New Delhi:
For most Twitter users, the words "Mrs.Weasley", "Neville Longbottom" and "Albus Severus Potter" don't make a whole lot of sense. If anything, they tease a slight nerve of faint recollection and leave it at that. Some, the kind who love to troll the internet, needlessly #hashtag the words and add something entirely irrelevant, in the hopes of getting a reply.
But for a Harry Potter fan, those selfsame words mean a whole lot of joy. And why would it not? Having grown up with (and party because of) these characters for the better part of a decade, watching them trend on one of the biggest social networking platforms is an interpersonal high. Inexplicably so, in fact.
Mrs. Weasley, for example, is the plump mother of his best friend Ron. She's amiable, she's frantic, she's harried, worried and constantly fussing over one of her immense brood. She's the eternal mother-figure to the orphan Harry is. It's endearing to watch how Ron basks in this extension of her love without once feeling a pang of jealousy.
So while real life takes a backseat in this fantasy world, it's for precisely that reason that we tend to smile. Perhaps her biggest moment arrives towards the end of the final book, when she takes on the malicious Bellatrix Lestrange in a fierce battle, yelling "Not my daughter, you b****!", when Lestrange tries to hex her youngest child. Take a bow, Mrs.Weasley, you deserve it.
Neville Longbottom, from the very start, was the epitome of the word "dunce". He bumbled, stumbled and mumbled through most of the films (and books) and was the target of pretty much every wizarding prank known to man. His strict grandmother kept him on a tight leash but never once did he think of rebellion. Always polite, alwaysanxious, always trying to escape one mad folly or another.
However, those descriptors can't even begin to fathom the true depths of his character. He's a steadfast friend to the trio of Harry, Hermione and Ron and it is later revealed how he could very well have been the child of the prophecy which makes Harry the centrefold of the wizarding world. Lord Voldemort's choice 'saves' him, but only in a manner of speaking.
Neville's ultimate redemption takes place when, in the absence of Harry, he takes over the mounted attack on Voldemort's evil rule on their precious school. That spells "win" in a thousand different ways.
And then there is Albus Severus Potter, Harry's youngest son. Introduced in the somewhat drab epilogue to the final book, he's the amalgamation of Harry's greatest influences--his erstwhile mentor and guide, Albus Dumbledore, and the man who creates the enigma Harry becomes with a series of unfortunate events, Severus Snape.
While most of these characters are prominent in the books, their roles in the films have been minor, so to speak. Not many people understand that the films helped put a face to the names.
And since each and every single role has been played by the same actor since the first film (barring that of Dumbledore--Sir Richard Harris portrayed him in the first two films and, after his sudden death, Sir Michael Gambon took over. Even then, the resemblence is uncanny), that association remains intact and stronger than ever before.
In a world so connected, it was somehow vital to see these names trend when the series has come to a final close. With the curtains drawn, it's time for the audience to reflect on those years of worship, wizardry, war, winning, whining and wisdom. It has literally been the journey of a lifetime and it has ended well, they say.
But Harry Potter, in the minds and the hearts of billions, yes billions of fans worldwide, will forever find it hard to say goodbye. Twitter and Facebook, then, will help keep this innocent giant alive, "for the greater good".
But for a Harry Potter fan, those selfsame words mean a whole lot of joy. And why would it not? Having grown up with (and party because of) these characters for the better part of a decade, watching them trend on one of the biggest social networking platforms is an interpersonal high. Inexplicably so, in fact.
Mrs. Weasley, for example, is the plump mother of his best friend Ron. She's amiable, she's frantic, she's harried, worried and constantly fussing over one of her immense brood. She's the eternal mother-figure to the orphan Harry is. It's endearing to watch how Ron basks in this extension of her love without once feeling a pang of jealousy.
So while real life takes a backseat in this fantasy world, it's for precisely that reason that we tend to smile. Perhaps her biggest moment arrives towards the end of the final book, when she takes on the malicious Bellatrix Lestrange in a fierce battle, yelling "Not my daughter, you b****!", when Lestrange tries to hex her youngest child. Take a bow, Mrs.Weasley, you deserve it.
Neville Longbottom, from the very start, was the epitome of the word "dunce". He bumbled, stumbled and mumbled through most of the films (and books) and was the target of pretty much every wizarding prank known to man. His strict grandmother kept him on a tight leash but never once did he think of rebellion. Always polite, alwaysanxious, always trying to escape one mad folly or another.
However, those descriptors can't even begin to fathom the true depths of his character. He's a steadfast friend to the trio of Harry, Hermione and Ron and it is later revealed how he could very well have been the child of the prophecy which makes Harry the centrefold of the wizarding world. Lord Voldemort's choice 'saves' him, but only in a manner of speaking.
Neville's ultimate redemption takes place when, in the absence of Harry, he takes over the mounted attack on Voldemort's evil rule on their precious school. That spells "win" in a thousand different ways.
And then there is Albus Severus Potter, Harry's youngest son. Introduced in the somewhat drab epilogue to the final book, he's the amalgamation of Harry's greatest influences--his erstwhile mentor and guide, Albus Dumbledore, and the man who creates the enigma Harry becomes with a series of unfortunate events, Severus Snape.
While most of these characters are prominent in the books, their roles in the films have been minor, so to speak. Not many people understand that the films helped put a face to the names.
And since each and every single role has been played by the same actor since the first film (barring that of Dumbledore--Sir Richard Harris portrayed him in the first two films and, after his sudden death, Sir Michael Gambon took over. Even then, the resemblence is uncanny), that association remains intact and stronger than ever before.
In a world so connected, it was somehow vital to see these names trend when the series has come to a final close. With the curtains drawn, it's time for the audience to reflect on those years of worship, wizardry, war, winning, whining and wisdom. It has literally been the journey of a lifetime and it has ended well, they say.
But Harry Potter, in the minds and the hearts of billions, yes billions of fans worldwide, will forever find it hard to say goodbye. Twitter and Facebook, then, will help keep this innocent giant alive, "for the greater good".
