Rower Ranking the Top Harry Potter Crushes

Harry Potter is a series about good versus evil — not a categorical "romance" novel. Still, we all can't help but crush on the characters and cross our fingers that maybe one of them will come alive and take us to the Yule Ball. After all, after reading seven books, watching all the movies, and following along with everything J.K. Rowling has said, we feel like we personally know every single character. Maybe we’re in love with the book character or the actors who portray that character, but either way — we’ve got dress robes waiting.

With such a variety, everyone inevitably has his or her favorite crush. (Or crushes.) Some people are going to disagree, but I've (completely not objectively) ranked the top 19 most crush-worthy Harry Potter characters. I've taken into account their character's story in the books, the actor or actress that plays the character in the movie, all sorts of background information, and where the fall on the good versus evil camp. Sure, Tom Riddle might be objectively good looking, but you're in the wrong place if you think we're doing to stand by and put him in the top 10.

When you examine the books with a cool, rational eye (because we're nothing if not rational when it comes to Harry Potter), which crushes come out on top? I state my case for these 19.

Tom Riddle

Tom Riddle is handsome — well, before he turns into a snake-human. But he's also horrendously evil, and he definitely doesn't understand love. Sorry, Bellatrix, but this crush is the worst. The only person I 'ship with Voldemort is Dolores Umbridge, and I can't even really 'ship that, because can you imagine what kind of super-villain children they might raise?

Gilderoy Lockhart

Personally, I like the theory that Gilderoy is part veela and that's why everyone is so obsessed with him, because the man's personality is awful. He's pompous and just plain annoying. However, Kenneth Branagh is awesome, so movie-version Lockhart gets a few extra points.

Draco Malfoy

Trust me, I understand this crush. First of all: Tom Felton. Second, Draco is the typical bad boy that you want to have a heart of gold. But the thing is, however, he doesn't. Draco is really just a cowardly, prejudiced kid who gets in way over his head. We'd all love to see a universe where he falls in love with Hermione and joins the good side, but for now that's just head canon. Plus, we absolutely can't go against Rowling on this one.

Charlie Weasley

There's nothing inherently wrong with Charlie Weasley. In fact, he seems super cool. He works with dragons, he's got an interesting burn on his arm, and he's a Weasley for crying out loud. But we never really find out much more about him, and the photo above with him in the back is basically all the evidence we have from the movie that he exists. And according to Pottermore, he's not in a relationship because he's so wrapped up in studying dragons. Though dragons are super cool, loves-dragons-more-than-you is not an ideal quality in a crush. Unless you're Khaleesi, in which case, it's a perfect match.

Bill Weasley

Ah! Another Weasley. So he can't really be that bad as a crush, because come on, Weasleys FTW. But once again, we don't know a ton about Bill, though he's obviously passionate about fighting against the dark arts, so that's a big plus. He's also cool with bringing home a girl his family doesn't approve of, and sticking up for her, and Fleur proved that she wasn't superficial as Mrs. Weasley thought. Wait, maybe Fleur is the better choice here...

Seamus Finnigan

Seamus is funny, Irish, nice, and though he often blows stuff up with his attempts at magic, at least he's exuberant. Still, he gets into a big argument with Harry about Voldemort's return, so he gets negative points for that.

Dean Thomas

Dean is outspoken, supports Harry, and recognizes how awesome Ginny is. He's actually pretty open-minded and doesn't have a lot of the prejudice that some other wizards have, which is demonstrated in the fact that he becomes friends with Luna even though she sometimes says wacky stuff. He also might be a Jedi. Actually, the only downside to Dean (besides his tendency to get clingy when a relationship is waning) is that we didn't get more info on him!

Sirius Black

Here's another bad boy: Sirius Black defies his dark arts-loving family and crosses over to the good side. He's a little wild, and of course he not only drives a motorcycle, but a flying motorcycle, so it's easy to see why he was so popular during his time at Hogwarts. He also puts Harry in serious danger and seems to confuse him with James. He had quite an attitude problem when he had to hide out and felt he wasn't doing anything to help with the Order, but who can really blame him?

James Potter

In the HP series, we see both good and bad sides of James Potter. He's dashing, daring, and brave, but he's also kind of a bully. Obviously, he matured enough for Lily to fall in love with him, but I can't shake the image of him dangling Snape upside down. That's pretty rough.

Remus Lupin

Lupin is good-hearted at his core, as evidenced by his reluctance to start a relationship with Tonks because he thinks she deserves better. He's brave, the voice of reason, and is also a pretty fantastic DADA teacher. He's also insightful about people's personalities. Though he wasn't as much of a bully as James and Sirius, he also didn't do much to stop them, and has to deal with the subsequent regret.

Severus Snape

This is a tricky one. On one hand, Snape is extremely romantic. "Always" is only one word, and it's one of the most beautiful quotes in the series. His patronus takes the shape of Lily's? Tragic. But the downside to Snape is he wasn't able to overcome his prejudice — he loves the dark arts and he has a problem with Muggle-born witches and wizards.

Luna Lovegood

She may be super quirky, but Luna Lovegood is one of the most kind-hearted characters in the series. As Emily Dickinson says, "Much Madness is divinest Sense," and Luna often doles out great advice even though she's a little bizarre.

Oliver Wood

He's passionate, intelligent, a great leader, and so underrated.

Ron Weasley

Upside: Ron is loyal, brave, hospitable, clever, and funny. Downside: He has the emotional range of a teaspoon.

Harry Potter

Harry is the chosen one. He's daring, brave, cunning, and always fights for what's right. He's also secretive, a little arrogant, and as evidenced on his date with Cho, can be very awkward. Don't get me wrong, I love Harry. But sometimes it feels like it's all about him — and yes, OK, his name is the series title. But remember when he's having a fit about seeing through Voldemort's eyes, and Ginny reminds him that she was actually possessed, and Harry says he "forgot"? You've got to be kidding me, HP.

Hermione Granger

Hermione is clever, resourceful, loyal, insightful, and overall truly "the brightest witch of her age." Still, she can be a bit of a know-it-all. Though let's be honest: She kind of does know everything, so she's earned the right to be that way.

Viktor Krum

Krum is everything readers want Draco to be. He grew up surrounded by dark magic as a student at Durmstrang, and yet he didn't join Voldemort's side. He sees how awesome Hermione is before everyone else does, and values her for her mind. Though he's a famous Quidditch player, he never seems overly arrogant. He's the ultimate bad boy with a heart of gold.

Fred and George Weasley

They're hilarious, confident, great businessmen, and they left Umbridge with a castle full of pranks to clean up. They're also Weasleys, aka the best family. And I bet they'd skip class to take you somewhere fun and crazy.

Neville Longbottom

Neville Longbottom is one of the bravest characters in the whole series. He stands up to Voldemort even after everyone thinks Harry is gone, he is kind to everyone, braves hardships and comes out the other end a stronger person. He's all around awesome, and come on, just look at him. Even J.K. Rowling has to blush when he's shirtless.

Images: Warner Bros (20)