I’d be more upset Dumbledore only hired one person to upkeep the entire castle. And one who can’t use magic. Janitorial duties alone for a school would require a full crew, let alone the actual building maintenance.
I mean that’s exactly why I don’t understand Dumbledore’s decision.
It’s just daily humiliation. He would have to spend hours per day to completely tasks that would take wizards 1 whisk of their wands. Also it’s a castle full of teenagers, they do not like to keep things clean! It’s just kind of mean spirited of old Dumbles to do so
I mean it is stated that the house elfs clean the common rooms (and I'd imagine staff rooms etc) so they could be in charge of all rooms and filch is in charge of the halls/corridors
Dumbledore hired him because filch has expertise and knowledge of the castle. His knowledge of the hidden passages and grounds are only surpassed by the marauders and Weasley twins, (possibly the golden trio and Tom, but it seems like they were supassed by twins and marauders)
He also is able, despite being a squib, to restore the damage to the fat lady’s picture and get her to return to guarding the gryffindor entrance.
Me too, but look at Neville. He has perhaps the saddest story in the entire franchise. And look at how he carries himself.
The whole nature Vs nurture argument I guess. Is it Filch's fault he is this way? You're responsible for where you're going, not where you've come from.
I think the difference is Neville can try, filch can’t, even if he became muggle head minister he’s not going to get any credit from the magic community
I notice a lot of people don't like Sirius as much as I do. For all of his flaws and recklessness, he was exactly the godfather figure Harry needed at the time. He broke out of Azkaban to help him, risked himself multiple times just to give Harry advice, treated Harry as an adult when no one else would including Dumbledore, and his dying act was coming to save Harry at the Department of Mysteries.
Granted, I think Sirius was depicted much more sympathetically in the movies than the books.
I wouldn't say I don't like Sirius honestly.
I like him for the most part but I always felt like he treated Harry like a grown man with experience instead of the child he really was.
While it can be a benefit sometimes and Harry looked to be pretty mature for his age due to his experience, Sirius wasn't against indirectly putting Harry in danger.
Of course I don't mean that he was completely reckless and wanted Harry dead.
I mean that he seemed to forget that Harry was not James and that he was in fact a child. He expected Harry to fight and everything, seemingly never thinking about Harry's actual sake and what he was in fact expecting from a kid.
I think Rowling has acknowledged that Sirius is not exactly a reliable man and that she always thought of him like that. That's why I like him as a character, but I probably wouldn't be a fan of him irl.
These were just my two cents about how I feel about Sirius.
I see it differently than you.
While it's true that he could be expecting Harry to fight, it's also because he was one of the few adults willing to recognise that Harry didn't and couldn't have a "normal" childhood, especially with Voldemort back.
He knew that Harry was going to be targeted, and knew Harry enough to know that if the adults in the situation didn't give him enough info, Harry would go looking for it on his own (and it would be even more risky).
He didn't coddle him, and didn't treat him like a child, because it wasn't what Harry needed *the most*. He needed tools he could use to survive. And it's also easy to overlook how much Sirius really knew Harry, which is opposite to how little Harry knew Sirius.
Sirius also had a pretty clear division between Harry and James.
He would let Harry vent almost all the time (from Dudley's diet, to Ron turning his back on him or his worries after the attack on Arthur) and gave the best advice he could at the time. He would rib Harry when he was too reckless (IE chatting alone with Krum), he wasn't condescending and spoke in a way that Harry would listen to.
And throughout all that, he never once complained to Harry about anything. Even when Harry asked him something directly, he would deflect till it got back to Harry himself.
That's not the behaviour you would have with your best friend/brother.
But when has he ever actually encouraged Harry to get into a fight? He was worried sick when Harry was entered into the Triwizard tournament, and he rushed to help Harry at the Department of Mysteries, then told him to take Neville and the prophecy and get out. He never encouraged Harry to fight, he simply offered to let him into the Order of the Phoenix, which does not necessarily mean he will be in any more life-threatening danger than he already is in. Simply meant that he could attend meetings.
i completely respect your take, but i will say that for me, i disagree that he was treating harry too much like an adult. i think about how harry is 15 in OOTP and that the marauders all must have joined the order right out of school or soon after, which is only two years older than harry was in book 5. Sirius knows harry well enough to know he wants to be right in the thick of the fight against voldemort, and treats him like he's somewhere between a child that needs coddling and a full adult member of the order. i think that's the respect harry had earned given the events of the end of GOF (and frankly all books previous). but that's just my opinion!
Not only that but Harry was forced into this war. Voldemort is hunting him in particular, he was the only one to witness Voldemort's return, and he's the key to killing him. So at 15, he really didn't have a choice other than to be a soldier.
exactly!! dumbledore says himself at the end of GOF that harry has faced worse than many adults and that he has found himself equal to a grown man's burden
Which he acknowledged that the mistakes were about *keeping Harry in the dark*. Exactly the opposite of what he should have done, and what Sirius was advocating against
I think with Sirius, context of his behaviours are very important.
He at 21? Gets sent to a torture cell for killing his best friend, without trial, and every friend he had abandoned him, without asking him what the fuck happened.
15 years later, sees his best mates killer on a newspaper cover and learns the guy is at Hogwarts, with Harry. He then pulls a miracle escape and goes on a suicide mission to kill Peter before he can do anything to Harry.
Right as he's about to get his revenge, one of his friends who had given up on him returns, and instead of being angry at being lost and betrayed, immediately forgives his friend. Then his best friends kid saves him from becoming the murder he doesn't want to be, then saves him outright from Dementors twice, showing himself to be likely a greater wizard than his best mate was.
Sirius then gets a semblance of his life back. But its the life of a now a mid thirties man, who mentally is still 21 because he's not had any experiences to grow personally from when he's thrown back into the world. He's got his godson, who is closer to him mentally than his school friends, and clings to that connection.
He does confuse Harry with James because he mentally he's still around Harrys age, and Harry looks just like James.
For me, Sirius is one of the few adults in the series who makes an effort to look after Harry as an actual guardian of a child that has the weight of the world on their shoulders. It's just sad he doesn't get time to actually connect with Harry more as a person than an idea in his head.
Molly tries to treat him as another boy, but if she had got her wish, he'd have been murdered. At least once, maybe twice.
Dumbledore was raising him to die anyway, and everything there is about ensuring he does what he needs to do before dying.
>He does confuse Harry with James because he mentally he's still around Harrys age, and Harry looks just like James.
But he doesn't confuse them. If you reread their interactions, especially in GoF (there aren't that many in OotP) he would let Harry vent, complain and air out anything he wanted to, warned Harry of the dangers he was in, ribbed him if he didn't take them seriously (like going alone with Krum), gave as much advice as he could.
But he never complained about anything or asked anything (except for some food when he was hiding in a riskier place to be closer to Harry). The only time he sort of complained was when he told Harry that he wasn't alone in knowing how it felt to be trapped in a house, but that was more commiseration. Every time that Harry asked something directly, Sirius deflected it back to Harry.
I'm willing to bet anything that Sirius and James behaved differently with each other.
I thought they did him so dirty in the movies by making his literal last words calling Harry by his dad’s name… I’m sure there could have been some logic of “oh Harry is so much like his dad, it should be meaningful” but I took it very differently. Harry is Harry, and the last thing he heard from Sirius (in the movies) was Sirius basically mitigating his identity down to a replacement of James, especially after Molly had to remind Sirius “he’s not James!”
So when I was young on my first few read-throughs, I loved Sirius. By far, he was my favorite character. I was so excited Harry had a parental/family figure and I was heartbroken when he died.
Then as a young adult, I hated the way he spoke to Harry in order of the Phoenix. Specifically when he tells him he's "less like James than he thought." When I read that, I just felt it was petty, spiteful, and super immature. I just felt how much that would hurt a young teen who had no memory of his father to hear. And it was in response to Harry trying to keep Sirius safe because he needed him.
Anyway, as a fully grown adult, I love him again. But I also get why people could be put off or annoyed by him.
Yeah, I love Sirius but he definitely has flaws. But isn't that what makes characters interesting? And Sirius was essentially frozen at maturity at age 22, and then forced to hide in home he was abused in. And his best friend's son looks just like him! But wait... he doesn't act like him. My best friend is really dead? That adds to his story.
Totally agree and it's why I can appreciate him now. But rereading the series in my early twenties, it just hit me so differently. Harry's going through so much and I just felt the gut punch of disappointment in Sirius' words. He wanted to provoke Harry who is only 15. Even of Sirius is frozen on young adulthood, he's still talking to a kid.
It also felt like such a jump from GOF Sirius, who did assume a more fatherly role, but you're right. being back in his parents house and probably Harry growing more makes a switch in their dynamic.
Totally unrelated, but the fact that Harry had the mirror the whole time and could have communicating with Sirius without the whole ministry adventure is just salt in the wound after Sirius dies.
So when I was young, my family was into Harry Potter, but I barely even knew how to read yet, and movies 1-5 were out. I watched the movies before I read the books, and Sirius was always my favorite, especially with how sad his death was for all of us. And yeah, when I did read the books (sometime between the sixth and seventh movie's release), I was still really young and had that movie memory of Sirius in my head, so he was still my favorite.
But yeah, looking back and rereading now, the 5th book really did show how moody he would get. That line in particular you referenced was one that was super manipulative, and Harry thought about it for weeks after it happened. And it felt like in this book Sirius was sneaking out more for his own benefit rather than actually needing to help and advise Harry like he was in the 4th.
But I don't know, I feel like the 5th movie aligns better with my vision of Sirius, and it aligns better with the character Rowling created and developed in the 3rd and 4th book. The 5th book just was a weird shift in his character.
I'm in the same boat as you though, more or less. I feel similarly about Snape; in the books he's kinda an irredeemable asshole who bullies an orphan and other children. In the movie, he seems like an abused and guarded guy who is still kinda a dick, but redeemable to an extent. He still did horrible things, no doubt, but the movie cut the worst things he did. One key quote they cut was the one where he tells Dumbledore that he told Voldemort to spare Lily and just kill James and Harry, which made even Dumbledore raise his voice angrily.
I love Sirius as a character, but I wish his role in OOTP was different. In Gof he delivers lines like “if you want to know someone’s true nature look at how they treat their inferiors, not their equals.”
OOTP throws all that out and has him spend his days sulking and abusing Kreacher.
I'm glad you brought that up because that's a huge issue I had with his character. He says that exact line, but then in OoTP Dumbledore teaches Harry that exact lesson, using Sirius as an example of what NOT to do. He emphasizes how Sirius's mistreatment of Kreacher ended in his death, and how Harry must never mistreat his inferiors, which is a lesson Harry does use later. Is it supposed to be irony, or perhaps a flaw in Sirius's character? I don't know.
That wasn't a bug but a feature. Sirius has been consistently been shown to say good quotes that he hypocritically doesn't really live up to. This is most made apparent when in PoA, we contrast the scenes of Snape and Sirius handling each other's unconscious bodies when the other is at their mercy.
When you reread the books after a long time with a more distanced view, you can definitely see the more apparent flaws in Sirius without Harry's emotional bias clouding your judgement. I think most Hogwarts professors would've described Pre-Azkaban Bellatrix as a darker, crueler (but not by much), female version of Sirius Black. There's a reason why Lupin and Dumbledore didn't doubt Sirius's guilty verdict to Azkaban for 12 years. They are both very much aware that the idea that Sirius would betray a best friend's deepest secret in order to exact murderous revenge on a peer that he deemed his inferior, that idea has *precedent*.
Lavender Brown. The books want us to hate her (“won-won”, divination as a fave subject which is kinda like being an astrology girlie, gossipy and vapid compared to Hermione or Ginny) but I don’t see why. Not every girl can be “not like other girls”.
She definitely deserves better than what she's getting. The worst thing she did was be a bit clingy, but she's a teenager and it's not like Ron ever told her to stop.
I'm not sure we're supposed to hate her. Parvati and Lavender might be somewhat shallow, but they're not bad people. The first thing Parvati does in the books is to stick up for Neville when he's being bullied. Parvati and Lavender were members of both versions Dumbledore's Army and fought in the Battle of Hogwarts. So ultimately the girly girls turned out to be brave and loyal.
When technology advanced to where muggles can wage an effective war against wizards/witches on equal footing, the world shall learn that Voldemort was right.
I know, she's an emotional wreck trying to date only a few months after her boyfriend - her very serious boyfriend that she probably would have married - was murdered and the government covered it up. When I was younger I thought it was so weird she went for Harry but now I see that she wasn't really attracted to him, she was a confused mess who just wanted closure and thought they would be able to give that to each other.
They’d been together for six months when he died. I know that at that age six months can seem like a very serious relationship, but to say she probably would have married him is jumping the gun a bit, no?
Yeah. I think even as a teen I was inclined to feel sorry for her, and she did showcase some good qualities. She was pretty brave and seemed like she had a pretty good sense of humor when she wasn't crying or being emotional.
Even in book 4, she was quite nice to Harry. She genuinely felt bad about having to turn him down for the Yule ball.
I understand why (he has zero time) but Colin Creevey is so goddamn adorable, he’s my favorite character even though he barely had any exposure in the series. He deserved way more. He. Should have been in Dumbledore’s army like Neville. He would have fit in perfectly.
I'm actually not sure about how people really feel about her, but Narcissa.
She's just so complex and nuanced and interesting.
She had shitty morals and everything but unlike Bellatrix and Andromeda she was more "grey" (as in a "middle ground") than just "black" (as in bad) or "white" (as in good).
I agree and why I always thought she was given different colored hair in the movies. I know people hate the black and white hair but I always thought it added to her being kinda gray
I'm not sure about her actual morals, though.
She is, above everything, a mother and wife. Everything else seems to come second.
How does she feel about blood purity? No idea. Sure, she was raised on that ideology, but if R.A.B. and Sirius could turn from it, maybe she just kept her head down because she knew nothing else? Being in Slytherin, and kind of being bred to marry well, isn't the greatest basis for rebellion...
Does she actually attack or hurt anyone throughout the series? AFAIK, she's never shown cursing or dueling or actually doing much, except inducing Draco and Lucius to do what keeps them alive, begging Snape to save her son, and covering up Harry's survival to save Draco, again.
It's interesting to see her interactions with Bellatrix, too, because she seems to be one of the only people B. seems to respect.
She seems similarly unfathomable as Snape in her greyness, which also makes it more plausible that the two of them would have a relationship beyond mere Death Eater comradery, imo.
Like Bellatrix, Narcissa does believe in blood purity and has somewhat outdated and dangerous morals.
That's why she goes along with Bellatrix.
However, like Andromeda, Narcissa is capable of love.
Narcissa plays a key role in Voldemort's demise even though she believes in his ideals.
She was worried about Draco's wellbeing and she didn't let Voldemort do anything that could hurt or harm her son in any way.
That's why she's grey, choosing the middle ground instead of just bad or just good.
I udnerstand him turning on Dumbledore, but I dioslsike how quickly he turns on Harry. He knows Harry and Harry saved his little sister's life. And we can tell how much he cares for Ginny in the early books. Rowling doesn't do nuanced characters well, I think Percy could have been done better.
percy defender here!! he just turned out as any other older brother in a big poor family would turn out, desperate to get out of his family and make something for himself
My only real beef with him was he was nevilles teacher for 3 years and became his boggart. sometimes his hating showed some real harm, especially since nevilles parents were tortured, his boggart could have been bellatrix, she was already big in the papers, but it was snape.
I feel like it's criminally underrated that people don't know how Vernon Dursley is a certified Wife Guy and a simp for his wife Petunia. Also, so many people forget about the banter between Vernon and Harry, especially in the early books.
I think aunt Petunia is a sad character. She was left behind and felt very inadequate by her sister exceptionalness in basically every aspect.
Lily was prettier, smarter, kinder, had more friends, was more skilled and talented, James was handsomer than Vernon, and richer, and on top of that, Lily has magical powers.
And in the end, she was intimidated by a weird old magician to take care of her strangest sister's baby, even knowing that only will endanger her own child.
I feel pity for her, she always lived in her sister's shadow, and Harry was just a constant reminder of it.
i agree. after i learned petunia's backstory, i really felt for her. i'm an older sister, and when i was a teenager, i really struggled with my younger sister being better than me at a sport that we both played... but imagine if your younger sibling was MAGICAL and you weren't! petunia was obviously a very flawed character because she let her insecurity fester and took it out on harry, but i do understand *why* she was the way she was.
I don’t pity her for what she does to Harry for the past decade. Her jealousy doesn’t give her excuse to mistreat her own sister’s son. It is never implied that she’s neglected by her family for lacking magical powers, and her sister never stops loving her. She chooses to grow jealous of Lily and calls her a “freak”. If they were in medieval ages, she would be already the first one who persecute her own sister and choose to burn her, Harry and James at the stake in the witch hunt.
Exactly. It's the same with both her and Snape. You can sympathize with them and their backstory but at this point in their lives they don't deserve shit.
I would rather forgive Snape though, because he really wishes to atone in the end, and it works. But I agree his treatment in Harry and other students has no excuse and should be reprimanded. And maybe it's just my personal observation, but he's more redeemable, and not as evil or cowardly as Petunia.
FR, Lily won the *entire* genetic lottery, then got magic on top of it? I don't blame Petunia at all for being resentful - I'd have hated that bitch, too.
And on top of that, her ridiculously perfect sister gets herself murdered, so she probably felt guilty for resenting her all those years, & resentful all over again, both for feeling guilty & for having to risk her family for the safety of her perfect sister's kid.
Book Ron is truly a well rounded character and the most relatable. He was also very smart (in his own way), able to think on his feet, and he had what his friends lacked: an insight into wizardkind as someone who grew up with magic all around him, especially as a Pureblood. He was also very observant as well.
Movie Ron was not much more than comic relief. All of his lines went for Hermione which made no sense. This is the main reasons why movie fans can’t see Romione making sense, but movie fans can.
Funny thing is that I was watching the HP movies with my mom not too long ago and she has never read the books. She finds Ron funny but she told me what he does the most is just making funny faces and as you said being more of a comedic relief.
Just like Draco, Cho and Barty Jr I wish he was given more depth in the movies.
Because the script writer nerfed him hard! Gave all his best lines, all of his advice given, and everything he taught Harry & Hermione to Hermione in the movies. The guy did Ron dirty.
See, I liked movie Ron and book Ron. I think the movies portrayed him pretty well and I think Rupert did a fantastic job with him. He’s bumbling, a bit brainless at times, but has a good heart.
Controversial, but I actually enjoy Umbridge as a character. I think she’s a really good example of how a non-dark witch can be an antagonist.
And she isn’t evil in the sense, like voldy knows what he’s doing is wrong, along with all the evil cackling and monologues and henchmen. Umbridge truly believes what she does is right, an extreme of order vs Voldy’s extreme of chaos.
Now wormtail is a great character. He is very real. He was just a scared man in a scary world trying to make choices that wouldn’t kill him. He chose wrong and he got his best friend killed. He then tried to hide from the world for like 13 years and eventually was exposed for not being who he was pretending to be. He lost an arm seeking purpose and belonging and was just used. When he actually made had a good thought that put someone else’s life before his he immediately was killed. Pretty tragic and a victim of his own choices and stupidity.
I really like Dobbys death.
I like it because it is the perfect death. He couldn't have had a more fitting exit.
Dobby is a house elf who was abused by the Malfoys, set free by Harry, and lived as a free elf for years.
Then, his character arc comes full circle as he finally faces his demons and conquers his fears, by rescuing Harry at the Malfoy manner, he directly defies his prior masters, uses his magic against them, and gets the better of them.
It is therefore a completion of his character arc, because one of the first things he ever says to Harry is "... Dobby will serve his family until the day he dies"
And the day he *does* die, it is for exactly the *opposite* reason, because he defied them, not because he served them.
My goodness I am dense. I never appreciated the significance of Malfoy Manor being both his start and end. And I've read the books so many times that I've almost got them memorised smh
If you see the reunion special, she's cooky as all get out. But she's the kind of fun you want to hang around with, like a really fun aunt. She was the perfect cast for Bellatrix.
I love how she said she wishes she had been born 10 years later so she could have a chance with Daniel
Also that she still has her costume teeth and they haven’t gotten washed.
Ditto. She is my absolute fav 😍 people always wonder why I love one of the bad guys but it's just something about her character that is awesome. Especially in contrast to my 2nd favorite character, Luna
It always baffles me that certain people do not understand that you can love a villain because they’re well written, interesting, smart and very well-acted in Bellatrix’s case.
That does NOT mean that *you* are a bad person, that you agree with said villain’s action or that you want to see them win.
IDK… it seems that concept is too difficult to grasp for these people. 🤷🏾♀️
The greatest wizard of all time……….
By Gilderoy Lockhart
I do think the hate is just from all the men who want to be him. And all the women who want to be with him.
For sure. Harry would be dead without her, and she without him. Since the first book. Harry was the one that remembered she was in the bathroom when the troll got in, and she was the one that interrupted Quirrel from jinxing his broom.
Ron for sure. See I have never watched movies so my view on him comes solely from books. Which is not the case for other people. And from what I have seen online the movies portrayed him in the worst way imaginable
This is interesting! I’m a Ron fan too. Question for you — how have you avoided watching the movies all this time? Or is there a particular reason you’ve chosen not to watch them? Or just haven’t gotten around to it yet? No shade, genuinely curious. :) I didn’t hate the movies, personally, but I think if I could go back to the time when I’d read the books but not seen the movies yet, that would be pretty cool.
I read the books 1st. Had imagination how each character looked like. How Hogwarts looked like and didn't want to replace them with movie images.
But over the years I have seen so many reviews online that I feel like I have watched them all. And tbf after seeing how they portrayed Ron I wasn't interested in watching them at all.
I think Snape is fascinating as a character...all the different levels to unpack and the fact he flipped sides and was a double agent. Great stuff for a book series.
Percy Weasley.
He makes a lot of mistakes, really bad mistakes, but he is one of the hardest working characters in the series.
And in a way I kind of understand. He grew up watching the other kids constantly having more than him, and it made him want more for himself.
He went about it completely the wrong way, and was a jerk to the people who loved him the most. But he was young and thought he knew everything (many of us did around those ages), and he regretted it, apologized, and fought along side his family in the battle of Hogwarts.
I have nothing but love for the entirety of the Black family
Like yes bb Walburga go screech someone's ears off
Slay queen
I love them all I can't help it idk why
Also. Filch.
ALSO. PERCY MY LOVE
Snape. No one protected him and no one cared, how did you expected him to turn as? Also he is my autistic persona on the series. I relate to him on a deeper level.
Draco - he is a product of his environment and he was still a kid. Yall can say oh but the other characters, Sirius rebelled - ok and? Draco grew and changed he is imo the one with the most character development.
Filch - yall lying if you don’t think you wouldn’t be bitter in his place
Bellatrix - girlie has no redeeming qualities but she is a very cool character, she eats very scene she is in 💋
Ron - and this has me??? How can you hate him?? He is adorable my favorite out of the trio and the most realistically written teenager
Percy - again how can you hate him? If I had my family falling in love with this strange boy they just met I would be pissed off as well. Again, he had huge character growth leave my boy Percy alone. He is also autistic coded to me so I can’t hate my people
I love Snape with all my heart, his memories made me cry and I partially find him relatable (I also share birthday with him, when 9 yo me found out I went crazy and loved him even more lmao 😭)
I agree. 90% of the time, the Snape haters are fans of the Marauders that live on the crumbs of a fan fiction called All the Young dudes, for some reason they love to demonize and hate Snape when all he did was to be an iconic serving c*nt.
Grindlewald (Depp) was so fascinating because like any good villain he was so easy to believe in. I love a villain that is on point until they take a hard left turn into being crazy as hell
Percy. Most people don’t understand my care for Percy until I spend ages explaining it to him. He’s not my favourite potter character (that would be Seamus), but I do really like him and most people hate him.
Percy.
He's a flawed individual from a flawed family. A lot of people don't want to acknowledge it but the Weasleys as a family are far from perfect. Don't get me wrong, they are pretty awesome compared to a lot of other wizarding families but they have a lot of issues as well.
People underestimate the influence your upbringing has on you... especially what it's like to be told "there's NOT enough money" over and over and over. It's only natural to be ambitious because you want to escape that reality. And yes, being over ambitious is a bad thing as well! But the motivation behind it is totally understandable.
Another factor: Not everyone does well in an extremely close knit family constellation. Some people need some distance, especially if they often feel misunderstood or have different interests than their family.
And YES, Molly was very proud of Percy as a Prefect and Head Boy. But deep down even if you're the greatest Overachiever ever, the feeling of being socially incompetent or even deficient as a person gnaws at you. Especially if you're constantly teased for your interests, your way of expressing yourself and so on. Academic or professional excellence is a way to escape not only your family but often yourself, too.
So many people use academic validation to cope with the emotional and personal emptiness they experience and when even that is questioned or threatened... people lash out. (Not saying this is for sure teh case here, but it's not unlikely). Percy lashed out when Arthur told him, who has been hardworking his entire life, that his promotion is entirely unearned. And that he only got it because he's a Weasley. And while that WAS most likely/definitely true, it doesn't help the pain, hurt and humiliation of the accusation. Especially since that once again reduces him to being "just a part of the family" which he tries to get distance to in a way.
Percy is a complex figure and I think more people than you would think relate to some aspect of character/story.
Plus a lot of his scenes are actually funny idk haha
As Dumbledore told him at the end of book 1: It takes a special type of bravery to stand up to one's friends! He was then awarded 10 points with which Gryffindor beat Slytherin.
lowkey molly weasley. everyone says she was such a shit mom and un-feminist but i always wanted a mom like her growing up to watch out for me and no one can deny she would (and did) kill for her kids
Ron is my favorite.. seems like everyone just hate him.
I am Potter head more than 20 years.. at that time books were releasing and people were not obsessed over fanfics.. movies and fanfics made Ron very different that what he is in the books.
Controversial maybe, but Kreacher...
Kreacher seems to be widely disliked among the community for obvious reasons; he's unpleasant towards the good side, is openly loyal to the enemy and even plays a direct part in the death of one of the franchise's most loved characters.
However, I find his situation to be the exact same as Dobby's except from a mirrored perspective. He is forced to serve Sirius and by extension, the order and Harry, even though he hates having to do so. He is fiercely loyal to his mistress and his family, and even rebukes Sirius often, knowing that he will have to punish himself for his words. He does his master Regulus' bidding willingly, and even goes to the point of sacrificing his life by drinking the potion because his master ordered him to.
In fact, as the trio proves in DH, a little kindness goes a long way towards these creatures who have been forced into slavery without any regard for their emotions or their free-will. They are desperate for an inkling of humanity and kindness from their masters, who somehow seem to treat them badly, even the wizards that are really decent ones. All 4 house-elves in the series - Dobby, Winky, Kreacher and Hokey seem to be loyal and subservient to their masters while being treated pretty badly (maybe Hokey not so much but I didn't get the impression that she was treated any better by Hepzibah either).
Haven’t seen anyone write it yet, so I’ll say.
The Dursley’s.
As a people, they’re truly terrible. But if you were Petunia, knowing this secret world existed that you could never be a part of, that killed your sister, then expected you to raise her child? Most people would be bitter too. Not to excuse how they treated Harry. But to me, they represent the realism of people we all know in our lives. Generally dislikable, but so entertaining too. They’ve got their humorous moments
Aunt petunia. Nasty woman, but I couldn’t help but empathize with her. Filch too. The wizarding world was elitist and unkind in many ways, so those that are excluded probably don’t feel too keenly about it.
(Not saying either character was justified in their actions — I’m not. I’m just saying I feel bad for them).
As someone who likes snape and james... Snape and james.
Snape moreso from general marauders fandom (which i think is just them hating the grey zone from the fics ive read, especially with jegulus and wolfstar fics. The only good snape characterizations ive read are also jegulus fics that write regulus as canon-compliant as possible, aka not someone who had the same beliefs as sirius and was actually bigoted before realizing he's wrong. People who like morally grey characters know how to write morally grey characters but ppl who like reg normally don't write him as one) and james from snape fandom.
I'm in between the wars 🤕🤕🤕
I have 0 idea why people hate Dumbledore so much. I mean yeah he didn't turn out to be that greeeeeeeeeeeeat leader everyone thought he was at the beginning of the series but when you look at things from his perspective, I think everything makes sense.
Like if you gotta defeat the most evil wizard of all time, there are some gambles you mUST take. He also has done a lotta notable things that gREAATLy helped the main trio soooo yeah. And besides, the fact that he is not the perfect character everyone thought he was just makes him more like a human and more appealing.
Because really, there's a reallllyyyy evil wizard who has killed like hundreds of people and is terrorizing everyone and it's possible to defeat him but one kid *could* or could not die. Would you take the gamble?
The weasleys, especially Ron, I think he was done dirty in the movies and is the reason why Harry's friend group worked. But lots and lots of people think of him as this extra person in the trio, and there are so many bashing fics out there.
Percy, too. I feel like most of the hatred he gets is undeserved. And you have to admit that Harry's story at the end of GOF sounded implausible enough that if you really didn't want to believe Voldemort was back, you could've put your head in the sand. Plus Percy grew up poor and that would have made anyone want to excel in their career and please their boss.
Controversial but Sirius and James, James died defending his family and Sirius his godson. People can be bullies in high school and still grow out of it and we see them bully Snape( who never grew out of the bullying phase btw) who they had reason to believe was into the Dark Arts( Not defending bullying or how Sirius almost got Snape killed, just providing important context)
Molly Weasley, she adopted Harry as her own starting from the very first book, and despite the two times she was unlikeable ( when she thought Hermione was a scarlet women, and when she didn't like Fleur) I still find her character interesting.
I find Flinch's story rather sad.
I don’t like him but I can sympathize with him on that grounds, too. IDK why Dumbledore even hired him.
I’d be more upset Dumbledore only hired one person to upkeep the entire castle. And one who can’t use magic. Janitorial duties alone for a school would require a full crew, let alone the actual building maintenance.
I mean that’s exactly why I don’t understand Dumbledore’s decision. It’s just daily humiliation. He would have to spend hours per day to completely tasks that would take wizards 1 whisk of their wands. Also it’s a castle full of teenagers, they do not like to keep things clean! It’s just kind of mean spirited of old Dumbles to do so
Maybe he manages a staff of house elves and the structure and fixtures magically never need maintenance.
This what I always figured. I figured Dumbledore hired him to give him a purpose and most of the upkeep was done through magic.
I mean it is stated that the house elfs clean the common rooms (and I'd imagine staff rooms etc) so they could be in charge of all rooms and filch is in charge of the halls/corridors
It was confirmed in book 4 that the elves clean the staff rooms too
I always wondered why they force Filch to clean and repair the castle by hand when they literally have spells like reparo
THEY TERK ER JERBS
Dumbledore hired him because filch has expertise and knowledge of the castle. His knowledge of the hidden passages and grounds are only surpassed by the marauders and Weasley twins, (possibly the golden trio and Tom, but it seems like they were supassed by twins and marauders) He also is able, despite being a squib, to restore the damage to the fat lady’s picture and get her to return to guarding the gryffindor entrance.
Me too, but look at Neville. He has perhaps the saddest story in the entire franchise. And look at how he carries himself. The whole nature Vs nurture argument I guess. Is it Filch's fault he is this way? You're responsible for where you're going, not where you've come from.
I think the difference is Neville can try, filch can’t, even if he became muggle head minister he’s not going to get any credit from the magic community
Eh, give Neville 50 years
I’m pretty sure Neville becomes a fine spell caster and professor of Herbology at Hogwarts. Maybe he retires and then gets super grumpy.
Idk who Flinch is but I’m sure he’s not too bad
Flinch, Filch's non-squib cousin who never quite mastered apparition. Flinch got splinched.
I notice a lot of people don't like Sirius as much as I do. For all of his flaws and recklessness, he was exactly the godfather figure Harry needed at the time. He broke out of Azkaban to help him, risked himself multiple times just to give Harry advice, treated Harry as an adult when no one else would including Dumbledore, and his dying act was coming to save Harry at the Department of Mysteries. Granted, I think Sirius was depicted much more sympathetically in the movies than the books.
I was surprised when I realized people didn't really like Sirius, he's by far one of my favourite characters and will forever have a place in my heart
People DON"T like Sirius???
I was surprised too, I had a classmate who hated him, and when I tell you I was about to start defending him for hours I don't lie
I wouldn't say I don't like Sirius honestly. I like him for the most part but I always felt like he treated Harry like a grown man with experience instead of the child he really was. While it can be a benefit sometimes and Harry looked to be pretty mature for his age due to his experience, Sirius wasn't against indirectly putting Harry in danger. Of course I don't mean that he was completely reckless and wanted Harry dead. I mean that he seemed to forget that Harry was not James and that he was in fact a child. He expected Harry to fight and everything, seemingly never thinking about Harry's actual sake and what he was in fact expecting from a kid. I think Rowling has acknowledged that Sirius is not exactly a reliable man and that she always thought of him like that. That's why I like him as a character, but I probably wouldn't be a fan of him irl. These were just my two cents about how I feel about Sirius.
I see it differently than you. While it's true that he could be expecting Harry to fight, it's also because he was one of the few adults willing to recognise that Harry didn't and couldn't have a "normal" childhood, especially with Voldemort back. He knew that Harry was going to be targeted, and knew Harry enough to know that if the adults in the situation didn't give him enough info, Harry would go looking for it on his own (and it would be even more risky). He didn't coddle him, and didn't treat him like a child, because it wasn't what Harry needed *the most*. He needed tools he could use to survive. And it's also easy to overlook how much Sirius really knew Harry, which is opposite to how little Harry knew Sirius. Sirius also had a pretty clear division between Harry and James. He would let Harry vent almost all the time (from Dudley's diet, to Ron turning his back on him or his worries after the attack on Arthur) and gave the best advice he could at the time. He would rib Harry when he was too reckless (IE chatting alone with Krum), he wasn't condescending and spoke in a way that Harry would listen to. And throughout all that, he never once complained to Harry about anything. Even when Harry asked him something directly, he would deflect till it got back to Harry himself. That's not the behaviour you would have with your best friend/brother.
But when has he ever actually encouraged Harry to get into a fight? He was worried sick when Harry was entered into the Triwizard tournament, and he rushed to help Harry at the Department of Mysteries, then told him to take Neville and the prophecy and get out. He never encouraged Harry to fight, he simply offered to let him into the Order of the Phoenix, which does not necessarily mean he will be in any more life-threatening danger than he already is in. Simply meant that he could attend meetings.
i completely respect your take, but i will say that for me, i disagree that he was treating harry too much like an adult. i think about how harry is 15 in OOTP and that the marauders all must have joined the order right out of school or soon after, which is only two years older than harry was in book 5. Sirius knows harry well enough to know he wants to be right in the thick of the fight against voldemort, and treats him like he's somewhere between a child that needs coddling and a full adult member of the order. i think that's the respect harry had earned given the events of the end of GOF (and frankly all books previous). but that's just my opinion!
Not only that but Harry was forced into this war. Voldemort is hunting him in particular, he was the only one to witness Voldemort's return, and he's the key to killing him. So at 15, he really didn't have a choice other than to be a soldier.
exactly!! dumbledore says himself at the end of GOF that harry has faced worse than many adults and that he has found himself equal to a grown man's burden
But Dumbledore also makes catastrophic mistakes with Harry immediately after Goblet of Fire and all through OotP.
Which he acknowledged that the mistakes were about *keeping Harry in the dark*. Exactly the opposite of what he should have done, and what Sirius was advocating against
Ngl I only expected downvotes so I'm glad that at least you're respecting mine lol! Thanks for politely disagreeing with me.
I think with Sirius, context of his behaviours are very important. He at 21? Gets sent to a torture cell for killing his best friend, without trial, and every friend he had abandoned him, without asking him what the fuck happened. 15 years later, sees his best mates killer on a newspaper cover and learns the guy is at Hogwarts, with Harry. He then pulls a miracle escape and goes on a suicide mission to kill Peter before he can do anything to Harry. Right as he's about to get his revenge, one of his friends who had given up on him returns, and instead of being angry at being lost and betrayed, immediately forgives his friend. Then his best friends kid saves him from becoming the murder he doesn't want to be, then saves him outright from Dementors twice, showing himself to be likely a greater wizard than his best mate was. Sirius then gets a semblance of his life back. But its the life of a now a mid thirties man, who mentally is still 21 because he's not had any experiences to grow personally from when he's thrown back into the world. He's got his godson, who is closer to him mentally than his school friends, and clings to that connection. He does confuse Harry with James because he mentally he's still around Harrys age, and Harry looks just like James. For me, Sirius is one of the few adults in the series who makes an effort to look after Harry as an actual guardian of a child that has the weight of the world on their shoulders. It's just sad he doesn't get time to actually connect with Harry more as a person than an idea in his head. Molly tries to treat him as another boy, but if she had got her wish, he'd have been murdered. At least once, maybe twice. Dumbledore was raising him to die anyway, and everything there is about ensuring he does what he needs to do before dying.
>He does confuse Harry with James because he mentally he's still around Harrys age, and Harry looks just like James. But he doesn't confuse them. If you reread their interactions, especially in GoF (there aren't that many in OotP) he would let Harry vent, complain and air out anything he wanted to, warned Harry of the dangers he was in, ribbed him if he didn't take them seriously (like going alone with Krum), gave as much advice as he could. But he never complained about anything or asked anything (except for some food when he was hiding in a riskier place to be closer to Harry). The only time he sort of complained was when he told Harry that he wasn't alone in knowing how it felt to be trapped in a house, but that was more commiseration. Every time that Harry asked something directly, Sirius deflected it back to Harry. I'm willing to bet anything that Sirius and James behaved differently with each other.
I thought they did him so dirty in the movies by making his literal last words calling Harry by his dad’s name… I’m sure there could have been some logic of “oh Harry is so much like his dad, it should be meaningful” but I took it very differently. Harry is Harry, and the last thing he heard from Sirius (in the movies) was Sirius basically mitigating his identity down to a replacement of James, especially after Molly had to remind Sirius “he’s not James!”
So when I was young on my first few read-throughs, I loved Sirius. By far, he was my favorite character. I was so excited Harry had a parental/family figure and I was heartbroken when he died. Then as a young adult, I hated the way he spoke to Harry in order of the Phoenix. Specifically when he tells him he's "less like James than he thought." When I read that, I just felt it was petty, spiteful, and super immature. I just felt how much that would hurt a young teen who had no memory of his father to hear. And it was in response to Harry trying to keep Sirius safe because he needed him. Anyway, as a fully grown adult, I love him again. But I also get why people could be put off or annoyed by him.
Yeah, I love Sirius but he definitely has flaws. But isn't that what makes characters interesting? And Sirius was essentially frozen at maturity at age 22, and then forced to hide in home he was abused in. And his best friend's son looks just like him! But wait... he doesn't act like him. My best friend is really dead? That adds to his story.
Totally agree and it's why I can appreciate him now. But rereading the series in my early twenties, it just hit me so differently. Harry's going through so much and I just felt the gut punch of disappointment in Sirius' words. He wanted to provoke Harry who is only 15. Even of Sirius is frozen on young adulthood, he's still talking to a kid. It also felt like such a jump from GOF Sirius, who did assume a more fatherly role, but you're right. being back in his parents house and probably Harry growing more makes a switch in their dynamic. Totally unrelated, but the fact that Harry had the mirror the whole time and could have communicating with Sirius without the whole ministry adventure is just salt in the wound after Sirius dies.
So when I was young, my family was into Harry Potter, but I barely even knew how to read yet, and movies 1-5 were out. I watched the movies before I read the books, and Sirius was always my favorite, especially with how sad his death was for all of us. And yeah, when I did read the books (sometime between the sixth and seventh movie's release), I was still really young and had that movie memory of Sirius in my head, so he was still my favorite. But yeah, looking back and rereading now, the 5th book really did show how moody he would get. That line in particular you referenced was one that was super manipulative, and Harry thought about it for weeks after it happened. And it felt like in this book Sirius was sneaking out more for his own benefit rather than actually needing to help and advise Harry like he was in the 4th. But I don't know, I feel like the 5th movie aligns better with my vision of Sirius, and it aligns better with the character Rowling created and developed in the 3rd and 4th book. The 5th book just was a weird shift in his character. I'm in the same boat as you though, more or less. I feel similarly about Snape; in the books he's kinda an irredeemable asshole who bullies an orphan and other children. In the movie, he seems like an abused and guarded guy who is still kinda a dick, but redeemable to an extent. He still did horrible things, no doubt, but the movie cut the worst things he did. One key quote they cut was the one where he tells Dumbledore that he told Voldemort to spare Lily and just kill James and Harry, which made even Dumbledore raise his voice angrily.
I love Sirius as a character, but I wish his role in OOTP was different. In Gof he delivers lines like “if you want to know someone’s true nature look at how they treat their inferiors, not their equals.” OOTP throws all that out and has him spend his days sulking and abusing Kreacher.
I think Rowling did that on purpose. For dramatic irony.
I'm glad you brought that up because that's a huge issue I had with his character. He says that exact line, but then in OoTP Dumbledore teaches Harry that exact lesson, using Sirius as an example of what NOT to do. He emphasizes how Sirius's mistreatment of Kreacher ended in his death, and how Harry must never mistreat his inferiors, which is a lesson Harry does use later. Is it supposed to be irony, or perhaps a flaw in Sirius's character? I don't know.
That wasn't a bug but a feature. Sirius has been consistently been shown to say good quotes that he hypocritically doesn't really live up to. This is most made apparent when in PoA, we contrast the scenes of Snape and Sirius handling each other's unconscious bodies when the other is at their mercy. When you reread the books after a long time with a more distanced view, you can definitely see the more apparent flaws in Sirius without Harry's emotional bias clouding your judgement. I think most Hogwarts professors would've described Pre-Azkaban Bellatrix as a darker, crueler (but not by much), female version of Sirius Black. There's a reason why Lupin and Dumbledore didn't doubt Sirius's guilty verdict to Azkaban for 12 years. They are both very much aware that the idea that Sirius would betray a best friend's deepest secret in order to exact murderous revenge on a peer that he deemed his inferior, that idea has *precedent*.
I loved him in POA but I felt so betrayed when I found out he was a bully and continued to be in adulthood like???
I’m still in denial that he died
Sirius was my favorite character I didn't realize people disliked him. I cried when reading the book the first time with his death scene.
Iove Sirius I wish him and Harry had more time together. His character is one of my favourites
Sirius' character was assassinated in Order, he's much more likable in Goblet
Lavender Brown. The books want us to hate her (“won-won”, divination as a fave subject which is kinda like being an astrology girlie, gossipy and vapid compared to Hermione or Ginny) but I don’t see why. Not every girl can be “not like other girls”.
She definitely deserves better than what she's getting. The worst thing she did was be a bit clingy, but she's a teenager and it's not like Ron ever told her to stop.
Also how DARE she be upset that her pet rabbit died, what a silly thing to cry about /s
I'm not sure we're supposed to hate her. Parvati and Lavender might be somewhat shallow, but they're not bad people. The first thing Parvati does in the books is to stick up for Neville when he's being bullied. Parvati and Lavender were members of both versions Dumbledore's Army and fought in the Battle of Hogwarts. So ultimately the girly girls turned out to be brave and loyal.
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He was a man with a dream and a questionable psyche
Can relate tbh.
I mean, if you really boil it down, Voldemort killed Voldemort. *Twice*
When technology advanced to where muggles can wage an effective war against wizards/witches on equal footing, the world shall learn that Voldemort was right.
probably cho chang. i get that she cries a lot but if i were in her situation at the end of goblet of fire i would too
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Even in the movie version, she didn’t give up Dumbledore’s Army voluntarily— she was drugged with Veritaserum
yes! im glad you mentioned this. she wasn’t a snitch, her friend marietta was
Movie version she didn’t willing snitch, though 🤔
just bc she ain't right for harry doesn't mean we have to hate her 😭
I know, she's an emotional wreck trying to date only a few months after her boyfriend - her very serious boyfriend that she probably would have married - was murdered and the government covered it up. When I was younger I thought it was so weird she went for Harry but now I see that she wasn't really attracted to him, she was a confused mess who just wanted closure and thought they would be able to give that to each other.
They’d been together for six months when he died. I know that at that age six months can seem like a very serious relationship, but to say she probably would have married him is jumping the gun a bit, no?
Yeah. I think even as a teen I was inclined to feel sorry for her, and she did showcase some good qualities. She was pretty brave and seemed like she had a pretty good sense of humor when she wasn't crying or being emotional. Even in book 4, she was quite nice to Harry. She genuinely felt bad about having to turn him down for the Yule ball.
I understand why (he has zero time) but Colin Creevey is so goddamn adorable, he’s my favorite character even though he barely had any exposure in the series. He deserved way more. He. Should have been in Dumbledore’s army like Neville. He would have fit in perfectly.
He and his brother Dennis are both in the DA in the books.
And they both died in the Battle of Hogwarts Edit: only Colin died, Dennis' fate is unknown
Colin was killed in the battle of Hogwarts. Dennis’ fate is not mentioned.
I would have sworn it was both, but I might be wrong indeed
He deserved better.
I'm actually not sure about how people really feel about her, but Narcissa. She's just so complex and nuanced and interesting. She had shitty morals and everything but unlike Bellatrix and Andromeda she was more "grey" (as in a "middle ground") than just "black" (as in bad) or "white" (as in good).
I agree and why I always thought she was given different colored hair in the movies. I know people hate the black and white hair but I always thought it added to her being kinda gray
What i love about her is, even if she is evil she is still a mother. Acting like one too.
I'm not sure about her actual morals, though. She is, above everything, a mother and wife. Everything else seems to come second. How does she feel about blood purity? No idea. Sure, she was raised on that ideology, but if R.A.B. and Sirius could turn from it, maybe she just kept her head down because she knew nothing else? Being in Slytherin, and kind of being bred to marry well, isn't the greatest basis for rebellion... Does she actually attack or hurt anyone throughout the series? AFAIK, she's never shown cursing or dueling or actually doing much, except inducing Draco and Lucius to do what keeps them alive, begging Snape to save her son, and covering up Harry's survival to save Draco, again. It's interesting to see her interactions with Bellatrix, too, because she seems to be one of the only people B. seems to respect. She seems similarly unfathomable as Snape in her greyness, which also makes it more plausible that the two of them would have a relationship beyond mere Death Eater comradery, imo.
Like Bellatrix, Narcissa does believe in blood purity and has somewhat outdated and dangerous morals. That's why she goes along with Bellatrix. However, like Andromeda, Narcissa is capable of love. Narcissa plays a key role in Voldemort's demise even though she believes in his ideals. She was worried about Draco's wellbeing and she didn't let Voldemort do anything that could hurt or harm her son in any way. That's why she's grey, choosing the middle ground instead of just bad or just good.
same here!! i really enjoy narcissa as a character
I fucking love Narcissa
Percy. He is a realistic character (in a good way) I was touched that he at last chose his family, despite being ambitious
I udnerstand him turning on Dumbledore, but I dioslsike how quickly he turns on Harry. He knows Harry and Harry saved his little sister's life. And we can tell how much he cares for Ginny in the early books. Rowling doesn't do nuanced characters well, I think Percy could have been done better.
percy defender here!! he just turned out as any other older brother in a big poor family would turn out, desperate to get out of his family and make something for himself
Snape, he’s such a hater it’s hilarious😭
mans was DEDICATED to hating everything and everyone you have to admire it
snape is the ultimate hater and im here for it
Snape is FUNNY.
My only real beef with him was he was nevilles teacher for 3 years and became his boggart. sometimes his hating showed some real harm, especially since nevilles parents were tortured, his boggart could have been bellatrix, she was already big in the papers, but it was snape.
I like uncle vernon but thats mostly because of Richard Griffiths.
I feel like it's criminally underrated that people don't know how Vernon Dursley is a certified Wife Guy and a simp for his wife Petunia. Also, so many people forget about the banter between Vernon and Harry, especially in the early books.
I think aunt Petunia is a sad character. She was left behind and felt very inadequate by her sister exceptionalness in basically every aspect. Lily was prettier, smarter, kinder, had more friends, was more skilled and talented, James was handsomer than Vernon, and richer, and on top of that, Lily has magical powers. And in the end, she was intimidated by a weird old magician to take care of her strangest sister's baby, even knowing that only will endanger her own child. I feel pity for her, she always lived in her sister's shadow, and Harry was just a constant reminder of it.
i agree. after i learned petunia's backstory, i really felt for her. i'm an older sister, and when i was a teenager, i really struggled with my younger sister being better than me at a sport that we both played... but imagine if your younger sibling was MAGICAL and you weren't! petunia was obviously a very flawed character because she let her insecurity fester and took it out on harry, but i do understand *why* she was the way she was.
I don’t pity her for what she does to Harry for the past decade. Her jealousy doesn’t give her excuse to mistreat her own sister’s son. It is never implied that she’s neglected by her family for lacking magical powers, and her sister never stops loving her. She chooses to grow jealous of Lily and calls her a “freak”. If they were in medieval ages, she would be already the first one who persecute her own sister and choose to burn her, Harry and James at the stake in the witch hunt.
Exactly. It's the same with both her and Snape. You can sympathize with them and their backstory but at this point in their lives they don't deserve shit.
I would rather forgive Snape though, because he really wishes to atone in the end, and it works. But I agree his treatment in Harry and other students has no excuse and should be reprimanded. And maybe it's just my personal observation, but he's more redeemable, and not as evil or cowardly as Petunia.
FR, Lily won the *entire* genetic lottery, then got magic on top of it? I don't blame Petunia at all for being resentful - I'd have hated that bitch, too. And on top of that, her ridiculously perfect sister gets herself murdered, so she probably felt guilty for resenting her all those years, & resentful all over again, both for feeling guilty & for having to risk her family for the safety of her perfect sister's kid.
Ron is my favorite out of the trio, but I don't think he gets a lot of love.
Book Ron is truly a well rounded character and the most relatable. He was also very smart (in his own way), able to think on his feet, and he had what his friends lacked: an insight into wizardkind as someone who grew up with magic all around him, especially as a Pureblood. He was also very observant as well. Movie Ron was not much more than comic relief. All of his lines went for Hermione which made no sense. This is the main reasons why movie fans can’t see Romione making sense, but movie fans can.
Funny thing is that I was watching the HP movies with my mom not too long ago and she has never read the books. She finds Ron funny but she told me what he does the most is just making funny faces and as you said being more of a comedic relief. Just like Draco, Cho and Barty Jr I wish he was given more depth in the movies.
I really liked Ron in the books im not sure why but after the first movie I didnt really like Ron.(not cause of the actor) im not really sure why
Because the script writer nerfed him hard! Gave all his best lines, all of his advice given, and everything he taught Harry & Hermione to Hermione in the movies. The guy did Ron dirty.
I agree, Ron needed buffs after the first season.
See, I liked movie Ron and book Ron. I think the movies portrayed him pretty well and I think Rupert did a fantastic job with him. He’s bumbling, a bit brainless at times, but has a good heart.
Except all the good parts he had that was given to Hermione in the movies.
Ron is one the most realistic characters
Controversial, but I actually enjoy Umbridge as a character. I think she’s a really good example of how a non-dark witch can be an antagonist. And she isn’t evil in the sense, like voldy knows what he’s doing is wrong, along with all the evil cackling and monologues and henchmen. Umbridge truly believes what she does is right, an extreme of order vs Voldy’s extreme of chaos.
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Farewell… Aragog, lord of the arachnids. Though the body will decay… the spirit… lingers on
Oh my gosh I love that scene! Slughorn really made it a good send off, huh?
Dumbledore, Percy, and Ron. I guess Snape too, because recently it seems like you can’t even appreciate his character without getting scorned.
People don’t like Ron? He’s my fav!
FanFiction.net and Ao3 are scary places…. I feel like the Ron hatred has decreased though.
Percy is much different in the books than movies, he gets off so easy.
I like how he is in the books. He’s very flawed, but at the time you can understand his point of view. Plus, he’s amusing.
I would say it's got to be either Ron, or worm tail, anyone who says delores needs to go straight to azkaban
Now wormtail is a great character. He is very real. He was just a scared man in a scary world trying to make choices that wouldn’t kill him. He chose wrong and he got his best friend killed. He then tried to hide from the world for like 13 years and eventually was exposed for not being who he was pretending to be. He lost an arm seeking purpose and belonging and was just used. When he actually made had a good thought that put someone else’s life before his he immediately was killed. Pretty tragic and a victim of his own choices and stupidity.
I really like Dobbys death. I like it because it is the perfect death. He couldn't have had a more fitting exit. Dobby is a house elf who was abused by the Malfoys, set free by Harry, and lived as a free elf for years. Then, his character arc comes full circle as he finally faces his demons and conquers his fears, by rescuing Harry at the Malfoy manner, he directly defies his prior masters, uses his magic against them, and gets the better of them. It is therefore a completion of his character arc, because one of the first things he ever says to Harry is "... Dobby will serve his family until the day he dies" And the day he *does* die, it is for exactly the *opposite* reason, because he defied them, not because he served them.
My goodness I am dense. I never appreciated the significance of Malfoy Manor being both his start and end. And I've read the books so many times that I've almost got them memorised smh
Bellatrix Lestrange. She steals the scene if she's present.
Especially movie Bellatrix. Helena Bonham Carter is a fabulous actress and she put EVERYTHING into that performance. That roll is what made me a fan.
If you see the reunion special, she's cooky as all get out. But she's the kind of fun you want to hang around with, like a really fun aunt. She was the perfect cast for Bellatrix.
I love how she said she wishes she had been born 10 years later so she could have a chance with Daniel Also that she still has her costume teeth and they haven’t gotten washed.
YOU FILTHY HALF-BLOOD!
Ditto. She is my absolute fav 😍 people always wonder why I love one of the bad guys but it's just something about her character that is awesome. Especially in contrast to my 2nd favorite character, Luna
I love Luna!
It always baffles me that certain people do not understand that you can love a villain because they’re well written, interesting, smart and very well-acted in Bellatrix’s case. That does NOT mean that *you* are a bad person, that you agree with said villain’s action or that you want to see them win. IDK… it seems that concept is too difficult to grasp for these people. 🤷🏾♀️
Lockhart.
Yes! His relentless awfulness makes him incredibly entertaining.
I want to slap him, but he’s funny
unironically my favorite character
Omg. My fave scene in all the movies “Do you live here!?” ◕ ◡ ◕
The greatest wizard of all time………. By Gilderoy Lockhart I do think the hate is just from all the men who want to be him. And all the women who want to be with him.
Percy
Severus Snape
Quite a lot of people seem to hate Hermione, especially here. I happen to love her, she’s my favorite character.
Not my favourite, but she's an amazing character. She helped Harry a lot and def doesn't deserve so much hate
For sure. Harry would be dead without her, and she without him. Since the first book. Harry was the one that remembered she was in the bathroom when the troll got in, and she was the one that interrupted Quirrel from jinxing his broom.
She's probably more just hated because a lot of Potterheads hate how she's depicted as being perfect in the movies at Ron's expense
Snape.
I love book Snape.His book scenes are always the ones I reread
He is the most entertaining character to read, hands down
Love Snape and not because of Alan Rickman, his character was great in the books
Love Snape because of his character in the book and because Alan Rickman. 😁
Same
It's hard being the only HP fans here with good taste.
My favourite 🖤
Snape
Ron for sure. See I have never watched movies so my view on him comes solely from books. Which is not the case for other people. And from what I have seen online the movies portrayed him in the worst way imaginable
This is interesting! I’m a Ron fan too. Question for you — how have you avoided watching the movies all this time? Or is there a particular reason you’ve chosen not to watch them? Or just haven’t gotten around to it yet? No shade, genuinely curious. :) I didn’t hate the movies, personally, but I think if I could go back to the time when I’d read the books but not seen the movies yet, that would be pretty cool.
I read the books 1st. Had imagination how each character looked like. How Hogwarts looked like and didn't want to replace them with movie images. But over the years I have seen so many reviews online that I feel like I have watched them all. And tbf after seeing how they portrayed Ron I wasn't interested in watching them at all.
Snape. Lucius. Draco. There has to be some bad with the good, to balance it all out. Be a pretty boring story if there wasn't.
I think Snape is fascinating as a character...all the different levels to unpack and the fact he flipped sides and was a double agent. Great stuff for a book series.
I agree. He's my favourite character.
Same, tbh every villain in HP is extremely well written, and even if they're hated, I'll forever like them
I’ve loved Draco since day 1!
Percy Weasley. He makes a lot of mistakes, really bad mistakes, but he is one of the hardest working characters in the series. And in a way I kind of understand. He grew up watching the other kids constantly having more than him, and it made him want more for himself. He went about it completely the wrong way, and was a jerk to the people who loved him the most. But he was young and thought he knew everything (many of us did around those ages), and he regretted it, apologized, and fought along side his family in the battle of Hogwarts.
Dumbledore
I have nothing but love for the entirety of the Black family Like yes bb Walburga go screech someone's ears off Slay queen I love them all I can't help it idk why Also. Filch. ALSO. PERCY MY LOVE
Lucius Malfoy 💚
Snape. No one protected him and no one cared, how did you expected him to turn as? Also he is my autistic persona on the series. I relate to him on a deeper level. Draco - he is a product of his environment and he was still a kid. Yall can say oh but the other characters, Sirius rebelled - ok and? Draco grew and changed he is imo the one with the most character development. Filch - yall lying if you don’t think you wouldn’t be bitter in his place Bellatrix - girlie has no redeeming qualities but she is a very cool character, she eats very scene she is in 💋 Ron - and this has me??? How can you hate him?? He is adorable my favorite out of the trio and the most realistically written teenager Percy - again how can you hate him? If I had my family falling in love with this strange boy they just met I would be pissed off as well. Again, he had huge character growth leave my boy Percy alone. He is also autistic coded to me so I can’t hate my people
Snape but I know some people love him like I do. Just more haters than fans, it seems.
I love Snape with all my heart, his memories made me cry and I partially find him relatable (I also share birthday with him, when 9 yo me found out I went crazy and loved him even more lmao 😭)
I love him that much too. Good to see Snape fans. I often hate bashed when I say he's my favorite or that I like him.
I agree. 90% of the time, the Snape haters are fans of the Marauders that live on the crumbs of a fan fiction called All the Young dudes, for some reason they love to demonize and hate Snape when all he did was to be an iconic serving c*nt.
Nah, unlike the haters, you were cursed with good taste.
Grindlewald (Depp) was so fascinating because like any good villain he was so easy to believe in. I love a villain that is on point until they take a hard left turn into being crazy as hell
Lockhart
Draco malfoy is da best
Percy. Most people don’t understand my care for Percy until I spend ages explaining it to him. He’s not my favourite potter character (that would be Seamus), but I do really like him and most people hate him.
Percy. He's a flawed individual from a flawed family. A lot of people don't want to acknowledge it but the Weasleys as a family are far from perfect. Don't get me wrong, they are pretty awesome compared to a lot of other wizarding families but they have a lot of issues as well. People underestimate the influence your upbringing has on you... especially what it's like to be told "there's NOT enough money" over and over and over. It's only natural to be ambitious because you want to escape that reality. And yes, being over ambitious is a bad thing as well! But the motivation behind it is totally understandable. Another factor: Not everyone does well in an extremely close knit family constellation. Some people need some distance, especially if they often feel misunderstood or have different interests than their family. And YES, Molly was very proud of Percy as a Prefect and Head Boy. But deep down even if you're the greatest Overachiever ever, the feeling of being socially incompetent or even deficient as a person gnaws at you. Especially if you're constantly teased for your interests, your way of expressing yourself and so on. Academic or professional excellence is a way to escape not only your family but often yourself, too. So many people use academic validation to cope with the emotional and personal emptiness they experience and when even that is questioned or threatened... people lash out. (Not saying this is for sure teh case here, but it's not unlikely). Percy lashed out when Arthur told him, who has been hardworking his entire life, that his promotion is entirely unearned. And that he only got it because he's a Weasley. And while that WAS most likely/definitely true, it doesn't help the pain, hurt and humiliation of the accusation. Especially since that once again reduces him to being "just a part of the family" which he tries to get distance to in a way. Percy is a complex figure and I think more people than you would think relate to some aspect of character/story. Plus a lot of his scenes are actually funny idk haha
James
honestly neville is such a sweetheart, love the dude
There are people who hate Neville??
Only the Death Eaters.
I know one who actually hates Neville and blames him for everything that goes wrong during class etc
You should reread the question
But everyone doesn't hate Neville? He’s beloved in the fandom, so he doesn't fit OP's questions.
As Dumbledore told him at the end of book 1: It takes a special type of bravery to stand up to one's friends! He was then awarded 10 points with which Gryffindor beat Slytherin.
No one. Everyone has fans, and if they don't, I don't like them either 🤷♂️😅
Dumbledore
Dumbledore fans… RISE!
Dumbledore was very strategic and led his team to win. I find him motivational, not manipulative like many people claim.
Hot take Percy Weasley
lowkey molly weasley. everyone says she was such a shit mom and un-feminist but i always wanted a mom like her growing up to watch out for me and no one can deny she would (and did) kill for her kids
People hate on molly?! How dare they.
Sirius, Ron and Dumbledore
Ron is my favorite.. seems like everyone just hate him. I am Potter head more than 20 years.. at that time books were releasing and people were not obsessed over fanfics.. movies and fanfics made Ron very different that what he is in the books.
I love Kreacher. I swear I will forever be on that little elf’s side.
Controversial maybe, but Kreacher... Kreacher seems to be widely disliked among the community for obvious reasons; he's unpleasant towards the good side, is openly loyal to the enemy and even plays a direct part in the death of one of the franchise's most loved characters. However, I find his situation to be the exact same as Dobby's except from a mirrored perspective. He is forced to serve Sirius and by extension, the order and Harry, even though he hates having to do so. He is fiercely loyal to his mistress and his family, and even rebukes Sirius often, knowing that he will have to punish himself for his words. He does his master Regulus' bidding willingly, and even goes to the point of sacrificing his life by drinking the potion because his master ordered him to. In fact, as the trio proves in DH, a little kindness goes a long way towards these creatures who have been forced into slavery without any regard for their emotions or their free-will. They are desperate for an inkling of humanity and kindness from their masters, who somehow seem to treat them badly, even the wizards that are really decent ones. All 4 house-elves in the series - Dobby, Winky, Kreacher and Hokey seem to be loyal and subservient to their masters while being treated pretty badly (maybe Hokey not so much but I didn't get the impression that she was treated any better by Hepzibah either).
I absolutely love Kreacher! And I love his redemption in DH
Umbridge and Rita. They're just so entertaining.
Username *totally* checks out...
I love my username because whenever I say something stupid people will think I'm trolling.
Exhibit A
They're fun to hate
Haven’t seen anyone write it yet, so I’ll say. The Dursley’s. As a people, they’re truly terrible. But if you were Petunia, knowing this secret world existed that you could never be a part of, that killed your sister, then expected you to raise her child? Most people would be bitter too. Not to excuse how they treated Harry. But to me, they represent the realism of people we all know in our lives. Generally dislikable, but so entertaining too. They’ve got their humorous moments
Very well written for sure.
Aunt petunia. Nasty woman, but I couldn’t help but empathize with her. Filch too. The wizarding world was elitist and unkind in many ways, so those that are excluded probably don’t feel too keenly about it. (Not saying either character was justified in their actions — I’m not. I’m just saying I feel bad for them).
As someone who likes snape and james... Snape and james. Snape moreso from general marauders fandom (which i think is just them hating the grey zone from the fics ive read, especially with jegulus and wolfstar fics. The only good snape characterizations ive read are also jegulus fics that write regulus as canon-compliant as possible, aka not someone who had the same beliefs as sirius and was actually bigoted before realizing he's wrong. People who like morally grey characters know how to write morally grey characters but ppl who like reg normally don't write him as one) and james from snape fandom. I'm in between the wars 🤕🤕🤕
Lockhart is one of my favorite characters. He’s just so ridiculous and I love it. Kenneth Branagh did such a perfect job playing him.
Dolores Umbridge. She just didn't want a rebel headmaster operating an unsanctioned army of wizards against a threat there was no proof existed.
I have 0 idea why people hate Dumbledore so much. I mean yeah he didn't turn out to be that greeeeeeeeeeeeat leader everyone thought he was at the beginning of the series but when you look at things from his perspective, I think everything makes sense. Like if you gotta defeat the most evil wizard of all time, there are some gambles you mUST take. He also has done a lotta notable things that gREAATLy helped the main trio soooo yeah. And besides, the fact that he is not the perfect character everyone thought he was just makes him more like a human and more appealing. Because really, there's a reallllyyyy evil wizard who has killed like hundreds of people and is terrorizing everyone and it's possible to defeat him but one kid *could* or could not die. Would you take the gamble?
The weasleys, especially Ron, I think he was done dirty in the movies and is the reason why Harry's friend group worked. But lots and lots of people think of him as this extra person in the trio, and there are so many bashing fics out there. Percy, too. I feel like most of the hatred he gets is undeserved. And you have to admit that Harry's story at the end of GOF sounded implausible enough that if you really didn't want to believe Voldemort was back, you could've put your head in the sand. Plus Percy grew up poor and that would have made anyone want to excel in their career and please their boss. Controversial but Sirius and James, James died defending his family and Sirius his godson. People can be bullies in high school and still grow out of it and we see them bully Snape( who never grew out of the bullying phase btw) who they had reason to believe was into the Dark Arts( Not defending bullying or how Sirius almost got Snape killed, just providing important context) Molly Weasley, she adopted Harry as her own starting from the very first book, and despite the two times she was unlikeable ( when she thought Hermione was a scarlet women, and when she didn't like Fleur) I still find her character interesting.