Next month, TBS in conjunction with Cartoon Network, has a new special coming where contestants will represent the Hogwarts house they have placed themselves in and compete in an ultimate fan quiz show against competitors from rival houses.
This show is a celebration of the legacy of films since it’s been 20 years since the release of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone.
Take a look!
Here is the write-up:
“Only one house can win. ❤️💚🏆💙💛 With celebrity guests, original film actors, and the House Cup at stake, Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses will be the greatest fan competition in Wizarding World history!”
Hosted by Dame Helen Mirren, the show will feature several celebrity guests like: Tom Felton, Dan Folger, Shirley Henderson, Matthew Lewis, Simon Fisher-Becker, Pete Davidson, Jay Leno, and Luke Youngblood.
Tom Ascheim, President, Warner Bros. Global Kids, Young Adults and Classics says it’s a celebration for fans of all ages:
“To celebrate the dedicated fans old and new who have passionately kept the Wizarding World magic alive in so many forms for decades, these exciting specials will celebrate their Harry Potter fandom in a must-see multiplatform TV event.
All Potter fans can gear up for this ultimate one-of-a-kind celebration by embracing their inner Hermione Granger and studying their Wizarding World knowledge. For fans who have always wanted to discover what it might be like to take the OWL exams, this is as close as they are going to get!“
You can catch this show on TBS, Sunday’s starting on November 28th and running through December 19th.
“Gryffindor vs. Hufflepuff” and continue with Ravenclaw and Slytherin going head to head before the two winning houses compete in a wildcard episode and finally, the grand finale.”
There will also be an interactive competition element that will invite fans from around the world to play via digital quiz events. These events will be on the WizardingWorld.com site starting Nov. 26 and will run through Dec. 10.
An upcoming art book could point to the release date of Hogwarts Legacy.
“The Art and Making of Hogwarts Legacy” is set to be published by Insight Editions on September 6, 2022.
As spotted by The Rowling Library, the book is authored by Jody Revenson, who has previously written “Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore Movie Magic” and “Harry Potter Paper Craft”.
September 1 is the date in the Harry Potter books that students return to Hogwarts, making a September release fitting.
Due to be published by Warner Bros. under its Portkey Games label, Hogwarts Legacy was originally scheduled to be released in 2021 for PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One and PC.
The possibility of a further delay to 2023 was raised by journalist Colin Moriarty during a recent podcast, in which he claimed: “I’m hearing behind the scenes that game is not coming out this year, and that it’s in some sort of trouble.”
However, an official update on Wizarding World Digital stated that “the Hogwarts Legacy video game will be arriving this year”.
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It reads: “2022 is also the year when the highly anticipated console game from Warner Bros. Games’ Portkey Games label, Hogwarts Legacy, is set to be released.
“Developed by Avalanche Software, this action RPG allows players to be at the centre of their own adventure set during the late 1800s wizarding world.
“From learning powerful spells and brewing potions to honing combat skills and taming magical beasts, this game will allow players to experience the magical world as a student at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry like never before as they determine the fate of the entire wizarding world.”
Confession time: I am a big Harry Potterfan. I loved the books and movies growing up, and the story became an inextricable and joyful part of my childhood experience. With that in mind, unsurprisingly, I also adored Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts, a heartfelt and nostalgic special that HBO Max released on New Year’s Day.
That being said, however, the special reminded me that I’ve got a bit of a bone to pick with the beloved franchise because, well… I’m a Hufflepuff (please, refrain from gasping or booing). I took a 112-question Sorting Hat quiz years ago and was so distraught upon being dubbed Hufflepuff, I took it all over again, only to once again be stuck with that garish yellow House.
For those of you who have forgotten or have no idea what a Hufflepuff even really is, here’s a brief rundown of House history. Hogwarts is divided into four Houses: Gryffindors (the brave ones with a lion mascot), Ravenclaws (the smart ones with an eagle mascot), Slytherins (the ambitious ones with a snake mascot), and Hufflepuff. We’re nice. That’s our Thing. That’s it. Everything else is downhill. Case in point: our House color is a very difficult to pull off bright shade of yellow, our mascot is a badger, and our House founder’s first name was frickin’ “Helga.” We can’t catch a break.
Photo: Everett Collection
Since I discovered my house in distressing fashion all those years ago, I’ve come to terms with and have even become proud of my ‘Puff status, but the Harry Potterreunion definitely did poke at some old wounds. If you’re wondering what the big deal is or what the heck I’m talking about, A) you clearly aren’t a Hufflepuff, and B) allow me to break it down for ya. A quick quiz for you: Name three Hufflepuffs.
Could you do it? While there are several ‘Puffs listed in the books, the most notable ones in the books and films end up being Cedric Diggory (Robert Pattinson), Nymphadora Tonks (Natalia Tena) and Professor Pomona Sprout (Miriam Margolyes). And if those names don’t ring a bell, here’s a refresher:
Cedric was clearly cool as hell from the get-go when he was introduced in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. Finally, Hufflepuff gets a rad hero of our own! He’s going to be important! Oh, what’s that, he’s dying that very same movie? He’s basically cannon fodder so Harry can see a friend die and grow stronger from it? Crap.
Tonks was a delightful figure who joined the party one book and movie later, in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. She’s a Metamorphmagus who can change her physical appearance at will. She’s also known as the wife of Professor Remus Lupin (David Thewlis), and similarly, doesn’t make it out of the franchise alive, dying in the Battle of Hogwarts in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
Professor Sprout is there throughout the franchise and survives to the end, but all she does is teach kids about plants, which, sadly, isn’t as thrilling as say, being an escaped (wrongfully convicted) criminal like Gryffindor Sirius Black (Gary Oldman) or even one-time Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Ravenclaw Professor Quirinus Quirrell (Ian Hart), who only appeared in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone but at least made a lasting mark by being the guy who had Voldemort’s (Ralph Fiennes) face on the back of his head.
Warner Bros.
Were any of these Hufflepuffs there at the reunion, sharing their memories and hanging with old co-stars? No, of course not. Every House had someone there representing them except for us (despite the fact that Robert Pattinson is the biggest star to emerge from the Harry Potter franchise BY A LONG SHOT). I think people sometimes misremember Luna Lovegood (Evanna Lynch) as a Hufflepuff because she’s quirky, but alas, she is but a wise and misunderstood Ravenclaw. And look at this promo picture for the special. Not a Hufflepuff in sight:
Photo: HBO Max
Hufflepuffs come out of Harry Potterlooking even lamer than Slytherin, who produced basically every single bully and bad guy in the series. At least they got to DO something. And even Slytherins, who live in a dungeon and have their fair share of unsavory characters, are like “ew, Hufflepuff.” Why is this our lot in life, J.K. Rowling? Merlin? Morgan le Fay? WHO CAN ANSWER ME?! No one? Fine, I’ll do this myself.
Here are just a few small and easy edits I have to suggest to the Harry Potterbooks and movies so that Hufflepuff can have a bit more presence and impact throughout the franchise:
Make Voldemort a Hufflepuff: I mean, who would have seen this coming? No one suspects a ‘Puff of anything, so how epic would it be if the darkest wizard of all-time turned evil solely because he was bitter to be sorted into Hufflepuff and wanted to make the wizarding world pay? Instead of a snake, Voldemort talks to badgers and commands an army of them to do his bidding. Who cares if it makes no sense narratively, at least it’d be a fun twist.
Let Hufflepuff win the House Cup or Inter-House Quidditch: I’m not greedy. One measly victory would have been fine! Is our House not good at anything except eating and smiling and dying?! What gives?!
Warner Bros.
Give us a cooler ghost: Gryffindor gets the awesome Nearly Headless Nick (played by John frickin’ Cleese!), Slytherin gets the spooky Bloody Baron, Ravenclaw gets the lovely and tragic Grey Lady, and Hufflepuff gets… the Fat Friar. ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! At this point, it feels personal. Give US John Cleese, instead, most comedians are probably Hufflepuffs anyway. Or at least make it the Hot Friar or Charming Friar, we’re not asking for much, here.
Let. Cedric. LIVE!!! It might’ve even been enough to save Robert Pattinson from doing Twilight. We’d be living in a very different world right now if that were the case, but I guess we’ll never know, huh.
Photo: Everett Collection
As you can see, from the beginning, Hufflepuffs have been cursed and looked down upon. Maybe one day there’ll be a sequel series, where it’s the ‘Puffs who rise up and take on the rest of the wizarding world for treating them like a joke. Or maybe they just band together and form a magical improv troupe (which would honestly be as frightening as any Death Eater or Dementor). At the very least, let’s hope for more Hufflepuff representation at the next reunion!
An MMO based on the Harry Potter series was in production at Electronic Arts but was cancelled due to the publisher doubting the longevity of the franchise, it has been claimed.
Kim Salzer, who served as EA’s director of product marketing from 2000-2003, at a time when the publisher held the rights to make Harry Potter games, made the revelation during a Twitch interview with streamer The Real Brandolorian.
When asked about a game that she was involved in that she was excited about but that ultimately never saw the light of day, she mentioned the Harry Potter MMO.
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“A big one for me, because I was so personally involved in it, and it’s such a huge IP that has lived on is an online massively multiplayer game for Harry Potter,” Salzer said.
“We did all the research, we had the beta built out, it was a combination offline/online experience where we’d actually mail stuff to the kids, like prizes and ribbons and stuff like that.
“Thoroughly researched, very confident in the success of this. But it was killed, for lack of a better term, because EA was going through changes at that time and they just didn’t know or believe enough that that IP would have a shelf-life longer than a year or two.”
In a statement published on social media at the time, the publisher thanked fans for their “tremendous reaction” to the game’s announcement the previous year and confirmed the new release window.
“Creating the best possible experience for all of the Wizarding World and gaming fans is paramount to us so we are giving the game the time it needs,” its statement read.
Rachel Wakely, Warner Bros. general manager, spoke to Toy World magazine about the Wizarding World IP, in which she referred to “two major releases in 2022”. The first is the upcoming film Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbeldore, she said, which releases in the UK on April 8. The second is Hogwarts Legacy.
“From what we’ve seen, the launch will be well worth the wait and deliver a unique way for fans to interact with the franchise”, she said.
“I’ve now received so many death threats I could paper the house with them, and I haven’t stopped speaking out,” she said. “Perhaps — and I’m just throwing this out there — the best way to prove your movement isn’t a threat to women, is to stop stalking, harassing and threatening us.”
Which law enforcement agency was doing the most to tackle the threat of Chinese money laundering? Who was the best person to talk to at that agency? Which prosecutors had brought the best cases? Who had done the most robust research on the volume of Chinese-owned money in the UK, and what assets did that money tend to buy? Which politicians were most alert to the question, and how did they organise themselves?
When I do research in the United States, I am consistently amazed by the willingness of officials to sit down with me, trust me and talk through their work and share access to documents. American journalists complain about their working conditions, just like everyone does everywhere, but for me doing research into financial crime in the US is as heady an experience as letting a child loose in a Lego shop. Andrew, however, was discovering that the pleasant surprise sadly does not work in the opposite direction. I think he had been hoping that I would share a few contacts and it’s possible that he had been concerned I would refuse to open my address book to him, but it seemed not to have occurred to him that I would have no address book to open; that essentially the people he was looking for would not exist.
There was no concerted law enforcement effort against Chinese money laundering, I told him, so there was no investigator who could talk to him about it. There have been essentially no prosecutions so none for him to look into, and there is almost no research into where the money has been going, how it’s been getting there, or indeed how much of it there is.
But where was the equivalent of the FBI’s International Corruption Squad? Who was doing the work of the Kleptocracy Team at the Department of Justice? What about Homeland Security Investigations; did Britain have something like them? Were prosecutors building cases, in a British version of the Southern District of New York? Was bringing down a big Chinese money-laundering ring the kind of case that would make someone’s career? Which parliamentary commissions were probing this? Surely, someone was?
As he talked, I began to see the situation through his eyes, which gave me a perspective I’d never had before. The problem was that he could keep trying different passwords until the rocks rotted away, but it wouldn’t help: there was no cave of treasures for him to open. If he wanted to find out how much Chinese money was entering the UK, who was moving it and what it was buying, he was going to have to start from scratch and do all the work himself. Andrew had come to London to discover how Britain was fighting illicit finance, but he was discovering that this was not happening at all. Quite the reverse, in fact.
It is of course not just Britain which helps kleptocrats and criminals to launder money. The shadow financial system used by Chinese criminals is transnational by its nature. It transcends any one jurisdiction, and derives its power and resilience from the fact it does not rely on any one place: if one jurisdiction becomes hostile, money effortlessly relocates to somewhere that isn’t. And the system grows all the time, as lawyers, accountants and others persuade politicians to give them access to the kind of fees they can generate by moving money around. You can find it as much in Dubai, Sydney, Lichtenstein and Curaçao, as you can in Switzerland or New York. But you find it most of all in London.
Harry Potter is one of the film sagas most valued by fans and has been growing since the release of The Philosopher’s Stone, the first movie released and based on the books by J. K. Rowling.
For the 20th anniversary, the production has decided to celebrate this date with a competition that will test the knowledge of the fans.
In Episode 1, the two Houses that fought were Gryffindor and Hufflepuff. Three rounds of trivia were played, generated from a video board that featured clips from the movies, quotes, parts of the books, and other media that are part of the fan franchise.
Even some Harry Potter celebrities asked questions.
The rounds have a variety of unexpected elements that create exciting challenges for even the most knowledgeable Harry Potterplayers.
Every winning house will advance to the final.
The losing house will go to a wild card round. That means that, wherever the fans qualify, they can compete for the prize.
Recall that the competition involves four groups of fans within the four well-known Hogwarts houses: Gryffindor, Slytherin, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff.
How to watch
The battle for the House Cup Championship will begin on November 28, 2021 at 8 P.M/E.T. The first episode of Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses will air on both TBS and Cartoon Network as part of its ACME Night.
When does Episode 2 of Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses air?
New episodes of Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses will air weekly on Sundays at 8 P.M/E.T. Here is a schedule for the pilot season of Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses.
Episode 1: Gryffindor vs. Hufflepuff November 28, 2021
Episode 2: Ravenclaw vs. Slytherin December 5, 2021
An incredibly unbiased take of the state furthest from my own.
For February Break, I was fortunate enough to accept an opportunity to visit Los Angeles. I had not been since I was around ten-years-old, having spent time with extended family in Long Beach. I’ve seen photos of myself in Disneyland and Legoland (with much longer hair and questionable fashionable choices) but have very vague memories of the Golden State.
My girlfriend, Julia, and I weighed our costs and benefits of missing three more days of school following the break and ultimately elected to take a true vacation (with a little business at the end…). After flying coast-to-coast Saturday night, we took a Lyft for about an hour from the Los Angeles International Airport to Universal City. As folks who grew up entirely in New York, the first thing we noticed was how flat Los Angeles was. Skyscrapers are staples of our eastern cities: looking up in New York we see our Empire State Building, our Freedom Tower and hundreds of storied buildings.
In Los Angeles, you look up and become blinded by the sun (I also forgot to bring sunglasses and was forced to buy some overpriced ones at the hotel, so maybe that one is on me). I might also have made a wisecrack joke at 1 a.m. (still mentally 4 a.m. Eastern Standard Time) about how those earthquakes must really be something if the Californians are so afraid to climb to the heavens. Our driver countered with the story of watching the floor shake after their 2019 quake. I backed off from the natural disaster gags from then on.
We spent our first day at the Griffith Observatory, hiking, learning about space and waiting for the fabled sunset over the Hollywood Sign. If Ithaca is gorges, then Los Angeles is hilly. We walked for miles across the dusted paths to different peaks and valleys, looking at lovely vistas across the city. Julia tolerated my obsession with Space for the hours we spent in the observatory, and eventually, we watched the Griffith sunset.
After reminiscing on our Slope sunsets, we ended the day with the most iconic meal for $10 in California: In-n-Out Burger. I watched Julia order like a pro with all the animal-style, protein-style type of gibberish before I ordered my shake, and we debated the age-old question: In-n-Out vs. Shake Shack. I must admit upfront, I order my burgers and shakes very plainly; I enjoy a plain burger with salty fries to dip in my chocolate shake. Julia contended that when ordering the “proper way,” In-n-Out beats Shake Shack. On the plain battleground, however, Shake Shack won out. I still hold that Shake Shack remains the king of the high-end fast-food clash. Lyfting home, we finished our first day with a nice tan, full stomachs and a nice hotel room overlooking the smokestacks of the building.
For day two, we walked to Universal Studios and bought the fast passes with aims to complete the whole park in the singular day we allocated. From the “Kung Fu Panda” attraction to the “Jurassic Park” one, we rode each ride and had enough time to go on the Studio Tour as well. Between fried chicken in The Simpsons’ Springfield and butterbeer in The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, we indulged in the specialties offered before settling down for a nice dinner on Universal’s City Walk. We went to bed again with more burns than tan, still full stomachs, and our glorious smokestack view.
On our last day before the business portion of the trip, we journeyed out to Santa Monica to visit the pier. Julia and I both come from Italian grandmothers who are insistent on the proper way to cook calamari, chicken parm, etc. But that calamari on the pier? Absolutely delicious. We then looked at the Pacific Ocean from a hot and shifty beach to which my East Coast preferences started to make their return. I didn’t realize how much I enjoyed cold snow hitting my skin until I laid in hot, blistering sand for a long period of time. We concluded our beach trip with ice-cold custards from the famous PierBurger and headed back to the new hotel with the usual: burns and tans, a full stomach but a new view of a parking lot.
While I’m certain everyone will be reading about the business portion of our trip in the next couple of weeks, I truly enjoyed my time in Los Angeles for the past week. This piece may have felt more like a blog post than an opinion piece, but I have three firm opinions combined with one free piece of advice. Firstly, California is worth the trip. East Coast bias most certainly remains in my veins, but visiting the sunnier side of our great nation is worth the seven-hour flight. Secondly, New York (plain) burgers, fries and shakes beat out California ones — I’m ready to die on that hill. Thirdly — and also my free piece of advice —you should take a trip with your best friend, that special someone if you can. Traveling across the country and living school-free for even a week with Julia has been one of the best times of my life. I encourage all of you to take a vacation with that amazing person, if you can, before the real world starts post-Cornell.
Patrick J. Mehler ‘23 (he/him) is a junior in the School of Industrial and Labor Relations. He can be reached at [email protected] The Mehl-Man Delivers runs every other Tuesday this semester.
Dirty lockers with chipped paint have become a canvas for Fairmont High School’s art students. The hallways are lined with brightly painted lockers that showcase the students’ and teachers’ favorite books, movies, and music albums.
In 2020, before COVID-19 made schools move to virtual learning, Fairmont High School art teacher Steven Taylor asked students in his Advanced Placement class to brainstorm an idea for the lockers.
He started with the question: “Well, what does it look like?”
This led students to the concept of a bookshelf. The bottom shelves act as traditional reference books, while the top shelves come alive with colorful book spines. Featured texts include classics like“To Kill a Mockingbird” and“Charlotte’s Web,” but also more recent favorites like “Harry Potter”and“The Hunger Games.“
After virtual learning left students feeling disconnected, this art project and others like it have provided an opportunity for self-expression and connection.
Taylor says that this project highlights students’ art styles. Cheyenne McNeill/EducationNC
Taylor said not only has the project allowed students to be creative, but it has also stirred up conversations.
“Some of them said, ‘What’s this book about?’ or ‘What is this like?’” he said. “We tried to cross that gap between stuff I thought was important and stuff they would think is important.”
From there, Taylor and his students were inspired to do more on their corner of campus.
The previous art teacher at the school drew several large squares on a wall in the classroom. After completing their first set of lockers, Taylor and his students began to brainstorm how these squares could be transformed into an art project. They decided on a “character select” look, similar to what is seen in video games like Mario Kart.
Taylor said choosing this subject led to an art lesson he never anticipated.
Senior Katlyn Tyler has painted several characters on the “character select” wall in Taylor’s classroom. Cheyenne McNeill/EducationNC
“We started doing anime and cartoon characters. You have to learn Van Gogh, you have to learn from the past, but the art these kids see today is that and they all want to draw that,” Taylor said.
Exploring different kinds of art allowed the students at Fairmont High School to have a sense of solidarity with their school.
Because of COVID-19, several of the seniors in his classes didn’t get to finish their projects, so they returned to the school over the summer to complete their pieces.
“The seniors that were in the middle of squares and doing other things actually came back. I had two or three that came back during summer school,” Taylor said. “They were graduating and going into college, but they felt strongly about finishing.”
Students use reference photos to help as they paint lockers and squares. Cheyenne McNeill/EducationNC
Others called back and asked how the project was going, if squares and lockers were completed, and asked what books and characters were being added to the project. For Taylor, this made it all worthwhile.
“So it’s just like a big interesting school beautification thing, and then I try to synergize that with all my classes. It started off with something very little, and now it’s gotten really big,” Taylor said.
Taylor’s class isn’t alone in its endeavor to beautify the school. Krista Rachels joined the Fairmont High School faculty in 2019 when it absorbed South Robeson High School.
Rachels saw the impact of these large projects and began to incorporate them into her classroom. She recently joined up with the theater teacher to create lockers designed to look like playbills.
Rachels’ classes are just beginning the process of painting lockers outside of the school’s theater classroom. Cheyenne McNeill/EducationNC
Rachels said these projects allow students to feel connected to Fairmont High School, something she said is especially important since the school absorption and the start of the pandemic.
“We have seen so many social and emotional changes with these students,” Rachels said.
When the schools merged, Rachel said there was tension between students from the different schools. She thinks that being able to come and be a part of an art program like this has allowed some of that tension to dissipate.
Taylor’s students painted this motto on the gym doors at Fairmont High School. Cheyenne McNeill/EducationNC
Taylor and Rachels’ art classes contribute all across campus. Rachels’ class paints the football field, while students in Taylor’s class design posters for clubs and athletic teams. Art students at Fairmont High School have also painted murals in other teachers’ classrooms when asked.
The art teachers say students from each grade find ownership and a sense of pride in their school and artwork. Now, these projects have turned into something teachers and students across campus look forward to seeing progress on and are excited to incorporate into their classrooms.
“My favorite thing about the art projects that we’ve done here is the expression that we’re able to show,” said Fairmont High School senior Katlyn Tyler. “Every student has a different art style and characters that they love. They are able to show things that they enjoy and I think that’s something that’s really unique here.”
For Taylor, these huge projects are a way to spotlight some of the more shy students in his classes.
“One of my goals is to give kids a platform,” Taylor said. “So it’s that kind of vehicle for them to be seen and also to find a safe space to do that.”
