Reader discussion: The Phantom of the Opera

Public reader discussion about The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux.

[Spoilers] The Phantom of the Opera just dissappointed me...

By plasmaolive8

I went into this with pretty high expectations. I was honestly expecting something more romance-y, but it turned out to be totally different. That part didn’t even bother me as much as other things did. I keep wondering if it was the translation I read (it might’ve been bad), or maybe I just missed the point, but I’m still open to the idea that I’m wrong. At the beginning I was really into it. The mystery was handled well, and I liked how the opera stuff was shown—especially the way everyone reacted to the events. Then I started paying more attention to Raoul and… he just got on my nerves. He’s supposed to be shy, has “fair skin” (sorry, I read it in another language so the details might be off), and even brave, but after that it feels like his whole personality is basically just chasing Christine. He mostly cried, screamed, and didn’t do much, at least not in a way that worked for me. Christine was interesting at first too. She felt strong and kind of complex. But around halfway through, all that potential just disappeared for me. She turned into this trembling, naive kid. I ended up caring way more about the side characters—like Giry and the Persian. Their interactions felt more natural than what Raoul and Daae had going on. I do like Erik, but he wasn’t explored as much as I wanted, and once he finally gets revealed I felt like there was less of him than there should’ve been. The parts about the music and his singing were amazing, and I liked the descriptions of the underground areas. But I was also disappointed by the big “he moves along the walls” reveal, because I’d already assumed something like that would be the case. So yeah—what did you all think? Did I completely misunderstand it? Should I read it again and give it another shot? And how did you see the characters?

The Story of the Phantom - a Phantom of the Opera-inspired song from the Goosebumps musical. Just discovered this and can't stop listening to it.

By rainAmber1995

Just to clear up the names in case anyone’s wondering: the Goosebumps one this is based on (“Phantom of the Auditorium”) has the kids putting on a play called “The Phantom,” but it’s its own version—same general vibe, but the details are different and everyone’s name gets changed (Christine → Esmerlada, and Roaul → Eric). Also, in that book there’s nothing saying “Phantom of the Opera” is a real musical/book in that universe, so I’m guessing they didn’t want to step on copyright issues or something. But in the musical universe, they straight-up say the play “The Phantom” is an adaptation of The Phantom of the Opera. And they did change Christine’s name, but Raoul stays Raoul, which is kind of weird compared to how the other one handled it.

Phantom of the Opera isn't talked about enough

By meadowverse1998

I basically tore through this book over the last few days. I grabbed it because I’m going to see the musical soon and I wanted to actually know what’s going on. I honestly had no clue what to expect since nobody really talks about the book—everything is always the musical and the movie. But wow, it was super action-y and way easier to follow than I thought. I do wish I had gotten more of the P. of the O.’s backstory, but it was still so fun that I didn’t even mind too much. It felt like the energy and thrill of *Count of Monte Cristo*, just kind of crammed into the Paris Opera. Has anyone else read it? Did you like it?

Is there any information on the plot of Return of the Phantom (proposed sequel to the 1925 film)?

By deer_dune

I heard Universal was talking about doing a follow-up to the 1925 Phantom (Return of the Phantom). Supposedly Gaston Leroux might’ve had a hand in it, but then Lon Chaney was still tied up with MGM, and they apparently wouldn’t let him go to do the Universal movie. So instead they ended up making that 1929 sound remake of the first one. But I’m really curious—what was the actual plot supposed to be? Like, how did Erik survive getting beaten and tossed into the Seine? I doubt it was something like him running an amusement park on Coney Island or anything.

Just finished Phantom of the Opera. Great read.

By Lake_Frog

I’ve never actually seen the musical, so I went into this with pretty much zero expectations. I figured it might be one of those classics that drags on, but nope—this one was easy to fly through. It just kept pulling me along, and the whole story felt really well put together. There’s suspense the entire way, and I honestly didn’t know what the ending was going to look like until I got there. The characters were interesting, the setting is really cool and different, and the whole premise is intriguing. It’s probably not “fun” exactly since it’s pretty sad, but I still thought it was a great read. I wanted a classic and I definitely got one—would recommend. Also, I listened to it on audiobook and it worked out well. The narrator pronounced the French names correctly, and that made it way more immersive than I probably would’ve managed if I’d been reading it myself.