#someone on discord wanted him to be tarred and feathered

[circusk]

i care him so much guys . guys. hes blorbo bingus

[dingoes8myrp]

Slippers Are So Last Century: Emerald City

The new show Emerald City totally snuck up on me. It was something my mom and I caught while looking through the guide. We saw Vincent D'Onofrio's name, and there was some discussion ("Hey, I haven't seen him in anything since Criminal Intent!"). So, we checked it out to see what Detective Bobby Goren's up to these days.

We did not know what we'd just signed up for. I hadn't heard anything about the show prior to our stumbling upon it while looking for something to watch on a Friday night. I figured Emerald City = The Wizard of Oz. Cool. I know this. Well, not exactly.

The rest of this post will contain spoilers for all of Emerald City so far, including last night's episode.

As soon as the premiere opened I knew this wasn't going to be what I expected. I didn't know what that meant – if it was a good thing, or a bad thing – but it surprised me and put me off kilter right from the start. That's one way to captivate an audience – the "Wait, what?" effect. Not my favorite, as a viewer, but it'll do the trick. It worked for Carnivale, The Walking Dead, Sons of Anarchy, and more recently Outsiders. At least, for me.

Let's start with Dorothy. She wasn't some naïve farm girl trotting around with a basket and a tiny dog. She was gritty and real, someone I could know in my real life. And her entrance into Oz wasn't magical and whimsical. It was terrifying, scary, and mysterious – as it would be if it happened in real life. Right away, it was clear this was not the technicolor Wizard of Oz I had grown up watching. This was something I could relate to, a world I could plant my feet in. So, I did.

Dorothy's introduction to Oz did not involve munchkins and songs. It involved escaping the police, being tossed around inside a cop car inside a tornado, and getting captured by some sort of tribe of natives. I'm still not sure what the deal with those guys is. Dorothy was interrogated and tortured before she was sent on her way down the road, which was not made of yellow brick, but of fine yellow dust. With her trusty bag of supplies and her new guard dog, Toto, Dorothy set about her journey.

Surely we know this part, right?

As Dorothy approached a man perched on a cross, tarred and feathered in the sun, I was reminded of a similar scene in Carnivale that involved a reluctant hero having to make a difficult decision: to press on and continue his planned journey to reach his own goal, or to risk his own plan to help someone else. There was even a tarred and feathered guy in both scenes and both heroes were regarded as healers. Both were also mistrusted, as no one knew whether they would bring salvation or ruin. Up until this point I'd been intrigued by the story in the way that I wanted to know what was going to happen and wanted to explore this new Oz. However, the moment Dorothy helped Lucas off his perch I became invested in her. This was a character I could get behind and root for.

One way to get me to care about a character right off the bat is to put him in a terrible position for no apparent reason. Wait, that's a person baking in the sun like that? Who the hell did that to this guy? He seems nice enough. A little confused, a little worse for the wear, but he's so cute! Like a lost puppy.

But…

He must have pissed a few people off. Why else would he have ended up tarred, feathered, and left to die? What kind of messed up people did that shit?

Perhaps, more importantly, what could Lucas have done to deserve that? No. Surely he couldn't have done anything terrible. He's so endearing and likable and nice to look at. No. He's a victim here. Of course he's a victim. Except, even he's not so sure about that.

Something that bothers me quite frequently about Lucas began when he assured Dorothy he was fine to keep walking, only to collapse a few seconds later. At the time, this seemed like a plot device to me. Now Lucas needed help, which led Dorothy to Oz's answer to a Pharmacy, where she'd cross paths with Tip. I rolled my eyes and I was annoyed, but I quickly forgot about my irritation and continued to follow Dorothy along the dusty, yellow path.

However, as I continued to watch the show I discovered this kind of behavior from Lucas was typical. He's constantly punishing himself and sacrificing himself for others. While at times I can get behind this – if he wants to be a distraction so Dorothy can escape a dangerous situation, for example – there are other times when it doesn't make sense from a strategic standpoint. He not only unnecessarily puts himself at risk, but he refuses help even when he needs it. As he learned bits and pieces of his checkered past, it became clear to me that Lucas has a lot of guilt over the possibility that he may have done some bad things. This is such a subtle, well done character trait that makes no sense at all until you get to know him.

The budding romance between Lucas and Dorothy did not surprise me, but it didn't irritate me as these things often do. It felt very organic and natural to me. Of course these two are going to have some feelings brewing. And they're just adorable. I like that their romance isn't becoming the center of the story. It's still about the journey as well as the ensemble of characters.

One of the biggest things that's kept me watching even before I was invested has been the witches. There was clear discord between the Wizard and the witches, but also between the witches themselves. Immediately I wanted to know what all that was about. What was up with that weird mud prison? Why was East such an asshole? What's the deal with West and Glinda being kind of cordial but also hating each other? How was Dorothy able to inherit those ruby mittens from East? These questions have only increased as the show has gone on. If all the witches are born from one woman (South), then how was Dorothy able to perform any magic at all? Why are West and Glinda such rivals? I have so many questions!

Tip! This character started out as somebody I considered a minor background character and then quickly stole my heart. How did Tip end up in that crazy woman's home and what the hell was she doing making Tip a boy in the first place? My theory currently, having learned witches are still being born in secret, is that Tip was a witch and since, as far as we know, witches are only female, this woman disguised her as a boy to hide her. However, I don't have enough evidence for this yet. It's just something I've thought about.

I loved the relationship between Tip and Jack: two childhood friends whose relationship gets very complicated now that they're older and one of them is now a beautiful young woman. Who can't relate to that? Tip's struggle in being treated like a woman after being raised as a boy has been captivating to watch.

It's interesting that Tip is automatically being placed in these roles reserved for women in Oz, and the reaction is great. Yeah, my thoughts exactly, Tip! I wouldn't want to be a nun or a whore either. Being a knight looks way cooler. Tip's internal struggle is heart wrenching as well. There's a constant stream of questions there Tip doesn't know the answers to. Am I a boy or a girl? Do I love Jack as a friend, or as something more? What does that even mean? How do I get my real body back? Which body is my real body? Such a complex character portrayed so wonderfully! Tip is very much my favorite to watch.

When Jack took a tumble off that tower I thought for certain that was that. I was shocked and so saddened for Tip. And there were so many unanswered questions there. I wanted to see their new relationship unfold into whatever it was going to be.

And then we caught a glimpse of that doctor for a few seconds and I had no idea what was going on. When we got to see what had become of Jack I was totally caught off guard. Ah, so they're going with a literal tin man here. Good on you, Emerald City. I did not see that one coming.

I'm not sure how I feel about Jack yet. He was a loyal friend to Tip, someone who was going to be there to help no matter what. I admired that about him. However, now he's grown a bit resentful and he's sort of finding his feet in this new body and in his new home. There's potential here and I'm curious to see where it will go.

Ah, West. I have complicated feelings toward this character. Because I'm so invested in Dorothy, I'm often at odds with West. I want to hate her for tormenting Dorothy and later Lucas. I disagree with a lot of her decisions. However, there are clearly layers to West we'll see peeled back bit by bit. She reminds me a lot of Nancy in The Craft in the way that she has a lot of pain and I think she uses her magic to mask or work around that a lot of the time. She's a very interesting and complex character, and if she's meant to be a villain she'll definitely be a complicated one to hate.

Lady Ev is definitely growing on me. I didn't know what to make of her at first. But the more I see of her the more I want to see. She's clearly smart and capable, but she's underestimated by those around her due to her attitude and her youth. There's so much going on there. With her father sick and aging and her mother deceased, Ev has had the role of ruler thrust upon her. She didn't ask for it and she doesn't even acknowledge it. Someone who appeared selfish and spoiled is the complete opposite once you see her in action. She's doing a hard job she was unprepared to take on and expecting no recognition for it. She's naïve and sheltered in a lot of ways, having little understanding of things like love and friendship. I have a theory that Lady Ev is our embodiment of the Cowardly Lion. I don't think she wears a mask because she has some disfigurement. I think she's socially anxious and shy due to being a bit sheltered and the mask keeps her from being afraid. I think she's learning a lot from Jack and I'm intrigued by their relationship.

We got to peek behind the curtain this week with the Wizard. I haven't known how to feel about him this whole time. Is he a villain? Are the witches the villains? Who the hell is this guy? Now we have some answers and I'm still not sure. I think Frank is the embodiment of the phrase "The road to Hell is paved with good intentions." I think he thought he was doing something extraordinary when he caused the tornado that brought his team to Oz. But, for what purpose? To gain recognition? To escape something? He introduces science to this world that's so steeped in magic his science is laughable. Was he trying to do something good for these people, or merely trying to control them to overcome his nerdy stigma?

Tip's reunion with Jack went about as expected, didn't it? Jack was a good friend. Tip killed him. Accident or not, that shit leaves a mark. However, I don't believe that's the end of things for Tip and Jack. There's lots of unfinished business there, lots of feelings to be resolved and explored. Lady Ev will no doubt make things complicated… or Tip will make things complicated for Jack and Ev, depending on how you look at it. I wonder how Tip will deal with this. Surely it's a relief that Jack's alive, but she still hurt him deeply. And now he's forever changed, something not quite human. This is going to get very complicated.

At this point I don't know if Dorothy and Lucas are a perfect match, or if they'll be the death of one another. Now Dorothy seems to have figured out Lucas's tendency toward self-destruction, so to compensate she tries to stand between him and whatever destructive thing he's about to do. Typically, this makes him stop and rethink things. But, the two of them are so stubborn that this often leads them both to do something stupid and risky. Sometimes this is a good thing, since they did find and rescue that little girl who turns people to stone sometimes. Sometimes this is a bad idea, like when it could mean they both die or go insane. But, hey, as long as they're together, right? Because that's the most important thing. Oh, wait. Except for some of these people who are now depending on you both to help them.

This is something that annoyed me in Buffy the Vampire Slayer as well. There's a tendency in TV shows especially toward showing the audience two people are in love by having them throw everything else out the window for that person. This is a bad lesson in my opinion. Yes, love is hard work and sacrifice. But there's a difference between that and giving up literally everything for another person in order for it to be considered love. It makes even less sense when you're in a setting where literally the world could end and lots of other people who are also loved and important could die, and these lovebirds suddenly just plain don't give a shit. This is an annoying trope I hope they don't continue here. Lucas and Dorothy love each other. That's obvious and we get it. Please don't make them all stupid and reckless over it. I've seen enough of that and Oz doesn't need it.

I love how things keep turning on their heads in this show. Whenever I think I've figured someone out they do something unexpected or some new information is revealed. Now there's this secret network of people working to hide the existence of witches, and there are spies and double agents. It's a Bond movie up in this bitch!

There's a lot more going on I didn't go over here because this thing would have been pages and pages long if I talked about every detail. But I love this show and it's become one of my ass-in-seat shows of 2017. If you’re also watching it and want to discuss anything let me know.