Favorite Characters: Jacob Kowalski (Fantastic Beasts)

In my initial Fantastic Beasts review, I mentioned my appreciation for the presence of this character, a Muggle who gets caught up in all the magical proceedings.  Jacob gives the new franchise an opportunity to explore an area that the Harry Potter universe has left fairly untapped so far, and he’s a fun, rootable supporting character to boot!  (A few Jacob-related spoilers.)

Without a doubt, the selling point of Jacob’s character is that he’s a Muggle.  He’s just going about his day, trying to get a bank loan so he can quit his soulless factory job and start a bakery, when he has the misfortune/fortune(?) to run into Newt.  One misplaced occamy egg later, and Jacob is part of a whirlwind of insane experiences that he has absolutely no context for.  Within his first short stretch of meeting Newt, he has magic used on him and sees it used on other people and objects, witnesses multiple magical creatures, and apparates, an experience that can be unpleasant enough for wizards who know what it is.  And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.  You can visibly see Jacob’s understanding of the world expand every moment he’s onscreen, and his looks of wonder – at everything from Queenie’s magic-aided cooking to Newt’s suitcase wildlife sanctuary – add a lot to the proceedings.

Certainly, part of his involvement is played for laughs, and in his performance, Dan Fogler takes full advantage of every incredulous reaction shot.  But Jacob’s ignorance, bewilderment, and general out-of-placeness makes sense.  He doesn’t know anything about any of this stuff, all of it is unbelievable, and a lot of it is pretty darn scary.  It stands to reason that he wouldn’t know the best way to contribute in a crisis, that he badly fakes his way through “knowing” what a house elf is.  He blunders into things, he gets himself in trouble, and he’s very, very confused – this is all to be expected.

But I like that, really, only the MACUSA folks (and sometimes Tina) treat him as stupid or ridiculous for not knowing things.  Because in truth, Jacob is no more ignorant or incredulous than Arthur Weasley is trying to use a Muggle tube station or wondering what a rubber duck is for.  Newt and Queenie both get that he’s new to all this, and while they don’t exactly take him by the hand and guide him through all the craziness, they also give him credit for doing as well as he does.

Because it’s not all fumbling and mistakes, not by a long shot.  Jacob may be largely along for the ride, but he goes pretty all-in fairly quickly.  Even if he doesn’t get much in the way of tangible victories, Jacob is there in the thick of it, taking it all in and trying to help in whatever small ways he can.  And loving it.  Yes, there are a lot of freaky moments, but Jacob spends much of the films with his head practically exploding in amazement.  This is nothing he’s ever known, and he wants to drink in every second of it, even if that means a lusty erumpent might try to mate with him.

It reminds of a quote from Doctor Who, in the series 2 episode “The Girl in the Fireplace,” when Renette says, “The Doctor is worth the monsters.”  For Jacob, the wizarding world can be a confusing, overwhelming, terrifying head trip, but it’s worth it.  He’ll gladly take the risks and accept some snickers at his expense if it means he’s allowed a glimpse into a world like that.