so i'm watching Return to Oz now and i'm about half way through it. the movie used to scare me big time when i was a kid. how in the world could the wonderful world of Oz have turned into a place where the Munchkins are gone, the yellow brick road is destroyed along with the emerald city and evil is all over the place. it was always quite the contrast from the 'lollipop guild' and singing munchkins to the 'wheelers' and the many heads of the princess.
but really on further viewings, was the first land of Oz as magical as i thought it was. two wicked witches basically running the world with a cowardly wizard hiding behind smoke and mirrors, crazy flying monkeys that steal you away and a bunch of line stomping blue faced guys chanting monk songs!? not everything was a bed of roses for that time in the land of Oz either.
Oz intrigues me though, and i'll be sure to watch the rest of it soon. fantasy worlds like that often can have fascinating parallels with our world as well as our spiritual lives and struggles.