The Potterverse: A Harry Potter Podcast

Mary & Blake discuss everything YOU have wanted to say to us, and answer all your questions in this listener feedback episode. In this episode, we discuss if Draco has been brave, or just fearful, our favorite books/chapters from Harry Potter, and if a dragon could actually eat a dementor! Plus much more.

Mary & Blake recap and give reaction to chapter 26 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - Seen And Unforseen. In this episode, we discuss one of Blake's favorite scene transitions in this entire book, the nature of rebellion and how hit it can manifest in many different forms, and why Mary has a Chernobyl sized take about a certain baby...

Mary & Blake recap and give reaction to chapter 25 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - The Beetle At Bay. In this episode, we discuss why Cho and Harry should have never been together, why you need characters like Pansy Parkinson to push Harry, and why Bluey is way funnier than Blake expected...

Mary & Blake recap and give reaction to chapter 24 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - Occlumency. In this special episode, we're in the car on the way home from watching the total eclipse that just happened! We discuss whether or not Dumbledore and Snape have Harry's best interests at heart, if Sirius was doing the right thing as a guardian, and why New England is a vortex...

Mary & Blake recap and give reaction to chapter 23 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - Christmas At The Closed Ward. We chat the nature of friendship and the roles the trio share with each other, how much Alice is truly aware of Neville, and why Blake breaks because of one VERY special character...

Mary & Blake recap and give reaction to chapter 22 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - St. Mungo's Hospital For Magical Maladies And Injuries. We chat the natural push and pull of character arcs for both Sirius and Harry, the real difference between foreshadowing and teasing, and why Harry's ahd absolutely ENOUGH...

Mary & Blake recap and give reaction to chapter 21 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - They Eye Of The Snake. We chat what separates the "Oneness" of Harry from Neville, the author setting up. major 3 beats to help amplify the remainder of the story, and why Blake is TOTALLY Pansy Parkinson...

Mary & Blake recap and give reaction to chapter 20 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - Hagrid's Tale. We chat the nature of storytelling within a story, how and why the death eaters are capable of making a more compelling case to the giants, and why Fang is feeling a little like Kevin McCallister right now...

Mary & Blake recap and give reaction to chapter 19 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - The Lion And The Serpent. We chat why Dumbledore and Umbridge cannot exist in the same narrative, why the Slytherins are both good AND bad in this chapter, and Blake does his first different perspective in a LONG time....

Mary & Blake discuss chapter 18 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - Dumbledore's Army. We chat why Hermione's judgement might not be the best in this chapter, Harry and Voldemort's connection feeling like Rey and Kylo Ren, and why Dobby suffers from poor circulation.

Mary & Blake discuss chapter 17 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - Educational Decree Number Twenty-Four. We chat if Umbridge is actually correct in enforcing the decree, why characterization needs to include traits ONLY that character should have, and why Justin Finch Fletchley continues to be the worst character in all of Potter...

Mary & Blake discuss chapter 16 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - In The Hog's Head. We chat why this chapter is more focused on the outside world looking in on Harry as opposed the other way around, Harry starting to experience his "Luke Skywalker Moment", and why Blake's school wouldn't allow the "poors" like Mary in it's pub on campus...

Mary & Blake discuss chapter 15 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - The Hogwarts High Inquisitor. We chat the dangers of state run media, examples of good character dialogue vs. bad character dialogue, and why Mary had a giant Harp in her college dorm room....

Mary & Blake discuss chapter 14 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - Percy And Padfoot. We chat the magic of dialogue placement and pacing, why the movie forgot to give Cho a character, and why Hermione is kinda living the life of that show "The Summer I Turned Pretty".

Mary & Blake discuss chapter 13 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - Detention With Dolores. We chat why the scary is the subtlety, why this isn't the best chapter for Hermione fans, and Blake gives a truly AWFUL impersonation of Bane from The Dark Knight Rises....

Mary & Blake discuss chapter 12 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - Professor Umbridge. We chat if we think Umbridge is actually wrong with her assessment of Hogwarts, why McGonagall is sneaky great, and the unfortunate rise of "Pinkhats" in sports...

Mary & Blake discuss chapter 10 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - Luna Lovegood. We chat the authors setting up Harry's isolation and changing the fabric of the one place place in which he finds solace, why Umbridge should have been setting of MAJOR red flags from the jump, and why if you're going to have friends, then you be on the lookout for fart friends...

Mary & Blake discuss chapter 10 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - Luna Lovegood. We discuss why setting up Draco as a prefect is a stellar writing device on multiple levels, why the movie gets so much right from this scene but mistakenly leaves out a much needed form of levity, and why we desperately need a Ravenclaw to tell us what the heck is going on in Luna's head...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 9 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - The Woes Of Mrs. Weasley. In this episode, Mary & Blake discuss how the author sets up a mental map of the Ministry for later in the book, why we should be way more terrified of Lucius Malfoy, and why Remus peaked in high school...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 8 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - The Hearing. In this episode, Mary & Blake discuss the motivations behind Fudge's actions, why this might be the scariest chapter in all of Harry Potter, and we have a VERY special guest...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 7 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - The Ministry Of Magic. In this episode, Mary & Blake discuss the difficulty of writing this kind of chapter due to plot, theme, and world-building, why it's important to see the Ministry through Harry's eyes, and why Blake is horrified at the notion of Kippers for breakfast...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 6 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - The Noble And Most Ancient House Of Black. In this episode, Mary & Blake discuss why the struggle and motivation revealed in this chapter make Sirius a great character, the plot being very simple for a reason, and why Mary couldn't help but do the Different Perspective RIGHT AWAY. 

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 5 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - The Order Of The Phoenix. In this episode, Mary & Blake discuss the need for tonal balance and characters like Tonks, the implications behind the decisions made for Harry by his Godfather and his adoptive mother, and why Blake LOVES the idea of a bow on a brand new car....

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 4 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - Number Twelve Grimmauld Place. In this episode, Mary & Blake discuss if Harry is justified in his anger, the emotional complexity of Percy's choices, and why Blake totally threw Mary off her "different perspective" game!

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 3 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - The Advance Guard. In this episode, Mary & Blake discuss the wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am nature of the chapter, why Tonks is perfectly characterized within the first few lines of meeting her, and why Vernon Dursley LOVES to rat on his neighbors.

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 2 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - A Peck Of Owls. In this episode, Mary & Blake discuss the split morality of Vernon and Petunia, why Sirius may have let Harry down, and why Blake doesn't understand the conversion rate of Celsius to Fahrenheit...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake gather an emergency podcast about HBO reportedly nearing a deal to reboot Harry Potter as a television series. In this episode, Mary & Blake discuss the business behind why HBO is rebooting reportedly rebooting Harry Potter as a television series, the thirst (or lack thereof) for more Harry Potter, who we would like to see as some actors and showrunners, and Mary makes and INCREDIBLE tie in for the Fantastic Beasts series of films...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 1 of Harry Potter and The Order Of The Phoenix - Dudley Demented In this episode, Mary & Blake discuss the cultural zeitgeist of Harry Potter when this book was released, why the dementors are interesting but its the opening paragraph that really counts here, and why Mrs. Fig wants Harry to just have more cats in his life...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss and review the 2005 film adaptation of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire  In this episode, Mary & Blake discuss how one simple line in the movie is the perfect bridge between films 1-3 and films 5-8, why there is a cognitive dissonance between the foundation of the book, and the structure of the film, and why when you have Ralph Fiennes, you just let him go full Ralph Fiennes...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 37 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - A Beginning. In this episode, Mary & Blake share a special new spin on the final chapter -- Blake reads the whole chapter to you!  At the same time we provide commentary on how this sets up the rest of the narrative, why this book feels very much like Ant-Man And The Wasp: Quantumania, and why Colin McCreavy needs to go home immediately...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 35 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - A Parting Of The Ways. We chat about about Fudge's true intentions for going to the hospital wing, why Dumbledore may have chosen to NOT take Harry's memory and put in the in the Pensieve, and why Snape's in line to have a really awkward conversation with Voldemort...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 35 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - Veritaserum. We chat about the mechanics of a returning portkey, the mystery of who cast the Stupefy charm, and why Winky thought bad luck always came in threes.

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 34 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - Priori Incantatem. We chat about the indirect connection of old magic, how macro vs. micro perspective can change the dynamic of a scene, and why Frank loves his Tuesday spirit meetings with Cedric...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 33 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - The Death Eaters. We chat a what Snape felt upon the reemergence of the Dark Mark, why this chapter contains some of Blake's favorite prose from the author, and Mary nails yet ANOTHER different perspective.

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 32 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire – Flesh, Blood And Bone. We chat a wild fan theory about Bertha Jorkins, Harry’s first experience to the wide wizarding world being death, and why Mary has a Different Perspective for the ages!

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 31 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - The Third Task. We chat why this chapter is a perfect pay off moment for all of the past experiences Harry has in previous years, why the the subversion of structure is a gold mine of opportunity, and why Bill is essentially Bender from The Breakfast Club

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 30 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - The Pensieve. We chat why this chapter broadens the wizarding world in a very intentional way, how the pensieve actually works, and why Barty Crouch Jr. was always The Big Bad Wolf in plays at Azkaban...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 29 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - The Dream. We chat the paternal roles being switched, why Crouch Jr. might be the best death eater ever, and why Eagle Owls are the Maserati of owls...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 28 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - The Madness Of Mr Crouch. We chat the underlying reason for hatemail, why we never thought Molly Weasley would ever be this petty, and why Viktor Krum would be more than happy to have COVID fog because of Hermione...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 27 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - Padfoot Returns. We chat the importance and value of perspective in storytelling, a perfect onset of the third act, and why Blake *MIGHT* be beginning to like Sirius more than Snape...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 26 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - The Second Task. We chat the adaptation of the merpeople from the film, why there is tension for the sake of tension with Dobby, and why Hagrid should be Emily In Paris...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 25 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - The Egg And The Eye. We chat the multiple layers of the Snape/Moody confrontation, troublesome magical artifacts, and why Myrtle is just a tad too pervy for our tastes...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 24 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - Rita Skeeter's Scoop. We chat ingrained wizarding culture, a listener email almost brings them to tears, and why Mary goes full Marissa Tomei...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 23 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - The Yule Ball. We chat how this chapter is the pivot point for the series, understanding the contrast between highs and lows, and why Blake played way too much Mortal Kombat as a kid...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 22 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - The Unexpected Task. We chat the importance of scene setting with perspective and environment details, finding courage to communicate, and why Blake was too interested in the Star Trek chat rooms on AOL at this age...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 21 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - The House-Elf Liberation Front. We chat the power of twisted narrative, the stark contrast between Winky and Dobby, and how Blake is extending an olive branch to all the Hufflepuffs.

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 20 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - The First Task. We chat the push and pull of Harry's tenuous relationship to the wizarding community, story rhyming, and why Hermione though VO5 Hot Oil would change everything...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 19 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - The Hungarian Horntail. We chat the importance of a low-point in a story, the magical properties of Mad-Eye's eye, and why Mary is a true Gryffindor to a fault...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 18 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - The Weighing Of The Wands. We chat Harry and Ron's moral obligation to each other, why Snape is hard to like in this chapter, and why Mary goes ALL IN on Earth, Wind And Fire...

The Potterverse Hosts Mary & Blake discuss chapter 17 of Harry Potter and The Goblet Of Fire - The Four Champions. We chat the important use of physical structure, interweaving the plot with misdirection, and Mary goes ALL IN on Mad-Eye Moody...