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Underground > Books, Criticism & Writing >

Potter deadpool

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sleazenation

12:27 / 16.06.03

So as the world at large counts down to the new installment pf the Potter francise surely there is some fun to be had speculating on the death of a majot character...

I think its going to be Ron who needs to die before Harry is shoved into the realms of hetronormitivity.

who do you tip for death?

Tryphena Absent

12:33 / 16.06.03

Hagrid... half-giant thus expendable minority figure, he saved Harry from his evil family and he comes across as slightly incompetent and ill-educated. My vote definitely goes with him.

Our Lady of The Two Towers

14:27 / 16.06.03

I reckon it's going to be one of the students that are in the year below Harry. Not anyone who has thus far been named of course, they would be far too major characters to be worth killing off.

I dunno, I'll be happy to be proved wrong (come to think of it, that Dumbledore 'I must tell you the truth Harry' thing someone posted here had a strong air of the deathbed confessional about it), but I'm dubious as to whether J.K. Rowling actually has it in her to do anything that would be upsetting to anyone, as a Hagrid/Ron/Hermione/Dumbledore death would be.

grant

15:12 / 16.06.03

Is there going to be a death at all?

I haven't heard any press or word saying that there will be, just people (apparently) assuming that since somebody died last time, someone's gonna die this time.

If there has been some kind of confirmation of an upcoming death, my money'd be on Cho. Nobly, but horrifically enough to make Harry consider turning to the dark side.

Less searchable M0rd4nt

22:11 / 16.06.03

Nah, I don't reckon she'll do one of the regulars, unless it's someone relatively insignificant. One of the characters that's popped up a few times but isn't really in the story: one of the Patil twins? A spare Creevy? Angelina?

S'pose there might be a death or two in the Slytherin camp, with the possibility of redemption for some of the creepy kids therefrom.

Jack Fear

22:12 / 16.06.03

I'm going to go out on a limb and bet that the uppity house-elf Dobby will be magically lynched, perhaps for whistling at a white woman—sorry, witch—in a cack-handed attempt to make a statement on civil rights.

that

07:52 / 17.06.03

I actually do think it'll be Dumbledore. I base this on all the drivel about how *hard* it was for her to kill off whoever-it-is...

nedrichards is confused

08:59 / 17.06.03

"Harry this is hard for me, I should have told you this five years agooooooooooooooo" The crossbow bolt protruding from his eye twanged slightly as Albus Dumbledore fell gently backwards, stone dead."

And that's exactly how it went down officer.

suds

11:29 / 17.06.03

i am going to my local borders at midnight on friday to get the new book! i can't bloody wait! so i was there today buying bust magazine and the dude at the till says to me that hagrid is totally going to die, and i was shocked. maybe it's true! i just hope ron doesn't die. he CAN'T die: he's got to marry hermionie!

suds

11:31 / 17.06.03

is anyone doing what i'm doing and buying the book at one minute past midnight? it would be good to know i'm not the only one!

Mono

14:17 / 17.06.03

*If* anyone dies, I'm betting on one of the Weasleys: there are loads of them, all of them sympathetic characters who will be 'fighting the good fight' and die nobly; and there's that clock in the Weasley hous, telling each family member's whereabouts, including 'Dead.'

Baz Auckland

01:58 / 18.06.03

My bet is on Ginny Weasley (is that her name? the younger sister?)... unless she's supposed to end up with Harry in the end. Maybe Ron dies, posesses Ginny, and Ron and Harry live happily ever after?

The Return Of Rothkoid

04:53 / 18.06.03

grant: there will be a death.

JK Rowling has told how she cried after killing off a "significant" character in the fifth Harry Potter book.
She tells BBC Newsnight presenter Jeremy Paxman she walked into her kitchen in tears after writing the death scene for The Order of the Phoenix.

She also reveals she looks forward to a post-Harry era in her life - and denies missing a deadline or experiencing writer's block while writing the book.

Hm. Maybe Harry, eh?

Our Lady of The Two Towers

07:16 / 18.06.03

'The Boy Who Lived (Until He Didn't Any More)'? Could be. Ron has been utterly useless in all senses of the word since the whole thing with Sirius Black and Scabbers/Voldemort's servent in book three. So he's odds on favourite. It's either him or Dumbledore, though I suspect Rowling may kill off Hagrid because it'll hurt Harry.

that

07:38 / 18.06.03

I can't imagine that she'll kill off HP. I would predict that she'll write his entire school career a la Malory Towers, as a cash-in effort if nothing else, and then cast him adrift in the world. I can't see that she'd kill off Ron either, because then Harry would be minus his bestest pal, and who'd go out with Hermione?

Kit-Cat Club

08:29 / 18.06.03

Snape. In heroic saving-useless-Potter-boy action.

I know, I know, it was just a thought... Neville, perhaps?

that

08:40 / 18.06.03

Better bloody not be Snape. Or Sirius, for that matter, but especially not Snape. He's practically the only character with any moral shading, for crying out loud.

Poke it with a stick

10:01 / 18.06.03

How's about Professor McGonagall? People like her character - one would assume J.K. does - she's the only Scot in the books to date. Plus, she's always been one of his guardians, so is likely to be in the frontline of any major incidents.
Snape'll be there until the last book - a deathbed revelation will reveal his good-natured side á la Darth Vader.

No star here laces

14:38 / 18.06.03

It's clearly got to be a teacher/authority figure for the whole coming of age ting. Dumbledore sounds good to me. Maybe Ron's dad?

Tryphena Absent

15:25 / 18.06.03

Ron's dad isn't significant enough surely? Look she killed a minor character off in the last book but she's been careful to accelerate the arc with every book she's brought out. The pattern says it's got to be 1)Someone Harry cares about. 2)A significant role model who we see often. 3)Someone who cares about Harry. 4)An expendable figure.

Now in order to defeat Voldemort they're probably going to need Dumbledore because he's the key figure in the fight against him. Arthur Weasley isn't central enough to kill but it could be him if they build him up an awful lot throughout the fifth book and then have Percy take his place as ministry guy.

I'd quite like Snape to die. That would be unexpected, shocking, marvellous and it would work in context with Voldemort's words in GoF.

Kit-Cat Club

15:41 / 18.06.03

Oh, bollocks, I'm going to have to buy it, even if I don't eat for the next fortnight. Which shop has the biggest discount? (Normally I feel bad about buying discounted books from chains, but I think in this case I really don't need to worry).
Did anyone else read the story about the mole delivery van driver who's absconded with 7000 copies near Wigan? Apparently the police are going to question anyone they see with a copy (before midnight on Friday obviously) who can't give a good account for themselves... it must be the latter days...

Tryphena Absent

16:34 / 18.06.03

Well apparently Tesco have reduced the price to £7.24 and that's very cheap.

I've just been for a walk through the heathen land that is Chorleywood and apparently the local bookstore is opening at midnight on Friday/Saturday. That's just... I have no words. Harry Potter- mind bending cultural phenomenon.

jeff

17:30 / 18.06.03

nah i don;t reckon it will cho coz JK said bout the whole puberty n girls aspect being more prominate so cho will prolly play a larger role. i recken the person to die will b snape coz one its so unexpected n to he will prolly die as harry is tryig to save him or sumthing hmmmmmmm

i think i wud like goyle to die tho n maybe malfloy to blame harry even more.

but i still reckon dumbledor is evil n is actualy helping voldie in some way. they said he is the only one powerful enough to stop voldermort so why hasent he???

ONLY NICE THINGS

21:22 / 18.06.03

I'm going for Hagrid. He's probably the closest thing to working class that the books have, and as such might as well have a target painted over his forehead.

On top of which, Harry now has Sirius. And killing any of the other olds, like the senior Weasleys, would have serious consequences, whereas Hagrid is pretty dispensable at this stage.

I'm still vaguely hoping it's Dumbledore, though. Because that would be really funny. I bet he'd claim that he'd planned it all along. Mind you, it worked for Gandalf...

Mazarine

10:27 / 19.06.03

For some reason I want to say one of the Weasley twins. But we'll know soon enough.

Tryphena Absent

12:00 / 19.06.03

You were in Kegboy's Walmart weren't you? Dammit everyone, Mazarine knows what's going to happen, let's lynch her!

Matthew Fluxington

18:47 / 19.06.03

She also reveals she looks forward to a post-Harry era in her life

Veering a bit off topic, but has Rowling ever expressed a desire to write anything other than Harry Potter books?

Saint Keggers

19:41 / 19.06.03

I'd really like it if they went all Pythonesque and had The Author die. For 500 pages the characters just wander around wondering what they hell they're supposed to be doing.

suds

19:58 / 19.06.03

i know what you mean about one of the weasleys, but j.k said in that interview tonight that she cried after she killed off the character. surely she wouldn't cry over fred or george?
then again, i was really gutted about cedric!
i think haus is on the money with hagrid. i remember seeing robbie coltrane on parkinson and more or less saying his character was going to die soon. & i see what you mean about his character being more dispensable.
has anyone here mentioned cho chang? i can't not rule her out.

Danzig: He Pitys the Fool!

06:45 / 20.06.03

Hate to disappoint you all, but i have it on good advice
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
SPOILER
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
that Hermione will be the one that croaks it. Such a shame, she was so young, she had such a bright future ahead of her, all the neighbours thought she was a lovely girl, blah blah blah

The Natural Way

10:14 / 20.06.03

If there's any fucking truth in that, you really might want to put a spoiler warning in front of it. Jeez....

Yes, Flux, in the same interview she talks about an *adult* novel she's been working on.

And finally: what is it with all this 'She'll kill Hagrid because she's an unconscious bigot' stuff? Christ, I hate how misanthropic Barbelith can be sometimes.

sleazenation

11:16 / 20.06.03

so as there are still a few hours to go does anyone fancy nipping down to the bookmakers with any of their tips?

Tryphena Absent

11:38 / 20.06.03

what is it with all this 'She'll kill Hagrid because she's an unconscious bigot' stuff?

Rowling follows a pattern when she writes. There are certain characters that fit in to stereotypical schemes- you've got your betrayed, hard done by and ill- educated half giant who's got a heart of gold. He's so unassuming that he's bound to have some terrible thing happen to him. Unfortunately that's a pattern in children's literature and especially in school stories. It brings across the message that in order to survive you need schooling. If it's not Hagrid (or Dumbledore) I might be weeping with joy because she will have broken out of the obvious formula.

Kit-Cat Club

12:18 / 20.06.03

If she is following an arc of increasing intensity, I would be very surprised if Danzig's spoiler information is accurate - surely something that traumatic would be saved for the (presumably) final confrontation? It would be outside the rules of the genre as well - sounds implausible to me.

Poke it with a stick

14:52 / 20.06.03

I'm hoping for a Star Wars conclusion to this book -
Dumbledore: "Voldemort, if you strike me down, I will become more powerful than you cna possibly imagine".

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