At the end of last week’s post, I mentioned I would be discussing the 1971 film Omega Man. That is not to be the case, as I was too late seeking out the DVD and it was already checked out from the library. Therefore, zombies will have to wait until next week. Thankfully, I have an even better find for readers this week.

It has been nine years since Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows was published, and five years since the final movie was in theaters. At that time, it appeared as if the Harry Potter phenomenon was ending. Fewer and fewer wizard rock bands toured; no longer was Hot Topic filled with Hogwarts memorabilia. It felt like my favorite addiction (despite owning all the books which I could easily reread constantly) was being torn from my life.

And then came Pottermore. J.K. Rowling stated there were no more Harry Potter novels, but stories of wizarding world characters and events would be examined fully with new content on this website. It was the Hitchhiker’s Guide for the Wizarding World! Since we had this digital encyclopedia, it was unexpected when Rowling announced she was working on a new Potter play. It was an eighth book!

On July 31 (Harry Potter’s 36th and Rowling’s 51st birthdays), the final Potter adventure premiered on stage in London, as well as in book form worldwide. While both my sister and I were excited for this new story, we both were not sure how good it would be. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child isn’t a novel—it’s a play. Without being able to see the final product, and even then I was unsure, how could the story show the emotion and the proper events needed to explain a full year at Hogwarts? As well, even if a 2-4 act play could properly portray this, was it needed?

Since the world finished reading Deathly Hallows nine years ago, there have been debates about whether the epilogue, which jumps 19 years in the future, was necessary. It concluded the trio’s story and put an end to a 10-year journey instead of letting fans live on in the wizarding world. Now suddenly this story appears, opening with the very scene that was criticized.

Starting here I will do my best to be as general as possible, but there may be spoilers if you have not read at least the first act.

Albus Severus Potter (I feel for you man; you’re never going to find a personalized keychain for that car Uncle Ron teaches you to drive) is concerned about which house he will be sorted into—Gryffindor or Slytherin? Of course we know who he was named after, but at 11 years old he doesn’t care about his father’s past. He cares even less as he grows older, wishing to be his own person and not the son of the famous Harry Potter. It’s a good thing he has his best friend Scorpius Malfoy, who was sorted into the same house as him—Slytherin.

Albus knows he’s not the same person as Harry, or even his brother, sister, or cousins. He doesn’t enjoy going on adventures. He isn’t the smartest person in his class. He could care less about Hogwarts: A History (unlike his best friend). When Albus overhears Harry being confronted by a person from his past about righting the wrongs he caused as a student however, he decides to go behind his parents’ back and go on his own adventure to help an old man and show up his father.

Despite this book being one of the best pieces of literature I have read in the past year, I had issues with several aspects of the story. As the second act happened, I began to get the strong sense that a British Marty McFly was about to show up in his own flying car. Time travel is a major trope used throughout the tale, examining multiple universes as well as the past, seeing Harry’s childhood both with the Dursleys as well as with his parents in Godric’s Hollow.

I would also like to note that while being able to read the written play is a wonderful way to those not in London to experience the story, I believe it would be much better seen live. We could see the play recorded and broadcast in theaters as has been done for other Fathom events. It would not be the same as seeing the show live in the same theater with wizards and dementors weaving through aisles, but it would show us the play as it was meant to be seen.

Despite these flaws the story is a fun read and exciting to see my favorite characters as adults, not much older than myself. It’s wonderful to see more of the wizarding world, and despite the controversial history of the American wizarding world that was recently posted on Pottermore, I am excited to see Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them in November. The wizarding world may vanish for some older fans, but for myself and other wizards like me, we’re still waiting for the letter inviting us to take the Wizarding GED test.