It's Time To Bring Neal Cassidy Back To 'OUAT'

There are lots of characters on Once Upon A Time who have come and gone from the show over the last four seasons. Some of their absences have been explained, while others have not — seriously, should someone do like, a wellness check on Ruby? But out of all these characters who have come and gone, I still find myself hung up on one of them: Neal Cassidy. Oh, Neal Cassidy, aka Balefire, aka Rumpelstiltskin's son, aka Henry's dad. I wanted to dislike him SO MUCH — because of everything he had done to Emma — but I couldn't. Instead, I rooted for him SO MUCH. Needless to say, I was devastated beyond belief when he died. The thing about OUAT, though, is that people seem to come back from the dead every other week. So now it's time for a serious question, Once Upon A Time writers: could Neal come back?

I am very aware that Neal is dead and we saw him buried in the ground, I know. But listen, Zelena was dead and she disappeared into a cloud of dust but now she's back from the dead. I'm pretty sure the Blue Fairy/Mother Superior has died at least once every season. August was a real boy, and then he became a little boy, and now he's a grown man again. So like, OUAT can bend whatever rules it wants, and it it wants to reincarnate someone, it will. Which brings us to Neal. Could we see him again in Storybrooke?

OUAT Has Talked A Lot About Neal Lately

Since his death in Season 3, he hasn't been mentioned that often. I like to pretend it's because everyone in Storybrooke loved him like I did, and even saying his name is risky, because it could lead to crying (like me). Sure, Snow and Charming named their newborn Neal, but as for Season 4, his name hasn't come up. That is, until Season 4's "Heart of Gold," where we found Robin and Marian living in Neal's apartment in New York City. It was honestly too much for me to handle. It was also kind of a weird thing to do, considering that Neal is dead, yet his apartment is still completely intact? And now Storybrooke residents can just rent it out?

Throughout the episode his name kept on coming up, whether it was Robin, Regina, or Rumple talking about him. Too much. Too suspicious. You know like when a band is getting ready to release a new album, radio stations will play a lot of their old songs? It's was like that with Neal. They were mentioning his name, as if to prep us for what's to come.

Every Else Gets To Come Back From The Dead

Even Rumple has died, and then miraculously come back to life (though, he did have Neal's help). The latest one to achieve this feat is Zelena. While she's fine as a villain and everything, wouldn't you much rather have a hero return from the dead? Is there seriously no spell that could be used on Neal? There's a spell for everything. Could even Zelena bring him back to life? She's back, we might as well use her.

His Return Hasn't Been Completely Ruled Out

The Powers That Be behind OUAT have always been open to the idea of Neal coming back. Edward Kitsis told TVLine following Neal's death episode that they would "love" to have Neal back for a flashback. Adam Horwitz recently had an interview with Entertainment Weekly where he suggested that we might even learn August's involvement in Neal's history (like, how he knew about Neal in the first place). Both of these reasons would bring Neal back.

However, I don't want Neal back for a flashback. I want him back as a regular character, so maybe, work some of that famous magic, guys.

William Shatner Wants Neal Back

Listen, I don't know where you get your TV news, but I get a majority of mine from Captain James T. Kirk. Shatner might be a bigger television fan than we all are combined, and not only does he live-tweet his favorite shows, he also asks the tough questions.

This should be my favorite Twitter exchange ever. Shatner tweeted about this pressing topic again, reminding us that Horowitz hasn't ruled out the idea of Neal returning.

Are We Really Behind Emma & Hook?

It's not that I don't love a good pirate, but Neal was a pretty good thief, too. He just reformed himself sooner. I dunno. Hook and Emma are fine together, I guess. But Neal was her first love.

Things for Emma and Hook are getting a little too easy right now. They're in a relationship, and now things between them are, well, kinda boring. I miss the tension between them, and Neal was part of that tension. Which one would Emma choose? Is the only reason she's chosen Hook — this time, and every other time — because Neal was out of the picture?

Neal Was A Great Person

Sure, he used to steal, and he had major daddy issues, but he was genuinely a nice person. He was selfless. He was kind. He's also never killed anyone — everyone else on the show has killed someone. Even Emma has now killed someone. So why was Neal the one who had to die? With all the darkness in Storybrooke now, wouldn't it be nice to have a little bit of light?

So Could Someone Please Go Find A Spell In A Storybook & Bring Him Back? Like Now?

Listen, his return to Storybrooke doesn't even need to make much SENSE. I'm still willing to go along with the idea that Henry is Neal's son, and Neal is Rumple's son, and Rumple is Peter Pan's son, and Peter Pan was EVIL. As a OUAT viewer, I'm willing to believe a lot. So his return doesn't need to be long and complicated. There's got to be a spell out there somewhere that can be used on him.

OUAT, can't just start visiting his old apartment, giving me back all these feels, without giving me a little bit of Neal eventually. So, please?

Images: ABC; Giphy(4); swanfireswift/tumblr(3)