Things The Fantastic Beasts Franchise Does Much Better Than Harry Potter

Although the "Harry Potter" movies introduce cinephiles to the wizarding world, they're largely restricted to roaming the halls of Hogwarts. This never allows audiences to see the true power witches and wizards possess. Granted, Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) and Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) have an exciting magical duel in "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" that showcases what two elite practitioners can accomplish, but it only lasts a mere few minutes.

In contrast, the "Fantastic Beasts" franchise treats audiences to massive displays of magical power. We see magic that can shatter huge sheets of glass, revert objects back to their original forms, and seal one's mouth shut. The most impressive spell introduced thus far arrives when Grindelwald casts Protego Diabolica. A powerful dark charm that manifests as a circle of fire around the caster, it allows his allies to pass through without danger, while his enemies are burnt to ash.

These additions show just how magical the Wizarding World truly is. But it does beg the question why Harry and crew never use any of these amazing spells when fighting Voldemort. Maybe they were all going to be taught during their scrapped seventh year?

The events of the "Harry Potter" series are mostly told from Harry's (Daniel Radcliffe) point of view. In contrast, while the "Fantastic Beasts" franchise does have a protagonist in Newt, audiences are offered multiple points of view over the course of its films. Because of this, the story told in "Fantastic Beasts" is uniquely well-rounded. Audiences are able to see the wizarding world through many different characters' eyes, rendering every conflict a complex affair.

This multifaceted approach makes the bad guys even scarier, because they seem all the more plausible. For example, Grindelwald (Johnny Depp, Mads Mikkelsen) is portrayed as being both charismatic and idealistic and truly awful, depending on the point of view. Unlike Voldemort, he doesn't always use fear to get his way — he calmly manipulates people, who feel genuinely charmed and intrigued by what he offers. Because of this, Grindelwald is an incredibly effective villain: The fact that he's comprehensible makes him far more terrifying.

With characters such as Leta Lestrange (Zoë Kravitz), Yusuf Kama (William Nadylam), and Nagini (Claudia Kim), "Fantastic Beasts" is a far more diverse series than "Harry Potter." People of color hold important positions in this depiction of the wizarding world, and play key roles in various storylines. While the "Harry Potter" series isn't an entirely white affair, most of the saga's main characters are. "Fantastic Beasts" offers a welcome change. 

However, it's important to note that some critics have called "Fantastic Beasts" out for stereotypical casting choices. As Megan C. Hills argued in Marie Claire, this is especially frustrating in the case of Claudia Kim, who plays Nagini. The "Fantastic Beasts" movies reveal Voldemort's snake to be a Maledictus. Essentially, a Maledictus is a woman who carries a blood curse from birth, which eventually forces her to permanently transform into a snake. Hills argues this reinforces stereotypes of Asian women as subservient, as Nagini eventually becomes Voldemort's pet, servant, and horcrux.

Throughout his series, Harry Potter is always amazed by the everyday actions of the wizarding world. This is especially clear when he visits his best friend Ron (Rupert Grint) and his family, the Weasleys. The Weasleys are a pure-blood wizarding family that is completely immersed in the magical world: Just as Harry is amazed by their self-stirring sauces and flying brooms, the Weasleys (especially Arthur Weasley) are bewildered by ordinary Muggle inventions like electrical sockets.

Until the "Fantastic Beasts" films premiered, Harry's stays with the Weasleys were the only real look audiences ever got at how witches and wizards live their lives. But through characters like Tina (Katherine Waterston) and Queenie (​​Alison Sudol), fans get to see how magic is fully integrated into their lives. In this franchise, audiences even leave the United Kingdom altogether to see how the wizarding world runs in other countries. While Hogwarts remains important, these films primarily focus on how the American magical community governs itself, which turns out to be a pretty different affair. Moreover, most of the franchise's characters aren't newbies like Harry. What results is a complex portrait of magical life, in all its mundanity and amazement.

In "Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows," Harry discovers Dumbledore and Grindelwald's complex history. These two wizards came to believe their power gave them the right to rule, and that they could accomplish their lofty goals through the Deathly Hallows. Tragically, things fell apart, and eventually came to a brutal crescendo when Grindelwald, Dumbledore, and Dumbledore's brother Aberforth dueled each other. When the smoke cleared, the Dumbledores' younger sister Ariana was dead.

The "Fantastic Beasts" franchise brings entirely new depth to Ariana's tragic tale. Attacked by a group of boys at a very young age, Ariana was traumatized to the point of becoming an Obscurial. An Obscurial (a concept introduced in the "Fantastic Beasts" films) is a witch or wizard whose magic has been suppressed, often through abuse. Turned inward, their powers grow uncontrollable and poisonous, eventually killing them. Watching this process eat Ariana alive was horrific, as Dumbledore recalls in "Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore." Fans knew about Ariana's sad fate before this third film hit theaters, but they'd never seen it explored in such potent detail.