Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking

Great concept lost in its own self-aggrandizing Hogwarts. A very talented and mostly likable group of chefs paying homage to Harry Potter themed challenges. Intertwined through the competition are video clips of memorable movies scenes as well as incorporation of the various movie sets in introducing challenges and judging. Given the outright magical inspiration for the show including being given a ticket to ride on the Harry Potter express train after the first challenge, the show is visually spectacular. The competition itself is well conceived, the Phelps brothers are pleasantly enthusiastic and Carla Hall is as always a thoughtful and constructive food competition judge. However, the general tone of the judging is overly melodramatic and Jozef Youssef's vainglorious persona is intolerable. Chairman Kaga was at least entertaining... not a pretentious...

The first episode was torture: introducing teams in a staggered, ridiculous fashion, judging based on I don't know what, special effects and "decor" painfully overdone (especially having contestants move locations to get judged, based on nothing).

I did NOT like it, but will give it one more chance and watch the second episode. I'll update this review afterwards. Right now, it's not looking good.

Have none of these producers/show runners ever seen GBBS or The Great Pottery Throwdown? Both those shows are to be emulated as they have winning formulas that engender loyalty and popularity.

But NOOOOO! Producers think we're too stupid, don't have attention spans that can focus (apparently we're all 3 year olds) and generally have no respect for anyone. The only thing that matters is the $$$ they're hoping for.

Update: I've watched 2 more episodes and I'm done. Rating can stay the same as it hasn't gotten worse, but it also hasn't gotten appreciably better.

The worst thing is the shallowness of the interactions between the hosts, judges and contestants. GBBS and The Great Pottery Throwdown have spoiled me. Too bad they can't all just relax and let their personalities come through. The Harry Potter theme is great, the food looks fine, the contestants skills are also fine, but that's not enough to hang a baking show on.

This is a FAIL for me.

After a few episodes I came to wonder how much the guest judges influence the decision. Also some of the feedback they give is the same a 3rd grader would give. You would think they would have gotten some kind of coaching. Also, Evanna Lynch is a judge who is vegan, so she can't eat the bakes...make it make sense.

Regardless of my issues with the above, the show is great and brings to life some of the most iconic scenes in all of Harry Potter. I hope they make more seasons and have a run like GBBO. There is so much opportunity to explore hundreds of other avenues with this show. Maybe some better guest judges will help too lol.

What a delightful series to watch! I absolutely loved the variety of themes and the exciting guest appearances throughout the show.

The set design was incredible, truly capturing the magical atmosphere, and having the Weasley twins as hosts was the cherry on top. Honestly, what more could any fan ask for?

The contestants were equally amazing. I thoroughly enjoyed hearing their unique stories, learning about their diverse backgrounds, and seeing how their love for Harry Potter inspired them. It was heartwarming to see how the magic of Harry Potter continues to resonate with the next generation.

The only downside? There just weren't enough episodes! Watching the show made me crave the cakes and dream of visiting the Warner Bros. Studio Tour in London. What an enchanting experience that would be!

Not bad, but the first episode seemed a little all over the place. I think they could have thought up a better format for the first episode, as it comes across quite disjointed.

Still, I'm hoping that as the season progresses, the strangely fragmented format will mend itself and become a bit more fluid.

I loved seeing all the Harry Potter-themed creations coming to life - some of them were really exceptional.

Oliver and James were a great choice for hosts, they slot into the vibe really well.

I'm going to stick with it as I've got a feeling that, now the introductions are out of the way, it will find its feet. We'll have to wait and see.