POV: You're someone who previously claimed they “don't like musicals,” only to see Wicked and proceed to make it your entire personality. And unlike all your friends who saw the show on Broadway without you (retroactively super mad about that, by the way), you have no idea how this story ends. Specifically: Does Elphaba actually melt like the Wicked Witch of the West in The Wizard of Oz?
If you simply refuse to wait for Wicked: For Good to find out the answer to this question, the time has come for spoilers. We have a full run-down of what to expect from the second film below, but if you just want the Elphaba details...
NOPE, Elphaba Doesn’t Die
Wicked opens with a shot of Elphaba's iconic black hat in a puddle of water, which certainly doesn't bode well. But please be advised that nothing is as it seems. Elphaba does! not! melt! But what happens instead is slightly convoluted—starting with the fact that Fiyero turns into The Scarecrow.
Correct, Jonathan Bailey will soon be a humanoid hay bale, which means you're less than a year away from being attracted to scarecrows. Start talking to your therapist now.
^ me when a hot Scarecrow walks through the room.
Anyway, Fiyero's transformation happens when Elphaba attempts to cast a protection spell to save him when he's captured by the Wizard's guards. But alas, it goes HAY-wire (bahahahahah).
Also just a side note to say: Wow @ Fireyro not informing Dorothy, on their endless walk to Oz, that he went to college with and is low-key dating the Wicked Witch of the West.
Elphaba Fakes Death-by-Puddle
The campaign against Elphaba in Oz is so widespread that she decides there's simply nothing left to do but fake her death—telling Glinda not to track her down, that she's limited (quick break to 😭), and that Glinda should take her magic book, the Grimmerie, and learn to use it for good.
At this point, rumors that water will melt/kill Elphaba are all over Oz, so she stages her death when Dorothy throws a bucket on her—leaving behind her mother's green bottle. Oh, and the Wizard of Oz eventually recognizes the bottle as his, because yep, he's secretly her father.
But that's a whole separate thing, and we're sticking with Elphaba for the moment, who is very much not melted and simply hiding.
So...What Does This Have to Do With Fiyero?
Good question. After Elphaba fake-melts, Fiyero meets up with her and they leave Oz together, ultimately deciding not to tell anyone (including Glinda) that they're both still alive. So, ultimately pretty bittersweet. THE END!
