Harry Potter 7 :: WARNING!!! :: SPOILERS INSIDE!!! ::

[DKT]

I just finished it last night and I'm still trying to absorb it all.  To sum up, I loved it. 

I was surprised by several of the deaths and how well she played them, especially after saying there would be 2 deaths in the book...  Killing Mad-Eye and Hedwig at the beginning set the tone for the book.  When Dobby died, I was sad, but I thought, at least no one else will die.  Killing Fred will probably leave me pretty haunted for a while.  And of course, I was epecially sad to see my favorite charachter (Lupin) die (off-screen, no less) but I had a feeling that was coming.  And Tonks and Creevy and everyone else.

I'm glad Harry survived and Neville wasn't the chosen one.  I thought it was awesome that Neville killed Nagini, though.  That was one of the best scenes in the book and I almost stood up on my couch (although, I thought pretty much everything from when they showed up in Hogsmeade on was awesome, which is high praise since I was already loving the book).  And everyone showing up at Hogwarts at the end was magnificent.  It made me smile to see people like Oliver Wood again.  I loved Mrs. Weasley calling Bellatrix a bitch and then smiting her.  I did not expect that.

The only thing that bugged me a bit was that I wanted to see more of Snape.  I was in the camp that was pretty sure he was working on Dumbledore's orders the whole way through, but I thought we'd get to see him do something a little more heroic in the last battle.  Still, that made Snape dying when he did all the more surprising.  And Rowling did a fantastic job explaining why Dumbledore told Snape to kill him (which was something I was worried about).  Okay, I was also bummed Lupid didn't kick Greyback's ass.  And I coulda done with more Ginny, but those are really small complaints considering the high expectations I had (and everyone else, who had certain things they wanted to see, ie, Listener hoping Neville was the real chosen one, etc.).  It was a very good show and I couldn't be much happier with how this final volume turned out.

But I have to say, this is probably the most satisfying conclusion to a series that I've ever read.  And it may very well be my favorite of the series.

I don't think the movie will be able to cut it, unless they hire a director and do a 4 hour cut Peter Jackson-style (I'm kind of surprised they haven't done this since Goblet of Fire). 

[Listener]

The only thing that bugged me a bit was that I wanted to see more of Snape.  I was in the camp that was pretty sure he was working on Dumbledore's orders the whole way through, but I thought we'd get to see him do something a little more heroic in the last battle.  Still, that made Snape dying when he did all the more surprising.  And Rowling did a fantastic job explaining why Dumbledore told Snape to kill him (which was something I was worried about).  Okay, I was also bummed Lupid didn't kick Greyback's ass.  And I coulda done with more Ginny, but those are really small complaints considering the high expectations I had (and everyone else, who had certain things they wanted to see, ie, Listener hoping Neville was the real chosen one, etc.).  It was a very good show and I couldn't be much happier with how this final volume turned out.

The problem is that the books are third-person-limited... Harry has to be in every scene (except for certain opening chapters in 1, 4, 6, and 7).  If he's not at school, we don't see Snape... or Ginny...

I think we all knew in our hearts that Snape wasn't evil.  This just confirms it.  My dad never believed he was good though.

[DKT]

I didn't mean that we'd see him outside of Harry's POV (although we have done that several times in the series).  I just meant I thought he'd do something more than die at Harry's feet.  Like take some kind of last minute mentor role, or save him again, or something.  I guess what I'm saying is that I was surprised that there wasn't more of a reconciliation between Harry and Snape before Snape died (as opposed to after). 

[Heradel]

Personally, I'd bet that if the books weren't what they were in terms of popularity, Ron probably would have showed up about 20 minutes later. But people read them to pre-teens, so snip.

I didn't really feel that there was that much in the terms of deus ex machina for a book with wizards and wands, and it felt to me like the wand lore bit had been set up in the earlier books.

The last movie was good, even cut down to the extent that it was.

[eytanz]

I just finished it last night and I'm still trying to absorb it all.  To sum up, I loved it. 

I was surprised by several of the deaths and how well she played them, especially after saying there would be 2 deaths in the book...  Killing Mad-Eye and Hedwig at the beginning set the tone for the book.  When Dobby died, I was sad, but I thought, at least no one else will die.  Killing Fred will probably leave me pretty haunted for a while.  And of course, I was epecially sad to see my favorite charachter (Lupin) die (off-screen, no less) but I had a feeling that was coming.  And Tonks and Creevy and everyone else.

She didn't say that there were 2 deaths - she said there were two that she didn't already intend before starting to write the book. I'm not sure who it was... Probably Lupin and Tonk, or maybe one of them and Creevy. I guess she'll answer that eventually in an interview.

I'm glad Harry survived and Neville wasn't the chosen one.  I thought it was awesome that Neville killed Nagini, though. 

I agree 100%. No offense, Listener, but I would have hated to have the ending you describe. I found it much more satsifying to have the victory come from a combination of Harry's willingness for self-sacrifice and Voldemorte's ultimate failure to understand the powers he was dealing with, than if it had come by the fact that the prophecy was about a different person.

But I have to say, this is probably the most satisfying conclusion to a series that I've ever read.  And it may very well be my favorite of the series.

I thought the ending was extremely satisfying. What complaints I have about the book are about the middle - it just drags a bit with too many scenes of the three heros just waiting for some idea of what to do. I would have preferred those trimmed a bit, and maybe more added about other characters at relevant points. I'd like to know the ultimate fate of Umbridge, for instance.

Still, overall an excellent book.

I didn't really feel that there was that much in the terms of deus ex machina for a book with wizards and wands, and it felt to me like the wand lore bit had been set up in the earlier books.

I agree. Or more accurately, I agree as far as the ending goes. I felt that the deus ex machina part with the wand was really in the beginning, with Harry's wand doing the "I can do magic on my own" bit. It didn't really lead anywhere, either - I can't see why it would have made much of a difference if Harry could have just beaten Voldemorte's wand normally there.

As for the elder wand and its special magic, well, every book in the series so far introduces new magical items that are crucial to the plot. I'd have been surprised if there hadn't been something new.

[Bdoomed]

I'm glad Harry survived and Neville wasn't the chosen one.  I thought it was awesome that Neville killed Nagini, though. 

I agree 100%. No offense, Listener, but I would have hated to have the ending you describe. I found it much more satsifying to have the victory come from a combination of Harry's willingness for self-sacrifice and Voldemorte's ultimate failure to understand the powers he was dealing with, than if it had come by the fact that the prophecy was about a different person.

Also, it was explained in the last book that Voldemort fufilled the prophecy by picking out Harry.  If Voldemort never heard the prophecy, he would have never killed Harry's parents, and thus Harry would never have cared as much, plus the strange connection they have would never have been made, and Harry would never have had that advantage over Voldemort.  Voldemort created his worst enemy, a self-fufilling prophecy.

Also I agree 100% that Neville killing Nagini was the best scene in the book.  I pictured a cool diagonally up slash while shouting, bloodspray, and the rotating head of Nagini in midair like the 300 scene w/ Xerxes punishing his subordinates.

As for a movie on this, they could cut out most of the useless isolated tent stuff.  They could cut out most of the arguments, the planning, all that stuff while on the run.  A lot of that was useless fluff that could be easily disposed of as "time passed" "general feeling" in a movie.
it will be interesting to see how they put it into a movie... cant wait for the Battle of Hogwarts scene!
The deaths of Dobby and Fred were probably the hardest to take.

It's like, oops, now she's even more powerful because of x, y, or z. Well, the Deathly Hallows are the same way. All of a sudden, Harry learns about this power that could rival Horcruxes. A little frustrating.

Yea but in the end, he ignores the power of the Hallows, he only uses the resurrection stone to prepare himself for death.  And hes been using the cloak ever since book 1.  He still destroys all of the horcruxes, and the only point where he "uses" the Hallows is just that he is the rightful owner of the Elder wand.  That part wasnt a cop out, it was more of "Voldemort you lack a lot of understanding about this stuff".  Voldemort's lack of understanding was his downfall.  He didnt realize that Harry was a Horcrux, he didnt know the full extent of the night he killed Harry's parents.  That is his major flaw, that is why he loses.  Its not because Harry found something more powerful than destroying horcruxes.

[Listener]

The deaths of Dobby and Fred were probably the hardest to take.

Yeah, my favorite characters are probably the twins (now the twin, I guess) and Luna, so I was quite sad.  I also felt slightly cheated by Tonks and Lupin dying.  I mean, we didn't even see it.  It just happened.

It's like, oops, now she's even more powerful because of x, y, or z. Well, the Deathly Hallows are the same way. All of a sudden, Harry learns about this power that could rival Horcruxes. A little frustrating.

Yea but in the end, he ignores the power of the Hallows, he only uses the resurrection stone to prepare himself for death.  And hes been using the cloak ever since book 1.  He still destroys all of the horcruxes, and the only point where he "uses" the Hallows is just that he is the rightful owner of the Elder wand.  That part wasnt a cop out, it was more of "Voldemort you lack a lot of understanding about this stuff".  Voldemort's lack of understanding was his downfall.  He didnt realize that Harry was a Horcrux, he didnt know the full extent of the night he killed Harry's parents.  That is his major flaw, that is why he loses.  Its not because Harry found something more powerful than destroying horcruxes.

I wasn't necessarily saying that the Hallows were used, just that they existed was enough to make me go "blornk *headonside*".  Wasn't there enough stuff in the book to help us understand that Harry could destroy the horcruxes anyway?  Elder Wand?  Okay, I'll buy that.  Cloak?  Why did it matter where it came from?  The fact that it exists was enough for me; I figured already that it was something James inherited, and then passed onto Harry via Dumbledore.

Now that I think about it, I guess the Hallows were necessary, if only for the cool, tribute-to-fans scene with the resurrection stone.

[DKT]

Yeah, my favorite characters are probably the twins (now the twin, I guess) and Luna, so I was quite sad.  I also felt slightly cheated by Tonks and Lupin dying.  I mean, we didn't even see it.  It just happened.

Oh, I definitely felt cheated by their off screen deaths (and Moody's, although I wasn't connected to him anywhere near as much) but that was part of what worked so well for me.  People are dying all around, people I know and love, and I didn't even get to see it happen.  They're just gone. 

The father in me had a very hard time with Lupin/Tonks dying and leaving their son alone.  Although I also get broken up trying to imagine George without Fred...

Dobby's death shook me up far more than I expected it would.

[Bdoomed]

well Lupin/Tonks dying is exactly what happened to Harry (well cept for the whole "voldemort falling" thing), but this time, you're content in knowing that at least their son has a godfather from birth, someone who cares.

FREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEED!!!! i cant believe he died...

In her first tell-all interview since the release of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” J.K. Rowling told TODAY’s Meredith Vieira she "probably will" publish a Potter encyclopedia, promising many more details about her beloved characters and the fate of the wizarding world beyond the few clues provided in the seventh book’s epilogue.

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY! you know we all wanted more.  DONT LIE TO YOURSELF!

[DKT]

well Lupin/Tonks dying is exactly what happened to Harry (well cept for the whole "voldemort falling" thing), but this time, you're content in knowing that at least their son has a godfather from birth, someone who cares.

Yes, when Lupin asked Harry to be Ted's godfather, I knew Lupin wouldn't make it out of the book alive.  Bummer, 'cause I wanted to see Lupin wolf-out one more time.

[eytanz]

I wasn't necessarily saying that the Hallows were used, just that they existed was enough to make me go "blornk *headonside*".  Wasn't there enough stuff in the book to help us understand that Harry could destroy the horcruxes anyway?  Elder Wand?  Okay, I'll buy that.  Cloak?  Why did it matter where it came from?  The fact that it exists was enough for me; I figured already that it was something James inherited, and then passed onto Harry via Dumbledore.

Now that I think about it, I guess the Hallows were necessary, if only for the cool, tribute-to-fans scene with the resurrection stone.

I think the point of making the invisiblity cloak a hallow was to underscore them as Dumbledore's weak point. Basically, he makes all the right decisions - except when the hallows are involved. He takes the cloak away from James when he knows the attack is coming - and it is implied that he took it *because* he knew that the attack was coming, knowing he will end up keeping it. This is an echo of how he will later try on the ring, which is probably his stupidest decision ever. The main point of the hallows, I think, were not so much that they are powerful artifacts, but rather that they give Harry something he can surpass both Voldemorte and Dumbledore in - each of those two tries to fight death - Voldemorte his own and Dumbledore that of his loved ones - while only Harry is able to master death by both accepting his own and realizing it mustn't be undone for others.

[Listener]

Yeah, my favorite characters are probably the twins (now the twin, I guess) and Luna, so I was quite sad.  I also felt slightly cheated by Tonks and Lupin dying.  I mean, we didn't even see it.  It just happened.

Oh, I definitely felt cheated by their off screen deaths (and Moody's, although I wasn't connected to him anywhere near as much) but that was part of what worked so well for me.  People are dying all around, people I know and love, and I didn't even get to see it happen.  They're just gone. 

The father in me had a very hard time with Lupin/Tonks dying and leaving their son alone.  Although I also get broken up trying to imagine George without Fred...

Dobby's death shook me up far more than I expected it would.

Well, by making Harry Ted's godfather at least Lupin made sure someone would be there to look out for the kid (though it meant Lupin was putting a hell of a lot of faith in Harry to win).  Of course, he didn't know that Tonks's dad would die, but Tonks's mom is still around and between her and Harry, I think the kid will do all right.  Tonks turned out okay, after all, so her mom can't be that bad.

A lot of fanfic addresses the "what happens to the other twin when one dies" question.  I rather think George will be depressed for a very, very, very long time.  I can see him passing ownership of the shop to Lee Jordan and striking off on his own, maybe working with Charlie in Romania for a while to get away from everything.

And yeah, I almost shed a tear when Dobby died.  As a whole I didn't really care for the house-elf subplots of 2 and 4 (though without Dobby, 2 would not have ended quite as well, nor would it have allowed Lucius to be quite as calculatingly evil as he became) but I think in 7 they were handled very well.

[Listener]

I wasn't necessarily saying that the Hallows were used, just that they existed was enough to make me go "blornk *headonside*".  Wasn't there enough stuff in the book to help us understand that Harry could destroy the horcruxes anyway?  Elder Wand?  Okay, I'll buy that.  Cloak?  Why did it matter where it came from?  The fact that it exists was enough for me; I figured already that it was something James inherited, and then passed onto Harry via Dumbledore.

Now that I think about it, I guess the Hallows were necessary, if only for the cool, tribute-to-fans scene with the resurrection stone.

I think the point of making the invisiblity cloak a hallow was to underscore them as Dumbledore's weak point. Basically, he makes all the right decisions - except when the hallows are involved. He takes the cloak away from James when he knows the attack is coming - and it is implied that he took it *because* he knew that the attack was coming, knowing he will end up keeping it. This is an echo of how he will later try on the ring, which is probably his stupidest decision ever. The main point of the hallows, I think, were not so much that they are powerful artifacts, but rather that they give Harry something he can surpass both Voldemorte and Dumbledore in - each of those two tries to fight death - Voldemorte his own and Dumbledore that of his loved ones - while only Harry is able to master death by both accepting his own and realizing it mustn't be undone for others.

When I read what you wrote, I had a flashback to the return of Aslan after the Stone Table scene in "The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe".

[Heradel]

I actually liked the part about the Hollows, mainly because it seemed like it pushed the story from little-kid fantasy to a darker adult reality. No, everybody doesn't have an invisibility cloak that "just works" perfectly. Things you've taken for granted aren't like that for everyone else, even in a magical world. Harry had a kinda rosy view of the wizarding world as a child, this one brought in the shades of grey.

[slic]

Really enjoyed the book - read it over two days while doing other stuff!

I was glad/unhappy for the Epilogue - glad to see the Happily Ever After, but now any other books - and I'm sure there will be others, just not written by Ms. Rowling - a la Dragonlance, Star Wars, etc, series) - will be less dramatic.

Harry dying and showing up at a train station made perfect sense, but gave me Matrix flashbacks

...it just drags a bit with too many scenes of the three heros just waiting for some idea of what to do.

I found it dragging as well, but also felt it was an excellent device to make all the readers feel how bored, on edge and frustrated the Three Heroes were.  None of this "...and then, 2 months later..."  It also made Ron's decision to leave more understanding.

When Ron actually starting doing all those cool things during the battle, I was sure we has going to die!!  Thank goodness he didn't.

[Bdoomed]

When Ron actually starting doing all those cool things during the battle, I was sure we has going to die!!  Thank goodness he didn't.

yea, those last few chapters i was REALLY dreading reading.  I was scared shitless that Ron or Hermione would die, and while I couldnt put the book down, i also couldnt bear to read those words.  thank Rowling they never came!

[DKT]

Before I read the book, I figured Ron and Hermione were the only two characters who were pretty safe.  I could see Rowling killing just about anybody but them.  (I was more worried about the twins and Lupin.)  But when Bellatrix was torturing Hermione and Ron was screaming from the basement, my faith stumbled.  I was so scared!

[slic]

I figured Ron and Hermione were the only two characters who were pretty safe.

And I had the exact opposite opinion - I was pretty sure one of them were goners!  If can't take out the Hero then one of the major sidekicks is an easy consolation...

[ClintMemo]

The only things I was sure about was the Harry would live, Voldomort would die and that Ron and Hermaine would end up together (finally).
If she spent seven kids books setting those things up to happen and then killed one of them off, she be the most hated woman alive.
The person I kept expecting to die was Hagrid.

[Listener]

The only things I was sure about was the Harry would live, Voldomort would die and that Ron and Hermaine would end up together (finally).
If she spent seven kids books setting those things up to happen and then killed one of them off, she be the most hated woman alive.
The person I kept expecting to die was Hagrid.

Yeah, when he took that dive off the bike, I totally expected him to bite it.

Did anyone else get a Shepherd Book vibe when Hedwig died... like, "this is the death to tell you that we're serious".

[slic]

I actually thought the Hedwig death was kinda lame - I get that the owl was Harry's link, blah, blah, but in the end - Hedwig was a pet.  Sorry it's dead, but then why didn't Harry just let him out of the cage earlier??

she be the most hated woman alive.

I'm not so sure that was a concern of hers....

[Listener]

I actually thought the Hedwig death was kinda lame - I get that the owl was Harry's link, blah, blah, but in the end - Hedwig was a pet.  Sorry it's dead, but then why didn't Harry just let him out of the cage earlier??

I dare you to make that comment on our Mike Vick forum threads over where I work.  You will be so vilified...

[eytanz]

I actually thought the Hedwig death was kinda lame - I get that the owl was Harry's link, blah, blah, but in the end - Hedwig was a pet.  Sorry it's dead, but then why didn't Harry just let him out of the cage earlier??

I agree that the death was lame, but not because Hedwig was a pet, but because it was just very quickly glossed over - it seemed to mostly be a device to get Hedwig out of the way of the plot, and probably Rowling figured it's better to kill the owl than to have him leave it with the Weasleys and worry about it periodically.

I'm not saying Hedwig should have gotten a momentous death, or that her death detracted from the novel, it just didn't really do so much for the story either.

[ClintMemo]

Yeah, when he took that dive off the bike, I totally expected him to bite it.

I didn't expect it until he went after the spiders.  I figured that someone big (no pun intended) would die late.
Although...
I didn't expect Mad-eye to die so early.  I was certain they were going to find him in Malfoy's castle or that he was going to come back as a zombie or something.
Hedwig's death was kind of glossed over, but it was totally necessary for the plot.  Someone would have used it to find Harry.
I was a bit disappointed that Tonks and Lupin died off-screen.  She could have at least had someone tell Harry how they died.

I was glad that Longbottom go to do something heroic.  I was a bit surprised that he didn't get to kill LeStrange but I suppose everyone expected that so maybe that's why she didn't do it.

I did enjoy the epilogue - especially the bit where Draco nodded his head (or tipped his hat whatever). It really gave it that "the past is the past and everyone has gotten over it and moved on" vibe.  Maybe Draco turned out not to be so bad after all. Maybe he just had bad parents.
Of course, it also sets the seed for "Hogwarts: The Next Generation."  I'm sure people are already pestering her about doing that.  Even if she never writes another Hogwarts story, I can't imagine that she would give up writing.

[slic]

I actually thought the Hedwig death was kinda lame - I get that the owl was Harry's link, blah, blah, but in the end - Hedwig was a pet.  Sorry it's dead, but then why didn't Harry just let him out of the cage earlier??

I dare you to make that comment on our Mike Vick forum threads over where I work.  You will be so vilified...

There's a pretty big difference in saying "Your pet died, so sorry but move on" and "it's ok to force animals to kill each other"

I also agree that many deaths were bushed over so quickly, but then I can see the difficulty in how to try and fit them in.

Speaking of Neville's heroics, though, I was a bit confused about his getting the sword out of the Sorting Hat - was that planned, is that why he "threw" himself at Voldemort?