Previously, in “Wicked”

Aspiring witches, green-skinned outcast Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) and pink-and-popular Glinda (Ariana Grande), started off as enemies at school, but then became friends. They decided to go their separate ways after discovering a plan by the nefarious Wizard (Jeff Goldblum) to blame and punish animals for problems in the Land of Oz. The Wizard and henchwoman Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh) tried to have Elphaba captured and silenced because she learned that The Wizard had no real magical power. Fortunately, Elphaba did have magical powers and escaped the Emerald City on a broomstick, though The Wizard and Morrible quickly spread rumors throughout Oz that she was a Wicked Witch.

Image

When we rejoin “Wicked,” Elphaba is still on the run, helping out animals when she can and trying to think of a way to expose The Wizard as a fraud. Her disabled sister Nessarose (Marissa Bode) is now governor of Munchkinland, with reluctant boyfriend Boq (Ethan Slater) as her favorite servant. Love interest Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey, recently named PEOPLE’s Sexiest Man Alive) is captain of The Wizard’s guards, tasked with hunting down Elphaba, but secretly determined to assist his old flame. As for Glinda, she’s been made a “Good Witch” by The Wizard and Morrible, a sort of magical superhero to balance out the Wickedness of Elphaba, at least in the public’s eyes. She isn’t exactly Wicked herself, but she has been seduced into complicity by the perks and popularity that come with the position. She even unwittingly gives Morrible the idea to do the most Wicked deed of all.

If last year’s “Wicked” served as a sort of prequel to “The Wizard of Oz,” then “Wicked: For Good” serves as a sort of parallel piece. It’s not an even split – there’s plenty of prequel-y stuff here too, but a never-fully-seen Dorothy shows up at about the halfway mark, and we see what was happening offscreen while that literary and cinematic classic unfolded. It all leads up to a devastating splash from a bucket of water that ties into the Munchkinland celebration from the beginning of the first movie.

Frankly, all the “running parallel to ‘The Wizard of Oz’” stuff is a huge detriment to both the stage and screen versions of “Wicked.” Characters’ attitudes, motivations, and loyalties turn on a dime just to accommodate the way those characters behaved in the more familiar story. Then there’s the huge plot hole of characters interacting in these movies despite ostensibly meeting one another for the first time during Dorothy’s walk down the Yellow Brick Road (a certain brainless wonder should have received more recognition than he was ever given). The whole practice makes the story a mess, though the movie is only following the stage musical’s lead, while admirably tightening up a detail or two.

Another area where the new film tries to fix a deficiency with the stage show is with its musical numbers. The stage version is so front-loaded with memorable songs that disappointingly little is saved for the second half. The film knows that audiences won’t stand for such a dull second installment, so it has added two new songs: Elphaba’s attempt to rally her animal friends with the familiar adage that “There’s No Place Like Home,” and Glinda taking a long hard look in the mirror (or rather, somewhat-reflective sphere) in “The Girl in the Bubble.” They’re admirable efforts, but neither is as memorable as the stage show’s “No Good Deed” or the titular “For Good,” themselves paling in comparison to the best songs from the first movie.

“Wicked: For Good” is a relative step down from “Wicked,” but it justifies its existence better than fans feared it would when it was first announced that the adaptation would be split into two movies. And it’s still a grand, ambitious, passionately-performed spectacle. I can say that the underwhelming second half of the stage musical has been changed for the better, and because it’s been shown some much-needed love, it has been changed “For Good.”

Grade: B-

“Wicked: For Good” is rated PG for action/violence, some suggestive material and thematic material. Its running time is 137 minutes.

Contact Bob Garver at rrg251@nyu.edu.