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It has been extraordinarily fun, and now the decade-long saga has reached its grand finale. The best has been saved for the last.

Harry Potter's epic magical tale ends with a bang and a whimper (ours).

The unlikely hero with the goofy glasses, nasty relatives and devoted friends has grown up. And he has grown up well, along with his cohorts at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Amazingly, Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint, as Harry, Hermione and Ron, have remained plausible and captivating in their roles over the 10-plus years. Of course, they were bolstered by some of the best actors in Britain, who gave the series gravitas and humor.

As masterfully directed by David Yates and superbly written by Steve Kloves, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2, the final adaptation of J.K. Rowling's incandescent, absorbing novels, is the ideal culmination of a fantasy series that has artfully blended excitement, adventure and terror with humor, kinship and love.

The series concludes on a massive scale, with the magical world ripped apart by the terrifying Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes). The decision to break up Rowling's densely rich seventh book into two films proves wise, rather than simply a vehicle for milking more dollars at the box office. Taken together, the last two films are the finest of all.

In previous installments, Harry has tangled with dementors, monstrous arachnids and a sadistic teacher clad all in pink. But throughout, his arch-nemesis Voldemort has been lying in wait for their ultimate face-off.

Of course, Voldemort's face is already partly off — at least the portion housing his nose — but that doesn't seem to impede his ability to torture our young hero.

Most everyone who knows the tiniest bit about Potter knows the outcome of his climactic battle with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named.

But the saga's massive clash between Voldemort devotees and Potter loyalists does not disappoint.

With all the entrancing spells and impressive special effects, Harry Potter's world has always been, above all, a moral universe. And the contest between prejudice and tolerance comes to a brilliant conclusion.

Even the somewhat divisive epilogue makes for a satisfying farewell.

Always a brave lad, Harry reaches new heights of courage. Scenes of the devastated Hogwarts landscape come to vivid life, as does the ragged army of exhausted wizards, looking like survivors of a world war. Harry's shy but plucky friend Neville Longbottom (Matthew Lewis) summarizes the film's theme as Harry and his cohorts cope with staggering loss: "Those who die remain with us in our hearts."

Amid the fabulous spectacle of the attacks on Hogwarts, the film's best moments are the quieter, gently moving ones. Finally, Harry understands the motives guiding the actions of the enigmatic professor Severus Snape (Alan Rickman). Harry's reunion with those who died is lump-in-the-throat material, and his encounter with Professor Albus Dumbledore (Michael Gambon) is both ethereal and down-to-earth funny.

On the surface, Harry Potter was a tale of magic. But it also was a story about love, for friends, teachers and family — biological or otherwise — and the ability of love to flourish in the most difficult circumstances.