Episode 39. Popular to Popped Bubble: Glinda, Elphaba & the Trouble With Being “Good”
Let’s be honest: Glinda’s bubble was cute until it wasn’t. And “good” was working for her… until it really, really wasn’t.
In this episode, I break down Wicked: For Good the same way Glinda breaks down emotionally in Act II: publicly, dramatically, and with a surprising amount of self-awareness. We talk about why Elphaba shows up morally certain while Glinda shows up morally… adjacent. We also unpack how “Wonderful” is basically the Wizard’s propaganda TED Talk, why mirrors are everywhere in this movie, and how “Girl in the Bubble” reframes Glinda’s entire character through complicity and awakening.
I also get into Elphaba’s new song “There’s No Place Like Home,” how it quietly echoes The Wiz and the Black experience of Oz, and why that matters for her story as the ultimate outsider.
If you’ve ever performed “goodness,” got the dream job/partner/life, and then thought, “Oh. This still didn’t fix me,” congratulations—you’re Glinda. And this episode is for you.
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