Eh, considering everything Regina’s done, I’ll give her credit for choosing not to immediately go to killing as a solution as she would have in S1. She’s the evil queen from the story after all- not killing *is* a big step for her. Maybe it wouldn’t be considered one in the real world, but in this heightened reality fairytale world, I’ll buy it. These are storybook characters- they aren’t from our world. That’s why it doesn’t bother me- I don’t try make it work within the context of the real world. Obviously, you disagree, and that’s fine- that’s your choice.
I’m also perfectly okay with the explanation that Emma doesn’t know how to control her powers yet. Just because she is true love incarnate doesn’t mean she is automatically going to know how to rescue everyone. Honestly, I think her struggling to figure her powers out makes for a far more interesting and entertaining story then having her be the hero without even having to try. I also don’t think it makes sense to have Emma already be stronger in controlling her powers than Regina just because she’s the savior. There’s a difference between having a lot of power and actually knowing how to yield it. (And Marian begged the villain because the heroes who were present had all been knocked out of commission.)