(no subject)
Jul. 17th, 2005 06:06 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
pandonkeyFinally finished HP&tHBP.
It's minor, but my first thought here is that I don't buy Lupin and Tonks at all. I guessed that it was Lupin, not Sirius, that Tonks was pining for when her Patronus was described so vaguely, and I was irritated to find out later that I was right. I just don't buy it. (And not just because I liked the whole werewolf/gay analogy that was underlined in bright pink highlighter in the film version of Azkaban.) I just don't see those two personalities fitting together at all.
The Snape question -- the fact that Snape appears to be 100% evil just tells me that it's going to turn out Dumbledore wanted Snape to kill him. As others have pointed out before me, Dumbledore's "Please, Severus" was probably not a request for mercy. I'm not ashamed to admit that I don't want Snape to be evil, in part because I really do think Dumbledore must've had good reason to trust him, and in part because (again, as others have said before me) I liked having a nasty, unlikeable character fighting for the side of good.
Dumbledore -- I don't think he'll be returning from the dead, but I do think he'll be inhabiting his portrait. I was rather surprised Harry didn't attempt to go talk to it after the funeral; that'll probably happen sometime in book 7. I can't see Dumbledore somehow being the one Hogwarts headmaster not to continue on as an observer in his old office.
Harry/Ginny doesn't surprise or bother me, but I'm not particularly interested in it. Their conversation during the funeral was neither believable nor moving, though. C'mon, J.K., you can do better than that. (I think.)
That's all for now. I may have more once my thoughts have had a chance to percolate (and/or I get through a second reading).
It's minor, but my first thought here is that I don't buy Lupin and Tonks at all. I guessed that it was Lupin, not Sirius, that Tonks was pining for when her Patronus was described so vaguely, and I was irritated to find out later that I was right. I just don't buy it. (And not just because I liked the whole werewolf/gay analogy that was underlined in bright pink highlighter in the film version of Azkaban.) I just don't see those two personalities fitting together at all.
The Snape question -- the fact that Snape appears to be 100% evil just tells me that it's going to turn out Dumbledore wanted Snape to kill him. As others have pointed out before me, Dumbledore's "Please, Severus" was probably not a request for mercy. I'm not ashamed to admit that I don't want Snape to be evil, in part because I really do think Dumbledore must've had good reason to trust him, and in part because (again, as others have said before me) I liked having a nasty, unlikeable character fighting for the side of good.
Dumbledore -- I don't think he'll be returning from the dead, but I do think he'll be inhabiting his portrait. I was rather surprised Harry didn't attempt to go talk to it after the funeral; that'll probably happen sometime in book 7. I can't see Dumbledore somehow being the one Hogwarts headmaster not to continue on as an observer in his old office.
Harry/Ginny doesn't surprise or bother me, but I'm not particularly interested in it. Their conversation during the funeral was neither believable nor moving, though. C'mon, J.K., you can do better than that. (I think.)
That's all for now. I may have more once my thoughts have had a chance to percolate (and/or I get through a second reading).
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2005-07-18 12:09 am (UTC)Lupin and Tonks. Completely disinterested in the whole thing. I can't possibly think of a subplot that would interest me less. I can't see how it fits in, or what she plans to weave of it.
Dumbledore. My understanding was that the portraits were just imprints of the character, less than a ghost so to speak. I know Dumbledore "consulted" portraits for advice, but somehow I think that Dumbledore being his old self only in portrait mode seems too convenient. Then again, J.K is the master -- mistress? -- of deus ex machina so it could very well be that he continues to play a big part.
Harry/Ginny. I was super happy for both of them -- heck, them being together made me feel warm and happy, so I can only imagine how much it must suck for Harry. As Jess pointed out, Harry's breakup scene was lifted right from a movie about a certain spidered teenager, so it was a little humorous to read. Then again, I think it worked a hundred times better here than it did in the movie. Who knows what happens when they go to film it though. They could just cut out the spiderman scene and put it in there to save money. I hope J.K. keeps harry and Ginny together, but I really can't tell you why she should, only that I'd like to see it.
Maybe I'm just wearing my tinfoil hat, but the first thing I thought of when I opened the book and found reference to a horrible president was ZZZZING! She would have written this about the time that gitmo and abu-graib were big news items, so the whole false imprisonment thing seems topical. Then again, she could have just been trying to present the ministry as an inept government body, and that just happens to correlate to another certain government body we all know and love.
There was a lot of yelling done throughout the book, but my favorite yelled line had to have been near the end of the book with him and Dumbledore on the island. "HOLY FUCK!! HARRY POTTER VERSUS THE MOTHERFUCKING ZOMBIES!!"
(no subject)
Date: 2005-07-19 02:32 am (UTC)I love Ginny and Harry. I think they were made for each other. I beamed when Harry finally kissed her. And I don't think they'll be seperated for long.
I'm *sure* we're supposed to read Snape as evil of all evil only to turn out he was doing what Dumbledore wanted... for the sake of his cover and to give the Order some kick in their complatency on going after the Death Eaters. I'm still pissed at Snape for performing Avada Kedavra... but... grr.
Guess we must wait 2+ years to find out the exiting conclusion of the Harry Potter saga.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-07-21 02:49 am (UTC)The Lupin and Tonks thing interests me solely because I have been very fond of Lupin since book 3. He's one of my second-tier favorites (along with Neville, Luna, and some others).
I'm very curious as to how Dumbledore's portrait will be treated. She's shown us so many of them throughout the books that it'd be hard for her to try to claim this one's different. We shall see, I guess.
Yeah, Harry and Ginny reminded me excessively of Spiderman, too. That was part of what seemed so unconvincing. "Uh, Ginny, I have something to say...hang on, I've got to cue up the DVD..."
I thought the same thing about the false-imprisonment stuff. Doug thinks I'm crazy, but I read it as a very clear comment on US policy.
And finally... if only Harry Potter and the Motherfucking Zombies were going to be the title of book 7. I would love to be able to create a mock cover for that. ;)
(no subject)
Date: 2005-07-21 02:53 am (UTC)Of all the things I'm looking forward to in the final book, Snape's full story is #1. Assuming we really do get a full story -- there'd better at least be something meaty.