President Coriolanus Snow is not the only character from the original Hunger Games trilogy that appears in A Ballad Of Songbirds And Snakes.
As The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is a prequel for the Hunger Games franchise, several characters from the original trilogy are set to make some surprise appearances in the story. The latest entry in the Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, is set to join its predecessors with its own film adaptation, which is to be released in 2023. Considering that the plot takes place before the events of the main trilogy, it is a guarantee that the story will make plenty of references to the original works, while, at the same time, deepening the complex lore of the world known as Panem.
The original Hunger Games series won fans around the world with its revolutionary tale of class struggle in the face of aristocratic oppressors. Though the stories initially focused on the titular games themselves, the narrative quickly expanded to explore the wider aspects of Panem society. This brought series’ hero Katniss Everdeen into direct conflict with President Snow, the autocratic and dictatorial head of state.
The story of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, by contrast, revolves around the main story’s primary antagonist, President Snow, during his younger days, with the happenings that make up his tale featuring an all-new cast of characters. While none of the more well-known Hunger Games characters like Katniss Everdeen or Peeta Mellark are expected to be seen in the film (since all of them would most likely would not yet be born), it surely comes as a shock to find that there are in fact several characters from the original trilogy that make an appearance in the prequel. Here is a list of those individuals.
President Coriolanus Snow
President Coriolanus Snow serves as the main protagonist of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. His story is told as a means of expanding upon his backstory and getting a better look into the life and mind of the series’ ultimate villain. The book depicts Snow undergoing many different strenuous tasks throughout the course of the plot. He becomes a mentor to a tribute during the 10th annual Hunger Games, serves as a Peacekeeper in District 12, and eventually becomes a Hungers Games Gamemaker, where he revamps and makes the Games into how they are seen years later in the main series. All the while, he slips further and further into the cold embrace of immorality, eventually leading him to become the wicked man fans know him to be.
Mags Flanagan
Mags makes her first appearance in The Hunger Games: Catching Fire in 2013. Hailing from District 4, she was forced to participate in the 75th Hunger Games in what is called a Quarter Quell, an event that occurs every 25 years that adds an extra special rule to the Games as a means of anniversary celebration. In order to snuff out Katniss, who has become an idol and symbol of rebellion throughout the world, the Quarter Quell integrates the rule of solely reaping from previous victors of the Hunger Games, Mags being among them. She is reaped alongside fellow victor Finnick Odair, and she ultimately sacrifices herself for his survival.
When she is initially seen, Mags is in her eighties, being one of if not the oldest victors of the Hunger Games. That is because, back when she was a young girl, she was reaped for the 11th annual Games the very year that Coriolanus Snow becomes a Gamemaker and integrates his new ideas. In fact, she was the very first victor to go on a victory tour across Panem similar to the one Katniss and Peeta participated in at the beginning of Catching Fire. While her original was rather short, she has since become a beloved character among the fan community. With any luck, her story will also be expanded upon in the prequel.
Tigris
Making her debut in The Hunger Games: The Mockingjay Part 2, Tigris is definitely a curious case. Having the appearance of a human/cat hybrid, she surely fits the bill in terms of the flamboyant fashion worn by the citizens of Panem’s Capital. However, despite her strange exterior and her obsession with making lingerie out of fur, Tigris has a very big heart. She gladly shelters and feeds refugees of Panem in her clothing store, including Katniss and her black-ops team, Squad 451. Tigris is set to play a major role in The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes as it has been revealed that she is the cousin of Coriolanus Snow. Fans can surely expect to see more of her when the film premieres, though probably she will be seen as she was before her feline makeover.
Lucy Gray Baird?
Lucy Gray Baird is the female lead of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. She is introduced as the Hunger Games tribute that Coriolanus mentors, hailing from Katniss Everdeen’s home of District 12. Though she does not necessarily appear in the original trilogy, in the first 2012 Hunger Games, Katniss makes a comment about District 12’s first-ever victor, more than likely referring to Lucy, as she wins the 10th Games. Her fate, however, is a bit of a mystery. In the book, Lucy and Coriolanus become an item. However, as the story plays out, events occur that lead to their relationship ending with betrayal and gunfire. Afterward, the character is never seen or heard from again, leaving the question of what happens to Lucy up in the air. There could be a possibility that she could have survived up to the point of the main trilogy’s events, thus being as old as Mags by that time. On the other hand, she could very well be dead by then, but Katniss’ seemingly one-off comment and her titular role in the prequel definitely mean she deserves a mention.
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