Chug your pumpkin juice and let’s win that Quidditch match! Join as Karoline, Sophia, Taavi, and our guest Ella discuss Chapter 14 of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince: Felix Felicis!
In this episode:
- The romantic drama of the chapter splits our panel
- An in-depth enumeration of all the ways Ron sucks
- Harry is a bad friend
- Hermione doesn’t get enough credit for her Quidditch passion
- Ginny tells the whole castle that Ron makes out with his aunt
- Viktor Krum’s Quidditch prowess lives rent-free in Ron’s head
- WON WON!!
- Ron’s Inauguration into the Society of Filthy Hippogryffs
- Would Felix Felicis make a good anxiety medication?
For more from our guest Ella:
- @ellaheipt on Instagram
If you have read The Phoenix and the Flame, a book about Rowling’s original plans for OotP (Irving and I both contributed a chapter) you’ll find that the original outline for OotP was to have Gryffindor “flattened” in the final Quidditch match. There is no mention of Ron becoming Keeper in his 5th year. This makes his need for the placebo, even after overcoming his nerves and turning the Slytherin’s “Weasley is our King” song against them at the end of the last book, make much more sense.
That does make a lot more sense.
Maybe it could have been explained as the after-effects of Ron’s brain encounter in the DoM. That always felt like it should have been more significant than just some tendril-scars on his forearms, and it messing with his coordination and/or confidence seems reasonable.
I really like that! In general, I thought there were too few long-term consequences of the DoM jaunt, especially where Ron is concerned.
I really liked the connection made between Ron’s attempted slut-shaming of Ginny, and Morfin’s actual slut-shaming of Merope – IIRC, I called this out on one of my first Alohomora episodes about the chapter with Morfin. Though I think the intent was actually different to what was proposed on the podcast – I think we’re meant to pick up on the similarity, rather than the contrast. HBP in general (“he can be a bit unkind,” per Luna) and this chapter in particular (as thoroughly discussed on the podcast) really drive home Ron’s less admirable qualities. Maybe this was setup for the DH betrayal, or maybe Jo just wanted to add some complexity to a character in danger of relegation to “goofy sidekick.” But I think Morfin is meant to indicate the end of the slippery slope Ron finds himself on, as a cautionary tale for the reader of what Ron could end up as without people to keep him humble.