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Back with more Zutara, featuring the song "rewrite the stars" from the greatest showman. This took absolutely forever!

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For some reason I'm seeing homophobic/biphobic Katara on my feed and fanart of it (I don't know how the algorithm thought I liked that shit) but I just don't understand how that trope even came to be especially since it seems like a vast majority of the people who are into that are Zukka fans or either think she would specifically be homophobic to Zuko. (Which doesn't make sense in the first place due to their relationship in Canon. Also isn't it canon that Aang is the only one who lived in a "open-minded" and "accepting" society while everyone else was discriminatory?)

Homophobic Katara has been making a resurgence lately and it comes from misogyny (and homophobia itself). For a couple of reasons.

In the show, Katara actually points out and makes fun of Sokka for his homophobia and misogyny. Zukka fans decided that since Sokka was gay/bi, this meant that Katara was being homophobic towards him. Which wouldn't even be true even if Sokka were canonically gay. Gay men acting on internalized homophobia is still homophobia. And in reality, Sokka is like, the straightest person in the series. Either way, Katara is right to call him out.

Katara is the only character who holds explicitly feminist views and cares about social justice. Not just "girls can fight, too," I mean that she actually uses the word sexist to call people out. So naturally, people decided that meant she was a bitch. And the person who most gets called out for being sexist is her brother.

Part of it also comes from fear of zutara. Some people feel the need to go out of their way to make Katara be extremely antagonistic to Zuko (who they headcanon as gay and back up with extremely homophobic evidence, like one time he moved his wrist a certain way, or he has a slight lisp). Which also comes from misogyny, ignores the actual valid reasons Katara was antagonistic to Zuko, and also ignores that they became close friends and allies. Besides, even when they were enemies, when Katara realized she had said something unintentionally ableist about Zuko's scar, she immediately apologized. No way would she make homophobic jokes about him.

I've also seen people say "oh, Katara and Zuko are friends, she just uses slurs against him all the time, and only him." Which also mischaracterizes Katara and is also still homophobic. Katara does tease Zuko once after they become friends, about his portrayal in the play, but when she saw that he was really bothered by it, she became serious and asked him what was wrong. The idea that she would call someone she was friends with slurs as a joke is complete disrespect to her character. And like always, I tend to think people on tumblr don't actually have friends if they think this is an acceptable way to treat people. Remember when we talked about how gay people can still be homophobic? Casually throwing around slurs and saying that straight people can use slurs against gay people "but it's okay because they're friends" is homophobia. Saying that it's okay for a straight person to call a gay person a slur because she specifically doesn't like him, "but she's not actually homophobic, it's just him" is homophobia.

It's also funny that people cry about how we need to respect Zuko and Katara's platonic friendship, but also need to headcanon them as sexually incompatable to ensure that they remain six feet apart at all times.

Anyway Zuko and Katara are both bi and friends can make out with each other sometimes, as a treat.

I don't think it's actually canon that the Air Nomads were more "open-minded," at least not in the original series. I know that was added later to the comics, but the show describes the Air Nomads as living in gender segregated temples, which is not something that a society that is open-minded about sex and gender does. Aang doesn't notice when Sokka is making homophobic remarks towards him sometimes, but that's more about his age, and he gets extremely insecure in his masculinity during the Ember Island play and takes it out on Katara as a result.

And isn't it a fun coincidence that Katara is yet again the victim of misogyny in a situation where another male character gets labeled as more progressive than her? Interesting, that.

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you will never convince me that zuko didn’t think about katara in the fire nation i know in my SOUL that he remembered her and their interaction in the catacombs every single goddamn day and the only reason the creators didn’t show it is because it would have read way too much like the most pathetic, down-bad yearning for bry.ke to ever be comfortable with lmao

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In Kataang, we never get to see Katara hint that she might return Aang's romantic feelings if there isn’t some external factor pushing her to consider him as a potential partner.

Katara only recognizes Aang as a 'powerful bender' after Sokka explicitly mentions it.

Katara only suggests that she and Aang kiss because that's what they must do to escape the cave. And, since this scene and the cave scene between Zuko and Katara are clearly parallels, I've gotta say something I noticed: after she and Aang (probably) kiss, Katara runs off without looking back, but after she and Zuko share that intimate moment, she looks back over her shoulder (which is clear romance coding)

It's Aang who insists that the two of them dance.

In the final scene, Katara is proudly presented to Aang as his prize for saving the world thanks to good ol' deus ex machina.

The two of them don't have a single conversation, Katara never mentions WHY she still chose Aang despite his previous toxic behaviors and unhealthy attachment/possessiveness. In TSR, Aang forced his own ideology onto Katara even though she needed to explore her dark side and find closure (which Zuko understood perfectly, and some people think ZK is "toxic"... sigh). I get that Aang had good intentions, but he never took the time to understand Katara.

Maiko also has this problem; Mai does care about Zuko, but she’s never been on the same page as him. Even if you care about someone, that doesn't mean you fit together romantically.

Mai never cared about doing the right thing, Zuko grew into a person who did.

Mai's apathy clashes with Zuko's passion and emotion. She doesn't understand him or know how to comfort him, unlike Katara.

Kataang and Maiko shouldn't have been endgame

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By kanonche

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…inner wrist kiss?

This but make it Vampire x Bloodbender AU.

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once again here to say that as much as bryke resented zutara, it is frankly Weird (though no less delightful for me) that the finale, which again!!! is a time you want to really emphasize closure to relationships that are going to resonate with the audience, story-wise, that So Much time is dedicated specifically to the bond between zuko and katara.

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Part 3 of the ZCU (Zutara Comics Universe). I live for sweet EIP debriefs between these too.

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Zuko must've heard and enjoyed how Katara narrates the story of the 4 nations, that's how he wanted history to be taught in the Fire Nation

(Based on the new comics)

This here is a zutara crumbs. Call me delulu but I will still devour it.

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Saw another "Katara would call Zuko a faggot because I am terrified of Zutara and also hate women" post. Like I thought we were over this, friends?

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i keep seeing the argument that katara saving zuko in the final agni kai means nothing because her character arc was completed in the crossroads of destiny, which makes no sense because it's incredibly clear that the ending of CoD is not framed as a triumphant moment by the narrative.

aang's death is the show's darkest moment, and the scene where katara catches and escapes with him only reinforces this hopelessness and despair. she is outnumbered, outclassed and outmaneouvred, saved only by iroh's intervention, and most crucially, the moment where katara revives aang hinges entirely on her spirit water and has little to do with katara herself or her own abilities. even the slight hope that surfaces with aang's survival is immediately undercut by the bleak reminder that ba sing se has fallen to emphasise that this is a retreat, not a victory. all they can salvage from the brink of catastrophe is the chance to live and fight another day, cold comfort in the face of losing the last, greatest stronghold against the fire nation.

take by contrast the final agni kai. the fight with azula highlights every one of katara's strengths as well as her growth and talent as a waterbender: her ability to evade and trick azula displays her intelligence; her use of the materials at hand (the chain and drain) reveals her resourcefulness; her final combat move demonstrates her ingenuity and proves that she has taken to heart the show's most important lesson of learning and drawing wisdom from even the unlikeliest of places.

the emotional crux of both fights is anchored in katara's apparent helplessness and fear (hence the near-identical shots of her horrified face as she watches aang and zuko get struck by lightning), but the difference is that the resolution of the final agni kai is contingent on katara and katara alone. this time, there is no magic water, no allies, no one to turn to for help, only a merciless, prodigious enemy at the apex of her power... and yet, it's katara who proves victorious.

where aang's death and resurrection are an actualization of katara's deepest fears - that by herself she is not strong or brave or skilled enough to protect those she loves, no matter how hard she tries - defeating azula and healing zuko serve as a repudiation of those very same fears, bringing her full circle from the scared little girl who could do nothing to save her mother.

the crossroads of destiny and the final agni kai are intentionally mirrored narratives, most obviously exemplified in the katara-zuko-azula triangulation and the polarity of their respective arcs; thus, where katara could once save aang only with a miracle, she now saves zuko with nothing but her own skill - and in so doing, brings her arc of empowerment to its triumphant completion.

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Ambassador Katara and Firelord Zuko 🌙

inspired by this pic:

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Zutara Shipping is Canon

Let me explain myself.

I was enjoying an afternoon walk (as I mercifully live in a decent area to go for walks to clear my head) and I started thinking about the Ember Island Players episode when it struck me.

Shipping Zutara is canon.

Now, don't get me wrong, this isn't about if Zutara itself is canon or not (it's totally canon and I will die on my hill of willful self-delusion), but about shipping it.

I'm sure most Zutara shippers still get a little thrill whenever we rewatch the show and our majestic bounty-hunter June, captain of the Zutara ship, calls Katara Zuko's girlfriend.

But, as I said, this is about Ember Island Players.

It never truly occurred to me before that, in canon, Zutara shipping is just a thing. Like, an actual, accepted aspect of the world.

When Puon-Tim wrote "The Boy in the Iceberg," he just outright included a Zutara subplot. And as annoyingly melodramatic as it was, it was still there. He even went out of his way to discredit the idea of Katara and Aang being together. And, even though the play is Fire Nation propaganda (which has since confused me since the wiki says that Puon-Tim is from the Earth Kingdom; though that feels like a retcon), it doesn't seem to show a Zutara romance in a negative way.

And it could've gone in that direction. As propaganda, it would have been only too easy to portray Katara as an evil seductress who corrupted Prince Zuko and convinced him to betray his country. But it doesn't. The Zutara scene is embarrassingly saccharine and schmaltzy, but it's not shown as being bad - except for the episode trying to frame it that way because it hurts Aang's feelings.

And, because of how popular the play seems to be, we can reasonably assume that there were audience members who left the theater as die-hard Zutara fans. Even if they were cheering for Zuko's death - because, y'know, Fire Nation - there weren't any boos at the Zutara scene. Like, some of those folks who cheered Zuko's death also probably regarded Zutara as a tragic love story. There were probably even a few who quietly whispered to each other that they hoped Prince Zuko would run off with Katara and have a happy ending instead of fighting for the throne and dying, as shown in the play.

And with how the war actually ended, Zutara shipping probably only got more popular as Zuko started reforming stuff and being an actually stable ruler as opposed to his psycho dad and sister.

So, with this in mind, Puon-Tim is the ultimate Zutara shipper. Zutara shipping is canon.

I don't really know what else to say.

Any thoughts?

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Commissioned by the talented artist nymre 

She does amazing art and was the one who created this modern Zuko and Katara for me. 

PLEASE DO NOT REPOST THIS ART

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Be careful what you believe in.