As someone with Aspergers, I find Newt Scamander to be one of the most positive portrayals in a long time

Saw the movie Fantastic Beasts and that is all I could think about when I left the theater. Checked online to see if I was just trying to see something that wasn't there and was pleasantly surprised to find other people who feel the same.

One of JKR's descriptions of Newt was years ago was that he was "eccentric" (which is saying something, if you're a wizard) and I thought he was going to be just quirky in the way a lot of HP characters are without rhyme or reason, like Luna, Hagrid and even Dumbledore to an extent. But then I saw the film and there seemed to be consistent patterns to his awkwardness and it finally hit me in the "I annoy people" scene -- he was pretty much me! I'm so used to aspergers being used as a punchline or as a ticket to win awards that it didn't even register until I looked closely.

For those unaware, here are some symptoms of aspergers that I feel Newt displayed:

• Not pick up on social cues and may lack inborn social skills, such as being able to read others' body language, start or maintain a conversation, and take turns talking. - He kills almost every conversation at the dinner scene because of his one-note answers. Also, when Jacob first meets him and asks what he's doing at the bank, he says "same as you", in an attempt to immediately remove himself from the convo even though it's a rude, nonsensical response.

• Appear to lack empathy. - When Tina says that Jacob was bitten, Newt just sits there smiling. He does grow more empathetic to his friends over time, though.

• Be unable to recognize subtle differences in speech tone, pitch, and accent that alter the meaning of others' speech. His or her speech may be flat and hard to understand because it lacks tone, pitch, and accent. - Definitely tends to mumble and slur words unless he's talking about something he likes.

• Talk a lot, usually about a favorite subject. One-sided conversations are common. Internal thoughts are often verbalized. - This is the biggest red flag for me as he becomes a different person whenever he is around his animals. Suddenly he is confident and talkative, even his posture is different. He is also very blunt by telling a government worker that their laws are crap, or both conversations with Jacob, the "People like you, don't they?" one and in the end when he tells Jacob "Because I like you, because you're my friend"

• Avoid eye contact or staring at others. - Again, another big red flag. He always tries to find something else to look at while talking to people. Except in the end when Grindelwald threatens him, Newt slowly looks up and stares Grindelwald in the eye. I thought that was a nice touch.

• Have unusual facial expressions or postures. - He doesn't react properly to situations, like when he's being arrested. He smiles too much during serious situations but when people are being friendly toward him his face is blank.

• Be preoccupied with only one or few interests, which he or she may be very knowledgeable about. - See above. Animals are his special interest.

• Have heightened sensitivity and become overstimulated by loud noises, lights, or strong tastes or textures. - Overreacts whenever his animals are in danger.

Anyway, I loved how in the movie that characters would notice that he was off, yet they would end up guiding him through social situations rather than making fun of him. Even Tina, who was downright frustrated with him at first, learns to appreciate his personality while he in turn slowly gains a keener understanding of people.

The film didn't make a big deal out of it at all and I loved it all the more for that. It didn't glamorize aspergers (Newt's just really good with animals, which is hardly a superpower) or treat it as something that needs to be changed. I hope there are more positive portrayals of aspergers in the future. As of right now, Newt's one of my favorite protagonists in a series.

Submitted January 06, 2017 at 11:55PM by jaded_throwaway12345 http://ift.tt/2jc9TZn