My 10 Favorite Harry Potter Characters

I've been at home sick with the flu the past few days, so I figured that I may as well make a blog post about one of the few things that is consistently able to keep me entertained: Harry Potter, the wonderful wizarding world of J K Rowling's creation. This woman is brilliant, and I applaud her for her amazing story-telling, world-building, and character-developing skills. Rowling is the writer that I have always truly wished to be, and there is no other author I can think of that I look up to any more- she's just brought so much unbridled joy to my soul with the magical journeys that she sent me on when I first watched the movies as a child and finally began reading the books as a teen (very late for someone to get into the Harry Potter book craze, I know). She really changed my life, and she's part of the reason why I have such a fascination for the fantasy genre.

So, in order to show my appreciation for my favorite author, J K Rowling, I'll be listing my ten favorite characters from the Harry Potter franchise. For everyone's convenience, I'll try to keep everything as spoiler-free as possible.
Also, keep in mind that this is my personal opinion.
Here we go!

10:

Cedric Diggory

So, as a proud Hufflepuff, I have to give credit where it's due to one of the very few Harry Potter characters to properly portray my house for its greatness. See, Hufflepuffs tend to (or at least used to) get a whole lot of slack for being the most "boring" house out of the four. Gryffindors are courageous, Slytherin are ambitious, and Ravenclaw are smart, and most people saw Hufflepuff as being the "leftovers". What those people don't know, however, is that Hufflepuffs are about loyalty, kindness, hard work, and fairness which sounds pretty darn awesome to me.

And Cedric seems like the perfect embodiment of the Hufflepuff name. He is popular, yes, but popularity is surprisingly portrayed pretty realistically in the Harry Potter franchise, since it does not depict jerks being popular for the sole reason of their good looks. Yes, indeed, he is popular for a reason. Now, OK, some of it is because he is a very beautiful man, but Cedric is also a nice guy, and people like being around him because of it. Heck, he didn't have to be as nice as he is to Harry during the Triwizard Tournament, but he went out of his way to make sure that none of his friends wear anti-Harry badges and to help Harry out with certain tasks that they'll be competing in. I mean, honestly, he's a much better friend to Harry in The Goblet of Fire than Ron was, and Ron is supposed to be Harry's 'loyal companion'.
He's just an all-around awesome guy, and he gives my all-around awesome house a good name.

9:

Viktor Krum

The sheer amount of people that forgot about Krum when when they were arguing over who Hermione should end up with is frankly startling to me. I mean, she and and Ron were clearly not meant to be, and while I can see the appeal to the HermionexHarry ship, she always belonged with Victor in my heart. I don't want to turn this into another shipping post, though, so I'll instead talk about why he's such a cutie pie.
I mean, look at the guy. He's kind of big and intimidating, and he's a professional Bulgarian quiddich player, but it's also important to remember that he's kind of socially awkward, a bit of a grouch, and adorably shy around the girl he likes. He reminds me of a few guys I know that would normally come off as mean and rugged but are secretly the nicest guys you would ever know.
That's who Viktor is: an adorable creme-puff in disguise. I just wish we got to see more of him than in just the Goblet of Fire and that one half-assed cameo toward the end of the books- and don't even get me started on the grave disservice the movies did for him.

8:

Fred and George Weasley

I feel like Fred and George are the only Weasley children that I actually like (except for Bill- he's a cool dude), and God do I love them. I mean, generally, I like the mischievous-twins archetype quite a bit, as I always find them extremely entertaining, and the Weasley twins are no exception. They're always doing something fun, whether it be blowing up fire works in the dining hall or pulling a trick as simple as joking with their mother about her mixing them up.  They've got an awesome sense of humor, and they're real family guys, too, as the Weasleys tend to be (except for Percy, because screw Percy). Plus, you can just really tell that they just love being each other's twin, which is all that I really ask for when it comes to twin characters.
Not much else to say. I'm just always smiling whenever their names turn up on the next page.

7:

Newt Scamander

Newt is what I would unironically refer to as my spirit animal. He's a socially awkward mess of a Hufflepuff with one of the biggest animal-loving hearts a dork could possibly contain and I absolutely love him for it. He doesn't care how cute/ugly or safe/dangerous his creatures are, he loves each and every one of them, and finds them fascinating, and he just wants to study them so that other people can see how magical and wonderful and, well, fantastic his beasts are.

I always knew from the scenes with Hagrid and his class that I could totally get into magical zoology, but Newt taught me just how awesome even the tiniest creatures can be. I just love how absolutely affectionate and loving Newt is with his creatures.

6:

Remus Lupin

My love for Lupin mostly has to do with his teaching style. He just seems like a very ruffled yet gentlemanly guy, and he very much seems like exactly the kind of teacher I'd like to have if I was in a magical school. He's got a certain style of teaching that is very hands-on and just overall so much fun for students. In fact, his first class with the boggarts is probably my favorite scene in any of the movies or books- it just caught the magic and fun and charm that comes with being a part of the Harry Potter franchise, and I absolutely adore him for it.
Plus, spoilers if you haven't finished the Prisoner of Azkaban yet, but werewolves are, like, my favorite humanoid creature, so that wins him some points, too.

5:

Minerva McGonagall

Professor McGonagall is the most badass teacher in all of Hogwarts, and nothing you can say will ever change my mind.
She actually reminds me quite a bit of one of my favorite teachers from middle school (otherwise known as the worst time of my life) who wasn't necessarily mean or anything, but she wasn't overly nice and didn't try to sugarcoat her class. She was a fun teacher, but she was also real. You could tell that she really cared about her class, and that because of that, she wasn't going to take anything from anyone. This is the very essence of Professor McGonagall, except slightly more old-timey and with a hella lot more magic.
She really starts to shine from The Order of the Phoenix onward. Probably my favorite scenes with her come with her being a total boss and pretty much carrying Hogwarts on her back while fending off evil Umbridge. The entire school would be in shambles without her, honestly.

4:

Draco Malfoy

Now as opposed to other characters on this list, Draco is not one of my favorites because I think he's an awesome guy or even that I like him. In fact, I hate this sleazy little racist whiny-baby.
No, no, no. The reason that I love Draco is that watching him suffer is so incredibly satisfying.

You see, I am not, by nature, a very aggressive or confrontational person; I prefer to keep any negative feelings to myself and bottle them all up in the most unhealthy fashion possible, which means that when I encounter insufferable assholes akin to Draco Malfoy (yes, I'm talking about you, Sarah and Kayla from the eighth grade), I keep kinda quiet about it. Which probably isn't very good for my mental health at all, but I've never claimed to make the best decisions in life, and we're not here to talk about my many mental issues and poor life choices right now, are we? No? OK, moving on.

Anyway, bottom line is when anything bad happens to this kid on screen, it is literally the greatest thing ever.
It just... It just gives me so much joy.
I mean. He's such a baby. Just look. Look at him whine. He's such a little daddy's boy. Grow a backbone already. Lolz.

Also, I realize that this is totally irrelevant to the cannon. It really is. But if you haven't watched A Very Potter Musical, do yourself a favor and go do that. You can find it on YouTube, and it is worth every damn second of your time, partially because their Draco Malfoy is just golden.

3:

Hermione Granger

Hermione is undoubtedly my favorite character out of the main trio. But why?
Is it because she a girl and I can relate better to her? Maybe.
Is it because she's usually the one with a plan? Kinda.
Is it because I borderline hate Ron and think that while Harry is a good character, I don't love him? Well... Yeah, but-
Is it because she's a total smart-ass? Hell ya, girl. You keep reminding Harry and dumb-ass Ron that you can't apparate or disapparate inside Hogwarts. You tell them that they better get their lives together before they get killed or, worse yet, expelled. *le gasp* You just keep doing you.
OK, but seriously, she's just such a fun character to add into the trio. She's muggle-born, meaning that she was born to a family of non-magic users, which totally helps her get along with Harry, who was raised away from magic, but this also makes it so much more impressive when it becomes very apparent very quickly that she is easily one of- if not the- brightest witch or wizard of her generation. This girl knows no boundaries.
She will kick your ass with all the knowledge in the world, and to hell if you think her non-magical lineage is going to stop her.
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... Also, she's responsible for this.
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2:

Severus Snape

First, I'd like to say a few words for Alan Rickman, Snape's brilliant actor, who passed away last year. He was an amazing guy and did perfect work in all the roles I've ever seen him play. The Harry Potter movies would have never been the same without him.
Rest in Peace, Alan.





Now, my love for Snape was never something I could easily explain. It wasn't really his backstory, as he was established as one of my favorites ever since The Philosopher's Stone, long before we knew much of anything about him. He wasn't ever a particularly nice guy, either- Snape always kind of toed that line where you were never sure if he was a good guy or bad guy because while he looked out for and saved his students several times, he also bullied them- especially Harry- and kind of made his class a living nightmare for anyone outside of House Slytherin. I guess it's because I always had this nagging feeling in the back of my gut telling me that there was more to Snape than meets the eye, that he wasn't just some grouchy asshat with a vendetta against our main character for no particular reason.
And I was not disappointed when I found out what that story was. Snape was a wonderful character, and there's only one other Harry Potter character that I could ever possibly love more.

1:

Neville Longbottom

 If Newt is my spirit animal, then Neville is my entire state of being.
OK, but no, Neville is legit the objectively best character in Harry Potter, and if you disagree with me then your opinion is invalid. He's a precious cinnamon roll, through and through, and needs to be protected at all costs. He's clumsy, awkward, and has a low self esteem throughout the beginning of the series, and when you read into his backstory, you'll see why. (I am trying to keep this relatively spoiler-free, so if you're somehow living under a rock and haven't read or watched Harry Potter, do yourself a favor and either pick up the books or watch the movies. Preferably the books, since they, for the most part, do Neville more justice. This kid alone makes it worth it.)
But as the years in Hogwarts progress and Neville gets older, you get to see him mature and discover his talents (like herbology), and you see him learn to like himself more and more with the help of his friends and a little praise from his headmaster at the end of his first year. He's such an awesome guy that you see him, as well as Luna, join the extended trio for adventures later on, and, God, did I want to see more of that. Oh, and by the end of the story, little Neville is undoubtedly the biggest badass in all of Hogwarts. I don't think that half of the remaining cast at that point would have made it without him.
Yeah. The clumsy little fat boy that everyone made their scapegoat for the first few books is the biggest badass at Hogwarts.
Let me repeat myself: Best Harry Goddamned Potter Character.
I like to think that he was the secret main character. He's pretty much canonically confirmed to be just as important as Harry to the series, anyway.


Oh, and did I mention he's a total cutie? Because he is definitely a total cutie.

And there we go! My personal list of favorite characters from Harry Potter. It was hard to exclude some characters like Luna, Sirius, Jacob, and Barty Crouch Jr. (If only for the ferret scene), but that really just goes to show what a diverse, colorful, and memorable set of characters the Harry Potter franchise is so full of. So, let me know: who are your favorite characters and why? While we're at it, what's your favorite book/movie from the franchise? My personal favorite book is The Goblet of Fire, since it introduced a lot of my favorite characters and had a lot of charm and magical adventures, while my favorite movie was The Prisoner of Azkaban, for similar reasons, but also because it didn't cut as much stuff from the fun stuff from the book. Anyway, I'd love to hear what yours are!

I'm heading out for now, though, so y'all have a fantastic night! ;D