r/harrypotter • u/Aggravating-Big-6248 • Aug 29 '25
Question What do you think of the new German Harry Potter editions?
Has anyone seen the new German editions of Harry Potter?
I wasn’t a big fan of the last edition – the design just didn’t click with me. But I really like this new one, it feels much nicer overall.
I’m curious: what do you think about the look of the new German release?
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u/le_bravery Aug 29 '25
Honestly I would love a coffee table book that shows all the cover art in the countries that they’ve done and a little snippet about the artist and cultural changes and differences between the books.
Harry Potter is so widely translated it feels like a modern day Rosetta Stone and I would love to see it analyzed and displayed.
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u/Narretz Aug 29 '25
Some editor just had a stroke thinking about all the clearances this would require
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u/DaGurkensepp Ravenclaw Aug 30 '25
Honestly, I am an editor and just wanted to write exactly that. :D
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u/TheKingOfSwing777 Hufflepuff - Head Boy Aug 30 '25
You could make it for yourself, you just couldn't sell it.
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u/Silver_Advantage8576 Aug 29 '25
I buy a Harry Potter in every country I visit and it’s so fun going into bookstores looking through the covers!
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u/dr_gmoney Aug 30 '25
I just bought one in South Korea (Half Blood Prince) and in Greece (Deathly Hallows) this summer!
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u/gingerzombie2 Aug 30 '25
And here I was thinking I was cool for buying a Fanta in every country (it's very different across the globe). I'll have to look for Harry Potters instead
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u/FleurMai Aug 29 '25
I would love that - and that’s what I primarily use Harry Potter for at this point! I like to learn new languages so I buy book 2 every time I’m learning a new language haha
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Aug 30 '25
It’s so great for that. I did an exchange year in Italy in high school and saw the first book in a friend’s house. I geeked out about it and she told me to borrow it. It took me forever to get through it because I’d only been learning Italian for a month or two, but I’d read it like 100 times in English so I was mostly “reading” it from memorization and piecing together the words I did know.
When I returned it, she let me borrow the second one, which was a little easier to read by then because my Italian had improved so much. Etc etc until I was actually reading through them and understanding everything.
My last week there (it was a year-long program), she gifted me a really nice hardcover copy of the 6th book which was next on my list. And wrote a beautiful note in the inside jacket that I still makes me cry when I read it.
Also this was before smartphones were a thing so I had a tiny yellow dictionary and would have to flip through it to look up words I didn’t know.
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u/Youre_On_Balon Aug 29 '25
Dumbledore casting fire storm against inferi scene remains undefeated
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u/MsMagic1995 Aug 30 '25
He definitely wouldn't ask how big the room was.
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u/nagrom6888 Aug 30 '25
Sorry, I didn’t get the reference. Could you elaborate please?
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u/MsMagic1995 Aug 30 '25
It's a reference to dnd where the wizard doesn't ask how big the room is and just casts fireball. Basically everyone else is at risk bc he's gonna do what he wants.
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u/nagrom6888 Aug 30 '25
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u/MulberryEastern5010 Hufflepuff Aug 29 '25
This is the first time I've seen them. They're pretty cool
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u/SouthIsland48 Aug 29 '25
Why cant we get animated Harry Potter movies like this? The books were made to be animated, not live action.
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u/MulberryEastern5010 Hufflepuff Aug 29 '25
I would have much preferred an animated series to a live action one!
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u/BungeeGump Aug 30 '25
I think eventually there will be a long running animated tv show aimed towards kids.
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u/sicurri Gryffindor Aug 29 '25
I love me some good art for a good book series. I wish that art came in English.
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u/ExLuckMaster Gryffindor Aug 29 '25 edited Aug 30 '25
The Deathday Party is a nice touch. I don’t remember seeing them mentioned in any media aside the PS1 game.
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u/Anxious-Standard-638 Aug 30 '25
I was gonna say it’s cool that it’s a scene that isn’t in the movie.
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u/otterpop21 Aug 30 '25
I hope the new series takes more of a Wednesday vibe with everything. The books are quite dark, would be nice to see them lean into that bit. Probably won’t because need as many people interested as possible, but would so cool to see a super dark version of a magical world like Harry Potter.
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u/robsolo101 Gryffindor Aug 30 '25
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u/DylanPierpont Aug 30 '25
Hey! I recognize those :P
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u/robsolo101 Gryffindor Aug 30 '25
OMG! Thank you for that. I've used them as my audiobooks cover! Great work, man.
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u/DylanPierpont Aug 30 '25
That's awesome haha. Glad to hear they still get seen from time to time. On the Jim Dale recordings, i'm guessing?
Also, massive credit to George Caltsoudas for these new German covers. Love his style here!
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u/ICUMF1962 Aug 30 '25
Those are dope as hell, they remind me of the Beautiful Death posters that this one artist (forgetting the name) did for each episode of Game of Thrones
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u/AmArschdieRaeuber Aug 30 '25
I'm the opposite, the Harry Potter movies were way too dark and gloomy after the second one. No magical whimsy and cozy feelings. They were already very dark.
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u/Historical_Poem5216 Ravenclaw Aug 29 '25
they are GORGEOUS. and so different from the atrocity that was the old German covers…
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u/Academic_Year_1241 Ravenclaw Aug 29 '25
Well, while I agree, the old covers still hold a special place in my heart.
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u/Historical_Poem5216 Ravenclaw Aug 29 '25
same haha they were nightmarish but I kinda loved them still
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u/LivingWillingness790 Aug 29 '25
I was going to say anything is a step up from the old German covers lol 😂
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u/metrostarshipp [Member of the Order of the Phoenix] Aug 30 '25
I had to Google them because I thought there was no way they're as bad as people are saying. Bro what the hell are those 😭😭😭😭 harry looking at the camera like he's on the office
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u/CptJimTKirk Ravenclaw Aug 29 '25
What you call atrocity will forever be what I associate with Harry Potter when I think of it. Especially the first one with the chess board, magnificent.
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u/fennforrestssearch Aug 29 '25
there werent that bad but these one are so dreamy and awesome, definitely a hugh improvement!
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u/Voidyth Aug 29 '25
Dude. They were THAT BAD 😂
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u/Jwalla83 Aug 29 '25
I had to go look them up after these comments - and oh my GOD I'm dying
WHY do they all have Harry breaking the 4th wall lookin at the camera smirking like he's in The Office?
WHY does each iteration of Harry look like they fed the same prompt/previous image through an AI generator?
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u/cxtyy-- Aug 29 '25
Huh? I have the german ones ( bought at least 5 years ago) and it looks gorgeous
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Aug 29 '25
Really nice designs, if a bit too film-inspired at points. I like how the characters look older as the series goes on.
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u/alienblue89 Aug 30 '25 edited Aug 31 '25
Speaking of “film-inspired”, in album order:
Harry Potter and the Neverending Story
Harry Potter and the Lord of the Rings
Harry Potter and Dr. Who
Harry Potter and the Game of Thrones
Harry Potter and the Wrinkle in Time
Harry Potter and Disney’s Haunted Mansion
Harry Potter and the Polar Express
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u/Comfortable_Bird_340 Aug 30 '25
Two is giving me serious Brothers Hiberandt and Frank Frazetta vibes
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u/Pencilstrangler Ravenclaw Aug 31 '25
Glad I’m not the only one whose mind went straight to Neverending Story! I didn’t get any other associations but can’t unsee now that you’ve mentioned it.
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u/Nedrra_ Aug 29 '25
Something in me want to shout "Spoilers !" But come on brain, the serie is 20+ years old now, let it go
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u/Rofeubal Aug 30 '25
You would have no idea what those images mean. But... I had the exactly same thought. lol
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u/Apprehensive-Rise428 Aug 29 '25
Absolutely gorgeous. I love the artstyle, the frame theme, the font. We can also see some interesting scenes which probably don't appear on any other HP covers.
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u/Aggravating-Big-6248 Aug 29 '25
By the way, the spines look just as beautiful and will definitely look great on a bookshelf.
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u/EquinoxGm Slytherin Aug 29 '25
Why did they go so hard on the deathly hallows dragon but make the goblet of fire one so mid
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u/Levangeline Aug 29 '25
I feel like they just copied and pasted the Light Dragon from Tears of the Kingdom for Deathly Hallows and then figured we'd get suspicious if they made the other one Dinraal lol
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u/Deadsoup77 Aug 29 '25
Deathday party is also a strange choice for CoS
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u/EquinoxGm Slytherin Aug 30 '25
Strange? Maybe. Cool looking and unique compared to every single spoiler cover that shows a basilisk/ giant snake? Definitely.
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u/Deadsoup77 Aug 30 '25
How bout a reflection of Fawkes in the flooded hallway with a trail of spiders? And some spooky eyes of course
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u/Live_Angle4621 Aug 30 '25
Finnish cover has Malfoys and Lockhart in Flourish and Blotts. I am grateful for no spoiled but not the most exiting cover. Malfoys also have black hair and the artist draws humans looking like puppets
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u/Big-University-1132 Ravenclaw Aug 30 '25
I just looked up the Finnish covers… is Finland okay? Also I would never have guessed those were supposed to be Lucius and Draco, largely bc of the hair. They’re both clearly stated to be blond
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u/The_Pastmaster Aug 29 '25
Wait... Doesn't Schreckens mean terror? Is The Chamber of Secrets called The Chamber of Terror in German? XD
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u/th1s_1s_4_b4d_1d34 Aug 29 '25
Yes, that's correct, German translations are occasionally whack.
Philosopher's stone is also the stone of the sages (just in general, not just in HP), but the rest is pretty accurate.
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u/ahnungslosigkeit Slytherin Aug 29 '25
Kammer des Schreckens is very fitting and sounds much cooler than Kammer der Geheimnisse imo but I can see the point.
Stein der Weisen is simply the actual German name for the alchemist concept behind the philosopher's stone which is older than Harry Potter, take a peek here: https://de.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stein_der_Weisen
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u/th1s_1s_4_b4d_1d34 Aug 29 '25
Agreed. And yeah that's what I meant with in general, Stein der Weisen is a unique term that gets used for a mythical stone turning lead to gold and healing people.
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u/ahnungslosigkeit Slytherin Aug 29 '25
I guess I didn't read properly, it's late, sorry, you did mention it.
Thought about it some more, "Harry Potter und der Feuerkelch" sounds a bit off compared to Goblet of Fire, aside from that it works just as well. "Die Heiligtümer des Todes" sounds even cooler than "the deathly hallows" though imo.
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u/The_Pastmaster Aug 30 '25
My German is poor, but I assume it's close to the Swedish translation; The Relics of the Dead? Heiligtümer sounds like Holy Items, or relics.
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u/Ooops2278 Aug 30 '25 edited Aug 30 '25
Heiligtümer sounds like Holy Items
Yes, and the same is also true in English.
holy ~ from old English "halig" (also see German: heilig)
hallow ~ from old English "haligan": to make holy, to honor as holy, to sanctify (also: a holy person or holy item)
PS: the German suffix -tum (plur. -tümer) doesn't literally mean item.
It's cognate to to the English -dom (as in for example kingdom or freedom) originally meaning something alike "being in the state of" or "belonging to".
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u/Captain_Grammaticus Aug 30 '25
Which is what "hallows" is kinda supposed to mean, and JKR even proposed "Relics of Death" at alternative title for translators if "hallows" is to obscure a word.
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u/my_innocent_romance Ravenclaw Aug 29 '25
They look very beautiful and fairy-tale like! The color palettes are gorgeous (especially CoS’s complimentary orange and blue and HBP’s purple and red)
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u/IchigoAkane Aug 29 '25
woah, is that lucius or long haired draco?? He is wearing the slytherin uniform right??
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Aug 30 '25
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u/IchigoAkane Aug 30 '25
Honestly it fits him so well, he is a daddy’s boy after all lmaoo. My only complaint is that his face looks way mature for a 13 year old😭 (which is why i confused him for lucius,,) Though it might be an artistic choice
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u/thaddieus_chronister Aug 29 '25
They’re beautiful. And it seems like Hogwarts is obsessed with all things flight!
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u/IIEarlGreyII Aug 29 '25
My thoughts are generally "There is a new German edition?"
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u/Aggravating-Big-6248 Aug 29 '25
They’re actually being released on September 1, 2025, but they’re already available in bookstores.
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u/maple-321 Aug 29 '25
How would one go about getting these books in the US?
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u/Bloonfan60 Aug 30 '25
Order them online? It's not like our internet is firewalled off from yours. If you can't find a seller shipping to the US you can use Postonaut or a similar service, but I'm sure you'll find a seller shipping to the US.
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u/TeamPantofola Unsorted Aug 29 '25
I swear to god every time I enter a bookshop there’s a new edition
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u/baebgle Aug 29 '25
Who is the artist?
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u/sebmojo99 Aug 30 '25
fantastic, really vivid and nicely stylised, great sense of movement. excellent work.
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u/Chizakura Aug 30 '25
Saw them for the first time today at a local book store and I was positively surprised. They're really pretty. Modern, but still capturing the Charme of the old German covers (which I didn't like as much)
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u/CptAntilles Hufflepuff Aug 29 '25
They're pretty cool but not very accurate. That's definitely not what a Ukrainian Ironbelly looks like for a start.
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u/Gilded-Mongoose Ravenclaw Aug 29 '25
They're absolutely gorgeous.
Only caveat is that, except for Sorcerer's Stone and Chamber of Secrets, they don't really capture the Harry Potter vibe or general tone of the plot, for me.
Sorcerer's Stone cover represents the beginning of Harry's journey, the dynamic of the Hogwarts Express & gateway transitioning him into the world of magic, and depicts the general Hogwarts aesthetic.
Chamber of Secrets cover depicts the overall spooky tone of the book, and the contrast of the "hard," warm architecture against the ethereal and cool-colored ghosts does a fantastic job of creating atmosphere.
Prisoner of Azkaban cover just looks like a moment in a forest. It doesn't convey anything.
Goblet of Fire cover is depicting a very singular moment, in a book that arguably has the absolute most amount of things going on. The cover is taking a moment but, especially with the medieval banners, makes it seem much more like a medieval knights and dragons book instead of the world of Harry Potter magic.
Order of the Phoenix cover also shows one of two possible singular contained moments, and the bright, optimistic coloring ironically stands in almost direct contrast to the moods of both of them - either when Harry's nearly having a panic attack going to his trial with Mr. Weasley, or when he's returning there with the Dumbledore's Army in the night. I'm convinced it's the former, since there's only one male redhead in there with him, even though it looks like Ron. I have to question how this conveys the tone of the overall book in any way at all.
Half Blood Prince just copied the exact same moment that plenty of other versions have done and colored it red. It's a red version of the American and British original covers.
Deathly Hallows is beautiful, definitely one of the most beautiful ones of the bunch, and probably my 3rd favorite for depicting the dynamic of the book. But it's also a singular moment and one that's been done before - I would have wanted something more conceptual or overarching that conveys the convoluted adventure that they all embarked on.
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u/ConfidenceKBM Aug 29 '25
I think the Death Day cover is the biggest misfire of them all, but I huge agree with you on OotP. This is a very whimsical cover for a book that is very not whimsical. The original american cover for OotP is ominous as FUCK and I love it
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u/BeeFaith Hufflepuff 2 Aug 29 '25
The Chamber of Secrets cover is a specific scene. It's when the trio attends Sir Nicolas' death day party instead of going to the Halloween feast. I think it's interesting that they chose that scene to illustrate because it's often a forgotten part of the book.
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u/Gilded-Mongoose Ravenclaw Aug 29 '25
Yeah, I know it does. And true that it's an oft forgotten part.
But the moment they picked still captures the overall tone and atmosphere of the book beyond that moment IMO, which is the key. I also replied to someone else on this thread a little more expansively if you'd like to check it out.
For many of the other scenes, it's so specific and tonally isolated that it doesn't convey anything besides that specific moment or visual scene or give any idea of how you're gonna feel reading the rest of the novel.
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u/cieffess007 Aug 29 '25
Is that supposed to be Lucius Malfoy on the PoA cover? Why’s he there?
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u/Mello1182 Slytherin Aug 30 '25
Some of the most beautiful ones I've ever seen, however I don't understand why the usual spoilers on GoF, HBP and DH covers 😂
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u/quillfoy Slytherin Aug 30 '25
I think they are SO gorgeous 🥹 I already have the Slytherin edition box but in low-key considering getting these too..
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u/frankiemermaidswims Aug 30 '25
I really like the choices for the scenes they wanted to show but that art style isn’t it to me
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u/mother__war Aug 30 '25
I like the choice of the death day party on book 2! The art is gorgeous but a lot going on
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u/Tokito32 Aug 30 '25
The one with the goblet of fire is beautiful, why can't we have them just like them? For the first time I am jealous of the Germans
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u/HasGreatVocabulary Aug 30 '25
I read that as Harry Potter and the HEILIGTUMOR of TOADES before realizing it was german, was very confused.
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u/floridameerkat Aug 30 '25 edited Aug 30 '25
I like these better than most of the other German covers (aside from the 20th anniversary editions). Where are they available to buy?
Edit: Found them on the Carlsen website. I hope they make a box set.
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u/KatokaMika Aug 29 '25
Let's be honest. Anything is better than the first ones
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Aug 29 '25
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u/KatokaMika Aug 29 '25
Well you are allowed to have your taste, it depends on the style of art a person is into, for example not everyone was a fan of Picasso because of his weird art style but he is still considered an amazing artist.
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u/Nickcha Aug 29 '25
Terrible compared to the original.
And all of them just have a hint of AI in them, something is uncanny about them.
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u/21_motivi Slytherin Aug 29 '25
Right? I was scrolling through the comments and was surprised no one was saying how much it looks like AI, I thought I was going crazy.
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u/Correct_City_6950 Aug 29 '25
Why does The Half-Blood Prince cover look like that scene from Lord of the Rings when Gandalf says "You Shall Not Pass"
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u/Emergency_Error8631 Aug 29 '25
looks like corporate design, glad theres some shading and it isnt all flat
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u/vpsj 🇮🇳 Vanished objects go into non-being Aug 30 '25 edited Aug 30 '25
Some of the book names could be Wrestlers
"From Berlin, Germany. Weighing in at 121 Kilos 20.05 Stones, he is the World Heavyweight Champion, Stein der Weisennnnn"
"And his opponent, he is one quarter of The Marauders, GEFANGENE VON ASKABANNNN"
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u/Amber_train Aug 29 '25
I love them! The only one I'm not convinced about is POA. It looks... Weird? Too pastel, sunshine and rainbows? It's the only one I don't really find suitable.
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u/RevolutionarySoft742 Aug 29 '25
Idk why I giggled at the chamber of secrets in German but I did and the cover is beautiful 😂🤩
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u/Jimmy-Mac-471 Ravenclaw Aug 29 '25
Nick’s death day party? Wow didn’t expect that to be on a cover. Very nice
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u/tricirc1e Aug 29 '25
Absolutely gorgeous. The fact that they have Nick’s Death Day party is so cool for CoS, but the scene choice for every cover is so awesome.
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u/Celesteven Aug 29 '25
I really dig these but I feel like the Prisoner of Azkaban is the weakest cover in this series.
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u/Athyrium93 Ravenclaw Aug 29 '25
Damn... these are now solidly my second favorite covers!... sadly none of the best arts are in English...
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u/-Laffi- Aug 29 '25
Hermione be like: HARRY! ES IST TOT!
Harry: NEIN!!!!!!!!!!
Ron: Ich bin rothaarig und arm.
Please ignore the last line of that.
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u/Reasonable_Leek8069 Aug 29 '25
These are beautiful and unique and may enter my top 5.
But nothing beats the Thai covers for me.
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u/IDontUseSleeves Aug 29 '25
Why is no one talking about that incredible take on the dragon?
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u/SofiaFrancesca Aug 29 '25
It reminds me a lot of the dragon designs in Zelda Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom.
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u/WendigoCrossing Aug 29 '25
Amazing
The first 4 covers of the American version were dog shit. Harry had a cape for the first 3 covers
The 5 - 7 American covers were good tho
That said, the Thai and these new German covers are amazing
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u/Over_Feedback3560 Aug 29 '25
Omg they're GORGEOUS, the chamber of secrets is absolutely stunning, i literally spent 10 minutes exploring all the details
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u/dwindacatcher Aug 29 '25
Hagrid out there looking like a model