#it was ironically fiyero’s own love and protectiveness towards her that doomed him

[cto10121]

Maybe I just feel this way because I have mixed feelings about musical Gelphie as a ship, but it seems to me that the way the musical fandom ships Gelphie reflects the ways that the musical is "the Glinda show." Personally, I can believe that Glinda might really be in love with Elphaba and not Fiyero, but I just don't see the same being true for Elphaba; her love for Fiyero and the trauma of losing him are too essential to her arc. Yet the fans insist that Fiyero is just comphet for both ladies.

*looks around nervously for the Gelphies* You said it, not me.

Seriously, you took the words out of my mouth. I’ve re-read Wicked countless times during the years, even adapted it into a movie script, so I close read it pretty carefully. Romance-wise, Elphaba’s true love was definitely Fiyero. And no, it wasn’t comp het, either in Elphaba’s character or authorial (also, accusing Gregory Maguire of out-of-character comp het is just hilarious).

Let’s put aside the fact that Elphaba went into a trauma coma when she lost him, gave birth to his son during said coma, went to the Vinkus to ask forgiveness from his wife, lived there, worked tirelessly to find out what happened to Fiyero’s whole-ass family after they were captured by the Wizard’s guards, and ran his family estate for years. Let’s put all of that aside.

Fiyero was the only one in the whole damn book even to come close to matching Elphaba intellectually and philosophically. He even manages to challenge her on some points (and honestly, imo, he did gag her at some points). He even reached a level of empathy for the Animals on his own, witnessing an act of violence. And he risked his own life to protect Elphaba, even following her in her assassination attempt to Madame Morrible. And it was thanks to his influence that Elphaba ultimately refused to hurt others in order to kill Morrible (they literally had a whole conversation about collateral damage, with Elphaba prepared to accept it and Fiyero firmly against it). When he died, it was as if a key part of Elphaba had died as well. It was in that section that she truly became the Witch.

With Glinda, Elphaba would essentially be replicating her dynamic with Nessarose as glorified handmaiden, and this at best. Also, Glinda was never that great an influence on Elphaba in the books to begin with; the whole point of that section was Elphaba’s influence on Glinda. And Glinda did not go with her after their meeting with the Wizard, and Elphaba did not offer.

Even in the musical-verse, Fiyero actively chooses Elphaba and her cause. His support is ultimately why Elphaba chooses him. With Glinda, she would have to live in her world, work with the Wizard, and turn a blind eye over the injustices of Oz. And that is something Elphaba can’t or will not compromise, as she knows it would lead her into certain danger.