With Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them earning the praise as the best movie of the year, some may be wondering where this leaves the famed Harry Potter. Is Newt Scamander, his predecessor in many ways, set to replace him? Will the stage be set for Mr. Scamander from now on? Should it be?
As a die-hard Harry Potter fan who grew up as the films were released, reading the Harry Potterbooks and seeing the Harry Potter movies throughout my childhood, it came as a bitter end when the final film was released and it seemed there was nothing more to look forward to. So of course, when news of Fantastic Beasts broke, I was overjoyed along with millions of other fans. We had something to wait for, something magical handed to us by the wonderful J.K. Rowling. But, though it is his world, it isn't our beloved Harry Potter.
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Instead, we follow Newt Scamander, Magizoologist and ex-student of a much younger (and yet to be shown) Albus Dumbledore. In a way, the new series resurrects many beloved themes and characters, as well as touching on quite a few things that the book lovers knew but never had the chance to see before. The niffler, the erumpent, the demiguise, all were mentioned throughout the course of the book series. We also saw the return of J.K. Rowling's knack for the weird and the wondrous, and her talent for creating characters we cannot help but fall completely in love with.
But, how does our new hero, Newt Scamander, measure up to the Chosen One?
One of the immediate drawbacks for Newt is that we have just one form of media to get to know him through. With Harry, we have books and films. Another drawback for Newt, he's older. We don't get to grow up with him the way we did with Harry, nor do we share a similar time period with him as we did with Harry. And then of course, despite their respective timelines within the wizarding world, Harry came first for us.
However, you must admit, Newt's outfit--particularly his coat-- is far more exciting that any costume we ever saw Harry in. And then there is Newt's huggable nature and his love for animals. Also, despite the distance Newt's age presents, the experience of seeing a fully realized wizard is quite a sight. Watching him apparate and disapparate like it was nothing, seeing Queenie and Tina prepare dinner absently with just a few flicks of their wand, and watching wizards rebuilt New York wihtout blinking an eye is something we never had the pleasure to experience following the story of three young wizards still learning to hone in on their powers.
Harry is modern, young, and Gryffindor through and through. Newt is eclectic, firm in who he is, and just about as Hufflepuff as it gets. Harry is the chosen one thrown into the role of hero, Newt is a magizoologist thrown into the center of a war. But while they have more than a few differences, and we are certainly prone to making comparisons, the two are more alike than they may seem. Both are favorites of Dumbledore, and both seem to have more than a little trouble following the rules. Both have had trouble belonging in the past, and both found home at Hogwarts. Both step up to take on responsibilities thrust upon them. Both have a knack for finding trouble, as well as for finding friends who are amazing as they are.
So, though it is easy to compare the two, to see who is the better of the two, I prefer to love them both in different ways, no comparisons, no contest. And, as an overly obsessed individual who has read the Harry Potter series 9 times through, seen the movies more times than I can count, and has seen Fantastic Beasts three times in theater already, feel entitled to present judgement on the matter. Newt Scamander, though he could never replace Harry Potter, is more than welcome to join Harry's side in the wizarding world among the cast of characters I have come to love so dearly.
