While pondering ideas for my first ever blog post, visions of Dragon Ball, Final Fantasy, and Batman were dancing in my head…..Ha. Batman. Dancing….Glorious. Anyways, it made narrowing down a kick ass topic a bit difficult when there was a Fandom Parade cluttering my prefrontal cortex. But out of the haze, a light glided into the foreground illuminating the biggest DUH! this world has ever seen. The Avatar Universe….Not the movie about the self-pitying man with a newly acquired spinal cord injury signing up to become a giant, able-bodied, blue dude to explore a planet that’s composed of a substance so rare and so unobtainable, it’s named Unobtainium….No thanks, James Cameron. I mean the REAL Avatar universe.
Avatar: The Last Airbender first aired on February 21, 2005. The creators, Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko (Bryke for short), had no clue how monumental that day would be…Especially, for a “Kid’s Show.” The Nickelodeon TV series caught the eye of more than just its 6-11 year-old target demographic. Considering I didn’t start truly investing time to watch it until I was 23….I’d say so. It was a hit! So…For all of my “Oners” who have been living under a giant rock for the past decade, allow me to channel my inner Toph and bad assly bend that boulder off of your noggin.
***Minor Spoilers***
Oners
Avatar: The Last Airbender follows Aang, a twelve year-old nomad who could “bend” or control the element of Air at will. But that’s not all. Aang was special. He was unique. He had the capabilities of bending all of the elements from the four bending nations—Water, Earth, Fire, Air—when others could only bend one. He was the Avatar. A privilege so rare that there could only be one in the world at any given time. Avatars are like The Doctor. They regenerate. But instead of regenerating into a fully functional adult, when an Avatar dies, he/she will be born anew to bring hope and peace to a world of chaos.
When an Avatar gets in a jam, he/she can hit the Nox for a little more boost. The “Avatar State” is an inherited network of all past Avatars. Once the current Avatar goes into the Avatar State, he/she gains the knowledge, bending styles, and strength from all of their predecessors. HUGE AMOUNTS OF POWER! But with great power comes great responsibility.….a responsibility Aang didn’t want for himself.
All eyes are on you when you’re the Avatar. People love you and you’ve never even met them. You are a symbol of hope and peace for a just society. You are all that is good in the world. The weight of all humanity is rests atop your shoulders because of who you are. You are the light people cry out for in the depths of darkness…..but you are also the light that humanity wants to snuff out.
You are loved….but you are loathed. People hate the idea of you. They hate who you used to be. They hate the almighty symbol you stand for. They hate you for things you can’t even control. You are weighed. You are measured. You are analyzed to exact calculations just to take you down. There is danger of death around every corner just because you were born…
Now, you’re twelve. A group of old guys come to your home and explain that you’re the Avatar. They plan to take you from your home to start training for your inherited destiny like many before you. It’s your duty, Avatar. The world needs you. No time for games. Get your things. Your childhood is over.
Fuck. That. Shit. Deuces, Zombie. I’m out!….and that’s what Aang did.
All Aang wanted was a normal, Air nomad child’s life. He didn’t want to be the Avatar. So he didn’t….until 100 years later. DANT. DANT. DAAAAAAAAAAAN!
So what makes this universe so appealing and just straight up O.P. (Over Powered)?
Humor
Well, for starters, it’s hilarious. And not just in a kid’s humor kind of way. Sokka and Bolin are two comical geniuses after my own heart. (but you’ll figure that out when you actually watch it)
Diversity
Its diversity is commendable. Bryke did not stop at filling in racial diversity (like Captain Planet or Magic School Bus) because they had to…they wanted to. Bryke didn’t just stop at race. My disabled homies made huge appearances too!
One of the main characters is blind. Fucking BLIND! Toph Beifong, an Earth Bender, does exactly what a disabled person should do. She was creative. Her creativity pushed her to develop two new styles of bending! These new styles were so “ground breaking” that sixty years later, in Legend of Korra, the police force specialized in them….of course, Toph becomes the Chief of Police but that’s just a minor detail….whatev-skiis.
......
I’m just going to say this once because in a few months, I will be dedicating a whole blog post to this example of diversity. I will try and refrain from over doing it….
KORRASAMI!!!!!
That is some quality fucking children’s television. Okay. I’m done.
Stay tuned for the next month or two and you can read all about my slight obsession with Korrasami.
Stay tuned for the next month or two and you can read all about my slight obsession with Korrasami.
Strong Male and Female Characters
Bryke created both strong male AND female characters. Aang, Zuko, and Tenzin are not just only physically strong but grow to be mentally as well. Toph, Katara, Korra, and Asami are not the stereotypical female characters either. They are strong, quick, fearless, and smart. Bryke had the foresight to create “Book 4: Balance” between the male and female characters. If the show is too heavy on strong, male characters, super crazy feminists would come out of the woodwork protesting its creation. Transversely, if it’s too heavy on strong female characters, guys would through the biggest bitch fits and stop watching….Come on guys and feminists. You know it’s true.
Antagonists
Where there are strong, main characters…there’s equally strong villains. Bryke created some of my personal favorite antagonists of all time.
-Unalaq: (Adrian LaTourelle)
Book 2: Spirits
-Korra’s Uncle
-Water Bending Master
-Harmonic Convergence
-Zaheer: (Henry Rollins)
-Book 3: Change
-Born Non-bender
-Leader of the Order of the Red Lotus
-Becomes Air Bender after Harmonic Convergence
-Kuvira: (Zelda Williams)
-Master metal bender
-Goal: to reunite the Earth Bending Nation
-desolve Earth Kingdom
-Commander of new “Earth Empire.”
-Fire Lord Ozai: (Mark Hamill)
-Supreme Leader of the Fire Nation
But my all time favorite antagonist goes to none other than Miss Azula.
She’s a fire bending bitch from hell. I’m just going to leave this clip right here for anyone to enjoy her conniving, heartless, brilliant warfare strategizing.
Music
The music in both shows are impactful. Just the closing credits’ songs are breathtaking. Last Airbender had an upbeat tribal song with lots of drums and a beat that made you instantly start dancing…or beatboxing….or both. No shame. But Korra’s closing credits’ song was a slow, melodic pan flute that absolutely destroyed me during the series finale! All of the tears.
I can hear you now….”But it’s a kid show.” It’s really not. The social/governmental problems these “kids” face are real. They’re
genuine. Yeah. The bending isn’t real (Damn it, Janet!) but the situations they face are. And what kid’s series would allow an Airbender to rip the air right out of a woman’s lungs and suffocate her with her last breath? Just put that in your pipe and smoke it.
Story
But the best part of the Avatar Universe is the story. Oh my god, Becky! The story! I literally cannot say another word or I could ruin things for the Oners-Tres Amigos. AKA.....watch it.
Obvious Influences
Recently, I’ve been watching Naruto for the very first time…I know. I’m behind on my anime. But, I’ve come up with some interesting comparisons. So anime loving Oners and Twoies….pay attention. Bryke seems to be heavily influenced by Naruto.
Influenced by…not ripped off.
-Elementally based Chakra natures:
(Water/Ice, Fire/Lightning, Air/Wind, Earth/Metal/Lava)
The Main Characters
Aang/Naruto
Airbender/Wind Chakra Nature
rare nature
rare nature
fun-loving, kind-hearted, loyal
-Katara/Sakura
Healing abilities
Strong female character
leading character’s love interest
***SPOILERS****…..I’m too proud of this comparison. Sorry. Not sorry.
-Zuko/Sasuke
Fire based with Lightning capabilities
Emo little bitches who have been “burned” by their family
abandoned mentor/loved one for power and honor (Iroh/Kakashi)
Bryke took the opportunity to improve upon an already classic.
Disclaimer: I’m not saying Avatar is better than Naruto or vise versa. Don’t jump down my blog’s throat for just some simple observations…
Disclaimer: Complete.
Fighting shown clearly
-every movement is visible.
-Naruto’s fight scenes are fast flashes of punches, kicks, Shadow Clones, and finger movements.
-Not as easily readable as Avatar fight scenes.
Distinct fighting styles
-They tailor the different bending nations to specific martial art styles.
Here's a documentary that explains the distinction between the bending styles:
-Training
-Training is important but not shown as much (2-5 min/Ep vs 8-9 min/Ep for a 20 min Ep)
-Leaves more room for the character development and story progression
-Very limited “filler”
-Only 14 episodes/season. No room for “filler”
-Exception, LoK Book 4 “recap episode”
-Once Nickelodeon started to cut the budget, Bryke opted for a “recap episode” so the rest of the season’s quality would remain high and they could keep
their entire much needed staff.
Alright, Oners, That’s enough reading about The Last Airbender/Legend of Korra because you know….
Now, go. Watch it. Here:
No excuses. Bend like a champion. HAZZAH!
Twoies
Now, Twoies….You’re ordered to do the same but not before I explain to you how shitty the movie adaptation truly is.
It’s awful. Here’s some proof:
And This:
“But that’s just on Rotten Tomatoes.” …well, here:
Last one by a professional critic….and Illini, Roger Ebert:
So moral of the story, if you hated the movie, Twoies, give the series a chance.
If you like or even loved the movie….
you don’t even know.
Now, begone with you. Go watch!
Tres Amigos
So......Aang is dead. It was inevitable. That's life--even for the Avatar. But one Avatar's funeral is another one's birth.
INTRODUCING:
Korra, the new Avatar, is a water bender from the Southern Water Tribe. She knew from a very young age that she was the Avatar.
Unlike Aang, Korra embraced her destiny....maybe a little too much. Her confidence turned her into a straight up teenage brat.
A large chunk of Tres Amigos are put off by this personal flaw. They just want Aang back. But don't be too hasty, my judgmental friends. Korra's growth into her role as the Avatar is the stuff of legends.
Aang ran away like a scared little bitch....Yeah. I said it! At least Korra is fearless...even at four years-old.
Korra's personality is not the only thing that is brought up when discussing Korra.
In a later post, I will dedicate a post to the haters but for now, here are the two other common complaints about LoK.
-Technology Advances
Argument: "The technology in LoK evolves too quickly."
-Approximately 68 years between LAB series finale and the start of LoK.
-LAB ended with the first appearance of an automobile like transportation.
(Later know as......the "Sato-mobile")....Quality.
Just think about the endless possibilities we would have if we had Benders.
-Earth/Metal bend:
Suits, structures, transportation in a matter of seconds.
Road work construction...completed in moments.
-Water bend:
Medical advances of healing, cleaning, make ice cream (Obvi), boat transportation for trade or travel.
-Fire bend:
Firefighters, welding, cooking
-Air bend:
Flight transportation, wind powered technology.
That's only what they can do separately. If you put them all together, the possibilities are endless.
That's only what they can do separately. If you put them all together, the possibilities are endless.
Don’t hate the game if you can’t play….
Now the big one.....Korra is not as good of an Avatar as Aang.
-Aang VS Korra-
For Last Airbender diehards, Korra is hard to accept. Your childhood hero is dead and they've replaced him with her?!
But you cannot compare the two. That's like comparing Appa to a regular, run-of-the-mill Bison.
There are only two comparisons you can make in the Aang vs Korra debate:
Both are the Avatar
One is male and the other is Female
Korra is NOT Aang. Aang is dead. Get over it!
The only true way to "compare" these two Avatars :
Aang Korrra
(First Appear)
Age: 12 4
(technically 112) (series: 17)
Bending: Air Water, Fire, Earth, Air (Work in Progress)
(White Lotus) Young, lost, torn Self-centered, arrogant,
Between responsibility and teenaged brat
a normal childhood
Panicked Embraced it
Ran away
(Became The Fire Nation attack First learned of Avatar Wan
the Avatar) Northern Water Tribe (The first Avatar)
(Lessons Personal morals prevail "Wan became the Avatar not because of who he was...
Learned) over vengeance and power But what he was"--Tenzin. Book 2: Spirits
Stepped up to the responsibility Grew into responsibility
(Series Finale)
Age: 15 20
Bending: Air, Water, Earth, Fire, Water, Fire, Earth, Air,
Energy Energy, Spirit, Metal
A scared boy turned into a Teenage girl turned into a strong,
confident adolescent independent woman
Same principles. Same drive for peace. But Korra is not Aang. And that’s great!
I could ramble on for days on day on days about the Avatar universe. It seems like I already have. It was suuuuuper ambitious to cover both Avatar: The Last Airbender AND Legend of Korra in my first ever blog post. It may be long. It may be lengthy. But all in all, I did my job as an Avatar lover. I educated the Oners. I set the record straight about the awful movie for the Twoies. Hopefully, convinced some Tres Amigos into giving Korra a chance. And finally brought back amazing memories for my Macho Cuatros.
For the rest of my life, I will be asking my friends, family, random hobos on the street, and many many more if they've ever watch these two phenomenal shows. I'm going to go re-watch the Avatar universe. To me, that just sounds perfect.
LOVE it!!!! Very exciting to read and I will definitely be looking for more posts!
ReplyDeleteI see what you did there with that last word. Sick reference bro.
ReplyDelete