Now that HBO is rebooting Harry Potter, they better come prepared—because we Potterheads have receipts. Of course, the movies were magical and they introduced us to the visual representation of J.K. Rowling’s Wizarding World, but they also snatched away some of the best moments from the books. Take for example a defining scene between Professor McGonagall and Neville Longbottom.
All Harry Potter readers will remember the scene from Half-Blood Prince where McGonagall tried helping Neville with his schedule and guided him on the right path by encouraging him to take Charms over Transfiguration. Can you believe the audacity of Warner Bros. for never including this scene? So now, it’s time for HBO to do right by our favorite Hogwarts professor and give her the screen time she deserves.
Recalling Professor McGonagall’s defining moment from the books
It was obviously not possible for Warner Bros. to adapt every scene from J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter novels, but it still stings how the films ignored one important scene surrounding Neville Longbottom, our favorite underdog-turned-warrior, and our all-time favorite Hogwarts professor, Minerva McGonagall.
Well, it’s a scene from The Half-Blood Prince novel, which started with McGonagall helping Neville with his schedule and ended up being a life-changing pep talk and a subtle roast of his grandmother. Now that’s the real McGonagall way. This moment from the books is pure gold that was criminally left out of the films.
In this sequence, Neville was feeling the pressure of his Gran’s expectations and therefore was trying to continue Transfiguration despite struggling with it. But McGonagall—being the wise queen that she is—saw right through it and reminded Neville that he doesn’t need to be anyone else’s version of “great.”
Urging the nervous boy to take up the subject of his preference, Charms, McGonagall guided Neville to the right path, despite herself being the teacher for Transfiguration. Oh, and the cherry on the cake was when McGonagall threw in some sass, pointing out that just because his grandmother failed her Charms O.W.L. doesn’t mean the subject is useless.
HBO’s Harry Potter reboot needs to focus on the scenes ignored by the films
The movies indeed gave us an incredible Minerva McGonagall—Maggie Smith did an impeccable job at flawlessly embodying the warm and sassy character. But there’s no denying that Warner Bros. robbed us of these small yet powerful moments that made her such an iconic mentor.
This was just one of her finest moments, but the books had more. Like when McGonagall walked right past Peeves who was busy loosening a crystal chandelier and in fact advised him that “it unscrews the other way”. Well, she wasn’t just the no-nonsense, strict professor of Hogwarts, even McGonagall had her fair share of quirky scenes.
One of which appeared in the movies during the Battle of Hogwarts, when she confessed her long-standing desire to cast the spell—Piertotum Locomotor—allowing the animate statues and suits of armor to come to life. So now, while the films skimmed over these gems, HBO has no excuse.
With multiple seasons to explore every detail, and each season focusing on one book, the upcoming Harry Potter TV show must give us the character-driven moments we deserve. Now, the show needs to focus on the emotional depth of the books and bring out these little yet defining moments.
Harry Potter films are available on Max.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
