The Hunger Games (novel)/Awesome

The Books:

• Katniss managing to bluff the Gamemakers and Take a Third Option at the end of the first book, therefore making the 74th Hunger Games the first time in history that two tributes were allowed to live.
• Finnick revealing the dirty secrets of all the important people in the Capitol in front of the entire country. Particularly awesome since we know what he had to go through that inadvertently allowed him to get this information, so when he reveals it he is basically throwing it back in the faces of the people who abused him for years.
• Cinna turning Katniss's wedding dress into a mockingjay dress, a huge Take That to the Capitol.
• Katniss blowing out the forcefield in the Arena in the climax of Catching Fire with nothing more than an arrow, a wire, and a big bolt of lightning.
• Haymitch winning the 50th Hunger Games Quarter Quell by using the arena force field as a weapon. This troper found it even better than the stint with the berries.
• The part where Katniss goes to the interview in her wedding dress, which starts out as a Dethroning Moment of Suck until she starts spinning, setting her dress on fire and turning her wedding gown into a mockingjay dress. Of course, it's apparent to some that Cinna's as good as effed for what he just did, but it's practically a Dying Moment of Awesome.
• Katniss shooting Coin when she was meant to be executing Snow. Not exactly a big moment in terms of what happens but the fact that she did so and wasn't killed on the spot and is ultimately left alone make it pretty awesome for her to get the jump on someone who tried to get her killed by her on-screen boyfriend.
• All of District 12 gets one early on, with their refusal to applaud Katniss volunteering to take her sister's place in the Games, described as the highest form of rebellion available to them.
• Katniss' performance in her private archery session, scoring several hard bullseyes after getting the feel of the bows, and getting angry because they don't bother watching so she shoots the apple out of the mouth of the pig that the Gamemakers are eating, causing one to lose his footing with surprise and fall into a bowl of punch. She storms out and immediately thinks that the conseqences of her impulsive behavior may be dire, they may even give her an immediate death sentence. They actually give her a score of 11 out of 12, making her the highest ranked before the games start
  • This scene, and Katniss's subsequent "Thank you for your consideration" and sarcastic bow got her cheers and applause from everyone in this troper's movie theater.
    • This troper thought it was more a curtsy than a bow, but it still counts - he was sorely tempted to pump his fist into the air and only just restrained himself.
• Katniss blowing up the mines around the Careers' food stash with three well-placed arrows.
• Thresh killing Clove after Clove taunts Katniss about Rue's death. Bonus points for not even bothering with a weapon. Instead, simply beating Clove in the head with a rock (in the book) or slamming her into the wall (in the movie).
• Fire is catching. And if we burn, you burn with us!
• "You... hung... Seneca Crane?"

The Film:

• When Marvel throws a spear at her, Katniss twists to the side and fires an arrow into his chest, all in the space of about a second. But then we turn to see Rue behind Katniss...
• Katniss' failed rescue of Rue. Or more precisely, her Due to the Dead, which sets off a riot. She leaves Rue's body as if she is sleeping among flowers in the sunshine grasping a bouquet with mockingjays singing around her, and then salutes the camera. We're then shown District 11, where the crowd return the salute, and then turn to attack the Peacekeepers.
• Peeta gets one in the movie that wasn't in the book. Namely, picking Cato up and judo-throwing him off of Katniss during the fight at the end.
• The Tribute's parade. Lalala, the victors look lovely, blahblahblah... who is that in the back?
• One of the most simply awesome moments of the film however is when Thresh in a rage kills Clove in revenge after hearing her boasting about her group killing Rue. He simply grabs her head and slams it against the wall until she stops yelling. The guy's largely a walking Offscreen Moment of Awesome, but we get to see exactly why everyone respects him.
  • It's just topped off by him sparing Katniss for being Rue's friend and treating her body properly. He's even an honourable badass.
• Seneca Crane's implied Better to Die Than Be Killed moment at the end with the nightlock berries. Not for Seneca himself, mind you- for President Snow, who is strongly implied to have set this up and cements himself as a Magnificent Bastard with it. Guy might be a villain, but the irony is truly delicious, and you can literally see him dreaming it up.

---

Back to The Hunger Games (novel)