Outside of a Dog: Rowling, J.K.: (05) Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Chad Orzel

Chad Orzel wrote on August 12, 2003 at 10:38 PM:

A minor diversion is Harry's relationship with Cho. Some people vehemently insist these few scenes are childish and unrealistic; this attitude frankly baffles me, as I thought they were absolutely spot-on depictions of adolescent awkwardness.

I didn't think they were especially unrealistic, but they had a "Oh, crap, I need to get this out of the way" feel about them. There've been hints of a Harry-Cho romance for a couple of books now-- a couple of long books-- and then the whole thing was disposed of in something like four really perfunctory scenes.

Mike Kozlowski

Mike Kozlowski wrote on August 12, 2003 at 10:49 PM:

Congratulations: You've just made me want to read this book even less than I already did. When the sole redeeming virtue of a series is its bubbly fluffiness, making it all dark isn't going to do much for me.

(I don't want dirge metal from the Spice Girls, either.)

Kate

Kate wrote on August 12, 2003 at 11:18 PM:

Chad: feeling like things have been perfunctorily dismissed has annoyed me in other books (_Lady Knight_, for Tamora Pierce readers), so I can understand the feeling. Considering the non-deep relationship here (a crush based on looks alone), the time spent on it worked for me, but YM does V.

Mike: Obviously, I disagree about sole redeeming virtues, but I'd rather spend the energy in nagging you to read the Dortmunder books.