not_IOhad this convo just yesterday 🤦‍♀️
jagermoI have the same one talk over and over with my wife. No other author gets that much slack from their fanbase.
“But its such great storytelling”
its not. Its mediocre and needs time travel to work.
It’s like the inverse of Liking Something Before It Was Cool. I never liked this problematic thing even when it was cool.
TheTechnician27Its mediocre and needs time travel to work.
My Immortal, a masterpiece in coherent plot, needs time travel to work too. I fail to see the alleged problem here.
Time travel is mostly used as a deus ex machina to solve a problem a weiter has written themselves in. Like in HP, Therme ia time travel bit only for students or to learn more, not to erase attacks by Voldemort, because reasons. In other words, they could have stopped the death if Harrys parents, but did not want to, because reasons.
I get rhat if used well and as a consistent plot device, it can work. But in HP, its simply a one oft drama device. Its boring and lazy writing.
Its boring and lazy writing.
STOP FLEMIN DA STORY, PREPZ
This comment rivals My Immortal on grammar and spelling.
rudyharrelsonits not. Its mediocre and needs time travel to work.
This mentality misses the point, IMO. If the Harry Potter books were written in a way that made even the staunchest critic go, “Damn, these books rival the works of of J.R.R. Tolkien and Shakespeare”, that should have zero bearing on whether or not any given individual makes the decision to boycott an author’s work on idealistic grounds.
I like plenty of art that could be classified as schlock; not everything we enjoy has to be masterpiece theatre. I’ve boycotted all HP content ever since Rowling became a professional asshole, but I won’t pretend I didn’t enjoy the books or the films as a teenager.
Here’s a hard pill to swallow: shitty people can make good art. We can condemn bad people unequivocally without simultaneously needing their art to be bad. Michael Jackson was my favorite musician for many years, but hearing his music in 2026 always leaves a bad taste in my mouth. But I won’t pretend that it wasn’t my jam and I certainly won’t suggest that the music was mediocre.
bufalo1973Orson Scott Card.
I bought Ender’s books before knowing what kind of shit is OSC. Now I wouldn’t download a free pdf of anything from him.
I’ll shit on JK as much as anyone, but I gotta say, I know a lot of trans people who own Hogwarts Legacy on steam…
Who would own Howarts Legacy on Steam when Epic gave it away free for a whole week…
Because no one is going to play it on Epic, even if its free
Idiots.
This is more of a general answer and not specifically about Hogwarts Legacy:
I mean, if I want to play a game now I don’t wait for years for the possibility that it becomes free for a week (and the chance that I don’t miss the giveaway). And if I have a steam deck, I maybe still want to own it on steam.
I am going to admit I enjoyed the series a lot 20 years ago, can’t say I’ve read ger stuff since the series ended and haven’t done anything to support her since the whole TERF thing came out and she started showing what sort of person she was. I recently picked up my old books to see if they held up and by god is it filled with bigoted stereotypes, Cho Chang (two last names) for the Chinese girl, Goblins being the obvious stereotype/alehory of Jews from a European who was “open minded” about Jews pre ww2 but still wanted to make sure that they deserved some of the bad shit that happened to them because they’re vicious even if unfair wizard laws were passed, the black auror being called Shackelbolt, the wezeleys being very much catholics for being poor with too many kids, the french being snobbish bafoons but classy, the Centaurs being either polytheists or gypsies, the list just goes on and Harry being the hero just gets rid of the head Nazi while leaving the institutions and culture in place, doesn’t even think about the slavery aspect except for Dobby, and he and Ron make fun of Hermione for her pushing for their freedom. I guess the reason why people enjoy the series is because the world feels somewhat real and magical because she put her imagination and bigotry into the story and never thought of trying to have the protagonists actually solve a major issue and will let it fester.
IheartcheeseI WAS that Harry Potter fan. The overly obsessed nerd who was waaaaaay to into it. But now I’m over it because fuck Rowling.
I don’t even plan to pirate the hp tv show. Fuck Jk Rowling so fucking hard. Fuck the piece of shit. Ugh
I was a huge fan back then and nowadays I’m like " This thread is how I learn, that there’s a new show announced?" - shows how much I care about that franchise today, lol.
MothraThey are easy to read and were some peoples introduction to fantasy/fiction (not everything is as dull as school assignments) and a set of shared experiences growing up.
Even when the books were written I found even the concept pretty stupid. “You need a wand to do magic” 🤷‍♂️ “We can teleport but you have to use a train to get to school” 🤦‍♂️ And the story is a ripoff of too many previous stories.
Shitting on people for enjoying something isn’t good praxis, folks. Be mad at the system, not the victims of it.
Idk your situation but if you support harry potter after all the heinous shit jk has said she has and will do we are not and never will be friends, you are voting with your dollars to hurt people.
You can like and enjoy the Harry Potter fictional setting without supporting JK and her TERF bullshit. They are two separate things.
“Voting with your dollar” is a shortsighted reaction. You fail to understand the meaning behind “no ethical consumption under capitalism”. It doesn’t matter where you spend your dollars, it is inevitably supporting bigotry and oppression because of the simple fact that every sale is being profited off of by the owning-class and the e.pirialost system.
Or did you forget that our taxes are currently funding Israel’s genocide?
Again, be mad at the system, not the victims of it.
To be clear i hate the system I’m stuck in, and had i the power to stop the genocide i would, in the meantime I’m telling you she has stated unequivocally that all the money she makes off the harry potter series will be put into her organization that is on a crusade to eliminate trans people. If you give her money by buying merch, watching her show, drawing fanart even, you are giving her attention and that can lead to others saying oh it’s okay to like this thing and that gets her more power money and influence. There is no ethical consumption but this is a hard line I will not intentionally consume something that has a direct line to hurting people, saying it’s impossible to do good is a fucking weak excuse to not try.
Again, you’re missing the point. Just completely and blatantly missing the point.
No one is handing money directly to JK. She is receiving money through a convoluted system of private ownership that enables her to demand royalty payments for the usage of the Harry Potter universe. She is making money off the back of other people just wanting to make their own art and works of this fictional universe.
Through your logic, there is literally not a single thing you can purchase that cannot be directly traced through our system of economics to funding or supporting something atrocious. That is the entire meaning behind “no ethical consumption under capitalism”. You literally cannot escape it unless you abstain entirely from utilizing the capitalist system.
Yet I’m sure you still purchase things. Because you choose for yourself which things to justify and which things not to based on your own arbitrary standards you set for yourself.
Let other people do the same for themselves and quit shaming them because their arbitrary line doesn’t fall where yours does.
So instead of telling people they shouldn’t directly give money to bigots i should just be angry at capitalism in general because it enables bigots.
No.
There is a new show because people asked for it, it’s gonna make her money because there will be new merch, subscription money, and renewed interest in the books from new people exposed to the show.
It isn’t a magic money machine it’s the market and people saying let people enjoy things are enabling others to think that this new batch of terf powered hog wash is acceptable and it will make the lives of an already marginalized group harder.
Can lead a horse to water but can’t make it drink.
Continue to be mad at victims of the system. That’ll surely show 'em.
Whataboutism
I havent paid a single cent to HP franchise in ages. But I still find books cool. Should I disregard quality/fun aspect of something even if creator of that thing is a POS and I havent gave them any money in a very long time?
𝔄 𝔰𝔢𝔫𝔱𝔦𝔢𝔫𝔱 đť”𝔦𝔢𝔠𝔢 𝔬𝔣 𝔠𝔥𝔢𝔢𝔰𝔢You can steal all media Harry Potter, not finance insane bigotry and save money, too!
“No ethical consumption under capitalism” is true, but there’s degrees to that truth and you can still make choices.
Pirating is still consumption. I never made an argument against it. And there are plenty of perspectives (none that I personally agree with) that will argue that pirating media is unethical. Also, not everyone can pirate things, not everyone is that tech savvy to not get caught, and denying themselves simple comforts does nothing to stop the system from being what it is.
No matter what you purchase under capitalism, you are supporting bigotry and oppression to some degree. There is no escaping it. So instead of arguing about the arbitrary line at which the degree of separation is far enough removed before you can enjoy something without guilt, maybe start talking about actually dismantling the system that allows them to oppress others to begin with?
Theres also a massive distinction between consuming something necessary/important, vs consuming something 100% optional.
Harry Potter isnt food, shelter, or any other kind of critical necessity.
Theres literally countless better alternatives to Harry Potter media you can choose to consume from that doesnt directly put money straight into the pocket of someone actively funding direct harm
This isn’t multiple layers of washing here, that money basically goes straight towards actively harming minority groups.
Its not even a good fucking book, and I used to be a fan of it as a kid, but I went back and read my old books and… it just fuckin sucks dawg, its not good lol.
Go pick like, any other fandom at least.
Thanks for being the voice of reason.
Wish more people could see things this way because I really hate when people start whining about my blood diamonds collection.
I just like shinny shit, let me enjoy it ffs.
How utterly disingenuous to compare a fucking childrens book series to blood diamonds.
I know :)
Although, both are unnessential and both enrich awful so…
Also, according to the logic on the meme you shared, its wrong to critizise ppl who buy diamonds because we should let them enjoy them.
Also also, critizising someone for economically supporting awfull ppl by buying their shit is not stopping them from enjoying said shit. Nobody is taking away their stuff, they can ignore us. However asking ppl to stay silent in the name of someones enjoyment is an attempt to make us give away our freedom to express our opinion.
Also, also also, What if I like critizising them? Let me enjoy it goddamn it!
Apples to oranges buddy but you clearly aren’t here in good faith, so, get fucked. I’ll not entertain you.
My kids and I read Harry Potter a lot. We love it and it’s been a good bonding experience.
We limit our consumption of Harry Potter though. We read the books, watch the old movies and occasionally (once a year) maybe, purchase a lego set.
I have explained to my kids that I would rather not support JK Rowling due to her stance on trans people and for the most part they are cool with things.
I am certainly still not helping but I believe my kids understand pretty well
DeckPackerI would say it’s fine to pirate Harry Potter media.
So if you are really that into it, just pirate it.
This and just act mature about it with a critical judgement.
Regardless what Rowling says the wizarding world, which is a mix of common mythology and has folklore huge queer potential. Its hard to find media that portrays something like it this well.
The series will have its flaws, the writer will make sure of that, but she will also be too shortsighted to recognise the extension and personal touched by everyone else involved that may not agree with her viewpoints.
I disagree.
Interacting with the new show, even through piracy, leads to more voices talking about it and making Rowling’s cash-cow culturally relevant. It also normalises the shit takes she pushes through her stories at children.
I don’t like Ben Shapiro, and wouldn’t pay a dime for his streaming service. But pirating Chip Chilla to show to my kids still gives him a say in how me and my family view the world.
Why does Rowling get a pass? Because I happened to read her racist, classist tripe when I was a kid?
MousePotatoDoesStuffBetter off, pirate it and donate the price of the media to the Trevor Project or something (can someone recommend a British trans charity in the replies, for example?)
I was considering playing hogwarts legacy a while back, I decided if I bought it I would donate double what I paid for the game to mermaids.
I wound up not buying it because there are other games from better franchises to play and my HP nostalgia isn’t all that strong, but I think this is a reasonable approach.
Whatever fraction of a share of the cost goes to Rowling and whatever fraction of that she uses to push her hateful agenda probably does less harm than mermaids does good.
Conceptually I view it as similar to putting sin taxes on things which are harmful to society but difficult to prohibit (alcohol, tobacco, unhealthy food etc.)
zenzanzooPerfection is the enemy of good.
Most consumerism is problematic and you can blame most people for something, just take your time and you will find something: Are you drinking milk? Are you eating meat? Do you drink beer or smoke cigarettes? Do you use Social Networks like Instagram, Facebook or TikTok? Do you buy stuff on Amazon? Do you use ChatGPT? Do you drive a car even though you could travel by foot, train, bus or bike? Do you watch soccer? Do you watch porn? Congratulations, you are probably supporting something shitty.
That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try to change things. But offending people for doing some of these things never helped. It often just achieves the opposite. Try to encourage others, show them alternatives. Etc.
Even if you do none of those it just keeps going. Coffee? Using too much plastic? Drinking 90% of soda brands?
I just like to think of it like “these things are bad, what good can I do rather than trying to cut out every bad thing?” If every HP fan supported the author by buying it, but then volunteered in a soup kitchen one time, they’ve done far more good than bad.
It’s rarely so cut and dry how the money you spend will be used to hurt people. And it’s also rare for such visible harm to be tied to something so unnecessary. You can move on from this 20 year old children’s book, I’m sure it’ll be okay.
It might work better if you recommend them an alternative.
I’ve heard good things about Discworld, for one.
Much better and funnier than anything from that witch.
ObiniceI mean yeah, so long as you’re not actually giving money to the evil woman that wrote those books in any way, nobody’s stopping you from enjoying your old Harry Potter books and DVDs.
Heck, if you’re missing one you can buy it on eBay second hand, just so long as you’re not supporting the evil woman with a shiny new purchase, ya know? That woman doesn’t deserve a penny.
There’s a separate conversation you might want to have with yourself on whether your can separate the author from the work while you’re reading it, of course, and whether you’re comfortable doing so or not is a personal decision you’ll have to make for yourself.
IlixtzeI get there are workarounds like piracy and buying second-hand, but also boycotting some merch shouldn’t be that hard surely?