The final fight

[Emotionless]

I was so exited when the last book came out and then when i finished it i felt like crying as there no more!!!

But one thing that really did bug me about the book was the ending. dont get me wrong i adore harry potter completely but the final fight between harry and voldermort was to short and wasnt as intense as i thought it should have been. There was only two spells and he died

I dont know if its just me but does anybody else think it should have ended differently?

[pyan]

Do you actually mean end differently (which can only mean Voldy winning), or that the fight was longer, Emotionless? I must admit it was a bit abrupt.
But at that level, they weren't going to have a long drawn out fight anyway - the first mistake was always going to be the last....

[Giovanna Clairval]

The H battle was so intense that I found the final fight weaker in comparison. She could have made it longer and more filled with suspense. But what I really didn't like was the epilogue. It was a bit bourgeois, wasn't it.

Not that I want to start a discussion on the epilogue...

[pyan]

I get the impression that the epilogue was self defence - to stop her being swamped with the fans demands for closure....

[lamanna]

I think there was good reason for the Harry-Voldemort fight being short. In my opinion I don't think a long battle would have made sense. Harry has never been magically powerful like Dumbledore or Voldemort. He could never match Voldemort in a duel based on magical skill alone. I think the final fight reminds us of this. Harry was up against the 'most powerful wizard of all time' and had no apparent powerful magical skills, so it took something extraordinary(elder wand's allegiance) to defeat him.

[Giovanna Clairval]

Originally Posted by lamanna

I think there was good reason for the Harry-Voldemort fight being short. In my opinion I don't think a long battle would have made sense. Harry has never been magically powerful like Dumbledore or Voldemort. He could never match Voldemort in a duel based on magical skill alone. I think the final fight reminds us of this. Harry was up against the 'most powerful wizard of all time' and had no apparent powerful magical skills, so it took something extraordinary(elder wand's allegiance) to defeat him.

You have a point there.

When I grumped about the length of the fight, it was the irrational fan speaking.

[lamanna]

Originally Posted by Giovanna Clairval

When I grumped about the length of the fight, it was the irrational fan speaking.

Ye I thought so. I understand how you feel too.

I wanted to read a bit more of what happened in the months after Voldemort was defeated but I guess it would have made the epilogue look a bit silly.

[Giovanna Clairval]

Originally Posted by lamanna

I wanted to read a bit more of what happened in the months after Voldemort was defeated but I guess it would have made the epilogue look a bit silly.

Temptation temptation (of offthreading away...)

Go on, say it!

What would have been your ideal epilogue?

[The Pelagic Argosy]

Originally Posted by Giovanna Clairval

What would have been your ideal epilogue?

Twenty more books!!!

But seriously...my problem with the final showdown was that it seemed to come down to a wand trick rather than a triumph of good over evil.

[Giovanna Clairval]

Originally Posted by The Pelagic Argosy

But seriously...my problem with the final showdown was that it seemed to come down to a wand trick rather than a triumph of good over evil.

I agree with Lemanna. The fight was so uneven that it could be won only with a magical object.

Isn't it a fight between love and friendship on one side and power for the sake of power on the other? I don't know if Rowling intended to depict a Tolkienesque fight between Good and Evil, imho.
Don't get me wrong. I love Tolkien, but I don't like his vision of personified battling forces. We have good and evil within ourselves. It's all a matter of choice, once again IMHO.

Going back to the story, there's a problem when a truly strong scene (the battle) comes just before the most significant one (the final fight).

I don't know how she could have solved this differently.

[Fake Vencar]

In my opinion she should have made the ending a lot longer. They seemed to spend the whole book figuring this all out but when it comes to the main fight, it is only half a page!!!

Still, she's the author and the billionaire.

[lamanna]

Originally Posted by Giovanna Clairval

Temptation temptation (of offthreading away...)

Go on, say it!

What would have been your ideal epilogue?

We could always start a new thread.

Originally Posted by The Pelagic Argosy

But seriously...my problem with the final showdown was that it seemed to come down to a wand trick rather than a triumph of good over evil.

When I read the book I again I felt that the triumph came when Harry sacrificed himself. Voldemort wanted immortality and thought Harry to be the only one who was denying him of that, that's why he was hell bent on killing him. Remember, the entire book was about Voldemort finding the Elder Wand(to kill Harry) and Harry and co. destroying Horcruxes(to make Voldemort mortal). I thought the series to be focused more on the acceptance of Death(good) vs. seeking immortailty(evil). So Harry sacrificing himself to keep the others safe was the opposite of what Voldemort did(Kill anyone to keep himself alive). I might be over-analysing but, between Harry being the Master of Death(having the Hallows), sacrificing himself(accepting death) to keep everyone safe and Voldemort having Harry's blood(therefore, Lily's sacrifice) running through him, it was almost guarenteed that Voldemort couldn't kill Harry. By doing that he had defeated Voldemort without even killing him.

[Giovanna Clairval]

Very deep analysis. I agree, Lamanna.
And:

Originally Posted by lamanna

We could always start a new thread.

Great idea!

Done!

What would have been your ideal epilogue?

[Crazihors]

I don't think she should have let Harry live - he should have died three chapters before and Neville should have killed Voldemort.
It was most disappointing when Harry won the battle by default, instead of using his own talents - he could haved accio-ed his Firebolt again, lol. It was the only way she could keep him alive, and i think it would have been a better ending if she hadn't have bothered

[Leisha]

Originally Posted by lamanna

I thought the series to be focused more on the acceptance of Death(good) vs. seeking immortailty(evil). So Harry sacrificing himself to keep the others safe was the opposite of what Voldemort did(Kill anyone to keep himself alive). I might be over-analysing but, between Harry being the Master of Death(having the Hallows), sacrificing himself(accepting death) to keep everyone safe and Voldemort having Harry's blood(therefore, Lily's sacrifice) running through him, it was almost guarenteed that Voldemort couldn't kill Harry. By doing that he had defeated Voldemort without even killing him.

That was my opinion also. The fight was never going to be evenly matched, not with the skill Voldemort had demonstrated.