Unless there’s another universally loved series in the future like Harry Potter, where the core dynamic is the friendship between three contrasting personalities, this franchise will forever be the top dog for the young audience.
It was the Golden Trio who steered the ship for this series, and their friendship was so amazing that people in real life crave to have similarly dedicated friends. While we feel that Ron and Hermione are both equally important to Harry, the title of his absolute “best friend” is still up for debate. So, we’ve compiled these points that might add a little more clarity to this hotly-debated topic.
Ron: He Makes Harry Happy
During their falling out in the events of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, both Ron and Harry were shown to be miserable. Ron took to hanging out with Fred and George, while Harry stayed with Hermione.
It was during this time that Harry reflected on just how happy Ron made him. He realized there was hardly any laughter in his life, no lighthearted moments, and the charm in Hogwarts was gone. When they became friends again, Harry was over the moon with happiness.
Hermione: She Will Never Abandon Him
When they had their big implosion in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Ron took off from the group and deserted his friends in the forest to go and stay at Bill’s place. Before he left, Ron urged Hermione to abandon Harry as well, but was met with rejection.
Even though Hermione was in love with Ron at this point, she still refused to leave Harry’s side. It killed her inside to do so, but her inherent duty toward Harry was far stronger than anything else. At that point, at least, the same couldn’t be said for Ron.
Ron: He’s There For Everything
You might think this doesn’t apply, since we just pointed out Ron had left Harry, but there’s also the real matter that Ron did join Harry in more adventures than Hermione did. Whatever plan Harry had, Ron would go along with it, no questions asked.
Hermione was always reluctant to go through with Harry’s ideas at first, and it was Ron who would back Harry up. Despite being deathly afraid of spiders, Ron accompanied Harry to the monstrous Aragog’s lair; he did the same with the Chamber of Secrets as well. In all of Harry’s exploits at Hogwarts, Ron would be by Harry’s side.
Hermione: Harry’s alive because of her
Voldemort perished only because Hermione was there, as Harry would not have survived each instalment’s events had it not been for her. You can name every dangerous situation was in, and realize that it was usually by Hermione’s doing that he lived.
Let’s list some of them: Hermione saved him from the Devil’s Snare and from being poisoned. Even while petrified, she communicated that it was a Basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets. She was the one with the Time Turner. Hermione trained Harry for the Triwizard tournament. She created Dumbledore’ Army. She was responsible for the trio surviving during the Horcrux hunt. Harry Potter would have ended back at the first instalment without Hermione Granger.
Ron: Harry Said It Himself
Harry felt rather guilty when he realized that he preferred Ron to Hermione. During Goblet of Fire, Harry’s narration divulged that, despite Hermione being a great person, she just couldn’t match up to Ron.
If given the choice between being around Hermione or Ron, Harry would pick Ron, because the latter is more easygoing and injects life into any interaction. After Ron briefly left in Deathly Hallows, Harry was grief-stricken.
Hermione: She’s Like His Sister
There are still a lot of Harry and Hermione “shippers” who would love nothing more than the two to end up together, but Harry already quashed any chances in Deathly Hallows, when he divulged to Ron that Hermione was basically his sister.
They were together the whole time while growing up, but never once did Harry even consider Hermione in a romantic light. Even when the two were in close proximity with one another with nothing to do for weeks during Deathly Hallows, we didn’t see any hint of attraction. For Harry, Hermione was a source of emotional comfort and understanding, something anybody can relate to if they have their own sisters.
Ron: He Gave Harry A Home Life
Harry spent most of his summers with the Weasleys, which meant he was around Ron for almost his entire life since he was 12-years-old.
Ron would open up his home to Harry, have him live among his siblings, share his room with him, and experience the comfort of a loving home. Most of all, Harry found his surrogate mother in Mrs. Weasley, who treated Harry the same as she did with Ron, meaning Harry didn’t feel like an orphan anymore. The Boy Who Lived truly started living because his best friend regarded him as part of his family.
Ron: He’s Prepared To Break The Law For Him
Hermione’s nagging issue throughout the series was that she didn’t want to break the school rules or any laws. This placed her in conflict with Harry and Ron quite a few times, who would then need to devise other ways to further their plans.
Ron would have no qualms with going against the rules if that was what Harry wanted, and he accompanied Harry in situations where he would find himself either expelled or in Azkaban prison. He was even prepared to kill the Death Eater Dolohov if Harry had given his consent. It’s invaluable to have a friend who goes along the ride with you, no questions asked, and Harry needed someone like this the most.
Ron: He Prefers Harry To His Own Brothers
All in all, it didn’t seem as if Ron was extra tight with his siblings. While he was on good terms with each one of them except Percy (although he reconciled with the family later), he wasn’t shown to be as open with them as you’d expect with your siblings.
It was around Harry that Ron was his true self. It was clear Ron would much rather have Harry in his life than his own brothers, and there’s no doubt that Harry would pick Ron out of anyone else too.
Hermione: She Always Has His Best Interests At Heart
While Ron would be by Harry’s side through everything, he was wrong to do so on some occasions. Hermione would play the devil’s advocate here, and even though Harry would resent her for it, she was still usually in the right.
For instance, Hermione was right in questioning the legitimacy of the Firebolt arriving to Harry and reporting it to McGonagall for security purposes. She was correct in trying to stop Harry rushing to the Ministry to rescue Sirius. Hermione was also right in preventing Harry from copying her work in school, because he never would have learned otherwise. She had his best interests at heart the whole time, even if it made her look bossy or overbearing.
