Her Handsome Hero

"Gaston: Her Handsome Hero... Interesting. Wouldn't have picked you for a fan of cheap romance. Belle: No! No. This is not like that. This book is about compassion and forgiveness... the things that truly make a hero."

"Her Handsome Hero" is the seventeenth episode of Season Five of ABC's Once Upon a Time. It was written by Jerome Schwartz, and directed by Romeo Tirone. It is the one-hundredth and fifth episode of the series overall, and premiered on April 10, 2016.

Synopsis
Belle turns to Rumplestiltskin with hope of finding a way to protect their child from Hades. However, they disagree over whether to use dark magic, as Belle forbids Rumplestiltskin from using his powers for evil. Meanwhile, Hades secretly meets with Gaston in the Underworld and encourages him to seek revenge on Rumplestiltskin. As the heroes try to find a way to defeat Hades, Emma has a terrifying nightmare that she realizes is beginning to come true. And in flashbacks, Belle and Gaston meet for the first time, but their blossoming romance comes to a halt on the eve of the Ogre wars.

Starring

 * Ginnifer Goodwin as Mary Margaret Blanchard
 * Jennifer Morrison as Emma Swan
 * Lana Parrilla as Regina Mills
 * Josh Dallas as David Nolan
 * Emilie de Ravin as Belle/Belle French
 * Colin O'Donoghue as Hook
 * Jared S. Gilmore as Henry Mills
 * Rebecca Mader as Zelena
 * Sean Maguire (Credit only)
 * Robert Carlyle as Mr. Gold

Guest Starring

 * Wes Brown as Gaston
 * Greg Germann as Hades
 * Eric Keenleyside as Maurice
 * Meghan Ory as Ruby

Trivia
Production Notes=

Production Notes

 * The title card features an ogre running in the woods.
 * This episode is named after the book that Colette read to Belle when she was young. The book first appears in "Skin Deep", and is first seen in close-up in "Family Business".
 * Wes Brown replaced Sage Brocklebank as Gaston for this episode. The "Skin Deep" shots of Gaston in the recap were also re-filmed with Wes Brown.
 * The line, "I am Sir Gaston, and you, beast, have taken..." was changed to "I am Sir Gaston, and you, beast, have taken my love."
 * The new line, is the version that was originally scripted for the episode "Skin Deep".
 * -|Episode Connections=

Event Chronology

 * The Underworld events take place after "Our Decay".
 * The Enchanted Forest events take place before "Family Business".

Episode Connections

 * Gaston was killed by Rumplestiltskin in "Skin Deep".
 * Belle and Zelena arrived in the Underworld in "Our Decay".
 * Zelena's relationship with Hades was explored in "Our Decay".
 * Gaston claims the best way to kill an ogre is by shooting at its eye. This is seen to work in "Lady of the Lake" when Mary Maragaret saves Emma from an Ogre attack.
 * The repercussions of the Ogre War between the Ogres and Maurice's kingdom is shown in "Family Business" and "Skin Deep".
 * -|Cultural References=

Disney

 * Belle, Gaston and Maurice are characters of the same names as in Disney's 1991 film Beauty and the Beast. LeFou, the man who likes to spread tall tales to embarrass Gaston, is a reference to Gaston's sidekick from the movie.
 * Maurice states that Gaston is the son of Lord LeGume. According to the story reel included in the Platinum and Diamond Editions of the DVD and Blu-ray release of Beauty and the Beast, Legume was originally intended to be Gaston's surname.

Fairytales and Folklore

 * This episode features Beauty and the merchant from the "Beauty and the Beast" fairytale, Hades from Greek Mythology, Captain Hook from the Peter Pan story, the Wicked Witch of the West from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz story, and Red Riding Hood from the "Little Red Riding Hood" fairytale.
 * A statue of a hippogriff can be seen on top of the grave that Hook, Emma and Mary Margaret are hiding behind. A hippogriff is a legendary creature which has the front half of an eagle and the hind half of a horse.
 * -|Props Notes=

Props Notes

 * Most of the symbols that Regina draw on the Underbrooke Library elevator, are Elder Futhark runes:
 * The top symbols, ᛈᛟᚱᛏᚨᛚ (with a pentacle between them), translate as "portal".
 * The ones in the middle, around the locks, ᚨᛋ ᚨᛒᛟᚹᛖ ᛋᛟ ᛒᛖᛚᛟᚹ, translate as "as above, so below". This is a well-known occult maxim from the Emerald Tablet, an ancient, mysterious tablet which is one of the pillars of Western alchemy, and is said to be inscribed with the secrets of the universe. This tablet is one of the texts that form the basis of Hermeticism. In Fulcanelli's translation, the full maxim reads: " As below, so above; and as above so below. With this knowledge alone you may work miracles."
 * The ones going down the right side of the door, next to the door frame, spell out "ᛒᛖ ᛁᛏ ᚹᛖ ᚹᛁᛚᛚ", meaning "be it we will".
 * The symbols at the bottom right, ᛋᛟ ᛒᛖ ᛁᛏ, translate as "so be it".
 * The word that Regina is writing when Hook and Emma come in, is ᛞᛟᛗᚢᛋ, which translates as "domus", which is Latin for house, home.
 * A pentacle (a pentagram with a circle around it) is inscribed at the top of the door. The pentagram and the pentacle have historically been used by occult faiths and magicians, and today, the pentagram is used as a a symbol for Wicca, Witchcraft, and Paganism.
 * A page in An Alphabetized Inventory of Magical Antiquities says:

[image begins] can unleash written words to beloved real objects


 * 3″ x 7″

Simply place the glass over every tenet and by saying the lines, "Abracadabra.. Abracadabra.. A"

Mirror of Souls: If someone has evil in their souls, it will be revealed in this mirror's gaze

Their eyes will glow with demonic fire


 * Size: Approx. 17″ x 19″


 * When Belle is talking to Gaston in the backroom of the Underbrooke Pawnshop, a rose arrangement in a metal vase is sitting on a table. It is an Underworld duplicate of a decoration in the foyer in Rumplestiltskin's castle in "Heart of Darkness".
 * -|Other Notes=

Filming Locations

 * The scene where Maurice and Belle find an "injured" Gaston was filmed in Lynn Canyon Park in the District of North Vancouver.