It is well past due for another top ten list. If you know me, you know I am a massive Harry Potter fan. This was an extremely difficult list to make, as there are so many great characters throughout the series. I am sure some people will be disappointed that a few people are missing, especially a certain someone, but I will explain myself along the way.
10. Bellatrix Lestrange
Bellatrix is a phenomenal villain, which in my opinion are just as important, if not more, to drive the story along and provide some worthy opponents for our heroes. Bellatrix was mentioned a few times in the early books, but didn’t make her main appearance until book 5. She is evil, cruel, but so entertaining while she is tormenting everyone. My only complaint about Bellatrix is that she wasn’t around more. Her and Neville have a history together regarding Neville’s parents, but I think more could have been done with that, more on that later though. All in all Bellatrix did a great job of making us hat her, but at the same time we never minded when we would come across her in a chapter or a scene.
9. The Weasley Twins
Fred and George Weasley are no doubt the coolest of the Weasleys. An argument could be made for Ginny, but only in the book. Book Ginny was cool, clever, and good at everything. Movie Ginny, is pretty forgettable. Anyways, back to the twins. Fred and George are quite intelligent, it is clear though that they have no interest in using their intellect for school. Instead they dream up hilarious magical items that can be used to prank your enemies, or siblings.
Pretty much anytime they are in a chapter, they bring a very comical element to the books. They love to rip on poor scrubby Ron, who struggles with most things. But at the end of the day, they are very loyal to their friends and family. One of the saddest deaths of the whole series was the death of Fred. The combo of Fred and George was one of the purest things in the series. Their whole lives they were inseparable, and I am sure Fred was just never the same without his counterpart.
8. Remus Lupin
Lupin was undoubtedly the best Defense Against the Dark Arts professor the students had during their time there. He was very down to earth, actually taught the students very effectively, and had the students backs when they needed him. The only hangup is that Lupin was a warewolf. He had it under control and was not dangerous to anyone, but during the climax of the third book as chaos ensued, he was forced out into the moonlight which put everyone in danger. In the end Lupin resigned, as the word got out for what he was. Luckily he stuck around the rest of the series as part of The Order. Overall, he is so solid, and one of many father figures that Harry had in his time at Hogwarts.
7. Draco Malfoy
Malfoy was a good Antagonist to Harry and the gang throughout the series. For most of the series he was that annoying rich kid that seemed to be a little jealous of Harry for his fame. As the books grew darker, so did Malfoy. But we also got to know more about his past and began to understand why he was the way he was. Malfoy became a very interesting character in book six. He was tasked with the extremely difficult feat of finding a way to get a handful of death eaters into the school, and then killing Dumbledore.
He struggled the whole book with the task, and became very emotional and outcast even from his Slytherin friends. In the end he succeeded in getting the goons into the castle, but was unable to end the life of his headmaster. After that we don’t see him for a while. But then in the final book we start to doubt how evil he has become, and in the end he did not succumb to the evil that was always destined for him. He is a great example of how someone with a terrible upbringing can still overcome it to live a good life. I think he would make a great main character for a follow up series to Harry Potter.
6. Hermione Granger
Hermione was the best witch or wizard Hogwarts has seen in quite some time. Her skill and knowledge is unparalleled, and in her adult life I am sure she turned out to be one of the greatest witches or wizards to ever live. Without her in the group, I have no doubt that Harry and Ron would have died a number of different times. The only reason she is not higher on the list is because about every other book she is insufferable. She is a lot of a know it all and lacks some social skills that extremely intelligent people often don’t have. Still, as the series goes on, she does learn, and becomes very likable, and a total badass.
5. Neville Longbottom
Neville is the purest character in the series. For anyone who has seen Lost he is the Hurley of Harry Potter, you just want to give him a hug. Neville really has no flaws as a person. He is extremely kind, loyal, and brave, despite what we think in the very beginning of the series. Back then, he was a bit of a wuss, but was always brave when he needed to be. He wasn’t well liked by his peers, or the readers probably, but grew tremendously as the series went on.
My only complaint about Neville, similar to Bellatrix, is I wanted more of him. We did get more of him starting in book five, but it still wasn’t enough. We learned in that book that he easily could have been the chosen one that the prophesy speaks of. His story with Bellatrix is very interesting and I would have liked more backstory on that, maybe a pensive chapter just for his parents and Bellatrix. One thing I am very disappointed that didn’t happen was a grand battle in the end between him and Bellatrix. Don’t get me wrong, when Molly Weasley called Bellatrix a bitch and killed her, everyone including me was pumped, BUT, an epic conclusion where Neville defeats her could have been one of the greatest parts of the whole series.
4. Lord Voldemort
Voldemort is a great villain. Bellatrix is cooler, Umbridge makes you hate her more, but Voldy is a great representation of pure evil. The things he has done are so evil that people fear even saying his name long after his initial demise. He is introduces as one of the greatest wizards to ever live, and someone to be terrified of. The first three books just tease us with him, but once he is fully brought back in the fourth, we get full blown Voldy. It is then that the series gets much darker and we can see some of the things he is capable of, like the unforgivable curses.
From the fourth book we only get to learn more about him. Harry’s connection with him is a great way to see into he mind of Voldemort. We then have the phenomenal duel between him and Dumbledore in the fifth book. The sixth teaches us about horcruxes which blew my mind when I first learned about them. Unfortunately, many of the pensive chapters were left out of the movies, but we got a rich backstory about him, which showed us why he began to hate muggles so much in the first place. Voldemort was a complete villain and a proper one for such an epic of a series.
3. Sirius Black
Siris is by far the coolest character in the series. The third book did a great job of introducing us to him. They painted him as a notorious criminal who was one of Voldemort’s key henchmen. J.K. lead us to believe he betrayed Harry’s parents and was the reason they were killed. We hated him at first, but boy were we wrong. He ended up still being a badass, but being so pure and good. He was James Potter’s best friend, who James probably didn’t deserve. He then showed the same devotion to his best friends son, Harry, and accepted him as his own. Harry had many father figures in this series, but it was always meant to be Sirius. The saddest death by far in the whole series was the death of Sirius. The whole firth book was spent with people not believing Harry about Voldemort, and people still thinking Sirius was evil. At the end of the book once the good guys prevail everything will be out in the open and Harry and Sirius will be able to be a proper family, something Harry has never known through many miserable years with the Dursleys. The fight in the department of mysteries is going well, the good guys are winning, and Harry is smiling fighting along his godfather, Sirius. Then, in one swift spell by Bellatrix, his happiness is ripped away. Poor Harry, no wonder he is so moody throughout the series.
2. Severus Snape
There were many great twists and turns throughout the series, but none were nearly as good as the final one, the true long con of the series. Many times we have questioned whether or not Snape was good or bad. The whole series he was a great antagonist to the core group. He was cold and cruel at times, but there was always something about him. J.K. did a great job making us hate him after the sixth book. We were all shocked when he seemingly ended up bad and killed our favorite headmaster. We all shared the rage and fury that Harry and the rest of the students did.
Then it was all erased in one amazing chapter in the final book. The Prince’s Tale is one of the best chapters I have read in any book. It gives us a full backstory, via the pensive, of this mysterious character that we have wondered about the whole time. It turns out that Snape had quite the complicated past. Like Draco, he had a dark upbringing that drew him to the dark arts. But it was love that kept him on the side of good. His deep love for Harry’s mother made him a good person. He hated Harry’s father, James, and for good reason. Honestly, James seemed like a pretty big dick, and she chose him over her. All of those stares at Harry over the years have meaning now. As we all know Harry looks like his father, except for the eyes. Everyone always was reminding him that he had his mother’s eyes. So when Snape gazed upon Harry he loathed his general appearance, but when he looked into his eyes, they reminded him of the woman he loved.
1. Albus Dumbledore
I greatly debated who would be number one between Albus and Snape, in the end Albus was just so awesome for so much of the book. Dumbledore was the only wizard Voldemort ever feared. Albus is a soft-spoken old man, who’s skill in wizardry is great, the only thing greater is his wisdom. Most of the series he is quiet, and very hands off. He teaches lessons to our main characters by helping them see the truth and correct path on their own. He is one of those people that is so quiet all the time, but on the rare occasion that he isn’t, everyone is on the edge of their seat, and his enemies are terrified. Some of the best moments of the series is when Dumbledore is being a total badass. For example, in the fifth book we see him stand up to Umbridge, and when the ministry comes for him, he is quiet and seems compliant, but then escapes after an awesome little speech. Then when he fights Voldemort in the fifth book, we get a true taste of his skill. Then, in my personal favorite chapter of the series, The Cave, we see him and Harry take on the traps of the locket horcrux. It is also then, that we first learn a small amount of his troubled past.
A part I am very disappointed the movies didn’t include in the seventh and eighth movies is the Rita Skeeter book, “The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore.” There, Rita Skeeter, the despised journalist, writes a book about his life, which ends up being mostly accurate. We get to know that Dumbledore made many mistakes in his past, but that in the end he found the right path and went on to be an incredible man.
Honorable Mentions
Harry Potter
I am of the opinion that Harry as a character is extremely overrated. I think he is a little whiny and makes a lot of decisions based on emotions. Now I understand that there is certainly a reason for him to be the way he is, I mean he did have quite the difficult past. But while he doesn’t make the top ten, he still is a good main character. He is rich with backstory and prophesy. He is the chosen one, though he never asked for it. So overall he is a good character, just not one of the most elite.
Dobby
Dobby starts out to be extremely annoying, but we learn that his intentions are always good. At the end of the second book when Harry frees Dobby, he goes from kind of annoying to a lovable and loyal character. The scene when Dobby dies later in the series is one of the saddest in the whole series.
Hagrid
Speaking of loyal and lovable, Harry is blessed to have Hagrid throughout the whole journey. Hagrid is not the brightest, but no one has any problem with that. He is yet another who is a bit of a father figure to Harry, but maybe more of a really good friend.
Minerva McGonagall
There are a lot of fiercely loyal characters in this series. I suppose that is one of the main traits of Gryffindors. McGonagall is a stern professor, but one who will stick up for her students and friends no matter what. She shines toward the end of the series, but wish she was more intricate in some of the more important storylines throughout the series.
Mad Eye Moody
Mad Eye takes no shit from anyone. He is a badass and one of the strongest wizards in The Order of The Phoenix. Something to remember though, is while he seemed super awesome in the fourth book, that was really Barty Crouch Jr. the whole time. Honestly Barty Crouch Jr should almost be an honorable mention, as what he almost pulled off was pretty incredible.
Kingsley Shacklebolt
Kingsley is unfortunately not in the series that much at all. He is described as one of the strongest wizards that currently exists and is feared by all dark witches or wizards. He does come around every once in a while and is awesome when he does.
Molly Weasley
I felt bad leaving Molly out of this list. She is awesome and the closest thing Harry has to a living Mom. Molly is very similar to Minerva. She is a stern mother, and cares deeply about her kids and all of their friends. She has a few awesome moments in the series, like when she defeats Bellatrix, though again, I wish we saw more of her.
Arthur Weasley
Arthur is the lovable father, who is obsessed with muggle things, but is far from understanding them at all. I think dads everywhere can relate to him a bit with this. But overall he is an incredible person and a solid wizard.
Ginny Weasley
Sorry to disappoint but Ginny is the last Weasley to make the list. Ron, to be honest is just ok. He is a shit wizard, and is pretty whiney throughout the series. He has his moments, but is no where near the actual top ten. People often forget, however, how solid Ginny is. That is because movie Ginny is nothing compared to book Ginny. Book Ginny is the coolest girl in school. She is smooth, sharp, an extremely talented witch, and pretty much just good at everything. She is a proper match for Harry in the books, where the movies their whole relationship seems a little weird.
Luna Lovegood
The final character on this list is Luna. While she is strange, she shows us that it’s perfectly fine to be different. She is a great person, and reminds me of Neville in a lot of ways. She just wasn’t developed as much as him as a character. Still, when she was around she was pretty cool. I don’t think I can think of a time when she was stressful or annoying as a character, just overall very solid.
Now, I know what you are thinking, that was a lot of honorable mentions. That is because this series is chalk full of good characters, and that is a huge part of what makes it an excellent series. It is ridiculous actually, at the lack of flaws in many of the supporting characters. I am sure I forgot some key people here, but I had to cut it off somewhere. Writing this makes me want to go back and reread everything, I am due for another go around soon anyways.
