Prequel

[t0ra-chan.livejournal.com]

I hope it's okay if I post this here.

As some of you might have heard, JKR wrote a 800 words long Marauder prequel for charity. And you can already read it here:
Marauder Prequel

Warning, it's hand-written and very hard to read in some parts.

ETA: Thanks to r_ganymede we have a link to a transcript for easier reading:
Prequel Transcript

Anyway, here's my take on it.



So Sirius and James drive around on Sirius's motorcycle, get caught by the police, get oh-so-witty with the officers, attack some Death Eaters (I think) and piss off again.

What the hell was the point of that? Bad enough that she again couldn't keep her word about being finished with HP, but she broke it to write that? That's not only boring, it tells us absolutely nothing about the characters we didn't know. Heck, it's just more proof what irresponsible jackasses Sirius and James were. Again Muggles are portrayed as stupid and clueless and it's perfectly fine for wizards to have fun at their expense. And look, another chance to make jokes about fat people, haven't seen those in a while. Whatever, JKR.

Comments

[intotheaether.livejournal.com]

I couldn't understand the whole thing, since her handwriting is really bad, but from what I read, I agree. I would've appreciated it more if there had been some controversial new develop (even if I hated it, which I probably would have), just so I could have an opinion about the new canon, if you consider this to be! But it was nothing. Boring, really.

[r-ganymede.livejournal.com]

There's a transcription here. (http://www.snitchseeker.com/harry-potter-news/potter-prequel-now-available-online-read-updated-57160/)

And yeah, it was really pointless. I don't know what it is about Wizards violating traffic laws that JKR finds so entertaining.

[artystone.livejournal.com]

I think it's the OMGPWNED not-stereotypical-at-all Law Enforcement Officers that she thinks is so f'ing hilarious.

Add another vote for LAME-O.

[papier.livejournal.com]

I thought that was only an excerpt, until I read your take on it. That's it?! Lame. JKR, move on please.

[t0ra-chan.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I also expected more. Heck, I thought she would write it from Sirius' or James' perspective, not some random muggle.

[artystone.livejournal.com]

Well Harry, her omnicient eye, wasn't around then. It's no wonder she was lost for a POV.

[j-lunatic.livejournal.com]

passive homoerotica with Sirus and James

I am now convinced the real reason JKR shies away from Sirius/Remus is because she (possibly subconsciously) ships Sirius/James. Too busy being a cool rebel to have a girlfriend indeed.

[tekalynn.livejournal.com]

Hmm. Fat jokes and SiriusandJames being twits while saving the day. Move on, nothing to see here.

[jodel-from-aol.livejournal.com]

Oh even better. As someone on one of my discussion boards pointed out, they left a couple of Muggle policemen babysitting three unconsious DEs. What's supposed to happen when they wake up?

That list is also currently tying itself in knots trying to reconcile Sirius's long hair when Moody pointed out in the old photo that back then Sirius had short hair.

And t-shirts with Phoenix logo don't do a lot for the contention that the Order was some sort of "secret society" either. But then I never believed that.

[jodel-from-aol.livejournal.com]

Or were the men on Broomsticks from the Ministry?

[j-lunatic.livejournal.com]

That list is also currently tying itself in knots trying to reconcile Sirius's long hair when Moody pointed out in the old photo that back then Sirius had short hair.

I was about to say that this prequel was supposed to be set in 1977, and the Order supposedly wasn't formed until after Trelawney's 1980 prophecy. But should we NOW presume that the Order existed before said prophecy? For the squidzillionth time, Rowling, a good editor can be your friend.

[jodel-from-aol.livejournal.com]

Oh, Rowling seems to think the Order has been around a good while longer than the prophecy. WHY it should have been around before the prophecy she has never explained. One would have thought that Albus had quite enough on his plate already, particularly since his silly Order just duplicated the Ministry's efforts and added another layer of unreasonableness to the whole war effort. In an embarassing lot of areas Rowling is a fool. But of course this little squib is just pure pandering to the audience in a good cause. It probably doesn't need to make sense.

I think it was my own theory (I was probably not the only one to come up with it, I just don't know who did it first) that the Order was formed in response to the Trelawney prophecy. That at least would have made some sense, given the Ministry's attitude toward the proper handling of prophecies.

But really, can you think of a single actual *function* that the Order served in VWI that wasn't already covered elsewhere? In OotP it served a legitimate function, since the Ministry was dragging its feet. It served it in a lame-arsed manner and doesn't seem to have accomplished anything but getting a couple of their members imprisoned or injured. But in the first war the best that seems to be said for it is that Albus put together his own psuedo-Ministry, loyal only to himself. I suppose he might as well have called it the "Mini-Me-Ministry".

[j-lunatic.livejournal.com]

But really, can you think of a single actual *function* that the Order served in VWI that wasn't already covered elsewhere?...But in the first war the best that seems to be said for it is that Albus put together his own psuedo-Ministry, loyal only to himself.

Bingo. While most of the Wizarding World was at Dumbledore's disposal, the Order's original purpose was to get him information, resources, and services at which the Ministry might have balked.

[t0ra-chan.livejournal.com]

Did the Order serve any real function the second time around? Everything they tried to do, they almost always fucked things up and once DD is gone, they don't even try anymore.

Also, if this is how the original Order members acted, it's no wonder so many of them got killed the first time around.

[artystone.livejournal.com]

In an embarassing lot of areas Rowling is a fool. But of course this little squib is just pure pandering to the audience in a good cause. It probably doesn't need to make sense.

OMG U H8ER YOU H8 WIDOWS, ORPHANS AND UNWED MOTHERS! It's for CHARITY!!!

[artystone.livejournal.com]

And t-shirts with Phoenix logo don't do a lot for the contention that the Order was some sort of "secret society" either

OMG yes. I saw that and thought WTF?

[savagedamsel10.livejournal.com]

They made them at Cafe Press!!!

That or maybe at the very first Order meeting/whenever new people join Dumbledore gave out a stack of plain t shirts and some glitter, glue, paint, safety pins, dye, feathers, scissors etc. to make their own t shirts. That might be why the Order seems so useless. They should have just tried to make a crust with customised t shirts. They were after all existing around the time of the British Punk movement. :D

[artystone.livejournal.com]

ROFL.
*pictures OoP as Brownie troop*

[lachlanm.livejournal.com]

jodel_from_aol: And t-shirts with Phoenix logo don't do a lot for the contention that the Order was some sort of "secret society" either.

Maybe it's a prelude to some sort of merchandising deal.

(And I'm sorry I'm replying so late. I was on vacation in New Mexico.)

[jodel-from-aol.livejournal.com]

*sigh* Oh, don't you just *know* that there are going to be phoenix t-shirts in every gift shop in the theme park...

[merrymelody.livejournal.com]

The theme park that JKR used to say was her worst nightmare...

[guza.livejournal.com]

i think it is really stupid :(

[snapes-witch.livejournal.com]

Word!

[guza.livejournal.com]

wow late reply to you, i'm sorry. it was completely lame. i would have paid her NOT to write it and let it loose on us all.

[artystone.livejournal.com]

I think you're being kind.

[guza.livejournal.com]

lol i've always had a heart of gold.

[shadefell.livejournal.com]

I thought it was incredibly poorly written in both senses of the phrase. Her handwriting was so bad I wound up skimming a lot and first thought the cyclists were Lily and James, talking about baby names. The opening sentance is really terrible and the rest of the story doesn't get much better.

[http://users.livejournal.com/lycanthropy__/]

Things'll be seriously black for you in a minute, you cheeky little -'
The pun...it burns.

[montavilla.livejournal.com]

Look at the bright side. At least Snape wasn't hanging upside down in it.

[artystone.livejournal.com]

I wonder if anyone bothered to turn this card over and look at the other side.

I have to de-lurk to say this

[(Anonymous)]

Seriously? Did she look at all the comments people made about what annoyed them about the series and try and combine them in one? Muggle baiting, badly thought out time line, terrible punning, Sirius and James as one dimensional pranksters? You can look at LJ accounts, The Sugar Quill, even FF.net for gods sake and find better written, more interesting and thought provoking drabbles and one shots. Arg...
Alex x

[galaxianomiko.livejournal.com]

All this has done is made me really, really hope we never see an actual prequel about those two. Urgh.

[spiffariffic.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the fat jokes were worse than I remembered them. And James and Sirius weren't even remotely funny... Elvendork? What?

[go-back-chief.livejournal.com]

This reads like one of the many filler scenes that should have been cut from the books.

Maybe it is a filler scene she cut from the books? Oh no wait, that presumes she cut anything at all...