penfold_x | HBP Initial Reactions

Where to begin?!

Snape is *not* a triple agent. First, for that to be true, Dumbledore needs to be a moron. And then there's the entire scene outside Hagrid's hut - the deflecting of curses, the extreme reaction to being called a coward, and "Blocked again and again and again until you learn to keep your mouth shut and your mind closed." Snape just up and offered Harry exactly what he needed to know. Oh, Snape's still a petty bastard who carries around too much anger over his teen years, but he's paid for it, and will continue to do so. He paid most monumentally at 595. As

garlandgraves theorizes, that gaze that Snape gave Dumbledore in the tower was almost certainly a legilimency exchange, and the thing that Hagrid overheard Snape and Dumbledore arguing about was probably related to an agreement about what to do if this type of situation arose.

So much new Snape canon. The revelation about the prophesy was extremely interesting: this makes Snape a much worse fellow than some wish to believe. It also makes me even more curious about what on earth it was that Snape offered to prove to Dumbledore his sincerity. Will the portrait reveal this? Unfortunately, I think what Dumbledore began to say to Harry, about Snape not knowing whom the prophecy would affect, points strongly to the LOLLIPOPS theory, which I really hate. But it would fit into the power of love theme (which I also dislike, to a certain degree, because of the tendency towards triteness that it can breed; if it actually caused the reader to think about character and nobility, that might be one thing, but here it will undoubtedly stop with a superficial notion of romance).

Slughorn: I was really starting to like him until he became a plot device. The tricking of Dumbledore, the indulgence in (what can be harmless and sometimes helpful) Slytherin personality traits such as networking and a love of the finer things in life. He had real potential as a good guy Slytherin, something the books could use, since now it seems virtually every Slytherin shares Voldemort's theories on the importance of blood purity. One of the most starkly "English" qualities of the books is JKR's idea that ambition is a negative trait. She never shows it without twisting it to a bad end (Voldemort, Percy, Slughorn's unnecessarily exclusive form of networking; Slughorn's grasping and pompousness). If an American wrote the books, you could bet the defining qualities of the "bad" House would not include ambition (though it certainly would include blood prejudice, i.e. inequality).

BTW, was it just me, or did the whole idea of an HBP seem like it went nowhere? Really, what role did the book play in anything? Harry learned a series of nasty jinxes, and got better at potions. And oh yeah saved Ron from death. But... but where did this go? It was the TITLE. But it wasn't particularly important. Or maybe it will be in the next book?

Shipping: I'm okay with R/Hr provided it's not the focus of the next book (c'mon, she's been beating us over the head with this for years). And people who think Ron and Hermione have been replaced with pod people because they used their classmates to make each other jealous? Hello, that's just what Hermione was doing with Krum. They are so not above that. Really, this seemed likely to be the way it had to be, IMO. They both have a lot of pride, and needed the jealousy to get over it.

I'm okay with H/G, but am really quite happy it looks like it won't be part of book seven to any great degree. But I didn't like how it was done. The big kiss scene at the quiddich party? The goodbye scene? So cheese you could break out the nachos and have a party. The kiss scene was especially egregious and, IMO, not really realistic.

I'm even okay with Tonks/Remus, but it just seems so out of left field. Without a lot of screen time being put to the ship, it seems tacked on and trite. I'm also disappointed that all we get to see is her being mopey about Remus. She has so much more personality than that, and since Sirius didn't get much attention in this book, I would have really loved a rich h/c scene between Tonks and Harry regarding Sirius. Or between Remus and Harry. During Christmas, I wanted Harry to hug Remus so badly. *sigh* That scene needs a definite re-write.

I'm just not into Fleur/Bill. She irritates me to no end.

graculus inadvertently made me realize there's an upside to all the shipping: the slash world is now in chaos. Ah, the silver lining. (Don't act so disappointed. I'm a Slytherin, what did you think I'd do? Feel their pain?)

Wonderfulness:

* Neville, woobie extraordinare. His wand is cherry/unicorn; oh, the innocence! His painful relationship with Gran. He's there at the battle. Oh, the missing scenes!

* Luna. I continue to [heart] her and her awkward insights. She needs to be featured more in canon. Hopefully, both she and Neville will get a role in Seven.

* Filling in the gaps on Blaise Zabini.

* Dumbledore confiding in Harry, at long last. Well, everything about Dumbledore, really. Take that, writers of Evil!Dumbledore.

* Molly & Arthur's relationship. Mollywobbles! Arthur taking Harry seriously.

Disappointments:

* Snape is the DADA teacher, but we hardly get any scenes! Such lost opportunities.

* Draco is bound to be coming over to the good. *sigh*

* Remus hardly appearing in the book. I can't wait for the werewolf spy fanfic.

* Percy: oh, you know you love your family. Come home already.