PotterCast 92: Live from Chicago Transcript

Part 1 (0:00 - 9:18)

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John Noe (JN): Live from Chicago!

Melissa Anelli (MA): What a start to our Summer Tour. Holy- well, thank you, guys for coming out. This is fantastic! We're so happy. And Laila, thank you. That was the best introduction we've ever gotten. (JN: Thank you, very much.) Usually it's like, "Here are these guys. They're going to do a thing." (MA, JN and audience laugh) So, we appreciate it and we just want to say that we are so happy to be meeting so many of you this summer as we head towards, the day.

JN: The month.

MA: The day. But first, as always, if you listened to PotterCast for any length of time, you know that we are sponsored by our lovely, lovely friends at Borders who actually are, way over there.

JN: I can see them from here. The big Borders tent. Make sure to stop by there. And Borders, Borders is part of the reason we're here; the reason we're everywhere this summer. So, (audience claps) big clap for Borders.

MA: They actually sponsored a second PotterCast, sort of, book discussion thing that you'll been hearing soon, seeing soon. It was videotaped, and they'll be putting it up on the website real soon, so keep an eye out for that. We also wanted to start today with a very special announcement, since you guys are all Chicagoans, or many of you are Chicagoans. How many of you aren't from Chicago? (loud cheers, JN laughs) Wow. Nice. (laughs) Well, we hope that you'll coming back, because we have been very secretive about where we're going to be for July 20th- because some details had yet to have fallen into place- but we've been invited by Anderson's Bookshop in Naperville, it's in Downers Grove, to come and do a very large podcast (JN: Huge!) and be part of their huge events. And we're very, very pleased to take them up on that offer, and so we hope that we will see you on July 20th. So, yeah. (audience cheers) Details about the weekend are forthcoming, there will be several podcasts, there will be events, there will be costume contests, there will be all sorts of mania. But on Saturday, we're doing nothing but reading. (all laugh)

JN: Yeah.

MA: Just telling you, now. Anyway, we wanted to start discussion today about a very special thing that came out yesterday.

JN: Yes.

MA: What could we possibly be talking about, but...?

JN: How many of you have seen the newest cover? Awesome. We were talking about it this morning, hoping most of you had seen it, so we could actually talk about it, but I didn't get to see it until late last night. I was travelling most of the day yesterday. But from what we have seen so far, we have come to a few semi-conclusion of what we think we're looking at. Melissa, was one of the first, I think, to spot out what particular dragon we're looking at here.

MA: I wasn't, because I called my friend immediately right after and "It's Norbert! I know it's Norbert and they got him back and oh, my gosh! They are flying on Norbert over the...!" and you know. And no. It's not Norbert. It can't be Norbert. He's got blind eyes and the only dragon that has those sorts of eyes in J.K. Rowling's world is the, wait- antipodean Opaleye. It's got pearly, iridescent scales. It is the only dragon that J.K. Rowling has created that is not dangerous, that is friendly to humans. Or we think. Don't poke it in its eye though, you know?

JN: No. All of that information comes from the Fantastic Beasts and creatures book. How many of you have that one? Mostly everyone. (MA: Yeah.) Very good.

MA: We knew there was going to be something in there (JN: And there it was.) that she threw in there. Say "Ah! but if you didn't read that book, you wouldn't have known, sucka!" So, here we have some information from the Harry Potter Lexicon, which is the encyclopedia for Harry Potter information on the 'net. Don't know what it is? I am sure you do. It's hp-lexicon.org. We love the dashes in our little Floo Network. (JN and MA laugh) The Antipodean Opaleye is from Australia/New Zealand, which is really interesting. Or, no, I'm sorry. We don't know that it's from- yes, we do. It's from Australia/New Zealand, which, Antipodes, from our research, Antipodeans are what you U.K. people call Australia or New Zealanders- is what it says in Wikipedia; which, you know, could be as accurate (JN: It's never wrong, Wikipedia.) as saying have left feet. I don't know. But, so it seems to make sense that from the U.K. they would call these dragons that thing. An antipode is the place you're standing, is the place at the diametric opposite of the Earth. So, if you burrowed through the Earth and got to the other side from where we are right now that would be the antipode. The closest antipode to England, to Britain are the Antipodes Islands is what they call them. It's off the southern coast of New Zealand. The actual antipode to those islands though is in France. So, (JN: Mm.) whatever. (audience laughs) (JN: Still cool.) So, what do you guys think they're going toward? What do you think they're flying into the sunset?

JN: Or, flying back from, perhaps.

Audience member: Godric's Hollow.

MA: You think it's Godric's Hollow? Down in the- see a lot of people have been saying that they- the houses in the front don't look like British countryside or British houses. Where, I don't know. I'm willing to bet there are some white-walled, red-roofed houses in Britain. Am I wrong? (audience mumbles)

Audience member: It looks like Romania.

MA: It looks like Romania.

JN: Romania.

Audience member: Romania.

MA: Yeah, Eastern Europe. France. There sees to be vineyards on the ground, if you look closely. So, what do you think, John?

JN: What do I think? Well, the first thing that really caught my eyes was the shape of Hermione and Ron's, in particular, robes while they were riding there. They were in terrible shape. Before I had seen it and I talked to Melissa she said, "Oh, Harry is wearing what looks like part of the same outfit he's wearing on the original U.S. cover that came out." And so, my thought was, gee, he was with Voldemort in our first cover, and he looked like the robes were in okay-shape. And now we see him again, and he's with the trio, and they're flying on a dragon, and they look like they have been through...

MA: A meat grinder?

JN: Yeah. So, my first thought was, "Oh, my God, did they just prove that the trio survives the battle with Voldemort?"

MA: What do you think?

Audience: Woo! Yeah!

MA: Yes?

Half of audience: Yes!

Other half of audience: No!

MA: Do you think this is the very end of the book on the cover?

Audience: No!

JN: I mean that'd be quite the giveaway. It'd be quite the giveaway. (audience laughs)

MA: Also quite the fake-out, (JN: Yeah.) that they all die. No! We actually got some information here last year, about this. Apparently, J.K. Rowling, when she went to Naperville or Downer's Grove, one of the Anderson stores, she was asked, back in 1998, "Will the trio survive?" and she said, "Yes." Let's hope she hasn't changed her mind!

JN: (laughing) That'd be quite a huge change-up for her, but I was never in the group of people that thought the trio couldn't possibly survive this whole thing. And one of the things we talked about last week. We're really jumping around here, but the big news of the theme park opening up in Orlando in a couple of years excites so many people. (audience cheers) It really excites me, but everybody was saying, "How could they do that, if the trio doesn't survive? Who would want to walk around in the magical world (audience laughs) of the dead trio?" And that would just be a bummer. Nobody would like that.

MA: Magical world of the dead trio. Come see their tombstones! (laughs) (audience laughs)

JN: That would be so sad. (MA: Fun!) Very sad. So, (MA: Oh.) seeing this again and seeing them with a sunset, with that kind of imagery of, you know, the day is closing, and the story is closing...

MA: They're riding into the sunset! What is not epic about that? They're riding into- that's what happened after I got over my "it's Norbert" thing. I was like, (JN: Yeah.) "They're on a dragon!" They're going- and I mean, this is how it should be. It seems like they fly something larger in each book.

JN: Sure. (laughs) (audience laughs) This is true.

MA: First, it's a broom. Then, (JN: Yeah.) it's a Thestral. Now, the biggest thing she can come up with...

JN: Well, don't forget Buckbeak, of course. (MA: Oh, Buckbeak.)

Audience member: The car! The car!

JN: Oh and the car, of course!

MA: The car. It's like she couldn't outdo herself, so she had to just, (to the audience) Huh?

Audience member: The phoenix!

JN: And the phoenix!

MA: And the phoenix!

JN: Coming out of the chamber, sure.

MA: They know more than we do, John. (audience laughs)

JN: They do. Well.

MA: That is their job.

JN: It's a shame. It's a shame. There's another quote about this cover that also, kinda, I thought led us to believe that this is a really big, important scene and it was- was it Arthur Levine? Or was it somebody involved (MA: Arthur Levine.) with Scholastic?

MA: Who is the editor of the American editions?

JN: He said it was one of his favorite scenes of the book and he almost insisted and begged, for this image to be used for the cover. So, if it is after they saw Voldemort and it isn't until after they defeated him.

9:18