only there to appeal to a certain demographic looking for hot males. I get that. But could the writers at least put a little effort into making him an actual character? They should stop giving him so many centrics if they can't do that. (They've proved they can't already.)

 

One last thing. 2B is amazing. We get to see moral grayness from Snow's black heart, Regina's first days in Storybrooke, Snow sparing Regina's life twice because she sees good in her, Regina's relationship with her mother, and Regina heroically saving the town. (That scene where Emma actually helps with her magic was the first budding of their friendship!) There's just so much good stuff in it, especially for Regina. I don't know why people don't like it, tbh.

 

Happy April Fools Day! ;)

Edited April 1, 2016 by KingOfHearts

[InsertWordHere]

KingOfHearts, I am really glad you were brave enough to reveal your true thoughts. It's encouraged me to share the unpopular opinion I have been keeping to myself for three years now. Selfless, Brave, and True is my all time favorite episode of this show. I could watch the magnificently-crafted Puppet!August all day, every day. He puts the CGI characters of movies like Planet of the Apes and Lord of the Rings to shame. I have to say that August is my all time favorite character and although I enjoy this episode I hate that shady Blue and Tamara conspired to keep him from his true love, Emma. Wooden Swan all the way! He may have ruined her life, but he's going to fix it by being smug and writing cryptic messages on his typewriter while hiding out in a camper in the woods!

 

Speaking of the typewriter, I adore the fact that the writers were brave enough to have August type "I know you're Baelfire" on a piece of paper in the typewriter that was kept in a box on the back of his motorcycle. Simply having him say it out loud would have completely ruined the emotional resonance of the best twist this show has ever produced!

 

On second thought, August is still my most disliked character and SBaT the worst episode ever.

[Camera One]

Well played, KingofHearts.  Bottled up indeed, LOL.

[Rumsy4]

Seeing you guys being brave enough to share your unpopular opinions gives me courage too. So, I am going to confess that I have always loved Belle. She is the embodiment of feminism and hope. However much her husband lies to her or treats her badly, she has stuck by Rumple through thick and thin. Unlike Milah, who ran away with a pirate and had the gall to tell Rumple she never loved him. Rumple may have abandoned their son, but Milah did it first. The fault was hers entirely. She deserved what she got.

Belle, on the other hand, supports her husband like Milah never could. She is the only one who sees the humanity within the Beast. And when Belle finds out Rumple is the Dark One again, she will be understanding. If she hadn't left Storybrooke, Rumple would have never taken back the Darkness. In a way, it was her fault for leaving Rumple alone and unsupported. I can't wait for their reunion episode when Rumple returns from the Underworld as a hero, having saved everyone's ass. There. Now, despise me if you dare!

[Curio]

You know, KingOfHearts, I've stumbled across a lot of blogs that have that exact same opinion, so I was buying it Hook (heh), line, and sinker for a few paragraphs. But saying that 2B was amazing gave it all away. ;)

[Selina K]

I'm just saying that when you're up on little sleep at 5 am and reading these things while having coffee, it is possible to wonder if you stumbled into an alternate universe or gone to the wrong site.

[profdanglais]

Well, I for one find your brave confessions genuinely inspiring, and I'd just like to say that I've always believed that Neal was Emma's true love, and that getting her pregnant when she was a teenager just proved how strong their love was. I mean, it wasn't his fault that he had to let her take the rap for his crime and leave her to give birth in jail alone. He had no choice! And then to come back for her years later, only to sacrifice himself for the good-hearted father he'd always loved and admired, well, it was truly heroic. It's such a shame that Emma has had to settle for the lukewarm, second-best relationship she has with Hook, but I guess beggars can't be choosers. 

[RadioGirl27]

KingOfHearts you scared me for a moment, lol! We don't celebrate April Fools Day in Spain (our equivalent day is in December) so I always forget about it.

Edited April 1, 2016 by RadioGirl27

[Shanna Marie]

You know, KingOfHearts, I've stumbled across a lot of blogs that have that exact same opinion

Yeah, I've seen a number of posts in various places that were almost word-for-word for most of this. It's almost like the way The Onion can't really cover this presidential campaign because the reality is more bizarre than anything they can come up with in satire.

[maryle]

I know some people do not want talking animal into the show.

My UO is that what the show need something bold like that.

 I saw Jungle  Book and now I totally believe it is possible (for a mini arc 3 episode at most) to have talking animal and be believable and  fun.

So I want the heroes team (CS  adventure will be even better it been so long)  be obligate to go in that Jungle to go searching for something useful to help for the Jekill arc and meet some animal from the movie and Mowgli and why not Tarzan and Jeanne.

I think it can help the rating if doing correctly, not last long and be integrated into the overall plot.

[Curio]

I actually don't mind Merida and Dorothy as characters. I think it's a good thing to show different personalities of women in fiction and media, and that includes grumpy, cynical, and sometimes rough-around-the-edges women. There can be this unrealistic goal where all women need to be likable and soft, and if they aren't, then they're automatically a bitch. There's a wide range of personalities women can have, and as a sarcastic, not-always-cheerful woman, it's nice to see more of that type on screen. Granted, I do think there's a large range of personalities the writers are missing the mark on in the middle of the scale between optimistic women like Snow and straight-up-bitchy women like Regina. The writers tend to shoot for one side or the other, and very few Emma types fall in the middle. 

Edited April 19, 2016 by Curio

[HoodlumSheep]

I also didn't mind Dorothy too much. She wasn't the worst. I think Merida is more bearable when she's interacting with Macintosh. But I blame tumblr for those shippy thoughts sneaking into my mind.

Edited April 19, 2016 by HoodlumSheep

[myril]

I actually don't mind Merida and Dorothy as characters. I think it's a good thing to show different personalities of women in fiction and media, and that includes grumpy, cynical, and sometimes rough-around-the-edges women. 

 

There with you. Remember how people complained about Emma at first, and even more about JMO's acting, calling it wooden. I for one am quite glad that we get recently more edgy women on screen, be it Jessica Jones or Wynonna Earp and here Dorothy, but I have a thing for Noir film and I always wished to see more of those classical Noir types being genderswapped to mix up things, for new stories. Wonder if for many things really got too dark so there were looking for something more bubbly, but then again remembered what people said about Frozen Anna.

 

I like Dorothy. From what they gave us about her story on the show would say, she has some right to be angry at life and everyone. And many wanted to see Ruby with Frankenstein, and that was some angry at life, dark, broody guy, a prick, a piece of work.

[Camera One]

I'll reply in recurring characters.

[Mathius]

I had no problem with Cora going to Heaven, and even thought it was perfectly logical for in-story reasons.

 

Also, the angry need some people have to see her burn in Hell creeps me out and makes me question their moral standing.

Edited April 25, 2016 by Mathius

[Rumsy4]

I think your personal biases may be preventing you from looking at other opinions objectively. At the end of the day, Cora is not real, but the posters in this forum are. When it comes to the point questioning the moral standards of posters, it's time to agree to disagree and move on.

[Mathius]

I apologize if I came on too strong, and I don't mean to insult or offend anyone here.  It's just a personal peeve of mine: fictional or not, when someone is hoping for another's destruction and calling it "justice", then I am creeped out by that mentality.  Some of the worst acts in human history have been labeled "justice" by the people who committed them. Heck, in the fictional context of OUAT, Regina's much-maligned (and understandably so) vendetta against Snow was viewed by her as seeking "justice" for Daniel, but her viewing it that way didn't make it true.  IMO, it's a similar case with Cora.

 

I'm anti-capital punishment and anti-afterlife damnation, I just can't see any justice in it.

Edited April 25, 2016 by Mathius

[maryle]

 the following is my unpopular opinion so here I go!

I am beginning to hate the way everyone buy the its the CS show even CS fans who always say how much CS fans are lucky with the screen time they got.

Because I think it is false  I mean no way CS or even Emma for that matter had more screen time in this half.  I am sure Zades had more scene. And even 5a I remembered saw that the screen time was not that bigger from the others. And that is suppose the big Emma and CS arc. I though that the final will have some pay off for the Emma and CS angs all season long but that not looking this way.

Regina seem to have a big role and the final and I do consider last year final been big for her and OQ but, nothing really significant for Emma seem to be coming in the final if not more guilty feeling.

So where is the big favouritism for Emma (  the protagonist) and CS  when looking rationnally I do not see any in fact, I believe Emma is not as well care for as she should by the writer.

[Camera One]

It's all relative.  Of course, A&E love Regina, Rumple and Very Special Villain Guests more.  But CS has consistently gotten more better developed, gradual relationship building, and more emotional character moments than other main cast members or relationships.  So to me, CS fans are definitely luckier than say, Robin Hood fans, or Snow/Charming/Emma fans, or Emma/Henry fans, or Belle-as-an-individual fans, or Mythology and Fairy Tale fans, or Granny/Blue/Cinderella/Aurora/Mulan/Red/Neal/Will/etc. fans.  The Writers have definitely g***** CS as well (and I can see how it would be very frustrating to read on Tumblr or Twitter where fandoms attack each other), but it's also important to remember there are less outspoken fans out there who have fewer "gifts" per episode/season than a CS fan.

Edited May 8, 2016 by Camera One

[Mathius]

I agree, which is why I admittedly feel somewhat uneasy when I see my fellow CS fans complaining about when CS gets g***** out of something (most recently, a proposal/engagement - supposedly, anyway), since it comes off as ungrateful given how much CS has already, and it's way too easy for the anti-CS factions to take advantage of that.  Lets not be like Regina and appreciate what we have, damn it!

Edited May 8, 2016 by Mathius

[YaddaYadda]

It's kind of easy to fall into that pattern of complaining when there are spoilers, and headcanon, and whatever else. But no, I agree that a few steps back need to be taken, and deep breaths need to be taken. Lucky as hell to ship CS because of the writing they've gotten so far which is more than I can say about a whole bunch of relationships that have been left twisting in the wind.

[Curio]

I'd say CS shippers had a right to complain after the 4A finale and 4B, but Emma and Hook have had it pretty damn good in Season 5 in both storytelling and milestones.

[OnceUponAJen]

Since I am 100% CS, I've been loving Season 5.  I don't care so much about a proposal at this point. I just want them to keep moving forward together. I like the slow but steady story progression that they've gotten. If I hadn't been persuaded by their story and their chemistry together, then I wouldn't have bought into the relationship. That's been my problem with some of the other couples on the show.

[TheGreenKnight]

Probably a big one: I'm more interested in what happens with Zelena and Regina next season than Hook and Emma. I enjoyed the fact that Hook and Emma were pretty central to the entire season, but I'll be glad if they take a backseat for a while now.

[Mathius]

Greg Germann was mostly great as Hades.  The whispering could get annoying, yeah, but I bought the kind of character they were going for.

Not sure how unpopular this is, but I've seen him get a lot of flak lately, and I don't think it's deserved.

Edited May 9, 2016 by Mathius

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58 minutes ago, TheGreenKnight said:

Probably a big one: I'm more interested in what happens with Zelena and Regina next season than Hook and Emma. I enjoyed the fact that Hook and Emma were pretty central to the entire season, but I'll be glad if they take a backseat for a while now.

Although I wouldn't want it to be permanent, my unpopular opinion is that I have often enjoyed the times Emma and Hook took a backseat more than when they have been front and center. They got some really nice quiet moments in 4B, and perhaps that actually prevented them from being involved in some of the least pleasing aspects of that arc.