PS: Chapter 5 - Diagon Alley

Diagon Alley - diagonally get it? Watch out for those geometric shapes...

So what was that canary-yellow circust tent thing that Hagrid was knitting on the train with Harry? Did we ever find out? What could he have used it for?

It specifically states on the letter students recieved for their first year at Hogwarts that "Students may also bring an owl OR a cat OR a toad". (67) So why was Ron allowed to bring his pet rat Scabbers to the school in the first place? Wouldnt think it would be allowed... unless they knew it was Peter and they wanted to keep an eye on him?

If no one knew where Harry was nor had they seen him in 11 years why does every one at the leaky cauldron immediately recognize him? Was it the scar? But wouldnt that have been hidden beneath his hair? How could it have been seen by the wizards across the room then? Was there some other way that they knew it was Harry? Does he look that much like his father that they could recognize that it was James Potter's son?

Hmmm interesting very interesting. A couple major deviations from the movie in this chapter the first being here. In the movie when Harry first meets Quirrell in the leaky cauldron he already is wearing his turban hiding Voldemort and avoids shaking hands with Harry. In the book it is made quite clear that Quirrell and Harry shake hands (which if you know how this all ends will prove to be very difficult later on...) and there is no mention of the weird turban (which Harry clearly notices later at the school). Hagrid tells Harry that Quirrell was so happy to meet him that he was trembling... somehow I doubt that was the real reason... So is Quirrell with Dark Lord yet or will that happen between here and the start of semster? Possible but that would leave one problem related to a theft at Gringotts later in the day... but we'll get to that later...

How the hell do you have a collapsible cauldron? Probably not important but I want to know how that works...

I like the engraving above the door to Gringotts. Very reminiscent of the engraving Dante reads over the Gates of Hell before he starts his journey in the Inferno. Kinda omnious for a bank. Plus the network of underground tunnels housing gold watched over by the little goblins is more than reminiscent of Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs. And those goblins seem quite troublesome also. We keep hearing little bits and pieces of the goblins wars and their history throughout the books... should we pay more attention?

Um... how did Hagrid get a hold of the Potter's bank key? From Dumbledore? But then the question remains how did Dumbledore get the key?

Pay attention to the bank vault numbers. We will come across some similar numbers again in the future... possibly nothing but interesting none the less. The Philosopher's Stone was in bank vault 713. We are never really told what the Potter's bank vault number was.

Hmm... there is an underground lake in Gringotts? Any connections to any other lakes we will encounter throughout the series? Like the lake at Hogwarts, the pipe system of Chamber of Secrets or the lake in Voldemort's underground cave in HBP?

So where did the Potters get all that money? Sirius seems quite rich too... We dont know what they did for a living but it seems odd that a young couple would have so much money. Is there more to the Potters than we realize? Did they use the Philosopher's Stone to turn lead into gold? Cause that is one of the legendary properties of the alchemical artifact...

The second deviation from the movie occurrs when Harry first meets Draco Malfoy at Madam Malkin's store instead of at Hogwarts. Interesting since we will run into Draco again in this store in HBP. Is it important that the first student Harry meets from his year is Draco? Does Draco really not recognize Harry during this meeting? Seems odd given who his father is and how quickly he recognizes him later on the train. Does Draco really not recognize Harry or does he really recognize him and faking it? Very odd...

Harry's opinion of Slytherin house is sealed in this chapter through his initial meeting with Draco and Hagrid's ominious statement "There's not a single witch or wizard who went bad who wasn't in Slytherin. You-Know-Who was one." (80) Is this a fact or is it merely Hagrids opinion... would be interesting to find out for sure.

Harry noted that "the Apothecary, which was fascinating enough to make up for its horrible smell, a mixture of bad eggs and rotted cabbages." (81) Hmmm... where have we encountered this rotted cabbage smell before? Any connections?

We learn that cats make Hagrid sneeze (81) How come he doesnt sneeze alot when Crookshanks is around later on?

Third deviation from the movie. Hagrid is with Harry at Ollivanders in the book while he is not during the movie. Does Ollivander remember every wand he sold and who he sold it to? Some memory? How long has he been in business? Since 382 BC? That would make him very old. He also tells us that "it's really the wand that chooses the wizard, of course." (82) And "you will never get such good results with another wizard's wand." (84) How does that work exactly? Then how could Draco's mom have been buying his wand for him while he was at the robe store? Or how could Ron have inherited his brother's wand or Neville his father's wand. Would the wand work but not as well as one that choose its owner?

How odd is it that Voldemort and Harry get wands that have feathers from the same Phoenix (Fawkes). Far too odd to be just a coincidence. Those two are connected in some weird ways... just how connected are they to one another? And all traces back to Dumbledore... curious very curious as Ollivander would say...