While Luna Lovegood might not be a member of the Golden Trio in Harry Potter, she is one of Harry’s other close friends. Luna doesn’t make an appearance in the books until Harry’s fifth year, but she quickly became a well-loved addition to the series.
Many fans felt attached to Luna because she’s unique and doesn’t care all that much what other people think of her, and she’s also a good character and quite heroic. However, just like all the other good characters in Harry Potter, Luna has many positive traits as well as some negative ones.
Worst: Defensive
Luna was raised by her father for most of her life after her mother died in a tragic accident while conducting a magical experiment. Her father’s beliefs were all very fantastically and not rooted in fact, and Luna parroted these beliefs as a teenager.
Understandably, many people pushed back on her for this, especially Hermione. While Hermione could have approached things better, Luna was always quite defensive when other people disagreed with her and her father.
Best: Eccentric
While some people might find eccentricity to be a negative trait, in Luna’s case and in many others, it’s actually a great thing. While it’s often used as a bad term, being eccentric allows a person to go outside the narrow view of what society says they should be. Luna might not have had many friends for most of her life, but she was true to herself.
This is definitely a great thing about her as she wasn’t persuaded to change by peer pressure.
Worst: Too weird sometimes
On the other hand, Luna could definitely take her eccentricity too far at times. While the line between weird and eccentric is somewhat thin and subjective, Luna could make other people uncomfortable by spouting off completely untrue things as if they were normal.
Her tendency to believe in so many off-kilter ideas also meant she wasn’t receptive to learning facts and the truth, and this can be dangerous as her father, Xenophillius, illustrates.
Best: Creative
While Ravenclaw might seem to be the stuffiest and most uptight house because it’s so cerebral, there are many different kinds of intelligence. Luna represents the playful, creative, and explorative side of learning and intellect.
She showed that she had a very artistic and inventive side in both her fashion sense and her creation of the lion-head mascot. She definitely approaches life and thinks in a different way than most other people, and this is a positive thing.
Worst: Aloof
Luna is a character who, just like many of her classmates, actually went through a lot of traumatic things at a young age. So, it’s clear she was trying to cope and protect herself by being a bit distant from others around her.
She seemed to use her weirdness as a shield at times to keep apart from her peers, and she didn’t really take the time to get to know anyone. However, this did change somewhat after joining Dumbledore’s Army.
Best: Brave
While Luna was sorted into Ravenclaw and not Gryffindor, she does have many of the traits of Gryffindor, too. Luna was very brave in the same way that her friends were, and she wasn’t scared to risk her own safety and even life to help her friends.
She was definitely committed to fighting back against Voldemort, and while she might seem somewhat like an airy-fairy, she was brave and tough, too.
Worst: Unrealistic
Overall, Luna’s worst traits have to do with living somewhat in a fantasy world. She was often almost childlike in the way she talked about and viewed things, and this is why she and Hermione didn’t click very well given how serious Hermione was.
It does seem as if her fantastical view on things and her illogical approach to facts was a way for her to not live in reality. While having a good imagination and being fanciful can be fun, she also needed to have some perspective on the truth.
Best: Loyal
One of Luna’s most positive attributes was that she was a very loyal friend. She didn’t have many friends because she was judged and mocked by her peers, so when she finally found people who accepted her, she cherished them a lot.
Luna was one of the few people to go help Harry try and rescue Sirius, and she was definitely willing to sacrifice a lot to help her friends.
Worst: Blunt
While Luna might have believed and spouted outlandish ideas, and would sometimes be upset if others disagreed, she was actually quite blunt herself.
This makes it seem like she could dish it out but not take it, and this is never a good thing. Being honest, open, and authentic is good, and bluntness also has its place, but she could border on being rude and mean by not knowing when to reign it in.
Best: Original
Luna has many great things about her, and she’s overall a positive and wonderful character. But, if you had to sum Luna up in one word, it would definitely be original.
Throughout the series, she stays true to herself and authentic. She’s creative and unique, and in adulthood, she seems to stay original while also embracing life in a more mature and realistic way.