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[hpraremod]

Discussion Question #5
Let's turn that last question around. What's one thing that you are really glad that JK Rowling added in the books? Or moreso, what's your favourite scene in all the books?

Comments

[masteroftrouble.livejournal.com]

Oh wow, this is a harder one for me. There are so many things that I'm glad were in there (lit nerd wise). Honestly, I think the best thing she did was the world she created. There SO much room to play with, unlike other fantasy series that have a certain set area that's hard to get out of. The world she created can expand across the globe with your own imagination being the boundaries. She literally made anything happen.

Favorite scene is definitely when Fred and George left. :D

[dragonhideboot.livejournal.com]

The world really is why there's such a *huge* fandom I think. It's something I'm really grateful for as well. :)

[theshadowpanther]

The Resurrection Stone scene, no question. It felt like the perfect thing for Harry to do - walking to his death surrounded by the people he's been most attached to (who are dead, anyway) and who loved him fiercely in return. My only gripe is that Remus was there, but that's because I'm sad he died at all. :(

[gamma-x-orionis.livejournal.com]

At the risk of sounding trite, I think my favourite scene, not only in Harry Potter, but in any book ever, is when Luna does the Quidditch commentary in Half-Blood Prince. Is it necessary to the story? No. But it's such a glorious display of Luna's character and somehow manages to make me laugh every time.
The other scene I adore, for nearly opposite reasons, is the Department of Mysteries at the end of Order of the Phoenix. I consider it an emotional turning point for the story - for lack of a better phrase, "shit just got real". It shows Harry that it's time to stop angsting and fight, or else people he loves are going to get hurt, and it's followed by a moment that I find absolutely heartbreaking - when Harry realizes that if he'd just been less hasty, he could have saved Sirius's life.
But even more than that, it's as fantastic a showcase of Bellatrix as the Quidditch commentary is of Luna. This is the scene that spawned my fascination with her (and my shipping of Bellatrix/Voldemort), and therefore directly led to me getting into the outside-the-books fandom.

[masteroftrouble.livejournal.com]

Yes, yes, and yes again. Luna isn't a favorite of mine so I didn't remember that scene right off the bat, but I'm glad you brought it up because it DOES show Luna. You could simply read that passage alone and get her entire character.

That scene in OotP is also really good. I remember thinking (when I closed that book) the same thing: "Shit just got real." I think that's the real reason why I was so disappointed in HBP -- shit just didn't seem like it was real anymore because things just kind of stopped. :/ I still don't think Voldemort would wait an entire year before making the final battle. He would have known Harry was weak and struck as soon as he possibly could.

[dragonhideboot.livejournal.com]

The scene in the Shrieking Shack in PoA.

I can't tell you how many times I re-read that scene. While there are many, "This shit just got real" moments starting with Cedric's death in GoF and pretty much the entirety of OotP, I think that scene in PoA was my first realization of "These aren't just kids books anymore." We start focusing on adults, and seeing that they have actual pasts to be fleshed out. Snape isn't just a looming figure of doom, you start seeing he's got some issues in his past. Harry maybe an orphan, but unlike other fantasy series, we start getting real information on his parents, meet their friends, etc. Also, this is the first time we see that the adults in charge can be drastically WRONG. Sirius rotted in Azkaban for over a decade for a crime he didn't commit, he didn't get a trial, and heck, Dumbledore thought he was guilty! Hermione gets a good bit of character development rather rapidly here too, between her admission that she knew about RL's "condition" to the "We attacked a teacher..." The scene is just pure Rowling gold.

[magic-knickers.livejournal.com]

I completely agree.

[nevrafire.livejournal.com]

uiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii this is hard

I really like how the magic works? like with spells like the patronus charm, or the
time turners or the secret rooms in DOM with the planets and love and time, the felix felicis and metamorphomagus

I also totally love that she created quidditch. it's not common for high fantasy to have sports and quidditch is so much fun to read about!

on a sillier note I like that she included Romilda Vane who is the embodiment of crazy fangirl. i thought she was hilarious *except when ron almost died-that i didnt like- but ron on love potion was funny.

[scarletladyy.livejournal.com]

The Malfoy Manor scene is definitely my favourite. I'm so glad that was there because it really deepened the war and made it more "real".

[nevrafire.livejournal.com]

on serious stuff, I know someone is going to get mad but i dont care, i liked that she put it in.

I liked how she sort off included religion/faith stuff in the books (the afterlife, and stuff) even if the characters are not particularly religious

I liked it because it reverses that thing that just because wizards can do magic, it means they got all the answers. or that just because they're witches and wizards that that should mean they're againt god and religion- And i'm So happy she didn't do that.
I liked that evn with magic, they still celebrated christmas and they still wondered what happened after we die and about love ones and seeing them again and stuff.

that really touched me personally cause i dealt with that stuff when my cousin died. So it was nice that rowling didnt went british total secularism on the books and included the resurrection stone and the limbo king cross and harry's doubts at end of ootp- and luna reassurance,etc

i'm afraid i'm going to be hated for saying that, but that's how i feel.

[masteroftrouble.livejournal.com]

I think it would have been odd if she DIDN'T include religion. Especially since she tried to make these books as close to real life as possible (even with the magic). Real people would worry about that stuff, so why wouldn't the characters?

My roommate went on about Harry as a Jesus figure for a long time and while I partially agreed with her, I told her to never say it again, lol. I'm Athiest and honestly didn't want to read the books thinking on that angle. She went on that angle for Narnia and I can't enjoy that series anymore (I think I have a Jesus phobia).

[alley-skywalker.livejournal.com]

Honestly, I think that is a valid interpretation of the books. I also feel like Rowling was bending a particularly Christian angle there too. So I don't see why anyone would hate you for liking that aspect.
Personally, I found those parts a little too preachy for my taste but it wasn't like the books couldn't be enjoyed even if one chose to not go on a religious angle, which is nice.

[nevrafire.livejournal.com]

on favorite scenes....

well I really like the happy ones. like at the end of philosopher stone and chamber of secrets that sense that harry had of belonging. or even at the beginning of PoA where he is free to walk around diagon alley and then meets u p with Ron and Hermione.

I really liked the quidditch matches scenes. specially when they won the cup in poa and all the gryffindors are so happy.

in terms of good suspense scenes- I love the mysteries at the end of philosopher stone, chamber of secrets and Prisoner of azkaban (it was quirrel not snape and voldemort is in the back of quirrel's head, it was tom riddle and he possesed ginny weasley, sirius black is an animagus and peter pettigrew is scabbers...) oh! and when hermione reveals the time turner.

there are a handful of emotional scenes/ harry nice scenes i like.

when he talks to sirius and sirius tells him was his godfather but if he prefers to live with the dursleys and harry is all "are you kidding?! When can I move in with you!!!!"

and then when harry is carrying back weak dumbledore in half blood prince and dumbledore says "i'm not worried harry, i'm with you"

and obviously the Dumbledore's man through and through.

and like two trio moments- when Harry looks at ron and hermione and feels so grateful for their friendship and for them sticking up for him.

and at the end of deathly hallows when harry pulls out ron and hermione and tells them to follow them.

OH! and when they go to dumbledore's office and there's noise but it's the portraits all clapping for them and dumbledore smiling at harry. that made me tear up.

[magic-knickers.livejournal.com]

For risk of sounding extremely cheesy, my favorite scene would be Snape's DH scene, when we finally understand the motivation and what Harry will have to go through, etc.--it's like all the puzzle pieces clicked together at once.

Also, the entirety of HBP. It is gold, complete gold. Plot-wise, I mean (the whole romance card was never the main bit of HP for me, so whatever to that). The Horcruxes and Draco and Snape and all of it. I just really love the turn the series took. She handled the growth of darkness in Harry's life extremely well.

[alley-skywalker.livejournal.com]

Bard to pick just one... Honestly, probably Snape's memories in DH. That's also one of my favorite scenes in the HP movies. Sev/Lily is one of those most romantic love stories ever, IMO, even though I usually kind of have a cynical approach to the whole "he loved her all his life" cliche but something about Sev/Lily just doesn't strike that pet peeve and it is probably the only HP movies scene that made me cry.

[aikawa-akihiko.livejournal.com]

you know, i've heard that everyone hates all the traveling and camping out that happened in DH, but i never saw that. i liked that a lot of the book was them floating around, trying to figure out what to do next. it made it a little more read than if they just went out and found the horcruxes one right after another with no problems. plus it gave JK time to focuse on the characters' more complex and grown up feelings and frustrations and the effects of war and horcruxes on them