Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Reaction Thread - SPOILERS!!!!

me | 7/21/2007 | me

[JenB]

So you finally know what happens to Harry. All our questions are answered. Or not. What are your reactions? Whose death hurt the most? Do you want more, and about whom?

SPOILERS are ok on this thread! You have been warned!

Wow. It's over.

[Bear_in_RoseBear]

I can't think of any female characters apart from Galadriel and Eowyn.

Well, there was Ioreth (IIRC), the woman who tells them where to find athelas, but she was just sort of comic relief, I thought.

[EmilyGeiger]

Good point, I will. :)

[grellis]

That's right, she was a healer, or a healer's helpmate, toward the end of ROTK. And the elf (I can't believe I forgot her name!) who marries Aragorn. Her character was a few sentences long in the book, but a fairly important character in the films. Very, very few dames in LOTR.

There were a lot in The Silmarillion, though, and they were quite complex.

[TightyRighty]

This is my favorite Naomi Watts picture:

If I didn't know better - I'd say that was a beach ball shoved underneath there.

[Tax-chick]

If you say that good people suffer because of evil, that projects the possibility “outward” into the real world, where it could actual harm (and certainly cause anxiety) to a child. It’s true that evil is part of the world, but there’s no need to allow fiction to threaten a child’s security. (Even a limited exposure to history or current events is enough for that, but that’s a different thread.)

If you emphasize that the author has made everything up, a child can still emotionally engage with the characters, while recognizing that they haven’t “died,” because they were never anything but words on the page and images in the imagination in the first place!

[Tax-chick]

Arwen, and in the LOTR books, she’s no more emotionally involved than a statue of Queen Victoria.

[Corin Stormhands]

And there’s Goldberry in LOTR. As well as Lobelia Sackville-Baggins.

And Rosie Cotton.

[Tax-chick]

Resulting, in my opinion, in a refreshing dearth of romantic twaddle. If I want romantic twaddle, I’ll check out a Barbara Cartland novel!

[Corin Stormhands]

Heh...in The Two Towers movie, the Arwen/Aragorn smoochie scenes were best for bathroom breaks.

My son and I did the marathon three-in-one-day when ROTK first came out. In the second movie, when they cut to Arwen and Aragorn, no less than 30 people (in a completely full theater) stood in unison to go out.

[Tax-chick]

LOL! I annoy some of my kids during those sections by ranting about what a nuisance it is (with support from Anoreth, who’s as much of a Crank About the Text as I am).

[SuziQ]

The first time I saw Naomi Watts, it took me a bit to figure out that she wasn’t Nicole Kidman. I read somewhere that the two of them are actually good friends. I can certainly see her as Narcissa; cold and elegant.

[TightyRighty]

FWIW, I agree with you on the death of Tonks. Her death really bothered me and I felt like it was done only to make the story come full circle. I understand that during a war everyone is at risk but there was plenty of death in the book to drive home that point.

What I found to be the REAL tragedy of this story was - that at 38 - Severus Snape died a virgin.

[null and void]

HEY! I got married at 38...

[Bear_in_RoseBear]

And Rosie Cotton.

I can't believe you didn't ping her! ;-)

[Bear_in_RoseBear]

in The Two Towers movie, the Arwen/Aragorn smoochie scenes were best for bathroom breaks.

Heh... I still think it would have been funny to have him wake up and find out he'd been kissing his horse!

[Tangerine Time Machine]

As with "Lord of the Rings," I found the absence of faith in God from the narrative context creates a sense of existential despair that is not overcome by the feel-good "happy ending." No matter how noble the pagans, all endings are death and damnation without the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Christ. And yes, I get all the typology and symbolism ... but that doesn't still doesn't fill the gaping hole in the milieu, in my opinion.

Tolkien occasionally tips his hand:

"And before the Sun had fallen far from the noon out of the East there came a great Eagle flying, and he bore tidings beyond hope from the Lords of the West, crying:

'Sing now ye people of Minas Anor

for the realm of Sauron is ended for ever

and the Dark Tower is thrown down.

Sing and rejoice, ye people of the Tower of Guard

for your watch hath not been in vain,

and the Black Gate is broken,

and your King hath passed through,

and he is victorious.

Sing and be glad, all ye children of the West

for your King shall come again,

and he shall dwell among you,

all the days of your life.

And the Tree that was withered shall be renewed,

and he shall plant it in the high places,

and the City shall be blessed.

Sing all ye people!"

Sauron fell on March 25th, which is the old English date of the Crucifixion, and also the date of the Annunciation.

[andyssister]

Check out this article. Jo says Arthur Weasley was the character who got the reprieve.And she'll be writing an encyclopedia.

[Bear_in_RoseBear]

What I find amazing about Snape is that he was named Potions Professor at the very young age of 21. He must have received quite a recommendation from Slughorn! ;-)

Speaking of Slughorn, my wife pointed out this: in HBP, Slughorn keeps saying that Harry seems to be a natural at potions, just like his mother was. Now that we know from book 7 that Lily was Severus' best friend at Hogwarts, perhaps she was such a "natural" at potions because she was getting help just like Harry was, from Severus (she directly, Harry from the HBP's potion book.)

Makes me wonder if Slughorn knew what was happening all along, and was secretly being sarcastic when he kept praising Harry...

[null and void]

Makes sense.

[Tangerine Time Machine]

As far as I can tell, this is an open forum and just because I don’t share the fantasy obsession doesn’t mean I can’t post. Reality remains.

""When I became a man I put away childish things. Like the fear of being childish, and the desire to be a grownup."

—C. S. Lewis