Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
holy FUCKTOAST spoilers
Right, SPOILERS, listen up kiddies, 'cause I'm only gonna to say this once..
Okay, stop. If, for some reason, you've come here not wanting your precious little eyes to burst into flame from reading about all the amazingly scandalous things that have happened in the latest book, boy howdy are you ever in the wrong place.
If you've come here expecting a prithee little dance as I flightingly refrain from denoting any sensitive topics, despite this warning that I am giving to you now, you're obviously retarded and I hate you.
In short, if you've not yet read the latest book of Harry Potter, that is, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (it's in that shiny little subject bar up there!), and want to retain ANY hint of surprise and amazement until you do, you should stop reading. Now.
Personally, I'd take a couple days off the 'net entirely, myself. Safer to avoid crap like this. Oh, wait..
So..
Yeah..
SPOILERS.
Right..
Bleeee~
...
Snape.
I love him. I'll say it, right here, just so we can be clear from the start. I'm a shameless Serverus fanboy. He's my favorite character, and nothing Rowling can do will ever change that. Better than Potter. Better than Hagrid. Better, yes, than Dumbledore. Because of this, my view is more than likely coloured. I've loved Snape from the very first book, before there was even a movie. I've always had a thing for very tall, thin people dressed all in black, especially those who are bitingly sarcastic and mean. I. Love. Snape.
So, obviously, it's always been annoying the way Potter leaps to accuse him of everything. The way how, despite chiding disbelief by all the other characters, he never quite let up, loathing Snape for every day. He seemed, it seemed, utterly incapable of accepting the fact that, maybe, just maybe, Snape could be a royal pompous ass and still be a goodguy as well. Thus, it was more than a little irksome when the Potions Master - or, as he finally managed, Teacher of Dark Arts Defense - turned around and killed the headmaster. Yes, that's right. Snape killed Dumbledore.
It was annoying in two parts. Obviously, of course, there's the fact that Dumbledore is, well, dead. I liked Dumbledore. Not as much as Snape, but I liked him. He was weird and he was funny and he was smart and he was kind and it didn't hurt that he was the most powerful fucking wizard on the planet. I'm going to miss him, now that he's gone. Secondly, I'm just rather annoyed that Harry was RIGHT. Because, let's face it, Harry's a prat. Or he certainly acts like one from time to time. The point is, for the most part, I don't like him. I like Ron and Hermoine and a lot of the others, I just don't like HIM.
Obviously, it's still up for debate. I, myself, and despite any evidence, screamed for Snape's innocence until the very last SECOND of Dumbledore's demise. And, heck, even a bit after, I hoped that it was all some clever ruse and Dumbledore would pop up from the grave with a hand full of flowers and say, "Oh, hahah, had you all fooled, no, I'm alive and Snape's really nice. Now let's all have a party." Obviously, Snape didn't WANT to undergo the oath that would bind him - by penalty of death - to help Draco kill Dumbledore, or else do it himself, but he did it out of a matter of pride, because he's to much of a git to let some girl laugh at him and call him a coward, and mostly just did it so he could laugh in her face. "Ha! Didn't think I'd do it, did ya you slimy bitch? Now I'm off to kill Dumbledore and.. oh shit." Whether or not this was just because he didn't want to stick his neck out, or because he genuinely cared for Dumbledore, however, is still up for debate. Arguments can be made either way.
It is interesting to note Snape's reluctance to actually KILL Potter, despite his obvious ability to do so. Really, obvious. Snape totally kicked Harry's ASS in their duel at the end of the book - if you could even call it a duel - but refrained from harming him in any way. Even had he merely wanted Potter alive for Voldemort, as he claimed, he certainly could've done more to smack the little brat down, but instead he refrained from harming Potter at all. And, indeed, in the Half-Blood Prince's Book, he never seemed at all malicious, (although, to be fair, that slashing spell was pretty bad, and I was convinced the original owner had been Voldemort up until Snape claimed it as his own).
There are other, minor factors as well, in addition to Snape's apparent refusal to actually fight any of the members of the Order, such as, for instance, his apparent help to Dumbledore beforehand, on the part of Dumbledore's withered hand - in the book, Dumbledore mentions that it is because of Snape that the curse did not entirely spread, thus preventing it from killing him completely. If this is so, it raises the question of why Snape would bother doing this if he were planning to kill him anyway. In short, I found THIS entry to be quite interesting (hi Iatro), although personally I couldn't care less about the locket(told you I'm a Snape fan).
Draco, incidently, showed perhaps the first bit of character depth in the series, at least concerning himself. Most often he's just a broken record - jeering and sneering, mudblood mudblood, oh yes, please, you're SO damn witty. Really, it got tiresome quick. I hated Draco, up until this point, just because he was so unapoligetically two-dimensional. Obviously, you were SUPPOSED to hate him.. but I got the feeling that I hated him for far different reasons than Rowling had intended. Finally, he's seemed to show an actually human side, both in the scene with Myrtle and in the last moments with Dumbledore. Now, I still doubt I'll like him much, but he's at least managed to get a middling level of depth, which almost makes him interesting.
Slughorn, meanwhile, is rather interesting. I like him, though - as you may expect - not as much as Snape. I thought he was a funny old guy. He's a selfish little prat who's, nevertheless, fairly good. Or, at least, neutral. I like gray areas, which Harry Potter is sadly lacking. I'm somewhat disappointed by the idea that he won't be in the next book, for no other reason than because Harry has expressed disinterest in returning to Hogwarts. I kindof hope to see more of him. Hagrid, too, who probably ranks as my second favorite character, and so many others that, without Hogwarts to combine them, might not make it back. On the one hand, I want to believe that Rowling wouldn't just ignore all these characters she's spent so much time writing about, but on the other, it seems as though the books are going off in a radically different direction in the final stretch. I don't know what to think. About Snape, about characters, about plot. I'm a little disappointed, to be honest, though there were some good bits (I pretty much loved everything having to do with Slughorn, Hagrid, the Half-Blood Prince, and, of course, Snape - ESPECIALLY Snape's short-lived duel with Harry at the end) that definately made me glad I read the thing.
Obviously, I'll read the next one. Having come this far, it'd be kindof silly not to. Even if there are parts that consistantly annoy me, and even if the massive plot twist made my head spin(that, at least, is not a bad thing), and even with Rowling's seemingly callous disregard for characters (still somewhat pissed over Sirius - not just because he died, but also because it was the most ANTICLIMACTIC DEATH, EVER), I still like the setting, and the characters themselves. And, really, I think that's why a lot of the people READ these stories. Certainly not for Rowling's writing ability, at least.
Right, SPOILERS, listen up kiddies, 'cause I'm only gonna to say this once..
Okay, stop. If, for some reason, you've come here not wanting your precious little eyes to burst into flame from reading about all the amazingly scandalous things that have happened in the latest book, boy howdy are you ever in the wrong place.
If you've come here expecting a prithee little dance as I flightingly refrain from denoting any sensitive topics, despite this warning that I am giving to you now, you're obviously retarded and I hate you.
In short, if you've not yet read the latest book of Harry Potter, that is, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (it's in that shiny little subject bar up there!), and want to retain ANY hint of surprise and amazement until you do, you should stop reading. Now.
Personally, I'd take a couple days off the 'net entirely, myself. Safer to avoid crap like this. Oh, wait..
So..
Yeah..
SPOILERS.
Right..
Bleeee~
...
Snape.
I love him. I'll say it, right here, just so we can be clear from the start. I'm a shameless Serverus fanboy. He's my favorite character, and nothing Rowling can do will ever change that. Better than Potter. Better than Hagrid. Better, yes, than Dumbledore. Because of this, my view is more than likely coloured. I've loved Snape from the very first book, before there was even a movie. I've always had a thing for very tall, thin people dressed all in black, especially those who are bitingly sarcastic and mean. I. Love. Snape.
So, obviously, it's always been annoying the way Potter leaps to accuse him of everything. The way how, despite chiding disbelief by all the other characters, he never quite let up, loathing Snape for every day. He seemed, it seemed, utterly incapable of accepting the fact that, maybe, just maybe, Snape could be a royal pompous ass and still be a goodguy as well. Thus, it was more than a little irksome when the Potions Master - or, as he finally managed, Teacher of Dark Arts Defense - turned around and killed the headmaster. Yes, that's right. Snape killed Dumbledore.
It was annoying in two parts. Obviously, of course, there's the fact that Dumbledore is, well, dead. I liked Dumbledore. Not as much as Snape, but I liked him. He was weird and he was funny and he was smart and he was kind and it didn't hurt that he was the most powerful fucking wizard on the planet. I'm going to miss him, now that he's gone. Secondly, I'm just rather annoyed that Harry was RIGHT. Because, let's face it, Harry's a prat. Or he certainly acts like one from time to time. The point is, for the most part, I don't like him. I like Ron and Hermoine and a lot of the others, I just don't like HIM.
Obviously, it's still up for debate. I, myself, and despite any evidence, screamed for Snape's innocence until the very last SECOND of Dumbledore's demise. And, heck, even a bit after, I hoped that it was all some clever ruse and Dumbledore would pop up from the grave with a hand full of flowers and say, "Oh, hahah, had you all fooled, no, I'm alive and Snape's really nice. Now let's all have a party." Obviously, Snape didn't WANT to undergo the oath that would bind him - by penalty of death - to help Draco kill Dumbledore, or else do it himself, but he did it out of a matter of pride, because he's to much of a git to let some girl laugh at him and call him a coward, and mostly just did it so he could laugh in her face. "Ha! Didn't think I'd do it, did ya you slimy bitch? Now I'm off to kill Dumbledore and.. oh shit." Whether or not this was just because he didn't want to stick his neck out, or because he genuinely cared for Dumbledore, however, is still up for debate. Arguments can be made either way.
It is interesting to note Snape's reluctance to actually KILL Potter, despite his obvious ability to do so. Really, obvious. Snape totally kicked Harry's ASS in their duel at the end of the book - if you could even call it a duel - but refrained from harming him in any way. Even had he merely wanted Potter alive for Voldemort, as he claimed, he certainly could've done more to smack the little brat down, but instead he refrained from harming Potter at all. And, indeed, in the Half-Blood Prince's Book, he never seemed at all malicious, (although, to be fair, that slashing spell was pretty bad, and I was convinced the original owner had been Voldemort up until Snape claimed it as his own).
There are other, minor factors as well, in addition to Snape's apparent refusal to actually fight any of the members of the Order, such as, for instance, his apparent help to Dumbledore beforehand, on the part of Dumbledore's withered hand - in the book, Dumbledore mentions that it is because of Snape that the curse did not entirely spread, thus preventing it from killing him completely. If this is so, it raises the question of why Snape would bother doing this if he were planning to kill him anyway. In short, I found THIS entry to be quite interesting (hi Iatro), although personally I couldn't care less about the locket(told you I'm a Snape fan).
Draco, incidently, showed perhaps the first bit of character depth in the series, at least concerning himself. Most often he's just a broken record - jeering and sneering, mudblood mudblood, oh yes, please, you're SO damn witty. Really, it got tiresome quick. I hated Draco, up until this point, just because he was so unapoligetically two-dimensional. Obviously, you were SUPPOSED to hate him.. but I got the feeling that I hated him for far different reasons than Rowling had intended. Finally, he's seemed to show an actually human side, both in the scene with Myrtle and in the last moments with Dumbledore. Now, I still doubt I'll like him much, but he's at least managed to get a middling level of depth, which almost makes him interesting.
Slughorn, meanwhile, is rather interesting. I like him, though - as you may expect - not as much as Snape. I thought he was a funny old guy. He's a selfish little prat who's, nevertheless, fairly good. Or, at least, neutral. I like gray areas, which Harry Potter is sadly lacking. I'm somewhat disappointed by the idea that he won't be in the next book, for no other reason than because Harry has expressed disinterest in returning to Hogwarts. I kindof hope to see more of him. Hagrid, too, who probably ranks as my second favorite character, and so many others that, without Hogwarts to combine them, might not make it back. On the one hand, I want to believe that Rowling wouldn't just ignore all these characters she's spent so much time writing about, but on the other, it seems as though the books are going off in a radically different direction in the final stretch. I don't know what to think. About Snape, about characters, about plot. I'm a little disappointed, to be honest, though there were some good bits (I pretty much loved everything having to do with Slughorn, Hagrid, the Half-Blood Prince, and, of course, Snape - ESPECIALLY Snape's short-lived duel with Harry at the end) that definately made me glad I read the thing.
Obviously, I'll read the next one. Having come this far, it'd be kindof silly not to. Even if there are parts that consistantly annoy me, and even if the massive plot twist made my head spin(that, at least, is not a bad thing), and even with Rowling's seemingly callous disregard for characters (still somewhat pissed over Sirius - not just because he died, but also because it was the most ANTICLIMACTIC DEATH, EVER), I still like the setting, and the characters themselves. And, really, I think that's why a lot of the people READ these stories. Certainly not for Rowling's writing ability, at least.