"Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince" out tomorrow!

[Jaguar]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui

Percy Weasley or Remus Lupin. Ron and Hermione, beginnings of Harry and Ginny. Character we don't know yet.

Damn, I wish they knocked off Percy. Would be nice. But I think it'll be Dumbledore. The old coot is... well... old!

24 hours away!

Percy will be redeemed shortly before his demise.

Dumbledore isn't going to just kick the bucket due to old age until the whole Voldemort thing is sorted out. This isn't Star Wars.

[Tuberski]

According to an article I read today, no one can release the book until 0001 BST.

Does that mean we don't have to wait until midnight in the US?

ACK!

[Imran Siddiqui]

I don't think so. In the US, I've only heard midnight local time.

Dumbledore isn't going to just kick the bucket due to old age until the whole Voldemort thing is sorted out.

He has to. He needs to die so Harry can stand on his own two feet, so to speak. Can't hide behind the big dude... and you have to find a reason for Harry to face Voldemort mano-e-mano without outside interference.

[Jaguar]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui
I don't think so. In the US, I've only heard midnight local time.

Dumbledore isn't going to just kick the bucket due to old age until the whole Voldemort thing is sorted out.

He has to. He needs to die so Harry can stand on his own two feet, so to speak. Can't hide behind the big dude... and you have to find a reason for Harry to face Voldemort mano-e-mano without outside interference.

Do you remember the endings of the Sorcerer's Stone, the Chamber of Secrets, the Goblet of Fire, and the Order of the Phoenix?

It seems they've found plenty of time to face each other alone already.

[Verto]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui
You know I've never listened to an audio-book. Probably would be smart... I'm notorious for failing to re-read books.

I would highly recommend it, especially if you can rent them/borrow them. Jim Dale does a superb job of voice-acting all the characters; listening to him, I actually find myself as much in the book as when watching the movie. My sister has them all on CD, and it's only a matter of time until I get an MP3 player and rip them all onto it.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Do you remember the endings of the Sorcerer's Stone, the Chamber of Secrets, the Goblet of Fire, and the Order of the Phoenix?

You can cross off OotP, because they didn't face off alone. Remember Dumbledore swoops in? As for the other books, Voldemort wasn't at full strength, until GoF, and Harry gets off by some luck.

If Harry and Voldemort ever have to fight alone against each other again, Dumbledore just looks more incompetant than he did in his speech at the end of OotP. If Dumbledore is alive, why in the Hell would he risk Harry even meeting Voldemort alone again?

[Rufus T. Firefly]

I pick up my daughter's pre-ordered copy at the mall tomorrow morning. Originally, she and her mother were supposed to be returning to the Philippines tomorrow afternoon; but their plans have changed, and now they won't be back until Tuesday. I, meanwhile, have sworn that my daughter will be the first of us to read HBP, but now I'll be all alone with it, all weekend.

This may be the toughest parenting challenge of my life...

[Imran Siddiqui]

Just do what every parent does.... lie .

[Jaguar]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui

Do you remember the endings of the Sorcerer's Stone, the Chamber of Secrets, the Goblet of Fire, and the Order of the Phoenix?

You can cross off OotP, because they didn't face off alone. Remember Dumbledore swoops in? As for the other books, Voldemort wasn't at full strength, until GoF, and Harry gets off by some luck.

If Harry and Voldemort ever have to fight alone against each other again, Dumbledore just looks more incompetant than he did in his speech at the end of OotP. If Dumbledore is alive, why in the Hell would he risk Harry even meeting Voldemort alone again?

I've pointed out three instances where Harry faces Voldemort entirely alone, and one where he faces Voldemort alone for quite some time until Dumbledore shows up.

That's a great scene, BTW. "It was foolish of you to come here tonight, Tom."

It's a possible theory for Book seven. But I doubt the Order can hold itself together long without Dumbledore. It would be interesting to see Severus Snape running the order for a year, but I doubt that will happen.

I'm not categorically denying that Dumbledore will die, but I don't think this is his book.

[Imran Siddiqui]

I've pointed out three instances where Harry faces Voldemort entirely alone, and one where he faces Voldemort alone for quite some time until Dumbledore shows up.

That's a great scene, BTW. "It was foolish of you to come here tonight, Tom."

Two times where Voldemort was NOT fully formed. You can see Dumbledore's plan to train Harry by letting him learn it on his own. While Voldemort was not fully formed, you say, ok, the plan seems reasonable there (even though there are near missses).

The third time seems like incompetance by Dumbledore. He SHOULD have stepped it and it seems like he didn't even think Voldemort would try such a thing.

You would have expected Dumbledore to never allow that again... and he DOESN'T.

I just went back to the passage in OotP where Voldemort shows up. He doesn't face Voldemort AT ALL before Voldemort shows up. You are confusing it with Harry facing Bellatrix. Voldemort shows up, Bellatrix grovels, Voldemort looks to Harry and says "Avada Kevadra" and then Dumbledore intervenes. Harry doesn't fight Voldy alone.

It shows the Dumbledore has learned his lesson and won't be caught on his heels like in GoF again.

--

I can also see it happening in Book 7, but there is a prediction of a big death in this one as well. It either has to be Lupin, a Weasley parent, or Dumbledore to be 'big' enough, IMO.

I think Dumbledore bites it at the very, very end of the book... providing a sad ending and a question of how the Order survives in the next book without him. A great cliffhanger.

Oh, if Dumbledore kicks it, I think Lupin would run the Order. He seemed to be second in charge in OotP.

[Verto]

I say, let the chips fall where they may. I stopped wanting to argue about who would die, or who the Half-blood Prince was long ago; now I just want to pick up my book, and spend my Saturday reading it all.

[Imran Siddiqui]

The arguing just gives us something to do until tomorrow at midnight .

[Jaguar]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui

I think Dumbledore bites it at the very, very end of the book... providing a sad ending and a question of how the Order survives in the next book without him. A great cliffhanger.

That I can live with. But he goes down fighting, I assure you.

[Verto]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui
The arguing just gives us something to do until tomorrow at midnight .

You could be cutting a lightning bolt into your forehead like a real fan

[Imran Siddiqui]

Originally posted by Jaguar
That I can live with. But he goes down fighting, I assure you.

I'd like to see him go like Yoda... needing sleep .

I mean without the Philosopher's/Sorceror's Stone how long can he live? Has Flammel died yet?

I don't want to see Dumbledore get bested in a fight... I'm not sure what could take him. Maybe that is when Rowling introduces vampires into the main story . Or maybe he fights the entirety of the Death Eaters.