Internet intensifies Potter mania

The Baltimore Sun

This month represents the pinnacle of Potterdom. With a new film and final book, it's a double-dose of the adventures of the boy wizard. And nowhere has this fanboy frenzy been more intense than on the Internet.

Harry Potter Web sites such as MuggleNet (mugglenet.com) and The Leaky Cauldron (the-leaky-cauldron.org) have been buzzing with excitement since the release dates were announced early this year.

On Wednesday, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the fifth in the blockbuster movie series, arrives in theaters. Ten days later, on July 21, J.K. Rowling's final book about the boy wizard, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, hits bookshelves.

Some sites are even displaying dual countdown clocks geared toward the month's big events. Other destinations have provided places for fans to post thoughts and speculations on how the series will end.

Even Rowling acknowledges the frenzy. "The first distant rumblings of the weirdness that usually precedes a Harry Potter publication can be heard on the horizon," she writes on her official site (jkrowling.com).

And this weirdness on the Web is many and varied.

Role-playing is the focus of Godric's Hollow (godrics-hollow.net), a mammoth fan site that lets visitors express their Potter passions with a MySpace bent. After registering, users build profile pages to show off their Potter prowess and meet like-minded souls. From there, they can participate in a variety of online role-playing activities, such as virtual Quidditch matches and wizard duels.

London-based Xauror (nero.xauror .com) takes the interactive approach one step further, offering online classes in subjects such as Care of Magical Creatures and Defense Against the Dark Arts. Courses are conducted in a manner similar to most online education programs and include interactive quizzes, suggested reading and digital grading systems.

In the books, romance blossoms between Hermione and Ron. However, that coupling doesn't sit well with some fans, who believe Harry and Hermione should be the series' love birds. (Followers of this movement, coincidentally, are called "H/Hr shippers," short for "Harry/Hermione relationshippers.")

Also on hand is an impressive collection of fan-created music videos, which blend movie footage with sad pop songs to create the desired lovelorn effect. The video set to the Sundays' remake of "Wild Horses" makes for a strong starting point.

Designed much like an online wedding album, complete with snowy-themed glamour shots of the pair and content categories such as "Harmony" and "Destiny," HarryandHermione.org (harryand hermione.org) offers everything from speculative fan fiction to photos of Harry and Hermione in realistic (though digitally manipulated) embraces.

"Since the books don't seem to be going my way," says the site's designer, about her efforts, "I decided to make a few adjustments."

Eyal Goldshmid writes for the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

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