30 Days of OUAT - Day 9: Best Dressed

Day 9 - Best Dressed

That honor goes to Neal Cassidy - though it was a hard decision. Most everyone dresses well in this show. Which I don't know how the curse knew to give them all designer duds, or how a drifter turned whatever he is now who has a trashy apartment can own the clothes Neal does... but still. There's not much this guy can't wear that doesn't look good. Even as the thief in Tallahassee, Neal's outfits never miss (his hair on the other hand definitely needed work... thankfully the Neal we all come to know and most love has a better look in that regard lol).

I love how Neal's style is comfort. Other than when he's just the "mystery man" in a suit and tie, he's normally running around in a sweater or hoodie. And his coat/sweater combos are always great. Ha ha. This prompt makes me feel silly. I feel like I should be talking about the character or the actor, not his clothes. But really the clothes do say a lot about his character. His appearance isn't the important thing about what he wears, it's about comfort. That they're stylish on him is just an added bonus.

When Neal is cursed back to his homeland at the end of Season 3a/beginning of 3b, we get to see what adult Baelfire's wardrobe looks like. And again it's pretty practical/comfortable. It took me a while to get into the whole Enchanted Forest costume, it seemed rather bulky, but once it was actually in a scene and not just stills it worked. Neal is back to the earth-tones that we saw on young Baelfire when he was living there.

I guess I should learn how to do what they do on tumblr and do those nifty little gif sets because obviously Neal's had more than two outfits (unlike his main rival for Emma's heart, Captain Hook ha ha). The blue/grey shirt he wore for most of Season 3a is probably my favorite look on him, even if it was soiled and bloody from being shot and worn for days on end all the while fighting off lost boys and traipsing through the Enchanted Forest, grabbing onto Pan's shadow, oh and hiking through Neverland. Just another day's work for Nealfire I suppose.

And, because I can, one of my favorite scenes in that shirt - where Neal confronts his father about the prophecy and Rumple's plans for Henry... best part is when Rumple calls him Baelfire and Neal balks shouting "It's Neal!" It's why I hope that this supposed reboot of the past that Zelena (though we're thinking Rumple is really going to pull it off) wants to cast is unsuccessful. Neal does not want to go back to the boy he once was - he even says as much to Rumple in Season 2: "14? I don't want to be 14 again are you insane?!... forget who I am? no thank you." While it would be great to see father and son reunited for good, I don't want it to be another reboot like what happened with August/Pinocchio. Anyway, I leave you with the scene from "Nasty Habits". Rest in Peace, Neal Cassidy... and thank you, Michael Raymond-James for being such an amazing actor. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE find a happy go lucky role, I just need to see you happy and alive in one show/movie... just once. It's all I ask!




Oh, and honorable mentions go to Prince Charming and Jefferson. Charming'd have gotten it if they weren't so obsessed with the fur capes and stuff. They are getting ridiculous! And Jefferson would've probably won out had it not been for my Neal obsession. Not going to lie. That and his Wonderland outfit is a little whackadoodle.

30 Days of OUAT - Day 8: Favorite Location

Day 8: Favorite Location

I'm probably cheating here, they probably want something more specific, but I can't narrow it down further. I love the Enchanted Forest. Every scene has so much to it. I could actually just go with a show that was in the EF and nowhere else. No Storybrooke, Neverland, Wonderland... I mean those places are nice, but I don't need them. Just tell me these stories with their twists.

Then again without the other realms we wouldn't have all the wonderful characters that we do/did. But, truly most all of the characters start in the EF... or end up there at least for a time.

And I love every corner of it. From the hovels, to the farms. The Kingdoms, the Castles... and the forest itself. So many stories, so many scenes... it will be interesting to see the Season 3 finale with the "reboot" and what that means for the EF - and its characters.

30 Days of OUAT - Day 7: Favorite Action/Intense Moment

Day 7 - Favorite Action/Intense Moment

So I've had a heck of a time deciding how to answer this one. There are so many intense moments, and the action moments I'm either saving or have already used (ones that I enjoyed anyway). I tried finding an action scene of Charming's that would work... but nada.

One of the ones that kept coming to mind, though, was the scene where Baelfire confronts Captain Hook on the Jolly Roger about his mother. Bae is rescued by Hook when he reaches Neverland (having given his life so that the Darling children would not be taken). Hook grows attached to the boy after finding out the boy's name - he's the son of his lost love... and his most hated enemy. Originally he planned to use the boy to find the Dark One's weakness, but soon realized revenge was not so important.

Problems arose when Bae finds a drawing of his mother on the Captain's Desk. He takes after Hook with his cutlass and Hook confesses that he is the man who stole Bae's mother. Bae has been told and believes that a pirate killed his mother, and Hook tells him the truth, that it was Bae's father Rumpelstiltskin who did the deed. Baelfire tells Hook he wants to go back to the Darlings, when Hook says that isn't possible, Bae demands to be let off the ship and that he'd fend for himself as he always has.

This sets up the explanation as to how Neal knows Hook and all about the ship sailing which we learn earlier in season 2. It also sets up perfectly how their relationship will work in Season 3... first with Neal holding on to grudges of the past... and then letting go and trusting the man in what would turn out to be his final moments. Yup, I'm still on that Neal kick. Probably always will be. Thank you, Michael Raymond-James... you've officially turned me into one of THOSE types of fans.

For most "Nealfire" fans, it seems these days they're out to hate on Hook. That's mainly due to the fact that the man is quickly winning Emma and Henry's heart and most Nealfire fans are very anti that relationship. While I don't really enjoy the idea of Bae's "stepfather" getting involved with Bae's "true love" I absolutely love the complicated relationship of "Nealfire" and Captain Hook. It's more than just rivals, it's more than just family. These two have a history that gives them a bond that is not only believable but advances the emotions of the story. Sure, when Hook goes off with the rest to save Henry he's doing it for Emma - but he's also doing it for the memory of Baelfire. When Emma reveals that Henry's father has died, Hook asks who his father is, and is shocked to learn it's "Baelfire". The revelation brings him back to the moment when he let Bae go, and gives him over to the Lost Boys. An utter betrayal that apparently haunts the man. He sets to make things right in memory of the boy he once looked after.

Fast forward to Neal making his way back to Neverland after being saved from death by a few characters in the Enchanted Forest and suddenly Hook's less sentimental. Now Neal is just Neal in the eyes of the pirate, and they spend most of their time fighting over who should get Emma. Things don't really get better when they get back to Storybrooke - though Hook does offer to step aside and "let" Neal have Emma for the "sake of the boy". Neal never truly gets a chance to take him up on that offer. Emma's too preoccupied with the fact that something feels "off" about Henry (she's right, he's really Pan trapped in Henry's body) and she's confused about her feelings on the two men. Then Regina has to save everyone from a reboot of the curse (thanks to Pan) and so began the long hiatus of the show while they filmed the second half of the season...

... and we all know where I'm going with this. Neal doesn't make it back (or does he?) to Storybrooke when yet another dark curse is cast. Emma, getting her memories back thanks to Hook, asks for several episodes where Neal is and worries he's been turned into a Flying Monkey (if he's alive at all). When Neal is found they rush him to the hospital where Hook and Neal have one final - and extremely touching - scene in which Hook finally acknowledges that Neal and Bae are the same person and that they spent far too long fighting over stupid things in the last year. Hook supposedly has no clue that Neal is a walking dead man at this point, but either he's not telling the whole story, or the writers just wanted to really make sure we knew Neal was toast. It was closure, and it was sweet... and it makes the flashbacks of Hook and Bae all that more tragic.

30 days of OUAT - Day 6: Favorite Romantic Moment

I'm finally over the worst of whatever bug I had. I actually have most of my voice today - though I took advantage of that and talked too much and now I'm hoarse again. But it's a start. I've been rewatching a lot of Once and other tv shows while being laid up. And this weekend I had the house to myself and so I took full advantage of having the living room tv and watched everything on Hulu. Which meant a lot of re-grieving over the loss of Baelfire/Neal. It's pathetic, I know, as it's *just* a tv show, but I'm hooked on the story of Nealfire... and I am bumming hard that Michael Raymond-James is not going to be on my tv every week any time soon (though I did love the tragic scene they gave us of Neal this weekend).

Day 6 - Favorite Romantic Moment

I don't find a lot of the characters to be all that romantic. I don't buy into the whole CaptainSwan thing - though when Hook first came into the picture I thought it would be an interesting twist. Then Season 3 happened with Neal fighting for Henry and I no longer wanted Emma with anyone (that includes Neal). I don't find either Hook or Neal all that romantic, though they try, they're adorable and they have their moments but nothing really screams "romance" to me (I'm one of the few Nealfire fans that doesn't find much of anything to enjoy about the episode Tallahassee. I know, I'm weird).

I'm also not a fan of the whole "Rumbelle" couple. There's just way too much creepy about it. I love the twist on Beauty & the Beast/Rumpelstiltskin, don't get me wrong... but it's still just... creepy. It could be that he's scaly in some of the scenes, but mainly it's the whole "she's younger than your son" thing that really gets me. (This is becoming one of the reasons that I don't like the Hook and Emma thing, yes physically he is close in age... but he once played father to the tween who would become the father of Emma's child. Not to mention that he was once "married" to Henry's grandmother!) I don't find Rumpel all that romantic, though he is nostalgic/sentimental. And Belle is just all over the map for me. (And I'm still mad at her for not fighting harder to save Neal, basically because she wanted her loverboy back. Grrr.)

Phillip and Aurora could have some very romantic moments if they'd let us see them more often (they are my favorite fairytale couple most times, just not when it's Once Upon A Time). Regina and Robin Hood are quickly becoming a great couple, but I'm not seeing much romance - well, except when she gives him her heart... and then this past weekend's scene where Robin tells her to share his (which then mirrors a scene of "Snowing" later in the episode).

But if there is one couple that screams not just TRUE LOVE but romantic, to me anyway, it's definitely Snow White and Prince Charming. They have so many great romantic moments and I've come up with one that is at least in my top 3 moments, if not the best one. I love that Charming is a picture of sacrifice - for the greater good, love, family. This scene is one from Season 1 episode 16. In the episode Snow White has taken one of Rumpel's potions that helps her forget Charming (she made a deal with King George to spare Charming's life by promising to tell Charming she didn't love him/couldn't marry him. To cure her broken heart, she takes the potion to forget him).

Charming spends a lot of time trying to convince her (after finding her once again - after all, he will ALWAYS find her) that she once loved him. She tells him words mean nothing, she wants action/proof. Later we see Snow getting ready to kill the Queen (the memory potion apparently turns Snow into a caring person into a cold hearted/jaded woman), and just as she shoots the arrow someone jumps in front and is the one hit by the arrow.

This is where I find the romance. It seems odd, probably, but as Snow White begins to freak out on him for ruining her chance to kill the queen Charming confesses that he loves her and that she once loved him. That he was going to prove to her that he loved her. That he would die for her so that her heart would not turn dark. This surprises our memory loss friend, and she looks at the prince in a "new" light. After searching his face, she gives him a kiss and suddenly her memory's back and the duo is truly reunited.



I don't know if it's just because I love Kevin Costner's Robin Hood film with the whole "I'd die for you" theme that is the reason I LOVE this scene... or if I'm just a sucker for that kind of theme in general. I just absolutely love this scene and I've watched it a dozen or so times just tonight as I was trying to decide which scene to choose.

And while I'm at it, can I just say that Josh Dallas is perfect as Prince Charming. They could not have found a better actor for the role. And he does dying/injured really really well. I mean we see him sacrifice himself a lot (probably why I was kinda thinking that David would be the one to die in Quiet Minds instead of Neal... even though I KNEW in my heart it'd be Neal that died). Josh is just incredibly convincing. It's those eyes. Those beautiful blue eyes.

It's no wonder Ginny fell for him. Ha ha. That just makes this couple even sweeter! It's "real life"!

I have to do one honorable mention. It's from the newest Once episode (3x19). And, yes, it's once again Snowing having a tragically romantic storyline. We found out this week that it was Snow White who cast the dark curse that brought the crew back to Storybrooke. They found out they need Emma to defeat the Wicked Witch, and the only way to get back to the land without magic was to recast the curse. In order to do that, the spell caster has to give up the heart of the one she loves most. Charming tells Snow that she needs to cast the spell at all costs, and offers up his heart. After a bit of discussion he convinces her. Regina takes his heart and gives it to Snow - who crushes it! I will admit I cried. Seriously season 3 sucks! ha ha! It's been nothing but sadness all the way through!



Season 3b definitely has a great storyline going, but I dislike how dark this whole season has been. And, I'm seriously never going to be able to get over it at the rate this is going. I have friends making fun of me on how personal I'm taking some of this stuff. Especially since Charming basically gets to cheat death with the whole splitting/sharing of Snow's heart. It's a beautiful picture and all, but dang it! If they could figure out a way to keep him alive they should've also used a loophole to save Neal (see how I keep going back to that. I really need help)!

I can't believe it's 1am already. I have been on a weird sleep schedule since being sick all last week. Slept so much that my body can't seem to shutdown at night these days. Ugh. I'll do another blog post tomorrow night (well, tonight, now) I need to catch up anyway.

30 days of OUAT - Day 5: Favorite Villain

Day 5 - Favorite Villain

Just for the record - having the flu sucks. Today is the first day since Sunday that I felt like sitting up for any good amount of time, and I'm still feeling crappy. But, I'm upright, and it's been bugging me that I've let my blog slide yet again (I know, I really have no life). Hopefully I'm alive and kicking for the weekend, or it's going to be a waste as I actually have the house to myself. At least it will be quiet.

Anyway back to the prompt, favorite villain on Once. I think this character is everyone's favorite - and if he isn't they're lying. Rumpelstiltskin makes this show - and not just because he's the author of the original curse. Robert Carlyle is a star, his strengths as an actor helped him create a truly creepy and complex character. Whether he's a sniveling cowardly father, the scaly "crocodile" of the "Dark One", or the ruthless shopkeeper Mr. Gold - you just want to love to hate him.

He's also a sympathetic character, even though you really don't want him to be. You feel for his plight to find his son Baelfire (Neal Cassidy), the loss of his wife to a pirate - heck, in some ways you feel like Belle believing he does have a glimmer of good left in him. Sure, watching Belle and Scaly Rumpel make-out is creepy, heck any of the women kissing him when he's in any form seems creepy, but there's still a part of you that is happy that he's found someone to believe in him no matter what (so much so that you can *almost* get over the fact that his new fling is younger than his son).

He is so quotable as well - especially when he is his Fairytale persona. I can't seem to stop "singing" his latest ditty "You feed the madness and it feeds on you" and "all the voices in my head will be silent when I'm... dead." And, really, who doesn't find themself quoting "all magic comes at a price." Robbie C's Rumpel is absolute perfection. He's every bit as terrifying as the original Grimm's villains - or Walt Disney's classic villains.

His current arc is definitely interesting, with Zelena holding him captive he's not truly seen grieving the loss of his son (this time for sure is final), but I don't expect the writers to give us any more than what they already have in that regard. Still, once Rumpel finds a way to enact revenge, I'd want to be far away when it happens. It's going to be amazing. (and if it ISN'T amazing then I'm going to be disappointed lol)


Honorable mention needs a shout out - and that goes to Captain Hook (Killian Jones). I think Colin O'Donaghue is quite possibly one of the best actors on the show. (He's definitely in my top three with Robert Carlyle and Michael Raymond-James). Hook has grown weak in season 3 for me, all the pining after Emma Swan has made the character a little too lovesick and far too little in ruthlessness. It's disappointing because he was so deliciously evil in season 2. Not that I don't think he shouldn't redeem himself, but there has to be some sort of middle ground, doesn't there? I'm also just not a fan of him ended up with Emma as I don't see that storyline fitting as much as people want it to (in all fairness I don't really want her with Neal Cassidy either - which considering what happened in Quiet Minds we don't have to worry about that). Still there's a lot to love about the man in pirate eyeliner (so yummy).

30 Days of OUAT - Day 4: Favorite Character Possessing Magical Qualities

Day 4 - Favorite Character Possessing Magical Qualities

Since tomorrow is "favorite villain" I had to choose a secondary character from Season 1 (and the very beginning of Season 2), whom I've already gushed about a little bit. I am not a fan of most of the magical characters on the show - the fairies, for the most part, are extremely disappointing (Blue I'm pretty sure is the mastermind of all the evil EVER, though). Tinkerbell is pretty cool, but she's also pretty unmagical ha ha.

I'm also not a fan of most of the villains on the show (nothing against the actors, I just don't like them... Maleficent is the most disappointing of all in every single way, though). So I couldn't choose my second choice of a villain because I really don't have more than one favorite.

And really, all along I was going to choose Jefferson. His magic may or may not come from his hat, but I think he counts. His story is most intriguing, and while they managed to close his story arc before he left the show for Captain America, he's got a lot left unsaid. I've always been curious to know what he meant by saying that magic and the hat is what cost Grace her mother - and he definitely blames himself for the loss. I wanted more flashbacks with his character. He brought humor in the EF flashbacks that were typically pretty dark, and he's handsome as all get out!

And, yes, it's another "Daddy's Girl" storyline. That he is reunited with his daughter in the second season is the perfect happy ending, but how they lost each other is so sweet and yet sad. Hat Trick in Season 1 told that story so perfectly and made him a very sympathetic "bad guy".

30 Days of OUAT - Day 3: Favorite Fairytale Male Character

 Day 3 - Favorite Fairytale Male Character

This was hard because I love so many of the male characters in this series. Each have a tragic tale that I easily buy into. And most of them are Dads, and being a Daddy's Girl, that's the easiest way to get me to connect to the character. Plus most of them are fairly attractive. Makes it easy to get obsessed with a lot of them.

But none really grabs my attention like Charming. It's partially Josh Dallas's good looks and deep voice, but mainly it's the story. From his finding out he has a twin brother, to his psychotic "adoptive father", to his courting of Snow White... and of course his giving up his child to give her "her best chance." The scene where he puts his daughter in the wardrobe before he "dies" in the pilot has always been one of my favorite scenes. It's so tragic and yet hopeful.

Charming is the ultimate "good guy". He is always on the path of right/justice. It's what gets him into trouble with his "father" King George, and ultimately what wins Snow White's heart. He's just an all around good guy that you don't mind bringing home to meet the parents. I prefer Charming to David in Storybrooke by miles! Not that I don't think David's flaws make him more realistic, I just think Charming does a whole lot better and is more comfortable in the Enchanted Forest.

30 Days of OUAT - Day 2: Favorite Female Fairytale Character

Day Two - Favorite Female Fairytale Character

This was supposed to be posted two-ish days ago, but my internet whacked out and it took our provider two days to get out and fix it (the modem went belly up). I was so bummed because I was excited to do my blog posts (I know, my life is sad, right? LOL). But then I went to write this one tonight and realized I don't even know who my favorite is. It's been a long time since we've seen a whole lot of the fairytale backstories, and I haven't rewatched Season 1 in a super long time. I was originally going to go with Snow White, because the OUAT version is by far superior to any other take on Snow White ever. But I'm not a fan of Mary Margaret, and really the "new Snow" of Season 3 isn't my cup of tea either.

So that left me searching, and I keep coming back to Red. I've loved Megan Ory's portrayal since the beginning, and I LOVE the character's overall storyline. It's tragic and yet triumphant. Since this is ONLY talking about fairytale characters, I guess it was just harder to go with one since their EF characters are only part/half of them any more. So off to youtube I went to rewatch some of Red's season 1 scenes. She totally owns the EF. She's every bit as much compassionate and strong as her BFF Snow, and she isn't a *princess* but is certainly just as regal.

Plus she ate her boyfriend who was Peter from "Peter and the Wolf" - the twists in her story are freaking amazing. She's Red Riding Hood, the Wolf from Peter and the Wolf... and I bet if they wanted they could put her in as Rose Red.

Her costume is awesome, she's beautiful... and she's as loyal a best friend as any girl could want. IF I could play a part in this show... I'd probably want to be Red (though her Ruby counterpart would be a little beyond me lol).

30 Days of OUAT - Day 1: Favorite Episode

Day One - Favorite Episode

After Season 3's "Quiet Minds" episode I've gone back and watched Season 2. It was a much "happier" time in Storybrooke where Henry meets his father and begins a seemingly good relationship. Much better than Henry having lost his memory and his dad (ala Quiet Minds). I'm still not over it. It was probably one of the best acted and written episodes of the series, but I'm still not happy about it from a character standpoint (and while I say it was the best, that really doesn't mean it was "perfect" in how it was done... it should've arced into a second episode. It was a tad rushed).

One of the things I love about Once is how they manage to tell very real stories about fathers. So often in fairytales the parents are used as very little backstory and it's the teens or children that are the heroes who are all alone (due to death or abandoment). Once dives into that in many of the stories, be it David (Prince Charming) and Emma, Rumpelstiltskin and Baelfire (Neal), Regina (Evil Queen) and Henry (her father not her adopted son), or Neal (Baelfire) and Henry.

One of my favorite "tragic" father child stories is that of Jefferson (Mad Hatter) and his daughter Grace (Paige). We find out about their story in season 1, but their "happy ending" happens in Season 2 Episode 3's "Lady of the Lake". It's been my favorite episode since my first viewing (until recently, it's now tied with another which I will list a little later). Jefferson is such an underrated character, and while I'm happy for the actor to have found "bigger and better" things in his career I wish they'd pop him into a flashback or *something*. The Mad Hatter is such an interesting character!





Since my rewatching of Season 2, I recently rediscovered the gem of Episode 14 of Season 2 titled "Manhatten". It's where Mr. Gold and Emma realize that Henry's father is also the long lost Baelfire. The reason for the curse. Before season 3 I was like many who just didn't care much for Neal. He was a great dad, but he left Emma to take his punishment for being a thief and yadda yadda yadda. Hindsight being what it is - and knowing more now than what we did then - the rewatching made Neal's character far more likeable. Also - as time has gone on, I've come to really appreciate what the actor (Michael Raymond-James) brings to the character. I will miss this storyline and hope that there's some way to bring the character back for a final round of closure (Henry needs this) or even to just complete the storyline. The fangirl inside me wants them to use one of their loopholes (there are several that I can find) to bring him back next season or even the season after, but I doubt that will actually happen. Which makes me even sadder.

Anyway in "Manhatten" we get a lot of what Oncers call "feels" between the reuniting of Baelfire with Rumple to Henry walking in and revealing he's Neal's son... especially now that we know the full story of "Baelfire/Neal" it's such an important and sad part of the story. But it was well laid out and well acted. It truly showcases that natural acting style of MRJ, and all of the actors have a good chemistry between them. Makes me wish they'd waited another season before they killed him off (I mean if they *had* to kill him off).



I honestly was not a Neal Fan until Season 3, now I'm totally smitten. Darn you Adam and Eddie! Bring him back! (I know, I know... it's "too late"...)

There are a lot of honorable mentions. For me what makes me love an episode in this show is when an actor (or more than one) really shows what they're made of. Colin O'Donohue (Capt. Hook) did that this week in "Jolly Roger" (though most of the episode was hokey).

Once Upon A Time - I was bored

So I am just awful at posting a blog. Time for one of those 30 day challenge of prompts... with a theme...

That theme being: ABC's Once Upon A Time. I shouldn't like this show, the writing is a mess and the dialogue is incredibly corny but I love the characters and the concept (the leading men aren't too hard on the eyes either, am I right ladies?)

Anyway, I'm going to play along and do this thirty day "challenge" to blog about my favorite moments and yadda yadda yadda...

Because I can, and I will... and I'm still 151 days till Disneyland which means I'm 90+ days from getting to book ADRs and other fun things.... me no like to wait.

Next post will have my first day answer. :)