So Harry Potter and the Cursed Child came out recently, and I, being a big Potterhead, just had to get my hands on it. However, I found myself rather disappointed when I finally was able to read it. I understand that this is merely a script for a stage production, but besides the lackluster storytelling and horrible grammar, the story itself had many plot holes and plot discrepancies that deviated from the original series. There were several times while reading that I found myself cringing. I had to force myself to continue reading in many instances.
So, without further ado, here are five cringe-worthy moments in The Cursed Child.
Warning: There are plot spoilers ahead, and much of the following content needs context to be fully understood, so if you haven’t read the play yet, I recommend you do before proceeding onward with this article. In addition, there were many parts of the script that I truly did enjoy, so I wouldn't call it a failure. It just did not live up to my expectations.
1.The Time-Turner Paradox
In the original Harry Potter series, time traveling occurs in a casual loop, in which a future event transpires due to a past event, and history cannot be altered. (Read more about casual loop here).
In the Prisoner of Azkaban, the third book in the series, Harry is saved by a person who he assumes is his father. Later, it is revealed that the person who saved him was, in fact, himself traveling back in time from the future. Thus, it is apparent that time traveling in the Harry Potter world assumes a single timeline, where one event causes another, and alternative realities do not exist.
However, in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, the casual loop paradox is undermined when Albus Potter travels back in time and as such, creates alternative realities. For example, in one of these alternative realities, Voldemort rules the world and Cedric Diggory is a death eater. This doesn’t follow suit with the seven previous HP books and leaves readers feeling confused.
2. The Polyjuice Potion Problem
3.The Ministry Has Been Infiltrated Part Two
In the seventh Harry Potter book, Harry, Ron and Hermione used the polyjuice potion to transform into members of the ministry and break in. You would think that now that Hermione is the Minister of Magic in the Cursed Child, she would have learned from her own experience and enforced better security, right?
WRONG.
Somehow, Albus, Scorpius, and Delphi transform into TOP MINISTRY OFFICIALS AND SUCCESSFULLY RETRIEVE THE TIME TURNER. I mean, if you are going to impersonate a ministry member, why not impersonate a less prominent member rather than HARRY POTTER AND THE MINISTER HERSELF? WOULDN'T THAT ATTRACT SO MUCH ATTENTION? Albus and Scorpius didn’t even temporarily knock out the people they were impersonating. I don’t understand how they didn’t get caught.
4. Ron Weasley and the Different Personality
Ron Weasley’s character in the Cursed Child made absolutely no sense to me. First of all, Ron was always the goofy-without-meaning-to-be type who struggled with many insecurities in the original series. But now, he seems to be a shadow of his deceased brother, Fred Weasley, making funny jokes and pulling several pranks. This very unlike Ron, and many Potterheads would strongly agree with me.
Also, Harry and Ron are supposed to be such great buds throughout the series, but in this play, they barely have any interaction or meaningful encounters. In fact, the two characters barely acknowledge each other. Is Ron still mad that Harry slept with his sister? God knows.
5. Godric’s Hollow, 1981
I have several qualms about this scene. How did Harry TRANSFIGURE HIMSELF INTO VOLDEMORT? Okay, so I am not too sure if whole human transfiguration even exists, but regardless, I felt like that scene was a cop out, and it made transfiguring into another human being look effortless. Additionally, none of the characters knew when the real Voldemort would appear, so they took a huge gamble in allowing Harry to impersonate him. What if the real Voldemort showed up while Harry was pretending to be him?
I also don’t understand why Harry needed to see his parents die, or allowed his young child to watch with him too. To watch your loved one die while you can do nothing about it should be very traumatizing. I didn’t understand why this scene was necessary for closure, but I suppose that’s my personal opinion.
I came upon several other cringe-worthy/doesn’t-make-any-sense moments while reading that were not mentioned. A good portion of the dialogue itself made me want to yell out in frustration of how badly written it was. I am so hoping that the stage production will be so much better. In the meantime, please comment below to let me know any of cringe-worthy moments that I might have missed!
