Kinda funny that you should mention all of this, because I actually completely agree with you. I even wrote an entire short story on this premise, and it's actually very similar to the points you just brought up. I hadn't gotten around to posting it yet because I was waiting until after the holidays, but it seems like great minds think alike!

Yeah, the discussion sort of spiraled, but I love that. Everything is connected to everything else.

I have other ideas about Murdoc's past, but I'm saving some of them for some other discussions on this forum. I'll mention them on the threads more fitting to that subject

You know, I used to watch ABC's Once Upon a Time before it got too scary for me to stand, LOL. I remember a scene where one of the villains, Rumplestilskin (or however that's spelled) tried to confess his feelings to Belle. Rumple must have left a mark on me, because I notice now that Murdoc reminds me so much of him, both in personality and behavior. They even move alike. I think that Deja Vu feeling might be the real reason the scene where Murdoc confesses his feelings to Penny never felt quite right to me.

I watched that show for its first season. Belle and Rumple were the best part for me. They were the reason I watched the show!

I think a lot of that deja vu goes back to the "beauty and the beast" archetype. There's really no such thing as an original story. We're all just writing and rewriting the same basic themes that are universal (or almost universal) across human history. Good/evil, dark/light, beautiful/ugly, monster/maiden, opposites attracting, redemption... All of those things repeat in multiple places, like echoes or ripples in a pond. Penny and Murdoc, Belle and Rumpelstiltskin, Beauty and the Beast, Ann Darrow and King Kong... They're all the same story. Beautiful and innocent girl meets evil monstrous man, she sees something good in him, and after some resistance, the man is inspired by her to seek redemption. Of course, the fact that these stories share so much in common doesn't make them any less special, but yeah, we all have our favorite version of the tale.

Sorry... English teacher waxing poetic over here.

I watched that show for its first season. Belle and Rumple were the best part for me. They were the reason I watched the show!

I think a lot of that deja vu goes back to the "beauty and the beast" archetype. There's really no such thing as an original story. We're all just writing and rewriting the same basic themes that are universal (or almost universal) across human history. Good/evil, dark/light, beautiful/ugly, monster/maiden, opposites attracting, redemption... All of those things repeat in multiple places, like echoes or ripples in a pond. Penny and Murdoc, Belle and Rumpelstiltskin, Beauty and the Beast, Ann Darrow and King Kong... They're all the same story. Beautiful and innocent girl meets evil monstrous man, she sees something good in him, and after some resistance, the man is inspired by her to seek redemption. Of course, the fact that these stories share so much in common doesn't make them any less special, but yeah, we all have our favorite version of the tale.

Sorry... English teacher waxing poetic over here.

No problem, I get poetic sometimes myself.

Yeah, Belle and Rumple were my favorite part of the show, too, but I couldn't make it through the second season, because it was getting too dark, especially compared to the relatively light-hearted first season.

I suppose that old trope does happen a lot, but it fits so well, especially for a guy like Murdoc. Sometimes I wish the Murdoc/Penny relationship was touched on after "Cleo Rocks".

I do, too. Especially since, after MacGyver showed her that file on Murdoc, Penny commented on how lonely he must be, always pretending to be someone else. She seemed to be sympathetic to him instead of hating him. And falling in love like that doesn't go away so easily, especially not for someone like Murdoc. Love sticks to you. That could've been a good opportunity if they had run with it. I understand why they didn't, but still... If only!

I do, too. Especially since, after MacGyver showed her that file on Murdoc, Penny commented on how lonely he must be, always pretending to be someone else. She seemed to be sympathetic to him instead of hating him. And falling in love like that doesn't go away so easily, especially not for someone like Murdoc. Love sticks to you. That could've been a good opportunity if they had run with it. I understand why they didn't, but still... If only!

Well, that's what fanfiction is for