Forget Dorothy, Wicked: For Good Unfairly Ruined 2 Other Wizard Of Oz Originals

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The musical Wicked has been a massive hit in the 21st century, offering a fresh take on the story of the Witches of Oz. It reimagines the Wicked Witch of the West as a sympathetic character. The recent two-part movie adaptation, concluding with Wicked: For Good, covered the second half of the play and included extra songs and scenes. While the film effectively conveys the emotional connection and sad ending between Elphaba and Glinda, it continues a confusing trend from the stage show by altering the origins of the Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion from L. Frank Baum’s original The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. By focusing so intently on the unfair treatment of Elphaba by the Wizard and Madame Morrible, Wicked: For Good turns these beloved characters into bitter figures, making their later heroic adventures with Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz seem out of character and illogical.

Both the stage show and movie adaptations emphasize that Elphaba is actually innocent, portraying her as a victim of political manipulation and a deliberate effort to ruin her reputation. This ultimately pushes the Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion to take drastic, even ‘wicked,’ actions.

The Lion’s Origin Story Makes Him Look Ungrateful Rather Than Cowardly

The Cowardly Lion’s reasons for wanting courage don’t make much sense when you consider his history, and actually shift what he’s looking for. In the original story and the 1939 movie, he’s just a lion who’s afraid and hopes the Wizard can help. His past is straightforward and works well with that simple idea.

Okay, so with the upcoming Wicked movie, they’ve got a really interesting challenge: connecting the Cowardly Lion’s backstory directly to Elphaba. Apparently, the film will show Elphaba and Fiyero rescuing a little lion cub! It’s revealed that the Wizard of Oz is doing some seriously messed up experiments on animals – trying to take away their ability to speak and even think. Elphaba accidentally casts a sleeping spell, and while everyone’s out, she and Fiyero free the cub. It’s a really sweet moment, honestly, and it totally explains why the Lion eventually joins Dorothy on her journey – it’s all about Elphaba’s kindness and Fiyero being right there with her, doing the right thing.

In the musical Wicked: For Good, the Cowardly Lion, now grown, recalls a pivotal event from his youth during the “March of the Witch Hunters” scene. He claims Elphaba, “the Wicked Wicked Witch,” took him from his cage as a cub, a statement intended to highlight the fear and hatred many feel toward her. However, this doesn’t make logical sense.

Elphaba and Fiyero didn’t kidnap the Lion; they saved him from a terrible life of imprisonment, abuse, and mind control under the Wizard’s rule. The story now suggests the adult Lion wrongly believes his freedom was a cruel act by Elphaba, turning his rescue into something evil in his eyes. This completely changes his character, making him appear incredibly ungrateful—either suffering from a severe case of Stockholm Syndrome, clinging to loyalty towards those who harmed him, or simply lacking the understanding to recognize a rescue when he received one, unlike many other Animals.

Boq’s Transformation Into the Tin Man Makes Him a Terrifying Villain

The Tin Man also has his backstory dramatically altered in Wicked. He’s revealed to be Boq, a Munchkin who was always in love with Glinda. When Glinda didn’t reciprocate his feelings, she steered him towards Nessarose, Elphaba’s sister, who eventually becomes the Wicked Witch of the East. Years later, Nessarose, desperate to keep Boq with her, tries a complicated spell from Elphaba’s spellbook – a book only Elphaba can understand. The spell goes wrong, causing Boq’s heart to slowly shrink. Elphaba tries to save him, but the only way is to remove his heart completely and encase him in tin to stop the shrinking, ultimately transforming him into the Tin Man.

It’s meant to be sad watching Boq change, because he thinks Elphaba is the reason for everything that happens to him. But honestly, I think the real damage happens after he’s transformed. When we see him again, leading the witch hunt, he’s terrifying. He’s completely driven by hatred for Elphaba, and he doesn’t just join the hunt, he actively whips everyone else into a furious rage, blaming her for ruining his life. There’s this one line that really stuck with me – he actually says he’s glad he doesn’t have a heart, because it means he can kill her without feeling anything. It’s just… chilling to see how far he falls.

His intense anger seems like an overreaction to what really happened. Boq spent years with Nessarose, even after she started requiring Munchkins to get her permission to leave Munchkinland, and even after she tried to use magic to keep him with her. He allowed her obsession with him to continue, possibly because he was too polite or afraid to stop her, which ultimately gave her more control and led her to believe he was happy staying with her.

He should also realize that Elphaba saved his life when Nessarose, fueled by jealousy and anger over his wanting to leave, tried to kill him by removing his heart. He shouldn’t have believed Nessarose’s obvious lies. His intense anger towards Elphaba doesn’t justify his role in the events that turned him into the Tin Man, nor does it excuse Nessarose’s years of cruelty or the fact that Elphaba rescued him. The story transforms Boq from a shy, infatuated boy into a vengeful creature obsessed with killing the very person who saved him, all to emphasize the unfairness of Elphaba’s destiny. This portrayal makes the Tin Man seem completely without reason or empathy, meaning his eventual search for a heart, while deserved, is motivated by deeply flawed and troubling reasons.

The musical Wicked brilliantly reimagines Elphaba as a complex and compelling character. However, this new take on the story leading up to and during The Wizard of Oz comes at a cost: it diminishes the charming and good-hearted nature of beloved characters. To strengthen Elphaba’s story, the Cowardly Lion is portrayed as ungrateful and the Tin Man as a ruthless leader, which feels unnecessary and unfair. By altering the personalities and motivations of these characters, Wicked: For Good weakens the overall beauty and message of Oz, demonstrating that even stories about fairness can leave some characters shortchanged.

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2025-12-04 04:41