As a huge, embarrassing Harry Potter nerd, I really wanted to like this play. Harry Potter was a huge part of my childhood, and I even have a tattoo of the Deathly Hallows, so when I heard we were getting a new Harry Potter story, I was thrilled. But, even with J.K. Rowling herself helping out, this story feels less like an authentic Potter story, and more like glorified fanfiction written by someone who knows almost nothing about the books.
Between the overwrought plot and the horribly out-of-character people, there’s almost nothing to praise here. This might sound confusing, but, even for a Harry Potter story, there’s too much magic. The reason we love Harry Potter isn’t because he has magical powers, it’s because the problems he’s dealing with are often distinctly relatable. It’s a story about a lonely, abandoned boy trying to find his place in the world, trying to understand death, trying to figure out how to lead and grow up and be an adult, trying to understand mundane things like schoolwork and relationships. In the end, like all good stories, Harry Potter is about what it means to be human. But, in The Cursed Child, it seems like the focus is more on how to deal with magic and magical villains than about anything human.
Granted, there is a lot in this play that didn’t translate well to the page, and the actors I’m sure do a great job of bringing these characters to life (and fixing much of the lifeless dialogue), so seeing this play live may still be enjoyable and worth it. On the page, however, the script is lackluster at best, and at worst is a blatant misinterpretation of the characters and world that were set up in the original series. For my fellow die-hard fans, if you want to buy this book to complete your Harry Potter bookshelf, by all means, go ahead. But don’t go into this story expecting to be dazzled the way that you were by the series. You will be disappointed.
PLOT: 2/10
CHARACTER: 2/10
WORLD BUILDING: 2/10
DIVERSITY: 3/10
FUN: 1/10
TOTAL SCORE: 10…out of 50. 20% = F
Head below for a more detailed review, but BEWARE OF SPOILERS
Literology 