Episode Discussion 1x12: Skin Deep

[jadestrick.livejournal.com]

Episode Discussion 1x12: Skin Deep

After Mr. Gold's house is robbed, Emma keeps a close eye on him when it looks like he wants to track down the criminal and dole out some vigilante justice as payback, and Valentine's Day finds Mary Margaret, Ruby and Ashley having a girls' night out. Meanwhile, in the fairytale land that was, Belle agrees to a fateful deal to give up her freedom in order to save her town from the horrors of the Ogre war.

Mod note: Please remember that all spoilers in this episode have to be under a cut with a spoiler warning until one week from tonight!  This includes new characters and graphics previews!  Thanks and yay new episode!

Comments

[primreceded.livejournal.com]

Her accent, I can't.

[pwalkeri.livejournal.com]

I agree!! Every time she talked it threw me off.

[amarra-jade.livejournal.com]

IKR? Why did she have an English accent when no one else in the fairytale world does?

[litlover12.livejournal.com]

She did a great job portraying Belle, except for that unfortunate accent.

[malana.livejournal.com]

"Just an old woman selling flowers"

Hahahahah!

That was an awesome call to the fairy tale, especially considering all the changes they've made.

[malana.livejournal.com]

Man, what is EQ's angle here?

EDIT: Ah, that makes sense. Break the curse and he loses his power.

[veracity]

Banish true love and he gets to live in misery, too. That's her revenge - to know that he'll never get to be happy as he holds so much power.

[veracity]

"What kind of message is that?" Ha. I loved that line since it's always bothered me.

[malana.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that made me smile.

[malana.livejournal.com]

Woah. That Gold & Regina scene...woah. I wasn't expecting that plot development until the season finale.

[veracity]

Right? Me either. This showdown is going to be so good for the rest of the season.

[malana.livejournal.com]

"A certain mermaid"

Gah! Yes, please. Soon, please please please.

[zippytheavenger.livejournal.com]

+1

[malana.livejournal.com]

I was just about to ask if people thought EQ was lying about Belle's death, but I guess that question has been answered now.

So. Freaking. Awesome.

[veracity]

Regina better beware. He hasn't forgotten in either form, that he's completely filled with vengeance.

I wonder how many people Regina has locked up in various places. (And why did that janitor look like Snape?)

Does anyone else think the Snow White and Charming thing is going a bit slow, dragging?

[madwitch58.livejournal.com]

he reminded of Chief from On Flew Over the Cuckoo's nest. my husband loved the scene where Gaston appeared at Rumple's door to use force to get Bell back and Rumple turned him into a rose. the story was well written and very well acted. especially on the part of Mr. Carlyle. i think things are only going to get far more interesting from here.

[pwalkeri.livejournal.com]

I knew he remembered :D

I like this episode more than I thought I would! And I've realized that even if someone died in fairytale land, they end up still being alive in the real world. Which leads me to wonder where Gaston is!

[oldandnewfirm.livejournal.com]

People who died in FTL didn't transfer over to Storybrooke. The Queen was lying when she told Rumple that Belle had jumped from the tower. It's doubtful that Belle made it back to her father's home at all; more than likely the Queen nabbed her as she was leaving Rumple's estate.

[malana.livejournal.com]

So, all in all, I think this was my favorite episode of the season so far. Yeah, they took a hell of a lot of liberties with the story, but I dug it. I mean, one of my favorite parts of the Hansel and Gretel thing was that they didn't make i into their father abandoning them because of an evil stepmother. There were lots of fun little nods to the classic tellings of the story, and the depth that it adds to Rumpel's character is really interesting.

Frankly, I've had enough of episodes where the fairy tales are very insulated from the main characters and storylines. Hansel and Gretel, Cinderella....they come and do their thing and then pretty much disappear into the background. So I liked that this one both brought in a new character/fairy tale, but tied into the long term story line as well.

[airolf.livejournal.com]

THIS! My favorite ep by far. But also because I like Rumple!

[wake-the-dragon.livejournal.com]

I was a little nervous about this one because Beauty and the Beast is my favorite Disney movie but I really liked this episode.

I liked how he got rid of Gaston, the Chip reference, and the Ariel reference. I'm also glad they've finally confirmed that Gold does remember being Rumpelstilstikn; I always suspected he did but I'm glad they confirmed it.

Do you think Belle remembers? Also, I wonder how many people Regina has locked down there.

[chloris.livejournal.com]

Ha. I've thought he remembered everything from the second episode at least. Maybe even the first when he gave such emphasis to Emma's name. It's good to have proof!

What I want to know is what the Queen did to Belle (because I'm not buying the story she gave to Rumpel even for a minute) and how she found out about the cup.

Excellent episode and I seriously loved how they did their version of Beauty and Beast. Power vs. Love. A tragedy now but maybe happiness in the future? And there is going to be hell to pay once Rumpel finds out.

[wake-the-dragon.livejournal.com]

What I want to know is what the Queen did to Belle (because I'm not buying the story she gave to Rumpel even for a minute) and how she found out about the cup.


I think part of the story could be true (the part where her father and the townspeople rejected her), but everything else she told him was BS.

Personally, I think she must have kidnapped Belle very soon after Rumple told her to leave.

[hughville.livejournal.com]

Everything I have suspected about Gold was confirmed in this episode. With each episode this show just gets better and better. It's good to see the writers getting more comfortable with exploring the characters.

[zippytheavenger.livejournal.com]

My thoughts, they are many:

-GAME OF THORNS HAHAHAHAHAHAHA. This makes me want to come up with flower-based puns for the whole ASoIaF series. A Clash of Kingsleaf! A Storm of Sunflowers! A Feast for Chrysanthemums! A Dance with Snapdragons!
-I want to party with Ruby.
-I do not want to party with Mary Margaret and Ashleigh, cause they are mopey as hell. And did you notice when MM winced after sipping her martini? Who in the hell can't handle a martini? That's just pitiful.
-I absolutely love how Belle flat out admitted that she went with Skinny because she was just jumping at the chance to play the hero.
-Gaaah, fucking Disney references. I guess I'm just going to have to try and stomach them as best as I can. But if the mermaid is named Ariel and has red hair and a little crab sidekick, I'm going to start chucking bricks at somebody.
-That said, I do like the scene where Belle is freaking out over the teacup and Skinny just stares at her like, "It's just a cup, chill your tits."
-I don't know about this retcon of Beauty and the Beast. It is pretty much that exact same story I've read a hundred times in period romance novels (yeah I read romance novels shut up) where the Magic Hoo-Ha goes to work for Mighty Wang as his governess or housekeeper or some shit and they have sexual tension for 500 pages. You know, Jane Eyre, but stupid.
-As is my wont, I must gush a minute about Skinny's costumes. LOVE the new coat, LOVE the gold shirt/red waistcoat combo, slighty iffy about the black leather pants. Some madman put leather pants on Rumpelstiltskin. What.
-I laughed so hard at the beginning when Gaston was all, " YOU CAN'T HAVE HER SHE IS ENGAGED TO ME" and Skinny is all, "lol housework"
-I want to go live in Casa Rumpelstiltskin. It'll be awesome, we'll quip and banter and I bet he parties twice as hard as Ruby. My life will be fabulous.
- Skinny's evil laugh sounds like someone wearing golf cleats dancing in a bucket of rubber duckies...in a good way!
-I think it's pretty neat how Belle's attempt to 'cure' Skinny blew up in her face. The whole 'I love him, so I can change him!' element of a lot of romances irks the living hell out of me. In real life a bad guy is very unlikely to turn into a good guy no matter what a special snowflake you are or how much you wuv him. Here Belle makes that fatal mistake of assuming that Skinny even wants to change, and that it's up to her to do it, and as a result Skinny goes on a rampage and everything turns to shit. That's what happens when you assume things, Belle.
-Watching Skinny&Gold go completely bananas with the screaming and the raging and the hitting with sticks...was pretty much the highlight of my week.
-A close second was Emma being so amused at having Gold behind bars, and carrying on pretty much like a kid taunting a zoo animal. Please let there be many, many more scenes of them bantering in the Sheriff's office.
-I liked Mary Margaret laying down the law on David and telling him to go home to his wife. You go, Mary Margaret. I still won't ever drink with you.
-"I've got my truck, let's go for a ride before my break ends." You know he meant that literally. lol, this show.
-Mermaid?! Yes! Soon! Please! DON'T FUCK IT UP.
-We've already had our Emma/Regina fight, now I wanna see Gold fight Regina. Come on, she totally has it coming.
-Wasn't it nice of the people at the asylum to provide Belle with lipstick?

[sweetkitten0417.livejournal.com]

Just had to say... I freakin LOVE everything you said. You have a great sense of humor and I was thinking a lot of the same things through the episode. LOL you call him Skinny haha. YES I would totally love to live in his castle too, that would be.... amazing. Also the whole Jail/Emma-Gold-banter was the BEST, I want more of THOSE scenes. Also I liked how he said when he asks her for a favor it will be much more then a sandwich. I was chuckling, and the whole "bring me back a cone?" I really don't want to wait another week for the next episode!!

[maddarilke.livejournal.com]

I loved everything about this ep, obviously, but one thing really bothered me, and my explanation for it doesn't seem to satisfy me.

WHY DIDN'T GOLD JUST SAY PLEASE WHEN HE WANTED HIS CUP BACK FROM REGINA???

She obviously obeyed every other request preceded with "please."

...my way of explaining it was that he was too emotionally compromised to remember to say it, because obviously he has never fallen out of love with Belle. But that doesn't seem enough for someone as formidable as Gold/Rumple.

Anyone care to comment? I really love everything about this ep, except for that one minor flub.

[missbreese.livejournal.com]

I don't think it was a flub (he did order her to sit at the beginning of the conversation) I took it more as their egos clashing. They've been getting on each others nerves throughout the season and finally they reached their breaking points. She was all, "I know your weaknesses and can force you into doing what I want" (having that conversation, which he'd refused her early) and he countered with, "and now you know that I'm stronger than you." Yes, he wanted the cup, but (I think) in that moment he also wanted to put her in her place.

As a lover of the baddies, I'm having such a hard time deciding who to root for :) They should always, always be in scenes together.

[grlnamedlucifer.livejournal.com]

It's just that it's important to him because it's all he has left of Belle. Even in the middle of his destructive meltdown, he couldn't destroy that because it's a symbol of her. Like she yelled at him when he threw her out, all he has is an empty heart and a chipped cup.

[earthspirits.livejournal.com]

It was an awesome episode, and Robert Carlyle (as always) was brilliant in it.

The chipped tea cup (to me) seems to be the sentimental item that Rumple/Gold uses as a sort of talisman to anchor his identify and memories around. It also helps him to retain his humanity and hidden goodness of soul, hence its importance to him as the symbol of the love and innocence that his time with Belle helped him recapture. Really, Rumple is quite the tragic romantic hero, and so beautifully portrayed by Robert Carlyle.

Also really digging his costuming as Rumple. Poet shirt with waist coat and leather pants = win. : )

My husband and I also were especially amused by the vanquishing of Gaston scene. So funny and classically Rumple!

I was also amused that at the end of the Enchanted Land sequence, the EQ called him "Rumple" (which is my own favorite shortening of his Rumplestiltksin name).

[airolf.livejournal.com]

Really, Rumple is quite the tragic romantic hero, and so beautifully portrayed by Robert Carlyle.

THIS.

Carlyle just impresses me every time he is on screen as either Rumple/Gold. He's got an incredible range.

[d-garmo71.livejournal.com]

Just a few thoughts:

Loved the scene between Regina and Mr Gold in jail. Possibly my favourite scene in the entire series so far. Can't wait to see those two going head to head.

When Regina asked Gold wat his real name was I immediately thought of the theory that she's the miller's daughter.

I was a little surprised how casually Rumpel turned Gaston into a rose. All magic comes with a price afteral. Or maybe that doesn't count for him? Loosing his humanity and son are his eternal price? Or was - ironically - losing Belle the price for Gaston/rose?

And lastly, I wonder what Moe French thinks happened to Belle/what the Storybrooke version of her 'death' is.

[sakuraberries]

When Regina asked Gold wat his real name was I immediately thought of the theory that she's the miller's daughter.

That is SO brilliant and makes all kinds of sense. I'm jumping on this wagon right now.

[malana.livejournal.com]

I have to say, 24 hours later, and I'm head-over-heels for this pairing. I even went and made a community for them over at rumpel_belle

[imzadi-gumdrop.livejournal.com]

I'm so there!

[silent--dreamer.livejournal.com]

Really fantastic episode. I'm so glad I didn't check out spoilers for this one. I liked how they touched the darker aspects of the Beauty and the Beast story...the prisoner aspect especially b/c we usually think of it as the perfect love story- sugar coated. I was a little surprised by Belle's accent but soon stopped noticing it b/c I thought the actress did a really fantastic job. I really loved this version of Belle. And wow that prison scene and the ending...holy crap. Definitely some of the best scenes on the show.

[madwitch58.livejournal.com]

ok please tell me i am not imagining this, i saw the golden fleece from Jason and the Argonauts in Rumple's castle.

[goddessastra.livejournal.com]

did you also see Mickey's wizard hat too??!

[goddessastra.livejournal.com]

omg this episode! this episode was all kinds of crazy! more so in rumples case. Robert can really play the fucked up mentally insane individual quite well!

it makes me wonder: why is it so important for rumple to be stronger than the EQ? why does that card trump even love? whats his angle? Maybe he's really the good guy and he HAS to be stronger than the EQ so she doesn't win and take over the land...

did anyone notice Mickey's magic hat in this episode?! i had to rewind it and show my fiance...i was all :o!! and expecting to see a mouse somewhere!