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"Phil Diffy, you are the most wonderful boy I've ever known"

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I will NEVER understand people who say “Zuko was the only one who supported Katara”

I’m sure I’ve said this before, but ZKs ALWAYS bring up The Southern Raiders as this huge revolutionary moment where “Zuko supports Katara like no one else did”, as you can see in this garbage TikTok.

I genuinely cannot comprehend how people can be THIS delusional.

While Katara does ultimately get some closure confronting the man who killed her mom, and it was nice of Zuko to help give that closure. It’s literally the LEAST he can do for Katara to make up for the crap he’s done before. Him going out of his to make amends with Katara in NO WAYS means he’s the only one to support Katara.

Re-watching A:TLA, all the members of the Gaang were on the same relative playing field, the were all equals, they all pulled their weight, sometimes one member would have to take charge, be it Sokka in The Library or Katara in The Desert, but they were a team. 

I have no idea where this notion that Katara has do EVERYTHING comes from. 

If taking Katara somewhere is such a big deal, Aang literally does this in the first darn episode, so she can learn waterbending, which is highly important to her culture, he gives himself to save Katara’s village from Zuko. He willingly lets Katara take Appa, encouraging her to go with Zuko.

In terms of emotional support, Aang comforts Katara when Jet dies, Sokka comforts her when Aang is captured at the North Pole, both comfort her when she bloodbends. Aang even empathizes with Katara’s anger, by relating to similar moments where she comforted him. 

These ZKs are really gonna act like Katara had NO support and all her friends were just dicks.

F off 😂

I also HATE how these supposed Katara always try to make her episode where she confronts her grief head-on and is pushed far into uncharacteristic, yet well deserved anger as some Wattpad Twilight Katara X Zuko fanfic. 

Most of the things these Zutara fanatics care about regarding this episode is about how “Katara now has a big strong man in her life to help her, because she’s to tired, has to hide her true feelings and does everything alone”. Again, ignoring the fact that Katara does have good friends and family who support her and NEVER pushed her feelings aside (when she’s angry, she’ll let you know), making her whole arc about what guy she likes is so reductive and borderline sexist.

Lastly these Zutara fanatics always use THIS episode to showcase how Zuko is supposedly “the only one who understands Katara and loves her ‘true self’ unlike Aang”.

Zuko doesn’t even know Katara, heck I don’t think he even knew her name until he spoke with Sokka. Aang and Sokka have known her the longest out of the Gaang, they’ve seen all sides of her character, they know that taking someone’s life (horrible person or otherwise) could have a bad effect on her and are simply concerned, Aang himself was in a similar situation in The Desert. 

Katara being consumed by anger and rage to the point of bloodbending and telling her brother “she didn’t love their mom like she did” is not her “true self” any more than Aang’s “true self” was him harming a  buzzard-wasp, lashing out at his friends and gearing up to destroy some sandbenders in The Desert. They’re not wrong for feeling angry, it makes sense why they’d be, they are three-dimensional characters, but they’re the result of are extenuating circumstances.

I’ve seen plenty of ZKs say “Zuko was gonna let Katara make her own decision, he trusted she wouldn’t lose herself”. Lemme set the record straight, Zuko fully expected Katara to off Yon-Rha. When Aang warns Katara about taking vengeance and urges her to let out her anger without harming him, Zuko mocks this idea and openly admits that Aang was right and violence wasn’t the answer. Aang was wrong about Katara needing to forgive Yon-Rha, especially seeing as the killer felt no remorse for his actions, but Katara made her own choice.

I will never be convinced that these types of Zutara shippers actually care about Katara. If she ain’t next to Zuko, she’s pretty much worthless to these people.

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THIS WILL ALWAYS BE CANON TO ME!

In a perfect world Jess and Leslie would end up together. They would have their own comic book publisher named "Terabithia ", and they would create their own comics. Jess's artwork,Leslie's writing, creativity and both of their imagination. Created carefully in Terabithia itself, sitting in their treehouse. Like Hogwarts,Half blood camp,Terabithia would also provide escape. It would provide home with Leslie and Jess as King and Queen forever🤍

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I do find it annoying how a lot of Zutara fans tweak the character's stories, personalities and even the timelines to suit their own needs.

Once again, there's nothing wrong with fanon and headcanons, however if looking through the lense of canon, you're objectively wrong.

I ended up stumbling on a post from a Zutara shipper. (At this point I'm regretfully considering not following the tags for Zuko or Katara because I get way too much Zutara content lol) I'm not replying directly to her because I don't want this to turn into an argument, and I know she doesn't take criticism very well.

Ok, So let's break this down.

The character who was first out of the group to trust Zuko?

I'm quite sure this is referring to the scene in Ba Sing Se's caves. And yes, that is a very important scene. I think it's a very important scene preceeding Zuko's 'relapse'. It shows how he's matured during his time in Ba Sing Se and therefore it serves to add to our dismay when he joins Azula. I adore the fact that Zuko's journey to redemption is not linear, it certainly adds a lot to the character and shows us how his trauma affected him.

It's also a horrific moment for Katara. To have her worldview on Zuko and firebenders as a whole challenged, and then for it to go blowing up in her face. It rips open old wounds of her childhood. It refreshes her resentment of Zuko and the Fire Nation as a whole. It parallels the death of her mother when Aang dies due to Azula's lighting and she is unable to do anything about it. It places her back in that spot of helplessness. Even though she's grown up, even though she's a master waterbender, she still comes a hair's breadth to losing one of the most important people in her life.

No wonder she hated Zuko so much after this.

It's an important moment for both characters, but I wouldn't say it is that in a romantic sense. It's a sweet, hopeful moment that then turns absolutely horrific and visceral for both parties.

I could argue that there are other characters who could be given the title of 'first to trust Zuko'. Funnily, Appa being one of them lol.

But other characters trusting Zuko dovetails nicely into the next point.

The character who emotionally connects to Zuko?

Well, technically, I'd argue that most members of the Gaang connect emotionally on one level or another with him?

But I'd argue that Aang is the person Zuko connected with the most. Aang is Zuko's parallel. Aang is the first person to reach out to Zuko. Aang is the person who showed mercy to Zuko, multiple times. Aang is the person who valued Zuko's life, the life of someone whose whole life goal is to capture him.

This was also an incredibly important moment to Zuko. This is the thing he brings up when trying to convince the Gaang to let him join.

Zuko: Why aren't you saying anything? You once said you thought we could be friends. You know I have good in me.

The character Zuko feels safest letting his guard down around?

It's Mai. Love her or hate her, her relationship with Zuko is incredibly important to him. Maiko isn't my favourite Zuko ship, in full honesty. But even platonically, Mai and Zuko are one another's reprieve from their respective shitty lives.

People often talk about Katara touching Zuko's scar while discussing healing his scar, however one could argue that she did so as a medical examination. Mai touching Zuko's scar is a casual thing, neither of them really make a big deal of it and that's the beauty of it.

I'm mainly talking out of my own personal experience, as someone with a huge amount of burn scars, but there is a world of difference between someone inspecting my scars like Katara did and simply accepting them as a part of me, like Mai does for Zuko.

With Mai, Zuko isn't the scarred banished prince, Ozai's son or Azula's brother. He's just Zuko. And they speak freely with one another, arguing like real people do. Often, being comfortable having arguments is actually a sign of being comfortable with one another.

The character who helps Zuko heal from his trauma?

Once again, this is a bit of a flawed question. By the end of the show, Zuko isn't even fully healed, in my opinion. He has made leaps and bounds on the road to recovery, but when he will truly heal if ever is yet to be seen.

Zuko's journey to recovery includes plenty of people. This includes Iroh, Aang, Song and Jin. People who show him the error of his coping mechanism. Who challenge his worldview, who coax him out of the his shell of pain and anger.

The character known for showing most compassion to others?

Yes, Katara's compassion is a huge part of her character. Her need to help and protect those who cannot do that for themselves cannot be understated.

But Aang's compassion for others and all beings is just as great, if not greater than Katara's. Compassion and nonviolence are huge parts of his culture and his own philosophy.

Aang: Wait, we can't just leave him here. Sokka: Sure we can. Let's go. Aang :No, if we leave him he'll die. Aang airbends himself off Appa and retrieves Zuko, bringing him to Appa. Sokka: [Sarcastically.] Yeah, this makes a lot of sense. Let's bring the guy who's constantly trying to kill us.

Friendly reminder that Aang could've absolutely wrecked Ozai, but held back because his own moral compass was so powerful. Hell, he was friendly and nice to Azula, the woman who literally killed him.

This is why Aang and Katara work so well together. They're both incredibly compassionate people who will immediately jump in to help others in need. Like they did during the Painted Lady, destroying the factiry together.

The character who primarily bears the burden of having to step up into a parental role?

I think "parental role" is an incredibly vague term. There's a lot of things that go into a "parental role". Katara plays a stereotypically "maternal" role, while someone who plays a "paternal" one would probably be Sokka.

Katara deals with very "homemaking" tasks like sewing and cooking, etc. And Sokka often takes on the role of leader, hunter, gatherer and also protector, despite being a nonbender.

This coincides nicely with their core childhood traumas. The loss of Katara's mother impacted her greatly, leading her to have to step up into a motherly role. While Sokka was clearly heavily traumatised by his father departing and the crushing responsibility of having to care for his entire village.

Sexism also probably played a part in this dichotomy.

The character who represses their emotions to be strong for others?

I'd argue that this could apply to all the members of the Gaang in some capacity.

Aang's pain is something most of us will never experience and cannot hope to understand. The complete horrific destruction of his culture and home followed him through the entire show. He was entitled to his grief and rage, yet he supressed it. We see during Appa's kidnapping, how easy it would be for Aang to rage, to let himself be destructive. And yet, he wakes up every day and chooses to smile and goof off, because his friends need someone to remind them how to be children.

Sokka puts on a very impressive bravado, despite having a lot of insecurities. However, as the oldest member of the Gaang (pre Zuko) he puts on a facade of the confident and unbothered older brother. Even if he's the butt of almost every joke, he still keeps that demeanour up, letting it slip only a few times.

I'd actually argue that Toph is the person whom this label fits best. While we know Toph as witty, callous and strong, we have to remember that she kept up the facade of her parents' good, helpless little blind girl for no reason other than her mother and father's comfort. She actually hides a lot of her hurt, covering it up with a prickly exterior.

I want to do longer think pieces about Toph and Katara so apologies if this isn't complete.

I'm actually baffled by the idea of Katara repressing her emotions. She's actually quite straightforward and open about her feelings. She yells and feels a lot of emotions and lets them be heard. She gets angry and sad. She's actually kinda bitchy sometimes and that's honestly why I love her so much.

The whole inciting incident of the show was her getting so pissed off she somehow pulls a giant iceberg from the bottom of the sea.

She is anything but repressed.

She is angry.

She's angry at the fire nation, at Sokka, at her father, at men, and with good right to be so.

This is what makes her an amazing character and one who broke the mould of a lot of female characters at the time. Her anger and unrestrained emotions rang true with a lot of watchers at the time. I'm not sure why this is being taken away from her rather than celebrated.

I reiterate the point I made at the beginning of this post: there is nothing wrong with headcanons and fanon interpretations for one's enjoyment. I do find it a bit odd when it changes a character too much (because then, why not just create an oc?) but it's all in good fun. However, you shouldn't push that onto other people and how they perceive canon and you certainly shouldn't use it to take away from other characters. It's a very unfair way of entering discourse.

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No idea who's the writer of this post, but thank you 😭

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I said it before on a post of mine, but in Part 1 of Sozin’s Comet, both Zuko and Aang get extremely angry and frustrated due to the upcoming final battle.

Aang gets angry at the others verbally, and chooses to leave to figure out the situation himself.

Zuko starts burning his surroundings and shoots fire at Aang to “teach him a lesson”.

Guess who gets more flak from the Zutara brigade.

People on this site be yapping about aangs temper while convenitely pressing delete on Zukos bad temper to make him come off as the more mature person . fake ass Zuko fans can't admit this boy got a bad temper and isn't the mature soft boy they praise him as

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Aang, he’s just better than Zuko.

For Katara anyway.

Frankly even in Book 3, the season where Zuko was at his best, Aang was still kinder and more altruistic than Zuko. 

In Sozin’s Comet (Part 1) both Aang and Zuko are driven to a rage breaking point due to the stress of the comet approaching and the others not taking the situation seriously enough, the others want to have fun at the beach while Zuko is concerned about Ozai’s genocidal plan, whereas Aang is concerned about having to kill Ozai, something the others don’t fully understand. Zuko gets violent and destructive, burning everything and attacking Aang to “teach him a lesson”, while Aang is genuinely angry which is verbally directed at the others (even Katara who trying to help), and so he leaves the situation to think out his dilemma. Guess who gets more flack from that side of the “fandom”.

You cannot convince me that Aang hating Zutara weirdos genuinely think Zuko is a kinder person than Aang simply because he learned familial abuse, violence, imperialism and colonialism were wrong and sought to improve himself. Or that he’s more mature than Aang for those same reason and because he’s less joyful. Zuko’s always been rather temperamental, even post-redemption arc.

They like Zutara for superficial reasons, nothing more. All of their media-illiterate “reasons” is amounts to nothing but misunderstanding The Southern Raiders.

These people will say Zuko is the only who supported and understood Katara. Lemme set the record straight, Zuko does a total of three significant “supportive” things for Katara, that’s it. 

He has one moment of empathy when she mentions her mother dying in the cave, which is nice. She considers healing his wound and he ends betraying her. The way the Zutara shippers go on, you’d think they kissed in the cave like Oma and Shu.

Oh, wait.

Not only that but Zuko himself never reflects back on that moment with any remorse, he never apologizes to Katara, if anything HE gets annoyed when Katara is rightfully pissed off at him much later. Zuko is “the only one who understands Katara” right.

Anti-Aang Zutara morons LOVE to bring up Zuko taking Katara to confront Yon-Rha as if it’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever done for Katara as if it’s the only time Katara was ever cared for. 

HOLY GLAZE BATMAN!

The MAIN reason Zuko did was specifically because he wanted Katara to stop hating him. He isn’t concerned about this will affect Katara about what choices she’s gonna make when she confronts this guy, or even if Sokka wants to tag along (he was kinda sidelined despite Kya being HIS MOM too). 

Both Aang and Sokka are concerned for Katara not because “they idealize her.” They’ve known Katara the longest, They saw her break down when bloodbending, they don’t want her to do something that will mentally break her later on.

The only time Zuko shows genuine support and kindness in the episode is when he checks on Katara when she’s in control of Appa and when he hears exactly what happened to her mom, he shows genuine sympathy and understanding. 

Cool. But this ONE moment in no way means he’s the only person who supports Katara.

He also saves her from Azula’s lightning. Great, really shows how far Zuko’s come as a person. But saving Katara’s life isn’t something exclusive to Zuko. Aang saved Katara too many times, just as she did for him.

Objectively speaking, Aang DOES support Katara, more times than Zuko. 

If taking Katara somewhere is so very important (in regard to her tribe’s colonization no less), in the first darn episode Aang willingly agrees to take her to the North Pole to learn Waterbending. He’s nothing but supportive to Katara in regards to her Waterbending, supporting her in moments of insecurity, refusing to learn from someone who’s openly discriminatory to Katara and cheers her on when fighting the discriminator.

He goes out of his way for Katara several times throughout the series, going through hell and high water to get frozen frogs to cure Katara’s illness, securing her lost necklace which he knows is important to her culture, surrenders himself to Zuko so that he’ll leave Katara’s tribe, helps her commit eco-terrorism when she masquerades as the Painted Lady, inviting her to dance when she feels left out, leaving the Guru specifically to save HER, etc.

If it wasn’t clear already Aang cares about Katara emotionally, he calls her Sifu when she points out he’s never done so before, when he walls himself off from his emotions, much to Katara’s dismay, he later tells Katara that she was right about not losing sight of hope and his feelings (especially for Appa and for her) which she greatly moves her, when Jet died and Katara was forced to bloodbend Aang comforted her, simply by placing his hand on her shoulder, letting her know he was there, which she appreciated.

It’s thanks to Aang that Zuko even joined their team at all and even then, he specifically asks Katara if it’s okay (seeing as she feels so strongly about it) and she only agrees to go through with it because of Aang, which he appreciates. 

People use The Southern Raiders as an example of Aang not understanding Katara, when if anything, it’s the opposite.

Aang himself knows what it’s life to feel “rage and pain” and appeals to Katara by brining up times he not only felt grief loosing his entire nation, his father figure, and Appa, the only living thing from his time and culture, all of which Katara comforting Aang over this by relating her own grief to his. Both have lost people they care about to the Fire Nation, both are kind people who once let themselves be driven by rage and pain, both are the last benders of their tribe. Even with Aang being concerned for Katara, he doesn’t invalidate her anger, he encourages her to confront her oppressor and even though she doesn’t forgive him, he accepts this. 

In addition to everything else, Aang and Katara simply just bring out the best in each other, they’re friends first, they have fun together (penguin sledding started it all), they both have each other backs, they work extremely well together in combat as a battle couple, they both care deeply about the other and while the both admire each other strongly, they have an equal partnership and love each other flaws and all. 

With all that said, can you really say Zuko was the only one who supported and understood Katara, because (aside from The Southern Raiders) he didn’t do anything super significant and factually speaking Aang clearly understood and supported Katara more than Zuko ever did.

Heck, even Sokka who was initially rather rude and dismissive of Katara in the first episode did more for Katara than Zuko as the show went on. Supporting her desire to save Aang in Episode 2, supporting her saving Haru, throwing hands with Aang when the later burned her, comforting her when she was sad about Aang’s capture at the North Pole, acknowledging how much Katara did for him when their mom died, purely so Toph would leave her alone, he was was good brother.

The Zutara brigade will cling to three moments where Zuko did anything for Katara because of the #aesthetic of their mid ship. Meanwhile they act like Aang not only did anything for Katara, but treated her like garbage, by naming three moments, all of which he either apologized for or realized he was wrong. 

They only like the idea of Zutara in their Wattpad fanfics, as opposed to what Zuko and Katara’s relationship actually is and no matter how many times they deny it, it’s primarily based on aesthetic and superficial reasons.

If Aang was 16 like Zuko, they’d lap up all those Kataang moments like crazy, even Aang kissing Katara in EIP (which was bad) given how much they love Zuko kidnapping Katara (I’ll save you from the pirates).

If Zuko was 12 like Aang, Zutara wouldn’t even be a thing, especially by how immature and quick to anger Zuko is for a good chunk of the show. They’d see Katara try to heal Zuko and think “it’s a mom caring for her child”, they’d see Zuko get mad at Katara for not trusting him and see Zuko throw a fiery, violent tantrum at Aang in Sozin’s Comet and say “he’s way too immature to be with Katara”. 

The hypocrisy snd double standards of these morons are insane. 

Shipping obsessed fake A:TLA fans is what they are. Nothing more.

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Can you Anti-Aang fake fans please stay away from A:TLA. I am so tired of y’all.

You people have no media literacy and chose to act like it’s the show creator’s fault you’re so dumb.

I shouldn’t even have to say this, but Aang never used Katara as a fan against his grief. What does the Guru say:

“You have indeed felt a great loss. But love is a form of energy, and it swirls all around us. The Air Nomads' love for you has not left this world. It is still inside of your heart, and is reborn in the form of new love”.

He’s basically saying even though Aang lost his whole nation, his love for them not only remains but he can also feel love again, for more loved ones, Katara. 

Katara herself even tells Aang that despite losing almost everyone he knew and loved, her and Sokka care about him and are his loved ones now: 

“Aang! I know you're upset and I know how hard it is to lose the people you love. I went through the same thing when I lost my mom. Monk Gyatso and the other airbenders may be gone, but you still have a family. Sokka and I! We're your family now!”

We got ourselves two beautiful moments where Katara comforts her grieving friend due to suffering a similar loss, assuring him he’s not alone, and said friend realizing that love is infinite and even if you loved ones you care about, love can be found in more loved ones. And these bitter Anti-Aang freaks try to twist this into something “selfish”, “unhealthy” and “toxic”. Because you’re still coping and seething over Katara not making out with Zuko in the finale like you wanted back in the seventh grade. 

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Me a HUGE Katara stan who also happens to be a Kataang shipper fading away because I like Katara happily being in a relationship with her closest friend whom she not only loves dearly, but has been supportive of her since the day the met, as opposed to shipping Katara with someone who only recently came to understand her and went out of his way for her once to make up for attacking her and her friends for most of the show.

i genuinely believe that if you truly love katara as a character, you would not ship her with aang.

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That’s fair. I know it sounds like a wanna hunt Zutara shippers for sport. I’ve got nothing against MOST of the fandom. I get the hype and I honestly love Zuko and Katara’s relationship and growth together. Love that one moment where Katara assure’s Zuko that Iroh will forgive him, really shows how far they’ve come.

I just can’t stand people who act like Aang was a selfish @$$hole who never did a single kind thing for anybody (trust me they exist).

But you’re spot on about Taang, their bond and dynamic is so underrated. I do wish it was explored more in the series and we had an extra Aang and Toph solo adventure. They’d actually work pretty well as a couple.

Also, little Taang crumb for ya. When Zuko and the others are laughing at Aang’s harebrained methods of not killing the Fire Lord. Katara looks concerned for Aang and isn’t laughing (which is rather expected), but neither is Toph. Perhaps she sensed Aang was sincere in believing his methods could work and he wouldn’t have to kill Ozai. I like to think she was also sympathetic to his plight.

Why (as a Kataang shipper) I kinda like Taang, just not the “hype”.

Hello A:TLA Fandom

So… TAANG

I kinda like it.

While I don’t particularly care for Zutara (fanbase aside, their is enough to form a romance and it weakens their interesting relationship IMO) I kinda enjoy Taang, it doesn’t hold a candle to Kataang and there’s no hint of romance between Aang and Toph in the show, but I like their relationship, they have good chemistry, and it has more basis than Zutara IMO. Namely because Aang and Toph are already very close friends when they first meet and they just have a more interesting dynamic IMO, they clash often because of their ideals and are polar opposites in a lot of ways, but still manage to form a genuine friendship and mutual respect deep down. Aang and Toph have an underrated friendship.

HOWEVER! A lot of people (especially the ZK fandom) only seem to ship Taang purely because it someone “gets Aang out of the way of Zutara” they wanna ship Aang with Toph purely out of dislike for Kataang and because they see Toph as they only other option. Not to mention most of THESE TYPES of people completely mischaracterize the Gaang.

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Catching Zutara Stays In My Post.

SO I BLOCKED ‘EM 😁

Sorry. Not Sorry. LOL.

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Why I HATE “Momtara”

(and Dadko)

I’m not really sure how to start this. I’ve been re-watching A:TLA, I was watching The Library and The Desert, or “The Fury of Aang” which is what both episodes were promoted as on Nickelodeon when they first aired, like one big movie. 

Great episodes, really shows how well written Avatar is. I love the world building in the former episode, and the latter is a great insight into Aang, it’s one that really challenges him, shows how far his anger and grief can take him, without it feeling forced.

It’s also a great Katara story, really emphasizes how she’s the heart of the group, who keeps everyone together when the others are either depressed, physically incapable of navigating the terrain, or high as kite. 

Then I remembered the Anti Aang fandom sucks or something, because we can’t have nice things, so… 

Many stupid people will say “Aang never supports Katara” or “Aang makes Katara perform eMoTiOnAl LaBoUr” and that’s simple not true.

One of the main I love Kataang is because of what Aang gives to Katara, when he first shows up he brings a sense of fun, joy and whimsy to her life. He values and respects her, not just as a friend, but also as a waterbender, Katara can be openly vulnerable around Aang, both have lost a great deal in life, he can comfort her just by letting her know he’s there for her, Aang will go above and beyond for Katara in any way he can, both will risk everything to save one another if in danger, and in the first darn episode he offers to take her to the North Pole so she can learn Waterbending kicking off the series.

Unfortunately many people will hyper focus on the rare moments of negativity or just vulnerability to frame Katara as a 30 year old woman who needs to hold up Aang’s head as if he were a 6 month old baby. As show here…

Right off the bat OPs yapping about “Momtara” crap. This point more than any other, is a stupid one to bring up. Both Katara and Sokka are concerned with telling Aang that his homeland was invaded because there’s no easy way to say it. You can’t blame Aang for crashing out once he eventually discovers the truth. OP also acts like Katara comforting Aang over this while he’s in the Avatar State is also somehow a bad thing that happens all the time. When if anything it shows Katara’s strength as a character, she isn’t deterred, put off, or judgmental about Aang’s rage, she instead emphasizes with Aang and just understands that he needs a friend. There TWO, count ‘em TWO instances where Katara brings Aang out of the Avatar State. 

Does OP not realize that both Sokka and Aang realize that they were wrong for their behavior and both actively apologize to Suki and Katara for being sexist and big-headed respectively, both girls reconcile with them and the boys don’t do anything like this again in the show, having learned their lesson. Heaven forbid characters have flaws they overcome (and this coming from a Zuko stan).

Also Katara was crazy jealous and petty when Aang was getting attention from those other girls, I mean she pretty justified, but it doesn’t paint her as a shining example of maturity.

Okay, now it just seems like OP is bitching about Aang for having realistic human feelings. Some old dude brings up something that Aang is personally ashamed of, he bails and Katara comforts him. Other than she had to find him in a storm (something Aang apologizes for and Katara understands BTW) what’s the issue with Katara just comforting a friend about a sore subject for him.

I like how in the second point OP tries to make Aang sound as problematic as possible by “triggering Katara’s trauma” by leaving. While this definitely upset Katara, and it reminded Katara of when another loved one left. Katara already had issues with her father leaving at the start of the episode, and was already felt hurt and tense with her father long before Aang left.

Speaking of which, I understand Aang leaving in the middle of a storm was wrong, it was something he shouldn’t have done, but, that’s the POINT, it was a misguided attempt to face the Fire Nation on his own to save lives and not put his friends in danger, the he realizes he can rely on his friends for support.

THAT’S THE WHOLE POINT OF A STORY ARC AND A PROTAGONIST LEARNING A LESSON AND GROWING AS A CHARACTER!!

I really hate when ZKs bring up this episode, because they only ever use it to hyper focus on Aang being more angry and irritable than he usually is. I’m not saying Aang’s anger or lashing out at others is justified and he isn’t framed as being justified in lashing out at other trying to help, but his anger is understandable giving he literally lost Appa, the only living thing from his past and his culture. It’s one of the ONLY times in the show Aang actively gets angry and lashes out at others, something that very seldom happens and is no indication of his character overall. (Not to mention he isn’t even blaming Katara for losing Appa in this scene).

Same thing applies with this scene. Aang is conflicted and frustrated over wanting to end the war but he doesn’t want to take a life, and no one seems to have any alternative solutions. Again he shouldn’t yell at Katara, but OP disingenuously tries to frame it as Aang blaming Katara for his problems when that isn’t even what he’s doing, nor is getting angry with Katara even a constant thing with Aang, sometimes friends get angry with each other every once in a while, doesn’t mean they have a toxic relationship.

Hooray, more “Momtara” BS. The thing OP misunderstands about Katara’s character is that Katara is motherly, it’s a role she took up when her mom died, but this doesn’t mean Katara is forced to be everyone’s mom. Her “motherly” traits are more so an extent of her compassion and empathy towards, something she extends to everyone, this doesn’t mean the other members of the Gaang are like her children, they pull their own weight, and most of the time are more than capable of supporting themselves, and she clearly doesn’t view herself as a mom. 

She views Aang as a friend, a peer, not a son, she has a crush on the guy for corn’s sake, she views Toph as peer and a friend too, when they argue, she ain’t afraid to stoop to the latter’s level or lower, with Sokka they have a pretty typical sibling relationship, more often than not Sokka actively looks out for Katara and often he’s the one leading the group, making sure they have everything they need, planning strategies and sticking to schedules.

In short Katara is motherly, many times she is the one who keeps the group together and she has no issue supporting or comforting anyone who needs it,  but she is in NO WAY a substitute for an actual parent, nor does she want to be seen as one.

BUT WAIT! THERE’S MORE!!

“Montara” is stupid, but I get where that comes from. I’ll never understand how and why Zuko is considered a father figure. First off, we see Zuko serve tea for the others once or twice. This doesn’t mean Zuko is the ONLY ONE to help Katara with chores is some BS. We see the other members of the Gaang help consistently in the past, it’s brought up in “The Chase”. We never actively see Zuko and Katara work in tandem taking care of the others. ZKs like their own idea of Zuko and Katara’s relationship more than their actual relationship, but they ain’t ready for this conversation.

ZKs need to understand that maturing the most does not mean most mature. Zuko definitely matures the most in the series, and has a wonderful, genuine redemption arc, but that’s doesn’t mean he’s the most mature of the Gaang. For all OPs bitching about Aang crashing out, so does Zuko, and more frequently, sometimes over trivial things.

At the start of Sozin’s Comet he crashes out and starts burning sh!t because the others (including Katara) are taking a break. It’s hypocritical to hyperfocus on a total of SIX times in over 60 episodes where either rightfully upset, makes a mistake he learns from, or lets his temper get the better of him, while dickriding Zuko and praising him like a god acting as if he’s never done anything like this before. The only reason why Katara wasn’t involved much during Zuko’s crashouts it’s because she wasn’t around as they were enemies (it fell on Uncle Iroh to understandably help Zuko), and because when Zuko did upset, he was more willingly and actively violent as show in “The Chase” and “Sozin’s Comet”.

Zuko and Aang do not have a father/son bond. They’re both equals, foils, both grow together as people, they both go a journey together to learn Firebending for one thing. Zuko training Aang and being concerned for his well being doesn’t make him a father-figure. Toph also trains Aang and at times is concerned for his wellbeing, does that make Toph Aang’s mother-figure?

Ignoring the fact that

Katara hardly acts motherly to Zuko because they only became friends with 5 episode remaining.

The first time Katara shows any compassion to Zuko, her instinct is to heal him like an injured child and her comforting Zuko over him betraying his uncle is hardly different than her comforting Aang in The Storm.

Preparing the provisions they need ain’t worth diddly-squat, not only is it something people like Sokka and Aang have done, but it’s the most bare minimum thing and isn’t indicative of Zuko and Katara’s relationship. 

Also Katara and Aang are literally equal partners throughout the whole f*cking show! The two interact and work together as friends, peers, equals!! Katara never looks down on Aang or sees him as beneath her!!! They are two years apart!!!! Will you braindead ZK dickriders stop adultifying this 14 year old dark skinned girl and trying to making Aang and Katara’s relationship Oedipus II, this legit pisses me off!!!!!

Sorry.

Actually, no I’m not, this whole post sucks eggs. Bunch of idiotic nonsense made by a ZK obsessed fake-fan who doesn’t understand A:TLA. OP should just read a fanfic and quit their whining.

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Debunking MOAR Anti-Kataang arguments with a hint of (Pro) Taang

Hi.

So I made a post about how I feel about Taang and why I kinda like it, even though a lot of people (ZKs) only ship it because they want Aang “out of the way” as show here

I also made a post debunking stupid Pro-Zutara arguments as shown here

This post is kinda gonna be a sequel to that. The same also made a ridiculous post about what Aang would “gain from Zutara” and most of it of course demonizes his relationship with Katara, completely mischaracterizes Katara herself and for some reason OP assumes this means Aang would instantly get with Toph, even I though Zutara being canon doesn’t mean Taang would be canon, not to mention Toph is also somewhat mischaracterized.

Allow me to explain

First things first, Katara never liked Aang because he was the Avatar. She clearly liked Aang because of who he was as a person, from the day he met Katara he already brought fun and joy back into her life, in addition to being kindhearted and brave through their journey. Those wholesome prisoners and Roku pointing out things should work out because of Aang’s good qualities and because when love is real it finds a way respectively, with Aang being the Avatar as a bonus if anything, but not a dealbreaker.

Not this again.

Aang doesn’t have an “unhealthy obsession or attachment towards Katara” he saw she was in danger and went to save her and when they were both in danger he walked himself away from Katara and DID unlock his Chakra. Must I always recap the story for these guys.

This has gotta be one of the dumbest arguments. Firstly Katara does love Aang while still being aware of his faults, there are multiple instances where Katara can be irritated by Aang (The Warriors of Kyoshi) or actively disagree or dislike his choices (The Avatar State) or even just be mildly annoyed by some of his antics. In the opening she even says “he has a lot to learn”. Secondly, Katara standing up for Aang doesn’t mean she’s blind to his faults, true she didn’t know the full extent of Aang’s past at the time, but she knew Aang wasn’t a thoughtless, selfish coward who would actively and deliberately cause harm to the world like that old guy insinuated and she had traveled with Aang for a while now, so she can back it up. Thirdly, Katara comforting Aang, after hearing what he did and assuring him that he shouldn’t focus on the past and can make a different in the present is a good thing (shocker), does OP want Katara to berate Aang for what he did, Katara wouldn’t do that, nor would it solve anything anyhow. Lastly if Toph was in Katara’s place she’d also stand up for Aang and assure him that he shouldn’t blame himself because they’re friends.

I don’t know what the second two images have to do with anything, but anyhow, AGE is the main reason for why these guys ship Taang, which I can sorta get, but these are the same type of guys who adultify Katara and act like she’s way more older than she is. She herself is only 2 years older than the both of them, she’s still a kid, we see in The Chase that it doesn’t take much for her to stoop to Toph’s level when arguing. (Not to mention she found Toph’s pit joke funny, so).

More Katara mischaracterization, oh joy!

Katara doesn’t beat around the bush to spare Aang (or anyone’s) feelings. As I said before if she takes issue with something Aang does, she’ll let him know. Even in this moment, she isn’t beating around this bush, she’s telling Aang she’s confused about her feelings BECAUSE SHE IS! When Aang kisses her despite what she says, she tells him “TF did I just say” and leaves and she’s right to do so! She clearly lets Aang know what he did was stupid.

Funny how this is the only comparison that doesn’t feature Toph instead featuring Meng. Almost as if it’s normal for people to develop feelings over time and not instantly think “I LOVE YOU” even Aang wasn’t crazy crushing on Katara the exact moment he saw her. Two more things to note. One, by the end of the episode Katara does come to consider Aang as a possibility of him being the powerful bender she’s going to marry. Two, this person ships Zutara, keep in mind Katara (rightfully) took 55 episodes to consider Zuko a friend at the least.

Katara is literally fundamental part of Aang’s growth as he is with her’s, neither revolves around the other, but the both heavily impact each other. In Aang’s case Katara comforting him over the loss of his people and assuring him that he can make a difference in the present is something that inspires Aang to make a difference and to not lose sight of his joy and optimism, not to mention Katara is literally Aang’s waterbending teacher, the two even have a conversion in the episode above which partially helps Aang come to terms with earthbending. Even Toph by the episodes end uses some of Katara’s positive reinforcement to teach Aang earthbending.

Katara treats Aang like a child because he IS, so is she. She actively tries to support Aang when he needs it, but she doesn’t view Aang as beneath her or as a son, they, much like Aang and Toph, both view each other as a peer because THEY ARE.

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Why (as a Kataang shipper) I kinda like Taang, just not the “hype”.

Hello A:TLA Fandom

So… TAANG

I kinda like it.

While I don’t particularly care for Zutara (fanbase aside, their is enough to form a romance and it weakens their interesting relationship IMO) I kinda enjoy Taang, it doesn’t hold a candle to Kataang and there’s no hint of romance between Aang and Toph in the show, but I like their relationship, they have good chemistry, and it has more basis than Zutara IMO. Namely because Aang and Toph are already very close friends when they first meet and they just have a more interesting dynamic IMO, they clash often because of their ideals and are polar opposites in a lot of ways, but still manage to form a genuine friendship and mutual respect deep down. Aang and Toph have an underrated friendship.

HOWEVER! A lot of people (especially the ZK fandom) only seem to ship Taang purely because it someone “gets Aang out of the way of Zutara” they wanna ship Aang with Toph purely out of dislike for Kataang and because they see Toph as they only other option. Not to mention most of THESE TYPES of people completely mischaracterize the Gaang.

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So I have no stake in ships in Avatar the Last Airbender, I do not have any real ships for the show. But when I was looking in Katara's tag for art and stuff, I saw this reoccuring claim that Katara always supported Aang with his problems and feelings, but that Aang never supported her back with hers.

And I don't care about the ships, but I do really like the friendships in Avatar, and that bothers me. It's a slight on Aang, but also on Katara (implying she wouldn't stand up for herself and break it off if a friend was all take and no give, which doesn't fit her personality at all.)

Aang does support Katara whenever he gets the chance, which is unfortunately few and far between because Katara seems to have a hard time leaning on the people she cares about and talking in depth about her own trauma and feelings about it, though she will do so when she literally doesn't care what the person thinks about her (and both times she opened up to Zuko about her Mom initially were her lashing out at him and not caring what he thought about her in return).

This would be something that would need to be addressed for a romantic relationship between them to truly work, and I imagine it would be part of the journey of finding a way to stay together, but it's very much not Aang's fault. And as I said, when he gets a chance to support her she does. Since I just recently rewatched most of the series, have a list of those times!

-His first time being supportive of her is literally a half hour after they first meet. As soon as she tells him about wanting more waterbending experience, he enthusiastically offers to fly all the way to the north pole so they can find her a master. And this very clearly means a lot to her.

-I don't think Aang knew how supportive of her he was being here, but there's the "I haven't done this since I was a kid" "You still are a kid!' exchange. As much as people accuse Aang of seeing Katara as his Mom (he's literally the one character who doesn't express that he does in The Runaway btw and I think that's for a reason) their first interaction establishes that he sees her as a kid, just like him, and think she should have fun like a kid does. This must have been huge for Katara, who'd been forced to take on adult responsibilities at a young age, who resented having to hold the family together, who thought her childhood was over. Aang helped her have fun and be the kid she is, and he'll continue to do so.

-When she lost her mother's necklace (And Zuko subsequently stole it) he was very concerned for her feelings and seemed to immediately understand the weight of that loss, due to his own experiences with loss. Not only did he make her a new necklace to wear as a way to comfort her, as soon as he saw Zuko had it he said "you're giving that back to me" and risked being hit by Zuko in his attempts to grab it. Then he gave it back to her and she was ecstatic!

-He was so supportive of her during the waterbending scroll episode it's actually ridiculous, despite how she lashed out at him. It's unclear if he actually understood she was upset or if this was just his unwavering respect for her coming out, but when she was upset that he learned the first move faster than her he said "well you didn't have such a great teacher!" and it clearly makes her feel better for a bit. He immediately forgives her for lashing out at him, doesn't judge her at all for stealing the waterbending scroll, or for accidentally dragging them into trouble. He, in fact, goes out of the way to reassure her, looking happy at the chance to work together and reminding her they need two waterbenders. And he appreciates her joke at the end (he's just straight up being simp (affectionate) there, and I get it).

-When Pakku won't teach her he immediately denounces him as wrong and unfair and is willing to sacrifice his own education (which he needs to save the world) because he won't stand for it. He remains upset about it even after Katara persuades him, tries to secretly show her what Pakku taught him, and cheers her on when she fights him.

-When she's crying over Jet's death, he's the first one to notice and reach out to her, putting his hand gently on her shoulder and drawing her into a hug (that becomes a group hug). She smiles and clearly feels comforted. They probably talked about it offscreen too (but this cannot be shown as they would need to directly acknowledge his death to do so)

-He's pretty much always praising her as a teacher, and when she grumbles about him not calling her Sifu, he goes out of his way to call her that.

-He notices that she's mad at her Dad and asks her about it, but she deflects

-He looks really sad when he has to remind her she has to take off her mother's necklace for their Fire Nation disguises, again it's something he very much seems to empathize with her about, he understands the weight of what it means to her.

-He not only doesn't judge her for lying during the Painted Lady saga, but praises her and enthusiastically helps her commit ecoterrorism.

-Both he and Sokka move to comfort her when she's crying after the bloodbending fiasco. Most of the comforting of her happens offscreen, which I do think is a shame, and a contrast to how Aang is handled- but it's more of a "he's the main character" thing, since the same happens for Sokka as well (I'm sure Katara and Aang talked to him about Yue's death and at least tried to comfort him, but we don't get to see that).

-He was trying to support her during the Southern Raiders ep, whether you believe he did it well or not, both according to his beliefs and cultural values and by trying to emulate the ways she's talked HIM down from revenge and hatred in the past. He specifically brings up those two incidents- losing his people and losing Appa- where she stepped in to keep him from losing himself to rage. As this post notes, he also specifically echoes her phrasing from when she was urging him not to lose himself to the Avatar state (she says "watching you be in that much rage and pain is really scary" and he echoes "you're feeling unbelievable pain and rage" while talking to her in this ep.)

It's not just the air nomads he's trying to emulate here, but her. Just like Katara doesn't want to see him consumed by hatred and pain, he wants the same for her. His concern is not for her mother's killer, but for her, he fears this will hurt her, just like her concern was always for him and how this would hurt him in those times he was raging.

He wants to do for her what she did for him. But, Katara is not him. She is not someone who will be talked down by someone else when she is grieving, angry, and looking for revenge. Nobody can stop her when she sets her mind to it. She needs to wrestle with whether to kill him and she needs to come to her own conclusions, because she's the only one that can stop her. And Aang realizes that. He says it's a journey she'll have to take on her own, that she needs to face him doesn't stand in her way.

(I wonder if it kind of hurt, deep down, that he couldn't reach her the way she always reached him. I wonder if he felt upset that he couldn't find the right words like she did for him. But I don't think there were any right words. She needed him to step back. It was her choice to make. So he did.)

And in the end, he was correct that she didn't want to do it. She did choose that based on her own feelings and values.

His assumption Katara not killing the guy = forgiveness is definitely him just kind of applying his assumptions and values, but when she says she doesn't forgive him, he doesn't like, judge her or anything that we can see.

So yeah, quite a few examples! It can feel lopsided because more attention is paid to Aang and Katara's personality affects things.

Katara is both open about her emotions and not. She's someone who will look after other's feelings but not really discuss her own pain with people she cares about, until it all builds up and bursts out.

And it's not surprising she's most concerned about Aang, if my friend had recently (from his perspective) survived a genocide where he lost everyone he loved and was now tasked with saving the world at twelve years old, I'd be pretty worried about him and want to support him too! Aang goes through a lot by virtue of being the protagonist, he has the most pressure on him, he's routinely in the most danger, he literally dies for a few minutes. It's not surprising Katara has more opportunities to comfort him, but he unfailingly supports her in any of her problems of goals (when they're not murder) when he can.

I do think there's some missed opportunities to explore Katara and develop their relationship, but it doesn't make Aang a bad, unsupportive friend, or Katara his Mom and not his peer.

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Band Geeks & Squilliam Returns Episode Order

SpongeBob SquarePants is easily my favorite show of all time. Anyone will tell you that those first three seasons are comedy gold with so many memorable iconic episodes, and two of my favorites are Band Geeks and Squilliam Returns, the former of which is the most popular and highly regarded SpongeBob episode of all time. 

Band Geeks first aired on September 7th 2001 and is Season 2 Episode 15b. Squilliam Returns first aired on March 15th 2002. However I think the intended order of the episodes were switched are work better the other way round. Allow me to explain.

Both episodes feature Squilliam Fancyson, Squidward’s more successful stuck up arch-rival from high school band class and a really underrated character who they should bring back. Both episodes are also rather similar. Squilliam brags about his success to Squidward, leading to the latter to lie and try to one-up his rival, which leads to hilarious meme-worthy shenanigans, only in Band Geeks Squidward comes out on top in the end but in Squilliam Returns when everything seems to be going well it all falls apart at the last minute.

Now, as I said before Band Geeks aired before Squilliam Returns, but I think Squilliam Returns was written first or at least conceptualized first and takes place before Band Geeks for different reasons. The first being that Squilliam Returns feels more like a direct introduction to the character and he has more screntime and interactions with Squidward, we get a better idea about who he is. He’s Squidward’s arch rival from high school, he’s more successful than Squidward, he’s the only person Squidward really feels self-conscious around. Band Geeks, while also a good introduction for Squilliam doesn’t give him as much focus, almost as if we should already know who he is, the episode is also loaded with almost every main character in the show and the plot doesn’t feel sepcifically centered around Squilliam, as Band Geeks was more about Squidward trying to get a band together so he could lead a band at the Bubble Bowl and live his dream (he didn’t think Squillaim would be there) whereas in Squilliam Returns, Squidward was more focused solely on impressing Squilliam. 

Secondly in Squilliam Returns, the two rivals talk like they haven’t seen each other since high-school, hence the title “Squilliam Returns” stills works for a Squilliam’s debut episode (like Pokémon: Mewtwo Strikes Back). Squilliam also suspects Squidward is a cashier, which he finds out is true at the end of the episode, whereas in Band Geeks he already knows this. “I hear you’re playing the cash register now”.

Lastly the biggest element of why the episodes work better in reverse order is because it’s more narratively satisfying. In Squilliam Returns Squidward goes overboard lying to Squillaim about having a fancy restaurant, he comes close to maintaining the lie, but it all falls apart at the end and Squidward  is forced to admit he lied, essentially humiliating himself.

Whereas in Band Geeks, Squilliam claims to be leading a band and playing at the Bubble Bowl, something Squidward’s dreamed of doing and coxes Squidward into lying about having a band. Squidward tried to form a band with most of the main characters, but everything seems to go hilariously wrong, but in the end SpongeBob manages to help everyone get their act together and in the definitive BEST moment in the show’s history, to quote a YouTube comment:

Squidward's band PLAYS THE SONG AT THE BUBBLE BOWL AND EVERYONE LOVES IT, FINALLY GIVING SQUIDWARD THE WIN HE DESERVED, AND FINALLY GETTING ONE UP OVER SQUILLIAM AFTER YEARS OF TORMENT ABOUT HOW MUCH MORE SUCCESSFUL HE IS! YAH! LOVE THIS EPISODE!

It’s more narratively satisfying to see Squidward try to impress an old rival of his (whom were introduced to for the first time) and everyone goes wrong because that’s what usually happens to Squidward, then in the next episode said rival makes a return Squidward once again tries to hold his own and one-up his rival, things go wrong as expected, but then all expectations are subverted, all the characters come together in an awesome song, that’s so awesome said rival faints and Squidward actually wins. Band Geeks should’ve really been the series finale, at least for the classic series, it would’ve been the highest note ever! (At least aside from the movie). 

I don’t think Squilliam Returns works as a sequel to Band Geeks, because while it’s still a great episode, it isn’t as epic or grandiose as the latter and if it is a sequel, then it craps alls over the previous ending (like Alien 3 did to Aliens). That being said I know it isn’t a sequel, SpongeBob isn’t a continuity driven show, Squilliam did make more appearances in the later seasons and the endings had varying outcomes (although said later seasons weren’t good).

I personally view Squilliam Returns as a prequel to Band Geeks that was released after (I’m guessing because Band Geeks was a more exciting episode). Kinda like watching the Star Wars Prequels after the Original Trilogy. Some other SpongeBob episodes also feel like they’re out of order, Life of Crime implies Mr. Krabs has a crush on Mrs. Puff (due to him hoarding her hair curlers) but in a later episode, Mr. Krabs meets Mrs. Puff for the first time and clearly develops a crush on her on said episode. 

Anyway, maybe I’m looking too deep into a funny cartoon, these are just my two cents.

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Truth be told. I like MJ and Gwen.

You might disagree, but nothing could make me hate Gwen Stacy in TASM and TASM2.

However upon witting my MJ meta and finding out there are other people who don’t hate her, I genuinely appreciate her character a lot more because she’s a flawed, yet kind person, despite all she’s been through.

To reiterate, MJ criticism is fine, but people who call her a whore are misogynistic incels. Especially those who actually agree with Norman’s sexist comment about her. It’s not like Peter and Harry aren’t without flaws, but these weirdos always whine about MJ and only MJ while ignoring any positive aspects about her.

Mary Jane Watson From The Spider-Man Trilogy Is Ridiculously Overhated

I keep seeing a bunch of stuff online about how the Raimi Trilogy MJ sucks, how she’s “the real villain” and a horrible person, blah blah blah.

Truth be told, I don’t have that much of an attachment to this character, I’ll defend people like Katara from the unjust hate she receives because she’s one of favorite characters and heroines EVER! But MJ (in these movies anyway) is merely okay. I much prefer the leading ladies of the other Spider-Man films, Gwen Stacy and Michelle Jones.

They have more personality, better relationships with Spidey and aid him more in his heroics. In the original trilogy Peter and MJ are often at odds and usually the later always has to be rescued (not that it’s her fault). There are legitimate reasons to dislike this depiction of MJ (i.e. her personality isn’t exactly comic accurate). But a lot the hate she receives is relatively unfounded and definitely in misogyny, coming mostly from incels.

Like, seriously, this just screams incel loser syndrome right here.

First and foremost, MJ is a fairly sympathetic character, she’s generally a kind, friendly individual for the most part, which is why Peter is drawn to her, but she’s also deeply insecure due to her abusive father and thinks her worth is determined by whom she’s in a relationship with, only for these people, such as Flash and Harry to mistreat her or demean her respectively.

People often get mad at MJ for her treatment of Peter, but really think about things from her perspective. He’s the only guy who treats her with sincere genuine kindness for the most part, then out of the blue, after he indirectly confesses his feelings about her and she directly confesses her, he states they can only be friends, then to quote TV Tropes, we the audience have a…

Then Peter tells her he wants to be with her after she’s publicly announced she’s engaged and the later when she comes close to considering it tries to back out of it, again we the audience know why, by MJ doesn’t.

However, I will say ditching her fiancé at the altar was messed up and I can’t really defend it, probably the worst thing MJ did especially because said fiancée was a genially nice dude. But hey, it’s sweet to see her and Peter finally admit their feelings despite her knowing he’s Spider-Man.

She also gets a lot of flack in Spider-Man 3, which I also find kinda unfounded. One big reasons is her essentially cheating on Peter by kissing Harry, but people tend to forget:

She quickly realized what she was doing was wrong.

Peter also kissed Gwen right in front of her, without much thought, you could argue that kiss was staged, but still it’s rather hypocritical.

I’m not saying MJ is a flawless woman who can do no wrong, but her that her vices are overblown by so called fans. It can only be due to misogyny seeing as Peter and Harry also do pretty jerkish things. I already mentioned some of Peter’s actions earlier, but in the first movie Harry essentially goes after someone he knows his best friend likes as soon as she breaks up with her ex and doesn’t even tell his best friend about it, then his dad pretty much calls his girlfriend a slut and that he should just do her while he can (something people actually agree with) and he barely defends her. But neither he or Peter get as much flak. Granted I really like both characters myself, but still.

I just don’t get why people are so obsessed with villainizing MJ in these films. Isn’t the whole point of these films is that anyone even good people can make bad or selfish choices, but sometimes all they need is forgiveness, understanding and compassion. That’s one of the core themes of the trilogy, especially the final film. So I’m gonna leave you with this…