Book Thread

madmadmad
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When I was a young teenager I used to read a lot of books but since several years ago I feel like I've been too busy and have had other things to do than to read proper fiction books. The last book I read outside of uni was Our Mathematical Universe by Max Tegmark, so a non-fiction book, which is what I seem to read if I read anything these days... and that was months ago...

When I was younger I loved Les Misérables, The Three Musketeers, The Count of Monte Cristo, Jane Eyre, Anna Karenina, Oscar Wilde's plays (and Dorian Gray), the Harry Potter series, The Dark is Rising (by Susan Cooper) series, The Lord of the Rings, Interview with the Vampire (had a big impact on me because I was thinking a lot about existential stuff and religion at the time), H.C. Andersen's stories were my favourites as a kid, April Witch by Majgull Axelsson, And I Don't Want to Live This Life by Deborah Spungen, Mio Min Mio and The Brother's Lionheart by Astrid Lindgren etc. are some of the books that have had an impact on me as a child.
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Philena
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Great thread! I love hearing everyone's different recommendations.
I am an obsessive person by nature (wonder how I wound up in the phandom?), and I tend to get attached to an author's particular writing style and just absorb all of their work. As a child, it was Madeleine L'Engle. Then Poe, Vonnegut, Steinbeck, Bill Bryson (a humorous travel writer), Mary Shelley, Toni Morrison, Palahniuk, Nabokav, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and now Dan Simmons. I like classics, surrealism, and fantasy.
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Despite being an old school bookworm (contemplating "book worm" knuckle tattoos (although I'd feel too much like I copied Frank Iero, I guess) ;) ) I love LOVE my Kindle - I was looking through it for some books to talk about and realised I had 17 (no exaggeration) books that I am currently part-way through. This is why I love the Kindle, so I don't have to carry several books around with me at all times.

There was a time I read 10-40 books a week (depending on length) but adulthood, parenthood, and fanfic all contributed to slow me down to 1 or 2. I'mma lurk this thread for some new ideas.
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timtam
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Not sure if this should go in the book thread but I just read spoilers for the Cursed Child and I don't even know what to do with myself. The plot is not what I expected. I'm really nervous that i'll hate it because the script format won't do it justice or I wont understand the characters actions because I can't understand their thoughts (like a novel) or see their expressions (like a play).

Hope that's not too spoilerly?
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timtam wrote:Not sure if this should go in the book thread but I just read spoilers for the Cursed Child and I don't even know what to do with myself. The plot is not what I expected. I'm really nervous that i'll hate it because the script format won't do it justice or I wont understand the characters actions because I can't understand their thoughts (like a novel) or see their expressions (like a play).

Hope that's not too spoilerly?
Haven't looked up any spoilers about it yet myself, will definitely hold off till both parts have had their first preview but even then idk if I want to spoil it. I've pre-ordered the script to read but have tickets to see it in November so I'm still struggling with the debate as to whether I should read or see it first :roll:
I'm trusting in JK Rowling that it'll be good, and the few tweets I saw about it said it was great so hopefully I won't be too disappointed
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mez29
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timtam wrote:Not sure if this should go in the book thread but I just read spoilers for the Cursed Child and I don't even know what to do with myself. The plot is not what I expected. I'm really nervous that i'll hate it because the script format won't do it justice or I wont understand the characters actions because I can't understand their thoughts (like a novel) or see their expressions (like a play).

Hope that's not too spoilerly?
I really like the sound of it (spoilers)
i wasn't so keen on the "big important story" aspect as I kinda thought it would be something pretty minor compared with the books. But I really like time travel/alternate universe plots. Kind of wish I'd tried getting tickets or something.
I can see the annoyance though, it's like JK herself is changing canon and that's a nightmare for fanfiction, among other things
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Okay so I've read the cursed child (didn't take me very long at all) and
yeah i didn't like it, all the spoilers were true and not any better in the book and i'm so disappointed
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Currently reading Cursed Child as I got it this morning, will be back with thoughts when I'm done :)
06/04/2016 - I found The Weakest Link :ninja:
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timtam
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bluebox-away wrote:Currently reading Cursed Child as I got it this morning, will be back with thoughts when I'm done :)
Please do! I'm loving reading everyone's opinions :)
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I've only read the spoilers, but not gonna waist money buying it. It seems like a not good fanfiction, it's not that bad, but when you think the same person that wrote the fantastic saga wrote that

I don't like how Harry acts, that's not Harry. I love Albus and Scorpius friendship :platonic:
The delphi thing is just stupid, the Cedric thing is just stupid.
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Okay I finished it. Wow there's a lot of emotions rattling around in my mind right now. I liked it but I also didn't like it? Idk. I went in knowing absolutely nothing and quite enjoyed it, but it does read a tad like fanfic. Is that just cause I've actually read fanfic where Albus and Scorpius are friends? Who knows. Anyhow I'm still excited to see the show, and would love an in-depth spoilery discussion about this but don't want to spoiler up the whole book thread :/
06/04/2016 - I found The Weakest Link :ninja:
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bluebox-away wrote:Okay I finished it. Wow there's a lot of emotions rattling around in my mind right now. I liked it but I also didn't like it? Idk. I went in knowing absolutely nothing and quite enjoyed it, but it does read a tad like fanfic. Is that just cause I've actually read fanfic where Albus and Scorpius are friends? Who knows. Anyhow I'm still excited to see the show, and would love an in-depth spoilery discussion about this but don't want to spoiler up the whole book thread :/
Please , I love spoilers and want to know if it's worth it the money and my memory of hp ( as I didn't like the last pages, regarding the future harry). I would suggest to open another thread for this, what's one more. :D
English is not my first language: half of the mistakes are typos ,half are me
sia
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I've also just read Cursed child and I may or may not have a very legal digital copy that I am willing to share if anyone is interested :)
First I have to say I went in completly unspoilered and I definitely recommend doing so
.
.
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I never read hp fanfiction so keep that in mind. I can say I really liked it, in a way I also really liked the new star wars, it was definitely fanservicy but in a good way, it didn't go overboard and it was also very action-packed and good with introducing new and interesting characters. I would probably liked it more if it didn't had time travel but it was still nice and I wouldn't mind a sequel or a fully fledged book. I think it did pretty good in capturing harry potter story feeling. The only thing I would do differently if I could would be that I would see the theater performance first. It sounds pretty fantastic, I am wondering how would be able to do on stage half of what is described in the book.
timtam
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bluebox-away wrote:Okay I finished it. Wow there's a lot of emotions rattling around in my mind right now. I liked it but I also didn't like it? Idk. I went in knowing absolutely nothing and quite enjoyed it, but it does read a tad like fanfic. Is that just cause I've actually read fanfic where Albus and Scorpius are friends? Who knows. Anyhow I'm still excited to see the show, and would love an in-depth spoilery discussion about this but don't want to spoiler up the whole book thread :/
'

Just put it under spoiler tags :P
majitzu wrote: I don't like how Harry acts, that's not Harry. I love Albus and Scorpius friendship :platonic:
The delphi thing is just stupid, the Cedric thing is just stupid.
Yeah this basically sums up my entrie feelings on it haha

Okay so i didn't like it much and I am incredibly disappointed because I am a HUGE harry potter fan. I knew all the spoilers beforehand so I went in with very very low expectations and still didn't like it. I personally think that if I hadn't know the spoilers beforehand I would have been both disappointed and angry.

Here's some things I did like though (MASSIVE SPOILERS BEWARE)
- Albus and Scorpius' friendship is really lovely - I'd argue that there's possibly more there as well
- I liked that Albus was in Slytherin
- I liked Scorpius although some times his lines were cringe
- Hermione being minister for magic
- The friendship moments between Harry, Ron and Hermione - good to see they are still good friends
- That Harry's traumatic childhood and trauma from the war is explored
- Harry and Ginny's relationship was super sweet and supportive - same with Ron and Hermione
- Random bits and pieces - Ron drinking firewhisky with Neville, Ron telling Harry that he might just be getting old, 'Sirius Black and his cronies', Ron attempting to attack Draco for insulting Hermione (I really like Ron okay), Hagrid's cameo at the end
Things I didn't like (this is a long list...)
- The fact that Voldemort has a daughter
- The time travel works differently to what was in the third book and honestly it's just a weak, cheap thrills way to make a plot
- Albus - wanted to empathise with him but it was really, really hard. The script format did nothing to help this. The fact that Harry has no problem with Lily or James made me think it was just Albus being an idiot and bad characterisation of Harry. Considering that Albus wasn't even that nice to his best friend (which Scorp pulls him up on)
- The trolley witch- I think it was supposed to be funny but it was just ridiculous
- The way Harry treated Albus seemed very out of character for me. I think him struggling with parenthood is realistic but it went way too far. Would Harry ever say he wishes Albus wasn't his son? I have a massive problem with this
- Harry was basically completely ooc the whole book - no trademark Harry snark
- Ron was reduced to comic relief who ate a lot
- Cedric Diggory becoming evil because he was humiliated - this is the kid who helped people at every turn and was going to willingly give away the triwizard tournament to Harry with no resentment.
- Snape's appearance made me want to puke - that was clear fanservice yuck
- Hermione and Ron's other kid Hugo isn't even mentioned by name. Literally there is one line that says 'their two children'. He's not even in the opening chapter which is based on the epilogue where actually does appear
- Things seemed to be solved and tied up far too easily. I found the bit at the end where Albus and Scorpius were figuring out the blanket and love potion thing was too easy. Scorpius just happened to have this knowledge did he?
- The script format made everything seem rushed
I have many, many many more complaints about it. I'm trying to enjoy the good bits but it's just ruined by the bad bits. I think if you are a big fan you should still give it a read. Just go in with low expectations. I expected so much more and I am incredibly disappointed. A lot of people have been saying that it's much better on the stage and I should stop judging it but they can go away because I'm never going to see it on the stage and if this is such as problem then they shouldn't have made it such an exclusivity way to see Harry Potter (I'm still annoyed at the exclusively of this format if you can't tell)
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timtam wrote:
bluebox-away wrote:
Just put it under spoiler tags :P
majitzu wrote: I don't like how Harry acts, that's not Harry. I love Albus and Scorpius friendship :platonic:
The delphi thing is just stupid, the Cedric thing is just stupid.
Yeah this basically sums up my entrie feelings on it haha

Okay so i didn't like it much and I am incredibly disappointed because I am a HUGE harry potter fan. I knew all the spoilers beforehand so I went in with very very low expectations and still didn't like it. I personally think that if I hadn't know the spoilers beforehand I would have been both disappointed and angry.

Here's some things I did like though (MASSIVE SPOILERS BEWARE)
- Albus and Scorpius' friendship is really lovely - I'd argue that there's possibly more there as well
- I liked that Albus was in Slytherin
- I liked Scorpius although some times his lines were cringe
- Hermione being minister for magic
- The friendship moments between Harry, Ron and Hermione - good to see they are still good friends
- That Harry's traumatic childhood and trauma from the war is explored
- Harry and Ginny's relationship was super sweet and supportive - same with Ron and Hermione
- Random bits and pieces - Ron drinking firewhisky with Neville, Ron telling Harry that he might just be getting old, 'Sirius Black and his cronies', Ron attempting to attack Draco for insulting Hermione (I really like Ron okay), Hagrid's cameo at the end
Things I didn't like (this is a long list...)
- The fact that Voldemort has a daughter
- The time travel works differently to what was in the third book and honestly it's just a weak, cheap thrills way to make a plot
- Albus - wanted to empathise with him but it was really, really hard. The script format did nothing to help this. The fact that Harry has no problem with Lily or James made me think it was just Albus being an idiot and bad characterisation of Harry. Considering that Albus wasn't even that nice to his best friend (which Scorp pulls him up on)
- The trolley witch- I think it was supposed to be funny but it was just ridiculous
- The way Harry treated Albus seemed very out of character for me. I think him struggling with parenthood is realistic but it went way too far. Would Harry ever say he wishes Albus wasn't his son? I have a massive problem with this
- Harry was basically completely ooc the whole book - no trademark Harry snark
- Ron was reduced to comic relief who ate a lot
- Cedric Diggory becoming evil because he was humiliated - this is the kid who helped people at every turn and was going to willingly give away the triwizard tournament to Harry with no resentment.
- Snape's appearance made me want to puke - that was clear fanservice yuck
- Hermione and Ron's other kid Hugo isn't even mentioned by name. Literally there is one line that says 'their two children'. He's not even in the opening chapter which is based on the epilogue where actually does appear
- Things seemed to be solved and tied up far too easily. I found the bit at the end where Albus and Scorpius were figuring out the blanket and love potion thing was too easy. Scorpius just happened to have this knowledge did he?
- The script format made everything seem rushed
I have many, many many more complaints about it. I'm trying to enjoy the good bits but it's just ruined by the bad bits. I think if you are a big fan you should still give it a read. Just go in with low expectations. I expected so much more and I am incredibly disappointed. A lot of people have been saying that it's much better on the stage and I should stop judging it but they can go away because I'm never going to see it on the stage and if this is such as problem then they shouldn't have made it such an exclusivity way to see Harry Potter (I'm still annoyed at the exclusively of this format if you can't tell)
It's funny because my feelings about it are pretty similar to yours with a few exceptions but to me it's still somehow weights on the positive side :D
I was actually pretty excited about Voldemort having a daughter, it did made sense to me in a way. Guy loved his heritage and books only talk about his inability to have romantic relationship, not sexual, and he was pretty flirty when he was young.

And I think a lot of stuff Albus did can be blamed on Delphi, troubles started after he talked to her for the first time, and also the guy is angsty teenager and slytherin, what's the point of him being in that house if he has no right characteristics

And the whole thing of Harry being ooc, I guess that is one of the main themes of the book, that he grew up and became the boring adult, who was too wraped up in his job and other stuff that were happening that he forgot about his invisible middle son with whom he didn't share a lot of interests. Basically he lost himself a bit.

Another thing I have problem with was that I think a story was written with both the books and the movies in mind instead of only books. I don't have any good examples of that, it was just a feeling I had when i was reading
timtam
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sia wrote:
It's funny because my feelings about it are pretty similar to yours with a few exceptions but to me it's still somehow weights on the positive side :D
I was actually pretty excited about Voldemort having a daughter, it did made sense to me in a way. Guy loved his heritage and books only talk about his inability to have romantic relationship, not sexual, and he was pretty flirty when he was young.

And I think a lot of stuff Albus did can be blamed on Delphi, troubles started after he talked to her for the first time, and also the guy is angsty teenager and slytherin, what's the point of him being in that house if he has no right characteristics

And the whole thing of Harry being ooc, I guess that is one of the main themes of the book, that he grew up and became the boring adult, who was too wraped up in his job and other stuff that were happening that he forgot about his invisible middle son with whom he didn't share a lot of interests. Basically he lost himself a bit.

Another thing I have problem with was that I think a story was written with both the books and the movies in mind instead of only books. I don't have any good examples of that, it was just a feeling I had when i was reading
Haha I totally respect that people can have different opinions about it. I think it's going to be a really divisive book.
- That's a good point about Voldemort. I think he would be interested in continuing Slytherin's line. I just feel that when he would have conceived her he would have still been convinced he was invincible (horcuxes were mostly intact). I have no problem with Voldemort being sexual (it does weird me out a bit tho :lol:) I also think Voldemort was too self absorbed to want a child. I think he might think of a child as a threat as well, especially one related to him with his 'pure' blood. I just don't see the purpose for Voldemort beyond continuing his family line? I also can't get over the logistics of how she was born and brought up? Brought up by the Rowle's - a serious Death Eater family who really should have been in Azkaban during her childhood. Its just the play would have worked fine without it...

- I don't agree about it being blamed on Delphi. Albus met her when he was nearly 14 and by then he already despised his father and had a terrible time at school. Albus' character really didn't gel with me. I'm glad he got berated by Scorpius and McGonagall for being self absorbed though

- I like the idea that Harry struggles with parenthood. He does have any role models so it wouldn't be as easy as others for him. However, I didn't like that way it was done. Why didn't Harry have problems with any of his other children? If anything Harry should identify more with Albus, because Harry too was ignored and isolated as a child.

- I just think that Harry was ooc as in they took all of Harry's not so good traits like his temper, stubbornness etc and put them to 100% and then ignored all the nice parts of his personality. I understand he would have grown as a person, but if anything he got more of a temper and more stubborn when really you think it would be the other way around

- I totally agree with that feeling! There's a line at the start where Rose jokes about how Scorpius has a nose so he can't be Voldemort's son. Which I laughed at but then realised that in the books Voldemort has a nose, it's only in the movies he doesn't.
I'm just a really big fan of HP. I know the books back to front. I know every minor detail about it so when inaccuracies or bits where he tried to edit the original timeline I was like 'no that doesn't work'. It really ruined the experience for me. I think people who are just regular fans will enjoy it more than I did.
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timtam wrote:
majitzu wrote: I don't like how Harry acts, that's not Harry. I love Albus and Scorpius friendship :platonic:
The delphi thing is just stupid, the Cedric thing is just stupid.
Yeah this basically sums up my entrie feelings on it haha

Okay so i didn't like it much and I am incredibly disappointed because I am a HUGE harry potter fan. I knew all the spoilers beforehand so I went in with very very low expectations and still didn't like it. I personally think that if I hadn't know the spoilers beforehand I would have been both disappointed and angry.

Here's some things I did like though (MASSIVE SPOILERS BEWARE)
- Albus and Scorpius' friendship is really lovely - I'd argue that there's possibly more there as well
- I liked that Albus was in Slytherin
- I liked Scorpius although some times his lines were cringe
- Hermione being minister for magic
- The friendship moments between Harry, Ron and Hermione - good to see they are still good friends
- That Harry's traumatic childhood and trauma from the war is explored
- Harry and Ginny's relationship was super sweet and supportive - same with Ron and Hermione
- Random bits and pieces - Ron drinking firewhisky with Neville, Ron telling Harry that he might just be getting old, 'Sirius Black and his cronies', Ron attempting to attack Draco for insulting Hermione (I really like Ron okay), Hagrid's cameo at the end
Things I didn't like (this is a long list...)
- The fact that Voldemort has a daughter
- The time travel works differently to what was in the third book and honestly it's just a weak, cheap thrills way to make a plot
- Albus - wanted to empathise with him but it was really, really hard. The script format did nothing to help this. The fact that Harry has no problem with Lily or James made me think it was just Albus being an idiot and bad characterisation of Harry. Considering that Albus wasn't even that nice to his best friend (which Scorp pulls him up on)
- The trolley witch- I think it was supposed to be funny but it was just ridiculous
- The way Harry treated Albus seemed very out of character for me. I think him struggling with parenthood is realistic but it went way too far. Would Harry ever say he wishes Albus wasn't his son? I have a massive problem with this
- Harry was basically completely ooc the whole book - no trademark Harry snark
- Ron was reduced to comic relief who ate a lot
- Cedric Diggory becoming evil because he was humiliated - this is the kid who helped people at every turn and was going to willingly give away the triwizard tournament to Harry with no resentment.
- Snape's appearance made me want to puke - that was clear fanservice yuck
- Hermione and Ron's other kid Hugo isn't even mentioned by name. Literally there is one line that says 'their two children'. He's not even in the opening chapter which is based on the epilogue where actually does appear
- Things seemed to be solved and tied up far too easily. I found the bit at the end where Albus and Scorpius were figuring out the blanket and love potion thing was too easy. Scorpius just happened to have this knowledge did he?
- The script format made everything seem rushed
I have many, many many more complaints about it. I'm trying to enjoy the good bits but it's just ruined by the bad bits. I think if you are a big fan you should still give it a read. Just go in with low expectations. I expected so much more and I am incredibly disappointed. A lot of people have been saying that it's much better on the stage and I should stop judging it but they can go away because I'm never going to see it on the stage and if this is such as problem then they shouldn't have made it such an exclusivity way to see Harry Potter (I'm still annoyed at the exclusively of this format if you can't tell)
Yep I agree with almost everything you said timtam, I liked a lot of the details you mentioned, but found the overarching plot so strange that the whole things has really disappointed me. I'm going to see it in November so that might change my opinion of it a bit, but generally the plot just sucked ..? :sideeye:
The timetravel bothered me but if they did it well it could have still worked, the main issue I have besides Voldemort having a daughter (completely ridiculous he would not have slept with Bellatrix but anyway) and Cedric turning into a Death Eater (because he was humiliated???? Just no) is that the whole thing felt like at the end nothing had really changed? They went back in time and messed stuff up and then fixed it and fundamentally nothing had changed, it was all kind of for nothing? I guess it felt like they were trying to capitalize on how well GoF did with the Triwizard stuff and then came up with a convoluted plot to make it vaguely make sense. And don't even get me started on Harry randomly being a shitty dad, but only to Albus. I mean really. He might not be the best dad in the world and he's certainly dealt with a lot of trauma in his life but he really would not be that sucky and out of touch at all. Also, since when are Draco and the trio on first name terms? That was so jarring to me..
Oh and Hermione being MoM was fantastic, I still love her and I think she's great.
Tldr. I am very conflicted about this because I wanted so badly to love it and imo it just wasn't as good as the books.
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mez29
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I thought it was pretty good
randomly ordered thoughts:

I'm a sucker for time travel/alternate universe plots so I lapped that up. Wish we could have seen more of the alternate universes (I was really intrigued by "staid" Ron) but I know that wouldn't have been that relevant so I can live. Likewise with seeing more of the other children, everyday Hogwarts life, etc.

It's kind of a shame that it was in the script format—I always think scripts seem really hammy when you just read through them, they haven't got the nuances of prose. Especially when it could have been JKR's prose, which I find so clear and well-crafted. You'd have thought they might have made a proper book out of it, if only to rake in that sweet cash (but I guess they're doing that already).

The whole first part ending on "Voldemort Day???!?!?!" I thought was a bit silly.
sia wrote:I am wondering how would be able to do on stage half of what is described in the book.
same! When it says things like "Harry/Voldemort's hair begins to sprout" …

I liked how it brought up Harry's childhood and how he got over things after his various Voldemort-induced traumas, even if it was a bit brief.
bluebox-away wrote:the main issue I have besides Voldemort having a daughter (completely ridiculous he would not have slept with Bellatrix but anyway) and Cedric turning into a Death Eater (because he was humiliated???? Just no) is that the whole thing felt like at the end nothing had really changed? They went back in time and messed stuff up and then fixed it and fundamentally nothing had changed, it was all kind of for nothing?
I agree on Voldemort and Cedric, I think they needed to be explained more to feel convincing. I liked the "nothing has changed" thing though. It reminded me of the Simpsons: lots of stuff can happen and then in the end it's back to normal ready for the next one. The result is that there haven't been any really significant changes to canon, which means everyone can keep imagining the potterverse in pretty much the same way as they did before. I find that kind of comforting, idk. Best of both worlds: major things take place so it's an interesting story, but we don't have to change the way we remember it in the end.

Also does prof McGonagall not want to retire yet? she's been through a lot
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bluebox-away wrote: Yep I agree with almost everything you said timtam, I liked a lot of the details you mentioned, but found the overarching plot so strange that the whole things has really disappointed me. I'm going to see it in November so that might change my opinion of it a bit, but generally the plot just sucked ..? :sideeye:
The timetravel bothered me but if they did it well it could have still worked, the main issue I have besides Voldemort having a daughter (completely ridiculous he would not have slept with Bellatrix but anyway) and Cedric turning into a Death Eater (because he was humiliated???? Just no) is that the whole thing felt like at the end nothing had really changed? They went back in time and messed stuff up and then fixed it and fundamentally nothing had changed, it was all kind of for nothing? I guess it felt like they were trying to capitalize on how well GoF did with the Triwizard stuff and then came up with a convoluted plot to make it vaguely make sense. And don't even get me started on Harry randomly being a shitty dad, but only to Albus. I mean really. He might not be the best dad in the world and he's certainly dealt with a lot of trauma in his life but he really would not be that sucky and out of touch at all. Also, since when are Draco and the trio on first name terms? That was so jarring to me..
Oh and Hermione being MoM was fantastic, I still love her and I think she's great.
Tldr. I am very conflicted about this because I wanted so badly to love it and imo it just wasn't as good as the books.
Yep I agree with basically everything you just said.
You are totally right about nothing having changed. The only thing that really happened was that Albus learned not to be so bratty and maybe Harry learned to be a better parent I dunno. I feel like I didn't really learn anything new either? Like yeah Hermione is MoM, and the trolley witch has claws (also another wtf) but I didn't learn anything new about the wizarding world? Is Hogwarts the same? Has Hermione been working towards magical equality? What's new in this magical world I wanna know! I found the first name basis jarring as well, I did just chalk it up to them being older and more professional. Them calling professor McGonagall Minerva really got to me though! :lol:
I think you'll enjoy it a bit more when you see it in person. I didn't like it but I look at the cast/set photos of all the time and I think it looks fun. I think some plots will be better on the stage as well.
mez29 wrote:I thought it was pretty good
randomly ordered thoughts:

I'm a sucker for time travel/alternate universe plots so I lapped that up. Wish we could have seen more of the alternate universes (I was really intrigued by "staid" Ron) but I know that wouldn't have been that relevant so I can live. Likewise with seeing more of the other children, everyday Hogwarts life, etc.

It's kind of a shame that it was in the script format—I always think scripts seem really hammy when you just read through them, they haven't got the nuances of prose. Especially when it could have been JKR's prose, which I find so clear and well-crafted. You'd have thought they might have made a proper book out of it, if only to rake in that sweet cash (but I guess they're doing that already).

The whole first part ending on "Voldemort Day???!?!?!" I thought was a bit silly.
sia wrote:I am wondering how would be able to do on stage half of what is described in the book.
same! When it says things like "Harry/Voldemort's hair begins to sprout" …

I liked how it brought up Harry's childhood and how he got over things after his various Voldemort-induced traumas, even if it was a bit brief.

Also does prof McGonagall not want to retire yet? she's been through a lot
I thought the evil timeline was just plain terrible. Voldemort Day, The Scorpion King and the Blood Ball. That was straight outta fanfiction

I agree about it exploring Harry's trauma. I'm really glad they did that. I even didn't mind the way they executed it either.

Also yes to Prof McGonagall. You'd think by the time James Sirius Potter came to Hogwarts she'd be outta there. I personally think she's probably had enough of Potter's causing trouble! And Weasleys!
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I've been missing Cursed Child conversations?! Massively agree with everything timtam and bluebox-away have said here, and also:
While he was hilarious in the show on reflection Ron seemed very one dimensional, he rarely did anything serious, just talked about food for the vast majority of it, in serious situations? The one thing I do remember is him being impressed that Albus had used the love potion he gave him to get a date with Delphie, which. Ew. Do not get me started on love potions.

I especially liked your point about wanting to know more about the actual Wizarding World, timtam, beyond Hermione getting to MoM and Harry to head of department super fast, what's actually happened? What has that influenced? What happened to the Malfoy family after the war, we heard about Astoria - sad she's dead, btw, I was kind of excited to get to know her - but what happened to Narcissa?

Also lol at the idea that the trolley witch, with no apparent powers beyond weird fingers, could stop either the twins or Sirius and James from getting off that train if Albus and Scorpius managed it. Although I'll take that the others tried in their first or second years and were too scared to try again afterwards. I have the best mental image of James and Sirius terrified of the trolley witch every year now, with Remus just having no idea why they're acting so weird!

re: Albus and Scorpius - did that ever feel a bit baity for anyone else? The whole dialogue of 'you're the best person I know... you make me stronger' from Albus to Scorpius in that super cute scene, then Scorpius is still pursuing Rose, who apparently hates him, right through to the end - wow how impressive and dedicated and not at all annoying and possibly creepy *cough*justlikeSnape*cough* - idk. I doubt it was intentional really, but Albus/Delphie and Rose/Scorpius just seemed odd in the wake of Scorpius and Albus being so close and cute. Stupid heteronormativity.
But yeah, there were good bits too, and the staging was amazing, definitely worth a watch if you can! (hahaha i'm literally going to be late to work b/c of this oops /o\ /o\ I have a lot of feelings!)
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internetakeover wrote:I've been missing Cursed Child conversations?! Massively agree with everything timtam and bluebox-away have said here, and also:
While he was hilarious in the show on reflection Ron seemed very one dimensional, he rarely did anything serious, just talked about food for the vast majority of it, in serious situations? The one thing I do remember is him being impressed that Albus had used the love potion he gave him to get a date with Delphie, which. Ew. Do not get me started on love potions.

I especially liked your point about wanting to know more about the actual Wizarding World, timtam, beyond Hermione getting to MoM and Harry to head of department super fast, what's actually happened? What has that influenced? What happened to the Malfoy family after the war, we heard about Astoria - sad she's dead, btw, I was kind of excited to get to know her - but what happened to Narcissa?

Also lol at the idea that the trolley witch, with no apparent powers beyond weird fingers, could stop either the twins or Sirius and James from getting off that train if Albus and Scorpius managed it. Although I'll take that the others tried in their first or second years and were too scared to try again afterwards. I have the best mental image of James and Sirius terrified of the trolley witch every year now, with Remus just having no idea why they're acting so weird!

re: Albus and Scorpius - did that ever feel a bit baity for anyone else? The whole dialogue of 'you're the best person I know... you make me stronger' from Albus to Scorpius in that super cute scene, then Scorpius is still pursuing Rose, who apparently hates him, right through to the end - wow how impressive and dedicated and not at all annoying and possibly creepy *cough*justlikeSnape*cough* - idk. I doubt it was intentional really, but Albus/Delphie and Rose/Scorpius just seemed odd in the wake of Scorpius and Albus being so close and cute. Stupid heteronormativity.
But yeah, there were good bits too, and the staging was amazing, definitely worth a watch if you can! (hahaha i'm literally going to be late to work b/c of this oops /o\ /o\ I have a lot of feelings!)
Everything you said is so true!
Ugh don't get me started on Ron. He's my favourite and they kinda ruined him. That line from the epilogue where he says 'it's me i'm extremely famous' and they changed it to 'it's me i'm extremely famous. Everyone knows of my legendary nose jokes' was not only completely cringe but ruined a good canon line. His humour was sort of all over the place. It seemed a bit more like George and Fred Weasley humour than Ron humour. Ron's humour usually has a bit more snark and wit to it. While I liked the references to him co-owning a joke shop I always thought that he wouldn't necessarily co own it and make joke items but more support George. Maybe with the more boring stuff like paperwork or maybe even work with the more defensive magic aspect. Him making skiving snackboxes really pulled me out of the story tbh.

Also yeah Ron nearly died as a consequence of taking a love potion in his 6th year. I mean it did help him break up with Lavender but all the same it was an odd choice. Ron giving James the pink comb was probably more his style - a little Fred and George again though. I think they were trying to make him more 'dad' humour rather than Ron humour.

I know! Where is Narcissa? She's gotta still be around somewhere? It was clear that Lucius didn't like Astoria but also Lucius probably went to Azkaban for a little bit so he has no place to judge. Again no mention of this. You'd think that if Lucius did go to Azkaban then Scorpius would mention it. Narcissa isn't a great person but I can't see her abandoning Draco or Scorpius, especially after Astoria died. I'm really interested in the family differences between Albus and Scorpius. Albus has all these family problems and yet Scorpius is mostly fine with his family. Whether that's because Draco and Astoria did a good job bringing Scorpius up and Harry just sucked? I refuse to believe that.

Also yes to the mental image of James and Sirius being frightened of the trolley witch. The only way I can deal with that is with that image. Especially since kids were dragged off the train in the 7th book and the trolley witch doesn't mention trying and failing to stop that.

Yeah Albus and Scorpius is baity. There's a lot of talk of heartbreak, making each other stronger and Scorpius being jealous. You could argue that the jealously is over Delphi/Albus friendship but it's obviously not. Yeah Scorpius/Rose was just shoehorned in there. It was terrible. Rose wasn't even that nice to him in the book so her popping in and being expected to roll with it? No. Also Albus/Delphi is weird af. Delphi is 22. I'm sure it's supposed to be like a school boy crush for Albus but it's weird to read.

Okay this got really long. I'm super passionate about hp so it was bound to happen!
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timtam wrote:
internetakeover wrote:I've been missing Cursed Child conversations?! Massively agree with everything timtam and bluebox-away have said here, and also:
While he was hilarious in the show on reflection Ron seemed very one dimensional, he rarely did anything serious, just talked about food for the vast majority of it, in serious situations? The one thing I do remember is him being impressed that Albus had used the love potion he gave him to get a date with Delphie, which. Ew. Do not get me started on love potions.

I especially liked your point about wanting to know more about the actual Wizarding World, timtam, beyond Hermione getting to MoM and Harry to head of department super fast, what's actually happened? What has that influenced? What happened to the Malfoy family after the war, we heard about Astoria - sad she's dead, btw, I was kind of excited to get to know her - but what happened to Narcissa?

Also lol at the idea that the trolley witch, with no apparent powers beyond weird fingers, could stop either the twins or Sirius and James from getting off that train if Albus and Scorpius managed it. Although I'll take that the others tried in their first or second years and were too scared to try again afterwards. I have the best mental image of James and Sirius terrified of the trolley witch every year now, with Remus just having no idea why they're acting so weird!

re: Albus and Scorpius - did that ever feel a bit baity for anyone else? The whole dialogue of 'you're the best person I know... you make me stronger' from Albus to Scorpius in that super cute scene, then Scorpius is still pursuing Rose, who apparently hates him, right through to the end - wow how impressive and dedicated and not at all annoying and possibly creepy *cough*justlikeSnape*cough* - idk. I doubt it was intentional really, but Albus/Delphie and Rose/Scorpius just seemed odd in the wake of Scorpius and Albus being so close and cute. Stupid heteronormativity.
But yeah, there were good bits too, and the staging was amazing, definitely worth a watch if you can! (hahaha i'm literally going to be late to work b/c of this oops /o\ /o\ I have a lot of feelings!)
Everything you said is so true!
Ugh don't get me started on Ron. He's my favourite and they kinda ruined him. That line from the epilogue where he says 'it's me i'm extremely famous' and they changed it to 'it's me i'm extremely famous. Everyone knows of my legendary nose jokes' was not only completely cringe but ruined a good canon line. His humour was sort of all over the place. It seemed a bit more like George and Fred Weasley humour than Ron humour. Ron's humour usually has a bit more snark and wit to it. While I liked the references to him co-owning a joke shop I always thought that he wouldn't necessarily co own it and make joke items but more support George. Maybe with the more boring stuff like paperwork or maybe even work with the more defensive magic aspect. Him making skiving snackboxes really pulled me out of the story tbh.

Also yeah Ron nearly died as a consequence of taking a love potion in his 6th year. I mean it did help him break up with Lavender but all the same it was an odd choice. Ron giving James the pink comb was probably more his style - a little Fred and George again though. I think they were trying to make him more 'dad' humour rather than Ron humour.

I know! Where is Narcissa? She's gotta still be around somewhere? It was clear that Lucius didn't like Astoria but also Lucius probably went to Azkaban for a little bit so he has no place to judge. Again no mention of this. You'd think that if Lucius did go to Azkaban then Scorpius would mention it. Narcissa isn't a great person but I can't see her abandoning Draco or Scorpius, especially after Astoria died. I'm really interested in the family differences between Albus and Scorpius. Albus has all these family problems and yet Scorpius is mostly fine with his family. Whether that's because Draco and Astoria did a good job bringing Scorpius up and Harry just sucked? I refuse to believe that.

Also yes to the mental image of James and Sirius being frightened of the trolley witch. The only way I can deal with that is with that image. Especially since kids were dragged off the train in the 7th book and the trolley witch doesn't mention trying and failing to stop that.

Yeah Albus and Scorpius is baity. There's a lot of talk of heartbreak, making each other stronger and Scorpius being jealous. You could argue that the jealously is over Delphi/Albus friendship but it's obviously not. Yeah Scorpius/Rose was just shoehorned in there. It was terrible. Rose wasn't even that nice to him in the book so her popping in and being expected to roll with it? No. Also Albus/Delphi is weird af. Delphi is 22. I'm sure it's supposed to be like a school boy crush for Albus but it's weird to read.

Okay this got really long. I'm super passionate about hp so it was bound to happen!
Aw, I'm sorry they ruined your fave! In the show live it kind of worked, the actor was really good, but thinking back on it now you're right that it was all over the place!

Also that just reminded me that I knew the Death Eater Cedric spoiler going in, and at the interval in the first half was talking to someone who said Cedric was her favourite character! Managed not to give anything away, but ouch, that's got to hurt. I was furious enough just as a fellow Hufflepuff - though admittedly I am ridiculously House proud and have always had a massive soft spot for Cedric (why so few Cedric/Harry fics?).

Yeah, I have so many Malfoy family questions, that's a great list! There's no way Narcissa wouldn't have been there or at least contacting Draco to fight for her grandson, especially after Astoria died, as you said. Family seems so important to the Malfoys, and the Blacks for that matter, I just can't imagine it. Also would have killed to see a Narcissa/Minerva scene arguing over access to the castle or something!

Good point about the 7th year stuff, you'd think that would be a massive failing in the trolley witch's mind, I hadn't thought of that!

I'm glad you agree about Albus/Scorpius/Delphie/Rose stuff, too! Albus/Delphie didn't even feel that convincing? I agree that it's clearly meant to be a school boy crush, but it feels to me like they just assumed that 14 y/o boy and older, tattooed, cool girl would be such a clear instant 'schoolboy crush' recipe in people's minds that they didn't bother putting any effort in to actually show it? And therefore whatever references/hints there are feel out of place almost? but idk.
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The Cursed Child book came out while I was in London so I read it with my friend who had reserved it like the loyal fan she is. We're both huge Harry Potter fans actually, but we didn't like it. At all.
I like Albus being in Slytherin and I love him being best friends with Scorpius (who is a great character). It was nice to sew Harry's trauma being explored as well. But those are pretty much the only positives about this story for me.

I hate the way the Golden Trio acts, like that wasn't a case of 'they got older' that was just blatant OOC behavior to fit the bad plot. Poor Ron was reduced to comic relief just like his awful movie characterization, AND HE GAVE HIS NEPHEW A LOVE POTION. Nah fuck that. And I'm genuinely upset at the thought of him and Hermione raising a kid like Rose who was insufferable and just really awful. The bit about how she and Albus had to be careful about choosing the right friends because of whose children they were had some real Draco Malfoy vibes going on. Especially Albus choosing Scorpius as his friend (someone who Rose didn't approve of) gave me flashbacks to the first book where Harry chooses Ron as his friend (someone who Draco didn't approve of).

The time travel stuff seemed all over the place and pointless by the end of the story, the Voldemort Day timeline was especially eyeroll inducing. Stuff about Delphi's origins was ridiculous and something straight out of fanfic. Cedric becoming a Death Eater because he was humiliated was some dumbassery at it's finest. And I'm like the only person who didn't care for Hermione being MoM... All she seemed to do was paperwork and shit, while it was established previously by Rowling that she took an activist approach in her previous jobs at the Department for Magical Creatures and later the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Why would the activist Hermione want a job like MoM that's more about 'power' than about changing the world for the better?

Also I rarely ever call something queerbaiting, but damn I just read an entire book about two teenage boys crushing on each other yet in the end I still got onesided Scorpius/Rose shoved down my throat. Scorpius honey, please love yourself.
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internetakeover wrote:
timtam wrote:
internetakeover wrote:I've been missing Cursed Child conversations?! Massively agree with everything timtam and bluebox-away have said here, and also:
While he was hilarious in the show on reflection Ron seemed very one dimensional, he rarely did anything serious, just talked about food for the vast majority of it, in serious situations? The one thing I do remember is him being impressed that Albus had used the love potion he gave him to get a date with Delphie, which. Ew. Do not get me started on love potions.

I especially liked your point about wanting to know more about the actual Wizarding World, timtam, beyond Hermione getting to MoM and Harry to head of department super fast, what's actually happened? What has that influenced? What happened to the Malfoy family after the war, we heard about Astoria - sad she's dead, btw, I was kind of excited to get to know her - but what happened to Narcissa?

Also lol at the idea that the trolley witch, with no apparent powers beyond weird fingers, could stop either the twins or Sirius and James from getting off that train if Albus and Scorpius managed it. Although I'll take that the others tried in their first or second years and were too scared to try again afterwards. I have the best mental image of James and Sirius terrified of the trolley witch every year now, with Remus just having no idea why they're acting so weird!

re: Albus and Scorpius - did that ever feel a bit baity for anyone else? The whole dialogue of 'you're the best person I know... you make me stronger' from Albus to Scorpius in that super cute scene, then Scorpius is still pursuing Rose, who apparently hates him, right through to the end - wow how impressive and dedicated and not at all annoying and possibly creepy *cough*justlikeSnape*cough* - idk. I doubt it was intentional really, but Albus/Delphie and Rose/Scorpius just seemed odd in the wake of Scorpius and Albus being so close and cute. Stupid heteronormativity.
But yeah, there were good bits too, and the staging was amazing, definitely worth a watch if you can! (hahaha i'm literally going to be late to work b/c of this oops /o\ /o\ I have a lot of feelings!)
Everything you said is so true!
Ugh don't get me started on Ron. He's my favourite and they kinda ruined him. That line from the epilogue where he says 'it's me i'm extremely famous' and they changed it to 'it's me i'm extremely famous. Everyone knows of my legendary nose jokes' was not only completely cringe but ruined a good canon line. His humour was sort of all over the place. It seemed a bit more like George and Fred Weasley humour than Ron humour. Ron's humour usually has a bit more snark and wit to it. While I liked the references to him co-owning a joke shop I always thought that he wouldn't necessarily co own it and make joke items but more support George. Maybe with the more boring stuff like paperwork or maybe even work with the more defensive magic aspect. Him making skiving snackboxes really pulled me out of the story tbh.

Also yeah Ron nearly died as a consequence of taking a love potion in his 6th year. I mean it did help him break up with Lavender but all the same it was an odd choice. Ron giving James the pink comb was probably more his style - a little Fred and George again though. I think they were trying to make him more 'dad' humour rather than Ron humour.

I know! Where is Narcissa? She's gotta still be around somewhere? It was clear that Lucius didn't like Astoria but also Lucius probably went to Azkaban for a little bit so he has no place to judge. Again no mention of this. You'd think that if Lucius did go to Azkaban then Scorpius would mention it. Narcissa isn't a great person but I can't see her abandoning Draco or Scorpius, especially after Astoria died. I'm really interested in the family differences between Albus and Scorpius. Albus has all these family problems and yet Scorpius is mostly fine with his family. Whether that's because Draco and Astoria did a good job bringing Scorpius up and Harry just sucked? I refuse to believe that.

Also yes to the mental image of James and Sirius being frightened of the trolley witch. The only way I can deal with that is with that image. Especially since kids were dragged off the train in the 7th book and the trolley witch doesn't mention trying and failing to stop that.

Yeah Albus and Scorpius is baity. There's a lot of talk of heartbreak, making each other stronger and Scorpius being jealous. You could argue that the jealously is over Delphi/Albus friendship but it's obviously not. Yeah Scorpius/Rose was just shoehorned in there. It was terrible. Rose wasn't even that nice to him in the book so her popping in and being expected to roll with it? No. Also Albus/Delphi is weird af. Delphi is 22. I'm sure it's supposed to be like a school boy crush for Albus but it's weird to read.

Okay this got really long. I'm super passionate about hp so it was bound to happen!
Aw, I'm sorry they ruined your fave! In the show live it kind of worked, the actor was really good, but thinking back on it now you're right that it was all over the place!

Also that just reminded me that I knew the Death Eater Cedric spoiler going in, and at the interval in the first half was talking to someone who said Cedric was her favourite character! Managed not to give anything away, but ouch, that's got to hurt. I was furious enough just as a fellow Hufflepuff - though admittedly I am ridiculously House proud and have always had a massive soft spot for Cedric (why so few Cedric/Harry fics?).

Yeah, I have so many Malfoy family questions, that's a great list! There's no way Narcissa wouldn't have been there or at least contacting Draco to fight for her grandson, especially after Astoria died, as you said. Family seems so important to the Malfoys, and the Blacks for that matter, I just can't imagine it. Also would have killed to see a Narcissa/Minerva scene arguing over access to the castle or something!

Good point about the 7th year stuff, you'd think that would be a massive failing in the trolley witch's mind, I hadn't thought of that!

I'm glad you agree about Albus/Scorpius/Delphie/Rose stuff, too! Albus/Delphie didn't even feel that convincing? I agree that it's clearly meant to be a school boy crush, but it feels to me like they just assumed that 14 y/o boy and older, tattooed, cool girl would be such a clear instant 'schoolboy crush' recipe in people's minds that they didn't bother putting any effort in to actually show it? And therefore whatever references/hints there are feel out of place almost? but idk.
Fellow Hufflepuffs unite :D

Oh my I can only imagine how disappointed that person must be! My friend and I were talking about how crushed we would have been if we read the book without knowing the spoilers. Because the start is actually okay but it just goes downhill!

Yeah it feels like they put no effort in. A lot people use the excuse that it feels like no effort was put into the writing because it's supposed to be performed. But you've seen and you clearly also agree. I just think that's a poor excuse. They knew the majority of people would be reading the script rather than watching the play and could have put some more effort in.
Catallena wrote:The Cursed Child book came out while I was in London so I read it with my friend who had reserved it like the loyal fan she is. We're both huge Harry Potter fans actually, but we didn't like it. At all.
I like Albus being in Slytherin and I love him being best friends with Scorpius (who is a great character). It was nice to sew Harry's trauma being explored as well. But those are pretty much the only positives about this story for me.

I hate the way the Golden Trio acts, like that wasn't a case of 'they got older' that was just blatant OOC behavior to fit the bad plot. Poor Ron was reduced to comic relief just like his awful movie characterization, AND HE GAVE HIS NEPHEW A LOVE POTION. Nah fuck that. And I'm genuinely upset at the thought of him and Hermione raising a kid like Rose who was insufferable and just really awful. The bit about how she and Albus had to be careful about choosing the right friends because of whose children they were had some real Draco Malfoy vibes going on. Especially Albus choosing Scorpius as his friend (someone who Rose didn't approve of) gave me flashbacks to the first book where Harry chooses Ron as his friend (someone who Draco didn't approve of).

The time travel stuff seemed all over the place and pointless by the end of the story, the Voldemort Day timeline was especially eyeroll inducing. Stuff about Delphi's origins was ridiculous and something straight out of fanfic. Cedric becoming a Death Eater because he was humiliated was some dumbassery at it's finest. And I'm like the only person who didn't care for Hermione being MoM... All she seemed to do was paperwork and shit, while it was established previously by Rowling that she took an activist approach in her previous jobs at the Department for Magical Creatures and later the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Why would the activist Hermione want a job like MoM that's more about 'power' than about changing the world for the better?

Also I rarely ever call something queerbaiting, but damn I just read an entire book about two teenage boys crushing on each other yet in the end I still got onesided Scorpius/Rose shoved down my throat. Scorpius honey, please love yourself.
Basically agree with everything you've said!
The golden trio characterisation is actually legit horrible. Hermione is okay but then in the alt. timeline if she doesn't get married to Ron she turned into a bitter teacher? Yeah no thanks. Also I so agree about Rose. She was judgemental and horrible and absolutely nothing like I thought her parents would have raised her.

I guess I like the Hermione being MoM because I think she would be a fair leader and be able to implement change from a higher level? But at the same time I get you. I wish there had been a little more about what she had achieved and how she got there, and less of her doing paperwork.

And yes to the queerbaiting. It was terrible and so disappointing.
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timtam wrote:
Catallena wrote:The Cursed Child book came out while I was in London so I read it with my friend who had reserved it like the loyal fan she is. We're both huge Harry Potter fans actually, but we didn't like it. At all.
I like Albus being in Slytherin and I love him being best friends with Scorpius (who is a great character). It was nice to sew Harry's trauma being explored as well. But those are pretty much the only positives about this story for me.

I hate the way the Golden Trio acts, like that wasn't a case of 'they got older' that was just blatant OOC behavior to fit the bad plot. Poor Ron was reduced to comic relief just like his awful movie characterization, AND HE GAVE HIS NEPHEW A LOVE POTION. Nah fuck that. And I'm genuinely upset at the thought of him and Hermione raising a kid like Rose who was insufferable and just really awful. The bit about how she and Albus had to be careful about choosing the right friends because of whose children they were had some real Draco Malfoy vibes going on. Especially Albus choosing Scorpius as his friend (someone who Rose didn't approve of) gave me flashbacks to the first book where Harry chooses Ron as his friend (someone who Draco didn't approve of).

The time travel stuff seemed all over the place and pointless by the end of the story, the Voldemort Day timeline was especially eyeroll inducing. Stuff about Delphi's origins was ridiculous and something straight out of fanfic. Cedric becoming a Death Eater because he was humiliated was some dumbassery at it's finest. And I'm like the only person who didn't care for Hermione being MoM... All she seemed to do was paperwork and shit, while it was established previously by Rowling that she took an activist approach in her previous jobs at the Department for Magical Creatures and later the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. Why would the activist Hermione want a job like MoM that's more about 'power' than about changing the world for the better?

Also I rarely ever call something queerbaiting, but damn I just read an entire book about two teenage boys crushing on each other yet in the end I still got onesided Scorpius/Rose shoved down my throat. Scorpius honey, please love yourself.
Basically agree with everything you've said!
The golden trio characterisation is actually legit horrible. Hermione is okay but then in the alt. timeline if she doesn't get married to Ron she turned into a bitter teacher? Yeah no thanks. Also I so agree about Rose. She was judgemental and horrible and absolutely nothing like I thought her parents would have raised her.

I guess I like the Hermione being MoM because I think she would be a fair leader and be able to implement change from a higher level? But at the same time I get you. I wish there had been a little more about what she had achieved and how she got there, and less of her doing paperwork.

And yes to the queerbaiting. It was terrible and so disappointing.
Maybe if they gave some background to Hermione wanting to be and becoming MoM I'd warm up to the idea, but until then I can't see it as anything but sacrificing an essential part of a character's dreams and personality in favor of some fake female empowerment.

Female characters in general were a bit... blah? I didn't find myself loving Hermione and Ginny as much as normal, Delphi was a fanfic cliché, Rose was terrible and Astoria died. Especially bitter about that last one, I was looking forward to finding out more about the woman who Draco defied his parents for, the woman who was against the Malfoy's pureblood superiority beliefs, the woman who raised a kid as wonderful as Scorpius. I mourn for the lost potential of an amazing female character that could've made The Cursed Child suck a little less. Also I missed Luna :(
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