Brawndo Addict
Banned
Considering that Iroh himself was imprisoned, I don't think it's much of a stretch to think that Ozai could easily be knocked unconcious, shackled, whatever, and sent off to prison. I also don't buy the conflict ending only because his bending was taken, I think the conflict ended because he was defeated and captured, and Zuko became the new Fire Lord. Whether Ozai has his bending in prison or not doesn't really matter.
As for the higher message, it's still the same problem in essence because there is no real interrogation of the underlying reasons or methodology. I want Aang to have more than conviction alone when deciding whether something is right or wrong. That the Air Nomads fought back and killed after being attacked is nontrivial, but Aang never really internalizes that action. To me, Aang seems like he would not even kill in self defense and I think that's something worth exploring in more detail.
Kids learn so much from media nowadays that I think it's a cop-out to say that kids shows shouldn't tackle more mature themes/issues in some capacity. Obviously context and proportionality is everything but still. Otherwise they'll just learn a different lesson earlier from someone else and kids will invariably watch content not meant for them too. There's not a magic age where suddenly it's appropriate to drop the full weight of human experience, it needs to be a more measured and consistent flow. If they're learning about ISIS or Isreal/Palestine in the news or school, I see no reason why the entertainment content they watch shouldn't reflect those kinds of issues/themes too, with moderation of course.
It's why Korra bothers me with the way relationships are handled. Kids have romantic relationships, and they're going to be informed by content they watch. So if Bolin kisses someone without consent, or Mako never actually breaks up with Asami before getting with Korra, yeah my nieces are gonna complain that it's not right and I don't have a good answer for why the show doesn't address it in a more "adult" manner because it's not an adult exclusive thing. If the first time kids are exposed to those kinds of issues is in their teenage years it's coming too late.
By the way, I didn't mean mutilation should be seriously considered, more so the idea of doing violence but not killing. And let's also not forget the show tries to have it both ways. Ozai is literally trying to commit genocide by burning the entire Earth Nation to the ground (not to mention the airbender genocide). It's obfuscated by having it all happen in the middle of nowhere, but it's there. So if you're going to bring up genocide in a kids show, then yeah, I want my kids to watch a show that more deeply explores whether killing someone to stop it is justifiable or not. But I also want them to consider whether killing that person is wrong if you don't have to kill them either.
But the scenario and motivations they set up are so simplistic that the dichotomy of choice Aang faces isn't even real, it's illusory. No one says why Aang needs to or has to kill Ozai, and there's no meaningful circumstances which might have made Aang even have to consider doing it. The lion turtle made it easier to end everything quickly, but it was not necessary to reach the same conclusion. Just speaking off the cuff, I think a more in-depth approach could have had the rest of the world wanting Ozai dead out of revenge and specifically not wanting to have him imprisoned, and Aang forcefully refusing to execute Ozai or allow him to be executed. "You need to send a message to the world and anyone who might try to replace him" "Killing him isn't the right message to send".
Maybe have Aang get seriously hurt or injured in the process of incapacitating Ozai, which only happens because he refuses to take the easy way out by killing him. Could lose some fingers or just have an arm broken, no need to lose an eye or leg, the implication is there. Maybe have there be some fallout from friends/acquaintances who can't abide by the decision. Doing the right thing shouldn't be easy, but it's uplifting to watch someone pursue it despite the costs. As it is, Aang doesn't have to risk or lose anything, he gets the perfect solution for free. In real life that's not going to happen and it cheapens Aang's decision and commitment.
As for the higher message, it's still the same problem in essence because there is no real interrogation of the underlying reasons or methodology. I want Aang to have more than conviction alone when deciding whether something is right or wrong. That the Air Nomads fought back and killed after being attacked is nontrivial, but Aang never really internalizes that action. To me, Aang seems like he would not even kill in self defense and I think that's something worth exploring in more detail.
Kids learn so much from media nowadays that I think it's a cop-out to say that kids shows shouldn't tackle more mature themes/issues in some capacity. Obviously context and proportionality is everything but still. Otherwise they'll just learn a different lesson earlier from someone else and kids will invariably watch content not meant for them too. There's not a magic age where suddenly it's appropriate to drop the full weight of human experience, it needs to be a more measured and consistent flow. If they're learning about ISIS or Isreal/Palestine in the news or school, I see no reason why the entertainment content they watch shouldn't reflect those kinds of issues/themes too, with moderation of course.
It's why Korra bothers me with the way relationships are handled. Kids have romantic relationships, and they're going to be informed by content they watch. So if Bolin kisses someone without consent, or Mako never actually breaks up with Asami before getting with Korra, yeah my nieces are gonna complain that it's not right and I don't have a good answer for why the show doesn't address it in a more "adult" manner because it's not an adult exclusive thing. If the first time kids are exposed to those kinds of issues is in their teenage years it's coming too late.
By the way, I didn't mean mutilation should be seriously considered, more so the idea of doing violence but not killing. And let's also not forget the show tries to have it both ways. Ozai is literally trying to commit genocide by burning the entire Earth Nation to the ground (not to mention the airbender genocide). It's obfuscated by having it all happen in the middle of nowhere, but it's there. So if you're going to bring up genocide in a kids show, then yeah, I want my kids to watch a show that more deeply explores whether killing someone to stop it is justifiable or not. But I also want them to consider whether killing that person is wrong if you don't have to kill them either.
But the scenario and motivations they set up are so simplistic that the dichotomy of choice Aang faces isn't even real, it's illusory. No one says why Aang needs to or has to kill Ozai, and there's no meaningful circumstances which might have made Aang even have to consider doing it. The lion turtle made it easier to end everything quickly, but it was not necessary to reach the same conclusion. Just speaking off the cuff, I think a more in-depth approach could have had the rest of the world wanting Ozai dead out of revenge and specifically not wanting to have him imprisoned, and Aang forcefully refusing to execute Ozai or allow him to be executed. "You need to send a message to the world and anyone who might try to replace him" "Killing him isn't the right message to send".
Maybe have Aang get seriously hurt or injured in the process of incapacitating Ozai, which only happens because he refuses to take the easy way out by killing him. Could lose some fingers or just have an arm broken, no need to lose an eye or leg, the implication is there. Maybe have there be some fallout from friends/acquaintances who can't abide by the decision. Doing the right thing shouldn't be easy, but it's uplifting to watch someone pursue it despite the costs. As it is, Aang doesn't have to risk or lose anything, he gets the perfect solution for free. In real life that's not going to happen and it cheapens Aang's decision and commitment.
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