- "As I try to avoid looking at his family, I learn that his name was Marvel. How did I never know that? I suppose that before the Games I didn't pay attention and afterwards I didn't want to know."
- —Katniss Everdeen about Marvel[src]
Marvel is a minor antagonist in The Hunger Games. He was the male tribute from District 1 in the 74th Hunger Games and a member of the Career pack.
Quick Answers
What district does Marvel represent in The Hunger Games?
Who was Marvel's district partner in the 74th Hunger Games?
What weapon did Marvel specialize in during The Hunger Games?
Who played the character Marvel in the Hunger Games film?
How does Marvel's strength compare to the other members of the Career pack in The Hunger Games?
Biography[]
Marvel was born in District 1, one of the wealthiest districts of Panem, and trained most of his life for the Hunger Games, specializing in the use of spears. During the 74th Hunger Games, he was a part of the Career pack along with his district partner, Glimmer[2]. His odds were the same as Clove's, making him the third-strongest of the Career pack, after Clove and Cato respectively.
74th Hunger Games[]
Marvel and Glimmer in their parade costumes.
Parade[]
During the opening ceremonies, he and his district partner, Glimmer, were spray-painted silver and wore tunics[3]. In the movie, Glimmer and Marvel wore fuchsia outfits belted out in sequins and feathers, representing their district industry, luxury. Katniss Everdeen pointed out that they both looked very luxurious.[4]
Training[]
Marvel throws a spear during training.
He showed great skill at fighting and throwing spears, which made him deadly at a distance. While the District 3 female was on the Gauntlets, she was tripped and he and the other Careers laughed. During training in the film, he saw Peeta's weakness and viewed him as a "meal" until Peeta's true strength was revealed when he threw a 100-pound metal ball at a rack of spears, leaving him and the other Careers surprised. Marvel received a very high training score of 9. He showed the same arrogance as many of his fellow Careers, but lacked the ruthless discipline of Cato and Clove (probably because they were from District 2, which contributed heavily to the Capitol's military); however, unlike his tribute partner Glimmer, he was very well-trained in his weapon of choice, which was a spear, specifically a javelin.[4]
Interviews[]
During his interview with Caesar Flickerman, he wore a blue suit with matching blue trousers and was presumably trying to be funny[4].
Cornucopia bloodbath[]
Marvel repeatedly stabs the District 8 male.
Marvel spears the District 7 female.
Marvel rose on the pedestal next to Clove and Katniss. When the gong rang, he ran to the Cornucopia to battle for supplies like most of the other tributes and picked up a kukri. He spotted the District 8 male, slashed his throat, and stabbed him to death with the kukri. He watched Glimmer kill the District 6 female, then attacked the District 10 male, taking the bag the boy stole from Glimmer. He saw the District 3 male hiding behind some crates, and he grappled with him over an axe, before Marvel hit the District 3 male in the face with his bag. Afterward, he attempted to swing his axe at the District 10 male, who dodged the attack. Marvel then took a spear and saw Clove ram the District 7 female into the ground, so he marched over and speared her through the heart, killing her. [4]
Alliance[]
Marvel made an alliance with Glimmer, Cato, Clove, Peeta, the District 3 male, and the District 4 female (book), to form a typical Career alliance that included two non-Careers (Peeta and the District 3 male)[2][5].
Marvel distracted by Rue's fire along with Cato and Clove.
Marvel helped the Careers chase Katniss up a tree[6]. In the film, he noticed her before any of his fellow Careers did, yelling "There she is!"[4] Realizing that she would be difficult to attack, he and the other Careers formed a camp below her. However, while they were distracted, Katniss sawed through a branch that held a tracker jacker nest. The nest hit the ground and burst open, and he, Cato, and Clove were stung many times, forcing the Careers (minus Glimmer and the District 4 female in the book, who succumbed to the stings) to flee to the nearby lake.[7]
After Marvel and the other Careers recovered from their tracker jacker stings, they began to hunt for more tributes. Rue lit a fire as a decoy, distracting the Careers, who went to kill the tribute who started it. Marvel and the others set out to find Rue, but after the supplies were destroyed by Katniss setting off the landmines[5], the Careers returned just as Katniss dragged herself into Rue's hiding place. Cato blamed the District 3 boy, and Marvel watched Cato snap the boy's neck. Marvel and Clove calmed Cato down, telling him that the tribute who destroyed their supplies was probably killed as well in the explosion. They waited for night to see the faces of those who were killed, but when they found that the tribute did not die, the Careers then set out to hunt the other tributes.[8]
Death[]
- "I don't know why I should even care about the boy. Then I realize... he was my first kill."
- —Katniss on killing Marvel[src]
Marvel being killed by Katniss.
Cato sent Marvel to kill Rue. Marvel trapped Rue with a net when she was on her way to light the last fire. As Rue screamed for help, Marvel threw a javelin into her abdomen.[8][4] In the book, Katniss witnessed this and shot him through the neck. Marvel tried to remove the arrow by pulling it out, but doing this resulted in his death[9]. In the film, Katniss reached Rue first and cut the net. Marvel threw a spear and Katniss dodged it, but it hit Rue in her abdomen. Katniss skewered him through the heart with an arrow, killing him.[4]
Rue removed her spear but already lost a significant amount of blood[4]. Overall, Marvel placed 8th out of 24, which was higher than his female counterpart, Glimmer.
Catching Fire[]
Marvel's appearance in Catching Fire.
In Catching Fire, Katniss and Peeta went to District 1 on their Victory Tour. Katniss felt uncomfortable, as she was responsible for the deaths of both Marvel and Glimmer, Marvel's district partner. She spotted his family, and she tried to not look them in the eye.[10]
In the film, Katniss also had a brief hallucination to her killing Marvel as she was about to kill a turkey. Gale Hawthorne comforted her afterward, but she kept quiet about what she saw.[11]
Victims[]
In the book, his most notable victim was Rue[9]. In the film, he kills Rue the same way in the book, but throws his spear into her abdomen after Katniss cuts Rue out of the net. He also seemed to have been aiming the spear at Katniss, until she dodged it and shot him in the heart. In the film, Marvel is shown to kill two tributes in the Cornucopia Bloodbath. After the District 8 male attempts to stab or punch him, Marvel slashes his throat with his kukri knife, throws him onto the ground, and then uses the knife to stab him until he dies. He kills also the District 7 female by skewering her with his spear while she was on the ground.[4]
Possessions[]
During the Games, Marvel had medicine, food, water, and other supplies from the Cornucopia due to his being a Career[9]. These supplies were blown up when Katniss destroyed the mines planted by the District 3 boy[5], and Marvel was left only with his spears and a backpack. The backpack held some knives, two extra spear heads, a flashlight, a small leather pouch, and a first-aid kit. However, it only included meager rations - a bottle of water and a pack of dried fruit - which Katniss saw as a sign of extreme arrogance because the Careers had such a bounty at camp[9].
Personality and traits[]
Katniss thought Marvel as "arrogant" after finding a pack of dried fruit on him following Rue's death, due to the fact that he had bountiful resources with the Careers' supplies[9]. Nevertheless, during the Victory Tour, she felt guilty for not knowing his name during the Games.[10]
During his interviews, he seemed to be going for a comedic approach, most likely to appeal to more sponsors[4]. However, at the start of the games he ruthlessly killed at least two tributes, and later Rue, a twelve-year-old girl[9].
In The Hunger Games: Tribute Guide, it is mentioned that Marvel is "not the sharpest tool in the shed with his fists or brute force but sharp with spears and was properly the best from long distance".
Physical description[]
Marvel is described rather more skinny and tall than muscular and fit, unlike the other Careers.[citation needed] In the movie, he has short light brown hair and green eyes. According to the movie, he was the second tallest tribute at 6'3, after Thresh at 6'6" (book).[4]
Etymology[]
Marvel's name probably comes from the word "marvel", which means "a wonderful object or thing". This might relate to how District 1 creates "wonderful" items to the Capitol.
Trivia[]
- In the film, it is shown that Marvel weighs 165 pounds and is 17 years old.[1]
- In the film, Marvel has 5-1 odds, just like Clove.[1]
- Marvel received the same training score as Thresh in the film[4], but in the book, he scored lower than Thresh.
- Marvel survived for nine days in the book and six days in the film.
- Marvel cameos in the film adaptation of Catching Fire when Katniss shoots a turkey and has a hallucination of shooting Marvel.
- In a deleted scene, Marvel says that his dad is a hunter, which is a reason why he wants to be in the Hunger Games.[12]
- In a deleted scene, Marvel mentions that he volunteered for the Hunger Games.[12]
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 File:Statsreference.png
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The Hunger Games, Chapter 11
- ↑ The Hunger Games, Chapter 5
- ↑ 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 The Hunger Games
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 The Hunger Games, Chapter 16
- ↑ The Hunger Games, Chapter 13
- ↑ The Hunger Games, Chapter 14
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 The Hunger Games, Chapter 17
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 The Hunger Games, Chapter 18
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Catching Fire, Chapter 5
- ↑ The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 The Hunger Games deleted scene (see this video)
