PotterCast 111: Live with book 7 discussion Transcript

Part 1 (0:00 - 20:10)

Borders ad:Today's PotterCast is brought to you by Borders. Haven't read Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows yet? Don't worry, Borders is here to help. Pick up your copy of this summer smash hit soon– you won't be able to hide from the spoilers forever. You can count on Borders to have it in stock and have it ready to take home tonight, along with the audio book version. Even if you've read the book, the Harry Potter fun doesn't have to end yet! Visit BordersMedia.com or click on the Borders banner at the top of the PotterCast page to find out more.

Melissa Anelli (MA): Welcome, guys, to the first of many post-Deathly Hallows PotterCasts. Just a warning: if you haven't finished reading Deathly Hallows, you should probably stop this podcast. It will be full of spoilers. Fair warning! See ya soon! (Audience cheers) Right, this is mine. This one's Sue's.

Sue Upton (SU): Oh, sorry.

MA: You can't mess up the books.

John Noe (JN): Which one can I hold?

MA: That's Edward's, but you can have it. (JN: Oh, Edward.) That's our staffer, Edward's. Even though they're the exact same book, you cannot make the mistake (JN: No.) of switching books up. So, welcome. Our first ever live podcast after the last Harry Potter. (JN: Oh my gosh.) You guys are all done? (Audience: Yeah). So we can talk freely, right? (Audience: Yeah.) Yeah.

JN: First, about how many (MA laughs) more PotterCasts? I think we're quitting after 150, right?

MA: Stop.

SU: No! Don't listen to him.

MA: Don't say these things!

JN: No? I don't know.

MA: So, favorite book? (Audience member: No.) No? (Audience Members: Yes! Yes!) Yes? Okay, how about we do this. Whose favorite book is now Book Seven?

SU: Make some noise.

MA: Noise, because it's a podcast, yeah? (Audience cheers) Who did not like it? (Audience member cheers) (MA and Audience laugh) One girl in the back. (SU: Yeah.) Who- it's just not your favorite. (Audience members cheer)

MA: Fair enough, fair enough.

JN: I think it's my favorite.

MA: Yeah, it's John's favorite because he got about twelve things right.

JN: Yes. (SU: Yeah.) (Audience laughs) I did pretty good, I gotta say.

SU: That's awesome.

JN: No, we're not gonna dig into that all ready, are we?

MA: Well, I dunno! We're a little bit out of it; you have to excuse us a bit, as you guys can probably (JN: I think everybody's out of it.) imagine, we're like, "Oh my God, we just read Harry Potter," you know?

SU: There's so much to process, it's so hard, I mean it was so emotional. I can't get over the emotion of this book. I mean, not just what we brought into it waiting all this time, but what was in the book, it was just...

JN: Well, Sue was the first to finish of our three here. (SU: Yeah.) Sue finished (MA: Like five hours.) maybe ten hours before I did, or something. (SU: Yeah, yeah.) I was the last- one of the last in the whole house.

SU: And it was hard not to go round squeeing a lot, too. (Audience laughs) It was really hard.

MA: Yeah, but you know, Sue can't hide it, she comes into- like me and two of my best friends were in the bedroom, we were reading, and Sue comes in and there's tears coming down her face, but she's like- (Audience laughs) beaming, she can't help it. It's just present in her face, the smile. (SU: Yeah.) So I knew it was gonna be okay, I think, from your reaction. (SU: Yeah.) Whose predictions were right on target here? Make noise. (Audience members cheer) Who was totally blind sided, gobsmacked by everything? (Audience member: Yeah!) Yeah! (laughs) (SU: Yay!) He's psyched about it, too. Which part surprised you the most? That Draco lives?

SU: Draco lived. A lot of people...

JN: Yeah. That was my big prediction that I got wrong. Yeah. Draco dead by Chapter Five. (Audience laughs) We didn't even see him until Chapter Twelve, or something.

SU: Yeah. That's right, first it was Chapter Two, and then it was Five.

MA: And not only that, he was necessary, (SU: Yeah.) (JN: Yeah.) because the Elder Wand was his. What is that about?

JN: I don't even understand the Elder Wand thing.

MA: Yeah, silence. (laughs) Yeah. It took a long time to kind of get. It took a lot of explanation.

Audience member: That whole Deathly Hallows- what they were and how...

MA: But I think it's only right that the Deathly Hallows were something that we could not have possibly guessed beforehand. (Audience members: Yes.) Like, she made up whole lore for that. Just like the Goblet of Fire was not something we could have guessed, the Half-Blood Prince was not something- (JN: Yeah.) you know?

JN: It's interesting with the Hallows in that Dumbledore said that that was what he was pursuing, that was his way of trying to pursue this greater power while Voldemort was pursuing Horcruxes. Like they're kind of opposites- but not opposites, but that they're similar and just opposite in their technique and how they go about doing it. But I don't think having the three Hallows- that doesn't make you immortal like the Horcruxes, does it?

MA: No, I think it's just this arrogant belief that if you have the three Hallows, you are the master of death.

JN: You're really powerful or something.

MA: Yeah. And it's all a bunch of junk, as Harry discards it right at the end. He's like, "Well, whatever. Who wants immortality?" Hm?

Audience member: I don't like that he did that.

MA: That he did that. That he gave the Elder Wand to Ron.

JN: They're gonna have a bunch of centaur ghosts running around in the Forbidden Forest now, because one of them's gonna pick up the ring and is gonna be like, "Ooh! (Audience laughs) The Resurrection Ring. Let's bring back all the dead centaurs."

MA: Yeah, no.

SU: That's very Frodo-esque of you. Very Gollum-like. I don't know that that will happen.

JN: Yeah, well he just leaves it in the forest like that, you know?

MA: Well, that is very Lord of the Rings-like, because you know the ring disappears down a, whatever, (SU: And Gollum finds it.) a river or whatever for however many years and Gollum finds it.

Audience member: Well, the lava...

MA: Huh?

JN: Yeah, he should have took it to Mordor.

SU: Well, it was ultimately destroyed at the end of that, you know the earth- that first story, if you go back- but we're not gonna talk about that now. (Audience laughs)

MA: But it does- I mean she sort of- there's no definite end to those things. (SU: Right.) Ron still has the wand, Harry still has the invisibility cloak, and the Resurrection Stone is lost. So, it's sort of the way...

JN: Wait, Ron still has the wand? I thought they gave...

MA: Harry gave it to Ron.

Audience: No!

JN: No, I thought Ron was like, "I want the wand."

MA: Did I get it wrong?

Audience: Yes!

JN: No, no, no. (Audience members talk)

MA: Whoa! Everybody chill. Oh, my gosh. (Audience laughs)

JN: They were going to put it back where it was, (SU: Back in Dumbledore's grave, right?) which is back in the tomb. And Harry said if he dies a natural death, then the Elder Wand's spell would be broken. No one would have it.

SU: Would that be back with Dumbledore, then, right? (JN: Yeah.) In the tomb?

JN: Yeah.

MA: Oh, I got it. Sorry.

JN: And Ron was like, "Oh, really? That wand would be fun to have." And Harry was like "No."

MA: Back where it came from.

JN: "That would be bad."

SU: "Fun to have." Yeah, I guess it would be kinda fun.

JN: Yeah.

MA: Wow, I totally missed that. Woo! See, but this happens when you read this. It just sorta- all the details you get a little hazy on it.

JN: That's part of the reason why I was kinda slow in this- is that there's so many times where I would just stop on a page and just keep reading it until it made sense, 'cause there's so much stuff in there. You read it the one time- the chapter that still baffles me is when they go up to Godric's Hollow (SU: Yeah.) and they follow the Mafilda whatever her name is. (SU: Bathilda.) (MA: Bathilda Bagshot.) Who was the snake, apparently.

MA: Such a gross image, that she like melts away and the snake is coming out of her. Blegh.

SU: Wasn't that- that really revolted me, I have to say.

JN: Well, she was dead for months, I guess, and the snake was just assuming her identity or something.

SU: But to make it that vivid, I just was...

JN: There's a lot of very vivid, gross...

SU: I just thought it was an act of pure evil. I could not describe that in any other way.

MA: Well, but that's- but that in particular was very sci-fi. (SU: Yes, it was.) It seemed like a scene from Independence Day, or something, (SU: Yeah.) (Audience laughs) with like the snake coming out of the top- (JN: Coming out of her neck.) came out of her neck, you know? Blegh. Blegh. Blegh.

JN: Like a caterpillar in a cocoon.

MA; But then again, I mean Book One. A double murder, two-headed- (SU: Sure.) (JN: Sure.) two-faced head. You know? Sucking blood out of a unicorn. This was never going to be anything but...

JN: Yeah, but there's a lot more vivid detail, though. Like when they talk about how- what is it? George's ear gets cut off, (SU: Oh!) and all the blood. (MA laughs) There's so much blood in this book! My gosh! (MA: I'm sorry!) And Ron getting splinched (MA: Ooh.) (SU: Ooh.) and having all (Audience: Ah.) the guts and all that. Ah, geez...

MA: But Fred and George...

SU: Oh, don't mention that. (MA: No, but...) It makes me so sad.

MA: Okay, okay, everybody be happy right now, cause we're not gonna get to that part yet. (Audience laughs) We're gonna pretend that didn't happen for the time being. (SU: Good, okay.) We're here in the book. (JN: All right.) How funny were they throughout this entire- every time you saw them it was something funnier and funnier.

SU: Holey! (laughs)

MA: Ear, ear!

SU: Ear, ear!

JN: Yeah. (Audience laughs)

MA: They just- but, you're sort of- every time she focuses on certain people like that they end up under her knife!

JN: It's a bummer.

SU: Bummer, yeah. Nice under statement.

MA: It's horrible! I wanted to hear about George at the end. What about you guys?

JN: Yeah.

Audience: Yeah.

Audience member: And what about Luna?

MA: And what about Luna? Didn't Luna go skipping off holding hands with Dean?

SU: Yeah.

JN: Hm.

MA: Is that right?

Audience member: Seemed like that.

MA: Who else melted when you saw Luna's bedroom?

SU: I did!

JN: Oh, the friends picture with everybody, written in gold all over and over again? Aw. I don't know nothing devastated me as much as poor Dobby and Hedwig. (Audience: Oh!) What the hell? (MA laughs)

SU: You've gone right into the sad things! Right into the sad things I wanted to talk a happy thought and there you were!

MA: I know, but the sad thing are just like right there!

JN: I'm sorry, but we just figured out in the car today that Hedwig's death is a direct result of Dumbledore.

MA: Dumbledore's Portrait...

JN: Dumbledore sent Hedwig and Mad-Eye to their deaths because he was the one that said, "You have to tell them the accurate date to when Harry was going to be leaving." And he did, and the Death Eaters were ready and Mad-Eye kicks it and poor Hedwig kicks it and explodes on top of it. (MA: Explodes.) (Audience laughs) Let's not just kill her, let's make her explode.

SU: I mean with the ramifications of that. Here is Mad-Eye Moody who has been one of his most loyal, most dedicated friends for many, many years- not just you know a member of The Order but his friend and I just- (JN: Yeah.) that made me very just...

MA: The "Fallen Warrior" chapter art is some of the most beautiful chapter art. (SU: Isn't it though?) I know you guys can't see it (SU: Chapter art.) but you see The Burrow in the background and everyone staring up into the sky waiting for him to you know. When he...

JN: Which one is that?

MA: The "Fallen Warrior" the one where Moody dies.

SU: Yeah.

JN: The funny part about that is that we didn't know Moody had died at that point we only knew that Hedwig died so we were all (MA laughs) like Hedwig's the fallen warrior and everyone's like no! Hedwig! (MA: Hedwig!) Everybody's moaning.

SU: I got to say they way she started the book- I'm always interest in how the beginning- how you go back and talk about how she started each book and remember the first sentence. That first chapter with the teacher totally took me by surprise. I could not get over...

JN: Who was worried that was Dumbledore?

SU: The body?

MA: No.

JN: The body on the ceiling. I was worried that might have been Dumbledore.

SU: Or McGonagall.

MA: I think she would have made- I think that if there was going to be desecration of his tomb, which obviously there was, she would point that out. It's not something that you gloss over, "Oh, by the way it's Dumbledore, and we went into his tomb and got him." (JN: Yeah.) You know? So- because that's a supreme holiness breaking into someone's- (JN: Awful.) that's a desecration that's- (SU: Yeah.) really devilish in most...

SU: But he did desecrate it right? Because he went in there...

MA: Oh, yeah, no. He did desecrate it. (JN: he got in the tomb. he got the wand.) But that's what I'm saying. We saw it. We wouldn't not see that. (SU: Oh, right. Okay.) "Oh, by the way I went to Dumbledore's tomb. (laughs) Forgot to tell you." You know?

SU: The fact that they did that- there was no holds barred. None in this book. Nothing. I didn't think there was...

MA: No, it was just war scene after war scene after war scene. Everybody- my friends David and Kathleen are here and we were reading it and my friend David for the past three books has been saying whenever we get to like a real big battle scene or it seemed like the stakes are- "It is not a game it is not a game anymore." But this time he was like "There are no games! How many game are in there? None! This is a no game book!" Everytime- and it's true! Everything was out there on the table. We felt that especially when we saw Numergard? Nurmergard? (JN: Yeah.) Wherever Grindelwald was being held.

SU: Yeah. Oh, man! Just- Grindelwald was there! All these little things that we have just thought about and then discarded as you go along, and there he is!

JN: Yeah.

MA: Okay, we gotta talk about this. We just have to. Grindelwald was there. She had said in a chat that- I'm sorry, in an interview I did with her in 2005 she had told us that Grindelwald was dead. (SU: Right.) Certain other things- there are certain other contradictions. The Fidelius Charm. On JK's website she says that when a Secret Keeper dies the secret goes with him. But either she never specified or she directly contradicted. I haven't gone and re-read the wording yet. That now we get this lore that when the Secret Keeper dies, everybody he's told the secret to becomes a Secret Keeper in turn. (JN: Yeah.) It doesn't- It's not like- (sighs)

JN: (sighs) Unless the Secret Keeper never told anybody, (MA: Right.) well then the secret would die with him, but she didn't say anything like anybody else they told would also be Secret Keeper.

SU: I think that was just...

MA: No, but it's not. It's only anybody else they told and then the original Secret Keeper dies. (JN: Yeah.) So they weren't Secret Keepers until Dumbledore died. (JN: Yeah.) So, maybe there's like a loophole there, but it's...

SU: It's just- yeah.

JN: It's tough.

MA: And Hermione Jean Weasley. (SU: Yes. Did you catch that?) We all thought her middle name was Jane.

JN: No, I didn't read that. I remember reading that. When was that?

MA: It was in a chat in 2004. Her World Book Day online chat. She said...

JN: When did they say her name here?

MA: When she was presented with the stuff from Dumbledore's will.

SU: Yeah, Jean. (MA: Yeah. Jean.) But she said it was Jane. So, that was kind of interesting.

MA: Okay, let's do favorite moments because I want to get happier here. (SU: Yes.) Sue?

SU: Oh, I just have to- you know it's coming. Hufflepuff, baby! They came through at the end. Rock on with Neville and the Venomous Tentaculas.

MA: Neville's not a Hufflepuff.

JN: Yeah.

SU: But Professor Sprout was leading, though. I couldn't go all like that with the Venomous Tentaculas. I love that.

MA: Yeah. I just love that they got this big battle with all the weapons you could imagine and Neville's coming out with plants. (Audience laughs)

SU: I know. The mandrakes. The earmuffs. I mean wasn't that squeeful?

MA: Throwing green things. (laughs)

JN: Yeah. They were throwing everything at each other. You had Trelawney tennis-serving crystal balls. (SU: Crystal balls? She did. Woo hoo!) So cool.

SU: That was great.

MA: McGonagall with the desks. (Audience member: Trelawney was...) Charge.

SU: But yeah. That whole...

MA: Trelawney. "I have more for anyone who wants them!" (laughs)

JN: McGonagall activated the most amazing defense Hogwarts can do. (SU: Absolutely.) With her- what was it? (MA: Let me see.) Something Locomortis something. But basically translation she activated the knights of Hogwarts. (SU: Yes! Rock on!) The knights of armor all came to life. (SU: Awesome.) (MA: Which, we have to say...) Which we called three weeks ago, I think. (Audience laughs)

SU: Yes, we did.

MA: John did. John out of nowhere on a podcast one day said, "Wouldn't it be cool if..."

SU: Well, we had a whole talk about that.

JN: It was the L.A. show, I think it was.

SU: Well, we had talked about that though before. Yeah, so. It was awesome.

MA: Oh, gosh. What's your favorite?

SU: That whole chapter.

JN: My favorite? Oh, man. (sighs)

MA: We're still re-reading. (laughs) It's like, "Sorry guys, hang on a second."

JN: I have to look at the front because it's like...

SU: I have to say one other thing. Can I say one other thing? (JN: Sure.) I have two. That the Hufflepuff cup was in the Gringotts vault.

MA: Was in the Gringott's vault.

JN: Yes. Finding the Horcrux in the bottom of the vault.

SU: They tried to Accio it and there's like a thousand cups.

JN: My joke had always been they'd all all be in there. That'd be the joke.

MA: But you said it'd be like Voldemort's safety deposit box.

JN: Safety deposit box. Yeah.

SU: Oh, that's right. Yeah. (Audience laughs)

JN: It'd all be right there.

MA: Get his key. Get the hammer. Bang, bang, bang. Horcruxes done.

JN: Yeah, exactly.

MA: Yeah! Nothing made me cry. Not Harry dying, not any of it until Neville walked forward and sliced Nagini's fricking head off!

JN: That made you cry? (Audience laughs)

MA: Thank you. But that was it for the rest of the book. And Molly! I've got it open.

SU: Molly! (SU and Audience applaud) Woo!

MA: This is my favorite moment in all seven books. "Not my daughter, you something-we-still-won't-say-on-this-podcast." But you get the idea. (JN: Yeah. Oh, man.) John you still don't have your favorite moment.

SU: Oh, Yeah. Come on, John.

JN: I'm looking at the chapter titles to help remind me here. The ghoul, that was weird. That was gross.

SU: So, okay. Instead of talking about- can we address your hero? (JN: What's that?) Your hero. Your friend.

JN: Now, explain to me why when you get an "O" in every single one of your N.E.W.T.S. everybody can take advantage of you throughout the whole book.

MA: Including Neville's grandmother.

JN: Including Neville's grandmother.

SU: Mr. Dawlish.

MA: Dawlish.

JN: Dawlish was mentioned five or six times. (Audience laughs)

MA: This is like Dawlish's book.

JN: And every time Dawlish was mentioned it was somebody cursing him, or jinxing him, or putting him in St. Mungo's. (MA: Confunding him.) Yeah.

MA: And at the end it's Neville's grandmother who gets the best of him.

JN: I mean, come on. (Audience laughs)

MA: It's not anybody's grandmother. It's Neville Longbottom's grandmother. (JN: I know!) Even Voldemort wanted Neville Longbottom. (SU: That's true.) Did you see that? "We need your kind, Neville Longbottom." Voldemort saying that to Neville. (JN: Woo.) Not a chance.

JN: Well, you guys know why I still don't mind whatever the guy does because, if you've seen Pottercast.com, you'll know that Jo has officially given Dawlish a first name which is now John. (Audience laughs) (SU: She did. Yes!) (Audience applauds) John Dawlish. (SU: Yay!) It's pretty cool.

SU: That's so awesome.

JN: We gotta say...

MA: We gotta take everything he says more seriously now because he's canon.

JN: I am canon. (Audience laughs) I'm the voice of reason suddenly.

MA: He's not going to be insufferable at all.

SU: Well, he may be canon, but I'm not going to take him seriously. (MA laughs)

JN: I'm still waiting for my call from Steve Vander Ark- (SU laughs) Or my call with Steve Vander Ark. (SU: That'd be awesome.) Because my gut feeling is that he's not going to put it in the Lexicon without huge asterisks that are saying (SU laughs) "This is something John Noe did so it's probably not accurate". (Audience laughs) But I assure you there's no lies here.

MA: You still don't have a big favorite moment?

JN: I love the dragon scene. (MA: Yeah.)(SU: Oh, that's brilliant.) That was awesome. It was less than what I thought it was going to be and it was really, really Gryffindor of these kids to go up on the dragon that if it were to tilt the wrong way, they'd be flying down, free falling for thousands of feet in the air.

MA: (laughs) Hermione's crying the whole time (JN and Audience laughs) Oh, Hermione. I love it. Yes, they're still brave and they've grown in many ways but she hates flying. Okay, gotta say it. The Ron Hermione kiss. (Audience cheers)

JN: Who knows what page it is? Who memorized the page already?

MA: Six twenty-five. (Audience laughs)

JN: Six twenty-five. (MA laughs) I'm waiting for the shirts that come out with, you know Ron/Hermione.

MA and JN: Six two five.

SU: Was it as good a moment for you?

MA: Yes. She made us wait 'til the last two hundred pages of the last book for that kiss and it was the House-Elves. It was Ron saying something about the House-Elves, of all things, that Hermione goes flying at him. But the best ever was Harry, "Oy! There's a war going on here! (Audience laughs) Is this really the time?"

JN: I just can't imagine that that was their first kiss. (MA: It was.) (SU: It was.) They fell asleep holding hands. They're in a tent together for weeks. (Audience laughs) With no adult supervision. I mean, come on you two.

SU: Oh, but it was such a magic- he picked her up! You can see that love. (JN: Yeah.) I just think it was awesome, man.

MA: Oh! It was great. So many great moments.

JN: Not enough Ginny, though.

MA: There's plenty of Ginny.

SU: He snogged her in the beginning.

JN: No, Ginny's around to make out a few times. (MA laughs) Then she's gone for the whole book and then she's there...

MA: Yeah, but that was quite a makeout session, I got to say. (JN: Yeah.) She even used the phrase, "And then she was kissing him as she never kissed anything," or something really- yeah, but...

JN: I mean a lot of people felt- a lot of fans wanted Ginny to join the little Horcrux hunt but really it is a story about the trio. (MA: Yeah.) She would kind of be a little screwing that up quite a bit.

MA: Even at the end, it was the trio (JN: Yeah.) walking into Dumbledore's office, you know? (JN: That's true.) When they were all like, "What are you doing? Why are you keeping this secret?" And he's, "Why am I keeping this secret?"

JN: Yeah. I still have not made up my mind about Dumbledore. Because there's one point when I was reading and it was before the scene- what's it called the King's Cross chapter? (SU: Yeah.) And I'm like, "Wow!" I totally changed my mind about Gambon because if this is who Dumbledore really is, then Gambon's playing him fine. (Some Audience members laugh) (MA: That's a good point. That's a good point.) Because, I'll be darned. Because, you know, when he had the conversation with Snape in "The Prince's Tale," Snape's like, "You've been using me this whole time. You didn't need to keep this kid alive. It wasn't because he was Lily's son. It was just because you needed him to stay alive until this point and then it doesn't matter what happens to him." And Dumbledore's like, "Well does that really surprise you, Snape? You know how many people have died for the cause along the way here. Why does it surprise you for him?" To talk about Harry like he's just another pawn on the board. I don't know where this "Dumbledore loves Harry" is coming from after that.