#animated ozai already did that in his own way
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God help us: the live action last airbender has actually got people thinking Azula was a complete victim and not a complicated villain character.
#seeing live action actually have ozai praise zuko a lil and be critical of azula and such already feels like they missed the point#of the fucked up family situation in animated verse#ozai literally in comics told zuko he was lucky to be born while azula was born lucky#and basically praised and encouraged azula in her fucked up path because he had the powerful young prodigy he wanted#as he could mould her then to be what he wanted and such#like people saying live action is just having him have the siblings compete against each other dont understand that uh#animated ozai already did that in his own way#from young ages he favored azula over zuko to the point zuko did what he could to have his father's praise and such#plus these people really forgetting that azula despite all her issues and shit still was a fucked up person in the end#and using the comics dont help#as in recent comics azula has still been rejecting redemption arcs when they offered to her
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ATLA Live Action Ep 1 Thoughts:
When the writers meant they wanted it to be like game of thrones, clearly they meant "we want the battles to happen in complete darkness so nobody can see what is going on," and not, you know, the sex stuff.
Idk why this never occurred to me until now but ostrich horse is chocobo.
They are clearly going for a darker, more grittier feel here, but it clashes with the attempt to keep things true to the animated origin. Like, the earth kingdom OC looks straight out of some more realistic Adult fantasy show, whereas Sozin's character design makes him look like evil Santa.
So firebenders are able to do that to bodies, which I appreciate from a fanfic perspective and also confirms what people have been theorizing about the agni kai, that Ozai put his hand on his son's face. Not sure it was necessary to see it, though. The original does a good job of horrifying us with implied violence and the adults already get it, while showing it makes it less accessible to a younger audience. This is hardly a problem unique to this show, though.
Air nomads actually riding sky bison!
I like having more background with the air nomads and Aang's actor is great but front-loading the flashbacks doesn't work great for the pacing.
One thing I do really like is the emphasis on how the war damaged the harmony of the nations in more than just a spiritual way. No one has friends from other nations now. Zuko comes seeking "someone who does not belong" with the (false) promise that no one will get hurt if everyone keeps to themselves, keeps the status quo. The air nomads are a complete anomaly in a world of division. We are introduced to Aang, Sokka, Katara, and Zuko, and all are isolated in their own way by the war at the beginning of the story.
Overall there is something just weird about the pacing. Characters keep pausing at vital moments of action to deliver exposition or meaningful monologues. It just feels off.
Zuko so desperate for "glory" that he accepts Sokka's proposal to fight one on one (nice foil to the final agni kai by the way). Then his surprise when Aang shows himself reveals that Zuko himself did not know whether he would really find the Avatar in this village he's suddenly shown up to terrorize. God, it just emphasizes how low Zuko is at this point. This is probably his first real high stakes fight and he might have killed Sokka over absolutely nothing out of a false sense that he had something to prove. It's just...sad.
The scene at the Southern Air Temple looked great and had me in tears. I actually saw some criticism of this to the effect of them "ruining Aang's arc" because he comes out of the Avatar state himself, but first of all, let's be real and admit that if mastering the Avatar State was Aang's arc, he never completed it. Second, just because he could bring himself out does not mean he can control it, and he's still letting his emotions control him which is a learning curve for handling that power, it's just that he was able to control his anger in that moment by remembering the people he loved. Which is not that different from how the scene plays out in the original, only he isn't using Katara as a crutch. Which is a good thing, actually. It's much more fitting and poignant that he thinks about Gyatso here.
I don't think there was any mention of Katara wanting to go north. She has a few lines about wanting to help more and Aang teaches her about balance so she can bend now, apparently, but where is her drive? It feels like they're attributing her accomplishments to Aang and that bothers me. Maybe it'll be mentioned in the next episode, since they haven't talked about Aang learning waterbending yet, either. But I do miss the Katara who was ready to banish herself from the village the moment she met Aang not just because it was the right thing to do, but because of her own desire for independence and autonomy.
Liked the scene between Aang and Iroh. It gives us a glimpse of an Iroh who is stuck as to what to do and so he just gives Aang the Zuko treatment by offering him tea. I'd be excited if this means we get to see more development for Iroh.
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Your thoughts on Azula/Tyzula haters saying Azula only apologized to Ty Lee at the party because she didn't want her to "make a scene in front of everyone"?
"The girl that turned a ball into a nuke during a game and then wrecked a boy's house because he rejected her did not want to make a scene" Bruh.
And Azula did not just apologize - which is already one hell of a big deal from someone like her - she admited she was jealous of her friend and insecure about her complete inability to properly flirt with a guy without scaring him away.
If Azula was only worried about not causing a scene, she'd have stopped at the "I didn't mean it" or by ordering Ty Lee to stop being dramatic. Instead the animators make her look far more gentle, Grey made her sound genuinely apologetic, and the writting itself makes Azula let herself be vulnerable for a moment.
Hell, The Beach has her be vulnerable MANY times. The whole point of the episode is "Ember Island reveals your true self."
And what is Azula's true self? A princess that fully believes everyone should worship the ground she walks on, yet decides, of her own free will, to see if people would still like her if she was just a regular girl. A child soldier that thrives on anything regarding war, but was left with no socials skills because all she knows is war and no longer knows how to exist outside of it.
Someone that is both very arrogant and deeply insecure, to the point that she WILL lash out at others, either verbally or by literally destroying their home, because her feelings were hurt somehow - yet can sometimes regret doing that.
A girl that is upset due to thinking her mother didn't love her, yet tries to surpress that pain as much as possible. Someone who will go check on her sibling, try to get him out of a depressing place, and genuinely push him to ask himself what is making him so angry because she does care, but will still call him pathetic for having doubts on if he is doing the right thing and being visibly traumatized by the actions of their father.
No one is obligated to like her as a character, or want her to be redeemed, but to claim that any moment in which she shows she's not completely evil is just an act because "Azula always lies" is absolutely ridiculous because:
1 - NOBODY lies 100% of the time, not even pathological liars - especially not in a fictional story, because it's guaranteed to make it boring.
2 - The "Azula always lies" line is introduced to us when Zuko doesn't want to believe his dad agreed to murder him - which Ozai himself admits was indeed true. "Azula always lies" is not a rule, it's, ironically, a lie Zuko told himself when his sister was using a horrible truth to mess with his head.
3 - Once again, the whole point of The Beach is "We are seeing who these four characters REALLY are" - and regardless of what fans like or dislike, Azula is a complex person that is capable of being both terrible and not that bad, a tormentor and a victim, cruel and compassionate, a scary villain you shouldn't mess with and just a child that is trapped in an awful situation and sees no way out.
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Fire Lord Zuko and Iroh
One thing that will never sit well with me in regard to the post-war Avatar: The Last Airbender world, especially as presented in the comics series, is the fact that Iroh gets so easily out of the mess of reforming Fire Nation and have relative happy ending, while 17 years old Fire Lord Zuko is left to deal with all the political shitty nightmare on his own.
And look, I get the storytelling goal of the new generation stepping in and “repairing” the world the previous generation fucked up and all. But Zuko is not just forced to undo damage done by his father’s six years of regime or Sozin and Azulon, but by Iroh as well, because Iroh was part of the Fire Nation set to conquer other people. It was Iroh that besiege a Ba Sing Sai for 600 days - it was him who joked about burning the city to ashes in his letter to beloved family - and who didn’t finish the task only because his son died, with little regard to how many of Fire Nation soldiers or Earth Kingdom soldiers and civilians was killed through the almost two years because he had once a vision he will take the Ba Sing Sai.
Zuko’s formal education ended at the age of 13, when his father burned his face and banished to chase Avatar that no one saw for hundred years already. Sure, the animation series showed that Iroh was teaching his nephew both firebending and what makes one a good leader but what Zuko experienced and learned during his banishment is not exactly the equivalent of political knowledge he will need as Fire Lord who must find a way to rehabilitate Fire Nation in the eyes of the world but also figure out how to reform an imperialistic and military country into peaceful society with stable economy. A country that saw him as disgrace and traitor not so long ago, mind you.
And as much I see a merit in Iroh’s decision to pass the throne to Zuko - the Avatar’s friend and firebending master, him choosing tea shop over Zuko is just so fucking wrong to me. Iroh literally admitted Zuko was like a son to him in the first season and spent the next one trying to keep his nephew safe from their horrible family and other dangers and I’m supposed to believe when Zuko officially became Fire Lord with not only political nightmare to solve peacefully but also his abusive father to keep an eye on* and younger sister with mental breakdown, Iroh just… washed his hands from those problems so he could enjoy tea and Pai Sho game in peace? In Ba Sing Sai of all possible places with no consequence? Like, seriously?
Legend of Korra strongly implies Zuko did a good job and had a healthy relationship with his family, as both Fire Lord Izumi and General Iroh II seem to be fine people on their own. Which is great and nice! But does Zuko really need to deal with problems created by his predecessors all by himself where there is alive Iroh, the actually fully trained, educated Crown Prince to help him get a grip of the political matters at least in the first few years of Zuko’s rule? I really want to know what Iroh was thinking? Give a throne to Zuko and hope the boy will survive all the assassination attempts and magically figure out how to deal with the consequences of war that lasted for 100 years?
I like Iroh but I’m not blind to his flaws and him being part of White Lotus should not be a free pass from the problems he helped create in the first place.
*Aang finding a way to stop Ozai without killing him is great for him and I’m happy he managed to do so while staying true to his own culture but he is not the one that is left to deal with Ozai for upcoming years. Taking Ozai’s bending doesn’t magically erase his abuse toward Zuko and Azula and the man still has political supporters that made Zuko’s life much harder and more dangerous than the kid deserves.
#atla#avatar the last airbender#prince zuko#fire lord zuko#zuko#uncle iroh#my rants#because this makes me so angry#iroh get a free pass while zuko is left alone to unfuck the mess on his own?#no thanks#if zuko was like a son to iroh he should be there and help him deal with reformation of fire nation#let's be real here if iroh stay with zuko the fire lord would not need to turn to his abusive father for advice in the promise comics#i get it i really do#but i hate this plot#atla critical#just in case
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Watched the new atla show. And now I will share my thoughts because I need to put them somewhere.
I agree with people that it kind of fell flat. More like an impersonation than the actual show. Also, people are right, where is Katara's rage? I'm not going to dive into it, because people already have, but Katara is stubborn and righteous, so where'd they put those qualities?
I wish the show would stop telling us everything. Like, stop telling me that Ozai thought finding the Avatar would be impossible, and sent Zuko on this quest anyway. I know, it's obvious. I don't need to be told the subtext, that's why it's subtext. Subtality could do this show a world of good.
Zhao's death sucked. It was perfect how it was in the original, it showed Zuko's kindness, and Zhao's hubris being his downfall was perfect. Also, this isn't necessarily a complaint, just something I noticed, Zhao feels different in the show. A guy with similar aspirations and ideas, yes, but not the same guy we all hate.
The acting wasn't always the greatest, but I can't tell if it's actually the actor's fault or script (probably script).
I wish Sokka was involved in the Jet plotline, he played a big part in it originally, and it really showed his true character.
Why did Katara and Aang never get any actual training in Northern Water Tribe? That's what they were there to do. Somehow, magically Katara became a master waterbender, because she what? Believed in herself? That's not how learning a skill works. Imagine trying to learn the flute, you're confident, and you figured out on your own how to play a few notes. But you still need someone to teach you the rest of the notes, how to trill, how to read the sheet music, etc. You can't learn everything just from confidence.
The costumes bothered me so much. Sokka and Katara's coats looked so light weight, which is probably more comfortable for the actors, but those coats could not shield you from a light breeze, much less a frozen tundra. Also someone pointed out that their clothes don't actually look worn, and they're right.
What on earth was the scarf scene? Why was it there? What was the point? I am not a Zutara shipper (though I have no hate for the shippers, just dislike for the ship), and now online is just going to be posts about that.
Was Suki just not wearing her warrior make-up because she had to kiss Sokka? Either way, it's still upsetting. The one time she doesn't wear her warrior make-up (which is an honor to wear) is when she's finally in a real fight, and on the day Kyoshi shows up too. Also, no Sokka wearing warrior make-up? I get if they couldn't fit it in, but it's still a bit sad.
I don't understand them getting rid of the fact that Aang ran away, I think it really makes his character more complex as he struggles to take on the responsibilities of the Avatar.
They sorta switched Sokka and Katara's roles in the Omashu tunnels, which I don't get.
Having Zuko fight Ozai in the Agni Kai was a terrible idea.
I'm sorry to say this, because I don't like Zuko being in pain. But Zuko's scar is smaller and a lot more understated than in the animation. I don't know much about burnt tissue, or how it will scar, especially with their technology. But we rarely see heroes with facial scars beyond a line through the eye or something, I don't want it taken away. The scar doesn't even seem to reach his ear. And I'm sad about them confirming his sight was fine. Zuko with some hearing and vision loss is technically just a headcanon. But then why did Zuko only leave his unscarred side up when sleeping around people he didn't trust in the animated version?
I could tell that Aang was airbending during it, so it wasn't really flying. But it's a little too similar, especially considering how significant flying is in Korra.
The thing that bothered me the most was Yue's death. Why was it barely acknowledged?! Yue made a huge sacrifice, but instead we're making up a plotline that causes Aang to have the spotlight instead. And when Sokka was talking to Arnook about Yue, somehow the conversation became focused on Sokka, and his insecurity, instead of someone they both deeply miss (though Sokka and Yue's relationship development could've been better). Sokka is joking around again by the end of the episode, it feels like her death never happened! And why make her a fish! No offense to fishes, but it feels less impactful, and in the original, we could see how Yue was able to keep some of herself alive in the way she presents herself as a spirit, she doesn't do that here.
Some things I liked:
Zuko being upset about Aang stealing his journal.
Sokka and Suki had really good chemistry (though, the show doesn't really give us a reason why Suki likes him, she seems annoyed with him when they first meet).
The effects were good, and I liked a lot of the fight scenes.
Kyoshi.
Oma and Shu being lesbians.
That one lady hitting Zuko for trying to hurt Aang.
Suki being awkward and beating up the guy she likes.
I am impressed with how they were able to overlap some story lines. That must have been difficult to figure out.
The sets.
Azula.
#did hei bai ever get better in the live action#I don't remember it happening#I'll probably add more stuff to the list if I think of things#atla#avatar: the last airbender#atla live action#atla netflix#the show feels like it's made out of cardboard#if that makes sense
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Heyo ATLA fan over here I keep seeing people praise the live action remake for being darker than the original and citing that the original cant be darker because it's animated and. I have thoughts on this.
The original ATLA couldn't get super gore type dark because of its RATING not its MEDIUM, it was being produced by a kid's channel. Animated media CAN be dark and NO i'm not talking about "adult cartoons". Look at shows like Blue Eye Samurai. Any DC animated movie. Animation is constantly associated with being childish just because its most often used in children's media and I mostly blame Disney for that because Disney is my arch-enemy.
Regardless, ATLA IS STILL DARK. IT'S STILL SUPER FUCKING DARK. The entire plot of the show and it’s themes center around really heavy topics like war, genocide, the rewriting of history, child abuse, oppression, deconstructing societal roles, the place of mercy in extreme circumstances, redemption, death and grief, trauma, and so so so much more ATLA was never subtle about its themes it just communicated them in a way that wasn’t overtly gore based and didn't have cussing.
Hell just look at Kyoshi she's literally documented as being ruthless in her persuit of peace, a foil to Aang and his ideals, and when you read her spin-off books you see why. Her childhood friend and crush who was raised under the false belief that he was the Avatar was fucking sacrificed in front of her face and later came back as a shambling husk of his former self that she had to put down like a rabid dog. She survived getting hit with lightning by a crime lord. She spent her early days as Avatar being hunted down by a man who raised her, who’s nickname was the Gravedigger because he buried his enemies alive after making them dig their own graves. That’s not even the full of it either. Kyoshi NEEDED to become ruthless to survive and you see that mindset in the Kyoshi Warriors and the Dai Li because those two groups are her legacy, she trained them, the darkness of her life bled over into that worldbuilding. When Aang asks her advice about Ozai she tells him to kill the bastard no questions asked because in her time hesitation on such things as mercy over justice is what got you killed.
I have so many thoughts about ATLA and it feels like many people miss the point. ATLA did not need to be given a “darker” medium to excel because it already excelled in its original one because live action is not adult media and animation is not child media and from what i’ve heard about the series it feels like the show forgot this is a story of children growing up in a hostile world that rests it’s fate on their shoulders.
The tone of the original show was childish despite it's incredibly dark themes and content because we were seeing the world through the eyes of Aang, Katara, and Sokka and later, Toph. Toph and Zuko's perspectives are way more jaded and darker because that's how they see the world and it's around when they become more involved we start seeing things with more weight than before. We don't need the show to be darker to be greater, it was great as it was because it was build on dark themes but did not let itself become drowned in them.
#Finis Analyzes#Nihil Dreams#Wow this is in both my personal and analysis tag#avatar the last airbender#atla
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Things I LOVED in NATLA Episode 6 - Masks
Opening with Zuko pre-scar getting ready for the war council - you really didn't have to gut-punch me like that, show
Starting the camera from behind his head so we don't know yet and having Iroh's monologue starting up - really really great stuff
Dallas Liu did such a great job acting as a 3-years younger Zuko here! The way he holds himself, the tone of his voice THE WAY HE FREELY SMILES!!!!! Immediately lets you know this is younger Zuko before the most traumatic shit of his life
Damn that transition from young Zuko to him on the shiiipp!!
Zhao is so slimy and is so good at making you hate him
Love Zuko's desperate plea to his crew that they stand by him and then Jee's outburst at the way Zuko treats them
We see both sides (and even more by the end of the episode)
Love the added layers to the 'villains' of the story
"We can solve the world's problems without hurting anyone!?" "We can try"
Such a great back and forth there - already showing where Aang's ideas are at and how he's a pacifist at heart
But he still mentions painful consequences if they fail - consequences those of us who know the animated version know all too well how close that is to Roku
The Mother of Faces! Great deepening of lore and reinforcing the themes of identity and masks for the episode
Though I miss Roku wrecking shop at the temple, seeing the fire sages all taken out by Nyla's paralysis was dooooopppee!!!
June is so cool and so very, very competent. Love her to death
Zuko's resigned 'no' as Aang begs him to let him go save his friends :(
Yet another instance showing that although Zuko's put a mask on to show the world since his banishment, Aang is the one who can see through it because he truly believes the best in people - even enemies
Baby Zuko in the war council not paying attention
Just trying his best but clearly not taking it as seriously as he should - giving plans of attack they'd already discarded
He just wants the approval of his father
Love the added depth from Ozai here
He WANTED Zuko to come up with a good plan, he's DISAPPOINTED he didn't.
This Ozai hasn't written Zuko off from the start, he's 'giving him chances' to be the son Ozai wants him to be - and is failing
Let's be clear here, it's not ok that Ozai is doing this and this doesn't mean Zuko brought his abuse on himself, it means that in Ozai's mind, he can justify it and 'gave chances' - see the cycle of abuse
Zuko's core shining through as, even though he doesn't have a good plan himself, he KNOWS what the other general suggested is wrong
You don't have to be an expert on world affairs or battle plans to know WRONG when you see it - it's basic humanity and anyone who tries to tell you you shouldn't have a say because you're not an expert can eat shit
AAAHHHHH Zhao throwing it back in Zuko's face that defying one of Ozai's generals (admirals), Zuko is defying his own father
AARRRUUGGGHHHHHHHAHAAAAAHHHHAAAA
Zuko strategizing immediately!!
Iroh trying to talk sense into him!!
Everything from this point on is almost directly pulled from the animated series and I think the show knew EXACTLY when to do a 1-1 translation to live-action
Zhao's little smarmy speech to Aang, Aang then blowing him into the door XD
Zhao's absolutely pitch-perfect middle manager 'Our numbers have been great this quarter, here's your pizza party!' energy that's waaayyyy too into this
He's so obsessed with the appearance of power and the rush of shouting accomplishments to uproarious applause, he doesn't care about anything else
Spit in my mouth, that pan over to The Blue Spirit hanging out in the tree and the little head tilt as he hears the wagon rolling underneath - uuuuuuhhhhh that was…good. Yeah, that was good. Ahem, I'm fine, totally normal over here, carry on.
NiNjA sTuFf!!
The whole unseen hallway fight *chefs kiss*
"Who are you?" Head tilt "Right, talk later, run now" while the Blue Spirit is already all the way down the hallway XD
Their heads popping up above the crates to scope out the courtyard XD too cute
"Now is that 'loyal' or 'faithful', sir?" 😭
Zhao's panicked scream after just having been so confident 🙃
SIIIICCKKK sword flourish!
ALL the choreography at the top of the battlement was fantastic - I could see the CGI doubles in a few places, but really, it was so good I didn’t care
Just two cuties stilt-walking across a courtyard full of enemies, nothing to see here
I LOVE how The Blue Spirit holds himself so differently than Zuko does. The mask hiding his features really does let him take on a persona that he can really settle into
The way he holds a stance ready to fight is completely different than Zuko does when he's firebending and I think it was such a good touch to make sure their fighting styles were nothing alike (even barring the difference in weapon)
It's sooo interesting that in this version, you can see through the eye-holes of the mask - looking closely, you can see Zuko's fear and insecurity, even his shallow breaths as he's terrified his plan won't work. It's something you have to look closely for, but it's very very good.
And that little nick on Aang's neck from the swords! Zuko really was holding them tight to him
Zuko slapping Aang's hand away XD it's hilarious in how honest of a teenage reaction that is
So much of what Zuko does is exactly what teens do when they're trying to be badass and edgy, but to us olds, it comes off so try-hard and petulant - it's a mask of confidence and badassery that's so easy to see through
"Can I ask you a question? It might be a little personal - goat hair or rabbit?"
I legit almost cried at that - it's just SO AANG to talk about mundane things with the 'enemy' to try to find common ground. Humanize each other so they can find a way to resolve the issue without threats or violence.
Ugh just, ugh - Aang telling Zuko that the work he did in the notebook was really good and helped him a lot
Zuko has finally heard he did a good job - something he did was worthy of praise. It was unique and impactful and Zuko should be proud of it. And it's his enemy telling him that - a genuine complement, not gloating or digging at him, but genuinely telling him that he did a good job
Zuko breaking and opening up to Aang!!!! Them bonding!!!!
Zuko's little smile at Aang's joke about snoring while meditating!!!
Love this expanded conversation between them - really humanizing each other and seeing the cracks in Zuko's façade, his mask that he thinks he needs to strengthen to be what he's "expected" to be - and how he reacts with anger when people try to lift that mask.
The Agni Kai - just….wow, yeah, it was a lot
Again, I love how they expand these scenes to really delve into character more rather than a quick, frankly a bit surface level, bullet point of character these scenes in the animated show had.
I have a whole essay about the Agni Kai in my analysis of the episode, but cliff notes:
All of Ozai's lines are dripping with depth and nuance to why he's doing this and a deeper meaning to this lesson than just throwing Zuko away as a nuisance
Ozai really wants Zuko to do well, to prove himself
And Zuko tries - he tries insisting that they don’t need to fight, that he does respect Ozai and the military, then he tries to please his father by fighting
The choreography is brutal and stunning
The fight builds, flows, and ends with Zuko showing compassion, unwilling to really strike his own father
And I've again, written an essay on it, but I do like seeing the conflict on Ozai's face as he brands Zuko
He's not any less horrific of a father, but he is more REAL - which makes it all the more terrifying and heartbreaking that we can see people like that in the world, he's not just a character relegated to a cartoon - his type of abuse is very real and present in our everyday lives
Aang talking about Kuzon :'(
"He's hurt" "He'll recover" "But he'll never heal"
WHAT and exchange.
"Sometimes the weak can become stronger. Sometimes, you just have to give them the chance"
Aaahhhhh!! There's Zuko's character thesis right there: he's always had to fight for his abilities, it's never come easy for him - but what 'strength' is will change and grow with Zuko through the story!
Jesus, Daniel Dae Kim's voice is just sooooo goood as the fire lord. It's not fair. Seriously.
Mark Hamill is legendary - there's no doubt about that, but damn if Daniel Dae Kim doesn't do just as good of a job, putting his own, very resonantly deep take on it.
And the 41st reveal!!!!!
I think this was a genius addition by the live-action team
Bringing it all around full circle where everything is connected.
Iroh cupping Zuko's face and him pushing him away, back to the 'petulant' (what he thinks is strong) mask D':
"There actually are a few of us who care about…about such things"
Cue the waterworks
"Our prince has returned"
Again, waterworks
No, it's not 'home' in the Fire Nation, but it IS the home that Zuko and the crew have made over the past 3 years
Enter the trope of home being where you least expect it and all that
"They must have missed you at music night" DX
Coming in again with the fire ending monologue )':
No Gyatzo waiting for Aang DX
Zuko seeing his unscarred, happy face in the mirror DX
"What's hard is knowing that sometimes, the mask is who we really are"
There were a lot of big emotions in this episode - I needed some time to recover
[Masterlist of my NATLA thoughts]
#natla#avatar live action#avatar atla#netflix avatar#avatar the last airbender#avatar netflix#natla positivity
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Hmmm…. Okay. One last post. My final verdict of Netflix atla is:
7/10, it’s not bad. It’s best viewed as supplementary to the original, not your first introduction to the series.
Did it make some questionable choices? Yes. Was it a one-to-one adaptation? Obviously not. But ffs, it’s not the end of the world. After going off the rails about Yue last night, I’m giving y’all a readmore this time bc I actually know it’ll be long.
I’m going to try to split this up into categories, so here we go.
The pros
Casting. Excellent casting. 10/10 no* notes. Everyone sounded the part, which, when adapting an iconic animated series imo, is the most important aspect. Think of the tmnt. Different cast each time, but the vibe of each turtle’s performance/voice remains consistent.
Costuming & set pieces. Again, fantastic visuals with just the right amount of realism.
Consolidation choices. I’ll say it. I thought they did an excellent job of condescending 20 22-minute episodes into 8 ~55-minute episodes. I thought centering so many different plots in Omashu was insanely clever and worked really well.
Azula. I liked the choice to have the audience meet Azula early. Letting us get a sneak peak into Ozai’s manipulation of her, as well as the overt reference to the Mother of Faces makes me think we might get Azula’s redemption shown on screen.
Children. Those Are Children. Those are children witnessing the horrors of war, which can be easily forgotten watching animated characters, but holy fuck those are CHILDREN.
Death. We’re straight up killing people on scream. Burning them alive even.
Iroh. I specifically want to shoutout Paul Sun-Hyung Lee. Mako made the role of Iroh legendary, a performance that’s difficult to follow and harder to capture correctly, but I think Lee absolutely crushed it. He wasn’t trying to perfectly imitate Mako, but that was the correct choice imo. He made it his own and successfully captured the essence of the character.
The mids/“that doesn’t make sense”
Bumi. Why’d they make him so cynical? Like, he was the opposite of how he should be. It’s not supposed to be up to Aang to teach Bumi that hopes still exists, it’s Bumi’s job to teach him that! Like that is the whole point of him being the one (1) person still alive that Aang knew.
Secret tunnel. An interesting enough solution to get Katara and Sokka to Aang, but at the same time…did that not move the tunnels into Omashu? Like it’s not a way in, it’s now a way into the heart of the dungeons? And sure, having it be a sibling bonding moment for Sokka and Katara was nice, but also…fuck you? The crystals ARE the answers. Iirc the badger moles didn’t sense emotions, they vibed to the music. I know I’m a kataang fan but even I cringed at the lights out kiss. But lights out should’ve still been the answer.
Did…did Aang never placate the forest spirit? Sure he planted the acorn but that didn’t like…do, the same thing this time. Speaking of spirits, they didn’t make Aang all that spiritual. He mentions having spiritual training with the monks plenty of times but he’s not actually like, attuned to them
Homeboy did not learn an OUNCE of water bending. Didn’t even try. I know he’s not on a time crunch (yet) but jfc practice with Katara at least??
Everything about Yue. I already went off on this, and it’s not really that bad, but it’s definitely mid. From her wonky wig, to her nonexistent ethereal moon eyes, to all the small changes that take the wind out of her tragedy—I’m a huge Yue fan. And while these changes are nicer for her, they’re a detriment to the overall narrative.
Wan Shi Tong. Having him just sorta…be there, and making it so only Aang can understand him is one hell of a choice, and does not fill me with faith that they’ll include the library in season 2, which is like…so pivotal on so many front, it’s truly the lynch pin of everything in book 2.
Ty Lee and Mai. They should not have been there. It’s one thing to show Azula getting manipulated by her dad, but legit why are the girlies here? Is it super funny to see these literal children and know they’re just a middle school mean girl clique? Absolutely. But the narrative purpose of Ty Lee and Mai is that they’re NOT there to support Azula.
The fucking… War tactics? Make no sense. You can’t “distract” from Omashu by laying siege to the North. These things are not connected or even associated. They are not allies. Forces were not diverted. Your logic isn’t logicing.
The cons (I’m super mad about)
None of the characters are angry enough. They nerfed Katara’s rage at being denied being taught by Paku. They striped Aang’s righteous spiritual fury (and placed it all on the ocean spirit? Hello??), and ohhh my godddd how did they take out most if not all of Zuko’s anger?? Where’s the brashness? The hotheadedness? The getting so worked up he stops thinking? He’s too fucking mellow. Did I enjoy him getting to be soft with Iroh? Yes. But god, at what cost? I know we as the fandom like to flanderize him as a soft autistic king, but that’s at least post book 3! Book 1 Zuko is a mess and a tragedy!
Speaking of Zuko, holy fuck they fucked up the Agni Kai so bad. I know I went off about this in a previous post but it bears so much repeating. He’s supposed to grovel for his father’s forgiveness, not be given and take the opportunity to fight back. So much of Iroh’s guilt is meant to come from not stepping in to stop his brother, not making a halfhearted attempt. OZAI IS NOT MEANT TO SHOW EVEN AN IOTA OF REMORSE. NEXT POINT—
OZAI. Let me just say, perfect casting. I love Daniel Dad Kim and I think he was the perfect choice, but it’s not his fault how Ozai was written/directed. WHY DOES HE LOOK REMORSEFUL SO MUCH? WHY DOES HE ACT LIKE HE GIVES A SHIT ABOUT ZUKO? WHY ON GODS GREEN EARTH DID THEY TRY TO HUMANIZE THE NARCISSISTIC MACHIAVELLIAN GOD COMPLEX VILLAIN! Part of what makes his downfall so perfect is that he’s shown mercy! That Aang DOESNT kill him! That he’s so thoroughly and remorselessly evil that literally everyone is saying “he needs to fucking die” and Aang spares him. He does not get to go out in a blaze of glory, he goes slowly, with a whimper! And all the poetic justice of that decision gets sucked out of you allow him even an INCH to show regret. A character willing to burn his son’s face off for being disrespectful is not a character that would regret that decision.
The gaang are barely coworkers. The heart of this show is the bonds between the core cast, and I never once felt like Aang and Katara/Sokka truly meant the world to each other. They say it. A lot of but they don’t show it. That chemistry is not there. It’s like watching goddamn Voltron and getting to the final season and thinking “this found family doesn’t even like each other.” The show spends so much time reinforcing the peripheral bonds of Aang and Zuko, and Katara and Sokka, that it drops the entire ball of Aang/Sokka/Katara.
*gestures vaguely to making everything about the moon spirit so fucking convoluted*It didn’t have to be a series of conveniences. You’re allowed to just fire punch a fish to death.
That’s all I can think of for now. I know there’s some HUGE cons but the worst of them are spread out. This is by far not the worst adaptation Netflix has ever put out. It’s certainly not OPLA (*chef’s kiss*), but it’s not Death Note either. It’s fine, really. It’s a pretty good watch. I do hope they finish out the series so we can finally, FINALLY have a live action Toph, but also because I’m so curious how the changes will compound. How differently these choice will go, and what new plots we could get from that. I could even see how we could get to fucking zukka from here, and while I absolutely do not think they’ll do that, it’s a fascinating possibility that’d be totally plausible from where we are. I want them to divert even further if they continue. I want this version to justify its existence in some significant way, even if it’s just “actually let’s redeem Azula during the conflict.”
But not Ozai. Fuck that. If they redeem Ozai, we riot.
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Me again sry but I'd love to know how you created such a cool character - any tips? What inspired you, how did he come about and did you put any parts of yourself into Lu Da (cuz if you did I want to be your friend lol)?
Hah, shucks, I’m flattered. Only in my dreams could I hope to be as witty and cool (and murderous) as Pirate King.
I've said before that in some ways his creation felt effortless. It felt like he’d always lived in my head and I just needed the right circumstances to bring him to life. But, to be fair, I think effortless isn’t really the right word. There was a lot of love and thought and care put into his character: what niche he would fill in the ATLA-verse, what kind of mark he might leave on the world as well as the people he gets close to (i.e. his being a foil for Ozai), how that world might bend around his existence and vice versa.
Inspiration-wise, I enjoy characters who exist in the grey areas of morality, who toe the line between “good” and “evil”, so that was certainly a big part of it, along with exploring the messy journey from darkness to atonement, and my general love of pirates. I also knew that I wanted Lu Da to be more than meets the eye. On the surface, he is pretty intimidating: big dude plastered in tattoos with a devil-may-care attitude, muscles for days, a notorious reputation for his “dirty hands”, basically screams of a life of ill-repute. Which is true in many facets. But he’s also a softie for animals, a music lover, terrified of heights, drinks respect women juice every day, and unflinchingly loyal to those he calls friend.
Personally, I prefer not to base my OCs on a real person, lest I feel allied to the inspiration instead of the creation. But there are absolutely pieces of myself – fears, flaws, longings, ambitions – that get injected into characters. I think whenever we write OCs – and they can be as different from each other as night and day – they will often end up with some part of ourselves in them, whether it's intentional or not; I think that’s only natural. Some people like to write deliberate self-inserts, which is perfectly valid for many reasons, but for me writing and building a character is an escape. I already have to live with myself 24/7, so I prefer to write someone new and different, with different histories and personalities and worldviews from my own. Whatever bits of myself end up in them is usually a happy accident.
As for tips, it’s important to remember that no human being is ever without flaws and fears, hopes and dreams, and that even the most despicable people will have some good traits, because no one is 100% good or evil. Life is just not that clean cut. Try reading books/authors known for complex characters, study what makes those characters memorable to you, what speaks to you about them. And then practice! Sometimes characters show us who they are as they grow along the way, so don’t be afraid to revamp or retcon things that no longer feel right. Most importantly, just have fun. :)
#hoo this got a bit long#thanks for the ask!#lu da#atla oc#original characters#character creation#character building
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netflix avatar episode 3!!!
my lil thoughts and feelings :)
So episode 3, at this point they're mashing like 5 episodes together, which to be fair, they are doing a pretty good job at, considering. but some of the details get lost dont they
the mail system doesnt get introduced properly, no bumi foreshadowing and now the gliding doesnt even make sense. in the show proper they could glide freely due to the strange air currents happening around the air temple... yknow... cuz it was an air temple. strange air is expected. but how can he still do that... in omashu...?
that said i really liked zuko and aangs fight, it had very good use of the environment and it got out of hand because zuko lost his temper, as is in character for book one(and well every other one too, but book one the most) zuko.
weirdly enough the episode mash, although missing a lot of detail went pretty well, the way they mash them together is pretty creative
"we dont have time for iroh to be relaxing in some springs so we will have his kidnapping be done in this way" and so on. its nice to see how creative they can get with it :)
i like that they introduce revolts inside the fire nation, makes the entire country be more simpathetic right away instead of waiting for book 3
azula and ozai are pretty neat, but i dont understand why are they introducing them this early. i'm a bit afraid they will make them an active threat in this season already.
also why are azula and zuko pitted against each other like this, i thought it was universal that zuko was very clearly NOT the favourite child.
while im speaking of ozai and azula, the throneroom scene made the air nomad genocide that much more pathetic. mans just scorched like 10 guys no problem with bigass flames, why did the COMET EMPOWERED mfs have they flames be smaller? you sure the comet doesnt take away their power???
im going to take this time to talk about zuko's scar and well... i think it should be bigger, or at least more hand shaped(though to be fair he couldve gotten it a different way than in the cartoon i guess ill just have to wait and see), i mean, animated zuko didnt have an eyebrow, almost didnt have an ear and this guy just sorta has a splash of red on him i suppose. sure its better than the m night one but still, could be better.
i know i compare it to the cartoon a lot but i have to say so far i really like it, the comparison is purely there because it makes it easier to write about. so far it stands very nicely as its own thing. like i can see someone watching it on its own without seeing the show first and liking it, there are no grievous immersion breaking character assassinations as far as i can see(aside from granny exposition) so i think its doing a pretty good job :)
oh and also: CABBAGE MAN WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!! HES THERE!!!!!!!!! HE SAYS THE THING!!!!!!!! I CANT WAIT FOR SOME DUMBFUCK CRITIC THAT HAS NEVER SEEN THE CARTOON TO CALL IT A WEIRD OUT OF POCKET GAG THAT DOESNT GO ANYWHERE!!!!!!! I CANT FUCKING WAIT!!!!!! I LOVE HIM!!!!!! :DDDDD!!!!!! AND HIS CABBAGES!!!!!!!!
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I've been rewatching ATLA several times lately and this time I especially ended up wondering a lot about Iroh and Ozai's past and characters in general. I just can't help but think it weird that Ozai is the ultimate trashbag of a humanbeing while Iroh ended up preaching harmony and peace. It just doesn't make any sense. These guys are brothers. They were brought up by the same parents, in the same fascist imperialistic nation, they were taught the same values growing up. You're trying to tell me the difference is that Iroh was destined to be the person he eventually came to be, but Ozai was just born evil? No, I don't think so.
I have two hot takes that I'm gonna elaborate:
1. Iroh had a guidance Ozai lacked
2. Ozai was the less favored son
(Disclaimer: I haven't read the comics yet so I don't know how deep they've already gone into this subject at some point. I'm trying to interpret and analyze the stuff that I got from the animated series only. If anything I say contradicts what has already been confirmed in the comics, feel free to correct me.)
Hear me out. Iroh wasn't born a saint. Everyone is aware of this, especially Iroh himself. He laid siege to Ba Sing Se for 2 years, costing the Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom thousands of lives. Everyone knew that if the Fire Nation took over the capital, it meant almost ultimate victory for the Fire Nation. He even went as far as making a offhand sadistic jokes about burning the city to the ground in that letter to Zuko and Azula.
Iroh acknowledges it himself; He was a different man.
So what changed?
Yes, his son died. It broke and shattered him from the inside, making him drop all efforts to continue fighting in the war. To continue what had been his lifelong ambition, what he believed to be his destiny. He had a literal vision about taking over Ba Sing Se when he was a child, and that had been what he'd been pursuing ever since. But the death of his son managed to crumble all of that into nothingness. How is that possible?
Don't get me wrong. I think it's completely valid. I just don't understand how Lu Ten and Iroh could've had such a loving and caring relationship in the first place, when that's clearly something unusual among the royal family. Ozai burned and banished Zuko without a second thought, not to mention all the other shit he did to him growing up. Ozai didn't give two shits about Azula either, he only ever intended to use her as his weapon. Doesn't seem too surprising, if you ask me. Azulon didn't hesitate to demand that Ozai kill his own son if he wanted the throne. That's the man that raised Ozai, so it's just logical that Ozai learned that behavior and those values from his own father.
Even 9 year old Azula thinks it laughable that Iroh would fall apart at the death of his son. She is a child and this is how she thinks. The reason Zuko doesn't think like this is because he's had the guidance of his mother, unlike Azula. This is the kind of mentality these kids grow up with. They grew up with war and so did Iroh and Ozai.
So why was Iroh's relationship with Lu Ten so different? Where did Iroh experience the kind of compassion and love he passed on to his own son, that Ozai definitely didn't? People act on how they've come to learn, so where did Iroh learn to care about his son to a point that it made him give up on his lifelong ambition?
Let's review a very crucial information we have on Iroh and Ozai as siblings: They have a huge age gap.
Frankly, I'm guessing about 10-20 years. Looks more like 20 to me, but that could also be Iroh's greater amount of endured pain and war making him look older than he actually is. But no one can deny that an age gap is definitely there. Which can also indicate they had different upbringings, despite having grown up in the same family as brothers.
What does this mean? Well, that's just me theorizing now, but I can definitely imagine that Iroh had someone, a family member maybe, there for him who wasn't around or didn't care to be when Ozai grew up. There must've been someone there who gave Iroh emotional security and guidance throughout his upbringing. Who? That's up to imagination. A friend of the family? A friendly uncle? His own mother ((or father))? (The last two things worked out for Zuko in the end, didn't they?) Otherwise I can't really explain myself why Iroh had enough values to love the way he loved Lu Ten, while Ozai clearly didn't give two fucks about his children at any point in his life.
Iroh was the firstborn son, the one who had a vision very early in his life that his destiny was to take over Ba Sing Se. Probably the one who got to have a family member care about him enough to show him how to love.
(I like to point this out a lot because I find it very interesting, and very significant. Please A:TLA give us more info on Iroh's past!!)
Which brings me to my second take: Ozai was the less favored son.
Iroh was clearly a son to be proud of. He was a master firebender, the "Dragon of the West", if you will. He apparently had a vision as a boy that he'd conquer the most "impenetrable city" in the world. He probably lived up to his parent's expectations for his whole life, especially having no sibling to be compared to for a significant part of his life. He broke through the outter wall of Ba Sing Se during his siege. Yada yada yada, you get my point. He's the best son they could've wished for.
And Ozai? As far as I know, he barely even has any military achievements. Taking over Ba Sing Se was Azula's doing. While Iroh laid siege to the capital, he was at home chilling in the palace. He's the younger brother to an established hero and was never meant to be firelord. Now, I haven't read the comics for more info on Ozai's biography, but this man barely had a chance to live up to his parent's standards with Iroh as an older brother. If my theory is correct, Ozai also didn't have any person to provide him emotional guidance throughout his life. (*cough* like Azula)
The logical outcome is: infinite jealousy.
And when Ozai suggests to Azulon that he revoke Iroh's birthright to become firelord, this is Azulon's answer:
Azulon doesn't even hesitate to call Ozai out on his bullshit. He doesn't hesitate to take offense at the suggestion of betraying Iroh, and he even seems to care about Iroh's suffering. Not to mention that Azulon is overall annoyed with Ozai's request for an audience and sends the rest of Ozai's family away as soon as he can, to get whatever it is Ozai wants over with.
I could also mention the fact that Ozai tried to impress Azulon with his daughter's skills (Azula, even named after him) and the overall strained relationship these two seem to exhibit. It's obviously very different from Azulon's relationship with Iroh, if the way he talks about said man is anything to show for.
What if Azulon treated Ozai the same way Ozai treated Zuko? (Probably without the physical abuse, but you get my point.) What if this is where Ozai learned to treat a "useless" kid like shit, maybe also in a way to cope with how he was treated himself?
Getting deeper into the fact that Ozai is rather a loser compared to Iroh, without any big military achievements and without value for anything beyond that, this also explains a lot about Ozai's constant need to establish his dominance.
First; Becoming Firelord through radical manners (you know, killing his own son or killing his own father)
Second; Publicly burning and banishing his own son whom he considers a weakling, who dared to speak up in his war room. Doing this to have everyone know that he doesn't associate himself with weakness and that he will not ever tolerate any form of disrespect.
Third; The whole Phoenix King act. No one can tell me this isn't a madman's doing. This is literally to show off that he is the most powerful person in the world.
Ozai is so obsessed with proving himself and his superiority to everyone, including himself and probably Iroh too. This makes most sense if we consider that he probably lived in his brother's shadow for his whole life, ignored by probably every guiding figure he's ever had in his life, maybe even considered a laughingstock by his own father.
Perhaps this is also the reason Ozai didn't have any problem with Iroh accompanying Zuko in banishment. His brother, the hero in whose shadow he grew up, and his son, the failure he'd wanted out of the way for a long time already. It would erase Iroh's image that made him superior to him, once and for all. For himself and the world. I believe that branding him a traitor was the biggest satisfaction Ozai had ever experienced in his life.
I absolutely despise Ozai with every fibre of my heart, but it amazes me how ATLA continues to leave so much room for interpretation and explanation for a character as despicable as him. Writing this, even had me feel sympathy for him at some point. Feel free to disagree with me or add anything, I'm eager to hear everyone's thoughts about Ozai and Iroh's backstories because I'm geniuinely very curious.
#atla#avatar#avatar the last airbender#atla thoughts#atla theory#atla things#ozai#uncle iroh#iroh#fire nation#phoenix king ozai#avatar ozai#avatar iroh#zuko#azula#azulon#atla textpost#avatar textpost
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How do you feel about the live action so far? Personally, I like some of the changes they made but I miss Katara’s whole character and I don’t think Ozai’s characterization works very well.
I'm enjoying it as an adaptation. There are also things that disappoint me about it as an adaptation, but I still think I am enjoying it as an adaptation more than i would have if I had just watched it as if were an original story, with no knowledge of the original series. It lacks a lot of the things that made the original series stand out. It kind of pains me to say it, because they tried, they really did. They tried with the bending, and a lot of it is impressive and clearly inspired by the original. But it still is not as impressive as the original. Part of that is because of the fact that it's not new, part of it is the change in medium. Part of it is just that the magic isn't there.
I keep thinking about, for example, Aang's fight scenes. Don't get me wrong, the LA does a great job. They clearly thought everything out. Gordon is great. The martial arts moves are nicely choreographed and clearly inspired by the original. The effects are nice. But Aang still doesn't feel like an airbender the way he did in the original. A large part of this is that they are working with real people and a more realistic medium. The actors just can't be as naturally dynamic as animated characters. Every airbending move Aang does has to be done with special effects and deliberate shots and there's just so much work that needs to go into it that a lot of the casual airbending Aang does in the original is gone. And this isn't so much a criticism because I recognize that this has to come with the change of medium. But, as I said, it does diminish some of the magic of the original. The same reason we don't get, for example, Zuko blowing smoke through his nostrils. The side effect is that he doesn't feel as connected to his element.
I'm a big fan of animation as an art form, and the things I mentioned about the original ATLA? That is animation as an art form at its essence. We get a sense of who a character is just by their stance, or how they move, and the artist uses their medium to convey it without words. The actors do a lot to try and make up for it, but you're still inevitably going to lose something in the translation.
See my previous post for my thoughts about Ozai based on the first four episodes I've seen. Katara is another sore point for me. She feels like such a non-character here, there's nothing really memorable about her. She's not offensive, but she's not anything special, either, and it is a shame since she's such an iconic character for the series as a whole. I'm not here for discourse about how she needs to be more feminine or more angry or more etc. etc. etc. But what they've given us is just so bland that if I didn't already know the character I probably would think nothing of her at all.
As an original story, the live action series seems to lack direction. As I said, if I hadn't watched the original show I would probably have gotten bored by now because of having no real sense of who a lot of these characters are or where they are going or what the stakes of this story are.
I'm mostly enjoying the show as an adaptation that can bring me some new perspectives on these characters, the way I would a fanfic that has its hit or miss moments. Then I can take those things and add them to my own fanfics and metas and thoughts about these characters and this world.
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Why the ATLA comics fail when it comes to Zuko and his family
To whom ever took their time to actually stop and read this post, thank you in advance for not skipping my post and willing to stay and read my humble opinion! I hope I won’t disappoint you!
As a relatively newcomer to the ATLA fanbase since 2020, I’ve come across a lot of interesting debates, comments and rants about the show, characters and fandom in general, but nothing has captivated me as much as the dumpster-on-fire that are the ATLA comics, more specifically: The Promise and The Search.
On one hand we have the hardcore fans who want them to be animated or serialized into the Netflix live action, praising the comics for the new views and subject matters they’ve brought into the show’s lore, while on the other hand we have the furious Azula fandom who is really angry for the fact that best girl didn’t get the redemption arc she rightfully deserved so much after the painful event that was the Last Agni Kai and the even more angry fans of the Urzai ship (yeah, the people who actually ship Zuko’s parents unironically) who hated the retconning of the show’s cannon since the comics basically took a huge fat dump on what was previously established as official cannon, when the Search entered the scene, but between these two sides, who has the more valid point? In the end, are the comics good cannon or bad written fanfiction?
Well... Here are my two cents on this matter since I myself happen to be an Azula and Zuko fan and had huge expectations from these comics (since I wanted more from my fave hot-headed fiery siblings duo) but ended up disappointed: the comics are indeed a huge mess and actually bad written fanfiction when it comes to Zuko and his family! Don’t click off yet, because I actually documented the reasons why exactly the comics fail in this area:
1. The author of these comics is not part of the BryKe duo
Yes, I would like to start with the fact that if you actually take a second to look up who in the heck took the time to write these two books, you won’t find Bryan, nor Mike, but a fellow man named Gene Yang. This is important because while the wiki of both The Promise and The Search state BryKe as the creators, that doesn’t mean that they were the actual minds behind these comics, but rather because ATLA is their “baby” and these comics involve their characters, over which they have copyright. Mr. Yang here is the actual brain behind the plot, as the main writer, which explains why we find huuuuge inconsistencies between the show lore and the comics, especially Zuko wise.
My main issue with Mr. Yang isn’t that he isn’t BryKe specifically, but because he did an unforgivable mistake in his writing process: He projected himself into Zuko’s character, based on the relationship Zuko had with his father. This is a documented fact from an interview in which he explains that he sees himself and his dad’s relationship into Zuko and Ozai and used that when writing their interactions and built Zuko’s character in the comics. And this is wrong because when you have an already very developed and complex character such as Zuko, you can’t just come in and be like “Oh, I was an angsty teen just like him in my teenage years, fighting with my dad and whatnot, so he must have the same thought process as me!”. NO! This is bad fanfiction writer behavior! Zuko has his own personality and philosophy, which he developed over the course of 3 seasons and is not defined by only 1 unfortunate aspect of his past, so you can’t just base his whole mindset and actions off of your own personal experience just because you had the same daddy issues he had!
2. The whole “Promise that you will kill me if I turn out like my dad!” nonsense in The Promise
Reason number 2 why these comics fail and go under the category of “bad fanfiction” is because they fail to convey the core essence of the source material. The whole point of Zuko’s redemption was that he realized the wrongdoings of his ancestors and his own mistakes. He outgrew his desire of gaining his father’s acknowledgement in favor of choosing his own destiny. Having him worry that he’ll turn into his father is utter nonsense and feels like poor angsty drama material for the sake of angst. At this point in time, Zuko has overcame that obstacle in his life a long time ago and should be at the level where he himself is the “Uncle Iroh” for other people and in no way someone concerned of becoming their own worst enemy!
Not only that, but the whole point of Aang’s journey and the story of the show as a whole was to teach us, the viewers, the importance of forgiveness, empathy and love in life. Aang didn’t spare Ozai, aka “the ultimate evil” just to flex in front of his pals or because he is a “ 12 y/o vegan pacifist monk kid”, but because he knew that killing someone, no matter of what they did or wanted to do, wouldn’t restore balance into the Universe, on the contrary, him killing the villain would have meant perpetuating the “endless cycle of hate” that plagued the world. So having Aang promise to kill his best friend in case “they turned into an evil maniac like their dad” contradicts Aang’s whole character and it’s a nonsense that throws into the trash what we’ve learnt throughout the entire TV series.
3. Azula deserved (and was supposed) to have a redemption ark
This might still be pure speculation, but I count it as a documented reason because I’ve heard quite a few people saying that there should’ve been a book 4 in the show, aka “Book 4: Air”, and no, it wasn’t The Search, but actually Zuko and Azula’s journey as Zuko helps his younger sister heal her broken mind by being her very own “Uncle Iroh”. Sure, they prolly were going to end up looking for Ursa, but the journey should’ve ended with them actually being happy and a family again and not the bs we got in The Search where a still very unstable Azula runs away and becomes the “Next Joker”! The only problem is that M. Night had to pop up and curse the world with his movie, which forced BryKe to delay the project (and eventually abandoned it in favor of Korra).
All in all, either if BryKe had this preplanned or not, it made sense for Azula to get a redemption ark, she deserved it because she was just a broken 14 y/o child! If Katara’s mom’s murderer deserved to be forgiven, so did this poor child who had no fault for what happened to her since she had a dysfunctional family! What Gene Yang did in his poorly written fanfiction was to just antagonize a broken child, turning her into a monster for the sake of friggin angst!
4. The Search is the worst of the two, being flat af character wise
And finally, getting to the point that I personally find the most annoying about these comics: The Search. This one... This one is a mess on a hella lot many levels, and just to list a few: characters are flat as fudge, being either black as vanta black (like Ozai and Azula) or pure white like Gene’s Gary Stue OC, Mr Ikem (or how I like to call him, IKEA man) and his ‘victim’ rendition of Ursa, Azula gets to suffer more for no reason (see reason number 3 to why I find this as a no no), Ursa’s whole character sucks ass (man, I could write a whole thesis on why Yang’s version of her is terrible and doesn’t match the strong woman we got in the show) and Zuko does morally wrong stuff (my man literally used his unstable sister to bribe their dad into spitting info about Ursa... Show Zuko would never do that!;-;)
Oh boy, as a person who’s seen a ton of anime and other media and read many books, I can’t begin on how much I despise this type of writing: flat characters are the worst!
ATLA characters in the show are nothing close to being flat! What I mean by that is that none of them fall perfectly into pure white (aka goodest of good characters with no imperfections) or vanta black (aka lowest and darkest twisted monsters out there), each of them are various shades of grey (like Aang who is a very light grey because despite being a very kind and nice character, he still isn’t a “perfect hero” since he ran away from his duties, practiced tax fraud with Toph, had insecurities and even threatened to kill people on ocassions like with the sand benders who took Appa) and this is a good choice because that prevents them from becoming what’s globally known as Mary Sues and Gary Stues (aka those either “perfect” characters with no flaws and/or unlimited power, or the twisted monsters full of flaws).
And the other reason why many other people hate The Search: it literally negates previously established cannon. And here comes my short essay on why this comic fails Zuko’s family (since we’ve already talked enough about Zuko himself).
In cannon and even interviews with BryKe, it was clearly stated that Zuko’s family was “once happy”. Where is this “once happy” family in The Search? All I see is pain, deception, lies and betrayal, nothing close to anything that resembles happiness. Okay, some of you might come in and say that “It’s because it was never the case! It was only lies and Zuko trying to convince himself that he didn’t live in hell forever!” and here is WHERE YOU WERE ALL WRONG! And why? Because, my dear fella, where were depicted the flashbacks of Zuko’s “happy family” in The Beach? Ember Island. And what do we know and had been even quoted in the show? "Like waves washing away the footprints on the sand, Ember Island gives everyone a clean slate. Ember Island reveals the true you." (direct quote from the show). Exactly, no matter who you are or how hard you try, you can’t hide your true self when you are on the Ember Island, best example being Azula, who’s impenetrable though shell cracked and revealed the true vulnerable child that was underneath. If Azula couldn’t resist the “spell of the island”, no one can. So this means that Zuko’s family was indeed happy once and yes, Ozai wasn’t always the douchebag we got to know in Season 3 (I have a whole nother essay on my theories regarding what could be his real past story and why he’s actually the “Zuko” of his generation, based on stuff I gathered from old wiki entries and character analyses I made, but that’s for another time, lemme know if ya’ll are interested).
And what I guess is the biggest proof why The Search did this family’s past trash is comics Ursa herself. My dude, if this woman were indeed the victim of years of endless abuse and never loved her husband, I guarantee you that she would’ve been closer to what we saw in Todoroki’s mom from BNHA and Zuko would’ve gotten that scar or even worse long before the Agni Kai, not from his “daddy dearest”, but from “mommy dearest” herself, because no sane woman would be soo affectionate and attached to a child that’s the perfect copy of their abuser, sepecially appearance wise (again see Todoroki’s mom’s case from BNHA because the stories are really similar) and in no way would’ve she been willing to sacrifice her life for said child’s sake. With this ocassion, I remind ya’ll folks that according to the ancient ATLA cannon wikis on Nick’s site, Ozai was designed with Zuko’s appearance in mind, being meant to be like a “grown up scarless version” of Zuko. So yeah, remember this with a grain of salt that whenever you simp over grown up Zuko, you involuntary simp for Ozai too.
So yeah, I guess this kinda concludes my “not so short” rant about why the comics fail and are bad fanfiction. Lemme hear your thoughts in the comments and if you agree, feel free to leave a like and even reblog.
Bye bye and remember that Momo is the true strongest character of the show!
Saby out.
#atla#avatar the last airbender#atla comics#zuko#azula#ozai#ursa#fire siblings#the promise#the search#atla rant
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The Promise
pairing: Zuko x Princess!reader
notes: this was requested by an anon and yes, it’s based off of the comics
summary: with tensions rising in Yu Dao, Aang seeks the Princess’s help in an effort to sway Zuko in the right direction
~ part of the fire lilies series ~
Aang’s heart is heavy with dread as he approaches the Southern Water Tribe for the first time since having left it nearly two years ago. Half constructed buildings peer out from the clouds, and as Appa nears closer to land the Avatar can see the statue of the south’s beloved leader. Her permanently etched smile does little to ease his nerves as he mulls over how he’s going to deliver the news to her, and though he hates to break his promise to Zuko he has found lately that some promises aren’t meant to be kept.
The moment the flying bison lands in the snow all the school children are quick to rush forward and excitedly crowd around the animal and the Avatar. In the distance you stand, a delighted smile on your face at the sight of your friend whom you immediately pull into a hug.
“Aang! It’s so good to see you again,” you exclaim before pulling out of the embrace. “Did you get taller?”
“I think so,” he chuckles sheepishly. “It’s nice to see you too, Princess. Or should I say Chief?”
“Please, Chief is only for formal occasions. You can still call me Princess if you’d like, just y/n will do too.”
“I was so sorry to hear about what happened to you,” Aang admits earnestly. “I wish I could have helped.”
“Don’t blame yourself, Aang. It was my decision to keep Koa a secret so that I wouldn’t pull you and Zuko away from your obligations. And everything turned out alright in the end, didn’t it?”
“I suppose it did, and I’m glad you’re alright. The South seems to be doing pretty well,” he notes with a faint smile, enjoying the way your eyes seem to light up at the mention of your home.
“We’ve already accomplished so much in just a short amount of time! The outer tribes are beginning to grow in number and our people have been mingling with those from our sister tribe. Oh, Aang, you have to meet my students! They’ve only been practicing for a few months but some of them have already passed the beginning level and-”
“That all sounds amazing, y/n,” the Avatar admits with a weak smile. However, his strong front doesn’t fool you in the slightest, and you immediately are able to detect that something is wrong, “but I didn’t come here for a friendly visit. There’s... There’s something we need to talk about. It’s about Zuko.”
He doesn’t miss the look that flashes briefly in your eyes at the mention of your boyfriend, and though he can tell how anxious you are Aang admires your ability to remain poised and collected in front of your students.
“Let’s talk in my office,” you utter quietly, and after dismissing the children for the day you and Aang are quick to head inside for a private discussion about the matters at hand.
“I’m so sorry to have to barge in on you like this when you already have so much on your plate but I didn’t have a choice,” Aang explains gently.
“What’s going on Aang?” You ask uneasily, and the worried look on your face doesn’t make things any easier for him. After all you’ve done for him and your friends, he doesn’t have the heart to break yours.
“The night the Harmony Restoration Movement was announced I made two promises to Zuko. I promised him that if things began to get out of hand and history began to repeat itself, I would end his life before he could have the chance to become like his father. The world needs peace and balance, and we can’t have anyone jeopardizing that. You know I’m just a peaceful monk, I couldn’t even kill Ozai, but Zuko is my friend and it meant so much to him that I had no choice but to agree.”
“And the second promise?” You murmur quietly, your mind reeling at the information given to you. Horror and panic flash across your features and you feel nauseous, you feel as if you can’t breathe and the walls are closing in all around you, and a newfound sense of desperation washes over you.
“The second promise was not to tell you. Zuko knew that if you found out you’d delay your return home to try and talk him out of it, and his mind had already been up. He didn’t want to worry you-”
“Why are you telling me this now, Aang? What’s changed?” You interrupt, though you fear you already know the answer. The Avatar refuses to meet your gaze.
“Zuko has withdrawn from the Harmony Restoration Movement and refuses to compromise. If things don’t work themselves out soon I might have to fulfill my promise...”
The room is heavy with tension and deathly silent as you process the news Aang has given you. It doesn’t sound like Zuko at all, and this promise doesn’t sound like Aang either.
“Aang, you’re my friend and I love you. But if you choose to fulfill this promise of yours I’ll never be able to forgive you.”
“Trust me, y/n, I don’t want it to come to that. That’s why I’m here,” he says earnestly. “I’m telling you all of this because I want you to talk to Zuko. You’re the only person he’ll listen to, so maybe you can get through to him and this whole mess can be resolved.”
“Where is Zuko now?”
“The last I heard he’d locked himself away in the palace back at the Fire Nation.”
“Spirits, so much for an honest relationship,” you grumble quietly to yourself. A small, defeated sigh escapes you and you nod. “Alright. Let me get my affairs in order and then I’ll go talk to Zuko.”
“Thank you so much, Princess. I know how hard all of this must be for you, and I wish there was another way but-”
“It isn’t your fault, Aang. At least not entirely. You only did what Zuko asked you to in respect of your friendship, and now in respect of our friendship I ask that you allow me to sway him in the right direction before any decisions are made.”
“Yes, of course,” he nods earnestly, and sensing that you need a moment to yourself, the Avatar excuses himself. “I’ll go make sure Appa is ready for the trip. Just let me know when you’re ready.”
A breath you didn’t know you’d been holding leaves you the moment the door shuts behind Aang, and it takes all of your will power to keep your rising tears at bay. To think that Zuko had gone to the extreme to reassure himself of the fact that he’d never repeat his family’s footsteps broke your heart; Zuko was nowhere close to being the cruel man Ozai had been, and you thought he was past this by now. You were worried about him and how he must be feeling, but you also felt it to be unfair of him to keep such a thing from you. He had been so distraught when he had learned about Koa and after that you had both sworn to tell each other everything no matter what, yet now it seemed Zuko had no intention of keeping that promise to you. Promise. It seemed like such a heavily loaded word now, and you were beginning to resent it entirely. You couldn’t wait another minute, you had to see Zuko.
It takes you no longer than an hour to get your affairs in order— Hakoda and your mother are left in charge to oversee the tribe while you’re away, and Pakku is to continue lessons without your presence. You pack your bag and join Aang on Appa’s saddle, and with the quick utterance of the phrase yip yip the two of you are riding high into the skies and making your way towards the Fire Nation.
The wind blowing through your hair is a bittersweet reminder of your days fighting the war alongside your friends; you had once believed that things would be simpler after the Fire Nation’s defeat, but so far nothing had seemed to be any easier than you had hoped it would be. You wished they were here now, you could really use some reassurance from Sokka or Suki, and you know Katara would probably have just the right thing to say to ease your nerves. Instead, the ride is silent and tense as you journey to see Zuko.
In the throne room sits the Fire Lord, tense and distracted by the millions of thoughts that whiz by in his head. He knew he was making the right decision by allowing his people to remain in Yu Dao, he was their ruler and it was his duty to look after their best interests, and backing out from the Harmony Restoration Movement would prevent the disruption of the peaceful lives they’d created for themselves there. Seeing the Mayor’s family, their daughter born of both Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom heritage, it allowed him to see his own future, one in which he selfishly realized what the movement would mean not only for his people but for himself.
Your portrait sits in his lap, face poised and stoic yet with a hint of a smile on your face, and it is this portrait that brings him solace and comfort during his time of turmoil. He’d purchased the photo from a vendor back in the South during the celebration of your coronation, and looking at it now he couldn’t help but feel guilty. Everything had become such a mess and all he wanted was your comfort; you were busy rebuilding a tribe, and after Zuko had made such a fuss about maintaining honesty between you two he felt foolish to try and tell you now. Surely you’d leave him for it, and he knew he wouldn’t be able to stand that heartache. Not again.
A knock on the door rips his attention away from your portrait and an immediate scowl forms on his features. He’d made it specifically clear that he didn’t want any visitors and was to be left undisturbed. Where were the Kyoshi Warriors to keep away the arrivals?
“I will see no one,” Zuko bellows, shoulders tensing when the door slowly begins to open despite his proclamation. However, when his eyes take in the sight of his beloved the Fire Lord does a double take before immediately relaxing at the presence of his Princess.
“Will the Fire Lord make an exception for me?” You ask with a meek smile, carefully shutting the doors behind you
“Y/n!” Zuko exclaims before scrambling out of his seat and rushing towards you. You can’t help the delighted laugh that leaves you when Zuko lifts your figure off the ground and holds you impossibly close to his chest. Tears well in his eyes as he nestles his face into your shoulder and breathes in the scent of fire lilies and snow.
“It’s nice to know you’ve missed me,” you giggle softly, though your smile fades once Zuko sets you back on the ground and you’re able to see his face. Carefully you rest a hand upon his face, Zuko immediately melting into your touch. “My love, you haven’t been sleeping, have you?”
“How can you tell?” Zuko asks with quiet surprise.
“I can see the restlessness and turmoil in your eyes. You’re troubled.”
“That’s an understatement,” he scoffs quietly. You frown.
“What’s going on with you, Zuko? Aang told me you backed out of the Harmony Restoration Movement.”
“Is that why you’re here?” The Fire Lord replies, a harsh edge suddenly coating his tone. “Just to talk me back into it??”
“I’m here because I’m worried about my boyfriend,” you emphasize, and you don’t miss the look of guilt that flash’s across Zuko’s face for snapping at you. Quieter now, “Aang told me about the promise he made to you. I want to hear your side of the story, and I want to do everything I can to make sure it doesn’t go that far.”
Zuko is silent for a moment, and after a beat passes he nods. No more secrets, it’s time to tell you everything.
You end up in the palace gardens by the pond, loaves of bread in your hands as you enjoy the breeze and feed the turtle ducks. The Kyoshi Warriors stand in the distance to guard you both, and Suki gives you a quiet nod when your eyes meet across the way. You wanted to give Zuko a comforting atmosphere where he could feel safe to talk, the tone of the throne room was a bit too intense for the both of you, and after recalling stories he had told you of his mother you figured this was the perfect spot to do so. It takes him time to gather his thoughts and process his emotions, but you wait patiently until he’s ready.
“I want to start by saying that I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner. I knew you’d worry and drop everything to try and talk me out of something I’d already decided, and I didn’t want to take you away from your people, not again,” Zuko explains quietly. “But my family, selfishness and destruction runs in our blood, and I needed to make sure that I’d never make the same mistakes they did.”
“Zuko,” you utter gently, your hand coming to rest upon his bicep, “you are nothing like your father or your grandfather. You’re a good person, you’ve already proven this time and time again. Yes, you’ve made mistakes, but you’ve also made changes, good changes.”
“I can’t make any more mistakes, y/n. That’s why Aang is there to stop me. But backing out of the Harmony Restoration Movement is not a mistake.”
“Why did you do it?”
“Because of you.”
“Me?” You repeat in bewilderment. “I-I don’t understand.”
“I had the chance to visit Yu Dao and see what my people had created, the life they spent generations building for themselves. As Fire Lord it’s my job to make sure my people are happy, and they are happy— coinciding with earth kingdom citizens. You should have seen it, y/n. Best friends, business partners, families made up of two different nations. I know Aang believes there can’t be any harmony unless the four nations are separate, but Yu Dao proves that that’s not true, and so do we.”
“The mayor’s wife of Yu Dao invited me to stay with them, her an earth bender and her husband a fire bender. They had a daughter and together they were a beautiful family. And do you know what I saw when I was with them?”
“What did you see?” You ask quietly, your eyes welling with tears as you hang onto Zuko’s every word.
“I saw us. I saw you cradling a baby in your arms while you sat in the gardens and watched the older children play. It was peaceful, and even though the odds have always been against us it didn’t matter that the mother of our children was of the Water Tribe and the father was of the Fire nation. All that mattered in that moment was our family. A family that can’t exist if we keep the four nations separate,” Zuko emphasizes desperately. “If it’s selfish of me to base my decision on my own desires then I’ll take the hit, but I’d rather die than ever have to be kept away from you simply because we’re different.”
Zuko’s eyes have grown wide and his shoulders rise and fall with each anxious breath he takes as he gauges your reaction. You’re silent for a long while, your own gaze settled upon the pond as you watch the mother turtle duck look after her ducklings. You wanted to be a mother some day, and you’d be lying if you said you could picture yourself being with anyone other than Zuko. He was it for you, the only person you’d ever want to be with, and no one had any right to tell you otherwise.
“Zuko,” you say quietly, lifting your gaze to stare into his golden irises, “you’re absolutely right.”
“I-I am?” He splutters in response, surprised at the fact that he’s truly in the right for once. He’s always relied on you as a moral compass, so to hear that you agree with him is a weight lifted off of his shoulders.
“You are,” you reaffirm. “How can you have peace if everyone is expected to keep to themselves? That’s not harmony at all. It’s isolating and it’s lonely and it’s sad. Those families shouldn’t be separated, and you need to do whatever you can to keep them together.”
“I will,” Zuko nods quickly. “Will you help me?”
“I’m on your side Zuko, but I can’t fight my friends,” you lament gently. “I’ll try to reason with Aang, and if it comes down to it I’ll stop him from fulfilling his promise to you, but I’m afraid I’ll have to remain neutral.”
“I understand,” he murmurs gently. He takes your hands in his own and gives them a gentle squeeze. “Thank you for hearing my side and having my back.”
“I always will, Zuko. You’ll never have to worry about that,” you reply, smiling as he pulls you into a tight hug. Despite the conflict going on between your boyfriend and your friends, you have a feeling that everything is going to work itself out. It has to. It must.
And it will.
| tags: @rainteslerrrr @simpinforsukka @sirkekselord @protect-remus @oddment-niwit-blubber-tweak @thebluelcdy @royahllty @the-firebender-girl @coldlilheart @ilovespideyyy @yiyibetch @eridanuswave @lammello @a-monsters-love @knaite-solo @draqondance @taeeemin @user12345321 @just--artemis--with--ghost @titaniafire @dekahg @emberislandplayers @kikaninchen-2 @lozzybowe @izzieserra @melacholy @music-geek19 @thia-aep @thyunnamed @haylaansmi @nataliahaslosthershit @idkdude776 @aangsupremacy @thirstyforsometea @ihaveaproblem98 @brown-eyed-thang @djskfkdkkf @xapham @yeetletzgetitjae @misnmatchedsox @chewymoustachio @that-bucket-hat-gal @chilifrylizard2 @kyomihann @kaylove12 @kiwihoee @freggietale @neighborhoodpansexualdisaster @noodlesfluffy @moon-spirit-yue @bubblegum-bee-otch |
#the promise#zuko#prince zuko#zuko x reader#prince zuko x reader#zuko imagine#prince zuko imagine#aang#aang x reader#zuko and the princess#avatar the last airbender#avatar: the last airbender#atla#atla x reader#atla imagine#fire lilies#au
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What do you consider demonizing Azula vs objectively describing her less flattering traits and harmful actions?
Honestly, it all comes down to word choice and language at the end of the day imo. If someone’s character analysis is presented with a certain tone I’m more inclined to say that they are demonizing her. For example saying that “ as a child Azula demonstrated red flags for mental illness and should have been helped” is a lot less antagonizing than “Azula was born evil, she liked to tease and bully Zuko from the start.” One of these statements addresses the complexities of her situation (a broken home and several poor adult influences/examples) while the other basically places full blame on a child. Things like that. I really, really do believe that it’s all about the tone an Azula analysis is presented in.
Personally I would agree that some of her childhood behaviors, like setting Zuko’s pants on fire and burning some of the bushes in the place garden were huge red flags. They are harmful actions. BUT a lot of those could be 1. attention getting antics because her mother usually paid more attention to her when she misbehaved. 2. Her emulating Ozai and his attitude. And stuff like, “dad’s going to kill you.” Is very much Azula mimicking what her father demonstrated as well as her father actively rewarding her for behaviors like that. These are definitely harmful actions that started getting worse as she got older. An analysis like that is fair and not demonizing imo, because it recognizes that Azula is still a kid and it doesn’t write off the possibility for her to unlearn some of these behaviors later in life with the right help.
While something like, “even child Azula is a insane, look what she did to Zuko! What kind of sociopath sings-songs about someone’s dad killing them!?” Here is an example of using buzzwords and implying that mental illness as something that automatically makes someone evil. It puts all blame on Azula while factoring out the adults in her life that either sat passive or actively taught her these behaviors. This, imo, is demonizing.
One of my biggest peeves at the moment is when they say that fucking Ozai and Zhao are more redeemable. Zhao was literally seen in the Avatar universe version of Hell. It is canon that he did not get redemption. So by extension it is canon that he is NOT more redeemable than Azula whose fate is still ambiguous. And there is not one argument that can convince me that the grown ass man who burned his own son’s face off while tearing apart his self-worth is more redeemable than a fourteen year old girl. There is not one argument that can convince me that a man who made a weapon out of his daughter and (heavily implied) abused his wife (at least emotionally) is more redeemable than a fourteen year old girl. Usually I try to keep an open mind and be nice about my opinions in these discourses but I just can’t with this one; I think that this particular statement is stupid as hell. Ozai and (especially in canon and in Hell) Zhao are NOT more redeemable than Azula. Bye, miss me with that dumb shit.
Some more specific examples that come to mind are;
When people make Azula out to be a murderer and/or a sadist
The turtle duck thing
Baby Azula.
The murder thing drives me nuts because, first of all, she’s a solider. She’s at war. Her one kill was a combat kill, he came back to life, and he was entering the Avatar state. Now correct me if I’m wrong but Aang killed Zhao in the Avatar state. You can’t tell me that no one died or was seriously injured in the episode ‘The Avatar State’. So of course she’s gonna shoot him down; he could have killed her just as well. He had no control over the Avatar state at the time.
Furthermore she has the least amount of collateral damage. And one of the smallest body counts. Aang has killed so many background characters via the Avatar state. Sokka killed Combustion man. Sokka, Suki, and Toph killed several soldiers by crashing those war blimps in the finale. I think that you get the point. But none of them get called murders like Azula does. Everyone seems to be well aware that all of those were combat kills. The reason they get called soldiers instead of murders is because they are protagonists.
Azula is not a murder. She is a solider. Combat kills are different than murder. They are horrible and unfortunate all the same but it isn’t murder.
And then there’s the sadist claim. At best I think that that’s a misinterpretation of character. At least from my personal POV. I've seen it argued that she’s not a sadist but only because it’s more coinvent not to be; that she would be one if she had time for it. But I think that a true sadist wouldn’t give a shit if it’s not convenient. If she were a sadist I feel like she would go out of her way to hurt people like Chit Sang even if it’s not necessary. Azula does only what’s necessary and that’s it. I do think that Azula is merciful. Perhaps not conventionally so but she isn’t cruel. She takes prisoners and as far as we’ve seen on screen those prisoners aren’t treated particularly bad (by Azula anyhow). She doesn’t torture her prisoners and she doesn’t kill them.
Now, I will give more of an open mind to people who say that she is an EMOTIONAL sadist of sorts. I do think that she gets a kick out of scaring people and bullying people. I’m on the fence with this argument though because how much of her getting a kick out of Zuko’s suffering is her also being relieved that it is not her. And how much of it is more run of the mill teenage bullying? This is one thing where I’m more than willing to hear from the other side.
I think that the murderer and sadism thing is very much an attempt to demonize her. I think that it can be an exaggeration of her unflattering behaviors. I’m not saying that the things she did aren’t harmful but I do think that some people over exaggerate them or make up stuff that isn’t there; I’ve seen people state that she ‘probably killed so many soldiers off screen’. There is no canon evidence to support this? Likewise these are generally the same people who tell Azula fans that they can’t say Azula was abused off screen.
The other big one is the turtleduck one. Zuko demonstrates how Azula feeds turtleducks. He throws a piece of bread. I don’t know where the rock thing came from. Furthermore I very much think that Azula chucking a loaf of bread at a turtleduck is just a small child being a little shit. When I was like five or six I yeeted a good half a loaf at a duck because, “the more food they get the happier they are, right????” To me that just seems more like a small child who has not learned impulse control than a child who likes hurting animals. This whole argument, at least imo, is actively demonizing a child for actions that aren’t exactly uncommon for children. The problem is when the child doesn’t learn that yeeting whole loafs at turtleducks is a bad thing. THIS is where I see a fair argument forming because (as of late) Azula didn’t seem to have unlearned this behavior. This is an example of one of those red flags I mentioned in the first paragraph. Which is where some nuance and critical thinking needs to come in. The complexities that I mentioned above about how the child isn’t 100% to blame here. The adults in her life should have tried to teach her better and/or Ozai need to fuck on off and stop teaching her to do wrong.
And finally baby Azula. I’ll just drop a link here because I already talked about this. But the tone of The Search literally tried to demonize a whole baby. The way the narrative decided frame her was really unnecessary. I really don’t see how this scene contributed to the story other than to remind readers that ‘Azula was always evil, see!’ Nevermind that she’s sleeping in a whole crib. Because that’s a literal infant.
Anyhow I might come back to this later to add more or clarify but I’m about to make lunch so I’ll end this here for now. Feel free to discuss further. I definitely don’t mind hearing from the other side so long as arguments are respectful and open minded.
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EQUALLY LUCKY
(PLEASE DON’T REBLOG!)
Warnings: Internal conflict / Mental struggles.
Pairing: Azula x f!Reader
Characters: Azula, Zuko, Izumi.
Requested: Yes!
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters, nor the gif. Credit to the owners.
Summary: You get a glimpse into Azula’s life years after Sozin’s Comet, with you by her side.
A/N: This was my first time making an x reader with Azula, so i’m very nervous to post this lol. It got way more angsty than i intended it to be, but i also wanted to try and stay true to Zula’s character to some extent. And i very much hope i did. Thank you for the great request @the-desert-shewolf i hope this is what you were looking for.
“Zuzu, you don’t look so good!”
The last Agni Kai. It was a day that was forever branded into your mind. You could still remember the heat of her flames. How her patient, strategic mind slipped into a rash and impulsive demeanor. She’d fataly wounded her own brother. Ready to do the same to Katara, if she hadn’t stopped her. And that was when you’d found her. Chained to a grid on the floor like an animal, crying in despair and spitting fire like a dragon. Nobody dared to go near her for hours. Nobody but you. “You need to stop, Azula,” You’d cried tears of your own as you forcefully hugged her, body winding against yours. Still trying to free herself. Still trying to fight. Still trying to win. “Please... I’m begging you...” Her whimper broke your heart. You were all that she had left.
There were times when not even a heartfelt “I love you,” could save her. Instead it was interpreted as a further manipulation through her mother. The so called ‘Puppetmaster’. She felt so far out of reach.
But not all days were bad. Sometimes Azula remembered. In the bright hours she recalled your supportive actions and words. You always hoped they would give her some kind of strength. And it wasn’t any easier to face those hardships yourself. To love someone who was hurt so very deeply.
“Being damaged doesn’t give you the right to abuse others,”
A lot of people called her crazy. Called you crazy for feeling affection towards the princess. But what were you supposed to do? You couldn’t just ignore them. Or turn them off. It wasn’t possible. It wasn’t what you wanted. All you were trying to do was to care for a person you’d known since you were a kid. A childhood friend, teenage crush and an adult lover. Where Zuko had been saved by Iroh, Azula had been saved by you. But it wasn’t quite the same. You'd just been a little kid yourself at the time.
“Are you going to see Azula?” You nodded, smiling at Zuko over your shoulder. The robes of the Fire Lord really suited him. “I am. I want to surprise her with a picnic,” He raised a brow, curiously leaning over the little basket on the table before you. You’d spent hours picking out different kinds of tarts and snacks, trying not to get in the way of the cooks.
It was a perfect summer day. The climate was warm and mild. Your timing couldn’t have been better.
Years had passed since Sozin’s Comet occured. Years full of anxiety and anger. But finally you’d arrived in a part of your life, where things were looking up again. The time spend supporting Zuko as the Fire Lord hadn’t been wasted. Both of you worked together on a daily basis. Especially when it came to his sister. Despite everything she had done, he couldn’t deny that he held a soft spot for her. So it was no wonder that she resided in one of the finest suites of the palace. After being monitored and treated for ages, her mental heatlh finally regained stability.
“She’s lucky to have you, (Y/N),” He said, attempting to steal one of the tarts only to earn a slap on the hand. Grumbling he retreated, watching as you checked the contents again, before closing the lid. “Maybe,” You turned around to face your friend. “But i’d like to think we’re equally lucky,”
Your picnic was set up in the gardens, by the fountain, under the old apple tree.
Her whole life Azula only gained approval from two people. Her father and you. The few moments of empathy she experienced were supported by you. If she had a nightmare late at night, you’d crawl into bed with her. When you reduced the choice between you two to physical affection, Ozai couldn’t keep up with you. The mixed messages her parents gave her as a child were what lead her into misery. But her best friend, someone of the same age, stuck by her.
Eventually you’d won her over. Relationships were rekindled. Needs were met.
And right this moment, you were beyond glad that you had. “There you are, sugarplum,” An involuntary grin spread on your face. You’d been so busy with displaying everything perfectly that you hadn’t heard her come up behind you. “I see you haven’t grown tired of the petnames,” That nickname would truly stick with you for life. She’d once used it mockingly, back when you visited Ember Island. And she did ever since. It was always used with an edge of sarcasm, but never empty of love.
“You wouldn’t have it any other way, would you (Y/N)?” You turned around to her, reaching for one of her hands. Her fingers intwined themselves with yours. “Of course not, Azula,” Pulling her towards your little arrangement, you sat down on the blanket, leaning against the strong stem of the tree and patting the spot beside you.
Since her recovery she’d formed a habit of over-sharing her feelings and often apologizing more than nessecary. Those were new sides that you had to grow accustomed to, but that weren’t unwelcome. Nevertheless you were relieved that she also kept some of her wit. She knew she could be free with you. Didn’t need to fear any jugdement. Some days were harder than others. On those Azula would cry a lot. And so would you. You couldn’t stand seeing her so broken.
“Keep it together, (Y/N),” She would say at first, making you laugh through your tears. “It’s okay,” You’d reassure her time and time again. “Healing takes time,”
It was hard to face all those bottled up emotions after such an amout of time. It wasn’t her favorite way to deal with things at first, but she quickly found it helped. And it didn’t take long for her to tell you.
“Sharing your tears doesn’t make you weak,” She’d repeat your words in her darkest times. It brought her comfort. Kept her from going back to her old ways.
The princess moved to sit in the spot next to you, but she never made it that far. Small feet rushed through the grass, running straight into her legs. A tiny, little person curled around them, hugging her as far as she could reach. “Zula!” They squeaked.
The so-called ‘Zula’ raised a brow and crossed her arms, looking down at the little troublemaker. “What do you think you’re doing here?” The girl only lifted her hands in response. You stiffled a smile as Azula picked her up. “Where is your father? Didn’t he want to spend time with you?” Yes he did. And he arrived right on time. “Izumi?” Zuko looked around, searching for her, until he spotted you. The princess was snuggling into her aunt’s chest, a place that always felt warm. You knew it best. “There you are!” His sister raised a brow, tapping her foot on the ground, when he walked up to the three of you. When they stood next to each other, the family-resemblance was undeniable. They shared the same shade of amber eyes, the soft umber strands, and the fair, spotless skin.
It was another person that had helped Azula on her journey. Izumi.
The girl got to experience the childhood the siblings never had. She was proof that princesses didn’t have to be perfect all the time. Nobody did. And she loved her aunt without any doubt or fear.
“You really need to keep better watch on her, Zuzu. This is already the fifth time this has happened,” The Fire Lord nodded, holding his hands out. “Of course. It won’t happen again, i promise,” Azula tried handing her niece over, who whined, clinging to her neck. “But i mean, now that we’re already here, we could also just join you on your picnic,” He argued, pointing to his daughter who held onto Azula’s clothes with all her might. “Izumi seems to like the idea,” You squinted your eyes at him. This was definetely not a coincedence. Accidents don’t repeat themselves that often. “Admit it, Zuko. You’ve purposefully told Izumi that her aunt is here, only so you could get your clutches on our food again!” You’d connected the dots and read the situation. He’d taken a glimpse into your basket every time before you went out the past times. Particular interest always occured when it contained those delicous fruit tarts. With rose pedals on top. He gasped. “No, i didn’t!”
“He’s lying,” Azula said, rolling her eyes. Izumi proceeded to tell her father that “Lying is bad!” which earned her a gentle pat on the head from her aunt.
Nevertheless they swayed you to share some of the ‘goodies’ as Izumi liked to call them. Finally you had Azula were she belonged. Next to you. Her niece sat in her lap, munching happily as your lover ran her hand through her hair. It had taken some time until she’d been allowed to see Izumi at first. Zuko and her mother hadn’t let them meet each other until his sister was completely stabile. Additionally he didn’t want to put Azula through something she couldn’t handle at the time. Their first meeting had been nervewracking for everyone who watched, but an eye-opening event for the two princesses. They seemed comfortable. Content with each other. Sometimes Azula would act as if Izumi bothered her. But she couldn’t deny that she was fond of the girl.
It was also no secret that Azula was clearly the ‘coolest aunt’. At least from Izumi’s perspective. She looked up to her as the strongest female firebender, to be known. Of course she was still too young to fight. But that didn’t stop her from constantly begging the siblings for stories. “Can you tell me a story?” She’d ask, making a pout. “I’ve told you stories countless times,” Her aunt replied, booping her upturned nose. “Another one, pleeease?” Azula sighed. Zuko chimed in, coming to her aid. He started telling the tale of the ‘Dance of Dragons’ in great detail, paying no mind to his sisters sarcastic comments interrupting the tale. Izumi was exstatic about both of them engaging in the narrative. When the story was completed, he beamed at Azula. “Remember when mother used to take us to watch the Ember Island Players perform this play? Afterwards you and i would reenact every scene. I don’t get why i always had to be the dark water spirit, tough,” His sister scoffed, not hiding her gleefull smirk. “Clearly, i made a better dragon emperor,” Her niece laughed at their antics, clapping her little hands. You could comprehend her joy. It was hilarious to have them both participate.
Unfortunatly, Izumi couldn’t escape her duties forever. “Bye, auntie Zula! Bye auntie (Y/N)!” She waved when Zuko carried her back inside. Upon her loopsided smile, Azula couldn’t help but grin, waving back. It wasn’t a sneer or a grimace. It was a genuine expression of so much beauty, that it took your breath away. When she turned back to face you, she furrowed her brows. “Why are you looking at me like that?” There were a ton of reasons. You didn’t even know were to start. So your delight had to be expressed differently. Her lips weren’t far from yours. It took a mere second to connect them. They were soft, as always. She tasted sweet, like the pastries she’d eaten before. “You’re my everything,” you mumbled, her lips still brushing yours. You see her eyes watering as she struggled to speak her next words. They reminded her of all that she’d endured. And yet you’re important enough for her to pull through. “I love you, (Y/N),”
A moment later the tears were replaced by a smile. Her hands came to rest on your cheeks, one of her thumbs running over your bottom lip, removing the lipstick hers had left. You yelped as she abruptly grabbed your shoulders, pulling you to rest your head in her lap.
She worked to untangle your locks, massaging your scalp in the process. Her nails lightly scraped your skin every so often. It felt relaxing. Heavenly. The smell of smoke and leather teased your senses. Something so familiar that it was like home. You allowed yourself to close your eyes for a moment, being at peace with just... feeling her. Being in her presence.
“Agni, you look just as self satisfied as my niece,” She playfully remarked.
The slight breeze made the leaves rustle softly. “Why wouldn’t i?” You chuckled, slowly opening your eyes to look up at her. Her slim fingers hadn’t stopped spoiling you. She looked stunning in the midday sun. Her eyes glowed like molten gold, framed by long, dark lashes, casting shadows on her cheeks. “I’m being pampered by the princess herself. I consider myself to be very lucky,” Her lips pulled into a smile as she caught your gaze.
“You’re right, (Y/N). We are lucky,”
Because everything you did for her, she would return tenfold.
Despite all the hardships, neglect and abuse she’d suffered, Azula had managed to get out on the other side.
Stronger, and better than ever.
Reconnected to the world around her, she remained one of the most powerful fire benders. Her blue flames offering protection wherever you’d go.
When she’d first felt affection towards you, she thought you were her weakness.
Now she knew you were her strength.
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