Ever After High: Is Darling Charming Destined to Be Apple White’s “True Love”?

In this progressive age, there is recently a push for films, tv shows, and even webisodes to be more inclusive and universal. This means not only are people focused on race, culture, religion, and gender, but also sexual orientation.

Ever After High webisodes, inspired from the dolls, have come to the fore for breaking a mold: They allowed two girls to touch lips.

A little summary on the EAH series: The series follows the descendants of popular fairytale characters who attend the high school to follow in their “parents'” footsteps. Throughout the series, however, they learn that they can be in charge of their own destinies. Apple White is one of the main characters and she is adamant about following the “Royal” destiny, the destiny written for her in the Storybook of Legends (basically a contract in the fairytale world), which encourages her to live out her life like her mother (Snow White) did. Raven Queen is her polar opposite in every way. She is represented as the “Rebel” deuteragonist. She was supposed to become the Evil Queen and villain in Apple White’s shining tale, but has decided that role doesn’t “fit” her. She is actually a “good girl”. She has “rebelled” against the Storybook of Legends and decided to re-write her own destiny.  In the movie Way to Wonderland, Raven Queen ripped out the pages of the Storybook so that she and other characters could write their own stories. Though the series was originally advertised as showing two different points of view, the actual series has mostly leaned toward the “rebel” side of things.

The Ever After High characters are all teenagers. Their high school was created by the “Grimm Brothers”, based off of two real-life German storytellers who were among the first to actually collect and publish the fairytales we know today. Of course, their versions were always more gruesome.

In the recent Ever After High movie Dragon Games, Apple White had been choking on a piece of poison apple (given by Raven Queen’s evil mother). She ended up passing out (like Snow White did in the story). Daring Charming, her supposed “true love”, tried to kiss her, but his kiss didn’t work. So over struts Darling Charming, his heroic sister determined to be a knight. She gives Apple White “CPR” (which many think was a kiss). There is a magic light and then Apple awakens. This seemed to many to indicate that Darling Charming was actually destined to be Apple White’s “true love”.

This may seem like a proud day for the LGBTQ+ community. In so many respects, it is. It really is one of the few moments where two females in an animated show actually touched lips. It’s a step forward in showing children that the act is very normal.

But as progressive as it seems, I have doubts that the creators really intended to turn Darling Charming’s “CPR” into Apple White’s “true love’s kiss”. I do believe it was a play on “true love’s kiss”, but I believe the scene was mostly intended to show that “true love’s kiss” isn’t real by getting a random friend to save the day instead. They may have been trying to follow the Grimm Brothers’ Snow White tale closer, which never involved “true love’s kiss” at all.

I acknowledge that by giving a “princess” the job to “kiss” instead of a prince, it was meant to make Darling appear more “knight-like” instead of like the stereotypical princess most Royal girls subscribe to. She did want to prove she could save other princesses like the princes, and that a girl can do the “kissing” (or CPR) and save the day, too. However, in the end, I do not think these girls will end up being lovers. There are several indications in the webisodes and throughout the movie that reveal the REAL intentions of the scene, and there are several indications that the chemistry between Darling and Apple is just not there.

Aside from the fact EAH creators already stated on Facebook that they aren’t lovers, there were signs long before the post that they weren’t meant to be.

As told in recent fairy tales (not Grimm Brothers, who actually told a completely different story), “true love’s kiss” can only work when the person kissing the princess has prior romantic feelings for her. In Apple and Darling’s case, neither one of them have ever shown signs that they were romantically “in love” with each other prior to the CPR.  Even if the princes didn’t know the princesses so well, there were at least obvious signs they were physically attracted to the princesses. In Darling’s case, she hardly seems interested in Apple or even in girls LIKE Apple. Therefore, how can it be that Darling is Apple’s “true love’s kiss” in this case? The only “loving” feeling Darling Charming has shown in the series is the love of friends…and it was that love for one of her friends that led her to try and save Apple’s life. This is definitely the “family-friendly” message a Mattel product would be sending.

Friendship is a recurring theme throughout the Dragon Games movie, as with all of these movies and shows nowadays. With Frozen proving that the love of a sister is more powerful than romantic love and with My Little Pony‘s “Friendship is Magic” motto, Ever After High wants to use the same effective message to increase the bond of their female characters. They seemed determined to prove that the love between friends was just as powerful, if not more powerful, than “romantic” love.

Second, as the series seems to lean towards the “rebel” side of things, it’s also likely the movie was aiming to show that “true love’s kiss” isn’t necessary and is basically non-existent. Though it’s still considered pretty “magical” in the fairytale world, it is really looked at as an outdated joke, especially among those characters that want to re-write their own destinies.

Darling is one of those characters that just doesn’t care about destiny. She defied her destiny. Darling’s destiny was to be the next “Princess Charming”. In tradition, according to the Ever After High book Once Upon a Time: A Story Collection (canon to the series, as author Shannon Hale works with the web series as well), princess charmings were mostly damsels-in-distress. This was her actual destiny.

So, obviously, it’s not possible for her to have been destined to be “princess charming” or the “hero” in Apple White’s story. She wasn’t destined to save anyone and become their true love. Her destiny wasn’t even intertwined with “true love’s kiss”. She doesn’t seem to be following any one set story (considering she saved Duchess from a tower in a recent book and took on the alias as the White Knight in the Way to Wonderland episodes), and she wouldn’t let one act of heroism decide love for her either, even if she were “destined” to be Apple White’s “true love”. It’s likely she’d just rebel against that, too. She doesn’t appear to be the kind of character that likes to be controlled by “written destinies”.

She chose to become a savior rather than a damsel-in-distress. She decided NOT to follow any destiny she doesn’t want to, and that includes the concept of “true love’s kiss”. That’s why I believe she chose to perform “CPR” instead of a real kiss.

Overall, making a choice doesn’t equal destiny.

Furthermore, from her profile, she has stated the type of “guys” she likes.

How could Mattel “intend” to make her Apple White’s “true love” if they already set her up to be interested in “guys”? They might have some “love” between them, like a sisterly or friendly love (though they never talked much or interacted much before the Dragon Games movie), but romantic lovers is a far-reaching conclusion.

Darling stated she “likes guys who are pure of heart”. This might change. She could have a coming out story later, maybe coming to terms with her attraction to girls, but I doubt that Apple White would be the one to drive her there.

Apple White has shown herself not to be “pure of heart” in any way (And I theorize that she’s REALLY the evil Queen). I mean, the girl is vain, looks in the same magic mirror that the evil queen once used, manipulates people and situations to achieve her own selfish desires, and does not have Snow White’s features (“hair black as ebony wood” is missing).

Darling Charming’s best friends are Raven Queen and Rosabella Beauty, girls that she admire for being “strong and standing up for what they believe in”. These are the types of girls she likes. Apple White has no part of that in her personality. If everything were left to Royal Apple White, Darling would still be a damsel!

Yes, Darling dared to “kiss”(perform CPR) on Apple, rescuing her the way any Prince Charming would. But if you think Apple White is the only princess she has saved, think again! It more than likely won’t be the last princess she “kisses” or performs CPR on. So are we to think that every princess she saves will be her true love?

In the Ever After High book Once upon a Twist: Duchess Lets Down Her Hair, Darling Charming rescues Duchess from a tower (usually the role of the prince). Normally, all the knights that rescue the damsels from the tower end up falling in love with the maiden. Darling saved Duchess. So, are they lovers now, too? It’s obvious that Darling just wants to be a hero and she wants to prove she’s just as capable of being a knight as her brothers and other male knights.

Now, we can take comfort in the fact that rather than be “destined” to kiss (or perform CPR) on Apple White, Darling simply chose to do it, which means she didn’t feel compelled or obligated to do it because of some written “fate”. At the same time, we also have to keep in mind that by choosing her own destiny, her actions won’t lead anywhere she doesn’t want it to.

This might mean she won’t see love like other “Prince” Charmings have. Most of those princes fell in love with the girl they kissed rather quickly, mostly just by looking at the girl, and some of them never truly developed a relationship with the princesses. Darling might not look at love the same way, and I am quite sure she would be much smarter about love than that. Darling has shown that she would rather get to know a person before claiming she’s “in love” with them.

Third, let’s look at the scene in totality. Yeah, sure, when the “kiss” (or CPR) happened, there was a magical “light” and she ended up coughing up a cloud of smoke. But if Darling really gave her true love’s kiss, wouldn’t the surrounding characters have reacted in a stronger way? “True Love’s Kiss” is a big deal in the fairytale universe (even if it is seen as mostly a myth). Darling Charming, as well as all the other characters in the movie, treated the whole scene as if it wasn’t a big deal, not as if the characters assumed Darling was destined to be Apple’s “true love”. Everyone was happy that Apple White was “saved”, but they didn’t acknowledge or question why Darling was the one to awaken Apple. Darling didn’t even think anything of it. Usually, when something is emphasized, like “true love’s kiss”, the narrator usually highlights it so that all surrounding viewers can fully understand what is being implied. But in this scene, the other characters (Even Darling!) just laugh it off nervously and make Apple believe it was Daring. Couldn’t it also be that there was a magical light because it was a magical curse that was uplifted? As the series is continuing to encourage all characters to write their own destinies, rather than follow a blue-print outlined for them, this scene seems to be another nod to that revolutionary idea rather than the idea that Darling is her “true love”.

Some people have suggested that if it was really meant to be just CPR, then it would have been done “right” using the Heimlich Maneuver.  However, that is actually incorrect in this situation.  Darling actually did the only thing possible in this situation. I personally had a chance to take CPR courses myself.  What I discovered is that HM only works when the person is responsive enough to stand on their two feet.  When the choking victim becomes UNRESPONSIVE and unable to stand, there is no way you can perform HM (abdominal thrusts). You must perform CPR to get the person breathing again. 

What is up for debate is Darling’s CPR methods. Many CPR lessons teach students to give chest compressions before blowing air into a victim. In the Netflix movie special, Darling blew air into Apple first, which could be considered incorrect today and could have been ineffective. To many people, the only other logical reason the spell could have been broken is if it was taken as a magical kiss, right? However, back in the past, CPR taught students to blow air into the victims before giving chest compressions. Just watch an old episode of The Jeffersons, Season 7 Episode 14. Some classes may still use this method. It’s possible the writers still remember this method.

It’s also likely this was used as a gag. This wouldn’t be the first animated show to get CPR wrong as a gag. Emperor’s New Groove anyone? Yet, it’s obvious that’s what they were going for.

What many don’t know is that there is a discrepancy between the Netflix special and the novel’s account of events. In the Dragon Games novel, it stated Darling used “chest compressions” alone, not blowing air into Apple at all. If this was supposed to be so romantic, why didn’t the authors and special writers get together to make sure the stories lined up?

Despite the fact that it was just CPR, I do think it was supposed to be a nod to “true love’s kiss”, even if Darling isn’t really Apple’s “true love”.

The magical light and the coughed-out “smoke” (which others have confused for a heart) could’ve been the aftereffects of a broken spell. I believe the irony was the fact that true love’s kiss wasn’t needed and that a simple, unmagical solution, such as CPR, was enough. After all, the evil queen never said that “true love’s kiss” was the only way to break this spell in this story at all.

Finally, the Dragon Games scene seems to be a play on the Grimm Brother’s story of Snow White. It’s paying homage to the original tale. After all, they are the ones who “created” Ever After High.

The reason why most people have associated Snow White‘s story with “true love’s kiss” is because of Disney. What is irritating is that most people are only familiar with Disney’s version of these tales. It was my main gripe with Alice in Wonderland. Trying to explain to others how the 1985 Alice in Wonderland version was the most accurate adaptation is still an aggravating challenge…

The original story of Snow White mirrors Apple White’s situation in the Dragon Games movie. In the original Snow White tale, Snow White also choked on a poison apple. No one could revive her, NOT EVEN THE PRINCE. Snow White was actually awakened by the Prince’s SERVANTS! While carrying Snow White’s coffin, they stumbled on some roots and the poison chunk was lodged out of her throat. 

The original Grimm tale NEVER SAID “true love’s kiss” would break the spell. That’s Disney’s version. Therefore, a kiss was never needed to begin with! Therefore, it isn’t an indication of Darling’s love for Apple. It’s an indication that just about any solution could break the spell, without a prince’s kiss, just like in the original Snow White tale.

Read about the original story here: Grimm Brother’s Snow White

Considering Ever After High puts a lot of emphasis on “changing” destinies or that “destiny is never set”, the confusion surrounding the tales fits with the EAH series in a strange way. Because there are so many versions of these fairytales, it further shows that the characters have many destinies they can follow and can even write their own futures. If we were to assume that the “kiss” (CPR) makes Darling Apple’s “destined” true love, it would contradict with the message behind the Dragon Games movie and the message of the whole Ever After High series. It betrays the whole message. That message encourages the characters to decide their own futures. Therefore, Darling is only Apple’s “true love” if Apple feels she should be. At this moment in time, Apple has not shown any romantic interest in Darling before or after the scene.

An EAH fan brought something to my attention as well: What may have lead Apple White to believe that a “kiss” was in her destiny may have been due to the fact that her mother told her a distorted view of her own tale. Snow White was asleep when the poisoned apple was lodged out of her throat. She really didn’t know WHO saved her! In the story, all she saw was a handsome prince standing before her. He did explain what had happened but from his perspective. She may not have known that a bump in the road is what saved her life. If Apple White were to truly follow in her mother’s footsteps, the reality is that Apple White is NEVER GOING TO GET “TRUE LOVE’S KISS”. But seeing as the story focuses on choosing our own destinies, hopefully she discovers that she can create her own “happy-ever-after”.

One fan of EAH, Sorafanchick,  made an interesting comment on Youtube about the scene:

My theory is that in the EAH universe their  “destinies” are actually moreso “written destinies” rather than literal fate. These were “written destinies” in the Storybook Of Legends that characters were at one point forced to fulfill. These written “destinies” were formed into a contract and placed in the Storybook of Legends.  By signing The Storybook of Legends, each character was supposed to seal their “written” destinies, vowing to live just as their parents did and vowing to follow the laws of the Fairytale world. Remember Legacy Day? But when Raven tore the pages out of the Storybook of Legends and gave it to everyone in the Way to Wonderland movie, this allowed everyone to write their own destinies and make their own choices as to how their destinies should be fulfilled. This also gave Apple the freedom to choose how her destiny will be fulfilled.  Of course, Apple has always been more conservative than the others.

In the movie Dragon Games, which of course, comes to us a few years after the original “Legacy Day” webisode, the Dragon Games movie teaches Apple White that even if she does follow in her mother’s footsteps…how she chooses to go about doing that is her choice.  This means that she doesn’t have to do exactly as her mother did to gain the same results of “happily ever after”.  She learns that she can still fulfill the destiny “written” for her, and yet still she can also choose how and when that “written” destiny will be fulfilled.

I will also talk about Apple’s excitement with “true love’s kiss” and what may have happened as to why she believed this would happen in her future if she chooses to live like Snow White.
In the original Snow White story, I don’t believe Snow White actually KNEW how she awakened that day. (It is only the readers that are made aware that a piece of apple was lodged in her throat). The only thing Snow White saw when she awakened was a handsome prince standing over her. So I believe in the EAH series that Snow White believed her prince awakened her, thus she may have told Apple that a Prince will awaken her with “True Love’s Kiss” as well (with Snow White still actually being unaware of how she herself was awakened).
I believe that Mattel played on this trope, too. When Apple White awakens she is a little bewildered and then she also wakes up to see Daring standing over her (just like her mother Snow White did). Apple then asks “did my prince wake me up?” lol Only her friends know that she was not awakened by the prince, but Apple is left not knowing how she awakened.

Raven’s mother wanted to force the “written destiny” to be fulfilled, hence why she sent a poison apple and hence why the things transpired the way they did in Dragon’s Games.  This caused Apple to temporarily fall into the same situation her mother once was in.  Just as Raven’s evil mother wanted. But the difference is that the people around Apple make their own dreams and destinies come true, and instead of waiting for destiny, they took matters into their own hands. Rather than wait for destiny to be fulfilled (with [the prince’s servants] carrying Apple or a Prince’s kiss), Apple’s friend Darling, who is the most heroic and clever of the team, realizes that there may be another way to awaken Apple White.  She decides to use CPR so that Apple White can cough up the poison. In turn, this saves the day.

I do believe that sometimes Mattel does play around with the literal fates of the characters. lol The reason for this has a lot to do with Mattel wanting to highlight the character’s fairytale stories while still giving each character their own free will to choose how the story will end or begin.  After all, mostly the characters are identified more so by their respective fairytales rather than anything else in the EAH franchise, right?  So some things will seem a part of their “destinies”, simply because the characters are meant to represent certain fairytales…which means there will be bits and pieces from their original fairytales inculcated within the webisodes and movies. Their original fairytales were how they were born and how they became to be who they are as of right now. This is why Apple White pretty much ended up in the same situation as her mother at that one time.  But how she was awakened and how her story at that time ended was totally different from the original Snow White story.  This shows us that how the characters’ own personal stories are told in their FUTURES, regardless of their pasts or regardless of their origins, is still entirely up to the students of EAH no matter how many times their parents try to force their “written” destinies upon their children. We are ALL influenced by our own past and origins…therefore it will always be apart of our world…but what we do with our past and origins is actually entirely up to US.  We can’t control our past and origins, but we can control our futures.  I think this is the lesson The Dragon Games was teaching and really what the entire EAH series is teaching us.

I don’t believe Darling Charming was set up by Mattel to necessarily be Apple White’s destined true love.  If this is what Mattel wanted, they would’ve given more hints and there would have been some sort of astonishment from Apple White’s friends about it.  But nothing was said.  In fact, Darling herself was not astonished that she was the one to awaken Apple. Even if actions do awaken true love instead of the being itself…, still I would think that the characters and especially Darling would have given a bigger reaction than they did. After all, being someone’s true love’s kiss is usually a BIG DEAL in the fairytale universe, right?  But because there was hardly any reaction to this scenario that took place, to me this means that Darling’s CPR was not meant to be something important to the destiny of both characters.  To me, this means Mattel didn’t intend for this situation to mean anything life-changing…hence why they never made the characters react to the situation.

No one was astonished that it was Darling that awakened her.  Darling herself was not astonished or amazed or questioning why it was her instead of Daring, either.  Instead, everyone carried on as if it was no big deal.  And usually in movies and stories when a person awakens their “true love”, doesn’t this cause the characters to feel some sort of connection?  Darling just moved on and didn’t really care. She performed CPR and that was it. Her mission was completed.  That is how it felt to me.  And then no one else really cared to say anything and everyone just kind of chuckled as if they realized “True Love’s Kiss” was not needed after all.  This also led me to believe that the characters did not see this as “True Love’s Kiss”; that Mattel was not technically trying to imply Darling is Apple’s true love. The casual reaction from everyone led me to believe that Mattel wanted to play on storybook tropes, using empowering feminist messages that men are not the only ones who save the day; that other women can too in their own special way. Mattel has always encouraged that women can also save the day, and in this case they wanted to show that Darling Charming has her own way of saving Damsels in distress.  Instead of a kiss, she used something as simple as CPR to do the trick, which actually turned out to be what helped.  She defied storybook stereotypes; that only true love’s kiss can awaken the princess….I think this is what Mattel was intending to show in this regard.

For both lesbians and non lesbian women, the situation still redefines the idea that a princess must always be kissed by a prince. 🙂    I just do not think it was Mattel’s original intention to make Darling Charming Apple’s true love in the future, and my reasons why are as I stated above.  If anything, I believe Apple and Raven have a stronger future together than Darling and Apple. Even one of the producers has acknowledged this pairing on tumblr.

And I agree. Regardless of the intentions of the creators, it still really is a step forward. However, I believe that companies are still trying to “play it safe” and stick to friendship stories. Now, if this was Raven kissing Apple, I believe it would mean something because the story has been developing their relationship dynamic throughout the series and the books.

Then again, the whole scenario of someone being “kissed” without consent has come under fire, even when thinking of Disney’s movies, and it wouldn’t change people’s mind about the issue just because the role is played by a girl knight. Is it okay for someone to “discover” their lover after being kissed without permission, especially without any development of a relationship, even a decent friendship, prior to the kiss occurring? There’s also the issue of romanticizing CPR in the first place, considering it’s a very serious procedure that even some adults HAVE to perform on very small children. Should this really be considered the first sign of a good and happy romantic relationship in any context?

Now, don’t get me wrong, I predict some writers from the team will try to come out and say “it was intended” all along in the near future. Even though I might be happy with it, there would be so much evidence to the contrary, I would think it sounds like corporate pandering and queer-baiting to fit in with today’s “corporate inclusive” environment rather than the creators actually intending anything from this “CPR” scene when it was written and designed. I get really tired of corporations trying to pass off subtle gags as LGBTQ+ relationships. Queer-baiting should be a thing of the past by now. It would make more sense for a real queer relationship to develop between characters who actually have chemistry, just like they do with their heterosexual characters. Why should queer characters be treated any differently? Even queer people have standards, too, and I should think Darling and Apple’s types should be compatible with them as well, even fitting with their own profile standards.

Leave me a comment and let me know what you think!

For all the most up-to-date information on Ever After High: Royal & Rebel Pedia is the best wiki for it!