History Characters / OnceUponATimeRumplestiltskin

->''"Becoming the Dark One was the act of a coward, but I'm no longer that man. You are. And that weak coward will not be the Rumplestiltskin the world remembers."''

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* GoldTooth: Appropriately as Mr. Gold.

* ForgotAboutHisPowers: He hasn't used the ability to see the future he took from the Seer since Season 2, and it hasn't been mentioned since early Season 3. There are many times it would have come in handy.

* EvilCostumeSwitch: As a dogged nice-guy he dressed in white clothes and looked pretty normal, as a sorcerer/demon/whatever he looks like what would happen if Tim Burton had directed ''Literature/{{Twilight}}''.

* CursedWithAwesome: Rumplestiltskin is cursed to be the most powerful sorcerer in the land and to have sparkly grey skin--which he may or may not be able to conceal with magic. That this ''is'' a curse is established in the Season 1 episode "Skin Deep", wherein Belle almost ends it with True Love's Kiss. In a slight departure, while the show clearly wants us to see him as cursed, Rumplestiltskin himself never complains about his powers, and is quite sensibly freaked out at the prospect of losing them and being at the mercy of the Evil Queen, not to mention losing any chance of finding his son. The chief downside is that the Dark One's dagger allows anyone holding it to command him, which is why he keep it tightly in his own possession. In Season 4, he tries to circumvent this by getting hold of the Sorcerer's Hat, an artifact that absorbs magical powers. He wants to use it to collect enough power to break the dagger's connection, so he can have power and be totally free.

* CursedWithAwesome: Rumplestiltskin is cursed to be the most powerful sorcerer in the land and to have sparkly grey skin--which he may or may not be able to conceal with magic. That this ''is'' a curse is established in the Season 1 episode "Skin Deep", wherein Belle almost ends it with True Love's Kiss. In a slight departure, while the show clearly wants us to see him as cursed, Rumplestiltskin himself never complains about his powers, and is quite sensibly freaked out at the prospect of losing them and being at the mercy of the Evil Queen, not to mention losing any chance of finding his son. The chief downside is that the Dark One's dagger allows anyone holding it to command him. In Season 4, he tries to circumvent this by getting hold of the Sorcerer's Hat, an artifact that absorbs magical powers. He wants to use it to collect enough power to break the dagger's connection, so he can have power and be totally free.

* CursedWithAwesome: Rumplestiltskin is cursed to be the most powerful sorcerer in the land and to have sparkly grey skin--which he may or may not be able to conceal with magic. That this ''is'' a curse is established in the Season 1 episode "Skin Deep", wherein Belle almost ends it with True Love's Kiss. In a slight departure, while the show clearly wants us to see him as cursed, Rumplestiltskin himself never complains about his powers, and is quite sensibly freaked out at the prospect of losing them and being at the mercy of the Evil Queen, not to mention losing any chance of finding his son. In Season 4, he tries to circumvent this by getting hold of the Sorcerer's Hat, an artifact that absorbs magical powers. He wants to use it to collect enough power to break the dagger's connection, so he can have power and be totally free.

* AdaptationalSpeciesChange: His [[CompositeCharacter many]] Fairy Tale counterparts include a Leprechaun, a Beast who WasOnceAMan, a Crocodile and a fairy, but he's just a human with and intence amount of magic power.

** In the Season 3 finale, we learn that his castle contains an ''entire vault'' of magical items that he stashed away simply because he considered them too dangerous and unpredictable to use. When ''The Dark One'', who fucks up shit on a regular basis, considers something ''too dangerous and unpredictable to use'', that's saying something. They're basically NamesToRunAwayFrom...

** The Sheriff of Nottingham is clearly fooled by Rumple's act and regards him as someone not to be taken seriously when he tells Rumple that the price of giving him information is a night with Belle. The horrified expression on Belle's face when the Sheriff says this visibly affects Rumple. While Rumple doesn't rip his face off, the way both his expression and body language changed should have made it clear to the Sheriff that he'd just stepped way over the line...if he hadn't of been too drunk to notice. Rumple does give him a chance to change his mind, the Sheriff keeps pushing for Rumple to give him Belle, and finally Rumple proposes a new deal... that the Sheriff does not like but has no choice but to accept.

* PoisonousFriend: Does terrible things in the name of his loved ones, even when they beg him not to.

* SmallTownTyrant: As Mr. Gold, the is an extremely intelligent, cultured character who holds on near-monopoly on power, information, and fear in town.

* CorruptHick: As Mr. Gold, to an extent, since he does not fit the part of the trope that requires the character be uneducated or a bumpkin. He is an extremely intelligent, cultured character who holds on near-monopoly on power, information, and fear in town.

* IWillFindYou: To Baelfire. He manipulates ''decades[='=]'' worth of fairy tale history to make it happen, including the rise of the Evil Queen and the relationship between Snow White and Prince Charming, culminating in the Enchanted Forest being ''ripped apart!''

* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: He spares Hook's life in "The Outsider", and in return, Hook shoots Belle, which causes her to cross over the town line and lose her memories. ''Ouch''.

-->'''Rumplestiltskin:''' "I WILL FIND HIM!"

* SelfMadeOrphan: [[spoiler:Twice. First he kills his father Malcolm/Peter Pan with the Dark One's Dagger, and then finishes him off during the trip to the Underworld in Season 5 by using water from the Acheron river to send Pan's soul to the Worse Place. Later, he kills his mother Fiona/the Black Fairy with her own wand]].

* WealthsInAName: His Storybrooke alias, "Mr. Gold," is a nod to his real identity as Rumplestiltskin, but also serves as this considering he's a wealthy pawnbroker.

* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: He "destroy[s] this world for the next." Probably one of the few instances where the Destroyer of Worlds actually succeeds!

* YouAreWhatYouHate: He's essentially a watered-downed version of his deadbeat father, Peter Pan.

[[caption-width-right:350:'''Rumplestiltskin:''' ''"[[{{Catchphrase}} All magic comes with a price!]]"'']]

[[caption-width-right:350:'''Mr. Gold:''' ''"Honesty has never been the best color of me."'']]

** Like Regina, he's emotionally (''not'' physically) abusive to his son. He kills people in front of his child. He has massive overreactions to any injury done to Bae, best shown when he turns a man into a slug and stomps on him for hitting Bae with a cart. Bae also seems to have become afraid of his father. Lastly, he ends up unwilling to listen to Bae and uphold the deal made with him to go to a new world, choosing to drop Bae into the portal rather than let go of his power; a decision he immediately regrets and never stops regretting. Particularly after hearing Bae calling him a coward before going into the portal. Sure, everyone called him that but his own son...... too much.

* TheCorrupter: He teaches Regina, Cora and Zelena magic. That ended well.

* FinalBoss: Rumplestiltskin ends up being the final villain to be faced in the series, but with a catch – [[spoiler:it's the Wish Realm's version of him, who never developed the redeeming qualities that Rumple did through further exposure to Belle and the presence of his sons (see his own section in the Magical Lands page for more details). The main reality's Rumple ultimately has to make a HeroicSacrifice to destroy him after Wish!Rumple claims the Darkness in its entirety and becomes the only Dark One]].

* GambitRoulette: [[SubvertedTrope Subverted]]. His long convoluted plan ''would'' be one of these, since it depends on Emma, who doesn't even exist at the time of the plan's inception, taking some very specific actions. (Coming to Storybrooke, deciding to stay there, etc.) However, it isn't one because he knows everything that's going to happen for the next 28 years or so. There's no luck involved when you can see that far ahead.

[[caption-width-right:350:'''Rumplestiltskin:''' ''"[[{{Catchphrase}} All magic comes with a price]]!"'']]

->'''Centric Episodes:''' [[note]]“The Price of Gold”, “Desperate Souls”, “Skin Deep”, “The Return”, “The Crocodile”, “Manhattan”, “The Miller’s Daughter”, “Lacey”, “Nasty Habits”, “Think Lovely Thoughts”, “The Apprentice”, “Heroes and Villains”, “Darkness on the Edge of Town”, “Devil’s Due”, “Changelings”, “Ill-Boding Patterns”, “Beauty”, “The Guardian”[[/note]]

** Subverted with his mother, who [[spoiler: Rumple thought hated him, but who actually loved him so much she turned to dark magic to keep him safe. Sound familiar...?]]

* AdaptationalBadass: In the original Grimm's Fairytales, Rumplestiltskin was little more than an evil gnome that engages in trading children for favors. ''Once Upon a Time'' makes him an immortal nigh-omnipotent sorcerer, MagnificentBastard and [[TheChessmaster Chessmaster]] who plays everyone else - with varying degrees of success that, ''usually'', come out on top for him - like a fiddle. Also, considering his role as a CompositeCharacter for various Disney characters, he plays this role as the Beast. In the original film, Beast was stronger than Gaston but Gaston was still skilled and strong enough to hurt him. In this series, Rumplestiltskin as the Beast is a nearly omnipotent EvilWizard whom Gaston stands ''no chance'' against.

* BadassInDistress: He's spent the last half of season three as Zelena's prisoner. Armed with his dagger, she's kept him locked in a cage in a storm cellar.

** [[spoiler: It gets worse: he was originally supposed to be a ''Savior'', but his mother changed his destiny to protect him, resulting in him becoming the Dark One instead. Ouch.]]

* BeingGoodSucks: His attempt to sacrifce himself to save his loved ones and Storybrooke from Pan ended up being negated when Zelena tricked Bae into sacrificing himself so the Dark One could be resurrected. It put him off heroics for the time being.

** The Sheriff of Nottingham is clearly fooled by Rumple's act and regards him as someone not to be taken seriously when he tells Rumple that the price of giving him information is a night with Belle. The horrified expression on Belle's face when the Sheriff says this visibly affects Rumple. While Rumple doesn't rip his face off, the way both his expression and body language changed should have made it clear to the Sheriff that he'd just stepped way over the line...if he hadn't of been too drunk to notice. Rumple does give him a chance to change his mind, the Sheriff keeps pushing for Rumple to give him Belle, and finally Rumple proposes a new deal...that the Sheriff does not like but has no choice but to accept.

* BookEnds: At least from Episode 1 to 12 - he's in a jail in either world. And again in Season 2. Storybrooke is now his prison.

* BroughtDownToNormal: In the fairy tale, his magical powers were taken from him by Snow White, Prince Charming and Cinderella. Taken further in Storybrooke where holding the Knife of the Dark One has no power over him anymore. Even more so now given the end of season 4 - Rumple is no longer the Dark One thanks to life-saving (or at least heart and ability to love-saving) magical intervention by the Sorcerer's Apprentice.

** In season 3, Peter Pan gives him a doll that was the last gift his father gave him before leaving him. Gold threw it off a cliff and it fell in front of him a short time later. Burned it and it just popped up a head of him. He decides to just take it along after that. The true significance of the doll is later revealed, specifically the name which Rumple gave it as a child: Peter Pan.

* ClothingReflectsPersonality: Before he became the Dark One and again in season one as. Mr. Gold, Rumplestilskin's clothes seem two sizes too big for him. [[FridgeBrilliance It makes him look more vulnerable than he actually is.]] The only time his clothes actually fit is whenever he has magic.

** He tries to be this to Emma in Season 4B seeing that his EvilPlan is to darken Emma’s heart.

* TheDon: As Rumplestiltskin, he would make offers people "couldn't refuse" and asked for payment that left them with what could be ''very'' generously described as "buyer's remorse", and would kill and/or torture anyone that tried to steal from him or try to go back on their deals. As Mr. Gold the allusion as a [[Film/TheGodfather Godfather]]-esq figure in Storybrooke was more apparent; his expensive suit, [[LoanShark giving out loans that he expected to be repaid with no concern for others]], his under-the-table deals and being fully willing to get his hands dirty when the need arises. Add in his ThickerThanWater mentality when it came to Baelfire/Neal, Gideon, Belle and (sometimes) Henry’s presence in his life and he has the makings of a [[Characters/TheGodfather Don Vito Corleone]] {{Expy}}.

--> '''Cora:''' Brides have to be snow-white.\\

--> '''Rumplestiltskin:''' Roast swan. That's amusing! You'll get that later.

** And once again in the season 4 finale, when he and Belle talk about why he wanted their happy ending in the book – because he loves her, but still doesn't understand how anyone could ever love him.

--> "I'm a villain. And villains... don't get happy endings."
** [[spoiler: Happens again in the series finale, this time when he pulls a TakingYouWithMe with his own Wish Realm counterpart.]]

* EasilyForgiven: Only in the sense that as long as you aren't actively working against him, he really doesn't care what you do even if you've screwed him over in the past (though he'll still remember the score). In the season 2 finale, he outright asks Hook if he's done trying to kill him. Hook replies to the affirmative. Gold remarks that that means he won't have to kill Hook first. However defied with his son, who has ''not'' forgotten that Rumple chose magic over him, and all the years he spent alone because of it. Although Bae still loves his dad, he is still justifiably angry at what happened.

* EvenEvilHasStandards: Does not approve of hurting children, using magic to make someone love you, keeping someone alive for the express purpose of killing them at a convenient time (granted he had a rather personal reason to be upset about that) or apparently of cheating (see the conversation he had with David in "Skin Deep"). He also considers Peter Pan more evil than him, and he's ''the Dark One''. Also, he appears to have a [[Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire Lannister-caliber]] tendency to repay his debts (granted he usually does it in a way that makes everyone wish he'd just backstabbed them straight-out instead). By the time of Season 6, [[spoiler: sacrificing family for power is ''also'' not something he will do and he ''murders his own mother'' to make sure it doesn't happen.]] Another thing that he won't do is doom someone to be without the one they love, thus [[spoiler: his refusal to allow Alice to become the Dark One as she'd lose her love.]]

* EvilParentsWantGoodKids: Wants his son Gideon to be good...it doesn't quite work out.

* FinalBoss: Rumplestiltskin ends up being the final villain to be faced in the series, but with a catch – [[spoiler: it's the Wish Realm's version of him, who never developed the redeeming qualities that Rumple did through further exposure to Belle and the presence of his sons (see his own section in the Magical Lands page for more details). The main reality's Rumple ultimately has to make a HeroicSacrifice to destroy him after Wish!Rumple claims the Darkness in its entirety and becomes the only Dark One]].

** In Season 6, he starts off bad, then tries to be good in order to help his son Gideon, [[spoiler: then goes bad again by teaming up with his mother, only to go good again in the season finale by killing his mother. As seen in the next season, it's this last HeelFaceTurn that finally sticks.]]

** Starts to become averted with the end of season two. He comes to realise that while Lacey makes things easy and killing Henry would solve his problem (something Lacey even suggests), it's Belle and Henry that he needs and wants (and he says as much). He uses the Blue Fairy's antidote to restore Belle's memories and embarks on a quest with the rest expressly for the purpose of honouring Bae, who everyone thinks is dead. (A quest he doesn't expect that he'll come back from, no less.)

* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Despite his jerkish qualities, he genuinely loves his son and Belle. In season two, he gave Henry a protective charm to help with the after effects of the slapping curse and didn't ask for anything in return. This was before he knew that Henry was his grandson. In season three, he sacrificed his life to save Henry from Peter Pan. When he was resurrected, he was willing to trade his freedom in an attempt to save Neal and Belle.

** In the season 3 finale, not only does he trick Belle into believing she has the Dark One's dagger when it's actually a fake and use the real deal to kill a powerless and imprisoned Zelena out of revenge, he also has the ''nerve'' to act offended when he's accused of having something to do with her death and use Belle (who utterly believes that he's changed his ways and is innocent) as an unknowing alibi. He keeps the act in season 4.

** Karma catches up to him in Season 3, but he is able to accept it, endure it, and redeem himself... even though [[RedemptionEqualsDeath it costs him his life.]]
** Played straight in [[spoiler: the Season 6 finale, where he decides to do the right thing for once after literally just having helped ''create'' the horrible situation everyone is currently in, and is EasilyForgiven by everyone, including Belle who takes him back.]]

--> '''Rumplestiltskin:''' (''Talking to Zelena'') It's okay. [[LampshadeHanging I have that effect on women]]. You love me.

* KnowledgeBroker: Even in a jail cell, he knows a frightening amount about everything–but getting the information has [[DealWithTheDevil insanely steep price tags attached]].

* LaserGuidedKarma: After being a KarmaHoudini for a long time, he gets it ''hard''' in Season 4 where after half a season lying to Belle, she banishes him from Storybooke and ends their relationship.
* LaughingMad: As Rumplestiltskin. Exaggerated in the second half of season 3, after the Wicked Witch revives him from his HeroicSacrifice.

* LoanShark: In addition to being a pawn broker and the landlord for pretty much the entire town, frequently operates as a particularly inflexible loan shark.

--> "I'm ''exactly'' where I wanna be!"

* ParentalAbandonment: When he was a young child, his father left him. It's shown he was abandoned by his mother, [[spoiler: the Black Fairy]], in exchange for power as well. He didn't learn from this and did the same to his own son as well. At least he was more remorseful for his actions than his father.

** In the season 3 finale, he helps Emma and Hook from the future reconstruct Snow and Charming's relationship. Later, back in the present, he and Belle are married.

** Gives more than his fair share. Notably to Emma in season 3 for her inability to take a leap of faith and how she can only accept that which is before her.

** [[spoiler: It happens again in "Leaving Storybrooke", where he sacrifices his life to save the life of his friend Wish!Hook and kill Wish!Rumple. This time around, he doesn't come back to life.]]

** After spending most of season 5 a normal human again and trying to be a hero it's revealed to be an act as the moment he had a chance to obtain the powers of the Dark One again he happily takes it. He then gains the power of every single Dark One that has existed including Emma.

* SelfMadeOrphan: [[spoiler:Twice. First he kills his father Malcolm/Peter Pan with the Dark One's Dagger, and then finishes him off during the trip to the Underworld in season 5 by using water from the Acheron river to send Pan's soul to the Worse Place. Later, he kills his mother Fiona/the Black Fairy with her own wand]].

--> '''Regina:''' Rumple was a bully. He didn't suffer fools and he certainly didn't coddle his students. And if he tried to teach you how to swim and you couldn't learn... you drowned.
* TheSleepless: As the Dark One. Apparently Dark One's dont need to sleep.

* SpellMyNameWithAnS: The show consistently spells Rumplestiltskin's name as "Rumplestiltskin".

* SuperStrength: Or at least ''enhanced'' strength, which as Rumbelstiltskin he demonstrates several times. One notable instance is when Belle falls from a height of at least ten feet and he catches her effortlessly.

** Likes to refer to everyone, male and female, as "dearie." Including his fans in real life.

* TokenEvilTeammate: Shares it with Regina in Season 2 and season 3.

** Has one after [[spoiler: he thinks his son has died in Episode 44...and after his son really ''does'' die in Episode 59.]]
** He has another one after [[spoiler: he kills his mother, the Black Fairy, in "The Final Battle: Part 2", his arm shaking and him staring silently at the pile of dust that was his mother until Belle comes in to snap him out of it.]]

* LaughingMad: As Rumplestiltskin. Taken UpToEleven in the second half of season 3, after the Wicked Witch revives him from his HeroicSacrifice.

* TranquilFury: As Mr. Gold. He rarely yells and goes on a rampage when angry. He speaks in a calm voice. Even after Belle loses her memory, and he tells everyone he will ''kill all of them'' if any harm comes to Belle, he ''still'' speaks in a calm voice, taking it {{up to eleven}}.

* CardboardPrison: His cell in the Enchanted Forest turns out to have been this. Upon examining his cell, it's revealed that he could have easily escaped at ''any'' time, but chose not to, preferring to make everyone''think'' he was helpless.

* AdaptationalBadass: In the original Grimm's Fairytales, Rumplestiltskin was little more than an evil gnome that engages in trading children for favors. ''Once Upon a Time'' makes him an immortal nigh-omnipotent sorcerer, MagnificentBastard and [[TheChessmaster Chessmaster]] who plays everyone else - with varying degrees of success that, ''usually'', come out on top for him - like a fiddle

* AdultFear: He is living in one. After his years of weakness and his wife running off with another man he clung to the power of the Dark One like an addict to his fix. But because of this addiction and refusal to let the power go when there was a viable means without killing him, he has lost what he cared for most.
** Once again living it in season 5, where his ''pregnant wife'' places herself in the equivalent of a coma to ensure Hades ''doesn't steal the baby''. Cue his [[spoiler: evil estranged mother kidnapping the child instead]].

* OverarchingVillain: The longest-lasting villain in the series who has not made a stable HeelFaceTurn, plus the catalyst for many of the bad events and other villains in the show.

* EarnYourHappyEnding: [[spoiler:A rare case in which the happy ending is ''death''. After [[HeroicSacrifice sacrificing]] himself to save Rogers and stop Wish!Rumple, he reunites with Belle in the afterlife and is able to travel to Mount Olympus with her.]]

** "Manhattan" reveals that he despised being labeled as "the coward's son", and yet he decided to desert out of both fear for his own life, and so as not to miss the birth of his son. Chronologically, this is hammered home when Bae angrily calls him a coward as he refuses to join him through a portal to another realm.