It’s no secret that Isabela Madrigal is my favorite character in Encanto. I mean, duh, it’s why I made this blog.
But the question is “Why? Why is Isabela your favorite character?” And I am here to explain why. If you follow this blog, then obviously you’re also an Isabela simp and probably have your own reasons for liking this character that probably coincide with mine. But here I am explaining my reasons.
Frankly, it’s because I see myself in her, in more ways than one.
I too am the oldest daughter of my family, and being the oldest daughter means you have certain expectations to uphold. You’re expected to set an example, to do as you’re told, to be the shining pillar your parents expect you to be. You’re the one with all the responsibility on your shoulders. You’re the one going out into the world first, the one your younger sisters are supposed to look up to. But you can’t live up to expectations all the time, it’s not fun to be placed on a pedestal, and eventually, that nut is going to crack. You long to act out, to be free, to have even a portion of the freedom that the baby of the family does. But you know your parents are always there, watching your every move, making sure that you are perfect. And the price to pay for not being perfect is devastating, too horrifying to even think about. And the worst part is that you’ll never live up to those expectations, you’ll never be perfect enough, you’ll never get the approval your parents forced you to think you’d seek. But you’ll also never be as free and wild as your younger sister.
So being stuck in that place, what do you do? Well, you overcompensate, try too hard to seek your parents’ approval, the approval you know you’re never going to get, but at least let them see that you’re trying, as much as it will never be enough. “What Else Can I Do?” resonated so deeply with me for this reason. No matter what language it is in, its message rings through and sends shivers down my spine. Because it’s all about realizing that you don’t have to be this perfect porcelain figure on a pedestal, you don’t have to be tight and contained and restrict yourself to one mold chosen for you by someone else. You don’t have to seek anyone’s approval or let anybody else run your life and make you feel guilty for something they put in your head. You can simply be. Be yourself. Be free and out there. There is so much more to you than what’s beyond the surface, so many more possibilities to what you can accomplish. It’s about breaking free from other people’s expectations of you, how the same way you see your sister as free, you can be, too. “What Else Can I Do?” is about freedom. About being emotionally repressed and denying your own truth to yourself, but eventually being liberated and fully embracing who you are, in all of its messiness, warts, and confusion. A person, not a shiny trophy or a pretty doll.
Secondly, representation matters. I’m not the first to point this out, of course, but the fact that they made the darkest-skinned of the female characters the most beautiful and feminine is so meaningful to me. I’m not an indigenous woman. I am Black. But even so, it made me so happy to see someone who is darker-skinned like me and has a similar complexion to mine be the image of graceful femininity. I’m a very girly girl, but the archetypical beauty and feminine norm has, for the longest time, been pale skin with blue eyes and long blonde hair. Something Isabela is the polar opposite of. And it’s never commented on or used as a source of irony either. She’s not beautiful in SPITE of her dark skin and hooked nose. She simply is, and her features accentuate that. Even better, she’s not used as a source of comedy for her looks, either. Colorism is a big deal in Latin-America, and in every country all over the world, sadly, so for them to do this took major ovaries. Her existence means a lot to me in this regard.
Thirdly is how her character reclaims femininity. Despite not wanting to be in the mold of a pink flower princess who is elegant and graceful, she doesn’t discard femininity as a constraint or a bad thing. And that is so, so powerful. Too many times, femininity is treated as a cage to break off, a cumbersome article of clothing to endure wearing until you rip it off in order to find your true self. Only by rejecting that which is commonly associated with womanhood can women be free. Now how ironic, misogynistic, and hypocritical is that? But Isabela shows that femininity was never the problem. Her having to conform to a particular mold that Abuela set for her is. Femininity is powerful and expressive. It’s not a prison to be locked in. And Isabela discovers that as she learns to express her femininity how she likes, by wearing a vibrant dress with a wide array of colors as she grows beautiful and towering plants that aren’t just flowers. There are more than one mode of femininity and they are all equally valid parts of the spectrum. “What Else Can I Do?” once again, shows this. Some of the plants she mentions growing are even flowering plants! She always had the power in her all along, she just never got the means to express herself up until that moment in time! Her character sends the message of coming to terms with her own femininity, in her own way, and discovering what it really means. She can be beautiful and strong and a firecracker who’s a force to be reckoned with, she doesn’t need a man but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t still want to marry a woman eventually, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Seeing her break free while also staying true to her femininity shows how the film goes out of its way to subvert the demonization of it. Certainly a feminist feat. If only more of the fandom could understand this.
And fourthly and lastly, her power. Flower power! The ability to grow flowers and other plants is such a beautiful and strong gift, and is much more useful than it seems. I have always been drawn to flowers and nature as a child and still am, if I had a superpower I think it would be the same power that Isabela had, or at least something similar. Her character and song also inspired a character of mine’s superpower, by the way, just wanted to throw that out there. And as you all know, I have always been drawn more to female characters, especially ones that are boldly feminine and unashamed of it! I like all female characters but I’ve always had a soft spot for the more girly ones since they’re more like me(especially when they’re Black and/or woc and Isabela fits that bill, too!), and her wardrobe and fashion color palette at the beginning of the movie is basically me and how I dress(I even have a flower crown!). I’d love to cosplay as her someday, in both dresses! And that concept art? *chef’s kiss*
So there you go, my reasons for why I love Isabela! This was quite expansive and really hard to put into words, haha, but it has always been there, so I am more than happy to share it with you! If you have anything you’d like to add onto this, want to share your own reasons, or simply agree with this post, then please reblog! I want to hear your thoughts too!
Thank you for coming to my Isabela TedTalk lol.
