The Black Knights, also known as Black Guards, Dark Knights or the Queen's Guards, are several characters featured on ABC's Once Upon a Time. They début in the first episode of the first season.
History
The Huntsman and his wolf head into a bar. Though the people insult him for crying over killing a deer, he responds calmly. This angers one patron, and he attacks the Huntsman, who stabs him. Unseen, the Evil Queen watches his actions from her magic mirror and has guards bring him to her castle. She desires his help to assassinate someone, but he will only agree if the wolves are protected. After the Queen concedes to his request, he is sent to murder her stepdaughter, Snow White, and bring back her heart as proof of death. Disguised as one of the Queen's guards, he accompanies Snow White, who reveals she knows of his intentions. She kicks him and runs off into the forest, to which he throws off his armor and gives chase. He quickly finds Snow White, but stops, puzzled, to see her scrawling a letter, which she asks that it be given to the Queen. As the Huntsman reads the letter, he is moved to tears and cannot bring himself to kill Snow White. Instead, he fashions a whistle out of a twig for her to use whenever she is in trouble. After letting her escape, he takes a deer's heart as a replacement for the Queen. Upon return to the castle, the Huntsman attempts to read Snow White's letter to the Queen, but she throws it into the fireplace. Upon further inquiry, she reveals that Snow White betrayed her trust by revealing a well-kept secret. Once the Queen receives the heart, she tries to place it into one of her vault boxes, however, none of them magically open. Realizing the Huntsman has played her, she takes out his heart as payment. To demonstrate what will happen if he crosses her again, she squeezes the heart; causing him pain. On her orders, the guards drag him into her bedroom. ("The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter," "Shadow of the Queen")
As part of a deal, Rumplestiltskin glamours Regina as a peasant. At the market, she stops commoners from hitting a stick effigy of her, but the Queen's knights arrive and mistake her as the creator of the effigy. As they prepare to execute her as punishment, a hooded vagrant saves her. During the battle, Regina's leg is cut with a rusty sword, and as an infection sets in, she passes out after seeing her savior is Snow White. ("The Evil Queen")
As Red Riding Hood, and Snow White are running from a group of Black Knights, one of them suddenly appears out of nowhere and attacks Snow White, saying that she cannot run from the Evil Queen, but the two woman manage to knock him out, and hide from the rest of the knights. ("Child of the Moon")
Three Black Knights track Snow White to the Werewolves' Den. The two of them kill Quinn, one of the Werewolves, by shooting him with an arrow. The knight then states to the remaining werewolves that they will stand down, or be killed, but Anita, the pack leader, kills him by snapping his neck, while the other pack members do the same to the other guards. ("Child of the Moon")
The Black Knights encounter Snow White in the forest and attempt to kill her for the Evil Queen. However, Prince Charming intervenes killing one of them by throwing a knife into his back. ("Snow Falls")
The Black Knights accompany the Evil Queen to the royal ball held at King Midas's castle. When Snow White, who has just broken into the castle, escapes on horseback, a Black Knight archer tries to shoot her with an arrow. However, the arrow misses when Emma tackles him. The archer alerts all those around him that Emma helped Snow White escape, and Regina has Emma arrested. Shortly after, the Queen sends a group of Bridge Trolls to deal with Snow White, but when they fail, she turns them into cockroaches. She threatens to do the same to the archer if he fails her again. To make a point, she lifts her boot and squashes one of the roaches with her foot, before ordering the knight him to find Snow White. ("Snow Drifts," "There's No Place Like Home," "Heart of Gold")
At some point, Claude meets the Queen, who is looking for Belle. By nightfall, he directs the Queen and her henchmen straight to her. After Belle is captured and imprisoned by the Queen, Claude becomes employed as one of her guards. ("The Outsider")
Two Black Knights chase Snow White to the edge of a cliff, but she manages to escape. To show them what "dead looks like," the Evil Queen kills his companion by snapping his neck. The knight then asks if he should send more men after Snow White, but she tells them that they've proven unequal to the task. ("Ariel")
Snow White is in the forest when she captures one of the Queen's knights. She threatens to kill him if he does not give her information about the Queen's whereabouts. After complying with her demand, Snow White knocks out the knight out and takes his armor and clothes as a disguise for herself. Later, Prince Charming finds the nude knight who tells him about Snow White's plans to kill the Queen, and how she has gone off to find Rumplestiltskin. Prince Charming questions the knight's version of events, but goes to find her. ("Heart of Darkness")
They accompany the Evil Queen when she runs into Hansel and Gretel. The Queen confronts the children on why they are on her road. They explain the disappearance of their father and that they are actively searching for him. The Evil Queen orders her guards to seize the children, but before they can do anything, Gretel throws Hansel's bolas at them. She and Hansel attempt to run away, but the Evil Queen uses her magic to fling them to the ground. She promises to assist them in their hunt for their father if they agree to help her out. ("True North")
The Huntsman still continues to fight on the side of good despite that his heart is gone. The Huntsman aids Prince Charming in his escape from the castle; killing a guard and giving him provisions for his quest to find Snow White. When offered to join Prince Charming, the Huntsman rejects the idea since he is bound to the Evil Queen ever since sacrificing his heart in place of Snow White's. Once the Evil Queen notes Prince Charming's absence, she threatens to kill the Huntsman for his incompetence. Though he swears to stop at nothing until Prince Charming is hunted down, the Evil Queen turns her attention away from him when she sees the Magic Mirror is able to show her where the prince currently is, and uses her magic to trap the prince in the forest. ("A Land Without Magic")
After Queen Regina puts Snow White under an eternal sleeping curse, the Magic Mirror witnesses Prince Charming awaken her with true love's kiss. He has Claude carry his mirror to the Queen in the royal garden and sternly warns against dropping him or he'll be cursed with fourteen years of bad luck. When her minions enter the garden, the Queen expresses annoyance at being disturbed, which quickly turns to outrage when she sees, through the Magic Mirror, Prince Charming proposing to a revived Snow White. ("Lost Girl")
On the day of her birthday, the Evil Queen and her Black Knights arrive in a village, with all its residents standing outside holding various gifts. A peasant woman wishes the Queen a happy birthday, proffering her a pie. Regina samples the filling, which is blueberry, calling it "not bad," but declaring that she prefers apple. The woman looks frightened as Regina addresses the crowd, telling them that while they don't have the present she wants, they will get it for her--"Snow White's heart on a plate". ("Souls of the Departed")
The Evil Queen overlooks a burning village when one of her knights approaches her and tells her that the forces of King George have failed, Snow White and Prince Charming have won the war, and the location of King George is unknown. She asks her knight the location of Snow White, and he informs her that she is on her way to meet with Prince Charming. The Evil Queen commands that she does not care how many lives are lost, Snow White is to be kept away from Prince Charming until she can meet with her. ("The Cricket Game")
Standing guard out of Belle's cell in the Queen's palace, Claude suspiciously watches as a hooded stranger approaches claiming to deliver a meal for the prisoner. Seeing through the lie, he attacks the assailant but is quickly overpowered and killed. With Claude dead, the stranger, Hook, breaks into Belle's cell hoping to extract information from her concerning his nemesis, Rumplestiltskin, and a cursed dagger. When she proves to be useless, Hook prepares to kill her until the Queen, Regina, stops him. She offers him the power to kill a magic-less Rumplestiltskin in another world once her curse is cast, but only if he manages to murder her mother, the Queen of Hearts, in Wonderland. Hook agrees, so Regina prepares to take him there by a portal hat. As part of the hat's rules, only the same amount of people who arrive in a world can return. Thus, since the Queen wants Hook to bring back her mother's corpse, she sends him to Wonderland with Claude's dead body. Instead of killing the Queen of Hearts, he joins ranks with her after learning Regina's curse will wipe out his memories. On return to the Enchanted Forest, Claude's body is left behind while Hook and his new accomplice depart. ("Queen of Hearts")
The Black Knights enter the Royal Castle as the Dark Curse engulfs the Enchanted Forest. They attack Prince Charming as he tries to bring his infant daughter, who is the savior, to the Magic Wardrobe, in order to send her to the Land Without Magic. Prince Charming overpowers them, and sends the baby through the wardrobe. The Black Knights attack him again, and the wounded prince does his best to defend himself, but he is quickly stabbed in the abdomen, and drops to the floor. The knights pry the wardrobe open, but it is empty. The Evil Queen arrives, and asks the knights about the child. The Black Knight replies, "Gone. It was in the wardrobe; and then it was gone. It's nowhere to be found." ("Pilot," "A Land Without Magic")Known Black Knights
List of Known Black Knights | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
S | Ep | Image | Name | Portrayed by | Notes | |||
1 | 01 | Black Knight (Pilot) |
James Bamford | Breaks into the Royal Castle while the Dark Curse engulfs the Enchanted Forest. Prince Charming duels him as he tries to reach the Magic Wardrobe.[1] | ||||
22 | ||||||||
6 | 17 | |||||||
1 | 03 | Lead Knight (Snow Falls) |
Amos Stern | Attempts to kill Snow White but is killed by Prince Charming first. | ||||
1 | 07 | Huntsman | Jamie Dornan |
| ||||
22 | ||||||||
C | SQ | |||||||
1 | 07 | Black Guard | Kam Kozak | Brings the Huntsman to the Evil Queen. | ||||
1 | 09 | Queen's Guard | Osmond Lloyd Bramble | Accompanies the Evil Queen when she runs into Hansel and Gretel. | ||||
1 | 16 | Black Knight (Heart of Darkness) / Lead Knight (Page 23) |
Edward Foy | Attacked by Snow White for information about the Queen's whereabouts. Killed by the Evil Queen when his information about Snow White is proven to be wrong. ("Heart of Darkness," "Page 23") | ||||
6 | 14 | |||||||
1 | 22 | Black Knight (A Land Without Magic) |
Charles Zuckerman | Escorts Prince Charming from his cell in the Evil Queen's palace. Killed by the Huntsman. | ||||
2 | 07 | Black Knight 1 (Child of the Moon) |
Jason Cermak | Chases Snow White and Red Riding Hood, and almost manages to capture them, but fails. | ||||
Black Knight 2 (Child of the Moon) |
Chad Riley | Tracks Snow White to the Werewolves' Den. Kills Quinn, one of the Werewolves, by shooting him with an arrow. Killed by Anita Lucas. | ||||||
2 | 09 | Claude | Paul Lazenby |
| ||||
11 | ||||||||
3 | 02 | |||||||
5 | 18 | |||||||
2 | 10 | Black Knight (The Cricket Game) |
Michael Soltis | Informs the Queen about Snow White and Charming's victory over King George. | ||||
2 | 20 | Berkley | Aleks Paunovic | Berkley and Rivers accompany the Evil Queen when she massacres a village. They later try to execute her while she is under a glamour spell. | ||||
Rivers | Michael Teigen | Berkley and Rivers accompany the Evil Queen when she massacres a village. They later try to execute her while she is under a glamour spell. | ||||||
3 | 06 | Black Knight 1 (Ariel) |
Josh Kalender | Killed by the Evil Queen, who magically snaps his neck to show him what dead really looks like. | ||||
Black Knight 2 (Ariel) |
Adam Lolacher | Chases Snow White to the edge of a cliff, but she manages to escape. | ||||||
3 | 21 | Black Knight Archer | Mik Byskov | Accompanies the Evil Queen to the royal ball held at King Midas's castle. | ||||
22 | ||||||||
4 | 17 | |||||||
5 | 12 | Black Knight 1 (Souls of the Departed) |
Jesse Blue | Killed by the Evil Queen who crushes his heart, believing it to be the heart of Snow White. |
List of Known Alternate Reality Black Knights | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
S | Ep | Image | Name | Portrayed by | Notes | |||
4 | 21 | Black Knights | Uncredited | In Isaac Heller's alternate Enchanted Forest, these Black Knights are present when Grumpy brings Isaac to the evil Snow White. They restrain Isaac when the Queen orders Prince Charming to behead him. They are also present when Snow White confronts Emma and Hook. | ||||
22 | ||||||||
4 | 21 | Bashful | Mig Macario | After Isaac Heller creates an alternate Enchanted Forest, Bashful and the other dwarves become Black Knights working for an evil Snow White. | ||||
4 | 21 | Doc | David Avalon | After Isaac Heller creates an alternate Enchanted Forest, Doc and the other dwarves become Black Knights working for an evil Snow White. | ||||
22 | ||||||||
4 | 21 | Dopey | Jeffrey Kaiser | After Isaac Heller creates an alternate Enchanted Forest, Dopey and the other dwarves become Black Knights working for an evil Snow White. | ||||
4 | 21 | Grumpy | Lee Arenberg | After Isaac Heller creates an alternate Enchanted Forest, Grumpy and the other dwarves become Black Knights working for an evil Snow White. | ||||
22 | ||||||||
4 | 21 | Happy | Michael Coleman | After Isaac Heller creates an alternate Enchanted Forest, Happy and the other dwarves become Black Knights working for an evil Snow White. | ||||
22 | ||||||||
4 | 22 | Lily Page | Agnes Bruckner | In Isaac Heller's alternate Enchanted Forest, Lily is a guard at the prison that holds Emma Swan. | ||||
4 | 21 | Prince Charming | Josh Dallas | In Isaac Heller's alternate Enchanted forest, Prince Charming serves as a henchman and Black Knight for Snow White, and a replacement for her true love, Prince James. | ||||
22 | ||||||||
4 | 21 | Sleepy | Faustino di Bauda | After Isaac Heller creates an alternate Enchanted Forest, Sleepy and the other dwarves become Black Knights working for an evil Snow White. | ||||
22 | ||||||||
4 | 21 | Sneezy | Gabe Khouth | After Isaac Heller creates an alternate Enchanted Forest, Sneezy and the other dwarves become Black Knights working for an evil Snow White. | ||||
22 |
Trivia
Storybook Notes
- The Black Knights are called Dark Knights in Henry's storybook.[2] ("The Snow Queen")
Prop Notes
- The design of the swords used by the Black Knights[3] are the same swords used by: ("Heart of Darkness," The Evil Queen" et al.)
- King George's army in the Season One episode "Heart of Darkness"[4]
- Prince Charming and Snow White's guards in the Season Two episode "The Cricket Game"[5]
- Regina and the serum queen in the Season Six episode "Page 23"[6]
- The Prince's guards in the Season Seven episode "Hyperion Heights"[7]
Costume Notes
- Some of the soldiers in the army that attacks DunBroch wear the same outfits as the Black Knights, but with different helmets.[8] ("The Bear King")
Appearances
Once Upon a Time: Season One | ||||||||||
"Pilot": | "The Thing You Love Most": | "Snow Falls": | "The Price of Gold": | "That Still Small Voice": | "The Shepherd": | "The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter": | "Desperate Souls": | "True North": | "7:15 A.M.": | "Fruit of the Poisonous Tree": |
Appears | Appears | Appears | Absent | Absent | Absent | Appears | Absent | Appears | Absent | Absent |
"Skin Deep": | "What Happened to Frederick": | "Dreamy": | "Red-Handed": | "Heart of Darkness": | "Hat Trick": | "The Stable Boy": | "The Return": | "The Stranger": | "An Apple Red as Blood": | "A Land Without Magic": |
Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Appears | Appears | Absent | Absent | Archive | Absent | Appears |
Once Upon a Time: Season Two | ||||||||||
"Broken": | "We Are Both": | "Lady of the Lake": | "The Crocodile": | "The Doctor": | "Tallahassee": | "Child of the Moon": | "Into the Deep": | "Queen of Hearts": | "The Cricket Game": | "The Outsider": |
Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Appears | Absent | Appears | Appears | Appears |
"In the Name of the Brother": | "Tiny": | "Manhattan": | "The Queen Is Dead": | "The Miller's Daughter": | "Welcome to Storybrooke": | "Selfless, Brave and True": | "Lacey": | "The Evil Queen": | "Second Star to the Right": | "And Straight On 'Til Morning": |
Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Appears | Absent | Absent |
Once Upon a Time: Season Three | ||||||||||
"The Heart of the Truest Believer": | "Lost Girl": | "Quite a Common Fairy": | "Nasty Habits": | "Good Form": | "Ariel": | "Dark Hollow": | "Think Lovely Thoughts": | "Save Henry": | "The New Neverland": | "Going Home": |
Absent | Appears | Absent | Absent | Absent | Appears | Absent | Absent | Archive | Absent | Absent |
"New York City Serenade": | "Witch Hunt": | "The Tower": | "Quiet Minds": | "It's Not Easy Being Green": | "The Jolly Roger": | "Bleeding Through": | "A Curious Thing": | "Kansas": | "Snow Drifts": | "There's No Place Like Home": |
Mentioned | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Appears | Appears |
Once Upon a Time: Season Four | ||||||||||
"A Tale of Two Sisters": |
"White Out": |
"Rocky Road": |
"The Apprentice": |
"Breaking Glass": |
"Family Business": | "The Snow Queen": |
"Smash the Mirror": |
"Fall": | "Shattered Sight": |
"Heroes and Villains": |
Appears | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
"Darkness on the Edge of Town": |
"Unforgiven": | "Enter the Dragon": | "Poor Unfortunate Soul": |
"Best Laid Plans": | "Heart of Gold": | "Sympathy for the De Vil": |
"Lily": | "Mother": | "Operation Mongoose Part 1": |
"Operation Mongoose Part 2": |
Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Archive | Absent | Absent | Appears | Appears | Appears |
Once Upon a Time: Season Five | |||||||||||
"The Dark Swan": | "The Price": | "Siege Perilous": | "The Broken Kingdom": | "Dreamcatcher": | "The Bear and the Bow": | "Nimue": | "Birth": | "The Bear King": | "Broken Heart": | "Swan Song": | |
Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Appears | |
"Souls of the Departed": | "Labor of Love": | "Devil's Due": | "The Brothers Jones": | "Our Decay": | "Her Handsome Hero": | "Ruby Slippers": | "Sisters": | "Firebird": | "Last Rites": | "Only You": | "An Untold Story": |
Appears | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
Once Upon a Time: Season Six | ||||||||||
"The Savior": | "A Bitter Draught": | "The Other Shoe": | "Strange Case": | "Street Rats": | "Dark Waters": | "Heartless": | "I'll Be Your Mirror": | "Changelings": | "Wish You Were Here": | "Tougher Than the Rest": |
Absent | Appears | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
"Murder Most Foul": | "Ill-Boding Patterns": | "Page 23": | "A Wondrous Place": | "Mother's Little Helper": | "Awake": | "Where Bluebirds Fly": | "The Black Fairy": | "The Song in Your Heart": | "The Final Battle Part 1": | "The Final Battle Part 2": |
Absent | Absent | Appears | Absent | Absent | Archive | Absent | Absent | Appears | Absent | Absent |
Once Upon a Time: Season Seven | ||||||||||
"Hyperion Heights": | "A Pirate's Life": | "The Garden of Forking Paths": | "Beauty": | "Greenbacks": | "Wake Up Call": | "Eloise Gardener": | "Pretty in Blue": | "One Little Tear": | "The Eighth Witch": | "Secret Garden": |
Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent |
"A Taste of the Heights": | "Knightfall": | "The Girl in the Tower": | "Sisterhood": | "Breadcrumbs": | "Chosen": | "The Guardian": | "Flower Child": | "Is This Henry Mills?": | "Homecoming": | "Leaving Storybrooke": |
Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Absent | Appears |
Once Upon a Time: Comics | |||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||
|
Once Upon a Time: Specials | ||||||||||
"Magic is Coming": |
"The Price of Magic": | "Journey to Neverland": | "Wicked is Coming": | "Storybrooke Has Frozen Over": | ||||||
Archive | Archive | Absent | Archive | Absent | ||||||
"Secrets of Storybrooke": | "Dark Swan Rises": | "Evil Reigns Once More": | "The Final Battle Begins": | |||||||
Archive | Archive | Archive | Archive |
Other Appearances | ||||||||||
|
Note: "Archive" denotes archive footage.
References
|