Tuesdays are Supernatural!

[WizarDru]

The thing is I've SEEN Prizoner of Azkaban, twice even. Just don't remember any dogs in it.

The movie reduces their presence. Early in the book, Harry encounters what he believes may be a Grim, and they are discussed. The name is a reference to a specific kind of black dog, the Church Grim. There are also 'shucks' which are headless black dogs. The implication is that when you see a Grim, like hearing a banshee's wail, death is near. Black Dogs are considered to be guardians of the paths of the dead, among other things. In 'Azkaban'

Spoiler

Harry's uncle can shapeshift into a large black dog, who appears several times in the book. Several times in the book Harry incorrectly (based on other characters info) believes that he's seeing a Grim, foretelling doom. In the movie, this plot aspect is dropped almost entirely.

Check out this paragraph referring to black dogs, and see how many D&D monsters you can identify from the common myth family:
"In the Quantock Hills of Somerset the black dog was frequently seen and called the 'Gurt Dog'. Cornwall has various tales of the 'Devil's Dandy (or Dando) Dogs', Devon has the 'Yeth (Heath) or Wisht Hounds. Other local names include Barguest, Black Shag, Padfoot or Hooter. Just to be different, in West Yorkshire the common name is 'Guytrash'; in Lancashire this is reduced to 'Trash' or changed to 'Skriker'. Further afield, a particularly unpleasant phantom pooch frequented Peel Castle on the Isle of Man in the seventeenth century and was known as the Moddey Dhoo, or Mauthe Doog. "

 

[Captain Tagon]

It's before Harry gets on The Knight Bus, where you see the dog coming out of the bushes at him; Sirius in his dog form, watching Harry. His name is even a reference to it: Sirius Black who changes into a dog.

True, but I also assumed that was more a werewolf thing.

EDIT: Or are the two more similar than I'm seemingly assuming?

 

[Desdichado]

True, but I also assumed that was more a werewolf thing.

No, it turns out to be more like a werewolf thing, but that's not what Harry and Co. believe for most of the book. As WizarDru points out, this element is much reduced in the movie, but it's not removed entirely. He does see the black dog, Ron and Hermione do worry that it's an omen of death, and the Divinitation teacher does comment on it (I believe more than once, but I could be mistaken) as an omen of death, etc.

 

[Captain Tagon]

No, it turns out to be more like a werewolf thing, but that's not what Harry and Co. believe for most of the book. As WizarDru points out, this element is much reduced in the movie, but it's not removed entirely. He does see the black dog, Ron and Hermione do worry that it's an omen of death, and the Divinitation teacher does comment on it (I believe more than once, but I could be mistaken) as an omen of death, etc.

Ah, gotcha. That's what I get for not reading the book. I did pick up on the omen of death thing, but without knowing the whole Black Dog thing I just assumed it was some random superstition like a black cat crossing your path. Not a whole mythological beast.

 

[Desdichado]

Ah, gotcha. That's what I get for not reading the book. I did pick up on the omen of death thing, but without knowing the whole Black Dog thing I just assumed it was some random superstition like a black cat crossing your path. Not a whole mythological beast.

Yeah, that's understandable. The other main well-known use of the Black Dog folklore is the Sherlock Holmes story "The Hound of the Baskervilles", but as that also turns out to not be a "Black Dog" that's kinda ironic. The Black Dog myth seems to have a habit of turning up in stories, and then turning out to be false.

 

[WayneLigon]

Ah, gotcha. That's what I get for not reading the book. I did pick up on the omen of death thing, but without knowing the whole Black Dog thing I just assumed it was some random superstition like a black cat crossing your path. Not a whole mythological beast.

Ah, ok; there's a big chunk of subtext you miss there, then Three makers of the Marauder's Map, Wormtail (Peter Pettigrew), Padfoot (Sirius Black) and Prongs (James Potter) were all animagi, a special and uncommon type of wizard with the ability to transform into an animal as a kind of at-will power.

 

[Steverooo]

YAWN! I hear viewership falling off, already...

ZzZzZzZzZzzzzzzzz!!!

 

[Desdichado]

Not on my end. Despite the episodic nature of the show so far, they do make a point of tying the big story to it just a tad after all.

I also intrigued by the Bloody Mary in the mirror story coming up next week. I remember that ghost story pretty well as a kid, although the details are vague now.

 

[Captain Tagon]

Yeah, last night was a really fun episode. Got three people who had never watched the show before interested after last night.

And next week looks like it could be good entertainment as well. Color me excited.

 

[fett527]

I liked the episode enough. I'll be watching again next week.