green_queen | (no subject) (Reply)

I'm way too tired for the lack of stuff I did today.

I only left the house to go pick up Leonie (sp?) for dinner, a family friend from the embassy in Tokyo. It was good to see her and hear all the goss from the embassy. She's pregnant again. So much has *happened* since I left! It's unbelievable. Most of today I avoided study, usually by playing Nsync mah jongg, which is so fun! but very bad. I'm slowly rereading book 5. Tom called and we talked for a while and he's all studyfreak, so I will probably not see him before they go to Brisbane *pouts*. He made fun of my unholy love of a certain boyband. Not much else by way of news.
Who the hell is soujikibobu?!

stolen from

alexmalfoy

1. Describe in five words or less how you feel about Order of the Phoenix. (your initial reaction)
Shock, awe, sadness, amazement, adoration.

2. What are your feelings on Harry's personality? Do you think he is overly cynical, depressed, etc. . . .?
Are you kidding? With what he's been through? He's downright optimistic. He's very angry, but I was very angry as a teenager too, it's perfectly understandable. Half the book I wanted to hug him and half I wanted to slap him--in other words, he's a perfectly normal teenage boy.

3. Do you think Order of the Phoenix is appropriate for children 13 and younger? Why or why not?
*ponders* My sister's 12 and reading it, but I think there are parts that will be hard for her. I think it depends on the reader, I know a very mature 11-year-old who read, understood and loved it, and some older kids who wouldn't get it. It's the really young crowd I worry about. The press makes a big deal out of that lot, but really it's kinda strong PG13. There's some scary shit.

4. List your five most hated characters (either in Book 5 or the whole series, non-humans can be included).
1. Pettigrew
2. Umbridge
3. Percy
4. Bellatrix Lestrange
5. Barty Crouch (both of them).

5. Percy turned away from his family. Will he come crawling back to them now or . . .?
I don't think he'll become a death-eater, more like Barty Crouch Sr and Umbridge--a psycho on the other side, so obsessed with fighting *against* the Voldy lot that he'll be almost as bad as them. He could be redeemed, but I doubt he'll want to be. If he comes back, it'll be reluctant and short-lived.

6. What did you think of the new DADA's punishment? Why didn't Harry nor Lee complain?
They didn't complain because the wizarding world has a history of unusual punishment and they don't really see how out of line it is. Harry also had the burden of not wanting to seem like he's focussing on what seems to him to be petty while all the Order at Hogwarts have more important things on their minds, plus he thought Dumbledore was ignoring him and wouldn't care. Thought by Dumbledore's anger at Umbridge when she started shaking Marietta, I reckon Dumbledore would have something to say, as would McGonagall.
Of course, that's part of why Harry didn't. Lee seems more like the sort who would try to take it like a man, make a joke about it, not let the bitch get to him.

7. What do you think of James and Lily now?
James is a more rounded character, one who made mistakes, and Lily finally *is* a character. She's a lot more interesting than I once thought, from what I saw in this one she's quite strong, not at all like the weepy witch we saw in the mirror. I don't like them any less, though.

8. Has your opinion (which is probably not too good) of Petunia Dursley changed? If yes, how so?
Most certainly.
She's downright 3-dimensional now. As the books progress I'm finding all of the regular characters are like that, rather than the still layered but more outlandish figures they were at the beginning. Since it's from Harry's perspective, I think that makes sense--as kids grow older they come to realise that the adults they count on are fallible and those they hate are often not so bad as they thought.
Back to Petunia. I realised that Vernon really is a truly evil bastard who genuinely doesn't care whether or not Harry dies; but by the same token I realised Petunia is not nearly as awful as I thought, and that she doesn't actually want Harry dead. There is no reason to have him in the house other than to save him, as he could be easily killed outside it. I don't think she remembered fully, until Dumbledore's howler, how much danger Harry was in.
I alsom finally, think Dudley has something worth redeeming, and I *love* the way Harry saved him. No matter how angry he is, Harry really is a good kid.

9. What's the meaning of Snape's nickname in your opinion?
What the fuck?!!! It's kinda obvious. Snivellus. Sounds like Severus, and he's snivelly. Childish taunting from some mostly okay boys acting like real shits.

10. What do you think of the character death? Do you think s/he will return? The "death" of this person was vague and not very final; however, remember that JKR said she cried over this character's death.
I don't think he'll be back. I think it was vague in order to leave us disoriented, as Harry was, but I believe Lupin. Especially since Remus/Sirius is almost canon now; I doubt very much Remus would leave Sirius unless he know for sure he wasn't coming back.
Don't think we've seen the last of the veil, though.

11. Do you think fanfiction will be hurt by Book 5? Do you see any new pairings arising? Do you see any huge ships falling apart?
I don't fandom, but lots of my online friends do so I guess I'm qualified to comment. Harry/Ginny is gone, but Ginny/everyone else is fair game. Remus/Sirius really does seem to be almost canon, and it won't fall apart, because there's plenty of history to fill in; just no more futurefics. New pairings? Well, there's the inclusion of Luna, and Tonks, and countless other new characters.

12. What was your favourite chapter in Order of the Phoenix? Why?
Um...probably Occlumency. *just likes the word*

13. Talk about Fred and George's "flight."
Fan-fucking-tastic. The whole section where the school fought against Umbridge was priceless; kind of dark humour, really. It was everyone doing everything they could not to give in to the Ministry's attempted control of the school and Umbridge's insane power hunger, with Fred and George paying for it with their education. It's kind of a kid's way of doing what they can for the fight, and doing it in a way that's attractive to others. I loved Fred and George in this; they go a little too far sometimes, but they have a brilliant sense of humour, and add some much-needed relief in an increasingly uncertain world.

14. Give some thoughts on Ron.
Erm...he didn't change much, did he? He so loves Hermione. He's finally coming into his own, and it's good for him. He's still a bit rash and daft sometimes. But hell, I love Ron.

15. What did you think of Dumbledore's explanation?
I cried when he mentioned how much Sirius loved Harry *paternally dammit!!*. The prophecy thing was...well, it was cool; knowledge is, after all, power. But I think the importance of it is sort of overshadowed by Sirius' death in protecting it. I love Trelawney's part in it all, I knew she was there for a reason. I love that it gave Dumbledore faults; not even the wisest man can know everything. Very cool.

16. Do you feel satisfied by this book?
It was all I had hoped for and more. I want to have its babies.

17. How anxious are you now for Book 6?
As always, let JKR take as long as she likes--it was worth the wait for this one, it will be worth the wait for the next.

I think maybe I got a little carried away there....I've been so eager to talk about it!!!

Link of the day is Pride, a cute character piece told from the perspective of Ian McKellan and John Rhys-Davies, for once. It's a very interesting bit, actually. by Lj user-loose_your_dogs> and rated R.

Pics of the Day, first from bag-end.