#also cynthia

[parasolladyansy]

Does Emmet have Ingo's journal?

Yes, indeed! He received it from Ansy back in the prologue shortly after Ingo disappeared.

Since then, he reads from it at least once a day, & always keeps it in his coat’s inner pocket during the day, next to his bedside at night. It was well-cared for, but whenever there was any wear / tear, he would meticulously repair it as he filled in his various notes (mostly translations from old Sinnohese to modern Galarian). 📖

[ladyantiheroine]

I’m thinking about Wicked tonight, specifically why Elphaba ends up with Fiyero instead of Glinda in the musical despite Elphaba and Glinda having the more well-rounded relationship.

You could chalk it up to the writers wanting a heteronormative ending (and I’m certain that’s part of it) or the fact that Elphaba and Fiyero had a love affair in the book. But I think there’s a bit more nuance to it.

The whole point of Glinda’s character is that she upholds the status quo of Oz. No matter how much she loves Elphaba or sympathizes with the plight of the Animals, she will always align herself with the current system and those in power. And as long as that remains the case, a relationship between her and Elphaba is futile because Elphaba will not give up her cause.

Elphaba and Glinda represent to different ends of a spectrum. Elphaba resists the oppressive forces in Oz, while Glinda upholds them. But Fiyero is somewhere in the middle. He starts out privileged and carefree like Glinda, but quickly turns to Elphaba’s side. He does become Captain of the Guard, but only to find Elphaba and help her evade arrest.

And therein lies the difference between Glinda and Fiyero as love interests to Elphaba. Glinda would never sacrifice her title as “the Good Witch” and all her power granted from the Wizard, even if it meant helping Elphaba. Fiyero, on the other hand, does give up his privilege, his title, and even his human form for Elphaba. Glinda clings to what the status quo gives her, while Fiyero ultimately rejects it.

Yes, the writing around Elphaba and Fiyero’s romance is a bit rushed and doesn’t have the same gradual development that Elphaba and Glinda have. And yes, I have no doubt heteronormativity played a role in giving Elphaba a male love interest in the end. But I see a lot of people write off Fiyero and his relationship with Elphaba and I just don’t agree.

Why does Elphaba end up with Fiyero instead of Glinda? Because Fiyero makes the sacrifices that Glinda wasn’t willing to.

[potato-jem]

kristin chenoweth and idina menzel appearing as the narrators in the wicked movie. the orb on kristin’s wand flickering and she can’t quite get it to work. idina noticing and lightly tapping the orb with the orb on her own wand. kristin’s wand begins to glow.

[nobodysdaydreams]

Haven’t seen the new Wicked movie yet, but I am forever impressed by the fact that someone saw the “Wizard of Oz” and was like:

“Hm. Yes. I see. Okay. The wicked witch and that scarecrow? They’re in love for sure.”

“The witch who sets him on fire?”

“It’s a complicated situation.”

[fairmerthefarmer]

✨toss toss✨

[randomminty]

sparkle on

[olessan]

The Rings of Power 2x08: Shadow and Flame

"My place is here. You know it is." "And where is mine? If not with you?"

[ceruleanharley]

WE ARE SO BACK WE'VE NEVER BEEN THIS BACK BEFORE

[furfurfrou]

I've managed to beat up the train blorbos in the pasio subway extreme battles. Here's the ending cutscene that plays out for those who couldn't make it this far:

Ingo and Emmet I love you very much but I'm going to have to beat you with hammers for the nonsense you just put me through

[souenkun]

I need the pokemas anniversary to come soon so we can hopefully see volo go batshit crazy again for the second time!!!

[raydrawsdaly]

"don't make me LAUGH, they were—" 🩷💚

[gamorahww]

𝐅𝐈𝐘𝐄𝐑𝐀𝐁𝐀 𝐅𝐄𝐁𝐑𝐔𝐀𝐑𝐘 ━ 𝑑𝑎𝑦 2. 𝑑𝑎𝑛𝑐𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑜𝑟 𝑐𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔

Today I'm holding space for the idea that in the context of the movie, dancing is a coping mechanism for Fiyero. While caring is a cure and a solution and an answer. I mean it is nothing new, but it needs to be said.

There will be a separate post on Dancing Through Life later today, but for now, we're starting from later. At history class, Fiyero voluntarily steps up to help the lion cub, and they make it all the way to the forest. Shortly after they are safe, and start talking, Elphaba says, "I know my life would be much easier if I didn't care, but—" and Fiyero cuts her off at exactly this point in her sentence. And I think that moment is crucial. Up until now, he’s never interrupted her before—but now he does and not because he’s frustrated with how much she talks, but because of what she’s saying. He doesn’t want to hear her talk about caring. That’s a pain point for him.

Because he knows it’s easier not to care. That’s the story he tells himself.

The lyrics in Dancing Through Life go: "Why think too hard when it's so soothing?" Soothing what? You don’t need to soothe something that doesn’t hurt. Soothing is only necessary when there’s an ache. To me this means he has cared before, and he has been hurt by caring before, and now he's coping with that by dancing through life. He is soothing his pain from secretly caring just too much, by dancing. Not because he doesn't care anymore about anything, but because he can't stop doing it, so he has to keep dancing. Dancing is loud, and visible. If he dances, people don't ask questions about his personality about what he thinks or how he feels. Maybe they haven't been doing it anyway, so he distracts them by doing his little dance, and as soon as they get too close, he pushes them away. But what he believes to be true for now is that caring = painful and dancing = a way to cope with that pain

But Elphaba just saw him care—deeply. She knows he’s capable of it. And she knows how unbearably sad it must be to choose to pretend otherwise. At the same time, she also understands how painful caring can be, she just highlighted is. In that moment, they find common ground.

But Fiyero’s façade—his carefree persona—is what he assumes people value in him most. So the second he realizes Elphaba doesn’t see him that way, he panics. He thinks that if she can see through him, it means she doesn’t want him there. No one has ever appreciated him for anything beyond the image he projects. So if that mask is gone… what’s left? Why would she still want him around, if he's not fun and happy and carefree? So he starts to leave.

And then she proves him wrong.

Not only does she say "she does (want his help)," but she physically holds onto him, keeping him there. The shock on his face (second gif from the bottom) says everything—he never expected someone to want him without the act. And later, when she touches his face so gently, you can see him struggling to process it. This is the most vulnerable he’s ever been, and it terrifies him. Not only that, but Elphaba sees a scar on his face, and sees that he has been hurt, without him noticing it. She reaches out and touches him gently, not really wanting anything, and he just can't bear it.

Her caring for him is not painful, it's soothing.

His Freudian slip a few beats later—"I better get to safety."—isn’t just about physical danger. This doesn’t feel safe. Being seen, being wanted for real, is the opposite of what he’s used to. Caring and being cared for are equally scary, but only the latter seems like a completely new experience for him. However, after feeling it, he finds something so real that he just yearns for it from now on. Yearns to be seen and touched and to be needed for something he did instinctively, without a thought, something he did because it felt right.

That’s why the later scene with Glinda is so important. When she holds his hand, the shot mirrors the moment with Elphaba—but with one key difference. Glinda is pulling him away, back into the world of pretense. But he can’t go back, not after this, and you can see him looking back at where he came from, back to the forest, back to Elphaba, back to being seen. For once, caring was not painful, and someone cared for him as well.

[ladyantiheroine]

Elphaba: You’re shirtless? Fiyero: nods Elphaba: And covered in… oil? Fiyero: Well you know how you always say I never glisten? Elphaba: Listen. You never listen. Fiyero: Oh.

[buotella]

“The first time I saw Cynthia in a film was in Steve McQueen's Widows. And like millions of others, I thought, now there's a young American woman who's going places. And the first time I met her in person, I was thrilled. Does she do this amazing English accent for everyone or just for me? A part of me still likes to think she does it just for me. ... The dedication of her preparation, the intensity of her commitment, her attention to detail and accuracy in performance, her fearless charisma and above all the warm soul that underpins it all. The sheer variety of all that, the sheer scale of the ambition, makes every new revelation feel like it's for you specifically. Every line spoken, every note sung, every bright green PVC dress worn, every single leg Romanian deadlift deadlifted, every Elphaba, every Harriet Tubman, every Celie Harris, every Belle, every Jacqueline in 2023's beautiful Drift. A film she acted in and produced while also writing, producing, and performing the theme song. Every moment feels like a generous and personal gift. As it is with all great performers, everything Cynthia does is not just inimitably her, it is also intimately ours. So in a way, haven't all of us here been nominated for the EGOT? Cynthia goes there, so we don't have to.”

Olivia Colman Presents the 2025 Visionary Award to Cynthia Erivo

[rhaenicentpilled]

so you theatre bitches were just casually hiding Peak doomed yuri in your damn musicals….

[a-bichol]

they have me out here posting gelphie like its 2014