More_Badass
Member
I don't watch animated shows/movies often. Besides stuff like Rick & Morty, South Park, and the rare episode of Afro Samurai, I still have that foolish stigma about cartoons and kids shows. There have been a few exceptions in recent years - The Clone War, Kubo, Zootopia, The Lego Movie - but for the most part, I don't watch cartoons. I'd say Avatar changed that.
I'd heard of the show before. Even watched the first show awhile back, but it didn't really do anything for me. Seeing this thread and noticing that the series was on Prime finally got me to sit down and just watch the show.
It only took three days.
It took quite a few episodes for the show to click with me. The more kid-focused humor was a slight turn-off at first, and while the characters were likeable and the action and world-building were great, I didn't really see why the show was so good. But then The Storm and The Blue Spirit happened, and I was hooked. Those two episodes captured everything that make the series so fantastic, from the handling of its mature themes and the narrative payoff of its more serialized arcs to the character-driven action. In those episodes, you learn about Zuko's and Aang's nuanced backstories, see the badass Blue Spirit in action, get some excellent action as the two work together, and really see how strong Zuko's desire for redeeming his honor is.
After those two episodes, I was in. The rest of Season 1 and the rest of the show was incredible. What perhaps surprised me the most was how it wasnt afraid to tackle heavy themes and go to dark places without talking down or sugarcoating. This is a show where genocide is the namesake of the subtitle. From the brainwashing and secret police of Ba Sing Se to the Zukos inner conflict with honor and destiny, to the struggles with loss and heritage and revenge throughout the series, Avatar is smart, well-written, and nuanced.
Watching the show, it reminded me of the young adult series I used to read as a kid before rebel against future dystopia became the trend: the captivating world-building and friends journey of Harry Potter, the pathos of Where The Red Fern Grows, the nuance of A Wrinkle In Time. The characters make the show; following Aang, Katara, Sokka, Zuko, Toph, seeing them grow and change throughout their journey was a joy. Zuko especially, his entire arc was probably my favorite in the show. Every season, his story went down a fascinating new path, from exile wanting to regain to his honor and fathers respect the point of sabotaging and fighting his own people, to nomad torn between a new beginning and those desires, to still conflicted returning hero, to mentor and friend driven to end the war. And on the other end, Azula proved to be such a cunning and ruthless antagonist, who wasnt just compelling because of her effectiveness as a villain but also because of her role in the whole Zuko/Iroh dynamic.
If anything, my biggest gripe is that the Fire Lord felt like such a weak villain. Compared to how well-developed Zuko and Azula were, Ozai was so one-dimensional and...cartoonishly megalomaniacal that even though hes supposed to be the shows most fearsome threat and the battle that the entire show was building too, he paled in comparison to Azula as the shows greatest villain.
(Zuko may be the most fascinating character, but Toph is the best)
On that foundation of fascinating characters and their personal journeys, the show constructed a world rich with history and culture. From the lore and bending arts and philosophies, to the distinct looks and aesthetic and cultural differences between each nation, its people, their beliefs and values, their ways of combining bending with infrastructure, Avatar presents a world that really deserves the kind of expanded universe that Star Wars and Harry Potter got.
Of course, those diverse and distinct bending arts imbued the shows action with such awesome imagery. The show never disappointed in that regard; episodes like The Blue Spirit, The Chase, The Drill, Crossroads of Destiny, Black Sun, Boiling Rock, and of course the Sozins Comet finale featured such inventive and intense fight, but more importantly almost all these fights, especially the ones between major players were never just action for actions sake, but driven by the story and characters. It gave those epic sieges and duels emotional weight. Its what make moments like this so effective.
Avatar isn't just a show; it's a journey. From the innocent early days in the South Pole to the disguised team making through the fire nation, you follow these characters as they grow and change, and see the world with them. Its part martial arts epic, part travelogue of a fascinating world, part character-driven adventure. Im very glad to have finally watched the show, and probably better that I watched it now when I can fully appreciate it.
Now onto Korra and the comics.
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I did watch a few scenes on Youtube from that movie Im sure everyone loves. A shadow of greatness is too kind a criticism.
