I think aside from the Yikes factor, which I don’t really have the authority to address, the Nagini reveal is really emblematic of the problem Fantastic Beasts and most prequel films have. Namely, does it really matter?
And the answer is truly no. How does Nagini formally being a woman impact the later events of the Harry Potter universe? Is it a weakness of Voldemort’s to exploit or a hindrance to the heroes? No, she accomplishes those things just fine as a normal snake. Is her involvement in the events surrounding Grindelwald important? No, because it wasn’t worth remembering, not by Dumbledore or Voldemort or anyone else. At the end of the day, this new information was not necessary, and therefore not worth the time to include in the original seven books.
And that’s what’s wrong about this whole Newt Scamander, Fighter for Dumbledore angle. Because the books and therefore the history and worldbuilding do not support it. Scrimgeour doesn’t tell Harry “you’re Dumbledore’s man through and through, just like that Scamander bloke” because Harry was one of a kind to Scrimgeour, not just the update to a previously existing prototype. There’s no chapter in Rita Skeeter’s tell-all book devoted to Dumbledore’s special relationship with Newt, because it didn’t exist matter. Newt does not participate in the Order of the Phoenix or attend Dumbledore’s funeral, so whatever bond they have in these films does not survive. Which begs the question why any of it matters.
The characters of the Harry Potter Wizarding World do not know Newt Scamander for being a hero in the war against Grindelwald; they know him for being a magizoologist. Rowling can retcon it for these films, but she cannot go back and change the text she already wrote which shows just how unimportant of a story these five films must be to never even crop up as a footnote in Harry’s story. When Newt was just a vehicle for the Beasts, that was fine. Harry is not Charlie or Hagrid, for whom Newt would have been a far more important figure.
But this push to have a Good vs. Evil conflict, and more importantly for a Cinematic Universe, renders Newt’s revised story completely irrelevant because we know it was irrelevant to the characters of the future we were first introduced to and loved. If they never cared, why should we?
I don’t think I have any mutuals in Florida, but if anyone else does, pass this along. Probably important to be aware of these issues when voting by mail in other U.S. states, too.
I’ve been voting by mail all my adult life, because I registered during the Bush years, when “hanging chads” in the state where one of the candidate’s brother was governor were one of the reasons he was allowed to win, and there was a lot of concern about the security of voting machines (which has NOT improved). Voting by mail has definite benefits, but cast your ballot early, and make sure it counts.
Its nice that we get to die someday. Imagine being immortal and suddenly you remember all the emberassing things you did in the last 2000 years. Horrible
Me, as a vampire: oh geez
Friend: What’s wrong
Me: Just remembered that time in 1654 when the tavern maid said “Enjoyeth thy meal!” I replied with “Thee as well”
This is the greatest progression of events I have ever read, where’s my historical gay romance novel about this
KING JAMES, CAN YOU CHILL?
Local King Cannot Stop Promoting His Boyfriend
where’s the lush period drama about this series of events?
fun thing about king James, this guy was fairly public about his bf (more public than what was acceptable). He threw lots of extravagant parties with his man on his arm. It pissed off the church obviously so to get them off his back, he’s the one that ordered the third translation of the Bible from Hebrew to English (the King James Version aka the Authorized Version) so the Bible every hot blooded all American Christian reads today was literally just written so a very gay king could fuck his boyfriend in peace.
oh my god this is hilarious
“guys, guys. I know this looks kinda gay, and i promise i have a good explanation for all this, but have you considered… that jesus… is also gay? checkmate, heteros.”
In the eyes of the British government, the U.S. may now be a risky destination for LGBT travelers. The British Foreign Office posted a travel advisory update to its website Tuesday warning members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities about anti-LGBT laws passed recently in North Carolina and Mississippi. “The U.S. is an extremely diverse society and attitudes towards LGBT people differ hugely across the country,” the advisory reads. “LGBT travelers may be affected by legislation passed recently in the states of North Carolina and Mississippi.”
The advisory also provides a map that marks countries around the world — including Turkmenistan, Pakistan, Nicaragua, as well as much of northern Africa and the Middle East — that also have anti-LGBT laws, and includes a few more pieces of travel advice. “Some hotels, especially in rural areas, won’t accept bookings from same-sex couples — check before you go,” the British government warns, noting that LGBT travelers should also “exercise discretion” in rural areas and avoid “excessive physical shows of affection” when in public.
This is the type of thing that I think would come as a shock to some Americans, as to how SCARY their country appears to many of us in the rest of the world. (And that’s allowing for the fact that many of our countries can be scary in their own ways.)
just remembered my favorite ben shapiro own of all time which is when he was debating a transgender woman on dr. drew and he made a point to misgender her as many times as possible in a single sentence so she put her hand on the back of his neck like she was picking up a kitten, looked him dead in the eyes, and said “cut it out or you’ll be leaving here in an ambulance”
shapiro started immediately sniveling about civility in political debate like the little cockroach he is but not a single person in the room would back him up
funeral-biscuit 