Grab your broomsticks and get ready for a magical journey! Join us as we uncover some of the most enchanting hidden gems and easter eggs in the world of Wicked.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00But when the kids run through the tulip field at the very beginning
00:03to announce the death of the witch, listen.
00:06Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're looking at the most swankified Easter eggs,
00:11references, and other small details hidden behind the emerald curtain.
00:15For those who haven't seen Wicked Part 1, there will be spoilers.
00:19You still do the coin trick, and actually,
00:22I shouldn't really be saying this, but if you look close enough...
00:2410. Familiar Friends Follow the Yellow Brick Road
00:40The film opens with a bird's-eye view of Oz,
00:42complete with a rainbow and the Emerald City in the distance.
00:46During a sweeping shot, Dorothy, Toto, the Scarecrow, Tin Man,
00:50and the Cowardly Lion head down the Yellow Brick Road.
00:53Although they're only briefly spotted from behind,
00:55they can be seen carrying the Wicked Witch's broomstick
00:58after supposedly melting her.
01:00This is the most we see of Dorothy in the film,
01:03but the three friends she makes on her journey all play a larger role,
01:07even if you don't recognize them.
01:09For those who haven't seen the stage version of Wicked,
01:11we won't give away too much.
01:13Look, this is one that I'm not going to say much about,
01:15but I'm going to say look at everyone's silhouettes.
01:17If you're a fan of the show, and you know what's coming,
01:20look at everyone's silhouettes, and I think you're going to have a fun time.
01:23Let's just say that much like the so-called Wicked Witch,
01:25things aren't always what they seem.
01:31She had her secrets.
01:34Number 9.
01:35The Wizard's Past Life
01:37Folks have come to expect that sort of thing,
01:40and you gotta give the people what they want.
01:44The Wizard may have plenty of tricks up his sleeve,
01:46but it's all smoke and mirrors.
01:48When Elphaba and Galinda realize that the Wizard has no real powers,
01:52they escape behind the Emerald Curtain.
01:54The two stumble upon relics from the Wizard's circus days,
01:57including the hot air balloon that brought him to Oz.
02:00Elphaba recognizes the Wizard for what he truly is
02:03upon spotting a poster for his magic act.
02:06You have no real power!
02:08Exactly. That's why I need you.
02:11The poster even features the Wizard's real name.
02:14Well, not his full name,
02:16which was revealed to be Oscar Zoraster,
02:18Fadrig Isaac Norman Henkel Emmanuel Ambroise Diggs in the Oz books.
02:23I give you the Oz of tomorrow.
02:27He was able to fool people into thinking that he could do something magical.
02:34I think people need direction.
02:36Even so, Elphaba sees that everything about the not-so-wonderful Wizard was a lie,
02:41including the name his kingdom was built upon.
02:43The best way to bring folks together is to give them a real good enemy.
02:53Number 8. Poppies
02:55Fiyero, what are you doing?
02:57Well, you coming?
02:59Elphaba and Fiyero grow closer after rescuing a lion cub
03:02who may or may not grow up to have a cowardly complex.
03:06The scene plays out pretty much as it did in the stage version,
03:09with one clever twist.
03:11On stage, Elphaba casts a vague spell to incapacitate the others in the classroom.
03:16That was you who made all that happen.
03:18Here, Elphaba uses a bouquet of poppies that she brought Dr. Diliman
03:22to spread a sleeping spell.
03:24This is a nod to the deadly poppy field from the original Oz book and the 1939 film.
03:30In both, the poppies nearly send Dorothy into an eternal slumber.
03:34Elphaba initially doesn't realize the power within the flowers,
03:37but she'll surely remember this when she encounters Dorothy down the road.
03:41Oh, you can't rest now, we're nearly there!
03:44Number 7. A horse of a different color
03:47What's been amazing for me is falling into something huge and trust the free fall.
03:53The stage musical introduces us to Fiyero as he arrives at Shiz University with his driver.
03:58In the film, Fiyero shows up to Shiz on a horse of a different color.
04:02We mean that literally.
04:04The colorful horse didn't originate from L. Frank Baum's books, but the 1939 movie.
04:09What kind of a horse is that? I've never seen a horse like that before.
04:14No, and never will again, I fancy. There's only one of him in Egypt.
04:18He's the horse of a different color, you've heard tell about.
04:22With Technicolor being a cornerstone of that cinematic classic,
04:25the filmmakers seized every opportunity to saturate the land of Oz,
04:29right down to the horse pulling Dorothy's carriage.
04:32In another change from the stage version, Elphaba is the first person Fiyero meets at Shiz,
04:37just as his horse is a different color,
04:40Fiyero finds that Elphaba isn't like any girl he's ever met.
04:43Not because she's of a different color, but because rather something deeper.
04:48We didn't see you there, you must have blended with the foliage.
04:53Is this how you go through life?
04:54Just running amok and trampling anyone in your path?
04:58No, no, sometimes I'm asleep.
05:02Number six, Lion in the Basket.
05:08Liberating the lion cub from his cage,
05:11Elphaba places him in her bicycle's basket and rides into the forest.
05:15If you're getting deja vu, that's because Elphaba did something similar,
05:19yet completely different, in another life.
05:22You wicked old witch! Uncle Henry, Auntie Em, don't let him take Toby!
05:26Don't let him take him, please! Stop it!
05:29Put him in the basket, Henry.
05:30I'm not putting him in the basket, I'm not putting him in the basket!
05:33I'm not putting him in the basket, I'm not putting him in the basket!
05:36Put him in the basket, Henry.
05:38In 1939's The Wizard of Oz, Elmira Gulch takes Toto from Dorothy,
05:42cycling away with the Cairn Terrier in her basket.
05:45Thankfully, she doesn't notice Toto slipping out and racing back to Dorothy.
05:49Although Dorothy and Toto escape Miss Gulch's clutches,
05:52they meet a greener reflection of their old neighbor in Oz.
05:56I'll get you, my pretty, and your little dog, too!
06:01Elphaba rescuing the lion mirrors Miss Gulch taking Toto.
06:04Of course, where Elphaba gets the lion to safety,
06:07we don't even want to think about what Gulch would have done with the little dog.
06:22Forced to share a dorm room, Elphaba would rather keep the door shut while Galinda wants it open.
06:27Finding a middle ground, Elphaba accidentally shatters the door's glass with her magic,
06:32leaving it open even when it's closed.
06:34I don't know! I've never known!
06:37In a way, this moment comes full circle during the climactic Defying Gravity.
06:41Taking flight, Elphaba bursts through the glass window, mirroring the aforementioned scene.
06:49This time, though, Elphaba purposely breaks the glass,
06:52reflecting how she's gained control of her powers.
06:55In both scenes, Galinda inspires Elphaba's actions, but for different reasons.
06:59When Elphaba broke the glass door, it was because Galinda got on her nerves.
07:03When she breaks the window,
07:05it's because Galinda has given Elphaba the confidence to realize her unlimited potential.
07:17Number 4 Erasing Animal History
07:20This school has been generations of education to the people of Oz,
07:24and animal professors, and Ozian professors all around.
07:27The musical's political commentary is given even more focus in this film,
07:31with additional scenes dedicated to Dr. Dilament and other animals,
07:35who are treated as second-class citizens.
07:42When Elphaba first demonstrates her powers at Shiz,
07:44she accidentally causes several structures to crumble.
07:48One of them collapses to reveal an old mural that was built over.
07:51The artwork features a faculty of animal academics,
08:03suggesting many species were once scholars at Shiz.
08:06That number has since shrunk, and soon enough,
08:09the contributions that animals have made to Oz may be paved over for good,
08:13in the name of quote-unquote progress.
08:15Even if animals can't talk in our world,
08:17there are parallels to how numerous cultures have essentially been erased from the history books.
08:36Number 3 Ruby Slippers
08:48Dorothy Slippers were silver in L. Frank Baum's book.
08:51Wanting to showcase Technicolor's capabilities,
08:53MGM switched the slippers to red in their film adaptation.
09:01Being a product of the 1939 musical,
09:04the Ruby Slippers have rarely popped up in other interpretations of Oz.
09:08Wicked is no exception, with Nessarose's father gifting her a pair of silver shoes.
09:12However, the filmmakers do sneak in a reference to the iconic Ruby Slippers,
09:16giving her new bestie a lesson in popularity.
09:19Galinda teaches Elphaba many things.
09:22This includes what shoes to wear, handing her a pair of red heels.
09:26They may not be exact replicas of the trademarked Ruby Slippers,
09:29but it's clear what the filmmakers are doing while still staying in their legal jurisdictions.
09:34Speaking of shoes, if you take a look at the ones gifted to Nessarose,
09:37take special care to notice the tornado-esque heels, calling to mind her fate.
09:43Number 2 Echoes of For Good
09:46Defying gravity might be the big showstopper,
10:05but For Good is the emotional high point of Elphaba and Galinda's friendship.
10:16Since that tearjerker doesn't occur until Act 2,
10:23we'll have to wait a year to hear Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande perform the duet.
10:27That doesn't mean For Good is completely absent from this film.
10:41There are a handful of musical cues hinting at things to come.
10:45The most important moment comes during the Ozdust ballroom sequence.
10:48Realizing the error of her ways, Galinda joins Elphaba on the dance floor.
10:53It's the beginning of a beautiful friendship,
10:55with both truly seeing each other for the first time.
10:58This is highlighted through an instrumental version of For Good playing in the background.
11:09Before we continue, be sure to subscribe to our channel and ring the bell to get notified
11:14about our latest videos. You have the option to be notified for occasional videos or all of them.
11:20If you're on your phone, make sure you go into your settings and switch on notifications.
11:25Number 1 Cameos in Oz
11:28I got us tickets.
11:29You coming?
11:30Everyone will be there.
11:32Erivo and Grande will surely be immortalized as cinema's Elphaba and Galinda,
11:36but the film doesn't forget their stage predecessors.
11:39The sisterhood between Elphaba and Galinda, Galinda's comedy,
11:44seeing Kristen Chenoweth originate this role, seeing her on Broadway.
11:48I'd never heard anything or seen anything like it.
11:50Keeping it in the family, Galinda's mother is played by Alice Fern,
11:53who starred as Elphaba in The West End.
11:56A few other West End players drop into Oz, including Carey Ellis and Diane Pilkington.
12:01For the Broadway crowd, the most notable cameos are saved for an extended version of One Short Day.
12:09Boy, boy, so I'll be back for good someday.
12:14Make my life and make my way, but for today we'll wonder and enjoy.
12:21Chronicling how The Wizard came to Oz are two whizzamanias superstars,
12:25played by the OG Elphaba and Galinda, Idina Menzel and Kristen Chenoweth.
12:30It's not Wicked without them.
12:32Or its writers, Winnie Holtzman and Stephen Schwartz.
12:35Holtzman gets a special bit of dialogue,
12:38while the composer is given a special cameo as the guard who tells the best friends
12:42that the wizard will see them now.
12:47The wizard will see you now!
12:53Did any other easter eggs stick out like a green thumb to you?
12:56Let us know in the comments.
12:57Well, these things are sent to try us.
13:06Do you agree with our picks?
13:07Check out this other recent clip from Ms. Mojo.
13:10And be sure to subscribe and ring the bell to be notified about our latest videos.