#aang really got through to him! all the way back in season one!

[jessmalia]

Mal's Avatar: The Last Airbender rewatch: The Western Air Temple 3.12

[wakeupthemembersofbylernation]

If Mike really loved El romantically, they wouldn’t have dragged out a weird plot of not being able to say ILY for two seasons. One season? Sure. I can let Season 3 slide somewhat if one discounts all the queer longing that takes place and the odd finale kiss. You could interpret S3 as an awkward kid building up the courage to say the L word.

But two seasons? Nah. If the first interpretation were true, things would’ve been resolved when El confesses that she loves him back at the end of S3. But things were not resolved? And the show goes out of its way to emphasize that Mike isn’t even writing “I love you” in his letters? And they have a big, explosive fight about it… and he still can’t say it? Nah Michael, I diagnose you with homosexuality.

“But saying I love you is scary and a big deal and yada yada…” Okay sure. Saying ILY is a big deal. But middle school kids still say it pretty casually. And they certainly at least write it. It’s not uncommon for a kid to drop the “L” bomb to someone they’ve only been dating for a short period of time, only to break up the next day. Things are fluid and chaotic and unpredictable and messy. In Romeo and Juliet, Romeo thought he was in love with Rosaline until seeing Juliet, and he immediately changed his mind.

But even if we just assume it’s harder for Mike to say ILY to El because Mlvn is serious and more meaningful than a fleeting crush, that still doesn’t let Mike off the hook. If Mlvn really is as soulmate-coded as Mlievens believe, when have you ever heard of a soulmate-coded relationship in media where the writers went out of their way to show that saying ILY was like pulling teeth? Imagine if there was a whole section of Titanic where Jack struggled with saying ILY to Rose? Imagine Leia got into a fight with Han because he couldn’t write “love” in his romantic letters, and Han was all like, “I care for you so much, Leia.”Imagine Katara pulled out the receipts, and Aang was like, “Okay, okay. Katara, you’re being ridiculous. Like what is this?”

That would be absurd. And you’d either demand an explanation or stop rooting for them. It’s not that ILY isn’t often a big deal in stories. It’s that when it’s emphasized in a weird way and dragged out for two seasons, you have to side-eye it. It’s one thing when the big ILY is the logical and natural culmination of an arc, whether at the end of a season or the end of a series. That makes sense. It’s another thing entirely when someone is literally begging you to say it, and you still can’t say it. And then when you finally do say it, it’s in the penultimate season, and it’s extremely anticlimactic. And everyone has to emphasize how you said it 9 times to cope/compensate.

If Mlvn was meant to be endgame, and Mike really loved El romantically, they would’ve just… shown Mike and El being in love with each other. There wouldn’t be any doubt. None of the other couples, other than Stancy, have ever gone through this weird kind of ritual where words are emphasized over actions. No one doubts that Lumax, Jopper, and Duzie are in love with each other. Jancy is a little more complicated cause they were separated throughout S4 and doubts were raised, but even so, it’s nowhere near the odd situation with Milkvan. Jancy, Lumax, Jopper, and Duzie have all shown they love each other through their actions. They don’t rely on big gestures or words to prove it. In fact, Lucas even specifically says to Max, “I don’t want a letter.”

All I’m saying is, if Mlvn is treated with a considerable lack of seriousness post Season 2, if the show keeps them in a weird Groundhog Day plot of constant fights and lies and not being on the same page, and if it takes a third party with vested romantic interest in the situation for Mike to finally monologue a measly ILY to his girlfriend, then maybe there’s a reason for this? 🤔

[woodlaflababab]

Rewatched The Awakening and having some Thoughts™

First, Katara, my baby, not me literally crying during my break in the backroom at work bc she's just so strong and so hurt and so brave. Her conversation with her dad will never not break me. I hate that Katara has ever gotten heat for actually being open to discussing her pain. My girl is brave and strong and lovely and the boys aint got shit on her.

I love the realism of this conflict. I love the way she so clearly lays it out and understands herself but is so lost on how to go forward which like, FAIR. The contrast of how excited she was for any news on her father in the Bato episode, to this, is just heartbreaking. She deserves a good reunion and yet because of the war, her family has been ripped apart and even when it comes back together she still carries those scars.

Second, how anyone can reach season three and watch this episode and still think Aang is a one note character or still the same childish figure he was before. He also breaks my heart in this episode. The adultification is wild, it's hard to watch him here and remember, this is a kid, a 13 yr old. It's someone who's experienced death, who feels the weight of the literal world on his shoulders, who's failure means losing an entire war, and he's so broken over it and it's like, No, Aang, honey, please. Have some grace for yourself.

Him in the water just, accepting death for the second time is so morbid and so sad. He's just ready to give up. Truely his lowest point. And going from his hurt at the mere idea of having to cover his arrow, to him literally burning his glider, which can never be replaced, like, how much more can he lose. He really has sacrificed everything for this war and yes I will sit here and cry about it thank you very much.

Third: speaking of these two, I think my favorite scene in the whole episode is unironically the one where she snaps at her dad and Hakoda walks away and Aang's like, "Are you mad at your dad?" All concerned and she's just "No, why?" And Aang's face kills me it's hilarious. Like, good job Aang, that was the correct answer. Him being like, something is clearly wrong and she clearly is also not ready to face it so he just shrugs and is just like, sure, okay.

Honestly, the whole interaction makes me laugh. The way Aang looks up at Hakoda like, oh yeah, the father of the two most important people in my life, the one they almost left me for, and also a world leader and so someone important to the position of the avatar. Ah. And then Katara seems to be mad at him and Aang's just, he just woke up from a coma, ksnfmsnfnd, he is not equipped to deal with this rn but he does it anyway.

Just, ugh, that second he stares at Katara before shrugging cracks me up so much, you can so clearly read what's going through his mind.

Anyway, I think this is genuinely one of my favorite episodes, I will always be a Book 3 stan.

[kyshiwarrior]

WORD VOMIT RE: Jet's attitude towards his decisions.

another reason i wanna kiss whoever wrote and directed jet's episode is the fact in the cartoon, jet was absolutely hyped about blowing up the dam and knew deep down it was bad because he shielded the gaang from it even if he was upfront with the freedom fighters and confirming with the duke that innocents would die but thats the price --- but still later smiling and saying theyre going to have a great victory over the fire nation after sokka is taken away.

in the liveaction, the cockiness jet has is when he's amused the gaang thinks they're slick for trying to sneak in, when he's helping them sneak in because he thinks its amusing and a helping hand, and the face of a threat: when the fire benders are found waiting for him in the forest to kill him for spying on them and hes ready to fight them back. Then, he's smiling at the camp when he's announcing who they are and what their goal is: freedom and protecting their home because no one else has their back.

Outside of this, Jet is very somber and expresses a lot of stress. For example, when he stops Katara from making herself known too early when Sai is talking to the spy then when Katara confronts him. What really stood out to me was when Katara walked up and Smellerbee was exchanging a look with him. They both looked really stressed and uncomfortable before she even came around the corner, but then especially. The look Smellerbee gave to Jet really said a thousand words, like they've been having a lot of discussions about involving her in their mission and an almost 'I told you so.' (sidenote: they did a wonderful job with nonverbals). Jet immediately puts his foot down about it not being the time then also not denying what he was doing when confronted. When he explains why he’s doing it, even as he smiles a little when saying they know how to take out the trash, its spoken with so much ire because he’s doing what he feels he needs to — and it hurts its your own people that let you down. He smiles because he’s in pain and overall feeling of ‘This is what happens when these people think they could get away with it. They have us to reckon with.’

What was significant to me was the lack of ego. This was someone who had full understanding that what he was doing wasn't something to boast about, but a building frustration tying with "IF NOT US, WHO?" What Katara didn't understand was the difference between herself and Jet, what defines being 'the good guy.' Jet was someone so acutely aware of his lack of privileges and the fear that drives the 'hard decisions' for the sake of collective. Hard decisions that put the very people you're trying to protect at risk because they were in the wrong place and the wrong time, but more would be at risk if they didn't act immediately. It's ugly, messy, imperfect -- and Jet is aware. He is not excited about any of this. Instead, he's pissed he feels he has no other choice because no adult after his parents did anything to help him. So it's all up to him, to him. ((cartoon implied these attitudes but I still spent years trying to get it through jet anti’s heads ))

And assassinating a KING and almost effortlessly succeeding is ... quite something. Impulsive, but pretty impressive. Sad, too, that it would be so easy. Everything Jet had to say about Bumi in this universe was true. Bumi lost his nerve, he was surrounded in privilege, he wasn't doing anything to really stop the corruption, and he fell into despair. Sure, Aang got through to him. Sure, Sai changed his ways and drew away from his treason with risk following. Sure. But we know what's going to inevitably happen, unless they decide to change it: Bumi happily lets Omashu get overtaken by the Fire Nation and orders all his guards to "do nothing" without any explanation. We better see Jet in Season 2 talk about his perspective here because the changes they did have me buzzing with theories. He would be livid and seemingly 100% right about King Bumi. ((Unfortunately, he is also destined to die before finding out about Bumi's plans to take Omashu back the day of the solar eclipse, but it doesn't matter because Jet would not have forgiven him for that terror.))

Anyway, they did a great job humanizing him while making him a foil to her. In the original, Jet was Sokka's foil, but I think it works so well to make him Katara's -- as they both become the most vocal and impulsive social justice activists. So seeing them fight and discuss what it meant to be a 'traitor' and 'unforgivable' was fascinating. They were actually able to have two separate discussions on the matter -- one where Katara confronted Jet to call him a traitor and when Jet confronted Katara to call her one in return.

I love how in the original, Sokka was able to prove he is a good leader in his own way by showing empathy for all and not willing to risk innocent lives ever, which gets Aang and Katara's respect after so much ridicule and comparisons. In contrast, I also love how they decided to go an alternate route because with Jet's impact on Katara that had such a lasting impression, this change did their dynamic justice. It sets up season 2 very well in how they'll engage with each other again.

I also love how Katara is able to reflect on Jet with criticism, but also understanding and a moment of gratitude. It feels a lot better than his simple flattery followed with manipulating her for her powers, and audiences feeling unsure how much of his flirting was genuine. Mind you, helps her story and establishes trust issues around being used (factors into her other plotlines), but it's such a disservice to Jet in return. I'm a big advocate of 'you don't have to completely demonize and ruin a character for the sake of uplifting another, the other should be able to stand on their own.'

[sokkastyles]

personal opinion, I think even azulas friends cared about her, but because she kept getting worse and worse. Tylee at least found more reasons not to stay and left. I think Azula slowly kept getting worse and worse till what we saw in canon. I think Ursa was a good mom, but Ozai made it seem to Azula she wasn't because he kept prasing her worse qualities. Than as soon as it was only just him and her he kept making her worse and worse feeding the fire into her worse qualities till she has to be perfect. Azula and Ozai was abusive to Zuko. But I also think Azula was abused too. Mostly emotionally and had Ozai playing mind games on her where she couldn't trust anyone eventually.

I agree with all of this. I don't see it talked about enough but something happened before the start of the show to make Mai and Ty Lee leave Azula (and it's a pity the live action didn't decide to explore that, and instead just had Mai and Ty Lee stand around and cheerlead Azula for all of the first season. Ty Lee and Mai both have their own separate reasons for leaving, but the way they react to meeting Azula when they are introduced hints at a deeper story. I think Ty Lee's story about not wanting to be part of a matched set is only partially true, and that another aspect of her running away to seek her own individuality in the circus was because of living under Azula's shadow. And Mai despises having to live in Omashu but if she had really wanted to, she could have stayed behind in Caldera. As bored as Mai is when she is introduced, I think she got to a point pre-series where she had enough of Azula's "excitement," seeing as how it involved her having lighted apples on her head. I think when we meet them at the beginning of season two, it's something akin to someone having left an abusive relationship being drawn back in by the abuser, who presents themselves as inviting, charismatic, and in need of their skills. The victim forgets how unhappy they were when they were with the person, and distance diminishes the bad and amplifies the memories of the good times. I think that's more true for Mai than for Ty Lee, who had to be much more aggressively coerced and was probably more hurt by Azula in the past than Mai had been.

I think what the live action show missed about Ozai's relationship to his children is not just the criticism and impossibly high standards, but the love-bombing that comes with that type of manipulator. Azula is the one who got that side most often, but we see in the original that Zuko gets it, too, when he thinks Zuko has killed Aang. Because if a parent is critical all the time, there's more of a chance that the child is going to see through that and eventually become resentful (like Azula in the LA appears to be). But in the original, both Zuko and Azula are in desperate pursuit of Ozai's love. In order for us to believe that, we have to feel that Ozai's love is actually worth something to them. Of course, Ozai's love is ultimately empty, but Zuko and Azula have to keep clinging to that need for it, that substance that makes it addictive. That's how abusers control their victims.

And while I'm at it, I think Ty Lee and Mai were a little bit addicted to it, too, before they god fed up. Ty Lee to the attention that being the best friend of "the smartest, prettiest girl in the world" got her. Mai to Azula's dark humor and hatred of the world, that felt validating to her in her depression. None of these are healthy relationships. That doesn't mean they aren't real relationships, though. They very much are. That's what makes them harder to get rid of.

[crystal-lillies]

General thoughts after watching Season 1 of Netflix's Avatar: The Last Airbender (spoilers may be present)

It's not bad. It's weird, but it's not bad.

No one asked for this.

No one asked, but we got it anyway. So what did we get?

It's not a 1:1 remake. I don't think, despite everything people have worried and griped about before the show's release, anyone wanted that either. It doesn't retain the same character arcs for everyone. Not just Sokka, but everyone.

At the same time, they still have arcs.

They're weird, they feel weird, because this show does what the Shyamalan movie doesn't, and makes an honest effort to capture the essence of the animated show, of the characters, of the world, and there is respect in its efforts.

There are musical motifs from the original. The set designs are out of the original. Many scenes are shot exactly like the original as homages.

And yet, storylines are merged together, elements from later seasons are introduced earlier, character interactions happen differently, character motivations are presented differently, and that feels weird.

We know the motions but when we the audience try to follow them, the show changes its direction and pulls a weird flex out of left field.

I won't say I agree with every major and minor change made, but I'm not enraged or disappointed in the same way as I was (and many of us were) after seeing the movie.

Instead, I'm more inclined to see where these new threads intend to go, and how the story we all know and love can be told in a different way.

Roku had barely a presence in this season, whereas in the original, he was more or less Aang's spiritual teacher. Instead, we've felt more from Kyoshi and Kuruk and Yangchen, and Aang has felt lost in his spiritual journey as well as his physical one.

Ozai, who was just a shadowy one-dimensional nightmare for most of the original first book, is now a more fleshed out figure, but one of confusing motivations. It's not the tonal whiplash of the movie, of the Ozai who legitimately worried and cared about Zuko's well being while also having still scarred and banished him, but one who is playing a 4-D chess game with his kids as the pieces and doesn't care who wins so long as one does.

I don't think it was the right call to have Zuko fight back in the Agni Kai before getting burned, but it gives a different dynamic to Zuko and Ozai's relationship that he's not the towering, shadowy Mark Hamill terror Zuko cowers before.

This Zuko seems legitimately convinced Ozai cares about him and all it takes is the Avatar to win his full love back, whereas there's still bitterness in the OG Zuko of book one. He knows Ozai favors Azula over him, he knows he's had to struggle well before being banished.

I also think not casting Dee Bradley Baker was a mistake. But they have time to correct that mistake.

All the kid actors, being green, of course do not stand up to expressive and gorgeous animation with brilliant voice acting. But they are all giving it their best, and I think they have what it takes to grow into the Book 3 Team Avatar if they get the chance.

The music got to me a number of times, particularly the instrumental renditions of "Leaves From the Vine."

Do we need this show? No absolutely not.

We have the original ATLA, and we always will. It's a timeless classic of our generation. Nothing could ever compete with it or ruin it.

However, I do feel like this adaptation is worth giving a chance to stand on its own. It may be far from perfect, but after watching it through, I legitimately want to see where it goes from here. I want to see this cast grow and change in their own ways. I want to see Toph in live action. I want to see Ba Sing Se. I want to see the new directions this story chooses to take to end up in the same place at Sozin's Comet.

But that might not happen if Netflix decides to cancel it, and I think that would be a shame.

I really do think it's worth seeing this show through, for better or worse.

Overall, as a show, I would give it a modest 7/10. (With individual elements skewing higher or lower throughout)

I don't like that it's only 8 episodes, but that's been a trend of other streaming shows also, across platforms, so I cannot fault NATLA alone for that.

You don't NEED to have seen the original to understand what's happening or get key details (unlike SOME adaptations have been doing recently). You can get a complete picture with just this. Is it as pretty or vibrant as the original? No. But it is still a whole picture (or, could be, with all three seasons).

It has great effects, sets, props, choreography, good music. It has SUKI. And JET. and JUNE. And THE Cabbage Man!

AND OMA/SHU ARE LESBIANS! I mean, I see that as an absolute win.

[solar-wing]

Rant #1 – ATLA: S2:10 The Library...WHY DIDN'T THEY JUST TELL THE TRUTH!

I'm currently re-watching the series and am on season 2 as you can probably guess by this post's title.

And, while watching Sokka and the Gang lie to Wan Shi Tong, one thought went through my head...WHY THE FUCK DID THEY LIE?!

I get their nervousness and reluctance in sharing the full truth with the Owl Spirit due to his blunt and seemingly unchanging opinion of humans and their use of knowledge for violence and conquest. But, that's just it. Why didn't they explain that to him in a way he could understand!

If Wan Shi Tong is a spirit of knowledge and prefers things getting solved with peace rather than violence, they had a perfect reason to explain to him why they needed to look through the library!

Let's start with Professor Zei, he was a lover of knowledge and books. All he wanted was to learn and expand his own knowledge of different subjects and cultures. If anyone had a perfectly legitimate reason to be there and not invoke the spirit's wrath, it was him!

But, since he's only a side character in this, his background and story don't hold much weight compared to the Gang.

Like Sokka and Katara, for example, who've suffered their entire lives at the hands of the Fire Nation since they were born due to their war and quest for conquest over the entire world. Wan Shi Tong is about peace and sees humans as obstructers of that peace and thinks low of them because of this.

And let's be honest; he ain't wrong. Humans are very prone to solving matters with violence. In fiction AND reality. But, the Southern Water Tribe siblings know of violence and tragedy at the hands of humans, because they've been subjected to it their entire lives.

If Wan Shi Tong is about peace and being a spirit of knowledge, using said knowledge to solve one's problems, wouldn't it be obvious that would be a perfect reason to explain to him why they're seeking information from his library? They're striving to protect the peace and balance of the world, and that means that have to find a way to stop the Fire Nation. Yes, it is through a means of violence, but sometimes, that's what it takes to protect peace.

They're fighting to protect themselves, their families, and all the innocent people who have suffered for so long from this war. That's easily good reason #1 they could have given to the owl spirit as a reason to let them browse his library. But let's say that didn't work and he was still apprehensive, they've literally got an even more perfect angle to come at him with: KNOWLEDGE!

If Wan Shi Tong is a spirit of knowledge and dedicates himself to collecting information, books, and tomes from all different parts of the world, wouldn't that automatically mean he wants to do his best to protect knowledge as much as he can.

This war from the Firebenders has wiped out homes, villages, and an entire nation of people along with their culture, leaving one lone survivor. Aang literally has the best reason to ask Wan Shi Tong to use his library.

Imagine, as a spirit of knowledge, learning that an entire civilization and its culture had been destroyed and burned to the ground. Taking with them all their customs, rituals, knowledge and wisdom, their teachings and practices, so much information that could have been added to your library's collection.

Again, going back to Katara and Sokka, whose tribe was harassed and stripped of all their water benders, minus Katara, as a means of preventing any kind of pushback or revolution. Katara had to travel halfway across the world just to find an authentic water-bending scroll before finding a master to teach her.

Aang lost his entire nation and people in this war. His entire culture was stripped from the world to the point that no one really remembered or knew anything about Air Benders or the Nomads until he returned to the world.

That alone is a perfect reason to give Wan Shi Tong why they need information on the Fire Nation. They're working to prevent the same thing that happened to Aang's people and Sokka and Katara's Tribe along with others from happening again somewhere else.

As a spirit of knowledge, I imagine the destruction and loss of other pieces of knowledge and information would strongly upset him and push him to want to allow those seeking to defend it access to his library, despite his reservations about violence.

And, this is where I feel like I'm going to be a bit controversial, but I really need the gang to stop letting Sokka lead them into trouble.

Listen, I love Sokka, I really do. But, that boy suffers from a problem I feel many humans also suffer from and have yet to find a cure for; he talks way too much. Wan Shi Tong was already on the fence about them being there and had just threatened the professor with turning him into a stuffed head of anthropology. And, just when he asks you why you're in his library, you decide to LIE?!

Sokka does so much for the group and is a vital asset to them, but he's also a major contributor to why they constantly end up in trouble. And, if anything, that was a perfect moment to go on one of your Fire Nation truth rants. Any other time, Sokka doesn't waste a second in trashing the Fire Nation and exposing them for the brutes they are, and the one time it would really be helpful, he decides to LIE instead!

The moment Wan Shi Tong mentioned Admiral Zhao and his misguided quest to destroy his enemies, that would have been a perfect time to enlighten the spirit that Zhao simply wasn't looking to just defeat an army or a nation. He was going after one of Wan Shi Tong's own: another spirit!

As a spirit of knowledge, Wan Shi Tong definitely would know the implications that would come if the Moon Spirit, Tui, now Yue, died. As mentioned by Iroh many times, the world would literally fall out of balance.

And, again, if Wan Shi Tong is against violence, Admiral Zhao was a Fire Nation soldier looking for ways to destroy the spirits, and Aanng and his friends are looking for wars to stop the Fire Nation, who do you think he would side with?

It doesn't mean they're necessarily trying to destroy the Fire Nation, they're just trying to end the violence that comes from this war they're pushing.

So, someone explain to me why that would have been so hard to explain to the Spirit of Knowledge, rather than LYING to his face, after he just threatened to make someone a stuffed head. And then, when he flies off, you gloat under your breath about being bright enough to fool him?!

A PARDON I BEG?

LIKE SIR, DO YOU HAVE A DEATH WISH?!

Yeah, I love Sokka, I really do, but sometimes, I really just need him to sit back and zip it. I get it was his choice to go to the library, but that I feel was a moment to just let either Aang or Katara do the talking. And I know Sokka wants to prove himself a capable warrior and leader, but sometimes being a leader is about knowing when to sit back and let someone else take the lead, and that was definitely one of those moments.

anyway, rant over.

[the-badger-mole]

Hallmarks of the Season: Part 6

"Zuko!" Katara launched herself into her fiancé's arms before she even realized she'd moved. Zuko was taken by surprise, but he recovered enough to pull her into a tight embrace. Katara buried her face in the crook of Zuko's neck and took in a deep breath. She was shaking and a moment later, Zuko realized she was crying.

"What's wrong?" he asked, horrified. "What happened? Are you hurt?" Katara shook her head and wiped her tears away hurriedly. Zuko fished a handkerchief from the pocket of his leather jacket- because of course he had a handkerchief with his casual clothes- and pressed it into Katara's hand.

"I just had an awful day," she told him. Zuko pulled her into a hug again and rubbed her back.

"I'm sorry," he murmured into her hair. "What happened?"

"You didn't call me back," Katara choked out a wet laugh. "It's always a bad day when I don't hear from you." Zuko drew back and searched her face for a sign that she was joking.

"I'm so sorry," he said. "I got done sooner than I thought I would, so I moved my flight up. I was going to tell you, but Haru thought a surprise would be more romantic, and-and its sounded like a good idea at the time..."

"Remind me to have a few words with Haru," Katara laughed again.

"I'm really sorry." Zuko pressed his forehead against Katara's. She shut her eyes and took in a deep breath.

"It's fine," she said. "This was a wonderful surprise. Just...don't go radio silent me? You didn't have to say you were coming, but I tried to call and you weren't responding to my texts."

"Never again," Zuko swore. He leaned in to kiss Katara, but she flinched away. Zuko's brow drew down, confused and hurt. An apology was already on Katara's tongue when the door of the house swung open to reveal Katara's family watching the couple with wide grins.

"Zuko!" Hakoda's deep voiced boomed out into the night. "Great to see you again."

-:-:-:-:-:-:-

Zuko was swept into the house in a flurry of laughs, loud welcomes, and jarring hugs. Kanna had arrived sometime while Katara was out, and she needed to be introduced in person. Sesi watched everything from between the banister rails. When Zuko smiled and waved at her, she waved back with a loud giggle and rushed upstairs to her room. Sokka shrugged at Zuko.

"She's pretending to be shy now," he joked. "Give her a couple of hours, and she'll decide you're her new best friend

Sokka, of all people, was the one to remember that they had someplace to be. When he announced that it was almost time to leave, and extended the invitation to Zuko, Katara's heart leapt into her throat.

"Zuko just had a really long flight," Katara reminded her brother. "Maybe we should reschedule."

"No way!" Sokka protested. "Su-I mean, everyone had to rearrange their schedules for tonight. I thought you were all anxious to drag Zuko around to everyone we know."

"I will!" Katara said, folding her arms. "But how about we let Zuko get settled first? He must be tired."

"I'm fine, actually," Zuko cut in. "I got some sleep on the plane. Besides, jetlag is telling my body that's it the middle of the morning still." Katara blanched. Her mind raced for a plausible excuse not to have to go to the bar that night. She had nothing.

"Alright," she relented. "Let me go get changed, then we can go." Katara fled the living room, praying that no one noticed her reluctance.

Katara grabbed fresh clothes and then went into the bathroom, locking the door behind her. She sank to the floor and dragged her hand through her hair. Maybe they would cancel if she said she was sick. Zuko would, she knew. The prospect of staying home and watching movies with Hakoda, Kanna and Sesi would appeal to him. Then she could get through the rest of this visit without seeing Aang again.

Sokka would ask questions, Katara reminded herself. And Zuko would notice her being evasive. Aang might not even show up. Or if he did, he would certainly not try to speak to her with Zuko there. Katara climbed to her feet and turned on the shower as hot as she could stand it. The steam had settled into a thick fog when she finally stepped into the shower, and she relished the the close feeling it gave her. She couldn't see much clearly aside from her own limbs. The water struck her skin almost painfully, but she welcomed it. She hadn't been able to get warm since she'd gotten home.

Katara got out of the shower before Sokka could start complaining about how long she was taking. When she went downstairs, her face still red from scrubbing so hard, she found Kanna and Sokka entertaining Zuko while Sesi helped Hakoda make snacks in the kitchen. The urge to just cancel the evening and stay home intensified. This had been all she'd wanted since Zuko said he'd join her family for the holidays. Sokka, though, was anxious to get going. In spite of herself, Katara was amused. Sokka had put on the best of his casual clothes. He was wearing a deep blue turtleneck sweater that played up his lighter blue eyes and warm brown skin. He was trying very hard to look good, and Katara was certain he wasn't trying to impress Toph or Zuko.

Not that Katara could claim her choice of clothes was completely coincidental. She was wearing a red blouse. Zuko had told her a few times that red was his favorite color on her. The way his eyes lingered on her as she walked down the stairs made her feel justified in her choice.

"You look pretty," Sesi said when she saw Katara.

"Very," Zuko concurred. Katara blushed and bit her lips to keep from grinning like an idiot. Still, Hakoda, Sokka and Kanna exchanged amused glances.

Zuko's reservation at the inn in town wasn't able to be moved up a day. He would be staying at Hakoda's house on the couch.

"I'll have a bigger bed in the guest room the next time you visit," Hakoda promised him apologetically.

"It's fine," Zuko assured him. "I did a lot of traveling volunteer work when I was in college. I've had a lot rougher sleeping arrangements than a comfortable couch in a nice home." Kanna sidled up to Katara and nudged her in her ribs.

"I like him," she whispered to her granddaughter. Katara grinned at Kanna and nodded.

"Me, too."

Sokka drove them to Toph's barcade. The Bind Bandit was only two years old, but it had become a staple among the young adults of the town. That evening the place was packed, but Toph had reserved a private booth for her friends. She was already waiting with Suki when Katara, Sokka and Zuko arrived.

"Hi!" Suki greeted them with a friendly wave. Then she turned to Toph and informed her of the trio's arrival.

"You don't have to give me a running commentary," she told Suki with a sardonic grin. "I can figure stuff out by context."

"Sorry," Suki apologized sheepishly. Toph's grin widened and turned mischievous.

"Oh, you're going to be fun to mess with," she said. "I can tell already."

"She's blind," Katara whispered to Zuko. "And she loves teasing people about it." Zuko nodded, then stepped forward.

"Hi," he greeted the women. "I'm Zuko." Then he stuck his hand out to Toph and waited a beat.

"Did he just put his hand out for me to shake?" Toph asked drily. Zuko, realizing his mistake, immediately shoved his hand into his pocket as the group erupted into laughter. Zuko even managed an embarrassed chuckle.

"Sorry," he said. "Force of habit." Toph grinned wolfishly and turned in Katara and Sokka's direction.

"Yeah," she said. "Tonight is going to be lots of fun." Then Toph clapped her hands and rubbed them together. "Alright, folks. Here's what's going to happen. You're my guest tonight to food, drinks and games are on me. Go bananas!"

"Alright, Toph!" Sokka cheered. "Suki, you have to try the banh mi sliders."

"That sounds good," Suki said. "I was looking a the fried cheese sticks earlier."

"Go up and tell the bar tender what you want," Toph said. "Tell them is for the boss's table."

Sokka and Suki volunteered to put in the orders for everyone and bring back some starter drinks. They were gone before Zuko could volunteer to help Sokka instead. Katara poked him in his side lightly and shook her head. Zuko's face lit up in understanding, and he winked at Katara. She let out a snort of laughter.

"It's so much fun when people have silent conversations around me," Toph drawled sarcastically.

"Sorry, that was rude," Zuko said, sliding into the booth behind Katara.

"I was just letting Zuko in on the little seeds of romance being planted," Katara told Toph.

"Those two?" Toph cocked her head towards the empty seats. "Yeah...I could see it. Suki's super into him."

"She said so?" Katara asked, her eyes widening in excitement.

"Not in words," Toph said. "But it's pretty obvious. She came in asking for his party and she kept casually bringing him up. I like her. Ex-military and she runs a martial arts studio, so you know she's no wimp."

"Sesi loves her, too," Katara said. She leaned into Zuko. "I really hope this works out. Losing Yue was rough on him. He hasn't been out with anyone since."

"Shh!" Toph nudged Katara. "They're coming back." Zuko turned and saw Suki and Sokka coming back carrying pitchers and a tray of shots. He turned back to Toph with a bewildered look on his face.

"How did you-?"

"I have my ways." Toph grinned, fixing her unnervingly sharp, sightless eyes on him. Zuko looked down at Katara, who just shrugged.

"You'll get used to it," she assured him.

Sokka placed two full pitchers, one beer, one soda on the table and stepped back to let Suki set her tray down.

"They're going to bring the food to the table," he said. "In the meantime, I think it's time to toast and get toasted."

"Hey, big brother," Katara reached over and pulled the tray of shots away from Sokka. "Did you forget you're our designated driver tonight?"Sokka's face fell instantly.

"Rookie mistake," Toph clicked her tongue. "You should've taken a cab."

"What if we leave the car here and take a cab home?" Sokka suggested.

"I'm not running a parking garage."

"Come on!" Sokka pleaded. "I never get to do stuff like this anymore." Toph thought for a moment, then a slow smile spread over her face.

"Alright," she agreed at last. "I'll let you leave your car here. Both out of the goodness of my heart, and because Sesi isn't going to understand that you have a hangover." Sokka blanched at that. He looked from the beer to the shots to the soda.

"Maybe..." he cleared his throat nervously. "Maybe I should get us a round of water. Just to stay hydrated." He hurried back to the bar, chased by the sounds of his friends laughing.

"So, Zuko," Toph turned towards him. "I already got the low down on Suki, here. Tell me about you."

"Well..." Zuko glanced around nervously and shrugged. "I'm not really sure where to start."

"Katara said you two met in Ba Sing Se?" Suki offered. "Were you born there?"

"No, actually," Zuko said. "I'm from Caldera. I moved to Ba Sing Se about ten years ago."

"Wait," Toph cut in. "Caldera? You're Zuko Kaji? As in The Kajis? As in the Sozin Inc. Kajis?" Zuko's face flushed a bright red.

"I haven't been associated with Sozin Inc in a long time," he said. "But yes, that's my father's company." Toph shook her head and let out a low whistle.

"I've met your dad," she told him. Zuko raised his brow expectantly. "He sucks." Suki choked on her soda

"Yeah, he does," Zuko snorted. "How do you know him?"

"My parents run a cyber security firm," Toph said. "They have a contract with Sozin."

"Oh!" Recognition dawned on Zuko. "You're a Bei Fong. Small world."

"Microscopic."

"Toph, I told you ages ago that Zuko was from Caldera," Katara reminded her friend. Toph just shrugged.

"I didn't put two and two together," she said. "I've heard about you. You stood up to your dad when he wanted to lay off a bunch of people to pay for a shinny new headquarters, then left the family business to do your own thing and took a lot of the people who'd been laid off with you. I'm impressed. That took guts."

"You did?" Suki asked. "That's really cool."

"Zuko's the most selfless CEO I've ever met," Katara said, beaming at him proudly.

"It wasn't all that," Zuko grumbled, drawing his shoulders up to his ears.

"And he's modest, too," Katara laughed. Zuko leaned in to kiss her, but Katara turned away at the last moment. Sokka returned with the water, distracting everyone. He set the pitcher down and looked around the table in confusion.

"Aang still hasn't shown up?" He checked his watch and frowned. "What's keeping him? Did he say he was going to be late when you stopped by his shop?" Katara could feel her cheeks heat up with consciousness. She shook her head uncertainly.

"Maybe he changed his mind about coming tonight." Sokka shrugged. "Still, you think he'd call or something." Katara made a noncommittal sound and poured a cup of beer.

"Why don't we grab a game or something?" Katara suggested.

"Not that one with the song lyrics," Toph said. "I cannot listen to Sokka's off-key butchering of whatever song he half remembered from the top 40 chart." Suki slid out to let Katara out. Zuko hurried after her. They passed a row of noisy arcade games to the wall of board games in silence.

"We need to pick something that Toph can play," Katara explained. "There are games with braille on them in that corner."

"Are you okay?" Zuko asked suddenly. Katara froze and turned to him with wide eyes.

"What do you mean?" She busied herself looking for a game. Zuko caught her hands and guided her around to face him, but Katara kept her eyes on their intertwined hands. She ran her thumb over his knuckles absently.

"You've been off all evening," he said. "Are you mad at me?" Now Katara met his eyes with a gasp.

"I'm not mad at you," she told him.

"You keep pulling away from me when I try to kiss you," Zuko pointed out. "You only do that when you're upset with me." Katara blinked hard against tears that suddenly sprang to her eyes.

"It's not you," she assured him. "I'm not mad at you. I just...I don't want to talk about it here."

"Did you want to stay home tonight?" Zuko asked. "I can tell everyone the jetlag caught up with me, and we can get out of here." Katara took a deep breath and hugged Zuko tight.

"I'm okay," she said firmly. "I want you to get to know my friends." Zuko hesitated, rubbing circles between Katara's shoulders.

"Alright," he said at last. "But let me know if you change your mind about leaving." Katara smiled into his chest.

"I'm sorry I made you think I'm mad at you," she murmured. "You haven't done anything wrong. You're wonderful."

"That's good to hear." Zuko pulled away and gave Katara one last concerned look over. Then he took her hand and brought it to his lips. Katara allowed him to press a quick kiss to her knuckles. Zuko started to lead the way back to the table, but Katara stopped him.

"We're supposed to be picking games," she said with feigned exasperation. They grabbed a trivia game, a comparison card game, and a block stacking game. This last one Zuko looked at with uncertainty.

"Toph is scary good at this game," Katara told him. "You'll see."

Katara was recounting one particularly epic game night when she and her friends were in high school, where Toph managed to pull the last brick from a row without toppling the precarious stack of blocks above it.

"To this day, no one can figure out how she did it," Katara said as the rounded the corner to the table.

"Hey, look to finally decided to join us," Sokka said, gesturing at the other end of the table. Katara's heart stopped, knowing exactly what was about to happen. Aang popped his head from around the booth and smiled at Katara.

"...hi," Katara said awkwardly. She cleared her throat and glanced around awkwardly and set the games she had been carrying on the table. "Um...Aang, this is Zuko, my fiancé. Zuko, this is Aang..."

"Hi," Zuko greeted him. "Great to meet another friend of Katara's."

"Yeah," Aang laughed. "I mean we were a little more than friends at one point." That statement landed with a thud. Zuko's smile faded a bit and Katara was sure her friends could see that she wanted the ground to swallow her. Thankfully, Toph saved the moment.

"Oh, please," she snorted loudly. "You dated her for two months in high school. That's a very little more than friends." Sokka and Suki laughed a bit too hard at that. Two angry splotches of red colored Aang's cheeks, but he slid out to let Katara into the booth. He started to sit beside her, but Katara grabbed Zuko's hand yanked him in behind her, nearly knocking Aang over in the process.

"Sorry about that," Zuko said in a way that seemed...less than apologetic. An awkward silence settled over the table. This time Suki stepped in to break the tension.

"So, what games did we get?" she asked. "And can we turn them into drinking games?"

"We got the tower game," Katara said, grinning at Sokka and Toph. "How about whoever knocks the tower down takes a shot." Sokka inhaled sharply.

"Slow down!" he said. "My liver can only take so much abuse."

"If we're going to do this, we'll need more than a round of shots," Toph said. She stood up and headed towards the bar. She came back a moment later with a full bottle of soju.

"You're trying to kill me," Sokka groaned.

"I thought you wanted to get toasted," Toph said innocently.

"Toasted," Sokka repeated as he took the blocks out of the box. "Not black out drunk. That's okay, though. I've been playing this game with Sesi for years now. I've gotten a lot better."

"Make sure you eat plenty," Katara said, pushing the plate of banh mi sliders and barbeque wings towards her brother.

"Did you guys order anything without meat?" Aang asked crossly, looking at the greasy meat sandwiches on the table.

"We have fried cheese sticks and onion rings coming," Sokka told him.

"Great..." Aang folded his arms and scowled. "That'll fill me right up."

"Simmer down, Aang," Toph said. "I have a whole vegetarian menu. Go order whatever you want. It's on the house tonight."

"It would have been nice if someone had thought to order something for me," he grumbled, climbing reluctantly to his feet.

"Well, maybe if you had shown up on time, you could have asked," Toph retorted, unsympathetically. "Stop whining and go get your food." Aang snorted irritably and went up to the bar to put in his order.

"What's his deal?" Sokka asked, scrunching up his nose.

"No idea," Toph said. "But if he doesn't snap out of it, I'm going to make him go stand in the corner." That got a laugh from the table.

Aang managed to find a better attitude by the time he returned to the table. He poured himself a shot from the soju bottle when he sat down. Once the game started, he took another shot, and he seemed to even be back to his normal cheerful self. He chattered on about memories from high school, and cracked his friends up with anecdotes from his misadventures over the years before he returned to his hometown. He even made an effort to get to know Suki, and not so subtly talk up Sokka in their conversation. To Katara he said little directly. To Zuko even less. As the evening went on, the slight was becoming more noticeable. Katara did her best to keep Zuko from realizing by keeping him involved in discussions with everyone else and encouraging her friends to ask him questions. Aang would huff and sigh and then turn the conversation in a different direction. At one point, Sokka stood up and announced it was time for another round of drinks.

"Aang, come help me," he said after he'd gotten everyone's orders. Aang agreed after a moments hesitation and slid out of the booth. With them gone, the conversation migrated around to Katara and Zuko's engagement and wedding plans.

"We haven't settled on a date yet," Katara was telling Suki and Toph when Sokka and Aang returned. "I think I'd like a spring wedding, though."

"I don't have a preference," Zuko said with a shrug. "But, I don't really want a long engagement."

"Gran-Gran said the same thing," Katara told him with a wide smile.

"What's the matter Zuko?" Aang asked, addressing Zuko directly for the first time. He reached across the table to grab his drink from the tray. "Afraid she'll change her mind?" Aang gave him an exaggerated wink and nudged him just slightly too hard in the ribs.

"Not at all," Zuko replied gamely. "I just don't want to wait too long to be able to call her my wife." Suki, and to everyone's surprise, Toph cooed at that.

"That's really sweet," Suki said. "I'd love to find someone who feels that way about me, someday." Sokka choked a bit on his drink at that.

"Are you alright?" Katara asked. Sokka was flustered, but he nodded yes and ran a hand through his hair.

"Whiskey just went down the wrong pipe," he said. Katara caught his eye and wriggled her brows at him. Sokka shot her a dirty glare and then pointedly looked away from her, but Katara was not to be deterred.

"You know, Sokka here is great at that dance game," she said.

"Really?" Suki asked, turning to Sokka. "I love that game."

"Oh...?" was Sokka's intelligent reply. "That's cool. A-are you any good at it?" Suki's mouth turned up into a smirk.

"Well, I was three time champ at my barracks," she told him. "I'd say I'm pretty good."

"Impressive..." Sokka cleared his throat and took another swallow of his drink. "Would you be up to a friendly match?" Katara could have cheered for her brother, but she settled for bumping her shoulder against Zuko's in excitement. Suki accepted the challenge and they ran off to the game. They didn't ask for an audience and no one offered to go with them. Katara and Toph joked and laughed a bit over the situation, and made predictions about how long it would be before Sokka and Suki were dating. Katara was going to suggest going over to peek at how the contest was going, when a server rushed up to the table, looking nervous.

"Um...Ms. Bei Fong," the jumpy young man gave a slight bow.

"I'm not working tonight," Toph told him.

"I-I know," the server stammered. "But...there's a situation in the kitchen."

"Whatever it is, you guys can handle it." Toph folded her arms stubbornly. The server shifted nervously on his feet, unsure of what to do.

"Okay," he said at last. "We'll try, but...the fire extinguisher is missing." Toph froze for a beat and then growled in irritation as she dragged herself from her seat at the middle of the circular booth.

"Honestly, what do I even pay a kitchen manager for?" she muttered. The server gave Toph his elbow and guided her back towards the kitchen. Zuko watched her go in alarm.

"Should we start making our way out of here?" he asked.

"Nah," Katara said waving off his concern. "It's probably just a little grease fire. But I do need to go to the bathroom." Zuko started to ask Aang to get up so he could let Katara out, but Katara told them to stay where they were and slid the long way out of the booth. Katara glanced back at the table, uncertain of whether to leave Zuko alone with Aang, but her bladder reminded her that she had a more pressing issue to attend to. She wouldn't be gone long anyway.

Aang was standing outside the bathroom when Katara emerged a few minutes later. She paused when she saw him, but moved aside to let him into the bathroom.

"I...um...came to speak to you, actually," he said. He swayed on his feet, and it was clear that the three shots and his drink had caught up with him. Katara glanced around nervously.

"We can talk at the table," she said.

"Please!" Aang begged. "I need to speak to you alone. It'll just take a moment. I just wanted to talk about...well earlier."

"Aang, honestly, it's fine," Katara fidgeted on her feet. "Just forget it, okay?" She started to walk away when Aang moved to block her.

"I don't want to forget it," he said. "Katara, that kiss was...amazing. I know you felt it, too." Katara's eyes widened in shock.

"I did not," she told him bluntly.

"Of course you did!" Aang insisted. "You kissed me back!"

"No, Aang, I didn't," Katara huffed in irritation. "Let's not discuss this now. You're drunk."

"You did, too!" Aang reached for her shoulders again, but Katara backed away. "I know you're confused now with him here, but you can't deny there was something in that kiss." Katara gaped up at Aang.

"Do you think that because I didn't pull away, I was kissing you back?" she hissed. "I was surprised! You started an argument with me! I had just told you that I love Zuko! How did that seem like the right time to kiss me?" Aang seemed genuinely poleaxed, which only served to further confuse Katara.

"But...earlier at the shop," he said. "You told me that you were upset because he hadn't texted you because he was too busy at work."

"Yes!" Katara shook her head. "Because I missed him! I was worried he wouldn't make it in time. What on earth would make you think I was angry enough to dump him over that?"

"He takes you for granted, Katara!" Aang stepped forward unsteadily, and Katara took a step back. "He's not good for you! Why don't you see that?" Katara glanced around again, but no one was coming down the corridor for the bathroom.

"I think I'm old enough to decide what's good for me," Katara scowled at Aang. "It's real presumptuous of you to think you can come back into my life after a decade and tell me how to live my life. I'm with Zuko. I'm going to marry him. If you're my friend, then act like it. Be happy for me!" Aang balked, and searched Katara's face for...she wasn't sure what. Uncertainty? A sign she was lying? Then after a moment, his face fell.

"So...yesterday in my office?" he asked. "Today, when you said you wanted an excuse to see me? That was nothing? You were just leading me on?"

"No," Katara scoffed and folded her arms. "Yesterday and today was me doing you a favor as a friend. I was just trying to help you with your business because I'm your friend. Me coming to see you was an an excuse to get out of the house. If you read more into it than that, then I'm sorry. That wasn't my intention." Aang shook his head in disbelief. Katara was going to attempt to push past him again, but he was quicker this time. Aang grabbed her arms at the elbows and pulled her forward.

"It wasn't nothing," he insisted, and leaned in to kiss her.

"Aang, stop!" Katara pushed against his chest and turned her head away from him. Then, suddenly, he was off her. Zuko had him pressed against the wall with his forearm braced against his collar bone like a barricade.

"She told you to stop!" he said darkly. Katara scrambled behind Zuko and clutched the hem of his sweater. Aang was startled. He blinked at Zuko owlishly and made a feeble attempt to push the less drunk and much stronger man away. For a moment, Katara thought Zuko was going to hit Aang, and she wasn't sure she would stop him. But the moment passed. Zuko took a deep breath and grabbed shoulder of Aang's shirt, dragging him out of the narrow corridor and back into the bar room. Katara was close on their heels. Sokka and Suki noticed what was happening and rushed over.

"What's going on?" Sokka demanded. He looked from Aang to Zuko to Katara and back, trying to make sense of the situation.

"He's had too much to drink," Zuko said, shaking Aang. "We need to get him a cab and send him home." Sokka turned to Katara, with a questioning look. She turned her gaze the floor and rubbed her elbow.

"He-he tried to kiss me," Katara told him. Several emotions flashed over Sokka's face before he landed on anger. He yanked Aang from Zuko's grip and shook him, which Katara was certain wasn't helping his inebriation one bit.

"Are you serious, dude?" Sokka demanded.

"I was just-" Aang tried to say. "You don't understand, Katara is supposed to be with me." Sokka let go of Aang shirt and pushed him away roughly. Aang staggered back and bumped into Zuko.

"I know where he lives," Sokka said. "I'll get him a cab." Aang resisted as best he could, but Sokka dragged him out of the bar with little trouble. Suki wrapped an arm around Katara's shoulders and guided her back towards the table.

"Are you alright?" she asked. Katara nodded her head and swallowed hard against a lump in her throat.

"No, I'm fine," she said. "He didn't hurt me or anything. He just-" Katara sank into the booth and sighed. Zuko sat beside her and took her hand. Suki looked up at the door with her lips pursed.

"I'm going to go wait with Sokka," she said. "In case something escalates." Katara wanted to tell Suki that Aang wasn't a physical threat, but she found she didn't have the energy. Then she was alone with Zuko.

"Are you okay?" he asked. Katara was going to say she was fine again, but the words wouldn't come. She took a sharp shaky breath before falling into Zuko's arms. In a scene reminiscent of his arrival earlier that evening, she cried into his shirt. Zuko murmured comfortingly and rubbed her back while Katara gathered herself.

"I'm sorry," she said when she could speak again.

"For what?" Zuko asked. "You didn't do anything wrong." Katara shook her head. She knew he was right in her head, but the guilt and shame lingered. She told Zuko what had happened earlier that day. About the first time Aang kissed her. How she hadn't pulled away because she was too surprised. Understanding dawned on Zuko's face.

"And that's why you didn't want to kiss me?" he asked.

"I just felt wrong," she confessed. "It doesn't make any sense, but I felt like kissing you after that would've been...I don't know. A betrayal or something. I know it doesn't make sense-"

"That's...normal," Zuko said. "When someone you trust does something that hurts you, it's normal to want to try to blame yourself. But, Katara, it wasn't your fault. You did something nice for Aang, and he chose to read more into it."

"You're not mad at me?" Katara asked. She curled into his side and rested her head on his shoulder.

"No," Zuko assured her. "Although, I think you shouldn't be alone with Aang anymore. I don't trust him with you." Katara let out a snort of laughter.

"Not a problem."

"Crisis averted," Toph announced as she walked up to the table. "I had to go over how to handle a grease fire to my crack team of kitchen experts." Toph felt her way to her seat. "So! What did I miss?"

-:-:-:-:-:-:-

The evening ended shortly after Sokka and Suki came back from putting Aang in a cab. Sokka was still fuming. After she had been filled in on what happened, Toph was equally as angry. She had the rest of the food they hadn't eaten packed up in to-go boxes and pressed them on Katara.

"You're always feeding people when they're in crisis," she said when Katara tried to refuse. "Let me return the favor."

Hakoda and Sesi were already asleep when Sokka, Katara and Zuko returned home. The couch had already been made up for Zuko, to everyone's relief. Sokka went up to check on Sesi, and then went to bed himself. Katara and Zuko lingered in the living room.

"I'm sorry this evening was such a mess," she said.

"I was having a great time, before that Aang guy went and ruined it." Zuko reached out and ran his fingers through the ends of Katara's hair. "I like most of your friends. I'm glad I got a chance to meet Toph and Suki." Zuko paused thoughtfully and rocked on his heels. "I was thinking... this town is pretty cool- well, what I've seen of it. Maybe we could have the wedding here?" Katara was stunned for a moment. Then she smiled.

"I think that's the best idea I've heard." She said good night and headed for the stairs. Then the paused and turned back.

"Forget something?" Zuko asked.

"Yeah," Katara nodded. She stood on her toes and kissed Zuko. "I love you."

-:-:-:-:-:-:-

Thanks to a combination of the night's early end and Sokka's diligence in keeping everyone hydrated, no one woke up with an insurmountable hangover. That was fortunate because, as Toph predicted, Sesi had no concept of hangovers and was up bright and early, and ready for her day with her Auntie Tara. Katara shrugged at Zuko helplessly as Sesi prattled on excitedly about all the fun things she and her aunt were going to do that day.

"I didn't know you'd be here," Katara told him. "And I did promise Sesi."

"You can come with us, Uncle Zuko!" Sesi suggested. Zuko preened at his official title, and he seemed to be ready to take her up on her offer, but Hakoda clasped his shoulder.

"Actually," he cut in, "I think this is the perfect chance for you and I to get to know each other better. It's a father-son tradition to crack open a couple of beers and watch the game. What do you say, Zuko? Want to join Sokka and I?"

"I-I'd love to," Zuko seemed genuinely moved.

The doorbell rang as the family was making final arrangements. Sokka got to it first and was greeted by a large platter of baked goods. He looked up from the tray to the owner, and his face lit up.

"Suki!"

"Hi," Suki smiled uncertainly. "I wasn't sure if anyone would be up for company, but I wanted to see if Katara was okay. I brought some sweets."

"That's never unwelcomed," Sokka said. "It's cold, though. Why don't you come in?' Suki shook her head.

"I have a class in an hour," she explained. "I have to go set up. I just wanted to check in."

"Oh," Sokka tried to keep the disappointment from bleeding into his voice. "Well, thank you!" Suki nodded and started to turn away, but then she paused, and turned back to Sokka.

"We never decided a winner last night," she said. "How about a rematch?" Sokka straightened up and puffed his chest with a cocky grin.

"Name the day," he said.

"How about Thursday?" Suki suggested.

"You're on!"

"And maybe after I win," Suki continued. "We can have dinner?" Sokka almost fell over in surprise.

"Yeah!" he agreed quickly. "Winner treats?" Suki raised brow at that.

"Isn't it usually the loser who treats?" she asked.

"Yeah," Sokka shrugged, "but I don't plan to lose." Suki laughed and waved goodbye to him.

"I'll call you."

Sokka went inside and found his family watching him with interest in the foyer. Hakoda was grinning, Zuko gave him a thumbs up, and Katara just looked smug.

"Daddy?" Sesi tugged on Sokka's shirt. "Were you flirting with Sifu Suki?"

the end

One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six

[izunias-meme-hole]

One Villainous Scene - Cruelty vs Restraint

Fire Lord Ozai, no matter how pathetic he is as a person, is still one of the most chilling villains in any animated series (Outside of like Emperor Belos, Bill Cipher, DCAU!Joker, Slade, and Professor Pericles). Despite only appearing in the flesh in season 3, his buildup through both the Fire Nation and his own family is amazing. We see that he scarred his son for both speaking out against him and not fighting back, we see that he basically groomed his daughter into a killing machine, we see that he's authorized so many war crimes, we see the crimes of his ancestors, and they all showcase one thing. He is unbelievably cruel. Born evil? No. Cruel to the point of disgust? Absolutely. Ozai, as the head of an imperialistic system, believes that he has a "Divine Right to Rule" and that "strength is all that matters", though his idea of strength is pure relentlessness and remorseless cruelty. In his eyes, if you're unable to burn whatever stands in your way with zero hesitation, then that makes you weak. It's a simplistic ideology for a villain, but its effective because of the type of villainous force the Fire Nation is (The fckin' Axis Powers), and the type of protagonist that The Avatar, Aang is.

Aang is an Air Nomad, a monk to put it simply. He lived a simplistic life before his people got eliminated by the Fire Nation 100 years ago, and part of that simplistic lifestyle involved zero killing. It's literally ironic since previous Avatar's have never hesitated to outright execute someone if they had to for the sake of peace. Since Aang is the current Avatar, and the current Fire Lord is literally threatening the world with the most brutal breed of fascism possible... you can see where this is going. Aang wants to stop Ozai, but he isn't willing to betray the beliefs of his long dead people. So when this inevitable fight starts, it got ugly really quick.

After stoping Ozai's attempt at turning the Earth Kingdom into a wasteland, Aang gets his attention and tried talking him into surrendering, but as expected Ozai doesn't back down. Aang does indeed fight this bastard, but consistently spends the fight restraining himself. He has opportunities to just snuff out Ozai's life, but chooses not to because of his beliefs. Meanwhile Ozai isn't hesitating at all. This is a man who burned his own kid for speaking out against him and showing weakness, so he has no qualms with killing this child who froze himself for 100 years.

Aang continues to restrain himself, while Ozai keeps trying to go in for the kill, taunting the last airbender while doing so and making him run. The Fire Lord continues showing absolutely zero mercy towards Aang, even as the boy is hiding, and this ultimately became his undoing. Thanks to his literal inability to show mercy, Ozai forced Aang into the Avatar State, and from there he is shown a power far beyond his own.

Now that he's literally pissed off the most powerful entity on the planet, Ozai begins getting completely and utterly washed. He is getting stomped out, and there is not a single thing he can do about it. He cannot fight back, and running is definitely not a luxury that he's being afforded. Now he's the helpless one while Aang is the one showing zero restraint, and it's made all to clear when Aang literally pins Ozai down onto the ground, getting ready to kill this man with all four elements.

Except, Aang doesn't do it. He regains control of himself, and regains that restraint, that desire to hold onto his people's beliefs, and shows Ozai mercy. Despite literally everything, Aang doesn't want to end it all like this. Ozai on the other hand is pissed.

"Even with all the power in the world, you are still weak."

Ozai was shown the immense power of the Avatar, and he was afraid of that power. Then he is shown mercy by this being who could decimate him in one shot? As scared as he was in that moment, Ozai would've rather died to someone that could overpower or at least have the will to kill him than be spared. So naturally, he wastes the mercy Aang gave him in an attempt to kill him, but ultimately gets pinned down, and unfortunately for him Aang remembered a little trick he learned before this fight. The ability to remove one's bending. So just like that, Ozai doesn't die, but rather is is powerless, humiliated, and shown for what he truly is... a small man pretending to be a big bad wolf.

Ultimately for all of his thoughts on what makes one "strong" and "weak," for all his talk about how he has a "right" to rule, and for all of his cruelty and ruthlessness, Ozai is ultimately just an pathetic human being using the past of his bloodline and his nation to become more than what he is. Meanwhile a literal CHILD MONK, the last personification of restraint and simplicity, not only kicks his ass, but proves that him wrong on so many levels and exposes him for what he really is. Fire Lord Ozai is a simplistic villain with minimal screen time, but what carries him is indeed his buildup as this purely monstrous figure, his constant presence, his cruelty, and the payoff that is this phenomenally done final fight.

[tailsrevane]

hey so sorry to jumpscare anyone who's still following me by posting some stuff here for the first time in like literally a year i think? adhd is fun. but yeah, i've really been missing writing something fierce, so i may try to be more present. i cannot promise that i'll be great about keeping up with what y'all are up to on here because the parts of my day i used to fill with scrolling tumblr have seemingly evaporated? but i'll do my best.

anyway, i was listening to a patreon bonus episode of one of my favorite podcasts (hey riddle riddle), and one of the hosts (adal) mentioned that every time he rewatches a tv show he hasn't watched in a while, he usually ends up with a different favorite character than he had the last time he watched it. and that got me thinking about some shows i've rewatched lately, and i realized that's largely been the case for me as well. hardly a shocking revelation of course, but i decided to do what any normal person would do with this information and write a long post no one but me is going to care about about my experience with this phenomenon.

avatar: the last airbender

original favorite: aang

current favorite: zuko

this is the most interesting one to me, and it also feels like it makes a great deal of sense both in terms of how i've changed since the first time i watched this show and also just how the show mechanically works. like... the first time you watch the first few seasons, prince zuko is unambiguously the bad guy for the first few seasons. the show even seems to go out of its way to show him being offered an off-ramp or two and not taking them. which is part of why him finally doing so feels so earned.

watching it the second time through was just a completely different experience. it didn't feel weird whenever zuko did something admirable. it didn't make me roll my eyes whenever he was Going Through It and showed us that he was hurting. it didn't make me angry to see him trying his best for a dad who would never love him. or rather, it did make me angry, very angry, but not at him.

i genuinely think atla is one of the shows that most rewards a rewatch. it was already one of my favorite shows of all time the first time i watched it, but i realized upon rewatching it that i was somehow underrating it in my memory.

star trek: the next generation

original favorite: captain picard

current favorite: riker

honestly there are a bunch of characters on this show i might've called my favorite on any given day when i was younger. i definitely went through phases with worf & geordi too. and embarrassingly i think my first favorite character was probably wesley. but i think the one i most consistently came back to was captain picard. he was aspirational. i wanted to be that good at listening to all sides of an issue but always, always making what i believed with strong moral conviction was the right choice, and being willing to put myself into the literal & figurative line of fire to defend my principles.

and don't get me wrong, there are still a lot of things i admire about picard. but also like... one other consistent thing about my favorite character years ago is that it was for sure never will riker. to be completely honest when i first watched the show i thought he was easily the most boring character. like, what even is a first officer? spock was that and a science officer at the same time. and on top of that the character himself is intentionally channeling the worst star trek captain? are you sure? and the thing that everyone likes about him is that he has a beard? (no offense to anyone but i don't find facial hair attractive.)

to be honest i still don't quite get the beard thing, but wow was i ever sleeping on this guy. will riker is my favorite tng character and it isn't particularly close. part of it is just finally noticing how dang charismatic jonathan frakes is in his unique kind of way, and how much he uses that charisma to be warm & reassuring and just... generally kind of a "good guy"? like, i hate star trek: picard, but i think seeing riker as a wholesome husband & dad is a big part of what made his character finally click for me. and going back & rewatching tng, it was hard not to notice how much he was constantly standing up for people and just... caring.

maybe that's just it. i like "boring" characters who care and want everyone to be ok and will do their best no matter what. and that's will riker.

and yeah, it helps that he's a slut.

star trek: deep space nine

original favorite: worf

current favorite: captain sisko

worf was my favorite star trek character for a good long time and there are still things i admire about him. i'll never not fall for that stupid-ass trick they pull every tng episode where he's having an interpersonal conflict in which he's been carrying the pigheaded idiot ball all episode, and he'll say something that sounds completely unredeemable and reminds you of all the reasons you're on the other person's side, but then he'll pause dramatically and start his next sentence with, "however." and immediately say the coolest shit you've ever heard that shows he's really Grown and Learned (but he'll forget by the next episode because while late-season tng got really good at having at least one character experience character development per episode, it wasn't until ds9 that they showed any signs of actually retaining what they learned from episode to episode).

also like... when we talk about autistic-coded characters i feel like worf often gets left out, but he's just... yeah, guys. yeah.

but on my last rewatch of ds9 it just became abundantly clear to me that captain sisko is the best star trek captain and it isn't especially close. he's every bit the paragon of virtue that picard is, but he's just... more human. more present. more willing to be transparent about what he's dealing with, more willing to talk through his weakness and biases, but still willing to accept the responsibility of command.

different doesn't have to mean better or worse, but especially with the way picard's character careened off the rails & burst into flames the further we got from season 7 of tng, sisko is just indisputably the best captain. and no disrespect to patrick stewart or anyone else who's ever been in front of that camera, but i think it's reasonably likely avery brooks is the best actor that's ever been on star trek. he's just incredible.

star trek: voyager

original favorite: seven of nine

current favorite: tuvok

i still like seven a lot, but tuvok was always one of my favorite characters on the show and rewatching the show really cemented it for me.

i especially like seeing the way he talks about emotions in a genuinely emotionally healthy way. he acknowledges their power, never says they're not real or unimportant, and then talks through them. it's just brilliant.

[friedoats]

Okay so i finished NAtLA

Im gonna be talking about what i think could have been done better, my few nit picks where i was ready to throw my tv out the window, the stuff that made me go what the hell, and the 2 things that i felt like they did really well/better than og, and shit that had me laughing

And before i go any further if i were to sum up everything wrong with this the main and biggest issue with this remake is that there is a common theme of them making shit up that a, completely disregards the og world building. B, give us no reason for the deviance. And c, just putting in cheap plot devices or shit that doesnt do anything for the story.

With that aside for what it was i liked it. it was okay, it definitely met my expectation of being average and mediocre.

Could have been better

Episode run time/plot set up had a choppy flow. So all the episodes average out to about 50 minutes and we got 8 episodes this season, they obviously would have to merge or cut episodes no matter what. The flow was especially weird with ep 3&4 the ones scened in omashu, where they combined like 3 episodes from the original and just-was not put together well and they definitely could have paced the story better. I honestly think-in my personal opinion-it would have been better if they had split the 7 hours down to 20-25 minutes each episode. that would have given us about 17 episode rather than the 8 40-50 minutes that each episode was, i think it would have helped their pacing

Why the comit celebration with the air nomads? Like why are they celebrating that comit? Is it culturally significant to them, if anything it seems like something only the firenation would celebrate, what significance does the comit that strengthens firebenders that only omes by once every 100 years have to the airbender? In the og it was multiple sycronized attacks on each temple if im recalling corectly, but yeah comit festivle at the air nation just was a tad bit weird for me

For yue im just mad the didnt save their cgi budget to give us floaty ghost yue, we were deprived of spirit yue and i detest that, other than that i apreciate she had the option to not go through with the aranged marriage, they would have written her as a character better, it just felt, a lot more surface level than in the og.

Huh/it happened

Why'd they take aangs shirt off in the first ep? I know they did it to show us his sick tattoos but, bro is seriously in the southern water tribe please give him his shit back while he's passed the hell out

I have...opinions about them physically showing us the genocide of the airbenders because on one had, we didnt see that in the og and its and intresting exploration of what we knew but hadn't seen, on the other hand, genocide... idk if it was necessarily an okay thing to portray the way that they did, it left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth (but thats kinda the point of it(genocide is supposed to make you feel uncomfortable it should feel wrong)) but yeah it was definitely a decision that they made.

I was ready to throw my phone

My only complaint about Suki is just the fact that they made her shy??? Like that felt so unnatural not having her talk to sokka for a whole 20 ass minutes (closer to five but it felt like 20) and not to mention the scene where shes teaching sokka i-i dont have words it was just horrible. it was so ooc for suki and i cant even think of a reason why they would do it, like, the audience doesnt gain anything from her not talking besides cringe 10,000 and it doesnt do anything for the plot whatsoever or narrative, someone was just like, "what if she didn't talk lol because outsiders are in her village and that water tribe guy is cute". The reason that sokka and suki worked was because she was just as if not more head strong than him, and she's really not the kind of person to have a crush at first sight. Just felt ick. Give me season one misogynistic, sexist sokka, let him have caracter development of getting his ass beat and his standards thrown back at him torn to shreds

Let sokka be problematic

I threw my phone

The only being able to talk to the previous Avatars via avatar statues makes no fucking sense and i have no clue what the hell possessed them to make them think it was a good idea to do that. First off how in the hell would they have figured it out (people in atla world)? There would have been a point at the beginning of the avatar cycle where mfs were not making statues of them, and then they did do it and some avatar was just like lemme meditate under this previous avatar and see what happens-it just agh. Second of all at some point avatar statues are going to be destroyed whether by time or intentionally at some point there will be avatars that will just never be reachable or wholly forgoten. It also just feels like a cheap plot device to get them to go places and we dont really gain anything from it.

Okay the spirit episode with hei bai, was just... a mess. And im chunking this all together, number one the fucking, ahhdhdhg, it makes me mad just thinking about it, the fact that katara and sokka got "pulled into" the spirit world with and was just bad. Bad storytelling. Bad writing. And they fucking knew it, and they knew that we would know that they were pulling shit out of their ass with it, they acknowledged that in the fucking show, they had sokka and katara say "hey how did we get in here with you" and aang just shrugs and says "idk" and it actually has me griping at my scalp and pulling my fucking hair out. that was first draft kinda stuff and the fact that it made it into the final fucking product has me raising my fucking fists to fight whoever made that decision. Numero dos why was yue there (yes i know that they gave an explanation but still why, it served no purpose it did nothing) number 3 sokka should not have a face aang should not have a face, koh the face stealer. he steals faces, specifically when people show emotion. Thats what makes him scary, not the memory bullshit whatever that was . It was just weak.

Kataras whole bending arc, nothing more needs to be said, actually basically her whole character in this.

Okay i really liked this

I really liked how they casted Azula. Spesifically that she looks her age, she looks young, because she is, even though shes definitely trying to be/apear older. And i like that they made her also just as much a victim of ozai's abuse as zuko(dont get me wrong love og but this is a good expansion of the narative for an adaptation) not to mention durring zukos agni kai shes not smiling, she looks conflicted, glad its not her, but thats her brother. and shes still is a genius in bending and her personality has been moulded to not be a target for ozai and vying for his aproval its obvious that she aware that ozai's wrath could also be turned onto her and had learned from zukos mistakes to not get the brunt of it. Just a good exploration of azula over all

Appa looks so cute! They did my boy good and Momo! Adorable truely 10/10 except the part where they nearly fucking killed him, that was unnecessary and he shoud have a part of the moon or ocean spirit in him like yue canonically speaking but ig.

Other coments

Half the budget was spent on wigs lol i have nothing more to say on this

I think we could have stood to have a bit more mention of sokkas Insticts

That was just a whole ass regular kayak at the end and it had me on rolling on the fucking floor

I felt like i was reading a fan fic written buy a child that doesnt actually like the source material and only read the spark notes

Side note

I didnt add a lot of stuff that i originally was going to bc its kinda obvious and were things that i felt like i couldn't add anything to

[botherkupo]

Woo finished all 8 episodes of atla live action show. So here are my final thoughts:

Show had its weaknesses but overall was very enjoyable. Would watch again

I loved everything they did with Zuko, Azula, and Ozai. I’ve rambled about this a few times now so won’t add anything more. Just want to emphasize that all extra scenes/changes etc were very satisfying for me and made me excited for the future seasons

I wasn’t sold on Iroh in that first episode but he grew on me quickly and the use of Leaves From the Vine still makes me heart ache. Perfect emotional touch. (Also Zuko saying Lu Ten would be proud to have Iroh as a father before the NWT battle was so sweet)

Aang was wonderful. Some parts with the Avatars being like” bro get your act together” felt repetitive at times, but I also like we got to see all the last 3 avatars. (Also Kuruk focusing on spirit battles was cool. Thank you for giving him more substance and explaining why Koh may have targeted him through Umi)

One thing I really appreciate about Aang here is that yes he didn’t technically “run away” and get trapped in the iceberg. He left to calm down because he was feeling so overwhelmed, then all that stuff happens, and then 100 years passes and he’s stuck not knowing how to be the Avatar — especially in a world so different from his own. The part where he said he didn’t belong in the world was just 😭😭😭🥺🥺🥺

Anyway I like that Aang is trying even though he’s so uncertain and lost. He has his flaws and he has his strengths and at the end of the day his role will be to fight for peace and try bring back the world he knew — when ppl could have fun and be friends with other nations. Also yeah the whole direction they went with the Ocean Spirit was awesome. Aang knew what was going to happen but he did it anyway because he thought that was all he could do, even if it meant he would be lost. I was very emotional lol

In terms of Sokka and Katara, this show definitely feels like it has placed Zuko and Aang as the leads. So yeah, in some ways Katara has stepped back a bit this season compared to what we saw in the cartoon. I honestly wasn’t happy with all the ways she was handled but overall I am still happy with her in the show. Her fight with Pakku was awesome, I love she rounded up the female waterbenders to fight, and I cried when she was calling out to Aang as he was lost to the Ocean Spirit. I think she will be even better in season 2, since her story in this season was about overcoming her trauma and not holding herself back for anyone

On that note, the 8 episode limit definitely made the show suffer in terms of pacing for those last few episodes. I would have loved to have seen Katara do more to fully accept she IS a master. I also didn’t feel much for Sokka and Yue since I felt he had better chemistry with Suki. They definitely could have done with more episodes to build that relationship up. I did like Yue though and how her sacrifice felt less like a destined thing the Moon Soieit had always intended her to do and more like something she chose to do freely.

Also can I just say the horrified screech I made when Momo got hit. I was going noooo momo the whole time until he got healed. (Show needed more Momo. Also Appa. Budget probably made their appearances few snd far between but still. Momo is my fav and I missed him)

It was interesting how they completely changed Hahn but also quite refreshing. One of things I do like about this live action (and I’m probably in the minority) is that they made complete changes sometimes. We all know the story, but it was cool to see unexpected stuff, especially since I could appreciate the changes. Like Yue actively choosing not to marry Hahn (even more so because natla Hahn is not a dickhead) is more satisfying to me than her feeling all sad about a betrothal she doesn’t want. (Also meant we got to see Katara earn Pakku’s strength all on her own instead of because he used to have the hots for Gran Gran)

I thought the show also did well combining omashu, Jet stuff, and Mechanist together. I’m actually happy we didn’t have to deal with The temple being taken over by the mechanist etc because it never sat well with me anyway. Also the episode limit meant they had to focus on ways to condense season 1 into a satisfying story — I think they did good with what they had. We have to remember the cartoon had heaps of episodes to work with, and animation is a different medium with a lot of strengths when it comes to fantasy etc

Anyway, this is getting super long. I will wrap it up by again saying the live action is not perfect but it is a good show that hits all the right emotional beats. I really hope it will get renewed and we’ll get the full story

[highfantasy-soul]

NATLA - Episode 4: Into the Dark (3/3)

[Masterlist of my NATLA thoughts]

An explanation of what I'm doing here and my history with ATLA.

Of course, full spoilers ahead.

<previous/next>

Sokka's instincts make an appearance in this episode too as they're navigating the cave - love that Sokka is smart and figures out the stones light up in the dark - and even though his plan goes awry, just like in the animated show, sometimes his instincts are right, sometimes they're wrong - he's delving more into using his brains to help the group rather than just his battle prowess. Here is where the character beats between him and Katara in animated episodes like 'Jet' come to fruition alongside their interactions last episode.

In the animated version, they have a lot of time (ie beginning of every episode, so 20 times) to have the characters poking fun and mocking each other, but in only 8 episodes, that can feel like tonal whiplash if the characters swing from mocking to learning the lesson then back to mocking then learning the lesson then back to mocking then learning the lesson all in one episode - structurally, it just wouldn't work. Merging Katara's frustrations with Sokka always needing to be in charge and 'he knows best' into these two episodes really let that dynamic breathe, deepen, and be resolved in a satisfying way. They have a really sweet sibling moment reminiscing about home, and Sokka urges them to continue on, doing his best to be a good leader.

They both get to explain why they fell in with the people they did, how Sai helped Sokka and Jet helped Katara. The idea that we don't get through life alone, we need friends and mentors to help us along the way, is a huge part of 1) this episode with Aang and Bumi and 2) the entire series. I like how Katara reminded Sokka that when he was thrust into a leadership position, he didn't have anyone to help him through it - he was just given command and left to his own devices. It's a concept that comes up in the animated show too and I'm glad they're giving it time to breathe this season. Again, we're setting the foundation for character's core traits through the series, Sokka's being: a leader, strategist, inventor, and warrior.

I like that it's sibling love that saves the day in the caverns - I mean, first off, the power of MUSIC is what somehow got the badgermoles to guide them through the tunnels the first time, it makes sense that they'd be a bit more intellectually advanced and be able to sense emotions and follow verbal commands. And second, love the switcharoo with it not being the crystals but rather an emotional through-line. The OG was a bit eehhh for me because honestly, teasing that a KISS would light the way out (and some in the fandom STILL believing that's what got them to safety) is just….eewww to me. Very unnecessary especially since Katara and Aang are literal children. I'm more for them developing a strong platonic bond while they're this age because it really didn't feel organic to me for Aang and Katara to get together after Aang's whole crush that started from the first moment he saw her. It was a little too 'ok, you saved the world, now here's your reward: a woman' in the og for me. Not to say they can't fix that ship, but cutting it for now I think is a good move.

I do think this episode had some of the best moments and some of the most 'eh' storylines for me, so a mixed bag. I loved everything except the Bumi storyline, but again, I get what they were going for with it, I just think the execution could have been better - and by that I mean fully nix the 'crazy king' aspect of Bumi (which would have made the internet even madder than it already is) and just fully reshape his character to fit the tone of the live-action. Characters like Bumi are just SO over-the-top it's really hard to get that balance right in live-action.

But as far as criticisms go, it's pretty mild compared to a lot of plotlines I forgive in other favorite shows, so - eh *shrug* I'll live.

These past two episodes were quite annoying to analyze beside the OG because I'm rewatching the animated version to make sure I get specifics right and these episodes covered are all so late in the season! Omashu happens, then I had to go through storylines that show up later in the live-action but happen earlier in the animated. But, rewatching the OG is always good for me and I stand by the assessment that nothing got messed up plot-wise moving those later storylines up to here, rather I think it built an even stronger foundation for the heavier stuff to come like the Spirit World and the Blue Spirit storylines.

[oneatlatime]

More season 1 thoughts

I like Katara better in the second half of the season than the first. I found her less annoying. Is that because she has evened out as a character, or is that because there was less of her? I don't know. I'd love to see a quantitative analysis of the number of lines per character per episode. Still, Katara handled the whole Pakku problem with fewer explosions than when she was handling the pirates and the waterbending scroll, and you can argue that the Pakku stuff was much more of a direct attack on her, so I'm going to call her reduced annoyingness growth.

Poor Sokka has been consistently my favourite character since episode one, and that hasn't changed at all. He just got royally stomped on in a way specifically designed to cause as much pain to him personally as possible in the finale, and I'll be interested to see if that causes any long term change. My boy is good at repression, so I doubt there will be obvious change, but this show is good at gradual stealth character growth. I'm looking forward to trying to ferret out the subtle changes to him in season 2.

Aang is lovely. I think he appears to be the least changed of our main cast at first glance, but like Sokka, I expect that getting used/possessed/actively participating in mega fishman destruction in the finale is going to have some effect on him (Still not clear on exactly who possessed whom / who was in control. Don't know if I'll ever know, or if it really matters). Aang is a lovable island of fun in a sea of century old war trauma. When he's not being stupid because he's 12, he's being consistently kind and open hearted, with an unshakable core and sense of self. Congrats to Gyatso on raising such a self-possessed boy. And you know what? He's entitled to stupid 12 year old moments because he is 12.

Poor Yue. Kind of a one note character at first glance, but because she's a mirror of Sokka, she feels just as deep as he does. That's clever writing.

Appa continues to be both team transportation and team dad. I think Sokka is team mom. Katara may be feminine, but it's Sokka who's keeping them fed and going in vaguely the right direction. He's the practical one. While Katara's or Aang's actions often drive the story, it's Sokka who's on clean up duty to make sure that the impulsive and bighearted decisions made by his sister and adopted brother blow up in their faces as little as possible.

I am convinced that Momo has no awareness of the main quest. I think Appa knows that his human and his human's friends are trying to save the world. I think Momo knows that these humans and their big furry thing feed him and keep him warm while going to lots of different places.

I loved that the season finale couldn't be predicted. The end game that the show set up was a showdown with the firelord. I expected that the firelord would make his first appearance in the season finale. Instead, we get a conflict I didn't see coming in a location I had honestly forgotten we were going to. Even if you had watched episodes 1 through 17, could you predict the conflict and location of the finale beyond something something fire nation? I like that I couldn't predict it. Too often shows spend so much time building up to the season showdown that it's almost anti-climactic because you've pretty much guessed the shape that the conflict will take. Not this show.

I think my favourite episode of the second half of this season is Bato of the Water Tribe. I loved having a glimpse into non-war water tribe life. It gives us a look at what it is that the people fighting the fire nation are fighting to preserve/get back. It also gives us a rough outline of the kind of person Sokka and Katara's dad is, which surprisingly adds a lot to Sokka's characterisation. And I love an episode where Sokka gets the A plot. The fight scene was really entertaining to watch, although I do feel sorry for June's big beast.

I think the best (as in the most skillfully executed) episode in the second half of the season is probably The Blue Spirit. It's a character episode disguised as an action episode, and not to get too much into fanfic speculative territory, but I feel like it lays groundwork for a couple of possible paths for the characters that certainly weren't available to them before. Also I love the melancholy note it ends on. I don't like unhappy endings as a rule, but I make an exception for contemplative endings, like the Southern Air Temple, the Summer Solstice Part 2, and the Blue Spirit.

I find I prefer the 'problem of the week' type episodes more than the episodes that serve the larger plot, because honestly I just want to hang out with these guys. High stakes adventures are both important and necessary, but it's also cool to have a problem presented and solved in 23 minutes. I feel like the characters act more like people and less like servants of the plot when they're in 'monster of the week' type episodes.

There were fewer eye-poppingly beautiful episodes in the second half of the season, although the Deserter's forest and fireworks festival was nice. The finale was downright bland, but you can't have lush multicoloured foliage at the north pole. I am so thankful that the show doesn't go for that stupid grimdark aesthetic that movies are still struggling with.

Finally, a word on the blasphemous live action that definitely doesn't exist:

Some of the greatest parts of this show are the gorgeously colourful eyepopping backgrounds, the very well thought out combination of bending and cartoon physics, and Sokka's stupid faces. You know what a live action can't do? Any of those things. So really, why did they even try? I can't think of a show, a world, a story, that is more suited to the artistic liberties and conventions of animation.

[innocentimouto]

What if ATLA had 6 seasons, the War trilogy (books 1-3) and the Post-War trilogy (Books 4-6)?

That would be fascinating! Book 3 would still have to be longer though. So maybe one extra season for the war?

I needed more Water Tribe, Gaang finding stray waterbenders, the Northern Water Tribe fighting the Fire Nation in the final battle with Hahn leading after having matured and choosing to remove the ban on waterbending for women like he promised Yue while she was alive.

SWT men returning home. Jet getting his arc of validating his trauma and fighting to help his people and enjoying small things and seeing the war end. The Freedom Fighters' group hug at the end of the war where they all break down.

And Zuko's arc. On one hand, people could go with what the show intended I think? Which was by Book 2, seeing the suffering of the people actually made him question his actions, doubt himself, regret his actions.

We'd of course get people who would act like this really did happen, but really, name one scene where he thinks back to his actions in the war and regrets them (this doesn't include Iroh).

This route would still realistically take a long time. He would no doubt mess up a lot and be confronted with prejudices and ignorance regarding other nations. Heck, regarding his own nation, since he got banished before properly learning how to lead.

Or you could go the longer route and keep the canon moments. And also make other characters fully aware of the racism and entitlement and lack of remorse. Really make it where they only allow him to join because it's for the sake of ending the war, and then have Zuko confronted with everyone in the group not liking his company. He'd have to sit down and understand why.

I think the most powerful way to make him stop and think is to have Aang be the one to react to his prejudices and fn beliefs. Considering Aang gave him so many chances, and also doesn't have a moment in the show where he gets to confront a Fire Nation person directly for the loss of his people and the rewriting of history, I think it would be impactful and even good for the plot.

We are not leaving Ba Sing Se falling in either scenario no no. Whether willingly or unwillingly Zuko will see how the people suffered from it. Iroh does not get to back there so easily.

Post war I'd rather be vague on, considering it won't be entirely pleasant, but have Katara and Aang search for surviving benders, flying bisons, have Katara and Sokka and Hakoda return home and stay for a while, Jet gets a whole long arc of having an adult to care for him and help him through his trauma.

It's not all fun and games unfortunately, especially with what to do with the Firelord, but I'd rather most of the war hardships be in the background and focus on them being kids in a war free world.

[tobitofunction]

🐉 part 6

Took a while but here’s the next part

part 7 part 8

Everything went so far, one minute everyone is fighting Azula and than suddenly a large tree lady with three faces popped up from the pool, light blue face masks floated beside her,"She's beautiful" you admitted even though the floating face mask made your skin crawl," I am the Mother of Faces. Through me, separateness came into the world. Through me, came identify" she said her voice was soft, it floated through the air like a leave in the wind," Each season I grant one favour to one human. You make your request now" Aang's face morphed to a surprised one, he looked at the two older siblings, Aang than turned to the mother of faces again,"Is it possible to have two?" he asked,"Don't test my generosity young Avatar, one" the mother said," They waited so long, if we only get one they deserve to get it"Zuko smiled at them,"We find Ursa in another way, I promise" you smiled wrapping your arms around his, he smiled down at you,"Go ahead Misu" Zuko said, as the older woman passed him with a grateful smile.

"This is ridiculous" you heard Azula his followed by the sound of breaking ice,"Your such a disappointment Zuzu, even if your strong your weak"Azula hissed breaking the two of you apart to make her way to the mother where Misu was making her request," We seek a Princess of the Fire Nation, her name is Ursa. Tell me where to find her" Azula said destroying Misu chance to help her brother, even though she hurt Haku, your heart broke for her, however the mother of faces answered, showing a face which was familiar to all of you," That's Norkio" Zuko gasped seeing the face of the woman which invited you all to her house before. "Azula is gone, she's probably on her way back to the town" you said,"We take Haku, it be faster," you said climbing onto the dragons back, Zuko followed by wrapping his arms around your waist,"Let me help, knowing Azula you two need all the help you can get" Sokka said,"Gaomagon ao pendagon kostā carry another kempa valītsos (Do you think you can carry another heavy boy)" you said, Haku grunted not sounding really happy about it but still agreeing to it,"Come on up, just a heads up Sokka it can be bumpy mostly since you two are heavier than Suki, Ty-Lee and me combined" you said making Sokka gasp,"Are you bodyyyy" Sokka was cut off by Haku flying off, he clung to Zuko like a baby kola would to his mother.

The second you landed in front of the small house, Sokka tumbled off the white dragon who was side-eyeing the water tribe boy,"That was the scariest, yet COOLEST THING I EVER HAVE DONE" he said but you hushed him at the end,"Kesan tepagon ao iā dozen sheeps istin skoriot arlī, ñuha kostōba valītsos (I will give you a dozen sheeps once where back, my strong boy)" you said rubbing his neck,"What's going in there? Noren's family... don't tell me Azula-!" Sokka said making you turn around both of them had their backs pressed against the wall and Zuko peeked through the small window," No, they're fine, they're just eating dinner" Zuko said moving away from the window, the light from inside still illuminating his face, Sokka breathed in relief, and so did you,"Thanks to Haku, we got here before Azula did" Zuko did walking over to the dragon rubbing his neck,"I'm going inside, Sokka stay here and keep and eye out for Azula" Zuko said,"Can you come with me?" Zuko asked gently wrapping his hand around your wrist,"Of course,Gūrogon care hen sokka (Take care of Sokka)" you said to Haku before walking towards the door with Zuko.

Noren opened the door, his face didn't show any surprise it was like he was expecting the two of you,"I knew you would return" he said with a soft smile, Zuko looked confused but before he could say something Kiyi ran over to the two of you and tried hugging the both of you at the same time,"You returned because we're best friends right" she said making you giggle,"Come eat dinner with us"she said dragging the two of you to the dinner table.

The food was delicious but Zuko didn't eat any of it, he was just staring around the table taking in the comfortable atmosphere," Noriko, could I ask you something?" Zuko than said suddenly,"Of course" she smiled,"Are you happy?" he asked, Noriko was taken back by the question,"What an odd question to ask?" she said awkwardly,"Please just answer it","Of course I am happy. I am where I belong" she smiled which made Zuko smile as well, he began standing up,"Zuko where are you going?","We have bothered them enough, let's go home. We have a wedding to plan after all" he said holding out his hand, you sat there unsure for a while looking at Noriko before sighing and taking Zuko's hand,"Can I go to your wedding?" Kiyi asked, "Of course, we wouldn't want it any other way," you said,"Wait!" it was Noren he rubbed his wife's shoulder and looked at Zuko,"Tell her what you came here to tell, I knew this moment would come sooner or later," he said. Zuko at first seemed unsure but you nudged him slightly and gave him a reassuring smile,"My name is Zuko, I am the Lord of the Fire Nation...and I am your son".

Silence filled the room, Noriko sat there shocked unable to say a word, however soon the silence was broken by Noren," I recognised you immediately due to your scar, I tried to learn as much as possible about Ursa's past. I knew you would come. I'm sorry for lying to you, I hoped I gave you enough information to satisfy you, yet still live a peaceful life with Ursa" he said bowing his head,"Ursa?" Noriko said confused as Kiyi climbed her lap,"That was your old name, my love, from your old life. You were once a Princess of the Fire Nation, you had two children, one turned out to be the Fire Lord" Noren explained,"Mommy, what is Daddy talking about?" Kiyi asked,"You don't remember any of it because an old spirit altered your memories" he explained further,"I also have an old name, Ikem" Zuko's face morphed into a surprised one,"Than I am where I am supposed to be…..with my father and mother” you looked at Zuko with confusion so was Norten, he shook his head, ” Ursa and I-“but cut off a loud scream,” It’s Haku” you said just than Sokka was blasted through the wall, crashing on the table,” You're having dinner without me….that’s so mean,” he said,” What’s going on?”,” Azula? She attacked out of nowhere, I tried giving Haku a command but he didn’t he respond, he's holding her back though” he said getting up,” I did say once a dragon is bonded, they will only listen to the one who they are bonded with” You smirked,” Than give him a command before Azula comes in”, you where about to speak when a lightning strike hits your shoulder making you fly back into a wall. Kiyi shrieked and hid behind her mother who was behind Noren.

Zuko ran over to you checking if you were okay, Haku's growling made him look back," Finally. I can't tell you how long I waited for this moment".

"My shoulder hurts" you mumbled, making Zuko sigh in relief," Get Noren and Kiyi out of here, Azula if focused on our mother. Sokka and I while take care of her" Zuko said watching Sokka hit Azula with his boomerang giving you the opportunity to rush over to Noren and Kiyi,"We need to leave" you said,"But my wife-","Kiyi isn't safe her, the boys got this, trust us" you said Noren hesitated a moment before moving with you.

"Wow," Kiyi said seeing Haku, meanwhile Noren tensed,"No need to be scared, Haku is mental," you said,"And he's getting used to carrying more people, so no need to worry about the weight," you said grabbing Kiyi from Noren and placing her onto the saddle with you following," Dragon's are real, you're even cooler now" Kiyi said as Noren sat behind you,"Sōvegon (Fly)" you said Haku immediately took off, you look downwards and saw Blue flames emerge from the house,"Don't worry, Ursa will be fine" you said feeling Noren grip tighten around you.

Kiyi was having the time of her life flying on Haku,” Haku land” you said Kiyi was trying to copy you making you giggle. “Hello Appa,” you said as you dismounted Haku,” You are safe here,” you said. Here you waited for the other's return, you heard Kiyi giggle and saw her playing with Appa,"This is a ski bison he belongs to the Avatar" you said making her eyes go wide,"Wow the Avatar" she said," Noren is everything okay?"you asked," I'm worried about Ursa" he said,"She will be fine Zuko and Sokka are amazing fighters and it's probably not the first time they fought Azula" you said putting a hand on his shoulder,"I want to apologise again, I shouldn't have lied I just didn't want our peaceful life to be disturbed","It's okay, I would have done the same too. You were trying to protect your family but now have a bigger family, isn't right Kiyi" you said,"What does that mean?" she asked as Noren picks her up,"Zuko and you are siblings you share the same mom....also Noren what did Zuko mean earlier? He called you his father?" Noren shrugged his shoulders,"Does it mean I'm also a warrior princess like you?" you smiled as Kiyi gained your attention again,"Yes, you be living in a palace and we play every day if you want" you said making her giggle.

Couple of hours later Kiyi was sleeping, you placed on Appa,"I hope this okay?" you said patting his neck, Appa roared softly in response,"That means he okay with it" Aang said from behind you, him, Katara and Sokka were waving at you,"Did everything work out?" you asked,"Yes the other water tribe siblings got what they wanted and are heading back to South Pole" Katara smiled,"But Azula got away" she said," What? Where is Zuko? Is Ursa okay?" you asked,"Yes Ursa is okay, she regained her memory and her face, she and Zuko are catching up" Aang said making both you and Noren breathe a sigh of relief,"Isn't anyone else worried that Azula can pop out any moment and attack us?" Sokka asked,"Aang do you know what Zuko meant by calling Noren/Ikem his father?" Aang sighed,"It's not my place to tell you" he said making you frown.

You and others waited for a while for Zuko to arrive with Ursa. Kiyi was still asleep, Noren quickly embraced his wife and you approached Zuko,"Is there something you need to tell me?" Zuko gulped and took your hand and led you a bit away from the others.

You read through the letter Zuko gave you,"So Ursa forged a letter claiming you aren't Ozai son?" he nodded,"Why were you so afraid of telling me this?","As before I didn't know if it's true or not, I was scared if word went to your father he will break the engagement off" you sighed,"My father agreed to this engagement because of your mothers blood, you have the Roku's blood flowing through you, being Fire Lord was only a bonus" you kissed his cheek,"And I don't really care for any of, I fell for you in such a short time because I felt a connection to you and I like you dorky side" you said leaning your head on his shoulder,"Dorky huh?" he said gently playing with your silver locks,"But next time don't hid something this big from me okay?" Zuko nodded,"I promise"