Sometimes, an artist doesn’t realize the magic they’ve made. In the case of J.K. Rowling, I’m glad she has seemingly ignored the best part of her own series. She doesn’t deserve them anyway. After all, she told a story about Newt Scamander when they were right there!
I’m referring to the Marauders. They were always my favorite part of the Harry Potter series and had a rich history that never got explored. The movies aged them up for no reason, and the books gave us snippets of James Potter, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew when they were at school together. Each of them had their own trauma for which they relied on each other, and that friendship is what makes Peter Pettigrew’s betrayal of James and Lily Potter so heartbreaking.
And yet, Rowling rarely interacts with that part of the fandom. Sure, I got a non-apology for killing off Sirius Black, my favorite fictional character of all time, but that was about it. For all her oversharing and building out the world when it didn’t matter anymore, she seemed to stay away from the Marauders era. Now, that is for the better, because I can still think about the Marauders and think that someone who is actively causing harm to people did not even realize what she had created.
At first, it was hard to separate my feelings on Harry Potter from what Rowling was doing to the trans community. Then she continually doubled down and there was no question in my mind. I could not support someone who used their time and resources to attack people just living their authentic lives. Despite being named in a cyberbullying lawsuit over her antics during the Olympics, she’s already back at it.
But when I do think back on my childhood love of the series, I do find it fascinating that she created something like this and … ignored it.
The fanfiction is better than what she gave them anyway
One of the things I find interesting is that fans saw sexual undertones in the friendship between Sirius Black and Remus Lupin, so much so that it is still one of the biggest ships on fanfiction websites (rightfully so). Rowling really did friendzone them (hard) in books by giving Remus a wife (Tonks rules though) and son, but it didn’t stop fans from wishing we’d get a story about the Hogwarts-age Marauders and get more of their relationship.
What I love about this entire situation now is that she is such a villain in the eyes of fans that we don’t want her to do this. If anything, the first thing I want when she inevitably has to sell the franchise because she has so many legal bills, is for someone to take this series over and let people who loved the Marauders tell that story. And preferably people who do not share Rowling’s views.
Look, I don’t have confirmation on whether or not she hates the Marauders. But I do think it is funny that a part of the series she could have made a spin-off about back when Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them came out got ignored for … a movie series that contradicts so much of the lore she created.
Whatever, great for me! She never touched it again and I’m a better person for it.
Published: Sep 4, 2024 02:16 pm