Once Upon A Time's Most Missed Characters
Once_Missed_PeterPan
15. PETER PAN
This little imp aka Rumple's father Malcolm (!) had a bold brattiness that offset the sweetness of his closest peer, Henry. Plus, Pan also had a colorful past with Hook, among others.
STATUS
Vanquished by the Dark One, in the middle of Storybrooke's Main Street. (Then again, Rumple seemingly died during that skirmish as well, and he was ultimately resurrected....)
Once_Missed_Lancelot
14. LANCELOT
Though we never had a chance to see him in Storybrooke — Cora killed the noble knight back in The Enchanted Forest, prior to posing as him to dupe Snow and Emma — lord knows he could have brought some needed diversity to the Maine burg.
STATUS
Long dead.
Once_Missed_Cinderella
13. ASHLEY AKA CINDERELLA
The show could definitely use more fun "breathers" like the girls' night out in Season 1's "Skin Deep." Plus as we saw much more recently, princesses can make for a most magical Mommy & Me class.
STATUS
Somewhere in Storybrooke.
EMILIE DE RAVIN, JOANNA GARCIA SWISHER
12. ARIEL
Upon swimming to Storybrooke as part of the plan to rescue the "Nevengers," the little mermaid showed promise to be a swell gal pal for Belle, who surely could use some non-book friends.
STATUS
Reunited, somewhere, with Eric...? (Season 3's "The Jolly Roger," with Zelena posing as Ariel, was quite confusing.)
Once_Missed_Cora
11. CORA
As Regina's mother, she brought to Storybrooke a nifty multigenerational aspect, representing her daughter's potential for nastiness, if left unchecked.
STATUS
Had her own life snuffed when Mary Margaret used a magic candle to save Gold.
ROSE MCIVER, COLIN O'DONOGHUE, JENNIFER MORRISON, MICHAEL RAYMOND-JAMES
10. TINKERBELL
The fallen fairy/Regina's onetime wingman proved helpful during the heroes' Neverland escapades, enough so that Blue awarded her wings upon everyone's return to Storybrooke. She also has a bit of an untapped past with a certain rakish pirate....
STATUS
Has she been seen since being among the witnesses to Regina and Zelena's rumble on Main Street...? (Rose McIver now headlines The CW's iZombie.)
Once_Missed_Whale
9. DR. WHALE
Dr. Frankenstein's Storybrooke alter ego has been known to get in do-right David's face, and once (during Charming's "marriage" to Kathryn) even indulged in a fling with Mary Margaret. Couldn't the sleepy town use an unabashed cad?
STATUS
Presumably tending to the sick at Storybrooke's hospital — while David Anders costars on The CW's iZombie.
JARED S. GILMORE, LANA PARRILLA, SEAN MAGUIRE
8. ROBIN HOOD
He had only just begun realizing his potential with soul mate Regina when Emma lugged "dead" Marian back from the past. #HappyEndingsRuined
STATUS
Left Storybrooke with Marian and their son Roland, so that his wife could escape the lingering effects of the magical spell cast on her by the Snow Queen.
JENNIFER MORRISON, GINNIFER GOODWIN, JAMIE CHUNG
7. MULAN
Another fairytale face that has yet to surface in Storybrooke, Mulan has again and again demonstrated a bravery and fierceness that Emma and David surely could use in a deputy.
STATUS
After Sleeping Beauty (unwittingly) broke her heart, she joined up with the Merry Men... though she was never seen after Robin Hood & Co. were transported to Storybrooke.
JOSH DALLAS, NOAH BEGGS, ALAN DALE, ELIZABETH MCCARTHY
6. ALBERT SPENCER
David's adoptive father/onetime father-in-law (it's complicated!!!) could serve as a powerful (if powers-less) foil in Storybrooke, both avenging his daughter Kathryn's heartbreak and seeking retaliation for his own arrest.
STATUS
Presumably serving time for the murder of Billy the tow truck driver, for which he tried to frame Ruby.
Once_Missed_Sidney
5. SIDNEY GLASS
Once Regina's most ardent admirer, Sidney in Storybrooke has on occasion proved useful as her eyes and ears, being a reporter for the Mirror.
STATUS
Briefly entrapped again as Regina's Magic Mirror, Sidney was set free by the Snow Queen, and hasn't seen seen since.
Once_Missed_Elsa
4. ELSA
Of all the Frozen characters that stopped by Storybrooke, the ice queen showed the greatest longer-term potential, forming a warm sisterly bond with Emma.
STATUS
Returned to Arendelle to thwart a coup/rest up for Frozen 2: Arctic Boogaloo.
ABC's "Once Upon a Time" - Season One
3. RUBY
When Once Upon a Time first premiered, Ruby seemed to represent an edgy, contemporary personality among all these frozen-in-time characters. Plus, her tracking skills (as the Big Bad Wolf) have been known to be useful when solving crimes or hunting baddies.
STATUS
Presumably in Storybrooke, somewhere.
Once_Missed_Graham
2. SHERIFF GRAHAM
An early fan favorite, he was an immediate foil for Emma and apparently helped Mayor Mills (ahem) "take the edge off." His death, though tragic and premature, demonstrated early on Regina's ruthless potential.
STATUS
Jamie Dornan (Fifty Shades of Grey) has kept busy with handcuffs and other forms of "lock up."
Once_Missed_Neal
1. NEAL
Representing the greatest untapped potential in a character, the con man for so long was separated from first love Emma – first by the Dark Curse, then by circumstance and his seeming fatal plunge through a portal. Even "reunited" in Neverland, where he was at first held prisoner by Pan, their time spent together was sparse. Similarly, Baelfire and the long-distraught Rumplestiltskin never enjoyed much father/son time, until, well....
STATUS
It was revealed in Season 3 that "mad" Rumple in fact had his son's soul inside of him. Knowing that Storybrooke could best benefit from Rumple's survival, Neal "split apart" from his dad, sacrificing his life to save others, dying in his dad and Emma's arms. Sure, he left Henry with the memory of a hero father. But wouldn't the lad much rather have a living Dad?