Episode #59: Draco Disappoints
Was it just us, or was Draco’s finale just a bit disappointing? By the end of Book 6, it looked like Draco was prime for some kind of glorious and game-changing redemption. His failure to off Dumbledore left him in a bad place, but it was clear that there was still some good left in him. Along with the hints that, in order to prevail, Hogwarts would have to unite against a common threat, we had all the signs that Draco was going to turn coats at a crucial moment, a la Darth Vader, and help Harry save the day. But alas, all we get is a mopey blond kid, more scared than anything else. What happened? How did Draco lose his mojo?
For fun, take a look back at an old, old Draco prognostication, circa Goblet of Fire.
Make sure to tune in next week for what looks to be a really great show. Travis Prinzi from Sword of Gryffindor will be our guest on the show.
In the news:
- JK Rowling is Entertainment Weekly’s Entertainer of The Year.
- Good Morning America previewed “The Tales of Beedle the Bard”.
- Harry Potter, the character, makes it onto Details Magazines “50 Most Influential Men Under 45″.
- JK Rowling received a 2007 Writers’ Guild Award.
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Tags: Deathly Hallows, Draco Malfoy, Harry Potter
November 29th, 2007 at 3:23 am
Hi,
Loving the podcast. (New listener!)
I agree that Draco was a disappointment. I really disagree with JKR’s quote that Draco was like Regulus Black, who just got in over his head. Regulus is nothing like Draco. Regulus was a Slytherin who redeemed himself in the end. He sacrificed himself for his family, for a house elf (!) and in the hopes of ultimately defeating Voldemort (for the greater good). He was brave and didn’t fear death. Though his story takes up only a brief mention in the final book, in those few pages his character proved more dynamic than seven volumes of Malfoy the Younger. The disappointment is not only in the sense that Draco remains a static caricature, but that Regulus’ story showed what an intriguing and conflicted nature could be found in a member of Slytherin House.
November 29th, 2007 at 5:13 am
Wow a lot to think on. My idea was that either raco or his father would meet a tragic end at Voldemorts hand and turn the other to the “good guy” side. I disagree with Greg on the if you could have a private conversation with J K she would reveal unrealized plot lines. While some may exist I believe these were like when Mr Weasley was allowed to live, in other words not to major to her plot themes. I feel she did what she wanted and made it fit even if it didn’t follow the established rules of her world. The book is full of such exceptions and you could create a whole episode on just those. I think she felt Draco was a slug and was going to stay a slug. If any character in the Malfoy family showed actual courage it was Narcissa who put her male family members to shame and most likely saved their butts from going to prison. I liked how the disappointment in Draco spun into a disappointment in Slytherin house and it’s role in the fight. There were quotes by the Black Portrait about let it be known that slytherin did it’s part eventhough I can only think of the reluctant fellow in emerald pajamas fighting for the school and based most of that statement on Snape’s contribution. I agree with Penny that his redemption is tainted because it was still all about him and not about a cause or conscience. Lastly I read Gregs early stuff way back when the podcast was young due to his references to it. They inspired me to give my thoughts here in this forum after expressing my outrage about the prejudice against half giants. I guess I would say that Greg’s writing and the podcast compliment each other as one was born from the other. A process of evolution that has made this such a great show and a great place for sycophants.
November 29th, 2007 at 9:15 am
Melusine: good point about Regulus, he totally slipped my mind; you are right, that is the kind of redemption story I was looking for.
November 29th, 2007 at 10:17 am
I must say that I totally agree with the feelings of disappointment in Draco. I too was waiting the whole book for him to do a Regulus. I think there is something scary in the possible conclusion that redemption ultimately leads to a troublesome ending (i.e Regulus, Snape [btw -Snape's redemption isn't tainted it's just that he was never really on Voldy's side so his redemption is only in our perception of him]).
Even at the very moment of confrontaition when Harry reveals to Voldemort that Draco was the owner of the Elder wand I was thinking WOW here it comes: Voldy is going to ask Draco for the wand and he is going to dramatically turn to Harry and hand it over to him.
November 29th, 2007 at 10:31 am
Also,
Looking forward to next weeks episode although i’m even more anxiously awaiting the episode when you will host Aaron.
November 29th, 2007 at 11:09 am
We’re also going to do a call-in show in the near future, probably the week after next.
November 29th, 2007 at 3:36 pm
Yay! another draco episode. I’m excited to listen to it.
November 29th, 2007 at 3:39 pm
Rachael- It is because you suggested it! We mentioned you on the episode.
edit: This is Penny, not Greg,
November 29th, 2007 at 7:46 pm
Draco was always weak. The only reason he even acted the way he did was because his father had brought him up that way. As his father lost control so did Draco…so I feel everything was based on Lucius.
November 29th, 2007 at 8:55 pm
Yay! I got mentioned twice. My life is complete!
Good episode.
I agree a lot with what you said about fan girls and tom felton. Thats why draco is my favorite character. I love tom felton and his good lookingness. I think he did well in the first and second movie, but then he go too hott for the character. You know? I know.
=)
But i feel bad for the character and his downfall of…..character, haha
November 30th, 2007 at 9:47 am
One positive thing about Lucious Malfoy( at least in the movies) Is I feel that he is by far the best dressed character. He has the coolest accessories and at least looks the part. I have often considered the Hogwarts houses as a view of human character. You have the snakes that hate and show sinful qualities like prejudice, greed, envy, cowardice, and essentially all the qualities that plague the soul especially selfishness. You have the couragous and vain lions that tend to lead by example but in spite of these talents may not be morally perfect. The ravens that value philosphy and mind power. The thinkers that detach themselves from the bandwagon of social behavior and are more happy for it. Lastly the Hufflepuffs who are the quietest and probably represent the people who are the most content an accepting with whatever life has delt them. Some would say the most common and simple and dull but I think not because that is a level which is hard to aspire too and very complex. I think that is why it is not as vividly defined as the others due to this complexity. Well great subject Rachael and as far as my hosting would go I don’t think Greg and Penny would have the patience or time to do the necessary editing that would surely be needed. Besides I would just talk about Hagrid. LOL
November 30th, 2007 at 3:22 pm
Hi Guys, great podcast. I just wanted to say that I didn’t find the character of Draco disappointing at all. To me JK used his character to bring up Bullying and how Bullys never win. Draco was the epitome of the typical “british’ bully (as seen many times on TV and movies. The bully is always good looking, normally well off or has something to attract others and normally has thugs to do his dirty work.
If you look at Draco as this character he was never meant to redeem himself he was meant to show that in the end a Bully is normally weak and weak Draco was, look at him blubbering to Moaning Myrtle, JK shows him as looking pale and drawn when he realised that he was on his own with his task from VM.
On the subject of redemption, I have to add that I do think Snape’s character was redeemed in some way, if you look at how Harry called him a Coward in book 6 yet at the end of book 7 he is telling his son that he was the bravest man he ever knew.
November 30th, 2007 at 5:23 pm
I’m a little glad Draco didn’t have this dramatic redemption like sacrificing his life for Harry as some people were predicting. I think his character is more morally complex because of what he did in book 7. I’m sure he was contemplating Dumbledore’s offer of going over to the good side and maybe that influenced him to later “help” Harry by not identifying him. But then towards the end the battle was so immediate that he probably didn’t feel like he had a choice. If he didn’t do something big to “redeem” his family in Voldemort’s eyes (or red slits) they would be doomed because it really did seem like the dark side would win. Draco’s act of trying to turn in Harry was showing his cowardice, something we had no doubt of in the past. Even if he had some good in his heart, and I believe he did, his ultimate goal was to get out of it alive. That’s where his Slytherin qualities come into play. And I think if he did some big heroic thing in the battle and made it out alive, it would be too much to see him and Harry friends or something in the Epilogue. I think the Epilogue does justice to Draco’s true character. He isn’t brave enough to be truly evil or truly good.
This is similar to how I feel about the Snape ending. Sure it would have been nice to see him and Harry have a heart-to-heart, but that would totally take away from the complex wonder that is Snape’s character. I do think Snape redeemed himself, but long before the books even started. The fact remains that Snape was horrible to Harry and his good intentions cannot erase that. Conversely, Snape’s nastiness cannot erase how brave he was. Not to sound trite but Snape is one of my favorite characters because he is so well-written, complex, and morally ambiguous (not because of his love for Lily, he’s so brave, etc.)
I think both of those story lines made the messages of the books more true to life. Everyone may have the potential for goodness, but not everyone has the courage to follow through. If they do redeem themselves, it doesn’t automatically make up for all of their future (and past) bad actions. If they don’t have a shift, it doesn’t mean they have no sense of moral goodness in their hearts.
Man that was long.
December 3rd, 2007 at 10:44 am
Ok I concede that Snape redeemed himself in Harry’s eyes, especially as one of his last acts was to finish the task which Dumbledore had given. When snape took and tore the picture of Lily disgarding Harry and James though it showed a selfishness that still remained as far as she was concerned. He must have been haunted by the fact that he lost her and did not realize until too late that it was his own fault. This was the cause of his wound and why it would never heal. Because it was self inflicted.
December 4th, 2007 at 3:58 pm
i think jkr didn’t redeem draco, because of the “bad boy” thing…. there is an interview where she says “Girls, stop going for the bad guy”, in regards to draco. If she had redeemed him, then it gives that hope to bad guy lovers.
December 5th, 2007 at 4:03 pm
Sorry for the rant….
I was never a fan of Draco, or Snape.
In terms of Slytherins, I think the presentation of Slughorn’s character is unique. He saw people’s gifts, or powers and was attracted to those that he could influence or be near. Did he redeem himself for offering the true memory? Did he influence Voldemort to his “greatness”?
Draco’s redemption I never saw forthcoming. Both Draco, and his father’s characters seemed defeated by the seventh book. Narcissa was interesting, even in the face of Voldemort she arranged for Snape’s watch over Draco, and lied to Voldemort himself. Did she redeem herself? Did she save the wizarding world? Choices?
December 6th, 2007 at 9:03 am
Hmmmm I think it very much depends on how she looks. Is she a hot blond or not. It is much easier for me to look at her as redeemed if she is cute. Was that a sexist comment?
December 6th, 2007 at 10:57 am
Just wanted to take a moment and say THANK YOU for being the only HP podcast left worth listening to. I have been listening for about 6 months now and have always been impressed with your way of coming up with thought provoking discussions and new ideas.
Great discussion on Draco. I knew I felt longing for more from him as a character but it was fun to delve into all the hopes and dreams I once had for him. He really ended up being a 1 dimensional guy.
December 6th, 2007 at 4:59 pm
I feel as though a dramatic redemption from Draco would have felt a bit cheesy and forced. For me, DH was really about the trio and Dumbledore, and everyone else had to click in around their stories. Take Ginny; I was expecting her to kick some serious butt, and she didn’t do much other than kiss Harry and maneuver so that Molly got to kill Bellatrix.
I do feel that Draco was redeemed in HBP, though. He visibly transforms from a cocky, petty, hateful boy to someone with at least some idea of right and wrong, trapped in old decisions. I have very little doubt that he was a better person for all he suffered at Voldemort’s hands, and I think his presence in the Epilogue illustrated this.
I also wonder who he married; I hope he didn’t stick with Pansy. (One thing that I think didn’t bother me before and disappoints me now — the complete desertion of Slytherin House. I get that many of them probably had relatives in Voldemort’s clutches, but… nobody? As McGonagall said, Slytherin had to choose sides; how did they come back from that one?)
December 6th, 2007 at 5:01 pm
Oh, and off topic. I *so* deeply want to read about Neville, Ginny and Luna in Hogwarts that year… anybody have a couple of million pounds we could offer Jo?
December 6th, 2007 at 11:31 pm
I could stand to lose a few pounds Michal. I will chip in. Excellent question about Slytherin and the desertion of most all of them. Slytherin did destroy a horecrux so perhaps they did their part albeit unknowingly. I was really expecting a lot more from Ginny as well. Oh well water under the bridge I suppose. Good for playing pooh sticks.
February 5th, 2008 at 7:29 pm
Draco Malfoy has been, and will always be a coward. I think that the only reason he didn’t give Harry away at the manor was because he was too scared, and really did not want to get it wrong. However confident he would be on seeing Harry, he would still have his doubts because his life was in the balance.
I love the fact that the two weren’t friends at the end, because it does show the whole ‘bullying’ thing which is, if you’re aren’t nice to people, bad things can happen to you. His callous attitude just says it all for me.
The Epilogue said this, ‘Yes, ok, fine you saved my life, whatever, now leave me alone, ok?” They were not friends, and I doubt ever would be. Draco Malfoy is a really complex character I think, but his mutual dislike and prejudice towards others still seemed to be the downfall. I am so glad that he didn’t have a massive redemption and went and said sorry to the people he hurt. Why? It’s not his character. He is proud, snobby, prejudiced and cowardly.
Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy is said to be not as bad as his father, but again, (sorry Draco) I think that this is mainly his mother’s influence because years of drumming into your son, ‘being bad is good,’ or whatever he was saying is something that can’t be ignored easily. Lucius did this with Draco, and it must be a pretty hard thing to shake off, which is why I think he hasn’t.
So, to conclude, I would say that Draco’s character in the seventh book did what it had to do. It served the purpose of showing that cowards pay, but it also showed that helping the good people, even though it’s due to cowardice again is the right thing to do and will save your life. I don’t think Draco ever wanted to save Harry’s life, but he just had to. Anyway, I do like to rant, don’t I? lol
Who wants to add?
February 10th, 2008 at 1:11 am
Personally, I think that Draco is one of Rowling’s most interesting characters, and I love him for his complexity. She claims that she doesn’t want her readers to concentrate on Draco and not to fall for the bad guy;however, we never really learned about Draco. We never experienced his side of the story. How can you hate a character when you don’t know their true motive? Plus, how can we deem a character bad or evil when he’s a minor? Plus, he can’t be that evil if he opted to save Dumbledore’s life. You could see that he was clearly overwhelmed with pressure from his father. If anything he was the result of a child that was forced into a certain lifestyle. Why doesn’t JKR give him a break?? I think that is unfair and provincial people have the capacity to change and by labeling Draco as a “bad boy” you make him a one dimensional character. Draco Malfoy is a mystery and will continue to be a mystery because we never learned much about him.
June 30th, 2008 at 7:47 am
I preface this with the fact that I am no fan of JK Rowling, or the Harry Potter books. I succumbed to reading them partially out of curiosity for the phenomenal fanaticism, and partially due to urgings from my girlfriend, who is a Pottermaniac.
Anyway, it is far too easy to cast Draco as a coward because the books are written from Harry’s perspective. Potter, is essentially groomed to be the good hero from day one. As such, the reader assumes a definite and extreme notion of good. Harry really doesn’t face the moral dilemma that Draco does.
Take a contrarian perspective, in which Harry was destined to be the villain. Would he really possess the necessary fortitude to initiate a radical transformation into a villain? Based upon his experiences, upbringing constant influence to be the good hero, I think the answer is no.
The mere fact that Draco struggles between choosing right and wrong, should show that he is indeed not a coward, but a dualistic character dealing with a paradigm of morals vs nature and upbringing. For a benevolent hero to perform heroic and magnanimous feats is his nature; it requires little effort. To expect a malignant villain to do the same is irrational. Thus, it is no small thing that Draco doesn’t kill Dumbledore, or warns Hermione (in his own shrewd way, that the Death Eaters are coming).
In that regard, I find Draco to be one of the few redeeming characters of the books, along with Snape, of course.