Harry Potter Theory

By the time Harry Potter sets foot in Hogwarts in the first book/film, the First Wizarding War is already a thing of the past. And at the same time, the Second Wizarding War is beginning to take shape, the primary focus of the books and films. But what I’ve always found interesting is that despite its scale and destruction, The First Wizarding War is typically treated as little more than distant history. The Second Wizarding War wasn’t great either, there were a lot of lives lost and for a while it looked as though Voldemort might genuinely take control of the Wizarding World for good. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hey everyone, welcome to another installment of Harry Potter Theory. Today we got our first UNEXPECTED glimpse at the trailer for the behind-the-scenes documentary centred on HBO’s Harry Potter reboot. The documentary, titled: Finding Harry: The Craft Behind the Magic is set to debut on HBO April 5th. I already made a video announcing and discussing my THOUGHTS on the documentary in general, so if you haven’t seen that already go and check it out, HOWEVER- I didn’t really break it down…And there’s a LOT to unpack here. Also- quick note to my regular viewers- I know we’ve been covering a lot of HBO stuff lately- but rest assured I’ll be posting some regular lore videos shortly. Anyway, hidden inside this “BTS” trailer are some of the clearest looks we’ve had yet at the series. So let’s break it down (in NO particular order). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

10 Moments HBO’s Harry Potter MUST Get Right (That the Movie Missed) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hey everyone, welcome to another installment of Harry Potter Theory. The first thing that I want to get out of the way here is that I DID actually enjoy the trailer. I don’t know what I expected, but it exceeded those expectations, so I just want to make it clear that these are OBJECTIVE criticisms. I’ve already done a breakdown video as well as a video full of some fun easter eggs, so make sure to check those out if you haven’t already. Alright, on to the things that were ‘wrong’. Before we go any further, I do feel the need to clarify what “wrong” actually means. Because not everything that’s different from the books is automatically wrong. There are a few different ways something can fall into this category. First, you have direct contradictions—things that are described a certain way in the books, and the show does completely different. Then we’ve got missing details—smaller things that are clearly established in the books, but just don’t show up (at least from what we can tell). And finally, we have additions—things that were never in the books at all, that the show has decided to introduce. Now, again—none of this necessarily ruins anything. Some of these changes might even end up being improvements. But if they’re going to advertise as book-accurate, we might as well hold them accountable by pointing out a couple of shortcomings. Again, on the whole I think they did a good job, but these are the things that stood out to me. Starting with… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In case you live under a rock, The HBO Harry Potter series just dropped its first trailer—and honestly…It gave us A LOT. I was expecting a 25 second long teaser trailer with a few frames, but we got a LOT more than that. And after watching it a few times, I’ve got a lot of thoughts—because this show looks very different from what I expected…in a good way. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

House elf slaves. Goblins BANNED from using wands. Werewolves shunned. Is it just me..Or are wizards, pretty awful? Voldemort is widely known for his strong hatred of MUGGLES, essentially believing that any human with non-magical, impure blood is effectively ‘beneath him’. But that prejudice extends beyond Muggles. Voldemort is so committed to this doctrine that he also rejects half-bloods—viewing them as lesser despite their magical ability. And it’s primarily due to this belief system that he set his sights on world domination, believing that the superior species- wizardkind- should rule over everyone else. And while he didn’t share this exact sentiment, Grindelwald believed something similar. While he didn’t outright HATE muggles, he did firmly believe that they were ‘inferior’ - necessitating his own belief that wizarding dominion would be for ‘the greater good’. And while this quote from his rally is somewhat giftwrapped in manipulation, it does mostly echo his philosophy: “You came because you crave something new. Something different. It is said that I hate le Non-magiques. The Muggle. The No-Maj. The Can't-Spells. I do not hate them; I do not. For I do not fight out of hatred. I believe that the Muggles are not lesser, but other. Not worthless, but of other value. Not disposable, but of different disposition. Magic blooms only in rare souls.” Anyway, my point is this: both of these men were hellbent on wizarding dominance because they genuinely believed that wizards were superior. It pushed them to do unspeakable things in the name of what they believed was “right”—and, more importantly, to convince others of the same. And while Voldemort was a little more crass in his presentation, and Grindelwald a little more refined and persuasive, the messaging was still the same. They were spreading hatred. In response, the wizarding world pushed back, condemned it, and assumed a distinctly holier-than-thou position. But what’s interesting about this is that Wizardkind, the same people who (with the exception of the Death Eaters and Grindelwald’s acolytes), fought against these prejudiced causes..Are a bunch of pompous hypocrites. And while the average witch or wizard LOVES to act morally superior to Voldemort—]when you actually look at their treatment of other beings, it becomes clear that in many ways- they are no better. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I’ve done a lot of spell videos. The most powerful, the most dangerous, the hardest to cast, but one I’ve always wanted to make involves taking a look at the most… Messed up. Not the deadliest. Not the flashiest. But the kind of spell that makes you question why someone would even invent it in the first place. Fortunately I’ve gone down the spell rabbit hole pretty deep- I’ve even made an entire video covering every single spell in the Wizarding World. So I’ve got a pretty solid grasp on the full spellbook. Which is why today, we’re shining a light on the most messed up, demented spells the Wizarding World has to offer—spells that exist to inflict pain, humiliation, and sometimes just pure, senseless suffering. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices