#we don't care about roku's island :)

[sillyfudgemonkeys]

I need a series where Yangchen/Kuruk/Kyoshi/Roku/Aang/Korra (from their respected novels/shows, guess Kuruk is an outlier tho) and their companions all gather in Korra's timeline and just....react to things. TT0TT Like kfljask;dfla I mostly want it because I think Kyoshi's reactions would just be 90% "WhAT?!/*absolutely flabbergasted*"

Yangchen: Let's go to my island! Kuruk: I'm sorry Yangchen, I sank it Yangchen: How do you sink an island? Kuruk: ...........you forget to cherish- Yangchen: Why couldn't you have destroyed some of my statues instead? >_> Aang: How about we go to Kyoshi's Island? Kyoshi: ????? I have an island??? Why do I have an island??? Korra: Kyoshi, you made it. Kyoshi: ????!!!! What???! Aang: Well more like moved it Kyoshi: ???!! WHaT?! Roku: Though you did make the Kyoshi Warriors! Kyoshi: ???? I did??? Why??? Why that name??? Am I a narcissist???? Aang: *sigh* she also made the Dai Li.... Kyoshi: THE FUCK IS A DAI LI???? Aang: Secret security police for the Earth King. Kyoshi, a known criminal: I DID WHAT?! Roku: Should we tell her she lived to around 230? Kyoshi: HUH??????! Wait. no. That tracks. Kyoshi's companions: WHAT DO YOU MEAN THAT TRACKS???? Aang: On second, let's just go to the Northern Air Temple. Yangchen: Oops, can't, I'm banned from going. Aang: ????! WHAT?! You're an Air Nomad, how do you get banned from an Air Temple???? How did YOU get banned, but NOT Kyoshi???? Kuruk: She got a tad bit silly. Roku: Oh let's go to Ma'inka island then! It's suppose to be amazing. Kyoshi, war flashbacks: FUCK NO! You can't make me go back there! Yangchen: Yeah, I'm pretty sure I'm not welcome there either. They hate my guts. I kinda fucked them over. Aang: What is the matter with you two? Korra: Can we just find a place to chill out where Yangchen isn't banned, and Kyoshi isn't having a meltdown?

[ur-frndly-neighborhood-memer1]

A THEORY ABOUT OZAI-

Why was Ozai so cruel?

Fire Lord Ozai is the absolutely malicious and tyrannical main antagonist of the Avatar: The Last Airbender. In the series, he comes across as a cruel, ruthless, and a megalomaniac dictator. Which is why he is often considered as a 2 dimensional cartoon villian with no rich background compared to the other villains like Azula, Zuko (formerly), Hama; Amon, Zaheer...

We never really see his inner struggles or anything complex about his character at all. His only motivation is like "Evil for sake of being evil". That's why some fans complain about his character being too shallow and too cartoonishly evil. And this really stands out when we compare him to rest of the characters, and arguably, they're all more complex characters than Ozai.

But... is this really true?

Could there be something more interesting and tragic about Fire Lord Ozai's character? Do we only see the only a small part of the iceberg? Well, let's find out!

There's literally nothing we know about his childhood or his early ages. All we know is that he was married Ursa when he was 30 and Ursa was 21, Ursa was specifically chosen because she happens to be the granddaughter of Avatar Roku. So, they could have powerful heirs for the Fire Nation. And it actually happened because Zuko and Azula really are exceptionally powerful firebenders.

Another thing we know about him is this panel,

They actually look like a normal, ordinary family here and it hurts. They're on a vocation; Ozai and Ursa just sitting calmly, baby Azula playing with sand, little Zuko running to save a turtle-crab... And when when the wave washed over Zuko, Ozai ran to save him.

Could the whole thing be true or Ozai was lying? I personally don't think it was a lie, because Zuko seems to remember some rare memories of his family being happy once and coming to Ember Island all together. Yes, you can say that Zuko could be an unreliable narrator here since he kinda romanticized those memories... But again, it's what happens with memories. Don't we all remember our childhood as purely innocent and happy? Because we like to remember those happy times and often forget about the bad ones. But the bad times don't erase the good memories! Also, in the "Beach", when Azula came to comfort Zuko, she also seemed a bit depressed. It means she was also missing those happy and innocent times of their life. So no, Zuko's memory was correct and Ozai probably wasn't lying either. Their family had some good times once.

Could it possibly be a redeeming quality for Ozai? Perhaps. However, we all know that it didn't last long. And we also know that Ozai was always sort of like that and Iroh comfirms it in "The Legacy of The Fire Nation" novel

And something interesting here... Iroh admits he sort of blames himself for not being a better guide for his brother. Which makes me think... Did Ozai really ever have a positive influence on his life?

You can arguably say Iroh, but i'd disagree. First of all, there's a huge age gap between Iroh and Ozai. And Iroh was a general who was busy with fighting in battle, such as the siege of Ba Sing Se. So I imagine they didn't really have a chance to spend time together and bond as brothers.

Also, Iroh wasn't exactly a positive influence before the death of Lu Ten. He used to be more ruthless and hungry for glory. Yes, he still was a caring guy towards his family, but he only realized the terrible side of violence and terror after losing his dear son... This is when he finally developed empathy towards everyone, not only for his family. So I don't think he would be able to be a better influence for Ozai when they were younger...

And if not Iroh, who could possibly be a good guidance for Ozai? Azulon? Pfft, yeah right! He definitely favored Iroh over Ozai, and was seen to be cold and harsh towards his son. So nope, he was an abusive father and far from being a good guidance.

But... What about his mother? What happened to her?

The only thing we know about Iroh and Ozai's mother is her name, Ilah. And she was married to Fire Lord Azulon. There's literally nothing else we know about her. So, we don't know what kind of a relationship she had with Ozai either.

And that's why I have this theory in my mind! Could it be that Ilah died when she was giving birth to Ozai? And maybe that's why Azulon was cold and cruel to Ozai?

The death on childbirth was a common incident during middle age and in the earlier ages too. Unfortunately, it still can happen in modern world too... But thankfully, it's a rare incident now due the modern advantages.

So yes, it's very possible that Lady Ilah to die on the childbirth. Because we never see her in the series nor in the comics. If she was alive at the moment, she would totally show up on Ozai and Ursa's wedding. But she didn't, which means she was long gone, at least for like 20 years. But since neither Iroh or Ozai mentions her for once, we can assume that she died very long ago.

Could this be why Iroh turned out to be a caring and compassionate person towards his own family? Because he had maternal love and support? Well, he obviously didn't get that from Azulon (even though Azulon seemed to care for Iroh and Lu Ten in a certain level). And that might be why Ozai became a cold and cruel jerk, because he never had this kind of love and support in his life.

And it also explains Azulon's bad treatment towards Ozai, reminds me of how Tywin Lannister despised his son Tyrion Lannister from Game of Thrones/A Song of Ice and Fire. Tywin hated his son Tyrion because he was a dwarf and also because he "killed" his mother in childbirth

So maybe Azulon was going full Tywin on Ozai and blamed him for "killing" his own mother.

If that's the case, it makes a ton of sense for Ozai's character! Because he never really had a chance to redeem himself and grow up in a healthy environment. He was being told that he was a killer since he was born and accused with killing his own mother. I can totally imagine Azulon telling him that he is "An ill-made, spiteful creature. Full of lust and low cunning" (Quote from Tywin Lannister), or maybe even calling him a "monster"?

If this theory is true, then it makes sense for Ozai's character and why he became a brutal, ruthless and narcissistic person.

And let's not forget, narcissism isn't only a personality disorder but also a coping mechanism. Narcissists actually have fragile egos and low self-esteems. That's why they fake confidence and a false sense of grandiosity as a self-defense mechanism. The exact reasons of narcissism is not known, but researchers show that both genetic and environmental factors are in it. And it's very possible to occur because of a trauma or abuse too.

So maybe Ozai was crushed under the abuse and pressure of being "guilty" for killing his mother in childbirth, and he found comfort in creating a false sense of superiority.

And this also might be why Iroh and Ozai became distant towards each other. Ozai was probably jealous of Azulon's nicer treatment towards Iroh. So he didn't want to be around him and see how their father treats him better, because it would remind him of the fact that he was the unfavorite child. And from Iroh's aspect, maybe he was devastated after the death of his mother and wanted to distance himself from Ozai for it? Yes, it doesn't really sound like something that the Iroh we know would do. But again, we really don't know the Iroh before Lu Ten's death, but he surely cared about his family so much. And maybe that's why he distanced himself from Ozai because he took away a part of his family? And because of Azulon, Iroh probably didn't have a chance to accept Ozai a part of his family at this point. And when he did, it was probably too late. The damage was done. Ozai already became a narcissistic jerk and a potential tyrant.

So, that's my headcanon about Ozai's evilness. You can agree or disagree with it. If you have different thoughts, please feel free to share them with me

[renatogpadilla]

My thoughts on the AtlA Live Action as someone who's fresh off the original Show:

I won't say it was bad, because it wasn't. Hell, up until the fourth episode it was done about as well as the Live Action One Piece! The problem is that they tried to streamline too much and they tried to fit too much unnecessary stuff in.

This is more of an issue with Theming rather than Timing. While they DID have the time to fit in the entire OG Season 1 scene by scene, even if they did, there would be the problem of "episodes have to have a theme".

For example, the third and fourth episodes, "Omashu" and "Into The Dark" had bits and pieces of Jet and his Freedom Fighters, the Artificers and Cave of Two Lovers.

And the streamlining of it was good! Because it made sense to streamline that knowing that in Book 3 we're gonna have to have them all show up again.

Unfortunately, after episode 4, the streamlining gets out of hand. By trying to fit as much as they possibly could in one episode (Heibai, the Spirit World, Sokka and Katara getting sick, June and Roku's Island) they lost track of every individual thread of said plots.

For Example: Heibai never gets healed, instead giving more screentime than he deserves to Koh the Face Stealer, which was AWESOME TO SEE, don't get me wrong, but it doesn't fix the problem.

Having said that, I do gotta give it props for a bunch of things:

- The cast FEEL like the characters, with only few exceptions (Roku isn't that goofy, Azula isn't vicious enough for this time in the story, Zhao feels TOO out of control, even for him, etc) and they genuinely tried their absolute best with what they were given.

- The locations and sets are AMAZING (I don't really care about the look of The Volume)

- The Fight Choreography is CRAZY! The Mixed Martial Arts into the Bending was INCREDIBLE!

I'm just honestly gonna list a bunch of things in the Show now, so you can judge for yourself with the info you're given:

- Momo's barely in it. (Like, seriously, he has 5 scenes in the entire thing.)

- Appa is in it only a bit more.

- Sokka's sexism being gone wasn't even that big of a deal. If anything, it was a lesson on studios needing to shut the fuck up about their shows until they release.

- Iroh doesn't bust himself out. It's done in a way that makes you see more of Iroh's story through the eyes of someone else, so it's okay, but it was still something I missed.

- Katara still dealt with Sexism over at the NWT.

- AANG DOESN'T ACTUALLY DO ANY WATERBENDING IN THE ENTIRE SEASON. (This is my biggest complaint.) In fact, they don't go into the Bending AT ALL. No "Fire comes from your breath." No explanation of how Waterbending feels different than Airbending and no Jeong Jeong to teach Aang Firebending and use it as an excuse to wait to the last season for it, etc...

- Mai and Yue don't look like their characters. Like, the feel is there, perfectly, but not the look. Mai is too chubby to be a flipping and dipping weapon thrower martial and Yue's hair was... Off. Something about it was a little much.

- Yue's betrothed wasn't an asshole.

- Koe the Face Stealer gets some original plot which would be REALLY COOL if it wasn't taking the space that could have gone to Zuko carrying Aang out of the NWT.

- NO HARU. AT ALL. HE DOESN'T EXIST. NEITHER DO THE WEED BENDERS BECAUSE THEY SKIPPED THE SWAMP WITH THE SPIRIT REALM. And they're not doing the Library it seems, because they used the Owl already.

- No big blockade in front of Roku's Island, and Roku doesn't fight. We DO get Kyoshi fighting to counterbalance it, though!

-No romance between Aang and Katara yet, which I get, given how the kids that play them are still a bit young for that, but they should have left Secret Tunnel for Season 2 if they weren't gonna do that now.

Stuff like that. There were a bunch of things that worked (the OG Music being there and a remix of "Leaves from the Vine" for Iroh's theme was GOOD!) and others that were complete misses that I'm willing to overlook if they use the "saved" time to focus more on Toph training Aang along with Katara.

Either way, it's a solid 6 outta 10 for me... Wouldn't watch it again for me, but would like a Season 2!

[morningdewer]

1. At the beginning of Book 1, Sokka is sexist, cautious, and constantly trying to fill the position his father left behind, taking care of both the village and his younger sister and grandmother.

And he may be dumb, but he is not stupid.

He won't be the warrior he became in Book 3 yet, of course, but he was smart enough to manage to - at least - hit Zuko with his boomerang, whether accidentally or not. That was one of the many scenes I expected to see that never came.

And as far as I can remember, in the original he was protecting his people from the Fire Nation, not explicitly Aang, of whom he was always wary and only agreed to help him because he couldn't let Katara go alone with someone they have barely known. However, in the show, he just agrees to help him for no reason at all?

I was waiting for the "Yip, yip" scene, another of Sokka's iconic ones. You know I was once again left disappointed.

And do you know what other scenes we didn't get? Him trying to eat Momo. Completely left out. The scene where they make him dress up as a Kyoshi warrior too.

I've only seen up to the beginning of episode 4, but the scenes on Kyoshi Island left me (once again) feeling disappointed. I remember he had a little bit of a crush on Suki, but not so much to the point of physical contact and *lovey dovey* eyes like in the Netflix show. He's literally going to have a girlfriend in the next episodes.

And by the way: Sokka's lack of sexism ruined the character development he had in the first episodes of the original show, where upon meeting the Kyoshi warriors he realized that women could be stronger and much more powerful than he thought.

2. I have very little to say about Katara because she barely has anything to offer in new show. I've never heard her talk about her mother even though in the original she took every chance she got to talk about her or simply to mention about her hatred for the Fire Nation. In fact, she and Sokka haven't even mentioned their parents yet and I'm in episode four.

She doesn't even have that motherly attitude that always got on my nerves in the original, nor is she having the same struggles with her waterbending. I find her boring and I don't even understand why she's interested in Aang when they've barely known each other.

3. Aang isn't that bad. I don't like that they made him worry too much about being an Avatar when the main plot in the first book is how he prefers to have fun. I remember him going around making fun stops and annoying Katara.

In the Netflix show we barely see him play or actually be a kid. I mean, so far, I've seen him playing around once because he's always talking about being an Avatar and not knowing how to do it, only for Katara to give him the answer - which I don't know why she should have them to begin with - and then he suddenly realizes he can do it.

Like with Avatar Kyoshi, for example.

That lecture she gave him was totally unnecessary coming from her when to begin with, Aang has a connection with Avatar Roku. That possession happened during a trial in the original and that's why it made more sense, but the fact that in the Netflix show she did it for him to defend Kyoshi island not only took away a bit of Aang's protagonism, but it's also like: if he can do that, let Kyoshi possess him and go kill Ozai at once so we don't have to see Book 2 and 3.

Long story short, Aang is too serious for a character whose problems in the original is being a child with responsibilities he doesn't want.

4. Zuko is boring. I have nothing else to say because I skip his scenes.

5. Ozai. God, I can't believe we've already seen his face. I liked that air of mystery he had around himself in the original, but now not only do we have scenes with him but we also have Azula? I haven't gotten to see how they interact and I don't even care to know. I dropped the show as soon as they appeared because I simply don't understand what they're doing there so soon.

[theowritesfiction]

‘The Avatar and the Fire Lord’

I've lost the count of how many absolutely normal sibling scenes between Zuko and Azula there have already been in Book 3, but it's a lot. It's like the people who make the ridiculous argument that 'Zuko shouldn't be responsible for the wellbeing of his abuser' are willfully ignoring everything about their relationship especially here in Book 3. I'd say these people badly need to re-watch the show, but since I also suspect they are victims of back alley lobotomies, I doubt it would help.

I've also lost the count how many episodes of Zukaang parallels we've had by this point, but they're always fun and watching Zuko and Aang learn the history of Roku and Sozin is pretty damn amazing. The history buff in me is so jealous of Zuko having this access to Sozin's own unfiltered record of his deeds. I would so dearly want to have that kind of insight in the thought process of a real historic figure, but unfortunately it's not a realistic wish.

I have to say, for his age, young Prince Sozin is a very carefree and chill heir to the throne. This is... a little odd, but I suppose there could be explanations. We don't know much about the current Fire Lord, so maybe he really is an easy going dude who indulges in excessive partying and doesn't really care about making sure his heir is well prepared to take over. Or maybe Sozin actually wasn't the designated heir? We don't know what happened during those 12 years Roku and Sozin didn't see one another. In any case, normally a heir at this age would be groomed for leadership and how to handle responsibility, and his life wouldn't be a chill party.

Also, it's time to hand Aang 20 Jerk Points for public flatulence.

Okay, so I think I'm starting to get where Aang's inability to move on from his unreciprocated feelings for Katara are coming from. Roku couldn't move on from this one girl for 12 long years, and so he had to hound her - we all know what 'being persistent' means - until she gave in? Also wtf do you mean about 'being the Avatar doesn't hurt you chances either'? Is 'dazzle them with your status' a part of Aang's lessons? Right... I know you're dead, Roku, but here, I'm pouring 100 Jerk Points over your resting place.

Okay, so Sozin's plan... I honestly don't believe that there were ever any noble intentions behind his 'sharing the wealth and prosperity with other nations'. This is just a veneer covering imperialistic expansion from the get go. It's simply a result of the Fire Nation becoming wealthy and powerful, and having this capacity to expand and conquer that for some reason wasn't there before. And this is usually driven by the wealthy elites who see it as means to increase their prosperity. Whether the whole war of expansion was the idea of Sozin or his advisors, it doesn't really matter. If the material conditions for expansion are there, someone will eventually take it to the 'logical' conclusion.

I think Sozin's eventual betrayal of Roku is framed a little oddly. It's clear that after his expansionist plans had been thwarted by Roku, Sozin never abandoned those plans and waited patiently for an opportunity for the next 25 years. Clearly, Roku was the only thorn in his side that Sozin needed gone. Why then, did they frame his betrayal of Roku almost as opportunistic and accidental? He couldn't have known that Roku would get blasted by the poison gas, but I think it would have made more sense if he went to the island with a much more clear and decisive plan to use the situation to his advantage and eliminate Roku.

Iroh's speech to Zuko... yeah, I think a lot of it is just borne out of Iroh's paternal feelings for Zuko, because most of this 'you are the only one with the power to restore the balance' sounds very much like the 'destiny' crap that Iroh was trying Zuko to unlearn, only to replace it with... a more wholesome destiny? Ahem, I call BS. I'm all for stories where the new generation has to break the cycle of hatred and undo the mistakes of the old, but the idea that Zuko is some kind of sole messianic figure who is destined to do it... I don't buy it.

But yes, everything I said before that Sozin probably should have been a harsher figure and that his characterization was a bit too soft? Well, I'll also say... screw realism on this occasion. Sozin's portrayal as it was in this episode served the empowering and wholesome message of nobody being born good and evil, and everyone being deserving of a chance. I give Aang a hard time during this re-watch, but he is wise to see the importance of Roku's lesson here.

Also, Sokka just hold hands!

Jerk Points for Book 3:

Zuko - 410 Aang – 120  Roku - 100 Hide - 80 Sokka, King Kuei - 60

[flameohotwife]

for the snippet ask game, from With You:

“I was happy about the baby already–really. But seeing Gyatso just now…I didn’t realize how badly I needed to tell someone, too. Someone who knew me from before.”

“The spirits were kind, today,” she says, slowly caressing his chest with her fingers. “They owe you that much, after all the times they’ve pulled you from this world for their emergencies.”

Aang chuckles. He knows how she frets over him every time he starts unexpectedly glowing during meditation, never sure when he will come back.

“I’m sorry if I worried you,” he says, but she cuts him off.

“Sweetie, I’ll always worry about you, but I trust you. I know you can take care of yourself in there. You are the Avatar.” She wiggles her eyebrows on this last bit and he laughs, feeling so loved. He bends to kiss her hair.

They curl up for sleep, and for the first time in years, fire does not consume his dreams. He dreams of his new child, of his family. He dreams of baking fruit pies and chasing each other around the island until their sides hurt from laughter. He dreams of taking them to the Spirit World to meet Gyatso, and his heart bursts when he sees them all together; all of the people who have loved him most. He knows now that nothing is missing. He pulls Katara closer in his sleep. Everything is as it should be.

Hiiiiii Northern! Sorry this is so late--kid stuff, birthdays, and holiday weekend got me. This snippet is basically the resolution of With You, which as you know was my Aang-centric secret santa gift for @itsmoonpeaches. It was where I was trying to wrap up all the loose ends and tie them into the purpose of the story.

The gist of it is that Aang is struggling with mourning his people and celebrating new life at the same time. They've just gone to the SWT to tell her family and he's sad that he doesn't have anyone to tell, too. When you lose someone, but I imagine *especially* when you lose *everyone* like Aang did, sometimes you still want to call them up and tell them things that happened to you. Sometimes it feels like you shouldn't be celebrating something without *them* there. Sometimes even the happiest events of your life are tinged with *hurt* because *they're not with you.* Add onto this the layer of war and genocide and being separated from everyone who knew you by a century... and Aang's gonna have some FEELS.

I also HC that Aang was kinda busy with both the mortal and spirit world after a century(+, if you include the time between Roku's death and Aang going into the iceberg) without an avatar. And sometimes the spirits don't necessarily think of human obligations when they have a problem that needs to be dealt with, so they might just steal Aang away on a whim during meditations or solstices or times when Aang is closer to the spirit world in some way. And we KNOW Katara is a worrier. BUT that doesn't mean she doesn't trust Aang to do what he needs to do; to do what's RIGHT. And to come back to her as soon as he can. Katara's remark is also a followup to earlier in the fic, where she prays to the spirits that his meditation will bring him peace.

And that last paragraph. OOOF. I contemplated writing a whole scene of it, but I was running out of time before the secret santa fics were "due" and I wasn't sure it would really fit... or if I really wanted that to be a real possibility or just something that happens in his dreams, to take away the pain and the fire and the guilt from before... I mean, obviously I *want* it to happen but you know. And I guess we *do* see the cloudbabies meeting Iroh in the Spirit World in LoK so it *is* possible... hmmmm maybe one day. And peaches pointed out that in ending the fic the way it started (with a dream) I brought it full-circle, which wasn't a conscious intention but sometimes our subconscious really knows what it's doing I guess, haha. Thanks for the ask, friend! This was fun :)

Send me a snippet of one of my fics and I'll give you a behind the scenes commentary on it.