At TID HQ, we make an effort to keep up with the latest in YA Lit (latest in fashion - not so much). So, when Liz read The Hunger Games trilogy over Thanksgiving, it was only a matter of time until Cailey jumped on the dystopian bandwagon. Why did it take us so long to delve into this wonderful world Suzanne Collins created? We don't even know! All we do know is that we devoured these books like they were sent to us in silver parachutes after days in the arena without food. And, as suckers for kick-ass female characters, we love Katniss in all her badass archery skill-rocking and conflicted emotion-repressing glory. We do, however, remain divided when it comes to Team Peeta vs. Team Gale.
But the hot men in Katniss' life are peripheral to the topic at hand: how would one Katniss Everdeen, aka The Mockingjay, aka the best fighting female heroine since Buffy tear down the Nazi flag?
Liz: Well, she's no stranger to evil government...
Cailey: Seriously. President Snow is up there with Hitler.
Liz: But, leaving aside the "all things are possible here" etherworld in which we sometimes like to frolic, would she know what the flag meant?
Cailey: I *think* she would. Even though it's ancient history in her world, Katniss would somehow discover the symbol when she and Peeta are working on their "Never Forget" book.
Liz: ie...their morbid but essential foreplay.
Cailey: Yes. Precisely! Peeta + Katniss 4Eva!!
Liz: You know I'm Team Gale. He's such a dark, brooding asshole.
Cailey: And while I normally go for brooding assholes in real life, I just can't resist Peeta and his devotion to Katniss. It's so hott.
Liz: Yeah, but I have a thing for the aloof, dangerous, volatile hero...the wild card...not so much a fan of eternal fawning devotion.
Cailey: But Katniss is, of course, the true - if flawed - hero of the books and our sure-to-be-glorious TID, so let's set her male admirers aside and get down to business!
Liz: So I'm picturing Katniss returning from a hunting expedition a couple years after the Mockingjay madness is over...
Cailey:...bow still in hand, she's got her quiver of arrows and some deceased woodland creatures slung about her shoulders.
Liz: She walks through District 12, which is slowly but surely rebuilding itself.
Cailey: Something close to a sense of peace settles upon her.
Liz: Oh man! I feel so awful that's she about to face the flag :(
Cailey: I know. But she can handle it...I think.
Liz: She understands the power of symbolism, thanks to Cinna. But it's been centuries since the swastika held the sort of power that makes men pause in their tracks and shake in their boots.
Cailey: Still, she's a smart lady. She knows what it means and knows it must be destroyed.
Liz: So she's walking back to her hacienda in the Victors' Village to skin the woodland beasts and give them to Peeta so he can make meat pies.
Cailey: And as she walks past the remnants of what used to be the mayor's house, she spots it.
Liz: A swathe of bright red in an otherwise gray and ashen world.
Cailey: Still ashen?
Liz: Still.
Cailey: At first she thinks it's a good sign - a celebratory, decorative sort of thing. Maybe to celebrate someone's birthday, or a wedding of some sort.
Liz: Then a breeze moves the flag and she sees what it actually is. She grimaces, but doesn't run or make a sound.
Cailey: At first she considers going to get Peeta, just so he can see the flag and make sure she's not hallucinating.
Liz: Then she considers putting it in her Book of Memories as some sort of historical artifact.
Cailey: But then she gives it some more thought and realizes that someone must have put the flag there...perhaps to taunt her? To unsettle her? Why is it there?
Liz: She takes a closer look. It's definitely not a relic. Someone stitched the flag into that shape, and the dye job is less-than-professional. Close up, it looks like a child made it.
Cailey: Nevertheless, Katniss makes the decision that it has to go.
Liz: She starts walking away from the flag.
Cailey: She methodically collects some twigs dry leaves and makes a tiny fire.
Liz: Majestically she pulls an arrow from her sheath, lights it on fire, and takes aim. It looks something like this:
Cailey: Remember how we used to watch that show because Richard Armitage wore a lot of tight leather pants in it?
Liz and Cailey: SIGH. Oh, our darling Richard Armitage!
Cailey: We digress! The flaming arrow whines through the air, lancing the flag right through its center.
Liz: The flag burns swiftly, its charred remains floating to the ground almost gracefully.
Cailey: The flaming fabric reminds her of her mockingjay costume. She pushes the memory to the back of her mind, not wishing to relive her past tribulations.
Liz: Then she notices...a small child watching her with tears in her eyes.
Cailey: Katniss feels terrible...the flag must have upset the young girl.
Liz: "It's alright. The flag is gone now. You don't have to worry," Katniss says in what she hopes is a soothing tone
Cailey: The little girl only cries harder, and tearfully mutters: "Why did you shoot it?"
Liz: "It's a symbol of great evil. And symbols can have more power than you'd expect. It had to be destroyed," she explains in her typical no-nonsense manner.
Cailey: The girl has stopped crying, although she still looks distressed. Hiccuping quietly, she says: "I...I...didn't know. I just saw a picture of it in a book and thought it was pretty, so I made it out of an old dress and some inkwells. I didn't know it was evil..."
Liz: "It wasn't always evil. But it was co-opted and rendered evil by some truly heinous villains. And there is some evil that can't ever be cleansed entirely, particularly if...if many, many deaths have come to pass" Katniss says, her voice dropping to a whisper, as she reflects on how tragically true this is. She has, after all, lived through her own brand of genocide, and lived to tell the tale.
Cailey: The fight has gone out of her for now. She pats the girl on the head, and turns back towards the Victor's Village, knowing that she needs to discuss this turn of events with Peeta.
Liz: As disconcerting as this experience was, it reinforces Katniss' belief that history has to be remembered if it's not going to be repeated.
Cailey: Shoulder squared, she marches with purpose back towards her home, ready to continue her mission. She will never forget. She alone carries the memories. As long as she lives they cannot die.
Liz: You know, I'm frustrated that we can't put pictures of any of the characters in this blog - although I never say no to some Richard Armitage/Jordan Catalano-love.
Cailey: Ditto! When will they cast the bloody movie?! All I want is for Hailee Steinfeld to play Katniss.
Liz: Agreed! She's not perfect, but she's so much better than other names they've been floating around.
Cailey: For example...Emma Roberts?!
Liz: GAG.
Cailey: Also - I'm not sure how I feel about the director. Pleasantville is a fine movie and all, but I really want the Coen Brothers to tackle The Hunger Games. I think they have the right sense of darkness/humor to really bring it to life in all its gory glory.
Liz: Now that would be incredible!! Especially if they got Jeff Bridges to play Haymitch!
Cailey: True Grit reunion FTW!
Liz: He would make SUCH a good crazy drunk!
Cailey: But I suppose we'll just have to wait for the movie to come out and hope no one butchers it.
Liz: True story.
Cailey: In the meantime you and I can have Team Gale and Team Peeta shirts made.
Cailey: You know you're late to a trend when the shirts are already being sold at Hot Topic.
Liz: Better late than never.
Cailey: Too true!
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