Gale Hawthorne is one of the male protagonists of The Hunger Games series and one of the most important men in Katniss Everdeen's life. He's a force to be reckoned with when he wants to be and believes fiercely in protecting those who cannot protect themselves, sometimes to the point of doing foolish and brash things that might not be the smartest.
But, some elements of his character overall just really aren't that logical or easy to understand. The following list details some of the things about Gale from the series that didn't make much sense.
He Didn't Get Chosen For The Hunger Games
Obviously, one of the main reasons Gale wasn't selected for the annual Hunger Games is because he wasn't the main hero of the story. However, we know that Gale applied for tesserae more than 40 times, meaning his odds were much higher than someone like Prim, who Katniss never would have allowed to enter any more than she had to.
It becomes statistically unlikely that Prim would have been selected over Gale, but then again, the game of chance is truly unpredictable.
He Started Playing By The Capitol's Rules
One of the frustrating things about Gale's storyline in Mockingjay was his desire to play by the Capitol's rulebook. He and Katniss frequently fought over his increasing lack of care toward the people his weapons could potentially harm.
This all came to a head later when one of his weapons killed Prim. It's a shame that Gale let his thirst for revenge blind his sense of reason and morality. He wound up becoming like the people he hated most.
He Didn't Save Peeta's Family
When Gale went back to save people from District 12, he somehow didn't end up rescuing Peeta's family. We were told that he didn't have the time to save everyone, and that is the most likely reason. But some people believe Gale may have had more malicious reasons for not helping them.
However, Peeta's family wasn't great. His parents were abusive, or at least distant. It would have been interesting to see what would have happened had his family survived, but no one missed them much. We'll always be left to wonder if Gale did it on purpose or not.
He Didn't Tell Katniss About His Feelings For Her Earlier
Gale clearly knew he had romantic feelings for Katniss early on, and yet he waited a painfully long time to reveal that he loved her. His timing was pretty terrible, especially considering everything that Katniss was going through with the Hunger Games.
He has a pretty forward personality, and things may have turned out differently if he had told Katniss how he felt much earlier. It could have changed everything between them.
He Gave Katniss An Impromptu Kiss
Kissing Katniss may have seemed like a good idea at the time since it might have been the last time Gale would have seen her, but it came across as somewhat rushed and stupid.
For starters, Gale should have known that if the Capitol caught wind of their romance, it would make things worse for Katniss. It also made it appear like he cared more about his own feelings rather than how Katniss might feel. The situation only confused her and complicated her life further.
He Created Weapon Schematics That Were Used To Kill Prim
Most people argue that Gale wasn't at fault for Prim's death because he had no idea what his bombs would be used for, but, the point is he was manufacturing bombs to be used on innocent people. Had Prim not died, would people still be okay with the fact he was fine with making deadly weapons to be used on anyone that crossed District 13?
No, Gale didn't command the use of the parachute bombs, yet he and Beetee created them. They facilitated their use knowing full well how they could be used and for what purpose. Katniss warned him about it, she told him it made her uneasy, and he did it anyway.
We Never Learn What Gale Wanted Katniss To Remember
When Katniss gets shipped off to the 74th annual Hunger Games, she and Gale get to share a final few moments together before the Peacekeepers kick him out. While he's being dragged out of the room, Gale said, "Katniss remember!"
Unfortunately, neither Katniss nor the readers find out what he was going to say. It's assumed he would have told her something about taking care of herself, or maybe even his feelings for her like "Katniss, remember I love you." But we'll likely never know.
Gale Didn't Want Any Of Katniss' Winnings Or Help
After Katniss won the 74th Hunger Games, she offered to give the Hawthornes some of her winnings so that he wouldn't have to work so hard to provide for his entire family. He is also visibly uncomfortable whenever Katniss hunts for his family.
However, Gale had no problem doing this for Katniss' family. It came across like his pride was too much to surmount to let Katniss help him, like he felt as if he'd be betraying his typical male "provider" role, which is rather foolish considering the stakes of the world in which they live.
How Did Gale Feed More Than 800 People With Limited Supplies
During the uprising, Gale frees more than 800 citizens from District 12 and takes care of them for three days before they're finally rescued by District 13.
He only has a few supplies to do so, including fishing rods and a net. yet somehow, he is able to feed that many people for several days. Even as proficient as he is at his technique, it doesn't seem realistic that Gale could have done all of that by himself.
Gale Gets Hired As A Military Captain
It seems a little counterintuitive for someone who was so anti-government to suddenly enlist in the government by the end of the series. It could be argued that he did it to see changes and be part of it in the new Panem authority, but one would think Gale would want to live a quieter life after everything he had suffered.
Also, after what happened with Prim and losing Katniss, why would he want to be part of a violent career again?