The villains and heroes in the Harry Potter series have many powers and abilities because of their magical powers, and that magic gives them all kinds of strengths that Muggles don’t have. Whether it’s using Expelliarmus to disarm opponents or having the gift of talking to snakes, all kinds of aptitudes exist in the wizarding world. However, all of the main characters have their weaknesses, too.
Some of these weaknesses are rather straightforward, such as Ron not being the most studious character, while others are weird or don’t even make sense. Some of these weaknesses are plot holes while others relate to innate insecurities or a lack of magical skill.

James And Lily: Not Becoming Their Own Secret Keepers

This weakness might actually just boil down to being a plot hole, but it ends up being their downfall and leading to their deaths. When the Potters went into hiding using the Fidelius Charm, they were going to make Sirius their Secret Keep but ended up using Pettigrew. However, as fans learn later in the series when Arthur becomes Secret Keeper for the Burrow, the Potters could have done this themselves and not have had to worry about anyone betraying them.

Sirius Black: His Hatred Of Kreacher

Hate and love are strong forces and central themes in the series, and it’s Harry’s ability to love that gives him an edge over Voldemort. However, even some of the heroic characters have hatreds that end up weakening them. Sirius placed all his animosity toward his family onto Kreacher, even though Kreacher was basically a victim himself. It also makes little sense given that Sirius talked about Barty Crouch Jr.’s poor treatment of Winky, but he couldn’t apply the same logic to himself. And of course, this led to Kreacher complicating the night that Sirius died, and even leading to Harry going to the Ministry to try and save him.

Fred And George: Giving Away The Marauder’s Map

Fred and George’s strange weakness also comes down to what could be considered a plot hole or contrivance, but it’s rather interesting to think about. Fred and George steal the Marauder’s Map from Filch’s office and use it to pull pranks and make their way through the castle without getting caught. Yet, despite knowing how valuable of a resource it is, they give it away to Harry and act as if they can function without it. Their reasoning was that he needed it more than they did, and they claimed to have it memorized already.

Voldemort: A Surprising Lack Of Magical Knowledge

Voldemort is supposed to be the most powerful and terrifying evil wizard, even more so than Grindelwald, yet he seems to be lacking in some key areas of his magical education. Dumbledore is supposed to be nearly his equal, yet Dumbledore understands much more about the magic of sacrificing your life for someone or saving someone’s life.

Dumbledore: Leaving His Memories Open In His Office

Many things that Dumbledore does are a mystery to both other characters and to fans. It’s hard to say for sure if he makes mistakes or if he does things on purpose. An example of this is when he leaves the Pensieve cabinet when Harry is in his office in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. This allows Harry to learn information that he maybe shouldn’t have been privy to such as the truth about Barty Crouch.

Ron Weasley: Not Knowing Basic Magic

Given that Ron was the only one of the trio who grew up in the magical world, he likely would have seen many basic, daily spells used around him all of the time. Spells such as Alohomora seem rather straightforward and common, yet Ron didn’t even know what it was when he went to Hogwarts.

Hermione Granger: Extreme Fear Of A Bad Grade

Hermione is clearly a perfectionist, and this can be a strength at times but also a weakness. However, it’s not exactly weird. What is rather surprising, however, is how unable she is to handle having anything less than a perfect grade. She’s so scared of this that her Boggart in the books is getting a failing grade. And, she becomes so upset about this Boggart manifestation that she ends up performing poorly on the practical test in Lupin’s class. Given how smart she is, it seems strange she would fall for this.

Harry Potter: He’s Really Bad At Divination

Harry has many strange weaknesses that impact him along the way, and they often have to do more with his emotions than anything else. However, one of the weirdest is how bad he was at Divination. While the entire class is and Trewlaney herself is shown to be a fraud, this doesn’t seem completely fair. Harry is someone who often uses his intuition and even dreams to understand what is going on around him.

The Trio: Not Knowing How To Make Food

In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the trio isn’t all that experienced in using magic to take care of their basic needs. Hermione does save the day by being the only one to think ahead and bring items like the tent, but even she doesn’t seem to really know how to use magic on food. According to Gamp’s Law and Hermione, you can make food by increasing the quantity of it. Yet, even after they steal food from grocery stores, they soon seem to run out. It doesn’t make sense that they couldn’t just have replicated it.