Few Fred & George Weasley twins. The identical duo provide nonstop comic relief all throughout the fantastical series, often delivering the laughs via outrageous slapstick or in-unison verbal methods.
Like all great humorists, though, Fred & George are not without controversy or conflict. There are moral lines that the boys tend to overstep and more than a few examples of their characters quietly slipping from grace. While we will always appreciate the Weasley twins for their laidback positivity amidst the dark Wizarding World, here are ten ways that they got worse and worse over the course of the series.
Being Meaner To Ron
Someone is always on the butt end of a good Fred & George joke—such is how comedy usually works. However, as the Potter series progressed, we saw Ron become a more and more frequent punchline for the twins' snarky witticisms. In the earlier films, Fred & George are simply Ron's goofy older brothers, pulling off pranks independent of his innocence. Later on, though, they start to tease him more frequently. From overcharging him at their joke shop to mocking his social endeavors at school, Ron eventually can't catch a break from his own kin.
Teasing Ginny
Ron is not the only one of the Weasley siblings who has gotten torn apart by Fred & George's humor. As Ginny grows up and becomes a more fleshed-out character in the series, the twins often take to teasing her as well. The only girl in the Weasley household other than their mother, Ginny ends up on the butt end of many Fred & George jokes. They particularly like to dig into her budding love life, making fun of her relationship with Dean or spoiling romantic moments between her and Harry.
Estranging Percy
Percy is definitely the black sheep of the Weasley family. While everyone else rebels against the corrupt establishment in the series' later installments, Percy continues working for the system, turning against his family and helping the tainted Ministry of Magic even when it is transparently evil. However, the estrangement goes both ways. Given the fact that Fred & George have always mocked Percy for his orderliness, we can almost empathize with the character. Perhaps a little more comion from his siblings over the years would have helped Percy stay on the right side of history.
Disobeying Family Rules
Despite all of the jokes, teases, and sibling rivalries, Fred & George have always had a strong commitment to their family. Nevertheless, that commitment becomes increasingly permeable across the series' seven books and eight films.
Sneaking out of the house to rescue Harry in an enchanted car is one thing, but by the later installments, the twins are eavesdropping on secret meetings and uprooting rules even when their parents specifically tell them not to. It's hardly any wonder that Fred & George are the only ones in the family who never became Prefects.
Challenging Hogwarts Authority
Fred & George's educational career is a rocky one at Umbridge istration. Nevertheless, the twins' knack for rule-breaking started long before Umbridge arrived and slowly escalated to a tipping point by their final year. Even when Dumbledore sat as heaster, they byed procedures by creating their own agendas (sometimes damaging school property in the process). As they grew up, they gained seniority about the castle and became even more disruptive. By the end of their time as students, they ran an enterprise for helping students get out of class.
Throwing Education To The Wayside
Speaking of Fred & George's time at OWLS. Plus, Hogwarts is not cheap. The Weasleys operate on a shoestring budget to send their many kids there. Fred & George flushed that money away when they decided to leave before properly graduating.
Profiting Off Conflict
While the Wizarding World was at war and in shambles, Fred & George were making bank running their joke shop in Half-Blood Prince. The entire town appears shut down with the exception of the joke shop. How is that the only thing staying in business? Have the twins turned into shady, tax-evading entrepreneurs? Has their store gentrified the community?
Mocking Voldemort
Satirical offerings regarding the war against Voldemort are a staple of the twins' joke shop. While we applaud their fearless audacity in mocking the darkest wizard of all time, we cannot help but realize the danger of it.
Voldemort is a temperamental and vicious killer with many followers. If the Fred & George are mocking him while Death Eaters hold seats of power, they are putting more than themselves at risk. Not only could the jokes cost them their shop or their own lives, but its no stretch of the imagination to think that the Death Eaters might target other Weasleys for such jests.
Endangering Harry
The other Weasleys are not the only ones that Fred & George put in danger through their antics. Given their closeness with Harry, the twins actually hold a lot of responsibility for keeping the Boy Who Lived out of harm's way. Unfortunately, they have not always lived up to that responsibility. It all started in Prisoner Of Azkaban when Fred & George gave Harry the Marauders Map to sneak about the castle while Sirius Black was on the loose. This hardly seemed like the safest thing to do at the time. As the series carries on, they continue to act without much regard for Harry's hallowed importance, ergo jeopardizing everyone.
Letting The Jokes Get Old
This one is on the writers more so than the characters. While we never really tire of Fred & George's humor, we notice that their jokes became a bit predictable by Deathly Hallows. Early in the film, George even resorts to bad puns, calling himself "Saint-like" for being "Hole-y" after losing his ear in a battle. The joke is uplifting, but even Fred calls him out for being trite here. Beyond this one instance, we recognize the twins' humor all too well by the franchise's finale, knowing when they will complete each other's sentences or drop witty one-liners. Evidently, novelty can wear off even on the best of things.
