Dresden Files / Harry Potter

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#1

I wish to entertain an idear.

Harry Potter and The Dresden Files are the same universe.

Dresden occasionally references ‘the European wizards’ as being hidden away from the rest of society. Some of the critters he encounters seem to match (in my mind) reasonable facsimiles of those in HP, and the types of magic employed in both seem fairly consistent.

The White Council of Dresden Files could reasonably be an encompassing agency within which the Ministry of Magic falls, perhaps handled in a manner similar to tribal police versus the FBI here in the US.

High technology seems equally unreliable around HP wizards as Mr. Dresden, and any vehicles the HP magic community uses are inevitably old fashioned points-style ignition, non-electronic kinds. The wholesale dismissal of ‘muggle’ technology, in fact, may be in part because anything terribly sophisticated simply doesn’t work reliably.

Two different cultures coexisting, neither giving much shrift to the other because they approach the subject differently, but both living in the same physical world.

Discuss.

#2

I haven’t had much exposure to the Dresden world (pretty much just the pilot for the TV show) but I found it interesting, and this idea intrigues me.

Rowling did mention witches from Salem in one of the later books, I don’t remember if this was a Hogwarts equivalent or what. Is there a corresponding thing in the Dresden 'verse?

#3

Yeah interesting but half of JK’s characters would have been executed by the White Council a long time ago:)

#4

I have to disagree with you on this. I love both the Harry Potter series and the Dresden Files (though I love the Dresden Files a whole lot more), but to say that they are written in the same universe is incorrect. As seen in the Harry Potter books, the wizards and witched need wands to cast their spells, the title of witch and wizard are gender based in the Harry Potter world, and the main villain Voldermort can not be taken too seriously (he is after all a geriatric wizard whose main goal is to kill a little kid). In the Dresden universe, spells are more powerful; and though wizards use foci like blasting rods (wands) and staves, they are not needed to cast spells. The villains of the Dresden world are more serious, and an actual threat to the world. You put Kimler up against Voldermort, and Kimler would wipe the floor with him. Kimler was a true villain and a threat to the world; a real reason for wizards to fear. With that being said, it took the entire white council to kill Kimler. (Btw, if you what to know who I’m talking about, read Dead Beat). So what does this tell you? It tells you that in the Dresdenverse, the most powerful and evil wizard who posed a real threat to the world was taken down by the council of wizards, who didn’t shy away from their duties to put down this threat. In the Harry Potter books everyone except for Dumbeldore is afraid of Voldermort. Even the ministry of magic are afraid to go up against him. To me these are a few examples that separates the two universes. Also in Harry Potter, faeries, and magical creatures are cute and pose little threat, where as in the Never- Never, any magical creature you come across is extremely dangerous and faeries are viscous and cruel. The two aren’t really comparable.

#5

Polka, nuff said:groucho:

#6

The magic systems are vastly different, so they are definitely different worlds. And the Fae in the Dresden Files are nothing like the Fae in the Potterverse.

#7

I have read about 2/3 of the books in the Dresden Files series,and all of the HP books, and I would have to disagree about being in the same universe. The way Jim Butcher, the author of the Dresden Files makes it out, being a Wizard is a series of trade offs. You have the power to cast spells and do things ordinary people would only dream of , but it comes with a price, i.e. the problems with technology. I compare Harry Dresden to Wolverine; he pays a price physically and personally to have the abilities he does.

#8

Fair enough.

In regards to the tradeoffs, does anyone else find themselves in the mindset of trying to ‘solve’ Dresden’s technology problems? For instance, I’ve imagined an elaborate web browsing setup involving binoculars viewing a monitor/computer that’s outside of his ‘chaos field’ effect along with some type of mechanical linkages to run mice and keyboards.

#9

Well said…

Dresden = Big leagues :slight_smile:

#10

Have you read Ghost Story yet? Without spoiling anything, there is now a potential way for Harry to have internet access.

#11

I’d argue the first comment: I’d say it only took Sue to face Kimler, but I’ll agree that it took the whole Council to distract him long enough for Sue to work. As to the second comment, I whole heartedly agree. It’s not a matter of HP magical types using anachronistic forms of technology because they don’t work around them; it’s more that the wizard in question uses the technology of the time frame they were born in, merely adding magic to improve the functionality to the technology level that currently exists. Dresden’verse is more about finding a level of technology that still functions around the magical energies, allowing the magical manipulator to fit into today’s society. Similar in results, different concept.

(It’s the old car/ new car conundrum: you need an engineering degree to decipher what your brand new car is telling you, but any monkey with a wrench can fix a Model T. - assuming you have parts available, that is.)