#at this point im being extremely annoying even for tumblr dot com's standard ddhdkdbdkdb

[widevibratobitch]

Top 5 Rodrigo moments (either the play or the opera doesn't matter)

i am a dirty cheat so you're getting twice as many and also me unnecessarily justifying each choice because i just dont know when to shut up. im putting it under the read more cut because it's really fuckin long sorry lmao

so in no particular order i guess (except for the first one which is definitely at the very top of my list):

1. play. the entire last scene with Elisabeth. im so boring about it but this is my favourite scene in the whole play. i could talk about it for hours, analyse it line for line, it's amazing. it's his fall from grace, the only moment in the entire play when he's completely emotionally naked and vulnerable - he's not quite like that even with Carlos. it's his last confession, his death rites, it's the defining scene for this character. there's everything there, and on top of all that, there's a delicious sprinkle of some good ol' Fear Of Death. it's amazing and it always makes me ugly cry - also Elisabeth calling him out on his bullshit and him just bluescreening there for a moment... i can't stress enough how much i love this scene (and the relationship between Rodrigo and Elisabeth!)

2. play and opera. The Restate Scene. i don't think i need to elaborate on that lol (mind you, this also involves the beginning of that scene in the play, where Philip is not yet present, there's just Rodrigo and Alba - who's visibly so irritated by this twink's bitching like 'omg you're literally getting an audience with The King Of Fucking Spain because he Specifically Asked For You, maybe you should act a little more grateful, you insolent brat, i swear to god, kids these days smh' because it's just fuckin hilarious)

3. opera. The Auto Da Fe Incident. i do love the play's equivalent of this scene too, i love it so much. but. there is something about him disarming Carlo in public (while that horrible reprise of their fRiEnDsHiP motive plays in the background, screaming crying shaking every time i swear) and immediately after - kneeling at Filippo's feet, presenting him with Carlo's sword AND getting a title upgrade???? right in front of Carlo? Elisabetta? literally EVERYONE??? it's amazing. prolly the worst day in Rodrigo's life (while simultaneously the best day in Filippo's lol).

4. play. the scene when Carlos gives him Eboli's letter and he just fuckin. tears it to pieces lol the moment is just hilarious to me jshsjssgdk

'so you wanna show this letter to the queen?'

'fuck yeah i do'

'ok. may i see it again? just for a sec'

'sure, here you gOH MY GOD'

on one hand it's just hysterical lmao on the other - it very nicely shows play!Rodrigo's controlling nature and the fact that he may love Carlos more than anything, but he still will manipulate the hell out of him. i also love how he yells at him but then immediately softens after Carlos's dramatic display of throwing himself onto the chair and the 'too well I know thou lovest me no more 😔' idk i just love this entire scene a lot. i love them.

5. play. the scene when he convinces Carlos to give him his letters. it's his second scene in the play after the Restate Incident (the first is another scene with Elisabeth that I also really really like). I also love Carlos here a lot, both of them honestly. The fact that Carlos is so preoccupied with Rodrigo having an audience with his dad that he entirely forgets about Elisabeth for a moment. and Rodrigo who's suddenly so flippant and sure of himself and it drives Carlos crazy because of The Implications. Rodrigo, again, getting a little mad at him and not bothering to hide it (i said it before but i love how play!Rodrigo will not hesitate to yell at Carlos when he gets too... uhh... Carlos-ish; opera!Rodrigo is only ever kind and loving with him and while it melts my heart... i do like my man being a bitch). and then the final moment with Carlos throwing himself into Rodrigo's arms, crying, being like 'my father could never make you betray me, could he? not my father, Rodrigo... 🥺😭' and running dramatically away while Rodrigo is left there, standing with that letter in hand, like 😐 what have i just witnessed

6. play. the entire prison scene. This is a stark contrast with his previous scene, which was the emotional breakdown witnessed by Elisabeth. here, he's much calmer. the whole thing is beautiful and heartwrenching obv but there is this one - not even really relevant - line, when he asks Carlos to just. sit down with him cause he's just so weary. and idk it just makes me so 🥺 my man has been through so, so much in such a short time, this scene is the moment when i feel all this tension and the emotional turmoil finally quiet down, and it leaves him fuckin exhausted. he has accepted his fate and he just wants to rest and spend these last moments with Carlos in peace and quiet (and he never quite gets that in the end). also the fact that that stupid Badminton Incident has been weighing on his conscience for so many years, is just. ridiculously heartbreaking. which brings me to my other favourite moment in that scene (there you go, Sofia jrhdksdh).

'yoooo who was that shot meant for?'

'lmao i guess for me 💅'

im sorry but it's hilarious. i always feel so bad for laughing at this but. come on.

also, im honestly a little obsessed with how different opera!Rodrigo and play!Rodrigo's deaths are. the play is definitely more tragic to me because it's so much more abrupt and quick and desperate. Posa genuinely thought he would have more time and it makes me wanna bang my head against the wall. the shot comes before Rodrigo manages to tell Carlos whatever it is he wanted to tell him, as he mentions earlier (this is another detail that's making me go insane, something i will never get over), there is no time for confessions or maudlin words or anything really personal. it's just. bam - too quick - escape - the queen knows all - over and out, bye-bye. absolutely fucking heartbreaking and ive just made myself sad, great.

having said that. opera gets a big big star because it's just so fucking beautiful, and Rodrigo deserved to die peacefully in Carlo's arms, and because there is this one line that absolutely destroys me and it fits Rodrigo's character so well and I actually wish it was there in the play too - the famous di me non ti scordar (and when accompanied by that fucking dio che nell'alma reprise.... fuckin. screaming crying shaking just kill me already).

7. opera. his first scene with Carlo. i don't think i need to say anything about it. it's just the gayest fucking thing and it's so tender and beautiful and dramatic. i love love love it. opera!Rodrigo is also so warm and kind and loving to Carlos from the very beginning, especially when compared to play!Rodrigo's initial 'what the hell Carlos you're being pathetic af rn' reaction. also that fucking duet slaps so much. it's just the best.

for the record though, the play does get a huge star for:

a) The Badminton Incident and the entire story of Carlos and Rodrigo's origin which is fucking hysterical ngl and Rodrigo's reaction to it which is just hilarious too. he's just so embarrassed and wishes dearly Carlos would just stfu <33 (and the - a little too much on the nose lol but still heartbreaking in the end - foreshadowing... damn)

b) that one exchange that goes sth like

"if one tear that gives me relief means to you more than my father's favour--"

"more than the entire world"

it's just. 🥺 but overall. I'd say this scene is much more one of my Carlos-favourite moments in the play than Rodrigo's per se.

8. play and opera. the Not-Really-Killing Eboli Incident. they both happen in very different circumstances in the opera and the play and I love both. the opera is just badass tbh, on both Posa AND Eboli's side ('fuckin kill me bitch, do it, *Joker voice* come on, i want you to do it, hit me, HIT ME'). also Carlo gets to witness this one and i love how this night gets just worse and worse for him lmao also the music is AMAZING, easily my favourite part of the opera (especially the trema per te moment GOD). in the play it's much more horrible though, Rodrigo is a total mess there and he is really fuckin desperate and does not know what to do. opera!Rodrigo doesn't kill Eboli because it's not all that necessary then, because he still has hope and god will inspire him (bless lol). play!Rodrigo doesn't kill Eboli because he can't bring himself to murder her for what he perceives to be his own fault - if someone has to die, it will be him. so it's also THE moment he decides to Do The Deed and sacrifice himself for Carlos (this entire scene is also what basically causes Eboli's change of heart... which ultimately does nothing in the play lol im really not a fan of play!Eboli). granted, play! and opera!Rodrigo's situations at that moment are different; opera!Eboli hasn't really done anything yet at that point and I guess Rodrigo kinda underestimates her then which, well, sucks to be him.

9. play. the scene when he gives Carlos's letters to Philip. i love this scene, i love this cunning, manipulative little bitch so much. i love how he has Philip wrapped around his little finger while still letting him think he's in charge. i also really love Philip's entire Situation here ('you're MY bitch and i want the whole world to know that uwu i love you btw mwah <3333') but this post is about Rodrigo. anyway, it's great (and goddammit, Lerma...).

10. play and opera. the scene with Elisabeth and Eboli in the garden. i love this one for different reasons - in the opera, the che mai si fa nel suol francese trio is, again, one of my favourite few minutes out of those 4 hours of Verdi's masterpiece, the music is fun and the entire situation is hilarious, i love Rodrigo and Eboli's whole dynamic, i love love love it. the more fake-ass smiles from the baritone and the mezzo involved, the better :))))))))) and, yes, im soooo boring about it but. the relationship between Posa and Elisabeth in the play makes me feel so warm inside. she is so excited to see her bestie, and then they do that silly little flirty bit which I always go insane over. i love them. also bonus points for the english copy that i own that has Rodrigo deliver a sick burn on Eboli in that scene, haven't seen that exchange in any other translation. also there's yet another Hilarious Rodrigo Moment there that I love - the moment when he's talking with Elisabeth about Carlos and she says something that mildly suggests she might care about him a tiny bit and Rodrigo immediately jumps up like

'so you wanna see him, do you? if he were here, you'd totally allow him an audience, right? :D'

'wait, what? what's going on'

'too late, here he is, tadaaaaa' *Rodrigo doing jazzy hands while Carlos jumps out from behind a bush, fanfares playing, colourful serpentines and confetti falling from the sky*

***

there. i cant play this game, im sorry. peace and love.