Tag Archives: review

Rio – The Green Witch

Spoilers below for the TV show Agatha All Along. 

Who is Rio?

Portrayed by Aubrey Plaza.

The name Rio Vidal, literally translates into ‘River of Life”.

Rio is the literal embodiment of death in the MCU.

We know, death is a universal constant. 

It is the cycle of life. 

Death comes for us all. 

So, let’s explore the characterisation of Death as The Green Witch a bit further.

Rio characterises herself as someone who’s just doing their job by escorting people into the afterlife.

Serving as a guide for the newly deceased.

She’s seen holding a knife in her left hand and a flower in her right. Which further symbolises her cyclical nature.

Also, as seen on the show, death in Tarot symbolises endings and also beginnings. 

Rebirth.

So we can pose some questions at this point: 

Can a characterisation of death be inherently evil, when death itself is a natural part of life?

Does the idea of dying carry negative connotations?

Can Death take a life?

Can Death be evil? 

Can Death fall in love? 

Can Death reproduce? 

Create life? 

Yes.

Maybe. 

I don’t know. 

Mushrooms

Time is also cyclical, in this universe. 

Death can serve as an embodiment of that circularity.  

The flower Rio is holding represents creation of new life, through death.

Through herself.

Through decomposition. 

Life feeding the soil, leading to the creation of life anew. 

That is why Rio is the Green Witch. 

She is literally nature itself. 

Herself.

Nature sprouts through her. 

She creates life. 

Green craft is about the cycle of all living things, growth and decay in constant flow. 

Like a river. 

The river of life.

Life is the road we walk through and death is the destination.

The road on the show is a circle, it represents the never ending cycle of life and death.

A key part of that cycle are mushrooms. 

Mushrooms need a lot of decay to grow. 

One cannot plant a mushroom per say. But we can grow them by repurposing dead materials. That is why they’re very commonly grown in and around rotting trees. 

Mushrooms represent rebirth, rejuvenation and regeneration.

They’re inherently mournful and hopeful. 

Which is a rare duality. And a contradiction. But, it’s our reality. 

Another reality is that, we live our days knowing the fact that we’re going to die someday.

We develop our consciousness through that knowledge. 

Learning about death is the reason humans develop empathy. 

So we deny our immanent deaths. 

Healthily so. 

We can live our lives to the fullest through that denial. 

We cannot deny the importance of fungi though.

Fungi generates soils that give life. 

Understanding the language and the nature of fungal networks, and how they communicate with it’s surrounding ecosystem may shine a light to better understanding our neural networks. 

The connectivity of life. Through death. Through mushrooms. 

Mushrooms are not exactly a vegetable or an animal but something in between. 

We tend to associate mushrooms and fungi with mold. 

We fear it. Myself included.

That phobia has been proven to be evolutionarily beneficial. 

Decomposition moves dying organisms and all their nutrients back into the earth, into the life cycle. 

That is why, mushrooms are the digestive track of the forest. 

They are spooky, weird and fascinating in the most wonderful way. 

They connect everything to the earth, support life, convert life, carry life, they are remarkable beings. 

Interesting how consuming death in a way transforms us. 

Death is a part of us and we become a part of death through consumption. 

And yet, we remain alive. 

Like magic.

Fermentation is another magical transformation that happens to nutritions.

It is entirely created through the actions of bacteria and fungi. 

Microbes.

Dionysus is the God of Fermentation and fermented foods. 

Fermentation is one of the ways we build our cultural identities.

The delicious rot.

The pies de Dieu.

The feet of God.

All acquired tastes around the globe involves some sort of fermentation. 

The taste of decay.

Creating wonderful flavour.

Consuming death. 

Remaining alive. 

Promises of something delicious. 

Maybe, it’s our unconscious way of being prepared for our own deaths. 

Facing our mortality.

Promises of life beyond death. 

Life above all. 

Love behind loss.

Pain in mourning. 

Grief beyond comprehension.

Comfort in dying. 

Food for thought. 

In the end, everything that dies, gets broken down.

It’s our ultimate fate. 

To be reused. 

Ecologically. 

Naturally. 

By The Green Witch. 

Herself. 

Rio.

Lessons from Miranda Priestly 

Where is the devil? 

In fashion, the devil is in the details. 

So, in how you dress, be mindful of your accessories.

Are introductions in order? 

Miranda Priestly, played by the Meryl Streep, is the titular character of the film ‘The Devil Wears Prada’. In it, she is the editor-in-chief of the US Runway magazine, not to mention a legend. Very much evoking another magazine and another (sadly, now former) editor in chief. (Vogue magazine’s Anna Wintour). 

How would I describe the character of Miranda Priestly? 

Commanding

Composed 

Confident

Assertive

Strategic

Passionate

Determined  

Decisive  

Self-aware

Creative

Resilient 

Dignified 

In my mind, she is a perfect mainstream complex character to dive into. So, I’ll be travelling to the depths here today.

I’ll look into the lessons to learn from the character of Miranda Priestly. 

Precisely, I’ll be looking at the lessons the character of Andrea (Andy) Sacs (played by Anne Hathaway) was learning throughout the whole time she’s been working as one of Miranda’s assistants. How did those lessons make them intellectual equals by the end? We’re going to be looking through those lessons and see how Andy reached the decision not to continue working with Miranda by the end. Or the beginning? Perspectives are in order. 

Diving in.

In my mind, making mistakes is one of the most effective ways to learn. It includes an element of shame. And that emotion is a great teacher. It does not want anything to ever repeat itself. So one learns. 

Andy is a writer. 

Like any writer, she wants to get published. 

First in publications. 

She’s applied for an assistant position for the editor-in-chief. Whom she does not know. 

Soon she learns: 

You work a year for her and you can get a job at any magazine you want. A million girls would kill for that job.

Emily

Andy is a confident person. 

That is how she got herself a job in front of her now, new boss Miranda. 

She was initially rejected,

For having a lack of interest in fashion.

But,

She turned a no into a yes.

She got the job. 

She still has SO much to learn. 

So, she needs to make mistakes. 

Many, 

mistakes…

Andy is not a Miranda Girl. 

Which is refreshing for Miranda, not being mindlessly adored by this new, young, smart individual, maybe a potential trainee? 

But,

Miranda still wants to be treated with respect. 

Both herself,

and her work need to be respected. 

Her self and her work are synonymous. 

They’re cannot be separated. (Proven!) 

If her work is being disrespected,

She takes that personally. 

And defends it. 

Fashion is no joke. 

It is an industry, sure, but it is also

art. 

And Miranda will defend her artists and their work together when the need arises. 

(I, in fact, am a reformed Miranda Girl; you’ve caught me) 

Lesson 1 – Andy needs to learn how to appreciate fashion 

Here Nigel comes in. (Played by Stanley Tucci). Because Nigel brings a voice to Miranda’s actions. Re-frames them as lessons. We need supporting characters like Nigel to enrich complexity in the mains. 

In reality, Andy has just been publicly scolded in a team meeting, and she’s rightly upset and runs to Nigel for comfort. (After the iconic Cerulean monologue ofc). 

Contemplating quitting internally, but she verbalises it all to Nigel as whining. 

Andy is not a quitter. 

So, she needs to adapt to her new job. 

She needs to stop seeing it as a temporary stepping stone, and she needs to fully commit to this world to fully succeed in it. 

Also at work, she needs to learn how to and from whom to ask for help. That person IS Nigel, yes. 

He can guide her. He’s been guiding her with snarky comments from day one. 

Because, this place where a million people die to work you only deign to work. And you want to know why she doesn’t kiss you on the forehead and give you a gold star on your homework at the end of the day. Wake up sweetheart. 

Nigel

But he can actually help her with her makeover. 

The fashion montage that starts with the CHANNEL BOOTS, Madonna – Vogue scene is one of my favourite scenes in film! I want to take a break from writing and watch it again. Ciao for now! 

I’m back! Iconic. 

Lesson 1: Learned, Miranda, is impressed; she did a double-take on Andy’s outfit. 

Love the boots there as well, I might add. 

Lesson 2: Andy needs to develop and utilise a network, especially in publishing

She failed at utilising a network already. 

And now there is a time pressure element in play. 

While delivering the mockup magazine, the book, she intrudes and witnesses Miranda and her husband arguing at their own home. In actuality, she witnesses Miranda’s husband disrespecting her. Which is far worse and is a fireable offence. 

But,

Instead, Miranda gives her an impossible task.

Of securing an unpublished Harry Potter book.

She hasn’t JUST made a mistake. 

She’s made THE mistake. She needs to learn to be careful with her job. 

She’s still not respecting the job well enough. 

We sympathise with her because her job does not have any boundaries. 

So it is unavoidable that the job will take over her life immensely.  

She needs to realise that what she’s done was a fireable ‘mistake’…

It is serious!

Miranda needs the new Harry Potter book for the twins!

The unpublished Deathly Hollows manuscript. 

Can you imagine…

The final book!

We know everyone in publishing. It shouldn’t be a problem, should it? And you can do anything, right? 

Miranda

The line delivery… Perfection!

The girls are leaving on the train for their grandmother’s at 4:00pm, so the book should be at Runway, no later than 3:00pm.

Additionally, Miranda would like her steak at the office in 15 minutes. 

It’s 11am now. She has 4 hours to get the impossible manuscript. Starting with getting a steak.

The restaurant for the steak does not open until 11:30am, so she needs to start utilising her network now.

Their network. 

The steak task is here to get the adrenaline pumping. 

The lion is staring at you. 

Fight or flight

Choose.

Now.

The second task is,

a final test of intelligence. 

It is a network utilisation test where Andy has failed once before her fashion era. 

Where it has cost Miranda to see her twins play. 

Where Andy hasn’t been fired for.

There was a hurricane after all…

She wasn’t fully respecting the job then.

Andy is respecting herself and the job now, alright. She knows she’ll be fired, and she’s desperate and contemplating quitting again. (Flight) But she can’t. (Fight) And she doesn’t want to. She’s willing to try. 

Her network is not vast. 

But, 

She did manage to meet someone interesting (and someone who’s interested in her. I’m skipping that part). 

Someone who’s willing and able to help her out of her current predicament. (THE MENTALIST! That’s Simon Baker, kids, Christian Thompson).

So she secures the HP 7 copy. 

Applause. 

Lesson 2: Learned, Miranda is very pleased. She picked the right person, alright. 

Final Lesson: Playing Chess 

The final lesson is about chess. 

I took chess lessons as a kid. 

It bored me. 

What? 

I can’t lie. 

Playing it then was boring when I could’ve played guitar instead. You know? Choices…

Anyway. 

I’m not bored by chess anymore, but, needless to say, I haven’t paid much attention to my lessons either. 

So the analogies that I’ll be making today need to be fact-checked. 

Don’t come for me, chess people!

Miranda needs selfless people around her at work, ones that would sacrifice their personal lives and prioritise the magazine with every decision, every time. 

Like herself. 

In Miranda’s eyes, if family, friendship, and relationship islands are shaking (Inside Out reference), one is ready for a promotion! 

It is a brutal way to look at employment. 

But for Miranda, she’s not just employed by Elias & Clark (the parent company that owns Runway magazine). 

She lives for her work. 

It is her one true passion. 

She breathes for it. 

She’s bled for it. 

She’s scarred from it. 

She’s earned it.

And she is the queen of her work. 

Earned it.

By blood, tears and hard work. 

It’s hers. 

For women, working always comes with making a lot of sacrifices. 

We all have 24 hours within a day, and so much can be achieved in a day. 

So much more,

So many more roles are being expected of women to play within a day. 

And those roles are expected to be played perfectly. 

Or there’ll be consequences. 

Always. 

We’re all aware of this. 

We make our choices accordingly. 

Chess is a game about anticipating choices. 

It is a battle. 

A kingdom falls every time someone loses at chess. 

And once one reaches the position of a queen at their work, multiple battles have to be fought behind the scenes every day. 

So Miranda fights. 

Every fighter needs allies. 

Every queen needs an army. 

And every battle and every war has sacrifices. 

They need to be made. 

Strategically. 

In the exact moment. 

Foresight is a must. 

Miranda had to sacrifice many pieces among her allies: 

Knight, Emily

Paris is the most important week of my entire year. I need the best possible team with me. That no longer includes Emily. If you don’t go I would assume you’re not serious about your future at Runway or… any other publication.

Miranda

Bishop, Husband 

Just imagine what they’re gonna write about me: “The Dragon Lady”, “career-obsessed.”, “Snow Queen drives away another Mr. Priestly.” 

Miranda

Castle, Nigel

When the time is right, she’ll pay me back. 

You sure about that?

No. But, I hope for the best, I have to…

Nigel and Andy


We’re sure about that, Andy, you need not worry! 

Queen, Andrea (Andy) 

Ok, so now we know that the company is trying to replace Miranda with Paris Runway’s editor-in-chief, Jacqueline Follet, because Miranda’s salary is too high. Miranda’s magazine expenses are too high. And the company wants to cut costs. 

The truth is, there is no one that can do what I do including her. Any of the other choices would have found that job impossible, and the magazine would have suffered. 

Miranda

I never thought I would say this, Andrea, but I really… I see a great deal of myself in you. You can see beyond what people want and what they need, and you can choose for yourself.

Miranda

This is the final push of confidence for Andrea to quit. 

Because she finally sees and it is confirmed BY MIRANDA HERSELF that Andrea herself, ANDY, is in fact valuable. 

Miranda is finally making eye contact with her while she’s speaking to her. 

She is valued. 

They are equals. 

And she does not want to sacrifice her whole life for this job. 

She wants to be a writer. 

She wants to have fun with her friends after work. 

She wants to have a healthy relationship as well as a healthy work life balance. 

Choosing to get ahead despite someone else is not a choice; everyone is comfortable making. 

Andrea isn’t. 

Miranda is. 

You want this life, those choices are necessary. 

Oh, don’t be ridiculous, Andrea. Everybody wants this. Everybody wants to be us. 

Miranda

THEY ARE AN US NOW FINALLY. BUT she’s about to quit. 

Because her journey goes through writing.  

She needs to write now. 

To honour her. 

Her legacy. 

Herself. 

Anna Wintour!

A legend.