Who Will Be The Hero Of 'OUAT' Season 5?

Ever since the beginning of the series, Once Upon a Time has played up the aspect of heroes and villains, which seems to be the theme going into Once Upon A Time Season 5. When we were first introduced to Storybrooke, the whole concept of the magical hidden town was that the Evil Queen (aka Regina Mills) was plotting against Snow White and Prince Charming to get her ultimate revenge. Well, it goes without saying a lot has changed since then. While Season 4 was all about Operation Mongoose, and villains finally getting their happy endings, toward the end we learned that even the heroes have a little bit of darkness.

As if the realization that the Charmings weren't so heroic after all wasn't hard enough to deal with, the Season 4 finale got viewers right where it hurts when Emma paid the ultimate price by sacrificing herself for Regina's own well-being (if that doesn't scream true friendship I don't know what does). Now that the Savior is the Dark One, the line between good and evil is about to get a whole lot more blurry for Season 5.

I have so many questions about the new season, but the biggest is that now that Emma is the new big bad, who will step up to take her place as the new big good? Since it was Regina that Emma stepped in to save, many people are speculating that the Evil Queen will become the Good Queen, but I have my own theories.

Regina Mills

I can't deny, Regina is probably the obvious choice here for the new hero in town. Not only is it a great example of character development (you know since she was the evilest of them all the start with), her happiness has been a long time coming. And there's no denying that, when Regina sets her mind to something, there's nothing she can't do.

Henry Mills

Now that he's the new Author, Henry's got unlimited power at his fingertips (quite literally, since it's the pen that does the magic). Whether Henry will use his new skill for good or evil is yet to be determined, but I know that he will do whatever it takes to get his mom back to normal.

The Charmings

We all love a good redemption story, and the Charmings are no different. Sure, they may have lost their way in the past, but who hasn't? I don't think it is fair that they should continuously be punished for their mistakes just because they were labeled heroes.

Maleficent

Since her daughter Lily came to town, this spitfire of a dragon has turned into a total softy. Maybe she can help keep the peace between Emma and her daughter, because you know there's sure to be a throwdown between these two now that the Savior has gone dark.

Rumplestiltskin

It's the question everyone is wondering: what will the Dark One be like without any darkness? We caught a glimpse of it in the season finale, but that is nothing compared to what will come in Storybrooke. Obviously, Rumple is going to have some major enemies now that his magic is gone. Will he be able to face his faults or will he run away cowardly like before?

Belle Gold née French

If Rumple is still in a magicless coma by the time Season 5 rolls around, what's stopping Belle from taking over? The show could always use another strong female lead, and Belle as the new hero could be the perfect opportunity for that. Not only is she able to see the beauty in the ugliness of beasts, all the books she has read make her super knowledgeable and wise.

Zelena

Okay, I know what you're thinking, but hear me out! Like I said before, the line between heroes and villains got completely messed up when Emma became the Dark One, so maybe this will have a ripple affect on the people of Storybrooke. Maybe Zelena's newborn baby will help her see that even the most wicked people are capable of doing good.

Images: ABC; Giphy (7)