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(WSJ) Harry Potter's Intercollegiate 'Quidditch' Game Grows Up

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jon bones

hot hot hanuman-on-man action
Door2Dawn said:
3fJqo.gif


:lol :lol :lol :lol
 

KingGondo

Banned
I'm all for people having fun... but this just seems like a stupid sport.

As others have said, I don't think Rowling designed Quidditch to be anything more than a plot device.

Any excitement during games comes from the fact that the players are flying around at high speeds and performing death-defying stunts... not running around with a broom between their legs. :lol
 

Kozak

Banned
Sho_Nuff82 said:
Death eaters spam it like crazy. It made zero sense that the Order would never use it in a life or death situation, even when they all knew the only way to stop Voldemort was to kill him. Are you telling me that Harry, after using the Crucio crap in book 5 (and getting no consequences) wouldn't have used avada cadavre at any point in 6 or 7? Even when he fought Snape?

Harry used crucio but it was shit. He couldn't pull it off.

You have to mean it when you use it which is what sets Voldemort and his crew apart from the rest of the Wizard world.
 

mrklaw

MrArseFace
WyndhamPrice said:
Then don't let your kid read them until he's older? It's not the author's responsibility to write what you think is appropriate.


To a degree, yes it is. You write a series of books that connect and continue on from each other, with the first one being a relatively fun adventure around discovering you're a wizard, and the natural inclination is to continue reading them. We didn't realise the tone was darkening and the emo rising until we were into the series (it doesn't really get heavy until book 5).

what am I supposed to do, put the books on hold and let him read them every couple of years? Thats a bit silly. I don't mind that harry grew up, and nor do I mind that the tone is dark - nothing wrong with a bit of scary when you're growing up. I was mainly disappointed at the lengthy bits of doing fuck all other than moping about.

Perhaps a 'kids' version with all that extraneous shit cut out would have helped.
 

Monroeski

Unconfirmed Member
mrklaw said:
To a degree, yes it is. You write a series of books that connect and continue on from each other, with the first one being a relatively fun adventure around discovering you're a wizard, and the natural inclination is to continue reading them. We didn't realise the tone was darkening and the emo rising until we were into the series (it doesn't really get heavy until book 5).

what am I supposed to do, put the books on hold and let him read them every couple of years? Thats a bit silly. I don't mind that harry grew up, and nor do I mind that the tone is dark - nothing wrong with a bit of scary when you're growing up. I was mainly disappointed at the lengthy bits of doing fuck all other than moping about.

Perhaps a 'kids' version with all that extraneous shit cut out would have helped.
So to you it's a bad thing that she wrote characters that actually developed over time instead of staying simple kids, and that she ultimately has some obligation to you to stunt their development?
 

Pikelet

Member
mrklaw said:
To a degree, yes it is. You write a series of books that connect and continue on from each other, with the first one being a relatively fun adventure around discovering you're a wizard, and the natural inclination is to continue reading them. We didn't realise the tone was darkening and the emo rising until we were into the series (it doesn't really get heavy until book 5).

what am I supposed to do, put the books on hold and let him read them every couple of years? Thats a bit silly. I don't mind that harry grew up, and nor do I mind that the tone is dark - nothing wrong with a bit of scary when you're growing up. I was mainly disappointed at the lengthy bits of doing fuck all other than moping about.

Perhaps a 'kids' version with all that extraneous shit cut out would have helped.

Well a large majority of the fans grew up with the books, myself included. If she had kept writing in the same style as the first one then i would have lost interest entirely.

Reading one of the books per year sounds about right, taking into account the incredibly diminished reading habits of the current generation.
 

GCX

Member
Pikelet said:
Well a large majority of the fans grew up with the books, myself included. If she had kept writing in the same style as the first one then i would have lost interest entirely.
Change in writing style also reflects the main characters' age pretty well. Harry's 11 years old in the first book so naturally there's not much time devoted to his angry teen emo phases yet.
 

Emerson

May contain jokes =>
Glad to see some attention paid to some of the ridiculousness of the attempted "maturing" of the series. It's the biggest criticism for me. The idea that Harry would never use the killing curse is ridiculous. The fact that the adult Order members wouldn't might be even worse.
 

Shanadeus

Banned
Thagomizer said:
Quiddich wouldn't have been half as stupid if the Snitch didn't effectively render the rest of the game moot.

Holepunch said:
Stop carrying around pointless brooms and get rid of the golden snitch and golden snitch seekers or whatever. Make the game like a rugby of trying to move the ball and getting it through the hoops. Keep the bludgeoners, knocking the bludgeons with clubs at the opposing team. Play it in some sort of rink just to keep the balls from rolling out of bounds and preventing the game from being fast paced.

It's still going to suck, but at the very least it'll be more sport than fantasy.
I agree, they can turn this into a somewhat legitimate games if they get rid of all the "magic" dependent rules.

Use segways instead if you absolutely have to be "riding" something.
 

ChiTownBuffalo

Either I made up lies about the Boston Bomber or I fell for someone else's crap. Either way, I have absolutely no credibility and you should never pay any attention to anything I say, no matter what the context. Perm me if I claim to be an insider
Kids nowadays grow up worse that I did.
 

Monroeski

Unconfirmed Member
Triple U said:
Wait they try to play this shit for real? WTF is this world coming to?
It's not that they play it for real that gets me.

It's that they're talking about making it an olympic sport. :lol
 

Bitmap Frogs

Mr. Community
DrForester said:
So... Does this qualify as LARPing or is this not quite as bad?

It's an hybrid form - nerds are evolving in order to better integrate themselves into a world of jocks. Quidditch is both a LARP and a sport.
 

Zachack

Member
DrForester said:
So... Does this qualify as LARPing or is this not quite as bad?
It's worse than LARPing because the context is so horribly broken. Conceivably the game could keep mutating until it no longer really resembled its origin (it would probably wind up looking like lacrosse or some weird rugby mixed with basketball) and become a "valid" sport, though I don't see that happening.
 

Ri'Orius

Member
Sho_Nuff82 said:
Death eaters spam it like crazy. It made zero sense that the Order would never use it in a life or death situation, even when they all knew the only way to stop Voldemort was to kill him. Are you telling me that Harry, after using the Crucio crap in book 5 (and getting no consequences) wouldn't have used avada cadavre at any point in 6 or 7? Even when he fought Snape?

-Harry tried to use Crucio, but failed. He couldn't muster enough hate for it.
-Harry tried to use Avada Kedavra against Snape at the end of book 6, but he disarmed Harry before he pulled it off, IIRC.
-Stupefy is about as effective as Avada Kedavra in the context of the battle.

But most importantly:

Watch any kung-fu movie. See how they're not using guns (much)? This is because it is fiction, and as such is supposed to be fun and interesting. While guns can be made interesting, martial arts (and, in HP's case, a variety of hexes and charms) are a lot easier to be fun to watch (or read).

Also, Harry and (most of) the other good guys are understandably reluctant to kill anyone. If you don't like that, then you don't like Batman.

Seriously, Batman could just use a gun all the time as well. But he's way cooler because he doesn't. Same thing.
 

Monroeski

Unconfirmed Member
SnakeswithLasers said:
You guys arguing about spamming spells are just as ridiculous as the people playing quidditch for real. You know that, right?
I would think that that's the joke.
 

DarkWish

Member
Umm... I actually was on the Quidditch team here at my college two years ago. It was pretty fun, and I would have continued but I just got busy with other stuff. Yea, it looks absolutely ridiculous, but who cares... I was having fun, and it was always funny to bring up in conversations. "Do you play a sport?" "Yea... I play Quidditch. What now?" *cue weird stare from other person*

But yea, it can be fun.
 

Mad Max

Member
Replace the brooms with jetpacks and the snitch with a heatseeking missile, that should make things interesting.
 

Apath

Member
SnakeswithLasers said:
You guys arguing about spamming spells are just as ridiculous as the people playing quidditch for real. You know that, right?
Discussion the plot of Harry Potter and the relevance of certain plot devices in the book is a far more acceptable form of fandom than taking a broken game from the book and trying to play it in real life.

If they were talking about the real-life application of HP Spells and planning on having real life duels with sticks you would have a point.
Ri'Orius said:
-Harry tried to use Crucio, but failed. He couldn't muster enough hate for it.
-Harry tried to use Avada Kedavra against Snape at the end of book 6, but he disarmed Harry before he pulled it off, IIRC.
-Stupefy is about as effective as Avada Kedavra in the context of the battle.
- Harry did use Crucio. It just wasn't powerful enough to really torture, just sting.
- Harry did not try to use Avada Kedavra.
- Stupefy can be nullified, blocked, and doesn't have a lasting effect. Every single Death Eater has probably been stunned at least once. Avada Kedavra is better and more effective in every single way.

The reason why people did not use the spell on the "Good" side is because they have morals that go above and beyond (ie. Moody and Dumbledore). In the same sense as Harry not using the stunning spell against enemies on broom sticks because they would fall to their death.

Really though the Order not using the spell is stupid, no matter how anyone tries to justify it.
 

mre

Golden Domers are chickenshit!!
DrForester said:
So... Does this qualify as LARPing or is this not quite as bad?

Yes, I was expecting someone to start yelling "Lightning Bolt!" and throw ping pong balls.
 

NekoFever

Member
viciouskillersquirrel said:
Other weapons are pointless if you're always carrying a gun. It's like having a fully loaded machine gun and instead of shooting it, you attempt to run up to your opponents to beat them to death with the butt.
Or you could use the threat of your gun to subdue someone, or shoot them in the leg instead of blowing their head off as soon as you get the opportunity.
 

mre

Golden Domers are chickenshit!!
Dali said:
They don't even get a proper sprinter to be the snitch? If ever there was a doubt about what a loser "sport" this was before, it's been officially confirmed now.

See, I actually thought the idea of the cross country runner was a good one, but then I was also under the impression that each team would have someone chasing him across the entire campus. Since they have to wait for him to reappear, then it would make more sense for it to be a sprinter.
 

Cyan

Banned
Oh God, just watched that video. This is the saddest, most pathetic thing I've seen in a long time.

And I include my Cal Bears getting trounced a million points to zero by USC last weekend.
 

wenis

Registered for GAF on September 11, 2001.
Just as stupid as the people who play "ultimate" frisbee...goddamn :lol
 

Dali

Member
mre said:
See, I actually thought the idea of the cross country runner was a good one, but then I was also under the impression that each team would have someone chasing him across the entire campus. Since they have to wait for him to reappear, then it would make more sense for it to be a sprinter.
:lol

That would be pretty cool. Pay some thugs to hide at random spots all over campus in hopes the snitch might run past them. You return triumphantly with proof you grabbed the snitch, while he's unconscious somewhere in some bushes with a black eye and a mouth full of blood.
 

Kurtofan

Member
Dali said:
:lol

That would be pretty cool. Pay some thugs to hide at random spots all over campus in hopes the snitch might run past them. You return triumphantly with proof you grabbed the snitch, while he's unconscious somewhere in some bushes with a black eye and a mouth full of blood.
Snitches get stitches?
 

thetrin

Hail, peons, for I have come as ambassador from the great and bountiful Blueberry Butt Explosion
I always thought Quidditch had incredibly dumb rules, and watching people try to bring it to real life just proves it.
 

ToxicAdam

Member
Well, I think nerds had a good run in getting mainstream acceptance. I think it's time to start beating them up again and shoving them into lockers.
 

ultron87

Member
How dare this stereotypically unfit social group get outside and exercise in a way that they enjoy with other people that have similar interests.
 

Alucrid

Banned
ultron87 said:
How dare this stereotypically unfit social group get outside and exercise in a way that they enjoy with other people that have similar interests.

Well, tbh, it's just that one dude who's really 'unfit.'
 
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