'Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald' Continuously Expands the Wizarding World

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J.K. Rowling has no plans in keeping the Wizarding World in a frozen state. She continuously gives us new stories and answers about our favorite world and characters that ignited our imaginations several times. Just two years ago, she introduced us to a new Harry Potter spinoff that opened a new world of magic and spells. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them gave us a lovable character to follow, Newt Scamander, a magizoologist who was kicked out of Hogwarts.

Now, as he continues his adventure with his new friends and sole Hogwarts defender, Dumbledore, they plan to stop the rise of Gellert Grindelward, who threatens to destroy both the wizarding, and non-wizarding worlds. There is a lot at stake, and with The Crimes of Grindelwald, J.K. Rowling seems like she's just about to start.

True enough, this sequel sets up a lot of bridges for its future -- the mystery surrounding Credence's identity whom we are unsure of which side he's on, the thing between Dumbledore and Grindelwald, the future of Newt's friends Queenie and Jacob, the awkward but supposedly cute love story of Newt and Porpentina, the evolution of the 'fantastic beasts', so on and so forth -- and it's impossible to know if it'll be worth it at this time.

It ambitiously expands the forthcoming of the wizarding world, to a point where it reaches even real life monumental events. In the process, however, it also forgets to close open doors and answer flaming questions. And sometimes when it does, it underwhelms. One example is the mystery between Grindelwald and Dumbledore. It certainly wants to be big, and at this point, it's just a promise that we either look forward to, or forget altogether.

The great news is, it's visually appealing from start to finish. It has always been the franchise's strength and it's slightly safe to say that it makes up for the convoluted stories of this sequel. Even the characters and beasts are as colorful and creative as ever. Fans of anything creature-related will be delighted by the new beasts that they've introduced--an enormous swimming horse made up of seaweeds, wild Siamese looking cats with plain blue eyes, a Chinese monstrous cat dragon like something straight from a Ghibli film, you name it. They are one of the reasons why this feels different from Harry Potter, good way or not.

With all the abovementioned quibbles, Crimes gives fans something to be giddy about. This sequel has references that will induce nostalgia. It would be just more awesome if it didn't seem like a filler. One day, we'll look back at this sequel as a footnote, rather than a remarkable chapter in one of the most beloved stories of our generation. It'll always be worth a watch.