#what anyone thinks but glinda KNOWS SHE FUCKING KNOWS

[the-clock-of-the-time-dragon]

Musings on how magic works in the Wicked musical/film(s):

So I've actually never really heard anyone explore in-depth how the powers work in Wicked, because I guess they're both simple AND mysterious enough that most people regard them as self-explanatory. But I think there's actually a lot of interesting things we might learn about the characters and world through observing how and when magic happens in Oz.

So with the Grimmerie, it seems to work by reading people's hearts and granting them an approximation of what they ask for. I've pointed out before how it's kind of a mirror version of what the Wizard does: people come asking for their "heart's desire", and both the Wizard and the Grimmerie want to grant that desire and make people happy. But whereas the Wizard must do this with charlatanry (and in the end, people always end up having to either go and get what they came for themselves, elsewhere, or they already had it all along), the Grimmerie can actually twist reality to give people some version of what they wanted (and didn't already have): but it always comes with some fucked up cost that makes them regret it. It plays into the overarching theme of "what is happiness? Is it getting your heart's desire? What will you give up to get it? Is it worth it?", etc. I think it could even be inferred that every character who ever comes into contact with the book — directly or indirectly — is in a way "cursed" to never obtain true happiness, only a mockery of what they'd imagined happiness to be. This extends to the Wizard, Glinda, Morrible, Elphaba, Nessa, and even Chistery. And the grander the desire, the graver the cost for getting it — Chistery is able to get away with physical pain for his dream of flying, but the human characters all have their dreams come true only in ways they are never able to actually enjoy. I think the reason Elphaba is the only one able to not only read the book but get away with using it repeatedly, is due to her own innate power.

Elphaba's power is very different from that of the Grimmerie. She seems to have the ability to just flat-out REJECT ACCEPTED REALITY. She defies the law of gravity; even TIME (essentially "remembering" things that have yet to happen). Every time we see her use her powers, she does so to STOP what is transpiring, or simply to say NO to what is before her. Making things fall up instead of down, recalling the future instead of the past, reading books that are illegible. It's in keeping with her overall character, being off, or backwards, or at odds with everything around her: crowds part as if repelled when she comes near; her first day of school she's already being told she's going to excel far beyond what any of the other students could ever hope to achieve. The idea of "I clash with everything" isn't just a joke about color coordination, it's quite literally how she interacts with the world, including on a metaphysical level. She distorts and repulses.

The reason she has such a different relationship to the Grimmerie than everyone else who's tried to use it, is precisely because she clashes with everything. More importantly: she rejects both the world as it is, AND the world as she wants it. She denies her own desires for the sake of what she considers more important. She knows that she can have all she ever wanted: but she can't. She won't. She chooses to go AGAINST heart's desire, REJECT happiness — to deny HERSELF. Something that, perhaps, only a child of both Oz and Kansas — of fantasy and reality — is able to do. She's so at odds with the fantasy world she's been born into, so committed to Truth — a world of objective non-fiction — that she actively says no to her own dreams, and can literally disrupt and challenge the basic laws and logics of the story that she's in. She can use the Grimmerie because she uses the same language: negation. You can't reverse the Grimmerie's spells because they ARE reversals — distortions of a twisted nature. But Elphaba can't want what she truly wants in her heart; she rejects it; it's already reversed. To the "what are you willing to give up to get what you want?" question, Elphaba is the only one in Oz who can honestly just reply "NO", and give up her heart's desire of her own accord.

Now, how Morrible's powers work seem to be a lot different from the others. Her abilities aren't derived directly from the Grimmerie (though we know she has at least studied it), and appear to be innate like Elphaba's, but they manifest very differently. But why weather?? I think it pertains to her innate nature. She's a manipulator whose temperament changes like the wind (warm with some and cold with others), capable of clouding the truth or making things clear as she pleases, and acts as if the world revolves around her like a cyclone. She has total control over her powers because her power is control. There might have been a time when her powers were more benign — she says her talent is "encouraging talent", so perhaps we could infer that her true powers are motivating/suggesting things, giving directions, and that whenever she developed into the truly wicked person she is now, that power darkened into coercion/manipulation. So she can direct a cloud to disperse, encourage a wind to blow, or persuade a crowd to become a raging tempest.

As for Glinda: the musical/film(s) kinda implies she doesn't have any powers?? At least not the innate kind that Elphaba and Morrible have. We haven't seen her use any spells (except a simple one that got cut way back in the pre-Broadway tryout run of the musical), her bubble is shown to be mechanical rather than magical, and she's obviously interested in learning sorcery but fails the only time we really see her try to use it, and she doesn't believe she can read the Grimmerie. So whatever magic Glinda possesses has to be developed, and given she has never really been encouraged to do so (whether in school or when she's Glinda the Good), she probably hasn't had much of a chance to become a real witch by the time the story wraps up (although it would be a fun inclusion if the second film shows her using a spell at some point). Also: since magic seems to be related to character's personal qualities or narrative themes, it's actually quite meaningful that Glinda (at the very least) struggles to use it — she's constantly questioning who she is, what she wants, etc., and so whether she possesses a natural power of her own or needs to develop it through training, we might infer that her magic is similarly "unsure" of what it's supposed to do.

Feel free to respond with any thoughts — I just find this aspect of the story really interesting and hopefully this all came together to at least mostly make sense, lol

[loverboybrightsideghost]

it's gonna be so over for me once i finally get to see wicked life

[lily-onher-grave]

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

[javierpena-inatacvest]

Pedro Boys and Their Favorite Wicked Songs

How many times will I listen to the Wicked soundtrack before the year is done? 😅 The musical theatre nerd in me can't help but think about what songs from Wicked each Pedro boy would like the most after seeing the movie (with or without being forced to go against their will LMAO) This is all just for fun, if you have a different suggestion, tell me who, and why!!!

No One Mourns the Wicked- Obyern Martell

Strikes me as a man who lives for a backstory. Very satisfied that he gets all the information he needs to enjoy the movie in the first 15 minutes. Deeply offended that everyone is so mean to Elphaba because she's green, and can't fathom disowning a child for that very reason. Develops a fat crush on everyone in the movie by the time it's over

Dear Old Shiz- ......

This is no one's favorite song, be fr

The Wizard and I- Din Djarin

Loves the song because of how much it makes him think of Grogu. No one is rooting harder for Elphaba than Din because of how excited Grogu is to see another green friend, and how much Elphaba reminds him. He's so proud he is of his kid for all the challenges and obstacles he's overcome. Loses points only because he does have to chase Grogu down the aisles of the movie theatre when he sees the frogs at the beginning of the song.

What is This Feeling?- Javier Peña

Definitely did not come to see this movie by choice. Confused why the original characters from the Wizard of Oz are not in this movie. Also confused why Glinda and Elphaba have to sing an entire song about how they just can't share a room together. Will he admit that this song makes him think of him and Steve Murphy? Over his dead body. Will he quietly tap his foot through the entire song and be humming it to himself days later because it's just so fucking catchy? Absolutely.

Something Bad- Dave York

Though the movie was going to be a lot darker than it actually was because of the title. Humored by the idea of being a hired assassin to a goat so he can keep his voice. Has so much beef with the Wizard (sorry Dave York fans, I know nothing about this man)

Dancing Through Life- Agent Whiskey

Whiskey absolutely loves Fiyero. A carefree, reckless man who doesn't live by the rules AND can ride a horse? Sold, immediately. As soon as the movie is done, he's looking up where he can buy Fiyero boots to add to his collection. Names his next horse Fiyero. Learns the dance not for anyone else, but just for himself, because he thinks it 's cool. The only caveat is that he refuses to listen past the first 3 minutes of the song because Fiyero doesn't sing after that

Popular- Joel Miller

This is the only correct answer to this question. In a happy, blissful world where the outbreak never happens and Sarah is alive and well, you know for a fact she has been playing this soundtrack around the house for WEEKS. No, he doesn't want to go see Wicked (he's heard enough of the soundtrack to last him a lifetime), but he's not telling Sarah no when she asks if he wants to go. By the time Popular comes on, he's completely sucked in, and quite literally giggling throughout the song. There's not a day that goes by that she doesn't hold it over his head. Popular is one of his top 5 songs on Spotify wrapped next year.

I'm Not That Girl- Marcus Pike

While he'd probably rather see a play than a musical, he knows about Wicked and likes it enough to go see it on his own. Has listened to the soundtrack once a while ago, and has a general idea of the plot, but completely forgets about this song. Marcus Pike is literally the definition of not being that girl. Tries his best to keep from crying, but is sobbing by the end of the song. Definitely needs a while to recover after seeing the movie because of how much it made him feel things.

One Short Day- Javi G.

This song is nothing but fun and good vibes. No internal conflict, no turmoil, just two gal pals enjoying their journey to Oz. Very much a fan of the fun colors, can't stop laughing at the guys in the egg shaped suits in the fountain. Didn't know anything about Wicked before he bought tickets, but heard everyone was talking about it, and now he's seen it 7 times and dances around his house to the soundtrack on repeat.

Sentimental Man- Dieter Bravo

This is no one's favorite song. It's not Dieter's, either. But he wasn't paying attention enough to remember any of the names of the songs, so when someone asks him what his favorite is, he points at this one and shrugs, thinking it was Dancing Through Life. He's confused why everyone is so surprised by his response. He watches it 3 more times and still never picks up on it.

Defying Gravity- Frankie Morales

The lyrics to this song hit SO HARD for our sweet boy. "As someone told me lately, everyone deserves a chance to fly?" Do you know how loud he sings this song to himself if he's flying alone in a helicopter? The song truly makes him reflect on a lot of life choices for the better. Already loved the movie up until this point, but this is just the icing on top of the cake. Goes to see it again specifically for this song.

[lollytea]

Glinda has probably spent her whole life in an echo chamber where she has deluded herself into believing she's God's specialist princess and the kindest soul in Oz. But she's spent more time and energy carefully curating that romanticised image of herself than actually doing anything good for the sake of good. Reflecting on her own morality and the idea that she might not be as good as she believes is icky and uncomfortable and she's naturally avoidant about the topic.

However I don't think Glinda is stupid. Just deeply self absorbed and unwilling to entertain complicated truths, especially about the ugliness inside her. But I think she knows. Deep down she knows.

That's why Elphaba's existence makes her so overwhelmingly angry that she can barely see straight.

I love their first interaction in the movie where Elphaba gives her a metaphorical dressing down. It's all like "your oath to fix me is drenched in condescension. The words you perceive as gracious are transparently performative and you clearly operate solely for the validation of your audience. Your altruism is shallow and absolutely worthless to me. And frankly put, I don't get the impression that you're a kind person at all."

Galinda has never been scalped so hard in her life. She simply couldn't comprehend that she had just been perceived in such bad faith!! She's not like that!! She's not anything like what this horrible green girl thinks she is!!!

But if Elphaba hadn't so accurately hit the nail on its head with her remarks, then Galinda wouldn't be half as enraged.

She's been seen!! She's been perceived!! It was like somebody held up a mirror that forced her to look at all the ugliness inside of her that she's been repressing.

Every time Elphaba looks at her, Galinda knows that she's being seen for exactly what she is and she can't fucking STAND IT.

So she doubles down on her denial and her defensiveness and decides that Elphaba is actually the worst person alive. She must be!! Obviously there's no reason for Galinda to hate her so much if she wasn't awful and unkind! Galinda doesn't hate anyone unless they deserve it! 😇

[moghedien]

saw someone say that they loved that Wicked is only a tragedy for Glinda and I wanted to throw hands. Like, you really think Elphaba is so shallow that all she needs to be happy is Fiyero’s dick??? Forget Glinda for a second, you think Elphaba is happy to give up her cause??? You don’t think the ending is at least a little bitter for Elphaba???

SPOILERS FOR THE ENDING OF WICKED FR FR DON'T READ THIS IF YOU DON'T WANNA KNOW SHIT

ok so first things first, Fiyero doesn't even have a dick anymore so she can forget about that. Straw near the coochie sounds awful and the man isn't gonna be firm enough to support a strap so we got nothing to look forward to in that regard

but in seriousness, Elphaba has lost everyone in her life. her sister is dead. her dad is dead. her mentor has been turned into a non-talking goat. Glinda is alive but Elphaba knows that she's being left alone and miserable with an impossible task that she hates. She has Fiyero but like...what are they gonna do? where are they gonna go? A green lady and a talking scarecrow can only go unnoticed for so long, even if they leave Oz, which alone is a very difficult undertaking. (like I said before, five years max before Ozma finds their asses by chance and heads to Dyke Castle to rat them out to Glinda)

And Elphaba doesn't really know that the Wizard is going to leave once she "dies." She doesn't know that Madame Morrible is going to be arrested and that Glinda will essentially stage a coup to take control. For all she knows, she's leaving Glinda to do as she's been doing this entire time, but now Elphaba isn't even there to be a scapegoat so they can double down on their attacks against the animals. Elphaba doesn't even know that Chistery talks at the end. Everything she did might as well been for nothing when it only left her family and loved ones dead or changed forever in a variety of unpleasant ways.

This is one of my major complaints with the musical, actually. That Elphaba just seems so fucking hopeless in the end that she gives up everything and runs. She doesn't know that anything good happened in the end. She just goes. Its a miserable ending to her, because she just gives up on everything she's fought for without knowing that her actions accomplished anything positive.

Literally, for all she knew, she's running and everything will be that much worse without anyone to actually fight the Wizard and Morrible. And she just left her only real friend with the responsibility of somehow stopping that and making good--something she couldn't even do--all the while knowing that said friend is entirely alone and miserable.

The ending fucking sucks for Elphaba, to the point where it genuinely makes me angry.

[bestworstcase]

i am revising my estimation on what rwby beyond will entail perhaps out of wishful thinking but: since they let the cat out of the bag on salem razed vale with the animatic that means salem razing vale is conceivably something that beyond might touch on. maybe not if her motives for doing so constitute a major spoiler (which is possible but seems unlikely), but that is a big “holy fuck” moment to drop in the Forbidden Eleventh Hour Episode Animatic and. hm. hmmm

i would really like to get a glimpse of the context. salem left atlas with herself and cinder; she can spawn hundreds of grimm per second but came to atlas with a giant whale and millions of grimm, which seems to have taken her several weeks if not a few months to put together. if the civilian retreat traveled very quickly southward to vacuo it’s conceivable that they arrive within hours of the destruction, which does leave salem time to have whipped up another storm.

but retreating so hastily would have necessarily meant leaving a lot of people to die (or be captured—depends what “there’s nothing left” means, really) and the longer it took the civilian retreat to get to vale, the less likely it is that salem stormed vale with a massive fleet of grimm a la atlas.

the other possibilities i can think of are:

salem and cinder flattened an entire city, which has horrifying implications as to how much salem has been holding back up to this point;

she cracked the wyvern out of gay baby jail and let it do the heavy lifting;

“there’s nothing left” means that salem encored her trick of ripping open the continental crust to make a grimm river, but under vale this time, cratering the entire city into a lake of grimm (which also has horrifying implications as to how much she’s been holding back before);

salem didn’t attack vale so much as she was seen approaching beacon tower and mass hysteria ensued, leading to the city being swamped by the local grimm again.

ponders.

or vale was a casualty of an extremely destructive attempt to brute force break through the extra protections ozpin arranged for the beacon vault. what that might look like practically is an open question, but… i mean, i’ve been thinking for a while on the possibility of ozpin weaving traps into those protections.

there is also the more interesting question of why. beacon fell -> grimm pulled out of vale within days -> surgical strike on haven -> held her forces back from attacking mantle -> no grimm in atlesian subway tunnels -> (ironwood forced the fall of atlas while salem was taking a dirt nap) -> razing vale to the ground apparently. what changed?

“people saw salem and panicked” seems like both a copout and also the explanation that tracks with what we’ve seen from her before and what we know of the situation. “something happened that made salem decide it was necessary to delete vale” is the more narratively punchy option and the one i hope they’re going for. in pursuit of a new world, no cost is too great, and all.

sighs. when glinda lays siege to the emerald city, the witch mombi magically disguises herself in the form of a rose, and general jinjur aligns herself with mombi in a bid to remain in power. salem has put a lot of trust in summer to hold beacon for her, never doubting her loyalty after a year or more without progress. if that trust were betrayed…

(<- NERVOUS.)

the other obvious possibilities is brutal overreaction to a perceived threat to cinder (“if anyone even looks at cinder wrong i will break this wyvern out of its shell” WAS A JOKE I WAS JOKING–). or she’s removing vale from the equation specifically to broaden the search radius for the crown, and/or now suspects that the vault is in vale. that glynda “emblem is a crown” goodwitch is being kept offscreen still is interesting in that regard, obviously.

i don’t think it’s a matter of salem feeling emboldened by possession of two relics, if only because she wasn’t emboldened by having the lamp in atlas, and also her character arc in v8 was firmly oriented around cinder and the beacon relic, in that order. that was the basis for my thinking that she would make a beeline for vale next, which is exactly what she did. my assumption was that she planned to dig in and wait for a counteroffensive to become necessary to hold the vacuo coalition together, which i did not guess would include razing vale—because i thought she might take a gamble on pitching her side to vale, to remove a pillar of support from the vacuo coalition; razing vale is a different tactical approach to the same end.

so it’s possible that salem simply made the calculation that razing vale was the most effective way to achieve her longer term strategic goal (eliminate vale as an ally to the vacuo coalition and prohibit a siege while she digs in at beacon). it comes at the cost of hardening the vacuan coalition by demonstrating that she’s capable of flattening two kingdoms in a span of weeks and giving mistral more reason to be nervous, but it also tells the world in no uncertain terms exactly where she is, which removes an obstacle to the counteroffensive she is probably counting on to deliver the sword to her.

narratively i think it’s a really exciting choice. the pressure it puts on the salem-summer-cinder dynamic stands to be very interesting and i would like to see it.

[loullipopx]

i'm just gonna ramble for a while don't mind me ignore this post whatever i really don't care move on with your life

i love wicked so much, it even hurts when i think about how much i love this story and these characters and all this music

i've made two amazing amazing amazing friends thanks to wicked, i've used the story during times when everything felt overwhelming and dark and just awful and horrible. elphaba and glinda were there through it all, they were my best kept secret for a while, because i just couldn't bear to have literally anyone insult them in front of me, it was like they were insulting me almost lmfao

i have literal artistic progress with those two, i'm not sure i have a picture of the very very first fanart i did of them but like thinking about all this makes me just. implode with so much love and admiration

stephen schwartz i'm giving you my inheritance

i really don't think i'd be anywhere if i didn't have wizard of oz and especially wicked and e s p e c i a l l y glinda the good. she's such a role model for me, the epitome of silliness and devotion and friendliness. oh gods i love her so much i'm listening to popular as i'm writing this and i can't stop the tears from falling. it's so silly so stupid and i love it so much oh my god they took such such good care of her

i'm an entire mess and a half i don't care if i'm alone as long as i have wicked i'll forever have two best friends on my shoulders butting heads and being stupid and loving each other dearly and dancing

wicked is literally the only thing i love that my family also actively knows about, as in they know the words to popular front to back top to bottom. it means so fucking much to me. i know it's silly because it's just a musical but oh my gods it's so much more than just a musical to me. it got me thinking maybe i could write one myself. i just wanna make someone else feel with my story the way i feel with wicked. just spread the love, pass it on to the next one, give them the cosiness and the comforting embrace of your story with silly lil songs always being there for them. that's what wicked is to me

the movie is gonna rewire my brain, isn't it. wicked is gonna rewire me again and oh gods. this has been in the works for 10 years and now it's here and it looks wonderful

brb i think i'm gonna throw up ( /srs but /pos )

bye

[a-couple-of-notes]

[spoilers for Wicked Act 2, I guess]

I have seen two whole posts framing the end of Glinda's arc in Wicked as some form of cosmic narrative punishment--that she must suffer and grieve to atone for her sins. In the most charitable, good-faith read of this: yes, Wicked is a Grade A tragedy, so there's lots of pride and lots of falls. Glinda feels a ton of regret for how she handled things, and she resolves to try to do real good in honor of Elphaba (and Fiyero, presumably, I guess). In that sense, it is some form of making amends and trying to better oneself.

But in the saltier read of this: it irritates the hell out of me. Firstly and most importantly, it is antithetical to the thematic core of Wicked to be gunning for anyone's cosmic punishment--like, the witch hunters were bad for a reason! This idea of "deserving" is something interrogated within the text itself; and just about every time anyone ever said "you/we deserve each other," it was a lie, it was a jab, it was pain--except in Elphaba's reclamation of "everyone deserves a chance to fly." Or, everyone deserves freedom, respect, basic rights and dignity. It was never about punishing anyone, not even the Wizard.

Secondly, it takes away Glinda's agency and arc in the ending. It becomes the narrative punishing her, the narrative enacting consequences upon her, instead of her choosing it for herself. I realize this sounds so nitpicky, and normally I would be all for characters doomed by the narrative; but in this particular case, when so many people seem to start and stop at the "white women liberals who uphold the ruling class" interpretation of Glinda (oh, we'll get there, my fucking god), I feel it's worth saying that the end of Glinda's arc is her choosing to do good.

Thirdly, the idea of this monumental amount of grief and tragedy as the price you have to pay to be redeemed and good now is just...so telling for how we conceptualize redemption and goodness, huh? I didn't grow up Christian but it sure sounds a lot like what I'm told that framework is. Even in my mounds of salt I will not deny that Glinda's choices led invariably to things that made her deeply unhappy--the whole point of "Thank Goodness"! She was complicit, in both small ways and large. Still, Elphaba and Fiyero's deaths, Glinda's grief and helplessness in the face of that, her loneliness afterward--that's not a transaction she makes for her redemption. I don't think Wicked as a text frames it this way, either. It was always a tragedy. And Glinda tries her best to make something good out of its memory.

I've been dancing around this for a couple of paragraphs, but the main reason why this gets on my nerves so much--this read of the narrative of Wicked punishing Glinda--is because in a larger sense, parts of the fandom want to punish Glinda. Or, you know, what she represents to them. Which, like, yes. That's fine. I've been around long enough to curate my spaces, and I certainly have a lot of sympathy for how personal experiences and the current political climate change your approach to a text. (I bounced off Once Upon a Time long before most other folks just because of the weird way they treated adoption.)

Still, because this is my void and I'm yelling into it: I think it's extremely reductive to recategorize Glinda into the villain (see above re: antithetical to Wicked's core themes). I will not deny Glinda's complicity with a harmful power structure, but I also live in America--every day I am complicit with harmful power structures. Sometimes I am able, like Elphaba, to resist. Sometimes, like Glinda, I feel as though I am only capable of survival. Fiction is separate from reality, yes, but if you refuse to engage with, understand, or give grace to these kinds of characters you will not be able to see when you are falling into the same patterns.

[tragcdysewn]

hello it's so late because fuck you tumblr but i got it out! if you want to plot, react to this and i'll message you to plot and split up starters!

abigail bishop: abi might be found wandering the edges of the market. she loved the holidays pre turning off her emotions, but she doesn't really care much about them now for obvious reasons. she's not looking to cause problems, but she doesn't really think it'll be anything enjoyable either

ahsoka tano: she is honestly probably making sure no one in her family kills anyone, going to be so real. she likes the holidays and absolutely needs to get gifts sorted for people, but her priority is absolutely making sure this doesn't turn into a ho ho homicide

alice tonner: daisy's two friends both are unavailable right now, and she's not a big warm and fuzzy christmas person anyways. she'll probably be drinking and avoiding the entire thing

allana solo: this is either going to be a really fun date with her girlfriend or an attempt to drag their girlfriend out of her depression cave, but allana will be having a good time either way. any excuse to decorate and buy dumb shit for their friends and family, honestly

ariana dupont: she's got the kids and whatever family members she can get doing the whole vibe. decorating ornaments, ice skating, girl is doing literally everything available and loving it

asmodeus: he's dressing as sexy santa and acting as his boyfriend's personal wallet. that’s all i got. he's very sociable though just approach him for whatever

athenodora volturi: the woman has been out of her tower for a month and you think she's going to a city wide block party? no. be so fucking for real

baxian argos: working security for the event and using breaks to shop for his friends. can you buy a novelty sized bottle of booze here bc that's most of what he's getting for them all

bela dimitrescu: it’s fucking cold she’s not going and nothing will change that

bryce quinlan: she's a sexy elf for sexy santa, because why not, right? definitely here to have a good time, can be found in the ice bar and skating when not being a ridiculous accompaniment to sexy santa

cassie lang: she's probably going with lott which... Yikes, honestly. but she'll probs have a good time even if everyone else observing is suffering. she loves the holidays and will try to get everyone around her to do the same

davina claire: talked her husband into sexy santa while she is running an art booth with a space heater. she won that argument

dewey riley: dewey is alone and depressed this holiday season, expect a bender in his apartment the man is not socializing at all

eleni vanserra: honestly gets a kick out of any season that isn't autumn, but people getting so excited for winter in particular is very charming to her. she'll be happy to try anything you might need a partner for

elphaba thropp: glinda will probably have dragged her to this, and she is reluctantly participating because she knows she can't leave until glinda's done shopping. she will probably complain about it though

eveline: evie is actually really into the holidays? good fake memories and would like there to be good real ones now too. she's never entirely sure how to behave like a person in a big group setting, but she is really going to try super hard

feng xin: he's absolutely dragging his friends to have fun, and probably at least attempting to help xie lian out with his actual booth. but his real priority is making sure his idiots stay sober this year

feyre archeron: eagerly participating in all the kid friendly stuff, and also managing an ornament decorating booth on the side. she's working it a bit, but not nearly as much time as she's spending with the kids

hannibal lecter: i mean... no. he doesn't participate in things like this. will probably throw a very fancy holiday dinner party though. eat at your own risk, none of the food is vegetarian

hazel levesque: she genuinely loves holiday activities now that she has family she can be close to. they will be dragging her brother and friends to every single thing they can think of, so i hope you're all good with that if you hang out with them

he chunyu: i guess she's spending time with fucking ming yi? but honestly the girl gets a kick out of how pretty everything is, even if (in her mind) she doesn't have any family or many friends to enjoy it with

howl jenkins pendragon: dad jokes and buying her kid a disgusting amount of sugar and silly little trinkets that he doesn't need. don't leave dad unsupervised next time, sophie.

james witherdale: he will be going to look for dinner, that's about it. maybe buy a few things for victoria, addie and laurent, but he's not sticking around long

jun wu: another one who does not do things like this, but will probably be dragged into it by nianqing so that the dude doesn't have to spend his own money. he is not happy to be there, and he will not pretend otherwise

kore sekkari: she'll hang out and observe, but it's doubtful she'll participate too much except to antagonize ceres and kaya a little bit. this lovey dovey holiday thing is not her favorite thing to dp

korra: would love to be a sexy santa, but is a woman and therefore cannot. the injustice is real. but they will have a lot of curiosity about the booths and games and all that, catch her poking around everything she can

kriya dura: honestly, she's really trying to have a wholesome family holiday with kaya and brinna, but we’ll see how that goes with her daddy issues going strong. please help her sort through gift ideas because she is so bad at it

lan wangji: he's very neutral on the holidays, but people who are close to him care about them quite a lot, so he'll get some gifts and try to enjoy himself as much as he can

liu mingyan: she's running a booth selling self written horny holiday books. if anyone asks, she is volunteering for some extra cash, and never met the author. but she will absolutely also wander around trying some new food and games

lucifer morningstar: he's seen every christmas since the dawn of time, so he’s kinda bored. but charlie is hype so he'll go all out in support of his daughter's enthusiasm. please help him get something for his kid i beg of you

lute: hates the holidays and has no one she'd want to celebrate with anyways. she will be ignoring that it's even happening

lyra ayala: lyra can one hundred percent be found performing christmas carols and taking requests near the edge of the market. she's not officially part of it, but close enough that she can get a good crowd

lysandra ennar: she will be spoiling their new niece rotten for her first christmas. lys loves shopping and any kind of celebration, and is very excited to explore everything they possibly can

manon blackbeak: nope. not a chance is she celebrating some silly mortal holiday about a big red man with reindeer. she'll go to some kind of dinner or party if her group throws any, but she's not going out of her way

melinoë: she's definitely curious about mortal holidays, and excited to experience anything new on the surface, but she's also absolutely lost. please offer her some assistance the girl is stupid

mj jones: she’s somewhat neutral on it, but she’ll go if she’s dragged tbh. it’s one of those things she’s sure peter would enjoy and knowing he’s not really here right now and they were fighting before it is a bummer

mo ran: he's kind of excited to try more new recipes that he can attempt himself for the restaurant or for chu wanning. otherwise, he's browsing for gifts vaguely

mobei-jun: another one here as a wallet for his weird little boyfriend. but also he fucking loves the winter, and will take any celebration that isn't taking place while it's hot as fuck

monkey d. luffy: newly aware, luffy is having a great fucking time. the man loves any kind of celebration, but especially one he can forcefully drag his little found family into participating in with him

nangong jingnu: she genuinely loves any kind of outdoor festival, and will be trying whatever is available, as well as chatting with any strangers who seem amicable

nie mingjue: honestly is just here to make sure kirei doesn't get herself in any real trouble, what else is he going to do?

nyssa solo: she has no idea what’s going on but is probably involved for the sake of her cover with her family. she's not having fun. not at all. don't say stupid shit

patroclus: probably was dragged by his friends, but doesn’t hate it nearly as much as he pretends to.

qi rong: this man only has any holiday decor because his son wants it around, he will probably make fun of the adults genuinely really enjoying it if he goes at all

renesmee cullen: she's probably having more drinks than she should, but will be having fun about it. will absolutely drag strangers into a snowball fight. it's not powers if you're just naturally faster and stronger, right?

rhiannon matthias: she doesn’t really care about the holidays, but is going hard as hell to keep violet distracted from her bullshit. catch her in a santa hat singing christmas carols

ryden samos: he is kinda lost about all this, because he’s never really celebrated anything like this, but he can enjoy the vibes of it anyways. please explain to him any of this he's so lost

sasha james: it was not her first choice to go to this, she’s definitely unsure about anything put on by this city, but it’s a distraction from The Horrors living at her job

shadowheart: this holiday is not shar approved, so she will be avoiding it like the plague. catch her recruiting people to her cult devoted to the lady of loss and sorrows

sheev palpatine: the vp has no reason to be there, and it's not like his brother would drag him, considering han doesn't care either, so he's not going

shen qingqiu: he has to actually buy things for his friends instead of just giving them cash like he did as shen yuan, please help him the man is terrible at gift giving

shi wudu: he truly doesn't care, but he'll go for qingxuan's sake. doing things that seem stupid to him is part of his attempts at trying to be a decent sibling

thanatos: they don't put a lot of effort into mortal holidays, but they can't help but be charmed by the ones that are so centered on showing your loved ones they're loved. they're also incredibly curious, and have to check it out a little bit

wen qing: surprise, festivals are fun when your creep uncle isn't overseeing them and watching your every move. she's honestly really enjoying this one, and they'll be doing a ton of shopping for friends and family

xaden riorson: he promised his foster dad he'd come home for christmas, so he has to get gifts. he's not thrilled about it, but he's gonna make it work

xiao lanhua: she loves this, and will be dragging strangers into hanging out with them as much as possible in between working sophie's stall. will probably drink a little too much

xiao qing: will try to rob people, but is also working a few stands for legitimate money so dad doesn't give them the disappointed voice

ziva desilijic tiure: not going, be so for real. she's celebrating with an expensive dinner and a glass of wine

[vinnymauro]

6, 7, 23 for the ask game !!!!! 🤍🤍🤍

hi milo!! thank you<3

6. which ship fans are the most annoying?

i don't know how to say it other than generalizing but like almost every single popular fanon m/m ship. like going back to teen wolf days. i hated stiles bc of sterek fans. i was a scott fan and i hated his best friend. i cannot stand a certain type of buddie fans(and not even coming from a bucktommy pov, like i just want buck with a man) y'all have ruined the fandom for me to the point i have 911 filtered and i actively watch the show. for a very long time i could not get into a single m/m ship in a show bc i was like well their fans are gonna be annoying so why bother. i try not to fall into that and just follow my guidelines for ships bc i know what i like. but god damn it some people are so fucking annoying i can't ignore it and i'm instantly turned off. also any sort of ship fan that's willing to go into someone's ask box and harass them over a fictional relationship. please get a job.

7. what character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how how the fandom acts about them?

stiles stilinski. fuck that guy. listen. i was a scott mccall stan, i loved that fucking werewolf so much. my favorite tumblr url was scootmccool ok. but when it comes to his best friend? hatred. i didn't even finish the show and i think part of it might have been the fact that stiles had a storyline that had him lying to scott and i'm like this is so fucking stupid. and everyone was acting like stiles was a poor victim in all of this bc scott is too good and too pure and would shun the poor stiles. like. girl. scott is his best friend why would he shun his best friend y'all are stupid. and i'm so sorry if anyone is a stiles fan that follows me now, i promise i rarely talked shit about him or even tagged it. i just kept it between me and my friends. and like i get it, dylan is a great actor and he's attractive i guess whatever. i just cannot stand stiles. and i think it was attributed to how the fans acted. how they basically made it the stiles show. like people would end up talking about stiles and whatever sterek crumb they thought they saw and i was like ??? ok but scott is right there. scott is the main character. anyway idk if this is making any sense bc i haven't watched teen wolf since 2015 or 2016 and i don't remember much outside of my emotions. also realizing this i did not curate my dash like i would have now. and at the time i was also indie rping scott and would have annoying people playing stiles. so it could be different now if i was an open minded person and could stomach a rewatch to finish of teen wolf but i know i'd get to allison's death and never want to touch it again.

23. ship you've unwillingly come around to

hm. so i could kind of put buffy and angel in this category. but i'm very much of the mind where none of these men are worth buffy and she is better than them. bc none of them will ever understand that she is the slayer. but i don't hate angel and buffy as much as i did when i first watched it. more recently you can put glinda/elphaba in there bc the new film made me go ok. i get it now. i guess i need visuals to understand things 😭

make me choose violence

[the-clock-of-the-time-dragon]

Okay so hear me out... [Massive spoilers and speculation on Wicked films ahead]

It's apparent that Wicked Part 2 is going to have new, expanded, and altered scenes — but by far the most tantalizing is implied by the first scene of the first film.

We see a cloaked figure on horseback fleeing from Kiamo Ko after the Melting, and then we see Dorothy, Tin Man, Cowardly Lion, and the Scarecrow on the Yellow Brick Road back to the Emerald City. This is in keeping with the 1939 Wizard of Oz, which implies something hugely important about the plot of Wicked Part 2: the musical's original ending has been changed.

In the original stage version, Fiyero comes back to Kiamo Ko after getting his diploma brain from the Wizard and all that, and Elphaba comes out from her little trapdoor, and then they leave Oz together without telling anyone. It's unclear (on purpose, obviously), but it seems very apparent that the cloaked rider we see at the start of the 2024 film is Elphaba. This leaves us with a few possibilities for how the plot will unfold in Part 2.

1.) Elphaba simply leaves alone, telling nobody — not even Fiyero — that she's alive. I am okay with this, since honestly the way that the finale of the musical was written has always felt kinda clunky and borderline plot-holey to me.

2.) They still end up having the original ending happen, just switched around the order of some of the events. Maybe Elphaba escapes first but then finds Fiyero alone elsewhere somehow, and in the end still leaves Oz with him. I'd accept it — it is probably the most likely version they might go with — but with all the changes being made, I would be a little disappointed if it ends up this way ngl, when they have the chance to make a new ending that far surpasses the original.

3.) Elphaba leaves alone BUT makes Glinda and/or Fiyero aware of her survival somehow. This is actually a surprisingly plausible option I think, since Elphaba in the original show immediately wanted to tell Glinda she was alive (with Fiyero talking her out of it — which may not be a thing that happens anymore); and just IMAGINE how poignant heartrending it would be if Glinda were to find the old Emerald City guide with the note she wrote her in it, but with "I hope you get what your heart desires" in it in Elphie's handwriting, or something like that. Maybe even with Glinda singing her final "Good News!" after seeing it — leaving the door open that Glinda might have a chance to find her Elphie someday. Or hell, if they wanted to they could use the closing lines of the book in some form: the classic "did she ever come out?" and "not yet" (which of course itself has some delightfully sapphic undertones)

4.) Mostly wishful thinking on the part of my very very sapphic ass, but... can you fucking IMAGINE if they dared to rewrite an ending where Elphaba finds Glinda and asks her one more time "come with me..."?? And then they LEAVE OZ TOGETHER??? Not as plausible an answer as the others, I know — but can't a girl dream? I mean they set it up so well, if nothing else it's THERE for them to use if they decided to have the courage. In the first movie Elphaba says "come with me" twice to Glinda: first when she asks Glinda to come with her to the Emerald City (her 𝓱𝓮𝓪𝓻𝓽’𝓼 𝓭𝓮𝓼𝓲𝓻𝓮), and lastly when she asks Glinda to come with her on her broomstick and escape (which of course Glinda refuses). If they decided to give Glinda a second chance to say yes and go with her, and this time she takes it... I mean, it would just be a really solid payoff to the material already established and obviously would also short-circuit all our gay little hearts. And the fact it's even conceivable they COULD do that is really exciting in and of itself. It isn't 2003 anymore, the stars are very on board for queerness — the only thing really reining in my hopes is the fact a major Hollywood family film blockbuster (even in 2024, sadly) usually can't bite the bullet and go full gay: BUT, who said it would have to be explicitly gay if Elphaba and Glinda leave together? Who's to say we couldn't get them And They Were Very Good Friends-ing away into the sunset together? No Homo as the plausible deniability needed to pull off the best sapphic victory in movie history? Oops, there go my hopes again, trying to defy gravity, lol

[irresistiibles]

hello waddup here is a plotting/starter call for the mini event! below the cut is just some brief descriptions of what my characters will be up to. toss this a like if you want to plot but also feel free to just reply and i will throw some starters your way once it starts. please specify who you want the starter from/for! some characters have more info than others because they just made more sense for the event, so if you want a general starter for anyone let me know. i’ll also be keeping most of my other threads of course, though i’m slowly dropping older stuff, so if you want a new thread for something fresh just let me know!

achilles (1/?) - josh washington

i for sure know he’s gonna wind up kicked out of the snowball fights. he’s not using any powers he’s sure of it but then why the fuck is his aim absolutely perfect??? he’s also a menace unafraid to just cram snow into someone’s face so he should not be there. after that he’ll mope and complain but just kind of check everything out. definitely not a big fan of the cold.

amber (1/?) -  imogen moreno

will be taking part in the snowman building competition and also just making snowmen in general. beyond that probably hanging out at the hot chocolate stand and generally having a good time

asami sato (0/?)

mostly exploring the vendors and buying a few too many gifts. gets weird rich people vibes during the holidays and may attempt to give things to strangers. not taking part in the snowball fights but will like watching.

chihiro ogino (1/?) - rei hino

mostly sticking to the food and drink vendors and giving in to her sweet tooth. will also want to watch some of the music performances. could attempt some ice skating or art but isn’t really interested in engaging in anything competitive. will try pouring espresso into hot chocolate.

ciel phantomhive  (1/?) - lizzie midford

his toy company has a stall again this year but because his memories are still out he’s actually having a semi enjoyable time. 

donna noble (1/?) - the twelfth doctor

not a big fan of the cold but she doesn’t want to be missing out. will be staying near the hot drinks and potentially doing some gift shopping for herself. will be getting several pictures with sexy santa

edward elric  (1/?) - winry rockbell

will get goaded into competitive snowball so fast it’s embarrassing. is having an automail arm that’s going to be stronger than any organic arm cheating? maybe so but what are they gonna do? tell him to take his arm off? i think not. my man is going to win.

entrapta  (0/?)

goes to build a wreath and somehow makes something completely different. or builds a snowman and tries to stick electronic parts in it to bring it to life. can she put launchers on the sleds? entrapta’s not sure but they definitely want to try. chaotic but having fun.

esther mckinnon (0/?)

she is a sucker for stuff like this and will be having a lot of fun. trying all the creative stands and hanging around the food vendors. really willing to try anything that isn’t competitive. 

glinda upland  (0/?)  

doing some shopping mostly and taking pictures (there will be a sexy santa picture for sure).  may try building a wreath but who knows if it’ll be any good.

jin ling  (1/?) - orpheus

does not know how to social and will bring the dog as a buffer and though he will not get a picture with santa he may get her to lmao. can also compensate for social struggles by just buying people things. dogs and money are the only way he knows how to make friends. will probably do some snowball fights

katya goncharova (0/?)

this all feels a little chaotic and maybe childish for her but katya will check it out regardless. she’s probably not well dressed for the cold but oh well. will do some shopping.

lily evans (2/?) - rubeus hagrid, marlene mckinnon

may offer to help referee a snowball match and will be trying to get holiday shopping done.

mianmian (0/?)

she’ll give ice skating a shot even though she has no idea how to do it. someone is more than welcome to try and help her. beyond that she’s keeping it chill.

madoka kaname (1/?) - homura akemi

having a lot of fun! she’s not as into the super active things but will be hitting up the food and craft stalls without hesitation. will also definitely hit up ice skating.

mob (2/?) -  lucrecia montesinos hendrich, rosemary winters

he’s not going to work at a stall but is willing to lend out his powers to help with set up, cleaning, whatever you need if you need a psychic to lift heavy things he is your guy. beyond that he wants to enjoy the other stalls, maybe try a craft or ice skating, but he’s an awkward guy and will need some help getting dragged into things.

nie huaisang  (1/?) - dani powell

someone out painting. ornaments are not his usual medium but he’s happy to trying. he likes the aesthetic of everything but will be complaining about the cold and going for several warm drinks.

rita skeeter (1/?) - sha hualing

giving unwanted commentary on the snowball and snowmen competitions. maybe even taking bets. getting pictures with sexy santa. judging people’s gift choices. being a general menace.

shang qinghua (0/?)

here for the food and drinks but could easily be bullied into face planting on the ice skating. he’s for sure whining about the cold despite the fact it’s incredibly manageable compared to what he’s used to.

shi qingxuan (1/?) - abby anderson

has a flask to pour into hot drinks because this whole thing is cute and fun but how are you supposed to stay warm in the winter without a little alcohol? come on people get it together. very social and will drag strangers into doing stuff with them because qingxuan hates doing things alone and makes friends by force

toph beifong  (2/?)  - aang, katara

struggling cause it’s cold enough that she has to wear shoes most of the time so they can’t use their earthbending to navigate super well but will take them off to be very competitive in the snowball fights!

victor nikiforov  (1/?) -  langa hasegawa

will mostly be on the ice rink showing off, but also offering to help people who are nervous ice skating. if there’s any alcoholic warm beverages he will be drinking a bit

zagreus  (0/?)  

had a fun time at the event last year and is coming back this year, at least a little more well dressed for the cold this time! will be doing some snowball fights before attempting some of the more chill stuff. man gets competitive fast though so he ay say he’s going to do a lot only to get stuck in matches for a while.

zhongli  (1/?) - childe

may be offering to referee some snowball fights. mostly just exploring vendors. this is an old immortal who just likes seeing societies getting together, so he’s mostly happily sightseeing in it all.

[helly-watermelonsmellinfellon]

ISTG, the enchantress in Beauty and the Beast pisses me off. So she randomly decided to just waltz up to someone's castle and pretend to be something she isn't all so she'd have an excuse to last a curse on some people.

Like, this was an 11 year old with a nasty attitude because he has no parental figures and no good examples to emulate. Not only did she curse a literal child, she then curses everyone working in the castle, and makes the end of their curse reliant upon the ending of his curse.

I don't know how anyone can come away thinking she's in the right and just teaching him a lesson. Even as a child I thought it was unfair that she hurt everyone else too all because a kid wasn't perfectly mannered to a creepy, lying ass stranger trying to get inside his house in the dead of winter.

What? She can't be a bad person cuz they drew her as super pretty? She looks like Glinda but in green so she's obviously in the right? The word used was 'spell' instead of 'curse' or 'hex' so it's fine?

She legit pulls a Dumbledore(but on a much worse scale) and gets praised for her dedication to seeing a random child tormented for have a shitty attitude. He was just spoiled and rude. He didn't murder someone, steal something, or torture anybody. He's a fucking kid.

Imagine if, instead of relying upon fear and pain to correct wrong attitudes in children, adults actually stepped up and raised them right?

[lesbiten]

HHEY YOU KNOW THAT SCENE WHERE ELPHABA HAS THE LITTLE TOY BIRD AND SHE SNAPS ITS HEAD OFF

and frex goes. "i knew she was gonna break it" or something to that effect??

yeah uh. i think i just found out where elphaba's belief that she can only ever do/has only ever done harm to anything (read: anyONE) she touches stems from. uoughh. ouughghg. hhhhh

HEY. HEY. HEY. HEY. OH MY GOD. i mean like........its extremely expected that this deep rooted trauma she has comes from her father Being Like That but also. like. god fucking damn dude.

and like........speaking of her whole belief that she harms everything (everyone) she touches. ok i talked about this literal months ago but THIS is specifically why one short day gets me like so so much...like we go from elphaba like flinching every time glinda comes into her personal space and her like. general hesitance to touch people and we end up with elphaba Reaching Out To Hold Glindas Hand Several Times and its like........wowie maybe the trauma is finally starting to subside maybe she can work it out maybe. Maybe. maybe things are starting to get better. hey guess what comes after one short day

[hello-yue-here]

The Great Comet is my favorite musical ever D:::: so great to see anyone talk about it ever haha. But I wanna hear you talk about the sokkla and wicked song! also the zutara one is spot on

great comet is LITERALLY tied for my fav musical (les mis is the other it was the first show i ever saw and it was amazing and enjfoaiend so many feelings for that musical)

i am SO GLAD you asked ab sokkla and wicked because that along with the yuekka great comet no one else song is what inspired me to make that list

so without further ado: sokkla: as long as your mine

one of the big things with sokkla as a ship is that most of the fics i read and most of the art i see if that many sokkla fans and artists rlly play into the whole forbidden romance theme; moreso than any other fm swt pairing in the series (ie zutara zukka azutara u get the gist)

and this song is ALL ABOUT THE FORBIDDEN ROMANCE

you see: fiyero in wicked is a carefree guy who plays up his charm and plays dumb a lot when in actuality i think hes a very smart character. i know sokka doesnt pretend to act dumb and thats a difference between him n fiyero: but the fact that theyre both pretty smart strategic characters is why i associate them with eachother

azula as elphaba?? HANDS DOWN AMAZING. elphaba is an outsider. she isnt liked by many people. she is very thoughtful and precise with her actions and has shown she can be cunning and manipulative when she needs to be. sound familiar? consider a post-redemption arc azula for this role. just just think of it.

now onto the lyrics:

"i need help believing your with me tonight / my wildest dreamings could not foresee / lying here beside you / with you wanting me"

elphaba in this moment cant rlly believe that the fact that she is with fiyero is reality. azula has been seen in the finale of atla to struggle in terms of reality and people wanting her (ie her mother saying she loves her and azula not believing it because it isnt real) i know this is a bit of a stretch because elphaba isnt hallucinating and has never been known to do so, but azula and elphaba definitely both have issues with people genuinely loving them and wanting them.

"maybe im brainless / maybe im wise"

LJGFJHGF my favorite hc that i have for sokkla is that while they are the two smartest characters in all of atla: they become dumb when it comes to each other. thats personally a hc i have for this ship and this line just supports that wholeheartedly. Sokka becomes a lovesick idiot when it comes to azula and he knows this. so is he dumb for acting like an idiot around her? or is he smart for loving her anyways. (both. its both.) also just the symbolism and implications of sokka saying this line when we all know hes a genius but in the show hes seen as insecure in his abilities and strengths just.... wow. this line is so sokka it makes me lakshfgwky

"say there's no future for us as a pair" "just for this moment / as long as your mine"

this is less to do with the ship itself but moreso with the fandom ab the ship. lots of people dont like this ship (and thats fine! not every ship is for everyone) and they think that it wouldnt work out and while i personally disagree i think this line is good for pointing that out. because ppl think it would never work and that its doomed and maybe since sokka and azula are both geniuses they recognize that their relationship may look that way to other people too. they arent dumb. theyd know how people would look at them as a couple and theyd realize that hey maybe this wont work, but i dont care because right now im with you anyways: sokkla core

and finally, the most iconic line in this entire show, literally where the title comes from

"for the first time, im feeling, wicked"

im sorry but azula would def say something like this. ugh i have so many emotions about this show and this ship and i love this musical and i rlly love this ship. wicked sokkla au anyone? goddammit im adding it to my list of fic ideas rn. sokkla wicked au is something i desperately need right now. zuko nessarose? suki glinda? morally grey aang wizard?? somehow katara fits into this?? idk i became inspired by writing this post to actually think about a sokkla wicked au. ill get back to this one day. maybe. idk. yeah.

ALSO YES FIRST DATE/LAST NIGHT IS SO ZUTARA

like the vibes???

bad first impressions, he made her cry because he was an ass, she gave him a second chance, extremelt awkward first date??? TELL ME that isnt how a zutara relationship would start. tell me. i dare you. also this fucking song is just so cute and well written and beautiful and yeah. first date/last night is fucking zutara to a T

thank you for indulging my theatre kid atla rambles :)))

ask me about why i think these songs go with these ships :)