#reminds me of how the hunger games movies are shown as if from the Capitol

[valla-chan]

The more I think about The Ring / Ringu 's story, the more I realize that the reason why it seems bizarre to treat Sadako/Samara as the villain is because... It sort of is.

This post contains spoilers for the Japanese movie, the American remake, and the original book of "The Ring/Ringu".

In the American version, Samara is implied to be a demon child; some sort of abomination brought into the world by irresponsible parents who wanted a child but we're not able to conceive. (See the queer undertone?) Her parents had no special abilities in any way.

Samara herself was being tested for ESP (extrasensory perception) at a psych ward, due to her deliberately "wanting to hurt people" seemingly for no obvious reason other than her being evil, maybe with a bit of parental neglect sprinkled in that has the undertones of it being "understandable" under the unique circumstances. It always felt like a sort of overly reductive view of the character, and a bit unfitting as to why she would create the tape seemingly as a cry for help, but then revealed at the end, ah, no, she is indeed just evil, look at her angry face!

This does not satisfy me.

In the original Japanese version of the movie, Sadako's mom is the one being tested for ESP. Sadako— who is shown to be a strange looking, moppish, unkept girl even in her oldest memories here (unlike in the American version where she is portrayed very much like a very deadpan but otherwise normal child)— uses her own ESP to kill a heckler in the crowd who is becoming critical and standoffish with her mom and the ESP doctor, Dr Ikuma. It is explained at some point that she is a demon child creating by her mother yearning for the sea too much. She is killed by Dr Ikuma after studying her, rather than her parents.

This one seemed to touch on something interesting, but it's nowhere near as interesting as the information the book provides on the matter.

Ikuma is her father.

Sadako and her mother's relationship and plot is a fair bit different from in the films, based on what I've gathered online, but it boils down to the same ideas. Her mother had ESP, Ikuma encouraged her to show off her powers, and in the process discovered that Sadako's were even more powerful, and proceeded to study her. This is where things begin to really diverge.

Ikuma gets sick from trying to unlock his own powers leaving Sadako to grow up away from her family. And she does grow up, unlike in the films. She grows to 19 years old before returning to Ikuma in his mental ward after a heartbreak and deaths caused by her powers. There, she is raped by a different doctor, who discovers she is intersex (with the present of both male and female genitalia), and is so disgusted that he throws her down the well. Sadako, in her remaining days, developed the smallpox that this doctor unknowingly carried, amplifying her death curse into a physical virus.

Okay can we talk about the fact that she is intersex.

Like holy shit what. NONE of the media of her other than book seems to find that worth mentioning. NONE of the other media finds her adult or teenage life worth mentioning. ALL of the other media treats her as an inherent evil. Even in the books, it is mentioned that she wants to be reborn normal, but is unable to because she is intersex. Not because she is cursed or has ESP, but because she is intersex!

An actual queer character, with an actual struggle, trying to live her life to her fullest despite everything in her life taking her away from the people who cared for her. The HIV parallel to the smallpox the doctor gives her. The fact that her last dying effort is to tell the world her story, and curse the world that wronged her with having to experience her pain. And what becomes of this in the later Movie versions???

Saying outright that she is a demon child.

Implying that it's better that she died, and that her story would be better forgotten.

Her parents shown as irresponsible and secretive for adopting a child they were never 'meant to' be able to conceive.

Portraying her as a faceless monster even as a child, or as a demented and unlovable freak.

Portraying her with ungrateful, evil intent even while alive.

Portraying her viral potential as something inherent to her as a freak, rather than as something that someone else unknowingly inflicted onto her that she must bear.

...

Portraying her the exact way that real queer/ND people are treated all their lives, through all of modern history, childhood to adulthood, all in an effort to create something from her character that doesn't have to discuss her intersexuality. Even her parents, turned from people destroyed by the societal reception and health issues from their ESP, into people who bring the devil to Earth for the crime of wanting a child when they cannot have one.

All leading right back to exactly what created the curse in the original. The trauma of queerness. All erased and paved over in order to create a more palatable villain out of a child who couldn't help it. Showing through the obfuscations created to hide it, if you know how to see through it. It's not even to say the book doesn't have those themes, but it is obvious that great care went into scrubbing this element from her character in the popular culture, while amplifying its effects on her.

No wonder it feels bizarre to treat her character how the movies do. They removed the central element that explains everything.

And no wonder we relate to villains so much. So much of the time they are us.

So much of the time their motivations are to tell their own stories, to have others understand their pain, to show the world how it treats people like them. And as soon as those ideas are marketed to a mass audience, the victim becomes the villain, and the point is buried under enough layers to make the people who would have thrown her down that well feel good about being part of the society that destroyed her in the first place.

I hope we remember that when we see a real queer person being demonized for relating to a reprehensible character.

[dumbass-tumbler-cryptid]

I can see Spider being taken to the Capitol and tortured like Peeta was in Hunger Games 3, it reminds me of Spider being interrogated by Ardmore.

Hey everybody remember the Hunger Games Au i wrote up back in November? I needed to watch the final movie but then I got bronchitis (that took me two months to recover from) and it was also Christmas at the time and I really didn't feel like watching the child murder movies. But I never forgot about this and I finally got around to watching the final movie! So without further ado let's wrap this up.

To the question of what Spider and Kiri would have shown off in individual training, I feel like Kiri would have purposely tanked her's just for fun not even for strategy. She'd see the whole thing as stupid plus she knows her abilities so she's got nothing to prove. the gamemakers though can see what shes doing and give her a 9 to make her more of a target. I can see Spider pulling a Katniss and shooting an arrow right at the gamemakers to make them pay attention then bowing out. Quaritch is only half pissed at him. The other part is so proud. He's even more proud when Spider is awarded an 11.

In interviews they're both just kinda dicks lol. Spider taunts the whole crowd, talks mad shit on Snow, and heckles the fuck out of Flickerman. Kiri is similar just way more sarcastic and petty. So Snow was definitely super pissed when these two won the game.

Moving on to the ending.

I've tossed around a lot of idea's in my head for who gets captured and I had almost settled on it being Neytiri, Ronal and Paz, but that was mainly because I didn't want to hurt any of the kids especially Spider (I hurt that kid enough in Cabin and all I want is good things for him. I really dont want to hurt the moms either or anybody for that matter but this is a Hunger Games au) And yeah it does match actual Avatar canon to have Spider be one of the ones captured so that's what happens. Neytiri and Aonung are also captured.

The families are all incredibly distraught. Paz has a full on meltdown the moment she wakes up in recovery and is told the terrible news. It's her worst nightmare come to life and she completely blames herself for it. Quaritch, who's already inwardly losing his shit over his son but trying to keep it together, internally breaks seeing his wife like that because he's never seen her break before. After Paz is sedated Quaritch goes off to be alone. Spider's capture cases a real strain on their relationship because neither knows how to comfort or emotionally support the other. Paz is so guilt ridden that she doesn't want to be anywhere near her husband feeling intense shame when ever he looks at her. Quaritch doesn't blame her for Spider's capture. He blames himself for not volunteering in his son's place the day of the reaping. the only thing they can manage to do together is plan on saving their son.

Ronal also blames herself for her son's capture but she buries it deep under a wildfire determination to get him back. Tonowari of course wants Aonung back too and is just as determined, he just advocates that they be calm and level headed about their recuse so that they don't lose anyone else.

Jake hasn't felt this powerless in years. He wants to storm the Capital single handed to get his wife back but no one will let him leave. They all look down on him for being in a wheelchair and forget that he was a victor in the Hunger Games once. That he trained his children to be warriors while being paralyzed. But no matter how much he advocates for himself it just falls on the deaf ears of district 13's president. Who i decided is not Grace but General Ardmore.

Ardmore rules over district 13 in a strict but seemingly fair manner. And she is a pretty good leader. She's just extremely power hunger. I'm going to say Ian Garvin is the Heavensbee of this au. He sees right through Ardmore but he does need her to win the war. It's him that convinces her to let Jake, Ronal, Tonowari, Quaritch and Paz into her war room. Jake impresses her with his war strategies ( Don't worry Jake doesn't come up with Gale's plan. That's all Ardmore) and quickly becomes the lead strategist of her army. Tonowari and Quaritch are on the frontlines. They try to convince Ronal and Paz to stay back but Paz brushes them off with a bitter, "I have nothing left to lose," and Ronal snaps, "i will fight!"

The Capital starts airing interviews with their clearly brainwashed hostages. Paz's shriek silences the entire cafetiere when she sees her son on the t.v. His wild mane of curls now fall neatly around his chin, brushed out of his face like a perfect little gentleman. It shows off how sunken his cheeks have gotten. how hollow and dead his eyes looks. His once tan skin is now pale, made to look even paler by the snow white suite they've dressed him to hide his thin frame. "what would you like to say to your friends and family right now Spider?" "Kiri? Mama? Dad?," Quaritch is trying to hold Paz up as she openly sobs for her child for all of district 13 to see, "please stop. This isn't you. Your good people that would never betray the country. Just stop fighting and come home please."

Aonung get's the exact same treatment dresses up and paraded around on t.v like the Capital's little pet, begging his mom and dad to surrender. Ronal cracked a tooth from clenching her jaw so hard in rage and Tonowari put a hole in the wall when no one was looking.

Neytiri is also brought out, her braids are taken out, hair straightened within an inch of its life. she's dressed in a tasteful white cocktail dress, with a white rose tucked behind her right ear. when she's asked "what would you like to say to your husband right now." She says, "my Jake," there's a long pause, a whole war going on behind her amber eyes before she finally chokes out, "end them." the broadcast instantly cuts off.

And the kids in all this? Since I don't really have a mockingjay singled out among the bunch, I'm gonna say they're all kinda the mockingjay. They're the kids who survived. The ones who have to now live with the horrors inflicted on them by the capital. As I was typing this I actually thought it'd fit Neteyam to make a shrine for one of his competitors like Katniss did for Rue. He bonded with a little girl that was Lo'ak's age at the time but reminded him a lot of Tuk. When she died it was like he could see both of his siblings dying with her and it utterly gutted him. He honored her in front of all of Panem and for it everyone loves him.

Kiri is beloved for her definice. It inspires so many others to stand up and fight.

Lo'ak feels ashamed for what happened to his mother and is very candid about it. He talks openly about how he felt so inadequate compared to his "hero" parents and brother. But he understands now that underneath all the pageantry and splendor of the Capital is a absolutely vile core that needs to be ripped out so that they all can finally know peace.

Tsireya is a medic in this like Prim was. Her and Lo'ak start up a romance because they trauma bond over a family member being held hostage.

Tuk is there but she's just too little to really do anything.

And finally Grace in all this plays a similar roll as the mayor from district 8. She just had this lightbulb moment after having Kiri that her daughter would never know peace as long as there tyrannical government stayed in power. She wanted to take Kiri with her but she got word that a sickness was spreading through 13 that was killing all the children. Kiri and her have a lot to work through but Kiri doesn't get angry with Grace for wanting to fight for a better world. Kiri still grew up healthy and happy with her adopted family and soon all of them would be able to live freely and safely in the world they'll create.

Finally the opportunity arrives to save the hostages. Norm is able to hack the system giving a volunteer strike team an opening. the team is made up of Quaritch, Paz, Ronal, Tonowari and Neteyam. It goes off without a hitch. I want to say that unlike in the movie/book where Snow actually just let them go that in this au the strike team was actually just that good and got in and out without anyone noticing. The families all hold each other all the way home the only sounds coming from their cries of relief.

Also none of them are brainwashed to try and kill a loved one. They are severely traumatized though. Their tortures goes as follows and you can skip to the next paragraph if you’d rather not read this. Spider was made to see horrific fantasies under trackerjacker venom to the point where it’s hard for him to tell what’s real anymore. He’s jittery and anxious all the time and panics easily. He flinches if someone raises a hand too fast and that includes his own parents who are both devastated for their son and enraged that the capital would hurt their boy so badly he couldn’t even trust his own mom and dad anymore. Kiri helps Spider through it playing “real or not real,” something she tells Quaritch and Paz about to better manage Spiders dissociative episodes when she’s not around. Aonung was given electric shocks in water now making him fear it. Even seeing a few drops of water is enough to make him shake. This hurts his whole family to see since the ocean is the core of there cultural identity. Ronal and Tonowari want to burn the entire capital down to nothing for the crime against humanity they’ve inflicted on their son. It takes so much time but his parents and sister start with coaching Aonung through the breathing mediation he’d do as a small child when he was first learning to swim putting his mind at ease by reciting the way of water with him. Once he doesn’t freak out seeing so much as a cup of water they slowly get him to interact with it again first with a very shallow bath (basically a puddle) building until his family is lovingly coaxing him into a pool. He panics at first but swimming is like breathing to him and surrounded by so much love and support he eventually calms. Neytiri was given a drug that made the simplest touch feel like excruciating pain. She knows it was just the chemicals they pumped into her veins but she can’t help but flinch every time one of her children hugs her, her breath catching in her throat. She puts on a brave face and holds her children despite how much it makes her heart race. The only one she talks about this with is Jake. They do their own form of real or not real where he’ll brush his fingertips over her arm so so gently he’s almost not touching her at all and ask, “pain or no pain,” until Neytiri can retrain her mind to not associate every minor touch with pain.

After they take time to recover it’s decided that a strike team will be sent out to assassinat Snow. There’s no way in hell any of the parents will let there kids go on this mission so it’s all the adults. Maybe it's just because I love all these characters and don’t want to kill them off but I’m going to say they’re all so good that they outmaneuver every capital trap and survive Ardmore’s bombing of civilians but if I was going to kill people off here's how I’d do it…

Tonowari meets the same fate as Boggs killed in a trap.

Quaritch is overwhelmed by mutts like Finnick was. Paz shoots him herself to put him out of his misery

Neteyam is killed in the second wave of bombings. He snuck out of 13 with the medics because he wanted to give aid to the civilians hurt in the war.

I also had the very evil idea of Neteyam getting sent to the group like Peeta was for some reason, and him being injured in the same trap that killed Tonowari and Neytiri staying with him while the rest move on only for them both to die when the building their hiding in is bombed and then Tsireya dies trying to give medical aid to civilians but good god is that devastating for me to think about.

But it’s a good thing none of that happens! So Ardmore gathers all the past hunger games victors to discuss Snow’s public execution and to float the idea of a hunger games with the capitals children. They are all equally horrified because they’ve all been through so much and just want peace. The kids all speak out but the parents stay quiet all silently thinking the same thing. This bitch has got to go.

All the victors are lined up with bows and arrows to execute Snow in front of the whole country. Only half of the arrows pierce him though. They other half sail right into Ardmore’s chest. Grace is later elected president. Kiri is constantly going from the Sully’s place to Grace’s to Spider’s. Spider and his parents live in a cottage in a peaceful meadow where he continues his recover. His mom is kind of smothering now still recovering from the trauma of losing her son but he knows it’s all love. When he’s in a better place he decides to travel and see the new world. Ronal and Tonowari are surprised to learn they’re expecting but it’s a happy surprise. They can’t wait to bring their third into a peaceful world. Tsireya continues her medical training and Aonung becomes a sailor. He just feels at peace out on the ocean. Jake is basically Graces Vice President and Neytiri is basically the secretary of infrastructure working to rebuild every district. Neteyam, Lo’ak, and Kiri are the leads on construction on a memorial for all the children slaughtered in the games. Everyone is their on opening day. It’s seeing the memorial that really brings peace to all of them. It’s not only a testament to those killed, but a marker that all the horror is now over.

Hope you all enjoyed the long awaited part 2! I’d love to know your thoughts 💙

[majorsoapfan]

⭐️🥰

Ok, since I've been given the license to choose, I'm going to give you the director's cut about my interpretation of Festus and Coral's relationship. The fic that I'm focusing on for this is Play At Your Own Risk, however for every canon-ish AU that I've written, am in the process of writing or have plans to write, where there is a focus on Festus and Coral's dynamic, I do follow the same dynamic so to speak (so they've definitely been on my mind for a while).

This is going to be very long, but you asked for the director's cut so, you've been warned.

Now, in terms of Festus and Coral's dynamic, at least from what I've shown in my works so far, the paragraphs from 'Play At Your Own Risk' that can sum up their relationship dynamic, in particular, Festus' thoughts towards Coral, is this:

'Then finally, came the Mentors. She knew that they were coming because if the songbird had gotten one, then it was reasonable to assume that so would everyone. Although if she had had the choice, then she would rather have no Mentor at all rather than the one she had gotten. Because hers was a creep. A complete and utter creep, who made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up and a shiver run down her spine as she observed the way that he had looked at her, the gestures he made towards her, the words he used to describe her. 

She had always thought that the Capitol saw the Districts as something less than human, not quite people like they were, but she was pretty sure that her Mentor didn’t even see her as that. To him, she was probably at best, an object, a possession, something for him to shape and mould in any way that he desired.'

And I'll admit, my inspiration for this stemmed from both the movie and book and from a gifset I saw here on Coral and Festus' first meeting in the film, where the creator made a mistake and had put 'desirable' instead of 'marketable' in Festus' lines. However, I'll admit, it took me a while to realise that it was a mistake, simply because 'desirable' didn't look too different or too off from what Festus had said, and if I hadn't seen the movie, and had just seen that gifset when going by my knowledge of the characters in the book alone, then I genuinely could have seen Festus saying desirable in the film and it looking natural.

Because both 'marketable' and 'desirable' both have connecting factors in what the Mentors are aiming to do with their tributes during the 10th Hunger Games. Their project after all, is for their tribute to be entertaining, therefore it would be obvious to Festus (in his own mind at least) that he needs to market Coral to the Capitol (marketable), he needs to make them want her or want to see her (desirable), otherwise he won't stand a chance at winning the Prize.

I'll admit that the word choice used in the film also felt to me a little like foreshadowing/an easter egg for the audience when referencing to how the tributes are basically marketed to the Capitol in the later Games, with the Capitol population starting to desire the more physically attractive Victors (Finnick, Cashmere, Johanna). Especially when one thinks about Finnick, who was also from District 4, seems to have been 'marketed' as 'desirable', at least after his victory.

(I also headcanon that Coral is actually related to Finnick, through his maternal side. That she's his grandaunt [her brother being Finnick's maternal grandfather] - there's no basis for this really than my own crazy mind connecting dots that aren't there. And if you believe the headcanon that Mags and Coral were friends/romantically involved before Coral was Reaped - which I do, it makes Mags and Finnick's bond that much sadder on Mags side as she would have Mentored Finnick through his Games, haunted by the reminder that she lost a relative of his, someone who was very close to her and she loved deeply, to the Games as well. And then by the time the 75th Games roll around, all of Finnick's family seem to be dead, making Finnick her last living connection to Coral. Finnick's Games and subsequent victory also would have haunted both Festus and Persephone then if they were still alive at the time as both of them would have seen their own dead tribute in him [Coral - family ties and Mizzen - youth and gender] and would have been reminded of their own failures towards their tributes whenever they saw him.)

Admittedly, all of that are just my wild thoughts so please feel free to just write me off as crazy.

However, crazy thoughts or not, it has influenced the way that I write Festus and Coral's relationship, as it highlights the power dynamic that is in place here between the two in the fic (and really any canon setting AU that I write).

Because as Coral hit right on the head in the paragraphs from the fic, Festus doesn't truly see her as a person. He doesn't truly consider her as a human being with her own thoughts and opinions. Right now, he sees her at worst, as an object or a product that he can advertise or market any way he wishes, or at best, an inferior being or animal that he can train and who will act exactly as he tells her to, regardless of whether or not that's who Coral personally is and her own thoughts about this situation and his ideas (another hint to the future fate of the tributes and victors by the time of the Hunger Games trilogy, how they're forced to adopt a marketing strategy so to speak in their interviews to try and get sponsors to help them survive the Arena regardless of their actual personalities and how many of the Victors might have fake personas that they present to the Capitol after they win to protect the last bit of individuality and self that they have from the greedy and entitled grips of the Capitol).

As far as Festus is concerned, Coral has no say, no right to voice an opposing opinion to his plans. She has no choice and he will be making the decisions from here on out when it comes to her well-being and for or the Games.

And then, what makes it worse for Coral here is that Festus can. He has the power to do exactly that. He has the power and the control to mould Coral in any way he wishes. And if Coral wants to give herself a fighting chance at survival (or to give Mizzen the best chance, which means she needs to keep herself in the best shape possible), then she can't go against him. She can't tell him no or try to fight back and/or argue with him.

Festus holds all the cards in this situation. The cards that could spell the difference between Coral's life and death here in the Capitol. Coral after all, is a starving kidnapped child, who is being chained and locked up, with guns being pointed at her constantly, away from her home and her family, with the looming knowledge that death will more than likely be coming for her, as well as trying to look out for Mizzen to in this dangerous environment for them both.

Festus on the other hand, is older than her (only by two years, yes, but as he's eighteen, he is legally an adult, whereas Coral is sixteen it seems and a minor). He is a member of an influential Capitol family and has freedom, perks, powers and comforts that Coral would never have even back in District 4 and as her Mentor holds her life in his hands, holds power over her and she knows this deep down even if she refuses to admit it in the fic.

Because to admit it, would mean admitting that she is vulnerable, that for the first time in her life, she is unable to defend herself and almost entirely dependent on the mercy of a stranger who she has no reason to believe would be merciful. And for someone like Coral, that is agony.

And in 'Play At Your Own Risk', Coral has no trust that Festus will truly help her survive the Games, so Coral needs to take care of herself.

I tried to show to this in particular through the topic of food, the main focus of the fic. Throughout 'Play At Your Own Risk', Coral is watching as the other tributes, already starving, battle between giving in and performing for food, chance that the Capitol citizens might be willing to simply hand it over without giving them something in return, or stubbornly hold on for a little longer. At first she resists going to the visitors to try and obtain food for as long as she can, but after her first meeting with Festus, where she hadn't received anything from him, hunger wins out and she tries her luck with the visitors when she gets back to the zoo.

Because she knows now that she can't count on Festus for help.

After all, technically Festus as her Mentor, should be invested in making sure she's well fed if she's going to have a chance at winning the Games. But that's not what the Mentors are interested in. Not really, going by the requirements of their project. As theoretically, Coral doesn't have to be the last one standing in the Arena for Festus to win (obviously though, the longer your tribute lives, the better your chances at winning. Now admittedly, their tribute living until the end and being entertaining seems to have been slowly intertwined in the quest for the Prize when it hadn't been originally going by the project's aims), she just needs to have been the most entertaining.

There's the difference.

Once again, tying back to Festus' first words to her in the film, he wants to win, therefore she needs to be marketable. She needs to be entertaining. Living until the very end? Maybe.

And for the Mentors, their competition started at the Reaping, they're already competing, therefore they want their tributes to put on a show. To entertain the crowds. Win them that prize. And it's possible that Mentors like Vipsania and possibly Androcles, deliberately didn't feed their tributes at the Zoo to make them perform for it in front of the citizens, as it would make them entertaining and memorable and therefore would better their chances at winning. Who's to say then that Festus hadn't considered the possibility too?

Festus, like Vipsania, seems to be competitive. He canonically likes dogfights and considered that betting on the Hunger Games would liven things up, hinting that he often betted himself. He also wanted Coral to do well in the Games, both for the Prize and for his own glory and had clearly been thinking of ways to achieve that prior to meeting her. Henceforth the way that Coral describes his behaviour towards her in their first meeting in the fic, the way he makes her feel and how he sees her as an object to control.

Festus wants Coral to win him the Prize, but when he first met her had never considered bringing her food to help keep her strength up for her to fulfil the task (not saying that she would, but logic would rule that a well-fed tribute would have the energy to be entertaining over a weaker and starving one). His reasoning for which I didn't show as Coral obviously wouldn't know and wasn't about to ask. I also left it unclear as to how much Coral knows about the Mentor's project/Prize (i.e. be entertaining), but at the end of that meeting, she knows enough:

Festus holds her life in his hands, she is subconsciously aware of this even if she doesn't voice it. Festus could be the key to her survival in the Games, but the same time she holds no trust that he'll actually help her. After all, he never gave her food, while she furiously notes that other Mentors did.

And in doing so or not doing so, Festus lost the only opportunity that Coral might be willing to give to him in terms of trust. Therefore by going to try and obtain food from the visitors at the zoo after, she's trying to make herself less vulnerable/at his mercy.

Coral might be powerless to stop Festus from 'marketing' her to the Capitol, but by trying to get food from the visitors without performing and not waiting and hoping for Festus to show up, she is trying to make herself less dependent on him and reduce the power that he holds over her well-being.

She has no reason to trust that he has her best interests at heart after all.

Now that's not to say that I think that Festus would be nothing but a horrible monster to Coral either. He has a softer side to him too after all (in the book as the film tried to erase it); he was one of the kinder classmates to Sejanus which had been considered unusual due to Sejanus' isolation from his peers due to being from the Districts and he was initially angry with Clemensia for not feeding Reaper in the Arena, even though a starving Reaper would be to Coral's and therefore his own, advantage. And I think after Coral's death, in the film especially, Festus would be haunted by her ghost and her last words for the rest of his life.

And Coral in the book clearly developed some trust towards him as she does ask for and receive food from him when she was in the Arena, so an understanding clearly had been reached between them. But Coral, as of the end of 'Play At Your Own Risk', and many of my other fics, has not reached that point in her relationship with Festus and therefore has no reason to trust someone from the Capitol who views her as a possession or something to control will actually help her.

I hope that makes sense.

[moowithmidnight]

Cashmere and Glimmer

I know it’s a popular theory that Cashmere was Glimmer’s mentor in the 74th Games and purposefully trained her poorly to cause her death, saving her from being sex trafficked like Cashmere.

However, that rings very false for me, because the Careers weren’t like the other tributes, and weren’t going to be very susceptible to bad advice. They weren’t only trained by their current Games mentors, not necessarily. Glimmer was training for the Hunger Games likely long before she’d ever met Cashmere. And even if Cashmere had started training her earlier, she likely wouldn’t be the only person. Cashmere’s speciality is knives, I don’t think they’re going to pick her to teach Glimmer every type of weapon, not when District 1 has other Victors with other specialities.

But I honestly think that adds a layer of tragedy.

Because let’s say that Cashmere had tried to sabotage her. Glimmer is way more likely to assume Cashmere was some sort of idiot than doubt her own training. Glimmer was extremely confident in herself; even if she’d looked up to Cashmere, she was likely going to ignore any bad advice Cashmere could’ve tried to secretly feed her.

Another thing to remember is how important appealing to the Capitol is, especially for District 1, as they’re one of the more respected Districts. While the Capitol sees all Districts as below them regardless, we’re shown that they’re still a lot more likely to root for and support the Career tributes. Whatever angle Glimmer presented herself to the Capitol from was going to matter.

While it’s not in the movies, Glimmer’s outfit for her interview with Caesar is described as essentially transparent. She came right out the gate with blatant sex appeal as her angle, something that Cashmere could’ve had some control over, but not all. (I’d argue not even most- people tend to downplay how important fashion is in the books.)

Counterintuitively, this is amplified because Glimmer is a Career; again, she’s gotten much more advice from outside sources. Besides, Glimmer never would’ve acted meek or scared, she’s from District 1. And Cashmere could’ve told her to dial down her flirtatiousness, but the people of the Capitol were willing to sleep with a 14 year old Victor. I don’t think that would’ve made much of a difference, and certainly wouldn’t have had the impact that a different costume choice would’ve had.

All of that to say that whoever the District 1 stylist/prep team were had infinitely more power than Cashmere ever did on how the Capitol was going to see Glimmer. While they might not have saved her from Cashmere’s fate completely, they definitely could’ve taken measures to change how the Capitol sees her. And sure, Cashmere might have tried to give her input and convince the stylists to do XYZ differently, but she’d never would have gotten the final say.

Cashmere could never have done anything to save Glimmer from her own fate, not a single thing. Even if Cashmere hadn’t gone to Sponsors, people would have sponsored District 1 anyway. Glimmer was taught to survive at all costs anyway, she likely knew how to live without relying on Sponsors.

Being a mentor is already a terrible punishment. And this is something that the Snow knows because of his experience watching Sejanus break during the 10th Games. It serves as a reminder from Snow that while the mentors may be respected as Victors, they don’t have any real power, and they never will.

The very second Glimmer volunteered for the Games it was game over, even if she’d survived.

And Cashmere knows it.

I think that is so much more a tragedy than anything else.

[bowlegsandbiceps]

Top 10 Favourite Characters

I was tagged by @not-a-natural-born-idjit and then flailed because they’re one of my absolute fave writers! (Seriously go to AO3 and read everything right now) 

Rules: list your favorite character from 10 different fandoms and tag 10 people

1. Castiel | Supernatural I know I flail a lot about Dean and I love Dean’s face but Castiel is my #1. He’s fierce and brave and impatient and selfless. I don’t know how a being that’s been around for millenia can be innocent but he is. I like how messy he is, and he can be such an effective antagonist without being the big bad. Any friction he has with The Winchesters is from disagreeing on the right course of action and as viewers we can decide who to side with because both are inherently good. It’s their decisions that cause problems and that is a much more compelling narrative than “this thing is just evil.” I ship him with Dean (duh) but also Sam occasionally and I’d honestly love to see some Cas/Rowena action.

2. Hannibal Lecter | NBC Hannibal/Hannibal-verse Long before NBC decided to grace us with the absolute masterpiece that is Hannibal, I have loved this character. I think I was 14 or 15 when I fell down the Thomas Harris rabbit hole and I’ve yet to find a more perfectly crafted psychopath. He’s so refined that you really can believe that no one would suspect him of being the Chesapeake Ripper. His crimes are heinous and many without feeling sensationalized. Harris was originally a crime reporter which I think gave him the ability to ground Hannibal in reality. I really liked how the TV show fleshed out the main points that in the books Clarice Starling and Will Graham continually have to remind people of which is that he does these things to amuse himself. It was really amazing to watch him set up the dominos and then stand back to let everyone else knock them all down. I ship him with Clarice or Alaina mainly but I LOVE me some murder!husbands. It’s the slowest of burns and I will bask in those flames forever.

3. Malcolm Bright | Prodigal Son First of all Tom Payne okay. Second of all, poor, sweet damaged Malcolm. I really like that he has that rich kid air about him but it’s super subtle. He’s obviously very damaged by his father (Martin Whitley is a good example of one of those over the top “legendary” killer characters, though Michael Sheen’s performance REALLY goes a long way to making that believable) and the show doesn’t make his mental illness the forefront of his character. Malcolm works and visits his family and occasionally dates very similarly to any other main character but he’s doing all these things with severe PTSD, anxiety and depression. He’s always portrayed as upbeat and determined to push through any handicaps his mental health issues might cause. There are also times when he can’t and those are shown not by concerned family and friends banding together to throw him in a treatment center but it’s usually him, white-knuckling through it or attempting to work it out on his own which is another extremely realistic portrayal of how people deal with trauma and depression. I ship him with OFC because he and Dani have ZERO chemistry (I’m sorry Brightwell people). I like the IDEA of him and Edrissa but no one is writing it and I can’t even really get MY head around how to write it so I feel this serious urge to PUT HIM WITH SOMEBODY but there’s not been anyone on the show I’ve seen him have real chemistry with yet. 

4. Tyrion Lannister | Game of Thrones I love Tyrion so much. I love him so much I named my cat after him. I loved him so much that I lived in CONSTANT. FEAR. that GRRM was going to kill him off at any moment. I like that despite everyone always thinking the worst of him he still does his best and not even with any intention of proving anyone wrong. He plays into their expectations with the booze and women but deep down he’s got a drive to be fair and especially kind to anyone who’s on the receiving end of pain and humiliation that are undeserved. He’s also fierce and clever enough to deliver crushing judgement and justice when deserved whether its through setting the wheels in motion or wielding the crossbow himself. I ship him with Sansa, shut up I know I just love the idea of them growing to love each other despite the rocky start.

5. Hermione Granger | Harry Potter HP was my first real brush with fandom. Like I’d been a Justin Timberlake fangirl since I was 12 and despite his level of fame the fandom was very small. When I started the series at 17 the breadth of content available was staggering. You could literally find ANY combination of ships you could fathom and it all ran the gamut from fluffy to downright depraved. I also find it interesting that while I like Hermione as a character in the books/movies she is far from my favorite character but she’s literally the only character I stan in the fanfic world of HP. I mainly shipped Hermione with Draco or Snape (forgive me I know it was a simpler time where we ignored everything problematic with certain kinks and narratives) and sometimes Harry. She’s such a strong female character that no matter who you pair her with the dynamic is going to be different and complex. 

6. Peeta Mellark | The Hunger Games While I relate to Katniss on a very personal level, the boy with the bread absolutely fuels my little fangirl heart. The pining from a young age. The complete disregard for his own safety or survival in the games. Selfless and just good to the core, his subsequent torture by the Capitol and Katniss’ carelessness with his feelings is like taking blow after blow. And when they strip his loyalty to Katniss and his district away it’s even more tragic because he was just this sweet kid who had a crush. UGH feels. I ship him with Katniss. I just really can’t see him with anyone else.

7. Alexander Hamilton | Hamilton THIS was one where i just identify SO. HARD. with Hamilton. While I definitely didn’t endure a childhood like his, I did end up transitioning from a blue collar upbringing to a white collar career and experience the same chip on my shoulder and drive to prove myself. And I too write like I am running out of time. I ship him with his wife or maybe Angelica a little.

8. Persephone | Greek Mythology Not sure if there’s a “fandom” for this persay but Tumblr went through a phase in the early 10s where there was a ton of meta about Persephone and how her narrative as a damsel stolen by Hades didn’t do her justice. The flipped the script and made her Queen of Hell, powerful enough to sway the God of Death and terrifying enough to keep him in line unlike all the other Gods that were sticking their dick in anyone and anything. It’s such an empowering narrative, a girl taken from everything she’s ever known seizes the opportunity to become a force to be reckoned with. I love it.

9. Gregory House | House M.D. I was going to say Sherlock here but I never really went hard for Sherlock either the movies or the BBC show. I loved the show but really more for the canon and meta which is only half the fandom life. With House, I just love that he is so unapologetically hateful to anyone he deems stupid. But he’s also earnest and good too with a heavy dollop of man pain... you know... my favorite *cough*Dean Winchester*cough* I ship him pretty exclusively with Cameron beacuse I really like the dynamic. Her hero worship/white knight complex his emotional constipation but fondness of her optimism and ideals. Great dynamic.

10. Edward Cullen | Twilight This is my favorite Trash Monkey character in my favorite trash monkey series. The books are horribly written, the movies are better but not by much. But goddammit something about his level of obsessive fuckery speaks to my girl lizard brain and I am just rooting for this sparkly idiot and his clumsy human jar of mayonnaise. I ship him and Bella because apparently the universe didn’t find the fact that he’s my favorite character in this series humiliating enough.

Tagging (please don’t feel obligated to participate if you don’t want to): @navajolovesdestiel @chevrolangels @cas-you-assbutt-dean-needs-you @castielific @rauko-is-a-free-elf @astral-almighty @only4myfandoms @ charlie-bradburi @notfunnydean @blowthatpieceofjunk

[rubyred078]

Hunger Games Review

Hello my lovely readers and welcome to my review of the Hunger Games! The movies to these books have recently been shown on Foxtel, and I was reminded of how much I want to read the books when I saw them! So here is a review of the whole series, including a section for the prequel, The Ballard of Songbirds and Snakes. Sorry about not giving the review expected, but I was borrowing the Red Queen series and haven't managed to get the next books, so a review couldn't be done. I hope you enjoy this one just as much!

Book trio from The Looking Glass Belgrave, $20 and prequel from Dymocks for $22.99

The Hunger Games was a great series that really captivated me. I loved the way the line between good and evil was blurred and the way romance was slipped in without feeling out of place. I felt like the quality of the books didn't deteriorate as the series went on as it does with some books. They were very well written and the details that were given added to the story in amazing ways.

The storyline was amazing and full of twists. I felt like the way killing was portrayed was true, it definitely showed the way it rips apart your soul unlike  some other series where killing is seen as something you get used to. The romantic dilemma was realistic and raw, but didn't overtake the whole series. I feel like there was some I-don't-know-what-to-do-with-this-character-so-I'll-kill-them moments, but most deaths had purpose. The twist of the surviving district shocked me, and I loved the way that 13 was in the grey zone, not good or evil, and I loved how realistic the confusion about loyalties was. The ending was a bit confusing to me, but I thought that The Hunger Games was an amazing series.

What about the prequel? The little moments that related to the trio made me sink even deeper into the world of Panem.

Characters, rules, even songs were referenced from the first three books and I loved it. The Ballard of Songbirds and Snakes definitely showed a different side to the Hunger Games and it made you more sympathetic to the Capitol. I look forward to reading these books again and again!

Thankyou for taking the time to read my review, and if you've had time for this, then I would appreciate it if you would spend just five minutes checking out The Looking Glass' website. They're an amazing second hand bookstore with affordable books and other nicknacks.

Thankyou again,

Ruby Red

[allaboardtheloonyexpress]

Macchiavelli and the Hunger Games or: How to Lose Friends and Piss Off People

Hi, everybody! (This draft is months old. So what? I write like George RR Martin: slow as hell.) I have decided to talk about something new for a change! First of all,

Today, I am talking about The Hunger Games! You know, that movie trilogy that finished up two years ago! Hey, I started by talking about the Star Wars prequels. That was a decade old. However, I think this series is fascinating when one views it as a demonstration of Niccolo Machiavelli’s main thesis:

“Whether it be better to be loved than feared or feared than loved? It may be answered that one should wish to be both, but, because it is difficult to unite them in one person, is much safer to be feared than loved, when, of the two, either must be dispensed with... Nevertheless a prince ought to inspire fear in such a way that, if he does not win love, he avoids hatred; because he can endure very well being feared whilst he is not hated.”

Everyone knows the first part of that quote. It is the reason that Machiavelli is so unfairly seen as a jerk today. But I think the most important part is the second part, which, as noted, says no matter what you do, don’t make your rule intolerable. When you do, your subjects will want you dead no matter the cost.

This is why, I will admit, I never took the premise of the Hunger Games seriously. Personally, I can never believe that there would be a regime as stupid as to do something like this.

For those who don’t know, in the World of Panem, the Capitol rules over the 12 Districts, who every year have to send two children, a boy and a girl, as “tributes”. These tributes fight to the death in the Hunger Games until only one is left.

The Problems with the Hunger Games are Threefold:

1. They are Indiscriminate- The ideal technique of repression of a populace should establish two things: Defy me and you die screaming. Obey and you live. But the Hunger Games don’t do this. They are designed to be random. And they target children, who didn’t do anything. And you don’t get out of the Reaping by say, being especially useful to the Capitol. The only lesson they teach is: “Gee, the Capitol are a bunch of dicks, aren’t they?”

This means that there is no reward for cooperation. Rebelling districts have nothing to lose. Oh, you may be killed by the Capitol for rebelling. But if your child can be carried off to be murdered at random, your only way to be certain for their security is to rise up.

2. They Create Martyrs- I would point out that technically, the children who die in the Hunger Games are not martyrs, as they are not dying for their beliefs. However, by dying as innocent children who are killed for the capricious whims of the Capitol, they fulfill a similar purpose. They serve to demonstrate the cruelty of the Capitol by being contrasted with their own innocence. They provide motivating figures of those who died because of Capitol Cruelty. They provide a face of those you want to avenge.

3. They are Constant- Lastly, the Hunger Games are every year. By making the wounds fresh every year, the Capitol keeps the memory of Capitol cruelty fresh in the mind of every resident of the Districts. Moreover, it means that in each district, the children are at constant risk. Their parents have a clear motivation to rebel against the Capitol that boils down to, “My child could be next, and there is nothing I can do about it except rebel.”

However, I will admit that there is one decent argument for the Hunger Games, which is expressed in this scene from the films:

For those who cannot see this scene, I will sum it up. According to President Snow, the Hunger Games provides the Districts with “hope.” It allows the Districts to channel all their efforts into winning the Games and getting the prize rather than working together against the Capitol. It is classic divide-and-conquer. And it definitely has some merit. And I could even argue that the brutality of the Hunger Games means that districts would not want to work together. If a District 7 tribute is brutally murdered by a District 2 tribute during the Games, District 7 might not want to work with District 2.

However, if the Capitol was trying this, they essentially shot themselves in the foot. Because the rule of divide-and-conquer is, in my opinion, never remind the people you are trying to divide that they have anything in common. Specifically, do not provide them with a common enemy, like yourselves.

The Capitol does this spectacularly in The Hunger Games. Allow me to explain. In this Hunger Games especially, the Capitol makes a new rule: from now on, the Districts can score a team victory. This is actually a brilliant move, to be frank. It encourages the Districts to think of themselves as different teams, since now it is your kids against the other districts, not against each other. But then the Capitol does...the dumbest thing ever...they say...

To be clear, right after Katniss and Peeta (the Protagonists) win by the new rules of the Hunger Games. Then, out of the blue, the Capitol says...“Yeah. We lied. Now kill each other.”

This is incredibly counterproductive. In canon, Peeta and Katniss essentially bluff the Capitol into letting them both go, since the Capitol needed there to be a winner. But the thing is, there were only three ways this would end, and all of them would have added fuel to the rebellion in a different way:

1. The Canon Scenario- Katniss and Peeta trick the Capitol into letting them both go. The Districts realize you can defy the Capitol and get away with it. They are shown to be vulnerable, prompting rebellion. 2. The Worst-Case Scenario- Katniss and Peeta kill themselves. There is no winner of the Hunger Games, and the Districts likely act as if the Capitol had just murdered 24 children for no reason. (i.e. they riot) 3. The Best(?)-Case Scenario- Katniss or Peeta kills the other. Who kills who is largely irrelevant. (One of the things I do appreciate about the Hunger Games series is that it emphasizes how the War is not about Katniss being a special Chosen One. Her importance is as a symbol to the other Rebels.)

The problem is, one has to ask this: what is achieved by this? The answer is simple: the Districts are once again reminded of the capriciousness and depravity of the Capitol. No matter what, in all three scenarios, the Districts are reminded that obedience to the Capitol brings nothing but pain. In the end, the Capitol ensured the rebellion against them, by proving this was the only way to be certain of security.

In the end, you can be feared, but not hated. Moreover, if you want to rule by fear, you have to make it clear you target those who rebel. By not rewarding collaborators, you only encourage all to rebel against you.