MOCKINGJAY pt 2 is VERY RELEVANT! (Movie Commentary)

[@themoviebud1988]

Rumour Juice - Cate Blanchett kzbin.info/www/bejne/pXqWkGVvetSNfbM Call It Crime - Richardson Family Case: Natural Born Killers, Real Life Edition kzbin.info/www/bejne/hIndqaSAfcSkhJI Instagrams: @stefanwolf_tmb @samlanemusic Discord server: discord.gg/GgWp3JzVFV

[@The020300knp]

Fun fact: Peeta actually knew that the mutts underground were coming because when the capital hijacked him they basically manipulated his mind into receiving orders to attack Katniss. So all those like water mutts were honing in on Katniss and Peeta was also getting the urge to attack her too. That’s why she kissed him at the end of that sequence because he was reverting back to his deranged self and she thought that kissing him would bring him back. So that kiss is actually in the books.

[@The020300knp]

Also the part where gale and Peeta have the talk is actually in the books. It’s rumored that Suzanne’s editor pushed her to add more romance into the book because she was really just focusing on the war aspect. It also really kind of resembles Eclipse where Jacob and Edward talk in the tent while Bella sleeps. Could be inspired by that since those books came out before this book did

[@dori8756]

I personally don't remember that kiss being in the books, but the talk Gale and Peeta have is very much in the books. But I feel like in the books, because we have Katniss's perspective, the talk comes across differently. Gale and Peeta both think Katniss is just going to take her pick, choose whomever she likes the most. Sure they frame it as "she'll choose who she can't survive without" but ultimately they both think she's gonna choose her favorite. Only to Katniss it's not about that at all. She isn't really focused on the romance in the books at all. She realizes she loves Peeta, but she knows that this is something to face AFTER the fight, and she even kind of silently judges Peeta and Gale for discussing this in the first place, because this is not what's important right now. At least that's how I remember it.

[@clover2739]

@@dori8756 she’s more upset at how gale views her, because the way he says that she’ll choose who she can’t survive without makes her seem heartless, like it’s who she needs more rather than anything to do with love or actually caring about them and she’s also upset that Peeta didn’t say anything to defend her since he just kept quiet about it.

[@maddysue3037]

And that “stay with me” “always” was in the book from earlier in the book

[@peterfedorchuk]

@@dori8756 it’s at the end of chapter 22: "Peeta?" His eyes are like black pools, the pupils dilated so that the blue irises have all but vanished. The muscles in his wrists are hard as metal. "Leave me," he whispers. "I can't hang on." "Yes. You can!" I tell him. Peeta shakes his head. "I'm losing it. I'll go mad. Like them." Like the mutts. Like a rabid beast bent on ripping my throat out. And here, finally here in this place, in these circumstances, I will really have to kill him. And Snow will win. Hot, bitter hatred courses through me. Snow has won too much already today. It's a long shot, it's suicide maybe, but I do the only thing I can think of. I lean in and kiss Peeta full on the mouth. His whole body starts shuddering, but I keep my lips pressed to his until I have to come up for air. My hands slide up his wrists to clasp his. "Don't let him take you from me." Peeta's panting hard as he fights the nightmares raging in his head. "No. I don't want to..." I clench his hands to the point of pain. "Stay with me." His pupils contract to pinpoints, dilate again rapidly, and then return to something resembling normalcy. "Always," he murmurs.

[@angelscorner4456]

1:16:08 "Peeta and I grow back together. There are still moments when he clutches the back of a chair and hangs on until the flashbacks are over. I wake screaming from nightmares of mutts and lost children. But his arms are there to comfort me. And eventually his lips. On the night I feel that thing again, the hunger that overtook me on the beach, I know this would have happened anyway. That what I needed to survive is not Gale's fire, kindled with rage and hatred. I have plenty of fire myself. What I need is the dandelion in the spring. The bright yellow that means rebirth instead of destruction. The promise that life can go on, no matter how bad our losses. That it can be good again. And only Peeta can give me that. So after, when he whispers, "You love me. Real or not real?" I tell him, "Real." " -Mockingjay, page 388.

[@todeluuee]

In every reaction, someone comments this and I always look for it and read it. One of my favourite parts of the whole series. 🌼

[@lillimarq]

I love this part in the book. It's so dusty here.

[@lilscenechick1995]

Gosh I love how she wrote this ❤ It's so beautiful

[@erickalena]

My favorite passage from the books. I was 14 when I first read them and I love it just as much, if not more, now that I'm 22.

[@Naahi95]

@@erickalena Same, I was 16 when I first read this and 10 years later those frases still hit me. I love Collins' writing!

[@ActuallyAnanya]

One fun piece of symbolism that occurs in every installment (if you combine Mockingjay Part 1 and 2) is that whenever Katniss is meant to shoot straight, to participate in the corrupt system, she instead chooses to shoot up in defiance. First movie: when she's displaying her skills to the gamemakers before the games, she shoots up at the apple in the pig's mouth rather than continuing to shoot at the targets Movie 2: when Snow wanted her to shoot straight and kill Finnick, she instead shot up at the forcefield Movie 4: when Coin wanted her to shoot straight and kill Snow, she instead pointed her arrow up at Coin Suzanne Collins is frankly a genius author and she doesn't get anywhere near the credit she deserves.

[@angelicasmodel]

Excellent symbolism. I enjoyed these movies when I watched them, and found them deeply moving, but I didn't take them too seriously, or look into any of complexity in them. (Mostly because I watched them on a sick day.) I've enjoyed watching these recaps, as they've pointed out much of the themes and symbolism.

[@keysburntgucci9016]

damn! I wonder if she smirks when she's by herself while thinking about all of the things she has left in this books hidden.

[@sianne79]

......nifty!

[@kamakazines4901]

There is something to be said for aiming higher...

[@bondvabond]

There is something kinda like that in MJ Part 1 as well! When the bombers attack District 8, she is meant to enter a bomb shelter with the squad, but runs off in order to try and help (however futile it might be), shooting the bombers out of the sky. Less of rebelling against the system and more a case of taking matters into her own hands, but it does work!

[@heyally7615]

In the books, Finnick’s death wasn’t that like… “PEOPLE, GO HELP HIM!” and more “We can’t go back, he’s already dead!” I wished they made it more like the books. They made it seem like he could’ve been saved but no one did.

[@kizi180]

In any case after the author admitted that she regretted killing Finnick, I made my own head-canon where he didn't die and lived with Annie and their son in District 4.

[@brynniefresh9746]

Finnick being s3x trafficked and seeing his whole story these last two movies/books is heart breaking and he’s such a sweet boy I wish he would’ve made it

[@heyally7615]

@@brynniefresh9746 Yeah, when I realized that, I cried!

[@sabahk]

@@kizi180 that's interesting that she regretted it. Did she explain why? Is it just because he was a beloved character?

[@kizi180]

@@sabahk I read a long time ago a post she made in her official Facebook page (or the books official FB page) that she felt rushed to finish the book and that his death left a dark stain in her mind and after a while she realized she did it for shock value. (Yes, she still left in, because in war people die and is never nice, but I will still head canon that he is alive. )

[@jeet9918]

The thing about Prim's death: this all started because Katniss volunteered to save her sister. She went through all that only for Prim to die anyway. It's devastating to think about.

[@eduardobeaufort2660]

oh god,this is so sad...

[@diamondfrazier8030]

Exactly it's like primrose being the main reason this all started in the beginning to still end up dead at the end. Suzanne Collins is a genius.

[@CrazyColorfulRoan]

Yes I also realized this after reading the books. It's so tragic. She went and tried everything to survive for her sister but at the end her sister died.😭😭😭 Bawled my eyes out.

[@theabruun1028]

Honestly, President Snow is such a great villain. Smart, cunning, and surprisingly truthful. He lies to the people, for the propaganda, but everything he says to Katniss is the truth, which honestly makes him scarier to me, for some reason.

[@lkcullen1918]

*Epilogue from the book, in case anyone wants to read it:* They play in the Meadow. The dancing girl with the dark hair and blue eyes. The boy with blond curls and gray eyes, struggling to keep up with her on his chubby toddler legs. It took five, ten, fifteen years for me to agree. But Peeta wanted them so badly. When I first felt her stirring inside of me, I was consumed with a terror that felt as old as life itself. Only the joy of holding her in my arms could tame it. Carrying him was a little easier, but not much. The questions are just beginning. The arenas have been completely destroyed, the memorials built, there are no more Hunger Games. But they teach about them at school, and the girl knows we played a role in them. The boy will know in a few years. How can I tell them about that world without frightening them to death? My children, who take the words of the song for granted: Deep in the meadow, under the willow A bed of grass, a soft green pillow Lay down your head, and close your sleepy eyes And when again they open, the sun will rise. Here it's safe, here it's warm Here the daisies guard you from every harm Here your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true Here is the place where I love you. My children, who don't know they play on a graveyard. Peeta says it will be okay. We have each other. And the book. We can make them understand in a way that will make them braver. But one day I'll have to explain about my nightmares. Why they came. Why they won't ever really go away. I'll tell them how I survive it. I'll tell them that on bad mornings, it feels impossible to take pleasure in anything because I'm afraid it could be taken away. That's when I make a list in my head of every act of goodness I've seen someone do. It's like a game. Repetitive. Even a little tedious after more than twenty years. But there are much worse games to play

[@lesliemonster92]

Just listening to you guys feels like being in a safe space. You both radiate empathy, emotional intelligence, and have such thoughtful commentary and sense of humor. You're my favorite place to be on KZbin and I can't thank you enough for the work you put into these videos 💛

[@hiraphane]

A great way to say it. I usually don't ever find myself rewatching reaction vids, but with the budz I find myself with their videos up in the background while I go about my day, because they just have a way of creating a very relaxed, comfortable atmosphere that keeps my nerves in check and grounds me while I'm working. A truly special channel.

[@DaianaLisJagou]

This is so true! They have a way of expressing things that I take for granted that makes me think them over or analyze them a little bit better!

[@meganlynn83]

Excellent comment! 🖤 Couldn't have said it better!

[@gigiiii]

agree with every word

[@TriceeXO]

This is so true. I completely agree

[@JennieQueen-o3k]

i think it’s less that they played up the romance in the movies and more like… the romance in the movies is so overt because gale and peeta very obviously have feelings for her and are interested in her, whereas she’s less interested. so it’s still pretty romance-y. but the book is from HER perspective. HER internal monologue, and since romance is FAR from what’s on her mind… the books are less romance-focused so from the third person point of view it would seem more romance-focused like the movies. but the books are in katniss’ head and her character is never romance-focused at all really lol

[@lpchambers3681]

I think it was more that the marketing focused on it way more. The substance of the movie versus books match close though.

[@arcadius2569]

Good point.

[@KylaTalks]

I wouldn't say she wasn't romance focused at all. I liked how we got to gradually see her fall in love with Peeta in the books (I think it happens by the end of the games in book 2?). It's just that a *relationship* was hard for her to deal with at the time, which I think is very different from having romantic feelings.

[@Viewable11]

The books spend a huge amount of pages on the political situation in Panem and how people try to handle it. This was cut from the movies, therefore the share of screen time spent on the love triangle is bigger in the movies.

[@alen7480]

I would also add, that she respects and cares for Peeta, and is falling in love with him, but she doesn't really realize it herself. Part of it is because in the first book, she doesn't trust Peeta, he is really good at lying and he is charismatic. Gale is more blunt and is direct like Katniss herself is, but he is not what you would call complex. Also Gale and her were close since they were kids, so she trust Gale already, which complicates her growing feelings for Peeta who she doesn't really understand as a person until the third book In some ways, it is Gale and Katniss themselves that are kind of just survivors, not really interested beyond their immediate friends and family, but Peeta thinks beyond these things, he has a more strategic view and frequently looks beyond his own immediate survivorship. Katniss figuring this out (and we with her) are part of the reasons I love these books. Although I must admit, I already liked Peeta from the first book, he was very intelligent, but like Finnick, I had no idea where he really stood when we first meet him. I find it funny that Haymitch figures out how great Peeta is from pretty early on. Actually I think he is the first one to figure it out in the books (and frequently points it out to Katniss).

[@FestivalFacePaintArtist]

Finnick’s death is always a gut punch. Katniss and Finnick were established besties in the books more than they portrayed in the films. Gale was even jealous of Katniss and Finnick’s relationship🙄 Gale is much more of a douche in the books. He is always emotionally manipulating Katniss and gets mad if she is not on the same page as him. Like dude, she’s just not that into you! Stop trying to make fetch happen, it’s not going to happen🤨

[@O___________0]

I can’t tell you how much I loved every part of your comment ✋😩✨

[@TheZenyaNova]

A little side note. The scene where Haymitch reads Plutarch’s letter is actually a tribute to Hoffman. In the book Plutarch talks to katniss directly. He die during production of Part 2.

[@applepie6832]

That scene always makes me tear up

[@keysburntgucci9016]

Rest in Peace Sir 🙏

[@RiverPond11]

Something that they weren't able to get across in the movies that kinda gives me goosebumps - In that end scene Katniss thinks "My children, who don't know they play on a graveyard." I love that line and the deeper meaning to it as well. Great reaction!

[@bandlover341]

Mine is “after all there are far worse games to play”

[@SnickerFoodle]

Funny story, you mentioned the phenomenal acting from everyone, the subtleties of everyone: my mom and I read the books before we watched the movies, my dad did not. He didn't like Jennifer's acting as Katniss. He thought she was too cold, too green, that her acting was lacking and sometimes way too over the top. He couldn't believe that a protagonist would act the way Katniss does. And then he read the books, and he couldn't believe how spot on Jennifer was. Katniss is hard, she's subdued, she's defensive, trying too hard to protect the people she loves by hiding her own feelings to the point of breaking. After watching the movies again, and understanding why she was the way she was, my dad fell in love with these movies ✨

[@arcadius2569]

Yeah... the movie tried really hard to amplify what the books set up. Katniss isnt likeable or charismatic. She spends so much time in the books in her head, wrestling with dark thoughts. You get to read them. Jennifer did an amazing job but just another showcase of how different these two media forms can be.

[@winnielou8206]

Honestly, that judt sounds like what happened to Kristen Steward when everyone said she couldn't act, when she just did a spot on portrayal of Bella

[@tmm4195]

@@winnielou8206 She did play Bella well, but Kristen did say she added a little of herself in there. It was a bit extra with the mouth breathing and blinking lol. Gosh those movies are so uncomfortable to watch.

[@lilyc1808]

A sad little fact that I feel like a lot of people don't realize is that when Katniss had made the decision to kill Coin, you can see her putting a nightlock pill in her pocket. She planned to take her life right after, but Peeta grabbed it from her before she had the chance. And in the book, she was kept in a locked room for days and thought a lot about suicide. Very tragic books...

[@thenotsodaringdevil]

Hi! The scene between Peeta and Gale was in the books. A lot of the exchanges between characters (excluding all the scenes showing the Capitol and Snow, which are movie additions) are nearly or exactly word for word from the novels. Finnick's bit about waking from nightmares to find no relief, the conversation Katniss and Gale have when he kisses her in Catching Fire, the bit about "we agreed not to lie to one another", Gale's line about "choosing who she thinks she can't survive without." All book originals, and lots more. They're really good adaptations.

[@thenotsodaringdevil]

One line change i found very interesting was the scene when Gale is talking about his bomb traps with Beetee. In the movie he says, "I don't think Snow used any rulebook when he hijacked Peeta." In the novel he says, "I'm using the same rulebook Snow used when he hijacked Peeta."

[@VirginiaRancier]

@@thenotsodaringdevil yeap, I think that was the line that made a lot of readers realize that she wasn't going to end up with Gale. If it wasn't Peeta, it was going to be a random dude, her a lone or death, but not Gale

[@NayvieNoir]

Not included was Katniss’s internal reply to Gale’s remark, which was “That’s fine, I can do without both of you”

[@karinhuddleston6232]

@@NayvieNoir that was the one thing that I was so mad about them leaving out of the movie. It was such an important line, especially for young female readers.

[@rahne176]

One of the things I love about the ending is just showing that Katniss and Peeta have kids. In the first movie, Katniss tells Gale she'll never have kids because of the Hunger Games. So I love that they kinda brought it around and showed that Katniss now felt safe enough in her world to bring children into it.

[@angelicasmodel]

I love that too. I know a lot of fans say that Katniss having kids went against this line, but I've always felt it perfectly complemented it.

[@gloriebluestein9721]

@@angelicasmodel really they say that? Do they not understand the symbolism of her having the kids? She wasn't not having kids for the sake of it but because she didn't feel safe having kids. how do they not see that?

[@xoltacueponi]

@@gloriebluestein9721 if i remember correctly, she still didn't want kids in the books at the end, but peeta kept bugging her about it. it's not about feeling safe, it's about the incessant need to have EVERY main female character's arc end in babies ever after. like that's the true sign of peace and happiness.

[@keysburntgucci9016]

@@xoltacueponi you know, I wonder if there were birth control methods in Panem. I'd like to believe no, because why would Snow allow that, when kids are as he saw them as "resources". So, I'm also assuming Peeta and Katniss didn't get too far into their intimacy for the fear of kids. And at some point, Peeta might've grown tired of these fears, and was along the line of "Would it be that bad, if we do end up having a baby?" And I guess that's how Katniss agreed. Just a speculation.

[@tmm4195]

@@xoltacueponi Peeta didn't necessarily bug her about it, but he tried to let Katniss know that they were finally safe enough to have kids. At the end I do think her having kids brought her some peace.

[@EstherFromTheEther]

One of my favorite things about the books are that even though she’s the protagonist you don’t necessarily have to like Katniss. She’s not meant to be a nice person. She’s a normal 16/17 year old just trying to survive. (Peeta on the other hand is naturally lovable which is in line with his character. Katniss on the other hand is supposed to be unlikable. Peeta makes her likeable). All of the characters feel real. They’re complex. They have their good sides and their bad. The author just did such a good job

[@pascaleand0r]

That’s my issue with “strong independent female characters” in general. They’re all perfect, not flawed in the slightest. And that takes me out. Like Katniss is extremely flawed but that’s part of what makes her so appealing. She’s human. She’s not perfect at all.

[@JaakuSan]

One moment the movie loses a LITTLE (and I do mean a little it gets its point across on its own) is how extra fucked Gale's plan for 2 is because 12 is the coal mining district. Tunnel collapse was a real and common cause of death in 12 that got members of both their families. Gale is proposing to inflict 12's nightmare on 2 and the movie loses that a bit because "12 is the Coal District" is more of a small background fact you forget justifies the iconic fire outfits. This and the two-stage bomb are the death knell for him having a relationship of any kind with Katniss.

[@lpchambers3681]

I mean his plan is the exact same in the book, and Katniss brings that they are from coal mining up. He responded with his “It is war, this has to happen” speech and reasoning.

[@JaakuSan]

@@lpchambers3681 Oh fair I don't remember her bringing it up in the movie.

[@HeiwaTori]

@@lpchambers3681 I think they meant that it doesnt come across as horrific because there wasnt as much emphasis on coal mining & the deaths from tunnel collapses in the movies, like they said it was a very minute change that doesnt affect the overall impact, but I agree, in the books we get more about Katniss' father & his death & becuase we only got a small snippet of that in the 1st movie its not as horrific

[@mikarosen]

I never thought about that wow

[@natasha7760]

Such a simple point but I want to say I loved how much you guys appreciated her 'ugly crying' over 'aesthetic crying'. I watched some guy reactors a while back really bothered by her crying face, it felt like it basically boiled down to the fact that they didn't find her attractive like that, so this was a nice contrast. Loved the reactions as per - keep ugly crying gals sometimes shits brutal (I mean not often this brutal but you know)

[@natasha7760]

also that bit at the end where you guys talked about progress being incremental and not linear (when I was already a bit weepy from the scene) got m e. so thanks for that haha

[@_aziuly]

yeahh I saw a couple of guys disliking the "ugly crying" as if it was supposed to be attractive lol

[@lilscenechick1995]

Ew...What channel so I know to avoid them?

[@Melanie-jy2nw]

@@lilscenechick1995 same. I’d like to know which channel to avoid.

[@emmanuelle2977]

yesss i know exactly which reactors you're talking about. totally agree w you

[@zuzauramek9850]

In the book, Peeta had relapses of brainwashing. Katniss would tell their children that when they grow up, she will explain why their father sometimes suddenly holds a chair tightly, staring empty at the distance.

[@observantwonderer7401]

I think Finnicks death was alot less avoidable in the books, it wasn't like Katniss (or anyone) were in a position to do something or could help and Finnick wasn't fighting alone dramatically (for very long) it just came outta nowhere, one minute they ALL almost made it the next a mutt-Croc grabbed him from behind and that was it.

[@jenniferrios53]

He basically sacrificed himself to save katniss...

[@matijasostojic4288]

Finnicks death really wasn't as avoidable as some people seem to think.

[@adddieeee]

At the explosion when the kids were targeted and prim died, katniss was set on fire as a call back to her pre- hunger games dresses as the "girl on fire". I think it was to highlight the difference between how she started (in the pretty dress) and how it all ended (her literally burning).

[@angeldesaray1834]

I'm pretty sure, and most people forget/miss this, but the whole bombs that coin sent, that idea, was Gales idea. I think we even hear him mention the idea earlier, during one of his strategic moments, he mentions a plan of that very scenario. So while he didn't imagine this very situation that him and Katniss were in and prim dying, it was his plan they used. Hence why she asked about rhe bombing plan the way she did, she was echoing the words of the strategy he'd proposed, and then asked if it was him. And he said he doesn't know. because he knew it was his plan they used, but he hadn't known it was going to happen then and there, like that. And why, even moreso, he specifically failed to protect her family. Makes it all the worse.

[@19Rena96]

Planning something is different than actually doing it.

[@tmm4195]

@@19Rena96 It didn't matter to Katniss if Gale just planned it and didn't actually do it. It was his idea that ultimately got Prim killed in the end.

[@sofiacarrillobrito2957]

@@19Rena96 In the Ballad Of Songbirds and Snakes, the guy that came up with the idea of the hunger games quite literally said it as a backhanded comment when he was drunk because he thought it was an interesting idea for a damn school project. Someone with enough malice took that comment and twisted it into what became the incessant killing of the district’s children, when the person that originally concocted the idea saw what was being done, realized that he somewhat had given the incentive, he killed himself out of grief and regret. So it ultimately doesn’t matter if Gale didn’t do it, he planned it, he gave the idea in the first place. That’s what drove Katniss away from him for good.

[@inevitable_role6843]

@@sofiacarrillobrito2957 random question, is the ‘Ballad of the Songbirds and Snakes’ worth reading?

[@sofiacarrillobrito2957]

@@inevitable_role6843 In my opinion it is, at first I feared that Suzanne was going to turn Snow into a sympathetic villain due to the fact that the book is from HIS perspective but it couldn't have been further from the truth. It really gives a lot of insight on how things were back then for the Capitol and how difficult the situation was for pretty much everyone. A deep dive into Snow's psyche was also very welcomed for me. He truly is a scumbag but it's so good because he's so good at it, he doesn't make you like him or root for him even once but through his point of view you get much more information about certain things about the HG universe. Not to mention some pretty good characters.

[@mckenzie.latham91]

The thing i love about Snow was how even facing his death he’s laughing, but he’s laughing because Katniss won the game, she beat Coin at her own game and he’s appreciating a worthy opponent.

[@barbara832001]

I definitely think that there's enough source material to justify splitting Mockingjay into two parts, unlike some other YA adaptations that were clearly cash grabs. I like that the characters are given time to breathe, and that they show that it takes time to recover from trauma.

[@irixaee]

honestly I feel like if they didn’t split it the movie would of felt really rushed; mockingjay is really condensed

[@observantwonderer7401]

That and the book was literally in 2 parts. The first mocking Jay ended exactly when part 1 book did.

[@keysburntgucci9016]

Like you said about the characters being given time to breathe. Also could be said about the cast that were portraying them. We know that every actor even the least of supporting cast involved in this movie has given their best acting, and being in that mindset of a character in these kinds of movies can take a toll on any professional. We definitely wanna avoid drained actors who can't bring their 100% to the table. So yeah a good decision by the movie creators to go along with the book's route.

[@O___________0]

@@irixaee would’ve/would have*. But yup, agreed

[@renjunsvoicecrack3321]

Prim was the only thing Katniss set out to protect at the beginning - and after everything she still lost her

[@SessVlogs]

Finnick's death was always going to be unsatisfactory in the movies. In the books it was EXTREMELY quick (which is why no one could help), but that would have been anti-climactic for a visual medium. However, because they extended the death it made the other characters look kind of incompetent. There are editing tricks you can do to make a quick death feel a little longer, but it's definitely a fine line to tread and I do not envy the filmmakers having to tackle that scene! I also think it was somewhat of a kindness to the character to give him his badass (or 'Aquaman'!) moment before his end.

[@introgeek5278]

In the book, they did heal her quickly due to advanced medicine and coin told her to go through more military training and Joanna joined in but they tried something with water and her PTSD sent her into shock. And the wedding was to stage/real thing to send to snow

[@novembermedusa]

i love that anywhere else the love triangle could be annoying as hell, but since here both boys are much more than love interests, it makes a perfect sense to have it there. each is presented as a symbolic path for katniss to choose, to pick how is she gonna live. but in the end gale is too much like her, and what katniss needs is something different - hope. a dandelion in the spring. in the books, when her whole family was starving after her father died(it was winter) and her mother became depressed, katniss was 11 while taking care of the family, and they were trying to make it to her birthday in may when she would turn 12(reaping age) and could sign up for tesserae(where her name name would be added to the reaping ball an additional time but they would be given extra food - grain and oil). but they had still weeks to go and she felt like they might all die as she was going around looking into trash bins while soaked from the rain, and when peeta's mother cought her and screamed at her to go away she sat under a tree, thinking it would be better to die there than to come back home to her starving family with bare hands. that's when peeta burned that bread for her. two actually, with nuts and raisins. it really saved them and when they met again in the school the next day his face was swollen and he had a black eye. he did not look at her, but when he did look at her once before quickly looking away katniss looked down and saw a dandelion. the spring has come. they did not speak until that reaping day six years later. but that gesture of compassion gave katniss a sense of hope and the dandelion meant they were going to survive(her father thought her about edible plants). so in her mind: peeta = dandelion/bread = hope/life. i loved this journey. great reactions guys!

[@racheleruggiu5590]

in the movie they cut the part where katniss and johanna train to be soldier, and right before going to capital city johanna had a mental breakdown because it was raining (she was tortured with water) and they really connected during the training, and it gives johanna point of view, i really liked that part

[@tiffanykim2773]

It doesn't show well in the film but Peeta actually stopped Katniss from taking a night lock pill after killing Coin.

[@lillimarq]

I came here to and did say this as well :)

[@catherineliu06]

I think her last words in the books were "there are worse games to play" such a strong sentence

[@frikkinpenguin]

The way I see it, as someone who never read the books, if Snow would‘ve just done the Quarterquell and everything that followed after, he would’ve broken Katniss‘ spirit and therefore won the battle. But making things personal by visiting her home, threatening Gale, taking and using Peeta and dropping off the roses over District 13, he, propably unwillingly, constantly reminded her that everything is his doing and gave her that fact to focus on. If he would’ve orchestrated all of it from the shadows, the pure pressure of seeing her loved ones getting hurt because of her and the weight on her shoulders as the Mockingjay would’ve created such an amount of desperation that would’ve suffocated and turned her mad. But his ego made him NEED to tell her „all this is your fault“ over and over again, so her desperation turned into livid hate, which she clung on to keep her head above water. Not for her sake, but for the sake of her loved ones and innocents suffering under Snows reign.

[@nox.205]

Something I did appreciate from the adaptations is making it more overt that both sides used her - plutarch was involved in the rebellion since the first book, likely before, and specifically manipulated snow to go harder on Katniss & the districts after the first games because he knew it would lead to the conditions that led to the rebellion. The districts & Katniss especially were being manipulated from the Capitol & 13 from the beginning.

[@9401maru]

I think that calls back to the prequel book. Snow is obsessed with Katniss. He hates her, he admires her, he feels threatened by her. I think he saw the shadow of Lucy Grey when he looked at her and that's why he made it all so personal, because he was biased, not just thinking 100% rationally.

[@ashleydowney1222]

@@9401maru I still haven't read the prequel. It's been on my Kindle for 2 years now. I couldn't read it during the pandemic when the book came out. I want to read it before the movie comes out. It seems though every time I am about to start it something tragic happens such as having my mom having a massive stroke or having sibling in a coma. And I end up losing interest in reading for awhile.

[@fuzzyapple]

@@ashleydowney1222 I am really sorry for the tragedies in your family and hope everyone recovers/recovered as best as possible. When I am not in the mood for reading, I just listen to audiobooks, so maybe that could be an option for you too. There are sometimes discounts on audible if you already own the kindle version

[@HBoyle]

This. Read the books (over ten years so...😅) But Snow really fucked up by not using the most valuable piece he had to play; "do what I say, or your sister goes in the games" Katniss would have literally done ANYTHING for him 🙄 seriously

[@emmybm15]

1:00:14 "What is that outfit Effie? Never change. Just keep being you, that's amazing" Brilliant we stan Effie appreciation ❤

[@lillimarq]

'She wasn't gunning for your sister.' Except how a 13yo medic in training was in the field... She totally was gunning for the sister too- either to further de-stabilise Katniss, or to incense everyone else, that not only Mockingjay may be dead, but so is her little sister. Gale and Beetee created this type of 2 prong bomb attack strategy. So while here Gale might not know it was definitely being used by the Rebels in this instance, as he was with Katniss and squad 451 over the last few days, and can't be 100% sure it was implemented based on their own plans,, but the way it came to be indicates heavily this was basically identical type of an operation (drop bombs, wait for first responders-detonate again). So yes, he doesn't know, but he KNOWS, and Katniss will now always think this was partially on him.

[@Octobris]

I remember being in the cinema, watching the scene when Katniss sees the cat after everything and people laughing at it... I was like, what the hell? I literally sobbed while some people chuckled. Will remember this injustice forever.

[@lilscenechick1995]

Same! That scene is gut wrenching to me. If I manage to hold it together until that point, that scene gets me every time.

[@Manon-nk4qu]

And that is exactly why we need more 'ugly crying' in Hollywood. People see that stuff and decide that it's funny because they've only seen people cry a solemn one lonely tear while their face is pretty and perfect and thus when someone shows actual real emotion (not saying that 'pretty crying' can't be emotional, it's just not realistic) they think that it's a laughing matter.

[@16taysia]

Don’t get me wrong that scene is so emotional, but I still found it a bit funny that the cat showed up…

[@littlesparrow303]

Yeah in the books it was done very well & I could feel Katniss pain for losing her sister.

[@wendellaraujo7203]

When I read the boom I literally thought she would win an Oscar for that scene, and she could tho

[@anabourdieu]

The aftermath in the books is even better. Peeta still heavely struggles with the torture he suffered from the Capitol, same as Katniss but in their own way. Some characters that don't even exist in the movies are also helping them with mental health to achieve some kind of happiness.

[@dariyaussenova9094]

For Katniss, Peeta represents peace and Gale represents war.

[@nox.205]

I read it more as Peeta = empathy vs Gale = revenge. Through the books her struggle to choose makes perfect sense, and it's really well foreshadowed which she will end up choosing by how she treats and sees the citizens of the Capitol as the novels progress.

[@tanyakopel]

Coin 100% sent Peta to the front lines in the hopes that he would snap and kill Katniss. As Boggs said, Coin is threatened by her in the upcoming election and would much rather have Katniss become a martyr.

[@Manon-nk4qu]

Coin bombing those children is even more horrifying when you realize that most of the children in 13 died of that epidemic that Prim mentioned in Mockingjay part 1. Even Coin's own children died and she still did not value kid's lives over her own desire for power. It is of course not mentioned but I personally think that Coin knew the war was over anyway but she still sent those bombs because like Snow mentioned, no one would be on the Capitol's side again. And that means that Coin's presidency wouldn't start with hunting down all those Capitol supporters who could eventually start another rebellion against her.

[@funsalmon]

Katniss' decision at the end of the movie re: the execution is signaled more in the movie. It took me completely by surprise in the novel. Amazing writing.

[@nox.205]

Also due to the POV it's more obvious it's not a planned decision. Let's be honest Katniss isn't a strategist - she reads snow & realizes he's dead either way, and that she's being used to recreate the very world she fought so hard to destroy, and makes the snap decision to take out the "other side of the coin" instead. It's very true to her character & I was shocked but not surprised at the moment in the book.

[@ranga1cat]

@@nox.205 I agree, she makes a snap (but correct) judgement regarding Coin.

[@mikarosen]

Absolutely

[@nox.205]

Something made more explicit in the books, when snow invites the citizens to his home when the rebels are closing in, it's not for PR, it's too use the Capitol citizens as human shields - if the citizens had stayed in their homes the rebels could attack Snow's mansion, it's framed more that snow engineers a no win situation where "collateral damage" is necessary for the rebels to target snow. It's fucked up but definitely places the blame on both sides. Iirc it was framed that the rebels began attacking at that point in the hopes the citizens would turn back & leave a path clear to snow, which is when he tells them to send their children forward "for their safety" and it's a super fucked up situation all around.

[@erickalena]

“I know this would have happened anyway. That what I need to survive is not Gale's fire, kindled with rage and hatred. I have plenty of fire myself. What I need is the dandelion in the spring. The bright yellow that means rebirth instead of destruction. The promise that life can go on, no matter how bad our losses. That it can be good again. And only Peeta can give me that.” -Katniss Everdeen, Mockingjay I love that Suzanne Collins knows her characters so well that she didn't just give us a happy ending and a romance story for the sake of it being happy. Katniss waited 15 years to have kids with Peeta and he's probably the only one that she could've had them with after all the trauma she went through. She knows this too and that's why I love them together. Their love arose in a complex way, at its own time, but it was real. And it survived all it did because they were the only ones who could bring that hope to each other. It is a beautiful depiction of what real love does in your life. It gets you through it. Despite it being so beautiful and relevant, it doesn't take away from the main message of the story one bit. I don't think there will ever be a book series to beat this as my favorite.

[@AmalaFrequents]

One thing I have always loved about Katniss is that for all that this series does have a key love triangle, it's a love triangle for everyone else. For Katniss, love isn't romance. Love is trust to her. I actually reread the second book and there is a canonical basis for reading Katniss as demisexual- the first time she mentions actually enjoying a kiss and suddenly feeling something is when she kisses Peeta on the beech in the second games, at the time she can trust noone in the world but him, and she's completely made her peace with it. It's the first time in the series she actually expresses any form of attraction at all. She kisses people because it's expected, it's a tool to console or empathise, she doesn't do it for herself. But the love triangle is less about romance and more a microcosm of the dilemma of who you choose to be in nightmare situations. Throughout the series Peeta and Gale both actually demonstrate more natural aptitude for the revolution than Katniss. Peeta has a gift for speaking, he has a charisma that can use genuine emotion to inspire and encourage, he knows how to play a psychological game, but he does it by engaging empathy and positive emotions vs fear and division. In the second games most victors try to stop the games by showing rage, by sort of seducing the audience, debating the legality- Peeta makes the biggest impact by perfectly distilling the point most people in the districts know but the Capitol people have become desensitised to: he tells them Katniss is pregnant, and suddenly you see an innocent life full of potential (the baby) be flung into a game with zero control to probably be murdered before your eyes. The Capitol audience react to this, because they're invested in the people, suddenly the games have a personal feel for them. Peeta can inspire and motivate, and he is a deadly weapon if he had been chosen as the mouthpiece. Think about how both he and Katniss got back at the game makers and investors in their evaluation for the second games- Peeta painted a picture of Rue, he reminded them vividly of the moment that sort of started the revolution, and how that response continues to naturally bloom from the games, they cannot take his humanity and they won't be able to take it from everyone, so they will never be truly in control; in contrast, Katniss hangs a dummy representative of Seneca Crane, a direct taunt and threat that noone is safe here whichever side of the glass you're on. Gale also is a great leader of people. In the books he becomes a sort of leader when he starts working in the mines, he's very community orientated, he is able to organise and evacuate people, and he's also a skilled tactician. Gale's specialty is traps. He knows how to study behaviour, play into it, and turn it to his advantage- just like Peeta. But with Gale his traps are always deadly. At first he used it to hunt food to feed the people he loves, in the war, he's using it to still protect and defend the people he loves. Gale is horrified by Prim's death because she was in his group. Gale is a survivor who will defend his group/community to the end, but to do so he will dehumanise everyone else other, he can only focus on protecting so much, and he loves the people he knows strongly enough he is angry at anyone who threatens them and thus it's easier to dehumanise anyone connected to the Capitol. He becomes one of the key tacticians in the rebellion. Katniss is a hunter too, she knows sometimes you have to kill for survival, whether to eat or stay safe or just because the situation doesn't allow anything else. She struggles between Peeta and Gale because Peeta seems kind of idealistic, unrealistic, she kind of thinks he's not trying to fight at all at first, but as the story continues she realises Peeta is fighting. He fights for her, yes, but he also always has one eye on the wider situation. He uses his single love for her to fight too, to fuel him. It's his triumph not to be controlled, and even at the very end, Peeta uses that love to help deweaponise himself, and still continue to inspire rebellion. He's willing to do the propos in the war zone because he understands what inspiration means to a revolution. With Gale, Katniss can understand him, she can think like him, but she cannot empathise with him. She sees someone she knew and loved ultimately arrive at the point of being a kind of gamemaker, staging death for impact (directly or indirectly) with what happens to Prim, and how he suggests treating civilians. Katniss knows what Gale doesn't yet, that being responsible for death on an intimate level shows you all death is horrific, and everyone is someone to someone, they're all human. Katniss constantly sees Prim in people around her, in Rue, in the girl at the presidential palace, she can't help but humanise and whilst she will kill for the greater mission, she will never kill unnecessarily because she knows the weight of each life. In a way Gale's arc as a tactician humanises even the game makers a little- or rather the suggestion that people who think in such horrific ways aren't necessarily just born like that they grew into it and were probably different once. The love triangle is kind of symbolic of how in dire situations pretty much all choices a person makes can be understandable and not originating in a bad place, but your choices still matter. Peeta represents hope, he uses love to inspire, and he uses it to fuel his determination to live and continue. Gale represents tactical reality, survival, a resignation to the world always being in grey areas. Gale is who Katniss was at the beginning of the books more, Peeta is who she wants to be. Peeta is the only person she trusts to not slide into becoming a villain, which is emphasised by the fact the Capitol try to physically make him into a threat to Katniss and yet he still overcomes that. She can trust the way he thinks. Peeta is the humanity, Gale is the dehumanisation that can both occur in traumatic situations. Katniss clings to and chooses hope. (That's my analysis anyway- also this isn't a Gale hate comment or anything, all characters make very understandable decisions, it's more my thinking on why Suzanne Collins chose a love triangle as a very smart writer who wrote a great series about humanity and power.)

[@ericakriner3244]

This is a beautiful analysis

[@jasmine7744]

What a thoughtful analysis. I love it!

[@KairiKH21]

Its a love triangle with deeper meaning that many YA novels cannot grasp any deeper than surface level. Love the analysis.

[@CleverlyCoCo]

Love your analysis! Some tend to think that romance is added to a story just to pander to an audience (and that does happen), but in many of the great romances it symbolizes personal, inner growth. In a well crafted love story, when a protagonist learns to love someone else it represents them fully integrating all the parts of themselves in order to become whole (i.e. the term "other half").

[@riag.1856]

Well said!! I loved reading your analysis!

[@rukbat3]

1:16:04 Don't forget that even before the Capital messed with his mind, Peeta was never really quite sure whether Katniss really loved him or whether it was all an act she was putting on for Snow's benefit. So I love this little callback and the fact that Katniss outright confirms at the end that she does love him.

[@stevie9675]

46:40 I didn't even know Finnick died when I read this part of the story because it was literally at the end or near end of the chapter and if I remember correctly, I think it was only about 1 or 2 sentences that stated Finnick's death then BOOM end of chapter. Next thing you know, I'm here confused as shit as to why Finnick wasn't with them for the rest of the book lmao. I actually had to re-read that part a few times to register in to my mind that he died.

[@inevitable_role6843]

Same here. Me being confused and upset about Finnick dying is the most vivid memory I have reading the series for the first time.

[@lylivictor]

Sameeee, I've talked to some people and most of us had the same experience, honestly at the time i was pissed (i was 13, I think) but now I think the way she wrote it to be kinda imperceptible at first, due to the nature of fights like these being so fast and unpredictable, is actually genius

[@A_a96x]

I think I also missed it in the book, because when that scene came up in the movie I thought that he wasn’t going to die since in my mind he didn’t in the books. So his death totally surprised and devastated me😅

[@heyitsmira17]

That was me with Prim, somehow I couldn't really get that she had died until later when they talked directly abt it lol

[@jesseyupanqui7739]

This was an amazing reaction, just something to point out. Both Katniss and gale fathers died when the mine they worked collapsed which is why for Katniss the burying the people in the Mountain was so much worst and horrified that gale could suggest that. Also In the book (might also be in movie not sure) there is a scene where Gale suggest the whole plan with the delayed bombs. That’s why Katniss partly blames him for her death.

[@Jemini4228]

Also cute fact: the kids who played Peeta and Katniss's children are Jennifer's own nephews and the older boy got on really well with Josh as he came to set a lot. :)

[@klarazjons7324]

Suzanne Collins has mentioned she regretted killing off Finnick. Also, there is a prequel book about Snow and it's set to be a movie released next year

[@Blossom_Screen]

One kinda lame adaptation choice they made in this one is that in the book both katniss and Johanna commit themselves to military training and study and really work to earn their spot as more than just faces of the revolution. Katniss doesn’t sneak into the front lines she gets sent there because of her hard work. But honestly slapping a training montage in the middle of the movie would have really halted the momentum.

[@julianaaraujo7928]

In the books the ending is much sadder. I think the end of the movie gave the impression that they managed to "get over" the traumas but in the book you know that they are still "broken" that they still have nightmares even after years and that Peeta is still not 100% like Peeta from before and that it took him years to convince Katniss to have children because she was afraid.

[@lindseysteward7736]

To answer your question, the conversation between Peeta and Gale while hiding in Tigris's shop did happen in the book.

[@mikkikayee]

A lot of other comments touched on what I wanted to say except for one thing- at the end Haymitch still struggles with his drinking problem and raises geese in an attempt to aid himself. I wish they had shown just a little more of the aftermath the three of them had when they went back to 12 (literally a mass graveyard tbh).

[@vanilla6326]

From what I can remember of the books, basically as soon as Peeta shows up Katniss is of the opinion that Coin sent him specifically to keep her in line. She wouldn’t act out on her own if she couldn’t take him with and if he so happened to kill Katniss it would be an excellent demonstration of how the Capitol divided them.

[@loren5290]

i just think is so fucked up how katniss started everything to protect prim and in the end she dies for nothing

[@oliviastratton2169]

Yeah,in the first book/movie Katniss and Peeta both express wanting one thing above everything else: to keep her sister alive, and to not let the Capitol change him. In Mockingjay, Prim dies and Peeta is brainwashed into a weapon. Genuinely tragic.

[@loren5290]

@@oliviastratton2169 yes i and i saw the suzanne collins actually planned on killing prim since she wrote the first book and it makes it so much worse :(((

[@chiaramierez5188]

I don't see a lot of people talking about this, but rewatching this, specifically Tigris' scene, was so interesting to me because in the last book (Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes) it is mentioned multiple times that not only Snow and Tigris were really close, they were cousins. Seeing her reaction to Katniss saying she was gonna kill her cousin, and talking about how he didn't think she was beautiful anymore has such an impact when you read how good friends they were in the past, when the Games were barely starting, and they were both around Katniss' age, and I think it kinda shows how much Snow has changed to this person he is now.

[@Jemini4228]

Also in the books Katniss's grief over Prim is brutal. She basically starves herself for weeks so that she's the thinnest she's ever been because she's so devastated.

[@jenniferrios53]

2 things: coin fully knew what she was doing when she sent in prim. Prim was a trainee and only 14yrs. Old. There was no reason she should have been there. And second, gale didn't know. He had no hand in sending out those bombs, but the whole concept was his idea. He gave coin and her team that idea and she used it to win.

[@Ανδρεια]

In regards to your questions etc: - The situation with Finnick's death is really chaotic and fast-paced in the book. She has trouble thinking straight during that entire scene bc. the mutts smell like Snow's roses and blood, which is horrifying to her. There isn't any time to get to Finnick, but Katniss sees three of the mutts already tearing at him when she decides to drop the Holo. Also, her shock is conveyed really well. She kind of has an out of body experience and only her actions are described, so it feels really mechanical, like she is distacing herself from the decision. - If I remember correctly, almost all of the kisses are in the books too, but it isn't played up as much, just people seeking to comfort others/seeking comfort in others. In regards to the scene where Gale and Peeta talk in Tigris' cellar, that was also in the book, and Katniss is really baffled to hear them talk like that bc. she never considered that they would actually have a conversation with each other. - Something they could have portrayed better was the scene where Gale screams that Katniss should kill him. She's actually really disoriented during the chaos and doesn't understand what he's saying. It's only after they've dragged him away that she remembers a conversation they had about killing each other if the Capitol gets their hands on either of them, so they won't be tortured. But it's true that it's unclear whether she would have been able to go through with it if she had understood what he was saying. - Prim's death is also extremely heart-wrenching and Katniss' trauma is explored even more in the final chapters (she really seems like she has a mental break-down, tries to commit suicide, first doesn't speak, then starts singing whatever comes to her mind to deal with her grief etc). It's hinted at that Coin placed Prim with the paramedic's team on purpose to break Katniss' spirit bc. Prim wasn't fourteen yet, which is the minimum age required to join the paramedic team. There are so many more details, characters etc in the books, so I would really recommend reading them if you are interested. Anyway, thanks for your reactions, they always make my day!!

[@applepie6832]

The scene in the house when Peeta sees his self kill one of the people in their troop, really cements to Peeta that his worse nightmare that he tells Katniss about in the first movie has come true. The capital turned him into something he’s not. He realizes how far away he is from the person he was before the games. Which is why he was so desperate to end it all so he doesn’t have to fear being used as a weapon. The tunnel scene is also extra sad with the knowledge that the mutts are made from the bodies of fallen tributes

[@riina__]

42:28 this scene is so creepy on the book, Peeta is literally connected to the mutts and he whispers like them in his sleep

[@mikarosen]

Holyshit did not remember that

[@alinac5512]

For the Prim thing: in the books Katniss reflects on how Prim could be there, so young, still in training. She would have volunteered for sure but she would have needed special permission from someone high up. You need to remember she was only like 14/15. I'm pretty sure that's what convinces Katniss that it was coin. Coin wanted to break Katniss by killing her sister.

[@lillimarq]

Have you noticed Peeta stopped her from taking the nightlock pill after schooling Coin? Also Coin told her to end tyranny, so she did 🤷🤷‍♀️🤷‍♂️

[@dontdeletethexos]

I have always found the table scene haunting and beautifully done. it shows how easily they can fall back into another hunger games. and the fact that they all justify it and the people who voted for seem to think it's a completely valid plan to get their revenge on the capital. it's a direct parallel on how the capital started this (to get revenge on the district's rebellion ) a viscous cycle that would have continued had Katniss not killed Coin

[@thedarkestreads7971]

The scene between Peeta and Gale and lifted almost straight from the books. Katniss is pretending to be asleep and heating Gale and Peeta speak about her allows her to come to the realization that Peeta is truly what she needs, less in a relationship capacity and more as a force in her life that offers lightness and reprieve whereas Gale will always offer fire and intensify and she declares she doesn’t need any more of that in the book bc she has enough of it on her own. I think it’s obviously better written in the book bc the romantic element is more stripped and it really is about Katniss realizing the trajectory she needs for her life has to include lightness and ease to compliment her drive and fire or else she’ll kill herself.

[@isabellanesheiwat8]

To Steph's point, I feel like Suzanne Collins working in the Hunger Games stuff could have been taken as "she's doing what has already been proven to be popular and get her sales" IF SHE HAD DONE IT WRONG. But she did it SO RIGHT to where it works perfectly without being considered repetitive. I think Finnick's line "Ladies and gentleman, welcome to the 75th Hunger Games" is so frightening and haunting. What a wonderful, epic, searing series.

[@MelaniePoparad]

I always struggled with the Gale/Peeta/Katniss triangle. Gale legitimately loves her, so does Peeta. She legitimately loves them both in different ways and for different reasons. By the end, I was ok with who she chose. But it really was all the way at the end that I was undecided. Sometimes, outside strength (gale being obviously helpful and protective) is helpful for someone who struggles with ptsd. Other times, someone who understands your struggles and has their own is better for someone with ptsd. Peeta and Katniss obviously have severe ptsd and they lift each other up through their bad times. Ultimately, I think Gale would have become a crutch for Katniss and she never would have gotten back on her feet… no matter how unsteadily or still struggling with the issues.

[@vadalia3860]

Ironically, I see it the other way around. Being with Gale would have mired her in her trauma and war, because that's what he dove head-first into whereas Peeta, despite having more superficial similarities in his experiences with Katniss', was always trying to rise above the bloodshed and hatred. They talked about it in the first book/movie- Peeta didn't want the Games/Capital to change who he was and they mostly didn't. Even with all the brainwashing and torture, deep down inside he was still the same kind and caring person he always was and Katniss needed that as a focus and goal to move on after the war. But fighting the Capital did change Gale into someone who will likely never move past the war emotionally, and with whom Katniss would probably always dwell on it as well. Katniss choosing the one she "couldn't survive without" was her choosing the one with whom she could forge a real life with in the aftermath (ie- "surviving" in a meaningful way), instead of metaphorically "dying" by living unfulfilled and miserable.

[@observantwonderer7401]

For me after catching fire (the book) there was no question in who Katniss would chose, why and how he's better. For me book one pretty much explains why even before the games Gale wasn't ever _really_ a true option for her she thought about for sure but in the end her conclusion was it can only be friendship even if they get married itd be more for convienence and still platonic (for her). Partly bc _she_ didn't trust him romantically (he gave fuck boi vibes) and she'd didn't think she'd be his type and therefore B) she'd friendzoned him from the get go. After the games Gale probably presented himself as true unambiguous option, but So had Peeta so by then it was too late. Katniss only entertained of for as long as she did was bc Gale was low key emotionally blackmailing/manipulating her, to her "it made more logic sense" to 'love'/be with Gale, like she _had_ to bc it was the og plan to be with him in some way and she didn't want to lose her friend so she felt like she HAD to do something and Gale was not stopping her (hense the emotional manipulation) and she didn't buy into the love "fantasy" with Peeta. But obviously she already did have romantic feelings for Peeta.

[@alarrim29574]

The way I see it is once katniss went into the games for the first time her and gale would have never worked out. She changed and gale was not what she wanted or needed. Not to mention how he changed as war set in just made them even more bad for each other. Peeta was always going to be katniss’s choice after what she went through

[@totaltotal8481]

I think it's interesting to consider that Collins didn't even want a love triangle. Her first plan was for Gale to be Katniss' cousin, someone who has the same experiences pre Hunger Games, looks just like her and thinks just like her. They even wanted to present Gale as her cousin as a cover-up in the books (I don't remember if they touched on that in the movie). I think her plan was always to have Katniss and Peetas relationship develop as a side story or minor note, so to show to her readers how people may survive the horrors of war and heal afterwards. She then was kind of forced to make it a love triangle by her publisher (I think), but I think she made it in a smart way as to have Peeta and Gale both represent the different perspectives and approaches to war and its aftermaths. I think if you really look at it from the beginning on, then not only representing Bread (I mean his name is literally Peeta), even the first book draws the comparison between Peeta and a dandelion. Sure it was the bread that helped Katniss survive back then, but it was when she saw that dandelion she truly realized what kind of gift she was given, that she has now the possibility to enter a new cycle of spring (blooming dandelions being the indicator that winter is over now) and that she has the possibility to work on herself and her skills to provide for her family so that they'd never have to starve this badly again. It's kind of the start of her taking real responsibility for the people she loves and actually being able to provide. In the end I think Katniss even thinks about why she chose Peeta and not Gale (just from a logical/ symbolic standpoint): Gale was to similar to her. They provide the same way for others in a physical way, they have similar perspectives of things and a real drive in them that ultimately makes both of them survivors, even before the Games happened. But Katniss doesn't need more fire from Gale to stoke her own fire, she can provide all of those things that Gale provides herself (interesting note is that the name Gale means wind, so Gale has been helpful to keep her flame running with oxygen, but we all know that too much wind can either make the fire uncontrollable or put it out completely. Also if you continue with the winter analogy, fire is so important in winter to keep you warm and does represent life/ surviving. But once spring begins and everything starts to grow and turn green, fire tends to be more harmful than helpful, burning away any possibility of new growth.). In the end she makes the comparison between Peeta and a dandelion again. Peeta again represents the beginning of a new cycle, spring, new opportunities to actually heal, that that is what she needs. She needs to be reminded that the war is over now and that she has a possibility to start over and not be reminded of the 'winter'/ war again and again and let that ruin any possibility of growth. It's also interesting if you compare the fire and the dandelion again, than the dandelion is able to teach the fire to be softer, more considerate and careful. She can learn to let the fire in her finally go from something that just burns (uncontrollably) to something that just warms instead, like the gentle heat of the sun, which provides for all the things to grow in spring. She even remarks at the end, that their children don't even know that they are playing on the fields that have grown over the graves of hundreds and hundreds of people. But with Peeta she is able to accept that and also enjoy that her children are able to even play in these spots that have seen so much death. That things really are able to change into something new/ better always. All in all, Peeta represents hope/ change whereas Gale represents fight/ survival. Another side note: I never actually thought that her feelings for Gale had any merit. She probably would have married Gale, if it wasn't for the Games, but just because he is an important person to her and out of convenience rather than any romantic feelings or attraction. She was also certain to never have children with Gale, so she probably wouldn't even have a sexual relationship with Gale and stayed celibate, because she wouldn't have been able to risk becoming pregnant and having a child, that would have a probability of dying due to the Games or just things happening in the districts or losing their parents due to work in the mines or them being caught trespassing. All the kisses she exchanged with Gale were because she didn't want to lose him or have him be unhappy with her and because she herself feels she can't really convey things through the way she speaks as she is a really physical person. But I also think that was her way of clinging to some kind of semblance of the live she knew and before she was deeply traumatized by the Games and later on the war. Her feelings for Peeta evolved gradually and weren't something she even really allowed herself to feel (she has a deep fear of losing people she loves and she has seen what happened to her mother after her father died). In the beginning she felt forced to a lot of the actions with him due to being in the Games, but I think as soon as they really started to bond and get to know eachother and she realized, that all of it wasn't just strategy but that Peeta was really someone she could count on to keep her head straight as he is so thoughtful and considerate, she fell in love with him slowly. During the war and games her focus was on not losing him, and after the war she was able to focus on wanting to be with him, as is something that normally happens when you start to heal.

[@secretlybees]

@@observantwonderer7401 Yes! The way Gale always pushed Katniss to make a choice about him when she was going through major PTSD always disappointed me. Peeta never pushed her. He loved her, he said he couldn't stand acting like strangers, but he never tried to push her to love him and respected her boundaries. Gale felt like a whiny baby mad that she used love as a survival tactic in a nightmare situation. He never seemed to understand or respect what she went through in the games.

[@StellaLoreley]

Katniss and Petaa’s kiss after the massacre was in the books, as well as the conversation between Gale and Peeta. In the books, they couldn’t go back for Finnick because he was practically dead. Katniss did that to spare his pain, like how she shot Cato in the first movie/book when he was getting eaten alive by the wolf mutts

[@TheMaskedChef7]

Actually i feel like alot of people misunderstood the point of Finnick's untimely death which is actually a main lesson of the entire hunger games series "Most deaths are untimely" especially in that sort of life Except for Snow and Alma their deaths were perfectly timed because they are not victims of the system but rather the creators of it. love this series and thank you guys for your great reactions and commentary.

[@kunilsen2519]

I agree, it's just that in the movies it makes it look like the other characters do nothing as they watch Finnick die. His death wasn't sudden at all because we watch him fight alone, and watch him get attached by more and more monsters until he is surrounded. Meanwhile, the people above had a clear shot at the enemies and quite a lot of time to shoot or do something to at least try to help/save Finnick. In the books it was sudden, they literally couldn't do anything because he died so fast and suddenly. There was nothing they could do.

[@TheMaskedChef7]

@@kunilsen2519 clearly there was no time to fight all those creatures they swarmed him way too fast by the time any of them would have went back down to him they would have been dragged in and died as well they made the right call even though it was a brutal one.

[@kunilsen2519]

@@TheMaskedChef7 They had guns, in the movies they could just shoot down at the creatures to give Finnick an extra second or two. Then they would at least have done something even if he still died. I understand that they were either trying to make the movie more "epic" or trying to pay some respect to the character by giving him a cool last moment. But it made the other characters feel inept and like they could have done more. Im only speaking about this spesfitic scene tho.

[@toriecarter2711]

Finnick watching over/helping Peeta was one of my favorite little touches, once I noticed it. I again just have to appreciate that you guys really take your time, pay attention, and think about what the movie is saying. I don't think I even made the connection that, Finnick would maybe familiar with handling someone like that after loving Annie~ I wonder if it's in the books, and more touched upon, if it is??? I really gotta set time aside to read them!~^.^ I know The Mouse and musicals are friends to no reactors, but with Maleficent 2 being up next, it reminded me that I'd be really interested in seeing you two react to the Descendants DCOM series, in the future~~~

[@no.1garlicbreadenthusiast]

As a big fan of the books I would like to say that yes it's definitely a thing in the books. I love the friendship between Katniss, Joanna, Finnik & Peeta.

[@themoviebud1988]

Yeah, I really liked Finnick being there for Peeta, even if they didn’t show it a lot. Thanks, we try to make sure we’re catching everything. Obvs we do miss things here and there, but we do our best haha. No worries, descendants is on the list and we’re hoping to get to it soon, but we’ll have to see how things play out in the next few months - Sam

[@lucysmith6530]

Tigress was a fashion designer....who obviously really likes cats. She went too far with her body mods and her cousin (president Snow) had her shunned. She helped because she hates Snow, she disliked the idea of the games from the beginning but she made snows clothes for his 1st mentorship and styled his tribute technically becoming the first tribute stylist (even though that wasn’t an official title at the time). He fired her and blamed it on her mods but I personally think it was because she knew he cheated so his tribute could win and hated the fact he’d helped create the hunger games as we see them here! Snow was a mentor in the 10th hunger games ...Capitol Academy kids were mentors at first.

[@Wargatron]

Gale fights fire with fire and Katniss just wants a fire extinguisher…

[@TheLoonyLovebad1]

The scene with the cat makes me cry every time. It is the moment both Katniss and the audience finally get to realize Prim's death and grieve her

[@ricardaseven6083]

I really appreciate how much thought and care you put into your comments - like the actual words you say - and how you make sure to listen to each other and add things and make it a discussion or at least a real conversation instead of some small lines here and there. especially in movies like these where there is so much to unpack, i can always trust that you will take the time to do so. just wondering,, after this series of pretty heavy movies, if we'll get some more fun ones soon like maybe another musical movie bc i also love your in depth comments on musical trivia :D

[@themoviebud1988]

Thanks so much, Ricarda, we do our best to find the balance between too much and too little 😊 Yeah, the next few will be less heavy. Not sure about the next musical movie, but there’s definitely some of those on the list 👌 - Sam

[@ricardaseven6083]

@@themoviebud1988 Well you're doing a really good job of that! Looking forward to it :)

[@-chenlanying5818]

@@themoviebud1988 the book, Finnick's death wasn't like "People, go help him !" and more "We can't go back, he's already dead". They made it seem like he could've been saved but no one did.

[@Melanie-jy2nw]

I remember not liking the ending when I first read the books. I didn’t find Katniss’ ending satisfying because it wasn’t a simple happy ending (I was 13 lol) and there wasn’t a big dramatic battle scene at the end but looking back, the ending was brilliantly written and realistic for this world and to the character. I really love it now.

[@sharonc.8801]

Clicked within seconds.

[@janasoskova007]

That Peeta and Gale conversation was in the books. There are still less 'love triangle' stuff in the books, though, because they are written from Katniss' perspective and she has her priorities straight. Cheers for the vid, buds! :)

[@wfhmlittlelife]

Reading the Ballad of Serpents and Songbirds put so much into perspective regarding the Capitol and the games. When Snow says "These things happen in war" he knows what hes talking about. It doesnt justify him. But it does explain a LOT. Especially his reaction to the Hanging Tree song. Yikes. His worst nightmare and his wildest dreams back to haunt him. It really is personal for him.

[@abbiejo6822]

One thing they bring up in the books was Prim was too young to be a front line medic by District 13’s rules, so she would have had to have special authorization to be there. Basically Coin deliberately killed her specifically as well as all the others.

[@AlyssaK83]

I read in an interview that the letter from Plutarch was supposed to be done in person from Philip Seymour Hoffman but he passed away and the scene was changed to have a letter instead. Also, the lizard mutts are so terrifying because they are part human, which is why they were whispering to Katniss in the sewers.

[@riahw3750]

suzanne collins in an interview said she regrets killing finnick so at least she knows😂

[@kingmidas2112]

My understanding of the scene, including from the books, where Gale apologizes to Katniss is that he didn't know beforehand, but he did recognize that it was a tactic he had JUST developed, and probably suspected someone on his side had used it as a false-flag attack. He feels guilty because he suspects he designed the trap that killed Prim.

[@chelsee8652]

You guys watching this inspired me and my girlfriend to rewatch and reread the whole series!!! Really so ahead of its time, its still so relevant, and for us, many of it is just part of the reality we live in. Love this series so much!

[@rosemariesgarden]

Great revisiting this with you guys. I can't believe we are getting a prequel movie soon.

[@briannafrancis6410]

These movies will always be huge part of my childhood and they will always hold a special place in my heart

[@skyrider260]

In the books, after the explosions, Katniss is left scarred from the burns. In the books they compare her skin to a quilt. I wish they would have tried to do that in the movie. To me that scarring represented how scarred she was in the inside by the time the war ended. It just seemed to me that they wanted her to stay pretty for the movie, which to me went against the point of the books. Like you guys said, these books show the ugly truth of war and that is the reason I loved the books so much. It felt like a deserves to Katniss and all she went through to take her burn scars away and leave her pretty for the end of the movie.

[@t.m.228]

We are finally at the last movie!! It was really fun watching them with you guys and hearing your input on them!! Definitely one of the highlights of my week when you upload

[@raulantunez4228]

The end of this movie makes me cry every time. Just thinking about the trauma that Katniss has and the fact that Prim will never meet her children, her home was completely destroyed and the people she grew up around are dead. The bright side is that her children will never have to go through the reaping and that the future is very bright, not only for her but for everyone.

[@comenerdwithme3346]

Finnick’s death (R.I.P) is actually different in the books, in the books it doesn’t go into details and just lists who got out of the sewers, in fact Collins actually regretted having him die once she saw and heard about how everyone loved his character so much. Also the “Tiger” woman that helps Katniss after they escape the sewers is Snows younger cousins she’s mentioned in “The ballad of songbirds and snakes” Snow origin story. ☺️

[@realSimoneCherie]

I love Joanna and I also empathize with her resentment. I think she comes around to respect her well enough, but I get it.

[@belzvaldez19]

I love your reactions so much!!! Just fyi, Finnick's death was so fast in the books that many of us had to reread to realize it. Basically everyone was going up to the "platform" and when they turned around Finnick was being attacked, everyone argues that they should help him but everyone was already up and going down would be suicide, Finnick yells at Katniss as if begging her to end his suffering and that's why Katniss leaves drop command. About the talk between Gale and Peeta, it's in the books and they both come to the same conclusion, the only one who can choose is Katniss, you could say they make a truce hahaha. Btw the bomb that killed Prim it was created by Gale since this one uses the same strategy that he used when hunting: you create a need (the children injured by the first bombs), then the prey approaches (those who help, either paramedics or civilians) and then you kill the prey, although he didn't know Prim would be there, but many times in the book he showed that he didn't care about collateral damage. And about the last thing, as I remember approximately 10 years or more passed between when Katniss and Peeta returned to 12 and had children, since both were still dealing with the aftermath of the trauma, since even with their children Peeta had episodes where he did not know what it was real or not and Katniss still had nightmares. THG are the best adaptations I've seen, even when there were changes they stuck so well to what was already cannon that it just seemed like they were always there.

[@Naahi95]

Watching this in cinemas when it came out was an experience, for sure. I'd already read the books by that point, and the last book destroyed me emotionally, but one thing I aprecciate about this movie is its ending. It leaves you with a little bit more hope, and when Katniss starts singing in the credits the same song to her kids that she used to sing to Prim, it gave me goosebumps and I stayed still in my seat until the credits ended. I think to this day it was the most emotional cinematic experience that I ever had in a cinema. This saga is top tier for me (both the books and movies), and it's a shame that many ignored it because they thought it was "another twilight".

[@kizi180]

After the author admitted that she regretted killing Finnick, I made my own head-canon where he didn't die and lived with Annie and their son in District 4.

[@nathanwilkins6107]

I really appreciate the catharsis of these books/movies- many stories end at the victory but there’s something so..relieving about seeing peeta and katniss going about normal life with the capital finally no longer looking over then.

[@realSimoneCherie]

Mahershala was on screen in the franchise for what? 15 minutes tops and became such a well loved character. No wonder he went on to be so big ❤

[@penelopereiss5041]

The end with the cat and the letter from Annie always makes me cry

[@spyrothetimelord]

It's been years and I'm still user by Finnick's death. I know the boom treated it differently, but that was one thing I truly wish I could change. He finally could have the happiness he deserved but it was taken once again, and it left Annie without him.

[@nikkih9534]

A thing a lot of people miss when watching this movie is that Katniss was going to take a nightlock pill after shooting Coin but she got dragged away before she could. Katniss wasn't planning to make it past the execution.

[@janasoskova007]

Oh guys, that kiss between Haymitch and Effie was an improv by the actors.