Elkins' Draco Malfoy Is Ever So Lame. (But not sympathetic)

[horridporrid03]

No: HPFGUIDX 124502


>>Nora: 
>It's, ummm, a rather nasty 'rival club'.
<snip>
>They seem to patently enjoy the domination of the other students.<

Betsy:
Hell, yeah they enjoyed lording over the other students!  That's why 
I included a comment about Draco being rather power-hungry (which I 
think goes hand in hand with his love of attention).  I'm not saying 
Draco's a saint.  If some mad bitch is going to give him power, he 
won't look a gift horse in the mouth.

>>Nora:
>What's attractive about the IS?  What's attractive about "Malfoy was 
watching her with a hungry expression on his face.<

Betsy:
Nothing.  But those weren't hurt/comfort scenes, and that was the 
whole point of the Elkins post.  Which is a reason I didn't talk 
about the IS in my original post.  Draco is most definitely a dark 
character, and he behaves as such, especially in the IS scenes. 

>>Betsy: 
>[On a total aside, A.J.Hall's fanfic, "Lust over Pendle" has Draco 
choosing to defy his father not because of any inner nobility but 
because he's squeamish about killing. Which I could easily see 
happening.]<

>>Nora: 
>It also features a very tangential relationship to any canon 
personalities, but that's another point, ain't it? :)<

Betsy:
Draco/Neville is *so* the new Draco/Harry. <beg>  

>>Nora: 
>Draco's shirking in class is certainly not stoic; it's manipulative 
and Snape indulges it because he's a favoritist.<

Betsy:
No, but Draco's already done his stoic bit.  Now we have the 
interesting twist of feminine manipulation.  But these scenes are too 
far away from the original moment of injury to fall under the 
hurt/comfort heading.  (And you do get some wonderful moments of 
Draco's wit. <g>)  Also, we never actually get it confirmed from 
anyone who would know that Draco wasn't still injured.  I suspect 
he's probably milking it, but why doesn't JKR make it indisputably 
clear that Draco is perfectly fine?

>>Nora:
>Not paying attention in class when you've been warned the stuff 
you're dealing with is dangerous is arrogant.<

Betsy:
So if the teacher is Hagrid and the student is Draco, not paying 
attention and the resulting disaster is the fault of arrogance on the 
part of the student.  But, if the teacher is Snape and the student is 
Neville, then not paying attention and the resulting disaster is the 
fault of arrogance on the part of... the teacher?  (Maybe it's the 
old, Slytherin = evil default? <g>)

>>Nora:
>[If something like that happened in chem lab, the teacher would make 
sure the student got aid, and then give them the chewing out of the 
ages.]<

Betsy:
But then scores of fans would read the following chew out and decide 
that the chem teacher gets off on another's pain. :)

>>Nora: 
>Path of least resistance is, in the Potterverse, still a path. Draco 
*could* wake up, but I rather think that the pattern that has been 
established is the one that will hold.  Draco's malice has generally 
intensified throughout the books.<

Betsy:
Has it?  Is there a pattern of Draco getting crueler and crueler in 
his treatment of Harry or any of the Trio?  I can't recall one, but I 
could very well be wrong.

And yes, not choosing is indeed a choice.  Draco is definitely taking 
the easy path towards Death Eaterdom.  At the moment.  I just wonder 
if JKR is setting him up for a shake up.  We still don't know what 
the full impact of having his father in Azkaban will be on Draco.  It 
will be interesting to see where he goes in the next book.

Betsy