MuggleCast 83 Transcript
Show Intro
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Andrew: This week’s MuggleCast is also brought to you by Borders. Prepare for the upcoming release of Book 7 by catching a glimpse of where it all began. During the month of April you can purchase Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone on DVD for only $14.99 at Borders. Also be sure to reserve Book 7 at Borders at 40 percent off and get a free sticker. Choose from “Trust Snape” or “Snape is a very bad man.”
[Intro music begins to play]
Eric: Because, because, because, because, because of the magical things we do, this is MuggleCast Episode 83 for April 1st, 2007.
[Intro music continues to play]
Andrew: All right guys, this is the end of the beginning of the end.
Jamie: It is.
Andrew: Does that make sense to you?
Eric: Yep.
Jamie: yes.
Andrew: I mean when we were talking about the release date, I was like, “It’s the beginning of the end!” and now it’s the end of the beginning of the end. I guess you could also say it’s the end of the beginning of the end of the beginning of the end of the beginning of the end of the beginning of…
Jamie: And then all that in brackets, Andrew.
Laura: Yes.
Jamie: All that in brackets and then “of the end” at the end, because all that’s at the end. It’s that big.
[Andrew laughs]
Laura: Very prophetic.
Andrew: Welcome everyone, to the show. Micah, you got your wish.
Micah: I did.
Eric: Not his wish, it was his command.
Andrew: Command.
Eric: Micah’s got the certainty and he’s got the tools and the power to make things happen.
Jamie: And the uh-huh-huh?
Andrew: Micah you know, you know, every time you make one of these, I don’t have any faith in you, but then sure enough, not days, hours, days later, you get results. I’m impressed.
Jamie: Micah, Micah, I’m a bit broke at the moment, so do you think you can ask her if she can give us a few million?
[Everyone laughs]
Micah: Yeah, sure. I’ll put in that request.
Jamie: Because I need a new fridge. Thank you very much.
Micah: But I can’t do that on the show, though, that wouldn’t be right.
Jamie: Well, if you just send her an e-mail to her private e-mail address, that would be fine.
Micah: Off-air, off-air. Yeah.
Andrew: In case you guys forgot, today is April Fool’s Day, but unfortunately we have no time for games or jokes or pranks because we have the cover to discuss. We have a lot to discuss about the cover. We also have an exciting little news piece that we all received earlier this week, but we’ll get to that a little bit later.
Jamie: Are you sure you’re going to…
Andrew: Hmmm.
Jamie: …are we definitely talking about that, Andrew?
Andrew: We’re going to talk about it. I’ve gotten clearance from the right people, and…
Jamie: Have we got advice from our legal team?
Andrew: …we have nothing to lose at this point. I really don’t think. It’s the final book.
Jamie: You’re right. Yeah, it’s true. Yeah. Harry Potter’s almost over. You’re absolutely right. Let’s just go for it.
Andrew: Okay. All right, I’m Andrew Sims.
Jamie: I’m Jamie Lawrence.
Eric: I’m Eric Scull.
Laura: I’m Laura Thompson.
Micah: and I’m Micah Tannenbaum.
[Intro music continues to play]
News
Andrew: All right, Micah Tannenbaum is standing by in the MuggleCast news center with the past week’s top Harry Potter news stories. Micah, what could possibly be on the news table today?
Micah: Thanks, Simsy. Of course, the big news this week a new portrait was released of Gary Oldman in the character of Sirius Black for the upcoming Order of the Phoenix movie. I’m just kidding. Back on Wednesday, Bloomsbury and Scholastic together released the cover art for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. The full jacket for the US version shows both Harry and Voldemort apparently engaged in a bit of wand-less magic. The UK children’s edition, however, is a bit more descriptive. We’ll discuss all that later in the show and the British adult version of the book appears to have Slytherin’s locket on the cover.
Bloomsbury also announced today that the UK edition will be 608 pages long. As previously announced the US version of the book will have 784 pages, making it longer than Goblet of Fire. However, the UK page count makes Deathly Hallows shorter than the British Goblet of Fire. Who cares about the page count? We’re all going to read the book anyway.
On The Today Show, US Editor of the Harry Potter books, Arthur Levine, stated that “We’re seeing Harry in a very interesting situation. Readers will find out exactly what the situation is.” He was of course referring to the cover art. He also stated that this was a very emotional book for him to read.
And it was announced earlier this week that the US Deathly Hallows audiobook will be released on July 21st, the same day that the book comes out. The Listening Library (which creates the audiobooks) also said that the story will run over 21 hours and retail for $79.95.
Last September, Entertainment Weekly caught up with the actors on the Order of the Phoenix set where they were in the midst of shooting the climax Department-of-Mysteries sequences. Be sure to check out all of the interview over on Mugglenet.com.
And finally, a listing on Amazon.com has revealed that the Order of the Phoenix soundtrack will be released on July 10th at a price of $18.95. And I wasn’t joking earlier about the portrait of Sirius Black. You can check out all of the new photos from Order of the Phoenix that came out this past week over on Mugglenet.com.
That’s all the news for this April 1st, 2007 edition of MuggleCast, back to the show.
Andrew: All right, thank you, Micah.
[Intro music ends]
Micah: I don’t think there’s anything – no news this week, guys, right?
Jamie: Nothing, nothing.
Micah: Nothing big, nothing major.
Andrew: Actually, we’re going to discuss it all. You don’t even need a news segment. Guess it’s a little late now, because it just played. I mean – whoops.
Eric: Ha ha. Whoops.
Announcements
Andrew: But anyway, we have a few announcements to get to – actually we just have a couple quick announcements to get to first, and then we’ll move on to the main story this week, of course the three covers being released. We want to remind everyone to vote for us at Podcast Alley. We’re number two — we’re at the number two spot right now, actually- but it’s going to be a new month today, starting today, it’s a new month over at Podcast Alley so place your vote for us to keep us up top.
Jamie: Please.
Andrew: And we appreciate that very much. Also, a special programming note: Jamie your special episode is coming this Wednesday.
Jamie: It is.
Andrew: What do we have to look forward to?
Jamie: I thought I’d give them a – well, it’s a kind of – it is isn’t a totally normal show. It’s a special show. What we’ve done is we’ve recycled some of the old segments we used to use – albeit not too well in some cases, but we’ve recycled them and hopefully it will be a trip down memory lane for everyone who has been listening awhile. We’ve done such favorites as Spy on Spartz, What if, the Dueling Club and stuff like that, so look forward to that on Wednesday.
Cover Discussion Initial Reaction
Andrew: Yes, very much. So, we’ll look forward to that. All right, so let’s get right into our main discussion this week. Of course the covers were all released this past Wednesday, March 28, 7:00 A.M. in the morning. Were you guys up.
Jamie: I was up.
Andrew: You were, Jamie. It was noon your time, wasn’t it?
Laura: No.
Micah: Yes.
Jamie: Yes, it was. Actually, I lied. I actually wasn’t up. I had quite a lie-in today.
Andrew: Oh, did you?
Jamie: A 3:00 P.M. lie in.
Andrew: Oh, yeah.
Jamie: I went to bed extremely, extremely late, because, because the new Prison Break came out yesterday and I wanted to watch it and I couldn’t because it was taking a long time to, ummm…
Eric: Oooh.
Micah: Come through the TV across the Atlantic.
Jamie: Download? To come through the TV, yeah. And it was taking so long to do that I had to wait and wait and wait and wait and finally it did it and it was awesome, so I’m so glad I stayed up.
Andrew: So, we got the cover…
Jamie: So, yeah. We got the covers.
Andrew: [laughs] And gosh, I don’t even know where to start. There’s so much to talk about. I guess we’ll start with initial reactions because when I first saw the United States edition, I just thought it was a little too simplistic at first.
Jamie: What?
Andrew: The cover…
Jamie: It’s just a picture of Harry. [laughs]
Andrew: I mean compared to the previous books, I mean, I really think the first book had the most detail in it. There’s a lot going on the front cover and even on the back cover, and I don’t know – what do you think, Laura? The seventh one, it just – it was very bare, but I think there was a lot of meaning behind all of it.
Laura: Yeah, I think so too. Whenever I first saw it, in the initial thumbnail size, I was like ‘What is this? It’s just a picture of Harry?’ And when I pulled it up I was kind of disappointed with it at first. Because I just – like you said – it just seemed way too simple, but then the more and more I looked at it, I started noticing things like, in my humble opinion, they’re in the Death Chamber, and you notice the shadows of all the people standing around the edges of where they are. You notice that their standing up on rubble and all sorts of stuff. So you know there’s got to be something going down at the Ministry. And, you know, it kind of grew on me a little bit. I like the colors. I like the way Harry’s presented.
Jamie: See? I just could not get excited about it. I can’t put much thought by the book covers and I think they’re book covers because the first thing you look at when you enter the store is the book cover so they’re made to be attractive and you know, be colorful and to draw people’s attention. And they aren’t made to be true to the things. And although there will be hidden details, it’s extremely exciting to look for, that comes after your initial reaction. So first of all I didn’t really, I wasn’t too, I don’t want to say I wasn’t too bothered because I was extremely excited, but it wasn’t like the title I jumped up and down and broke six windows before I finally calmed down.
[Andrew laughs]
Eric: Jamie that surprises me though, Jamie, because…
Jamie: Why? Did you break seven?
Eric: I did.
[Everyone laugh]
Eric: But also because the UK covers and you’ll presumably be getting a UK book…
Jamie: Actually Eric I’m going to fly over…
Eric: Oh, right. Well, no, I figured you’d be here in July.
[Andrew laughs]
Eric: So, I don’t know. You’ll be getting…what will be the first copy you
read?
Jamie: I’m going to get a British one. I must say I’ve always liked the British ones more than the US ones…
Laura: Me too.
Jamie: And this is no exception, I must say, I think this one’s amazing. Actually I can’t believe I just said after I said I wasn’t excited, but this one is pretty cool…
Eric: Right, you broke your own rule there. I’m actually pretty excited. But I was the opposite, Jamie. I actually preferred some of the US covers at least…
Jamie: Yeah.
Eric: …for Order of the Phoenix, especially. Even though the phoenix is awesome, they kind of go hand in hand.
Jamie: Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
Eric: It didn’t really show favoritism.
Jamie: Yeah.
Eric: But not that it’s that different with Book 7, but if you look at the UK cover, which is the one you’ll be getting and the one I’ll be getting here in New Zealand…
Jamie: Yeah.
Eric: It’s just absolutely…every book kind of has a color scheme as Alice was saying to me the other night, just last night, because we found out at 2 o’clock this morning. Thanks Andrew! And every book has kind of a color scheme but this one, this UK edition has every single color and every thing. It’s a variety of hues. All sorts of blues and gold, and I don’t even know what they are doing, but…
Andrew: It’s a very colorful book and I think that’s one of the things that struck me about this UK version was that how colorful it was. I just don’t see the book being – because when I think colorful, I think cheery and bright.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: And this one’s very vibrant with very sharp colors…
Eric: Exactly.
Jamie: But…
Andrew: And it was sort of like this can’t represent the final book. The book’s going to be so dark.
Jamie; But…
Andrew: But…
Eric: It’s ironic.
Jamie: Didn’t you guys notice the background color, black, symbolizes death, mourning…
Eric: Yeah.
Jamie: You know, that’s what I saw first of all. I thought, “Oh my god! It’s black.” You know, the back thing is black. And first impression was the castle on the back looked like a sort of Disney palace: Aladdin’s palace.
UK Edition: Hogwarts?
Laura: Yeah, you guys don’t think that’s Hogwarts, do you?
Andrew: Well, let’s start with that. Let’s try to move from one thing, to another.
Laura: Yeah.
Micah: Yeah.
Andrew: I mean, there’s tons of things to talk about…
Micah: I agree with that.
Andrew: Do you think it’s Hogwarts? I think it is! It’s got to be.
Laura: I don’t think so…
Jamie: I think it’s got to be as well.
Eric: It is. It’s that simple. It’s Hogwarts.
Jamie: I’m expecting too see Jafar come around the corner…
[Everyone laughs]
Micah: Yeah.
Andrew: It looks like it’s from Aladdin.
Micah: The tree is there.
Andrew: I mean…
Jamie: And the flying carpet.
Andrew: I think the castle’s lit up like that, like it’s being illuminated by the moonlight.
Jamie: Yeah.
Andrew: Because that moon is so huge that it’s sort of- But that wouldn’t explain why it would be completely- It’s almost like, I would say, it would be iced over.
Eric: Yeah…
Jamie: It does. An ice palace.
Laura: Well, it almost looks the way that it’s very rounded, like the towers and stuff.
Jamie: Yeah.
Laura: Have you noticed that? It almost has a very Arabian-type look to it.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: Well…
Laura: It doesn’t look like it’s thousands of years old…
Eric: If you think about it…
Laura: It doesn’t look like it’s one thousand years old.
Micah: Well the Whomping Willow is there.
Andrew: Is that the Whomping Willow? It must be…
Eric: It’s a tree and it’s black. That’s actually the thing that I was going to
point out is even though there is a lot of color, if you look the far left on the back cover it’s – you know right near the ISBN…
Jamie: Yeah.
Eric: …there’s the black kind of darkness, dark shroud that the cloud, the blue chilly icy moon light’ an almost ice palace. I’m going to go out on foreshadowing here and say the circular tower structures represent time being circular and everything coming full circle and the whole series is just… Bah, I think it’s Hogwarts.
Jamie: [singing] One step, ahead of the…Hogwarts
Eric: [singing] Breadline. [starts snapping his fingers] One step ahead of the mob. I…
Laura: I don’t know…you guys, I mean, Jamie…
Eric: Sorry.
Jamie: Has what? Sorry.
Micah: Jamie, has Hogwarts ever been displayed on the books before?
Laura: I think so because…
Jamie: Ah, you know what? I don’t know because…
Laura: In the…
Jamie: I’ve left my books at university and I’m home now. [laughs] And I can’t remember.
Laura: Well, in the Goblet of Fire version…
Jamie: Oh!
Laura: …I can’t remember if it shows up on the cover, but I know that on the inside flap it shows the inside of Hogwarts.
Jamie: Yeah, what clearly, I mean this is different. This moonlight think doesn’t…
Laura: Doesn’t look natural.
Jamie: The moonlight’s the big thing in this. Do you think it’s a werewolf reference? Or…
Andrew: I mean it could be, I mean those clouds are really eerie too. They’re not just up in the sky, they’re like rolling onto Hogwarts, it almost looks like.
Jamie: Yeah.
Andrew: So, that’s kind of interesting.
Micah: It’s eerie, but it’s almost calming in a way. It looks like everything is very peaceful. Almost like a calm before the storm.
Jamie: Yeah.
Andrew: Well yeah, if that is Hogwarts what on earth is that symbolizing, the icy Hogwarts I’m just going to keep calling it.
Jamie: No, call it -I don’t know, Aladdin’s palace.
Andrew: [laughs] Yeah I mean, just real quick…
Laura: Oh, go ahead.
Andrew: The Hogwarts ground is closest to you is perspective. The grounds are green and then the rest is all icy. It’s kind of weird. What were you thinking
Laura?
Jamie: Perhaps it’s a Dementor thing.
Andrew: Oh maybe.
Laura: Well what I was thinking was if you look at the front of that cover the trio, they are all sitting on this pile of gold and gold and rubies and all of this different…
Jamie: That’s really interestin.
Eric: It is.
Laura: All of this talisman-looking things, but those seem to match the palace looking thing a lot better than they would match Hogwarts.
Andrew: That’s a good point.
Laura: You know, because it seems like the whole theme of that cover is items of value, almost.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: I think it’s too late to introduce a whole ‘nother castle into the series, I mean I think it’s very…
Jamie: Perhaps it’s Beauxbatons?
Eric: It could be, maybe.
Jamie: That’s the kind of impression I got. The willowy air of…
Laura: Yeah, maybe.
Jamie: …of, you know, Fleur. That looks very Beauxbatonish.
Andrew: Oh yeah.
Duck Tales
Jamie: Very Beauxbatonish, but this treasure thing it really interested me because it actually reminds me of -and if anyone’s seen this please tell me because I don’t think I’ve heard of anyone who has ever seen this – there was a cartoon, Duck Tales, and they had…
Eric: Yeah.
Jamie: …a special called Treasure of the Lost Land?
Eric: Yup.
Jamie: And there was this warlock who would – oh what was his name? I don’t remember his name. Morlock or something like that. And he stole this treasure. And this treasure just looks identical to that. And that has made no perceptive point about Harry Potter whatsoever, but I just thought I’d mention it.
Eric: [laughs] I remember Duck Tales, Jamie. I saw that too.
Jamie: Oh, good.
UK Edition: House Elf
Andrew: What I love about this cover is there is a lot talk about here. I mean, first of all, who…
Jamie: Yeah, there really is.
Andrew: Obviously, that must be a house elf behind Harry.
Jamie: Yeah.
Andrew: Dobby or Kreacher?
Laura: Yeah.
Jamie: Dobby, yeah.
Andrew: I’m going to go for Dobby.
Laura: And why are they holding a sword?
Eric: It’s the Godric Gryffindor sword.
Andrew: Yeah, I was going to say, that’s Godric Gryffindor’s, isn’t it?
Eric: Yeah.
Laura: Yeah.
Jamie: Well, if we…
Laura: Yeah, but, like, why?
Eric: And I didn’t even notice, until you said it, I didn’t even notice that it was a Dobby or a house elf holding Gryffindor’s sword.
Andrew: Yeah.
Jamie: It looks like Ron.
Andrew: Well, yeah. At first I thought it was Ron. Yeah, but then you can see…
Eric: Small, clawed hands.
Laura: Yeah.
Andrew: The skin tone.
Laura: Yeah, the skin tone.
UK Edition: Trio’s Appearance
Jamie: But can I just say, what is Hermione wearing?
Andrew: [Laughs] Is it a nightgown?
Jamie: She clearly doesn’t shop at the decent places nowadays.
Andrew: See, now…
Jamie: She should have straightened her hair before going into battle.
Andrew: Hermione and Ron both look like they’re wearing something…
Jamie: Stupid.
Andrew: It’s not a Hogwarts robe. It’s not a…
Eric: It’s very billowing.
Andrew: It’s not something they would wear at Hogwarts, I don’t think. And Harry, you can’t really tell.
Jamie: I hate to point this out, but the clothes that Harry’s wearing are black. And we all know what black represents.
Andrew: Ah, yes.
Laura: No!
[Andrew laughs]
Micah: And Harry looks like he’s been through battle in that picture.
Jamie: He does.
Andrew: Oh, a lot of battle.
Eric: Yeah.
Laura: So does Hermione.
Jamie: What’s reflected in his eyes?
Laura: If you look at both of them, there are bruises…
Jamie: Yeah, and cuts. Yeah.
Laura: …all over Hermione’s arms.
Andrew: Yeah.
Laura: And Harry’s got them all over his face. But Ron doesn’t look like he’s been damaged at all.
Eric: Ron just looks scared.
Jamie: Can I just say – I love Harry’s hair. Harry’s hair looks awesome.
Eric: Yeah. Yeah.
Andrew: Yeah.
[Laura laughs]
Andrew: Well, it’s like Harry and Ron’s are both blowing in one direction, it almost looks like. But then Hermione’s is just like all over the place. I don’t want to get off topic, but Harry looks just…
[Jamie laughs]
Andrew: What?
Jamie: Harry just looks a picture of elegance.
[Eric and Micah laugh]
Andrew: No, Harry looks like Waldo on this cover.
Jamie: He must tell us where he gets his hair done.
Eric: He does look like Waldo.
[Laura laughs]
Jamie: He does, yeah.
Eric: Put him in a red, striped shirt.
[Jamie laughs]
UK Edition: The Treasure
Eric: No, guys, actually this reminds me, even though it’s treasure, I wasn’t quite sure what the blue was. If it was like glass or something.
Jamie: It looks it, doesn’t it?
Eric: What it reminded me of was all the shiny, fizzing things in Dumbledore’s office.
Jamie: Oooh.
Micah: Well, if you look…
Eric: Now, it’s clearly not because it’s treasure. It’s actual gold-like items. Like you can see like a goblet and things. It just…
Micah: Well no, they look like actual pieces of armor, though.
Jamie: It looks like pieces of what, sorry?
Micah: There’s a helmet there. There’s a shield there.
Eric: Where’s the helmet?
[Jamie laughs]
Micah: The helmet is right above J.K. Rowling. It’s got a dragon on top of it.
Andrew: Oh, yeah. Yeah, you’re right.
Eric: Oh, wow.
Jamie: Where is it?
Eric: Oh my gosh.
Jamie: Where is it?
Eric: You have to look to see it, though.
Andrew: The helmet right above Rowling.
Eric: It’s not very clear, but it’s a helmet because you…
Jamie: On what? On which one?
Andrew: The UK cover.
Eric: The UK cover.
Andrew: All right, everyone talk at once. I mean, nobody talk at once. [laughs]
Eric: UK cover.
Jamie: The adult one, you mean?
Andrew: No, no, no. US. No, I mean, UK children’s.
Jamie: Where?
Eric: Okay…
Andrew: Right above Rowling. Where it says Rowling at the bottom. J.K. Rowling.
Jamie: Yeah, what’s the…
Andrew: Right above it.
Eric: Look above the “L.” The “L” is where the nosepiece comes over it. And then, there’s kind of an eye.
Jamie: Yes, I see. Oh, I see. Okay, yeah.
Eric: That’s the helmet.
Jamie: The dragon one, yeah. Okay, cool.
Eric: A dragon helmet.
Andrew: And then, what’s that underneath Harry’s left arm? Is that like a shield?
Micah: Yeah.
Andrew: Yeah, you think so?
Laura: Yeah, I think so.
Andrew: It doesn’t look very big.
Micah: Very King Arthur-like.
Jamie: What’s the thing underneath Ron’s foot? It’s like a…
Andrew: It’s armor.
Jamie: Baby-holder.
Eric: It’s a shield. It’s a chest plate. There’s arm holes.
Jamie: Oh, yes. Yeah.
Eric: Look, it’s arm holes. I didn’t notice this.
Andrew: And then who is on that? What kind of creature? It looks like a snake, doesn’t it?
Eric: It is.
Andrew: How it’s sort of wrapping up the…
Eric: Oh, no. No, it’s not a dragon thing.
Andrew: At the top it looks like a bird.
Eric: It’s the thing that guards Dumbledore’s office. What is that?
Jamie: The gargoyle-thing.
Eric: The gargoyle. No, the bird. The…
Jamie: Can I just ask, how many of you have your necks craned now?
Andrew: I am right now, actually. [laughs]
Eric: Yeah.
Jamie: Same here, same here.
[Laura laughs]
Micah: Yeah.
Jamie: My neck actually hurts, I’m so close to it.
[Andrew laughs]
Jamie: I could almost kiss Harry.
[Andrew laughs]
Eric: Because you can see the bird beak and eye, but you can also see, like a wingspan. Like this incredible – wow. But that’s not necessarily on the chest plate. It could be reflected in the chest plate, maybe? Do you think?
Micah: Yeah, I was thinking that too.
Eric: Or something.
UK Edition: The Archway
Jamie: Haven’t we also have to point out that Ron and Hermione look pretty scared, but Harry just looks completely determined.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: Very much so, yeah.
Eric: Well, it looks like they’ve entered a chamber. Sorry, Andrew. It looks like they’ve just entered a chamber. If you look at the thing behind them. It looks like a circle, but it’s not. It’s actually just like a rounded doorway.
Jamie: Yeah.
Laura: It’s an archway.
Eric: It’s an archway, but it’s glowing.
Andrew: It sort of is.
Eric: Sort of.
Jamie: But what’s the stuff around it? Is that like a wall or is that like a substance? Because it doesn’t look a wall…
Andrew: You mean the color? The red color?
Jamie: Or very solid. Yeah, the red.
Eric: Oh.
Jamie: It doesn’t look like a wall. It just looks like…
Eric: Nothing.
Andrew: You know what’s interesting? What’s inside of this archway, it’s like the same color as the…
Micah: Yeah.
Andrew: …sky in the United States edition.
Jamie: Yes, it is. Very bloody type…
Andrew: Orange.
Laura: You know what I found interesting about the sky, not to take us too far off topic, but it looks like…
Andrew: Well, can we save it for the US part?
Laura: Yeah.
Andrew: Because I think people…
Laura: Yeah, that’s fine.
Jamie: Can I…
Andrew: Go ahead, Jamie.
UK Edition: Prongs
Jamie: What about the unicorn?
Andrew: Huh?
Eric: Where’s the unicorn?
[Andrew laughs]
Jamie: What about the stag?
Andrew: Oh, okay. Yeah.
Eric: What stag?
Andrew: The stag on…
Jamie: The stag on the bottom right-hand corner of the – Prongs, I see, obviously.
Andrew: Prongs?
Eric: I missed it. Where are we talking about?
Andrew: On the bottom right…
Jamie: The bottom right of the UK children’s where it says 17.99.
Andrew: Of the cover.
Eric: I’m looking, but I don’t see it.
Andrew: The fold. Past the fold. Keep going right, Eric. You’ve got to look at the full one with the back cover.
Eric: Oh, right. Sorry, I just didn’t scroll right. That’s my bad.
Jamie: Okay. I think it’s Prongs.
Laura: Oh, yeah.
Jamie: But, 18 pounds? Are they joking?
[Andrew and Laura laugh]
Jamie: 36 dollars? Oh my – I’m not buying…
Andrew: You’re not going to buy it?
[Everyone laughs]
Andrew: Yeah, right. Well, that’s interesting that he’s on there. Because that sort of means that it’s emphasizing that Prongs might play more of a role.
Jamie: Make a reappearance.
Andrew: Yeah.
Jamie: Yeah.
Andrew: I mean, because I remember with the Half-Blood Prince UK edition, there was that ring. Gaunt’s ring. It was Gaunt’s ring, right?
Laura: Mhm.
Jamie: Yeah.
Andrew: And I mean – I don’t know. I guess I don’t want to over-read into it, but…
Jamie: No, you do. You do.
Andrew: I guess. Well, what do you think? What do you think, Jamie?
Jamie: About Prongs? I think it just points out the importance of a Patronus. It has been shown that it isn’t just a charm to repel dementors. You know, it can do that. It can also, as shown in Fantastic Beasts, be a charm to repel the Lethifold, the mythical, tropical creature. It can be a method of communication, we think, between Order members. And when Harry is on the train and Draco Malfoy hurts him, and then he goes up to the college with Tonks. Yeah, I think it just points out the importance of that. And perhaps the love connection with his family and…
Eric: Psatronuses.
Andrew: Yeah.
Jamie: You know, clearly these are all symbolic.
Eric: Patronuses are real reflections of your inner self, is all I wanted to say.
Jamie: What? Patronuses?
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: And we talked about this on a show a few months back about how beautiful it would be to see Harry use a Patronus to either defeat Voldemort or just play a big role because it’s Harry’s dad. It’s his inner self that is coming out to save the day.
Jamie: Yeah, yeah.
Andrew: And it would be a beautiful ending.
Jamie: It would be amazing.
Andrew: Although, the US cover sort of contradicts that kind of ending. Because it looks like Harry and Voldemort are on, you know, that’s their final battle, but let’s finish…
Eric: Well, let’s not forget that there’s a battle up ahead.
UK Edition: Falling In or Coming Out
Andrew: Yeah, well let’s finish. I had one question about this UK cover here. Are they falling into it? Or are they coming out?
Laura: Yeah.
Andrew: Because it looks like Ron’s falling in…
Jamie: Yeah.
Laura: …but the other two are coming out. Or Hermione’s being pulled in and Ron’s falling in.
Jamie: What, do you mean being sucked in?
Eric: Oh, wait.
Jamie: Are they being sucked backwards?
Andrew: Maybe not just being – Are they being sucked in?
Eric: What if they’re being sucked backwards?
Andrew: Or are they coming out? I can’t tell.
Jamie: I think they’re being sucked backwards into it. Like, Hermione’s feet are going in first. Because if you look…
Eric: Yeah.
Jamie: If you look at her hair it is flowing forwards, which gives us…
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: It’s not sucked backwards.
Laura: Yeah, all of their hair is flowing forwards really.
Jamie: Which, you know, it looks like they’re being sucked in, but then if you look at, if you look at…
Andrew: Harry’s…
Jamie: Ron, he’s – Harry’s face, you mean?
Andrew: Well, what were you going to say?
Jamie: I was going to say, Ron’s face. He’s looking in fear or something, and leaning backwards. So it could be that they are all going back into it because they’ve seen something.
Andrew: Yeah. Although…
Jamie: But then the coins are flying backwards, I think, as well. But…
Micah: Harry looks like he’s going forward, though, like he’s determined…
Andrew: Yeah, that’s what I was going to say.
Micah: Maybe he’s letting them go and going forward on his own.
Jamie: And Dobby’s hand seems to be placed forward as well.
Andrew: He’s in like a charging position almost.
Micah: Yeah.
Jamie: Yeah.
Micah: Yeah.
Jamie: Well, perhaps they are being sucked backwards and he is going forwards for the final battle.
Micah: Could be.
UK Edition: Dobby or Kreacher?
Andrew: Or like, is Dobby riding back? Is he riding on Harry’s back?
Jamie: Yes Andrew, he’s riding Harry “Brokeback” style.
[Everyone laughs]
Andrew: Oh no, Jamie, that’s not what I meant. I meant, is he riding on Harry’s back, like, or is he sort of grasping Harry to pull him in, or…?
Jamie: I think it looks…
Andrew: I mean, there’s so many ways that this could be interpreted. I love it.
Jamie: Well, you wouldn’t think that Dobby would raise his sword if he was going backwards into it, you’d think he’d, you know, be flying forwards.
Jamie: Yeah, I think that. And also this – It could be that, perhaps, Dobby is pulling them backwards with his power, you know.
Andrew: Yeah.
Micah: Well, who says it’s Dobby?
Jamie: That kind of thing.
Micah: If it’s Kreacher, then…
Jamie: Wait.
Micah: It could be a betrayal.
Andrew: Why would it be Kreacher?
Eric: No, it’s not Kreacher.
Andrew: It can’t be Kreacher.
Laura: Well, Harry does own Kreacher.
Jamie: Dobby is going to be there. He’s proven himself.
Andrew: He does own Kreacher, but Dobby is willing to help.
Laura: Yeah.
Andrew: And Kreacher’s not.
Laura: But who says that that elf right there is helping?
Andrew: Well.
Micah: Right. That was my point.
Jamie: He could be evil…
Andrew: Well, he’s taking Gryffindor’s sword, so…
Eric: He’s actually taking Gryffindor’s sword to kill Harry. Yes.
[Andrew laughs]
Eric: That makes sense to me.
Jamie: Yeah.
Eric: Well, I mean, it could be another house elf, but just the fact…
Jamie: That would be ironic.
Eric: Just the fact that it’s wielding Gryffindor’s sword makes me think it’s Dobby because Dobby has been incredibly loyal to Harry.
Jamie: I agree. Yeah.
Andrew: Yeah. I just realized – you know what would be the ultimate cover? If it looked like the sword was upside down as if he was stabbing Harry.
[Laura laugh]
Andrew: The fans would go nuts these next three months.
Jamie: Yeah.
Eric: Betrayal!
Andrew: Four months. It would be like, “Is Harry actually going to die?” But anyway, sorry.
UK Edition: In Essence Divided
Laura: I had one more question.
Micah: What do you think about…
Eric: Well, I think it is time to move on.
Andrew: Hold on one second.
Micah: No, Laura’s got a question.
Laura: I’ve got a question.
Andrew: Laura’s got a question.
Laura: What is this thing over here? It’s like an orb.
Jamie: Oh, yeah.
Micah: I have my theory.
Laura: On the other flap of the cover. And it has a snake in it.
Andrew: Oh yeah.
Micah: I have my theory. I talked to Jamie about this earlier, and I’m not sure…
Jamie: And I almost died from excitement.
[Everyone laughs]
Jamie: I flew across and kissed Micah on the forehead, it was so good.
Eric: What are we talking about?
Jamie: This is very good.
Eric: Oh.
Jamie: We are talking about – if you look at the UK edition…
Eric: Yep. Got it.
Jamie: On the far left, that thing.
Micah: Well…
Jamie: Go on Micah, you sexy beast, you.
[Everyone laughs]
Micah: Now, I’m not one hundred percent sure about this because when I went back and read it in Chamber of Secrets I wasn’t convinced that it was the same thing. But if you remember back in Dumbledore’s office there is that moment with Harry when those two snakes sort of come out of that instrument that he has.
Eric: Oh.
Laura: Oh, yeah.
Andrew: Hmmm.
Micah: And he makes that comment, “in essence divided.” So, I don’t know if that’s connected in any way.
Eric: You know what?
Micah: It may only be one snake in there. That’s my question.
Eric: Wait a minute.
Micah: There’s also – If you look in that orb, though, there is a window in there.
Laura: Yeah, I was just looking at that.
Micah: Which is kind of weird.
Eric: It’s a window in the reflection. In the reflection.
Jamie: It’s a window in the sky.
Andrew: [laughs] I’m not going to. Not today.
Jamie: That looks kind of like the window in Aladdin’s palace, right in the top, right…
[Micah laughs]
Eric: No, I’m sorry it doesn’t. It’s not doing it for me, Jamie.
Jamie: Oh, it’s not doing it for you?
Eric: [laughs] No.
Jamie: That’s a bit of a shame. But what is, I want to say Palantia, and I’m sure I’ve pronounced it wrong, the one in Lord of the Rings. It looks like that. Actually, it doesn’t look a bit like that. I don’t know why I’ve just said that. But it reminds me of that.
Micah: My other thought was, could it be a prophecy?
Laura: Oh, yeah.
Andrew: Well, that was my first thought.
Jamie: Oh.
Andrew: Yeah.
Laura: With a snake inside it?
Eric: I think due to…
Andrew: [laughs] That’s the one question.
Eric: Due to that it’s colored, it’s in color, it’s not completely blue, I would like to think it is not a prophecy. In essence. I mean…
Jamie: Yeah.
Eric: I don’t know why that makes sense to me, but I think because part of it is colored in, part of it – I think it is like an illusion inside the glass sphere. Like, exactly whatever Dumbledore, his instrument. And I said this reminded me of his office. So…
Jamie: But also, they look like real snakes.
Laura: Yeah.
Jamie: I mean, in that – in Chamber of Secrets, didn’t he say that is was whispery snakes? Like, smoke snakes? Instead of real ones.
Micah: Yeah, that’s exactly what they were. They came out of his instrument.
Laura: Well, see, it’s weird because…
Jamie: But these are like actual snakes.
Eric: The danger is more real than it was in Book 2.
Jamie: Well, perhaps, yeah.
Laura: Kind of going along with the ice theme, if you look, one of them looks icy and the other one doesn’t. Which would sort of go along with, you know, Micah talking about “in essence divided.” Kind of to show the difference between the two of them.
Jamie: “In essence,” though, is that like a horcrux? Divided, in essence divided? Or are you talking about more figuratively.
Laura: Well, I was just kind of remarking that one of them is frozen, the other one is not.
Jamie: That is true, yeah.
Micah: Maybe neither can live while the other survives. I don’t know.
Jamie: Oh, I’ve just realized it’s another Aladdin reference. When he says, you know, “Come and fight you cowardly snake.” And he’s like, “Snake, am I?”
[Laura laughs]
Eric and Jamie: “Let’s see how snakelike I can be.”
Jamie: Yeah, that.
[Micah laughs]
Jamie: I think it’s that. I honestly think that J. K. Rowling thinks, “I can’t think of anything original, so I’m just going to borrow stuff from Disney, and this is it.”
[Andrew laughs]
Jamie: Seriously, watch this space.
UK Adult Cover
Andrew: All right, do you guys want to move on to the – We’ll get to the book summaries at the end. But do you want to get on to the UK adult cover first?
Jamie: Adult one. Sure. UK Adult.
Andrew: All right, I mean…
Jamie: Now, there’s a person on the back. I’ve seen her before.
Andrew: I couldn’t…
[Everyone laughs]
Jamie: Can’t quite place her face.
Andrew: It took me awhile to figure out.
Jamie: Yeah, she’s the queen.
Andrew: Oh, is that who it is?
Jamie: Yeah, the Queen of England. Famous author.
Andrew: I thought it was that lady I saw on Pop Idol while I was over there.
Jamie: [laughs] Yeah, it was, it was her. It was both actually. She’s the Queen of England, you see.
Andrew: No, But seriously. All right, go ahead, Laura.
Laura: Whenever I first saw this – this is the adult cover. The first thing I thought was that that locket looks like it came from the dollar store.
[Jamie laughs]
Andrew: It does.
Laura: It really does.
Jamie: It doesn’t fit.
Eric: It’s supposed to. It’s so you wouldn’t suspect that it actually has one seventh of Voldemort’s soul inside it.
Jamie: Yeah.
Laura: [laughs] I mean, it really doesn’t…
Jamie: You wouldn’t, would you?
Laura: …look remotely like…i
Eric: It says “S.” It’s got rubies. It’s got – It’s a locket.
Laura: They’re not even rubies. They’re like pulled-apart Mardi Gras beads.
[Andrew laughs]
Eric: Okay, okay.
Jamie: Well, he…
Andrew: I think it’s kind of cool.
Jamie: Well, you know Laura, Voldemort was tired. He didn’t know what to do. He just went to the dollar store and said, “Do you have any Slytherin lockets?”
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: What you don’t know…
Jamie: And they said, “Oh, you’re in luck, sir.”
Andrew: I think the design is pretty cool, actually. I kind of like how the – I don’t even know what you would want to call it, the Mardi Gras beads…
[Andrew and Eric laugh]
Andrew: …are formed in the shape of the S. And then where they get smaller as they go further down the “S.”
Laura: I don’t think the locket itself looks bad. I think it is mostly the green beading That it just…
Jamie: Well, why is it on there, then?
Andrew: Well, Laura, why don’t you make a better one, and submit it to Bloomsbury?
Laura: Fine.
Andrew: Maybe they’ll replace it.
Jamie: Yeah, Laura.
Laura: I will.
Andrew: The book hasn’t gone to print yet.
Jamie: And you can put a horcrux in there as well.
Micah: Go out to…
Jamie: You try to put half your soul in there, Laura, then you’ll fail…
[Everyone laughs]
Andrew: All right, so are we all in agreement that this is R.A.B.’s horcrux? I mean, or locket, there’s not really that much to…
Jamie: Yeah.
Eric: Yeah.
Laura: Yeah, there’s no question.
Andrew: …discuss with it.
Jamie: Clearly, it’s obviously of immense importance if it is on the thing.
Andrew: Yeah.
Jamie: But is it symbolic of all the horcruxes as a whole? Or is it this specific item that is important?
Laura: Maybe it’s the last one.
Andrew: This one just has to play, really – well, I mean, if we look at the past adult covers, the Goblet of Fire one had the Goblet of Fire.
Jamie: Yeah.
Andrew: The Order of the Phoenix one had, what, was it a phoenix? Or what was it?
Jamie: I can’t remember. Yeah, it was, I think. Yeah, it was a phoenix, yeah.
Andrew: And then Half-Blood Prince had the book, the diary, the potions book. And then this one just has straight up the locket.
Micah: Yeah. Yeah, I don’t…
Andrew: Which is interesting because this was in Book 6, you know, and so many people have been speculating about it, and now it’s on the cover.
Eric: Andrew, that’s exactly it. I think this symbolizes all the stuff that’s been pre-hinted at, and all the stuff that the series has been building up towards previously. And the locket itself – it might not be special significance except that it might be one of the remaining Horcruxes, but just that it is one of the things that has been introduced previously, and is going to play a really big part.
Jamie: Yeah. There’s a genie inside.
[Laura laughs]
Andrew: Yeah.
Jamie: Harry rubs it and the genie come out and gives him three wishes.
Eric: Because he…
Jamie: And he says, “I want to wish for a million wishes…”
Micah: Voiced by Robin Williams.
Jamie: … and “I can’t bring anyone back from the dead. It’s not happy feelings; I don’t like doing it!”
[Andrew laughs]
Andrew: Micah, do you have any thoughts on this cover?
Micah: I think they’re always going to be a bit more – I don’t want to say mundane, but…
Jamie: Simplistic, though, but coolly simplistic.
Micah: Yeah, I mean they’re more adult-like, definitely. I guess there’s more of a mature look to them, but I definitely like – of all of them, I like the UK children’s version the best.
Andrew: I agree.
Laura: Yeah.
Micah: I don’t particularly like this one.
Jamie: It has no substance.
Eric: They look like J.D. Rob novels or something, I don’t know – the adult covers.
Jamie: What substance is the locket on? It looks very sort of…
Andrew: It looks sort of stone.
Eric: I actually don’t think that’s…
Jamie: It looks like a Voldemort substance, you know. It doesn’t look very Harry-like.
Micah: Like a cave rock.
Jamie: Do you think he comes back into possession of it? Yeah, yeah, it does. Perhaps it’s the –
Eric: Considering where I’d like to prefer to believe that the locket is, in Grimmauld place, I’d like to believe that this locket is actually just in nowhere, meaning it’s not really up against, say, rock, for instance, because it’s still in a cave.
Jamie: It’s in limbo.
Eric: It’s in limbo. I think the rock is just for lighting effect. You know, the terrain and the ruggedness. I don’t actually think that’s, like, a location where the locket would be, even though it was supposed to be in the cave.
US Cover: The Sky
Andrew: Mhm. Well, I guess we should move on now to the US cover, which we originally started off with. [laughs] And then we went full circle with everythin else.. That’s okay. There’s – I mean, okay I didn’t see it coming as an orange book.
Laura: Yeah, me neither, but, I mean…
Micah: It’s very ominous, though.
Laura: Yeah, I mean, I do like it.
Andrew: It is ominous, I guess.
Laura: What’s interesting about it – what I was going to mention earlier is that if you look at this, it looks like early in the morning.
Jamie: It does.
Andrew: Yeah, and you know, and I thought that, and then I realized that it would be so cool if the battle was just all night…
Laura: Yeah, all night long.
Andrew: …and then the setting. Yeah.
Jamie: And then at sunrise, they thought, well, we’ve been fighting all night, let’s just call it a day, go and get breakfast.
[Eric laughs]
Andrew: Yeah, I hear McDonalds opens in another half hour, you want to get some McGriddles and then we’ll continue this? [laughs]
Eric: They’re sitting in IHOP, across from each other, and there’s very funny scenes that can be written about Harry and Voldemort at IHOP, but… [laughs]
Andrew: But seriously, I just thought that it would be a perfect sitting for the final battle, where they go into this final area and Jo sets it up as the sun was beginning to rise as Harry and Voldemort were doing whatever the heck they were doing all night.
Micah: Well, what do you guys think though…
Andrew: I think that would be so cool; it’s like the final morning.
Jamie: The color of the sky is pretty much identical to the one on the UK behind the thing.
Micah: Yeah.
Eric: Yeah.
US Cover: The Veil?
Jamie: And Ciaran came up with an interesting theory about this. I can’t remember exactly what he referred to, but he said in a different series, that color type thing is used to represent limbo, so is this beyond the veil? What happens beyond the veil? Is there some type of limbo-type thing?
Micah: Well, the curtains are drawn.
Jamie: And is this some sort of Limbo type thing?
Micah: The curtains are drawn.
Eric: The curtains are drawn, but they are often. There’s another cover in the U.S. where that’s actually Harry’s four-poster bed
Andrew: Are the curtains the four-poster bed on Sorcerer’s Stone?
Eric: Yeah, I think so. Of the hard cover. If you look at the hard cover, there’s…
Andrew: Are you sure about that?
Eric: I’m pretty sure about that.
Andrew: Why would they be the four-poster beds? There are curtains.
Eric: There are curtains.
Andrew: I don’t think it’s the four-poster bed, though.
Eric: Well, where you see Harry’s hand holding the candle…
Micah: Well, I’m saying that’s the veil. The veil is drawn back.
Andrew: What did you say, Micah?
Micah: I’m saying the veil is drawn back.
Laura: Yeah.
Andrew: Oh.
Micah: That was my initial impression looking at it, because – and I’m trying to look for the quote here from Order of the Phoenix. I think what Laura said earlier is definitely accurate, at least in my opinion, that they are in that room in the Department of Mysteries.
Andrew: Yeah.
US Cover: Who is Watching?
Micah: ecause it was said to look exactly like this, and to look like a coliseum that had seating all around it, and it looks like somebody is watching them.
Laura: Yeah.
Andrew: Not just somebody – a lot of people.
Eric: It’s the shadows.
Laura: I would take that as seeing shadows of the people beyond the veil.
Eric: Right.
Micah: The Deathly Hallows.
Andrew: That’s interesting!
Eric: Not just beyond the veil – beyond history, beyond time, beyond present day. The shadows of all the people of the past, all the people Voldemort killed, etcetera. All of Harry’s family looking over him.
US Cover: Back to the Sky
Eric: But back to the sky, I, too, don’t know what Ciaran was mentioning, but I do know that in…
Jamie: It was a very good point, I just can’t remember what it was…
Eric: Yeah, yeah, yeah, well the first Narnia book, there’s a – The Magician’s Nephew…
Jamie: Oh, it was Narnia.
Eric: Was it?
Jamie: Yeah. I don’t know, now I can’t remember.
Eric: Well, whether or not it was, in The Magician’s Nephew, arguably the first – chronologically, anyway – Narnia book, the kids traveled or different kids traveled this kind of dead world which has been silent, not a single sound or anything, this destroyed city in tatters, and there’s like a red sky and sort of stone pillars and stuff, so that might have been the allusion. But either way, that’s so – even thought it’s traditionally a warm color, it would be thought of as death. It could also mean something very hallow or something.
Jamie: Yeah.
Eric: Just a guess.
Laura: Well, isn’t it a red sky in the morning supposed to be symbolic of bad things?
Jamie: The shepherd’s warning! The shepherd’s warning! Yeah.
Eric: It could also be symbolic of a new dawn. A new dawn is approaching.
Andrew: Yeah.
Jamie: Is this room the room with the spinning doors, because you could…
Laura: No, I don’t think so.
Jamie: I guessed it’s that – there’s doors.
Eric: No, it actually – for a fleeting moment, I thought it was a highway, a Muggle highway, potentially? Like an over bridge of a highway?
Jamie: Like a viaduct, you mean.
Eric: Yeah, a viaduct. Or a viaduct.
Jamie: A train viaduct.
Eric: A train viaduct. Or for – for cars.
Jamie: Andrew, do you think that thing in Durham? It looked like that.
Andrew: Sorry, I went away for a second.
Eric: The viaduct that the Hogwarts Express goes over. That’s what crossed my mind.
US Cover: Harry’s Hand Motions
Jamie: Oh, never mind. Yeah, exactly, a viaduct. Why don’t we talk about the way his hand is, because it looks to me like he’s trying to draw some sort of power from the sky, like love, and, you know…
Andrew: Well, they’re both reaching for it, I think.
Micah: Yeah, whatever it is.
Andrew: It sort of seems like Voldemort is reaching in that same direction. Actually, someone on the MuggleNet comments on the news post about the book cover being released suggested that it sort of look like there’s something there right above Harry’s hand.
Laura: Yeah.
Andrew: And when you get in close, something he or she described it as, like, “whooshy,” and if you look close, there is something that looks different from the rest of the cloud patterns in the sky. Do you see that, Laura?
Jamie: Yeah.
Laura: Yeah.
Jamie: It looks like a dolphin on the left.
Andrew: A dolphin?
Laura: What?
Jamie: Yeah, that one on the left. That white pattern looks like a dolphin. Look, its flippers are…
[Laura laughs]
Andrew: You know, I’m…
Laura: It does!
Andrew: Oh, yeah, you’re right, actually. Yeah, that’s a little hidden message.
Jamie: It’s like that – what’s that dolphin movie called? Flipper? Is it Flipper?
Eric: No, it’s not Flipper with Elijah Wood; that’s a dolphin movie, but I think it looks like a whale like Free Willy.
Jamie: I said it’s a dolphin movie.
Andrew: Oh, Free Willy. Yeah.
Jamie: Oh, Free Willy, that’s it, yeah.
Andrew: You know, I’m looking at Harry’s hair and it almost looks like he has some streaks of – a couple grey hairs in there.
Laura: Yeah, it does.
Andrew: [laughs] Doesn’t he? Oh, that’s funny.
Laura: Yeah. I mean, it could just be the effect of light, you know.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: Here’s the question.
Andrew: All right. So, all right, let’s stay on the hands. What do you think this means? Laura, did you have an idea?
Laura: It almost looked to me like…
Andrew: Well, not like “what it means,” but…
Laura: Whenever I first saw it, my initial reaction was they were trying to catch something, like something physical…
Andrew: Yeah.
Laura: …that was flying through the air. But then of course, you know…
Micah: The snitch.
Laura: [laughs] Yeah. They’re playing Quidditch.
Micah: Whoever catches it wins. That’s it. Game over.
Laura: Final showdown. [laughs] No, but I was kind of thinking maybe something completely dramatic happens, like a Horcrux flies through the air or something, like, you know, Ron throws the locket or whatever.
Eric: I think…
Laura: But the more I thought about it, the more it seemed like they were both doing wandless magic. Because they’re not holding wands.
Andrew: Well, you know what?! Yeah! They’re not holding wands!
Eric: I think they’re both summoning something. Yeah. That’s right.
Andrew: And – and I have all of the book covers open here. In Books Four, Five, and Six, Harry’s holding a wand. One, Two and Three, he’s not, but…
Eric: When he’s in battle…
Andrew: When he’s in battle, yeah.
Eric: This is actually Harry and Voldemort, presumably in battle…
Andrew: In battle…
Eric: …feet away from each other, you know, – not even a meter maybe, and they don’t have wands. So they both seem to be…
Micah: Could that be what they are going after?
Eric: Oh, that’s true. Maybe one wand but – it’s not like you don’t need wands.
Micah: Now… Okay, it’s crazy theory time. I’m going to throw something crazy out there.
[Laura laughs]
Eric: All right.
Micah: They almost look like they are working together.
Andrew: [whispers] No.
Eric: Never happen.
Andrew: See, they seem so close, though, that wouldn’t surprise me.
Jamie: They do, yeah.
Eric: Actually if you want to get crazy theory time, I think they are both wearing brown robes, so they both converted to Jedi.
Andrew: They are both… [laughs]
[Everyone laughs]
Jamie: They did.
Andrew: They are both wearing brown robes.
Jamie: Darth Voldemort
Eric: And Voldemort looks like – in, in – what’s his name? Ian Hart, Ian Ho… I’ll fix it.
Andrew: Harry’s not scratched up at all, though, like when he was on the U.K. cover.
Micah: Right.
Andrew: What – which is kind of interesting.
Micah: Why I brought that up, though, was because of what Arthur Levine said. He said that “we’re seeing Harry in a very interesting situation. Readers will find out exactly what the situation is.”
Andrew: I love when he said that, because I was like, oh, really? We’re going to find out this situation?
[Micah laughs]
Andrew: I didn‘t think we were going to know.
Micah: But…
Eric: But that’s interesting, yes.
Jamie: The sun is too bright and they are trying to shield their eyes. That’s it, look.
Laura: Yeah
Jamie: Both of them are. Oh and Eric, to continue your Star Wars reference Voldemort looks a bit like General Grievous from Revenge of the Sith. The face.
Eric: Yeah, well, he is more man than machine, now, really.
Jamie: Yeah, well that’s true.
Eric: More machine now than man.
Jamie: Machine than man, yeah.
Eric: I messed that up.
US Cover: Comparing Sorceror’s Stone and Deathly Hallows
Andrew: You know I am looking at – I have the Sorcerer’s Stone cover here. I have it all stretched out so I can compare the two, and it is kind of interesting. There is a couple of similarities here, one, Harry is reaching out for – I mean, on the Sorcerer’s Stone cover, we can see that he is reaching out for the Snitch. But he is almost in the same exact position where he is looking up with his mouth open, his eyes shooting up and he is reaching out for – in the Sorcerer’s Stone cover, the Snitch, but in this one, we can’t see that. And also on the Sorcerer’s Stone cover, it’s, like, dusk; the sun is setting, because we can see the stars in the sky, but also there is some sunlight closer to the ground.
Laura: Yeah.
Andrew: In this one it is sort of like, dawn so it’s the opposite. And also back to the curtains, the curtains are on the same – like, they are on the tail ends of the covers…
Jamie: Yeah.
Andrew: …and they are all like – I mean, the covers – the curtains on this Book 7 cover are all, like, tattered…
Laura: Tattered
Andrew: …and they are like – yeah, they are messed up at the bottom and the ones on the Sorcerer’s Stone cover are all like, they have stars on them and the ropes are tied back. It’s almost like they are the same curtains. Because we don’t really know what these curtains are in the Sorcerer’s Stone cover. So that was kind of interesting.
Laura: I always just kind of assumed they were almost kind of to look like a stage, in a way. Not like literally saying it was a performance but like…
Andrew: It was the opening?
Laura: … presenting it as such. Like a story. Yeah, well, kind of something along the lines of – I mean, I guess you can draw it as the opening and closing type connection between them because do you really see these curtains on any of the other covers?
Andrew: No, I don’t think so.
Eric: Yeah, they are. There are curtains on one of the hardback U.S. editions.
Laura: Yeah, but I’m asking if there are…
Andrew: Sorcerer’s Stone.
Laura: … on any of the other ones?
Eric: Yeah, okay.
Laura: Because I don’t recall seeing them.
Andrew: Right, no it’s not.
Laura: And it also seems like it’s set as a production. Not literally saying that, but saying the story is opening, the story’s closing.
Andrew: Yeah, so it’s…
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: I like that.
Eric: That’s cool.
Andrew: Go, Mary.
Eric: I like that.
Andrew: Go, Mary GrandPré and Laura for –
Eric: Laura, that’s awesome.
Jamie: That is very impressive.
Eric: But, Andrew! What you said also…
Jamie: Have a cookie.
Eric: …about it being dusk or rather – yeah, the end of the night, sunset, in Book 1, and sunrise in Book 7. I think it’s – you know, Harry’s world is getting darker and in the end, there is hope to see some light, you know, his light getting lighter whether or not is the light at the end of the tunnel, or not.
Andrew: Yeah.
Laura: Mhm.
Andrew: But, I am really liking this curtain thing, because it is almost like the same cover, only behind it, it’s seven years later. And the curtains are all worn out…
Laura: I know, it’s so cool.
Andrew: … because it’s the closing of the book.
Jamie: That’s really cool.
Andrew: I really like that. [Laughs] And you know that that’s Mary GrandPré at her best. Which is – I would love to think that she’s had that in mind this whole time, starting with the curtains how they are on the Sorcerer’s Stone cover and then on Book 7 being all tattered like that.
Laura: You know, I mean…
Jamie: What about the…
Laura: Sorry, Jamie, go ahead.
Jamie: Sorry, go on. [Pauses] Thank you.
US Cover: Broken Veil?
Jamie: I was going to say [laughs] what about the pieces of wood at the…
Andrew: What about them?
Jamie: … front? Yeah, they look broken to me as in man-broken, not supposed to be there. And…
Andrew: That one on the far right looks like a rock. Doesn’t it?
Laura: Well, yeah, there’s stone and stuff. It almost looks to me…
Eric: Yeah, it’s a tree stump.
Laura: …like they are broken, they’ve broken the veil or something like they’ve broken the archway?
Andrew: Oh.
Micah: Oh.
Jamie: Or perhaps the hands are there to shield them from what’s behind it. If we put ourselves in their positions what’s where they are looking now?
Andrew: It’s something in the sky.
Jamie: Window?
Andrew: [laughs] Maybe.
Eric: I was under the impression that…
Andrew: And to love I rhapsodize.
Eric: Wait, that’s the other thing, though. The Department of Mysteries presumably isn’t open air to the sky unless it’s got a sky similar to the Great Hall. But the fact that there is a sky kind of maybe rules out that they are in the Department of Mysteries stadium? Unless…
Micah: Unless the Ministry of Magic was destroyed.
Laura: Yeah, that’s what I’m thinking. It looks like they completely wrecked it.
Eric: That or the veil did something or they are in the land of limbo on the other side of the veil. And it might be a mirror image of what the actual colossus is.
Andrew: Wouldn’t they be on the other side of the veil as they stand right now because of all the people around them?
Laura: Yeah, it almost looks like they are on the other side.
Micah: Well…
Andrew: Yeah, because you can see the people.
Laura: Yeah.
Andrew: You wouldn’t be able to see the people if you were – you know?
Jamie: But, if you have noticed that the shadows get a lot, lot lighter as you go around…
Laura: Yeah.
Jamie: … to the right. They start off pretty dark and then they get very, very, very sort of not dense if you go around to the other side.
Laura: What if you’ve gone through the veil and the reason you can’t come back through the veil is because it’s broken on the other side? Like, it’s set…
Jamie: The vanishing cabinet.
Laura: … so, like, you can’t come back, like you can’t come back through?
Eric: I would…
[Everyone laughs]
Andrew: So you are saying that they’re stuck?
Micah: Yeah.
Eric: …say, Laura, that they need to repair the Stargate and get it up and running…
[Laura, Micah and Jamie laugh]
Jamie: Yeah.
Eric: …so Kurt Russell and them can get back to they other – I’ve seen that movie.
Jamie: Guys, we’re at 46 minutes.
Eric: Yeah, what do you guys think…
Andrew: That’s it? [laughs] I feel like we’ve been going a whole lot longer.
Jamie: That’s loads.
Eric: No, it’s true, it’s…
Andrew: Let’s keep going.
Jamie: Yeah.
Andrew: I mean.. Is there anything else any one wants to talk about with this cover? I mean…
US Cover: R.A.B.’s Locket?
Laura: What is that…?
Jamie: I think we’ve covered this very well to be honest.
Laura: …thing around his neck?
Andrew: That’s got to be the locket. Doesn’t it? Doesn’t it look – it’s the same…
Laura: It doesn’t
Andrew: …shape as the one…
Eric: Oh…
Andrew: …on the adult cover.
Eric: Oh jeezum! Harry in the US edition is wearing something…
Jamie: Maybe that’s what…
Laura: It almost looks like a pouch though.
Jamie: …protects you when you go through the thing.
Eric: It looks like a pouch. It doesn’t look like the Slytherin locket.
Jamie: Yeah, it has his pocket money,
[Andrew and Jamie laughs]
Laura: Well, I almost thinking – I mean…
[Everyone laughs]
Andrew: It’s his iPod shuffle.
[Everyone laughs]
Laura: We know how damaged…
Eric: Yeah.
Jamie: He’s listening to My Chemical Romance.
Eric: What would it be? Welcome to the Black Parade?
Andrew: You know – yeah, Laura, you’re right it does look like a pouch because there’s the oval shape…
Laura: Yeah.
Andrew: …and then there’s something right above it.
Laura: Where it looks like there’s a drawstring…
Andrew: Is that what you’re talking about?
Laura: …type area to pull it closed.
Andrew: Right.
Eric: Yeah, in two seconds.
Micah: It looks like a Time-Turner.
Andrew: Really?
Eric: It’s Harry’s – no.
Laura: My immediate…
Micah: Well, from the movie anyway.
Eric: No, the Time-Turners…
Andrew: They are more circular, though. I think they would be more circular, wouldn’t they?
Eric: Or more hourglass-y, I think it’s a pouch though.
Laura: My immediate reaction to it that we knew how damaged Dumbledore’s hand got from the ring and whatever process he went through to destroy it, so what if Harry has the locket and he’s keeping it in the pouch? So it doesn’t come into direct contact with his body.
Andrew: Hmmm.
Micah: Interesting.
Eric: Maybe, in addition…
Andrew: To keep it clean…
Micah: What if he could…
Laura: To keep it clean? [laughs]
Andrew: Maybe it has to do – [laughs] to keep it clean. Maybe it has something to do with Voldemort not seeing it. I mean, obviously he was not hiding it, with it just sitting there around his neck, but…
Laura: That’s interesting.
Eric: I think it – a lot of times lockets themselves, and things, are supposed to protect against something. So, I’m not saying he has Slytherin’s locket, it doesn’t seem it’d be – but I think he has something in the pouch that might give him some protection in battle, or it’s just his bus fare to arrive at this field…
Laura: It’s Ginny’s heart.
Eric: …somewhere.
Laura: She cut it out and put it in a bag.
Eric: Oh!
Micah: Oh, Laura. Geez.
Eric: It is, Laura. It is.
[Laura laughs]
Eric: That’s pretty violent, actually.
Micah: I have one more theory.
Eric: Ummm…
MuggleCast 83 Transcript (continued)
US Cover: Fight For What?
Micah: What do you guys think about – now assuming it’s the veil or whatever they’re raising their hands to, what if they’re fighting each other? What if Voldemort’s trying to destroy something, and Harry’s trying to stop it from being…
Eric: Rescue it.
Micah: …destroyed? Or vice versa. What if it’s a Horcrux that Harry’s trying to destroy and Voldemort’s trying to prevent it from being destroyed.
Eric: It’s very resemblant of when Snape and Harry were fighting and Snape – and Harry tried to get something and Snape blocked it. Harry’s trying to get – you know they’re both fighting for – maybe, I think they’re both summoning something, really, you know. Accio whatever it might be. But what would it be that they both want? And also you said that they don’t have wands, obviously they can’t fight the same wands. And it’s just Harry and Voldemort.
Micah: But…
Eric: And I think that’s very symbolic and message-setting – tone-setting for the book. That it’s really just Harry and Voldemort on the US cover, and it’s really just their battle.
Andrew: Yeah, I was going to say, this must be the final battle. So we now know it’s just Harry and Voldemort.
Micah: But is it…
Eric: Well no, that’s the thing…
Andrew: Well, sort of.
Micah: Is it a battle?
Eric: There’s no Harry and Ron on the cover here and there’s also no Snape. Which upsets me a little bit, but his book was Six, I guess, but…
Micah: I was going to say is that…
Eric: If this truly is…
Micah: …they’re not facing each other, which is still what kind of bothers me in a way, because they don’t look like they’re going against each other. They don’t look like they’re battling each other and like…
Eric: They look like they’re both catching a football.
Micah: …somebody said before Harry is not even messed up. He looks fine.
Andrew: Yeah. You’re right.
Eric: They’re throwing a football.
[Eric laughs]
Micah: What’s that?
Andrew: Hey dad! It’s like Toy Story…
Laura: Yeah. [laughs]
Andrew: When Mr. Potato Head – I have it backwards I haven’t seen that movie in so long.
Eric: You mean Buzz Lightyear…
Andrew: Buzz Lightyear.
Eric: …and Zorg.
Andrew: Yeah! And they throw a football after they realize that Zorg is Buzz’s…
Eric: Father!
Andrew: …dad. [laughs] Oh, it’s awesome. Um, one last thing. Voldemort’s hands look very big.
Laura: They remind me of the Grinch.
Eric: Yeah.
Laura: Honestly.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: They could totally crush Harry’s skull and like…
Andrew: Yeah.
Laura: Well, Voldemort, I mean…
Andrew: I would almost…
Laura: Sorry. In the…
Andrew: Go ahead.
Laura: In other, you know, chapter art and stuff, Voldemort is always portrayed as being very big, in the US editions. Like, if you look at the cover art, or the chapter art for the one showdown in the Department of Mysteries, Voldemort is much bigger than Dumbledore. So… I don’t know if that’s just a Mary GrandPre thing or…
Andrew: Yeah, yeah. And I really think it symbolizes something with the big hands that he’s – he’s very commanding and powerful.
Laura: Mhm. I think so as well.
Andrew: So… I like it. Is Harry leaning on a rock?
Micah: Yeah. It looks like it.
Andrew: His right hand – is he like leaning on a rock?
Eric: Uh… No, no, no, that’s in the distance.
Andrew: It’s hard to tell. Yeah, I think so, too…
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: …because it’s sort of more faded than his hands.
Laura: Well, it looks he’s got his hand on something.
Andrew: Or he’s falling or…
Laura: Yeah.
Andrew: …he’s doing a dance. [laughs] There’s so many ways you can interpret this.
Eric: There’s a dance off.
[Laura laughs]
Eric: They’re doing the musical, they’re staging the production of how they became friends.
Andrew: Yeah. All right, well…
[Everyone laughs]
Laura: They’re playing DDR.
[Everyone laugs]
Cover Summaries
Andrew: Let’s talk [laughs] – this cover actually, you could have a lot of fun in Photoshop with that. All right, so let’s talk about the book summaries real quick. We have here on both the US and the UK editions. From the UK adult edition, do they say the same thing? Let me look.
Laura: I don’t know. I haven’t looked.
Andrew: Yeah, it does.
Eric: No they don’t. Do it?
Andrew: Yeah they do.
Eric: Does it?
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: Oh.
Andrew: So, on the UK edition it says: “Harry has been burdened with a dark, dangerous, and seemingly impossible task: that of locating and destroying Voldemort’s remaining Horcruxes. Never has Harry felt so alone, or faced a future so full of shadows.” Ooooh! “But Harry must somehow find within himself the strength to complete the task he has been given. He must leave the warmth, safety, and companionship of the Burrow and follow without fear or hesitation the inexorable path laid out for him.” It’s interesting that they refer to the Burrow specifically. So, I guess…
Eric: Yeah.
Laura: Well, it almost sounds like he leaves there directly to go on whatever quest…
Andrew: You would think…
Laura: …he needs to go on.
Andrew: that however, on the US edition they talk – it mentions Privet Drive.
Eric: Yeah, yeah, well
Andrew: It’s just like in the beginning Harry is up at Privet Drive.
Eric: Well no, it says – it mentions both of them on the UK cover. On the UK kid’s cover it says, on the back it says, “Harry is waiting at Privet Drive.”
Andrew: Oh.
Eric: “The Order of the Phoenix is coming to escort him safely away without Voldemort…”
Andrew: Oh yeah, you’re right.
Eric: “…and his supporters knowing – if they can. But what will Harry do then? How will he fulfill the momentous and seemingly impossible task that Professor Dumbledore has left him with?” I think it’s interesting that they mention Dumbledore.
Laura: Well, it could mean he doesn’t go back to Hogwarts.
Eric: Well, here’s Hogwarts on the back cover.
Andrew: Well, we don’t know that.
Laura: I don’t think it’s Hogwarts.
Andrew: You know I like Jamie’s idea that it’s the Beauxbatons – Beauxbatons.
Eric: Where did Jamie go by the way?
Andrew: Because it’s all icy. Yeah, where did he go? He’s quiet. I don’t know, but yeah, I think I’m in agreement with Jamie and Laura there. Ummm, let’s see, so what else is there to talk about?
UK Children’s Edition: The Triangle
Eric: What’s the triangle? Is that just the publisher?
Andrew: Yeah, I was thinking about that but then I realized it’s probably – it’s probably just the Bloomsbury symbol or something.
Eric: Logo, yeah.
Andrew: On the UK version there.
Eric: No, their logo’s the cat. The cat or whatever. The little thing sprinting across next to the ISBN.
Andrew: Wasn’t Gaunt’s ring on the spine?
Eric: Uhhh…
Laura: Yeah. It was on there somewhere.
Eric: Actually, it’s a…
Andrew: I mean…
Laura: It was, but…
Eric: It’s to show that AOL owns Time Warner…
Andrew: Yeah. [laughs] It’s subliminal advertising.
Eric: [laughs] …who produced the Harry Potter movies.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: AOL’s trying to come back and it will be big.
Back to Book Summaries
Andrew: Yeah. But one thing I noticed about these books summaries with this book is that they’re much more ominous then like – I remember with Book 5, the book summary was cool because it talked about – well, it didn’t say Umbridge specifically, but they said, I believe it was a teacher that was as sour as some sap or sappy or…
Eric: Blueberries, yeah.
Andrew: Yeah, it went…
Laura: It was like, “poisoned honey,” or something like that.
Andrew: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: It pointed out like a few different things in the book, and this is just very, like, Harry’s got to do it. He’s got to take Professor Dumbledore’s…
Eric: Yeah. Can he do it?
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: Will he do it? Can he do it? Will he do it? Can he do it? Well, and the thing about Book 6 was that it didn’t seem to be ominous as much as it was, because they were talking about – like, Book Six’s summary was, at least in the US, I think it was, you know, people are dying left and right, they circle ads in The Daily Prophet for all the things, and they’re watching the… And it made it out to be something that the book wasn’t actually like, about…
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: …as far as things go. I mean, yeah, people were dying, but that wasn’t at all about what Harry’s journey was in that story. So…
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: It kind of just detracted from that, and then this is like, dead on, but very ominous all the same.
Andrew: Yeah. So, yeah, I think that’s pretty much the extent of our cover coverage, he he, now.
[Eric and Laura laugh]
British Page Count and Arthur Levine on Today Show
Andrew: I mean, we encourage everyone to send in their theories about the covers. I’m sure there’s going to be millions of them, and we’ll try to get to as many of them as possible. You can e-mail all of those into mugglecast at staff dot mugglenet dot com. Some other smaller news that came out today: UK page counts confirmed – 608 pages. Not really big news. And Arthur Levine, the Scholastic editor, was on The Today Show today to formally reveal the cover. I give him props, though. Did anyone see the video? He was wearing a brown suit with a yellow tie and a green shirt. You know what that’s just like?
Eric: Alex of the Remus Lupins?
Andrew: No, what Harry’s wearing on the cover of the US cover.
Eric: Ohhh, right.
Andrew: Brown Jacket, green shirt.
Laura: Oh, yeah.
Andrew: I thought that was kind of cool, kind of clever of him to do there. So, I give him mad props for doing some color coordinating with Harry. And, you know, a couple of quotes from him, that he said on The Today Show. He says, “When I was reading it, I had both the excitement and the power of the book and the plot driving me forward, but I was also feeling a little sad it’s the last time.” Yeah, Laura?
US vs. UK Page Count
Laura: You know, I missed something. Something interesting that happened today. Ciaran and I were talking, and he had me check the…
Micah: Does that not happen often?
Eric: Wow!
[Everyone laughs]
Laura: No, we were talking, and he had me check the page counts in US editions because in the UK editions, apparently, and this is according to him, Deathly Hallows is the third longest book, not by much, but it still is somewhat shorter than – I forget which book it was, but then, in ours, Deathly Hallows is the second longest.
Eric: Oh, that’s weird. By like, quite a bit. By like 50 pages.
Laura: Yeah, it is weird. Yeah, so it’s, I mean, obviously – did you guys, I mean, this is what I thought, but whenever I got Half-Blood Prince, the typeset looked slightly larger than it had been before…
Eric: I think I felt that way.
Laura: …but it could also mean that there are some things that the US editors left in.
Eric: If there are, though, everybody in the UK will be pissed, especially because the UK should actually…
Laura: Yeah. [laughs]
Eric: …technically have the most, technically, maybe.
Laura: Why?
Eric: Because JKR is the one writing it, you know? Why would the US edition have something completely, I mean – I don’t know. It just makes sense that a lot of people would be pissed if Book 7…
Laura: But they should be loyal to the printers. [laughs]
Eric: No, I’m just saying it would be – if anything is omitted, I mean, I would think that it would be really freaking big deal, especially for the seventh book, when everything has to be exactly as it is.
Andrew: Right, right.
Laura: So, if it turns out that they left a bunch of stuff out of the UK version, are you going to come back, Eric?
Eric: Yeah, I will.
Andrew: All right, so I guess there’s nothing else to talk about there. Again, e-mail all your theories about the covers into mugglecast at staff dot mugglenet dot com and we’ll get to them…
Jamie: Oh, are we still on the covers?
Andrew: …on show 85, 85 we’ll get on to them.
[Eric and Laura laugh]
Book 7 Manuscript
Andrew: Show 84, there’s no book cover discussion, so when you listen to it, don’t be surprised, but then 85 and onward we’ll have plenty of discussion about the covers. All right guys, it’s time to, time to announce what happened the other day.
Jamie: Are you sure? Andrew…
Laura: Oh, my gosh.
Jamie: To be – we can back out now if we need to.
Andrew: Well, I mean, that’s what editing is for, but I really think that since this is the final book, we have nothing to lose. Think about it.
Jamie: Okay, let’s do it. Let’s just do it now. Just do it.
Andrew: All right, so we’re all going to go around the table here to announce – to talk about what we experienced earlier this week because it’s big, and before we tell you, you guys should know that you’re going to be a little jealous and you’re going to hate us.
Eric: And there is an e-mail address set up specifically if you’d like to hate us.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: There are support groups, there’s a Facebook, and everything.
Andrew: All that, yes. All that discussion about the book covers, all that speculation we were doing, we made it all up.
Jamie: Yes.
Andrew: We actually know…
Laura: Yeah.
Andrew: …what’s going to happen in…
Jamie: Andrew, don’t forget what the legal team said, choose your words carefully.
Andrew: Jamie, Jamie, can I just – can you let me do this?
Jamie: Yeah, okay. Sorry, sorry.
Andrew: We received the manuscript to the final Harry Potter book. All of us received it. All right, we made copies, and then I ran to the nearest Xerox, and we… All right, so, I haven’t told you guys the whole story yet…
Jamie: Oh.
Andrew: …but I guess we’ll start off with that and then you guys can go into, you know, the rest of it. So, basically what happened was, I was in New York City this past weekend, and I had passed the Scholastic store, and I thought, “Hmmm, wait a second, Book 7 is done.” The editors are all there; it was a weekday, it was a Friday mid-afternoon, so I decided to go in. I’m going to condense it all, because, you know, all the details are irrelevant. We – I went in, and I ran into the one and only Arthur Levine, who we just talked about, and I asked him, basically, straight up, “Is the manuscript here?” And he laughed at me, and he said, “Yes.” And then I, you know, sat there for a few minutes and I thought, “How can I get that manuscript out of his office?” He told me it was in his office [laughs], he told me, actually, exactly where it was.
[Eric laughs]
Andrew: It was in his drawer, to the right.
Jamie: Yeah, but he knew you, Andrew.
Andrew: He knew me, he knew me, from MuggleCast, and so I thought for a few seconds, “How could I get into his office?”
Jamie: Let me do it, let me do it!
Andrew: All right. All right, so, Jamie, to be honest with you, I’m kind of…
Jamie: He’s recounted this story to me thousands of times, so…
Andrew: I’m getting a little choked up because this moment was very special, so [pretends to cry] can you just finish this, please… [sniffles]
Jamie: Yeah, so, Arthur went off and Andrew was sitting there in what he described as the nicest chair his bum has ever graced, so extremely nice, inside of Scholastic. And so he was just sitting there, waiting along, and I can’t remember her name, Rachel something…
Andrew: Fadden.
Jamie: …from Scholastic came out…
Andrew: Fadden.
Jamie: Huh? Oh, Fannon, okay, okay.
Andrew: Fadden.
Jamie: Sorry?
Andrew: Fadden!
Jamie: Fadden.
Eric: Fadden. Rachel Fadden.
Andrew: Yeah.
Jamie: Fadden, oh, okay, came out, and she said that they’re doing a – because, you know, it’s Book 7 and it’s the last big book, they’re doing a kind of online, sort of, what’s it called? What word did she use? Online circulation, just to see what, sort of, some certain people think of it…
Andrew: Yeah.
Jamie: …”Do you wanted to be part of it?” Andrew says he acted all professional, but I don’t think he did at all, did you?
Andrew: I wet my pants a little bit, but it wasn’t enough so they could see.
Jamie: [laughs] No, yeah. So, he said yes of course, and it took four or five hours from there, and he went into the office, had to sign a million NDAs (non-disclosure agreements).
Andrew: Mhm.
Jamie: They said it was embargo for a few months, obviously, until the release. But, he found a loophole in it, which he’ll explain soon. So, yeah, he got the manuscript, brought it back, photocopied it. We each got a copy recently, and we obviously spent that night reading about it. And everyone has comments that I’m sure they want to share because it seriously is mind-blowing, but do you want to talk more about the NDAs, Andrew, and the loophole you found?
Andrew: Well, I was reading through all the papers, and it turns out that I have a good friend who is a lawyer, and I was reading through everything about how you can’t tell anyone about any details and how none of it can be published and everything and my lawyer friend pointed out to me – his name is Steven M. Capello.
Laura: Ohhh.
Andrew: And it’s capellolaw.com or capello-law or something like that. He told me that – Well, the document said that I could not directly tell anyone the details of the book. What it didn’t say, though, was anything about sort of like broadcasting it to a general public. Basically, I could do it indirectly. So, I was thinking about it, and I was like, “All right, indirectly, indirectly.
Jamie: Very good, very good.
Andrew: Well, directly would be straight to a person, but if I do a broadcast medium, I could talk about it.”
Andrew: That’s good.
Andrew: So, what did I do? I made my own podcast, and I sent all the URLs to my fellow staff members, at which point the other guys will be explaining what they got.
Eric: So, we have the audio broadcast of Andrew reading Book 7 to all of us.
Jamie: I thought he was mad to do it, but that’s, you know, dedication…
Eric: But this is how much Andrew cares about his friends.
Laura: I know, man
Eric: So, we all know what happens now.
Jamie: Well, should we tell them what we think? I’d be dying if…
Andrew: Well, what do you think, we should divulge some details about the book?
Jamie: Well, I just want to give away a few things.
Andrew: What did you have in mind?
Jamie: I wanted personally to talk about the death.
Eric: I was right!
Jamie: I don’t know what everyone else wants to talk about.
Eric: You mean the deaths. [longates the “s”]
Laura: Oh yeah, we should definitely talk about that.
Andrew: Should we do a quick spoiler warning?
Jamie: Oh, yeah. Okay, everyone who wants to read Book 7 – just seriously, don’t listen now.
Andrew: Forward ten minutes. We’ll probably be done in ten minutes.
Jamie: Yeah, 10 minutes?
Andrew: So, who dies?
Jamie: You’re sure I should say? Okay.
Andrew: Why not?
Jamie: It’s two deaths, actually.
Andrew: Yeah.
Jamie: Ronald and Hermione. And I know so many people didn’t want that to happen, but once you read it, you’ll realize it had to happen. And it had to happen.
Laura: I was shocked!
Jamie: I know! I was shocked, as well, but you know the point – I realized it was going to happen after they went into the Ministry. And I thought if they hadn’t had done it, Harry was in for it, and…
Laura: Mhm. Yeah, definitely.
Jamie: …after they revealed that piece about the prophecy, you knew Harry had to survive. So, I think they had to die for Harry to do it. So, I wasn’t surprised – I was very, very upset, but they had to go, I think.
Eric: Well, if you look at when they’re in the chamber…
Jamie: Yeah.
Eric: …with the delicacies, as they’re called – if you want to know how it happens, there’s some hints on the U.K. cover.
Jamie: Yeah. If you take that gold to be literal, then it gives you a bit of a clue as to what’s happening. So yeah – just take it literally, and you get a clue. And also the shape of the arch, as well. If you look back at Goblet of Fire is it, Laura?
Laura: Yeah, that’s right. It completely, it really… You won’t believe you missed it. You’ll be smacking yourself. It’s crazy.
Jamie: Yeah, just look at that. The color, as well. It gives a huge clue. But, Micah, what did you think about the death?
Micah: Well, you’ve failed to mention not just people on the good side died; there are people on the bad side that kicked the bucket, as well.
Jamie: Yeah, I know. Go on.
Micah: Well, you know what I liked? Somebody got some sweet, sweet revenge, man. Do I want to talk about how Lucius died?
Jamie: You may as well mention it.
Andrew: Honestly, guys, we should just go all out. We already spilled the beans on…
Laura: Yeah, come on. Let’s do it.
Micah: Lucius – I mean, Dobby going hardcore with the sword into Lucius’ back, that was some serious scene.
Jamie: Yeah.
Laura: Yeah, that was…
Jamie: I don’t know how he got into Azkaban. Was it a spell or did someone bring him there? Because she didn’t explain it.
Eric: Well, it’s House-elf magic, really.
Jamie: Oh yeah. I suppose that’s true. He just had some powers.
Eric: What’s important, though, is that Dobby spared Draco, and that Draco was kind of like…
Jamie: Why did he do it, though? Why did he do that though?
Eric: I don’t know. But what was important to me was that when Snape came and it was the scene where at the – they were underneath – what is that underneath the hospital?
Jamie: Oh, the chamber underneath the hospital.
Laura: Mhm.
Andrew: The chamber.
Eric: No, there’s a tunnel.
Jamie: They didn’t…
Andrew: Oh…
Eric: That leads directly there.
Jamie: The tunnel to the chamber, yeah.
Eric: Okay, they’re in the chamber in the tunnel, but at the same time it was – Snape kicks ass in this book, basically.
Jamie: Yeah.
Eric: He’s good, by the way. He’s good.
Laura: He really does.
Jamie: He is good. Very good. But you’d think halfway through he wasn’t good, but there’s a huge revelation at the end.
Andrew: I didn’t understand why, out of the blue, he just starts making out with McGonagall.
[Micah laughs]
Jamie: How could you not understand that? It was built up.
Andrew: Well, it’s because…
Eric: Oh, come on, it was so bulit up!
Andrew: No. No. It came out of the blue to me.
Jamie: Andrew, did you completely miss the bit in the pensive right in the beginning when it showed their childhood? Were you asleep?
Andrew: Their childhood was nothing. Just because they’re playing with Barbie dolls together doesn’t mean they’re going to be making out 30, 50 years later!
Jamie: Are you kidding? Didn’t you spot the love between them?
Laura: She’s at least 30 years older than he is.
Andrew: Okay, listen, Laura, we don’t have to get all technical about it. Point is, they were making out.
Jamie: Okay.
Laura: That’s kind of creepy.
Jamie: They were. It’s true. But I thought that paled in comparison to Harry’s new job after he kills Voldemort. He kills Voldemort, by the way. Love comes into it in that he has a sort of blow up, inflatable heart, and he suffocates him, puts it over his face…
Eric: No, you shouldn’t them the specifics. You should not.. Don’t tell them the specifics.
Jamie: I want to mention the heart specifics.
Andrew: Do it, do it. I think it’s okay.
Eric: You can say love. You can say love.
Jamie: Yeah. So, he puts his heart over his face and suffocates him. So, that was the sort of – metaphorical love was going to kill him in the chamber of the heart, which I thought was very clever.
Eric: They didn’t use wands.
Jamie: Exactly. They didn’t use wands.
Eric: By the way, Jamie, do you want to tell them what they’re reaching for on the U.S. cover? Because we did that for a long time.
Jamie: You sure?
Andrew: Just do it. Just do it! I mean, we’re going all out.
Jamie: Okay, fine. Well, this heart that he suffocates Voldemort with – he doesn’t actually have it first of all, and Ginny comes along, and she puts this protective suit on that’s called an “anti-veil” thing. They bought it from Fred and George. And she puts this on and she reaches through the veil to where they’re fighting and hands him this thing. So, they’re reaching up because Voldemort at this point realizes that this thing is going to kill him. So they both reach up and Ginny manages somehow to throw it to Harry and he does it like that. But, his job. Come on. Did you know he was going to be a basketball coach?
Andrew: No, no. You know…
Laura: Yeah, that was really weird.
Andrew: Just these things – you would think at least Quidditch. That would be it. You wouldn’t go outside to real Muggle sports.
Jamie: No, you’d really think he would.
Laura: Well, I mean…
Eric: If it weren’t for the fact that the whole world – go on, Laura.
Laura: I was just going to say, the whole part where Neville ran over Bellatrix with Sirius’ motorbike, that was…
Jamie: Well, I did not think that was going to happen.
[Micah laughs]
Andrew: Wasn’t that accidental?
Micah: That was awesome.
Andrew: Was that accidental or was that…
Micah: No.
Jamie: He says it was. He says it was, Andrew. Come on.
Eric: Yeah, he says it was an accident, but that’s because…
Jamie: He says, “Oh, I didn’t realize…” – by the way, that was my favorite line of the book when he says, “Oh, I didn’t realize the gas tank was full.” It was brilliant, genius.
[Andrew and Laura laugh]
Andrew: Yeah. Oh god.
Micah: Jamie…
Eric: I loved the description, “The face of flattened pancakes.”
Jamie: [laughs] That was brilliant!
[Everyone laughs]
Andrew: I think Jo sort of let herself go there. I didn’t think that was very original. That’s been written before. That wasn’t very Jo-like.
Jamie: I know, yeah.
Andrew: Micah, what was…
Eric: But it was so enjoyable.
Jamie: What was your impression of Harry’s job, Micah?
Micah: I was going to say, how would you expect him to be anything else after he lost all his magical ability?
Jamie: I know.
Andrew: Yeah.
Laura: Oh, that’s right. Yeah.
Eric: To be fair, he might be a basketball coach, but at least it’s in the limbo world because of the eclipse and everything.
Jamie: Yeah.
Eric: Pretty much, the world ends when Book 7 ends. And I don’t mean just Harry Potter’s world.
Jamie: Yeah. Oh, Eric, you shouldn’t have said that, though.
Eric: I know, but I have to say it because, actually, we thought, what would happen after? But that’s why J.K.R. couldn’t say that, “I don’t know if there’ll be more books after.”
Jamie: Yeah. Precisely, yeah.
Eric: Not only does Harry’s story end, but the whole world just ends. It’s not like Harry dies.
Andrew: Yeah.
Eric: But it’s that the world just stops.
Laura: The epilogue is one word, you guys.
Jamie: Are we going to talk about that?
Laura: Should I tell them what it is?
Andrew: Yeah, go ahead.
Jamie: Yeah, go on, yeah.
Laura: It’s one word. It’s just “End.” That’s all it is, “End.” And a period. That’s it.
Jamie: It is, yeah.
Eric: And “Scar,” and “Scar,” and “Scar.”
Jamie: Then if you turn the page it’s just, “Hahahahaha.”
[Eric laughs]
Andrew: Another thing…
Eric: Parentheses…
Andrew: …I wasn’t a fan of. The Sorting Hat song at the beginning.
Jamie: Oh.
Andrew: I mean, I know Jo’s been a Beatles fan for a while, but then he starts singing, Help.
Jamie: Yeah. Yeah, he really does.
Andrew: What? That’s pushing it. Isn’t there copyright issues? Did she really get permission from the Beatles to do that?
Jamie: Well, I think she must’ve spoken to them, yeah. Well, I’ve heard that Paul McCartney did actually go to Hogwarts when he was a child, but he failed and he bought a guitar with his failure money and started a band.
Andrew: Oh really? I didn’t know that.
Jamie: So there is a kind of connection there, but, yeah.
Andrew: Oh, I didn’t know that, Jamie, thank you.
Eric: We might be talking… Guys, we might be actually talking about this in a light tone, but this is actually – we have to emphasis this – this is not a children’s book.
Andrew: No.
Jamie: Yeah, I completely… Yeah.
Eric: Not only do you get to see Bill and Fleur’s wedding, but you get to hear about their honeymoon.
Andrew: See…
Jamie: I couldn’t believe…
Laura: Yeah, wow.
Eric: I just have to say…
Laura: That’s all I have to say. Woah.
Jamie: I was going to say, I couldn’t believe when that guy stood up in their wedding and shouted, “She’s already married! I married her four years go!”
Andrew: [laughs] I know! Can you believe that!? Right out of Maury. Right out of Maury. I swear.
Jamie: But I think we should stop there. Poor Bill, though. I think we should stop there.
Laura: [laughs] You can’t put that in.
Andrew: One last thing that really grinded my gears. I know we are in the 21st Century now and we are in this high-tech age where there’s computers and stuff.
Jamie: Yeah.
Andrew: I know what everyone’s going to say: “Oh, there were computers?” No. But what really annoyed me was that they started using Facebook.
Jamie: No, but, Andrew, that was how he found out where the Horcux was.
Eric: Yeah.
Andrew: Jo specifically writes in the Hogwarts network. I couldn’t believe it!
Jamie: Yeah, she does.
Laura: You see, what was stupid – what was stupid was that Harry was actually updating his status to say when he got the Horcrux. I was like, “What are you doing!?”
Jamie: It was so obvious.
Andrew: I know. Less Facebook time, more finding Voldemort time.
Eric: Oh, come on!
Jamie: Oh, it’s awful. But, that post on his wall was so provocative.
[Eric laughs]
Laura: Well, I mean, the poking war. The poking war…
Jamie: “Come and get me, Harry, you scrawny, scarry…” I just couldn’t take it.
Eric: Listen, guys, guys. What about Aberforth’s, what was it, alias. Like Goatman or something, that he was trying to pick up the little girls in the chatroom with?
Jamie: That’s just disgusting.
Andrew: I thought that was disgusting, really.
Eric: And it turned out that Ginny was almost swayed by – Oh my God.
Jamie: But also…
Andrew: What? Did you see those photos that Hermione tagged of Harry on his “view more photos” page with Voldemort?
Eric: They’re horrid!
Jamie: I can’t believe she tagged remaining Horcruxes, as well.
Andrew: Yeah.
Jamie: I mean, you just don’t do that.
Andrew: Just try to keep it a secret.
Laura: I couldn’t believe that she actually had a picture of Harry and Voldemort. They had their arms around each other and their thumbs up in the air. I was like, “Woah.”
[Andrew laughs]
Jamie: Well, I couldn’t believe that Voldemort had time to make that MySpace picture. You know, he had his camera and his robes out, and he was looking into that mirror, and he had his make-up on and he took the camera, and you saw the flashes.
Andrew: Yeah.
Jamie: I mean, it was beautiful photography, but isn’t he supposed to be killing Harry?
Andrew: It’s too MySpace. It’s too MySpace, if you ask me.
Jamie: It is. Way too MySpace. And why did he put his income at $250,000 and above? Because he doesn’t earn anything. He doesn’t have a job. And his song, as well.
Eric: I wish Kreacher and Winky would just stop poking each other on Facebook and just hook up. Seriously.
Andrew: And what on earth was with Harry joining the, “All I Need to Know I Learned fFom Watching The Magic School Bus” group on Facebook?
Eric: [laughs] Yeah!
Jamie: Yeah.
Andrew: You know…
Eric: But I got to tell you, those people were totally happy in the book, at least, when he did that.
Andrew: That’s true. That’s true.
Eric: Jo made some friends in that group.
Andrew: All right, I think we spilled enough.
Eric: We’re done, we’re done. It’s that simple.
Jamie: I think we spilled enough.
Eric: Everybody outro, we’re stopping.
Andrew: So, we hope we didn’t spill too much for you.
Jamie: But should we mention Jo’s reaction, Andrew…
Andrew: To what? Oh.
Jamie: …because I heard that it was terrible to behold.
Andrew: Well, you know, I think it’s just digging a deeper hole by talking about it, but she was not happy about it.
Eric: Jo will have no more dealings with Scholastic.
Andrew: I don’t want to go into details, Jamie. I mean, we’re running out of time.
Jamie: It was pretty…
Andrew: Jo wasn’t happy.
Laura: Maybe not with you, but me and Micah, she trusts us with her work.
Andrew: Why?
Laura: I don’t know.
Eric: Why you, Laura?
Laura: I don’t know.
Jamie: Laura, you think that. You should hear the stuff she said to me about you. Oh my god.
[Eric laughs]
Laura: She did not.
Jamie: She did, she did.
[Laura sighs]
Eric: So Andrew…
Jamie: Over a cup of tea. And a croissant.
[Eric laughs]
Jamie: She told me all this.
Show Close
Andrew: All right, well, I think that wraps up today’s show. We’ve been going for a while. We apologize for – I mean this is the Aprils Fool’s Day show, no jokes. But it was a big week. I mean, especially for us. Not only the cover, but we got the manuscript.
Jamie: Yeah.
Andrew: So, I thank everyone for listening.
Jamie: I’m sorry we couldn’t do a real joke, Andrew. We should probably apologize. We didn’t do a proper joke. An April Fools joke.
Andrew: Well, it just… Sometimes we just don’t have time for it.
Jamie: It just didn’t feel right, you know.
Andrew: Yeah, yeah. Well, it didn’t feel right this week, what with getting the manuscript.
Andrew: We have to be very serious now.
Eric: Speaking of not enough time…
[Show music begins playing]
Andrew: To remind everyone about our contact information, you can send us parcel mail to the MuggleCast P.O. Box, which is:
P.O. Box 223
Moundridge, KS
67107
You can also call in your voicemails by using 1-218-20-MAGIC in the United States. If you’re in the U.K. you can dial 020-8144-0677. If you’re in Australia you can dial 02-8003-5668. And you can also Skype the username MuggleCast, just try to keep your message about 30 seconds in length and eliminate as much background noise as possible.
You can also visit MuggleCast.com for a feedback form and you could also contact any one of us at our first names at staff dot mugglenet…
Jamie: Shouldn’t we point out that, please don’t e-mail us for a request to read or view the manuscript. We think that’s pushing it a bit far because we haven’t actually revealed that much…
Laura: Yeah, there was a lot more that was…
Jamie: We don’t want to show anyone the real thing. Literally. We weren’t even scratching it. We were poking it very roughly. The surface didn’t even feel it.
[Laura laughs]
Eric: Just once again, that’s it for this week. Stay tuned on Wednesday for Jamie’s episode. And hopefully sometime in the future we’ll be seeing more of Ben, Mikey, and Ben, and everyone else.
Jamie: Yeah.
Eric: Good night.
Jamie: Ben, Mikey, and Ben. [laughs] Ben, Mikey, and Ben? He appeared twice, Ben. Two Bens.
Andrew: [laughs] I’m Andrew Sims.
Jamie: I’m Jamie Lawrence.
Eric: I’m Eric Scull.
Laura: I’m Laura Thompson.
Micah: And I’m Micah Tannenbaum.
Jamie: Couldn’t quite remember that, Laura.
Laura: Bye.
———————–
Written by: Micah, Adrienne, Allison, Briana, Cindy, Jessica, Laura, Leah, Margaret, Matt, Samantha, Sapna, Sarah, Shannon, Shelly, and Tina