#the eternal zuko debate (?)

[queenpiranhadon]

Okay so uhm

Just thinking about interactions between the KotLC and ATLA characters

Zuko marveling over Marella’s control over her ability and how she was able to not draw her power from rage, but from herself, but also feeling so sad for the girl as he finds out that she’s forced to eternally hide her ability (he can relate because of his time in Ba Sing Se, but the burden of hiding it for the rest of her life is terrible to him)

Katara and Linh bonding over their goofy brothers and showing each other water tricks and overall just being great friends.

Aang and Sophie finding comfort in the fact that they weren’t alone in becoming some monumental figure gifted with the abnormality of multiplie abilities, with the responsibility of keeping the world in one piece, when they’re just trying to be kids.

Sokka meeting Keefe and telling him that your abilities don’t define you, and that you aren’t your parents, you define your own legacy (Sokka felt all the pressure from stepping into Hakoda’s shoes, and while their situations are different, they share the same sentiment) to do something great, and proceeds to show him how to use a boomerang. (They end up cracking jokes and Keefe decided to get his hands on a boomerang someday to cause havoc within the halls of Foxfire)

Fitz attempting to read Toph’s mind after a heated debate on his abilities and her mental blocking (she doesn’t know what it is, but is stubborn enough to assume that it’s the strongest). No one knows how it ends because they refused to talk about it afterwards, but Dex ended up handing Biana his most rare Prattles pin afterwards.

Maaaaybe I’ll do a part two if this is liked enough

[seyaryminamoto]

Why do you think Azula is treated so badly by all the characters in the show and comics? Nobody shows her any kindness or appreciates her intellect or anything and only treat her as evil and crazy. If even ONE person showed genuine love and affection Azula would be so grateful yet the writers won't give her the tiniest bit of compassion. Doesn't make sense with the themes of the show

I honestly don’t think the showrunners or writers ever intended for Azula to become as big a character as she has been in the fandom. Thus, I believe they wrote her while constantly expecting the whole world to go “SHE HAD IT COMING!” when she has her downfall. Some people actually see it that way, to this day...

But the point you’ve brought up is what I always have brought up in such situations: YES, the show set up Azula to fall... but the show also never gave her a chance to do anything else. Azula was never at the crossroads of her own destiny: she wasn’t allowed to see any other alternatives beyond what the Fire Lord wanted her to become. Had she glimpsed any other possibilities, sure, she could have rejected them, and THEN, perhaps, you could say Azula’s downfall feels more like something she deserves because she had choices and never picked the right one, deliberate and knowingly. 

Yet as we met her in canon, Azula never had any choice but to be exactly who she was. She had no kind influences of any sort, her friends may not have been dreadful but they weren’t exactly the greatest friends in the universe either -- I will never not point out how, in The Beach, Azula has brought them all on vacation and none of them choose to even SIT with her. They pick their own spots on the beach and leave her alone? Why? The scene with the guys trying to hit on Ty Lee could happen exactly the same way if Ty Lee were sitting with Azula, couldn’t it? Yet they all choose anything else but her. However abrasive and mean as Azula may be, the only positive reinforcement she ever receives is from her father and from doing his bidding. Even Lo and Li are shown only pointing out her mistakes, at least in their personal relationship with her: why couldn’t Lo and Li be for Azula what Iroh was to Zuko? Why couldn’t they be shown as her grandmother-figures, basically? Instead, they’re pretty much all business except for in The Beach, and even then there’s no real relationship between them beyond Azula being disappointed by their beach house and bored by their explanations about Ember Island.

So, if you were raised by a narcissist with rage control issues and far more power over the world than anyone like him should ever hold, and nobody around you seemed to give a damn about you, at least, not beyond fulfilling said narcissist’s orders or staying on your good side... would you spontaneously become a better person? Would you recognize the error of your ways just because? Anyone who claims they would do so, without any external influences, definitely doesn’t understand human psyches. My main problem with Azula’s canon writing, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it a million times, is that she’s never given any other choice. And just as you’ve put it, anon, it seems more than a little contradictory for a show as generally good-natured as ATLA was to treat a character like Azula as heartlessly as it does.  

[ohmygodtheywereparabatai]

I did not just see a post claiming Ursa isn’t an abuse victim because Urzai “started out well”

[phoukanamedpookie]

Fic Prompt: How to Be Good (inspired by The Good Place)

No, Azula doesn't die young and go to the Bad Place to be tormented by demons for all eternity.

Instead, shortly after the events of ATLA, Azula's entire world has been turned upside down. The war is over. The Avatar from a "weak" culture singlehandedly defeated the most powerful man in the world. Her father lost his throne and his bending. Traitor prince Zuko is the Fire Lord. She lost a fight to opponents she should've handily beaten. Traitors Mai and Ty Lee were released from prison. Everything she believed about the world and about herself turns out to be flat-out wrong.

When she's no longer catatonic with shame and guilt*, she does the one thing she's never done before: she reaches out for help. She doesn't seek help from any of her previous associates in the Fire Nation. She doesn't seek help from Zuko, either. She seeks help from the one person in the world whose job it is to help everyone: Avatar Aang.

Realizing that Azula's distress and confusion are genuine, Aang agrees to help her. But there's one problem: he has no idea how to do that. So he goes to his friends for help. Team Avatar is split between bad worst idea versus right thing to do. There is some debate about whether or not any effort to help Azula would pay off. But they come around to agreeing to help, if only so they can all be there to watch each other's backs. Literally.

If Team Avatar hadn't blown it at the Spirit Library, they would've had thousands of years of moral philosophy to choose from in order to help Azula understand morality and ethics in a more comprehensive way. So, they have to try something else: find someone who specializes in teaching this stuff and convince them to help. Off to Ba Sing Se University to meet the Avatarverse version of Chidi.

He creates a curriculum for her: How To Be Good. Hilarity ensues. Just imagine Azula dealing with the trolley problem.

Azula: "Why are they on the monorail tracks? Did I put them there?"

ATLA!Chidi: "Why would you even do that?"

Azula: "Because they deserved it."

ATLA!Chidi: "What! How could—why?"

Azula: "They're enemies and traitors, and they need to be punished. Even a child understands that."

ATLA!Chidi: (muttering under his breath) "Not enough cactus juice in the world for this."

Team Avatar gets in on it because the lessons are so interesting.

*IMO, when Azula has control of herself, she doesn't lash out (that's Zuko); she holds things in.

[retvenkos]

beneath the snow filled sky | z.

ATLA - Modern! AU, Zuko x Reader, fluff

tw: none.

word count: 1.4k

prompt: We’re going out in the cold for a walk, and I know you don’t want to get wet, but I’m trying to convince you to make a snow angel with me.

Snow fell peacefully above, spiraling down from the night sky as though each flake was a dancer in a beautiful balet, flitting this way and that, whichever way the music took them. (Y/n) watched the snow from their place beside the front door, their mind vaguely aware of the music playing within Toph’s house, but their entire being focused on the icy beauty of winter.

There was no breeze, and the weather was slowly turning more mild with the hopeful onset of spring; it was a perfect night to sit outside, in nothing more than a sweater and appreciate the wonder that such cold brought. 

They hadn’t been out for long when there was movement at the door, and Zuko stepped out. “Hey,” he said softly, rubbing his hands against his arms. 

“Hey,” (Y/n) echoed, smiling at him gently before turning back to the night sky, clouded and dark, but with the most beautiful, pristine snow gracing them from above, falling delicately before kissing the ground. For a moment the two stood in silence, (Y/n) noticing the patterns in which the snow fell, and Zuko memorizing the look of wonder in their eyes and the steady manner in which they existed.

They both thought, for a moment that was beyond time itself, that if the world were to stop turning, they could happily spend eternity right here, in the mild cold.

“So,” (Y/n) broke the stillness with an ease unlike any other, “did the others ask you to come get me? Because no offense to them, but I’d rather not suffer through another game of Monopoly.”

“Oh—” Zuko cleared his throat, pulling himself out of his daze “—No, not yet, anyway. Sokka wants to play Uno, but Katara wants to watch a movie, so...”

“...They’re not going to figure it out for another twenty minutes or so.”

Zuko chuckled in a way that was mostly breath, something like a cheerful sigh that brought a contentedness into his eyes and a casual grin to his lips. (Y/n) stuck their hands in their pockets, only now starting to feel a chill.

“Do you want to go on a walk with me?”

“It’s one in the morning.”

“Yeah, but would you rather listen to their complaining?”

“You’re not cold?”

“Not if we get moving.”

Zuko looked out at the frozen world that surrounded him: the snow, the icicles, the slick patches of ice where even the best of shoes lost their traction, and the frigid air. How any of it could be the least bit enjoyable was beyond him, and yet, (Y/n) could never get enough of the winter months, and whenever they spoke of its beauty, there was an earnestness in their voice that made him believe in their sentiment. Part of Zuko wanted to just go inside, sit by the fire, and watch the room devolve into chaotic arguing. Toph and (Y/n) would sit on either side of him, and they’d make sarcastic remarks until Katara dragged Toph into the fighting and things would escalate until he or Aang eventually intervened.

But a nagging part of Zuko (smaller, but incessant nonetheless) told him to look at (Y/n) in the eye, knowing that once he did, he wouldn’t be able to say no. It was odd, knowing that part of him no longer existed for himself, and the fear of that knowledge was enough to convince him to go back inside, but then (Y/n) shifted beside him, asking him what he thought, and he looked.

And there they were, smiling in a way that would have been self righteously smug, had it not been for the hopeful question that swimmed in their gaze. 

“Let’s go.”

(Y/n) smiled and the expression didn’t melt away but rather lingered as they set off down the snowy sidewalks, going nowhere in particular. Zuko rubbed his icy fingers together, wishing he hadn’t left his gloves in the pocket of his coat, back at Toph’s, and when (Y/n) noticed his fussing at a street corner, they stopped.

“Come here.” They offered their hands to him, and Zuko hesitated for a moment before putting his hands in their open palms. The rubbed their hands over his, and the warmth they generated was enough to send his cheeks ablaze. “You’re fingers are freezing! We really should have gotten coats or something before setting off - at least we both have sweaters, though.”

And Zuko couldn’t get anything out other than a strained “Yeah,” that made (Y/n) chuckle.

“C’mon, we’ll finish the loop around the block and then we can head back inside.”

(Y/n) continued to walk, but their hands never let go of his. Zuko found himself acutely aware of the feeling of their hand in his, warm and alive - squeezing his with care and something akin to... well, like the raging fire he felt in the pit of his stomach, but kinder, softer.

“What do you like about winter?” Zuko surprised even himself, and (Y/n) turned to him with an expression more warm than the last.

“Everything, I guess.” They turned their head to the heavens and a snowflake fell on their cheek. “Sure, the snow is beautiful and all, but it’s more than that, too. Winter it... it brings people together. I mean, when was the last time we all got together and played Monopoly?”

They had a point, there, but whether playing a three hour long game of Monopoly was for the better was debatable.

“The days just seem longer in the winter, and you find time for everyone you’ve been missing. Sure, it’s cold and most everyone is miserable” —(Y/n) eyed Zuko pointedly and he faltered— “but then you comes together to celebrate what little you have.”

They were back at Toph’s, now, and they faced the front door with a sense of reservation, as though neither wanted to break the moment, just yet. Zuko looked at (Y/n) from the corner of his eye, and they locked gazes. “You always have us.”

(Y/n)’s eyebrows shot up, their eyes lighting with something bright and pleasant, and eventually they settled. They squeezed Zuko’s hand. “That I do.”

Shouting erupted from the house in front of them, strong enough to rattle the windows, and Zuko and (Y/n) sprung apart. They both hesitated for a moment before laughing, the sound warm and from the belly.

“Do you think they’ll kill each other in there?”

(Y/n) rolled their eyes. “I’m sure they can sort it out themselves. Besides, have you ever made a snow angel before?” Zuko found himself caught between an exasperated laugh and some sort of stammered response, and (Y/n) snorted. “If you haven’t, then I demand to teach you.”

“I’ve made one before!” 

“Then you won’t mind proving it?”

“(Y/n), I’ve made a snow angel before!”

“Then come make on again! I promise not to tell Sokka, if it’s that damaging to your pride.” (Y/n) sat down on the snow, a challenging smile in their eye. Zuko opened his mouth to speak, but (Y/n) cut him off. “And don’t say anything about getting wet, because we’re five steps from the house. We’ll be beside the fire before you even get cold.” (Y/n) laid back, spreading their arms out and fixing Zuko with a pointed look.

“I’ve made a snow angel before,” Zuko grumbled, laying down beside (Y/n) and eliciting laughter from them.

“You’re cute when you’re angry - y’know that?” 

And Zuko was glad that they were both moving their arms enough to hide the way his face heated up at their comment. 

(Y/n)’s arms slowed to a stop, they were quiet as they stared up at the night sky above, once again lost in the beauty of it all. Zuko brought his arms to a stop near theirs, so that their fingers were just barely brushing, and he looked at them with a fondness that made him look peaceful - happy, even.

“You really love the snow that much?” and it was barely a whisper, but (Y/n) heard anyway. 

They turned to him, and fixed him with a smile that was more bashful than before, something that made Zuko’s heart beat faster in his chest, perhaps from the intimacy of it all. It was just them beneath the snow filled sky, after all, blanketed in the dark of night. “I love the company more than anything else.”

And Zuko felt his heart constrict in such a way that all he could get out was a strained “Yeah?” but it made (Y/n) chuckle as they caught his fingers in their own.

“Yeah.” 

-- taglist: @coffee--writes​ // message me if you want to be added to the taglist!

[thejakeformerlyknownasprince]

I've been rewatching Avatar: The Last Airbender (because we should all be watching it like, non-stop) and now that I'm older I can't not see Sokka, Katara, Toph, and Aang as Marco, Cassie, Rachel, and Tobias

I love that so many grown-up AtLA fans have transformed from “ugh, why does Sokka always ruin everyone else’s fun?” to “all of a sudden I overwhelmingly identify with Sokka as the only halfway-adult character in this whole mess of a team.”

Which, to be honest, is basically the same thing I did with Jake.  As a little kid reading Animorphs, I found him obnoxious and boring for constantly trying to remind people about the dreary yeerk-type mission stuff while they were busy having fun conversations about Teletubbies or giant squids.  And then I grew up, and now I keep finding myself going “Guys? Guys? Why are we debating about Teletubbies when there are aliens invading?”, generally about two lines before Jake says more or less the same thing.

Not to say I don’t see the resemblance between Sokka and Marco — brilliant dumbasses, chronically underestimated, long-term planners and short-term goofballs, can and will kill for you in a heartbeat but would die before admitting they love you — but more to say that they’re complex characters and I see lots of crossover.

At the very end of the series, I think several of them have the potential to become sort of Aang-like.  I love how Aang starts out not taking the whole Avatar thing seriously, even to the point of running away to avoid being the Avatar, and only gradually comes to accept responsibility for the sheer amount of power he has.  I’m maybe the only person who likes “The Great Divide” in AtLA, but I love that Aang straight-up lies to resolve that ending.  It’s a mark of who he is at that point in his life, that he genuinely doesn’t get that he’s subverting two cultures’ histories with a casual bit of bullshit.  Because he really doesn’t get what being the Avatar means.  And the whole point of his character arc is coming to accept that responsibility.  Maybe he’s never what an Avatar “should” be (according to Zuko, anyway) but he does learn how to use his power with care and respect over the course of the series.

Anyway, I’d love to see a similar postwar plot with Cassie or Marco or Tobias.  Obviously none of them is a century-old reincarnated world spirit, but all the Animorphs are ridiculously powerful in both social and physical ways.  I could totally see Marco making an offhand comment about how Powerpuff Girls kinda sucks, only to have Powerpuff Girls get cancelled within a season because he tanked it.  Or Cassie fondly repeating the story of the time Rachel pretended to be the Elephant Police to get a circus trainer to stop hitting his elephants, only to have the circus trainer get bullied out of his home and attacked with death threats.  Or Tobias offending all of PETA just by being himself, and then ending up in some giant exhausting culture war with PETA for the rest of eternity.

And then they’d have to learn.  That being a giant in the media and in other forms of power means you can’t just stomp around wherever; you have no choice but to tread lightly.  That power can do a lot of good, if it’s raising money to save the rainforest, and a lot of bad if you use it carelessly.  That they might be unbreakable and impossible to injure for more than a few seconds, but that most people can’t go through life with their casual neglect for risk.  It could be super cool.

[redrobin-detective]

relieved, with honors

A Fire Lord’s duty is to his people; Zuko seeks out the last Fire Nation soldiers of the Hundred Year War to send them home

__________

“The candles, my Lord,” Uncle said, bowing reverently as he presented the beautifully crafted red candles atop a silver platter with golden silk. Zuko squirmed a bit in his formal robes, aware of all the eyes on him, both friendly and hostile; still trying to orient to the bitter cold of the North.

“You don’t have to-,” Zuko began softly but Uncle silently chastened him with a look. Zuko was the Lord of Fire, he was above every Fire Nation citizen, including the uncle who made him into the man he is today. This was a solemn event, long overdue, and he needed to give the moment the ceremony it deserved. Three long difficult years have passed since the War’s end. Peace was here, on shaky lamb-fawn’s legs, but holding steady thanks to the collective efforts of the World. The North Pole was hosting their annual celebration for the sacrifice of Princess Yue to become the Moon Spirit. 

While he mourned and thanked the white haired Princess he’d regretfully only seen in passing; Zuko’s heart couldn’t help but ache for the men and women just miles away; lying cold at the bottom of the ocean with no way to reach Agni’s light. He’d brought it up, hesitantly, during the first celebration and was barely spoken to the following few days. The second he’d managed to get Aang involved and they’d wrestled a bitter acceptance for the following year. Now it was the last night of the celebration, the Moon had received her tributes. Finally, Zuko was allowed to lay his nation’s soldiers to rest.

He untucked his hands from his long, cumbersome sleeves and gripped the sides of the platter as he carefully walked up the steps to the top of the main wall of the North Water Tribe. From there, he could look out into the vast ocean where hundreds of his countrymen had met their watery end at the hands of the Ocean Spirit. Aang’s delicate, barely there footsteps could be heard following him only because the air was so stagnantly silent. They’d both debated if Aang should participate or not, if it was disrespectful for the power that killed them to be present. In the end, they both agreed that Aang was the Avatar, the man who was to bring balance to the whole world, and that included the Fire Nation. 

They reached the top far too quickly and it took all his concentration to keep his hands from shaking and spilling the sacred candles everywhere. In a way, it’d been easy to debate the morality of Aang’s involvement so to distract him from the legitimacy of his. He was the 21 year old Fire Lord, the youngest by far for almost 2 centuries, who’d betrayed himself and his nation several times throughout his life. He was scarred, he was awkward; still lashed out sometimes when he ought to hold his tongue and still cried when he ought to be strong. Most importantly, he had borne witness to the Ocean Spirit’s rampage, had seen the ships fall victim to the waves and disappear from sight. The Fire Lord was said to be the father and protector of the entire nation, would the restless dead respect his slightly ill-gotten authority? Why should they when he had been unable to save their lives in the first place? The crown had never felt so ill-fitting on his head. He swallowed down bitter, haunting memories that remind him of the lost 41st division and carried on.

Zuko knelt to the ground and gently plucked one candle and placed it on the cold, hard ice. Each candle bore the name and number of a ship that had gone down, 15 large candles for the Imperial class ships and 9 smaller ones for the battle cruisers. He turned the writing towards the open ocean his rough fingers lightly ghosting along the wax, blessed by the Fire Sages prior to the journey, before moving on to the next candle. 

“Should we help him?” He heard Aang whisper to Uncle off to the side. The three of them are up near the front while 28 Imperial Fire Benders stand at attention behind them. He’s sure the rest of their friends are down below in the crowd somewhere but only fire benders were up on the wall.

“No, this is something Zuko must do alone. The Fire Lord was once the head sage, though we have since forgotten our roots, Zuko still has spiritual blood running through him.” Uncle answered, sounding far more confidant than Zuko felt. “Besides, every Fire Nation citizens answers first to their lord, Only the Fire Lord can properly lay them to rest.” If Zuko weren’t so focused on making sure each candle was perfectly aligned, he’d snap at them to stop gossiping but thankfully they became quiet afterwards. Soon, all the candles were laid out. The last rays of sunlight were sinking into the sea, that magical time of day between light and dark, life and death. 

“Today,” Zuko pronounced loudly with his back to the audience still facing the ocean, “we lay to rest the loyal members of the Fire Nation Navy who lost their lives during the Hundred Years War.” No one said a word, no one shuffled or sighed, all ears on Zuko’s next words. “We cannot condone what they were here to do but we respect the love they had for their country and the loss of their fire in pursuit of what they believed was right.” He took a deep breath and forced his hand still to light the first candle.

“We light these memorial candles not just to honor of their sacrifice but also to tell them their fight is over; with these flames I give my thanks and relieve each of their duty. For them, the war ends today.” At last the final candle is lit and in the fading light of the sun, they cast eerie shadows against the ice and his robes as they twist in the wind. He gazed one last time at the ocean and bowed at far as was appropriate which still felt so inadequate. Behind him, there was the confused whispering and the quick rustle of the Fire Nation citizens seeking to bow lower than their Lord. 

“I, Fire Lord Zuko, 47th Fire Lord of the Modern Age, Keeper of the Eternal Flame and Agni’s representation on Earth here by release the souls of the dead. May the candles guide them into Angi’s light where they may burn forever in the realm of our ancestors. Go with peace and go with honor, you are relieved.” Still in his half bow, Zuko kept his eyes squeezed shut, hoping that his words (practiced for hours and hours and hours in a mirror because he just had to get them right) were enough. That he was enough. 

“Oh,” he heard Uncle choke out behind him and Zuko hesitantly raised his head. At first he thought he was seeing things but it seemed as if there were dozens of little stars floating above the water. Soon more followed, floating upwards towards the setting sun. Mixed in the unnameable colors of the sky was an immeasurable amount of little lights, little clusters of souls leaving the ocean and flying towards the sun where they belonged. He pulled his eyes from the sky to turn and see both Uncle and Aang openly weeping with silent awe, even beyond the wall he could see the faceless people below him wiping at their faces. He turned back to the beautiful image of light returning to light, to burn and be reborn into new Fire Benders, this time, who would live in a war without war. The familiar pain in his left eye told him he’d started crying as well but maybe that was alright. They had been sentenced to die by a Fire Lord who hadn’t cared whether they made it back or not and laid to rest by a Fire Lord who wept for them. Maybe there was hope in this world after all.

Aang approached him from behind and laid a hand on his shoulder. He said nothing to Zuko but the monk was muttering something under his breath, a prayer or perhaps an apology. Either way he thinks his friend’s shoulders will be less tense the next time they come to the North Pole. They stay like that for a long while, past the setting of the sun and the disbursement of most of the crowd. They stay watching the candles burn down to the quick, to the very last light making its way towards the sky. Their leader and balance of the world, watching and blessing their journey the whole way. 

[bluewithpurplepolkadots]

Honestly I think the thing with the diamonds and even something sometimes criticals miss is that it would be really freaking weird and be a tonal problem if we had Steven or heck even the Crystal Gems put them down like dogs. And like Steven is a kid, and I'd say it's not immature to balk at murder anyway.

Its just that the letting them wander around and still be basically worshipped and such after all they've done and be the ones not only able to fix things but the only ones able to fix certain things was... bad. That was a bad idea. 

Not to mention the fact Steven being one of them is kind of like... irritating. Like you need to be royalty to fix things. I mean they'd have straight up killed him immediately if he hadn't pink diamond's gem. Nepotism and birthright saves the day. Plus a talk back. It's very uninspiring.

I think overall it's just SU wasn't able to handle these issues and thus should have really avoided them. They wrote themselves into a corner and just couldn't handle them adequately in the first place.

Sometimes people try to compare it to atla sometimes which had Aang want to find another way but it doesn't really fit to me. The closest equivalent would be like if Zuko was the Avatar instead of Aang. (A fun Fanfic idea but an immensely unsatisfying idea for canon in comparison to what we got, to have a descendant of those responsible be the outright hero rather than a victim of it). Or if Ozai was necessary to heal the earth kingdom or bring air bending back or what have you. It's just immensely offputting. And Aang clearly doesn't consider Ozai even Zuko's real family. The big deal is that Ozai is a person in general and Aang's cultural beliefs. Not the connections Ozai might have with others or himself.

(Not to mention as the last airbender I feel Aang has additional reasons why him killing Ozai would have been tragic: which Steven does not have, not to mention energy bending itself at least came with some risks in using it itself).

When writing about estranged family finding each other you can't shackle them to a plot like the diamonds and make it work all that well. There's just so many problems to it and I feel both sides of the 'diamonds need to be put down!!' debate are missing this fact. They never could have made it work no matter what they chose honestly. Even bubbling the diamonds has weird connotations. I mean they could be popped and is eternal slumber any better than death? But then having what actually happened is just straight up terrible idea too.

Maybe if they'd been completely stripped of all their powers or all the diamonds had died or become corrupted themselves long ago maybe a different story could have been made. Like I kind of like the idea (which it seemed to be like at first) of the story perhaps being based on the aftermath of a war and how do people work through that, even in the aftermath having effects: like unexploded mines or dangers like the cluster, mental scars and the corruption itself and the desperation in finding a cure for it. Where perhaps there's a focus on revenge rather than healing which people have to work past. And maybe healing the corrupted diamonds (which the gems plus humans discover: perhaps the earth is in fact special) completely removes their domineering size and powers forever. Steven is not a diamond at all. Who knows though: I'm just spitballing ideas here. No doubt there could have been problems with that idea too. I'm just not sure how they'd make it work without lifting the atla version wholesale with some tweaks added.

But yeah i'll admit straight up putting the diamonds down on screen would have been a weird ass tonal problem but what else could have worked? What happened certainly doesn't work very well either. Mistakes were made but I think they extend beyond season 5.

[goldlightsaber]

my top ten avatar: the last airbender episodes (in no particular order)

1. jet (season 1)

katara gets her first big crush. she learns appearances aren’t all that they seem. the audience learns that even people fighting on the “good side” aren’t always good people

2. siege of the north part ii (season 1 finale)

the high point of season 1! it’s so good -- from princess yue’s surprise transformation, to ko, the creepiest spirit from the spirit world to this day...it’s high-tension, full of drama. i love it. we also see zuko’s inner conflict really begin here. you can tell his attempts to capture aang are beginning to wear him down.

3. zuko alone (season 2)

prepare to cry. this episode goes away from the gaang entirely and it’s all about zuko. he’s reaching his turning point. he’s not ready yet. he won’t be for a while. but he’s struggling. he comes to a place where no one knows him until he’s forced to remember who he is.

4.  the swamp (season 2)

this one is...otherworldly. spiritual. we get some creepy parts, some heart wrenching parts, and a great lesson about everything and everyone being connected. it’s the kind of spiritual mystical stuff that i love about this show!

5. the crossroads of destiny (season 2 finale)

what a finale...aang, on the brink of death in katara’s arms? katara, hair unkempt and crying? we end on a very dramatic, devastating blow to the whole gaang. zuko, who for a moment, seemed to have just walked toward the light...retreated and aided azula in nearly murdering aang. the person he loves most, uncle iroh, stands between him and the avatar, telling the latter to flee. the stakes could not be higher. one of my favorites. 

6. the puppetmaster (season 3)

creepy, creepy, creepy. every element seems to have a dark side. waterbending’s dark side is arguably the creepiest. the idea of bloodbending just makes me skin crawl. hama is an excellent character. her backstory is grief-stricken and fascinating and her revenge-driven heart is terrifying. to see katara be subjected, against her will, to learning bloodbending is bone-chilling. such a good episode.

7. the beach (season 3)

ahhh yes, the individual humanities of the fire nation kids...we get insight into mai and zuko’s tumultuous relationship here. azula’s awkward social skills are given a spotlight. ty lee is not as happy-go-lucky as she seems. it’s a great episode. it’s funny and it’s interesting to see how in some ways, they are just like any group of friends. 

8. the boiling rock part i and ii (season 3) 

this heist-y episode is so well-executed. i love that, apart from zuko, it focuses on the work of sokka and suki’s genius and non-bending abilities. the worldbuilding is fantastic -- the prisoner within a dormant volcano is such a good idea. it’s action-packed and wonderfully paced. i love it. the stakes are high, and a huge turning point as far as allegiances -- mai’s “maybe you don’t know people as well as you think you do. you miscalculated. i love zuko more than i fear you” is arguably one of the best lines in the show (maybe i’ll do a ‘favorite quotes’ list, though 75% of it would be uncle iroh).

9. the southern raiders (season 3) 

ah, yes, no surprise that another field-trip-with-zuko episode is my favorite! this episode is so good for katara and zuko’s development both. he’s earning her forgiveness and giving her a chance for closure...katara learns that revenge is not worth it, and i think zuko does too. it’s epic -- katara and zuko look badass in their sneaky ninja outfits and work wonderfully as a team.

10. sozin’s comet, parts i, ii, and iii and avatar aang (season 3 finale) 

i’m sorry, there’s just no way to split this up -- it’s all one cohesive episode to me. this finale is fantastic, brilliant, wonderful, live-changing. we see the individual strengths of the whole gaang be put to the test. zuko’s resolve is stronger than ever, and him and katara in the final showdown against azula is breathtaking and heart-wrenching. first, we got unhinged azula...it’s heartbreaking. we’ve never seen this precise perfectionist move so sloppily before. the way she is alone because of her own actions is -- such a cautionary tale. it’s also just a beautiful battle with amazing music and choreography...don’t even need to talk about zuko’s self-sacrifice, katara’s epic waterbending, etc.

aang’s fully-realized strength as the avatar against ozai’s shirtless fire-y skills is...epic. it’s just a stunning product of fantastic animation. we can debate about whether he should’ve killed ozai for eternity, but this finale did not disappoint in terms of this fight being truly epic. 

it ends peacefully. a natural conclusion to the end of war. it’s so heartwarming to see the gaang and characters like iroh, mai and suki standing by their side.

honorable mentions:  the blue spirit (season 1), the city of walls and secrets (season 2), the tales of ba sing se (season 2), the firebending masters (season 3)

[carnistcervine]

AU Thoughts

So, in my AU where Raava adopts Zuko, I mentioned that there is still an Avatar, just not Raava’s Avatar. So I started thinking up some ideas for what the Avatar would be like if Raava and Vaatu were swapped.

I’m not 100% on these ideas, I might tweak them or use them for their own AU and come up with something else for Raava Adopts Zuko, but this is what I got.

If anyone likes these ideas or the concept, feel free to use them. :D

~~~

*There is an old myth concerning the origin of the Avatar, it varies from nation to nation, and even some nations have multiple variants depending on where the tale is told. But the basic rundown is this: Thousands of years ago, in an era before bending, when the greater spirits still roamed the lands and mighty beasts guarded the tribes of man, a human was banished from his home, forced to roam the wilds alone. Tales vary on why he was banished and whether he deserved it, some stories claiming that he was a dirty thief who got finally got caught, others say he was falsely accused of murder, there's even one tale of the man as an almost robin hood style figure who stole food from the rich to help the poor. The man survives in the wilds for a while, seemingly bent by the spirits to turn against his fellow man. He eventually goes on, traveling the world, encountering the eternal spirits. The tales are split on whether the spirits were lovers(cast in an eternal dance) or foes(cast in an eternal struggle), but all tales agree that there were two, a pale one who embodied the light and order of the world, and a dark one who embodied the darkness and chaos. The man attacked the spirits, reasons vary on why, some say he was tricked by the dark one, some say he simply misinterpreted their dance to be a struggle, some say he was just trying to protect someone else. Either way, the spirits are separated and one is wounded. Stories once again diverge on whether it was the pale one or the dark one who was injured, but the result is the same. The balance of the world is egregiously damaged by his actions, and as penance he is forced to absorb the dark spirit and suffer it for ten thousand years. For each mistake he makes, another hundred years are added to his sentence. He spends the rest of his life trying to atone for his mistakes, dying on the battlefield when he's old and grey. Being that his sentence is not yet up, he reincarnates into his next life, and the cycle of the Avatar begins.

*Most dismiss these stories as, well, stories. But they remain the only record of any kind of origin for the mysterious being known as the Avatar.

*As for the Avatar themself, they tend to do whatever the hell they feel like doing. Despite being possessed by a dark spirit, they rarely do anything that could be considered genuinely malicious. The Avatar's presence is often marked before a great disaster or tragedy. Leading some to call them an omen.

*There have been stories of Avatars who gave warnings that were ignored. Then stood by and watched the chaos unfold, smiling and mockingly saying: “I told you so.”

*Being as powerful as they are, there are measures in place to immediately locate the newest Avatar as soon as the previous one perishes.

*One consequence of finding out when the Avatar is so young is that new Avatars are often either snuffed in their cribs or abandoned as small children by parents unable to deal with the dark spirit haunting them.

*Should the Avatar be allowed to live and grow, they will eventually seek aid in learning to control their abilities. Whether they seek the aid in disguise or openly depends mostly on society's view of the Avatar at that time.

*Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom parents are the most likely to snuff out a baby Avatar. In the Fire Nation, having the Avatar for a child is said to mean that Agni himself is angry with you or your family and is punishing you. In the Earth Kingdom it is usually said to mean that a tragedy will soon befall one. Usually the means of avoiding said tragedy is by ridding yourself of the dark spirit and passing it along the elemental chain. In the Water Tribes, the arrival of the Avatar is said to be a sign of change. While it's not uncommon for the Avatar to be killed in it's crib, the usual tradition in the southern tribe is that the head chief raises the Avatar, and in the north, the head healer is set to raise the child. As for the Air Nomads, since it is in their teachings that all life is sacred, and children aren't raised by their parents anyway, Air Nomad Avatars are pretty much never killed young. Instead the Avatar is sent to be cared for and taught by the strongest and most spiritual master. Rather than try and snuff them out, Air Nomads try as much they can to be a guiding force. Leading the Avatar down a good path and hopefully curbing any vicious tendencies.

*While not the first, Yang Chen is quite notable for the peaceful era that her long rein achieved. As for how she achieved such a peace, well, let's just say there's a reason no one dares invoke her name.

*People became much more open and accepting of the Avatar after Yang Chen, however. When Kuruk's time came, he was treated very well by those around him. Times were peaceful, and Kuruk himself was mostly pretty laid back. Well, except for his competitive streak. He'd challenge anyone and everyone to bending competition, or harmless duels. He was also quite the ladies man, only eventually settling down with a woman from his tribe. When she died, he became cold and withdrawn, wandering the world alone and eventually vanishing. His fate unknown.

*Well, he obviously died, as a new Avatar was born, but his body was never found.

*With Kuruk MIA, there was a bit of a power vacuum. Criminals took full advantage of this and terrible gangs roved the lands, killing and pillaging as they pleased.

*At least until Kyoshi showed up.

*Kyoshi was legendary for her ruthlessness. She slaughtered her enemies without so much as a second of hesitation. Some sources say she bathed in their blood and wore their entrails as fashion. While exact details of Kyoshi's apparent brutality are hotly debated among historians, one thing remains clear. Her enemies died quickly, and the world feared her. She was the longest lived Avatar, and the world remained at peace for her reign.

*With the Avatar having a mostly positive reputation, the Fire Sages opted to let the newest Avatar, Roku enjoy his early years as a normal person. And to their surprise, he was very normal. He didn't have any apparent violent impulses, wasn't withdrawn(even if he did seem a little shy), and overall was very happy and healthy. Like in canon, he grew quite close to Prince Sozin and they enjoyed a good friendship. Roku's status as Avatar was very publicly announced at his and Sozin's birthday. While Sozin was happy to have such a being as his friend, Roku had mixed feelings on harboring a dark spirit within him. He saw how the people around him reacted, they feared him. So he tried his best to show restraint. He'd prove to the world that the Avatar isn't one meant to be feared. His training went mostly smoothly, with only the spiritual training having some... unfortunate mishaps. Eventually he fell in love with a woman that didn't fear him, they got married and at the wedding Sozin told Roku vaguely about his plans of world domination. Roku, uh, didn't approve. But didn't want to make a show, because it was his wedding. So he simply growled at Sozin that he didn't want to hear about it. Then, he found a colony in the Earth Kingdom. He and Fang nearly trashed it in a fit of rage, but he decided to show restraint and told the people to fuck off back to the Fire Nation. Terrified of the Avatar, they did. Roku went to go confront Sozin, they got into an argument, Sozin attacked Roku and a royally pissed off Roku leveled the palace, only barely spared Sozin. In full avatar state, with red glowing eyes and smoky darkness billowing around him, Roku roared at Sozin that if he so much as breathed at the Earth Kingdom wrong he'd string him up by his entrails. Terrified of Roku's threat, Sozin abandoned his ambitions. He and Roku didn't speak again until many years later, when Roku's home erupted. Sozin didn't abandon Roku, but Roku being old and having inhaled too much poisonous gas died not too long after the incident. Sozin stayed by Roku on his deathbed. Roku had grown to regret his harsh treatment of Sozin, feeling he may have judged his old friend wrongly. His last words to him were an apology. Then he passed on, the Avatar Spirit moving to the Air Nomads once again.

*Sozin misinterpreted Roku's apology and subsequent death as the spirits being on his side and thusly went back to trying to achieve his ambitions.

*With Roku's last breath, Aang is born into the Air Nomads. He's left under Monk Gyatso's care. For the most part, Gyatso finds that Aang is a very gentle soul. He enjoys having fun and playing around. They decide not to tell him his true identity until he's older. Aang gets along quite well with his peers and gains many friends very quickly. Despite Gyatso's protests that Aang must be properly nurtured to sooth the dark spirit within him, the Elders decide to reveal the boy's true identity at twelve. Aang, doesn't take it well. The thought of a dark spirit living within him is well, scary. To make matters worse, his friends abandon him, utterly terrified of him. Gyatso tries to help Aang, treating him the same and remaining his last support. Then, because Gyatso insists on letting Aang be a kid, the elders try and separate them. Heartbroken, Aang runs away.

*Sozin still attacks the Air Temples, but not in an attempt to kill them all or rid the Avatar. No, Sozin thinks that the Avatar could be used for his war, so the soldiers are ordered to steal away as many children as possible, while killing anyone and everyone that stands in their way. Aang is frozen, so obviously all of the captured youths are just airbenders. Sozin doesn't have them killed though. No, he has use for them in his war machine...

*The search for the Avatar continues for a fair few decades before they figure that the being may have simply served his sentence and vanished from the world.

*When Katara and Sokka find Aang in the ice, let's just say they have more than a few reasons to be suspicious of him.

*As for Aang, he opts to keep his true nature under wraps for as long as he can.

*Not like anyone is actually looking for him anyway. :p

[woeismyhoe]

Iroh and Ozai headcanons

It never seemed to me that Iroh really hated Ozai. More like he strongly disliked him and was simply uncaring and apathetic towards what happened to him (everybody was saying that Aang had to kill Ozai to end the war and Iroh didn’t show the slightest bit of concern). If Iroh genuinely hated him, he would try to kill Ozai himself or, at least, wouldn’t avoid confronting him as much as he did (he had 3 opportunities in canon where he could’ve/should’ve confronted him: the first was when Ozai became Fire Lord, the second was when Ozai fought an Agni Kai with Zuko, the third was at the end of the series when Zuko asked him to fight Ozai). Iroh completely avoids facing Ozai throughout the series.

In my opinion, Ozai and Iroh never got the chance to spend much time together nor bond both because of Azulon’s extreme favoritism of Iroh and because of their huge age difference. Honestly, the age difference between them seems to be much more than 10 years. I’ve heard people who believe there’s 30 years difference between them or that Iroh is over 70 years old. That’s a bit too much in my opinion, but it is still telling. Based on their physical appearance, Ozai is in his early 40s (the oldest I could he see him being is 45, though I personally headcanon him as being 41-42 in Book 3). By that same token, Iroh is in his early/mid 60s (I headcanon him as being 63-64 in Book 3). I mean, just look at them.

Seriously, if you didn’t know they were brothers and someone told you they were related, what would you think? I’d much sooner believe they are father and son, rather than siblings. I know some people think Iroh’s in his late 50s but that seems to be stretching it a bit (just like saying he’s over 70 is a stretch). Iroh was likely in his 50s during the Siege of Ba Sing Se, but not during the main events of the series. A good middle ground can be seen in Piandao and Tenzin. Both of them are clearly older than Ozai, but are also obviously younger than Iroh. They are in their 50s (heck, it was even confirmed that Tenzin is 51 in Book 1 and 55 in Book 4).

So, with 20 years difference between them, it means that Iroh wasn’t around much when Ozai was a child. Iroh was probably already fighting in the war by the time Ozai was born (Lu Ten is, at most, 10 years older than Zuko, as seen from the flashback in S03E05 The Beach, and he was already fighting in the war so it’s makes perfect sense that Iroh would be fighting in the war as a young adult too) and was well on his way to becoming a revered military leader. I’d say that’s also the reason why Ozai never had a chance at winning Azulon’s favor. Azulon already had a successful, perfect son and heir in Iroh and he didn’t care for a younger, inexperienced Ozai who was desperate and eager to prove himself. Simply put, Azulon didn’t need Ozai.

We know that Ozai has no military experience, we know that Ozai resented Iroh for being Azulon’s favorite and it was also confirmed multiple times in the Avatar Extras for Book 3 that Ozai is the most powerful firebender in the world (and his feats on the Day of Black Sun and under Sozin’s Comet back this up nicely). Furthermore we have this quote from Bryan Konietzko: “Ozai is not like some kind of palace dweller. We will say that. I’m not sure how much he’s ventured out into the world, but he’s not like the Earth King where he’s isolated. The Fire Nation is a little more ‘hands on’. It’s not uncommon that you will have to fight or duel for political or military positions or purposes. There’s a big difference. I think in the Fire Nation, unlike in Ba Sing Se, if there’s a prince who’s 30 years old, he’s probably fought pretty intensely a few times. Had to prove his worth. Not unlike Japanese Samurai in their day. They had to make a name for themselves, they had to have some fame. Fire Nation, like a lot of other militaristic cultures throughout history, has warriors who have to prove themselves either through some battle, test of martial skill, or duel. Fire Nation’s a little more aggressive like that. Ozai’s not sitting around eating Bon Bon’s in the palace, he’s working out.”

All this leads me to conclude that Ozai definitely tried to prove himself to his father, but Azulon never gave him an opportunity to lead his own military campaign. What did he do instead? He sent Ozai off to search for the Avatar (in S01E01 The Boy in the Iceberg it was stated by both Zuko and Iroh that Ozai, as well as Azulon and Sozin before him, had searched for the Avatar years ago). I imagine this was, much like in Zuko’s case, an attempt of a father to rid himself of his son, at least for a while. As we know, Ozai’s search resulted in failure and Azulon would likely see it as just another reason why Ozai is unworthy of being given any kind of opportunity to prove himself.

Well, I have a ton more headcanons regarding Ozai and FN Royal Family, but I won’t bother you with that now. As long as I’m talking about Iroh and Ozai, here’s an extremely well-made video that answers the eternal fan-debate of who would win in a fight between them. If you want to check out more A:TLA analyses, Seyary-Minamoto has some great ones: analysis of Ozai, analysis of Sokkla, analyses of Zuko, analyses of Azula in the comics, analysis of Fire Nation sexism.

[thelittlepalmtree]

What is a healthy ship?

I think about this a lot, because we through the word “toxic” around constantly. I actually love the word toxic to describe relationships that are draining, because like radioactive or poisonous materials, toxic behavior may be unnoticeable on a given day or it may have a big affect all at once. However, because of overuse of the word, I’m going to talk about healthy vs unhealthy.

So first of all, let’s identify things that are risk factors: A relationship between a boss and an employee (even after that dynamic has ended), a relationship with a significant age gap, a relationship between people of different social strata, a relationship between a person who has financial control of another person, and a relationship with a history of aggression/dislike of one another, a relationship between a therapist/social worker/doctor and a client, a relationship between a teacher and student, a relationship between people of different physical abilities, etc.

Obviously these risk factors vary in many ways. That’s because what makes a relationship unhealthy is a clear and dramatic divide between the partners. This is true of every relationship. That’s why teachers, doctors, therapists etc have strict regulations and ethics because the people they serve are in their power. Abusing that power is wrong. Now you can have some risk factors, and not be in an unhealthy relationship. In fact most if not all relationships have some risk factors for an unhealthy dynamic (common).  For example, people of different social strata can have healthy relationships, they just need to work that out and find ways not to let that into their relationship. And there are millions of healthy relationships where one partner has financial control of the family, but is not abusive.

Then there are gray areas. Personally, I think that a relationship between a boss and an employee isn’t inherently abusive as long as they are no longer boss and employee (look at Aunt Hilda and Dr. Cerberus on TCOS, Ben and Leslie in Parks and Rec). But there are so many factors involved that if one of my friends told me she had a crush on her boss, I’d tell her not to pursue it and I heard a boss was trying to pursue a relationship with an employee I’d immediately be uncomfortable. But a lot of it depends on the job relationship, have they always been boss and employee? How dependent is the employee on the good graces of the boss? Is the boss using rewards or punishments at work to control the employee in the relationship? Is the boss directly managing the employee? I have a similar thing about age differences. Often people are quick to condemn a 20 year old dating a sixteen or seventeen year old, but there are so many factors that you really have to look at it on a case by case basis. Similarly I know people who have very strong and loving relationships with a 7-10 year age difference that met when the younger one was in their early 20s and the older one was in their 30s. Personally, that isn’t something I’m interested as a 20something trying to date, but that doesn’t mean that every relationship like that will be terrible.

That being said, there are some risk factor that are always bad (absolute). A relationship between a therapist, counselor, personal aid, or any profession that gives the professional intimate and necessary knowledge of the person is wrong. If you need that explained think about Elijah Wood in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Did he skeeve you out? Yeah, that’s why the “my therapist is hot and I want to date them” plot is often very cringe. A relationship with an adult and a child, is always going to be bad (If you’re wondering where that line is, you’re too close to it). A relationship with a history of abuse is always going to be a relationship that is unhealthy. 

The thing is, if the relationship hasn’t happened yet, and it doesn’t have one of the clearly wrong risk factors, whether it’s actually abusive or not is really up for debate. A lot of time we throw the word abusive around for ships we don’t like. Sometimes it’s about misinformation, where people assign an absolute risk factor to a relationship in which there is no absolute risk factor. A big one for this is buckynat, a ship I adore. I’ll go into the age difference (which is one of many things that does not make sense):

the primary canon for the ship is in the comics based on Black Widow: Deadly Origins (the last comic to give specific dates for Natasha’s life)  they met when Natasha was twenty eight and Bucky was thirty nine. Not a significant age difference when you consider that at this point they both have anti-aging bastardized super serum that will keep them both alive for sixty three more years and counting. While other comics have alluded to changing the timeline, they have not actually provided different dates or information (there’s also some discrepancy as to whether or not Natasha was continuously with department X or not).

In the MCU (not that it matters now) it would probably not be hard to establish Natasha as older than the date given in CA:TWS and it would actually empower her to say that she has a version of the serum (where right now she’s just a normal human) and undo the horrible concept that she was sterilized as a graduation from the red room (in the comics she can’t have children because the serum makes pregnancy impossible unless you take immune system suppressants). If they didn’t want to go with this plot line, they could also just have Bucky and Natasha meet in the early 2000s right before she defected (Iron man 2 came out in 2010 if she met Bucky in 2004 when she was 20 she’d still have six years to defect).

And yet there is some strange insistence that if Bucky and Natasha even look at each other in the movies it will be some sort of pedophilia because of a throwaway line in CA:TWS, and based off of almost no evidence from either of the two reservoir of content we have. And rather than just say “I don’t like this ship” it’s been called unhealthy from every angle. Ironically in the comics it was one of the healthiest and most supportive ships which is why so many people fell in love with it. (but that’s for a different blog)

 Then there’s the assigning a gray area risk factor to a ship and insisting it always means that relationship will be unhealthy. I have to admit, I can be guilty of this. And I’m calling myself out right now because I do this to the reylo ship all the time. The thing is, these are legitimate reasons to not ship a ship, they’re gray areas and if you’re like me, the very existence of these risk factors makes the idea of the two characters being together seem cringe-y. So my Reylo analysis below:

The risk factor that makes Reylo seem unhealthy is the fact that Rey and Kylo had very few positive interactions in the first film, and in fact their most in depth conversation was while Kylo was hurting Rey. But, given the circumstances, it is possible they might get together. Think about Katarra and Zuko, who were on different sides of the same war, and then later became good friends (and personally I shipped them like crazy). It’s commonly accepted that in movies with grand fantastic implications, that two people who are on different sides can later become friends when one of them makes a major personal change.

Now, in the second movie, it seems fairly evident that that character change has yet to happen. But speaking from personal experience, it takes a lot for someone to be a better person. While it’s not a good idea to get together with someone to change them, it’s not like that’s an impossible thing to do, but also Kylo and Rey are not together and have yet to get together in the films. So presumably most of the shippers are hoping for Kylo to make better choices before the two characters get together.

That’s the thing about shipping. No one ships the version of Reylo where Kylo is a whiny bitch who wants to take over the metaphor for the original nazi army metaphor (they’re called storm troopers people) and he spends all day emotionally manipulating Rey just to make her feel bad. The ones who do ship it, like that Kylo and I guess Rey have to become better people first. They don’t ship things as they are now, they are excited about the potential happiness these characters can find.

While this isn’t a good way to live your life (i.e. don’t date someone who isn’t their best self right now), it can be a fantasy for someone. I get it, the idea that the person you like isn’t great yet but eventually they’ll get their shit together. The thing that makes it nice is the fact that it never happens in real life. So if that’s what you’re into, cool. You do you. If your version of the ship is okay, we’re good.

Then there’s the last method of calling a ship unhealthy. That is taking a number of common nearly universal risk factors and using it as evidence to say the ship is unhealthy. To me this is the grossest misuse and one of the most common. It is almost always used against canon ships that get in the way of the popular ship and it can honestly push people out of the fandom. The example I’m going to use here is the ship Karamel, because once again I did not ship it at all. But I saw so much Karamel hate that I’m familiar with the ridiculousness of the some of the arguments. Analysis below:

Where to start with this one. Honestly everything was thrown at this ship. The fact that Mon-El was kind of a dick in the beginning. The fact that his parents were bad people. The fact that he told her he liked her multiple times. The fact that Kara took some time to show interest in him. Yes, if a relationship is abusive, these might have been early red flags, but this relationship was not abusive. It wasn’t the best relationship ever. But Mon-El never disrespected Kara’s choices or ingnored her when she said stop or no.

The truth is, sometimes people have crushes on people and it’s not mutual. In this situation, they had to remain a part of each others’ lives, and honestly, I’m glad that Mon-El was honest with his feelings. Because for him, Kara’s friendship was really important, and she was constantly pushing him to be open wit his feelings and to be more emotionally mature. So when he was honest, even though the conversation was risky, I think it was the right decision.

Here’s the problem with labeling this relationship as abusive. Obviously, the implication is that Mon-El is abusive. When you are in an abusive relationship, it isn’t a choice. It’s something that happens to you, because an abuser will constantly lie and gaslight you so that you have no real understanding of the facts and therefore cannot really make a choice. If you say Kara was in an abusive or “toxic” relationship just because she’s in a relationship you don’t like, you are taking away her choices. The best part of Supergirl is that Kara has to struggle to make choices whether they be right or wrong. She’s the one in control of the plot, she’s the driving force. So to then take all that away because you disagree with her choice in partner, really ignores her power and turns her into a passive, incapable woman. Whether or not you like her relationship with Mon-El, it is clear that she is the one that sets the boundaries and she is the one that drives it.

So then there are clearly abusive ships. I’m not going to do an in depth analysis but I think the best example is Jarley. The tamest incarnation of this ship Suicide Squad in which the Joker tortures her and then pushes her in a vat of toxic chemicals. It’s also a relationship between a therapist and a patient. A truly unhealthy relationship is one that satisfies most or all of the following criteria:

The couple is actually together in the canon (otherwise how would we actually analyze that dynamic?)

The couple has an absolute risk factor

There is evidence in canon of physical, sexual, or emotional abuse (this is not having an argument or teasing each other, for more info go here)

There is evidence of gaslighting or maniuplation (these must be intentional)

There is a clear power disparity between the characters

It’s important that we don’t over-label ships as abusive. First of all because there are a lot of people who are in abusive relationships or have been in abusive relationships all over the world. If they see that just any relationship that people don’t like is qualified as “abusive” it will become so much harder to then see their own relationships with clear eyes. I legitimately realized that my parents had been abusive to me because of some of the discourse here on tumblr. But if I was fifteen in the marvel fandom right now, it would be really hard for me to distinguish between healthy and unhealthy relationships. 

It’s also really important to make a distinction. Not all ships are created equal. There are dark corners of fandoms where parent/child ships grow and pedophilic ships are popular. And several fandoms have very popular incest (sibling) ships. These relationships are not okay. We need to be able to call them out undeniably. And every time you call a ship you don’t like unhealthy when it isn’t, you’re giving people a reason not to believe you when you do call out an unhealthy relationship.

Our words matter, and how we treat each other matters. It’s important to remember that there are no easy answers here. And also it’s okay to just not like something. You shouldn’t feel the need to justify it and you shouldn’t feel the need to declare it from the rooftops. My favorite ship is Buckynat. I’ve never once gotten mad for seeing a “how do you like buckynat?” “not my cup of tea” post. I get so upset when I see a “How do you like buckynat?” “oh it’s so TOXIC” post. In the same way that if you liked chocolate ice cream and your friend told you that chocolate ice cream is contributing to misogyny and trauma for women everywhere, you’d be a little up in arms.

If you read through this, thank you so much, you probably don’t need it. If not, well, you’re not here are you?

[seyaryminamoto]

I think the episode Th Beach was supposed to portray Zuko in a sympathetic manner, but in my opinion it makes Zuko look worse. This is the ONLY episode in which Zuko spends a substantial amount of time interacting with the fire nation citizens, and he can barely control his jealously and temper around them. He even wreaked Chan’s house. Those are his future subjects. He should have learned to treat them better if he’s ever going to be fire lord.

Playing the devil’s advocate just slightly, as I’ve mentioned elsewhere, I’m pretty sure Zuko’s complete incompatibility with the Fire Nation during the first half of Book 3 intended to convey a message that says Zuko doesn’t know how to fit in with his old life anymore. Hence, he couldn’t have a particularly positive thing going for him in the Fire Nation besides Mai, because then he’d have enough roots to keep him locked down in his role as Ozai’s heir and he wouldn’t feel as easily compelled to turn his back on his royal life and do the right thing.

Nonetheless, it is a problem from a thematic standpoint, I agree 100% with that. I have more than enough problems with Zuko’s character arc, but that his connection with his nation is practically severed or non-existent feels really wrong to me, especially when the show makes a point to feature Team Avatar bonding with ordinary Fire Nation citizens, and even finding some, like Piandao, who aren’t supporters of Ozai’s rule.

In my personal opinion, Zuko could have undergone a storyline akin to that of Alejandro in Mask of Zorro, who was absolutely out of place amid nobles, but he had to play a role so he could find the information he needed and put an end to their self-serving plans. There’s a very heartwrenching scene in that movie when the group of nobles are basically touring a gold mine where enslaved locals are forced to serve their lords, and one of these slaves, an old friend of Alejandro’s, attemps to attack them only to get killed immediately by the asshole captain protecting the nobles. Alejandro then steps forward and cradles the dying man, who recognizes him and realizes what Alejandro is doing, disguised as a nobleman... and then the man dies in his arms, smiling because he believes Alejandro will set things right. But he still dies, and Alejandro is obviously both livid and depressed about it because he couldn’t save his friend.

Obviously... there’s no way Zuko would be put in a similar situation, at least not a situation that’s 100% the same as this, it’d be way too dark for Avatar even if Avatar did feature dark situations when it suited the plot. But if Zuko’s journey had been mapped thoroughly from day one... gee, how about Jet doesn’t die, but instead gets captured and handed over to the Fire Nation, and Zuko finds him in a cell at the Prison Tower when he’s on his way to meet Iroh? His old frenemy, in horrible shape... Zuko finds he doesn’t care about the past, because he knows this is wrong and Jet’s been through more than enough by Fire Nation hands, so he releases the guy and they escape! And then Jet potentially acknowledges that not all Fire Nation people are garbage thanks to Zuko... while Zuko realizes, through Jet’s words, that if there’s good in the Fire Nation he has to find a way to help it grow, and that there’s so much he can start doing to fix the mess of a country he’s supposed to rule someday.

With that as a starting point, Zuko could begin to travel through his nation, to learn more about his people, to visit cities and villages and find out if they’re living well or not (then maybe confront his father about their living conditions, showing a Zuko who’s no longer scared of standing up to Ozai, not even if it means risking the approval he chased after so desperately for years). Imagine him showing up at Jang Hui village, finding this horrid situation the villagers are living in! He’d not only cross paths with Team Avatar, which could be interesting at this stage, but he’d also potentially offer the people an alternate living location because he wants them to be free to live in better conditions than this... only for Team Avatar’s approach to teach him that maybe the answer isn’t running away or leaving when your house is on fire, but to put out the fire by any means you have available. Then, Zuko could start having many similar epiphanies throughout his journeys in his own country and understand that his work with the Fire Nation has to be FOR the Fire Nation itself, and not the glorified concept his father believes in: he’d have to work for the people who are unaware of how oppressed they are, the people who barely can get by in these times of war, those who have lost family, those who have lost friends, all be it for a war that makes no sense. Had Zuko’s character arc focused on THIS rather than exclusively on his own internal struggle... you probably wouldn’t see that many Zuko-critical posts on my blog. It would convey a strong message about what it really means to be a leader, and Zuko’s character would benefit greatly from that.

... But yep. Instead we got him losing his temper at small triggers, acting out and being very much socially inept. I understand what they were going for, I repeat it, and I don’t think it’s fundamentally WRONG... but I do think it’s too simple considering the scope of the story they were telling, and the character development they were trying to build for Zuko. There’s way too much to address with a character like Zuko... and that all his growth was meant to be internal (with even a few things that either were never addressed or were addressed poorly or that he supposedly grew out of but then regressed into all over again) may not have done him any favors.

... And well, I’ll say, I actually don’t think most of The Beach intended to portray Zuko as sympathetic? Maybe only the point where he gives Mai gifts that she rejects, and when he goes to the old family villa, but in general he feels like such an ass in that episode that I’m pretty sure they were making him an ass intentionally xD Yet I can’t agree more, it’s really wrong that the only time we see Zuko interacting normally with common Fire Nation people, as equals, he acts the way he does. I’tll never not confuse me that Team Avatar gets to see and learn more of the Fire Nation, and interact positively with their people, than Zuko did...

[communxjoinmun]

The Restoration of the Phoenix Raises Conflicts between Nations and The Establishment of UCN - Southern Waters Post Editorial — Mehi Koda

Five conference meetings have elapsed, yet the main goal of “world peace” consumes tons of human casualties and even takes the life of the Avatar itself. Riots and civil wars broke out everywhere, especially in Yu Dao. Despite the debates during the conference, the council agreed upon the establishment of the United Council to maintain peace and harmony.

The stakeholders have been drafting the establishment of the United Council of Nations. During the discussion, four councils have been drafted: the Grand Council of Representatives, Economic and Trade Council, Socio-Cultural Council, and Security Council.

Amid the drafting of the United Council of Nations in the conference; it is a shame that the Fire Nations used this chance to send troops to Yu Dao. Quoting from the directive, over 3000 armies are deployed to besiege Yu Dao. The question raised in the council was, “why would you deploy troops in the name of the United Council of Nations when it is still in the drafting phase?”. The use of the UCN flags and white lotus troops raises distrust among the conference.

Although the Fire Lord Zuko has mobilized back the forces in Yu Dao, the Southern Water Nation Republic highly condemns the action that the Fire Nation has taken. The misuse of UCN flags in the name of “peace” is recognized as a possibility for a new form of Fire Nation colonialism and imperialism.

In response to the troop’s mobilization, the Southern Water Nation Republic has been accepting refugees from all nations. This creates the image of the Southern Water Nation Republic as “a welcoming nation for the refugees who seek stability and freedom from oppression”. Furthermore, to protect the citizens of the Southern Water Nation Republic from the Fire Nations Troops, the nation is conducting military exercises.

Coming to the end of the conference, the Fire Lord Zuko had been dethroned and switched with his own sister, Phoenix Queen Azula. However, as Azula took over, she declared an end of imperialism beyond the Fire Islands and opened for discussion regarding colonialism.

Affirming the joint directive from the conference, all four councils of the UCN have their own goals and methods. The Southern Water Nation Republic has taken the right path by taking part in the UCN establishment. As a major economic power among the nations, the methods of the Economic and Trade Council shall promote a better economic activity both on domestic and international level.

At the end of the day, the Southern Water Nation Republic has become a regional power with its economy and armies as well as public’s recognition. The implementation of UCN might be the peace that all nations have wanted. However, transparency and international affairs will be the key to eternal peace. When one’s nation feels higher and mightier than the other, the next hundred years war is not the matter of “if”, but the matter of “when”.