Rationalization (feat. Marcy Wu)
Rewatching A Day at the Aquarium is a whole new layer of pain when you realize it’s the episode Marcy agrees to betray Anne. Her and Anne had a plan. “Find Sasha, get the music box, and go back home.” She didn’t necessarily like the plan, but in her mind, it was the “logical” thing to do. It’s what her friend wants; what’s best for her.
Anne, right now you have to follow your head. Not your heart.
Once Hop Pop gets the music box we’ll just… send a servant to pick it up. More efficient that way.
The Plantars got you here, to me. It’s time to let them get back to their lives. Why don’t you guys take the day to say goodbye?
This is how Marcy sees decision making. She can’t just want Anne to stay with her, it needs to be “more efficient”. She needs an excuse, something deeper than her own desires.
Whoa whoa whoa. It doesn’t really make sense for you to go back to Wartwood. The last thing we should do is separate again. Not after we’re so close to finding our way home.
Lines like this give away the fact that Marcy is scrambling to find a reason for Anne to stick around. Initially it had the same vibes as Anne’s “I don’t want to lose you after I just got you back.” thing in indirect nerd words. But when you realize her desperation is also due to the fact that she wants to spend as much time as possible with Anne before she has to move, it is absolutely heart-wrenching.
This is the look Marcy gives once Anne and the Plantars have to say goodbye. Seeing how much it hurts them to part ways with each other makes her start to feel self-conscious about her suggestion.
I’m sorry Anne. This just, made the most sense.
I know I know. *sniff* Logical thing to do.
At first, Marcy considers comforting Anne- being vulnerable. But instead, she sighs and accepts that maaaaybe Anne staying isn’t the most ‘strategic’ way to do things. Maybe she was the one who wasn’t following her head.
Now go, follow your heart.
Anne going with the Plantars makes sense, there’s no reason for her to stay here when Marcy can handle the preparations by herself. Anne wants to be with them, and they clearly care about her. Being honest about the move would simply make things awkward. Uncomfortable. Tense. It’s similar to the music box- if it won’t come up, or hasn’t come up yet, there’s no point mentioning it. It would just be a burden on her friends, or worse, make them dislike her. If she stays quiet, then the fun can last a little longer once they meet back up again.
Always sad to see someone go, isn’t it?
I have a proposition for you, Marcy. And I think you’ll find it very interesting.
Narratively, there’s only one thing this could be about. You don’t drop something like that unless it’s going to be revealed later. Andrias knows Marcy is in a delicate state right now. So he offers her the chance to travel to all sorts of different worlds, and she can bring along her friends too! Of course, if it’s something only she wants, that wouldn’t be fair. But…
I did it for us.
During Marcy’s speech in True Colors, she tends to frame things with "us” and “we”. She switches to using “I”, “me” and “you both” when talking about stuff her friends didn’t know… and when she progressively gets more desperate to convince them her actions were for their sakes. Andrias helped Marcy convince herself that lying about the music box and staying with her friends was the “logical” thing to do. That they’ve flourished in Amphibia, made connections, and have been having so much fun! That it’s even better than the way things were back home!
Except… once that “logic” faces scrutiny, when her friends can have a say, it all falls apart. And when that happens, Marcy finally admits why she really thought the plan “just made the most sense.”
I just, didn’t wanna be alone…
