#i MEAN SHE DOES DEFY GRAVITY
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mrmeepsmadmind · 4 months ago
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rewatching this over and over again.. mainly bcs tarn makes soundwave into a manlet but also bcs it's hilarious
#thunderhowl at the copilot doing Absoluteky nothing then being surprised when shadowstriker is unfamiliar with the terrain: :D#i get ure a theater kid but CAN U STOP BEING SO CRYPTIC#bumblebee moving to the wall like the only smart person#optimus just wants to find the source#had to include soundwave being the bitchiest person for no reason at the end of course 🩵 mi lady#somebody help tarn bro only has one arm 😭😭#hes not even using it against a wall or anything like hes just trying to keep his balance#everybody panicking while shadowstriker doesnt give a fuck#girlboss shit she does every day and no one cares it pisses me off yall need to appreciate my mean lesbian like yall appreciate her mean gay#bestie#thunderhowl :) bcs he wants soundwave to struggle probably. i mean at the cost of others maybe risking a concussion? sure#theyre both so petty but try to act too cool to be in their own lame ways. im obsessed with them#he was hoping soundwave was gonna land in his lap 💔#somehow from all the way back there LMFAO if his terrains can defy gravity so can his beloved annoyance ok. he believes#im a filthy multishipper so i need tarn and soundwave to have more fic & kiss too bcs it's literally tarn being like I Know What You Are#(a Bttm) to soundwave and soundwave having to screw his lips into a smile & be like teehee of course.. only to be like (u forgot the Brat*)#at the end like. why are they like that. tarn holding him by the waist with 1 arm being like i got u bbgirl meanwhile hes getting#60000 concussions and soundwave is trying So hard not too laugh.. TOO loudly. (tarn thinking hes so anime protag rn)#tf cyberverse#soundwave#tarn#thunderhowl#shadowstriker#bumblebee#optimus prime#maccadam#transformers#I CANT BELIEVE I HAD ENOUGH ROOM FOR THESE TAGS!
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loverboybrightsideghost · 2 months ago
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listening to defying gravity movie version while thinking about superman is doing shrimp emotions to my heart. what does this mean
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usuallydyinginside · 3 months ago
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"No One Mourns the Wicked" is about Glinda, not Elphaba
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Okay, but hear me out. Wicked songs are so good at saying one thing and meaning something entirely different once you have more context. For instance, "I'm Not That Girl" is Elphaba singing about Glinda initially, then in Act 2 flips to Glinda singing about Elphaba. Because it turns out, Elphaba IS that girl and Glinda is not. When we meet the Wizard, he sings about how he always wanted to be a father. When you get to Act 2, you get the sad little reprise in the background music as he realizes that WHOOPS, he was one and he destroyed his only kid. "Defying Gravity" starts with "I hope you're happy" in the sarcastic sense and ends with them both using the same phrase to genuinely wish one another well.
"Thank Goodness" is set up as a cheerful engagement song where Glinda genuinely means "thank goodness for how great my life is" and ends in a place where she's insisting that she IS happy even as she realizes her engagement is a sham, her best friend is gone, and she's left with the Wizard and Madame M, who she doesn't even like.
You get the picture.
Basically, the whole musical is about subverting what you expect, starting with the base premise of "what if the Wicked Witch was the hero of the story" and digging in from there.
Honestly, I'd never paid much attention to the first song. It's a good opener, sets things up well, but it has some big competition with later songs. However, in the movie the staging and camera choices made me really notice it for the first time. Because you know what? Someone DID pay attention to that song, and you can really really tell.
For those who need a refresher, the lyrics to the chorus Glinda sings are: And Goodness knows The Wicked's lives are lonely Goodness knows The Wicked die alone It just shows when you're Wicked You're left only On your own I was always so busy noticing Glinda's grief over thinking Elphaba was genuinely dead that I failed to notice Glinda's grief over her OWN fate. The movie did such a good job with this because every time we get to the pink lines about being alone, Glinda IS alone. She is standing apart from the crowd who adores her. Standing above them. Standing at the center of a bunch of people yet still, isolated.
Because in the end, we know that Elphaba DIDN'T die alone. We know she wasn't on her own. We know her life WASN'T lonely ultimately. She had her flying monkey and animal friends. She had Fiyero.
And who does Glinda have?
Everyone, but realistically, no one. She is an ideal, not a person to most of Oz, just as much as Elphaba has become the token scapegoat. Where Elphaba is the "Wicked Witch," Glinda is "Glinda the Good Witch" - she is literally supposed to be the embodiment of goodness.
And what does Glinda have at the end of this whole thing (as of this song at least)? A disastrous end to her engagement, the death of her best friend, a sorceress who has hated her, demeaned her, and dismissed her from the start, and a con man who is also just a symbol more than a person.
I think it really hit me when Glinda throws the fire on the giant effigy of Elphaba. Ariana's acting was SO good there, because I'd expected us to see that private moment of horror or regret. What I didn't expect was the sort of determined and almost angry glare at the effigy.
But it makes sense. At this point, Glinda has realized that she lost everything and everyone she actually cared about.
As she so aptly puts it in "Thank Goodness"...
Though it is, I admit The tiniest bit Unlike I anticipated. But I couldn't be happier, Simply couldn't be happier, Well, not "simply" 'Cause getting your dreams It's strange, but it seems A little, well, complicated.
There's a kind of a sort of cost. There's a couple of things get lost. There are bridges you cross You didn't know you crossed Until you've crossed!
And if that joy, that thrill Doesn't thrill like you think it will Still-- With this perfect finale, The cheers and the ballyhoo! Who wouldn't be happier? So I couldn't be happier, Because happy is what happens When all your dreams come true.
Well, isn't it?
Happy is what happens when you're dreams come true.
It's not Elphaba's fault that Glinda has ended up this way. Glinda chose it every step of the way. Yet, if Glinda had never met Elphaba, (if she'd never known her, you could say), she might have stayed shallow and vain. She might never have been challenged to look deeper and realize how empty it all felt.
So as Glinda sings "No One Mourns the Wicked," she realizes that even if the Munchkins are singing about the "Wicked Witch," she's not.
She's singing about herself.
The one who traded her morals, friendship, and love for a taste of the admiration and power over those who don't really know her. The one who was so worried about being likable that she herself doesn't like who she's become.
Even after she makes things better for Oz and herself by sending the wizard away and getting rid of Madame M, it just leaves Glinda by herself as the leader and source of goodness in Oz. It leaves her on a pedestal she can never step off of.
It leaves her lonely.
Entirely alone.
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katherinemckay · 29 days ago
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one musical to movie change i haven't really seen anyone talk about is the subtle difference in how glinda's potential future with the wizard is laid out to her before defying gravity (and how that changes how you can read her motivations).
in the musical the wizard explictly says "you have so many opportunities ahead of you - you both do" and then that's that, so glinda has reason to believe she has a legitimate future with the wizard regardless of whether elphaba's there. this can play into the interpretation that she stays behind for her own ambitions - she clearly has opportunities waiting for her.
however, this actually isn't how it comes across in the movie, at least to me. the wizard's original inclusion of glinda in his plans is changed from explicitly mentioning opportunity to just "you having a home here [...] and if it'll make you happy, possibly, your friend." in the movie version, the wizard directly states only that glinda would be joining them in the palace - and it's merely a suggestion as an addition to elphaba (she's even just referred to as her friend, not being spoken directly to) to make elphaba want to stay, rather than him describing glinda as someone who could have her own individual opportunities.
then, when elphaba runs away, morrible tells glinda "you want to do yourself some good, bring her back." here, morrible now suggests that glinda could do something for herself and her individual future. what i find interesting is that glinda instead jumps on the hot air balloon with elphaba and even fights off the guards with her. while glinda does try to talk elphaba down for awhile ("let's just have a word with them," "you've got to let him explain," etc.), she ultimately abandons this approach by the time elphaba has chosen to defy gravity.
in the movie, glinda goes against morrible's direct orders of bringing elphaba back when she accepts elphaba's choice to leave and helps her get ready. this means that by supporting elphaba in her decision, glinda actually abandons the chance she believes she has to finally get in with morrible (and by extension the wizard). in movie-verse, glinda really has no reason to believe staying behind without elphaba could advance her own ambitions, because both the wizard and morrible have laid out a potential future for her that is reliant on having elphaba at her side and keeping elphaba compliant to them (and using glinda to do that). i don't think that movie!glinda ultimately stays behind for selfish/power-seeking reasons, because the wizard and morrible haven't actually suggested to her that she has a path alongside them as an individual. (they also just truly show no interest in glinda as an individual person in a much more obvious way than in the musical, but that could be its own post.)
ariana grande has spoken a couple times on how one of the emotions glinda feels in the added hug scene with morrible is relief, and i think this all is why. glinda chose to stay behind while helping elphaba escape, knowing it was disobeying what was asked of her. given glinda is also being detained by the guards in that moment, i think that relief comes from her genuinely not having known if she would be safe or would become essentially a prisoner after staying behind, and feeling relief when morrible does free/accept her and suggests there's still a path for her.
there's definitely moral grayness to discuss with how glinda accepts her position within the regime and settles into it, but i think (in movie-verse) the actual choice to stay behind isn't one of those moments — it wasn't established to glinda that staying behind without elphaba could actually lead her to power and opportunity with the wizard, and she directly goes against the one path to power that was suggested to her by helping elphaba leave.
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nikyu0 · 7 days ago
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Are there any fun shenanigans that unfold after the bond in the avatar au? after the angst dies ofc
I actually still have a lot of ideas with the other arcane characters that happen before the bond! Although ldk lf I'm gonna be able to draw them all, because some of the ideas are very lengthy. So, I might as well practice my writing!
One of the ideas involves how Jayce and Viktor begin their relationship with the tribe in the first place.
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VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV
Jayce and Viktor have been out on their research trips for a couple of days now. Sergent Caitlyn Kiramman, a fellow avatar driver with combat training, accompanies them for protection. Although they have been exploring the deeper forest for a while, all they have encountered so far was peaceful fauna, yet none of the natives.
"I wasn't expecting that we were so good at hiding our presence to not even spot one na'vi." Jayce remarks as he tries to keep up with Viktor's pace.
"They've known we are here the moment we got off the military base." Viktor assures him while looking down at his tablet. "Afterall, we are in their domain. Just because we don't see them, does not mean they are not here, no?"
The eeriness of Victor's comment made Caitlyn's ears twitch, she couldn't help but look up at the thick tree crowns and scanning through them. As they continued through the forest, she grabbed her firearm tighter.
The trio reaches a cliff that opens a view to the base of the Hallelujah Mountains. All of them in awe as they watch the floating rocks defy gravity right infront of their eyes.
Unfortunately, the devices that were helping them navigate the forest so far, start to act up because of the strong magnetic fields surrounding the mountains. The group begins to consider returning to the base to prepare for tomorrow, when they suddenly hear the sound of a cry, a na'vi battle cry.
They have been spotted by 4 na'vi flying their Ikran, the one leading the patrol being Ekko (in this AU refered as "Eko", is a young warrior na'vi from the tribe that Jayce and Viktor are going to be working with later on. Although smaller than his fellow tribe members, he is known for his skilled flying, amazing scouting and leadership qualities).
He was informed by Vi, who suspected that dreamwalkers started roaming around the forest but was unsure how deep they might enter. Confiming her suspicions, Eko spots the trio too deep for his comfort in the tribes territories, on one of his flying patrols.
He was about to descend to confront them when he noticed the outsiders strangly waving at him in panic and the one with the weapon aming past him. Eko turns back to the sudden calls of his fellow tribemates. That is when he sees the Toruk above him, who was diving straight down to Eko, claws ready to grab him. An air chase through the mountains happens and he finally loses Toruk when he flies through the dense forest which annoyingly results in him falling off his ikran. Although the fall was softened by the big leaves, it still results in him getting injured enough to not make it back alone. His Ikran and fellow tribemates not hearing his calls for help.
That is when he gets discovered by our avatar trio. In an attempt to scare them off, he tries to stand up and grab his knife but yelps in pain. Viktor and Jayce try to calm him down to get closer to examine his wound, but it takes a while, especially with Caitlyn and her firearm facing him. Eko does finally let the two scientists inspect him when they start speaking na'vi and tell Caitlyn to step back.
Viktor tries to create a temporary brace out of branches for Eko but is unable to break the thick wood, frustrated at the tools he has at hand.
"Ugh, we don't have the right equipment here! Only if the labs were closer..." "May I try?" Jayce squats besides Viktor, who states that it is useless but does not stop Jayce from taking the branch. Jayce inspects the thick stick while holding it in his gloved hands, determining how much force he would need to use. "Jayce, I really don't think-." He snaps it with ease before Viktor could finish his sentence.
"Oh! That was easier than I expected... You sure this works as a good support? Maybe I should look for another one?"
Both Viktor and Eko were baffled at what they just witnessed, it wasn't unrealistic but it was definitely surprising to see. The hardness of that branch could compare to a thinner metal rod, and there you have Jayce just snap it in half with no trouble. He continues to ramble about the branch unaware of Viktor's perplexion. Eko simply muttering a low "Tewti.." (translation "what the heck...").
(Turns out Jayce is much stronger than the average na'vi, his Avatar builds muscle much more easily. Similar to Jake Sully.)
The 3 help Eko back to the tribe, where they are already expected. A crowd forms around them, many wary but many curious about the dreamwalkers since this clan had no prior interactions with them, besides through stories from other tribes. Before the leader and tsahik aproaches them, a na'vi, Jinx (in the AU refered as Tsyensk, a peculiar but very creative and innovative na'vi with a strong connection to Eywa, she usually keeps her distance from the tribe in self-exile because of her emotional unpredictability) jumps down from above the trees to check on Eko.
Caitlyn furrows her brow and points out to the two scientists in english that the na'vi girl has been following them since the they found Eko, what none of the 3 expected is that Tsyensk would reply back in english!
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youvebeengalindafied · 19 days ago
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This is all @polyarmy and @fiyeroba ‘s fault for making me sad about Glinda again so now I’m posting my whole Glinda Meta here (originally an obnoxiously long dm sent to @gamorahww who is a patient saint)
You’ve asked for it, and now you get……The Glinda Meta™
First: I have been obsessed w/ Glinda's character for like 15 years. She is my roman empire. But I also really LIKE her as a flawed character - something that the fandom has always seemed to be a little uncomfortable with.
She is, to me, what Jane Austen once wrote about Emma:
“I am going to write a heroine whom no one but myself will much like.”
Full meta character analysis under the cut. Uh. Strap in.
(This gets a lil long sorry, but PLEASE HEAR ME OUT -)
To me, the interesting thing is what actually - ACTUALLY - motivates Glinda to act the way she does is so much greater and deeper than a simple desire for success/fame/popularity.
Like obviously in literature/critique of narrative, we have this idea of protagonists vs supporting characters. Supporting characters might have philosophies or goals that drive them (think Nessa and Boq) but those philosophies and goals are usually not developed into self-contradictory nuance the way a protagonist's motivations are. They’re just facts about the character.
And in my option, a big problem in the wicked fandom is that everybody seems to treat Glinda as a supporting character whose motivations are easy to digest. To most fans, she's either the girlfriend who is there to support Elphaba's story by being "loving but conflicted." Or to critics she's entirely selfish and cruel (even as she's fun and interesting), and therefore a semi-antagonist
But if you step back and treat Glinda as a true antihero protagonist of Wicked (for the sake of the mental character study), you see that she's not actually motivated by love or popularity or even success....what drives her is desperation.
Glinda sees her world as a place that cannot be changed and will only work to destroy those who cannot correctly operate in it. And she is SO DESPERATE to avoid that. Elphaba's fate is actually her worst fear - she cannot break away from society and leap to a new fate, because she is the ultimate cynic who thinks there is no way that could possibly work. In fact, it's an enormous testament to her love (however you want to intepret that) of Elphaba that she's even willing to consider leaving during Defying Gravity. For a brief moment, her immense, incredible faith in Elphaba is almost enough to overcome her complete desperation to survive the horrible world she thinks she's in.
And that obviously means that she's not as noble as Elphaba or as brave as Fiyero as a character - she cannot make the choice to leave when both of them do at different points - but that's because she's the most "human" character in the story. Most people are not brave enough to become international terrorists, even in the face of great evil. We might join in a developed cause, but to knowingly walk towards what is likely one's death to change a system you know you’ll actually have very little effect on...that takes a very special kind of person. And while Glinda is a GOOD person, she is too much a cynic and too desperate to survive her crazy world to become that impossible standard of the Rebel or the Hero. She's just a flawed, scared girl, in circumstances she never dreamed she’d be in.
And then the craziest thing happens:
Rather than showing Glinda that she should have been brave and done what E and F did, the narrative instead goes and basically confirms all her darkest fears: Elphaba rebels...and her revolution fails, and Glinda loses her best friend to bitter hatred and insanity for most of Act 2. Fiyero decides to leave and do the right thing by going with Elphaba....and he is almost immediately murdered in a horrible, violent way as punishment for it. This can only reinforce for Glinda that the State/the System/the World is all-powerful, and she must bow to it.
But that's the most fascinating moment for her character, because the very moment she realizes the absolute overwhelming power of the system (March of the Witch Hunters) is also the very moment that chooses to die rather than perpetuating it. She leaves the City to approach Elphaba - whom Glinda thinks POSSIBLY WANTS TO KILL HER - and BEGS Elphaba to not die. Begs Elphaba to stop her self-sacrificial madness. Begs Elphaba to allow Glinda to sacrifice herself instead ("Then I'll go, I'll tell everybody the truth!" "No! They'll just turn against you!" "I DON'T CARE!" - this girl who is entirely motivated by survival is straight up throwing it all on the line ready to walk to her death at the hands of a mob with wide open, unblinking eyes)
And obviously, in doing so, she is making the same choice that Fiyero did earlier in the story, But the huge difference is that Fiyero is a classic case of a "dead from the beginning" character, and he does not have the same motivations as her. He starts as a nhilist already embracing death in Dancing Through Life and his character is not somebody who is desprate to survive - his character is driven by a desperation for a faith. And Elphaba (and her cause) is his faith that he happily martyrs himself for.
By contrast, Glinda is terrified of the system that is trying to kill her, and she is desperate to survive it. She sees the way it takes everything form her, again and again, destroying everything she loves - Elphaba, Fiyero, her own sense of goodness…
(And she is extremely genre-aware that she is in a tragedy: her world isn't fair, and she knows that Elphaba will fail. She knows this will all go wrong.)
But Glinda still has such strength of character that she - in the end - overcomes all of her fear, all of her weaknesses, and humbles herself at the pyre to join the people she loves so much in their fate. She both offers to die for Elphaba and she takes up Elphaba's work and dedicates her entire life to it, consequences be damned. And that comes from a place of ultimate love and goodness, despite all of her flaws and all the temptations dissuading her.
Because Glinda is not Elphaba or Fiyero - she isn't a starry-eyed optimistic rebel or a man with a obsessive, loving faith. She is just a girl. Just Emma. And she is extremely flawed, and has so many fears that push and pull at her in a way the other main characters do not experience. But despite being so painfully, humanly defective, her goodness allows her to do the right thing in the end.
tl;dr - the greatest thing about Glinda’s character is that she is flawed, and she is weak and makes all the wrong choices. But in the end, she humbles herself completely - to the point of offering her own life for Elphaba and taking the whole weight of the world on her shoulders despite all her fear - because she is ultimately good.
And thus in the end, she becomes the person that Elphaba so clearly sees her as throughout the story: good, caring, and able to make real change in the world. She will now try desperately to fully live up to Elphaba's incredible faith in her. And it's so heartbreaking and tragic, but also one of the best character arcs ever.
So I guess it's less "wants to stay safe in her bubble" and more "she sees no option other than to stay safe. The State/System is all-powerful and there is nothing she thinks she can do to change that. But the beauty of the character lies in her decision to step out of that bubble anyways."
BONUS: Glinda’s flaws in relation to her relationship with Elphaba
(Or why Gelphie is a devastating ship (romantically or not) but not in the way you think)
This section dedicated to the SJB/AA performance that just BREAKS ME.
Elphaba basically sees Glinda through some WILDLY rose-tinted glasses (which is just. such a fascinating insight into elphaba’s character). Which is why a good chunk of the fandom accepts it as fact that Glinda is ~not actually all that flawed~ or is somehow being forced to make the decisions she is (she is not. the narrative point of Fiyero’s character is to prove that lol)
Glinda is very much complicated and does make some truly terrible decisions. Elphaba just sees and believes the good in her, despite everything she does (because it’s also a fact of the story that - either platonically or romantically - she’s clearly a little in love with Glinda. (The passes she gives that girl…)). I don’t think her weird thing about Glinda is particularly rational, but it is undeniably all-consuming.
And that makes their relationship feel VERY human. Their flaws don't make them unworthy of each other’s love and respect and friendship. Elphaba's love of Glinda is pretty crazy in light of how much Glinda’s morals and choices differ from her own, but that’s the kind of love that real, sometimes illogical people have. Anybody trying to prove the logic or compatibility of the characters is kinda missing the point - it doesn’t make sense, and THAT’S how you know it’s love.
(Brief aside: similar to Elphaba’s obsession with Glinda, Fiyero is also irrationally obsessed with Elphaba. I mean, she kinda sucks at the whole revolution thing (she's trying!!) and he's clearly starry-eyed ignoring a LOT of her flaws lol. In contrast - for better or worse, Glinda does see Elphaba's flaws and calls them out, just as Elphaba sees Fiyero's flaws and calls him out. It’s a nice little circular relationship)
But…but….is it gay???
Sure. I think so - but I’m a lesbian who has shipped it since I was a preteen lol. But that’s also NOT THE POINT, and focusing on only the romantic angle of their relationship REALLY ignores just how layered and complex it is.
Taking off my squee shipping glasses for a minute: they’re fundamentally just two people in some version of an EXTREMELY intense relationship. I honestly think Glinda reads as a little terrified of how insanely intense her relationship is with Elphaba. She fears walking down that road and fully falling into that intense, all-consuming love. (And we literally learn why later through Fiyero’s ‘death’ and Elphaba’s insanity - love makes you do some crazy things, and Glinda can’t afford that in this world.)
Regardless of whether you interpret them romantically or not - it’s clear they’re very intense about each other and Glinda is very afraid that Elphaba is her weakness. Unfortunately, Elphaba is also her soulmate and the love of her life, and she’ll always come back again. That fact will ruin Glinda’s life in the end, but it will have been worth it for all the love that was there
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ladyantiheroine · 2 months ago
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I’m thinking about “Defying Gravity” and “No Good Deed” and how they’re two very different sides of the same coin.
Both songs are about Elphaba fully embracing who she is. She accepts that she will never be "good" in the eyes of Oz. She accepts that following her heart and doing what she knows is right means everyone will despise her even more for it. She gives up on trying to prove to the people around her that she's more than her green skin. She gives up trying to stay quiet in hopes of gaining acceptance, or at least tolerance, from everyone.
But they take very different approaches and happen in very different stages of Elphaba's life. "Defying Gravity" is an empowering, proudly defiant song. I've seen actresses sing it with a smile on their face. Yes, it's bittersweet considering everything Elphaba is sacrificing in this moment. But ultimately, it's a happier song as we watch Elphaba finally throw off her shackles and embrace her full power.
"No Good Deed," on the other hand, is more bitter and angry. Elphaba is older in act two. She's been resisting the Wizard longer. She's not the younger, optimistic Shiz student she was before. She's become more hardened by the world after losing so many people she loves (Nessarose, Doctor Dillamond, and seemingly at the moment, Fiyero). "Defying Gravity" is arguably the most famous song from the show, but "No Good Deed" I think more succinctly describes Elphaba's journey throughout the show: She wants to be good, but all it does is hurt her and the people around her.
"Defying Gravity" is about accepting that you won't die a hero. "No Good Deed" is about accepting that you've lived long enough to become the villain.
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evilminji · 11 months ago
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Broadway :3c
And I hear ya. (Insert spooky joke here) There is a sprawling WEB of central hubs, for The Arts. For trade. For getting drunk and having a good time. The Zone is large and it is endless. You'll NEVER reach the far end. It can never reach you.
All things, in gentle sweeping waves, across eternity.
So when folks want to have "a market" or "a movie theater" or "the waterpark"? You gotta PICK a point on the endless map. Figure if you are close or far enough away for others like it, to make it worth the effort to build.
You might even be the first to do it for GALAXIES in any direction! People might fly for WEEKS to come to your place! Move their Lairs to be closer too it. Like dust gathered by gravity, slowly creating planets and stars. A mega Lair. A CITY.
They rise, they fall, the Zone shifts all the while.
But!
Does the dead starlet stop singing? Does getting gunned down, stop the show?? I think NOT! Where is her STAGE? What musicals? What dramas? What operas and tragedies and forms unknown to human kind??! Ballet dancers who CAN defy gravity! Singers who have no NEED for air! The haunting blend of instruments, that could never in life have met! From empires long turned to ASH!
The greatest show in DEATH!
Ember was a world wide hit. Yes, her voice was hypnotic. But that could be FOUGHT. It was SKILL that carried the game. And she was hardly "I was Literally The Greatest My Planet Ever Produced" skilled. She was good, great even. Not "I was Born For Greatness" Excellence.
And like?
.....eventually? Danny's gonna ask after "cultural-y" Culture stuff. Clothes and food. Music and the arts. To help his parents get used to the whole "our son is half-dead" thing. To show he's not some mindless monster now.
And? Ghostwriter? Probably an absolute legend. Does he know where you can find some CULTURE? Oh THANK ZONE! He thought you'd NEVER ask! You unsophisticated-! *fist fight in a library* Still a dick, though. Always and forever.
And just? Imagine Broadway stretched out into a floating city. That never sleeps. Never stops. Shows ever changing. Some on a cycle, some only once. Dream-like. Beautiful. Eye catching.
And yeah, Danny didn't think he LIKED musicals. It was more of a Jazz thing. But? This was important! Gotta get the whole family in the Speeder. We're going to see a play, guys! We'll pick when we get there! Family road trip! Educational! We can make notes!
His parents are trying to be supportive. Big, fixed, strained grins. Trying to pretend to be excited. But they... DO seem reluctantly intrigued? And Jazz is all but vibrating in her seat. It's basically her "before you go away to college" present. And she is THRILLED.
The longer she excitedly speculates? The more into it she gets their folks. This IS gonna be new! Exciting! Never before seen Ghost Culture! Music! As a FAMILY! Think we could find souvenirs? Ooooh, wonder if they sell CDs??!
Then? They GET there. And it's... it's like seeing the Las Vegas strip for the first time, except multiplied into a city. Made of even MORE styles and eras. At angles gravity would never allow.
The air filled with laughter and excitement, people rushing to shows or humming bits of tunes. Street stalls. Fountains. Flowers growing everywhere.
They could stay for months and not even reach a fraction of these buildings. His parents are taking countless photos. His sister squeeling with joy as she races for an information kiosk like they just arrived at Disneyland. He, at least, remembers to lock up the Speeder. Grab their day bags.
When did HE become the responsible one?
The argue over shows. Obviously. Wouldn't be Fenton's otherwise. HE wants to see the alien one. It's from mars! But it's his sister's trip, as his dad points out, so she gets to choose. She picks a musical set during the Fall of Krpton. He's... reluctantly kinda interested. I mean, EVERYBODY likes Superman, right?
It's... it's amazing. Terrible, but amazing. I mean? A coming of age story cut tragically short? Oof. Hello, massively projecting then getting FEELS about it! Yeah, sure, rip my heart out why don't you? He's fine. No, really! Just drowning in his own emotions over here. The refrain of "A Life Well Lived"? *gargling dying whale noises* he's FINE. Not grappling with anything! Go on without him!
Thankfully?
They DO sell CDs.
He... he may end up, kinda, getting a bit of a collection. Going on the weekends, hoping show to show. Wandering to whichever catches his eye in the moment. Buying the CDs for one's he likes. Which? Honestly is a lot of them. Even though there's all sorts of genres and languages. Cause it... it RESONATES you know?
The grief. The anger. The "I have died but I wasn't FINISHED. It isn't FAIR.". And? Something about ghost speak flows so BEAUTIFULLY in song? It's hard to explain. But he... he needs them.
A pair of headphones, a CD, and a clear night sky? Nothing touches it. It's like a trance made of light. Like he can just drift.
The problem? Is the CDs are kinda... Zone made? They're radioactive, for one. Nothing a Fenton CD player can't handle. But... they? Also? Kinda fuckin GLOW? Like... very, very noticeably. And not in a "ha ha, cool glow in the dark paint!" Sorta way.
.........but like FUCK is he leaving his music behind when he goes to college. Gotham will have to deal. It's already a burning shit-nado, it can handle this. Probably. He'll put um in a lead lined box. Actually, speaking OF.... he needs to get a few more of those... *goes back to packing*
Which? Is how? The Bats are treated to some of the most HAUNTING music they've ever heard, belted and crooned from Some Guy's speakers, out an open window, on the "stop for a mid-patrol drink of water and a snack" building. It's one of the intersections of their patrol routes. And THAT? That is some dude listening to a Romani ballad about death and the circus. Now it's a musical about the trenches of an obscure war.
Okay, that was DEFINITELY Kryptonian. Like... coherent Krypto- *Bruce gets a call from Clark on his "work" number DEMANDING to know where that is coming from. Who is that voice Bruce?!* huh.... Well Then.
@hdgnj @hypewinter @nerdpoe @lolottes @babbling-babull @spidori @mutable-manifestation @the-witchhunter
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garlicbreadthoughts · 2 months ago
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Changing “get her!” to “kill her!” is a tiny lyric change that has a much bigger impact than you might think. I was sitting in the theater like did I actually hear that right? And I did. So what does this change actually mean?
“Get her!” means they just want to catch her before she goes too far. Reprimand her. Get the Grimmerie back. Rehabilitate her.
“Kill her!” means even though the citizens of Oz don’t fully know what she’s done other than the message from Madame Morrible, they are already ready to kill her within minutes of hearing the news. It means we skip all of the escalation and twisting of the propaganda that happens between the end of defying gravity and march of the witch hunters. If we start out at wanting to kill her, then where do you go? How do you escalate when you start at 100?
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kozachenko · 8 months ago
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Here, have a fairly light sketch dump with two relatively complete sketches and some of the process for the main Zanmu one. Also, Gensokyo's specalist girl makes an appearance here too
Artist's Notes;
Zanmu is such a fun character to draw, like, there's so many little aspects in her design that you can emphasize, and her colour palette is so satysfying too. The reason I ended up drawing this was because when I was scrolling on Pinterest I found a specific pose that just screamed Zanmu to me (it was the skull that did it for me) and I just had to draw her in that pose. I did end up taking my liberties with my reference though, and also I am not drawing feet, I just straight up don't like it, and this is mainly something more on the sketchy side so it didn't really matter lol. Also, IDK too much about the hands, I'm usually pretty good with them but I struggled with them a bit this time. Also Zanmu is sitting on nothing because I just didn't feel like drawing what she was sitting on (plus I already drew in the clothes and including what she was sitting on would mean having to change the sleeves and I just didn't wanna do that lol). Also realized that I should probably start trying to improve on drawing frills in clothing, and I tried a new technique for drawing them. I do like how they look, but at the same time it can still be better.
I do love how Zanmu's pose turned out the most in this batch of sketches. In my process, I put the reference image on the canvas and then roughly blocked in the silhouette. One change I knew I wanted to make since the beginning of the sketching process was opening up the space between the bent arm and body more, mainly to make the silhouette of the pose clearer (even though with the addition of the clothes it does get closed up a lot). I also wanted to turn the torso towards the viewer and change the position of the legs to something more cross legged/casual. In another sketching pass, I just kinda quicjly scribbled what I wanted the pose to look like just so I could get my idea out and I'm glad I did that because that helped me focus more on the pose itself rather than the small details. Afterward, I did a sketch of the body, clothes, and hair all together and then coloured it to get the coloured Zanmu sketch!
Again, I could've done a better job with the feet and the legs themselves for that matter, but the nice thing about sketches is that they don't need to be perfect, and I was more so focused on the gesture/feel of the pose rather than the minute details. With her facial expression, I knew that I wanted something very specific with her eyes, so I just simplified it into this "almost closed" eye and I do like how it turned out a lot. Also, a problem that I often have drawing Zanmu is that in the poses I put her in, I don't really know how best to draw in those triangle cut outs she has, so instead, I added these little triangle details onto her sleeves and pants to add some visual interest and allude to them instead, also because they can kinda allude to a crown and Zanmu is the king of Hell so it fits lol (also, love it when people add details like that onto sleeves sm lol). The hair and tassles did a lot of heavy lifting when it came to making the drawing have a nice flow to it, and I have the headcanon that Zanmu is just able to make those float on there own by.... honestly I don't know, I just like the idea of her tassles defying gravity and floating all the time. Also IDK if you can see them, but I did make sure to include her scars as I'm basically adding that as a part of my way of drawing Zanmu. It just adds a certain something, y'know? Also found a specific reference for the skull and made it the red that it is in Touhou 19, and also because drawing skeletons and skulls is just fun lol.
Now onto Reimu, so that face drawing was mainly there just so I could get a better idea of how I wanted to draw her face in the future. My main concern was trying to make it different to Keiki and Zanmu's faces, so as I was sketching hers I had the drawings of Keiki and Zanmu's faces turned on to make sure I wasn't drawing the same thing again. Down here I included this little test I did where I hyper simplified the eyes of the three faces and just traced over their face shapes, noses, eyebrows, and mouths. While the nose is the most consistent trait shared among the three of them (tbf that can just be chalked down to an aspect of my style), I feel like the three are different enough from each other to where they don't have same face syndrome, even if you simplify the eyes into dots and also didn't include the detail of Zanmu's scars on her face.
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I'm obsessed with giving Reimu these tiny little eyebrows for some reason, IDK it just works for her. I also really like using a red as a highlight for whenever I draw her hair black, mainly because it helps to give the illusion that her hair is just a really dark brown and incorperates her main colour of red into another aspect of the design. I also wanted to try and draw Reimu's eyelids differently to try and imply monolids but tbh IDK how well that reads. I also like how her pupils turned out, as I'm experimenting with different characters in my style having different kinds of pupils. I didn't even bother properly rendering her clothes, so I just did them linelessly (I think I wanna try drawing in my lineless style again for a future piece sometime as I kinda miss the feel it had). I of course had to give Reimu her big bow, and also use that specific shade of red. IDK what it is about that shade of red specifically, but I just love it, it looks so nice to me you have no idea- Now that I think about, I kinda wanna draw Reimu more now, as I feel like I can still do some more experimenting with how I draw her eyes specifically. Also because I've got some ideas when it comes to how I wanna draw her body type.
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ballroomblitzzzz · 6 days ago
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So I've been doing a lot of thinking recently, about wicked, because of course it's about wicked.
Specifically Glinda and her relationship to sorcery. (Hold tight this one's gonna be a whole ass essay) I find it interesting that the film really tries to make it clear that she has, not just little power, but none at all.
Because in the book she does have magic! Like there's this great scene where her, Nessa and Elphaba are talking about sorcery and she explodes a sandwich in their faces to prove a point.
This isn't relevant at all I just really like the scene. Point is, book Glinda's magic ain't too shabby. And in the musical (unfortunately I've only seen it once so apologies if I've read this wrong) I kinda saw it as she did have magic, but just didn't really get good at it before act 2. But in the film it's clear she doesn't have any. Like in NOMTW she pushes a pedal to make the bubble instead of using her wand, similar to how the wizard uses mechanics to fake sorcery. So why is it different? I hear you ask.
Well my curious child, I'll come to that in a minute (promise) right NOW I wanna talk about why Glinda wants magic in the first place.
And this is something that's had me stumped for a while, I mean it's not like she needs it. She can easily get whatever she wants from social manipulation, and yet it's still her heart's desire to become a sorceress.
And it's SUCH a big part of her character that couldn't just go around not being able to answer that question now could I?? And guys I think I figured it out.
So she's always been jealous of Elphaba, right? Right. And the thing about Elphaba that she envies, is that she's powerful without having to rely on other people. Glinda doesn't have that. She gets to the top because people like her. She said it herself, 'its not about aptitude it's the way you're viewed'. She knows the way to truly succeed is to make sure that you're liked. And she's very good at that, so she doesn't need sorcery, and YET she wants it. And to me this proves that Glinda hates the reason that she's liked. She wants people to love her for what she can do, not for the shallow persona she presents. She wants to have a power all to herself. She doesn't want to need people. She wants to be the kind of person who hops on a broom and overthrows the government at the drop of a hat (pun intended) but that's not who she is.
Of course she doesn't go with Elphaba. Elphaba can be strong on her own but without the public on her side Glinda is powerless.
And just think it's soooo fucking interesting how Elphaba and Glinda's different kinds of power can be seen as just another metaphor for their sense of self. Because Elphaba has had to trust herself, to have a strong enough identity to know that she's better than what people say. But Glinda's entire identity and self worth are tied to what people think of her, she's only as good as people say.
So of course she doesn't go with her.
But here's where she changes (for good hehe). And of course, it's down to Elphaba. Because Elphaba has always believed that Glinda is powerful outside of other people. And, back to sorcery now because yes that is what I started talking about, it's Elphaba who invites her to sorcery class, it's Elphaba who asks Glinda to come and meet the wizard with her, it's Elphaba who asks her to come with her in defying gravity and (SPOILERS FOR PART TWO!!) its Elphaba who gives her the Grimerie. Because Elphaba has always believed Glinda was strong even when she wasn't.
Glinda always wanted to be a sorceress but it was only Elphaba who had faith that she could do it. And this is what makes Elphaba giving her the Grimerie so symbolic and so, so fucking sad. Because Elphaba's showing her that she's better than she thinks, she just going like 'hey, you got this'. And srhstjdyfkvhlvukflyyc. And so the way Glinda's viewed doesn't change at all, but the way she sees herself does, and so don't mind me while I go cry in a corner.
And you know maybe all this was obvious to literally everybody who watched the film and I've just mansplained lesbianism to everyone but I just really needed to write this down because I've been going insane about the power dynamics and I can't shut up about it.
And dude these characters are so complex I just wanna peel them all like onions, but oh boy does it make my eyes water.
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sailorscout93 · 27 days ago
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I reblogged a post about the Thropple (gliyeraba) earlier and how Glinda and Fiyero are in a QPR with each other and both in a relationship with Elphaba and I’m here again to infodump my thoughts on their sexualities and stuff to this relationship!
Glinda is a lesbian (and maybe a little bit demisexual or grey ace when I feel like projecting) but because of her comphet past she built a bond with Fiyero, whether there were romantic or sexual feelings there or not. She loves Elphie with all her heart, Elphie is the only one for her in terms of romantic/sexual relationships. But she cannot deny that Fiyero is important to her and to Elphaba.
Fiyero is Pansexual. He finds whoever he finds attractive, no matter their gender or what parts they have. He was attracted to Elphaba right away, but as we all know she snuffed him in the forest that first night. And then G(a)linda came in, flirting with him. They have some fun, he of course didn’t know that she was in the closet (maybe she didn’t even know at that point). They get together, and then he realizes he has REAL feelings for Elphaba. But he does still love and care for Glinda too.
Elphaba is bisexual. She loves both Glinda and Fiyero. People think she is the hinge between the 2 of them. But of course she isn’t. They have their own relationship.
I have a hard time deciding if Act 2 just doesn’t happen (that would also means Defying Gravity doesn’t happen) and it’s a “nothing hurts and everything is okay” type situation and I wanna flesh out the ideas of how they end up together while still at Shiz and what maybe a NORMAL life for our little trio could look like or if I want to imagine/headcanon a part of act 2 happens but diverges before Fiyero becomes the scarecrow or a post canon fix it where Elphie first comes back for Glinda and then they DO figure out how to undo a spell from the Grimmerie to make Fiyero go back to a human….
If anyone who writes wants to make these ideas happen for me, feel free! I myself am not usually a writer but I’m getting closer and closer to debating writing it just for myself 😂
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lily-onher-grave · 2 months ago
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Every day I have more thoughts about the wicked movie
Like how making nessa (and Elphaba!) so vocal about Nessa’s independence and ability to handle herself adds so much depth to her character. It adds so much more complexity to her motivations and her flaws. It humanizes her even more and makes her descent into the wicked witch of the east more believable and more tragic. Because a Nessa who only wants to be loved will of course so desperate and sometimes cruel things to achieve that love, but why does she take it out on Elphaba? A Nessa who is longing for her own life, though, who expects Shiz to be a new start, who wants to be seen and accepted as normal and capable and independent, and who doesn’t want to live under anyone else’s shadow, least of all her very loudly abnormal sister who has been her caretaker all her life—it makes perfect sense for her to never be at elphaba’s side. It makes her villain story richer, and it makes her dynamic with Elphaba all the more interesting and emotional
And then there’s Morrible, who is so much warmer in the movie partly because it’s a movie and you can see her expressions, partly because most of her crueler moments (the ones with Elphaba at least) were given to Keala Settle’s character whose name I can’t remember, and largely because she has so many more one-on-one moments with an Elphaba who is just so much more vulnerable and blatantly starved for affection. And all of that, combined with the chilling performance Michelle Yeoh gives once morrible shows her true colors, makes her all the more sinister. I’m STILL not over her hugging Glinda during defying gravity. The first time she’s ever not criticized or belittled Glinda. And she’s not even being particularly motherly. She looks cold, she looks intimidating. And Glinda hesitates, we see it. But she also has nowhere else to go. She’s already falling, and morrible very calculatedly puts herself in the exact place where Glinda will land (and fuck, I cannot wait to see their scenes in part two. The Glinda-morrible dialogue in the middle of March of the witch hunters is one of my favorite parts of the show, and I think the two of them are going to rip my heart out with it)
And on elphie herself being softer, more vulnerable, more…subdued, I suppose. I’ve seen some criticism of it and I get it, I love a mean, witty, biting Elphaba so freaking much. But what I love about this take is that it makes so much sense with all the little changes they’ve made. AND I think it goes directly into this version of Nessa and how much she craves independence. Elphaba knows she doesn’t need to be her sister’s caretaker. More than that, she knows Nessa doesn’t WANT her to be her caretaker. And because of that, Elphaba doesn’t intend to go to shiz. Whether she secretly wants to or not, she doesn’t see it as her place. She’s probably spent so much of her life taking a step back and setting her own dreams and emotions and even just her actions and words aside so that Nessa can have her own space. She has made herself small to make sure Nessa isn’t living under her shadow. Maybe it’s just because I’m a sucker for sister relationships but I think the movie’s reading of their dynamic brings so much more to both of them. But also, I think getting to see more of elphaba’s magic accidents makes a softer Elphaba make sense. When she gets angry, she runs the risk of hurting people. And it’s not just making nessa’s chair spin like in the musical. It’s glass breaking and rocks flying and Nessa flying through the air in a way that could’ve seriously hurt her. There’s more danger to elphaba’s magic here even if it’s purely because of movie special effects. So of course we have an elphie who isn’t as angry—she’s terrified of her own anger
(You could also get into the influence of dulcibear on baby Elphaba. I like the idea of musical Elphaba having an avoidant attachment style but movie Elphaba having an anxious attachment style because she was given some affection and care, it was just unreliable)
And then okay other smaller things but:
All the Oscar diggs/Omaha NE stuff littered throughout. I 1) love the implication of the wizard just ripping pieces off his old circus wagon or whatever and using it to impress the ozians and 2) wonder if it’ll come up in part two because damn there is so MUCH of it, especially in the attic of the palace
I love that we get to see Frex drop dead but it brings up so many questions? Why was he at shiz before Elphaba left, because we all know he wasn’t seeing her off. Maybe he used it as an excuse to see Nessa but then why was Nessa at home with him at the end? It implies that either the trip to the emerald city happened on some sort of school break, which means Glinda just ditched her family to go with Elphaba (Glinda that’s gay) OR frex refused to let Nessa stay at shiz without Elphaba caring for her (frex that’s mean)
I’ve always been so curious about Elphaba having some sort of gift of prophecy?? It’s like. It’s there in the musical but it’s not really specific, it’s like they want to include it but they want to dance around it at the same time. But I loooove the visions she gets in the movie and I hope they do it again in part two with her seeing Nessa and the tornado. God this movie is gonna destroy me
The gym class fight scene. Listen I know everyone’s obsessed with galinda leading the entire school in a choreographed walk to class and I am too but I am MORE obsessed with the fact that they are literally sparring. Ladies that’s GAY
(I might be delusional but I swear there’s a section of the munchkinland tulips that is the colors of the lesbian flag I’m just sayinggggg)
Also I’m still not over sunset defying gravity yes I know I’ve said it in every post but I’m not OVER it what do you MEAN the world is dark by the time Elphaba is flying away what do you MEAN night has fallen and nothing will ever be the same again
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radioisntdead · 2 months ago
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On my knees begging for Carmilla content some day because I want to be adopted by the Latina who defied angelic immortality out of love for her family-
And you write really well and I'd love to see you interpret her.
My dear, Get off your knees for your wish has been granted!
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Mamá Carmilla Carmine headcanons
Warnings: fluff!! I did headcanons first since this is my first time writing for her [I say, lying while staring at the scrapped Oneshots of her.]I used some traits of my own Hispanic mother for her.
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A strict but loving mom for sure, if she has to drench her hands in blood to ensure her children are safe and sound, that her children are alive and breathing, she'd destroy heaven and hell if she had too.
We don't know if her daughters are adopted or biological but that doesn't matter, I see her as the type to just causally adopt a kid.
Like "You are my kid now."
All of her children are bilingual, I don't make the rules, she does.
She can and WILL start talking to you in Spanish, she'll start quizzing you on what word means what if you've started learning.
If you don't know she stares at you disappointed before telling you the word and what it means.
Duolingo Sinlingo is highly frowned upon, that little owl uses ai and its app is increasingly getting worse and worse, all of their budget is going towards marketing.
She'll get books and other language learning apps for you to learn.
I feel like she's the type to scold her children but not physically hurt them, spoons, sandals? Only for eating and wearing, respectively
Do not EAT SANDALS.
Family game nights, everyone gets competitive, your mother, your sisters and you.
Monopoly was banned by Zestial.
Your name like your sisters is possibly also after a ballet.
Speaking of ballet, you and your sisters were taught, she has recordings and pictures of the three of you dancing.
She's a very proud mother, like those are her kids!!
If you have long hair sometimes she'll brush it, maybe put it in a braid or bun, or something elaborate like her own hairdo.
She doesn't cook often but when she does it's the best fucking food ever.
I'm talking Menudo, Tamales, Pernil, Almojábanas, empanadas, etc etc
Teaches her kids to be smart and how to defend themselves.
She may not always be there to protect you, you need to protect yourself.
All kids get a goodnight kiss to the forehead before bedtime.
You get random bowls of fruit sometimes, you didn't ask for it, she didn't ask you, just eat the fruit.
Definitely a believer in hard work.
She's proud of you, and your sisters, even if she doesn't say it often.
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Broke out the fancy gravity falls headers for her, I want tamales, I haven't had them in like ages :[
PLEASE I WANT SOME PLEA-
ANYWAYS good evenin' folks! I do hope you enjoyed these! I hope you all have a wonderful rest of your night, thank you for tunin' on in!!
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balanceoflightanddark · 1 year ago
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Acknowledgement of Pain
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I think one of the things that I feel Azula in the Spirit Temple gets right is acknowledging one of what I believe to be one of the pillars of her character.
That is, acknowledging what she went through, the pain she endured, was legitimate.
What do I mean by this? Remember that scene where Azula confesses that she feels like she's a monster at the fire pit during "The Beach"?
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The way she brushes off her concerns about what she's doing is wrong? She has problems admitting to what is eating at her and opening her up to others. This is reinforced since...well Zuko isn't exactly the most sympathetic to Azula and her relationship with Mai and Ty Lee is strained. So it's not like she can admit to them either. Growing up under Ozai's influence probably wouldn't help since having concerns or internal struggles would probably be seen as "weak" in his eyes.
And weakness...well we all saw what happened to Zuko.
Privately though, we see another side to her:
Azula: Don't pretend to act proud. I know what you really think of me. You think I'm a monster. ... Azula: Well what choice do I have? Fear is the only reliable way. Even you fear me.
Her strained relationship with Ursa and her belief that she's a monster does eat at her. It's not something she can just brush off so easily. Particularly when she doesn't have anybody to admit it to. Sure, she tries to make excuses like how fear is the only thing she knows how to get people to like her, but that's normal. Again, this is something that's instilled in her for years and it's not something she's good at handling by herself.
On some level, she DOES know she's hurting...but she can't admit it to herself since that would be a betrayal of everything Ozai built her up to be. And since Ozai was the only one who validated stuff like her talent with firebending and being more than just a troubled child, how could she tear that down without tearing herself down?
What I think Azula needs though...what she's craving...is for somebody to validate that yes, she was hurt. That her family and loved ones did hurt her. Yes, it might be misdirected since she lumps the Fire Warriors in there, but it's still valid since she probably wouldn't have a grasp on her feelings. I think what Azula wants is for her pain to be acknowledged and for somebody to say, "that's not right". In the environment she got, she never got the chance. And the spirit didn't help since it just labeled her a monster for rejecting its "redemption".
Hell, even her slaying of the Zuko image demanding she apologize to them doesn't acknowledge that she was hurt too and that neither party can entirely blame the other. It's all take and no give according to the spirit, which rightfully isn't treated as valid by Azula or the narrative. Otherwise, I think she would've faced more repercussions for defying it.
What Azula needs is for her pain to be acknowledged. Not brushed aside or downplayed. I mean to actually be acknowledged and treated with the amount of gravity it deserves.
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mer-acle · 1 month ago
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I realize this is a little odd, but ever since seeing Wicked I've been like hmmm how can I make Defying Gravity about Athena? Cos like. That's what I do. (yes I loved Wicked, naturally. making it about Athena is affectionate, pls don't hate me)
Finally found a moment I can imagine her singing it, in Slipping through my fingers, we have this very climactic moment of her and Hera meeting after Athena returns to Olympus after Pallas' death. She's pretty hurt, and pretty angry at Hera for abandoning her and now acting like everything could possibly be the same between them (meanwhile Hera missed the hell out of Athena. ahhh they make me so unwell)
I'd do the radio edit, starting with "Something has changed within me", and the song would basically be about Athena committing to her role on Olympus, to being a goddess, her father's right hand, while rejecting Hera's offered hand. It would transition to the ceremony that introduces her as an Olympian, with Hera watching from the side, bc what else can she do?
The Glinda/Elphaba verse (if we work in tandem) would be a flashback to the time before Triton, when they were happy.
And, despite this not being a winged!Athena story, I imagine she can create wings for herself so she does that in the end, standing before the evening (western lol) sky of Olympus.
Some lines and how I imagine them:
Too late for second-guessing Too late to go back to sleep (referring to leaving her childhood behind)
Too long I've been afraid of Losing love, I guess I've lost Well, if that's love, it comes at much too high a cost (referring to both Hera and Pallas, and from now on not having attachments)
Kiss me goodbye (the most sarcastic she's ever been. She doesn't even let Hera touch her. But yeah, kiss that little girl you knew goodbye cos she's dead and gone. Sobbing.)
I hope you're happy Now that you're choosing this (you too) I hope it brings you bliss I really hope you get it And you don't live to regret it I hope you're happy in the end I hope you're happy, my friend (idk you'd probably need some slight intonation changes to make this work bc a) Hera knows Athena is not happy and b) Athena is very bitter)
So if you care to find me Look to the western sky (directed at Hera, meaning that they are nothing but members of the same council atp, there's nothing personal)
And soon, I'll match them in renown (one of my faves, just Athena committing to being an Olympian)
Idk this is just fun to imagine songs in different fandoms like that :D
youtube
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