Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

[WARNING PLOT SPOILERS AHEAD -- READ AT YOUR OWN RISK]

If you read my blog a couple of entries back entitled 'Will Harry Die?,' you know what my ultimate prediction was... however shrouded in satire it may have been. But seriously, how do you wrap-up the most successful literary/cinematic/merchandising phenomena in entertainment history?

(Ok, I know that's probably not yet quantifiable, but come on... do we really need to quibble? The last figure I saw was nearing the $6.7 billion mark -- and there are still two more films to be made, and the inevitable Criterion Collections; Directors' Cuts; Gold Bound Special Editions; Complete DVD Box Sets; Complete DVD Box Sets - Extended Editions; 5, 10 & 25 Year Anniversary Box Sets; and the endless supply of Harry Potter merchandise to come)

I, for one, think that J.K. Rowling had an immeasurably difficult task at hand when it came to providing a fitting conclusion to the series, especially considering the incredibly diverse range of HP readership. Rumors have been circulating for the past two years that key characters were sure to die in this seventh and final book of the saga, and by this time in the narrative, it's open war, and in wartime, people die. So there was a feeling that at any given time, on any given page, any given character could kick off.
The death toll is pretty extensive: Hedwig (the owl); Mad-Eye Moody; Dobby, the house-elf; Lupin; Tonks; Professor Snape; and George Weasley loses an ear. (Hey, I said there'd be spoilers!)

Deathly Hallows deviates from the standard HP sequence of events found in the prior books - opening at Privet Lane; the journey to Hogwarts on the Hogwarts Express; 1st Term; Christmas Break; 2nd Term; climatic conclusion at Hogwarts as the school year ends - and begins with Harry, Ron and Hermione, having withdrawn from Hogwarts altogether, almost immediately embarking on their quest to find the hidden 'Horcruxes.' This adds another layer to the overall story in that it concentrates much more on the adventure's journey - much like The Lord of the Rings.

It's no secret that Rowling is well educated in the classics, and at times her influences and inspirations are evident - Tolkien; C.S. Lewis; the... New Testament Apostles?*

*Asked if she was a Christian, Rowling answered:

''Yes, I am,'' she says. ''Which seems to offend the religious right far worse than if I said I thought there was no God. Every time I've been asked if I believe in God, I've said yes, because I do, but no one ever really has gone any more deeply into it than that, and I have to say that does suit me, because if I talk too freely about that I think the intelligent reader, whether 10 or 60, will be able to guess what's coming in the books."

I'm not sure of the authenticity of this quote (I found it online), so I'll save my comments. That being said, Harry does choose to lay down his life for the lives of others (greater love hath no man); he secretly goes to meet Voldemort (reminiscent of Aslan and the White Witch in The Chronicles of Narnia), and he does not defend himself (like a lamb to the slaughter). And it's the act of not defending himself that "saves" him and paves the way for his resurrection (although it's not clear as to whether or not he was truly dead or simply heavily stunned).

Despite much criticism and scrutiny from the religious right, this story is not about magic, witchcraft or wizards. It's a tale of virtue and flawed heroes; of friendship and loyalty; of trust, love and reconciliation.

There are some surprise twists in the story that lie in the re-emergence of Dumbledore, and the true nature of Snape's allegiance. I mentioned in my previous blog entry that we LOVE surprises even more than explosions, body counts and clever quips from our heroes. Although this tale does not end with the shocking death of Harry, Ron or Hermione, there are enough twists and turns to appease this reader. There are a couple of loose ends, however, that I would have appreciated being just a little bit more resolved. As I said, I think Rowling did a masterful job concluding the story, but I would like to know what happened to Hagrid. The lovable , cuddly half-giant was, indeed, one of Harry's most trusted and devoted friends, and as we're told what happened to just about every other character that meant at least as much to Harry, Hagrid's outcome remains a mystery. I'd also like to know what Harry does now. He always wanted to be an auror. I'm not sure that they're necessary in the wizarding world, sans Voldemort, but surely there is still some level of evil left. It seems that every witch and wizard in the world worked for the Ministry of Magic. Is that Harry's fate too? Do he and Ginny run a quaint B&B? A nice cafe? Is he a broom mechanic, or a Quidditch coach?

These are just a couple of unanswered questions I have, but I'll leave you to your own imagination as to the answers to these queries.

McRating: 9.0

Ozomatli

The last time I saw Ozomatli perform was for their first record release party/concert in 1998 at the House of Blues Sunset Strip in Los Angeles. I had connections by way of my 'brother from another mother,' Manuel Delgado (Delgado Guitars), a third generation guitar maker who'd made a guitar for Ozomatli guitarist, Raul "El Bully" Pacheco.

My ears are still ringing as I've returned from seeing them perform at The Arches here in Glasgow. In true Ozomatli fashion, the venue was jumping (quite literally) to the up tempo fusion of Latin, hip hop, jazz, funk, reggae, and rock that defines Ozomatli. This nine-piece, multiethnic band puts on a show like few other bands I've seen (up there with Fishbone & The Mighty Mighty BossTones), and they endear themselves to the audience by thoroughly engaging them throughout the show. From start to finish there is literally no lull in the performance. E-N-E-R-G-Y is just about the only word that accurately describes their stage presence.

Unlike 99% of the gigs you'll go to where the band finishes their set with a warm farewell and a 'thanks for coming out," Ozomatli, in their entirety, exited stage center directly into the welcoming arms of the crowd, where they set themselves up in the center of the Arches and initiated a drum & horns jam that veritably rocked the red brick catacombs. Closing with an enthusiastic conga line that ended in a crescendo of beating drums and blaring horns, the band esteemed themselves to the crowd once more as they closed their final number to a fury of applause and howls.

After the show I sought out Raul "El Bully" Pacheco who was surprisingly and pleasantly accessible. We talked of the show in LA and of our mutual friend, Manuel. He asked what I was doing after the show to which I responded, "Dude, I have three of the most beautiful young women in Glasgow sleeping at home, waiting for my return. I'm going there."
If you ever have the opportunity to see them perform live, I highly, highly, highly recommend it. But drink your Red Bull... you'll need the energy boost.

Will Harry Die?

With the release of the fifth cinematic installment of the Harry Potter empire, and the seventh and final book due out in a week, the film-going, book-reading world is buzzing with Potter-mania!

Yes, I saw Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix this weekend, but as I've stated in prior film reviews, I'm not going to bother reviewing films that gross hundreds of millions of dollars worldwide in less than a month. It will be argued that this is the best of the five films. It will be criticized for accelerating the storyline of the lengthiest book thus far (870 pages). Strong cases for both will be hard to refute.

But what's more interesting than the hype surrounding the current film, is the outcome of the final chapter in the literary series. Rumors have been circulating for at least two years that J.K. Rowling is going to kill off two major characters in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, and we know that Rowling isn't shy about offing fan-fav characters (Professor Dumbledore; Sirius Black). So the billion dollar question is: Will Harry Potter chalk out?

As an American, I like closure. No - I need closure. The Brits don't seem to share my hang-up. They demonstrate almost limitless patience (which explains cricket) when it comes to the issue of 'resolution.'
We Yanks, however, don't want a flowery ending. We want things definitively tied-up. And that usually means a large body count. Preferably in the context of excruciating death sequences and lots of explosions. We love lots of explosions.
And we love when characters utter curt catchphrases like, "Let off some steam, Bennett," or "Stick around," after they skewer them with a lead-pipe or nail them to a wooden beam with a machete.

For these reasons, Harry Potter must die. I mean, I don't hate the kid. He's not my favorite character in the story, I actually like him. He's endearing and he's suffered a lot. So why do 80% of Americans polled think that Harry's headed to that great Quidditch match in the sky? His parents were brutally murdered, he spent his childhood in a closet, and every year someone close to him dies. Hasn't this kid been through enough already?

You want Harry to die... even if you don't know you want it. You want him to die because you want to be surprised. You want to be shocked.
Even more than explosions, we love surprises. And even though 8 out of 10 of us offer Harry our bloodlust, we know, deep down that won't happen.
Rowling doesn't have the stones.
Harry won't die because it doesn't fit with the formula for ending a grand mythological tale. Good triumphs over evil. Hope overcomes despair. Paper covers rock. Harry wins. Voldemort loses. The Ewoks sing.

Even though offering Harry a dirt nap is the only proper way to end this saga, it won't happen. However poetic, however tragic, however surprising it would be... Harry is decisively not going to die.
But how perfectly poetic would it be if a story that began with the chapter title, "The Boy Who Lived," concluded with the final chapter heading, "The Boy Who Died?" Harry is alive because his parents sacrificed their own lives to save him. It would be so appropriate if he kicked off with a similar act of self-sacrifice.

Of course, maybe if Voldemort lofted one final indefensible spell at Harry... like a mega-mother of an Avada Kedavra curse that no one has ever survived... and maybe if Harry did some kinda super-slo-mo-Matrix-stop-action move and deflected the curse back at ol' Voldy, and then the dark lord exploded everywhere into a million reptilian pieces, and then Harry blew on the tip of his wand and smirked, "I told you not to curse, Voldemort."
That'd be pretty cool, too.

Rankings, Shmrankings - The Angels are #1

Check your calendars people and remember July 1, 2007 as a remarkable day in Angels Baseball history. At the end of the day, the California Angels (I still can't bring myself to write LAAoA) stand alone at the top of Major League Baseball with the best record in the league. I can't remember a time that the Angels held the best overall record in the league.
Despite overwhelming evidence that they've earned the #1 spot in the ESPN Baseball Power Rankings, the Angels still find themselves sitting behind Boston in the #2 spot. The ESPN.com writers claim that a week containing Frank Thomas' 500th home run (and ejection), Craig Biggio's 3000th hit, and Carlos Lee's walkoff grand slam, were enough dramatics for the baseball world to handle. There was no need to add further drama by rearranging what already seemed like a pretty accurate ranking... pretty accurate.

I love that the Power Rankings came out on the day that the Angels took sole possession of the best record in baseball by beating Baltimore, while Boston dropped a close one to Texas. Neither team played particularly well this week, but last week Boston jumped two spots to #1 by having one more win than the Angels that week. This week, Boston went 1-5 and held the top spot, while the Angels went 2-4, earning the best record in baseball. Boston is 4-6 in their last 10. The Angels are 6-4. The Angels have the same number of losses as Boston, but two more wins and find themselves sitting 20 games over .500 - talk about your east coast bias.

I know this could all change by Tuesday and that the Power Rankings (still) don't really mean anything, but right is right. What else could the Angels possibly do to earn their rightful place of #1 atop the Power Rankings list? Win the World Series?!?!?!?

They just might.

"Terror Related" Attack on Glasgow International Airport

It's sobering when something like this happens in your own city. I've never really considered Glasgow to be much of a target for terrorist activity. London, sure. New York, a given. Los Angeles, of course. But Glasgow? Scotland???

Two men were arrested after ramming a burning car into the airport's main terminal, a day after police thwarted two attempted bombings in the capital.

Police said one of the men wore a "suspect device" and the incident was being treated as terror related.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown urged the public to remain vigilant.

"I know the British people will stand together, united and resolute," he added.

More on this story can be found at the BBC NEWS website.