#atla sokka

[shrewisweird]

Sokka, master of flirting.

[iamnotdirtylaundry]

zukka smooch

[guyeatingtomatos]

Zukka doodle :)

[myartsing]

Redrawing my Atla headshots a year and a half later for the glow up <3

[ssokkasmoon]

GOING TO BED WHILE MAD AT EACH OTHER (MODERN AU)

(Decided to add Zuko and Bolin too cuz they are my favs )

(Making out headcanons will be out soon )

SOKKA

The drive home from your double date with Katara and Aang was tense and silent after Sokka and you had disagreement. Now in your apartment, He walked to the bedroom, stripping off his shirt with more aggression than necessary.

You followed with narrowed eyes, grabbing pajamas. "Well don't look so angry, it's not the end of the world," you snapped.

Sokka threw his shirt into the hamper with a little more force than intended. "Maybe I wouldn't be angry if you listened to me once in a while instead of doing whatever you want".

You scoffed, yanking your top off to change. "If you'd take that giant stick out of your ass, you'd see I was right!"

He opened his mouth to argue when his eyes fell on your exposed chest, momentarily distracted. you caught his stare and put your hands on your hips. "Enjoying the view?"

He swallowed, eyes flicking back up guiltily. "...Maybe."

"Thought so." You smirked, slipping your sleep shirt on. "You can't stay mad at this."

Sokka chuckled softly, tension breaking as he pulled you into his arms. "No, I can't." He kissed your forehead gently. "I'm sorry. You drive me crazy but I love you."

You snuggled close with a content sigh. "I love you too, dork. Now come to bed."

ZUKO

Zuko and you still hadn't said a word to each other since your argument that afternoon. Now you lay stiffly in the dark bedroom, turned away from each other.

Zuko sighed softly. He hated going to bed angry, even if it was just a petty disagreement. Shifting towards your back, he slowly wrapped an arm around your waist.

"I'm sorry I snapped at you earlier," he murmured into your hair. "You were just trying to help."

You didn't reply at first. Then, you back seemed to soften in embrace. "You never listen to my advice," you grumbled.

Zuko smiled, "I know. I'm a stubborn mule." He nuzzled a kiss to your shoulder. "Forgive me?". You twisted in his arms to face him. "You're lucky you're cute," you muttered, bopping his nose gently.

His grin widened. "So we're good?" At your small nod, he peppered your face with kisses until you cracked a smile too.

BOLIN

It had been a long day and Bolin was exhausted as he shuffled into your bedroom, ready to pass out. But when he walked in, you were already lying down facing away from him.

He sighed, knowing you were still upset about their earlier argument. "Babe, come on. Don't be like that," he pleaded softly pouting. When you didn't respond, he sat on the edge of the bed and gently rubbed your shoulder.

"I said I was sorry. You know I'm an idiot sometimes." Still nothing. He leaned down and nuzzled your neck. "Please don't ignore me, I'll die without my goodnight kiss!"

You stubbornly kept your back turned, though he noticed the corner of your mouth twitching up in smile. He grinned, an idea coming to him.

Springing to his feet, Bolin turned off the lights and climbed onto the bed on all fours, prowling towards you ,"Gotcha!" he pounced, tackling you from behind and attacking your face with sloppy kisses.

You squealed and squirmed, trying to fight him off through your giggles. "Ew, Bolin stop! Get off me!"

He let up, catching your hands and pulling you into his chest as you caught your breath. "I love you," he murmured sweetly, pecking your lips.

"I love you too, you dork. Now let me sleep!"

[closetsof-backlogged-dreams]

okay so I’ve seen and loved a bunch of these posts already but everything u say is immediately correct and amazing and sending u asks is the best

opinions on why zukka works and makes sense as a ship and if you think it could work in canon (outside of fanon)?

I CANT BELIEVE YOU JUST MADE MY ENTIRE LIFE COMPLETE AND FULL BY ASKING ME THIS QUESTIONNNN (strap in folks hold on to your hats keep a good hold on your bladders bc this is 10+ years worth of BUSINESS)

Why "Zukka" works and makes sense as a ship

something i've discussed THROUGHLY with my notes app and a school slides presentation is that Zuko and Sokka are both direct parallels AND contrasts to one another, at the same time. i'll list them out here:

Their fathers' roles in their lives

Both Hakoda and Ozai were the leaders of their respective nations, with Sokka and Zuko as the heirs. Then, they both become absent in their sons' lives and leave them to fend for themselves.

This is a parallel, but this is also where they contrast. Sokka's father left to go fight in the war, a noble and honest pursuit, and left Sokka to protect his sister and the village.

Ozai, on the other hand, cast Zuko out of the nation and forced him to protect and defend himself, while effectively turning all their people and his own sister against him.

Their sisters' roles in their lives

Despite both of them being the oldest sibling and brother, they both have severe inferiority complexes due to their younger, powerful bending sisters.

With Katara, she was the only waterbender in the entire tribe, a marvel. She could learn to protect the tribe in a way that Sokka had been trying all his life, and she eventually does. Despite all this, Katara is still a grounding and valued person in his life, and he would be completely lost without her (something he openly admits to in canon!!)

With Azula, she was a prodigy firebender, while also being a special kind of keen and cunning. She was adored by their father and grandfather and Zuko could never quite measure up. Because of this, Azula is the main villain in Zuko's childhood. She does everything she can to break him down, and that continues when she returns as a character in his life in season two. All throughout the show, instead of being a source of comfort and familial love, she is his main obstacle he must overcome.

The loss of their mothers

Both Sokka and Zuko lost their mothers at very young ages to the Fire Nation, but they had vastly different impacts on their families (and further developed their sisters' roles in their lives!!)

When Sokka's mother died, she was killed by a Fire Nation general. Katara quickly took over the motherly role in his life, cementing her place as a grounding and comforting force. Her death also did not break their family. It deeply hurt all of them, but Katara, Sokka, and Hakoda still loved one another just as much as before.

When Zuko's mother died (obviously not really, but this is what he believes for many years), she was "killed" in order for his father to ascend to the throne and become Fire Lord. This left Zuko without anyone to protect him from Azula's tormenting and cemented her place as a destructive, villainous person in his life. Ursa's death also did destroy their family. Whatever way she had managed to keep them all together was eradicated, and Zuko was left with a sister and father that resented him and a sister fighting for his place in the line of succession.

Their obessesions

Both Sokka and Zuko had two bone-deep obsessions that were very defining parts of their characters in the first season, that slowly wavered and faded away as the story progressed and they developed as people. They were both given these obsessions by their fathers immediately before they became absent in their lives (whether leaving themself or sending their son away) and proceeded to dedicate their entire life to these goals in the name of honor.

With Sokka, his father asked him to protect his sister and his village. Sokka then dedicates all his time and energy to becoming a brave soldier and training the children of the village in order to protect his people. This is seen further in season one even after they leave, when he is overly protective of Katara and constantly worried for her safety (something this fandom doesn't talk about enough!!)

With Zuko, his father sent him on a wild goose-chase to find the hundred-years-lost Avatar, and when he actually does, all he can do is chase after Aang so he can go back home. As we see in season three, letting go of capturing the Avatar was essentially letting go of his former self.

Unlearning their flawed cultures (the big one!!!!)

Both of their cultures had many flaws that became ingrained in their belief systems and characters; their whole development is dedicated to unlearning these flawed teachings and reorienting their perception of the world.

It is very obvious throughout the shows that the Water Tribe had strict gender roles that were both implicitly and explicitly taught from birth. The men go off to fight in the war, the women take care of the children, Sokka has to protect his "defenseless" little sister, etc. Suki helped start him on the journey of unlearning his deeply-rooted misogyny, and by the end of the series he's really drinking the Respect Women Juice™️ (unlearning the flaws of his culture also brought him much closer to his sister and strengthened their bond and respect for one another)

The Fire Nation is a lot more complicated with a lot more cultural nuances and implicit and explicit teachings, but we'll focus on one central cultural theme: the constant prioritization of ambition over absolutely everything else, including (if not especially) love. (I actually talk about this extensively in another analysis post about Azula, if you want to check that out<3) We see Zuko battle with this teaching all throughout the series, and it is the main conflict he faces, at its heart.

We watch him commit his entire life to capturing the Avatar in season one. We watch him betray his uncle in season two. We watch him, time and time again, put his own health and safety on the line trying to capture Aang, especially in season one. Constantly, over and over again, he puts his ambition first because that was what he was taught.

And though this is a trait him and Azula share, it is also what pits them against each other. Azula's entire character is built on putting ambition first, and that leads her to chasing the throne that is Zuko's birthright. Zuko just wants to go home, but that would reestablish him as the heir to the throne. Time and time again, we watch them fight and betray each other, constantly battling for this crown for a broken nation. In the end, it is Azula's undoing, but that's another post.

All in all, unlearning the flaws of their culture is central to their development as characters and a place where they parallel... but it is also a place where they directly (and perfectly) contrast.

Despite the cruelty of the Fire Nation, they are the only military that includes women. They seem to not really struggle with the same gender roles the rest of the world does. They may be colonizers, but they're not misogynists. Zuko never looked down on his sister because she was a woman, nor did her father. It was always her propensity for cruelty that undid her. (They even send a team of highly skilled women to capture the Avatar!!)

This is a direct contrast to the teachings of the Water Tribe, which are entrenched in misogyny and gender roles. The men go off to war, the women stay behind. The men are strong, the women are weak. Can you imagine how much Zuko could have assisted Sokka in his development here? (blah blah directly paralleling Suki's role in Sokka's life blah blah blah)

In the Water Tribe, love and family comes before everything. We see that time and time again. Sokka's main priority, every time, is his sister and his tribe. They stick together. They love one another. They are united, with one person leading them as a group but not standing over them like a tyrant. "Ambition" seems like a mostly unheard of concept in their nation. The only ambition we ever really see from Sokka is when he's trying to protect his tribe (season one finale)!!

Can you imagine how much Sokka could have helped Zuko unlearn his constant prioritization of ambition?? Like, come on. All the things Zuko was left to stew with and angst over all on his own Sokka could have gently taken into his own hands and shown him the way. Like, it actually makes me go feral just thinking about it. Sokka could have helped Zuko so much!! (pushing the Ba Sing Se Zukka AU rn)

Consensus

Okay, let's recap. It looks like Zuko and Sokka are both direct parallels and contrasts, paralleling in the ways that allow them to understand each other but contrasting in the ways that help them heal one another. Like, it's actually insane. I really don't know if it was intentional or not but it's really just so perfect. They slot together perfectly as characters. I hope this all made sense😭😭

Could "Zukka" work in canon?

Now, this is tricky. Believe it or not I'm actually really glad they didn't make Zukka canon. ATLA had a huge problem with writing good romance, and in the canon we saw in the show, neither Sokka or Zuko were in a place to get together.

I've enjoyed my fair share of Zukka AUs where they get together before the end of the war, but you and I both know that would have been a hot mess. (Both of them just weren't ready, they were both in relationships, and sorry but they were kinda busy—Katara was right about the whole "there are other things to worry about.") If they were ever to get together in canon, it would have to be years after the war ended.

Let's address a few things that needed to happen before they could ever have gotten together:

Finally admitting that Maiko was just an extreme example of comphet

Zuko did not give a single shit about that girl. Like. He didn't even personally go get her out of prison WHEN SHE WAS LITERALLY ARRESTED FOR PROTECTING HIM😭😭 And then they try to play off their story as some big epic romance?? uhhhh no

(really, Mai was in long-time unrequited love with Ty Lee that was finally requited after Boiling Rock but idk if society is ready for that yet)

Not to mention, Azula literally forced both of them into that relationship, but if I get started with that I'll never stop so. Moving on.

Figuring out Sokka and Suki

Okay, so while there is a good chance that Sokka and Suki could have made it work in canon, there is also a good chance they would have broken up. They both had very different priorities: while they both did care about overall world peace, it was obvious from Suki's first introduction that her Kyoshi Warriors were her top priority every time, and Sokka's was his tribe, his found family (Aang, Katara, Toph, Zuko, yk yk), and world peace at large. You're telling me those don't conflict? Especially because they really seem like a Piper/Jason situation, where they found comfort and love in each other during wartime but wouldn't have known how to keep up the relationship without the constant threat of death.

Overall, in order for Zukka to work, Sokka and Suki would have had to break up, which would not have been difficult to arrange.

Sokka needed to go home and begin rebuilding the Water Tribe

No matter how much I adore fics where Sokka stays behind in the Fire Nation and helps Zuko rebuild, it just wouldn't work. Sokka's obvious priority had always been his tribe. The second the war was over (ignoring the comics bc that's a can of complicated worms i don't want to get into), he would've gone back with Katara to work on rebuilding their destroyed tribe. Only once the Southern Tribe could stand steadily on its own two legs could he have even considered leaving.

Anyways, that's really it. In order for Zukka to work, three plot points would have to be resolved: Maiko, Sukka, and the reparation of the Southern Water Tribe. Extremely doable, imo.

Personality-wise and just as characters, would it have worked?

I really think it would have! Like I said before, Sokka and Zuko are two characters that perfectly parallel and contrast at all the exactly right points to make them slot together flawlessly as a pair. (Whether that's romantic or not—doesn't matter.) Really, I genuinely think they are a real missed opportunity. I have genuinely never seen two characters that seem so different that actually work that well together, or even just characters that work that well together at all.

Like, I really mean it, they are perfect matches. It's genuinely scary. Like it or not, no one will ever be able to replicate the perfection of what Zukka could have been.

Anyone that says that it's "random" or "doesn't work" obviously hasn't been watching the same show or simply just hasn't been paying attention. People might ship it just because it's opposites attract or red and blue or even just the most accessible MLM ship in the fandom, but they really are perfect for each other.

alright, I think that's it! sorry for this monster of a post😭😭 genuinely did NOT expect that to happen. PLS SEND ME ANY ASKS YOU CAN THINK OF ABOUT THESE TWO!! i have spent a concerning amount of time thinking about them and these show has analysis potential for days, so. (and who knows, maybe i'll finally post the like three unfinished fics i have for them💀💀 god knows i should)

thanks for the ask, and have a great day <3

[mrteaspill]

They're old and in love 🫶💕

[beetlesockss]

watching atla w friends so i drew a few headshots of the crew at thta point :)) made these at halfway through s2 haha (hadnt drawn toph yet cuz i didnt know enough abt her. but i will draw her!!)

[rosessd]

Love my besties 💞

Artist Tara Spruit (IG taratjah)

[ao3statistics]

This is self-made. Date of creation: 22.04.2024

There will be more Atla statistics coming in the future as well. :)

I assume no guarantee or liability for the completeness, correctness and accuracy of this chart despite my best efforts.

Includes fanfictions in all languages available, NOT English only. Includes all fandoms on Ao3 connected to Aang.

Percentages were rounded up or rounded down to natural numbers for easier comprehension.

Poly ships were included.

More charts will follow. :) Want to have a chart for different pairings, headcanons etc. in your favourite fandom? Send me an ask!

[dunnowho180125]

yea new one

HEY HEY HEYYYY

Ok so AU where Zuko has a connection to the spirit world(no he wasn’t blessed but he spent three years running towards the first magical shit he saw so fuck you this is my headcannon) and so he doesn’t chase the Avatar but the spirits always try to push Aang and Zuko towards one another cause yk spirits like to fuck with them and one day they finally meet each other, probably a bit after the attempted siege in the NWT, but Zuko is like “No I can’t teach you firebending i dont wanna be in this war” so Roku just possesses Aang and lectures the FUCK outa Zuko because “HOW DARE YOU YOUNG MAN, TO LET YOUR NATION DOWN AND NOT SAVING THE OPPRESSED AND NOT KICKING MY EX’S GRANDKID-

So yea, Roku likes to berate important children

[shrewisweird]

ugh i accidentally drew more zukka 🙄🙄🙄

[sweaters-and-vertigo]

i have a teeny, tiny superiority complex because i didn’t watch the atla live action.

[threalcrabbysamantha]

VI. The Lovers

One of the most positive cards in tarot, this is a card about partnership, harmony, and, yes, romance. Here our lovers are Sokka and Suki, jumping into each others arms. Drawing the Lovers card generally suggests an incredibly strong bond, like these two have, but this doesn't just have to be romantic or external; it can also have to do with a sense of alignment and harmony within the self as well - which I think it's safe to say, these two also bring out in each other.

--

I'm drawing an Avatar themed tarot deck (Major Arcana only)! Every day I'll reveal a new design. :) Follow along and let me know which one is your favorite!

[vomits0cutely]

Sokka: I love you, please don’t turn into the sun.

His lover: ..uh-?

[imlisteningt0tyler]

ERM WHAT THE SIGMA!?