Magic in Harry Potter and the times it went horribly wrong
One of the best parts of Harry Potter is the magic! But, for every spell that went right, there were also a bunch that went wrong. Very, very wrong.
Harry Potter is filled with magical mistakes so we’re looking at some of the biggest blunders in the series.
Magic mishaps
Who doesn’t remember Harry and his “diagonally”? Harry was young and it was also his first time using Floo Powder. So we can give him a break there. But this was not the first time Harry had a hard time with a spell. There was also the time that Harry let his temper get out of hand. It was a completely understandable situation, of course. But still, inflating your aunt to the size of a hot air balloon and watching her float away? Unintentional or not, that is going to take some explaining. Let’s not forget the time Harry performed magic before he even knew he was a wizard. Removing the glass from the snake enclosure and releasing the snake at the zoo was definitely a spell gone wrong. An inadvertent and hilarious one, especially when Dudley fell in and Harry made the glass reappear!
Exploding experience
You can’t talk about spells gone wrong without talking about Seamus Finnigan. His reputation of blowing things up was given to him in his very first year. He singed his hair and face in front of the whole school. Probably well deserved, as he was trying to turn water into rum. It certainly didn’t end there, as there was the time Seamus was attempting to perform the Levitation Charm. If you haven’t already guessed, that ended in an explosion. There was also the time he was trying to make a Living Dead potion and he, you guessed it, caused it to explode.
Fame over facts
We certainly can’t leave out Gilderoy Lockhart. We could go on about his mishaps for days. Every spell he attempted to cast went wrong. The first we saw being when he attempted to fix Harry’s broken arm. Harry insisted he was fine and would go to Madame Pomfrey, but Lockhart insisted it was easy. It probably was before he touched it. By the time Gilderoy was done, Harry didn’t have a bone left in his arm. It took all night for those to grow back! Then there’s the moment he tries to show off during Dueling Club. He acts as though he can get rid of that snake with his eyes closed. All he manages to do is throw it in the air.
Underrated
Probably right up there with Lockhart, is Neville Longbottom. His first five years at Hogwarts were stressful for all of us. His first flying lesson that ended in disaster is certainly a well remembered event. Not only did he send himself flying around like a rag doll, but he ended up with a broken wrist. Then there is the painful memory of the time he transplanted his ears onto the cactus. Situations don’t get much more prickly than that one. Of course we can’t forget the time he sent Professor Flitwick flying across the room. But there is one important factor in Neville’s favor. For the first five years at Hogwarts, he had been using his father’s wand. His skills did vastly improve after he found one that “chose” him.
Best intentions
Ron had a few of his own spells that ended with some not so great results. A Scabbers turned yellow was his first attempt. This one didn’t exactly end with any dire circumstances. Unless you consider embarrassing yourself before you even get to your first year of school dire. Then there was the time that all Ron was trying to do was defend Hermione against Draco. He tries to hex Malfoy, only to hex himself. The slug vomiting is still difficult to watch. Although, Ron’s broken wand was mostly the blame here.
Straight A disaster
The only magic mishap that is surprising to everyone is Hermione’s. She was way ahead of the game before she even began her attendance at Hogwart’s. But I suppose nobody is perfect. Hermione attempts to make a Polyjuice Potion to turn into Millicent Bulstrode. Except that, instead of Millicent’s hair, Hermione ended up with a cat hair off the girl’s robes. This definitely didn’t end well, as it led to Hermione being in the hospital wing for weeks. Good thing she’s a quick study, because that’s a lot of catching up to have to do!
Related Story: You've read the mishaps, now here's the most difficult spells!
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