Future books: humor element, Voldemort/Harry encounters

[uilnslcoap]

No: HPFGUIDX 34298

So sorry to create a new thread when SO many are worth discussing, 
and maybe the topics I'm writing on have been done before, but 
perhaps people have new ideas they'd like to discuss on the same 
issues they've talked about before.  Or maybe I'm lucky and they 
haven't really been brought up yet (no such luck with so many people 
as obsessive as myself, I'm sure).

Right, firstly, I'd like to talk about humor in the books.  To me, 
the books are relatively constant smile-bringers, and occasionally 
they make me burst into laughter.  It's very refreshing to read 
something I can get a REALLY good laugh out of (although the title 
for most real laughs from a book goes to Catch-22 where I was almost 
hysterical on several occasions).  Is anyone worried about the tone 
of the future books being SEVERELY affected by the darker subject 
matter?  I mean, there will be a WAR on!  Can the humor really stay 
in the same league with the foreboding over everything?  Will the 
laughter be more of a kind of "whistling in the dark as you pass a 
graveyard," a stress reliever rather than the pure humor it has been 
in the past?  I know that all stories like this must grow serious to 
retain interest and realism (I'm actually really looking forward to 
these next few books, including their tone and subject matter), but I 
will miss the humor if it has to suffer in the face of Voldemort's 
return.  Would anyone care to discuss their thoughts?

One thing I've been longing to discuss with others is the future of 
Voldemort vs. Harry, in direct conflict, that is.  How many more 
times can Harry face Voldemort and maintain realism?  Surely at some 
point, one of them has to succeed in finishing off the other--and 
Voldemort has failed three times, once directly, once through 
Quirrell, and once through his past self.  I can't see Voldemort 
fouling up too much again with his own body and wand and knowledge of 
the wand connections between he and Harry.  So the question is once 
again, how many more times will they come into direct conflict before 
the series ends?  Personally, I think two.  One where Harry and 
SOMEONE (in an earlier post tonight, I suggested Ginny--and if you 
are a G/H shipper, you should read that post because I think I 
painted *pats self on back* a pretty compelling case for that ship 
and even a moving picture of the possible moment when Ginny and Harry 
come together--but Ron or Hermione or Draco or any combination of 
them might work) face off against Voldemort, and are overcome but 
escape thanks to the sacrifice of someone else (Hagrid? Dumbledore? 
Lupin?).  It would be VERY interesting to see Ron's or Hermione's 
actions in the face of Voldemort.  Remember, only Harry and Ginny 
have ever seen an incarnation of Voldemort recently and lived to talk 
about it (without being a Death Eater, obviously).  How would Ron and 
Hermione fare in the face of the Dark Lord, encountering him for the 
very first time, only having heard from Harry second-hand what he is 
like, the terror he creates?  How would Ginny fare?  Would she be 
stronger, having seen Tom Riddle before and having even possibly 
absorbed some of his power?  What would Draco do?  Would he embrace 
the Slytherin way and face down Harry with Voldemort behind him or 
would he, as I suspect, suddenly realize what good and evil actually 
are (not weakness and strength as he thought before, but good and 
evil), and team with Harry?  And what about Pettigrew's bond with 
Harry?  Great dramatic possibilities.  The other occasion where Harry 
and Voldemort come up against one another will be the final one, of 
course (more on this in the next paragraph).  This leaves open, what 
about the other book if I believe only two showdowns remain?  Well, 
Rowling has, with great success, not brought V and H together for the 
climax before (in PoA).  Personally, I can't imagine what PoA-like 
climax (in that it will lack Voldemort's/Riddle's physical presence) 
she will come up with in OotP or Book Six (I'm leaning toward OotP as 
the non-Voldemort finale one, but I could be wrong), but I'm sure it 
will be wondeful.  What do other people think about this?  Do you 
believe Harry can face Voldemort three more times?  Perhaps more if 
there are multiple encounters in Book Seven?  Do you line up with my 
theories?  Do you believe Harry will always face Voldemort alone or 
will someone (sometwo? somethree?) stand beside him in the future?  
Let's discuss!  Please?

Now, for my other obsession (well, all right, there are many of them, 
but this one hits me harder recently): what do people think about the 
very last Voldemort/Harry encounter?  I'm not even talking about HOW 
Voldmort will go down, or if Harry will survive, although these are 
interesting.  I just feel these details are too far out of reach for 
discussion (though that hasn't stopped me before :), maybe will be 
always out of reach till I sit, madly taking in the last two hundred 
pages of Book Seven, and suddenly it will all become clear to me.  
I'm more interested in things like: where? how?  I've been 
considering Godric's Hollow.  Perhaps in some desperate race to get 
something associated with his parents' past?  What about in the 
"Fortress of Shadows", that title that's been copyrighted recently?  
Anyone have some great ideas?  As for how...I think that it must be 
in a way that is voluntary for Harry, where he knows what he is about 
to get into.  It's all fine and well for a Portkey to get him to the 
fight in GoF, but by Seven, I want a Harry moved by his own actions, 
not by the machinations of evil.  Maybe that's not fair considering 
his voluntary walk into fire (literally and metaphorically, 
respectively) in PS/SS and CoS.  However, I also want a Harry more 
confident in his own actions.  Not saved by help from outside (i.e. 
his mother's benediction, Fawkes and sword, mysterious wand 
connection).  I also think the very end of the fight must be them 
alone.  Just Harry and Voldemort, no one else.  Does anyone have 
thoughts about this stuff?  Does anyone have theories on that which I 
consider unfathomable (will Harry live? how EXACTLY will Voldemort be 
defeated? something to do with Harry's blood?--a personal beginning 
of a theory for me)?  Once again, let's talk.

All right, I have to go to bed, now...after I look up past discussion 
on these topics.  Oh God, tomorrow won't be very good for me.

Devin