Chapter 9: The Writing on the Wall | Chamber of Secrets

Join J and Ben as they dive into Chapter 9 of the Chamber of Secrets and discuss the scene of the crime, Lockhart’s paintings, Snape and Dumbledore reading Harry’s mind, squibs, Professor Binns, the introduction of the Chamber of Secrets, Slytherin’s locket, prefect points, and Hermione’s rule breaking evolution.
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Chapters:
00:00 - Intro and Chapter Art
04:52 - Chapter Breakdown
1:08:20 - Closing Thoughts and Review
Edited by :: Ethan Edghill
#ThroughtheGriffinDoor #HarryPotter #SuperCarlinBrothers

[@PalmelaHanderson]

One of the things that I love that comes up consistently is that the Weasley twins are REALLY, REALLY GOOD at magic. Like, any time they ever do anything magical, whoever is around is impressed by it. They figured out the marauder's map, Ludo Bagman says their fake wand is the best he's ever seen, Hermione says their headless hats are impressive, clearly they must be really good at potions, the corridor swamp, etc. If one of the twins turned Ron's teddy bear into a spider on purpose at the age of 5... that tracks.

[@ulrikruby]

11:23 Dumbledore always refers to the teachers by their first name. Harry however is a student, so he should refer to them as professor (insert last name).

[@geraldgrenier8132]

In a school where teachers don't use student's first names, it would be absolutely forbidden for a student not to use the correct honorific for staff

[@rittersportfan]

I agree. Dumbledore always calles the teachers by their first name, so the real hidden insult is when he refers to Umbridge as "Professor Umbridge". That way he makes clear (although Umbridge doesn't recognize it) that he doesn't respect her as a colleague. And he doesn't correct Harry when Harry called her just "Umbridge" because she doesn't deserve to be respected.

[@422katieleigh]

Through The Griffin Door is literally the highlight of my whole week. I listen when they come out, I usually listen again, and then of course I watch the supercuts on the main channel.

[@lindseyz6213]

Speaking as a college writing tutor, I can absolutely tell when students do the tricks to make their essays longer. The thing that most students don’t think about is that their paper is in a stack of 20+ other papers, most of which didn’t use the same tricks they did. So when I’ve already stared at 12 essays with proper format, I can spot enlarged punctuation marks, alternative fonts, and enlarged margins in a second. 😂

[@Musicteachersheff]

The water came from moaning Myrtle flooding the toilets! That’s why it’s out of order.

[@FenDweller13]

That’s very much a possibility. We know she tends to flood the bathroom when she’s upset and just last chapter she had fled the Death day party after Peeves made fun of her

[@jamma.77]

@@FenDweller13 I was going to say she wasn't in the bathroom that night, but you're right, she leaves the party early and probably floods the bathroom because she's upset. Do you think she ever sees the basilisk emerge from the sink, though?

[@cubedmelons876]

@@jamma.77 Nah. She'd get petrified if she did.

[@xAbbieCx13]

I thought this was common knowledge because they definitely say this in the movie, that's what my interpretation of it was anyway

[@jamma.77]

@@cubedmelons876 Good point.

[@ricey23]

"Gilderoy, we need precicly 11,583 leaves from the mandrakes - I'm trusting you with the count." Dumbledore said, with what Harry thought was a wink to his colleagues.

[@Acromion11]

As for why does Dumbledore calls Lockhart 'Gilderoy', I am pretty sure he calls everyone by their first name when talking directly to them. Minerva, Rubeus, Argus, Cornelius, Sybill, Tom, Igor,...he does refer to their 'title' when talking with a third person (Harry) about them. We have him call Hermione mrs. Granger and Snape prof. Snape even if he calls Snape 'Severus' when speaking directly to him.

[@AThursdayPrincess]

High school/college English teacher here. We can tell. All of it. The different fonts, sizes, margins…it’s actually really obvious. Even the hidden text to make the word count is rather in your face. I tell my students not to bother, as the page or word requirements are really expectations of how much space I think they need to do what I’ve asked well. Provided they’ve done what I asked, I don’t penalize for going under or over. In the meantime, I hope your high school English teachers are proud of you. They should be.

[@PositiveOnly-dm3rx]

Getting penalized for going over taught me that I should never go above and beyond, and its not about being good, its about being a good slave. Never penalize a kid for going over unless you are TRYING to crush their individuality.

[@jb888888888]

You meant "it's actually _pretty_ obvious." Since you're commenting on a HP-related video.

[@rebeccaq7291]

Especially when you have other essays to compare them to 😂

[@TheManitobaTV]

Just refreshed the feed at 9am until this came up 😂

[@Xanderbfrye]

Same!!!!

[@Esquared57]

The message couldn’t be cleaned with the cleaning supplies Filch was using because it’s a magical mess remover. As in it removes magical messes, it does not magically removes messes. And Ginny wrote the message using mundane paint, so a magical mess remover wouldn’t work.

[@henryguillen806]

I'm pretty sure she used chicken blood. But good catch. Edit: Never mind, Ginny says paint, but that could be her denying killing chickens.

[@Esquared57]

@@henryguillen806 still mundane.

[@redbeard5939]

3:30 I suspect that most of the staff who have been around long enough to know about the death of Myrtle all know Hagrid well enough that they doubt he intentionally opened the Chamber. They probably assume that, at worst, he accidentally found a secret passage and unwittingly allowed something out, or he raised something he couldn't control. None of them would really believe he was heir of Slytherin, much less opened the actual chamber of secrets.

[@amberleinheiser1835]

The guy I was talking to just told me there's "another girl," so this is me forgetting about reality and immediately running to Harry Potter! 😂 Thanks Carlin Bros!

[@dreadzilla_9548]

Awe, sorry to hear that 😕 your coping mechanism is awesome though 😀

[@josephcantu3562]

Harry Potter has always been my comfort book/movie as well. Hope things get better for you.

[@Zinz778]

Escapism sure does feel great :)

[@maggiebakken6159]

If someone doesn’t value you in the way you deserve, they truly don’t deserve to be with you. I’m sorry, but the bad feeling will pass soon! You have to have darkness to see the light and the treatment you deserve. 💗

[@thareelhelloagain]

You'll find the other guy when it's the right time :). And meanwhile, I join you in loneliness, heartbreak, and Potter!

[@hufflepom]

Ghosts definitely know about things that happen postmortem. Nick knows that Sirius Black died. The ghosts seem to know why Harry is important.

[@cptjeff1]

Ghosts that are paying attention, anyway. Binns seems like the type who just wouldn't notice.

[@hufflepom]

@@cptjeff1 totally valid!

[@JessieDeeRiver]

My understanding is that Dumbledore always calls the professors by their first names when referencing them directly (aside from Hagrid, guessing it is Hagrid's preference to be called by his surname), but calls them Professor [Last Name] to other students. I don't think him using "Gilderoy" is him throwing shade at all.

[@noelbrucker135]

“Transmogrifian Torture” just reminds me of the classic Calvin & Hobbes Transmogrifier invention - awesome example of Bill Watterson’s genius 🐅

[@raevalentine9002]

This Is It! Thank you! I knew I had heard that word before, but I knew It wasn't a Harry Potter word lol

[@MCGreggy28]

My mind IMMEDIATELY jumped to Calvin and Hobbes. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if Hamster Huey and the Gooey Kablooie was one of the Tales of Beedle the Bard. 😂

[@TaratheEnchantress]

Doesn’t moaning Myrtle flood the bathroom after she’s made fun of at the death day party? So then Mrs. Norris sees the *basilisk reflection in the water. 57:55

[@DavidJones-gu3bz]

Scrolled down just to post this

[@kiminimuchu__]

Exactly. Like, it's directly mentioned in the chapter, idk how the missed it.

[@DavidJones-gu3bz]

Happens occasionally, normally it's minor but occasionally it's a massive detail that influences some fairly major plot points. Pretty sure in Dumbledore's Big Plan they talk about it being Dumbledore's idea for the Weasley's to go to Egypt so that Harry is safe at Privet Drive from Sirius, but Sirius only escapes because they went to Egypt.

[@PositiveOnly-dm3rx]

Basil is a herb. A basilisk is a mythical beast.

[@TaratheEnchantress]

@@PositiveOnly-dm3rx my bad I use speak to text and didnt check to see if it was correct

[@SalterThe]

Ultimate headcanon. Salazar Slytherin's wife was cursed with the same curse as later Nagini. Transformed into Bazilisk. He have build a chamber for her, so he doesnt have to kill her. Create locket, so their newly born child would be latter able to talk to/visit their mother (as they were parsletungue as well) Salazar then find out (maybe false) evidence that it was at least partially (somehow - maybe Griffindor student accesently did it?) Godrics fault that his wife is now Basilisk. They have an argument about it. Salazar leaves (and cursing the Griffindor hause - as you mentioned last episode - every Holloween something bad happens to Griffindor house)

[@pantsonparade]

I never got the impression that Draco is popular. Even the Slytherin team just tolerates him because his dad got them new brooms. Flint berates him, Crabbe and Goyle are the only ones who laugh at his "jokes".

[@donb7519]

I mean he does have the main named slytherin girls chasing after him and in later years is surronded often by even more people than just crabbe and goyle. He also manages to get people chanting weasley is our king and the potter stinks badges going.

[@darthpotato3566]

When you said Lockheart lies to himself so aggressively he forgets that he's lying, I think that's exactly right. My brother is like that irl, he lies and lies and lies and then when you confront him over it he's utterly baffled because he forgot that's not actually how it went down and didn't expect anyone to question his story. There's probably a part of Lockheart's mind where he thinks "I triumphed over wizards who could do those things, so I'm clearly better than that, I don't have anything to fear" and then he's genuinely surprised when it doesn't go his way and hastily patches things over again with the memory wiping curse.

[@simunjiii]

In addition to that I think that Lockhart has to be a very good author in order to convince the whole wizarding world. In addition to that the mentioned spells, potions and tips have to be correct otherwise no one would believe him. So he probably knows a lot over the true story behind his books. In order to write convincing he probably dived into the story so deep that he has convinced himself. But knowledge doesn't make you a good wizard. He knows the spells and all those potions, at least at the time of the writing of his books, but isn't good at brewing potions or spellwork other than obliviation. So when he tries to apply the knowledge he mispronounces the spells and ruins the potions.

[@rickeymariu1]

Here's a point about "reliable" sources. You can have a reliable source and not be sure about the date. We can only be positive about spesific years relatively recently in history, the past 1000 years or so.

[@GandolfKlown]

Nobody ever talks about how the Basilisk was able to petrify and incorporeal being. Ghosts can't touch thing, things can't touch them but the eyes still cause the damage.

[@MHruskamusic]

They discussed this in a previous video in this series: hear vision.

[@NCThomas821]

In regards to the writing on the wall - It was just in the movies that the words were in blood. In the books it was some kind of paint (silver, I think). That much blood and Ginny would have been dead on the floor, assuming it was hers.

[@sunnydg22]

I thought it was the roosters blood

[@rittersportfan]

I was surprised when I reread this chapter that even in this early stage (before Harry spoke parsel tounge in front of the whole school) Harry was suspected to be the heir of Slytherin. Even considering him being found in the presence of the petrified Mrs Norris and the writing on the wall it seemed to be weird to me that anyone could believe that. But than I remembered what Snape said to Bellatrix in the second chapter of the sixth book: When Harry first came to Hogwarts there were many rumors about him being a prospective new Dark Lord. Later in the book Ernie Macmillan is telling his friends this exact theory but I doubt that he came up with it himself. I'm sure some of the old death eaters told their kids these rumors and they spread it in the school all along the years. Even if they didn't believe it at first, many people had heard about these rumors and when Harry had been caught at this suspicious crime scene it came up again and some naïve students believed it.

[@anonymus3156]

speaking of Slytherin have you guys heard the theory that while his descendants and followers are racist he wasn't? The idea is that he was known for his cunning and ambition and because of that and the witch trials he didn't want muggleborns at the school in case they were followed or accidentally let something slip. He didn't hate them he was just worried about the safety of the students he already had.

[@danielsantiagourtado3430]

Happy St Paddy's day! Thanks For this 🍀🍀🍀🇮🇪🇮🇪🇮🇪🇮🇪

[@carlinrackley8547]

Carlin Brothers, the game Hogwarts Legacy is set the late 1800's and Professor Bins is there as a ghost, teaching History of Magic. So if this is considered canon, then he would have died before Dumbledore arrived for his first year at Hogwarts, so he'd have been dead well before the first opening of Chamber when Hagrid was expelled.

[@IansChonkyCat]

What I remember is that the water in the hallway came from Myrtles Bathroom bc she had a fit in there after Peeves upset her. And as far as the pipes, if your theory about the Gaunts installing the plumbing is true, then they probably enchanted the pipes to be able to expand to any size required

[@cjg8763]

I hit refresh, this came up and said 33 seconds ago! Wow! Guys, I want you to know I am LOVING this series! I put these on my youtube lists I listen to while I'm at work and I always look forward to them coming up. The next one in my que is The Whomping Willow, still a fair number of videos out. I dread the day I eventually catch up to you though as I'm going through these at the rate of about two to three episodes a week (I started listening a few chapters before you were finished with the first book) and I'll have to settle for once a week like everybody else after. All of your Harry Potter related Super Carlin Brothers videos make it onto my lists too, as well as your ATLA vids. I've thought of a million things I wanted to say or theorize about while listening to you but as I'm at work while doing so I rarely remember what it is later, just know I enjoy these thoroughly. Thank you Carlin Brothers and their associates who work hard to make these videos possible.

[@Mario-SunshineGalaxy64]

Percy had every right to take away house points, it’s literally his job to enforce the rules, even more so when Ron made such disgusting accusations towards him. Ron acuses him of not really caring about Ginny and only caring about his chances at being Head Boy being threatened, which is a huge slap to the face when Percy has been the only one looking out for Ginny. Not Ron, not the twins, just Percy. He made her take a potion when she looked sickly, comforted her after Mrs. Norris’ attack, and later he goes off on Fred and George when they were continuously harassing and frightening her to the point she developed nightmares. Meanwhile all Ron’s done so far is cause trouble and be in places he shouldn’t be, so a measly five point reduction was very lenient on Percy’s part. He could’ve done a lot worse considering it’s a younger sibling mouthing off against an older sibling, which shows just how much restraint Percy has.

[@lewisbeer6156]

I don't often see people defend Percy, but I've got to say you're right here. He's a stickler for the rules, and stuck up without doubt. But his response to something like that is reasonable. Ron's perspective will always be warped because it isn't exactly out of character for Percy to be more concerned about his reputation than his family (as later books illustrate) but this is an understandable and frankly lenient response.

[@Mario-SunshineGalaxy64]

@@lewisbeer6156 And this wouldn’t be the last time Ron makes accusations about Percy that he cares more about his self-image than family. Like that statement he makes in GoF about Percy being willing to throw his family to the dementors for his ambitions, even though the last chapter the complete opposite happened. For a guy that gets accused of placing his self-image above everything else he sure did have no problem going from impartial Ministry official to concerned older brother as he rushed into the freezing waters of the Black Lake to help his baby brother out during the Second Task of the Triwizard Tournament, probably looking very foolish in the process.

[@mangahell8177]

This is one off the problems in harry potter series sometimes they have characters like Percy who are all most allways depicted in the wrong or in a bad light have moments where they are in the right and protagonists like Ron, Fred and George in the wrong but for some reason those moments still play out with characters like Percy still being in the wrong and protagonist never acknowledged that they were in the wrong

[@lewisbeer6156]

@@Mario-SunshineGalaxy64 I get you, but he then proceeds to do exactly that the next book, I agree tho that Ron and The Twins are wayyy harsher on him than they should which doesn't help

[@kiminimuchu__]

About the prefects being allowed to dock points: Ernie's line in book 5 was a mistake that was later fixed. On the first version of the book Ernie does say that prefects are not allowed to dock house points, which was a direct contradiction to this exact moment with Percy in book 2. So later copies of book 5 had that sentence changed to prefects cannot dock points "from fellow prefects" as a way to amend that.

[@GrantDolanMusic]

I have always thought that Mrs. Norris is a maledictus and was Filch’s wife.

[@Martyn_Wolf]

JK has a already said Mrs. Norris is simply a rather intelligent cat. It appears she and filch are in Hogwarts Mystery. Given that Minerva mentioned that Filch has been at the school for "a quarter of a century" that's 25 yrs as of Deathly Hallows is set in 1997, Filch has been at the school since 1972 as that's when Apollen Pringle left and Argus took Over, Mrs. Norris was apparently born in 1984

[@BlueSparxLPs]

I always think of "several" as more than 3, but less than 12 (because at 12 you'd use "dozen").

[@jenniferpalmer5130]

I want to make a suggestion. Percy and Ron getting made prefect was to keep the twins in line. So history is repeating itself as lupin was made prefect for the same reason

[@JoseMendoza-lz4ym]

1. The stray water must come from Myrtle splashing into the toilets. 2. The basilisk need not travel through the pipes. This might be a mistake on Hermione's part. Pipes make great megaphones. Harry was hearing the basilisk not because it was near. The snake was basically yelling out of hunger and frustration. The voice carried through the pipes. Ron and Hermione must have heard something even if they didn't understand what they were hearing.

[@newtidek]

If it wasn’t using the pipes then how did it get around

[@javihojman9150]

Hi there! Teacher here hahahaha the thing is, if you have to read 100 pages at a time from different students, you kind of notice the changes in the diferent pages, because your sight is so used to the regular composition and if it changes, you just see it.

[@blackpinkinyourarea773]

When you mentioned the theory about the fidelius charm on the locket I thought that must be why Hermione couldn’t remember what the chamber of secrets was so needed the book! Loving the podcast as always guys ❤

[@joshuahallett6235]

Happy St. Patrick’s Day. Also I’m curious wouldn’t Voldemort’s Rebirth in Goblet kind of qualify as a ritual?

[@sharpw9761]

Its a potion

[@mildsatyr3731]

About Percy taking points from Gryffindor, I have viewed it as ‘a prefect can only take points away from their own house and can only award points to other houses,’ so that they can’t abuse their power.

[@lilac_rain3855]

That question at the end made me wanna cry, the thought of Teddy meeting Remus and Tonks and his first time of hearing their voices would be through the resurrection stone just breaks me as much as Harry seeing James and Lily for the first time through the mirror of erised

[@randallgates9065]

To the question: How do ghosts send letters? They use a ghostwriter.

[@dza_kicuf]

In the last week's episode when discussing the review you mentioned the villains always explain their plans. What's funny is that this is exactly what Harry does to Voldemort as they circle each other in the Great Hall after their duel. It is just a way to humiliate the other.

[@AndrewJGaming]

Even if Dumbledore read Harry's mind and found out that he heard a bodiless voice, I'm not sure that would have solved anything for him. Thinking about it, I don't know if he even realizes that Harry has a connection with Voldemort yet. He says himself that he doesn't realize that Voldemort made horcruxes until Harry gave him the diary at the end of this book, so how could he suspect yet that Harry is a horcrux? So he probably doesn't realize that Harry can speak to snakes, unless he witnessed or heard about the ordeal with the boa constrictor at the zoo. After the duelling club things probably start to fall into place for him. We know that Dumbledore knows who opened the chamber last time (at least he is like 99% sure). So for him the big mystery of this book is not who opened the chamber, it's how Voldemort could have done it.

[@sestoelemento2013]

52:52 I always took the scortch marks to be the friction of the basilisk slithering across the floor.

[@jakkaljakobie8774]

It could also be from the basilisk venom. It's apparently very ascitic, and acids can leave burns as well.

[@FenDweller13]

I do believe it’s a byproduct of the basilisk’s stare hitting Mrs Noris indirectly and only petrifying her instead of killing her, like when Colin was attacked and the film in his camera had melted

[@sarahodell3479]

According to wikipedia in European legends the basilisk's hole is recognizable because the surrounding shrubs and grass have been scorched.

[@sawanna508]

@@FenDweller13 I always pictured the stare of the basilisk like a laser or something like that.

[@jacobknowles129]

In terms of ritual type spells, I always considered the spell/potion thing that Voldemort uses to give himself a new body as a ritual. Bone of the father, flesh of the servant, blood of the enemy, it feels very ritualistic.

[@sawanna508]

Also the whole process of potion making seems to me like a ritual.

[@lanastone4735]

I just read this chapter today with my partner. I'm so excited for the future episodes :)

[@wrdreads4742]

I figured that over a thousand years ago they might not have had access to consistent calendars... Could have been in the 800s or early 900s, I imagine that was a difficult time to know the year number. And then at some point, perhaps over a hundred years after the founding, they get told what the civilization-accepted year is...

[@diannepascolini2863]

When I was in school, we had to do word count. I.E. a 500-word essay, so there was no way around that kind of assignment.

[@richardfarrell9253]

I laughed so hard when you guys were talking about ways to distract Lockhart - here’s some tangled up ear buds gilderoy 😅😅😅

[@itsallme1234]

I’d love to see a video that starts with the clip of J and Ben incredulous that Hermione forgot something from Hogwarts: A History, and then a montage of missed Harry Potter trivia questions

[@olandir]

1:11:00 You know what, I just realized: Voldemort killed Harry with the Elder Wand in the forest, but as master of the wand already, I don't think it would have worked if Harry hadn't wanted to die. Either the wand wouldn't have worked against him (unlikely) or (more-likely) because Harry intended to die, that was why the wand didn't change allegiances when Voldemort "killed" Harry the first time.

[@maudline]

Bassie the Basilisk and Nessie the Loch Ness kelpie - besties for sure lol

[@pinchusyagid8225]

I always thought that the reason Percy took points was because in his rage and embarrassment he forgot that prefects can't take points, almost as if to show that even Percy, Perfect, organized Percy, can forget such simple things too sometimes because he isn't generally a very good master of his emotions as much as he'd like o believe of himself

[@emma_704]

52:53 "Scorch marks" Remember Colin's film in the camera? It was burnt. So was Nick. So I guess old Basi's stare really does burn.

[@jb888888888]

The bathroom is still broken because it's Filch's job to fix it and he can't _Reparo_ since he's a Squib.

[@justinharness1750]

Gotta disagree with a statement made...Snape is not what I would call a good guy. He's bitter to Harry out of spite, and he bullies students that are not slytherin

[@mikebrown1881]

There is a ritual in Harry Potter: the ritual to revive the Dark Lord.

[@kyles2027]

Yes and no.. Wormtail does it in a ritualistic manner, but at the end of the day it's just adding ingredients to a potion.

[@newtidek]

it’s more so just a complex potion.

[@mikebrown1881]

@@newtidek we don’t know if it’s required or not to tell the words (it look like it is required) so it’s a ritual to make a potion.

[@mikebrown1881]

@@kyles2027 but maybe if it isn’t done like Wormtail did the potion fails… so it is a ritual.

[@jessicadicola4541]

I thought the water was there because after Peeves teased her at the death day party, Myrtle went back and "tried to drown herself"

[@kimgrod]

I think any popularity Draco has is based on Lucious wealth & influence. More fear-based than adored

[@joshuapomeroy8618]

The message being written in blood is only in the movies. Tom Riddle tells Harry that Ginny had paint on her when she came to after Mrs Norris was attacked.

[@Kieran113]

Severus was referred to by his first name by Dumbledore when Harry and Ron are about to be punished earlier in this book.

[@Lewa1110]

Has it been a week already? always ready for a new trip through the Griffin Door

[@robertgronewold3326]

I think when it comes to Professor Binns, his grasp of current events is tenuous at best.

[@FenDweller13]

I feel like he’s probably like a hundred or two years dead so he’s just going through the motions of his lessons without really noticing what’s going on around him. Bet he teaches an empty room every day during summer break

[@robertgronewold3326]

@@FenDweller13 Yeah, I wonder if he was perhaps going a bit senile in real life, and he's just stuck that way as a ghost.

[@jeremytung1632]

I’ve been chewing over this thought about occlumency for a while and I’d like to hear your opinion about it. What if instead of blocking the intruder, which Harry always seems to have trouble doing, would it work if instead you inundated them with random banality, like thinking about the breakfast you had that morning in excruciating detail, or rapid firing as many simple math equations as you can, or perhaps blasting the most annoying ear worms you know in your head.

[@RancorSnp]

That is largely how it works in the Eragon series. Where as long as you are focused, it doesn't matter what you are focusing on, it will be the only thing the person trying to look inside your mind will see, but the second you lose focus they will be able to nearly freely browse your brain until you manage to push them out again

[@maudline]

Haha that would make anyone who tried listening to my thoughts wanting to shut it down fast!!! 😂 adhd brain for the win 🤣

[@Silver_Girl178]

Magical portraits are basically an interface with an AI that's been trained on that specific person.

[@WKP1996]

Was suprised the episode released one hour early. Then I realised the US already have summer saving time. Here in Sweden it's starts the last Sunday of March, in the US it's the 2nd Sunday of March (last week).

[@VVOPOL]

Just realised how important and interesting that should have been if Harry just tried speaking to Basilisk … he doesn’t only because Big Boldy said to him not to.. but it would have worked if you think about it

[@leonjohnson610]

Thank god this came up. I'm going through tough times and you guys help out alot. Love the vids!

[@leopoldsandberg1816]

The hog warts song goes ”teach us something please wether we be old and bald or young with scabby knees” so it’s possible not only kids went there to learn at the start but all ages.

[@leopoldsandberg1816]

So the “safe haven” theory sounds plausible

[@katelyn5647]

Silly headcannon: Slytherin got a basilisk because he’s severely arachnophobic and wishes to banish the spiders from the school. It’s only effective when the snake is active. 53:35

[@davidgreathouse3861]

Love the podcast. I like the theory that the basalisk is a line of defense. A dragon can't be controlled and is hard to hide.

[@jamesfischer2427]

RE: the discussion that starts at 5:38. Historically, there tends to be a long time lag between the time when most people decide that a word or phrase is impolite and stop using it themselves, and the time when society starts punishing those few who persist in using the word or phrase.

[@Ballers9]

17:30 doesn’t Neville and others where amulets and keep garlic as Neville thinks he’s close enough to a squib and other muggle borns, it to protect themselves from the monster, in said book

[@resathe6760]

This was one of the funniest episodes yet. I cried at the Basilisk eating Peter 🤣 Somehow I forget each week that a new episodes is coming on sunday and I'm so happy when I see it pop up. Thanks for brightening each sunday ❤

[@user-qz9cy9tg7b]

Have y’all ever seen the movie Bednobs and Broomsticks? It was one of my favorite live actions as a kid and then I loved it in a completely different way as an adult when I was able to get the WW2 references. The main character is a witch who learns from a “correspondence course”. Since I knew this story before Harry Potter, that’s what I always thought of the quickspell as.

[@nightspawnson-of-luna4936]

Given Filch's embarassment about it, I figured it was a sort of...adult joke about pills for...um people with wand problems

[@hufflepom]

So excited to see you in June!

[@TaratheEnchantress]

I love when cross over happen in my favorite content!! Gotta love survivor!

[@darthpotato3566]

Conspiracy theory: Tom was noticing Ginny's ailing health and deliberately spread various things like the flu during her earlier narcolepsy periods to make it less conspicuous when she was actually going to the chamber. Like, it doesn't feel like the kind of plot that hinged on luck for just no-one confronting Ginny for a whole year

[@rhodryaddis9477]

Heyyyyy Brothers! This hufflepuff is sporting slytherin green for St. Patty's Day!

[@CrazyMuggleGirl]

Imagine if Harry hadn’t seen Lupin and Tonks lying dead in the Great Hall, and then used the Resurrection Stone in the forest. Lupin would have showed up and Harry would have been like “omg what!?! Why are you here!!! When did you die?!? No!” And Lupin would have been like “yeah….I know”

[@calebbaird4379]

Myrtle flooded the bathroom because she was upset after what Peeves said at the deathday party. That's why there's water in the corridor when Mrs. Norris gets attacked.

[@anthonyosterholt5481]

A great episode as always. I've always wondered about what if Serious told james that peter was missing Before halloween and james and sirius went looking for him

[@Kyeian]

slytherin didn't trust muggles. if the castle was a haven, the chamber could have been a panic room. as years went on and the other founders calmed down about the potential threats, but not slytherin. the strife that caused their parting could have been him shoring up the castle defenses as the other founders were all "calm down! we're safe here."--the paranoia creating a wedge in the group. getting the basilisk could have been mentioned and denied by the rest "well, that's not safe.", and slytherin decided not to mention that he already possessed the thing. when the parting happened he just left it

[@Debatra.]

Magical amulets may not come up again, but the idea of enchanted clothing and jewelry isn't treated as an absurdity. Fred and George later make Shield Hats, a simple clothing item with a Shield Charm on it. And they mention being able to do it with other items, like rings.

[@ragnhildknezevic8564]

I think the water in the corridor comes from Murtle blocking up the toilet. She does that when she's upset, and she was really upset that evening.

[@jamma.77]

I think prefect don't have any ability to deduct house points at all - that's Ernie's objection in Order of the Phoenix, and why Malfoy being able to as part of the inquisitorial squad is such a big deal. Pretty sure Umbridge only recruits Slytherins to the squad as well, since their point total is the only one that doesn't tank once the squad is introduced.

[@moon_fyreamaroq2251]

I will never forget 10th grade English. We had to write a 5 page paper. My teacher took 2 points off my grade for too much white space. But then he gave me 2 points back for writing consistency, lol. Now I'm writing process work instructions for my job!

[@SlyLashes]

Theory: Lockhart used the same process Tom Riddle did with Morfin. That is, he removed the memories from the people who did amazing feats, leaving them with no memory. It's that or kill them, or else they might expose Lockhart's secret.

[@harrypotteranddisneyfan5800]

I wish I could go to the tour but I can’t but I will be watching these episodes every week

[@eliealvarez801]

I got my tickets!!!!!!!! Can't wait to see y'all

[@rfactor1502]

So now that I'm caught up, i have to say that i have a thought about squibs, almost enough for a theory. My thought is that squibs are a spectrum, categorically including all those that fall below the threshold for qualifying for Hogwarts (or other 'local' school of magical learning). Mrs Fig has a house that has a distinct smell that matches a potion, so perhaps she has enough magical clout to manage alchemy, potions, and herbology (studies that are closer to muggle skills, but still needing some small magic). Filtch seems to be close to fully muggle, unable to make even simplified magic or even some magical products and objects work for him, but still able to have a connection to a clearly magical animal (assuming he's not an inverse poltergeist of course). I feel there's something worth exploring here.

[@oliviaoconnell56]

The scene Ben mentions in the 5th book is correct, Prefects cannot add or take away points according to Harry and Ernie - I think the distinction is Head Boy and Girl, which I believe Percy is in Chamber

[@cubedmelons876]

Nah, he's not head boy until PoA.

[@jamesfischer2427]

They should have sent Gilderoy looking for blue flowers with red thorns. If you know, you know.

[@lindabroer8995]

I’d think it was obvious where the water comes from. Myrtle was upset by Peeves at the Death Day party and fled back to the bathroom crying. She splashed into the toilet and splashed the water everywhere. Then the Basilisk comes out and slithers over the water spreading it around.

[@dendikke3]

You guys should get a shoe sponsor. Heck you might already have one. It's like its own little billboard/ad banner. Premium placement throughout the whole episode.

[@Ugulabuma]

In my sophomore English class, I only ever did 1 of our homework essays. I had to be convinced to do it, and it was a pretty big deal for my friends and teacher. One friend even made me a paper medal for doing it. I tried really hard, and ended up getting a 99%, because I missed a couple of apostrophes. I went back to never doing homework essays after that

[@nightspawnson-of-luna4936]

I've honestly always thought it was always weird that there were only three spellls that were specifically labeled as 'Unforgiviable' and the worst one is just a painless instant death (Like apparently Horcruxes aren't illegal?) One possibility is that it's intent? I mean you can kill someone with a summoning charm (Accio Heart), but with AK, there's no...other thing you could use it for...so it's specifically designed to kill

[@blade2813]

You can't use accio on living beings, so accio heart wouldn't work. Dark magic seems to be outlawed in general but yea seems like there would be way worse spells than Avada to be included in the unforgivable curses category

[@TheToneBender]

Myrtle was at Nick's 499th Death Day Party during the troll attack

[@MadHymek323]

How did the basilisk travel before the plumbing in the castle existed? Like we know for ages the students just magiced away their business so what was the chamber entrance beforehand? And who knew the entrance was there when they built the plumbing and was able to maintain the access?

[@jakeferreira1211]

I really think that Teddy Lupin is where a potential sequel should have come from. Harry's story should have ended with Voldemort's death and him getting the happily ever after with Ginny and his kids. In my mind, it does. It just feels like there's some unfinished business with Teddy. I'm not saying he should be going on a revenge tour or anything even close to that. But I think it would be really fitting to have him go on to fight back against a sort of revival of the Death Eater cause. You could even keep Delphi as the primary antagonist. Just make her Bellatrix and Rodolphus's kid. Bellatrix would be Teddy's aunt and she did kill Tonks. All the pieces were there. Harry could take on the parental role for Teddy, but would otherwise be fairly uninvolved. You could even have a big battle scenario where all the old gang shows up to fight one last time if you really wanted Harry to be a part of it. In fairness, there's no way a battle involving Harry's loved ones happens without him showing up to help. And the parallels would all still work with the other two Wizarding Wars. Dumbledore, Harry, and Teddy, all orphaned heroes who go on to defeat Dark Lords, who they were connected to from a young age and all lost family to them (Delphi wouldn't technically have killed Tonks but the connection still works) and save the Wizarding World.

[@khrystynaoselska8390]

Let's increase the discoverability of this beautiful podcast!