My name is Rock Candy, a bitter sweet kind of treat, who's eager to meet, a love that's complete. If you can handle me, when I'm in dismay, I'll be the stone that grounds your days.
It's ok to like a movie, or character, even if most other people don't. Everyone likes something that others disagree with, and that's what makes us the beautiful, unique humans we are. But Asha is a terrible person, and this is why I feel that way. I'm asking you to hear me out, because I heard you, and still respect your opinion. I left a "Like" too. I'm sorry this is long, but here goes. All of the people live in a kingdom, with no taxes, perfect living conditions, and wishes can actually come true. And to spare them the pain, of not having their potentially harmful wishes come true, the king erased the memories of those desires. Which every participant consented to. These wishes weren't mandatory, everyone was free to keep their wish, and try to fulfil their own dreams. But that would take actual effort, and wishing to know how to play guitar or make dresses is easier. Everyone was living in a paradise. And because Asha grew up, never knowing anything, outside of being so privileged, she was horribly entitled. She only wanted to be the king's apprentice, so she could get close to him, for her own benefit. She basically demanded that her grandfather's wish be granted, and that the king give back the memories of ungranted wishes. The king was never a bad man, and was empathetic towards Asha, because she lost her father, and he knew how loss feels. But he lost so much more than she could even imagine. He was worried that her grandpa's wish could inspire greed and other terrible things in people, so he wouldn't grant it, and wouldn't give it back, because the grandpa didn't want it back. But she acted entitled and argued with him, until he raised his voice at her. And because Asha was used to having everything handed to her, in life, she was shocked, when he got angry at her, for not accepting "No" for an answer. She basically insulted his competence, disrespected him in his own abode, and didn't show any gratitude towards him, for the already perfect life she had. Instead of beheading or imprisoning her, like any real life king, of that time period would, he fired her instead. And because of her brattiness, none of her family's wishes would ever be granted. They'd have to actually work, to achieve their dreams. Then she felt sorry for herself, and took it out on her grandpa, by telling him, on his birthday, what his wish was, and that it'd never be granted. Even though he told her, he didn't want to know. She broke his heart anyway. You'd think she'd realize it's best to let the people continue to willingly hand over their wishes, and forget the ones that couldn't be granted, but she didn't. She just threw a fit. Then she ran away, crying, because her grandpa was mad that she ruined his birthday. She found a wishing star, whose magical arrival was felt by the whole kingdom. And just like she did, with the king, she decided to use the star, for her own benefit. The king became terrified, because he didn't know what caused the magical burst, felt by the whole kingdom. He was desperate to keep his people safe, because he literally lost everything, as a kid. He almost resorted to using forbidden magic, but unlike Asha, he's willing to stop and think about consequences, so he put the book down. Meanwhile, Asha went on a crime spree, because she decided her way was best, and committing multiple felonies is perfectly fine, as long as you believe you're right. She even manipulated her friends to be accessories, even though they'd all be guilty of treason, which is punishable by death, in any other country. Her selfish actions drove the king to resort to forbidden magic, which controlled him, and turned him evil. And because of her, her whole family was forced to flee, after he tracked her down. After coming back, she used the wishing star, and a mouse, to turn the queen against the king, who's motivations were never selfish. He created a perfect utopia, and invited everyone to live there, rent and tax free. His goal was to protect his people, and provide them with a perfect life. Asha's goal was to grant her grandfather's wish, and make everyone else put in effort, to follow their dreams. And the king didn't just take the memories of the wishes, to keep people from feeling sad, that he didn't grant them. It was an incentive, to encourage people to actually use effort, to better themselves. Yet most people decided it was better, to just forget their desires, because if they couldn't just have it handed to them, it wasn't worth it. But mostly, Asha's goal was to get her way. Later, she sang a song, to further manipulate her friends, and the queen completely turned against the king, because Asha manipulated her, too. The queen even had him locked up, at the end of the film. He made her a queen, gave her the happiest marriage, and then she usurped him, because he made one mistake. She didn't try to find a way to cure him, she immediately gave up, because a book said there was no going back. And the worst part is that Asha got a magic wand, when she couldn't even make good, or selfless decisions, without magic. The king should've been the protagonist. By giving his people a perfect paradise, they all became lazy and content. And his overwhelming desire to do good, was sadly, the cause of his downfall. When an entitled, manipulative, teenage brat decided that risking the lives of herself, and all her friends, was more important than accepting "No" for an answer, he lost it all. I think if you like Asha, that's totally OK. And I only saw the movie once, a while back, so I can't really remember everything about it. I just remember the things that stuck out to me. I'm sorry this was so long. But I don't think it's right to say, "I don't like Asha" without providing a complete explanation. If you read this far, thank you, for hearing me out.❤
I see where you're coming from, but Asha's entitlement still doesn't make sense to me. She is a tour guide who is literally paid to show people how amazing the kingdom is, and she changed her mind when she didn't agree with the king's reasoning. I don't understand why playing music for a crowd is too dangerous to be granted. The wish was obviously not violent or hateful in any way. The king chose to look at it in the worst possible case scenario. Asha probably felt hurt that the king was assuming the worst of her grandpa without getting to know him. In terms of the wishes being given up willingly, the movie wasn't trying to say that was the problem. The citizens forget the memory of the wish, leaving them without drive or purpose. Of course, the movie didn't explain this well due to the rushed writing and too many characters to give proper focus to. I don't remember the citizens ever implying that they didn't want to work for their goals and wishes. Magnifico said that he does what he does because "the journey is too rough and unfair". That could be taken as the people not wanting to work hard, but I took it more as a way to get your wish granted even if you try and fail due to circumstances you can't control. Again, Disney did a terrible job of making this clear, but I think this was their intention. Asha didn't want to free all the wishes for her benefit, though. She thought everyone deserved to know their wishes so they could get their passion back. It implied through the animation that the characters are hurt and weakened by their wishes being taken. They wince and loose energy. When the wishes are completely destroyed, people literally collapse. Asha felt that Magnifico should't be the one to decide which wishes are worth granting, especially because he is power hungry and destroys wishes when he is angry. He encouraged the town to rat out "traitors", and causes unrest. When the townsfolk ask questions, he refuses to elaborate and calls them ungrateful. Asha and Magnifico both throw tantrums, but thats why they're the perfect enemies. The impulse to give people freedom vs the impulse to control people (for better or worse) The movie botches this by the bad dialogue and mediocre songs. Oh, what could have been I suppose. Thank you for the discussion and the support of the channel!
