Harry Potter and the Cursed Child holds issues from its first scenes. The follow-up story relies on the concept that Albus Severus Potter is alienated from the rest of his family, relying heavily on Scorpius Malfoy as his only friend and confidant. While their friendship is at the heart of the story, that may be the only detail the sequel gets right. Otherwise, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child struggles through its storytelling in an attempt to suggest why there is a story to tell at all. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows had brought the original series to a solid conclusion. So, why go through the trouble of creating a sequel? Was there a real story to tell?
While there were numerous ways Harry Potter and the Cursed Child could have told its story, it chose a direction that resulted in fans wishing it never existed. The play suggests that Harry is a terrible father to Albus, and even uses some very out-of-character dialogue with him to get to the root of the conflict. Likewise, Hermione’s character suffers from horrible treatment toward one of her alternate timeline counterparts. Rather than creating something new and exciting for the next generation of Potters, Weasleys, and Malfoys, they are trapped in re-living the franchise’s golden years in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.
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The Alternate Universe Hermione
Warner Bros. Pictures
Hermione Granger is a strong-willed, confident, and brilliant individual with flaws just like anyone else. In the canon timeline, Hermione Granger grows up to become the Minister For Magic after having participated in defeating Voldemort alongside Harry and Ron. With or without Ron Weasley as her husband, it is hard to believe that Hermione Granger would not have achieved great things. However, one alternate universe counterpart of Hermione attempts to suggest otherwise. In a re-created timeline where Hermione does not marry Ron, she becomes a bitter and angry teacher at Hogwarts. Not to say that being a Hogwarts professor is not successful. On the contrary, if Hermione wanted to be a teacher, she had every right and ability to thrive in the profession. However, how the narrative treats her makes it a problem.
Hermione does not come across as a successful teacher who enjoys molding young minds. Instead, she appears harsh, bitter, and cruel, similar to how Severus Snape had been as a teacher. Hermione never came across as someone whose life would entirely fall apart because she did not marry Ron Weasley. It creates the wrong impression of Hermione that she would not have the same bright future because she was not married.
Voldemort’s Secret Child
Warner Brothers
Voldemort never spoke about wanting an heir, which is one problem in the play. Another is the lack of consistency, considering someone would have likely noticed Bellatrix was pregnant throughout Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows if the two had conceived a child together. Yet, it seems that Voldemort and Bellatrix’s daughter, Delphini, only exists so that Albus Potter’s main villain can be Voldemort’s daughter, allowing the conflict between Harry and Voldemort to live on in some way.
If Albus and Scorpius needed a villain to face off against, it did not need to be someone directly connected to Voldemort. With the amount of unnamed Death Eaters who were likely killed or put in Azkaban after the Battle of Hogwarts, any one of their descendants could have stepped up to be the antagonist. It still would have fit the story that Harry had been responsible for hurting their family, so they were taking revenge against his son. However, by making the villain Voldemort and Bellatrix’s child, Delphini opens the door for too many plot holes.
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Harry’s Treatment Of Albus
Were people expecting Harry to be a perfect father? No, probably not. He was not given a solid look at a decent marital foundation or healthy relationships with their kids until he spent the summer with the Weasley family. It would be unfair to claim that anyone could be a perfect parent who never makes mistakes. However, in Harry’s case, it is as if Harry’s bad parenting is done so over-the-top for plot reasons. Harry and Albus do not have the closest relationship, which is not necessarily the worst part of their dynamic. What makes it worse is how bad they are at communicating with each other. At one point, during a fight, Harry claims to wish that Albus was not his son.
Although there are suggestions that Harry gets along better with James and Lily, the play never actually shows those dynamics. Instead, by not allowing the audience the opportunity to witness Harry interact with his two other kids or offering their perspective of their relationship with Harry, it is up to the implication that Harry is a better father to them rather than showing it. But unfortunately, that does not make things better or worse regarding understanding the complexities between Harry and Albus.
It Acts As Nostalgia Instead of A New Story
Warner Bros.
Instead of allowing the next generation a chance to step up and show what they’re capable of, or giving them something entirely new to do, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child finds itself stuck in the past. Albus and Scorpius’ big mission is to go back to the past, during their parents’ time at Hogwarts, and fix it. Their attempts to undo Cedric’s death end in constant tragedy, portraying alternate realities of Voldemort winning or other events that do not quite add up with what fans know already. In the final time travel escapade, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child brings everyone back to the day Harry’s parents died, forcing everyone to witness Voldemort killing James and Lily.
Instead of feeling like a brand-new story, or an addition to the already existing wizarding world, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child almost comes across more as an excuse to revisit Harry’s years at Hogwarts.
