Warning: The following article contains spoilers for Wicked, the film and the Broadway playThe stage musical Wicked reveals the past of The Wicked Witch of the West, Elphaba, and in doing so, it connects some of its key characters to the characters of the beloved book and eventual film The Wizard of Oz. One such character is the Scarecrow, who is revealed to be Fiyero in the Broadway musical's second act.

While the film adaptation, Wicked Part 1, only covers the first act of the Tony-award winning production, Wicked subtly sets up Part 2's big Fiyero twist in the 2024 film. Along with plenty of references to how he is mindless, like the Scarecrow is, the scene where he saves the lion with Elphaba foreshadows how he withstands The Wicked Witch's magic in 1939's The Wizard of Oz, specifically during the poppy scene.

Elphaba Makes Fiyero Unaffected From Poppies In Wicked Long Before He Becomes Scarecrow

Elphaba and Fiyero Escape With The Cowardly Lion While Everyone Sleeps

After Dr. Dillamond is taken away, a new professor enters the class with a lion cub in a cage. Elphaba, already upset over what happened to Dr. Dillamond, is determined to do something. Frustrated, she hits the table, unintentionally using her magic to send several poppies into the air, and their pollen sends everyone into a deep sleep aside from herself and Fieyro, who runs away with Elphaba and the lion. Alone, Fiyero asks Elphaba why he was unaffected by her magic.

There are a few possible explanations behind this. For instance, their feelings for each other could influence how Elphaba's magic affects him. While neither realized their true romantic feelings for each other prior to this moment, Fiyero is one of the only students at Shiz University to treat Elphaba as a person. He is also one of the only people to insist she does not need to change herself for others. It's clear there is some level of respect and iration on his end, and that is bound to mean something to Elphaba.

Beyond their feelings for each other, Fiyero is one of the few students willing to do something about the lion. While he is surprised by Elphaba's call to action, that doesn't mean he isn't upset. He wants to do something, unlike many of the other students, but he doesn't know what to do. After all, as Elphaba says, he cares more than he leads on. If Elphaba can see that in him, perhaps that's what influenced her magic, sparing Fiyero as he is one of the few people she believes would help.

The Wizard Of Oz's Poppies Scene Shows The Continued Impact Of Elphaba's Spell On Fiyero

Wicked's Reference To The Poppies Explains How The Scarecrow Is Unaffected By The Wicked Witch's Magic

This would not be the only time Fiyero would be immune to Elphaba's magical powers. In The Wizard of Oz, the Wicked Witch of the West casts a spell over the poppy field Dorothy and company walk through, putting Dorothy and the Cowardly Lion to sleep. The Tin Man (Boq) and Scarecrow (Fiyero) are unaffected, though.

Initially, the explanation seems to be that because the Tin Man and Scarecrow are not humans or animals, they could not fall asleep, or they were unaffected by poppies because of their anatomy. Come Wicked, the jaw-dropping musical adaptation of the Broadway show, it seems Elphaba's magic affects people differently depending on who they are to her. By this point, she knows Fieryo's feelings for her and vice versa, so the spell not affecting him makes even more sense. However, why the Tin Man is unaffected is more of a mystery, since there is animosity between them by this point.