KingofPhantoms
The Spook Factor
Alright, time for some thoughts on Avatar. This is mostly about characters, and be warned, it's a fairly long post:
With that out of the way, spoilers ahoy!
I still really regret not giving this show more of a chance when I was younger. It's thriving with great writing, and it shows through it's storylines and characters.
I'm only a few episodes away from the series finale, at this point.
With that out of the way, spoilers ahoy!
-The Gaang is all pretty great. Their interactions with each other is one of my favorite things about the show.
-Aang is a solid character. I like his positive and friendly attitude, and his backstory is rough and really weighs on him, but I don't think he really got much strong character development until Book 3. He had a little bit of it for short intervals in the previous books, but it's Book 3 when he grows the most, imo. Not necessarily a bad thing, but i did find myself liking the rest of the Gaang more.
-Katara is a really strong character from the beginning. She's had a rough upbringing, but it hasn't stopped hee from showing compassion to people in need, nor standing up for what's right, because she won't take **** from anyone. She's also gotten increasingly more badass with her Waterbending skills over the course of the series, .making her strong not just mentally, but also in terms of combat.
-Sokka's a walking comedy goldmine and still a valuable member of the Gaang as the team tactician and a support party member who knows how to throw a bladed boomerang. The sexism he had early on kinda bogged his character down, but he got character development on that for a reason (and thanks to Suki), and Book 1 clarifies that it wasn't an uncommon issue among the Watertribes to begin with. Like Katara, he's become more badass as the series goes on, and fortunately still doesn't lose his comedy and sarcasm for it. Both aspects of his character are balanced.
-Toph is an absolute badass from the get-go and combined with her snark, she makes for a great addition to the main cast. Every fight she's participated in, plus her eventual achievement of becoming the world's first Metalbender, all solidify her as being the best and toughest Earthbender out there. She's had her own difficult upbringing thanks to her parents, though. I'm honestly hoping they'll be able to reconcile with her at the end of the series.
-Zuko's character arc...man, where do I even begin? The show's first villain (and a tragic one at that) has struggled with who he is for a very long time, which makes for an emotional rollercoaster of a storyline, from both his POV and those of the other characters who were hurt and betrayed by his actions. While not my top favorite character, he's up there now because he was always sympathetic, and, up to this point, has had one of the best character arcs in the entire show. He's finally realized who he really is, and is making amends to help Aang end the war once and for all. I was really interested in seeing how he'd get the Gaang to accept and trust him after everything, and having seen a few (but not all) episodes since he began his redemption, I can't say I'm disappointed.
-Iroh is such an amazing, balanced and well-written character that he legit might be one of my top favorite fictional characters period, now. 'Nuff said.
-Suki's great as well, though I wish she had shown up more often after her return in Book 2. She's an incredibly strong and no-nonsense character, yet another certified badass (a badass with no Bending powers, at that, and no less dangerous for it), and the relationship between her and Sokka is honestly pretty sweet. She's also the one who kickstarted his character development into becoming a better person, while growing a soft spot for him in the process herself, so it's nicely fitting that they ended up together.
-Jet's arc was intriguing His backstory is downright tragic, his extreme hatred for the Fire Nation is understandable, but he also serves as a good example for why extremism is a bad thing. His motivation and actions made him out to be a potential ally of the Gaang at first, and though him being a Romantic False Lead for Katara is fairly obvious from the get-go, his extreme ways aren't and his debut episode is a dramatic one. In the end, he remembered why he truly became a Freedom Fighter and sacrificed himself to do the right thing and went out with a smile. The others may not have forgiven him all the way, but you can tell they still felt sympathy for him in his final moments. Jet lost his way, but it took something monstrous to morph him into that, and he did all he could in the end to attempt to make up for it. He was an interesting character who gave us some insight on how other victims of the war outside Team Avatar have been affected by it.
-I kinda wish Princess Yue had more screentime before her sacrifice and ascension. She deserved more, especially given her ultimate fate, but while she was still around, she was a solid character. I like how she returned in spirit form to guide Aang while he was struggling with himself and what he needed to do next in Book 3, while her charcter development, plus her growing relationship with Sokka, were both short but sweet.
-Admiral Zhao was the true main antagonist of Book 1, and a force to be reckoned with. He as more of a tactician than Zuko, and a more competent military leader as well, but this also compensates for how he had less finesse and restraint as a Firebender than the banished prince does. Every time the two dueled, he always lost, hammering the point home. His threat in a direct fight came almost exclusively from how destructive his Firebending could be as a result of his unrestrained anger, and it shows from how he actually managed to burn Aang. All this made him for a very effective villain, but also an extremely hateable one. So I'm really glad he didn't survive past Book 1 lol.
-Azula is even more competent as a planner, manipulator, and Firebender. As a result of that and being borderline sociopathic, she's
even more detestable than Zhao, but also an even more effective villain. She's a great foil to her brother and most of her scenes lead to increasingly more failures for the Gaang and the other three nations. The fact that, unlike Zhao, she ends Book 2 victorious and survives to continue being an antagonist in Book 3...yeah, she's easily the show's prime Knight of Cerebus. She's a great villain, probably among my favorites as far as animated villains go, now. But, she's still crazy, so she still needs to go down. Iroh spoke the truth.
-Give the Cabbage guy a freaking break. He needs it.
-Aang is a solid character. I like his positive and friendly attitude, and his backstory is rough and really weighs on him, but I don't think he really got much strong character development until Book 3. He had a little bit of it for short intervals in the previous books, but it's Book 3 when he grows the most, imo. Not necessarily a bad thing, but i did find myself liking the rest of the Gaang more.
-Katara is a really strong character from the beginning. She's had a rough upbringing, but it hasn't stopped hee from showing compassion to people in need, nor standing up for what's right, because she won't take **** from anyone. She's also gotten increasingly more badass with her Waterbending skills over the course of the series, .making her strong not just mentally, but also in terms of combat.
-Sokka's a walking comedy goldmine and still a valuable member of the Gaang as the team tactician and a support party member who knows how to throw a bladed boomerang. The sexism he had early on kinda bogged his character down, but he got character development on that for a reason (and thanks to Suki), and Book 1 clarifies that it wasn't an uncommon issue among the Watertribes to begin with. Like Katara, he's become more badass as the series goes on, and fortunately still doesn't lose his comedy and sarcasm for it. Both aspects of his character are balanced.
-Toph is an absolute badass from the get-go and combined with her snark, she makes for a great addition to the main cast. Every fight she's participated in, plus her eventual achievement of becoming the world's first Metalbender, all solidify her as being the best and toughest Earthbender out there. She's had her own difficult upbringing thanks to her parents, though. I'm honestly hoping they'll be able to reconcile with her at the end of the series.
-Zuko's character arc...man, where do I even begin? The show's first villain (and a tragic one at that) has struggled with who he is for a very long time, which makes for an emotional rollercoaster of a storyline, from both his POV and those of the other characters who were hurt and betrayed by his actions. While not my top favorite character, he's up there now because he was always sympathetic, and, up to this point, has had one of the best character arcs in the entire show. He's finally realized who he really is, and is making amends to help Aang end the war once and for all. I was really interested in seeing how he'd get the Gaang to accept and trust him after everything, and having seen a few (but not all) episodes since he began his redemption, I can't say I'm disappointed.
-Iroh is such an amazing, balanced and well-written character that he legit might be one of my top favorite fictional characters period, now. 'Nuff said.
-Suki's great as well, though I wish she had shown up more often after her return in Book 2. She's an incredibly strong and no-nonsense character, yet another certified badass (a badass with no Bending powers, at that, and no less dangerous for it), and the relationship between her and Sokka is honestly pretty sweet. She's also the one who kickstarted his character development into becoming a better person, while growing a soft spot for him in the process herself, so it's nicely fitting that they ended up together.
-Jet's arc was intriguing His backstory is downright tragic, his extreme hatred for the Fire Nation is understandable, but he also serves as a good example for why extremism is a bad thing. His motivation and actions made him out to be a potential ally of the Gaang at first, and though him being a Romantic False Lead for Katara is fairly obvious from the get-go, his extreme ways aren't and his debut episode is a dramatic one. In the end, he remembered why he truly became a Freedom Fighter and sacrificed himself to do the right thing and went out with a smile. The others may not have forgiven him all the way, but you can tell they still felt sympathy for him in his final moments. Jet lost his way, but it took something monstrous to morph him into that, and he did all he could in the end to attempt to make up for it. He was an interesting character who gave us some insight on how other victims of the war outside Team Avatar have been affected by it.
-I kinda wish Princess Yue had more screentime before her sacrifice and ascension. She deserved more, especially given her ultimate fate, but while she was still around, she was a solid character. I like how she returned in spirit form to guide Aang while he was struggling with himself and what he needed to do next in Book 3, while her charcter development, plus her growing relationship with Sokka, were both short but sweet.
-Admiral Zhao was the true main antagonist of Book 1, and a force to be reckoned with. He as more of a tactician than Zuko, and a more competent military leader as well, but this also compensates for how he had less finesse and restraint as a Firebender than the banished prince does. Every time the two dueled, he always lost, hammering the point home. His threat in a direct fight came almost exclusively from how destructive his Firebending could be as a result of his unrestrained anger, and it shows from how he actually managed to burn Aang. All this made him for a very effective villain, but also an extremely hateable one. So I'm really glad he didn't survive past Book 1 lol.
-Azula is even more competent as a planner, manipulator, and Firebender. As a result of that and being borderline sociopathic, she's
even more detestable than Zhao, but also an even more effective villain. She's a great foil to her brother and most of her scenes lead to increasingly more failures for the Gaang and the other three nations. The fact that, unlike Zhao, she ends Book 2 victorious and survives to continue being an antagonist in Book 3...yeah, she's easily the show's prime Knight of Cerebus. She's a great villain, probably among my favorites as far as animated villains go, now. But, she's still crazy, so she still needs to go down. Iroh spoke the truth.
-Give the Cabbage guy a freaking break. He needs it.
I still really regret not giving this show more of a chance when I was younger. It's thriving with great writing, and it shows through it's storylines and characters.
I'm only a few episodes away from the series finale, at this point.
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