Comments on: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire: Spoiler-free Review

By: ZBalance

ZBalance — Tue, 29 Nov 2005 23:27:45 +0000

If you like the Drizzt, you should check out the latest ones centering around Entriri and Jarlaxle. I ended up liking them better than Drizzt’s gang.

Alright then. I trust your word on Harry Potter. Maybe I’ll get around to it someday.

(ahem. but er um… can I put a Playboy book-cover over them when I read? because MY co-workers would kick my ass if they caught me.)

By: archangel

archangel — Tue, 29 Nov 2005 22:47:51 +0000

To be quite honest, I felt exactly the same way for years. A lot of people my age tried to convince me otherwise (the author herself says they weren’t meant to be childrens books), but I retained my snooty attitude. I, too, have read 6 Drizzt books, plus some Irvine Welsh stuff (Trainspotting) that really push the limits of good taste. So I can see the appeal of that stuff, too.

I saw all the movies as they came out, and found them very entertaining despite the fact that they star kids/teenagers. I tend to hate any movie where kids play a big part, they’re always so cutesy, like it was made for a 45+ single woman who lives with 8 cats. These are more about kids who are getting a raw deal most of the time, which I can relate to. And the art direction is phenomenal. But as much as I loved the movies, I still assumed the books were for kids.

Then book 6 came out (The Half-Blood Prince), and Agent Assassin was walking around stunned because he couldn’t believe what happened. So before the spoiler got out, I decided to have a go. I started from the first book (“Sorcerer’s Stone”, or “Philosopher’s Stone” in England), and was immediately hooked. I read all 6 back to back, pretty much nonstop. The books have larger print, and are easy reads, so this only took about 4 weeks (I’m a very slow reader). Thing is, they’re just damn entertaining, and I do acknowledge that I would have loved them even more if I read them growing up. But they also get darker with each volume. Violence and death are not ruled out, this ain’t G.I. Joe where only robots die, and your shoot opens automatically when your plane explodes. Books 5 and 6 become quite dark, and I’m curious as to how they’ll be turned into movies.

So basically, they’re just good stories well told, for adults and teenagers alike. I know Agent Bladerunner is reading them now, as is one of my coworkers who’s also older than me. In fact, Bladerunner has said he had to stop telling the stories to his kids a few years ago because they were finding them a little too dark by book 3. Now that she’s 13, his daughter is picking them up again.

And I have to admit, I pretty much enjoy the same crap now as I did at 13 :^) I think a lot of us at The Crack Team can say the same.

By: ZBalance

ZBalance — Tue, 29 Nov 2005 21:15:19 +0000

The commercials to these movies always look OK, but isn’t this a children’s series? I can’t see throwing money down on this until my kids are a little older to see it as a family.
And you’re reading the books too? From the “young adult” section???
You were always smarter than me, so my criticism must be the result of ignorance. Enlighten me, my liege!
I think my problem is,… I have been through the entire Drizzt-Salvatore series and the Gunslinger-King books, so I’d have a hard time weaning off the sex and gore and deep-thought.
HOWEVER it does seem (from the trailers, I mean) that Harry Potter is growing up and starting to draw a different age group.
Is this the case?