Thoughts on HPDH *no spoilers*
Jul. 17th, 2007 01:15 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
selene_13I remember when HBP was coming out, I started counting down the days about two months in advance. I was so excited, so happily immersed in fandom and so high about the coming release. Well, we all know how crappy that turned out. Needless to say, this time I’ve hardly given a thought to the fact that the release of DH was coming closer. Of course I knew about it, but I just haven’t cared.
It’s mostly due to this apathy that I haven’t sought out any spoilers. Now that the release is almost here, I won’t bother to either. I’ll go get the book on Saturday (at the lowest price I can find), because I am curious about the ending (even though I think it might be laughable; if not the climax, then at least the shipping). After all, I have been breathing these books since 2000 so I might as well be there for the finish. So I will go into DH squeaky clean, non-spoilered, and free to create my own opinion on what I read. ...Perhaps there will be something that will surprise or amaze me...? o_o
Here’s my prediction though: I have no worries about Harry, Ron or Hermione dying. I do not believe that Rowling would kill any of them off. If she was going to, she should have killed Hermione in OotP, or Ron in HB, to get the maximum effect of such an invasive alterment to Harry's life and to fully appreciate his/everyone's reaction. Since she bailed on that, and practically any meaningful death amongst the teenage characters, I sincerely doubt she’s going to start now. Cedric was created specifically to be killed off, and DD was pretty much a given. Sirius was the only one who I was sorry to see go, but she didn’t handle that one very well for its disappointing lack of impact. HBP was supposed to be the epitome of the war: the penultimate novel where things should have been at its darkest (they always are before the end), but where a resistance was also built to make a victory convincing. Instead we got something very different instead. Sure, there was mention of people dying at the hand of DE's, but there wasn't any involvement with the reader or lasting effect on the characters. Are we supposed to believe that this time the war with Voldemort is worse than the previous time (as the prophecy said)? I haven’t seen it. Rowling didn’t even manage to kill any of the peripheral kids besides the trio. Basically, it’s rather a wimpy, ineffectual war that’s been put on the pages.
So, these two characters that are supposed to die? Harry’s already lost his parents, Sirius and DD. Will he lose either of his best friends (or Jenny)? I don’t believe so. Not if JKR wants to make this a happy end (and I believe she will). Will Harry die? If after an enormously crappy childhood and a royally fucked-up school experience Harry gets to die at the end of it all, then blah. What's the use having him grow up and evolve (though HBP has made that debatable, I realise) if he's not going to be able to do anything with it or learn anything from it to implement in later life? What would have been the point of building his character at all? Follow the boy for 7 years only to have him snuff it before he gets to be a man for the sake of all the other characters who I hardly care about? That would be a pretty unsatisfying finish, plus rather a cop-out (is this what being good deserves? Fictional death?). At the end of it all, Harry deserves some reward, and I firmly believe JKR will give it to him (though we will probably disagree on what the reward should be *cough red-headed babies cough*).
Sooo, who will die? I don't care. If not the trio, it will probably be adults (I think pretty much all the kids are home-free - maybe a Weasley or Luna, but I don't really think so). If an adult, then probably Lupin and Pettigrew (kill off all marauders in a 7-book run!), doubtfully a Weasley parent, very likely Hagrid, a teacher or an Order member. It won't have that huge an impact on me. Say it would be Ron or Hermione: That would have been shocking earlier, but HBP slaughtered Hermione and kept Ron as a dunce, so, why would I care too much about them? I could have still cared about them in relation to Harry, but Harry wasn't that great in HBP either. I fully expect the epilogue will narrate the OBHWF future in great detail... what a thing to look forward to.
*sigh* Basically I'm just curious how JKR will resolve the Harry/Voldemort issue; but I'm expecting nothing special, nothing shocking, and nothing that will erase HBP, so the end will probably be as underwhelming (or frustrating) as that was. But maybe, just maybe, I'll be pleasantly surprised? *wince*
I'll be back saturday with all a y'all.
It’s mostly due to this apathy that I haven’t sought out any spoilers. Now that the release is almost here, I won’t bother to either. I’ll go get the book on Saturday (at the lowest price I can find), because I am curious about the ending (even though I think it might be laughable; if not the climax, then at least the shipping). After all, I have been breathing these books since 2000 so I might as well be there for the finish. So I will go into DH squeaky clean, non-spoilered, and free to create my own opinion on what I read. ...Perhaps there will be something that will surprise or amaze me...? o_o
Here’s my prediction though: I have no worries about Harry, Ron or Hermione dying. I do not believe that Rowling would kill any of them off. If she was going to, she should have killed Hermione in OotP, or Ron in HB, to get the maximum effect of such an invasive alterment to Harry's life and to fully appreciate his/everyone's reaction. Since she bailed on that, and practically any meaningful death amongst the teenage characters, I sincerely doubt she’s going to start now. Cedric was created specifically to be killed off, and DD was pretty much a given. Sirius was the only one who I was sorry to see go, but she didn’t handle that one very well for its disappointing lack of impact. HBP was supposed to be the epitome of the war: the penultimate novel where things should have been at its darkest (they always are before the end), but where a resistance was also built to make a victory convincing. Instead we got something very different instead. Sure, there was mention of people dying at the hand of DE's, but there wasn't any involvement with the reader or lasting effect on the characters. Are we supposed to believe that this time the war with Voldemort is worse than the previous time (as the prophecy said)? I haven’t seen it. Rowling didn’t even manage to kill any of the peripheral kids besides the trio. Basically, it’s rather a wimpy, ineffectual war that’s been put on the pages.
So, these two characters that are supposed to die? Harry’s already lost his parents, Sirius and DD. Will he lose either of his best friends (or Jenny)? I don’t believe so. Not if JKR wants to make this a happy end (and I believe she will). Will Harry die? If after an enormously crappy childhood and a royally fucked-up school experience Harry gets to die at the end of it all, then blah. What's the use having him grow up and evolve (though HBP has made that debatable, I realise) if he's not going to be able to do anything with it or learn anything from it to implement in later life? What would have been the point of building his character at all? Follow the boy for 7 years only to have him snuff it before he gets to be a man for the sake of all the other characters who I hardly care about? That would be a pretty unsatisfying finish, plus rather a cop-out (is this what being good deserves? Fictional death?). At the end of it all, Harry deserves some reward, and I firmly believe JKR will give it to him (though we will probably disagree on what the reward should be *cough red-headed babies cough*).
Sooo, who will die? I don't care. If not the trio, it will probably be adults (I think pretty much all the kids are home-free - maybe a Weasley or Luna, but I don't really think so). If an adult, then probably Lupin and Pettigrew (kill off all marauders in a 7-book run!), doubtfully a Weasley parent, very likely Hagrid, a teacher or an Order member. It won't have that huge an impact on me. Say it would be Ron or Hermione: That would have been shocking earlier, but HBP slaughtered Hermione and kept Ron as a dunce, so, why would I care too much about them? I could have still cared about them in relation to Harry, but Harry wasn't that great in HBP either. I fully expect the epilogue will narrate the OBHWF future in great detail... what a thing to look forward to.
*sigh* Basically I'm just curious how JKR will resolve the Harry/Voldemort issue; but I'm expecting nothing special, nothing shocking, and nothing that will erase HBP, so the end will probably be as underwhelming (or frustrating) as that was. But maybe, just maybe, I'll be pleasantly surprised? *wince*
I'll be back saturday with all a y'all.
