Title: Poison Pen
Author: GenkaiFan (I think this story is co-authored, but I'm not sure)
Rating: Solid T
Genre: Drama/Humor
DLP Category: The Alternatives or Independent Harry
Pairing: None (but I get the feeling there might be some later on)
Status: Work in Progress

Summary: Harry has had enough of seeing his reputation shredded in the Daily Prophet and decides to do something about it. Only he decides to embrace his Slytherin side to rectify matters.

Link: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5554780/1/Poison_Pen

Here's a good story I found yesterday. For me, it's pretty novel, featuring Independent-but-not-Independent!Harry who understands the power of the press. At the end of his forth year, Harry decides it's time to turn the wizarding world upside down, so he starts writing letters to newspapers...completely anonymously.

Pros: It's well fleshed out, with a storyline that is neither rushed nor forced. Also, as we've all probably read at least one story where someone tries to apply logic to the wizarding world, we know it doesn't work too well. However, this fic applies wizarding logic to the wizarding world and simply demonstrates how messed up it can be.

Cons: Wolf-in-Sheep's-Clothing!Harry (kinda), slight character bashing, and Natural-Occlumens!Harry. If you don't understand the first one, you will after the first chapter. It's annoying and cliched, yes, but at least it's not made the focus of the story. The second one is more of 'from this character's point of view, this person is pretty stupid'. I can live with that. The last one, since it's only been brought in the last few chapters right now isn't too pronounced, but the way it's described could make this story crash and burn later on.

All in all, I really like this fic. Not quite boner inducing, but it's a pretty good read for the independents.

 

I tried reading it, but couldn't get past the third chapter. It wasn't necessarily bad, per se- I just found that it moved far too fast without the required character building or descriptive material- one minute Harry's reading the prophet, the next minute everyone's agreeing that his anonymous letters are the best thing since sliced bread.

2/5 for me.

 

Oh, for me that's what keeps it readable. These little time skips keep the story moving without dragging on about every little thing.

 

I find this story interesting and I'm following it.. but it's really a shitload of fanon cliches packaged nicely. Characterization on the other hand is paper thin. The authors are emphasizing virtually every negative character trait present in the series except for those of Harry and Flitwick. The fact that Harry is the sole voice of reason in the Wizarding World is also more than a little infuriating.

However, I did enjoy reading this. For that reason alone, I'll round up from 2/5 to 3/5.

 

At absolute best this belongs at the high end of the almost recommended thread. Frankly I think it's not quite even that.

Massive bashing/OOC, super!Harry, goblin!Friend Harry, Lords who appear out of the woodwork to support Harry, A Dumbledore who is manipulative and transparent... I'm all for a good lampshade, but this is ridiculous. The plot is uninteresting because we know how everything is going to turn out. Oh, and let's not forget FREEDOM!USA

But the worst thing, the unforgivable aspect of this story, is Oliver Twist. The whole story is basically a canon bash of how The Prophet treated Harry, and so Harry teams up with The Quibbler and lets the world know what's really happening.

And they go about it the exact same way, only it's okay cause it's Harry doing it. Writing an editorial about what a bitch Molly is, referring to Hermione and Ron as "Potter's goons", generally taking the piss out of the school... he's doing exactly what Rita did, only hiding behind a name, not an animagus form. While everyone else might be getting a hardon for Harry's turning of the tables, I found the whole thing amateurish and quickly unreadable.

2/5

 

This.

If I judged it on the writing quality alone, I might give it a 2/5. If by enjoyment as well, I would give it a one.

It is at it's core, another rehashed Manipulative!Dumbledore story, with little originality.

Several of the common themes are listed below.

1. Japan being the best magical school.

2. The goblins being amazing and Harry's best friend and magical guardians. ("May your gold flow" Greetings used often)

3. Emancipation.

4. The wonderful nicknames, such as "Old Coot", used liberally.

5. Muggleborns not being allowed to get jobs.

6. Sirius going out and getting drunk and partying after he's been cleared. While that by itself is fine, when followed with lines like this...

7. Dumbledore being an idiot and:
- Stealing Harry's Money
- Hiding his magical heritage as Griffindor's Heir
- Hiding his normal inheritance
- Deliberately hiding Harry's medical records. (Referencing Abusive!Dursleys.)
- Monitoring his mail
- Ect, ect, ect.

8. Again, the goblins. They are mentioned practically every third paragraph.

My personal favorite, in chapter 20.

The goblins did this, the goblins think that. Sirius fucking paid to have a "Trial by goblin" since he didn't trust the ministry.

We've all seen it before. This story only being unique in just how many characters it can attempt to insult, and how unlikable the characters are.

Edit:

The fucking coup de grâce. In the last chapter, at the end, "Oliver Twist" is declared a traitor to the wizarding world, the entire ministry is locked down, all papers are sealed. Basically with Fudge as Supreme Dictator.

Amelia Bones Objects.

And do you know who she goes to? The muggle government.

After finishing this story, I alter my vote. The writing quality gets worse and worse with every chapter.

1/5. You're not missing anything if you skip the entire story.

 

Eh... it's okay. I've been reading it, but I realized I can basically skip chapters and not miss anything. So 2/5 for me.

 

Eh it a nice fluffy bit o bashing. and a quick read...

Not dlp library stuff, but fun.

 

While I agree with all of your other points, I can't say that I've ever read a fic with this idea before, which is intriguing because I've read (probably) thousands of HP fics. Oh, there are enough fics featuring katana!wielding Harry, martial arts, asian masters/sensei, and other generic japanophile cliches, but I don't recall any non-crossover fics that talk about the magical school(s) of Japan.

 

Then be proud that you started out with higher standards than the rest of us. I remember running into this a lot in the beginning, but I rarely see it now that I filter out most of the crap before it even reaches my screen.

 

Off the top of my head, the main fic that comes to mind that has Harry going to school in Japan is "30 Minutes that Changed Everything." It was in the almost recommended thread a while ago, I think.

---

As for this story, I agree with what everyone else said about it for the most part. It's just your stereotypical Indy!Harry fic with a cookie-cutter plot and 2-D characters. 2/5 for me as well, becausewhile it is readable, there's no reason you'd actually want to read it.

 

To be honest, it's pretty nice to see the press as something other than a Villain in HP fanfiction for once, and the writing is solid. A bit rushed in places though, and it's not without some of my pet peeves, but the story somehow works for me despite that. It's also one of the few stories I'm following at the moment that updates relatively consistently, which definitely colours my impressions.

This fic may be built on clichéd sand, but it's sure neat to look at from a far.

3/5 at the moment, but I might round up if the ending is good enough.

 

Tried it, didn't get far. The writing was bland, and the plot was dull and cliched. Seen it before, seen it done better. That said, the A/Ns claim it was written as part of the NaNoWriMo, so I can cut it a little slack. There presumably wasn't much time for editing, which would explain the numerous tense changes from paragraph to paragraph (hell, line to line at points).

2/5

 

Wow, Iztiak really did good work on this.

Also, I hate Harry's articles. Never seen a journalist!Harry that works >_<

2/5

 

Japan: it is a school - the best one, at that.

 

Because a typo obviously invalidates the point.

Japan has* the best magical school. Same as the other 800 stories that include Japan in any way.

Good job writing such a insightful statement into your opinion of this story.

Edit: Ignore the unnecessarily offensive wording. Not intended.

 

I guess the experience wasn't so ruined for me since it's the first of it's type that I've read. You all may have, but I've never seen a Reporter!Harry and I like the feel, even though I'll admit that the tense shifts get annoying and there are a few grammar mistakes. Guess that just means I'm neither as jaded nor as much of a writing nazi as you guys.

 

You're not as jaded or selective, and I envy you for it. I've read so many stories it's hard to find something new or that I enjoy.

 

If I took a shot whenever I ran into a cliche in this story I'd be unconscious before I finished it, but I still enjoyed it. Which is impressive, I suppose. Definitely recycle bin worthy.

 

Kind of a rip off of "Celestial Requiem," but the authors admit that, and Requiem was never finished. Not bad writing, very cliche-filled, but not a bad read.