Hunger Games
- Thread starter Meinos Kaen
- Start date
My original review:
It sucks balls. I tried it a few months back and I hated it. I got 150 pages before I went "fuck this shit" on a a day I was bored.
It lured me in with a decent first few chapters, where the setting is established [note: it takes some suspension of belief to even get past the first chapter if you like to over-think things]. Then... the crappy writing hit. I should have known because the "romance" angle was pretty obvious from the get go. You can tell that it is written for teenage girls in mind.
Never could reconcile the character that was strong enough to give her life for her sister to the idiotic person that appears shortly thereafter. I gave up after that stupid scene when the girl falls to pieces after no one pays attention to her shooting skills. That wouldn't be a bad scene if not for the fact that not 20 pages before that she was all "I am going to hide my skills".
As I learned later from a co-worker, it gets worse.
It sucks balls. I tried it a few months back and I hated it. I got 150 pages before I went "fuck this shit" on a a day I was bored.
It lured me in with a decent first few chapters, where the setting is established [note: it takes some suspension of belief to even get past the first chapter if you like to over-think things]. Then... the crappy writing hit. I should have known because the "romance" angle was pretty obvious from the get go. You can tell that it is written for teenage girls in mind.
Never could reconcile the character that was strong enough to give her life for her sister to the idiotic person that appears shortly thereafter. I gave up after that stupid scene when the girl falls to pieces after no one pays attention to her shooting skills. That wouldn't be a bad scene if not for the fact that not 20 pages before that she was all "I am going to hide my skills".
As I learned later from a co-worker, it gets worse.
Calling it the new Twilight is a little unfair. For a start, the source material isn't shit; and secondly, the movie was well acted. It was not a perfect movie, obviously, but I would go see it again given the chance.
The only real complaint I've heard from anyone about Hunger Games is that it has a similar premise to Battle Royale, and that it targets the same audience as Twilight did - which is apparently a crime now. I for one am glad teenage girls are starting to gush about something that's actually decent.
Put bluntly: it isn't Twilight, and it's worth a look.
On a side note: I didn't like Katniss at all in the book, but the actress managed to make me give something of a damn.
The only real complaint I've heard from anyone about Hunger Games is that it has a similar premise to Battle Royale, and that it targets the same audience as Twilight did - which is apparently a crime now. I for one am glad teenage girls are starting to gush about something that's actually decent.
Put bluntly: it isn't Twilight, and it's worth a look.
On a side note: I didn't like Katniss at all in the book, but the actress managed to make me give something of a damn.
Never read the books (despite friends telling me I should) but I got dragged along to see the movie. It wasn't the best movie I have ever seen, or even approaching the 'Very Good' level. However I thought it was reasonably well acted, and the very fact that it was a movie at least gave us a little bit of distance from the characters which was I think a good thing.
The premise seems a bit far fetched and as mentioned its basically Battle Royal, However the thing worked I thought, and most of the characters (or at least major ones) were reasonably distinct.
The premise seems a bit far fetched and as mentioned its basically Battle Royal, However the thing worked I thought, and most of the characters (or at least major ones) were reasonably distinct.
Calling it bad because it's YA doesn't really hold true, at least to me. When I'm bored and looking for something fresh, I'll go through the YA sections to see if I can't find something that I like. Some of the better series I've read recently have come from there (like Septimus Heap, which I heartily recommend to anyone who likes fantasy, magic, and wizards).
I was going to pick up the Hunger Games and check it out, but the fans annoyed the mother-shit out of me before I could, and that killed whatever interest I had in it. The next Harry Potter, better than Tolkien, the new Twilight?
Go fuck yourselves, fans. You killed your chance before I could even break it out of my wallet to hand it to you. Get your goddamn tween drama out of my Orwellian dystopia.
I was going to pick up the Hunger Games and check it out, but the fans annoyed the mother-shit out of me before I could, and that killed whatever interest I had in it. The next Harry Potter, better than Tolkien, the new Twilight?
Go fuck yourselves, fans. You killed your chance before I could even break it out of my wallet to hand it to you. Get your goddamn tween drama out of my Orwellian dystopia.
Even with the Elves Are Better and Author Tracts, Fowl was still amazing. It asked a question that I had not, until then, even considered, which was "what if Tom Swift was also Johnny Marcone?"
Still, though, if you haven't read it and want to, here's my advice to you: Stop reading after The Lost Colony. That was the narrative high point of the series, and everything after that is totally downhill.
Still, though, if you haven't read it and want to, here's my advice to you: Stop reading after The Lost Colony. That was the narrative high point of the series, and everything after that is totally downhill.
So...
I got my tires changed at BJ's Wholesale Club one fall, and there was a delay of like an hour that came up because I was like the fourth person in line.
So I wandered into the store, perused the books stacked on the table, and eventually got a plastiwrapped set: the first three of the "Gregor the Overlander" YA books. I liked them enough that I went and picked up four and five at Borders or some other book chain.
Anyway, that was the same author as the Hunger Games.
But I haven't read the Hunger Games.
Because...
My... let's call her my sister-in-law (they're engaged, not married, but close enough, arrite), who majored in Classics, said they're based on the Labyrinth myth, Theseus vs. Minotaur, you know? And I remember thinking, "no, this definitely sounds like 'The Running Man' to me."
In the end, I guess basically my problem is, Arnold already made this movie.
I got my tires changed at BJ's Wholesale Club one fall, and there was a delay of like an hour that came up because I was like the fourth person in line.
So I wandered into the store, perused the books stacked on the table, and eventually got a plastiwrapped set: the first three of the "Gregor the Overlander" YA books. I liked them enough that I went and picked up four and five at Borders or some other book chain.
Anyway, that was the same author as the Hunger Games.
But I haven't read the Hunger Games.
Because...
My... let's call her my sister-in-law (they're engaged, not married, but close enough, arrite), who majored in Classics, said they're based on the Labyrinth myth, Theseus vs. Minotaur, you know? And I remember thinking, "no, this definitely sounds like 'The Running Man' to me."
In the end, I guess basically my problem is, Arnold already made this movie.
I think the one thing that is most interesting about The Hunger Games has been that the ambiguity allows the reader/audience to ascertain things from the series that reaffirm their own predjudices. I was linked to a foxnews article that said the series was 'clearly' a metaphor for the dangers of over powerful government and I also read a marxist blog review saying it was 'clearly' a metaphor for the class war between the working class and the ruling class who exploit them.
I meant that the book, "the Hunger Games", sounds a lot like the movie, "The Running Man".
Which was adapted from one of the Bachman books, yes.
"The Running Man"... is a surprising existence, because they dramatically changed the story for the movie adaption. The surprising part was the wisdom of doing so: if they has faithfully followed the book, it would have been a pretty crappy movie.
Which was adapted from one of the Bachman books, yes.
"The Running Man"... is a surprising existence, because they dramatically changed the story for the movie adaption. The surprising part was the wisdom of doing so: if they has faithfully followed the book, it would have been a pretty crappy movie.
Having read the series, the "tween romance" is contrived, but not the way you'd expect.
Spoiler:
The guy does have a crush on the main character, but it's completely unrequited, to the point where the main character is wondering if said guy is just putting on a show, or just really stupid.
It turns out to be a bit of both.
The Capital City audience watching the Battle Royale ends up as a satire on Twilight fans. The audience changes the rules mid-game on a whim because they lap up the romantic stuff, and the main characters are just cynical enough to play along and use it to their own advantage.
The ending isn't exactly happy either. Both of them suffer through Eva-level trauma. The main character ends the series terrified that they're going to be bad parents because they're both just a bit insane and she knows it. I think at one point she wonders how to explain to her kids why she wakes up screaming at night.
She also has doubts as to whether she fell in love or if it was just an effect of living together through two Battle Royals and a war.
There's really no clear-cut lesson on romance or anything. The main character ends up being a psychological wreck and her boyfriend is not much better, with their relationship being characterized as caring but knowingly dysfunctional.
Overall, there were some stupid parts and the minor characters had a tendency to be utterly forgettable, but the whole series was likable, above average, and certainly nowhere near the crap that was Twilight. The main character has alternating moments of strength and weakness, never strong enough to be a Mary Sue, and only weak enough to drive the point in that it's a crapsack world.
Spoiler:
The guy does have a crush on the main character, but it's completely unrequited, to the point where the main character is wondering if said guy is just putting on a show, or just really stupid.
It turns out to be a bit of both.
The Capital City audience watching the Battle Royale ends up as a satire on Twilight fans. The audience changes the rules mid-game on a whim because they lap up the romantic stuff, and the main characters are just cynical enough to play along and use it to their own advantage.
The ending isn't exactly happy either. Both of them suffer through Eva-level trauma. The main character ends the series terrified that they're going to be bad parents because they're both just a bit insane and she knows it. I think at one point she wonders how to explain to her kids why she wakes up screaming at night.
She also has doubts as to whether she fell in love or if it was just an effect of living together through two Battle Royals and a war.
There's really no clear-cut lesson on romance or anything. The main character ends up being a psychological wreck and her boyfriend is not much better, with their relationship being characterized as caring but knowingly dysfunctional.
Overall, there were some stupid parts and the minor characters had a tendency to be utterly forgettable, but the whole series was likable, above average, and certainly nowhere near the crap that was Twilight. The main character has alternating moments of strength and weakness, never strong enough to be a Mary Sue, and only weak enough to drive the point in that it's a crapsack world.
No. I meant that the concept of 'tween romance' is contrived and seemingly genre inappropriate here.
The mere fact that the book has sold so well to the teenage girl demographic means that either the majority of the fanbase simply doesn't get it (having met some of the fanbase, this is not that unlikely) or the author got away with putting that crap in under the guise of 'critique.' After all, anyone can poke fun at Twilight fans. It's kind of the common denominator of cultural satire.
Since you've read the books, would you be so kind as to tell me what the overall message is? The whole point of a fucked up future dystopia is having it magnify an aspect of our society. What aspect is the Hunger Games magnifying and is it still relevant?
Some people mentioned similarities to the Running Man, a movie that was relevant in the 1980s and really didn't take itself all that seriously to begin with. From what I've seen of the trailer, The Hunger Games is taking itself seriously with a really outdated and irrelevant premise. Correct me if I'm wrong. It seems like it's TRYING to be part of the future dystopian genre by copying its predecessors while appealing to an audience that has no real appreciation or interest in the genre.
The mere fact that the book has sold so well to the teenage girl demographic means that either the majority of the fanbase simply doesn't get it (having met some of the fanbase, this is not that unlikely) or the author got away with putting that crap in under the guise of 'critique.' After all, anyone can poke fun at Twilight fans. It's kind of the common denominator of cultural satire.
Since you've read the books, would you be so kind as to tell me what the overall message is? The whole point of a fucked up future dystopia is having it magnify an aspect of our society. What aspect is the Hunger Games magnifying and is it still relevant?
Some people mentioned similarities to the Running Man, a movie that was relevant in the 1980s and really didn't take itself all that seriously to begin with. From what I've seen of the trailer, The Hunger Games is taking itself seriously with a really outdated and irrelevant premise. Correct me if I'm wrong. It seems like it's TRYING to be part of the future dystopian genre by copying its predecessors while appealing to an audience that has no real appreciation or interest in the genre.
I have no problems with genre inappropriateness in and of itself. Sexuality and grim stories used to be inappropriate in the magical girl genre. Magical girls used to be inappropriate in war and mecha. Plot used to be inappropriate in porn.
What romance was there was written in realistically. Yes, it's not your typical dystopian future story, but your typical dystopian future story doesn't usually star a young girl as the main character.
As for the overall message. . . I don't think there is one. The author does a decent enough job of showing everyone as more than two-dimensional, if somewhat cliched. The result is that while there are obvious villains, even they have understandable motives and personalities. Even the same government that oppressed the people was also responsible for keeping them alive this long.
If there was a political message somewhere in there, it went over my head. You might as well ask if Magica Madoka had a political message.
What romance was there was written in realistically. Yes, it's not your typical dystopian future story, but your typical dystopian future story doesn't usually star a young girl as the main character.
As for the overall message. . . I don't think there is one. The author does a decent enough job of showing everyone as more than two-dimensional, if somewhat cliched. The result is that while there are obvious villains, even they have understandable motives and personalities. Even the same government that oppressed the people was also responsible for keeping them alive this long.
If there was a political message somewhere in there, it went over my head. You might as well ask if Magica Madoka had a political message.
Let's not confuse the book medium with anime/manga here. A good anime/manga is simply supposed to be entertaining. A good book is supposed to be meaningful and serve a greater purpose.
Second, porn used to have a plot before all the amateur stuff became popular instead of studio produced stuff and it all became about pointless fucking. Go watch porn from the seventies and you'll find that most of all of it has a plot.
My point here is that genre inappropriateness is jarring. The goal of the dystopian future genre is to strip away the bullshit and make social commentary. So you can understand how fucking jarring it seems to have a story that's doing that while attempting to retain bullshit like 'tween romance' as if it isn't as contrived as the rest of the material it's ridiculing.
The concept of there being any romance during a game where kids kill each other is absurd and not realistic.
If there's no message than why is the future like that? The entire point of the dystopian future genre is taking a problem in our society, multiplying it in scale, and then showing how it has created this horrific future. This is done for the purpose of social commentary. If there's no social commentary, than the whole setting is pointless.
Second, porn used to have a plot before all the amateur stuff became popular instead of studio produced stuff and it all became about pointless fucking. Go watch porn from the seventies and you'll find that most of all of it has a plot.
My point here is that genre inappropriateness is jarring. The goal of the dystopian future genre is to strip away the bullshit and make social commentary. So you can understand how fucking jarring it seems to have a story that's doing that while attempting to retain bullshit like 'tween romance' as if it isn't as contrived as the rest of the material it's ridiculing.
The concept of there being any romance during a game where kids kill each other is absurd and not realistic.
If there's no message than why is the future like that? The entire point of the dystopian future genre is taking a problem in our society, multiplying it in scale, and then showing how it has created this horrific future. This is done for the purpose of social commentary. If there's no social commentary, than the whole setting is pointless.
Sorry, you've lost me. The idea that anime/manga cannot be meaningful or that a book cannot simply be entertainment is not one I'm willing to accept.
So it was historically appropriate before it was historically inappropriate. And I'm sure if you go back further, there's a point where it's historically inappropriate again. This doesn't matter. Whether I enjoy it or not depends on whether it's appropriate to me, subjectively, same for you. Please bear in mind that we most likely live in different countries and that even if we had both been alive in the seventies, our studious would not have produced the same stuff.
And my point is that it isn't jarring to me, because I don't have such limits on what and what is not a valid subject for dystopian future stories. Therefore I can let it pass. There are teens in those futures too. Most likely, they fall in love with each other as well. You think that's unrealistic, fine. I've thought it normal ever since I read my first Dystopian Crystal Tokyo Sailor Moon fanfic.
Agreed. Which is why the romance only really gelled outside said games and took years to run its course.
Maybe for you. Personally I don't need my future-based fiction to always include commentary on present politics or social issues.
Mind you, I understand where you're coming from, and I know now why you can't enjoy this series, and most likely never will. I admit it's not a masterpiece and most likely will be forgotten by most people in less than a generation. But that doesn't mean it's not an enjoyable story for it's own sake. Or that everyone has your exact standards with regards to stories involving a dystopian future.
P.S. I just realized you're the same guy I just had an argument with on a different part of the forum. Small world, eh? Though we seem to have changed sides since then.
P.P.S. And I just realized that the part about romance is supposed to be a spoiler. Yet taking it out would ruin the argument. :headbanger: Then again, it's unlikely that you'll be reading the series anyway.
So it was historically appropriate before it was historically inappropriate. And I'm sure if you go back further, there's a point where it's historically inappropriate again. This doesn't matter. Whether I enjoy it or not depends on whether it's appropriate to me, subjectively, same for you. Please bear in mind that we most likely live in different countries and that even if we had both been alive in the seventies, our studious would not have produced the same stuff.
And my point is that it isn't jarring to me, because I don't have such limits on what and what is not a valid subject for dystopian future stories. Therefore I can let it pass. There are teens in those futures too. Most likely, they fall in love with each other as well. You think that's unrealistic, fine. I've thought it normal ever since I read my first Dystopian Crystal Tokyo Sailor Moon fanfic.
Agreed. Which is why the romance only really gelled outside said games and took years to run its course.
Maybe for you. Personally I don't need my future-based fiction to always include commentary on present politics or social issues.
Mind you, I understand where you're coming from, and I know now why you can't enjoy this series, and most likely never will. I admit it's not a masterpiece and most likely will be forgotten by most people in less than a generation. But that doesn't mean it's not an enjoyable story for it's own sake. Or that everyone has your exact standards with regards to stories involving a dystopian future.
P.S. I just realized you're the same guy I just had an argument with on a different part of the forum. Small world, eh? Though we seem to have changed sides since then.
P.P.S. And I just realized that the part about romance is supposed to be a spoiler. Yet taking it out would ruin the argument. :headbanger: Then again, it's unlikely that you'll be reading the series anyway.