My review of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
Well...here it is. The last of the Harry Potter series. The final culmination of the literary epic that has captivated the world. And, well, to be honest. I wasn't entirely all that impressed. Overall it just seemed to be very rushed. This book was released 2 years and 5 days after the sixth, which admittedly was not the longest wait between books (it was just less [17 days to be exact] than 3 years between the fourth and fifth books) but I can't help but feel that JKR's heart wasn't fully in this final product. Yes, I'm aware that it was reported that she broke down in tears when she finally finished writing it, but I'm not 100% convinced. I mean, I couldn't really envision her putting her everything into it. This was her world. She's been creating and shaping it for the past 17 years. It's as much a part of her as are her eyes and limbs. And now it's over. That's bound to have quite a rather depressing on an author. So I could see her dreading finishing it and as a result she didn't quite make it her own.
Anyway, that's just my general gripe about the book. But there were some things about the book in particular that I had my issues with:
-The Fidelius Charm. I'm relatively certain that in either OotP or HBP, it was mentioned that if someone who is the Secret-Keeper dies, then the Secret dies with them, only remaining known to those who were told it before the Secret-Keeper's death. Now all of a sudden, she changes it and is like...oh yeah, when a Secret-Keeper dies, those informed of the Secret all become Secret-Keepers, thus weakening the secret. RIIIGHT. Gross oversight? Deus-ex-machina? hrmmmm. I wonder.
-Dumbledore. Now let me just say right from the get-go, I love Dumbledore. I really do. I would be like Harry in that I'm "Dumbledore's man through and through". But seriously, did this entire book really have to revolve around him? I thought it was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, not Dumbledore still manages to manipulate everything from beyond the grave. I do appreciate the vast insight to Dumbledore's past and his true personality, but I think The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore should have been a supplementary book available for purchase at some future date much like Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and Quidditch through the Ages, with just a mention of its existance in passing during DH. Just my two cents. Prior to the actual book being released, I read a rather long (670ish pages) fan-fic version of this book. And in a lot of ways, I really enjoyed it better than the real version. This fan-fic focused more upon the Trio (which actually became a quartet-Ginny had gotten back together with Harry right at the start and up and left with Harry Ron and Hermione) and their quest to locate and destroy the remaining horcruxes. Not about the this hitherto unmentioned trio of fabulous magical artifacts which would allow the possessor to defeat Death! In my opinion, the fan-fic was a more natural progression of the storyline. Yes, that fan-fic never really gave any meaning to the "deathly hallows" but I really don't think the Deathly Hallows were necessary.
-Snape. Ahh yes. Up until the end I was so conflicted about him. And now, after the end...I'm still just as conflicted. Okay, so he really was good. And was good ever since he found out Voldy was targeting Lily Evans Potter. And everything he did down to his double-double agent role was all for her, even though shortly after turning to good, she was killed. And he loathed Harry because seeing him there, a copy of his archrival and biggest nemesis James, but with the eyes of the woman he loved, just tortured his very existance. Okay...I won't deny that I feel for the guy. To quote the Rolling Stones: "Love...its a Bitch". I really have come to like his character. Before this, he was just the guy that everyone loved to hate (or hated to love), and I shared in on this sentiment. But now, I truly can say that I like what was done with Snape's character. Show that he actually did care for people beyond himself, that he wasn't this cold, cruel, and calculating mastermind sonuvabitch. Up until it was decided, I really could have seen his character going any number of ways. And overall, I am satisfied that he was revealed to be a good guy. But why, then, do I have Snape as one of my gripes about the book? Simple. I hated the backstory they gave him. Oh yeah, he just so happened to grow up in the same town as Lily and Petunia. And then he was a creepy little stalker. And then when he revealed to Lily that she was a witch, she just magically befriended him. And yes, I used magically intentionally because I just can't fathom any other reason why Lily would become best friends with the creepy little stalker boy who drooled over her. Okay, he was able to explain the weird things she was doing. Fine. So maybe she could tolerate him because he knew things that she had no idea about. But to go so far as to make them *best friends* up until the point where snape, in a rage at james, calls her a mudblood. I don't buy it. Acquaintance, okay, that I can see. A moderate friendship, one that is able to fight against the Gryffindor/Slytherin prejudices. A possiblity, though nowhere near 100%. But best friends??? Nah. I just can't buy that. So maybe they become okay friends prior to Hogwarts, mostly due to their shared position as witch and wizard. But I think that friendship would have deteriorated by the end of the first year. With Lily becoming a Gryffinor and Snape a Slytherin, they would never be, for fear of angering their respective houses, good friends. They could never associate themselves with one another, especially with Lily being a muggle-born. The slytherins would never let snape do that. And he would be on close terms with the slytherins, considering that Snape was previously described as something to the effect of "a little greaseball up to his eyes in the Dark Arts, coming to school knowing Dark Magic that even some of the 6th and 7th year students couldnt dream of." So he'd naturally make it in with some of the upper "rank" slytherins (Lucius Malfoy springs to mind) and no self-respecting pureblood slytherin (yes i know snape is half-blood, but i doubt he would tell his classmates that) would ever associate with a mudblood gryffindor! It just boggles me.
-Some of the Deaths. Now we all saw deaths coming. It was a guarantee. I have a man a bone to pick....in fact I think I find something disagreeable about every single *major* death. First off, Mad-Eye Moody. Okay. Mundungus was a coward. That's expected, but is it really likely that Mister "CONSTANT VIGILANCE!!" would allow himself to get killed from behind. Not bloody likely. If he was going out, it shoulda been with a bang! Second, Hedwig. That made me sad. Especially when Harry had to explode the sidecar. It was just upsetting is all. A needless death, but that is the Death Eaters. Third..Scrimgeour. Yeah Not a *major* death. But I had kinda expected he would. I knew that somehow Voldy would infiltrate the Ministry and there would be a regime change. Which would require Scrimgeour's death. All in all, it didn't really bother me. I never liked the bastard. Wormtail-yeah, I saw that one coming...though not quite in the manner it came. I also kinda figured that he was going to take Lupin down. It was pretty set up, what with a silver hand, silver being a werewolf's bane...but eitherway I thought his death was kinda cool. Next- Dobby. That one got to me the most. I'd say that it almost got to me as much as Dumbledore's death in HBP. It just seemed so....cruel. Poor, innocent Dobby, dying a hero's death. *sniffle* Crabbe-Meh..so long. Fred- =( Not gunna lie, I really would have much rather seen Percy die instead of Fred. Fred was funny. Fred was awesome. Percy was a prat. I suppose thats probably why Fred was killed. Doesn't mean I like it. BOOOO. Snape-A rather anti-climactic end. Though at the time of his death, you don't know where his allegiance lies, so I personally had thoughts along the lines of "well he got what was coming to him, though i would have preferred it to have been drawn out" but after finding out the truth about severus snape, i kinda wished he hadn't died, even though it was a part of the plan. it would have been intriguing to see snape and harry's relationship. Remus and Tonks- this right here. Pissed me off alot. It was just like an afterthought. It was like..oh yeah, harry saw the bodies of Lupin and Ionks next to Fred's and then walked away. I mean, seriously. What the fuck?!? They deserved more than a passing mention. Lupin was one of my favorite characters. Granted, as soon as he named Harry the godfather to little Teddy Lupin, I knew that he (and more than likely Tonks as well) was going to die. But, as with Moody, I had figured it would be a blaze of glory or (as it was in the fan-fic I read) a sacrifice to allow Harry or someone important to survive. Bellatix- shoulda been Neville to kill her not Molly.
And of course I saved the most important two for last, even though one isn't in chronological order ;) Voldemort- well duuuh. Everyone knew he had to die. The chances of this book ending with Voldemort not dying (and therefore being the reigning power) were less than 1%. Period. It was bound to have a happy ending. Even if every good major character died along with Voldemort it would still be "happy". This way just had a lot of major characters survive. Of course the manner in which he died was lame as all hell. Harry: "blah blah blah blah blah" Voldy: "O RLY?" HP: "YA RLY!" V: "NO WAI!!" HP: "YA RLY!" *pew* *pew* stupid magic crap, voldy's spell gets reflected back at him, and he is killed by it. Sad thing, is that really is how it happened. And last, and most irritating: Harry Potter- Oh yes. This little crafty sonuvabitch dies. But of course, because he "willingly" surrendered himself to voldemort and allowed himself to be killed to save everyone else, he somehow broke the laws of magic and came back. Of course, it really was the fact that he was the master of the 3 deathly hallows. but im going to ignore that because i think their inclusion in the story was freaken retarded. oh yes, and of course it also might have had to do with the fact that harry was voldemort's seventh horcrux. so when voldey decided to kill harry, all he really managed to do was kill the part of his own soul that was within harry's body, and harry just kinda chilled in some twilighty place that was like Kings Cross station...with Dumbledore and some poor retching mass that represented the part of voldemorts soul in harry. yeah....LAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAME. I would have much rather had harry die. but like, die for real, and then have someone, anyone, kill voldy. honestly. hell even if after harry's death, it somehow allowed sirius to fall from the sky and avenge his godson's death. but no real explanation as to how he survived was given, i think i might have preferred that to what *did* happen. Okay, so I may be exaggerating a *little* bit. but only just. oh right...sirius couldnt have, because harry used the resurrection stone (one of those *awesome* deathly hallows) to see the phantoms of those he loved who had died (read as his parents, sirius, and lupin) so they were dead to be sure...but reading through this that doesnt mean much of anything. because after all it *is* harry potter, and the normal laws of magic dont apply to him. but i digress
-Kreacher. While I can't deny I liked the new Kreacher...it greatly foreshadowed Dobby's death. Seeing as how Kreacher became all bright and peppy, basically another Dobby. So that was like..oh well it looks like Kreacher was trained to be Dobby's replacement, so bye! Which is sad, cuz I much preferred Dobby to Kreacher. In fact, I think the old Kreacher+Dobby was infinitely more amusing than anything else. Anywho. It really just goes to show that Hermione was right about House Elves all along-they should be treated nicely and with respect, yadda yadda yadda. But like everything else in this book, it felt rushed. I just can't believe that talking about the Locket and Regulus and then finally handing Kreacher the fake locket would give him a complete turnaround in personality. Well..maybe eventually...but we're talking about a matter of...i dunno....10...15 minutes tops? Nah. People don't have that drastic changes of heart that quickly.
And lastly, what might be my biggest point of frustration with this book:
-The Epilogue. I don't give a shit about the next generation. I want to know more about the main characters of THIS book! All I learned was: Harry and Ginny got married (like i didn't see that one coming), Harry and Ginny made babies (NO REALLY?!?! though i will say, James and Lily....and the abomination whose name I shall not mention >.<...real classy names. not the least bit predictable), Ron and Hermione got married (what a shocker!), and Ron and Hermione had babies (Hugo Weasley? HUGO? are you shitting me?), Draco shacked up with some broad and had a son (Scorpius...JKR, did you write this while high? or after suffering a brain hemmorage?) Neville became the new Herbology professor (the type of information i actually wanted, but something i had foreseen), and little Teddy Lupin was still around. Fan-fucking-tastic. Beyond the fact that it read as though it were written by a nine year old, I didn't see even the vaguest of points to having it. I would have much rather found out what Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Luna, the rest of the Weasleys, the rest of the Order, and the other major characters did with themselves. Not their kids first trip to Platform 9 3/4. Seriously. FUCKING LAME!
Now...I'm sure I'm probably just bitter about the ending of the series. But I really don't think it lived up to everything it could have and imo, should have been. I dunno. I'll reread it. And then I'll reread the entire series, and maybe then I won't find it so disagreeable. But for now. I'm disappointed.
Anyway, that's just my general gripe about the book. But there were some things about the book in particular that I had my issues with:
-The Fidelius Charm. I'm relatively certain that in either OotP or HBP, it was mentioned that if someone who is the Secret-Keeper dies, then the Secret dies with them, only remaining known to those who were told it before the Secret-Keeper's death. Now all of a sudden, she changes it and is like...oh yeah, when a Secret-Keeper dies, those informed of the Secret all become Secret-Keepers, thus weakening the secret. RIIIGHT. Gross oversight? Deus-ex-machina? hrmmmm. I wonder.
-Dumbledore. Now let me just say right from the get-go, I love Dumbledore. I really do. I would be like Harry in that I'm "Dumbledore's man through and through". But seriously, did this entire book really have to revolve around him? I thought it was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, not Dumbledore still manages to manipulate everything from beyond the grave. I do appreciate the vast insight to Dumbledore's past and his true personality, but I think The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore should have been a supplementary book available for purchase at some future date much like Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and Quidditch through the Ages, with just a mention of its existance in passing during DH. Just my two cents. Prior to the actual book being released, I read a rather long (670ish pages) fan-fic version of this book. And in a lot of ways, I really enjoyed it better than the real version. This fan-fic focused more upon the Trio (which actually became a quartet-Ginny had gotten back together with Harry right at the start and up and left with Harry Ron and Hermione) and their quest to locate and destroy the remaining horcruxes. Not about the this hitherto unmentioned trio of fabulous magical artifacts which would allow the possessor to defeat Death! In my opinion, the fan-fic was a more natural progression of the storyline. Yes, that fan-fic never really gave any meaning to the "deathly hallows" but I really don't think the Deathly Hallows were necessary.
-Snape. Ahh yes. Up until the end I was so conflicted about him. And now, after the end...I'm still just as conflicted. Okay, so he really was good. And was good ever since he found out Voldy was targeting Lily Evans Potter. And everything he did down to his double-double agent role was all for her, even though shortly after turning to good, she was killed. And he loathed Harry because seeing him there, a copy of his archrival and biggest nemesis James, but with the eyes of the woman he loved, just tortured his very existance. Okay...I won't deny that I feel for the guy. To quote the Rolling Stones: "Love...its a Bitch". I really have come to like his character. Before this, he was just the guy that everyone loved to hate (or hated to love), and I shared in on this sentiment. But now, I truly can say that I like what was done with Snape's character. Show that he actually did care for people beyond himself, that he wasn't this cold, cruel, and calculating mastermind sonuvabitch. Up until it was decided, I really could have seen his character going any number of ways. And overall, I am satisfied that he was revealed to be a good guy. But why, then, do I have Snape as one of my gripes about the book? Simple. I hated the backstory they gave him. Oh yeah, he just so happened to grow up in the same town as Lily and Petunia. And then he was a creepy little stalker. And then when he revealed to Lily that she was a witch, she just magically befriended him. And yes, I used magically intentionally because I just can't fathom any other reason why Lily would become best friends with the creepy little stalker boy who drooled over her. Okay, he was able to explain the weird things she was doing. Fine. So maybe she could tolerate him because he knew things that she had no idea about. But to go so far as to make them *best friends* up until the point where snape, in a rage at james, calls her a mudblood. I don't buy it. Acquaintance, okay, that I can see. A moderate friendship, one that is able to fight against the Gryffindor/Slytherin prejudices. A possiblity, though nowhere near 100%. But best friends??? Nah. I just can't buy that. So maybe they become okay friends prior to Hogwarts, mostly due to their shared position as witch and wizard. But I think that friendship would have deteriorated by the end of the first year. With Lily becoming a Gryffinor and Snape a Slytherin, they would never be, for fear of angering their respective houses, good friends. They could never associate themselves with one another, especially with Lily being a muggle-born. The slytherins would never let snape do that. And he would be on close terms with the slytherins, considering that Snape was previously described as something to the effect of "a little greaseball up to his eyes in the Dark Arts, coming to school knowing Dark Magic that even some of the 6th and 7th year students couldnt dream of." So he'd naturally make it in with some of the upper "rank" slytherins (Lucius Malfoy springs to mind) and no self-respecting pureblood slytherin (yes i know snape is half-blood, but i doubt he would tell his classmates that) would ever associate with a mudblood gryffindor! It just boggles me.
-Some of the Deaths. Now we all saw deaths coming. It was a guarantee. I have a man a bone to pick....in fact I think I find something disagreeable about every single *major* death. First off, Mad-Eye Moody. Okay. Mundungus was a coward. That's expected, but is it really likely that Mister "CONSTANT VIGILANCE!!" would allow himself to get killed from behind. Not bloody likely. If he was going out, it shoulda been with a bang! Second, Hedwig. That made me sad. Especially when Harry had to explode the sidecar. It was just upsetting is all. A needless death, but that is the Death Eaters. Third..Scrimgeour. Yeah Not a *major* death. But I had kinda expected he would. I knew that somehow Voldy would infiltrate the Ministry and there would be a regime change. Which would require Scrimgeour's death. All in all, it didn't really bother me. I never liked the bastard. Wormtail-yeah, I saw that one coming...though not quite in the manner it came. I also kinda figured that he was going to take Lupin down. It was pretty set up, what with a silver hand, silver being a werewolf's bane...but eitherway I thought his death was kinda cool. Next- Dobby. That one got to me the most. I'd say that it almost got to me as much as Dumbledore's death in HBP. It just seemed so....cruel. Poor, innocent Dobby, dying a hero's death. *sniffle* Crabbe-Meh..so long. Fred- =( Not gunna lie, I really would have much rather seen Percy die instead of Fred. Fred was funny. Fred was awesome. Percy was a prat. I suppose thats probably why Fred was killed. Doesn't mean I like it. BOOOO. Snape-A rather anti-climactic end. Though at the time of his death, you don't know where his allegiance lies, so I personally had thoughts along the lines of "well he got what was coming to him, though i would have preferred it to have been drawn out" but after finding out the truth about severus snape, i kinda wished he hadn't died, even though it was a part of the plan. it would have been intriguing to see snape and harry's relationship. Remus and Tonks- this right here. Pissed me off alot. It was just like an afterthought. It was like..oh yeah, harry saw the bodies of Lupin and Ionks next to Fred's and then walked away. I mean, seriously. What the fuck?!? They deserved more than a passing mention. Lupin was one of my favorite characters. Granted, as soon as he named Harry the godfather to little Teddy Lupin, I knew that he (and more than likely Tonks as well) was going to die. But, as with Moody, I had figured it would be a blaze of glory or (as it was in the fan-fic I read) a sacrifice to allow Harry or someone important to survive. Bellatix- shoulda been Neville to kill her not Molly.
And of course I saved the most important two for last, even though one isn't in chronological order ;) Voldemort- well duuuh. Everyone knew he had to die. The chances of this book ending with Voldemort not dying (and therefore being the reigning power) were less than 1%. Period. It was bound to have a happy ending. Even if every good major character died along with Voldemort it would still be "happy". This way just had a lot of major characters survive. Of course the manner in which he died was lame as all hell. Harry: "blah blah blah blah blah" Voldy: "O RLY?" HP: "YA RLY!" V: "NO WAI!!" HP: "YA RLY!" *pew* *pew* stupid magic crap, voldy's spell gets reflected back at him, and he is killed by it. Sad thing, is that really is how it happened. And last, and most irritating: Harry Potter- Oh yes. This little crafty sonuvabitch dies. But of course, because he "willingly" surrendered himself to voldemort and allowed himself to be killed to save everyone else, he somehow broke the laws of magic and came back. Of course, it really was the fact that he was the master of the 3 deathly hallows. but im going to ignore that because i think their inclusion in the story was freaken retarded. oh yes, and of course it also might have had to do with the fact that harry was voldemort's seventh horcrux. so when voldey decided to kill harry, all he really managed to do was kill the part of his own soul that was within harry's body, and harry just kinda chilled in some twilighty place that was like Kings Cross station...with Dumbledore and some poor retching mass that represented the part of voldemorts soul in harry. yeah....LAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAME. I would have much rather had harry die. but like, die for real, and then have someone, anyone, kill voldy. honestly. hell even if after harry's death, it somehow allowed sirius to fall from the sky and avenge his godson's death. but no real explanation as to how he survived was given, i think i might have preferred that to what *did* happen. Okay, so I may be exaggerating a *little* bit. but only just. oh right...sirius couldnt have, because harry used the resurrection stone (one of those *awesome* deathly hallows) to see the phantoms of those he loved who had died (read as his parents, sirius, and lupin) so they were dead to be sure...but reading through this that doesnt mean much of anything. because after all it *is* harry potter, and the normal laws of magic dont apply to him. but i digress
-Kreacher. While I can't deny I liked the new Kreacher...it greatly foreshadowed Dobby's death. Seeing as how Kreacher became all bright and peppy, basically another Dobby. So that was like..oh well it looks like Kreacher was trained to be Dobby's replacement, so bye! Which is sad, cuz I much preferred Dobby to Kreacher. In fact, I think the old Kreacher+Dobby was infinitely more amusing than anything else. Anywho. It really just goes to show that Hermione was right about House Elves all along-they should be treated nicely and with respect, yadda yadda yadda. But like everything else in this book, it felt rushed. I just can't believe that talking about the Locket and Regulus and then finally handing Kreacher the fake locket would give him a complete turnaround in personality. Well..maybe eventually...but we're talking about a matter of...i dunno....10...15 minutes tops? Nah. People don't have that drastic changes of heart that quickly.
And lastly, what might be my biggest point of frustration with this book:
-The Epilogue. I don't give a shit about the next generation. I want to know more about the main characters of THIS book! All I learned was: Harry and Ginny got married (like i didn't see that one coming), Harry and Ginny made babies (NO REALLY?!?! though i will say, James and Lily....and the abomination whose name I shall not mention >.<...real classy names. not the least bit predictable), Ron and Hermione got married (what a shocker!), and Ron and Hermione had babies (Hugo Weasley? HUGO? are you shitting me?), Draco shacked up with some broad and had a son (Scorpius...JKR, did you write this while high? or after suffering a brain hemmorage?) Neville became the new Herbology professor (the type of information i actually wanted, but something i had foreseen), and little Teddy Lupin was still around. Fan-fucking-tastic. Beyond the fact that it read as though it were written by a nine year old, I didn't see even the vaguest of points to having it. I would have much rather found out what Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Luna, the rest of the Weasleys, the rest of the Order, and the other major characters did with themselves. Not their kids first trip to Platform 9 3/4. Seriously. FUCKING LAME!
Now...I'm sure I'm probably just bitter about the ending of the series. But I really don't think it lived up to everything it could have and imo, should have been. I dunno. I'll reread it. And then I'll reread the entire series, and maybe then I won't find it so disagreeable. But for now. I'm disappointed.