The Potter Discussion: The Harry Potter TV Show Podcast

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In this episode, we discuss episodes three and four of Tea Leaves, our version of the Harry Potter TV show. The trio make their way from the Death Eater ravaged grounds of the Quidditch World Cup to Hogwarts. Beauxbatons and Durmstrang arrive, and Dumbledore officially sets into motion the Tri-Wizard Tournament. Enjoy!
Topics/Summary:
·      Listen to the last episode, Tea Leaves S4 S1+2 here!
·      2:00 We open on another forest. It’s on the Quidditch World Cup grounds, but it’s a bit gloomier than before. The air of dark magic should still hang over the grounds, a scar of the Dark Mark hanging in the sky. The Weasleys and Harry and Hermione make their way back home.
·      20:56 Off to Hogwarts! Charlie Weasley hints on Platform 9 ¾ that he will be seeing them sooner than they think. On the train, Draco hints at something similar in between bragging about his father wanting to send him to Durmstrang. Harry also sees Cho and maybe forms a little crush. They arrive and meet Professor Moody, and Dumbledore reveals the Tri-Wizard Tournament in a dramatic end to the episode.
·      35:19 Episode four begins with classes. They go to herbology, care of magical creatures, and divination. They encounter Malfoy when they leave and then comes the Malfoy/ferret/Moody encounter.
·      41:46 Beauxbatons and Durmstrang. We separated the welcome feast and their arrival because this should be a bit more of a serious moment. The flying carriage and ship arrive, and the Tri-Wizard Tournament has begun.
 ThePotterDiscussion@gmail.com
thepotterdiscussion.com

Nox

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In this episode, we discuss the first two episodes of Tea Leaves season four, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Voldemort kills Frank Bryce at the Riddle House, Harry returns to the Burrow with Hermione and the Weasleys, and they all go to the Quidditch World Cup. Not only do we see an exciting game, but the Death Eaters attack and cast the Dark Mark into the sky. Enjoy!
Topics/Summary:
·      Listen to episode 339 The End of an Era here!
·      2:03 Goals for season four. 1. Explore complexity within and between characters 2. Begin the true rise of dark magic 3. Draw Harry closer to the outside world
·      13:29 We open episode one in a forest. It’s nighttime. The darkness coalesces into a pale, frail form on the ground. It’s Voldemort right after the events of the Philosopher’s Stone. Then we move to Little Hangleton and follow Frank as he goes to the Riddle House and gets killed.
·       29:53 Harry jolts awake in a cold sweat. He is in 4 Privet Drive, and just had the worst dream. He writes to Sirius about it and goes down to eat breakfast with the Dursleys. They get a letter from the Weasleys about the Quidditch World Cup, and Vernon begrudgingly lets Harry go. They arrive to get him with quite the banging entrance, and Harry goes back to the Burrow to enjoy a magical life again at last. They wake up on the morning of the Quidditch World Cup and make their way to their portkey. Along the way, Harry’s party picks up Amos and Cedric Diggory. They grab the portkey and the episode ends.
·      42:50 Episode two opens with another quiet forest. This one is more cheerful. In a flash of light they drop to the ground. They enjoy the Quidditch World Cup, and then run from the Death Eaters as they infiltrate the camp. The Dark Mark is cast in the sky, and the episode comes to an end.
 ThePotterDiscussion@gmail.com
thepotterdiscussion.com

Nox

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In this episode, we reflect on our just finished season three of Tea Leaves, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Tea Leaves is a series where we make our version of the Harry Potter TV show, episode by episode. Next week will begin season 4, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Enjoy!
Topics/Summary:
·      2:03 We are entering the “Dark Hogwarts” era. The first three seasons feel like the introduction to the wizarding world and setting up the conflict. The fourth season represents the beginning of the true conflict of the story.
·      12:00 The best moments are the most personal, and we should see a lot of those. Harry’s past is going to come alive before our very eyes this season. We are going to see a much darker current emerge in the story, and that kind of story demands a different kind of storytelling. Humans are empaths so we should be able to feel what Harry is feeling.
·      18:38 Malfoy follows the pattern of the story to a tee. He is something of a static bully for the first three books, but the moment the fourth book begins he becomes something more. Malfoy’s journey as a Death Eater defines his arc and reflects the greater conflict, and the Goblet of Fire is the kicking off point of his journey.
·      24:54 Complexity. Characters like Neville have just as complicated a past as Harry, and now that the first three seasons are over, we can dive into their characters more deeply. 
·      30:14 This is getting real. That’s what we’ve been dancing around this whole episode. Now is the time; it’s finally beginning. Voldemort is on the rise, and Harry must rise to meet him.
 ThePotterDiscussion@gmail.com
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Nox

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In this episode, we discuss the season finale to Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Dumbledore sends Harry and Hermione back in time to save Buckbeak and Sirius from their fates. Enjoy!
Topics/Summary:
·      1:58 Quick recap and Harry in the hospital wing. It’s important that we begin this episode with something quiet and calm after the crazy adventure last episode. Fudge and Snape walk in and tell Harry that Sirius will receive the dementor’s kiss any moment. Dumbledore gives Harry and Hermione their task and sends them back in time.
·      16:17 The insanity of the time turner. Harry and Hermione land in the hospital wing and make their way down to Hagrid’s hut. They narrowly escape with Buckbeak then make their way to a vantage point on the Shrieking Shack. Once they all emerge again, Hermione howls to draw Lupin away and they run to Hagrid’s hut to hide. Harry sees the dementors from the window and rushes to the lake, casting the famous patronus. They fly with Buckbeak up to the locked classroom with Sirius and send them away into the moonset. They make it back to the hospital wing just as Dumbledore closes and locks the door.
·      34:50 The end of the year. Lupin is resigning much to Harry’s dismay, and the trio packs their things and loads onto the Hogwarts Express. On the way back they get a tropical bird with an owl for Ron and a signed letter for Harry to visit Hogsmeade. We zoom out of the train and find Frank in a faraway English village looking out over the Riddle house. A light flicks on, and the screen cuts to black…
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Nox

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In this episode, we discuss Harry's patronus lessons with Lupin. Gryffindor continues to dominate on the quidditch pitch and Sirius Black breaks into Hogwarts again. The trio go on their Shrieking Shack adventure and Harry tries and fails to protect himself and Sirius from the descending dementors at the lake. Enjoy!
Topics/Summary:
·      1:31 I went to Scotland! Here is one of the tour guides I really loved who showed me around the Harry Potter world in Edinburgh.
·      7:26 Quick recap and Harry and Lupin’s lessons. The boggart dementor should be smaller than the actual thing so we can have some differentiation. When Harry is falling through his memory in the presence of the dementor, I don’t like the film version of the fade to black. I would rather see it through Harry’s eyes and watch the memory bleed into his reality. Lupin is there every step of the way, and we should really begin to trust Lupin in this opening.
·      26:18 Gryffindor vs. Ravenclaw quidditch match. More dementors get on the field, but it turns out to be Malfoy. Lupin is still impressed with his production of a patronus. Afterward, they return to their dorms and celebrate. Black breaks back into Hogwarts when they go to bed, and he and Harry have a dramatic chase through the castle. We look into his eyes for the first time.
·      41:06 Episode seven opens with studying for OWLs. Harry and Ron are trying ot study for divination, but it’s hopeless. Harry goes into for his OWL and Trelawny has a real prediction. There is clearly something afoot…
·      43:26 The Shrieking Shack. This is the final sequence of this episode, and it is of course the famous Shrieking Shack chase. This scene should have the audience hating Sirius and turning on Lupin. We should see the horrible image of Lupin helping up Sirius and hugging him like a brother, but we soon learn the truth. Lupin transforms and the black dog defends the trio. Sirius collapses at the lake and Harry tries to defend him against the hundreds of dementors, but it’s no use. 
 ThePotterDiscussion@gmail.com
thepotterdiscussion.com

Nox