Robin Hood

Robin Hood is a supporting character on Once Upon a Time. He was a well known thief with a heart of gold who brought radical changes to Nottingham, in the Enchanted Forest, and once he was able to bring down the dishonorable sheriff, Robin Hood became involved with Marian, and fathered her child. When Marian fell ill, Hood took it upon himself to steal a magic wand from Rumplestiltskin, and his life was ultimately spared by the Dark One when the latter realized what the thief had stolen the wand for, and thanks to the influence of the benevolent Belle on the beast as well.

Before the Curse
When the unhappily married Queen Regina is approached by a fairy named Tinker Bell, said fairy offers the Queen a way to gain happiness: by using pixie dust to locate her true love. Regina is skeptical as she lost her first love, Daniel, thanks to Snow White, but Tinker Bell assures her that people can love again. The fairy steals some pixie dust from her superiors which, when a spell is performed, lead Regina to a man. Tinker Bell and Regina are led to a bar where a man with a lion tattoo on his arm is drinking with friends. The fairy tells Regina to go in, and leaves the Queen alone to do so, however, Regina doesn't go in as she's too scared to do so. She lies to Tinker Bell, saying that the man was horrible, and because Tink stole the pixie dust, she is stripped of her wings and magic thanks to Regina. It is later revealed that the man with the lion tattoo on his arm is Robin Hood, and by not going in and talking to him, Regina ruined both her life and his.

After he helps the Merry Men pull off a heist, Will Scarlet is accepted amongst their ranks by Robin Hood, their leader. Here, Robin teaches Will that the Merry Men are not thieves as they do not steal for themselves, they steal for others. Will suggests that they break into Maleficent's castle and steal her gold, as rumor has it it's enough to end poverty in the entire kingdom. Knowing how dangerous Maleficent is, Robin is reluctant, but he eventually agrees to do so. Will then returns home and tells his true love, Anastasia, that he's managed to fool the Merry Men into believing that he agrees with their cause, and that they'll finally get what they're looking for after the heist of Maleficent's castle. Robin and his Merry Men manage to break in and steal the gold, however, when inside, Will steals something else also. He is seen celebrating with the rest of the group when the heist is successful, however, Maleficent uses her magic to project her voice and tell them to keep the gold if they must, but to return the other item they stole, or there shall be consequences. An incredibly angered Robin Hood asks who stole something else, and a guilty Will doesn't own up. When Will tries to leave, he is approached by Robin who realizes he stole for himself in Maleficent's castle, and he is bitterly disappointed in him, telling him that he is going to do to him the worst thing of all: nothing. Will then leaves and uses what he stole - a Looking Glass - to transport he and Anastasia to Wonderland.

When Rumplestiltskin is yelling at his maid Belle for crying too loudly, he hears a noise upstairs and goes to investigate. He and Belle discover a thief, Robin, in the room attempting to steal Rumple's magic wand, to which the Dark One is very unhappy. Robin fires an arrow at Rumple from his bow, one that contains magic so that it never misses its target, however, due to Rumple's own supply of magic, he is able to pluck the arrow fired at him from out of his chest and take Robin prisoner. The Dark One spends a while painfully torturing Robin, much to the dismay of Belle, and when the wizard leaves his castle for a while, Belle sneaks down into the dungeons and gives Robin some water, before untying him so that he is able to run free. He asks her to come with him but she says that if she does that, her family will lose Rumple's protection in exchange for her servitude, and so the thief wishes her luck before fleeing the castle. Rumple grows furious at his maid for letting Robin go and even more so that the thief escaped with the magic wand, and so vows to kill him with his own bow in front of her. After gathering the information he needs from the Sheriff of Nottingham, Rumple and Belle find Robin in Sherwood Forest where the thief uses the magic wand to heal a sick Marian. As she steps out of the carriage, Rumple sees she's pregnant, and as he doesn't want to leave a child without a father, when he fires the arrow, it misses, and Robin Hood and Marian are able to ride off with one another to safety.

Season 3
It is revealed that Robin Hood has been living in Rumplestiltskin's Dark Castle ever since the Evil Queen's curse ravaged the land. He is surprised to find two trespassers - Mulan and Neal - inside his castle, and fires an arrow at them as a warning shot. Neal says that he's looking for something and Robin asks him what gives him the right to take from the castle, at which Neal explains that he's the Dark One's son. Robin, who feels he owes a dept to Rumple for sparing his life, decides to aid Neal in finding whatever it is he needs to find, and Neal soon approaches his father's old cane which has been abandoned on the floor. Robin is skeptical, not believing that the cane holds any magic, however, once Neal handles the thing, a door magically appears in the wall. Robin wonders how this is possible, and Neal explains that Rumple tuned the stick to only perform magic for him or those with his blood, such as his son. From behind the door, Neal retrieves a crystal ball and uses it to view his true love, Emma Swan. He is shocked to learn that she is not in Storybrooke, but in Neverland.

Robin and Mulan remain with Neal Cassidy in Rumplestiltskin's Dark Castle as he frantically looks for a portal in his father's magical possessions. He becomes angry when he's unable to find anything, and when Robin Hood's Merry Men sense disturbance, they enter the castle. Robin assures them that he's okay, and Neal is surprised to see that Robin has a young son named Roland, which gives him an idea. When Neal tells the archer that he'd like to use his son as bait for Peter Pan's shadow, Robin initially refuses, but Neal then reminds him that his father spared his life, meaning that Marian and Roland were able to survive. Due to his need to repay his debt to Rumple, thinking he can do it through Baelfire, Robin agrees to let Neal use Roland as bait under the assurance that his son remain safe. Robin, Neal and Mulan hide whilst Roland utters the phrase "I believe..." which causes the shadow to burst through the window. It attempts to take Roland but Mulan fends it off, allowing Neal to hitch a ride to Neverland and find his own son, as well as his true love. Robin takes note of Mulan's skill and offers her a position as one of his Merry Men, making her the first female member. After a disappointing conversation with Aurora, Mulan decides to join Robin Hood and the Merry Men on their travels through the Enchanted Forest.

When the Dark Curse is undone, those who lived in the town of Storybrooke, Maine are transported back to their home in the Enchanted Forest; a group of them begin trekking to the Evil Queen's palace, for it was untouched by the curse. Whilst on the journey, Regina and Snow White are attacked by a flying monkey, and the former fails to fend it off with her magic. Suddenly, Robin Hood appears and shoots at the creature with his bow and arrow, injuring it and scaring it off. Snow is grateful but Regina is disgusted by the thief, and his Merry Men, who hold a likewise opinion their former tyrant, having spent many years running from her Black Knights. Robin and his band join the others on their trek, and on the way, Snow points out that Robin is kind of cute, however, Regina retorts that he "smells like forest", clearly uninterested. Robin spots Neal and begins catching up with him, wondering what became of his son, and Neal reveals that he is not with his child but that Henry is safe with his mother. When they finally arrive at the palace, they are surprised to discover a protection spell has been cast around it - one that isn't Regina's - meaning someone has taken up residence inside.

Another flying monkey attacks the group and attempts to snatch up Roland whilst pursuing Regina, leading the Evil Queen to rescue the little boy and turn the creature into a new plush toy for him to play with. Robin sincerely thanks the Queen, and so secretly goes with her when she decides to trek beneath the tunnels of the Dark Palace, figuring he owes her a dept. She is annoyed when she realizes he's been following her, but allows him to come anyway, navigating him through the tunnels and telling him how to avoid her booby traps. On the way, he tells her of his deceased wife, Marian, whereas she tells him of her lost son, Henry, who she can never see again. They soon make it to the palace's crypt and Regina is shocked to find that it's already open due to the fact that she previously sealed it with blood magic; this means that the Wicked Witch of the West, who they're up against, must be immensely powerful. When they make it to one of Regina's old room, she begins mixing a dark potion, which spurs Robin to pull his bow and arrow on her. She begins strangling him with magic in retaliation, but he points out that his arrow would still leave his bow if he died, meaning he'd take her with him. Regina relinquishes and explains that she's making a sleeping curse so that she can be awoken by the only person she'd want to be awake for: her son. He tries to stop her but she freezes him to the spot, keeping her word and disarming the shield before she pricks herself with the magic needle. However, she has a run-in with the Wicked Witch and learns that she's her half-sister, telling Robin that she doesn't need to go into a sleeping curse for she took his advice and found something to live for; something she hasn't had for a very long time... someone to destroy.

As payment for helping her break into the palace, Regina gives Robin a collection of golden-tipped arrows, much to his surprise. He later finds Prince Charming in the stables, drinking, and asks his comrade what ales him. Charming explains that his wife, Snow, is pregnant and he is scared that he won't be a good father because he was forced to abandoned his first child. Robin tells Charming that, when his wife died, Friar Tuck spoke of a root that, when ingested, rids the consumer of any and all fears. The prince wonders if it works, but Robin reveals that he never tried it, having never dabbled with magic unless he had to. He gives Charming directions to this night-root, before returning to his son, who he has decided to keep in the castle for it is the safest place with a Wicked Witch on the loose.

Eight months after Snow falls pregnant, Robin Hood sits on the royal council and offers to help them break into Rumplestiltskin's castle, where the resurrected Dark One resides as the Wicked Witch's prisoner, for he knows his way around the traps that surround it. Regina is against the idea, not thinking they should be trusting a thief, but Snow disagrees, thinking that Robin will be useful and decreeing that he should tag along. The Queen is about to touch an enchanted door when Robin fires an arrow at it, revealing that it would have burned her alive. However, despite him having just saved her life from this magical booby trap, she is enraged that he almost fired an arrow into her head. He asks for thanks, but she refuses to give it. Once Rumple offers all the information he's able to give on how to defeat Zelena, the witch. Ultimately, a Dark Curse is cast over the Enchanted Forest by Snow White so that Emma Swan may be located in order to defeat Zelena with her light magic, and everyone in the land is transported to Storybrooke, Maine, Robin Hood included. However, due to Zelena's tampering, Snow does not remember what she set out to do and her memories are lost along with everyone else's.

After the Enchanted Forest is cursed again, Robin and his Merry Men end up in the reformed town of Storybrooke, Maine, with everyone having lost a year of their lives. He is seen hunting in the woods with his men and Little John is trying to use the crossbow he stole to do so. He ends up missing the turkey he had his eye on and begins chasing it, crossing the town line in the process. When he does so, he is carried away by a flying monkey, and found later with a large bite mark on his shoulder by David and Robin. They accompany him to the local hospital, but here, Little John sprouts and tail and turns into a flying monkey himself, before smashing through the window and flying through the night sky of Storybrooke.

When Regina comes to check out the Wicked Witch's farmhouse, Robin fires an arrow at her from his crossbow, thinking she herself to be the witch. She catches the arrow in her hand, remaining unharmed, and he apologizes after realizing his mistake, suggesting that the two of them work together in order to track this witch down. Before they go, Regina asks Robin if she knows him, for he seems familiar, but he points out that he'd remember meeting the famous Evil Queen, unless perhaps it was in that pesky year no one can remember. Inside the house, Regina is searching for anything of magical origin whilst Robin begins to have doubts about the name she was assigned, not believing her to be evil at all. She assures him that the name served her well, for fear is an effective tool, and Robin grabs a bottle of something from the shelf, wondering if it's magical. Regina sees that it's whiskey and tells her new comrade that it has the ability to provide the drinker with courage, as well as act as a love potion of sorts, but that it's not magical. Realizing it's alcohol, Robin pours the two of them a drink, thinking they deserve it after the rough deal they've been dealt. He goes to hand her a glass, but when he does, she sees the lion tattoo on his arm, signifying that he's the man Tinker Bell tried to introduce her to many years ago: her true love. She leaves abruptly, and later, when Robin is spending time with his son, Roland, in the woods, she watches with sadness.

Robin attends Neal's funeral and the proceeding wake at Granny's Diner, where Tinker Bell spots his lion tattoo and realizes that he's Regina's soul mate. He then witnesses Zelena, the Wicked Witch, storm in and announce herself as Regina's half-sister, going on to challenge the Evil Queen a fight on Main Street at sundown, giving her time to learn the truth of their familial connection. Later, as Robin is searching for flying monkeys in the woods, he comes across Regina crying over a letter which she found in her mother's belongings. She allows him to read it and he sees that it's from Rumplestiltskin, telling Regina's mother that he found her first born and she is an extremely powerful sorceress. This distresses the Queen because she always thought the letter was about her, but she now realizes it's about Zelena, and if the man who taught her everything she knows about magic thinks that the Wicked Witch is more powerful than her, she doesn't stand a chance in this fight. Before she shows up that night, she requests that Robin Hood hides her heart in the woods, lest Zelena try and steal it. He stands guard as the fight takes place, and Regina emerges relatively unscathed after the witch tries and fails to take her heart, flying away on her broom afterwards. Regina then returns to the woods where Robin returns her heart, but she puts it in a leather pouch and requests that he holds on to it, trusting that it will be safe in his hands. He takes this obligation with much esteem, and as the Queen leaves, he points out that she still owes him a drink; she concedes to this.

Rumplestiltskin, under the control of the Wicked Witch, heads into the Merry Men's camp and demands to be given Regina's heart. Robin refuses, aiming his crossbow at the Dark One, but when he fires, Rumple uses his magic to redirect the arrow towards Roland, threatening to kill him if the heart isn't handed over. He assures Robin that he doesn't want to kill the boy, but he will, for he's being controlled. The Merry Men take Regina's heart from its hiding place and hand it over, meaning Roland goes unharmed and Mr. Gold leaves. Regina then shows up, wondering if her heart is safe, and Robin explains what happened, apologizing. Regina assures him that her heart is not worth the life of a child, and so forgives him, but she goes on to grieve over the fact that she's still alive. This confuses Robin, and she explains that Zelena hasn't crushed her heart, meaning she needs it for something far worse. That night, after a hectic day, Mary Margaret convinces Regina to be impulsive, and so Regina arrives in the woods and begins kissing Robin Hood passionately. He kisses her back.

Over at Granny's Diner, Regina and Robin Hood are seen making out in the back rooms when the former asks her new boyfriend what he sees in her. He says he sees a second chance, and goes on to wonder what she feels when they kiss, since she doesn't have a heart. She informs him that she can still feel, just not fully, and that it's complicated to explain, but he assures her that he will feel enough for the both of them. They continue to kiss, but to their surprise, Henry walks in on them, casually heading back to the diner and greeting "Madame Mayor" as he does so. She appears saddened and Robin asks her if she's alright, which she replies to negatively, going on to say that Emma, Snow and Charming are waiting for her, and so she leaves. Before she does, he gives her one last passionate kiss and wishes her good luck. Later, when Henry's memories have been restored and the curse has been broken by a kiss of true love, Robin finds Regina and her son down at the docks where they are discussing the kiss he witnessed earlier that day. He then introduces himself to the lad, who finds meeting the real life Robin Hood "awesome", and Regina simply comments that the curse is broken. Remembering all that's happened over the past year, Robin points out that things were a bit rocky between them, but Regina jokingly assures him that, for some reason, he's so much more likable in Storybrooke. Laughing, he leaves with Regina and Henry.

With Mary Margaret having gone into labor with her son, Robin Hood and his Merry Men are amongst those who gather at the hospital to try and secure the premises against Zelena, who wants to steal the child. However, when the Wicked Witch arrives, Robin attempts to pelt her with arrows but she merely knocks he and his fellow thieves to the ground effortlessly with her magic. Once she's taken Snow White's newborn son and with Emma Swan's magic having been earlier drained, it is unknown how Zelena will be stopped from casting her time travel spell, and Henry suggests that Regina use her own light magic, which she obviously possesses if she was able to issue a kiss of true love in order to break the curse. Robin Hood agrees, and he, Regina, Emma, Hook and David head to the barn where the witch has already begun her spell. They do battle with Rumplestiltskin, who's still under Zelena's control, but Regina is ultimately able to summon enough light magic to defeat her sister, taking the pendant which houses her magic - making her utterly powerless - and freeing Rumple from her influence. Zelena's lack of magic means all her flying monkeys are returned to their human forms, including Little John; Snow White reunites with her baby, and all is right with the world... until Zelena dies at the hands of Rumplestiltskin and the magic from her pendant spills across town and causes her time travel spell to enact.

Gallery
Gallery of photographic stills used to promote the character.