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

[horridporrid03]

No: HPFGUIDX 124662


>>Nora:
>Or, by overdoing it, JKR makes it ever-so-slightly comic, in the 
fine tradition of blending deserved punishment with a somewhat nasty 
twist.  I stand by the deserved Schadenfreude ideal; there's 
something rather nice about seeing self-initiated bratty behavior 
receive comeuppance.<

Betsy:
I would write this off as a personal taste thing, but I still get the 
feeling that JKR *purposefully* makes it too much.

***********************
"Professor Moody was limping down the marble staircase.  His wand was 
out and it was pointing right at a pure white ferret, which was 
shivering on the stone-flagged floor, exactly where Malfoy had been 
standing."
[...]
"...it flew ten feet into the air, fell with a smack to the floor, 
and then bounced upward once more."
[...]
"...as the ferret bounced higher and higher, squealing in pain."
[...]
"Moody, *is that a student*?" shrieked Professor McGonagall, the 
books spilling out of her arms.
"Yep" said Moody.
"No!" cried Professor McGonagall...
(GoF Scholastic hardback pp. 204-206)

"It was as though someone had exploded a box of fireworks within the 
compartment.  Blinded by the blaze of the spells that had blasted 
from every direction, deafened by a series of bangs, Harry blinked 
and looked down at the floor.
"Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle were all lying unconscious in the doorway."
[...]
"Thought we'd see what those three were up to," said Fred matter-of-
factly, stepping onto Goyle and into the compartment.  He had his 
wand out, and so did George, who was careful to tread on Malfoy as he 
followed Fred inside."
[...]
"Ron, Harry, and George kicked, rolled, and pushed the unconscious 
Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle... out into the corridor, then came back 
into the compartment and rolled the door shut.
"Exploding Snap, anyone?" said Fred,"
(ibid pp. 729-730)
****************************

And then there's the "fight" in OotP where Harry and George beat on 
Draco and walk away with one split lip between the two of them.  And 
the Quidditch Final in PoA where Draco plays better than Harry but 
looses because Harry had the better broom.

I don't read any of those scenes as humorous.  Actually, they're a 
little distubing in how much they end up detracting from Harry.

>>Nora: 
>Draco is not continually spoiled in the sense to which some fans 
exaggerate it, but he does get the goodies from home and the nice 
fast brooms for everyone on the team--he's not wearing crappy dress 
robes, either.

Betsy:
Well, of course Draco is dressed well. He is a Malfoy, he does 
represent the family at Hogwarts.  And Lucius is intent on impressing 
the Ministry with his wealth (starting in CoS) so of course he 
supplies his son's team with brooms.  But Draco's broom is never 
updated.  That's four years without a new broom (after a match is 
lost on broom speed in Draco's second year on the team).  Would the 
Dursleys *ever* make Dudley wait that long between important toy 
updates?

Are sweets from home a sign of spoilage?  Maybe Draco's mom loves 
him.  He is her only child, away at boarding school, and it does add 
the "mother's boy" element to the feminization of Draco.  But I don't 
think it compares with Dudley.

>>Nora:
>But I think the Dudley comparison *does* have legs in OotP.  OotP 
opens with Harry's commentary on Dudley and his gang bashing on Mark 
Evans, basically because they can but also out of a nasty sense of 
aggression on Dudley's part.  Draco joins the IS and gets his jollies 
out of bossing around the other students to whatever degree he can, 
and is "watching hungrily" when Umbridge is about to cast Crucio on 
Harry.<
<snip>

Betsy:
I don't see a real comparison here at all.  Dudley is a street punk, 
breaking laws and picking on small children.  Draco's authority is 
given to him by the school authorities, and while he does take away 
house points for no reason at all, he doesn't really squash anyone.  
None of the students care about house points anymore because of 
Umbridge's foolish management style, and I'm sure Draco is aware of 
that.

And yes, Draco is eager to see Harry slapped down (I doubt he's ever 
seen someone under Crucio before, so I'm not sure he's aware of its 
full horror).  He's been waiting *five years* for this moment.  Harry 
has seen Draco writhing in pain enough times (and seems to have 
gotten enjoyment out of it) so I can understand Draco's eagerness.

>>Betsy:
>(Draco not being the Slytherin heir *is* a big hint that the Trio do 
not have a clear view of him.)<

>>Nora:
>He would totally *like* to be, though.<
<snip>

Betsy:
Of course he would.  I bet Harry would love to be the Heir of 
Gryffindor.  It's a cool title, seems to embody everything his folks 
hold dear, there's the possiblity of a swanky secret lair, and maybe 
a kick-ass monster at your beck and call.  What twelve year old boy 
would say no to that?  But does Draco understand exactly what being 
Slytherin's Heir (as defined by Voldemort, anyway) really means?  
Hell, no.  Draco is a child.  He didn't get the full implications in 
CoS and I don't think he gets it yet in OotP. The interesting moment 
will be when Draco finally *does* understand. 

 
>-Nora notes it's how long until we get this somewhat settled?<

Betsy, totally counting the days.  Umm... in that way where you're 
not really sure exactly how many days are left. :)