Mr. Gold's Knowledge

[lorelaisquared.livejournal.com]

So I was listening to the "We Are Both" episode the official podcast with Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz last night and in it they said that Mr. Gold only started to remember who he was once Emma came to town and said her name to him.

Until I heard this, I had been operating under the assumption that Gold had known the truth all along and had been putting on an act during his time in Storybrooke so this revelation has me a bit confused and brings up a lot of questions.

1) I had sort of thought that Gold had been the one to give/make available the book to Mary Margaret that she gives to Henry and that sends him looking for Emma. But if he didn't know who he really was until Emma came to town, how *did* Mary Margaret get that book?

2) It was made clear very early on in S1 that Mr. Gold had been the one to obtain Henry for Regina. I figured this was not a coincidence and had been one of the many ways in which he's manipulated things behind the scenes, but if he didn't know who he really was then does that mean Henry was a coincidence? Is there someone else out there that we don't know about who's been pulling strings? Did Bae somehow arrange it?

3) Gold has loads of relics from Fairy Tale Land in his shop and has all along. If he didn't know the truth, why would he have all those things and where would he have attained them?

4) We know that Rumpel created the curse, so why would he NOT build in a protection for himself within it?

There are probably a million other implications from this reveal that I'm missing. Anyway, I'm curious to know what other people think about this.

Comments

[chloris.livejournal.com]

I haven't listened to the podcast but they have been talking about Gold only remembering with Emma's name since last spring so I'm familiar with the idea. I was shocked too since I thought he knew all along before that! But it does make a certain amount of sense once you think about how hard he found it to not give himself away once he did remember. He simply could not resist trolling everyone including Regina. And 28 years when you can't change anything or do anything but remember and brood doesn't sound like all that much fun.

1. There are many theories on how she got the book, including one where the curse provided it, but none that have been made canon in the show. I'm sure it will be revealed once we know who wrote it (not August) and I have the feeling that they will be getting into that mystery this season. (My favorite possibility is the Blue Fairy.)

2. Possibly someone else out there pulling strings. Possibly Rumpel built into the curse the way to bring Emma to town. (If he can really see the future.) Also, it's possible that Henry is the only child who could have been adopted into Storybrooke since he is not really an outsider. If that's the case then Regina might have tried and failed for some time to find a child for adoption before Henry was available.

3. Now that I really believe was built into the curse - that powerful and important objects would gravitate to his vicinity. Also, he owned a great many powerful objects in FTL so it makes sense that his property would tend to end up near him. (Such as how Snow's ring stayed with her.) However, it seems that he could not completely count on any particular item being in his possession even if he knew he would have many similar items - which would be why he had such a complicated plan for bringing the True Love potion through.

4. He did! He woke up as soon as Emma came to town! That's when he needed to spring into action and begin doing what he does so well: manipulate things to his own advantage. Before that they were frozen in time and nothing could change (except Henry) so he was safe. And I think he was especially safe so long as Regina did not suspect in any way that he remembered. She knows him very well and in 28 years he was bound to trip up.

[morbid-sparks.livejournal.com]

I've heard the theory before but I'm still not sure how much I buy into it, even if it's 'official'. For me it's just a little too coincidental that he got Henry for Regina if he wasn't looking for Henry in particular.

[dj-rocca.livejournal.com]

They state it in the commentary for the pilot. Its why he wanted Emma's name.

[morbid-sparks.livejournal.com]

Haven't listened to the commentaries, 'cos the dvds aren't out in the UK yet. But even though it's canon, I still don't like it :P

[lorelaisquared.livejournal.com]

Ahh see last year I watched the show regularly but I wasn't up on other news so I missed that so this was a shock for me. Although the way you've laid it out here it *does* make sense.

1. Ooh I like the idea of the Blue Fairy being the one to write it. Also interesting theory about the curse providing it. If that's the case then really it's Rumpel who did that since he's the one who made the curse.

2. Good point about Henry possibly being the only child who could have been adopted. Somehow I think we're going to learn more about his actual adoption this season especially since we're supposedly finding out who his father is (I'm thinking it's got to be someone else connected to FTL but somehow outside of the curse).

3. That makes a lot of sense. He would have made sure that he would have possession of most of his most prized/powerful objects. I wonder though if things he DIDN'T own gravitated to him as well?

4. Of course, the power of a name! He does have quite the expression on his face in that scene. I wonder if he was hit with everything at once in that moment or if it came more gradually? And it's true that until then he wouldn't really have had a need to know and he seemed to have a pretty cushy life as Gold. Plus, Regina would be more likely to be suspicious of him since she knew he created the curse so I could actually see her regularly testing him to see if he knew anything.

The more I think about it the more it makes sense that he *didn't* know.

[lorelaisquared.livejournal.com]

I don't know, now that I'm over the initial shock, the more I think about it, the more it makes sense. See the first comment above, it makes a lot more sense to me after reading that.

[lorelaisquared.livejournal.com]

Oooh I haven't listened to that yet. I might have to get on that!

[sukybarbossa.livejournal.com]

I've abandoned all hope that there is any logic to this series. Jane Espenson's episodes are the only ones that make sense to me and have any depth of character development, with Rumple as the lynchpin to the overall story. But then all the other writers stir the pot, and everything I thought made sense goes out the window. OUAT is like a crazy quilt of an excessive number of underdeveloped characters and squandered potential, and I end up either loving it or hating it. Needless to say, I hated last night's episode.

[rodlox.livejournal.com]

I assume that Rumplestiltskin didn't need to be out and about, because nobody else was...better to appear when needed, rather than wait out however much time passed.

as to the artifacts...maybe he held them close to himself as the curse-cloud passed over them, so they stayed near him: in his shop.

[rodlox.livejournal.com]

I suspect Rumplestiltskin didn't make the curse itself...he may've taken credit for it, but then again, how long did Snow and the others believe Regina was behind the curse?

>2.
I wonder if that's who we saw in 2.01 - Henry's dad...an average, everyday, normal guy who will probably be at least as weirded out as Emma by all the FTL characters.

I have a feeling that Regina didn't know either, for 28 years. (not sure if she woke up when Emma arrived, or when the clock started to move)

[rodlox.livejournal.com]

and just when I was starting to think that Pinocchio (or another FTL refugee) was the one who made sure it was Henry who got to Gold's middleman arms.

[lorelaisquared.livejournal.com]

Why do you think Rumpel didn't make it himself?

Oh I'm pretty certain the guy we saw in 2.01 was Henry's dad, I'm not so certain he's as normal as all that. Pretty sure he's going to be from FTL. My best guess is he's Bae, something I've seen lots of people guessing, but we could all be wrong. We should find out soon. Episode 6 is supposedly Emma's backstory (or at least some of it).

That's an interesting point. Would Regina *need* to know until there's a threat? Although there's all the things that came over from FTL like her vault - I feel like that's significant and why would she have it if she didn't remember?

[lorelaisquared.livejournal.com]

I think you're probably right on the first count, and as Chloris pointed out, it's safer too.

Hmm maybe. I supposed that's possible.

[rodlox.livejournal.com]

the narrative...it contains things like Regina's talks with the Huntsman (and the Huntsman's actions in that FTL bar) which Pinocchio wouldn't know...but there are also things that Rumplestiltskin wouldn't know (but might have planned for)

...though, if Rumplestiltskin (or anyone else) made it, why was Pinocchio fixing it?

maybe its because I think of OUAT as "fantasy dropped into reality", but now that Emma knows that they're not nuts and really are fairytale people in that town, the amount of nonmagical elements is reducing.
(not counting "magical beings learning how to get along without magic")

>Would Regina *need* to know until there's a threat? Although there's all the things that came over from FTL like her vault
Things like that, are probably so that she will be ready when she does wake up, however long it takes.

[rodlox.livejournal.com]

I thought it was just because he owns the town, and the amount of tourists Storybrooke sees in a decade can be counted on one hand.