Your Wicked Years Quote of the Day is...

Hi there!

Glinda is technically one of the characters that is the least different, which is to say, still really damn different, but not on the same scale as say, Fiyero or Nessarose.

In the musical, when we meet Galinda, she’s the top of the social ladder, she has everything, she’s incredibly shallow. Then she gains a lot of depth as the musical progresses, especially in positive character development. Her choices are more directly framed against Elphaba’s, but not in a way that there’s a definitive “right” and “wrong” between them, I think.

I think the wider goal of both Glindas falls in line with each other more-or-less on a conceptual level, which is trying to do as much good as possible while staying in the frame work of the political system, in order to keep the amount of power to continue to do such things.

In the book, the Galinda we start with isn’t nearly as well-placed socially, but still manages to secure a place of shallow superiority. Being well-off enough to have too high a sense of her own worth compared to others, but also using that sense to consider herself more worldly and more wise than those higher-placed. She also gains a lot of depth from that point, especially at the point of her name change do the experiences that prompted it.

We do get a reminder of the level of book Glinda’s more shallow, reproachable side, though, with the racist comment she made about Fiyero to Elphaba, and the flippant manner she had about the feelings of oppressed peoples, “Tyrants come and go, belvederes are forever” being one of the most “book Glinda” lines you can quote.

But she also has the advantage of her part in the rest of the series - where it really feels like a lot of her actions later were some personal repentance, like she could somehow make it up to Elphaba after the fact. And that’s like a whole other essay I could write.

As far as a preference, I’m not even sure what metric I would decide that by. Like, which one I like better as a person? Which one I find more interesting/complex? Is there a balance to strike between those?

I’m not sure I really have the answer. I tend to prefer the books on a general level, but I don’t think that’s a comment on Glinda’s character in particular, nor does it mean I prefer the book characters individually in all cases. (I absolutely loathe book Nessarose, but I wouldn’t change her in the context she happens to be in.)

I’m not sure I actually said anything that answers your question. If there’s an aspect you’d like to me to discuss in specific, I’d be more than happy to do so.

“So do my clients,” he replied.

“And this is a stuffed scissor bird. I think they’re extinct now.”

“Well, that one is extinct, anyway.”

The Bear shuffled to his feet and poured himself a cup of tea. “You’re standing on a flying carpet,” he said.

“Is that so?” asked Tip and Rain at once.

Because I probably would have posted quite a lot in this gap if I didn’t feel so obligated to schedule, which was stressing me out more than is logical.

I’m not sticking with him even if he is my maybe-uncle. Forget it. New plan needed. I’ll improvise. “You’re disgusting,” said Liir. “I’m mean, really. That’s disgusting. You’re disgusting. I can’t believe it. It’s - it’s monstrous.”

-

“The Emperor of Oz…no. Shell? Shell Go-to-hell Thropp?”

“The First Spear himself. Can you really not have known? Where have you been? The moon?”

The very paving stones on the quay seemed more slippery. “I don’t get it. Everyone talks about the Emperor’s....his virtue. Shell was the last person to have any virtue. He was a spy, wasn’t he - didn’t someone say? Anyway, he used extract of poppyflower to opiate the young women in Southstairs and fuck them silly. I know that for a fact.”

-

“He’s a charlatan, Shell is.”

-

“Do you know who I am?” asked Liir.

“Ought I?” She didn’t sound worried about it. “Is it Shell?”

“Decidedly not.”

-

“She holds both the future and the past,” said Shell, wringing his hands.

“He’s gone green?” she asked, amused.

No way to know if you are still watching this blog, anon, but you definitely aren’t alone.

(Gelphie lives?)

I mean, Glinda herself would probably be one of those people.

While they didn’t really have the best final interaction, you can see from her post-Wicked appearances how much it pains her - how much she misses Elphaba. And I think it informs a lot of her subsequent actions, like a sense she needs to make something up to Elphaba, to do something important for her, somehow, any how.

I know it’s been ages, and this was sent to be ages ago, but I’m back.

“I hope none of you will care less for me than you did before. I’m just the same Tip, you know; only-only-”

“Only you’re different!” said the Pumpkinhead; and everyone thought it was the wisest speech he had ever made.

-The Marvelous Land of Oz, L. Frank Baum

“Are you going to tell me who you are, and why you’re here?”

“You can call me Tip. I suppose. I’m guessing you haven’t reported me to the governors of this establishment?”

Rain said, “Am I to call you Ozma?”

“You may call me Tip,” she answered.

“I’m told that when you discovered what had happened, you fainted dead away. I thought, when I could think, ‘Well, isn’t that just like a girl.’“

“Not funny, Rain. Under the circumstances. How did you find out?”

Rain neither moved away nor did she come closer, and neither did Ozma Tippetarius. They stood nine feet apart on opposite margins of a sun-bleached carpet. “I suppose-I don’t know-maybe I dreamed it.”

“You’re lying. You don’t lie. Have you changed?”

“Well.” She held up her green fingers. “A little.”

-Out of Oz, Gregory Maguire