Character Analysis
Bait and Switch
Poor Ron is a total non-factor in this installment. Harry gets a burst of self-confidence. Hermione gets to save the day. And Ron…gets dragged into a tree by a dog, loses his pet rat (who turns out to be an evil traitor) and spends the rest of the movie in the infirmary.
RON: What the bloody hell was that all about?
That's Ron's reaction after Dumbledore sends Harry and Hermione on a time-travel adventure, but it might as well be how he feels after being useless for the entire movie. On top of not getting to tag along, Ron isn't even told what happened:
HERMIONE: Honestly, Ron. How can somebody be in two places at once?
Hey: we thought these guys were the fearsome threesome. Why the need to keep Ron in the dark?
However, Ron at least gets one scene that might just be one of the most normal and humanizing moments in the entire film series. Upon returning to Hogwarts, Ron and Harry reunite with their friends in Gryffindor. The boys experiment with some magic candy that enables them to make realistic animal noises.
It's the wizarding equivalent of seeing friends after a long absence and spending a night catching up while eating candy or ingesting other sorts of real-world substances. (Like soda. We're talking about soda.) This is one of the rare times we're reminded that in addition to being a boy who will change the world, Harry Potter is still just a kid, too.
And Ron is there to be his best buddy.