MuggleCast EP12 Transcript
Intro
Andrew [Show Intro with music in background]: This is MuggleCast – Episode 12 for October 24, 2005. Hey everyone! Welcome to the show! I am Andrew Sims!
Kevin: I’m Kevin Steck.
Laura: I’m Laura Thompson.
Cristin: And I’m Cristin Atkins.
Andrew: Cristin Atkins – welcome to your first MuggleCast appearance. You’re here because you won the “101 Ways to Kill Off Voldemort Contest”. You got First Place and our promise was that the First Place Winner would be able to come on to the show. So, welcome!
Cristin: Thank you. I even had to e-mail Eric back because he didn’t mention it when I first spoke with him. [Laughs]
Andrew: Oh!
Laura: Awww!
Andrew: Well, he’s kind of forgetful like that. The first…
Cristin: I said I would hold him to it because that is what you all said to do.
Andrew: Yeah, yeah especially with Eric. But, before we get to anything else, let’s go to Micah with the past week’s top stories in the Harry Potter world.
News
Micah: All right, Andrew. Glad to see you have recovered after what happened at the end of last week’s episode.
Imelda Staunton appeared Wednesday on ITV’s “This Morning” show and confirmed that she will play the part of Professor Dolores Umbridge in Order of the Phoenix. She has yet to receive a script, but said she will begin work on the film early next year.
Keeping with the movie news, it was reported on Tuesday that from November 18th through the 20th, James and Oliver Phelps (the actors who portray Fred and George Weasley) will be at the Hollywood Boulevard Theatre in Woodridge, Illinois, for a meet and greet. They will be there to sign autographs and speak with fans throughout the day.
And, Collectormania GMEX kicks off in Manchester, England, in February 2006! The line-up promises to be massive, as both the actors who play Cedric Diggory and Viktor Krum will be on hand.
Newsround reports that the fourth Harry Potter movie has been given a 12A rating by the British Board of Film Classification. According to a BBFC spokeswoman: “Examiners decided that the 12A was the most suitable category, as younger or more sensitive viewers could be frightened by some of the more intense scenes.” For those of you wondering, 12A would be roughly the same as the PG-13 rating which Goblet of Fire received here in the US.
Of course, there are plenty of movie photos, scans, banners, clips and a new Goblet of Fire TV Spot available for download on MuggleNet’s Main Page. And, thanks to Extra!, there is a special behind-the-scenes look and interview with Dan Radcliffe on the upcoming film. Plus, both HarryPotter.com and the official UK Harry Potter website have been updated.
Finally, we end with Rocco, the Brazilian Harry Potter publisher, who has revealed the title of the sixth book, which translates as “Harry Potter and the Enigma of the Prince”. JK Rowling was presented with a number of titles and chose this one herself. The book is due out on November 26th.
That’s all the news from our News center in New York for this October 23, 2005 edition of MuggleCast. Back to you guys!
Andrew: Thank you, Micah.
[Silence]
Andrew: Is he not there?
Laura: I don’t think so.
Kevin: I don’t think he is.
Andrew: No? Okay. I don’t want…
Laura: I think he’s locked up in the Transcript Dungeon this time.
Andrew: I don’t want him to surprise me EVER again.
Kevin: Yeah, he had fun with that last transcript.
[Laura laughs]
Andrew: Yes. Yes, he did.
Meet Contest Winner – Cristin Atkins
Andrew: So, before we move on to anything else, – first, Cristin, would you like to tell us a little bit about yourself?
Cristin: Sure! I am currently a substitute teacher at Hoffmann Lane Elementary School and I have substituted from Kindergarten all the way up to 8th Grade, and I am fixing to start a short-term position in computers for Kindergarten through 6th Grade. So, I am really excited. [Laughs]
Andrew: That’s great! And you are really in to Harry Potter, too?
Cristin: Yes. I first started reading it because I have a younger cousin – he’s about eight years younger than me, and he didn’t have anybody who would read it with him and he got a game for Christmas. So, I started reading it so that I could play the game with him and I really enjoyed it, and then I went out and got one of those Wizarding World Press books and started reading through it and figured out it is a lot more than just a kid’s book. She goes into such detail that you can really read it tons of times and still find something interesting and new.
Andrew: Yeah. That’s so true. So, thanks for coming on today and we’re sure you’ll do a great job.
Announcements
Andrew: Now, let’s move on to a couple of announcements first. You might notice that once again Ben is not with us this week.
Kevin: Yeah.
Laura: Ohhh. I am…
Kevin: What a shame!
Laura: I am so disappointed.
Andrew: So…
Kevin: Yep.
Andrew: Yeah. I guess we… Okay!
Kevin: On to other things.
Andrew: So, he’s not here. And then Eric was also going to be here this week, but he had some recording difficulties.
Kevin: He may still join us. He may get in.
Andrew: But no guarantees.
Kevin: Yes.
Andrew: Don’t get your hopes up.
Kevin: I also do want to say something. I got an e-mail from someone, Brian, asking us permission to use the podcast in his English class.
Andrew: No!
Kevin: No? I didn’t think so.
Andrew: No.
Kevin: I thought it would be… It’s unacceptable!
[All laugh]
Cristin: That’s so mean. You should do anything for teaching.
Andrew: No way.
Cristin: Come on.
Andrew: Yes! Absolutely! Sure!
Kevin: So Brian…
Andrew: I shouldn’t say that in front of a teacher, should I?
[All laugh]
Kevin: No.
Cristin: Trust me. We’ve heard it all before.
Kevin: So, Brian Carr – yes you have our permission. Have fun. And, Andrew…
Andrew: What grade does he teach?
Kevin: He teaches 8th Grade Language Arts.
Laura: Nice!
Kevin: Yeah.
Andrew: Oooh!
Kevin: Must be fun.
Andrew: And what is he going to use our thing for?
Kevin: He doesn’t say. He sent in a voice clip asking permission, but I wasn’t able to open it.
Andrew: Ohhh!
Kevin: Yeah.
Cristin: Maybe illusions. That’s real popular.
Kevin: He does have a class website though. He did mention that.
Andrew: Let’s not plug it because I don’t want it to be crashed.
Kevin: Yeah. I don’t want it to kill the school website.
Laura: Yeah.
Kevin: That would be bad.
Andrew: Maybe say it one time really, really fast so only a few people can get it.
Kevin: Oh, I don’t think so because they will slow our voices down.
[All laugh]
Andrew: Yeah.
Laura: All right.
Andrew: All right. So, that’s great! Sure! Anyone can use our podcast, even you, Cristin.
Cristin: Yeah? Well, thank you.
Andrew: Although… Yeah, anytime!
[Cristin laughs]
Andrew: So, moving on, we also have a New York City update.
Kevin: Yes, we do.
Andrew: Actually, no actually, we really don’t.
Kevin: Is it official yet?
Andrew: Oh, yes! We do!
Kevin: Is it official yet that we’ve moved?
Andrew: Here’s something official. Kevin bought his train ticket.
Kevin: Yes. I did.
Andrew: Or whatever you bought.
Kevin: I did.
Andrew: So, we know you’re going.
Kevin: Yes. At the cost of what, $53.00?
Cristin: Awesome!
Andrew: Cool! Cool!
Kevin: It is not bad at all.
Cristin: Better than gas.
Laura: Yeah.
Andrew: $53.00?
Kevin: Yeah. It’s cheap!
Andrew: I could take a train for $15.00.
Kevin: Oh, yeah. Thanks a lot Andrew! Make me feel better about myself. Mr. New iPod over there.
[All laugh]
Cristin: I could take a plane ticket for like $750.
Kevin: Well, I was trying to get Andrew to buy my plane ticket, but he wouldn’t have it.
Cristin: Hmmm.
Kevin: He said flying from Connecticut to New York…
Laura: Yeah. God, Andrew!
Cristin: That’s so mean!
Laura: You’re so cheap!
Kevin: He is!
Laura: God!
Andrew: No comment. Also here’s the real announcement. Nobody cares that you’re coming down there. Give me a break.
[All laugh]
Laura: Oh! That was mean. That was mean. Sure they care.
Cristin: Nobody would care if I was coming. They probably would care if you were coming.
Andrew: I’m sorry. Okay. But, I’ll say, here’s…
Kevin: But, see the thing is, I am bigger than you, Andrew.
[Laura laughs]
Kevin: And I am going to be seeing you live in New York.
Laura: Exactly.
Cristin: Oooh!
Kevin: But, if the fans won’t see you after will I see you is the question?
[Laura laughs]
Kevin: So, the real announcement…
Andrew: You talk like I’m afraid.
Kevin: You should be afraid.
Andrew: The real announcement is that Barnes & Noble, the bookstore that will be hosting us while we are up there, originally we were at, whatever bookstore we were at…
Kevin: 22nd Street.
Andrew: Ah, 22nd Street.
Kevin: It was it? Broadway and 22nd then?
Andrew: Broadway and 22nd. Yeah, but however Barnes & Noble contacted us the other day and told us [makes coughing noise] “We’re not going to be able to hold everyone.” So, therefore…
Kevin: Really?
Andrew: Yes. Therefore…
Kevin: No surprise.
Andrew: We are moving everyone to my house. No. Just kidding.
[All laugh[
Cristin: Nice. Did you tell your Mom?
Andrew: We are moving to a bigger Barnes & Noble. Yeah, we’ve been moved to a bigger Barnes & Noble at 14th Street in Union Square, still in New York City. A few extra blocks, but that is okay. Everyone is taking a cab anyway. It’s going to be at a bigger Barnes & Noble. We’re going to be able to hold like double or triple the amount of people and we are really happy about this. You know it is a bad sign when Barnes & Noble calls you and says, “Uh. We have to kick you out and move you into a bigger one of our stores.”
Cristin: That’s a good sign.
Andrew: Yeah. I guess so.
Kevin: Eric is back. So I am going to invite him in now.
Laura: Cross your fingers everyone.
Andrew: This show was going so well.
Kevin: So well. Okay, Eric?
Eric: Yes.
Kevin: Are you with us?
Eric: I am fine.
Kevin: Great!
[Andrew laughs]
Laura: Yay!
Kevin: We were just telling everyone about how Barnes & Noble had to move us because we had too many people coming.
Eric: No kidding?
Kevin: Yeah.
Eric: Ahhh!
Andrew: We kid you not! So…
Eric: Where are we now?
Andrew: Once again… Well, I am glad you asked. Once again our new place is at [makes drum roll] 14 Street in Union Square, New York City. There’s going to be lots more room. We are going to able to run our voices through the entire store to annoy all the people who are there for actual work, and it is just going to be a great time! And don’t forget, you can always RSVP by e-mailing hp live at gmail dot com. However, that does not guarantee you a spot at the show. It just gives us an idea of how many people are coming.
Kevin: And hopefully with this larger venue, we can actually hold quite a bit more of you.
Andrew: It’s going to be able to hold about 300-400 we can hold now.
Eric: Wow!
Andrew: And then there’s plenty of standing room too.
Kevin: That’s good.
Eric: Neat!
Andrew: Yeah. It is nothing. I talk to 70,000 a week.
Kevin: Yeah, right.
[Eric, Cristin, and Laura laugh]
Andrew: So, moving on – we’d also like to cheaply and shamelessly remind you to vote for us at PodcastAlley.com and rate, review, and tag over at Yahoo! Podcasts.
Kevin: And also we have to remind you to not vote for The Leaky Cauldron.
[Laura and Andrew laugh]
Kevin: You know, their podcast is horrible!
[All laugh]
Kevin: They shouldn’t be on the air!
[All laugh]
Kevin: And don’t even vote for them. Please!
Cristin: Aren’t they going to be with you in New York?
Andrew: The reason Kevin brings this up, the reason Kevin brings this up is because they thought they were all cool, that they could use my voice to promote their show by taking my shameless plea for votes last week and turning it into their own. And, actually I have to admit, I do sound a lot better on PotterCast. My voice is a lot more, just a lot better.
Laura: Hey, now! I feel insulted.
Andrew: So, you…
Eric: You go join PotterCast then, Andrew.
Andrew: I think I will.
Laura: Yeah, fine. Traitor!
Eric: But who will be our editor?
Andrew: Uhhh, Kevin!
Kevin: Yeah, I can do the editing.
Eric: Yeah, okay. Balance editing and college.
Kevin: But, I haven’t let Andrew know yet so I don’t have to do anything.
Lego Contest Announcement
Andrew: And also, it wouldn’t be another MuggleCast if we didn’t have another Contest and this one is for all of you Lego fans. You might remember that a few shows ago, I sat down with Joe Fulton of MillionairePlayboy.com, where we discussed the Harry Potter Lego sets, and now we have a big Contest Announcement. So, take a listen.
All right, we are joined once again by Joe Fulton of MillionairePlayboy.com. He made an appearance on the show a couple of episodes ago where you gave us a sneak peak and very good review about the new Harry Potter Lego Sets.
Joe: That’s right. And hello again to everybody in the Harry Potter world. Yeah, we got such a great response from your listeners about the reviews and even about the Lego sets that I was contacted by Lego, who asked, “Can you guys do some kind of giveaway for the Lego Sets for the Goblet of Fire Sets?” So, that is why I am back on the show today.
Andrew: Yeah. So, we have a big Contest Announcement! And, this is good timing because a lot of people lately have been asking for a new contest. So, this works out good. Now, what is the Contest all about, Joe?
Joe: All right. The Contest is the “Harry Potter Lego Custom Contest” brought to you by MillionairePlayboy.com and MuggleNet.com. Here is what you are going to have to do. We want you to recreate and photograph a scene from Book 6: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince using Legos. And, the most creative person will win two different Lego Sets, “The Graveyard Scene” Set and “The Harry and the Hungarian Horntail” Set.
Andrew: Excellent! Now, we have some rules.
Joe: You’re going to be able to see all the information if you go to MillionairePlayboy.com and look right there in the center under “Feature Articles,” and you will see a link to the page. But, here are the rules.
First, you can enter as many entries as you like. We want people to be creative. So, if you have a bunch of different ideas, put them together and send them.
Second, the photo must be a “.jpg” submitted by e-mail to my e-mail address, which is ldp at millionaireplayboy.com along with the “Title of the Picture,” and “description of the scene,” and “your name.” Now again, the e-mail address is on that page so you don’t have to sit and memorize it, but please send me a little bit of a description of the scene because I may not know exactly what the photograph is supposed to represent.
Third you must use “Lego bricks,” “mini-figures,” anything from Lego in the design to qualify for entry. So, something of Lego must be present.
Which brings me to Rule No. 4, which is you are allowed to use other items along with that as long as you use something from Lego in the design.
Fifth, the scene must be specifically from Book 6! Don’t try and give me a Goblet of Fire Set or even doing from Book 5. It must be from Book 6!
All the entries are due by November 4th! If you don’t get them in before that, you cannot be counted. The winner will be announced right on the MuggleNet podcast Episode 15, which debuts November 13th.
Andrew: Which is also our LIVE podcast.
Joe: Yep.
Andrew: So, we’ll be doing it in front of the LIVE audience.
Joe: Yep.
Andrew: Maybe you’ll be there. Maybe the winner will be there.
Joe: Oh! Hopefully.
Andrew: That would be cool.
Joe: But, it will be, I think it is a great opportunity for creative Harry Potter fans to really give us something great and they can win some great Lego prizes.
Andrew: All right, Joe. So, once again the deadline is November 4th! The winners will be announced the weekend of the Goblet of Fire domestic premiere, which will probably be November 13th. Thanks for joining us, Joe. And, we’ll be talking to you again soon.
Joe: Oh, thanks for having me. And, if you have any questions or anything go to MillionairePlayboy.com and I assume that MuggleNet will also probably have a link to the article as well.
Andrew: Yes, and the e-mail address.
Joe: Yes.
Andrew: So, all you have to do is go to our “Show Notes” page and we’ll have the e-mail address there.
Joe: Great! Good luck to everyone!
Spy on Spartz
Andrew: Now, before we do anything else, let’s get to our regular segments that really make this show shine each and every week. Taking the world by storm – “Spy on Spartz!” This week, Emerson Spartz was at home.
Kevin: Oh, where is he?
Laura: Woohoo!
Andrew: That’s all I have to say because…
[All laugh]
Eric: This section…
Andrew: He is not online. So, tune in next week for another exciting edition of “Spy on Spartz.”
[Laura laughs]
Andrew: I have a feeling that they are like getting worse and worse each week.
Eric: They are getting less exciting.
Laura: [Laughs] Yeah.
Andrew: Ooh! Ooh! Here, I have a “Spy on Spartz” clue or a tidbit thing. [whispers] Emerson’s, everyone turn up their microphones because I can’t say this too loud because I don’t want many people to hear it, Emerson Spartz will be doing a podcast soon. There’s my phone.
[Andrew’s phone rings]
[All laugh]
Laura: And you were lecturing me to turn mine off!
Andrew: Sorry! [Laughs]
Cristin: Yeah! Hurry up! We don’t have that much time. Hurry up!
Eric: Andrew! Andrew!
Andrew: No, I do know who that is.
Eric: You’re the reason we’re lagging man! You and your cell phone.
Andrew: I know. Sorry! Well, I am leaving anyway.
Andrew’s Listener Challenge
Andrew: So, for this week’s “Andrew’s Listener Challenge” I am still going to pose the same challenge to you, which is to dress up as one of us or a Harry Potter character for Halloween. Extra points if you dress up as one of us because anyone can dress up as a Harry Potter character, but if you dress up as one of us, nobody is going to know who you are. So, you really have to have some strength.
Eric: And, that’s the fun part.
Laura: Actually, one girl who e-mailed me said that she was going to wear a sign that says, “I am Laura Thompson from MuggleCast!”
[All laugh]
Kevin: Oh geez! That’s genius.
Eric: That’s easy.
Laura: I thought that was brilliant!
Andrew: Excellent! We have another extended remix for you this week. It’s a little bit longer so we will only air one. And, once again, you can send all of your Challenge Entries to challenge at staff dot mugglenet dot com.
Main Topic – Sirius Black
Andrew: Now, let’s get on to the main topic of the week. Continuing our regular series on a specific Harry Potter character, because you know what, guys? There are so many characters that if we just do one for every show, we’ll be good for about three years. So, this is a safe topic.
[Laura laughs]
Kevin: It is.
Laura: Yeah.
Andrew: And, of course we will be switching it up.
Eric: And immediately after that, we will be so screwed.
Andrew: Yeah. So, we will be doing this, we will be doing quite a few of these and I think these are turning out really well because it gives everyone a great look at one specific character, and we can just focus on one steady topic. So, this week’s character is Sirius Black.
Kevin: Are you serious?
Andrew: That is right. Ah ha ha!
Laura: [Laughs] You know what, Kevin? That was worse than my Avada Kedavra joke.
Kevin: Hey! I try.
[Laura and Cristin laugh]
Andrew: No, Laura. Your Avada Kedavra joke is taking the world by storm. Mark my words!
Kevin: Oh, okay.
Laura: I saw that. I saw that. People in the comments were quite amused by that.
Kevin: Yeah. So, let’s get on to the main topic. Do you think that Sirius is dead?
Eric: Yeah.
Laura: Yeah, I really do.
Kevin: I do, too.
Eric: Yeah.
Laura: I think he’s a goner.
Cristin: I held out hope, but then after this last book, I have kind of let that fall by the wayside.
Eric: Yeah.
Laura: Yeah.
Kevin: Well, I mean it’s, they had that interview with JK Rowling saying that she was crying.
Eric: Right.
Kevin: Over the death.
Eric: Yeah. In the kitchen to Neil.
Kevin: I don’t think that she would be crying if he was still alive. You know? She doesn’t seem like the author to kill someone off and not mean it.
Laura: Yeah.
Cristin: Yeah. And, didn’t she say…
Eric: Yeah, and like misleading the fans.
Cristin: Yeah, I know.
Kevin: Exactly. Same thing goes for Dumbledore. I don’t think Sirius or Dumbledore are still alive.
Laura: Yeah. Same.
Eric: But, once again, I can’t really emphasize it enough. Does that mean they’re gone even though they’re dead? They don’t have to be gone. We might see them again, but as I think as far as…
Laura: Well, no, it’s a constant.
Kevin: I think the most we’ll see is a tidbit left behind by them, but not anything larger than that.
Eric: Yeah. I have to…
Kevin: Although I do feel like there is going to be something very personal for Harry to discover that Sirius or Dumbledore left behind.
Eric: Yeah, I have to agree with you on that.
Laura: I also think it is more of a symbolic thing, like what Dumbledore was saying, “that he would never truly be gone as long as those at Hogwarts were still faithful to him.” So, I think that is how characters like Sirius and Dumbledore do live on in a way, in the series. It’s because people they left behind still love about them and care about them.
Eric: Well, those we love never truly leave us.
Laura: Exactly.
Cristin: And, it affects the way they behave too because with Harry, thinking back about what’s happened to Sirius and what’s happened to Dumbledore, it is just going to give him more fire to go on.
Laura: Exactly.
Kevin: Yeah. I was just going to say that. She always mentions Sirius throughout the books even though he’s gone.
Eric: Yeah, he was, Sirius was mentioned in the beginning of the first book. He was there. Hagrid said that he borrowed his bike from him. He told McGonagall and Dumbledore.
Kevin: Yep.
Eric: So, he’s been there. I mean I thought that was particularly cool. He’s always in the background or he existed there. He was one of the first few characters she introduced. And, next to Dumbledore, Dumbledore was the first character, I guess, next to McGonagall.
Kevin: Yep.
Laura: Right.
Eric: So, that’s all I think he could have possibly hoped for.
Kevin: Now, what do you guys think about Sirius’ purpose in the books? Do you think he had a purpose, and if so, what was it? And, did he fulfill it, like as a character I mean?
Eric: Hmmm.
Kevin: In the sense of a character, I mean.
Laura: I think he… Go ahead. Sorry.
Eric: Oh, no. Oh, okay. I think he existed because if you look in the third Book, it was mainly devoted to the love of Harry for his family, and for his past, and for his father and for his father’s friends. I think that is a tremendous part of the third book, obviously not the movie, but the third book had a lot, with the Marauders and everything. The whole book is really about Harry’s friends, Harry’s parents’ friends and what they did at Hogwarts. Sirius really existed, especially at the end to kind of give Harry a sense of family and closure. You know? The whole going to live with Sirius thing. It’s really a shame that it all goes to hell because you really get this tremendous sense of what a great guy and what a great father Sirius could be, and the love that he had for James Potter, and the one that is passed on now to Harry.
Kevin: Now, do you think he would have been a good father? Because that I have a seen quite a bit of debate about because of his tendency of being reckless.
Cristin: His immaturity?
Eric: Well, you’re right. That’s… That’s, I think you’re…
Kevin: He was, he seemed like a good friend.
Eric: Right. Exactly.
Kevin: But, as a father figure, I don’t think he was the best.
Eric: I know, Kevin. And that’s exactly what she then later developed in Book 5.
Kevin: Yep.
Eric: With him treating Harry like James and that he’s not James. You know, all that stuff with Molly and things. So, I think, my favorite thing about Sirius, I would have to say, is that he is flawed, and that he’s…
Cristin: Human.
Eric: He’s human, he’s flawed, and he’s tragically misunderstood. Throughout the whole third book, we’re going through and thinking that he’s this demented murderer, when in fact it is completely the opposite.
Laura: Right.
Eric: Well, he still is demented.
[All laugh]
Cristin: I love his loyalty.
Kevin: That’s true. Yeah.
Cristin: Because I started going through the books and looking at things. If you look at his actions, if you don’t understand the underlying meaning behind the actions, the reasons he was doing those things, you could see him as a horrible person.
Eric: You can.
Cristin: But, when you start looking into it, you can interpret almost every thing that he did as loyalty.
Eric: And love.
Cristin: You know? Even… Yeah, and love.
Eric: Yeah, Cristin, even when he admitted, remember when he admitted to Harry that “I as good as killed them.”
Cristin: Yeah.
Eric: He told Harry, but before he clarified himself it was like “Yes, I killed them, Harry.” And, Harry was able to beat him up or whatever. But, he was so truthful and he felt so guilty over what had happened that he just…
Kevin: And, I think that, that is one of the flaws in his personality that made him so reckless. He tended to blame himself for things.
Cristin: Right.
Eric: Yeah.
Kevin: And felt responsible to address them and to fix them.
Eric: But, that’s the thing. That’s where I saw a parallel between myself or possibly people in general, Sirius because I think a lot of people do dabble in measures they shouldn’t and have good intentions going in.
Cristin: Well, you can look back to when he went after Wormtail. I kind of looked at that and went “Hmmm. Is that just revenge or what’s going on here?” With someone who is as loyal as Sirius, he could have even seen it as something he had to do for James and Lily, not just for him.
Kevin: Yeah, that’s true. Definitely.
Laura: I…
Eric: Well, I have a question.
Kevin: Sure.
Eric: Laura, sorry, you can talk. I just have one quick question.
[All laugh]
Laura: It’s totally cool.
Eric: Do you guys think that the wizarding community had a double jeopardy law?
[All laugh]
Eric: Could he kill Pettigrew again and get away with it?
Kevin: I highly doubt it.
Eric: That’s kind of stupid.
Kevin: I find it highly doubtful. Yeah.
Eric: It’s probably stupid anyway because he needed Pettigrew alive to prove his innocence, but okay. Laura, what were you going to say?
Laura: All right. I like what you guys had to say about him. I think you guys raised several good points. First, on to Sirius’ purpose in the series, I think he really did fulfill his purpose, which I think was to serve as a driving force for Harry, to motivate him to defeat Voldemort. Because as you can see in the series, up until the point until Sirius dies, his focus is Voldemort, strictly Voldemort. After Sirius’ death, as it wasn’t Voldemort that killed Sirius, it was Bellatrix, you see more of a broadened view. Voldemort is not the only evil person here. There are people willing, waiting to step up and take his place. People who would love to stand in his shoes if he would go away. So, I think Harry sees it as more of a general goal now that he needs to get rid of Voldemort and that he needs to get rid of these followers because they are just as dangerous.
Kevin: See, I think that that is exactly what his purpose was: bringing the battle to Harry on a personal level.
Laura: Right.
Kevin: When Harry’s parents died, he didn’t know his parents, he just knew that his parents died. And although that might seem like a personal thing to someone, if you’re an infant, and your parents die, and you grow up, you really never knew your parents.
Cristin: You don’t know what you’re missing.
Kevin: If you know who killed them, you’d be mad at them, but you never truly knew them as people. And the difference was with Sirius was that he got to know this man and the man was taken from him.
Laura: Really…
Kevin: And it made that battle with Voldemort that much more personal.
Laura: Exactly.
Kevin: It made it so that it came into focus for him and he had to say to himself, “Wow! This is really what my life is.” You know?
Laura: Exactly. It made him more focused, I think.
Eric: Yeah.
Kevin: Most definitely.
Eric: I agree with you. That’s definitely…
Kevin: Not only against Voldemort as you said, but the Death Eaters as well.
Eric: Yeah. I think Bellatrix is probably going to be Neville’s to take care of, which is cool. I want him to finish her off.
Laura: Oh, I’d love that.
Cristin: Yeah.
Eric: Or do something with.
Laura: I’d love to watch him finish her off.
Eric: I want him to confront her.
Laura: Oh, I hate her.
Eric: Yeah, I want him to confront her, but…
Kevin: I also, I don’t think he’s going to confront her. I think he’s going to kill her. [Laughs] To be honest.
Eric: I don’t know. Neville…
Laura: I’ll be rejoicing when that happens.
Eric: We’d like to see Neville take her down, because she’s clearly, clearly an evil person, but this isn’t the Bellatrix cast. So, back to Sirius.
[All laugh]
Kevin: Yeah. That’s true.
Eric: I agree with her purpose.
Cristin: Do you guys have a problem with the way Sirius died? It was just so harsh to me, him falling through the veil, no closure at all.
Kevin: See, yeah, but I think that is why she did it. Because it wasn’t only no closure for us, it was no closure for Harry.
Eric: Yeah. Uh huh.
Kevin: Because in an instant, he was gone.
Cristin: Yep.
Eric: Exactly.
Kevin: He had no time for Sirius to be wounded and dying or Sirius to have last words. He just died. And I think she did that for a purpose to make it so that he was torn from Harry and made Harry realize what was going on.
Laura: Something that JKR has always, has always stressed is that she thinks that children are greatly underestimated, and a lot of the time when you see death in something that is considered a children’s book, you see people trying to create closure so that they don’t disturb children. But, I really think that she is trying to put across the fact that life is short, life can be taken away very easily in the space of a second, and she’s trying to put across that kids can take this, kids and adults alike. I think that was a big part of it.
Eric: Yeah, definitely.
Cristin: And kids don’t get closure. They don’t always get to say goodbye.
Kevin: Exactly.
Laura: Just like adults.
Kevin: Most times they don’t.
Eric: Yeah, which is…
Kevin: And I think that she was trying to tune the audience into the harsh sense of reality.
Laura: Well, it’s not all a fantasy world. It’s not all spells and magic.
Cristin: Magic.
Laura: Exactly.
Eric: No, I don’t like it. I don’t like it when people say, when people treat Harry as some silly fantasy novel because it’s not. Its allegories and its parallels are tremendous. You know? Corruption in government. And what you were talking about the whole death and having no time, that is a complete moment of dramatic irony when there is no time for Harry to say goodbye to Sirius. When right next door is the Time Room with all the Time Turners.
Laura: Exactly!
Eric: You know? I mean, how, that’s a slap in the face.
Laura: Definitely. Definitely.
Kevin: Yeah. Not to mention that he didn’t even know what the veil was.
Eric: Yeah.
Kevin: It is sort of like exactly what goes on when a family loses someone close and they have to explain it to the child.
Eric: Yeah. It’s a child.
Kevin: Because a child doesn’t understand.
Cristin: Right. Harry wanted him to come back.
Kevin: Harry had no clue about the veil. Exactly. Harry had no idea how the veil worked. All he was told was that he was dead.
Laura: Yeah. And he’s not coming back.
Kevin: Even to this day, we still don’t know what the veil is and what its purpose is, and I think that is very important in the series because I think we’re going to find out what its purpose is.
Laura: Right.
Eric: Yeah. That surprised me in Book 6, that he didn’t, that JKR didn’t really focus at all on the Ministry of Magic, like actually the place or the Department of Mysteries.
Kevin: I think she did that purposefully, though.
Cristin: Mhm. Yeah.
Eric: I think she did too and I agree with you.
Kevin: Because it makes it so that, there was one thing about that whole scene that was very important and that was the fact that she mentioned that room that Harry could not get into.
Eric: Yeah.
Laura: Mhm.
Kevin: And, what happens is if she brought it up in Book 6, we all know that something in the Department of…you know, the Ministry of Magic.
Eric: Mhm.
Kevin: We know that something is going to happen there. Something has to happen there.
Eric: That’s true.
Kevin: And, the fact that she didn’t bring attention to it this time, shows that she is trying to divert your attention from it so that you don’t have any suspicions about it for next book. You know what I mean?
Cristin: I also think, I mean this book is really the reason I stopped wanting Sirius to come back. I mean I still want him to, but I stopped holding out that hope.
Eric: Pretty much. Yeah.
Cristin: Because if he was going to, it would have been mentioned.
Eric: You think he might have… Yeah.
Cristin: Something would have happened with him.
Kevin: Definitely. Although she does continue to bring up his name throughout the book as sort of a…you know, a….
Cristin: Inspiration?
Kevin: Inspiration for Harry. Exactly.
Laura: Yeah.
Eric: Which was cool. And last week, well, last week I said about the whole Tonks thing how I didn’t really get it. Just the fact that she was upset about Sirius really did just bring more, bring Sirius up again.
Cristin: Right.
Eric: That was the purpose. That helped.
Cristin: The question I was left at after Book 5 finished was, “What is going to happen with Sirius with Luna talking about hearing the voices and things like that?” It really was something that gave me something to hold on to, and with it not being addressed in this book…
Laura: I always thought of that as being when you die, you have the choice to come back in ghost form, as Nearly Headless Nick said, or you have the choice to go on. And, I think that was more meant to show that when Harry goes on he’s going to be reunited with these people, but not until it is time.
Kevin: Yep. Well, it also showed that because Sirius didn’t come back as a ghost, he had nothing to hold him to the Earth. He had no regrets. You know what I mean?
Cristin: Yeah.
Eric: He was… Yeah.
Laura: Yeah, and I could see him potentially staying for Harry, but I think Sirius would look at that and realize that, that is not what Harry would need because when you look at Sirius, you see a lot of erratic behavior, and you see a lot of leaping before he looks. And, it has caused some very serious and damaging effects because as we have seen he shouldn’t have gone to the Department of Mysteries.
Eric: Actually, he didn’t.
Laura: However, I think that something as serious as Harry having to fight Voldemort on his own, I think Sirius would realize he needed to go on and be with Harry later.
Kevin: I also think that he recognized Harry’s maturity.
Laura: Exactly.
Kevin: He knew Harry, I mean Harry acts well above his age because he has been forced to.
Eric: Right.
Kevin: The events in his life have forced him to…
Cristin: Mature quickly.
Kevin: Jump out of that teenage stage very early and into maturity. I mean, look at what he is facing now.
Eric: Oh god! It’s crazy!
Kevin: But, at the same time I think that the main purpose of Sirius and even Dumbledore was to make it so that Harry had a drive. Harry has every purpose in the world and every reason in the world to kill Voldemort. Every reason. And, I think it just makes it so that when he gets there, he’s going to be faced with a choice. You know what I mean?
Cristin: Yeah.
Kevin: To be honest, I don’t see Harry killing Voldemort flat out like in cold blood, even if Voldemort was defenseless. I doubt he would as a person.
Laura: I think it is going to be more personal than that. I really do.
Kevin: Exactly. Yep.
Cristin: Well, with what Luna said, after finally reading this book, what I kind of thought was, she started talking about how she loses things, but they always come back, and I think Sirius really did come back in this book that way. Harry still had him. He hadn’t lost him.
Eric: And you know what’s cool? Sirius put Harry in his will and gave him Grimmauld Place and Kreacher, which Kreacher to an extent, I guess is arguable, whether or not he helped Harry in Book 6, but I think it is very mature for Sirius to have done that. Because if he prepared a will, he kind of figured that the end might be near for him and when Sirius was sitting, rotting in Grimmauld Place, bitter about everything, bitter about life, bitter about not being able to be with Harry, I think he finally realized that Harry would have to go it alone and that he would have to… Sirius kind of took a responsibility role and thought things ahead and really prepared Harry, he prepared to give Harry, Grimmauld Place and Kreacher and all that stuff. I really think it is a kind of redeeming quality because yes, he does act before he thinks, but this clearly was something he planned ahead and was very good about.
Kevin: Now, were you surprised by the lack of personal letter or something left behind by Sirius to talk to Harry? You know what I mean?
Eric: No. The two-way mirror. That ticked me off. Harry just smashed it, didn’t he?
[Laura and Cristin laugh]
Laura: Oh yes!
Kevin: Yeah, but that ticked a lot of people off.
Laura: I was so mad.
Eric: It should have ticked a lot of people off. I mean there’s that… That’s more irony. The answer was right there and Harry didn’t use it and Harry didn’t think about it.
Cristin: Imagine how mad…
Laura: I slammed the book shut I was so mad.
[Kevin and Cristin laugh]
Cristin: Imagine how mad Harry had to be. People get angry whenever they don’t understand things like death. You know? That’s one of the things that people do. They’ll get angry at the universe for whatever happened because they don’t understand it, and I think that’s what Harry was doing.
Kevin: And, it was a way of forcing Harry to see that everything isn’t perfect and he doesn’t think about everything. You know? He can’t always be the person who saves the day.
Eric: Even though he was…
Kevin: There are some times he’s forced to accept reality and realize that he can’t do everything. You know?
Cristin: Yeah. He can’t save everyone.
Kevin: Exactly.
Eric: Even though he was ticked off.
Kevin: And I think that mirror was representing that.
Eric: He was ticked off with the world. I think he was ticked off with the world long before he discovered that death wasn’t happy. You know?
[All laugh]
Kevin: That’s true.
Eric: But, yeah. So, the purpose of, I mean I like, I agree with you the purpose of Sirius going back to that was to empower Harry. I think that was more the purpose of his death. As I was trying to say earlier, he does also serve as a connection to Harry’s past, which did not previously exist, and I mean it is important I think to mention Lupin as well right here because Sirius and Lupin really did bring the perspective thing to Harry. In Book 5, after the Snape-Pensieve scene, he confronts Sirius and Lupin about his father, and they say, “Yes, Harry. He did make mistakes. He was an arrogant person.” And so, he’s able to converse with them and find out all these things about his past through Sirius and Lupin. And, I think that’s important because he’s really worried about his father there and I think Lupin being alive for now is going to be, I think is going to help with more stuff about his past in the future.
Kevin: Okay. So, do you think that covers every aspect of Sirius we can think about?
Eric: No. We should talk about more I think.
Cristin: [Laughs] Oh no!
Laura: Actually, I did have a question for you guys.
Eric: Sure.
Laura: We’ve seen several death clues, especially throughout Book 5, that Sirius was going to die, but I think that there was more to do it then that. I think that JKR was beginning to show us that Sirius was going to die from the end of Book 3. I really think that his erratic behavior, examples being Harry not wanting to tell him that he had been entered into the Triwizard Tournament because he knew that Sirius came back to England over his scar. And, I believe that exact quote was, “He’ll come bursting through the doors of the Great Hall if he finds out about this!” Do you think that it has been there, we haven’t really seen it, but it’s been there that Sirius was going to do something that was going that would end up resulting in his death because he wasn’t thinking clearly, or thinking far enough ahead?
Eric: Yes and no. Well, I think yes and no because, because of Dumbledore’s death. We’ve seen that Sirius, yes, his erratic behavior did get him killed arguably, but Dumbledore is the one person who thinks everything out and can get a way out of everything, and even he died.
Laura: Right. Right.
Eric: So, I don’t think it’s, you know? In a way, yes, Sirius was, again, arguably bound to die because of his erratic behavior and bound to get into trouble, but Dumbledore also died and that is really a shame.
Laura: I know.
Kevin: Yeah.
Cristin: Yeah.
Laura: It’s hard not to get upset about that.
Eric: It’s like no one is safe. Whether you are organized or unorganized or…
Cristin: Whatever skills you have.
Laura: Right.
Eric: No one is safe. What about the Animagi and the history of that whole thing at Hogwarts? The Marauders as children and Sirius, you know?
Kevin: I was very surprised that Harry didn’t investigate that more in Book 6.
Cristin: Yeah.
Kevin: I was very, very surprised. Because I would think that, like, Harry really looked up to Sirius and I think he would learn that skill and how to morph like that just to mirror his mentor. You know? His fallen mentor. And, I was very, very surprised that he didn’t. I was sort of disappointed.
Laura: I would at least think that he would want to research it.
Kevin: Yeah.
Laura: Maybe not necessarily pursue it, but definitely look into it a little bit. He might.
Eric: Well, one of the things with the deaths in the Harry Potter books, the trend I noticed between Dumbledore’s death and Sirius’ death was that in Book 5 we really got to know Sirius even more than we had before. We did have him a lot more in Goblet of Fire then he will be in the movie, unfortunately, but they have to make cuts that is understandable, but we found out all about his family and all about the whole Noble Ancient House of Black, the whole family tree, which was important pureblood information for the future. And, we got to spend time with Sirius, we got to understand that he wasn’t really happy where he was alive, and we found out all this stuff about him and then he died. She took him away from us. Now, similarly with Dumbledore in Book 6, we had the meetings with Harry and Dumbledore where Dumbledore set Harry up for things he would need to know in the future about purebloods and Voldemort, and then she took him away from us. And, so I think it is an interesting concept, it is an interesting kind of pattern.
Laura: Well, I think…
Eric: At least, did you guys notice that?
Laura: I think again that Dumbledore served his purpose.
Eric: He did.
Laura: And, however sad it is to say it, we don’t need him anymore.
Kevin: I still maintain that he is going to be…he must have left at least some clue for Harry to teach himself.
Laura: Yeah.
Kevin: The whole thing that is bothering me about the whole Dumbledore situation is that he left Harry without a trace. You know? And I think that there must be something, just like I think in Sirius’ case, I think that there is more to the death of the character then just their death. I think that maybe each of them left something behind for Harry.
Cristin: Right.
Kevin: And, I believe that they will serve their purpose in Book 7, in leading Harry on the right track.
Eric: And, I like that. I like it because it also says what I think JKR has tried to say, which is that even in death, people are still useful, and people can still help. Even the memory alone of people can help serve things.
Cristin: Right.
Eric: One other thing if everybody is done, before we move on. Sirius said he grew up practically under the Potters’ roof, under James’ roof, always hanging out with James and stuff.
Laura: Mhm.
Cristin: Mhm.
Eric: You guys have any thoughts on that? Comments?
Cristin: Kind of like Harry and Ron.
Laura: Yeah.
Kevin: Definitely.
Eric: Yeah, it is definitely the idea of if you have an unsuitable family that you can find shelter in someone else’s family.
Kevin: Well, I think it was also an attempt by JK Rowling to mirror Harry with Sirius.
Laura: Yeah.
Cristin: Mhm.
Kevin: She was making a connection because Sirius was over the Potters’ house, but Harry was over the Weasleys’ house.
Cristin: Yeah.
Kevin: It was sort of like a low-level connection to the two characters.
Laura: Yeah. The Potters basically adopted Sirius the same way the Weasleys have adopted Harry.
Kevin: Exactly, because of circumstance.
Cristin: And, not only that, but if you look at Sirius with his background, he would have been welcomed into Slytherin, into those circles. I mean I know not all Slytherins are bad, but the ones that were, he would have been welcomed into that. Just like Harry was welcomed by Draco. And they both made decisions that, that wasn’t who they were.
Eric: And, I think that’s one of the best things about him. That’s why everybody actually ended up believing that he was truly a Voldemort supporter in the end, at least the people who knew that it was Sirius Black, who, well, I guess everybody knew that he attacked Peter Pettigrew, but what I am saying is that is what I think made it easier to believe for some people that he could have been working for Voldemort. Because he was a harsh. He was sporadic. He was…
Cristin: Reckless.
Eric: In Prisoner of Azkaban the movie, he said that once or twice they thought of making the Padfoot transformation permanent. He’s a dog. He’s a scavenger.
[Cristin laughs]
Eric: He’s got that personality for bad stuff. He just chooses not to use it.
Cristin: And, see dogs remind me of loyalty anyway.
Eric: Yeah.
Cristin: You know?
Eric: Man’s best friend.
Cristin: I mean isn’t that the one quality you really think of when you think of a dog is loyalty?
Kevin: Yep.
Laura: Exactly.
Cristin: I have an interesting parallel and I want to know what y’all think, with Sirius and Snape. Most people who like one don’t like the other one that much, which is understandable because they didn’t like each other.
Laura: I love both of them.
Eric: Who? Wait, sorry, who?
Cristin: [Laughs] Well, I said most people, not all people.
Eric: Wait, who?
Cristin: Sirius and Snape.
Eric: Oh, I like both. I really do like both. I think it is very important because they are both, I see them similar. And, even though they are enemies I think Snape does care about Harry in a way. As much as he detests him, when they were going at it about Sirius’, sorry, I mean Harry’s Occlumency lessons and all that stuff, even though they hate each other I think there is completely like a, I don’t know. It’s like the hate-love thing. They hate each other as much as they depend on each other because Sirius had to depend on Dumbledore and Snape to teach Harry correctly and instruct him out at Hogwarts because Sirius had to stay behind at Grimmauld Place. I mean I think it is one of those situations.
Cristin: Yeah. So, what my thing is, is that everyone thought that Sirius was a spy, just like everyone now thinks that Snape is a spy, and the ones who trusted Sirius, they were the ones that were murdered. And it appeared that Sirius murdered them. Just like with Snape, the one who trusted him, Dumbledore, who convinced everyone else to trust him, was killed, and Snape was the one who did it.
Laura: That is interesting.
Cristin: And then they both seemed to run away and honestly…
Kevin: Yeah, but I still think there is something behind Snape that we haven’t seen before.
Laura: Same.
Cristin: Yeah, I can…
Kevin: Or yet.
Cristin: I am not saying that. I mean even this is another clue that Snape doesn’t necessarily have to be evil.
Eric: Well…
Cristin: Because like Sirius, everyone thought that he was, but he wasn’t.
Eric: I know what you mean. One of the things, I guess since we are talking about Grimmauld Place, I can sneak this in. I know it is not SnapeCast, I apologize, but…
[All laugh]
Eric: …Book 5 was another book, I said Book 6 was it, but Book 5 also, we don’t get a lot of Snape at all. I mean I suppose there was a little bit more in Book 5 because Book 5 is a longer book, but between Book 5 and 6, we don’t know it all yet even now in Book 6 or in Book 5 what Snape was doing. And, I think that just draws more suspicion or draws more… It give us less to use as conviction for him being evil.
Cristin: Mhm.
Eric: So…
Cristin: Especially at the end when he was still teaching him not to say spells out loud.
Eric: Exactly.
Laura: Yeah.
Eric: And so Sirius…
Cristin: That struck me as really odd. You know? He was…
Eric: And, he really does come across as a Sirius-type character, Snape, I mean, because even though he does detest him he can still teach him and tell him what he needs to do.
Kevin: Yeah, but you sort of have to remember with the lack of Sirius, I think that some of the hatred went away from Snape. If you know what I mean.
Laura: Mhm.
Eric: I know what you mean.
Kevin: Because Sirius died. You know what I mean?
Eric: Yeah.
Kevin: Why continue hating somebody even when they’re dead? Because they’re dead.
Eric: Exactly.
Laura: Exactly.
Eric: Exactly.
Cristin: Right.
Eric: And, even when he hated…
Cristin: He’s not still calling him names.
[All laugh]
Kevin: Exactly.
Eric: He’s not calling him Snivelly all the time.
Cristin: Right.
[Laura laughs]
Eric: So, that’s a plus. Yeah, James and Sirius, you know, if you realize in Book 3, McGonagall called them the “rag-tag duo.” They would give the Weasley twins a run for their money, Sirius and James. And, those two, I guess they were the highest in power. I’m sure Lupin was in there, but I think Snape was probably picked on most by James and secondly Sirius. He’s not afraid to call him Snivellus. With James dead, thanks to Snape in a way, and Sirius dead, thanks to Snape’s inability to properly teach Harry Occlumency (which is actually Harry’s fault), but with the two lead contenders dead, I don’t think Snape really has much to go on to hate Harry anymore.
Cristin: Yeah.
Eric: He can’t blame him for hanging around with Sirius because Sirius is dead.
Cristin: He has to look at him for himself and not for who his parents were and his godfather.
Laura: Right.
Eric: I’m sorry. Does anybody get the parallel of the Beatles when they think of the Marauders?
[All laugh]
Eric: Maybe it is just me. I’m thinking John and Paul, and then you’ve got Ringo who is Pettigrew because…
[All laugh]
Kevin: Okay.
Eric: And George Harrison is Lupin. Lupin is George. You ever get that?
[All laugh]
Eric: Anybody ever think that?
Cristin: I can honestly say I’ve never thought that before.
Laura: Yeah, me neither, but that is interesting.
Cristin: Yeah.
Eric: Just think of it.
Laura: I will never think of the Marauders the same when I listen to “Yellow Submarine” from now on. [Laughs]
Eric: Okay. [Starts singing] Hey, Harry (to the beat of “Hey, Jude”).
Kevin: Okay, so…
[All laugh]
Kevin: Well, if we’ve covered all the topics on Sirius…
Eric: [Still singing] Ava-da Keda-vra (to the beat of “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da”).
[All laugh]
Eric: Wait, I got it. Guys, guys, guys, guys, guys, Kevin.
[Still singing]
Ava-da Keda-vra
Kevin: Okay.
Eric: [Still singing]
Life stops here
Woo!
Da, da, da, da
Life stops here
Kevin: Okay. So, on to Voicemails.
Voicemails – Tom Riddle’s Diary
Kevin: We only have a couple voicemails this time because we don’t want to make this show too long.
[Audio]: Hey MuggleCast! This is Angelica from Toronto, Canada. Eh? Okay, here’s my question, but first I am fluent in French and every time the mispronunciation of Beauxbatons was used. So, no more “Beauxbaxtons”, Andrew!
[All laugh]
[Audio]: Anyway, if Voldemort didn’t know that Lucius had released the diary at Hogwarts and didn’t know that it was destroyed, wouldn’t it mean that if the memory had survived there would have been two Voldies? Just wanted to hear your thoughts. Thanks. Bye.
Kevin: I do want to mention that this question has already been answered on JK Rowling’s own site, but if you read her response, she sort of dodged the answer. She said and I quote, “I can’t answer that fully until all seven books are finished, but it would have strengthened the present-day Voldemort considerably.” Now, knowing JK Rowling’s own response, what do you guys think would have happened if the diary had survived?
Eric: Great question. First of all, I just want to announce right now I am going to make a remix of Andrew going “Beauxbaxtons.”
[All laugh]
Eric: It is going to be three minutes of him saying “Beauxbaxtons” to like a really catchy beat. I’m going to work on that. Get that out to you.
[Laura laughs]
Eric: But, anyway. To the question. I think it is very interesting. I think it is all about the power of the Horcruxes. Horcrux Power! Can one-seventh of one’s soul manifest itself into a full being and the answer I guess, is looking like “Yes!” because the diary was taking its power from Ginny and Tom could become a separate person. And, that’s scary because if a Horcrux can stand by itself and drain power from other people, if Harry is a Horcrux, can it drain on him and other things like that?
Kevin: Well, I also think the diary, because it is not a full part of Voldemort’s soul, it would be somewhat, it is sort of twisted saying it, but it would be somewhat more corrupt than Voldemort. Reason being that as we found out, we didn’t know when it was happening, but as we found out the Horcrux is a part of the soul that is fragmented when you murder someone. How good or what material can be in that soul that would, there’s no good figment of that soul in any way. It is a part of the soul that was fragmented because you murdered someone. The ultimate act of hate. So, I think that on a certain level it would be worse than Voldemort because it would be even more corrupt because of its origin.
Eric: Well Kevin, just before you get hate mail, for the women out there, for the women fans, I guess I have to say the only good thing that did come out of the twisted, more corrupt Horcrux was Christian Coulson.
[All laugh]
Eric: No. That’s my understanding of the fandom. Okay girls, take it away.
Laura: Ha.
Eric: What do you think?
Laura: Well, first of all, I really never understood that appeal. Anyway, I think…
Eric: Yay!
[All laugh]
Laura: I think that…
Eric: Well, me neither. I just said that.
Laura: I totally agree with what you guys said, and all I really have to add to that topic is if the diary had survived, Harry would be screwed.
Cristin: Definitely.
Laura: Yeah.
Kevin: Most definitely. Especially then since you would have to kill two full-strength Voldemorts.
Laura: Yeah.
Cristin: Yeah.
Kevin: But, in order to kill…well, you couldn’t kill one without the other.
Eric: Well, you know what?
Kevin: I think it is more of a paradox situation.
Eric: You know what’s interesting?
Kevin: Because if one can…
Eric: Actually, at that time…
Kevin: What?
Eric: At that time, Voldemort wasn’t in power. He wasn’t in power for another two years, which is interesting.
Kevin: Yeah, but think about it. If he had separated it, is almost like a paradox situation because now you have a full-strength Voldemort and another full-strength Voldemort, both relying on Horcruxes to stay alive, but each of them is considered a Horcrux to the other.
Eric: Yeah.
Laura: Mhm.
Kevin: It is almost like this paradoxical situation that JK Rowling was wise to avoid and just kill him off.
Laura: [Laughs] Yeah.
Cristin: If you think about that, then what about the other Horcruxes?
Eric: Roads…
[Cristin laughs]
Kevin: Yeah, but the other Horcruxes weren’t full strength.
Eric: Yeah.
Kevin: They didn’t have substance. They’re not a person. They’re not a true soul until they…
Cristin: Right, but could they?
Eric: Right.
Cristin: I mean…
Kevin: I think it’s possible, but I don’t think he…
Cristin: It’s probable.
Eric: Theoretical.
Kevin: I don’t think he made any other Horcrux with the intention that it would create itself.
Laura: Then it would be able to act independently.
Cristin: Stand for him, kind of?
Kevin: Exactly.
Eric: Yeah.
Kevin: He made that one specifically.
Eric: Right, like the ring.
Kevin: And, we’re still not sure if he knows that the diary has been destroyed, and I would gather that he doesn’t because I believe he was saving that for a special situation.
Cristin: Mhm.
Kevin: That was like his book of last return. Like, “If all else fails, I still have this book, which has the potential of keeping me alive.”
Cristin: Right.
Kevin: You know? And…
Eric: Could it have restored him too?
Kevin: Well, it wouldn’t restore him so to say, but it would restore…
Laura: It’s a back-up copy.
Kevin: Exactly.
[All laugh]
Eric: Ha! A back up.
Kevin: He’s established his last will and testament. That was him saying, “You may have killed me, but just wait.”
Cristin: The sequel.
Kevin: But, to be honest I think that he is going to be a little angry at…who put the diary in…Lucius! He’s going to be a little angry at Lucius when he finds out the diary has been destroyed.
Laura: Just a little!
Kevin: Just a bit!
Laura: Yeah. [Laughs]
Cristin: Yeah. [Laughs]
Eric: Well…
Kevin: I don’t Lucius is going to be sticking around for much longer after he tells him that.
Eric: Well, he went and he…
Kevin: But, I don’t think…
Eric: He gave Draco the suicide mission just because Lucius put the book in Hogwarts and got rid of it. So…
Kevin: That’s true.
Eric: You know? [Laughs]
Kevin: Yeah. It’s possible.
[Laura laughs]
Voicemails – Snape and Lily
[Audio]: Hi! This Brianne from Arizona. I love your guys’ show! My question is about Snape. Do you think the reason why Snape showed so much remorse after Lily and James’ deaths was because he had feelings for Lily? And also, do you think that is why Lord Voldemort offered Lily a chance to live, because that is not really what Lord Voldemort would do? I’d love to hear you guys’ input about that! Love your show! Bye!
Cristin: I think that it would explain if he did, but I can’t necessarily see him telling Voldemort to give her a chance to get away. So, I think really, Voldemort didn’t have any use for her. Otherwise it wouldn’t have mattered if Snape had feelings or not. She would have been dead. [Laughs]
Kevin: Well, I think that he definitely has feelings for her. I really think that is a very, very, very distinct possibility, but I also think that it was maybe only one of the one times that Voldemort was actually acting on, he was actually picking up, as a leader I think he was picking up a sense of one of his followers. And, he knew that if he had ordered Lily’s death without a way out that some of the followers would be a little upset. Also, I think that Voldemort saw value in Lily because we have know that, and it has been said that she was a very talented witch. And, I think that it wasn’t only for Snape, but it was for his own good. He was thinking, “Oh! What’s a better chance, to get someone on our side?”
Eric: No, but she was a Mudblood, which is what you have to…
Kevin: Yeah, but, but…
Eric: She was dirt to him. No matter what. Like even…
Kevin: Yeah, but I think that even Voldemort would see the value in someone talented.
Eric: I don’t know.
Laura: And…
Kevin: She may have been a Mudblood but at the same time she has been said to have a lot of talent.
Laura: And also…
Eric: Yes, but this is a man who hates all mankind! This is a man who just despises anything that is not pureblood or more. And, I like the idea that he would spare Lily because he thought she was talented, but I just don’t think it is in his personality at all.
Laura: Well…
Eric: I mean he hates everyone.
[Cristin laughs]
Laura: It’s definitely a possibility and the real reason that I could see her sparing her because of her talent is, yes, he does despise Muggleborns, however, he loves talent. And, he loves taking advantage of talent when he comes by it.
Eric: That’s Slughorn.
Kevin: And… And…
Eric: That’s Slughorn. That’s not…
[Cristin laughs]
Kevin: Yeah, but why not take advantage of the talent…
Eric: I think…
Kevin: And then dispose of her?
Cristin: Because I think he had no reason to. I mean I think if he had a reason to kill her.
Eric: Then why kill James? I think James was talented.
Kevin: Yeah, but maybe he had a specific purpose in mind.
Eric: Which is my thought.
Cristin: Right, for James.
Laura: And, I also think it is very possible that Snape had feelings for Lily.
Kevin: Yeah, definitely.
Eric: Yeah.
Laura: And, I think he probably spent a lot of time calling her Mudblood to cover it up.
Eric: Yeah, absolutely. Which is kind of obscene.
Kevin: And, I think Lily identified that.
Laura: Mhm.
Kevin: I think Lily was a very, very astute person. She was able to pick up the subtleties in people and I think she realized that he was doing that because he was trying to separate himself from her. You know what I mean?
Laura: Mhm.
Eric: Yeah. I don’t think Snape would tell Voldemort. That’s my point.
Kevin: Yeah. I don’t think he would.
Eric: I think, yeah, Snape definitely like Lily, but I don’t think Voldemort would do that for someone anyway. I don’t think he’d spare someone just because one of his followers told him to.
A) He doesn’t care what his followers think to an extent, to most of the extent and also
B) These are the parents of the kid that is going to overturn him.
Laura: Right.
Eric: Voldemort saw that as an incredible threat. So, I don’t even know why he hesitated to kill Lily because these were the parents of the kid that was going to overturn him.
Laura: Well, he might have been lying.
Eric: These are the parents of the Chosen One. These are the… So… You know?
Kevin: That’s a distinct possibility.
Laura: He could have been lying.
Eric: So, I really don’t think…
Kevin: I mean he was about to kill her son.
Laura: And, the thing is…
Kevin: Maybe he said it mockingly. Maybe he said it because he knew that she wouldn’t.
Laura: Mhm.
Eric: Yeah. It’s…
Kevin: Just so that to know when she died that she had the opportunity to get out of it and she didn’t. You know what I mean?
Laura: Mhm. And I also…
Kevin: It seems like the evil act he would do.
Laura: And, I also think that we know that that Voldemort doesn’t understand the concept of love, and I think that if he were lying to Lily, he would say, “Oh! Get out of the way. I’ll let you live.” Because he can’t understand how a mother can love her son, how a mother can love her child.
Kevin: Yep.
Eric: Which was his downfall.
Laura: Exactly.
Kevin: IS his downfall.
Laura: He might have been trying…
Eric: Because his mother never loved him.
Laura: He might have been trying to use that to his advantage and it just didn’t work.
Eric: Yep. One other thing in closing, another thing about Snape, sorry, Dumbledore not caring about his followers. [Note: I think he meant Voldemort not caring about his followers, not Dumbledore.] If Snape could make Voldemort care about his own person love for Lily or something, that is very scary because it shows that Voldemort and Snape have an even possibly stronger connection than Snape and Dumbledore, which scares the crap out of me.
Laura: Yeah!
Eric: I mean if he can convince Voldemort to spare the life of a Mudblood, that’s crazy!
Kevin: Yeah.
Eric: Especially the Mudblood mother of the Chosen One. That is power and Snape has got it.
Show Close
Kevin [Show Close with music in background]: So, we’re going to call that the night. So, just for all the listeners out there, if you have noticed a lack of Andrew it is because he had to go on urgent business, as he says.
Eric: Yeah, we kind of… He just kind of disappeared like he did last time.
Kevin: Yeah, we missed you, Andrew.
Eric: Only…
Kevin: Don’t worry.
Eric: Yeah.
Kevin: He’ll be back next episode. So, thank you for being on our show, Cristin.
Laura: Yeah, thanks for coming.
Eric: Cristin, you’ve been a wonderful, wonderful…
Laura: You were great.
Eric: Contribution.
Kevin: It was excellent!
Cristin: [Laughs] Thank you!
Kevin: And I think that wraps up this week’s episode. Again…
Eric: Well, Cristin, are there any shout-outs you’d like to give to anybody, since you’re the Contest Winner on the show you’ve kind of earned shout outs.
Kevin: Oh yeah. That’s true.
Cristin: I’d like to say “Hi!” to everybody at Hoffmann Lane Elementary School and all of my family, and I would like to say “Thanks!” to my cousin Josh for getting me hooked on Harry Potter in the first place.
Kevin: I think that wraps up this week’s edition. So, again, I’m Kevin Steck.
Eric: I’m Eric Scull.
Laura: I’m Laura Thompson.
Cristin: And I’m Cristin Atkins.
Kevin: Thank you for listening. Goodbye!
Laura: See you next time everyone!
Eric: Goodbye, everybody!
Comments
[Soothing music begins playing]
[Comment Audio #1]: Hi! I want to give a shout out to all the MuggleBoys and say that you are really cute and I like your voices and you make my day better than any other. Thanks!
[Comment Audio #2]: Hey guys! It’s Meredith. And I am listening to you from Covington, Kentucky. I love your show. You do an awesome job. Jamie, I am loving the jokes, so keep them coming. I crack up every time. I listen to you guys while I lift weights at the gym and during biology when my teacher gets boring. I’m also a volleyball player, so I listen to you guys before games to get ready. I found that when I listen to Episode 5, I do especially well, but any episode will work. So, if anybody is looking for a good-luck charm that is definitely one you should think about. I thought I would plug my site too while I am on here. It is a role-play that hopefully is going to be starting term soon: s4.invisionfree.com/hogwarts_rp_site. We still need teachers, canon, and fan and characters if anyone is interested. So anyway, keep up the good work and I look to forward to next week’s episode. I listen to you guys religiously.
[Comment Audio #3]: Hey MuggleCast. It’s Donny McGowan. Yep, I have been listening to the show since the first episode. Got to say it’s great! Keep up the good work! And, while you’re at it, check out my film coming out November 23rd, “Konack,” at www.konack.tk. All right, thanks. Bye.
Andrew: If you’d like to comment on this week’s past show, then please send your voice comment to voice at staff dot mugglenet dot com. Please keep your message under thirty seconds. Thank you!
Bloopers
BLOOPER 1
[All laugh]
Andrew: So…
[Cell phone rings]
[Laura laughs]
Andrew: Oh my god!
Andrew: So…
[Cell phone rings]
Eric: Oh my god! Andrew!
Andrew: Sorry! This is such a mess. It is going to…
Cristin: Don’t you have silent?
Andrew: It is going to be…the edited version will be much better, Cristin. This is how they always go.
[Cristin laughs]
Eric: No, they aren’t this bad. They haven’t been this bad since my Audacity up.
Cristin: I seriously think you ought to put one of those up there because people just crack up.
[Laura and Cristin laugh]
——————————————————————-
Eric: All right. Somebody finally responded. Thank you, Kevin.
[Starts singing]
Thank you, Kevin. Thank you, Kevin. Thank you, Kevvvvvvvvvvin. Yeeeaaahhh!
[Phone rings]
All right! Phone call! Yes, I am fine. Yay!
———————————————————————
Micah: All right, Andrew. You know what? I don’t feel like doing the news this week. I just don’t feel like doing it. And, guess what? You’re just going to have to accept that!
Remix
Remix by Tarney from Australia coming soon!