I read Cassandra Clare's fanfiction and now I have to yap about it

SEE PINNED COMMENT- hey guys, I'm really sorry, but for whatever reason it seems like youtube's cut off the final two minutes of the video rather abruptly for no reason. I'd rather not take it down so just read the pinned comment which has what I said in it.
Before becoming one of the biggest YA novelists out there, Cassandra Clare was a mover and a shaker in the Harry Potter fandom. Her fanfiction defined future fan writing and lead to her professional career.
Join me as I dive right into this fic, one in which polyjuice potions don't wear off, queerbaiting is VERY homophobic, and love triangles are tedious as hell.
Follow me on Twitter: / davidm_423

[@fawnlowell6094]

the most unrealistic part about this fanfic is that hogwarts would send a kid home when theyre injured

[@DavidMChannel]

I just screamed 💀😂

[@manboy4720]

"did you speak your name into the goblet of fire?", dumbledore asked calmly = "DID YOU SPEAK YOUR NAME INTO THE GOBLET OF FIRE!?!?", he says as he violently beats the shit out of harry.

[@rayvenkman2087]

@@manboy4720 *DID YOU SPEAK YOUR NAME INTO THE GOBLET OF FIRE?* Dumbledore enquired, blasting Harry away with the Almighty spell Megidolaon. Said spell boosted by Almighty Boost, Almighty Amplifier and the support spell Concentrate for twice the damage output.

[@SuperStella1111]

You owe me a new keyboard! I just spewed out my drink. ❤

[@SilentProti]

​@@rayvenkman2087I see you're a person a culture as well.

[@Hazeljv3]

The idea of Voldemort being here for the teen drama and purposefully stirring up shit just for fun is so fucking funny to me

[@DavidMChannel]

Voldemorts the messy bitch on the reality show there to cause fights for the lols

[@FIRING_BLIND]

​@@DavidMChannel so he's the reason everyone even watches

[@iknowfacebutidontknowname5880]

“I thought you were gay” “I can see why you did” 💀💀💀 the way i cackled

[@martymcflown3707]

Narcissa and Sirius turning out to be cousins sounds like an actual plot twist Cassandra would come up with, to be fair.

[@DavidMChannel]

I mean shes still flirting with incest in the fic- the implied sexual tension between Draco and Harry does not stop after they become step-brothers

[@meddlesome-]

given that the main couple in the mortal instruments had a half-siblings twist iirc. yeah.

[@echowoods7977]

she literally wrote ron x ginny incest fic

[@ladyblubel]

@@DavidMChannel This is on-point considering that the male lead’s adoptive brother canonically had a crush on the male lead in The Mortal Instruments

[@paigemosher8697]

​@@echowoods7977 That the Mortal Instruments series was NAMED AFTER. She really thought she was being slick istg

[@alicefade]

Harry: Draco is only nice because of my niceness Also Harry: Insults Narcissa’s blanket gift, irrationally mad at Hermione, starts a full on fist fight with Draco

[@DavidMChannel]

Harry's the fucking worst lmao. Both of these prospective love interests just need to leave Hermione the fuck alone. And she needs higher standards.

[@alicefade]

@@DavidMChannelI literally could not agree more 😭 or better yet date each other instead! Hermione does not need to be dealing with either of them

[@DavidMChannel]

@@alicefade if they date each other they can make one another miserable instead and I for one am here for that tbh

[@TheAstip]

I mean, the argument would be he is mean because draco is mean?

[@froggyringu]

@@TheAstipHarry has always been mean. Source: book 3.

[@miadaorerk1681]

it took me 57 minutes to realize ron was absolutely non existent in this fic absolutely incredible

[@DavidMChannel]

hes in it VERY briefly towards the end but yeah- CC just does not care much for the character at all xD

[@QuaePanemEtCircenses]

@@DavidMChannel and yet, didn't the mortal instruments start as ginny/ron fanfic? was that just a rumor

[@DavidMChannel]

@@QuaePanemEtCircenses the name is similar but the plot of the books is a lot closer to this and its sequel. the plot summary for the fanfiction titled 'mortal instruments' on FanLore bares no resembelance to the events of the mortal instruments trilogy. its literally ron and ginny comitting incest at the burrow whilst they're their on there own.

[@QuaePanemEtCircenses]

@@DavidMChannel 😲 Yikes!!

[@Heather_Duke]

With the lack of Ron in this fic and the Ron/Ginny fic Cassandra wrote, it's no wonder people thought that she hated Ron (and Ginny). Seriously. I found out about the Ron/Ginny fic after googling Cassandra Clare and reading the fanlore page about her when Shadowhunters premiered.

[@britnicox3929]

Not me thinking this whole time that this series was a Draco/Harry fanfiction - I have no idea where I got this idea from but I was very shocked when him and Hermione kissed lol

[@DavidMChannel]

the series at times feels like its more about harry and dracos relationship tbf and it gets increasingly queer-baity as it goes on. Clare keeps flirting with the idea that the two of them will do or be *something* but it never goes anywhere. its strangely infuriating

[@kaemincha]

only 8 minutes into this video and thats literally what i thought this was

[@MeowRealest]

18 minutes in and I only realized it wasn’t when the t-slur from Harry came up

[@SomeRPGFan]

I somehow thought she wrote Draco/Ginny and that is why the two leads from Moral Instruments kind of looked like Draco and Ginny.

[@DavidMChannel]

@@SomeRPGFan *looks at book 2* funny you should mention that...

[@morgan1076]

Lucious sounding like the Potter puppet pals version of snape really elevates the experience

[@InvaderGIR98]

Everytime he says "boy" i choke, its so funny for some reason

[@thegoodwitchluzura]

Snape, Snape, Severus Snape.

[@thelexicon7294]

55:55 You don’t know what I would give to have Draco take his M-emblazoned ring with the family crest, flip it over so it’s a W, and declares that from now on he will be a Weasley. And this is how we discover that Ron has actually been a part of this story all along, and Draco’s niceness was actually a result of Ron’s rare moments of chill.

[@DavidMChannel]

this is the best ending. if only

[@aceoflights.]

"Draco" being sent home because he supposedly believes he is someone else and thus appears to beentally unwell seems unrealistic for a school that literally puts the students education over their lives. I feel like Madame Pomfrey would just be like "here drink this potion that heals your brain and get outta here"

[@DavidMChannel]

hogwarts is designed to facilitate adventure and not actual education. this is why its such a stupidly irresponsible and dangerous institution if you think about it as an adult tbh

[@aceoflights.]

@@DavidMChannel Exactly! If there was any regard for the students wellbeing more than half the stuff in the books would never have happened. (And Snape would haven been fired for bullying children)

[@DavidMChannel]

@@aceoflights. The best example of this I can think of is the detention in book 1 where the school decides its completely appropriate to send a bunch of eleven year olds into the 'Forbidden Forest' to investigate something with a teacher. That is at worst potentially life endangering, and the least extremely traumatizing. what are you doing.

[@thelexicon7294]

@@DavidMChannelEspecially given that Dumbledore himself explicitly warns them against going into the forest in his start-of-term speech. 😂 Whatever for, if you’ll ship them off there yourself if they’re caught out of bed after hours (which, let’s be real, probably happens to at least a dozen students nightly)?

[@elliganzweitweg]

I have rwatched this masterpiece about 5 times now and only now realised that Ron is not in this fic at all

[@DavidMChannel]

he's in a few scenes I gloss over and he's part of the rescue but- YEP. Cassandra Clare just HATES Ron. He is cartoonishly irrelevant. And I'm so pleased you enjoy it! Thank you!!!

[@Black_pearl_adrift]

😭 omg??

[@cryptikkcries]

​@@DavidMChanneli thought she wrote ron/ginny fics???

[@DavidMChannel]

she wrote a single one which was p shocking for a lot of her fans at the time iirc

[@cryptikkcries]

@@DavidMChannel i mean yeah theyre siblings 😭😭

[@leothelion6245]

It's CRAZYYY how gay Cassandra makes Harry and draco considering theyre supposed to be in love with Hermione..... Oh they NEED each other (but not in a gay way that's gross)....... Like Cassie WHAT DO U MEANNNN

[@DavidMChannel]

she later toyed with including explicit slash in the next book. they never get together but man there's a lot of "WOW WERE SO HORNY 4 EACHOTHER BUT NO HOMO". its....something.

[@saulgoodthey]

maybe if she releases a spanish translation….

[@gremloid]

@@saulgoodthey i felt my soul leave my body reading this. the spn finale haunts me everywhere i go

[@saulgoodthey]

@@gremloid hehe ;3c

[@heelturn2]

@@saulgoodthey thjs made me lose 50 years off my lifespan

[@ona3779]

As far as I can remember, Lucius Malfoy met Hermione in the Chamber of Secrets book & film, he would have recognised her as Hermione Granger and would have probably remembered her given that Draco has canonically talked a lot about her. It isn't the only plot hole in the fanfic, but still, anyway.

[@DavidMChannel]

this crossed my mind too- my assumption is that shes changed enough in the past four-ish years for this not to be a dead give-away

[@jasminv8653]

'WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING YOU MOTHERFUCKERS' 😂😂 i appreciated that

[@thelexicon7294]

Very goffik of David to include it

[@meeomelovescookiesandhisto459]

This was randomly recommended to me and I misread the title as "now I have to rap about it" so I went in with all the wrong expectations, but I'm not mad about it. I hope your channel gets fed to more new people, this was a great watch!

[@genevievelok9496]

The fact that this woman doesn’t have an archive of like 3000 Kingdom Hearts fics frankly astonishes me - you would think the Sora Riku Kairi dynamic would be so far up her alley it would be illegally trespassing in her backyard LOL

[@DavidMChannel]

CC doesn't strike me as a gamer but who knows! maybe she was a fan and she took inspiration, you never know!

[@genevievelok9496]

@@DavidMChannel LOL I *was* mostly joking, there are and were a ton of anime series that did the same thing too for a start, but it’s actually true - maybe she was one of those people who had a friend she watched play! 😂

[@Pandachu123]

PLEASE KEEP HER AWAY FROM KINGDOM HEARTS FOR THE LOVE OF GOD WE DON'T WANT HER 😭😭😭

[@thenumbertwo9136]

As a queer person i laughed my ass off when lucius was like 'oh good i thought you were gay.' Its such a stupid repeating joke but its just funny to me for whatever reason

[@gnilda8955]

25:22 "what the hell are you doing motherfuckers" girl i see what u did there 😭

[@DavidMChannel]

STOP FLAMING :PPPPP

[@susenkovyalchymista4261]

Discovered you through Crow Caller's comment section and I'm so glad I did! "Long ass recap of a book/fan fiction I have never read" is my favourite genre of YT videos. If you're going to do more, I'll be looking forward to it!

[@yoogrldude]

Same tbh XD any other channel recommendations? I loved cari can read’s acotar series too lol

[@stormystohelit6256]

​@@yoogrldude krimsonrogue!

[@yoogrldude]

@@stormystohelit6256 they kinda give me “all bad no good” vibes with the video titles, one of the things I like about crow (and this video) is appreciating some lighter funny things and being able to not hate every little thing. Any best vids for that?

[@Moony1568]

@@yoogrldude Krim is not all negative. He gives genuine writing advice by using bad books as examples on what not to do and every now and then he will give the authors credit when they do something well. Plus he’s funny. I personally really like his breakdowns on Ready Player 2 and some Star Wars book (I forget the name). And he does have more positive reviews on his channel (though some of them pretty old now. He’s pretty focused on the long form breakdowns as of late).

[@Banuna]

Without question the knowledge that Lucius was shoved into a trunk is the highlight of my day

[@CatsandDragons7]

I hate that I’m compelled to correct this but HP used to be a special interest of mine before the TERFening, but “finite incantatum” is in fact a canon spell

[@DavidMChannel]

Its been pointed out yeah. my bad! 😂

[@CatsandDragons7]

@@DavidMChannel great video though! I’m glad it popped up in my recommended videos. Hope to see more of these!

[@miledith555]

That and Wormtail's hand. He couldn't use it as a wand but he did get a silver hand created by Voldemort. He also died by that same hand because Voldy made it so any sign of betrayal or weakness would make the hand turn on Pettigrew and strangle him.

[@Kathrynkara]

When I heard they switched bodies I though for sure Draco was going to live in the muggle world for the summer as harry, but I have a feeling I’m going to be very disappointed.

[@DavidMChannel]

Now this would be interesting. Dunno how long he'd survive or how long he'd be able to go without using magic though

[@fenrik8178]

Well even if they weren’t established as cousins in canon yet Cassandra does have a tendency to include some kind of semi-almost/sometimes actual-lncest in her works from what I understand (Never read much of her, just watched a very extensive video detailing that) so it kind of fits.

[@DavidMChannel]

Im now imagining Cassandra Clare realizing she did an accidental-incest and thinking “….wait I kinda like that” qajdskaldpcla

[@jAkiosn]

@@DavidMChannel You kind of don't know half of it lol. This is her at the most moderate. The original Mortal Instruments fic was a bonafide incest fic, and the Published original work of The Mortal Instruments, the six classic novels of the longer "Shadow Hunters Chronicles" has incest or quasi-incest as a running theme. First with the main two romantic leads hook up, and then we get a long story arc about them thinking they are siblings while fighting to supress the romantic feelings they build before this fake fact. This is revealed to be false and they can now hook up, but its not really the end of it as the Biological brother of the main character turns up, and while he is ampt up on demon blood is still extremely horny for the main character anyway, its more extreme in the books. But even in the TV series he still tries to forcibly kiss her several times, and manage to at some point. Some who have read the later Shadow Hunters books series say that the theme of incest is phased out later in the book series after TMI, but i have not read them yet. But the moral is, it is one of her things, and she is very aware even from as early as her fandom days. And an interview have her allegedly say that if the two main characters were siblings for real, she doubt the publishers would pick it up. So she knows, and she is maybe dialing it back for mainstream consumption. Nothing accidental about it i fear.

[@DavidMChannel]

So, slight correction-Im familiar with the plot of the OG fic. its got next to nothing to do with the later novels outside of incest (and even there the incest in the novels is accidental in the first instance). otherwise theyre nothing alike. im aware shes got a fixation though, trust me

[@caixucook3]

​@@jAkiosnyeah but in the series after tmi, the main character and love interest are basically adopted siblings, like Jace and Alec in tmi

[@jAkiosn]

@@caixucook3 Interesting did not know that, thanks.

[@Chattyaddy09]

hearing you say that this is the most long winded and annoying love triangle is SO FUNNY, because literally every shadowhunters series has a long-winded and annoying love triangle. love triangles are just her thing i guess

[@DavidMChannel]

Love triangles are a popular trope in fairness but man, this ones truly insufferable. I dread to think what they're like in her ongoing series

[@zi2651]

The Ron erasure is what upsets me the most 😭😭😭

[@DavidMChannel]

the way the fandom just hated Ron afjasfjas;la its sad

[@zi2651]

@@DavidMChannel Right? He's always been my favorite 🥺

[@DavidMChannel]

@@zi2651 #rondemption

[@reuvenn6888]

Most fanfic have a bone to pick either Ron with a passion of an erupting volcano. LMAO. Which is sad since he is my favourite character.

[@moontokkym_art]

I clicked into this and watched the whole thing, I went to the comments to look at what others thought and thought it was weird only 19 comments for nearly 500k views. Then I realised it's nearly 500 views. I really hope your channel picks up because I love this sort of thing but I know it's work intensive and it can be kind of disheartening when you do so much with little feedback, you seem really sweet too. You deserve cupcakes, my friend.

[@slushmonsterz]

ik this video is kind of older now but as someone who has read all of her books, the smell thing is absolutely a thing that’s brought up often in like all the romance pairings she writes. its really weird and whenever i see it its an eyebrow raise,

[@DavidMChannel]

I keep thinking it may be worthwhile to read her professional writing to compare. Obviously this is older, likely didn't go through a professional editor, and so on, but Im curious how if her language or use of tropes is at all similar to what she did here. She did take some inspiration from her fanfic writing. "Mortal Instruments" is the title of a fic she wrote and whilst both it and her series have incest they're not otherwise similar, and Im told she borrowed aspects of one of her OCs backstories for someone in that series as well, So Im wondering about the overlap. (MI also by the sound of it seems to be taking cues from both Harry Potter and Buffy as its starting point, which is fine imo. nothing wrong with taking inspiration as long as you make it your own)

[@slushmonsterz]

@@DavidMChannel just letting you know the first book in the mortal instruments series is not the best, it’s probably her weakest book and her weakest series, not saying its ALL bad, i feel like thats a misconception a lot of people have about it. Theyre not great but theyre not outstanding. A really good series of hers is infernal devices, that’s probably her best work in my opinion. Her writing is very troupey and melodramatic at times but it definitely improves. Same goes for the world building it branches off from these og inspirations a lot by the end. Clare herself is kind of a defensive person but especially when it comes to the incest thing 💀 i feel like i wouldnt go as far as to say she likes it yknow i feel like shes just too defensive to admit it was weird so shes just decided to roll with it as a thing, which is definitely wrong ofc. And she has a habit of being defensive about this in the book by making these villian characters believe in incest or whatever and then the main character will be like “that’s disgusting!” which i THINK(?) might be her trying to say its wrong but just makes her seem like she actively wants it in her books, but thats just giving her the benefit of the doubt. She also uses a love triangle a lot the only time it has worked effectively in my opinion was in infernal devices, but in her other books its honestly unnecessary.

[@theweyrd]

I feel like it is used to flesh out the experience , but if it gets too specific, people can be put off by it too.

[@thelexicon7294]

@@DavidMChannel The thing is: the Mortal Instruments was painfully obviously meant to be a trilogy (which, yes, borrows from her Draco trilogy). Then she randomly decided to add three more books to it. And if she was already kinda famous for awful pacing, lacking a meaningful plot, teen melodrama, weird pointless incest… she amped it up to eleven in those added three books. Yeah, City of Bones is poorly written, but at least she had a general idea. Those latter additions are just abominable. And yes, she lifted an ungodly amount of things from HP - though not verbatim, so I guess it flies. I found out about her past midway through book 2 when I could no longer ignore the blatant similarities and googled her name alongside “HP”. Boy, was that an eye-opening afternoon.

[@ukonnokia]

Hermione: where you forced to spill our secrets? Draco later: I lied because they didn't even ask me if I was forced.

[@lalalalalalal4]

I came in thinking this was a Drarry fanfic because of the introduction you gave :') I was like "wow, I didn't know she wrote Drarry, she was an adamant DracoxHermione fanfic writer" and then I was proven wrong in the worst way possible 🧍‍♀️dude... The no homo but yes homo scenes were painful to listen to 😭😭😭 how did you tolerate that? (I loved this video btw lol)

[@selectivelysocial7117]

I thought it was Drarry too! I didn't really believe that the sexual tension was real (I figured there might just be a lot of fighting) and then he read the excerpt and I died.

[@lalalalalalal4]

@@selectivelysocial7117 the whole premise of the two exchanging bodies is fruity on it itself 😭😭😭😭 Cassandra was wild

[@miles2757]

I love your lucius Malfoy voice, you going "boy" like that was making me lose it lol

[@DavidMChannel]

Book 2 is coming October Tenth! Love Potions! Time-Travel! Necromancy!!

[@redblaquegolden]

Please do it. Plez!!!

[@vlbarbara]

you might want to pin this comment now that there are a lot of other comments :)

[@DavidMChannel]

@@vlbarbara I thought I had! I must've forgotten to months ago or accidentally unpinned it. fixed that now, thank you!

[@electronicfox8153]

I really hope you do the rest of the series. I’m kind of invested now.

[@Aphrobiteme]

I'd love to see more of the trilogy from you

[@7sinclr]

i tend to watch book/fanfic reviews while i'm doing other things, and this one was a really great listen! you did a fantastic job summarizing the fic sufficiently so i don't have to wind up reading it myself, and your voice is really calming. also, i am so hoping that 25:22 was a My Immortal reference because it made me cackle WAY too loud

[@DavidMChannel]

that it was! and not the only MI reference in the video xD I've read My Immortal more times than I've read the original Harry Potter books so I slip up and say 'Death Dealers' instead of 'Death Eaters at one point. I also jokingly call the killing curse 'abra kedabra' also- thank you! I'm quite pleased that you enjoyed it even if (I feel at least) the final product was a mess. it's great to know people enjoy watching/listenign to the video as I did making it.

[@amywhite2938]

dude i have been crossing my fingers someone would make a video essay on this fic for SO LONG. like it fascinates me but no way in hell i was gonna read it myself. thank u for your service

[@DavidMChannel]

Hope you enjoyed it!

[@jginge67]

I think I had the thought 'why aren't they just polyamorous???' like 5000 times through this video,,,, it was brilliant btw!!

[@neddles33]

50:34 I'm so glad I'm not the only one who sometimes slips up and calls them Death Dealers

[@DavidMChannel]

Im glad it's taken over a year for someone to notice I did that xD but I feel that. I've reread My Immortal several times in the last six years and haven't touched any of the HP books so it makes sense for the wires to get crossed

[@Tareltonlives]

I remember trying to read the Draco trilogy back when it was popular- it was excruciatingly painful. The purple prose, the plot contrivances, the nonsensical magic, the ridiculously out of character dramatis personae and the very premise of the trilogy- it was horrible, just horrible. I made it three chapters in before I declared eternal enmity to Clare and her fandom.

[@DavidMChannel]

The craziest thing is that I think there's some stuff in this book at least that is entertaining even if its overall kind of mediocre. The plot is engaging when her writing style isn't sabotaging it. The next book is hampered by the worst things about this one- the gung-ho stealing of quotes and chapters that go on for forever for no reason.....and also shows how she (and a lot of the fandom at the time it seems) did not understand even the most basic things Rowling was trying to do with her books. And the books arent super deep, so thats saying a lot. Her fandom was surreal as hell though I agree- people calling her a 'goddess', I saw one person saying she evoked Rowling's voice uncannily (which is astonishingly hard to believe).

[@Tareltonlives]

@@DavidMChannel She does have pretty wild and creative ideas. It's just that she doesn't express them well- she goes back to her Buffy quotes and purple prose. If you dig under the cliches and toxicity of Mortal Instruments there's some good ideas but they're buried until that other crap that she just loves. She loves stuff that isn't necessarily good for the story or setting .

[@DavidMChannel]

​@@Tareltonlives I sometimes think about reading some of her published work to compare and contrast- obviously having a professional editors gonna help, but Im wondering about similarities in tropes, themes, or prose. Im told her most recent stuffs gotten more long-winded so I wonder if shes actually learned anything in the decades since. As for wild story ideas, here's a teaser for book 2 of the Draco Trilogy- Salazar Slitherins back from the dead and hes the villain

[@Tareltonlives]

@@DavidMChannel Again, while shades of "Somehow Palpatine returned", it's a creative idea. I understand there's very little difference between her fanfic days and published days- she got away with it scot free so it's not encouraging any growth.

[@elliganzweitweg]

I went on a msscribe deep dive again this week and this came up in my recommendations. Can't wait for this break down

[@DavidMChannel]

let me guess- strange aeons? I adore her stuff

[@elliganzweitweg]

@David M yes but also some deep dives into Cassandra Clare's plagiarism and all in all shotty behaviour. Have you seen the episode of when posting goes wrong? I used to fall asleep to it for weeks at some point

[@DavidMChannel]

Yup- its brilliant. A bit sad they decided to end that series. and yeah...a lot of CC's behavior at the time is pretty damn awful. I gloss over it here because it feels a little overblown compared to, say, her allegedly trying to get a college student fired. It's also a lot worse in Draco Sinister

[@SuperStella1111]

I still dream about Msscribe sometimes…

[@emmyrose233]

Cassandra Clare is one of the people that makes me grateful for separating art from the artist because I genuinely enjoy some of her published books, but just about everything else she's ever done makes me want to die. Btw this video was so funny, I hope your channel blows up!

[@DavidMChannel]

Thank you! I'm glad you had fun. As for her behavior- I kind of hope that she's matured in the two decades since her fandom days. I want to give her the benefit of the doubt at the very least.

[@Flareontoast]

I'd love for you to do the rest of the trilogy, it's absolutely batshit and entertaining to watch

[@pkae]

I am now so invested and only want to hear you talk about this series because your narration is so captivating

[@DavidMChannel]

notes are being taken! 😁

[@CarrionCarriesOn]

Finite Incantatem is used like once in the second movie and as a trans person I hate that my knowledge of Harry Potter stretches that far

[@meddlesome-]

I was about to comment about that, I found it in the unofficial spellbook I have for some reason

[@CarrionCarriesOn]

@@meddlesome- It goes even further with how Finite was an already existing spell in the books, the movies tend to do the thing where they add a thing to an existing spell a lot, like how they took Reparo and added Oculus to it so that one spell only works on glasses, or taking Lumos and adding both Solem and Maxima for two different versions of just like light. Again, I hate that I have this information burned into my head but it's there to stay lol.

[@nephthis42]

So I was reading this when it was coming out live and I distinctly remember leaving off on one of the chapters with the Manor’s booby traps, but then never going back to finish it. Now I know how it ended! 😬 You have a very soothing voice!

[@mamachuipala]

Thank you for sparing us the trial of reading this work of art ! Loved the way you recaped the story. I'll be looking foward to a part 2 if you decide to do one.

[@vlbarbara]

i was revisiting reads with rachel's series on cassandra clare and i'm so glad this video got recommended to me afterwards because i became quite curious about her fanfiction. loved the video, hope that you continue with the other books!

[@DavidMChannel]

I'm so glad! Im seriously considering it now

[@mashawinchell1554]

What is this Rachel series?

[@Lo0serx3]

I read the Ron/Ginny fic she wrote and it was absolutely insane lol I hope you do the other Draco trilogy because I'm too scared to read it for myself lol also please do a video about the series of unfortunate events Netflix show

[@DavidMChannel]

Im surprised you were able to find it, it seems like its been erased from the internet. Id rather not read it but I did poke around to see if there was any information on it. I have been thinking a lot about ASOUE recently, so perhaps I shall!

[@Lo0serx3]

@@DavidMChannel I found it on scribd of all places, if that helps. I could log in to my account and send it along to you if you'd like, but it's incredibly cursed. :p I've been thinking a lot about it lately, too!! and no video essay seems to accurately explain why it's so incredible to me.

[@DavidMChannel]

@@Lo0serx3 I think its amazing but also very flawed....so I've mixed feelings. My biggest complaints are the handling of Olaf and the VFD mystery as a whole (it makes the Baudelaires seem really stupid unintentionally) but it also does so much *so* well. As for the fic- well, thanks for the heads up. I *think* I'll pass. The archivist in me's glad it's been saved but that doesn't mean I want to read it xD. The summary on fanlore.net was enough

[@MegaKaitouKID1412]

Gotta say, I really love the effect that Harry Potter fandom has had on Harry Potter discussion-- Lucius Malfoy being pronounced like AVPM rather than like the movies, and don't think I didn't hear you call them "Voldemort and the Death Dealers" at least once hahaha.

[@DavidMChannel]

...was I saying Lucius wrong? Im positive I've heard others say it like that too. Also the Death Dealers bit was a completely subliminal slip of the tongue, in my defense I've read My Immortal more recently than I'd read the books xD

[@MegaKaitouKID1412]

@@DavidMChannel I mean, it's been 84 years since I've seen the movies at this point, so maybe I'm the one misremembering, but I'm pretty sure the movies went with a pronunciation more like "lucy-us".

[@DavidMChannel]

maybe its an 'asio' vs 'akkiyo' kind of thing, different places saying it differnetly

[@micahfoley9572]

"If you support JK Rowling, get out." Fucking based.

[@DavidMChannel]

shitty fanfiction? *chefs kiss* transphobia? get outta here

[@cooraa]

You have a very pleasant voice and are a great narrator. I've never really gotten into the HP series but the visualisation and explanations from you were more than enough to help me understand this fanfic. Hope to see more videos like this from you! ☻

[@DavidMChannel]

Wow, thank you!

[@sg_dan]

Wow ok so I'm 35 so I was around when this fic was happening - I was never that into the HP Fandom but just enough to know what was happening, like these fics, Ms ScribeGate and The Snapewives - but I had no recollection of Cassandra ripping off the Sith Code and using it for the Malfoy family moto. 😂😂😂 What I mean to say is Thank you for the leisurely stroll down the memory lane of early 2000s problematic fanfics 😂

[@gigglegirl4894]

I appreciate the my immortal reference you slipped in 25:22

[@bluebirdhumming]

as a Professional Fanfic Reader i will say the pacing is just an issue of fanfic as a whole, reading it all together going from short to massive chapters absolutely sucks but i can imagine reading it as it released getting these massive chapters on update day was probably like a blessing

[@SummerSommerSummer]

Gosh what a trowback to my teens when I used to be so involved the harru potter fandom. Great to catch up with all the english fics i never read as a kid. It has been years since I have read any fic at all but gosh IM SO INVOLDED. I really hope there will be videos for the next two parts because I know it will be less funny if I read them myself lmao

[@claiternaiter446]

I’m used to reading fan fics where the characters have canonically enhanced senses of smell, so seeing scents described didn’t seem so weird. Had no idea fics with ppl with normal senses did that too 😆

[@spacerangersam1311]

I could be wrong but I swear I've seen the claim that one of the things she liked to quote/plagarise was the TV show Red Dwarf, and in Red Dwarf there is an episode where two of the main characters switch bodies and while one is showering, he finds out the other guy us, uh, well endowed. It could be a coincidence that a similar thing happens in her fic but...

[@DavidMChannel]

oh, she did yes! amongst other tv shows but that makes a lot of sense! It likely is another of her 'homages' to things she likes then

[@ExactlywhyImfree-vt2fw]

This is now the only way I have ever consummed this fic and from what I've heard I feel relatively confident in saying that I'd prefer to keep it that way. But honestly, I'm glad I got this video randomly recommended today, it was a fun watch! Keep up the good work!

[@merliiiinn]

I keep coming back to this and watching it again. I've been waiting for someone to cover some iconically weird fanfic in this sort of stile for such a long time! I hope you do the other parts as well, your voice is so soothing to listen too and you made this so fun!

[@mcowley895]

Can't believe it took me six months to find this video. Thank you for your service!

[@sidney9796]

right? glad my recommendations finally took me here

[@mmsjjdjdh]

same! such a great, in depth video!

[@erinrae1089]

I think the inconsistent pacing is due to the way fan fic was written back then. It would have been dropped- and written- bit by bit with reader feedback on each chapter. I’m sure readers were pushing Casandra to write more with each chapter drop, especially as the fic got more and more popular. This doesn’t mean the weird bottom heavy structure is good but it does kinda explain it. Like, if you’ve been waiting a month for the next chapter release then you probably want a meaty chapter- even if not that much of importance happens in it.

[@DavidMChannel]

the thing is you can find the posting schedule online- this was released over about three months. Which is, to be fair, a really impressive output. I can't fault Cassandra's work ethic at the least. I do think the serialization of fanfiction is partially to blame though, yeah. Maybe she felt an intense pressure to put out as much as possible despite the short gaps between chapters.

[@erinrae1089]

@@DavidMChannel that’s interesting, I definitely figured the rate of upload would be much slower. Thanks for the insight. I enjoyed the vid!

[@Heather_Duke]

I haven't fully read Cassandra's previous fanfics, but fanlore had little snippets of her fics on their page about her. The part that has stuck out in my mind since I read it a few years ago after Shadowhunters first premiered is when Harry and Draco switch bodies. Draco!Harry is in the shower and looks down and utters, "well done, Potter" or something similar. On the subject of the story having Hermione not understand how other girl's think, it makes me giggle because in the fifth book, we literally have her being the one to explain to Harry and Ron why Cho was crying after kissing Harry. Also, lol at Narcissa and Sirius getting married. It also wasn't until a few years ago that Cassandra was responsible for the term, "Draco in leather pants".

[@DavidMChannel]

there’s been a lot of discussion (rightly so I feel) in recent years about internalized mysoginy in Rowling’s writing but I actually think Clare’s fanfiction is a lot worse in that regard. Hermione does take pride in appearance and some feminine things and does understand how other girls think. if anything she’s doing like half the emotional labor for her two rather dim witted guy friends in the books. She makes a point of looking amazing at the yule ball. She may not get along with other girls her age but shes definitley not ‘one of the guys’ as it were.

[@Coramichelebooks]

The step brother reveal at the end made me die laughing 😂 I hope you cover the rest of these stories! I have literally never read or watch anything Harry Potter, but was a big mortal instruments fan when it first came out, so this is super entertaining for me. LMAO.

[@chloeclarke9495]

This is so funny!! You should do this with E. L. James. Fifty Shades started as a Twilight fanfic.

[@DavidMChannel]

I've got issues with 50 Shades....its depiction of BDSM is....troubling if not outright stigmatizing to say the least. so its a thought, thank you!

[@Niobesnuppa]

I understand it's fanfiction and all, but there's so many assumptions made about Narcissa and Lucius in this story. There's not really any evidence that Lucius is abusive to either his wife or son in the actual books, and no sign that Narcissa has a problem with the dark arts, though granted she had barely even been in the books by that point, so anything about her would probably be a big assumption, but it's just such an extreme thing. I also am kind of bothered by how the only thing she ever does in the story is crying and fainting, it's like she's straight out of a very stereotypical Victorian novel or something. I understand she's meant to be an abused wife, but still.

[@DavidMChannel]

my favorite example of this is when she just straight up faints when Sirius is brought in like WHAT. EDIT: something I didnt think of when writing this comment- its basically implied she's a r*pe victim? if she was under the imperius curse up until Draco was born thats.....really fucked up. And Im fine with exploring darker subjects but that implications not even acknowledged.

[@Niobesnuppa]

@@DavidMChannel Bizarre and questionable writing choices all around, honestly.

[@rosecoloredchloe]

on my third rewatch and just now noticing all the my immortal references

[@DavidMChannel]

What can I say, I'm a goff at heart!

[@briefisbest]

I think you unlocked a core memory because I still remembered what the characters were said to smell like.

[@chelsey8737]

This is a specific kind of wonderful 😂

[@caricanread]

omg you really suffered for the people lol also my name is spelled incorrectly in your tags if you want to fix that for seo :)

[@DavidMChannel]

oh my gosh you saw my comment ahahahah Im in shock. And thank you! I'll fix that asap :) I loved the Mortal Instruments video by the way- the series seems very pulpy but I can see why it got popular, incest plot aside

[@wickedcoolghost]

Harry/Hermione shippers made Ron an asshole for no reason. It was A Thing.

[@ClaraPezzini]

First of all, sorry about my weird english! Not my native language and I'm not used to write in english. I don't usually comment on YT, I'm more of a lurker, and I don't have any remote interest in HP (never had one) or in Cassandra Clare's work (outside of the drama she always seems to be in, I *love* the MsScribe drama and how batshit insane everything about it was), but I'm very interested in the history of fandom circles, and I really loved your video! Didn't think that I would sit around 1hr20 of somebody telling me about a fic I would not think to read out of my own volition, but I did sit around! And really enjoyed it! I love your style, feels like a friend of mine telling me about something crazy they read on the internet, even with the use of a phone as a mic, feels like somebody sending me an audio message. If you're thinking about doing the other books or similar content, I'll be around, or if you decide to do something else I'm pretty sure I'll stick around too. Hope this video blows up and your channel grows!

[@cryptikkcries]

watching this again and i love how you included the illustration, i miss when fic authors would add those in

[@DavidMChannel]

I just wish I could find the original artist so I could properly credit. but yeah! It's fun

[@Densomsadet]

Do more of these! I’m always on the lookout for these kind of Jenny/Mikes Mic/Cari summary videos and you have exactly the vibe I enjoy. Very funny and can make such a random subject interesting. Keep up the good work 💪💪

[@DavidMChannel]

More to come! Not sure I have the space to set up pictures+the pointer but Im sure ill think of something haha

[@DavidMChannel]

Recap of book 2's coming in October!

[@HobbylessWolf]

I'm clicking that bell just in case you decide to go through the next book. I doubt I'd like the fic by itself but you made it quite entertaining, and thanks for the hard work. Going through a long winded badly paced fic was probably not easy 😅

[@Grateful.knits99]

My algorithm should’ve known I’d have wanted this as soon as it uploaded not half a year later

[@DavidMChannel]

the algorithm giveth and the algorithm taketh. it is unknowable. (enjoy!)

[@rosie321go5]

OMIGOSH I LOVE THIS. the way you talk and present your notes, the delivery, the content, PLEASE I would absolutely love it if you did more, I think I just fell in love with your narration 😭 I would deffo watch if you did the other parts of this series

[@DavidMChannel]

thank you! I've got a few things lined up before I start working on a sequel but the next project (after the one I just filmed) is gonna cover Cassie's plagiairsm scandal IN DETAIL. I hope you stick around for that :D

[@rosie321go5]

@@DavidMChannel aah, of course! I would love to see that, and will be awaiting patiently xD

[@alittlefruitfairy]

This is the content I come to KZbin for, PLEASE do more of this trilogy

[@mcthurman8822]

Hermione is a jkr self insert, so in this she becomes a Cassandra Clare self insert

[@DavidMChannel]

shes too poorly written to be anyones self-insert in this tbh. and I like to think Hermiones a much more well-rounded character by the end of the series to be anything like JKR. even if its not intended

[@stardoogalaxie9314]

Im ngl Draco Dormiens is a lil more entertaining than whatever j k rotten came up with. Like!! In the seventh book she basically laughs at the idea of using a sword to kill voldemort with Harry sort of balking at Scrimgeour when he suggests at using the sword of Gryffindor and he’s like “you cant just… put a sword through Voldemort thats not how it works.” But like? Honestly? Putting a sword through Voldemorts main form definitely makes shit easier if youre closer to destroying his fuckin horcruxes. God what a major hack that woman is

[@theevilonewholaughs]

Oh thank God, the long winded review I needed of a fic I had no intention of reading

[@DavidMChannel]

I aim to please! 😁

[@SDJHSFDH]

As a drarry connoisseur this entire thing is making me snicker

[@DavidMChannel]

Its very strange to read a fanfiction (ie something where slash is common) where the authors being this agressively baity

[@ixeliema]

I hope you do more stuff like this, you have a really contagious energy and I found myself fully immersed in this messy fic despite knowing Cassie's style and I don't jive anymore (middle school me disagrees)

[@DavidMChannel]

It's so bad, but its so enthralling despite that. I cant describe it

[@ixeliema]

@@DavidMChannel The fact that you say this tells me you're already reading more...and I must say 🫡 thank you for your service.

[@DavidMChannel]

@@ixeliema oh I read the first two draco trilogy books on a whim like 8 months ago xD didn't plan to make them into videos but they kind of consumed my brain space. Book 2 is....painful. legitamately painful. But Im planning to start taking notes for a sequel to this video xD

[@jasminv8653]

I love how this really is just Ron Weasly discrimination specifically. He just doesn't exist. Draco is him now, plot and character wise. No gingers allowed in CC world (unless for... You know let's not go there.)

[@DavidMChannel]

He does get more to do in Draco Sinister (recap coming later this year!) but like...he's fifth wheeling. it gets so bad that Cassie has to acknowledge how weird it is that we're seeing more of a connection between Draco and Harry than him and Ron. The fandom seemed to just hate him in general- Maybe him being shitty about House Elves stuff in book 4 was elated? But I think its more because a large portion of the fandom shipped Harry/Hermione

[@DavidMChannel]

and speaking of red headed female protagonists, and there edge lord blonde boyfriends....well, watch this space😬

[@kajamiletic3223]

NGL having seen all the Carri Can Read ACOTAR retellings and a bunch of other similar vids on popular YA stuff, the plot of this actually sounds way more interesting and specific than any of those and I can see why she is popular. I actually tried to read this like ten years ago but hated the writing style so much I didn't make it past like the first couple of scenes, though, so I guess you win some and then you lose some

[@DavidMChannel]

part of my interest here is tracing what *worked* in these fics. its all aggressively 'fanficcy' but there's aspects to her approach to writing that feel very YA so it makes sense she got published, if that makes sense. They're still painful to get through, but, its not entirely lacking

[@kajamiletic3223]

​​​@@DavidMChannel I like that her characters have agency, stuff is happening and people are reacting, relatively reasonably within the confines of the genre, to what is happening, and the consequences of their actions are shown. They have goals they are working towards, kinda. Thinking back on SJM in particular this NEVER happens with her, the protagonist is always kinda wandering around until she stumbles into the plot and there's a huge contrast between a really sketched in main plot that people are hardly reacting to and frustratingly detailed interpersonal drama where everyone is acting like a mix of robots and Jersey Shore characters. This sounds like the typical OMG SEXY SAD BOY fanficcy writing but at least she has a grasp of plotting 101, unlike SJM in particular

[@suzannewdowik]

YES. I would probably actually hate this if I read it, but I was thinking the same thing as I watched this video

[@k00lk1ttyx]

cassandra clare is such an interesting figure to me. i haven’t read any of her books for YEARS but every time i see a video talking about her early days fandom drama, i have to click. genuinely my favourite form of entertainment

[@morphogenetic_]

I really appreciate your ability to change your voice for the characters!

[@TheRaychenator]

I know this is fanfiction from the 2000’s and like, I was there so I get it, but there’s so much about this fanfic that wants to be taken seriously and I cannot wrap my head around the idea that Hermione would bring alcohol instead of water on this trip. Like I’m not a HP fan so I get that I’m not an expert but this bitch is so practical and so smart, and this is so absurd. it just feels like every time Casandra wants to write a silly little scene with teen drama she can’t just wait until an opportune lull in the plot, she always has to like contrive a moment of boredom amidst the rising action and it just keeps happening throughout this fic. Again, I know it’s a hallmark of 2000’s fanfic, but it’s so silly and not really funny today.

[@aceoflights.]

22:18 The "finite incantatem" spell is actually not invented by her. Hermione uses it in the second movie. And it also appears in the books at some point I believe. (Yes, I know way to much about hp, and I don't want to)

[@DavidMChannel]

join the club! it's hard to forget. Joannes infested our minds with her bullshit magical world, unfortunately

[@aceoflights.]

@@DavidMChannel Exactly! I hate that this is the one thing I have like an encyclopedic knowledge about. Yeah, being obsessed with someone's work and then finding out that they believe you shouldn't exist is not fun, lol.

[@freaklet72]

got reccommended this about a week ago ! love listening to it in the background :-) your voice and the way you speak is lovely. hope to see more soon :-]

[@DavidMChannel]

Welcome aboard! Good stuffs in the works!

[@sascha9439]

PLEASE do the rest i am so invested in this its so interesting

[@DavidMChannel]

Im glad Im not the only person who found this fanfiction oddly fascinating xD I'm working on it, don't worry!

[@SuperStella1111]

I have a theory Rowling read this, and got her idea for the horcruxes from it. They never made sense, came out of nowhere, and she read her BNFs - I refuse to believe otherwise.

[@DavidMChannel]

I always kinda figured she just rebranded the whole 'phylactery' idea from Liches in DnD which are more or less the same thing. That said- the similarity is eerie now that you point it out

[@n.s.6984]

You have a nice voice to listen to and I’ve been having a blast with this 😭 also i really didn’t notice where audio/video were off tbh

[@boboblueblue2]

So very fun! I clicked on this initially thinking you were going to talk about the OG fan fiction that became City of Bones. So I was prepared for weird incest stuff, but I was happily disappointed! I don’t know much about Cassandra Clare, so it was interesting to hear about her other works!

[@DavidMChannel]

I'm told you CAN find that fic but....yeah no Im good. It doesn't seem like there's much to talk about the incest and like....I dont wanna read HP incest lol

[@boboblueblue2]

@@DavidMChannel completely understandable!!

[@wenmistry]

loved your way of explaining things, it's a crime your channel hasn't got more attention! i'd love to see you do videos for the rest of the series, this was great to listen to while working (:

[@visttia]

Thank you for going through this fanfic, you did a great job! I love this type of content :D I hope you'll do the other books as well.

[@DavidMChannel]

*glances at one hundred and five page google doc I finished yesterday* Well...you're in luck...

[@wanderingstars4121]

I know this is 'a different time' but I feel like the judgmental homophobic tones when compared next to the incest plotline of her other fic being treated as an acceptable pairing really paint an interesting picture of the time. Not a good one, but an interesting one for sure. How very Alabama of you, Cassie

[@DavidMChannel]

Im lead to believe her ron/ginny fic was also pretty controversial- she wasnt a big fan of ginny or the weasleys so it was interpreted as a deliberate attempt to poke the bear. That said- slash was still somewhat divisive in some online communities despite that, so its still kinda weird yeah

[@wanderingstars4121]

@@DavidMChannel That's probably true, but she borrowed pretty heavily from both to make her first and largest YA series and kept the incest thing going with her two main characters so I'm always going to be sus

[@DavidMChannel]

@@wanderingstars4121 she kept including it in later stuff too apparently? And ive no problem with exploring darker or twisted themes but thats an odd fixation to say the least...

[@Arausita]

Oh, God, the Draco trilogy. Thanks for the video!!

[@kendallwhite7002]

Tbh she probably would have written Narcissa and Sirius the same way, regardless of if they were canonically cousins or not😭

[@DavidMChannel]

the funniest thing to me is that even after the two of them get engaged in this story, Harry and Draco, who are *soon to be step-brothers* continue to have this intense homoerotic tension in its sequel, so she's *still* kind of flirting with the idea of incest in this fic.

[@kendallwhite7002]

@@DavidMChannel her determination knows no bounds

[@ilyuser]

i could listen to you talk forever your voice is so pleasant to listen to

[@saturnash]

I actually remember reading this fic! I'm not sure I got through the rest of the Draco trilogy at the time, but my favorite HP I still think about once a week minimum is Draco Malfoy, the Amazing Bouncing Rat. Settling in to remember how wild this fic was and why I cannot stand Cassandra Clare.

[@DavidMChannel]

*laughs in Draco Sinister* this is the best hp fanfiction she wrote ahahahahahahaaha (also- hope you enjoyed!!!)

[@FiveEyedRaven]

Dude I'm so grateful for this video, and so sorry you put yourself through this xD I've been curious about this fic for so long,, Would definitely watch future videos in this style!

[@DavidMChannel]

Glad I could help!

[@taakoadventurezone]

please oh my god it's 2am and im really drunk and i thought you had already uploaded the other 2 books in the trilogy and im so upset rn im so invested in this awful stupid okayish written early aughts heterosexual love triangle in a fandom i gave up almost a decade ago but only as told in 2023 by like. a cool funny normal (presumably?) queer guy. please im screaming crying throwing up etc? 😢

[@DavidMChannel]

I cant tell if you're presuming Im normal or queer in this xD but I can assure you I am very queer, but am not normal :P And I know! I hate I care about this. I shall be recapping book two over the course of two videos later this year- just give me a couple of months :3 all I can say is I hope you have more booze for that one....

[@taakoadventurezone]

@@DavidMChannel LMAO presumably queer only because i was pretty sure but i always hate to put labels on people they don't identify with, and "normal" as in "normal about trans people with good opinions about things" which is always appreciated when getting into HP fandom wank. VERY excited for the upcoming videos though 👀 you did an amazing job with this one if my thoroughly sloshed self didn't convey that well enough last night

[@DavidMChannel]

ahhh gotchya- and I respect that- never assume, etc. and thanks! It felt weird to talk about Harry Potter in any capacity without acknowledging Joanne's very dangerous actions at present. And it's fine- I took it as a compliment!

[@stolenguts5566]

This was so fun to watch, I love the way you explain this stuff

[@JollySalmonCosplay]

I’m watching the vid and really enjoying it but also can’t help trying to connect pieces of this crazy fic to the Mortal Instruments books Clare later wrote. The plot almost doesn’t overlap but family abuse, teen drama, melodramatic characters not revealing things just because and convoluted rules of the magical world kinda track 😅

[@DavidMChannel]

I probably should read the books myself to see if i can find any other similarities- both in terms of tropes and prose.