Messalla

Messalla is assigned to the sharpshooter’s squad and therefore goes to the Capitol along with Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark. He helps the squad navigate various apartments and reveals the secrets that each apartment holds. 

Messalla Character Profile

• Name: Messalla
• Age: 20s
• Gender: Male
• Place of origin: The Capitol 
• Physical appearance: Young slim man, several earrings, tongue piercing 
• Skills: Film making, editing
• Strengths: Creativity
• Weaknesses: Not trained in combat
• Loyalties: Rebels

Personality 

Messalla is brave, bold, and righteous. Despite understanding the consequences he would face, he decided to defect to the side of the rebels during the Second Rebellion. Here, he puts his knowledge of filmmaking to use. He is excellent at editing videos and puts together propos that are extremely compelling. Katniss notes that he takes great pride in his work. 

Messalla is also very courageous in his work. He follows Katniss onto the roof of the hospital in District 8 despite the threat of danger, just to get a good shot of her. He can also be fussy at times. For instance, when the Star Squad is navigating several apartments in the Capitol, he demonstrates how he, much like other Capitol residents, is particularly picky about the kind of apartment people would choose. However, as these are issues that can only come from having too much privilege and luxury, the rebel soldiers are amused at his pickiness.

Physical Description

“The TV crew consists of a pair of burly Capitol cameramen with heavy mobile cameras encasing their bodies like insect shells, a woman director named Cressida who has a shaved head tattooed with green vines, and her assistant, Messalla, a slim young man with several sets of earrings. On careful observation, I see his tongue has been pierced, too, and he wears a stud with a silver ball the size of a marble.”

Katniss Everdeen about the film crew in ‘Mockingjay’

Messalla is a young, thin man with several piercings. He wears many earrings. He also has a piercing on his tongue, which he has adorned with a silver stud that is about the size of a marble.

Messalla in District 13

Messalla defects to District 13 at the beginning of the Second Rebellion to help the rebels overthrow the oppressive rule of the Capitol. In District 13, he begins working as the assistant to the director of the TV crew, Cressida. As part of a TV crew, he helps to produce propos that are then broadcast to the rest of the districts to enlist them in the cause of the rebellion. 

Messalla, therefore, works closely with Katniss after she agrees to become the Mockingjay. Accompanies her to District 8, where he films her in the hospital. He continues to film Katniss even in the face of danger, and Katniss is impressed with his effort. He climbs up onto the roof of the hospital and films Katniss and Gale Hawthorne as they shoot down the Capitol hovercraft. 

Katniss was so impressed with the TV crew’s work that she speculated that if she were in the arena, she would want them as her allies.

The propo filmed in District 8 is called “Because you know who they are and what they do.” It is expertly edited by Messalla. He intercuts the footage of Katniss at the hospital with short studio clips of Boggs, Gale, and Cressida describing the incident. The video ends with the bombs raining down on the roof of the hospital.

Messalla continues to film more propos and edit them for the Airtime Assault that the rebels planned. His efforts in filming a live broadcast also proved invaluable during the rescue mission.

Messalla in Squad 451

Messalla is assigned to Squad 451, or the sharpshooters’ squad. As such, he goes to the Capitol along with the rest of the squad as a cameraman. The squad includes the TV crew, Katniss Everdeen, Peeta Mellark, and Gale Hawthorne. Messalla continues to film Katniss as they infiltrate the Capitol. He even uses fake smoke as an extra effect in his videos.

While filming, a tragic event occurs. Boggs, the commander of Squad 451, is killed by an explosion from an unnamed pod, and Messalla is thrown against a wall. He is knocked out and is later revived by Finnick Odair. He continued to be a little dizzy for a while after that.

At one point during the mission, the squad is forced to find refuge in an abandoned apartment. Fortunately, the floorplan of the apartment is similar to Messalla’s previous residence in the Capitol. Messalla is, therefore, able to tell the squad where the stored food might be. He also helps them find some space to dump the extra TV equipment before moving on. 

“Messalla proves most valuable because he lived in a near replica of this apartment and knows where people would be most likely to stash food. Like how there’s a storage space concealed by a mirrored panel in the bedroom, or how easy it is to pop out the ventilation screen in the hallway. So even though the kitchen cupboards are bare, we find over thirty canned goods and several boxes of cookies.”

‘Mockingjay’

Messalla’s Death

When Squad 451 is forced to hide in the underground sewage system, Messalla is killed by a peculiar pod. The pod is not named and gives off a golden light that is deadly. Unfortunately, when running away from the lizard muttations, Messalla gets caught up in this beam of light and is unable to escape. No one in the squad can help him as nothing can pierce the shaft of light. The light ultimately melts him to the ground. 

“I whip back around, arrow poised for flight, but what can be done? Two of Gale’s arrows already lie useless beside the wide shaft of golden light that radiates from ceiling to floor. Inside, Messalla is as still as a statue, poised up on the ball of one foot, head tilted back, held captive by the beam. I can’t tell if he’s yelling, although his mouth is stretched wide. We watch, utterly helpless, as the flesh melts off his body like candle wax.”

Katniss Everdeen in ‘Mockingjay’

In the film, Messalla dies similarly. However, instead of melting him, the pod simply vaporizes him. 

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