Maleficent


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 * This article focuses on the character, Maleficent. For Maleficent's animal form and Storybrooke counterpart, see Maleficent's Dragon Form.
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"But, 'beast' is so harsh. I prefer Maleficent."

- Maleficent to Prince Charming

Maleficent is a character on Once Upon a Time. She makes her debut in the second episode of the first season. She is portrayed by Kristin Bauer van Straten, and her Storybrooke counterpart is a dragon hidden beneath the clock tower.

Before the Curse
At some point in time, Maleficent hexed Princess Aurora with the Sleeping Curse, putting the princess and her kingdom into a thorn-endorned ruin. The reason and circumstances for this currently remains unknown. However, it is known the Sleeping Beauty Regina had mentioned who had bested Maleficent was not Princess Aurora, but Aurora's mother.

Some time after, but before the casting of the Dark Curse, Prince Charming fights Maleficent after Rumplestiltskin forces him to make a deal. In exchange for his mother's ring back, Prince Charming has to take Rumplestiltskin's bottle of true love encased within a protective egg and hide it in the belly of a great beast. The beast turns out to be Maleficent transformed into a fire-breathing dragon. After he succeeds with his task, he jumps out the window of Maleficent's castle to safety. ("A Land Without Magic")

Later, after she was defeated, she retired and lived with her unicorn until the Evil Queen came to her. The Evil Queen traded the Dark Curse to Maleficent a long time ago, in exchange to have the Sleeping Curse so she could put Snow White into a deep sleep and get rid of her forever. However, the Sleeping Curse was broken when Prince Charming broke the curse with true love's kiss.

Frustrated, the Evil Queen goes to Maleficent to get the Dark Curse back. Maleficent says they made a deal and the curse belongs to her now. She keeps the curse held in the orb of her staff, and when she refuses to willingly hand it over, the Evil Queen challenges her. They have a magic spar, and just as the Queen readies a fireball to throw at the pet unicorn, Maleficent jumps in front to intervene and is tied up with the metal of the chandelier, which is thrown into the wall. She believes she will be killed, but the Evil Queen states she would never do that since Maleficent is her only friend. Free to get the curse's recipe from the orb of Maleficent's staff, the Evil Queen is warned of the curse's dangers, and how it would leave a void in her, but she takes this all in stride and leaves. ("The Thing You Love Most")

For events occurring after the casting of the Dark Curse, see Maleficent's Dragon Form.

Trivia

 * She is the second witch to appear in the series.
 * She can transform herself into a dragon.
 * In the Disney adaptation of Sleeping Beauty, Maleficent had a pet raven named Diablo. In this series, she has an as of yet unnamed unicorn instead.
 * Maleficent's outfit and hairstyle from "The Thing You Love Most" was featured in the Facebook game Sorority Life during the Fairytale Adventure travel abroad series.
 * She, Red, Anita, Quinn and the other "Children of the Moon" are the only people shown to be able to transform into something different from their human form.
 * Emma Swan slays the dragon Maleficent with an overhead sword throw, mirroring a moment in the first episode where Prince Charming attempts to kill the Evil Queen in the same manner with the same sword. Both instances are homages to Prince Phillip slaying Maleficent in Walt Disney's Sleeping Beauty. ("A Land Without Magic")
 * She's the Evil Queen's only "friend".