Saying goodbye is the absolute worst. Saying goodbye to a franchise you’ve dedicated the last four years of your life to is even worse.
The release of the much-anticipated “The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 2” is bittersweet for fans of the series. On one hand, we get a satisfying end to an important and beautiful franchise. On the other hand, after this, it’s all over. Katniss Everdeen’s journey is done. We’ll never see Jennifer Lawrence rock that iconic side braid ever again. We’ll never hear Effie say the word mahogany one last time. How terribly tragic is that?
But we’ve been through this pain before. (“Harry Potter,” we’re looking at you.) So we know how this game goes. Here are the 12 awful, excruciating, emotional stages of saying goodbye to a beloved franchise like “The Hunger Games.”
Anticipatory Sadness
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You know it’s coming, and you just know that you’re going to cry.
Blinding Anger
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How could Suzanne Collins do this to you? Couldn’t she have written ONE MORE BOOK? It’s so unfair it’s over. That’s it. Katniss’ story is done. IT’S ALL OVER.
Blaming Yourself
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“Did I do this? Did I not buy enough Katniss Everdeen merchandise? Were my hours upon hours spent stalking Tumblr and tweeting at @Hibbits not enough for you? Could I have saved the franchise?”
Deep Despair
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Does this mean that we’ll never get a “Hunger Games” cast selfie ever again? We weren’t prepared for this. Real or not real?!!
Denial
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No. It’s not real. You’ve been hijacked. Definitely not real. “The Hunger Games” will never end. Hahahaha haha ha ha.
Focusing on Yourself
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OK, you know what? This might actually be a good thing. Without “The Hunger Games” consuming your every waking moment, you can finally binge-watch all of “Friends” on Netflix. Find your lobster!
Isolation
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OK, maybe your spending a little too much time by myself.
Forced Optimism
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Just keep smiling and everything will be OK. You can get through this. It’s not the end of the world! You can still write fanfic and pay tribute to Katniss and Peeta’s eternal love. In fact, Finnick doesn’t even need to die in your world. He could LIVE.
Sadness
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You just really, really don’t want to see this end. You wish Jennifer Lawrence could play Katniss forever.
Indifference
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Oh, the premiere of “Mockingjay — Part 2″ is less than 24 hours away? Whatever. Who needs the Mockingjay. It’s not like she’s the savior of the world or anything. You don’t need her.
Excitement
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OMFG. “MOCKINGJAY — PART 2″ IS LESS THAN 24 HOURS AWAY. I AM SO EFFING EXCITING. PEETA!!! <3
Acceptance
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Coping with loss is a ultimately a deeply personal experience. One day, you’ll wake up and be at peace with the fact that there won’t be any more “Hunger Games” movies. Because you’ll realize that the franchise lives on in so many ways. Plus, there’s a Lionsgate theme park in the works, so you should probably prepare your emotions for storming into the Capitol.