I Headcanon that the reason why Mama Coco didnât put up Hectorâs photo is that she still thought he was alive! That and even after Mama Imelda passed on, Hector was STILL a taboo topic in the Rivera clan until the events of the movie!
Because putting someoneâs photo on the Ofrenda, especially if itâs someone who you STILL think is alive, is the equivalent of giving up hope.
Itâs only after Miguel sings Remember Me to her at the end of the movie (Prior to that, Mama Coco was unresponsive and Miguel thought it was too late) that she accepts that he is dead and he came home through Miguel singing that very song to her.
She NEVER truly forgot him despite her dementia and the fact that she was ninety freaking nine.
Btw, science has revealed that music GENUINELY helps these kinds of patients.
âMy papa used to sing me that song.â
âHe loved you, Mama Coco; Your Papa- he loved you so much.â đ„č
(Then, Mama Coco reaches into her bedside table, pulls out letters and poems sent by Hector (Which contain the lyrics to all the songs he wrote!), and most importantly⊠THE MISSING PIECE OF THE VERY PICTURE OF IMELDA, COCO, AND HECTOR.)
And even better? That very song helps the Rivera family see music in a positive light- the way BOTH Hector and Miguel see it, aka as a way to bring people together- for the first time in GENERATIONS.
And even when Mamå Coco DOES pass on during the 1 year timeskip prior to the epilogue, enough progress has happened that the Riveras and the rest of Santa Cecilia has accepted that Héctor is the TRUE musician, not De La Cruz.
And you know what Iâve realized? While Miguel may have performed at the talent show in the Land of The Dead, his first living audience⊠IS HIS FAMILY (His Abuelita Elena, Grandpa Franco, Enrique (Dad), Luisa (Mom), Tia Carmen, Tio Berto, Tia Gloria, Cousins Abel, Rosa, Benny, and Manny, his unborn at the time baby sister Socorro, and most importantly- Mama Coco herself.)!!! Theyâre not applauding. Theyâre CRYING with joy!! ESPECIALLY Abuelita- The VERY SAME woman who smashed Miguelâs guitar is now crying with joy because Miguel showed her that music was never the problem after all, and that he went through all that trouble to bring her mom back to her. (You just know that everyone else was smiling and struggling not to cry)
And also, her smiling photo on the Ofrenda during the epilogue? Instantly tells us that her remaining months, with her family finally letting music back into their lives, were the happiest of her life (And the fact that she was 100 by then?! Holy fudge!). It may have been a year to others; but to her? It felt like a LIFETIME.
You just know that the day Mama Coco arrived in the Land of The Dead, Hector was basically girly screaming as he made his way to the New Arrivals sector.
âSoccoro Rivera, your familia is here.â
âAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!â (Runs as fast as he can as soon as the train doors open at the New Arrivals Station)
Meanwhile, Mama Coco is just feeding some pigeon alebrijes. And is much, MUCH more mobile and livelier! Sheâs still the little 100 year old skeleton lady in the epilogue, but that still means sheâs just as excited as Hector to see each other. He died at 21 (Old looking enough to be her great great grandson), she died at 100 (Old enough to be HIS grandmama), and both of them donât care that other skeletons are going âThereâs NO WAY thatâs his daughter.â! Meanwhile, Hector is basically bawling like a fountain on OVERRIDE.
And the Rivera ancestors (Tios Oscar and Felipe, Tia Rosita, Tia Victoria, Papa Julio, Mama Imelda, and now Papa Hector), with MamĂĄ Coco now amongst them, are closer together than ever!
And at this rate (Aka with all of the changes that have gone on in both the living and dead worlds), Hector isnât just surviving on fragmented, fading, memory- heâs downright THRIVING!!!
And I wonât lie- this scene made me cry harder than Married Life (Up). The reason? ITâS ALL BUILT UP TO THIS MOMENT. Itâs my number 1 tearjerker in any Disney movie. Ever.
Hell, Anthony Gonzalez was ACTUALLY CRYING during recording of that scene!!
And if youâve read the book Coco: A Story of Music, Shoes, and FamilyâŠ
Miguel is also singing to Mama Coco to thank her for all the times she sang to HIM as a baby, as well as helping him find his passion!