Harry Potter & the Cursed Child SPOILERS

[Deleted]

Harry Potter discussion thread because I very much want to talk about it but only once people have finished it.

DO NOT KEEP READING IF YOU HAVE NOT FINISHED!!

[wanderingheart]

That's some fast reading there.

[Deleted]

Well, I didn't feel like talking to myself, so I was waiting to start the discussion until I knew at least one other person could join

[longhornwino0907]

Only through Act One, but hoping H will leave me alone tonight and let me finish!

[Deleted]

longhornwino0907, I hope you get some time to read tonight!

[longhornwino0907]

@bonzo2012, finally finished yesterday! Ready to discuss! So now, yes, I'm that person bumping a post from the second page, sorry y'all!

So overall, I felt the dialogue lacked the Rowling finesse, but that's to be expected since she didn't write it.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Click here to see more.}I'm also really left wanting more about Delphi, Voldy, and Bella. She was knocked up? By Voldy?! I just have a really hard time wrapping my brain around this. Other than just his desire to pass on his blood, but why would he have felt a need to do that when he seemed so convinced that he was going to win and become all-powerful anyway? Thoughts?

[daisy818]

Aug 8, 2016 10:53:46 GMT -5 longhornwino0907 said:

@bonzo2012 , finally finished yesterday! Ready to discuss! So now, yes, I'm that person bumping a post from the second page, sorry y'all!

So overall, I felt the dialogue lacked the Rowling finesse, but that's to be expected since she didn't write it.

SPOILER: Click to show

{Click here to see more.}I'm also really left wanting more about Delphi, Voldy, and Bella. She was knocked up? By Voldy?! I just have a really hard time wrapping my brain around this. Other than just his desire to pass on his blood, but why would he have felt a need to do that when he seemed so convinced that he was going to win and become all-powerful anyway? Thoughts?

I finished it on Friday and was hoping this would get bumped!

Do we need to use the spoiler feature since the whole thread is spoilered? Just in case:

SPOILER: Click to show

{Click here to see more.}
When they are in the Dark World alternate timeline, Delphi is basically seated at his right hand running the day to day business of being evil. Maybe he thought that a blood relative of his would be the most loyal and trustworthy person to help him after he won? And by going with Bellatrix as the mom, he was linking himself to a very old pureblood line AND ensuring that both mom and dad were purely dedicated to his cause.

[longhornwino0907]

daisy818, wasn't sure about spoilers, so I used it just in case. Maybe if you haven't finished it, just don't read from here on out! Not using the spoiler this time!

So I definitely get WHY Bella, but it's still weird. I think I'm basing that mostly on the movies, though, and how much he really seems to barely tolerate her while she's desperate to even be near him and is pretty pathetic about it usually. In my opinion anyway.

That makes sense, though, about the right hand man thing. Hadn't thought of it like that. Is that giving Voldy too much credit, though, to think that he would NEED someone once he won? He doesn't seem like to type to ever think he would NEED anyone.

[kayladawn91]

I finished it last night.
Maybe I'm in the minority, but I was not impressed by this play. I found it underwhelming, cheesy, predictable, and annoying. I was not even a little bit invested in the characters. I don't feel like there's anything in the original books to back up this second prophesy or Bellatrix being pregnant. I would honestly like to pretend that this whole story doesn't exist at all.

[longhornwino0907]

Can we also talk about how much humanity and likeability Draco was actually given here? I found myself, a lot of times, rolling my eyes at Harry and thinking, "C'mon, that's old stuff, just listen to Draco, give him a shot! Plus he really loves his son and their relationship seems a bit better than yours with Albus right now!"

[longhornwino0907]

Aug 8, 2016 11:29:37 GMT -5 kayladawn91 said:

I finished it last night.
Maybe I'm in the minority, but I was not impressed by this play. I found it underwhelming, cheesy, predictable, and annoying. I was not even a little bit invested in the characters. I don't feel like there's anything in the original books to back up this second prophesy or Bellatrix being pregnant. I would honestly like to pretend that this whole story doesn't exist at all.

I found the story interesting enough, I guess. I liked characters I didn't think I would, though. And Ginny and Harry's relationship seemed like it was continued by the actors from the movies and so I didn't buy it. Not that I much bought it in the books either, but that's a different beast altogether!

The prophecy definitely seemed forced, at least in its wording, so I rolled my eyes at that. And like I said, just hard to buy Bella having Voldy's baby.

[swivelchair5]

Lurking because I love Harry Potter.

I was disappointed that there wasn't even a mention of Luna.

Do you think Bellatrix and Voldemort conceived the old fashioned way? Or is there a spell?

[longhornwino0907]

Aug 8, 2016 11:38:20 GMT -5 swivelchair5 said:

Do you think Bellatrix and Voldemort conceived the old fashioned way? Or is there a spell?

See, this! This is what I'm wondering! Inquiring minds need to know!

[kayladawn91]

Aug 8, 2016 11:32:39 GMT -5 longhornwino0907 said:

Aug 8, 2016 11:29:37 GMT -5 kayladawn91 said:

I finished it last night.
Maybe I'm in the minority, but I was not impressed by this play. I found it underwhelming, cheesy, predictable, and annoying. I was not even a little bit invested in the characters. I don't feel like there's anything in the original books to back up this second prophesy or Bellatrix being pregnant. I would honestly like to pretend that this whole story doesn't exist at all.

I found the story interesting enough, I guess. I liked characters I didn't think I would, though. And Ginny and Harry's relationship seemed like it was continued by the actors from the movies and so I didn't buy it. Not that I much bought it in the books either, but that's a different beast altogether!

The prophecy definitely seemed forced, at least in its wording, so I rolled my eyes at that. And like I said, just hard to buy Bella having Voldy's baby.

Exactly. I never liked Ginny and Harry's relationship and I still didn't here either.
I'm just so disappointed because I had high hopes for this. I felt like there was so much potential for a story about the next generation. And to go with a "what can go wrong with time turning" storyline felt very uninspired in comparison to the original books. One of the things I loved the most about the original series was the way it always kept me guessing and this play just didn't. The storyline was weak and just didn't do anything for me.

[Deleted]

For me, the biggest issue is the Voldy/Bellatrix pairing. It just didn't make any sense to me. Plus, how could Bellatrix give birth at the Malfoy house and Draco didn't know about it? Major plot hole.

I absolutely love Scorpius. He has some of the best lines, and I just want to hug him. He's so earnest, and smart, and uncertain. I love the scene at the end where the Potters and Weaslys are all hugging and Scorpius and Draco have an awkward hug.

[Deleted]

Aug 8, 2016 11:47:08 GMT -5 kayladawn91 said:

Aug 8, 2016 11:32:39 GMT -5 longhornwino0907 said:

I found the story interesting enough, I guess. I liked characters I didn't think I would, though. And Ginny and Harry's relationship seemed like it was continued by the actors from the movies and so I didn't buy it. Not that I much bought it in the books either, but that's a different beast altogether!

The prophecy definitely seemed forced, at least in its wording, so I rolled my eyes at that. And like I said, just hard to buy Bella having Voldy's baby.

Exactly. I never liked Ginny and Harry's relationship and I still didn't here either.
I'm just so disappointed because I had high hopes for this. I felt like there was so much potential for a story about the next generation. And to go with a "what can go wrong with time turning" storyline felt very uninspired in comparison to the original books. One of the things I loved the most about the original series was the way it always kept me guessing and this play just didn't. The storyline was weak and just didn't do anything for me.

I don't understand why in the wizarding world everyone seems to essentially marry their high school sweetheart. Like, it's fine for some characters to do that, but Harry+Ginny, AND Hermione+Ron seems like too much. And in an alternate world Ron marries the other girl just because he danced with her once?

This is another reason I like the Malfoys so much more here -- we've never heard of Scorpius' mother before now! She wasn't a main character, she's just a person!

[kayladawn91]

I also don't know why JK Rowling ever agreed to let someone else write a sequel (in a play format no less) to the best selling book series of all time. The original series has so much imagery and descriptive language which adds so much depth to story. You don't generally get that in a play and you definitely don't get it if Rowling isn't writing the story.

[daisy818]

Aug 8, 2016 11:50:07 GMT -5 @bonzo2012 said:

Aug 8, 2016 11:47:08 GMT -5 kayladawn91 said:

Exactly. I never liked Ginny and Harry's relationship and I still didn't here either.
I'm just so disappointed because I had high hopes for this. I felt like there was so much potential for a story about the next generation. And to go with a "what can go wrong with time turning" storyline felt very uninspired in comparison to the original books. One of the things I loved the most about the original series was the way it always kept me guessing and this play just didn't. The storyline was weak and just didn't do anything for me.

I don't understand why in the wizarding world everyone seems to essentially marry their high school sweetheart. Like, it's fine for some characters to do that, but Harry+Ginny, AND Hermione+Ron seems like too much. And in an alternate world Ron marries the other girl just because he danced with her once?

This is another reason I like the Malfoys so much more here -- we've never heard of Scorpius' mother before now! She wasn't a main character, she's just a person!

That did bother me a bit until I thought about the fact that, Hogwart's is really the only high school for witches and wizards in England. So you aren't going to meet a whole lot of new people outside of Hogwarts, unless you go for someone a fair bit older/younger or go for a Muggle.

[kayladawn91]

@bonzo2012 and longhornwino0907 I agree with both of you about the Malfoys. If I were to pick one thing I think was well-done about this play it would be Draco's character and his relationship with Scorpius. I love that they wrote those characters the way they did. I had always hoped that Draco would overcome the expectations that having the Malfoy name always put on his shoulders.

[Deleted]

Aug 8, 2016 11:54:06 GMT -5 daisy818 said:

Aug 8, 2016 11:50:07 GMT -5 @bonzo2012 said:

I don't understand why in the wizarding world everyone seems to essentially marry their high school sweetheart. Like, it's fine for some characters to do that, but Harry+Ginny, AND Hermione+Ron seems like too much. And in an alternate world Ron marries the other girl just because he danced with her once?

This is another reason I like the Malfoys so much more here -- we've never heard of Scorpius' mother before now! She wasn't a main character, she's just a person!

That did bother me a bit until I thought about the fact that, Hogwart's is really the only high school for witches and wizards in England. So you aren't going to meet a whole lot of new people outside of Hogwarts, unless you go for someone a fair bit older/younger or go for a Muggle.

That's true, I guess it just ends up feeling pretty contrived since the main characters all paired off.

Maybe that was another good thing about the Triwizard Tournament, since the kids from the different schools got to interact! After all, then we get Bill and Fleur, which is pretty cute.

[kayladawn91]

Aug 8, 2016 11:47:32 GMT -5 @bonzo2012 said:

For me, the biggest issue is the Voldy/Bellatrix pairing. It just didn't make any sense to me. Plus, how could Bellatrix give birth at the Malfoy house and Draco didn't know about it? Major plot hole.

I absolutely love Scorpius. He has some of the best lines, and I just want to hug him. He's so earnest, and smart, and uncertain. I love the scene at the end where the Potters and Weaslys are all hugging and Scorpius and Draco have an awkward hug.

I also found it amusing that Scorpius liked Rose and asked her out. Talk about a pleasant change from the original Malfoy-Granger relationship.

[longhornwino0907]

Aug 8, 2016 11:55:58 GMT -5 kayladawn91 said:

@bonzo2012 and longhornwino0907 I agree with both of you about the Malfoys. If I were to pick one thing I think was well-done about this play it would be Draco's character and his relationship with Scorpius. I love that they wrote those characters the way they did. I had always hoped that Draco would overcome the expectations that having the Malfoy name always put on his shoulders.

The part where Draco was talking to Scorpius about his mom and how she saw the good in him and all that stuff (can't remember exact phrases or anything) was SO TOUCHING and so unexpected coming from Draco, and I loved every second of it.

[kayladawn91]

Aug 8, 2016 11:58:58 GMT -5 longhornwino0907 said:

Aug 8, 2016 11:55:58 GMT -5 kayladawn91 said:

@bonzo2012 and longhornwino0907 I agree with both of you about the Malfoys. If I were to pick one thing I think was well-done about this play it would be Draco's character and his relationship with Scorpius. I love that they wrote those characters the way they did. I had always hoped that Draco would overcome the expectations that having the Malfoy name always put on his shoulders.

The part where Draco was talking to Scorpius about his mom and how she saw the good in him and all that stuff (can't remember exact phrases or anything) was SO TOUCHING and so unexpected coming from Draco, and I loved every second of it.

Yes. Draco was my favorite character in this story. I couldn't stand anyone else.

[daisy818]

I really liked Scorpius. Made you think that Astoria must have been a really good person (in addition to the tidbits about how Lucius and Narcissa didn't like her bc she wasn't on board with the anti-pureblood nonsense). And on Astoria, apparently her older sister Daphne was in Slytherin in Draco's year, and Astoria was two years younger.

Now, Rose Granger-Weasley, on the other hand, seems to be a pretentious little brat - she came across as a better fit for Slytherin, with her I'm-better-than-everyone attitude. And how come poor Hugo was only mentioned a handful of times, always as an afterthought?

[daisy818]

Also, new discovery thanks to Mr. Google - there is a whole subgenre of Harry/Daphne Greengrass fanfic. So bizarre.

[longhornwino0907]

Aug 8, 2016 12:15:51 GMT -5 daisy818 said:

I really liked Scorpius. Made you think that Astoria must have been a really good person (in addition to the tidbits about how Lucius and Narcissa didn't like her bc she wasn't on board with the anti-pureblood nonsense). And on Astoria, apparently her older sister Daphne was in Slytherin in Draco's year, and Astoria was two years younger.

Now, Rose Granger-Weasley, on the other hand, seems to be a pretentious little brat - she came across as a better fit for Slytherin, with her I'm-better-than-everyone attitude. And how come poor Hugo was only mentioned a handful of times, always as an afterthought?

Agreed, Rose was a very off-putting character. Way worse than Hermione ever was. I'm assuming they were going for a "she's like her mother" thing, but Hermione was never THAT off-putting or stuck-up, I didn't think.

[daisy818]

Aug 8, 2016 12:20:07 GMT -5 longhornwino0907 said:

Aug 8, 2016 12:15:51 GMT -5 daisy818 said:

I really liked Scorpius. Made you think that Astoria must have been a really good person (in addition to the tidbits about how Lucius and Narcissa didn't like her bc she wasn't on board with the anti-pureblood nonsense). And on Astoria, apparently her older sister Daphne was in Slytherin in Draco's year, and Astoria was two years younger.

Now, Rose Granger-Weasley, on the other hand, seems to be a pretentious little brat - she came across as a better fit for Slytherin, with her I'm-better-than-everyone attitude. And how come poor Hugo was only mentioned a handful of times, always as an afterthought?

Agreed, Rose was a very off-putting character. Way worse than Hermione ever was. I'm assuming they were going for a "she's like her mother" thing, but Hermione was never THAT off-putting or stuck-up, I didn't think.

Yeah - Hermione was a know-it-all and thought she was smarter than everyone (and she pretty much was correct on that point) but she never thought she was just flat out better than everyone else.  In fact, it's ironic that Rose thinks she's superior because of her parents (Harry Potter's famous friends and her mom being Minister) when Hermione was constantly treated poorly because of her parents.  Parenting fail on that front, Ron and Hermione.

[Deleted]

Aug 8, 2016 12:24:09 GMT -5 daisy818 said:

Aug 8, 2016 12:20:07 GMT -5 longhornwino0907 said:

Agreed, Rose was a very off-putting character. Way worse than Hermione ever was. I'm assuming they were going for a "she's like her mother" thing, but Hermione was never THAT off-putting or stuck-up, I didn't think.

Yeah - Hermione was a know-it-all and thought she was smarter than everyone (and she pretty much was correct on that point) but she never thought she was just flat out better than everyone else.  In fact, it's ironic that Rose thinks she's superior because of her parents (Harry Potter's famous friends and her mom being Minister) when Hermione was constantly treated poorly because of her parents.  Parenting fail on that front, Ron and Hermione.

TBH, I kinda like that Rose is so unlikable. She has all the worst qualities of her parents, and none of their good ones really. It would be a little to perfect if she was nicer, you know? The whole package of "we were best buddies, now our kids are best buddies".


What I do wish is that Hermione or Ron would acknowledge that Rose is a little brat, and that they're working to overcome her attitude. But I guess in a play format there isn't enough time for that. 

[daisy818]

Aug 8, 2016 12:50:22 GMT -5 @bonzo2012 said:

Aug 8, 2016 12:24:09 GMT -5 daisy818 said:

Yeah - Hermione was a know-it-all and thought she was smarter than everyone (and she pretty much was correct on that point) but she never thought she was just flat out better than everyone else.  In fact, it's ironic that Rose thinks she's superior because of her parents (Harry Potter's famous friends and her mom being Minister) when Hermione was constantly treated poorly because of her parents.  Parenting fail on that front, Ron and Hermione.

TBH, I kinda like that Rose is so unlikable. She has all the worst qualities of her parents, and none of their good ones really. It would be a little to perfect if she was nicer, you know? The whole package of "we were best buddies, now our kids are best buddies".


What I do wish is that Hermione or Ron would acknowledge that Rose is a little brat, and that they're working to overcome her attitude. But I guess in a play format there isn't enough time for that. 

I think this kind of captures my whole issue with it - I want another 700 pages to read to fill in more details! 

[Deleted]

Aug 8, 2016 13:19:55 GMT -5 daisy818 said:

Aug 8, 2016 12:50:22 GMT -5 @bonzo2012 said:

TBH, I kinda like that Rose is so unlikable. She has all the worst qualities of her parents, and none of their good ones really. It would be a little to perfect if she was nicer, you know? The whole package of "we were best buddies, now our kids are best buddies".


What I do wish is that Hermione or Ron would acknowledge that Rose is a little brat, and that they're working to overcome her attitude. But I guess in a play format there isn't enough time for that. 

I think this kind of captures my whole issue with it - I want another 700 pages to read to fill in more details! 

I know! I read a lot of plays for work, so I wasn't bothered by it being a script. But I want a full, JK Rowling length novel to go into all the details of the story!