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I think it's a fun thing to talk about. I've always had an interest in writing and the fine details of what makes one book or poem better than another and why. When both of the things being talked are very bad (as in this case), it becomes a fairly involved matter of degrees that is enjoyable to discuss.
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Jul 30, 2018 15:39
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all fic is bad. fanfic too.
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Jul 30, 2018 15:59
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Here's a question for people in this thread. What are your favourite HP fanfictions? I know HP and the Natural 20 and the Alexandra Quick series seem good, and then there are the funny bad ones, My Immortal, HP Becomes a Communist, and HP and the Most Electrifying Man.
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Jul 30, 2018 18:56
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Prince of the Dark Kingdom was pretty good. It was about Voldemort winning the war due to the prophecy thing not happening and him not trying to kill Harry as a baby. It's got all kinds of interesting setting development and uses minor villain characters really well, and Harry's weird mentorship thing with Voldemort gets really interesting. It's pretty long but sadly died shortly before it would have been finished. Hogwarts Battle School is also good, it's basically the bad Ender's Game thing that HPMOR half tries at, but a fully realized plot/setting and actually written well.
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Jul 30, 2018 19:19
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In terms of being the absolute polar opposite of HPMoR, I'm a fan of Potter Who and the Wossname's Thingummy
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Jul 30, 2018 20:33
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Tunicate posted:In terms of being the absolute polar opposite of HPMoR, I'm a fan of Potter Who and the Wossname's Thingummy I mean, it’s really twee, so you need some tolerance for that, but the sense of wonder and the empathy for the cast make it a really pleasant read if you can accept it.
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Jul 30, 2018 20:40
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finally a good excuse to post this list. Shamelessly stolen from the last time i did a list like this three years ago. I added some new entries, took out some of the shittier ones from last time around. My most important metric when selecting these is just the genuine quality of the writing, and I (remember) all of these being quite good. Starnlicht is also fantastic, with a very unique setting: wizarding Britain in 1590. All original characters of course, but it's really really good, complete, and fairly short as well. Stars Judith Fairweather and Rebecca Gryffindor, who are both really well done for original characters. Has romance, some comedy, plenty of drama, what more could you want? I really like this one. This is probably my favourite on this list. Circular Reasoning by Swimdraconian and Renegade Cause by Silens Cursor are two of my favourites and probably two of the best written fanfics I've ever read, Renegade Cause especially. They are not similar in tone to the Arithmancer at alllllll. Renegade Cause is intricately plotted, filled with subtlety, some politics, and good action, and a suitably independent Harry who doesn't fall into all the standard cliches. If you want quality fanfiction, look no further because this is the gold standard. Does have one or two incidences of sexual assault. Circular Reasoning takes the 'peggy sue' concept (go back in time to fix it all!) and turns it right on its head. Starts out with a fantastic opening depiction of a very post-apocalyptic Magical Britian, so if you like post apocalyptic works you'll get your dose there. Then we return to the modern world and see the wizarding underworld in all its glory. Probably some of the best written action I've ever read. Besides those three favourites, Harry Potter and the Boy Who Lived is a classic, the premise being that Harry isn't the Boy Who Lived, and transfers to Durmstrang. It's a very engaging read. Despite the kinda silly summary it's actually excellent, if incomplete. Unfortunately abandoned but what's there is quite good. Midnight Blues is a post Hogwarts fic starring Harry and Ron as dark wizard hunters contracted to the Ministry. Absolutely hilarious, but it's not a crack-fic and has some good serious moments. Almost Bond-like in its sense of adventure, though it's a bit too funny for it to really be a spiritual successor. Highly recommended. Hogwarts Battle School obviously draws heavy inspiration from Enders Game and some later parts of MoR, without Orson Scott Card's homophobia and without Eliezer's insanity. Well written if you can suspend your disbelief. Check it out, see if you like it. If you like action and politics, this fic has both in spades. Alexandra Quick and the Thorn Circle by Inverarity takes place in wizarding America with a completely new cast. Some pretty incredible worldbuilding, good characterization, and 4/7 books are already completed. I really like this one as well, but it's pretty different from the standard fare. Hasn't been updated in a few years but what's there already is really really great. I really enjoyed these ones, and they feel the closest to actual Harry Potter novels. Undeniably the best written out of all of these. On the subject of things different from the standard fare, Harry Potter and the Wastelands of Time is a truly epic in scale adventure with a rather sisyphean protagonist. Very much a classic, very action-adventure-y, and is a wild ride from start to finish. A bit rough in patches, but it's a lot of fun and you don't get more, well, epic in scale than this. For a dash of horror, look no further than Deathly Hallowed. The premise is that Lily Potter dabbled in magic she shouldn't, and it gets pretty freaky. Unfortunately it hasn't been updated for quite some time, but it's creepy and scary in the right ways. To Play the Devil by the Wayland Smith. This one takes place about a hundred years after the original series. I'm just going to quote the summary for this one and say that it is very good. It's a pretty unique fic, with a more mature, more low-key vibe that works very well. Some pretty superb worldbuilding, also has a sequel that's... different. "Immortality is not all it's cracked up to be. The war ended over a hundred years ago. Harry Potter and Voldemort are old, out of practice, and politely ignoring each other. However, as tensions rise across Europe the Ministry persuades them to join forces to try and end a series of disappearances in the Black Forest. No pairings." For some other works that are also good: Applied Cultural Anthropology takes the less absurd than you'd think concept of a Slytherin Hermione and runs with it. Actually pretty original and good, and despite the summary, Hermione isn't an 11 year old copy of Voldemort by any means. Little bit of Mary Sueish-ness. Forging The Sword. Fascinating story that's all about the characterization of the golden trio and the exploration of magic. Probably the most similar to the Arithmancer out of this entire list. Iris Potter and the Goblet's Surprise. The author seems determined to keep rewriting this fic, but the 15 chapters that are currently up are oddly engaging. Iris is an annoying little poo poo and it consistently blows up in her face in satisfying and amusing ways. loving nails what being a 14 year old girl struggling with her sexuality is like though  . Less serious, surprisingly charming, the first two chapters are pretty weak. The Pureblood Pretense and its sequels are great. A rip-off of Alanna the Lioness with blood substituting for gender.... but on the other hand, Alanna the Lioness in the Harry Potter world is a fantastic combination. Very engaging all around, Harriet has a thing for Potions in this one, and it's blatantly obvious the author is in academia because the not so subtle swipes at the Potions "journals" are pretty both on-point and funny. Good all around, give it a read, see what you think. Magical Relations has Dudley Dursley get a letter inviting him to Hogwarts too. It's great. Not as stupid as you'd think. e: the previously recommended harry potter and the natural 20 is amazing The Iron Rose fucked around with this message at 21:26 on Jul 30, 2018 |
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Jul 30, 2018 21:15
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Tunicate posted:In terms of being the absolute polar opposite of HPMoR, I'm a fan of Potter Who and the Wossname's Thingummy
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Jul 30, 2018 23:01
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I'll throw a mention to Harry Potter and the Eagle of Truthiness for being fairly amusing and blessedly short. Also Seventh Horcrux is quite good. Added Space fucked around with this message at 00:41 on Jul 31, 2018 |
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Jul 31, 2018 00:07
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Why are the kids making this announcement?
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Jul 31, 2018 04:10
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Is there a good fic similar to just the Fiona parts of HP20? Because I could read about Muggles figuring it out and circumventing obliviators all day.
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Jul 31, 2018 04:35
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Tiggum posted:Why are the kids making this announcement?
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Jul 31, 2018 04:36
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WilliamAnderson posted:Here's a question for people in this thread. What are your favourite HP fanfictions? I know HP and the Natural 20 and the Alexandra Quick series seem good, and then there are the funny bad ones, My Immortal, HP Becomes a Communist, and HP and the Most Electrifying Man. Probably my faves and/or the ones I think are best are Alexandra Quick or Natural 20, but here's some others I liked, in no particular order: Harry the Hufflepuff! Harry is the strange type of lazy where he'll spend all week building an elaborate Rube Goldberg machine that butters his toast and ties his shoes and saves him ten seconds of effort every day. Pure zaniness. Has some sequels, with the fourth year stuff currently updating. Read this one! Goldstein, which follows Anthony Goldstein, a Ravenclaw in Harry's year, offering his perspective on things. This story has him as muggle-born and very, very Jewish, so it's got a different take on magic and daily life at Hogwarts. Very respectful of the religion/culture, I think, and I learned a lot! Goes up to some point in second year I think, not complete but is still updating I'm pretty sure? The Sum of Their Parts. Harry is fed up with the continuing corruption and prejudice in the ministry and wizarding society even after Voldemort's fall, and becomes a Dark Lord in order to change things and protect his godson, Teddy Lupin, with Ron and Hermione's help. Pretty dark! Complete. The Best Revenge. By chance and whim, Snape ends up delivering Harry's Hogwarts letter to the Dursley's, and gets a much more positive first impression of him (and learns how the Dursleys treated him), and becomes a mentor/guardian. Very happy and positive, mostly. Has a sequel, is complete. Strangers at Drakeshaugh. Follows a muggle mother whose son befriends James (Sirius) Potter, the son of the strange new neighbours Harry and Ginny. (Post-War). Mostly a lot of happy fluff and parenting stuff and precocious children, so diabetes warning I guess. Leading up to the muggle folk figuring out magic, but not quite there yet. Also there's some sort of capturing a serial killer plotline but whatever, that's not important. Not complete, but updated recently. I think the author has a bunch of other fics set in this 'universe' but I haven't read them. The Changeling. Ginny gets sorted into Slytherin. Introspective. Complete. The Definition of Normal. Thanks to the Dursley's abuse, Harry really really wants to be normal and has no interest in this whole 'magic' thing. Part of a series, and the fourth year just started updating. Honestly I barely remember this? I liked it enough to bookmark but I got no clue what went on. The Path Not Tread. Lily and Snape try to reconcile during their fifth year. It's a long and arduous process, and their friendship still hangs by a thread. There's no instant turn-around "Ok, I am not a racist git anymore" "ok I forgive you!" . Not complete but I'm pretty sure is still being worked on. Seasons of Change. Harry reaches out to Dudley in first year and the two become closer. Quite positive! Not complete, not sure if it's updating. The Strange Disappearance of Sally-Anne Perks. Mystery. Based on how there's a character Sally-Anne, who gets sorted just before Harry, but in later books she's nowhere to be found (another character even takes her place as being immediately alphabetically ahead of Harry). Complete. Victoria Potter. Follows- well, a girl 'Harry', although she's very much her own person, not just Harry with another x chromosome. There's a lot of world-building stuff that's pretty neat. Only eleven chapters though so it's very much incomplete, but is still updating, hopefully? I know White Squirrel (the author of Arithmancer) is kind of contentious around here, but I did somewhat like A Dramatic Reading and Petrification Proliferation. Dramatic Reading has Umbridge find the actual Harry Potter book series, reads enough to find some damaging stuff to Harry et al, and then forces the professors to read it to all the students. Petrification is a moderately entertaining 'what if?' set at the end of the second book. Don't read past the first 2/3 chapters though, it starts becoming a story it has no need or right to be. Calculation is a one-shot, just kind of poking fun at some stuff in the series, specifically how Hogwarts is run. I wouldn't really call it good and it won't be to everyone's taste, but it's short and maybe you'll go 'heh'. Brightest Witch and the Darkest House replaces Hermione with a much more 'Slytherin' character, where Slytherin means 'power hungry, amoral munchkin with the cheat sheet'. I'm kind of hesitant about recommending this one- under no circumstances would I call it 'good'. There's a lot of bad writing style stuff, and its very much in the same vein as Arithmancer or Methods- a Mary-Sue becomes super powerful and important and doesn't face meaningful challenge or setbacks really. However this fic is, I think, much more aware that it's doing so, maybe? It almost revels in it, without becoming satire or parody of the tropes, so I find it enjoyable to lean back like 'heh yeah this is dumb but no one's really taking it seriously', like the equivalent of a cheesy 80's action flick. Or maybe I got poo poo taste! definitely I got poo poo taste Has a sequel and goes up to fourth year I think, not complete, not sure if it's updating. Probably there's a bunch of other stories I liked that I can't think of right now, likely a lot of one-shots and shorts. If I remember them I'll stick them in. Mazerunner fucked around with this message at 06:29 on Jul 31, 2018 |
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Jul 31, 2018 05:36
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Seventh Horcrux is immensely stupid but still makes me laugh. Strangers at Drakeshaugh is actually good. Natural 20 has some great muggle cop adventures. My Immortal briiings meeeee tooo liiiiiiiiiiiiife. Of course, I have terrible loving taste. I've read every Culture/HP crossover I've seen. And the Hellraiser ones. And at least two self-inserts. Edit: I am disappointed that there don't seem to be any "Murderbot Teaching DADA" stories out there. Not enough Murderbot fanfic in general, I find. e2: trap loving sprung again, I guess. 90s Cringe Rock fucked around with this message at 09:24 on Jul 31, 2018 |
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Jul 31, 2018 09:20
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I guess HPMoR is my favorite HP fanfic because I don’t read fanfic so it’s the only one I know about in detail. Best by default!
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Jul 31, 2018 13:25
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I can't believe I forgot about the Changeling because it's easily the most haunting of the lot. Very unique writing style and it pays off. The sequel isn't quite as good though. It runs out of steam pretty quick and suffers from the fatal problem of not needing to exist in the first place. E: Taure is regularly updating Victoria Potter over on the DarkLordPotter forums The Iron Rose fucked around with this message at 22:00 on Jul 31, 2018 |
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Jul 31, 2018 13:42
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Pvt.Scott posted:I guess HPMoR is my favorite HP fanfic because I don’t read fanfic so it’s the only one I know about in detail. Best by default! Same. I've tried reading HP and the Natural 20 due to the general praise but I'm not seeing it - five chapters in and it hasn't offered any hook beyond the basic "boy, D&D magic sure is different from HP, isn't it?" premise, which has been beaten pretty much to a pulp. (Almost makes me re-evaluate HPMOR's infuriating habit of throwing out tantalizing story ideas and then never doing anything with them - at least it keeps you reading.) Should I keep going or are the first five chapters representative enough? If the latter, which of the above-mentioned stories are the most unlike HPTN20?
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Jul 31, 2018 21:29
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NihilCredo posted:Same. I've tried reading HP and the Natural 20 due to the general praise but I'm not seeing it - five chapters in and it hasn't offered any hook beyond the basic "boy, D&D magic sure is different from HP, isn't it?" premise, which has been beaten pretty much to a pulp. (Almost makes me re-evaluate HPMOR's infuriating habit of throwing out tantalizing story ideas and then never doing anything with them - at least it keeps you reading.) It gets much better changeling is probably the most unlike though
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Jul 31, 2018 21:42
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NihilCredo posted:Should I keep going or are the first five chapters representative enough? If the latter, which of the above-mentioned stories are the most unlike HPTN20? Cardiovorax fucked around with this message at 22:06 on Jul 31, 2018 |
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Jul 31, 2018 22:04
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NihilCredo posted:Should I keep going or are the first five chapters representative enough? If the latter, which of the above-mentioned stories are the most unlike HPTN20? Yeah I wouldn't say the first five chapters were representative of the fic at all. It almost feels like it started as a joke up until the author realized that there was actually some genuine potential there, and he actually managed to weave a coherent narrative with a character arc that works thematically well with D&D. Plus, I get the sense the author is probably a good DM because he does a good job of portraying D&D magic as different, rather than overpowered or underpowered compared to Potterverse magic. The Iron Rose posted:Alexandra Quick and the Thorn Circle by Inverarity takes place in wizarding America with a completely new cast. Some pretty incredible worldbuilding, good characterization, and 4/7 books are already completed. I really like this one as well, but it's pretty different from the standard fare. Hasn't been updated in a few years but what's there already is really really great. I really enjoyed these ones, and they feel the closest to actual Harry Potter novels. Undeniably the best written out of all of these. Apart from HP20, I do think this is the best written one of these, and I read and enjoyed all four volumes that are out (fic seems to be dead past that but the author apparently posts entire books all at once so who knows?) but I do have one major problem; I get the sense that in a conscious effort to avoid Mary Sueing the main character, the writer leaned way too hard in the opposite direction. The protagonist just won't stop making bad choices--and while most protagonists who make bad choices feel like an author trying to contrive a particular situation into happening, this one felt like they were doing it just to show the readers how far removed they were from a Mary Sue. Mazerunner posted:Strangers at Drakeshaugh. Follows a muggle mother whose son befriends James (Sirius) Potter, the son of the strange new neighbours Harry and Ginny. (Post-War). Mostly a lot of happy fluff and parenting stuff and precocious children, so diabetes warning I guess. Leading up to the muggle folk figuring out magic, but not quite there yet. Also there's some sort of capturing a serial killer plotline but whatever, that's not important. Not complete, but updated recently. I think the author has a bunch of other fics set in this 'universe' but I haven't read them. This one was cute and I enjoyed it but I'll get royally pissed if the family gets obliviated--better that they don't find out if so. I think one or more of the author's other fics takes place after this one and as far as I can tell they don't know.. Mazerunner posted:Victoria Potter. Follows- well, a girl 'Harry', although she's very much her own person, not just Harry with another x chromosome. There's a lot of world-building stuff that's pretty neat. Only eleven chapters though so it's very much incomplete, but is still updating, hopefully? Read this on your recommendation and I liked it. I'll keep an eye on this one but maybe I should look for the author's other fic, which this one is apparently a massive reworking of?
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Aug 1, 2018 06:38
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Argue posted:he actually managed to weave a coherent narrative with a character arc that works thematically well with D&D.
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Aug 1, 2018 10:30
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Cardiovorax posted:If watching the actual Doctor Who series is anything how reading that story is like, I can understand why people like it so much. This one is basically the whole "silly whimsiness and wonder" deal that characterized the first Harry Potter book to me back when I was ten, but about three times as much so. I'd say it absolutely nails what you'd expect from the internal voice of the Eleventh Doctor. The stories themselves, eh, sometimes, but Doctor Who suffers when it goes too far in that direction. And the other lead actors are fairly madcap and wacky, but none quite as much as the living cartoon that is Matt Smith's Eleven. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oo2RKAHu-kI
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Aug 1, 2018 20:14
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Cardiovorax posted:If watching the actual Doctor Who series is anything how reading that story is like, I can understand why people like it so much. This one is basically the whole "silly whimsiness and wonder" deal that characterized the first Harry Potter book to me back when I was ten, but about three times as much so. I guess I'm too removed from that aspect of terrible nerd culture to immediately make the connection "geddit, Potter WHO!"
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Aug 1, 2018 20:49
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I wouldn't know it, myself. For all that I'm aware, the show was never translated into my native language, so I never got the chance to watch it when I still had an interest in TV. That clip Dabir there posted gives a pretty good impression of what I think that fic might look like in action, though, so I guess it's true to type?
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Aug 1, 2018 20:55
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That clip's a little sillier than usual, since the character is in a manic state during it.
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Aug 1, 2018 22:16
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Last time I paid attention to Dr. Who, it was the guy with the scarf and the robot dog, and I don't remember that as overly whimsical.
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Aug 1, 2018 22:54
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Epicurius posted:Last time I paid attention to Dr. Who, it was the guy with the scarf and the robot dog, and I don't remember that as overly whimsical. The revival is very different from the original.
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Aug 2, 2018 00:44
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Tiggum posted:The revival is very different from the original. The revival's also very different lead actor to lead actor. So far we've had Dark and Moody Doctor, Compassionate Dramatic Doctor, Living Cartoon Doctor, Bitter Old War Veteran Doctor, and Senile Old Man Doctor. Starting next year it's a woman playing the Doctor for the first time, and no idea what her series is going to look like because they finally got rid of the lead writer/producer Moffat who drove the show sillier and sillier and was responsible for the casting of the cartoon and the senile one.
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Aug 3, 2018 08:25
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Liquid Communism posted:they finally got rid of the lead writer/producer Moffat who drove the show sillier and sillier Oh please, RTD's era was peak silly. I think people have forgotten.
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Aug 3, 2018 10:07
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The show has been silly since possibly the second story.
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Aug 3, 2018 10:22
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Yeah, let's not go down this path, fair point.
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Aug 3, 2018 10:29
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Speaking of HP20, new chapter. Unrelated, HP canon question: I could have sworn it had been established that repeated obliviation causes brain damage, but I can't find anything about this at all. Somehow I got it in my head that there was a Muggle character briefly mentioned in one book who lived in such close proximity to magical things that they had to keep wiping him and consequently giving him permanent brain damage. Did my brain somehow invent this or was my mind polluted by events from a fanfic in this thread?
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Aug 3, 2018 16:26
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The World Cup field owner guy got very dopey, but that was supposedly from having so many done so recently, presumably not permanent. Bertha Jorkins (Crouch's assistant) had her memory damaged permanently by an overly-strong one.
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Aug 3, 2018 16:42
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Argue posted:Unrelated, HP canon question: I could have sworn it had been established that repeated obliviation causes brain damage, but I can't find anything about this at all. Somehow I got it in my head that there was a Muggle character briefly mentioned in one book who lived in such close proximity to magical things that they had to keep wiping him and consequently giving him permanent brain damage. Did my brain somehow invent this or was my mind polluted by events from a fanfic in this thread? Goblet of fire has a couple things like that - the guy who owns the land for the triwizard tournament gets memory wiped so much he thinks it's christmas, and Bertha Jorkins has permanent mental issues due to a memory charm.
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Aug 3, 2018 16:47
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Oh, thanks, that's why I couldn't find it; I had been convinced it was the old guy who took care of the Riddle house, and my memory smushed the details together with the Triwizard guy and Bertha.
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Aug 3, 2018 17:00
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The Riddle gardener was merely killed by Voldemort, he never received any kind of mental damage that we know of. Lockhart self-obliviated with a defective wand and was lobotomized as a result. Jorkins received damage to her long-term (or short-term?) memory as a consequence of being obliviated by someone incompetent in the use of the spell. Of course, since souls actually exist in that setting, apparently she remembered everything again once she died and was recalled during Goblet of Fire, because apparently souls remember things separately from people's brains and gently caress it, it's magic.
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Aug 3, 2018 22:58
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WilliamAnderson posted:Here's a question for people in this thread. What are your favourite HP fanfictions?
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Aug 4, 2018 04:53
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Cardiovorax posted:Of course, since souls actually exist in that setting, apparently she remembered everything again once she died and was recalled during Goblet of Fire, because apparently souls remember things separately from people's brains and gently caress it, it's magic. Anyways, here's the entirety of Chapter 99: Roles, Aftermath quote:Ten days later, the first dead unicorn was found in the Forbidden Forest.
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Aug 4, 2018 05:18
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re: Wizard Hitler, wasn't there an entire movie out about that recently?
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Aug 5, 2018 20:36
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Xander77 posted:Good thing Yud never read the books, or (one of the) basic premise behind the fic would be gone by the time he got to 4. HPMOR's treatment of the afterlife seems weird and inconsistent. Harry's so completely sure the afterlife doesn't exist even though three months ago he was completely sure magic didn't exist, and even though there are ghosts and apparently a portal to the afterlife in a government basement. Then Herminone dies and it's suddenly totally reasonable to try to bring the dead back to life because he really wants to.
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