'OUAT' Season 5 Promises More Lily & Maleficent

We might as well face the facts, everyone: Once Upon A Time Season 5 is going to be largely about Dark Swan, and more specifically, about returning Emma to her former, non-evil state as Storybrooke's Savior. It's a battle that will likely dominate the first half of the season and possibly later, meaning that there won't be a whole lot of time to delve into other storylines.

I love Emma and am really excited about the recent turn of events, but it's also slightly disheartening to know that all the potential that exists with some of Once 's more minor characters will likely be squandered, or at least pushed by the wayside, while we deal with the matter at hand. One of the most intriguing storylines from last season belonged to Maleficent and Lily, who were reunited after more than 30 years of separation — a separation caused by Emma's parents. There's still so much we need to learn about these two women, and thankfully, it seems like Maleficent and Lily will get the screentime they deserve, after all... eventually.

Once executive producer Edward Kitsis promised that we will eventually learn more about Maleficent and Lily's past, as well as what will happen in their future — just don't expect it right away.

"We intend to tell that story at some point this season. We set it up for a reason. That is one we are definitely intending to do," he told EW.

Well, that's a relief. It also lends a bigger clue as to just how long this whole "rescuing Dark Emma" situation is going to go on, and frankly, five episodes seems quicker than I would have expected. That's not a guarantee that Emma will be her old self again, but it seems like it'll be resolved enough that we can dedicate time to other things.

But back to the matter at hand. Once we can focus some attention on Maleficent and Lily, we'll likely be in for some serious mother/daughter bonding time. After all, they've only just been reunited, and both will have issues surrounding their separation that they'll need to confront, whether or not they decide to seek Archie's help in the matter. Lily in particular has some deep scars that have never healed, from her rage at Snow and Charming for keeping her from ever having anything resembling happiness in her life to having grown up motherless and, well, pretty much alone. She's also only just got her dragon powers, so she'll need to learn how to control them if she wants to keep from burning Storybrooke to the ground.

Of course, there's also the matter of Lily's parentage — the other half of the equation, anyway. Lily wants to know who her father is and where he is, but Maleficent doesn't have the answers, considering that what happens in dragon form stays in dragon form. I long ago guessed that perhaps Merlin is Lily's father, which I'm still not sure is untrue, but only time will tell. Since everyone will be traipsing off to Camelot to find Merlin anyway to help Emma, it might just be a double whammy of a discovery once they get there.

Hurry up, September 27!

Images: Jack Rowdan/ABC; askthedarkeshteart/Tumblr