One of the most popular YA stories of the last decade has been The Hunger Games series, the infernal story of Katniss Everdeen. First a best-selling trilogy before becoming a box office success, this several part tale encompasses romance, political intrigue, revolution, action, danger, and monumental loss. It’s a powerful work that captured the minds and hearts of many readers. Furthermore, it sky-rocketed the career of Hollywood darlings Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, and Liam Hemsworth.
At the center of it all is Katniss, a fantastic marksman with a fiery heart. She does what she believes is right and will do anything to protect her little sister. One split-second decision to take her sister’s position in The Hunger Games changed the world around her forever. After all, who can resist a girl on fire?
Between her endless in-story fans and fans in the real world, Katniss is beloved by many. She even inspired a lot of young girls to take up archery, sparked another fandom romance debate, and technically saved the world. Despite all of the trials she went through, though, she survived. However, not everything about Katniss, the symbolic Mockingjay, is perfect. Some of it just doesn’t add up. After all, her popularity can’t cover all of her character flaws up.
With that said, here are the 25 Things Wrong With Katniss In The Hunger Games Everyone Chooses To Ignore.
25. Her Romantic Interest In Gale
One of Katniss’ love interests is her childhood best friend, Gale. However, the romance between Gale and Katniss is pretty irrelevant. They could have just been great best friends and it wouldn’t have effected the overall plot of the series very much.
Unlike Peeta, the girl on fire had little reason to be romantically interested in Gale. They both had very different views about how to get things done and he was a much more unforgiving person than she was. For someone desperate to be comforted and grounded, he never makes sense. While Gale was attractive, that didn’t make him a good option for Katniss.
24. She’s Better Than Career Tributes
When Katniss enters the Hunger Games, she learns about “The Careers.” These are kids from the wealthy districts who have spent their entire lives training for this. They see it as an honor to join the ceremony.
Though our young heroine is fantastic with a bow, it’s a bit of a stretch to think that she could face off against trained warriors. If all of the deus ex machinas hadn’t saved Katniss (Rue, Thresh’s mercy, wolf-mutts, etc.), she probably would have been toast. The Careers were painfully lackluster considering how skilled they were supposed to be.
23. Her Dull Lack Response To Losing Prim
In Mockingjay, a lot of terrible things start to weigh on Katniss’ shoulders. The Capital brainwashed her sort of boyfriend, Peeta. While contributing to a mission, wolf-mutts mauled her close friend, Finnick. Worst of all, though, was what happened to Prim. During The Hunger Games, Katniss risked her life to save Prim from the games. However, the rebellion’s own bombs decimate Prim while she was helping the wounded.
Though Katniss is devastated, she lacks the fiery response expected from her character. She’s always responded to frustrations and pain with rage and vengeance. If she stayed true to her character, she would have destroyed Gale for being the one to make the plan.
22. She Doesn’t Use Her Wealth To Help Others
After surviving the Hunger Games, victors get to live in their district’s “Victor Village.” This place has huge mansions and victors get to bring their entire families with them to live there. Also, they earn a bunch of money, resources, clothes, and never have to work again (excluding mentoring tributes).
However, with all of this wealth and resources, it doesn’t make sense that some victors don’t use this to better their district. Despite the money and power Katniss, Peeta, and Haymitch have, District 12 is still helplessly poor. While they live in relative luxury, their community suffers. As the heroes, they should make some effort to help others, not just wage wars.
21. Her Friendship With Madge Undersee
Throughout The Hunger Games book series, Katniss has a close female friend, Madge Undersee. While the movies omit her, she’s pretty important to the novels. This is the character who gives Katniss the Mockingjay pin and supports her. However, as time goes on, it becomes clear that a character like Madge Undersee doesn’t quite belong.
One of Madge’s distinct moments happens when she buys a pretty dress so that she can look good if she gets picked in the culling. Next to a family-focused, rebellious girl like Katniss, the two simply don’t match up. Of all of the people the girl on fire could have befriended in District 12, Madge didn’t mesh well with her personality.
20. She Got Drunk With Haymitch
When the trio of District 12 victors learn about the new Quarter Quell rules, they don’t take it well. After all, they’re pooling from victors only, and there are only three of them. Since Katniss is the only girl, the only other option is Haymitch or Peeta.
Throughout the first Hunger Games, Katniss is startled and repulsed by Haymitch’s drunkeness, even if she appreciates him. However, later, she seems to be following him. It’s understandable, considering the trauma of the Games, but Katniss acts like a person who has to cope with violence and stoic-ness, not one who has to deal with alcohol.
19. Her Lack Of Appetite In The Movies
Because of District 12’s helplessly poor conditions, food can be quite scarce. In contrast, the capitol is rich with food and goods. It’s not surprising that the half-starved Katniss gorges herself on food in the books. However, for some reason, the movies decided that she should resist eating. This not only directly goes against the books, but it also ignores how hungry a starving young girl can be.
Katniss may be a rebel, but she has always struggled and scraped around for food. Peeta even got in trouble for getting her burned bread.
18. Her Complicated Relationship With Her Mother
In a world like Panem, family is the only thing people have left, especially in places like District 12. Though losing her husband crippled Mrs. Everdeen, it should have brought her closer to her daughters, not further. Depression is infectious and monstrous, but sometimes duty has to supersede pain.
On the flip side, though, Katniss clearly just took over her mother’s role instead of trying to help her get better. This created a weird mother/daughter relationship that sometimes felt mixed up. While their lives were hard, the Everdeen women should have found a way to cope together. Katniss shouldn’t have been strong-arming her way through everything.
17. Her Endless Arrows
Looking at Legolas from Lord of The Rings or at any Robin Hood movie, you’ll notice that this mistake is pretty common. After all, where did all of those arrows come from?
The endless quiver is a problem that many movies with archers face. While it would be boring for archers to run out of arrows, it also doesn’t make any sense for their stock to never deplete. In the grittier world of The Hunger Games, it could have made for a more interesting storying, as we could see what Katniss would do if she ran out of ammo. Unfortunately, that’s a scenario fans will never see come to fruition.
16. The Gale Kiss In Catching Fire
Throughout The Hunger Games, the book eludes to the fact that there might be more between Katniss and Gale than just friendship. He’s desperate to know that she’s okay and whenever she thinks about Peeta, she worries about Gale. It’s all complicated, teenage romance stuff.
However, when Gale finally gets Katniss alone, he thinks it’s a great idea to kiss her. She’s still confused about her feelings between the two boys. Conversely, though, it was bold of him to presume that she felt the same way about him. He probably should have waited until they talked about it before going in for the kiss. That was the moment Katniss should have known that Gale was too aggressive for her.
15. She Was Left Out Of Peeta’s Rescue Mission
When The Rebellion went to save Peeta, they were very deliberate about leaving the Mockingjay home. However, this wasn’t the right plan. It makes sense that they’d wanted to keep Katniss safe to be their figurehead. People fell in love with her during her televised “romance” with Peeta. Being able to capture video of her saving Peeta would have made for a great propoganda piece.
That is, until they realized that Peeta was brainwashed against her, but The Rebellion didn’t know that at the time. They should have done what would have convinced people, especially the rich, to join their side – they should have shown the beloved Romeo and Juliet back together again.
14. She’s Quick To Trust Cinna
Because Katniss grew up in a harsh world where those around her faced starvation, she isn’t quick to trust anyone. Even Peeta, who came from her district and helped feed her family, is someone she assumes has a secret agenda. Conversely, Katniss trusts Cinna, her stylist, almost immediately. While it serves the story, it doesn’t make much sense and betrays her cautious personality.
Their relationship needed to be fast-tracked to set up for losing him in Catching Fire, but it still felt too forced and rushed. When it comes to someone like Katniss, it takes far more than a beautiful dress to earn their trust.
13. She’s A Teenager Running Major Parts Of A Rebellion
When The Rebellion chooses Katniss as its Mockingjay, the figurehead for their cause, it was purely pragmatic. She was a skilled fighter who the public latched onto, since she was seen as a symbol of rebellion and hope. Her involvement in their propaganda videos and public events made sense.
However, they also give her serious missions in the rebellion, which is a dangerous decision to make since she’s their symbol. Furthermore, she is only a teenager, so she should probably be protected. However, if they were intent on letting her become involved, it is wrong for them to not let her become involved in saving Peeta.
12. She Never Diversified Her Battle Skills
Katniss became an expert hunter because she needed to feed her family. However, some part of her was aware that that training made her more capable for the Games if her name were ever to be drawn. Though she only needed her bow and a knife to hunt effectively, the threat of the Games should have encouraged her to learn more about weaponry and tactics.
For example, it isn’t until Catching Fire that Gale teaches the victors about traps and snares. That kind of knowledge would have helped Katniss greatly in the past. She could have even set up traps or snares around Rue to protect her.
11. Her And Peeta’s Ignorance When It Comes To Mining
In Panem, the Capitol prefers to work its people to the bone. Inside District 12, the working class spends their days at the mine, earning measly wages. Despite the fact that almost everyone works the mine (even Gale, eventually), Katniss and Peeta are never taught much about mining. You’d think that all of kids would be taught about the mines.
Furthermore, in any mining pictures, no women are ever shown. Does this mean that women aren’t allowed to work in the mines, or are they forcibly allocated to other jobs? The entire system makes little sense and it seems odd that the protagonists don’t get to show off the skills that their specific districts teach them.
10. She Doesn’t Run Away From District 12 In The Movies
The Katniss fans meet in the novels is far more defined and nuanced. All of her actions are explained and well-thought out. To compensate, the movie Katniss is played more stoic and precise. However, this causes some issue when facing some of her more nuanced decisions.
For example, Gale and Katniss contemplate running away in Mockingjay, just getting away from it all. However, in the books Katniss explains the pressure of of how many people she’d want to bring and protect and how it’d be impossible. In the movies, that internal struggle is far less defined. Ergo, fans just sit there wondering, “why don’t you just run away from all of this? It seems crazy!”.
9. The Love Triangle
The Hunger Games was near-famous for following up the Edward/Jacob debate with Gale/Peeta. However, the love triangle in the series didn’t make sense, as it took away from the focus of the novels.
While it’s fun to have a teenage girl brood about which boy is right for her, Katniss had way too much going on to worry about such this. She was worried about her family, her actions sparked more flames of rebellion, and the capitol was actively trying to off her. Two cute boys in a love triangle weren’t necessary to the story. Katniss’ emotional growth between the time when she uses Peeta and loves him was enough of a fascinating development.
8. She Doesn’t Rob Or Squat In The Victor’s Village
Because of its lack of resources and good, District 12 wasn’t known for winning at the Hunger Games. Only four people from the district ever won in over fifty years. Of course, that means that the area’s victor village was nearly abandoned, save the lonely and drunk Haymitch.
However, it doesn’t make sense why no one tried to squat in or steal things from other Victor Village mansions. They were fully furnished, abandoned, and there didn’t seem to be much security. It seems plausible that someone like Katniss should have broken in, since she was desperate to minimize costs and protect her family. Granted, it could have been very dangerous, but someone could have saved their freezing family by breaking in.
7. Her Ethnicity In The Movies
Though this is a hotly debated topic, many fans agree that the movie version of Katniss is much more white than she was intended to be. The book heroine was described as having an olive, ruddy skin tone. Because of this, fans were expecting a tanner and possibly mixed race girl on fire. Instead, however, they got a very white Jennifer Lawrence. The casting calls even asked for someone who was Caucasian, so the directors didn’t even bother looking for someone else.
While Lawrence did a great job, it’s disappointing that a more accurate Katniss was never given a shot at the role. It would have been truer to the books.
6. She Trusts The Rebellion Wholeheartedly
Katniss is first introduced to the Rebellion and learns about its plans immediately after she is snatched up from the Games and they tell her that they abandoned Peeta. Understandably, she wasn’t very happy.
Despite Haymitch’s involvement in The Rebellion, along with other allies, it’s still surprising how quickly she jumped to join their side. After all, they didn’t put priority over the only reason she made it this far. Without Peeta’s love for her, not nearly as many people would be so enamored with her story. Katniss should have been more skeptic. Though it was wrong to rush her in so quickly, at least she stuck to her unwavering, cautious nature in the end.
5. Her Treatment of Gale Post-Bombs
After the bombing of District 12 and the loss of Prim, Katniss was heartbroken. Even worse, she found out from other Rebellion members that Gale was the one who concocted the plan. Her response? End their romance.
The story did a serious disservice to Katniss’ character and Prim’s memory by giving her such a weak response. For the girl who ended her first life over losing Rue, it was a terribly tame reaction. What would make more sense would be to have Katniss end his life, too.
Instead, the story cops out by just having her be sad and give up on loving him. Prim deserved more.
4. Her Love For Peeta In Mockingjay Pt. 2
While the novels made Katniss and Peeta’s relationship compelling throughout, the movies dropped the ball in Mockingjay Part 2. Because of the limited nuance of inner narration in a movie, Peeta was just insane and inconsolable, instead of the confused, mind-warped boy in the books. The movies gave Katniss no good reason to keep loving him and it was wrong to try to force her or fans into it. It would have worked better if Katniss accepted another loss and lived out the rest of her days, alone.
Instead, Peeta manages a sudden 180 and he and Katniss live happily ever after. Or, as happy as they could ever be.
3. She Wants To Save Peeta In The Movies
Narration does wonders to stories with high internal conflict. In the case of Katniss, it gave fans a closer look at her struggle between desperately wanting to survive and not wanting to feel alone. From the moment she met him, she didn’t quite trust Peeta, but the more he trusted and believed in her, the more she wanted to help him.
In contrast, the movies didn’t get to focus on her struggle nearly as much. Because of this, it doesn’t fit her character to help Peeta when it doesn’t serve her. Instead of trying to save both of them at the end of The Hunger Games, the movie version of Katniss would have sacrificed him to survive since she’s ruthlessly pragmatic.
2. Her Contradicting Personalities In The Books And Movies
The movie version of Katniss is quite different from the Katniss we meet in the books, and its one of the problems with the films. Book Katniss is rebellious, has a fiery personality, and will do anything to protect the people she loves. Meanwhile, movie Katniss seems more stoic, pragmatic, and stubbornly independent rather than rebellious. Without internal narration, a lot of of what she stands for is lost in translation.
If the movies adapted to fit this version of Katniss’ personality, the films could’ve become even stronger than the novels. A hero who is also ruthlessly incorrigible? That’s interesting. However, instead stoic Katniss just followed book Katniss’ actions, and the end results were okay at best.
1. She Volunteered As Tribute
Fans are enamored with Katniss the second that she, in a panic, volunteers as tribute to save her sister. However, in the context of their world, this is a bold move that doesn’t make much sense. If so many people are afraid of the games, what would make her strong enough to break all the rules? Career tributes don’t even volunteer, and they are raised to fight.
Furthermore, it’s a similar argument used to make historical, fictitious characters do things way ahead of their time. However, a character like this only makes small strides, and doesn’t change the entire country. It’d be more accurate if Katniss lost a family member who volunteered and lost, and then chose to volunteer herself.
Did we miss any other things wrong with Katniss in The Hunger Games series? Let us know in the comments!
