Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-25926288-20170429134340/@comment-25926288-20170514194149

DSP88 wrote: Regina didn't go to Zelena to figure out what else was necessary in order to open the portal to Emma. They went to Zelena because they needed a dark magic user and they believed at the time, as Hook said, that Regina was no longer dark enough (that she had done too much good). It was proven in a later episode that the ONLY reason why Regina wasn't able to use the wand in the begining was because of her confidence level and then she sent Zelena back to Oz.

Everything else you mention goes back to the writers. They make Regina look stupid for the plot and the plot alone. In the first two seasons Regina/EQ was basically unstoppable but once she became a hero they toned down her abilities.

Also, Regina was able to break Zelena's protection spell on her castle. So that's one example of her breaking a magic spell/barrier of someone who is supposedly stronger than her. 1. Regina didn't say it, but she did say "Fine. That we can do,' when Zelena gave the information about what as needed. So, she didn't know that she needed an object that belonged to Emma.

2. Yeah, plot. Regina during the fight with Black probably would do better than Zelena despite them saying otherwise because the writers sort of go with whatever they feel like. The part of why I put Regina where I do is because of that, but people do have to remember, before Emma in the EF, there were Rumple and Blue, but besides them, Regina was the most talented and powerful witch in the region. So, she's not weak at all. But Zelena was in Oz, Ingrid was in Arendelle, then the LWM, Fiona was already mentioned to be Dark One level or beyond, pan was in Neverland, etc.

3. Regina didn't break Zelena's protection spell. Zelena hijacked Regina's protection spell, which Regina realized quickly on how to break it (seeing how she knew how she casted her own.)