Unfortunately, I am not an original fan of Avatar: The Last Airbender. The show cam out in 2005 and ended just a few months after I was born, so I missed the intial hype of it all. However, though I didn’t grow up watching it religiously every morning, I got the complete DVD box set of the show and it’s (crappy) successor, The Legend of Korra, a few Christmases ago and have become a big fan of it and look forward to eventually reading the comic books and hopefully watching the new live-action remake that’s coming out on Netflix in a few years.
#1: The Magic System and the Message
The entire magic system of Avatar: The Last Airbender (which I’ll be referring to as ATLA from now on), is based primarily on the four elements; Earth, Air, Water, and Fire. While I don’t agree with the religions that these four factions come from – each drawing from different aspects of Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, Inuit religions, etc. – they worked very well within the story and helped propel the main message of tolerance foward.
In the world of ATLA, each faction lives in their own different place and depending on a combination of who you’re born to and if you’re born with the ability to use some sort of element, you just kinda stay there. No one really travels anywhere else unless they’re on a diplomatic, military, or commercial campaign. While this atomistic approach works for some factions, it makes them weaker when people like the Fire Nation ultimately attack them one at a time in their quest for world dominion. The intro to the very first episode of ATLA perfectly sums this up as being the main conflict and we see throughout the show that the magic system works best when the elements come together to help each other since they’re all complementary in one way or another. It’s only when they’re working together that the Gaang is able to defeat Fire Lord Ozai and – by extension – beat Zuko’s maniacal sister, Azula. This can be seen as an allegory for how division ultimately weakens and destroys, but being united makes people stronger when they can put aside their differences for the sake of the greater good.
On top of that, by themselves, the magic systems are just cool by themselves. Each element is aesthetically pleasing, representative of each benders culture, and fun to watch. For example, the general aesthetic associated with water bending is very icy and consists of cool blues, grays, very light tans, purples, and whites, which all match with the cultures and climate from each water tribe, primarily the North and South tribes, making it easy to identitfy who’s a waterbender (or from that tribe) and who’s not. The movements that waterbenders use in their bending are all very subtle and flowy that push and pull, similarly to how water moves in real life. They use water as an extension of themselves in fighting and in everyday life.
(Fun fact: though I’m referring to the elemant bending aspect of ATLA as a “magic system”, the show only ever uses the word “magic” once, and that was to draw a distinction between element bending and magic usage. The creators actually preferred element bending to be seen as a martial art instead, even going so far as to use different movements found in martial arts to solidify this.)
Here are also some other examples of some of the aesthetics associated with the different benders:
The firebender aesthic consists of a lot of blacks, reds, yellows, golds, oranges, etc., a direct contrast to the cold palate of the waterbenders. They invoke a sense of heat and the imperialism that was so common in the cultures that the Fire Nation was based on. The bending style of the firebenders are also much quicker than that of the waterbenders, preferring quick punches and kicks as opposed to sweeping graceful movements.
Earthbenders are usually associated with a lot of light and dark greens, blacks, browns, beiges, creams, etc. Their bending style is more solid that any of the traditional firebending or waterbending styles in the show and while it does consist of a lot of kicks and punches, it is primarily based on keeping a low center of gravity and staying close to the Earth.
The airbending aesthic consists of light yellows, oranges, reds, blues, and tans (similar to the firebenders, but more pastel) and feels very light and happy instead of super angry, much like the bending style of the people. Their bending style is less about dealing physical damage and is more about disarming their opponent, which consists of a lot of jumping around and never staying in one place for longer than need be.
#2: The Animation
One of the things that so many people comment on about ATLA is how well animated it is. The producers of the show definitely spared no expense when having it animated. The characters faces are very expressive and the way the elements are portrayed throughout the show is absolutely beautiful. One of the best examples I can think of to show this is in the last Agni-Kai in the show’s finale. The clash of colors as Prince Zuko and Azula shoot blue and orange fire at each other is not only gorgeous (especially since they were two very bright complementary colors), but also symbolic of the clash between these two very different siblings.
Another example is in how the background terrain is portrayed. While most people don’t pay attention to the little details in the background, as an artist, I do. The terrain not only serves as an excelent way of world building and showing people’s character (as in the episode where the Gaang confront the leader of the Dai-Li in his office), but it also does a good job of eliciting emotion. In the episode where the character Katara is being hoisted through the tree by Jet, the background changes from looking like your run-of-the-mill forest to being a rosy-pink wonderland where cherry blossoms and leaves are falling behind them. Not only does this show that Katara has a crush on Jet, but it also makes the audience go, “Aw! How cute! You will get married now. I demand it.”
Much of storytelling in movies is visual (in contrast to in books where much of it is spoken in dailouge), which means that the saying that a picture can mean more than a thousand words is absolutely correct and ATLA perfectly captured that.
#3: Zuko’s Character Arc
I’ve mentioned Zuko’s character arc in my blog about how to write a villian (specifically when describing the flip side to writing a hero-to-villian arc) and I’m going to talk about it again because it is easily one of the best parts about the entire show. Throughout all three seasons, we get to watch Zuko grow as a character. In season one, he says “Set a course to the light!” in referrence to the light that Aang created when he broke out of the iceburg and from there everything goes uphill. Within a few minutes of Episode 1, Zuko’s motivation is clearly defined and set out for the audience and in later episodes of the first season, we’re given his tragic backstory, which helps flush out his character and motivation even further. In season two, when he decides to go off on his own without his Uncle Iroh, he starts to learn empathy for others, the value of hard work, be that for yourself or for others, and also questions what his honor is based on. He goes from being a selfish, insecure prince obsessed with gaining his honor from a father who sees him as a broken tool to finally – in season three – being a kinder, socially-awkward, noble leader who chooses to forge his own path for the good of the people around him. It’s rare that we ever get that type of character arc in modern day T.V. shows if we even get a character arc at all.
#4: Katara is Actually a Strong Woman while Azula is Not
Another reason why ATLA is so good is because is doesn’t have the modern, stereotypical Strong-Whaman as a main character. In fact, ATLA actually villianizes that in the form of Katara vs. Azula.
Katara is the motherly figure in Team Avatar and in her own tribe. In the first episode (I can’t stop talking about the first episdoe since it did a wonderful job of settin gup the main players and their motives), it’s apparent that she’s the chief’s daughter and because her mother is dead, she is in charge of doing what her mother would’ve had to do. She helps take care of the village children and keep things running in a smooth order. When Aang comes into the picture, she thus retires that responsibility to go with him and help save the world. We see examples of her motherly nature as she serves as a comforter to Aang when he starts going into the Avatar state from anger, keeps the boys (mostly Sokka) from doing stupid stuff, gets them out of scraps time and time again, and helps Toph in season two become more feminine. She can be terrifying, but is also merciful. She has multiple chances to kill people in the show (such as Hama, Azula, Zuko, and the guy who killed her mother), but each time, she chooses to have mercy and compassion instead. Her restraint is what holds the Gaang together and ultimately helps them win.
Meanwhile, Azula is basically today’s femme-fatal, Strong-Whaman type. She uses her femininity when she knows that she can use it to manipulate people and thinks along the lines of everyone is a tool to be thrown away when they’re no longer needed, then is shocked when anyone dares stand up to her. She was given power by her father being the Fire Lord though she didn’t deserve it and rejects any form of motherliness that she might have, which I think is one big reason why she hates Katara so much. We even see her out right rejection of that maternal instinct when she shatters the image of her mother in the mirror during her mental breakdown in season three. While Katara holds everyone together with strong bonds of love and compassion, Azula tries to hold them together by threatening them and being manipulative. While Katara is like duct-tape for the whole team, Azula is more like a toxic acid that eats away at anything and everything.
#5: Great Lines
There are so many awesome lines in ATLA, some of which have been turned into shirts and memes. While some of the lines are serious, many are there for comic relief. Unlike the forced humor of today, they’re actually funny and still hold up years later, which is a mark of good writing.
Until next time,
M.J.
The Tanuki Corner 
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