Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-25355646-20140930163721/@comment-24674051-20150112225107

I would challenge that statement. Granted, they did not have a LOT of magic, and their normal powers were suppressed. But Regina could still control Graham with his stolen heart. And, she was able to get the poison apple from the enchanted forest, which still had enough efficacy to cause Henry to fall under the sleeping curse.

And Gold had enough magic to enact the "curse" that opened the way for magic to enter the LWM (albeit contained within the confines of Storybrooke).

But, they could very easily use non-magical villians. Pull someone like a Professor Moriarity (Highly intelligent and clever), and have that villian figure out a way to reduce the effectiveness of Magic. (BTW, I'm not pushing for Sherlock Holmes in the series, just using Moriarity as an example). Or maybe a Judge Frollo. Or combine some of Ingrid's and Zelena's personality, and strip away the magic (both had some parts of their personality that were genuinely likeable, which they used to ingratiate themselves to the Heroes, getting an inside advantage.)