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Okay, we were talking about what could send Emma over the edge and here is my prediction. Putting it in spoiler codes.
Because Ruby coming back is technically a spoiler I’ll put the theory here: Ruby wasn’t returned for some reason with the others back to Storybrook last time. Maybe she was in her wolf form and animals can’t transfer. I don’t know. Just that she never came back. They did say we’d find out what was going on with Ruby. Emma for some reason, or no reason at all, kills Ruby, ripping her heart out and crushing it. Realizing what she’s done, she erases the Storybrook gang’s memories and they’re transported back to Storybrook with no memories of this heinous act. Her last act before finally submitting to the darkness.
[adrotate group="5"]Keeper of Rumplestiltskin's and Neal's spears and war paint and crystal ball.
This is end of series stuff. You can’t tell me otherwise. This is the last season. The dagger returned to it’s rightful place and balance is back in the world.
Keeper of Rumplestiltskin's and Neal's spears and war paint and crystal ball.
Ooh, good questions, Twice.
If the show hadn’t opened under the Shondaland banner would it have opened as well?
We have to remember that Shonda didn’t create or write this show. She’s the executive producer, but it’s not her original creation. That said, you can see her influence on it. I don’t know how it would be received if her name wasn’t attatched to the project.
Who do you think Eggs911 is?
I’m thinking it’s Nate. I have no idea who else it could be.
What do you think the prosecution’s attorney has on Asher?
Wasn’t his dad into some trouble? Or at least powerful? I predict it has something to do with his family.
Next main cast member to be killed?
Conner has a sweet story line with Oliver. Wes is a main character (ignoring Annalise lying in blood and being shot 🙂 ). Asher is involved in something we have no idea about. I’m going to say one of the girls. My guess is on Laurel. But that’s a total guess.
If Annalise Keating had to represent one OUAT character who would it be and what did they do?
Mr. Gold. If only to see Viola Davis and Robert Carlyle go head to head in scenes together. 😉
Keeper of Rumplestiltskin's and Neal's spears and war paint and crystal ball.
Oh, I don’t think it will be both, but if Annalise is Wes’s mom they might push it up to the line with the sexual tension. Make us believe something could happen, not that it has. And then the reveal and we’re all grossed out.
Who knows what will happen. This show is so brilliant and wacky.
One thing I must say. Although it would be nice to see our favorite shows more often, I’m liking the tighter plotlines of these limited run series. Plus, it frees up the schedule for the networks to take more risks. If HTGAWM were the traditional 22 episode run, I fear it would suffer from bloated storylines and an overdose of “bold” storytelling.
Keeper of Rumplestiltskin's and Neal's spears and war paint and crystal ball.
Great work, RG. I’m really glad we went through with this. It forces you to slow down and examine things in a way you never looked at it before. Like you said, it’s easy to skip over to get to the juicy stuff. I admit, myself, that I picked up Deathly Hallows are read parts of it because of reading SS. But there is a joy in reading the story again after a long break from it. We’ve all probably reread the series and watched the movies, but it had been a while since I’d picked up the books. It gives a new perspective on the story.
1) How would you classify Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone?
I would still classify this book as Children’s Literature, at least the first three stories. Yes, it has adult themes and “opens with a double homocide” but I don’t know where people get the idea that the Children’s Literature category is all sunshine and rainbows. Roald Dahl, who I’ve talked about many times in relation to J. K. Rowling, had a particularly macabre bent to his writings. In Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Charlie lives in abject poverty and lives on the verge of starvation. James and the Giant Peach opens with James’s parents being killed by a rhinoceros at the London Zoo. Even the beloved (and first real novel I ever read) Charlotte’s Web is a story about preventing the main character’s slaughter and ends in the death of a friend. I truly believe this novel in particular does belong in the Children’s Literature category.
One of the genius aspects about J. K. Rowling’s writings and the Harry Potter series is as Harry ages his world expands, the concepts become more complex, and the reading level and book length increases. The reader ages with the series. I look at the series as a set of concentric circle, the center is Sorcerer’s Stone and each book expands on the base that the previous book provides.
Later entries into the series, starting with GoF and up I would move to the YA category. I will admit in general I’m not a fan of YA literature, or at least the current trend. I know most of you here adore it and it’s become a huge genre that adults also read, but dystopian, futuristic stories have never been my cup of tea. But on the whole, Harry Potter is one of those things that defy categorization. It attracts fans of various genres and a vast array of ages.
2) Thinking about the series as a whole, where do you rank HP: SS?
It’s really hard to rank the books for me as a whole from 1 to 7 in terms of favorites because it’s a continuing story. Whatever book I’m reading at the time I think, “Oh, I love this one, why don’t I read it more often.” I really don’t know if I have a least favorite, although I do adore Chamber of Secrets, which often makes the bottom of people’s rankings.
3) What do you think of JKR’s writing in this first book? Does it suffer from being her first published work?
I actually don’t think it suffers, at least for me. I only read the series as an adult so I go in thinking this story is from the point of view of an eleven year old boy. As I mentioned in the previous question at this age his world is smaller. So I don’t mind that with the introductory novel. I actually have more problems with later entries to the series and the need for better editing (e.g. bloated OotP, dragging plot lines in HBP, never ending camping trip in DH)
4) What surprised or shocked you the most in re-read of book 1?
I was surprised at how much more I despised Petunia Dursley. I’ve always disliked her but she is particularly mean and nasty when studied in the vast context of the whole series.
I’m feeling new things for Dumbledore, too. I ended the series initially with feeling a bit betrayed by his maneuvering. He has a bit of a Machiavellian bent to his actions, which were revealed in the latter part of the series. But rereading, I’m understanding more of the reasons why he did what he did. I might not agree, but I’m understanding better. It couldn’t have been easy for him, either. He’s becoming more layered than the flat characterization of a wise guiding wizard I originally perceived him to be.
And finally I’m always surprised at how much a smart aleck and snarky Harry really is. He is the Chosen One, the Boy Who Lived, but he’s also really funny in his own way. The twins have their outrageous humor, Ron is a comic relief, but Harry has this sarcastic humor that is hilarious in his own right. Something the movies never captured. I like reading those times when his humor shines through.
Keeper of Rumplestiltskin's and Neal's spears and war paint and crystal ball.
Great theory, Ranisha.
I will bring up one major point. We are right about NOTHING with this show. But….my dad used to say “Even a blind squirrel can find an acorn sometimes.” So maybe Ranisha is on the right track. But IF Wes is Annalise’s son, I can totally seen them going a step too far into ickiness (yes, that is the technical term :P) before it’s revealed. If any non-HBO show is going there, it’s this show.
Keeper of Rumplestiltskin's and Neal's spears and war paint and crystal ball.
Oh the siblings are totally sleeping together because why not. Why have a male and female who are obviously not related but adopted and not have some kind of twisted affair going on. We might as well throw in a parental affair in there, too.
I’m still on Wes being Annalise’s son. It was icky and cringe-worthy but I think it was meant to be.
Also, what kind of odd show is this that philandering Conner has the sweetest relationship…until he screws it up or kills him.
Keeper of Rumplestiltskin's and Neal's spears and war paint and crystal ball.
Hahahaha, you’re reactions are perfect.
–I really wish I could type what Connor just said about cravings but I’d have to ban myself.
How bad is it I know the exact line and can still repeat it an hour after the show ended? That line was probably tweeted a LOT ! 😛
But seriously. SDFJSDLFKDLSFKDLSFDKSKFLEWSDAF is a perfectly reasonable response to the ending of this episode.
Keeper of Rumplestiltskin's and Neal's spears and war paint and crystal ball.
I actually have no problem with Emma being a little thief pre-Neal. She was a runaway from the foster system so she had to have some skills to survive. Like mentioned she was stealing a car when she met Neal, it just happened the car was already stolen. She wasn’t an angel or new to the game, imo. It’s actually one of the only points of continuity I’ve heard of recently with the series.
Sorry I haven’t been around. I stick to the HP thread mostly now. We could use more people posting. Come on, everyone loves Harry and we have such interesting and enlightening conversations. So glad we did this. It’s rekindled my love and has made me adore JKR even more, if that was even possible.
Keeper of Rumplestiltskin's and Neal's spears and war paint and crystal ball.
I admit I don’t remember crying with this particular book before, others but not this one. But I have cried multiple times throughout this reread. This chapter especially. All the moments RG said. When Harry is touching Quirrell because he knows it’s hurting him, I don’t know…it just affected me. Then when Dumbledore explained about his mother’s love being infused into his skin. Even awarding the house points. Hermione cries, Ron’s embarassed, and Neville is confused. So perfect and true to their characters and I felt for all of them. And then the album. Thanks, Hagrid. I did not need the salty liquid extruding from eyes.
And now I’ll answer my own questions
1. How did you feel the first time you read the story when it was revealed that Professor Quirrell was the perpetrator and not Professor Snape?
I was in my early 20s when I began reading the series. I went in with the thinking it was just a “children’s series”. I read the book with that frame of mind. So when I turned the page and it was Quirrell I was really shocked. Just stunned. That was the turning point for me from this being a “good read” to a “must read”. I also convinced my mother to read the books, too. She was very intelligent, well read, and loved mysteries. I remember her saying this was one of the few books she’d read that she’d never guessed the villain and she immediately reread the book looking for clues. She declared JKR a genius. She only got to read the first four books before she passed away, but I think she’d have loved how the series evolved and ended.
Back to my question, like I said in my analysis. It felt organic. On rereading it all fits. You can see the attention to detail JKR gave in her world building. She gave each of her characters a complete biography before writing and it shows. That meticulous detail is the reason millions love this series. It’s also a reason I criticize Once so much now. Yes, it’s a TV show and a different medium, but attention to world building is essential to fantasy and if you cross or move parameters I feel lied to and lose faith in the story. Something I’ve never felt JKR does and the reason the bait and switch of Quirrell as the villain instead of Snape is successful.
2. How would you handle the answer Dumbledore gave on why Voldemort was after him as a baby if you were Harry? Would you have accepted it and moved on like Harry did?
One of my learning styles is I often have to learn “why” to learn “how”. My parents used to get annoyed because I’d constantly ask why and was extremely curious. I didn’t care that a radio worked by plugging it in and turning the dial, I needed to open it up with a screwdriver and see it’s parts even if I didn’t know what I was looking at. So I probably wouldn’t have been happy with Dumbledore’s delaying of answering Harry’s questions. I would have been more obsessed with that question than actually fighting off evil and Voldemort. I also hyperfocus on certain things so I a fear that question would be something I’d be obsessed with. Thankfully, I’m not a heroin fighting villains in a book 😛
3. By the end, we discover that Harry, Ron and Hermione suspect Dumbledore of setting them up to protect the Stone and that he “taught us just enough to help.” What do you think of Dumbledore’s teaching style? Ignoring real life consequences, was it a viable option considering what Harry will have to do in the future?
I have been very critical of Dumbledore in my rereading. His motivations, his methods. But with this ending, I can see both sides of it. I can see that Dumbledore needs to prepare Harry for the impossible task ahead. He needs for Harry to develop the skills to do what he needs to do in the end. We have to realize that Dumbledore’s human, too. He’s seen so much life, experienced so much, but then he’s tasked with preparing this young boy for something that nobody should have to do. It couldn’t have been easy on him.
But then like RG said, I remember that Harry is just eleven years old. He doesn’t have the wizarding background knowledge that wizarding children like Ron even has. He was a sheltered, bullied child and thrust into this new world. He has one school year of instruction in his belt and can transfigure matchsticks and make simple potions. Not skills that necessarily transfer over to defeating the most evil wizard in modern history. I think in the end, Harry did what he needed to do. He is not an ordinary boy. He’s not an ordinary wizard. He is our hero.
Keeper of Rumplestiltskin's and Neal's spears and war paint and crystal ball.
