#then you also have roku and ta min

[circlique]

I'm sorry I just love the idea that the Avatar, regardless of gender, is destined to end up with a woman.

[sillyfudgemonkeys]

Yangchen and Aang: *trying to hold onto what Air Nation qualities they have while still performing their duties* Disha, to Roku: You are a spirit of NO Nation. Me: ??????

[dailyavatarslove]

welcome to daily avatar’s love!

since i have endless brainrot for all of the above ships (and the similarities that they share) i wanted to make a blog solely dedicated to the relationships between the avatars and their partners.

on this blog you can expect to find content of:

yangchen/kavik from the yangchen novels

kuruk/ummi from avatar: the last airbender/extended avatar studios lore/the kyoshi novels

kyoshi/rangi from the kyoshi novels

roku/ta min from the roku novel(s)/avatar: the last airbender

aang/katara from avatar: the last airbender/atla comics/legend of korra/lok comics/upcoming avatar studios content

korra/asami from legend of korra/lok comics/upcoming avatar studios content

with the exception of yangvik, all of the above ships are confirmed canon! but don’t worry, yangvik’s non-canon status won’t deter me from posting about the ship like it’s basically canon (which it kinda is).

i’ll be posting content from across the franchise, which will include the novels, the shows, the comics, extended lore, and all new content from avatar studios! i’ll also be reblogging fanart (no reposts here). if you’re familiar with the @kataangfanartarchive (one of my other blogs) the tagging system will be quite thorough so the fanart can easily be found.

if you have any requests or questions, feel free to send an ask to this blog or my main @kataraslove. i won’t be reblogging any critiques; this will be a safe space for shippers of all the aforementioned ships! BUT, if there is a ship you particularly dislike, i will always tag the post (whether it’s my original post or a reblog) so you can easily filter it out.

finally, absolutely no racism, homophobia, lesbophobia, transphobia, biphobia, and other forms of bigotry will be tolerated. that will result in an immediate block.

[bluespiritshonour]

First of all I’m such a big fan of your art and writing. If you would be down (and I know your super busy xD) I’d love to see your take on Maiko wedding art (pic for reference)!

Thank you so much😊

Hi! I saw your ask and my brain went BRRRRRRR!

Because, well, FASHION!!! So, before we get to the real deal—I just fucked around and here's some self-indulgent Mai sketches! Hehe.

She looks more like canon Mai without the makeup. (I coloured her eyes in the same layer, please ignore ⊙⁠﹏⁠⊙)

So, Fire Nation wedding dresses are white. What Ta Min is wearing here and what Ursa wore in the comics. I imagine Mai would sooner slit her throat with her own dagger. LOL. So, red it was. FN has heavy emphasis on the colour red. It's considered an auspicious colour in Chinese culture and I've seen traditional Chinese wedding dresses are predominantly red. (Please free to correct me if I'm wrong!)

Also, Mai has worn red without any hesitation in canon.

Sorry, I didn't do the Roku/Ta Min one that you asked for—for some reason I couldn't.

Pose inspiration for this one are Gomez and Morticia. I know Maiko is like the Addamses only aesthetically—but they were both traumatised kids; I don't see why they can't be like the Addamses when they're both grown up and adults and healed somewhat.

Plus, all that PDA? Definitely Addams family vibes.

And oh! I drew such glorious eyebrows for Mai but alas, her bangs came in the way 🥹

But I absolutely have to share it!

Aren't those eyebrows glorious? [sigh]

Anyways! Thanks for enabling me.

P.S: my full-updo Zuko propaganda is raging full force. That man has to have long hair and he has to put it all up!!!!

[mysteriouslee]

The Avatars and silly little tickle headcanons.

first off, the rankings from most ticklish to least ticklish.

Aang

Wan

Korra

Kyoshi

Yang Chen

Roku and Kuruk

Jetsun used to tickle little Yang Chen all the time. Especially if Chen was being cheeky or just for the point if being silly.

I'd like to think Kuruk would giggle when being tickled, Ummi tickled him just hear it cuz she thought it was cute.

Korrasami got into plenty of tickle fights in the spirit world vacation, many of which Korra lost.

Kavik had only managed to get Yang Chen very few times, and his head almost got blown off mutiple times. (She got him back tenfold, rip Kavik :P)

Rangi is an evil ler, rip Kyoshi :P. Kyoshi's laughter is really snorty when being tickled. (Rangi thinks its adorable)

Wan acts all big so the other avatars jump him in the spirit world but jokes on them, he knows all their weak spots since he's the first avatar. He sees and knows and he will get you if you come after him.

Katara once dragged a finger up Aang's spine and he screeched so loud, birds flew away.

When lee:

Aang's laugh is and was full of squeals, even as an adult. Full on fights you, its a reflex and he doesnt mean it tho.He harbours no shame about being tickles and outwardly admit to liking it and will ask for it. Katara is mostly gentke with him unless he was being cheeky or annoying, she will have him in tears.Toph likes to use soft and light tickles to drive her oppenent insane, Aang being her biggest victim.Worst spot: mid-lower back, especially the sides of the back and near the point that connects your sides to your back.

Yang Chen's go from soft quiet giggles to full on hearty belly laugh, and sometimes she loses control of her airbending through her voice and it shakes the room. If you get her weak spot, her airbending powered scream comes out by accident. If you get her good, she'll go limp but otherwise, prepare to be wrestled. If you tease her, she'll shout at you to shut up. Worst spot: Everywhere below the waist, from hips to toe tips, my girl will just die.

Korra gets into a cuddlly mood after being tickled, especially when its with Asami. She will put up a fight when it matters but other wise she'll just squirm or go limp. It matters when Mako and Bolin try to ambush her or if its a tickle fight. Korra is only rough with Asami gives the ok and when they do, they shake the bed with their tickle fights. (I know what you were you were thinking you naughty wackus bonkus). Naga accidentally tickles Korra all the time. If you roughly tickle her, her laughter will be a loud belly laugh you can hear from miles away but with soft tickles, her laughter turns into hiccupy giggles that Asami loves. Asami loves to tease Korra and Korra blushes hard at that.You cannot tell me the airbender kids havent jumped Korra before and she sometimes lets them win.Worst spots: Tummy, Thighs and Under her knees.

Roku's laughter when tickled is loud cackling or goofy giggle, he will do all in his power to crawl out of your grasp, unless its Ta Min, he lets her get him. Sozin used to get him and wreck him til tears all the time when they were kids. When Fang was smaller, she woukr nuzzle his head into Roku's tum, making Roku laugh. Blushes easily and cannot take teasing. Worst spot: Chest, Hips and Ears.

Wan will straight up scream at you then dissolves into cackles and wheezing.Cocky Lee but crumbles so quick. He's pretty fast tho so its almost harder to catch him than Yang Chen.Worst spot: Ankles and Feet.

Kuruk may be a big burly guy but his laughter when being tickled is soft and giggly first. After time it turns to guffaws, not as loud as Korra tho. Worst spot: Back, Ribs and Knees

Kyoshi secretly also likes being tickled but she'll never admit it on her life. Rangi figured it out quick tho. Loud giggles and snorts. Rangi used it a lot against Kyoshi when they spar or when Rangi was trying to get Kyoshi to take care of herself. Kyoshi has freckles almost everywhere and Rangi loves to kiss and raspberry them. Worst spot: Ribs, Neck, Upper Back and Tummy.

When ler:

Aang is a goofy ler, gentle with all (except with Sokka, Sokka isnt gentle with him either). Laughs with his victim and coos at them, only with Katara will he baby talk.

Wan is quick, swift and evil. Menacingly good at being a ler. His fingers are quick and nimble and is accurately good at finding weak spots that havent been revealed to him. He will get you before you even know what just happened, quick to attack, quick to escape. Knows when someone cant handle rough attacks and will be gentle on that occasion, otherwise, prepare to be on the floor in tears and begging for mercy, a certain avatar learned it the hard way (comment to post on who you think said avatar is).

Korra is almost as goofy a ler as Aang. Loves to tease and baby talk. Cocky like Wan, especially when she's winning a tickle fight.Might be soft with the airbender kids, gets into silly tickle fights with them all the time.

Kyoshi is a gentle ler to Rangi and Rangi only, everyone else suffers her wrath. Teasy asshole.

If she's getting revenge, you cannot escape Yang chen, no matter how far you run, Kavik knows from experience. Soft and light to drive her victim to insanity, Kavik knows from expereince.Whispers, teases into Kavik's ear. However if its just for fun, she is for most part not vicious, however if you are a certain waterbender from Bin-Er named Kavik, she will tickle you to see your smile.

Roku and Sozin got into rough tickle fights all the time when they were little and they tied a lot. Roku is very gentle when it comes to Ta Min.

Kuruk is just as a goofy ler as Aang, and is extremely competetive in tickle fights.

And now: A little treat for the Szeto and Gun fans (idk shit about Salai sorry :[ )

I just have an idea of young Szeto, as a junior officer being tickled by his comrades after a long mission. Also methinks he would be a bratty lee. For the most part, I cant see him involving himself in being tickled, twas a bit of a sourpuss majority of the time.

Gun was pretty hard to tickle, only Mesose has gotten close enough to tickle him and Mesose got it back tenfold. Gun didn't like being tickled after Mesose died tho :[

Please forgive me if anything I've said is inaccurate and do correct me in the comments

[azulasmommyissues]

ATLA sexuality headcanons, part 2, Roku's era:

due to the limited information regarding this era, i might just be spouting bullshit. but! it's mY bullshit.

roku

-bisexual, male lean

-he mainly dated men when he was younger because he was trash at talking to women, but after mastering the avatar state he actually started seeing women (because raava is a lesbian)

-he is the master of homoerotic friendships, i tell you. sozin? gyatso? sud? no heterosexual explanation for any of them

-with sozin, roku was oblivious as fuck. he loved him, but he could never pinpoint exactly how. there were many moments of unresolved sexual tension.

-he fell in love with ta-min because she's absolutely raava's type

-but literally wore sozin's crown until the end of hid life and keeps it in his spirit form despite everything??? roku, please.

sozin

-he is gay but he's also awful

-contrary to all I've written until now, these things CAN co-exist

-being the golden child, a direct azula parallel, and also obsessed with roku?

-the fire nation law allowing married couples to legally annul their married was drafted and ratified by firelord sozin at around 44BG on the eve of avatar roku's wedding

-and gay marriage was made illegal after roku died.

-and he banned dancing in his oldest bitterest years of being alive because roku liked dancing, “sozin, It's my wedding! have a cookie! dance with someone!” (he didn't)

-he basically proposed to roku with his crown bfr

-i imagine that he was the one to kill gyatso. personally.

zeisan

-absolute lesbian

-in the avatar universe the lesbian masterdoc is a philosophical text that she herself wrote

-SO sick of sozin's imperialist, fascist bullshit. girl same. be gay study philosophy.

-she canonically bore no romantic love for khandro and he bore no such feelings for her either. the marriage was strictly political and based on mutual respect.

-rioshon, on the other hand? the love of zeisan's LIFE fr fr

ta min

-you've got no idea how much I'm looking forward to getting to know her when roku's book comes out. she seems nice. the roku episode barely gives her any attention, though. she's definitely raava's type that's for sure-- not a coincidence roku wifed her up AFTER mastering the avatar state, raava had been WAITING

-the vibes are relatively heterosexual

-girl was BEEFING with sozin

-"may i borrow your husband for a moment" if i were ta min and that was my wedding day idc if he was the firelord he would have gotten his ass beat (/j) so she's definitely a better person than me

-I'm a big fun of the theory that each avatar has the face of their past life's true love and aang looks a LOT like her so i think her and roku are sweet

gyatso

-gay bitch

-i don't know i just genuinely can't imagine him with a woman,,

-he had feelings for roku which weren't reciprocated and a nice old homoerotic friendship. his difference with sozin is that he didn't commit genocide and he DIDN'T leave roku to die in a volcanic eruption

-he loved roku enough to settle for being his friend if it meant he'd be happy

-he would have protected aang with his life, he was like a son to him,,, and he reminded him so much of his best friend

-after gyatso caused so much damage to the fire nation troops, sozin came to kill him himself. and god was it personal.

sud

-bisexual

-another homoerotic roku friendship

-roku you slutty slutty old man

-sud was roku's bi awakening, in fact. obviously sozin was the first one he loved but he couldn't explain it or understand it back then. he was old enough when he met sud to figure it out.

-him snd roku had tea dates after training, come on now

-they were friends first and foremost, though, lifelong friends.

taqukaq

-bisexual but never realises. I have to imagine he's at least somewhat conservative since he's from the northern water tribe and all—at least at first.

-then again, he was very spiritual and soft-spoken since his childhood. he travelled the world as a diplomat and saw many different walks of life

-he was perhaps in love with his good friend nai, and that's why his betrayal shook him to his core and gave him such terrible trust issues

rioshon

-lesbian

-also asexual

-perhaps she also fought sozin during the comet.

-maybe it was more personal for her than it was for him.

-she mourns the life she could have had with zeisan, if only she'd spoken out. if only she'd been honest with her feelings. damn the consequences! sozin won anyways. they wasted their lives and their love for nothing.

khandro

-aromantic and asexual

-bro finds rioshon captivating and respects the grind

_____________________________________________

now... nyanchi, boin, ezra, zeebee, bo, chegu, ema, sherab, and norbu, etc, who all appear in avatar legends as regenerated characters—i actually don't know what to say about them. they barely feel like characters-and they're not really that connected to roku. i just want this era to get fleshed out like kyoshi's and yangchen's! like their novels were so good. I'm more excited to find out more about the past avatars than to get new avatars, honestly, but that might just be me.

[chaotic-tired-bastard]

pleasseee i'm begging you to share some roku or roku x sozin headcanons 🙏

okay so many apologies I STARTED this but my computer hated me, froze, and I lost everything ,T-T, many apologies again. Solely Roku headcanons first, Rozin second (some canon-compliant, some not)

Roku gets arthritis in his hands and wrists when he gets older, and he gets this really nice lotion that smells like wisteria that he uses to massage his knuckles and fingers to reduce the pain

Roku learned how to use Airbending to lighten his footsteps, lessening their sound, in order to sneak around the house at night and not wake up Ta Min and their child(ren)

Roku gained a fanclub due to his gentle demeanour (and his pretty pretty face), and he was a bit creeped out sorta accepting about it in the beginning... but then he met one of the members. After that, he avoided them like the plague; he even sometimes jumped over houses and walls and into rivers to get away

Roku tried to learn how to heal, but he could never really get the hang of it

Roku actually really, really likes Water Tribe cuisine! It's canon that he stayed in the Northern Water Tribe for multiple years before he was able to start learning Waterbending, and I like to think that he gained a taste for the food about a year into his stay. Sometimes he goes to Water Tribe restaurants wherever he can find them, and he can immediately tell when it's authentic or not from the taste. It became a kind of honour (HONOURRR) if Avatar Roku were to come into your Water Tribe restaurant and like your food

Roku was scary good at composing poems. He learned how to do them when in school (with Sozin bcs they learned in the same class (they were the only two in the class bcs Royal Privilege and that's what Sozin asked for)), and it eventually matured into a hobby. Roku would express affection by composing poems and reciting them; he composed a few for Ta Min and proposed through one, and he wrote a few at the birth of his child(ren). He might have composed one for Sozin, but he'll never tell...

Rozin starts here!

Sozin is so possessive that it's not even funny. Like the MOMENT he knew Roku was back in the Fire Nation he had a spy or two on him. You just know that he was spitting fire and blood when he learned that Roku and Ta Min were going to get married. (Also like he kinda lowkey steals some things of Roku's to put in his chambers to pretend that Roku's living with him… pathetic yearning)

Roku had a teeny little crush on Sozin when they were pre-teens. It was awkward, and Roku eventually grew out of it by convincing himself "It wouldn't work anyway, he's going to be the Fire Lord and I'm just some kid"

Sozin didn't know that he was down bad for Roku until about a year after Roku left. He was just sitting in a garden somewhere, lying in the sun, and was just like "I wish I had Roku here so I could have his head in my lap and play with his hair..." and then he was just like "WHAT"

Sozin tried to send letters to Roku while he was away, but because of his dad they never were sent. They were supposed to be burned, but someone stored them away instead. Somewhere, within the depths of the Fire Nation Royal Palace, there's a box full of decades-old letters, just waiting to be read or burned... and those letters might just contain a confession...

Sozin is soooooo touch starved—every chance he can get, he's draped over Roku in some way, and they snuggle every night they can. They're the kind of couple you can find lounging on a couch with literal feet of couch available, but Sozin's either pressed up against Roku's side or is sitting on his lap

When Rozin fight, they split up to cool off and then spar about it. They continue the fight whilst they actually fight, and they end up making outup when they end the fight&spar. Sometimes it's bending only, but when they're really angry it's just throwing punches & kicks. The inherent homoeroticism of beating each other up-

[impossiblycolorfulpanda]

Zutara - Injury Recovery

After a brutal battle with Ozaatu and the red lotus. Zuko suffered some minor injuries, the gaang helped out and were hiding out in a hidden lodge.

Zuko: "Katara...?"

Katara: "(Shushes) will hide here until you're strong enough to move. Once again, you willingly put you're own well-being at risk for us. You're either the bravest prince I've ever met or the craziest."

Zuko: "Ex-prince, remember?"

Katara: "How do you always get hurt the way you do?"

Zuko: "Pain has become an old friend over the years."

Katara looked sad.

Katara: "I can't help but feel like I'm the one to blame."

Zuko: "What are you talking about?"

Katara: "Zuko, I'm always put in a situation I can't get out of, and you are always there to get me out, jeopardizing your own life while doing it! You shouldn't have to do that!"

Zuko: "I could just leave you to get hurt or die, couldn't I? It's my choice and I promised myself I'd make the right ones, and I’ll always do it knowing you're safe. I actually have a chance at saving you, I'm taking it, no questions asked. I'm not abandoning you like I was forced to abandon Azula because I'm an idiot."

Katara: "You are not an idiot."

Zuko: "You know of the mistakes I made and always called me out on them. No holding back. I always gave credit to my uncle for changing my ways, but I believe you also made me better in your own way, even if you didn’t know it. In a way. You saved me too."

Katara: "Zuko I..."

Zuko: "I'd be lost without you Katara."

Their eyes got caught in contact, unable to break. They leaned fearlessly, and their mouths caught into a kiss.

Aang’s eyes widened with shock. He wasn’t sure why; he already opened his last chakra and he told Katara his romantic feelings are gone but a part of him still felt surprised. His hands clutched and he closed his eyes. His mind wondered.

Patik voice: (Once you open this chakra, you will be able to go in and out of the Avatar State at will and when you are in the Avatar State, you will have complete control and awareness of all your actions. The Thought Chakra is located at the crown of the head. It deals with pure cosmic energy and is blocked by earthly attachment. Meditate on what attaches you to this world. Now, let all of those attachments go. Let them flow down the river, forgotten.)

Aang voice: (Yangchen said I'm supposed to latched on my earthly tethers; she was wrong. The moment all my chakras became open, at first, I was lost, and I was afraid I would always feel that way. But instead, a sense of calmness and true freedom has come over me, I'm no longer at war with myself and I see things more clearly. I’m no longer capable of harboring any romantic feelings for you. I’m sorry, but we could never be. My affections were never real, and they always clouded my judgment. I was wrong to risk ruining our friendship because of my desires. It’s better this way, that way I can truly embrace my role as the avatar. I’m not gonna keep letting fear stop me. I’m done running from who I am.)

Roku voice: (My wife was actually not an earthly tether, that honor belonged to Sozin. Ta Min was something else. I call it, the beacon of ascension. It is a person who is most special and most important to the avatar. The light within the darkness and the one to inspire you to achieve balance and your true potential and vice versa. Give yourself time Aang, your beacon of ascension is out there. This being is very rare and will sometimes appear when you least expect it.)

Aang eased his hands, took deep breaths, and opened his eyes. He made a tiny smirk at the new couple.

[rifari2037]

13. Do you think the Fire Nation would allow Zuko’s heir to become Firelord if they were a waterbender?

Actually, this question is hard to answer, because I do have the same question in my head 🤯

But in my opinion, one element can't be the leader of the other elements, especially for the Fire Nation which has a royal order, except they changed the constitution. Non-bender is fine, though, because they kind of neutral.

If Zuko and Katara's firstborn is a waterbender, he/she will be an heir of Southern Water Tribe after Sokka and Suki's children. He/she still Prince or Princess of the Fire Nation, but he/she can't be a Fire Lord. They will waiting for firebender/non-bender children, because an heir to the throne doesn't have to be the eldest.

(In canon, Ozai is second child and Izumi has not been confirmed to be a firebender)

In my headcanon, after Zuko and Katara married, the sages asked them to immediately give the nation a firebender heir, since the Fire Nation have no heir at the moment. It took time for Zuko to convince the sages and his ministers to accept a non-bender heir, but they can't accept a waterbender heir because it would break the balance.

Zuko and Katara really want to raise a family, no matter if their children will be firebenders or waterbenders, or even non-benders. But they also understand that giving the nation an heir is one of their responsibility.

Fortunately, Kya, their firstborn is a firebender. Kya became the heir of the Fire Nation immediately since she can make sparks. Well, it seems too coincidental, right? But, not really.

As I know, bending is gene. Zuko has dominant firebending gene from his family, while Katara has a weak waterbending gene (all of her family are non-benders). So, most likely they will have a firebender children.

Kazan (the second child) is non-bender because both Zuko and Katara have non-bender gene (Fire Lord Sozin's sister, Zeisan, is a non-bender and I think Roku's wife, Ta min, also a non-bender). While Izumi (the third child) is waterbender from Katara's gene.

But, how if they only have waterbender children? Actually the possibility is very small, but if it does happen, well, I don't know, I let the sages and Zuko as the Fire Lord think about their own problem.

Do you have other opinion/headcanon about this? I would like to know! 😊

[zeno-zero]

Headcanons !!

These are simply me just having fun and pulling myself away from the canon that I don't find myself indulge into it :3

Yasu and Roku are fraternal twins. Obviously, Roku is the one who transitioned but at first, his parents didn't accept him at first. They think it's nonsense and that whatever you are assigned at birth, you'll stay that way because that really defines who you are. However, since Yasu gently tells them that it doesn't work like that anymore and the FN should be progressing - their parents decided that having two sons are better than having one son and one daughter. After Yasu's death, they still kept their word to Yasu that they'll be accepting about Roku's whole new identity but Yasu didn't say that they couldn't try to turn Roku into like him as a way to cope with loss.

People tend to forget that Yasu and Roku are twins due to how different they are from each other. It also confuses them even more because Yasu calls Roku 'his little brother' whereas Roku calls him 'big bro.' They both take advantage of this and mess them up badly!

Yasu tries to be the mature out of the three but is the one who gets them all into crazed shenanigans. Roku wanted to be the voice of reason but is easily persuaded whereas Sozin goes extreme mode.

Sozin and Yasu are best friends with Sozin having a slight interest in him. On the other hand, Roku and Sozin are beyond platonic - doing gestures that no one understands but them, spend many nights with each other, Roku's immediate help, Sozin choosing Roku, their destiny linking with each other and talked about how their days with each other are warm and brighting?? Yasu has a place in Sozin's heart but Roku legit never left his mind to the point it haunts him until he dies.

Yasu mentioned he wanted to be an Astronomer, so every time Roku looks at the stars that are above him - he thought of him and how he would love these constellations.

Gyatso and Roku are an inseparable duo in Avatar Roku's team. Every time they're together, they always have a great time even if the circumstances are dire. Every time they have an emotional and meaningful conversations along with how physically affectionate they were towards each other, it definitely made their team smile wide at how gentle they are.. What Sud obviously didn't know is that Gyatso would probably sell Roku for five big watermelons if given an option to do so. /silly

Ta Min and Roku are booksmarts. They start holding each other's hands as their entire bodies vibrate with excitement when one of them references their favorite book ever and the other starts to place down more references to keep the train going. They're each other's biggest hypers and they're both adorable doing so while in the background, Gyatso looks at them with an amused look across his face and Sud just chuckles at them. 😭❤️

Roku taught Sud politics. Every time they finished their earthbending practices together, Roku would pull Sud into the chair and have long discussions with each other (+ sipping tea)! Their roles in the relationship switched time to time, Roku would be the mentor whereas Sud is the mentee. Vice versa for Sud as well.

The team travels all across the globe, having Gyatso's sky bison - Lola, their only ride at first. It has definitely become a race between Roku and Gyatso, wanting to find out who has the fastest transportation when Fang became such a strong, enormous dragon. Ta Min clenching onto Roku's waist as she is experiencing fear and delight at the same time whereas Sud SCREAMS until his voice is no more!!

Sozin never marries and never wanted a kid, which he never understands why (misopedy /hj). For the sake to keep the war going, he gets a surrogate mother who is from one of the noble clans. He literally did not have any thoughts during this process and only wanted to raise Azulon so his plans can keep going. He isn't always actively there in Azulon's life but whenever the two interact, Sozin only wants to know about his progress and goals - anything else is dismissed.

Yasu and Roku's hair are naturally curly thanks to their mother's gene. Yasu let his hair just the way it is while Roku straightens them in his childhood to early adolescence. He stopped straightening them when he felt much more confident and proud of himself for the way he is.

[hauntedradiotower]

Avatar Roku’s big mistake was doing nothing decisive about Sozin. He says as much himself. What’s interesting is a very common critique of him extrapolates further, saying he did nothing noteworthy at all.

I disagree. ATLA is a story about Aang. The narrative orbits Aang. He’s The Guy. All we need to know about Roku is how his life relates to The Last Airbender’s life. I think Roku was a good avatar, but he was an even better (though imperfect) mentor. Everything he said was to lift up Aang, and erase himself. It’s a combo of his self-effacing nature and just good writing to keep the narrative tight.

Roku talks about Sozin much more than the longtime love of his life. That’s not because he loved Sozin much more than Ta Min, it’s to set up a direct parallel to Aang & Zuko, a very timely hint at generational healing.

When he does touch on Ta Min, the main focus is on his complete awkwardness around her. He knows Aang is having big first crush angst. Although saving the world is foremost on everyone’s mind, Aang is thirteen and the need for hope in the ways of love is likely just as pressing for him. Seeing the past avatar struggle with this and still find love probably brought Aang a lot of subconscious peace of mind.

What stood out to me the most to me: Roku doesn’t even mention his own children. Is that because he doesn’t care about them? You cannot convince me that’s true. Now, if he didn’t even mention them, he definitely won’t regale Aang with tales of raising Fang (not canonically confirmed), or pushing for legal restrictions on dragon-poaching (which canonically exploded in popularity only after his death), or bringing about tedious peace between the Northern Water Tribe and the Earth Kingdom (also canon), especially not when time is of the essence & Ozai’s lit a candle under everyone’s ass…

Maybe if someone like Bumi had been the previous avatar we’d get some random stories like that, winding wildly back to a lesson that solves everything. But not with Roku, he’s gonna show Aang what it was like, and what it could be again, subtlety nudging him in the right direction for the world: making peace with Zuko.

Past glories do not matter so much as the possibility of future peace.

[hongyueg]

'The Reckoning of Roku' Review

The Reckoning of Roku

By Randy Ribay

Genre: young adult, fantasy

Content Warnings: death, grief, colonization

Description: “A young Avatar Roku has only just commenced his training at the Southern Air Temple when his erstwhile friend, Prince Sozin, requests his aid in preventing the Earth Kingdom from claiming a remote Fire Nation island. Despite his inexperience, Avatar Roku slips away with the help of an irritating young Airbender named Gyatso. As the reluctant companions delve deeper into their wayward mission, they begin to realize that even greater threats lie ahead. Plagued by self-doubt but eager to prove himself, Roku fights for his life and the lives of others while ensuring that the hidden secret of the island doesn’t fall into the wrong hands.”

After reading the previous Chronicles of the Avatar books, and liking them a lot, particularly the Yangchen duology, I was very excited to read The Reckoning of Roku and see another author tackle the Avatar-world in novel format. Overall, I liked The Reckoning of Roku. The characters were very entertaining, the plot was intriguing, and the book does a nice job setting up the themes and events we know Roku will face later on in his life. I have some complicated feelings toward how one of the antagonists was handled and a death that occurs later in the novel, but in general, I find this book enjoyable.

What I enjoyed:

-Just like the original show and the Kyoshi and Yangchen duologies, this book creates heartwarming and heartwrenching character dynamics and relationships. Ribay especially does a good job providing more depth to both Roku and Sozin’s and Roku and Gyatso’s friendships. As someone who recently went through a life transition that meant moving away from some of my closest friends, I could really relate to Roku as he navigated leaving his childhood best friend behind. Additionally, I am impressed by how the novel humanizes Sozin while making you hate him more. Sozin’s storyline reminded me a lot of Snow’s in The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes and I would be interested in seeing where it continues in the sequel. Gyatso was wonderful in this book and I appreciated learning more about his past and seeing him interact with Roku and a new character named Malaya. I especially loved how Gyatso got to be his own person in this novel and not just Roku’s Airbender friend. Also, Ta Min completely stole the show in every chapter she was in. I hope we get to see more of her in the sequel!

-Speaking of Malaya, I wanted to acknowledge how her character helped challenge some problematic tropes in adventure and travel stories. In this book, Malaya, at first glance, stands in for the stereotypical and often racist caricature of the “friendly Indigenous guide.” Yet, almost every scene where she interacts with outsiders is written from her perspective, forcing non-Indigenous readers to challenge their own biases and assumptions within this story as well as in similar narratives. Additionally, since so much of the novel is from Malaya’s perspective, we can really see her own agency in her decision-making and see her growth as a character going from beginning to question her own leader to fighting to protect her clan while choosing to explore beyond her home.

-In terms of themes, I appreciated what this novel had to say about grief both in terms of grieving the death of a person and also about grieving changing relationships with one’s friends and allegiances. Detachment is a word that pops up a lot in this novel and the book does a great job of challenging what it means to detach and exploring how we can have healthy attachments to the people and places that are no longer in our lives.

-The worldbuilding additions in this book were fascinating! I enjoyed learning more about Air Nomad and Fire Island cultures and it was neat seeing how the author weaved his own Filipino culture into the story.

What I thought could be better:

First, as a note, it’s very hard to talk about my critiques of the book while avoiding spoilers, so please take this as your spoiler warning.

-[Spoiler Alert] I have complicated feelings about how Ulo was handled in the novel. On one hand, I appreciated how Ulo’s storyline showcases the importance of holding all leaders accountable. Just because a leader is from a marginalized identity and claims to be making decisions to protect their communities does not mean they are exempt from being corrupt or abusing their own people consciously or unconsciously. On the other hand, since we are mainly seeing Ulo through the eyes of Roku and Malaya, the novel seems intent on making readers distrust Ulo’s position toward outsiders without delving into the complexity of his order to kill all outsiders. Ulo is also the primary character in the story who outright discusses a fear of colonization, a fear that is proven true by the end of the book. It seems like the book is trying to both give complexity to Ulo while still retaining him as an antagonist without truly delving into his motivations and the source of his fears. Maybe if Ulo had just been given a couple of chapters from his perspective, his storyline would have felt more like a complex examination of leaders living under the threat of colonization rather than a muddled commentary.

-I also have complicated feelings regarding Malaya’s death. On one hand, I appreciated that the scene is written from her perspective, allowing readers to recognize her agency in her decision to try to assassinate Sozin. Her decision also reflects her growth in her ability to stand up to corrupt leaders. On the other hand, her death appears to be used to emphasize Sozin’s paranoia and cruelty, characteristics readers already know he possesses. While her death does add to the grief plotline of the book, it still feels somewhat unnecessary since we already see Gyatso and Roku grow in terms of their understandings of grief even before she dies. This leads to her death feeling like the book is killing off its only Indigenous, female point-of-view character to showcase the male characters’ cruelty and growth. [End Spoiler Alert]

Despite my complicated feelings regarding some of the book’s plotlines, I enjoyed The Reckoning of Roku overall. I loved seeing Roku, Gyatso, Ta Min, and even Sozin receive more characterization and it was a lot of fun meeting new characters like Malaya and Sister Disha. What this book had to say about grief was powerful and I can’t wait to see where these characters and themes go in the sequel! I recommend the book to any Avatar fan looking for an exciting adventure.

[azuzula]

So does like. Sozin twist Roku’s death into pro-Fire Nation propaganda or.

I mean think about it:

I’ve always thought it was interesting that even during the war, the Fire Nation seemed to hold a relatively positive view of Avatar Roku.

Like the Fire Sages, makes sense that they’d hold a high regard for him (even if most of them were more loyal to the Fire Lord in that ep., they were moreso working against Aang than anything else — they showed a lot of reverence to Roku once he possessed Aang)

But even in The Deserter, Jeong Jeong immediately bows to him and is all “i meant no disrespect great avatar” (paraphrasing. he doesn’t say that lol) when Roku appears before him (not even mentioning he agrees as soon as Roku tells him to???)

While one could make the argument that “ohhh but if the Fire Nation hates Roku and Jeong Jeong hates the Fire Nation…” but that doesn’t really seem to hold up. Zhao seems to carry a lot of reverence for Roku (which yeah his spirit is actively attacking but like. He looked like he shat himself as soon as the doors opened — before Roku started destroying the temple)

I mean considering that he technically died in a natural disaster Sozin can’t just label him as an enemy or anything like that (look at the size of that volcano and the aftermath of an eruption of that size and tell me that him staying and fighting the volcano wasn’t worth it. a lot of people who are smarter than me have written some great things about that but roku stopping the volcano was super important and absolutely saved a lot of lives)

I mean, if I were trying to establish “our nation is the best!” propaganda to the general public I wouldn’t go trashing the most recent equivalent of a God, especially one that is from your own nation.

There are two likely things that I think would happen when Roku’s death is announced:

1) Sozin spins his death into pro-Fire Nation propaganda (which. hm. is it denial and him trying to be like “buddies to the end” or trying to preserve as many positive ““memories”” of their friendship? though if he does that I think Ta Min would legitimately assassinate him)

or does he

2) Let the news be. Only a formal statement from the Firelord regarding the Avatar’s death. Nothing more, nothing less. A message that is quiet, simple and professional in tone and almost… regretful?

There’s lots of potential either way you slice it, but it’s a special sort of disgusting to spin the death of your former best friend, who you left to die so he doesn’t stop your plans of taking over the fucking world into propaganda for those very actions — actions that he nearly killed you over, only sparing you because of your past friendship (also to avoid war bc you can’t just assassinate the fire lord no matter how much you want to.), with the only remaining contact being an ever so watchful eye, making sure you never step out of line.

[tiger-pumpkin]

All right hear me out here, the avatars with the song "The Moon Will Sing by the Crane Wives"

Example:

"I could have been anyone, anyone else Before you made the choice for me"- Yangchen having to deal with her past lives taking over in random moments and constantly not feeling like herself

"All those empty rooms We could have been anywhere, anywhere else Instead, I made a bed with apathy My heart knew the weight Ten years worth of dust and neglect We made our peace with weariness and let it be"-Aang coming to terms that his entire culture and people are gone, along with Gyatso, and blaming himself for running away.

"The moon will sing a song for me I loved you like the sun Bore the shadows that you made With no light of my own I shine only with the light you gave me I shine only with the light you gave me"-this can honestly go for all of them losing a loved one in death. But I am specifically thinking of Kuruk and Kyoshi blaming themselves for the death of Ummi and Kelsang, and not doing more to stop it even though it really wasn't their fault. They forever blame themselves even after they pass on themselves.

"Name your courage now We could have had anything, anything else Instead, you hoarded all that's left of me"-Roku, as he viewed as a brother, Sozin, betrayed him left him to die and then went on to commit horrible actions of war and terrorism. And then wondering how things might have been different if he had just ended Sozin. Then maybe Ta min wouldn't have been a widower. In fact have him also blame himself for the death of Gyatso.

Finally "Swallowin' your doubt

Like swords to the pit of my belly

I want to feel the fire that you kept from me"- Korra feeling like she not only failed as the avatar but that she failed to live up to Aang's Legacy.

[nexstage]

Something that got me curious about the whole deal Zuko and Iroh have with the concept of destiny is how ingrained in their minds it is concerning stuff that they believe must be theirs at any cost or it is theirs from the start because they feel it or say so despite the evidence against such sentiment or how questionable it is. And that got me wondering: what if it was a family thing? And well, I rewatched a fragment of The Avatar and the Firelord episode because I wanted to know if this destiny stuff had started during the several years before Sozin and Roku met each other again. Guess what? It did happen during that time or that is what Sozin’s dialogue implied: “I've been thinking hard about the state of the world lately.” Lately as in the several years before Roku’s return? Or lately as in the time it took Roku to ask Ta Min to marry him until the talk they had during the wedding party? Anyway, Sozin had been thinking and that’s where “destiny” comes into play: “Right from the start, I was destined to be Fire Lord. And although we didn't always know it, you were destined to be the Avatar. It's an amazing stroke of fate we know each other so well, isn't it?”

With that mentality, Sozin believed it was also destiny to expand the Fire Nation, to “share their prosperity with the world” and that both best friends had this great future handed to them until Roku refused to be part on his delusions of power.

Other thing that is interesting is that even when Sozin had been thinking lately about such destiny, maybe there was an external influence that pushed him toward it, like his father’s teachings or words, or the greatness of former Fire Lords and what they had accomplished to make him believe world domination was his “destiny call” to make history.

Still, this context is super intriguing because it puts more weight into this mindset that we’ve seen on Zuko and Iroh. It’s not just reaching the top and make your mark on the world, it’s also like a family tradition. Though, while it was both of them for Iroh, for Zuko, destiny was tied to his self-worth too. Beyond the typical entitlement of a prince, there was also this high value his father had put on concepts like power, strength, dominance that were deeply connected to being a ruler, to be on the throne, and concerning the throne, that was also on a high pedestal. Heck, Ozai even created a new throne by naming himself the Phoenix King because he believed that was his destiny. So, when Zuko was stripped from his title and banished, his destiny AKA the throne, was taken away from him. No destiny means you were worthless or you screwed up so big you didn’t deserve to be close to what you have been told should be yours as long as you showed your power.

The same happens with the concept of honor, Zuko thought he was trying to restore it but in the end chasing Aang was just to please Ozai and get his love and approval. Honor and destiny are tied to his self-worth and this imaginary path he had paved in his head: getting his honor back means he finally did something right and he’s not a failure anymore, fulfilling his destiny means he has reached his true potential and is not a worthless excuse of a prince but someone worthy of the throne that is the embodiment of that potential.

The problem is that this attachment is not only unhealthy but also dangerous. Nor the show or the comics push Zuko to understand and come terms to with the fact that the throne is his not because of destiny but because of how the family inheritance structure works: if you are the firstborn, you will rule, if you aren’t, you won’t. And in very rare ocasions, if there were in ancient times, if the firstborn died on birth or childhood, another baby would have to take their place. Oh, but let’s not forget that he wasn’t even on the list, it was Lu Ten until he died on the Siege of Ba Sing Se and then Ozai schemed against Iroh and killed his own father to steal Iroh’s birthright, so Zuko’s case can be categorized as a special one of brother’s treachery and power usurpation.

Besides, by putting so much focus on destiny as this grand treasure that “he oh-so-rightfully deserves” it takes away the real struggles he had to endure to make sure the country is ruled appropriately. Sure, he was shown determined to restore the world with Aang after the war as a Fire Lord, but the comics have made him regressed a lot on character development making him incredibly entitled, abrasive, harsh, making poor decisions in politics, and arrogant by talking about how the throne is his and that’s law, blah, blah, blah. Though, to be a bit positive about how the comics portrayed Zuko, I have to say that they make him look like an ATLA version of Democles.

Have you ever heard of Sword of Democles story? He and the king, Dyonisius, swapped places and Democles starts enjoying the luxury and glamour of a king’s life, thinking that royalty is only that. He couldn’t have been more wrong because above the throne was a sword hanging by a single hair of a horse’s tail to depict the crude reality of being a king: facing multiple enemies and dangers that could eliminate him to take his throne.

Did Zuko have a sword hanging over his throne by a single hair? Technically, no. And symbolically, the comics made sure he was untouchable or that he got out of any trouble without confronting him with hard questions and realities in regards of always thinking the throne is his destiny instead of a duty based on loyalty to his people or how warped his sense of worth is by tying it to power. And honestly, with all the backlash I’ve read toward the comics, I doubt Zuko will be faced with such challenges.

[gnfawkes]

“Your present face is the face you loved most in your past life.”

So, a while back I’d seen a post about Avatar: The Last Airbender along with this quote, which is apparently an old Japanese legend. I’ve just finished ‘The Dawn of Yangchen’ and there is no way the creators of Avatar don’t also know about this legend, because by god we are six for six on known Avatars at this point.

Moving backwards from the most recent to the oldest known one, Wan excluded, we have Korra, a water bender who shares her features with Katara. Aang looks like Roku’s wife, Ta Min. Roku looks like a genderbent version of Rangi from Kiyoshi. Kiyoshi looks like Avatar Kuruk’s love, and going all the way back to The Dawn of Yangchen, we meet ‘Kiruk’, who looks pretty freaking similar to Kuruk himself!

Apparently, there’s supposed to be a second book in the Yangchen saga, and if Kiruk doesn’t become Yangchen’s love interest, then by god I will eat a shoe.