author_by_night | The Cursed Poll

I actually am way more excited about the Fantastic Beasts movie, though that is partially because I really like Eddie Redmayne and I also really like old-timey-New-York as a setting. When the trailer came out, I actually realised I had completely separated this movie from the HP universe in my head, and I was really confused for a minute when the first word was "Lumos". I might buy the ebook of Cursed Child depending on how expensive it is.

I'm more excited about FB too, for similar reasons. And I really do see it as separate.

I'll probably buy the book, but I might not binge read it the way I did each time I read a new book in the series. (With DH, I pretty much got home from the bookstore, read, took a break for lunch, read, had dinner, read, finished, went to bed with a horrible headache.)

Me too! I'm really looking forward to FBaWTFT :-D

Okay, so...

1. Other

Since it's November 1999 when I first read the first book to July 2007...I round it up to 8 years instead of a 7 and a half.

3. Other

I would be more interested if it wasn't only a play being done in London. However, now that they're releasing the play as a book, I'm more intrigued. Also, I love Hermione but the other two casting decisions...not sure yet.

P.S. It's being released on Harry Potter's 36th birthday, damn are we all getting old...but I always loved that the trio was only born a few years before I was.

I actually got into HP in 1999 as well! But not in the fandomy sense as much as the "wow these books are way better than I thought they'd be" sense. Although I did plan out a few fanfics. I even found a HP forum somewhere, but felt "weird" joining.

but I always loved that the trio was only born a few years
before I was.

Yeah, and whenever I read a new book I was only a bit older than the trio in those books. (Actually, when I read PoA and GoF respectively, Hermione and I were the same age. Like her I was a year older than most of my peers.) But they were born 5-6 years before I was.

A month ago I would have said "I'm looking forward to it." But now I've worked myself into a frenzy about it and am planning an old-fashioned new-book get-together, which I'm VERY excited about.

So "OMG OMG OMG"!!!!!!!

I love that you're thinking of doing an old fashioned meetup! :)

I've noticed, obviously, that you've suddenly gotten really into exploring the books again. May I ask what brought that on? Or do you not really know?

What I attributed it to when it started was reading Rainbow Rowell's "Fangirl" and "Carry On Simon."

But I suspect that subconsciously I was realizing that The Play is 5 months away (4 for the preview spoilers) and The Movie is 9 months away, so it's like the beginning of a pregnancy. :D

Fantastic Beasts is where I am. I'll definitely read Cursed Child when I can get my hands on it, but I'm not going to the midnight release party or anything like I did for Deathly Hallows.

I'm glad they decided to release the script (because the play was far too exclusive a medium for a canon sequel to such a popular series), but I am still pretty hesitant about it, particularly when she didn't actually write the bulk of it. (To me that means it will be like the ghostwritten Animorphs books--story outline by the author, but the dialogue and characterization could be off).

But the main thing is that the story seems kind of awful? After all of Harry's trials and suffering he is apparently still miserable? So much for "all was well," as much as I hate the epilogue. It's almost like seeing Hans and Leia where they were in the new SW movie.

And sounds like Harry should be teaching at Hogwarts if his Ministry job sucks so much. ;) after OoTP I was so sure he would end up as the DADA teacher...maybe that will happen here!

I'm glad it's a script for the same reason. As far as who wrote it goes, I've heard mixed reports about how involved she really was, whether it was essentially ghostwritten or if she actually wrote parts of it. (Or at least a basic outline.)

But the main thing is that the story seems kind of awful? After all of
Harry's trials and suffering he is apparently still miserable? So much
for "all was well," as much as I hate the epilogue

My guess - and I hope I'm right, honestly - is that it's less "all wasn't well after all" and more that throughout the play, something from the past he thought he'd left behind comes back to haunt him, and/or he perhaps realizes he hadn't moved on as much as he thought. (Which would make sense, IMHO.) I don't think there'll be a Voldie wannabe running around, so in that sense things really will be better. My worry, of course, is that I'm wrong... I really don't want to see miserable!Harry.

Also, the synopsis mentions that he's overworked, but that doesn't necessarily mean he hates being an Auror. However, I don't think being head of the Auror Department would necessarily be the easiest job to juggle with raising three kids. (Especially with Harry's Saving People Thing, which if anything I'd guess the war made worse, not better.) So it also may involve him trying to level all of those things out, too.

Or so I hope...

Edited 2016-02-11 16:27 (UTC)

Fantastic Beasts has me excited, while the Cursed Child has me intrigued, really.

You don't have an option for "I thought it was going to be about Harry and Teddy and I'm still annoyed that this is not the case." Oh well, I suppose Teddy may still be in it ...

TBH, the title made me worried it'd be a really angsty play about Teddy, so I was a little relieved! I do hope he turns up, though. I'd even love for him to be the one who talks sense into Harry, at least somewhat. :)

Edited 2016-02-11 16:34 (UTC)

Great poll. :)

Great poll! I've enjoyed checking back in to see more of the results. :)

I was a total lurker while the books were still being published. I was around and reading and loving it, but I was a total lurker-- didn't even have the guts to leave comments. Finally, finally, finally I got the guts to sign up for my own LJ and actual comment and very soon after start writing! YAY! I never want to stop! *clings to HP fandom*

My personal take on the new stories being created: The actual HP story/true canon is complete and the hard canon for it is closed. However, all this extended universe stuff is interesting and fun! (I actually consider the movies in this category too.) I don't get as wild about the expanded universe stuff, but I'm always interested in what it has to say. I consider it not necessarily canon but sub-canon perhaps? And isn't that the fun of fandom and creating your own fanworks? Being able to expand on/draw from/change/ignore at will?

Thanks for posting this! I'll try to remember to check back, but if you wanted to post the results and your thoughts on them, I would love to see that, too!

It's definitely been fun reading the results! Not sure if I'll post my thoughts on them or not. I'd read a few comments and had wondered what the greater consensus was.

I actually like the way you're looking at it, as an extended universe. A lot of series actually have done that - Star Wars has the expanded universe (and of course TFA), and Buffyverse has a bunch of spinoff comics. Even though opinions vary, it really isn't that uncommon for a creator to expand the world in other mediums. And as a reader, you can choose whether or not to acknowledge the other stuff, or how much of it you want to acknowledge. So if I end up hating this play, I can crawl back to my seven-books-only la la land.

Yes, EXACTLY! Star Wars and Buffy are great examples. I enjoy the expanded stuff when I do watch/read/whatever, but I don't feel as confined to it. I sort of take bits and pieces. I feel much freer to ignore those spinoffs or those takes on where the characters go after the movies/show/whatever and don't necessarily consider that AU when I do. (Though if I change something from actual canon, then it is obviously!)

Excited but scared.

I'm excited for The Cursed Child, but only because a) I'm seeing it, rather than reading it because I hate and detest reading plays and b) I'm seeing it in London (which I adore) with Sarah (who I adore) and will get to do all sorts of other cool London-with-my-BFF (and no spouse or kids) things while I am there.

My "other" on how involved I was at the time... I was an opening nighter at all the movies. I waited in the lines and talked to people when the books were released. I attended panels at the general Sci-Fi/Fantasy Con that I attend (Arisia).

Two quick stories:
One night I was going home on the T pretty late. The other guy in the car with me was a bit older than I was (I was mid-thirties; he looked 50-ish). He asked about what I was reading (Sense and Sensibility) and said that he hadn't read a book since he graduated high school until his kid got into Harry Potter. It not only became a bonding ritual for them, it got him into reading for enjoyment. Since he enjoyed Frederick Forsyth and other spy novels, I suggested John LeCarre, much to his delight.

In the summer of 2009, I'd been unemployed for a long time. I was keeping my head above water, barely, but had no money to spare. I got a card from my sister with a 20 dollar bill in it and a note saying, "See the Half-Blood Prince on opening night. I know it's important to you." I cried. It was, in many ways, the best present I ever got.

Last one, I got my British copy of Deathly Hallows a few days after release. I had to accompany my father to the AAA office for some reason and since I knew there'd be a wait, brought the book. Three teenagers approached me asking if it was the British edition, how far I'd gotten, what had made the most impact on me so far (the were good about not spoiling). When we left, my father turned to me and said, "I finally understand what this means culturally." Three teenaged girls were willing to approach a 45 year old woman to discuss a book. He was amazed.

My other for question 1: I didn't read any of the books until after OotP was released, but then I read them all in a week, fell in love and jumped into being the lurkiest lurker who ever lurked with reading fanfiction and forums. I didn't create an LJ until 2008, so then I became more involved and actually began participating and writing. So I was very involved and still am, but was late to the party. ;)

I was also other for the last question . . . I thought parts of the epilogue were silly, such as there being too much steam to see anything. In the other books she always talked about Harry looking around the platform seeing everything. But overall, I was fine with it, and have included it in stories I've written.

Ah, okay. I think a lot of people lurked, which I can honestly understand given how intense things could get.

My 'other' for question 1, too, stands for late to the party but then very involved. I was hooked on the books just before the PoA release, but didn't really become fannishly engaged until the end of 2005 and then it swallowed me whole. So that was only one and a half years before DH came out.

As for the Epilogue, it was hard to pick one answer... I loved that Harry got his family; I did like it for that, even if I didn't love all the details in how it was done. When it comes to fic, I'm firmly in the EWE camp. So, mixed feelings. :)

I'll read the cursed child... just out of curiosity.. but I am not as excited as I was for any other book from the series

Hi! I've been sort of trying to come back to LJ and have been sort of bouncing about from LJ to LJ tonight and saw your poll. It felt like old times seeing an old fashioned LJ poll.

I have nothing to really add to that - just thought I'd explain why I took part. :) It's fun to be back here again.

Cheers!

Hi! Yeah, I remember seeing you around years ago. :)

Also, your userpic is adorable. Just saying.

I remember you too! IDK why I never friended you - I'd love to do that now if you'd accept? :)

Also, your userpic is adorable. Just saying.

Thank you - that's my little Wonder Pup. She's a brat but she's my brat! :))

I was going to friend you anyway, actually... so I'll go ahead and do that.

Yay! New friends. :D :D

I haven't heard too much about the Cursed Child, although it scares me because it seems that Harry is miserable in it? That makes me pretty upset. I'm honestly a bit tired of authors/etc making sequels and being like "that character/otp you thought was happy? they're NOT! REALISM!!!" I didn't exactly read Harry Potter for the "realism," so pardon me if I wanted my magical ending :/

Also, re: the epilogue. I don't think I hated it as much as others did? I really liked the pairings so I was happy about that. I just didn't like the names a lot!!

My impression, and I do hope I'm right, is that it's less "Harry isn't happy at all" and more that things from his past come back to haunt him, and that there's already some things in his life that are out of step - which makes sense anyway; he's Head of the Auror Department and has three kids, and he'll still have the pressure of being the Boy Who Lived. I just hope, like you said, that it's not that he was never happy.

I liked the epilogue but had issues with the names. Of course, like you I was also thrilled with the pairings, so that also helped.

'Deathly Hallows' pretty much killed my Harry Potter fandom. I was just not satisfied at all with that story or the ending. And the epilogue, ugh.

And now I just feel like they are milking it for all it's worth because the first wave of kids that grew up with Harry are now adults with jobs who will buy things. Sorta like all my 80s childhood stuff started coming back a the 2000s.

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