When Dorothy and Lucas discover that the Wizard is out to kill her, they decide to take a big risk to find Dorothy a way back to Kansas in “Mistress-New-Mistress.” The Wizard, back in Emerald City, seeks out his advisors when he sees that his control is slipping as the witches exhibit more power. Meanwhile, Tip and Jack search for a cure for Tip’s predicament.
‘Emerald City’ knows how to pace a show
Within the first 10 minutes of the show, we get hints that Jack is starting to like the new Tip, we see three women commit suicide in front of the Wizard, and Dorothy finds out the Wizard wants her dead.
If you’re looking for a slow-moving drama, “Emerald City” isn’t it. It aims to get through story points quickly, and it’s doing it amazingly.
Dorothy discovers the Wizard isn’t her ticket home
Unlike in the Judy Garland version where Dorothy makes it all the way to the Emerald City before she finds out the Wizard is a fraud, Dorothy discovers he’s not her best hope for getting back to Kansas a little earlier than that. She discovers it on the road as his guards discuss killing her. This might seem like it’s putting things in motion a little too soon, but it makes Dorothy’s journey all the more interesting.
While we’re all busy looking for corresponding points to the story we already know, this forces Dorothy’s journey to find her way home to be completely different than what we expect.
Instead of her walking around in a pair of ruby slippers that everyone wants, for example, she finds herself with East’s gauntlets appearing when she needs them -- and giving her access to her fortress when she wants to see if the weather can take her home.
'Mistress-New-Mistress'
The title of the new episode comes from the title bestowed on Dorothy by East’s guard.
The man believing Dorothy is the new Mistress of the Eastern Wood leads to her deciding to attempt to use East’s magic to use a cyclone to get herself back home. As Lucas tells her, it’s not exactly brave, but reckless.
We see just how reckless it is when Dorothy can use East’s gauntlets, but she can’t control anything. Instead, she’s whisked away to a place where the belongings on interlopers are found.
Her mother has definitely been to Oz, and knew the Wizard, but if her mother was an “interloper,” can Dorothy not be a witch?
Anna is one smart advisor
We don’t know everything about the Wizard just yet, but his newest advisor is pretty smart. She’s the only one who sees through what the Wizard says and seems to have a handle on just about everyone else as well. Interestingly, though she is one of Glinda’s girls, her mother worked in West’s brothel. It does make you wonder if Anna knows more about both sides of magic than she’s let on so far.
Tip and Jack travel to the City of Ev
With Tip having a brand new body, Jack can’t seem to stop watching his old friend with new eyes. Tip is desperate to go back to normal, but he discovers, when trying to get new medicine, that he was actually born a girl.
Jack ends up paying the price during an argument with Tip.
This storyline is treading an interesting line for the show. Tip just wants to be the boy he’s always believed himself to be, but he’s being told he now has to live as the girl he was born to be. It’s hard not to see this as an analogy to being transgendered instead of a possible nod to Princess Ozma (who was cursed as a boy) in L. Frank Baum’s series of novels. I’m very curious to see where Tip’s storyline goes and if there’s any way he gets his happy ending in this new incarnation of Oz.
The verdict
The more we learn about the characters on this show, the more questions we have!
4 out of 5 stars.
What’s next
In next week’s “Science and Magic,” Dorothy and Lucas will meet someone new, while Tip and Jack both find themselves with possible new directions in life.
