Wednesday 8 February 2017

Paperback's Pondering's: Harry Potter, What are you Doing?


This topic... god this topic. I've talked about my problems with revivals of classic books, tv shows, and movies before, but today, we're getting more specific. My first post was having not read Cursed Child, but now that I have, I needed to revisit this. I need to get more stuff off my chest.

I'd be lying if I said I didn't buy into the Cursed Child and Fantastic Beasts craze. Everyone did, I mean, we're loyal fans who for years haven't gotten a sign from the Wizarding World, and now Harry's checking in to let us know what he's been up to! How exciting! I read, and somewhat enjoyed Cursed Child, and I thought that Fantastic Beasts was ok. But the truth is, I'm sick and tired of these HP revivals. I'd rather that they didn't exist, and I'm not sure if I want to buy into them again. 

Cursed Child was just weird for me. It didn't feel like the eighth Harry Potter book, it felt like some sort of fan fiction that someone had written after finishing the Deathly Hallows. Harry didn't sound like Harry, Ron didn't sound like Ron, and don't even get me started on Hermione. She was so flat and didn't feel at all like the Hermione I used to love. I refuse to believe that book was the eighth Harry Potter book.

Then Fantastic Beasts. That to me, felt like a random movie about wizards set apart from the HP world. It was so incredibly random, and they're actually making five movies out of it?! Give me a break. 

The point I'm trying to make here is, that I don't think these revivals are coming out for the happiness of the fans anymore. I feel like if they were, they would take our opinions into account such as making a certain couple canonically gay and putting down that "snape was good" analogy forever. I would also much rather prefer a series on the Marauders rather than five freaking Fantastic Beasts movies. Maybe I'm just being cynical, but I'm seeing these things as a money grab alone. 

To me, this is all just a way to make more money. They know that anything with Harry Potter plastered on the front, people will buy in to, so they've been milking all of these revivals to the death. It makes me not want to see the five other Fantastic Beasts movies, or not even try to get Cursed Child tickets. It makes me angry that my favourite book is being exploited like this. 

Maybe I'm just being dramatic and negative. I don't mean to be a debby downer on all those who love the revivals, and you are not any less of a fan for wanting to do these things. I'm just saying that for me, these revivals have not been working out, and I wish that HP would either listen to the fans for what they want, or not do anything at all. 

How do you feel about HP at the moment? Please share! 

Emily @ Paperback Princess

11 comments:

  1. You've pretty much just summed up how I feel. I won't be reading Cursed Child, and I don't think I'm going to watch the next Fantastic Beasts film. The only Potter thing I can see myself spending money on is the studio tours down near London, as I loved that so much the previous times I went and they've added more since I last went. But as for any new books, films or merch? Nah. I don't even keep up with Pottermore or anything as it all just feels like JK can't let go. Or maybe I've just outgrown my Potter days.

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    1. I know right?! I think my love for pottermore lasted all of 20 minutes. I haven't logged on in years. I'm definitely still an a huge fan, but I think my prime Potter years are over :(

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  2. Annnnnd breathe!

    You sound *almost* as cynical as my generation of teens (who liked dystopian novels and punk rock albums about political corruption and the end of the world... we might've been on to something...)

    If you're not enjoying the spin-offs then don't watch/read them Em, no-one who matters will think you're any less of a fan! Life's too short to spend it doing sh** you don't like for no discernible reason.

    That said - I enjoyed Fantastic Beasts like hell, and Cursed Child. Now, I had problems with both, don't get me wrong, but I still enjoyed them.

    For a start, Scorpius is a divine cupcake, and should be protected at all costs, and for a second, yes, I ship the thing (almost as much as I ship Stucky - which is A LOT BECAUSE THEY BELONG TOGETHER DAMMIT!)

    Again, I think maybe as a comics reader, I've had to get used to re-boots, re-imaginings, spin-offs, multiple timelines, alternate realities, and anything else they might've come up within the last 50+ years.

    Maybe this is just the point where HP graduates from an of-its-time fandom to a durable and integral part of pop culture (a la Star Wars, Dr Who, or Star Trek.)

    (Ha, that rambling comment sounded half-intelligent for once! Hehehe XD )

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    1. Lol maybe I was a teen in the wrong generation haha! Thank you for such an informative comment Cee!

      Yeah I definitely agree with you that Scorpius was so precious, I just... I guess I just wanted more for him.

      The whole revival thing is still something I'm getting used to. While I'm not against them for some of my other interests, I think for me, I need to back away from the HP ones.

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    2. Fair enough - do what makes you happy, Em. That's what makes it all worth it, honest.

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  3. Preach!! I totally get where you're coming from. I knew from the start that these Harry Potter revivals were for money. It was just the question to see if they worked for the HP audience.

    I'm still a new(ish?) HP fan. I read HP in 2016 because I wanted to (finally) jump on the bandwagon BECAUSE of the Cursed Child. I was like "this is it! harry potter is getting an eighth book! i'm going join this party!" So me and my brother dived into the Wizarding World of Harry Potter.

    What a ride man. We laughed, cried, smiled and felt the magic of Harry Potter. We loved it. I was so happy to (finally) be part of HP family. Ahh sorry the nostalgia is kicking in. Anyway! This is where things get bumpy for me. My brother didn't read the Cursed Child. But I did and I must say, I enjoyed it. I did! I enjoyed the newer aspects in the Cursed Child. But everything else? Like our older characters, places, writing, small side things, spells etc? They weren't the same and not very enjoyable.
    If I had to label the Cursed Child, it would be an engaging, wonky fanfiction. Not our 8th book.

    Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them is a completely different story - literally. The movie is loosely based off a 20+ page schoolbook and then, all of a sudden, we're getting 5 movies. ~cues in the fandom freaking OUT~ More Harry Pott- oh I mean Newt Scamander! We're getting Newt now. Honestly, I really liked FBAWTFT but it wasn't Harry Potter. And, at this point, I don't want ANY more HP revivals. I'll just take the rest of the FBAWTFT movies and my future (pls) Marauders movie(s). Okay Rowling?! That's all I can take!!

    I guess my point is that the HP revivals are nice and enjoyable but they aren't Harry Potter. And I can't take these mixed feelings anymore. So, please, Rowling take your fresh, printed money and leave Harry and his world alone. The end of Deathly Hallows was fine but now you got HP fans just tearing it apart and fighting. :/

    So yeah. That's my (long and probably filled with typos!) opinion on these HP revivals haha. Great discussion, Emily!

    anna | annaish

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    1. Thanks Anna! First off, i'm glad that you're fully immersed in the Potter world and I hope you will be for years to come :)

      I totally get what you're saying that the fact that these revivals aren't necessarily boring or bad, it's that they're not HP. Maybe if JKR had said that Fantastic Beasts was a movie separate from the HP world, that would make me feel less obligated to keep comparing it. And I just got really offended when they said that Cursed Child was the 8th book. Again, it could have been a fanfiction, or in this case, an author fiction??? But it was not part of the series we know and love. I really appreciate your thoughts Anna!

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  4. Well this summed everything up nicely. I think revivals will often never be as good as the orginal because it is orginal. I love Harry Potter but especailly The Cursed Child just didn't do any justice to the orginal series and it was disappointing to wait so long for that.

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    1. It was very disappointing! Especially because it was highly awaited.

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  5. I've never been in the Harry Potter wave because I'm quite young if you consider when the books were published, and I just kind of missed them. However, I'm currently reading the fifth book and even though I'm all about Harry Potter and I really truly like the series, I find, just as you, that revivals are just trying to sell and have more money in their pockets. A good story stays a good story when you know it's enough (someone should say that to Cassandra Clare as well), and I understand that some fans are thankful for it, but I don't feel the same way.

    Great topic.

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    1. Thank you, L! I'm glad you're enjoying the books :) I've only read a few things from Cassandra Clare but I definitely agree that she seems to be milking her series. It's just too much.

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