Friday Poll

[trinityvixen]

This is a new feature I'm test-driving. It requires less effort than a Friday song-lyrics-meme/download or whatever. So, on with the poll!

WARNING: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN COMMENTS TO THIS POLL. There are no spoilers in the poll itself. This week's focus is on Harry Potter. If that's not your bag, no worries. See you next week!

[Poll #1036845]

Comments

[arcane-the-sage.livejournal.com]

My first exposure to Pot-Head, it came in the form of questions thrown at myself and the other "elders" of a certain online community. Needless to say it didn't take most of the board long before we all hated Pot-Head and put all who would spout on about him on our "you do no exist" lists. Most of the long term members of that community harbor a deep hatred of Pot-Head and wish for him a terrible end. For all of us, a final end of the books is a welcome relief from many years of torment.

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

Sheesh. I can't tell whether that's over-reaction or just annoyance understood. What online community is this, may I ask?

[arcane-the-sage.livejournal.com]

This was one of the spiritual boards back in the good old bolt days. We got use to certain "random" questions coming from folks around the world. But the volume of questions that could be traced directly from the Pot-Head books was just too large. Add the fact that they just wouldn't listen to the "that book is a work of fiction" logic we hit them with and you ended up with lots and lots of whining. It was REALLY BAD! O_O

[viridian.livejournal.com]

I had to do a lot of "other" options because... I honestly do not 100% remember if I saw the first HP movie before I read the book. I know I had NO interest in the books until the movie was coming out, and I know I had very little interest in the movie, and I know I was DRUNK at the movie so I didn't hate it, and I know I actually got into fandom sort of all in a rush after that.

I THINK I saw the movie first, but read the book almost immediately after, and at some point the images of the kids in my head stopped being identical to the movie actors, if they ever were.

ALSO.

I hate that you didn't give me an option that let me select both Snape AND Draco as my favorite Slytherin.

ALSO, despite the fact that I find Alan Rickman brilliant and adore him as Snape, he's really a bit too old AND a bit too attractive to be Snape, so I really had to go with Umbridge as best-cast, because HOLY SHIT that woman gave me the fucking creeps.

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

I hate you for even thinking that Draco should be your favorite Slytherin. You're an idiot. Draco is less interesting than Crabbe or Goyle. You just want to dooooo him. Also, putting him in the same league as Snape is just wrong.

I picked other on Slytherins because, despite Snape, I don't really like any of them. The closest I come to liking any of them is liking Tom Riddle from Chamber of Secrets. And probably only then 'cause the actor was pretty cute.

Movie-Umbridge is PERFECT. That's why I picked her. Kenneth Branaugh would have been my choice but for her being sooooooo good. She actually added menace to Umbridge whereas book-Umbridge was just evil in a banal, self-important way.

[viridian.livejournal.com]

It's true, I really loved fanon-Draco and that colored my view of book-Draco from the point that I got into fandom. Snape, I adore, but Draco will always sort of secretly be an echo of what fandom did with him, to me, and so he's still in my favorites, because I don't let old favorites go.

But yeah, Kenneth Branagh would've been my second choice. The movies as a whole are, I think, really well cast, except that at some points I almost think they just picked good actors whose names are recognizble when they didn't HAVE to. See: Gary Oldman, Emma Thompson, Ralph Fiennes. Those three in particular I think are sort of wasted in their roles, and are mostly just as sort of cameos, like, LOOK WE HAVE FAMOUS NAME PLAYING X.

[shell524.livejournal.com]

Haven't seen Order of the Phoenix, so maybe she would have taken my choice over Rickman. Kenneth Branaugh was amazing, too, though. Hmmm..

[equustel.livejournal.com]

Most inspired casting = Richard Harris as Dumbledore. Seriously. Michael Gambdon is a fantastic actor, but not a fantastic Dumbledore. And seeing as his relationship with Harry is one of the most central and important (IMO), I'm sad that I don't have the same reaction to it onscreen (anymore) as I do in the books.

This is the only place where the first two films have an advantage over the more recent ones.

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

I didn't know what to do with the Dumbledore casting question. That's why I left it out, really.

Richard Harris brought a sparkling note to Dumbledore that Michael Gambon has not. Gambon is a very dangerous-seeming Dumbledore, which undermines the trickster that Dumbledore, the seeming old, senile man, is supposed to be. On the other hand, Harris was so obviously frail, it would have been impossible, even had he lived a few years longer, to see him take up the more action-heavy role Dumbledore occupied in books 4-7.

Gambon, I think, had two very good scenes so far and has otherwise been a non-presence. Which, as you say, will complicate his role in the next two films where he and Harry need to share a closeness they have not since Gambon took over the role. The scenes I think he did well with are the ones involving the time-turner in Prizoner of Azkaban ("We did it, Professor!" "Did what?" ::SNEAKS AWAY::) and the confrontation in the Ministry of Magic in Order of the Phoenix (not to mention that kick-ass escape with Fawkes from Hogwarts). Dumbledore's distance in the films will hurt them.

However, the fact that the Horcruxes are virtual no-shows in the films with the exception of the diary means more trouble still. Rowling did herself a disservice by introducing the concept so very late and with so little clues before OotP, but the films really shot themselves in the foot trying to save time amidst the volume of extraneous material in OotP.

[ecmyers.livejournal.com]

Very true. This is why I'm worried about the next movie, which is very Dumbledore-heavy. I don't think Gambon can carry it.

[anarchicsquirrl.livejournal.com]

Worst casting: the guy who plays Lupin. I skeeve him. Second worst: Gary Oldman as Sirius. Gary Oldman does a good job, but I picture both Sirius and Lupin as slightly younger and better looking.

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

First, Gary Oldman is plenty good looking, shut up. Second, yes, you're right about Lupin. Third, shut up about Gary Oldman or I'll beat you up.

I also agree that the actors playing Harry's parents' generation are too old, but that's only because the book made them crazy young. Nowadays, as the films seem to be set, it wouldn't be strange for parents to be 30 or older before having kids.

[moonlightalice.livejournal.com]

Pervert.

[decidedly.livejournal.com]

the guy who plays Lupin.

ARGH, THANK YOU. His casting actually ruined him in the books for me, and he was my favorite character until the Azkaban film came out. Is that lame? Probably. But I don't care, he sucks. He's not Lupin.

(Compleeeeeeetely disagree on the Oldman front, but I see your point about his age.)

[fairest.livejournal.com]

Thirded. Emphatically.

[decidedly.livejournal.com]

I don't know why, but the word "doughy" always comes to mind when I look at him. And I know that's meant to indicate someone, er, fleshy - but I feel as if I could poke a finger in his chest and he'd instantly deflate.

And I hate his stupid voice, too. *pout*

At least your icon is cracking me up. :)

[decidedly.livejournal.com]

I was first exposed to Harry Potter when working at Borders. I started about six months before Goblet of Fire came out. As I worked in the Kids Books section, I figured I should see what all the fuss was about.

As for favorite - I said Deathly Hallows, but Prisoner of Azkaban is always going to have a special place in my heart. So let's tie those, shall we?

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

Yeah, those are my two favorites. After Azkaban, Hallows. Because Azkaban has fewer problems to it and better reveals. But otherwise, those are my two favorites.

[happyelfling.livejournal.com]

clarifications!

-Arthur Weasley, specifically, is my favorite Gryffindor adult
-Favorite Slytherin is Slughorn. I love how he was written/characterized.

My favorite book (Order of the Phoenix) is a lot of people I know's least favorite. What gives?? This one is so brilliant. I know part of the reason I like it so much is that the Umbridge storyline is so excellent and politically relevant, and i LOVE LOVE LOVE the D.A.

[happyelfling.livejournal.com]

and Ginny and Neville are both really close runner-ups to Hermione for favorite Gryffindor students!

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

Neville edges out Ginny due to the fact that he got consistently more awesome with each outing and was braver in the face of adversity than any Potter ever. Ginny, though she got awesome, did so off screen and once she was relegated to being love interest, she stopped being able to be as cool as she was. It's sad.

[wellgull.livejournal.com]

THAT bugged me. Harry diminishes her. It's sad, because she's really so so awesome.

...or should be.

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

Yes, exactly. I'm really upset that Ginny became Potter-ite thirty-million. Her greatest moment in five is telling Harry off for being so self-centered in thinking that he's the only one to have suffered an uncomfortably close brush with Voldemort. Then...nothing.

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

The political relevance of the Umbridge story line is counter-balanced by the agonizing, overlong side stories and Harry's emo screaming in all caps and dating Cho Chang. Ugh.

But yeah, Arthur Weasley is awesome!

[moonlightalice.livejournal.com]

Don't forget Miss Lavender, perhaps the most absurdly irrelevant character to appear thus far.

[wellgull.livejournal.com]

Hmm. I actually like most of the characters tremendously, except that Harry Potter himself does drive me kinda bonkers. I <3 all the Weasleys of course, but Neville is SO COOL and I should've picked him, but how can you not love McGonagall? Or even Dumbledore? AUGH CANNOT CHOOSE

[trinityvixen.livejournal.com]

Sorry! I did separate them into students and adults to help, but alas not.

[moonlightalice.livejournal.com]

McGonagall was only marginally interesting until DH. Then she became full-throttle commander.