Hunting

[PrincessKiara]

I would like to hear your thoughts on Kiaras hunt.

If we forget about the fire for a moment, do you think she would have caught a prey?

Why do you suppose she seems much less skilled at hunting than her mother, Nala? (The general impression seems to be that Nala and Sarabi for that matter, are good hunters) Is it due to lack of training and excperience, perhaps?

Would Kiara have done better on her first solo hunt if she had had more time to prepare?

Do you think Nala taught her daughter the basics of hunting, or did this job befall other lionesses of the pride?

[Regulus]

I assumed Kiara sucked at hunting because of Simba's over-protectiveness. It doesn't seem like Nala really taught her much at all. Either that, or she was rarely, if ever, able to practice her hunting skills.

[DGFone]

This is a good point. Simba might not trust Kiara enough to let her out of someone's sight, but he trusts Nala enough. I really don't see how it was possible that Nala was never able to teach her own daughter how to hunt well.

I think this was a plot point that was forced into the movie at the expense of characters (particularly Nala) just so that Kovu will be the one who gets to teach Kiara how to hunt, thus giving more bonding time.

In short, it's very sad what SP did to Nala. They took one of the strongest characters in The Lion King and turned her into another piece of scenery.

[cleargreenwater]

I don't think it was a failure on any particular teacher's fault, whether it was Nala or any other.

I think Kiara is sufficiently characterized as headstrong and stubborn enough that if she did not want to learn to hunt, or if it wasn't her top priority/preoccupation, I can very well see her NOT LISTENING TO/absorbing anything anyone else said or was teaching her. Because she's noticably fond of being utterly unshakeably convinced she's *always right and she knows it* despite all common sense and advice given, both as a cub and an adult.

Although really I think her ineptness is nothing more than a Mary Sue trait thrown out there by the producers that's supposed to make her *endearing*.

[TheLionPrince]

Seeing as she startled a gazelle herd when she tripped over a rock she tried to avoid and couldn't keep up with the running herd, she would have struggled to catch her prey if the fire outbreak didn't occur. Plus, when Kovu was teaching her to hunt, he told her that she was breathing too hard (and was making noises), so the herd would have heard this, and ran. She probably would catch her prey, but it would have took longer than Nala or the matured lionesses would take.

It's obvious that Simba's over-protection played a role in Kiara's hunting skills. It's otherwise confirmed that Simba makes judgement on it when he yells, "No more hunts for you! Not ever!" As hinted in the first movie when Scar summons Sarabi, the Queen of the Pride Lands is the leader of the hunting party. So yes, Kiara's hunting lessons fell on Nala, but Simba's over-protectiveness hindered her from being an accomplished huntress. I'm sure Nala taught her well, but Simba stood as the barrier from her hunting skills to improve. And like DGFone stated, this opened the door for Kiara and Kovu to develop their relationship at the expense of Nala's character.

One theory I have to add to the table as to why her hunting skills were below par is that her build (and her body length) wasn't fully developed yet. In this screenshot, she only comes up to Nala's shoulder, and her body length isn't as long as her mother's. Director Darrell Rooney did mentioned that Kovu was a "teenaged killer" in the Proud of Simba's Pride documentary, and Kiara being around that same age-span makes sense as Romeo & Juliet serves as the inspiration for the storyline in SP...and the title characters are, you guess it, teenagers. Meanwhile, I can assume adult Nala in the first movie was much older than "adult" Kiara so her body was capable of the challenges of hunting.

So, in conclusion, I believe Kiara can be a much better hunter now that Simba doesn't have to be over-protective of her now and that her body needs to mature more.

[Regulus]

^ that is a nice find. I never noticed.

[Kopalover]

Seeing as she startled a gazelle stampede when she tripped over a rock she tried to above and couldn't keep up with the running herd, she would have struggled to catch her prey if the fire outbreak didn't occur. Plus, when Kovu was teaching her to hunt, he told her that she was breathing too hard (and was making noises), so the herd would have heard this, and ran. She probably would catch her prey, but it would have took longer than Nala or the matured lionesses would take.

It's obvious that Simba's over-protection played a role in Kiara's hunting skills. It's otherwise confirmed that Simba makes judgement on it when he yells, "No more hunts for you! Not ever!" As hinted in the first movie when Scar summons Sarabi, the Queen of the Pride Lands is the leader of the hunting party. So yes, Kiara's hunting lessons fell on Nala, but Simba's over-protectiveness hindered her from being an accomplished huntress. I'm sure Nala taught her well, but Simba stood as the barrier from her hunting skills to improve. And like DGFone stated, this opened the door for Kiara and Kovu to develop their relationship at the expense of Nala's character.

One theory I have to add to the table as to why her hunting skills were below par is that her build (and her body length) wasn't fully developed yet. In this screenshot, she only comes up to Nala's shoulder, and her body length isn't as long as her mother's. Director Darrell Rooney did mentioned that Kovu was a "teenaged killer" in the Proud of Simba's Pride documentary, and Kiara being around that same age-span makes sense as Romeo & Juliet serves as the inspiration for the storyline in SP...and the title characters are, you guess it, teenagers. Meanwhile, I can assume adult Nala in the first movie was much older than "adult" Kiara so her body was capable of the challenges of hunting.

So, in conclusion, I believe Kiara can be a much better hunter now that Simba doesn't have to be over-protective of her now and that her body needs to mature more.

I agree with you.
But like she said "I don't want to be Queen", maybe she didn't want to hunt either ? She didn't want the female tasks to be put on her, she just wanted to be free?

[TheLionPrince]

Seeing as she startled a gazelle stampede when she tripped over a rock she tried to above and couldn't keep up with the running herd, she would have struggled to catch her prey if the fire outbreak didn't occur. Plus, when Kovu was teaching her to hunt, he told her that she was breathing too hard (and was making noises), so the herd would have heard this, and ran. She probably would catch her prey, but it would have took longer than Nala or the matured lionesses would take.

It's obvious that Simba's over-protection played a role in Kiara's hunting skills. It's otherwise confirmed that Simba makes judgement on it when he yells, "No more hunts for you! Not ever!" As hinted in the first movie when Scar summons Sarabi, the Queen of the Pride Lands is the leader of the hunting party. So yes, Kiara's hunting lessons fell on Nala, but Simba's over-protectiveness hindered her from being an accomplished huntress. I'm sure Nala taught her well, but Simba stood as the barrier from her hunting skills to improve. And like DGFone stated, this opened the door for Kiara and Kovu to develop their relationship at the expense of Nala's character.

One theory I have to add to the table as to why her hunting skills were below par is that her build (and her body length) wasn't fully developed yet. In this screenshot, she only comes up to Nala's shoulder, and her body length isn't as long as her mother's. Director Darrell Rooney did mentioned that Kovu was a "teenaged killer" in the Proud of Simba's Pride documentary, and Kiara being around that same age-span makes sense as Romeo & Juliet serves as the inspiration for the storyline in SP...and the title characters are, you guess it, teenagers. Meanwhile, I can assume adult Nala in the first movie was much older than "adult" Kiara so her body was capable of the challenges of hunting.

So, in conclusion, I believe Kiara can be a much better hunter now that Simba doesn't have to be over-protective of her now and that her body needs to mature more.

I agree with you.
But like she said "I don't want to be Queen", maybe she didn't want to hunt either ? She didn't want the female tasks to be put on her, she just wanted to be free?

I was actually thinking about adding that to my post when I was typing based on what I read from cleargreenwater's post. However, I talked myself out when I remembered she appeared joyful when she was about to embark on her solo hunt before looking back to see Simba's "go ahead" nod. Also, she was assured that Simba wouldn't try to protect her, and was disappointed when he did. Going on her first hunt without Simba's interference would have gladly made her happy; it was one of the rare chances for her to get from under Simba's nose.

[Kopalover]

Maybe she was just happy to be free for once? Cause we saw that as a cub, she was hassled to be safe and always stay in someone's sight. Maybe since she knew she was alone for the hunt, she was happy, and also.happy to prove she could live without being in someone's sight. She thought about being free too much, that she was sloppy with her hunting and failed. That's if the fire didn't happen.

[DGFone]

Kiara might decide to ignore all the schooling about being a queen due to a rebellious streak, but I don't see how she would deny herself the opportunity to learn how to hunt. Her hunting would be taught by Nala, not Simba, and I don't think that Kiara has a grudge with her mother. It's Simba who is over-protective, often forcing Nala to intervene on Simba's behalf, so if anything, I would see Kiara idling through Simba's lessons, while being very active when learning from Nala. But if that is the case, she would be a very good hunter, and not a bad one.

Another thing I don't get about Kiara's lack of hunting ability: hunting is very dangerous. Because of this, I can see how a rite of passage can be passed through a successful solo hunt, but with all solos, Kiara would need Nala's approval first. And seeing how dangerous hunting is, Nala has reasons why to hesitate in approving Kiara to hunt alone instead of allowing it before Kiara is truly ready.

And before that first solo, Kiara would have trained with the adults. After all, the most likely person who would have the authority to allow Kiara's first solo would be Nala. Before Kiara will be ready, Nala and the other hunters would watch over Kiara and make sure that she will become good enough to be trusted to hunt on her own. Yes, it's different then having them be sure that Kiara will get a kill on her first try, but at least they need to know that she's good enough to survive the attempt.

In The Lion King, prey for the most part behaved as they would in the wild - thus the stampede. It's not unheard of for prey animals to turn and fight off a lion if they feel like the lion is weak enough to take on. And in Simba's Pride, Kiara can't even sneak up on her prey without alerting them to her presence.

So I see it that Kiara's lack of hunting ability was forced in so that she can bond with Kovu.