Warning: SPOILERS ahead for Elphie: A Wicked Childhood by Gregory Maguire.Gregory Maguire’s new Wicked prequel novel, Elphie: A Wicked Childhood, sheds further light on Elphaba’s upbringing, 30 years after the original book — but it also changes how her magic works. Although Maguire’s 1995 novel gave life to this nuanced version of The Wizard of Oz‘s Wicked Witch, many know her from the musical and movie adaptations of his work. And the musical and movie make changes to Maguire’s Wicked book, especially when it comes to Elphaba’s powers and her acceptance into Shiz University.
The new Wicked prequel book attempts to bridge the gap between the source material and its adaptations, which ultimately leads to it contradicting both. When it comes to Elphaba’s abilities, the 2025 story aligns her childhood experiences with the way her magic is portrayed in the musical and movie. It isn’t necessarily inconsistent with the rest of Maguire’s series, but it does suggest her powers are more innate than the other books let on.
The Wicked Musical & Movie Changed Elphaba’s Magic Powers From The Book
They Give Her A More Innate Connection To Magic
In Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, Maguire doesn’t depict Elphaba as having an innate, powerful connection to magic within her. She’s able to use magic because she has one parent from Earth and one parent from Oz, and because of the Grimmerie. However, her acceptance to Shiz University is much less dramatic. In the novel, Elphaba gets into the insтιтution because she’s intelligent and pᴀsses the necessary tests to study science.
Elphie: A Wicked Childhood doesn’t contradict this — Elphaba takes the test at the end of the prequel, and Unger pushes her to embrace her cleverness — but it adds in details that support the musical’s and movie’s version of her magic. In the Wicked adaptations, Elphaba primarily gets into Shiz University because she exhibits powerful abilities she’s unable to control. She’s not even supposed to become a student, but she’s enrolled when people see what she’s capable of. This suggests a far more natural ability, and Elphie: A Wicked Childhood adds lore to support that.
Wicked’s New Book Tries To Align Elphie’s Magic More With The Musical & Movie
“The Hex” Suggests Elphaba Is Capable Of Doing Magic Without Knowing How
“The Hex,” the second part of Elphie: A Wicked Childhood, gives Elphaba’s magic more of a backstory. And in doing so, it suggests that she’s capable of accessing her powers naturally, without really knowing how — just like in the adaptations. The members of Frexspar’s camp discuss the concept of hexing, which leads a much younger Elphaba to give it a try. She’s really trying to get one over on Nessarose, telling her sister that she’s capable of transforming a stone into a plum. She intends to replace the stone when Nessarose is sleeping, but she doesn’t need to.
It’s clear that Elphaba makes this magic happen, though she doesn’t quite understand how.
Despite Elphaba falling asleep herself — and thus, never manually replacing the stone — both sisters wake to a sweet plum the following morning. It’s clear that Elphaba makes this magic happen, though she doesn’t quite understand how. And this depiction of her magic is more in line with the Wicked musical, suggesting intention and emotion give her access to a power deep within her. It’s a divergence from the original book, which mainly sees her using the Grimmerie to make things happen. However, it’s a positive change, and Elphie manages to combine both versions.
It’s Better For Elphaba’s Magical Powers To Be More Innate
It Fits With The Themes Of Her Journey
Although Elphaba’s magic being innate is a change from the original Wicked novel, it’s actually a better direction for her character — and it’s nice to see the prequel is embracing this element of the adaptations. With Elphaba’s journey in the book, musical, and movie focusing on self-discovery and embracing her potential, it makes sense for her to have a more tangible and untapped power within herself. It fits with the themes of her journey, and it just generally makes the magic of the story that much more interesting.
Obviously, it also makes for a flashier narrative when bringing Wicked to the stage or screen, even if it doesn’t quite match Maguire’s source material. But thanks to Elphie: A Wicked Childhood, both versions of Elphaba’s magic can technically coexist. There are changes that are more difficult to square from one iteration of the story to another. Giving Elphaba minor but innate magic ahead of time could strengthen her story in the original books, though, further explaining why she’s capable of using the Grimmerie.
Wicked
- Created by
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Gregory Maguire, Stephen Schwartz, Winnie Holzman
- Upcoming Films
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Wicked, Wicked: For Good
- Cast
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Idina Menzel, Kristin Chenoweth, Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey, Jeff Goldblum, Michelle Yeoh
- Character(s)
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Elphaba, Glinda, Fiyero, The Wizard, Madame Morrible, Nessarose, Boq
Summary
The Wicked franchise is based on the 1995 novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire. It explores the untold story of Elphaba, the misunderstood green-skinned girl who would later become known as the Wicked Witch of the West, and her complicated friendship with Glinda, the Good Witch. The franchise began as a highly successful Broadway musical and has since expanded into global stage productions, a forthcoming two-part film adaptation, and various other media.
