Scan barcode
A review by njdarkish
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child: Parts One and Two by John Tiffany
4.0
I was actually quite pleased with this play. I'd very much enjoy seeing it performed (in part because I'm sure the sets and special effects have to be crazy!).
If you've spoken with me about Harry Potter before you know that I generally have a great love for the series, but felt like the last book was a bit of a trainwreck. I thought that Harry should have actually died (what's the point of a great sacrifice if the sacrifice itself gets taken away?), I was mad that almost all of my favorite characters were killed off in a single paragraph, and I felt like it just didn't draw me in the like previous books had. Plus, I thought the sentimental ending with the main characters being adults, dropping off kids to Hogwarts, felt too much like "and everything was bright and shiny and nothing bad ever happened to them again." Which was ridiculous, because the whole wizarding world had been in a state of civil war, and that leaves some deep wounds.
This play actually helped me feel a little better about book 7. It did a great job of showing that there are lasting repercussions of the war and the Battle of Hogwarts. It showed that life was still hard for the main characters and they had to work hard to live up to the standards they'd set for themselves. Well, except Ron. He was pretty much just comic relief.
I thought the story was good-- it was a great blend of pulling from the past and telling a compelling new story. It was a great time travel story. The new characters-- particularly Albus and Scorpius-- were fun and interesting. I loved that the story's focused more on the newer generation than the old.
Was it as good as the first 6 Harry Potter books? No, but it was still pretty solid. I had a lot of fun.
If you've spoken with me about Harry Potter before you know that I generally have a great love for the series, but felt like the last book was a bit of a trainwreck. I thought that Harry should have actually died (what's the point of a great sacrifice if the sacrifice itself gets taken away?), I was mad that almost all of my favorite characters were killed off in a single paragraph, and I felt like it just didn't draw me in the like previous books had. Plus, I thought the sentimental ending with the main characters being adults, dropping off kids to Hogwarts, felt too much like "and everything was bright and shiny and nothing bad ever happened to them again." Which was ridiculous, because the whole wizarding world had been in a state of civil war, and that leaves some deep wounds.
This play actually helped me feel a little better about book 7. It did a great job of showing that there are lasting repercussions of the war and the Battle of Hogwarts. It showed that life was still hard for the main characters and they had to work hard to live up to the standards they'd set for themselves. Well, except Ron. He was pretty much just comic relief.
I thought the story was good-- it was a great blend of pulling from the past and telling a compelling new story. It was a great time travel story. The new characters-- particularly Albus and Scorpius-- were fun and interesting. I loved that the story's focused more on the newer generation than the old.
Was it as good as the first 6 Harry Potter books? No, but it was still pretty solid. I had a lot of fun.