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Korrasami is canon. You can celebrate it, embrace it, accept it, get over it, or whatever you feel the need to do, but there is no denying it. That is the official story. We received some wonderful press in the wake of the series finale at the end of last week, and just about every piece I read got it right: Korra and Asami fell in love. Were they friends? Yes, and they still are, but they also grew to have romantic feelings for each other. Was Korrasami “endgame,” meaning, did we plan it from the start of the series? No, but nothing other than Korra’s spiritual arc was. Asami was a duplicitous spy when Mike and I first conceived her character. Then we liked her too much so we reworked the story to keep her in the dark regarding her father’s villainous activities. Varrick and Zhu Li weren’t originally planned to end up as a couple either, but that’s where we took the story/where the story took us. That’s how writing works the vast majority of the time. You give these characters life and then they tell you what they want to do. I have bragging rights as the first Korrasami shipper (I win!). As we wrote Book 1, before the audience had ever laid eyes on Korra and Asami, it was an idea I would kick around the writers’ room. At first we didn’t give it much weight, not because we think same-sex relationships are a joke, but because we never assumed it was something we would ever get away with depicting on an animated show for a kids network in this day and age, or at least in 2010. Makorra was only “endgame” as far as the end of Book 1. Once we got into Book 2 we knew we were going to have them break up, and we never planned on getting them back together. Sorry, friends. I like Mako too, and I am sure he will be just fine in the romance department. He grew up and learned about himself through his relationships with Asami and Korra, and he’s a better person for it, and he’ll be a better partner for whomever he ends up with. Once Mako and Korra were through, we focused on developing Korra and Asami’s relationship. Originally, it was primarily intended to be a strong friendship. Frankly, we wanted to set most of the romance business aside for the last two seasons. Personally, at that point I didn’t want Korra to have to end up with someone at the end of series. We obviously did it in Avatar, but even that felt a bit forced to me. I’m usually rolling my eyes when that happens in virtually every action film, “Here we go again…” It was probably around that time that I came across this quote from Hayao Miyazaki: “I’ve become skeptical of the unwritten rule that just because a boy and girl appear in the same feature, a romance must ensue. Rather, I want to portray a slightly different relationship, one where the two mutually inspire each other to live - if I’m able to, then perhaps I’ll be closer to portraying a true expression of love.” I agree with him wholeheartedly, especially since the majority of the examples in media portray a female character that is little more than a trophy to be won by the male lead for his derring-do. So Mako and Korra break the typical pattern and end up respecting, admiring, and inspiring each other. That is a resolution I am proud of. However, I think there needs to be a counterpart to Miyazaki’s sentiment: Just because two characters of the same sex appear in the same story, it should not preclude the possibility of a romance between them. No, not everyone is queer, but the other side of that coin is that not everyone is straight. The more Korra and Asami’s relationship progressed, the more the idea of a romance between them organically blossomed for us. However, we still operated under this notion, another “unwritten rule,” that we would not be allowed to depict that in our show. So we alluded to it throughout the second half of the series, working in the idea that their trajectory could be heading towards a romance. But as we got close to finishing the finale, the thought struck me: How do I know we can’t openly depict that? No one ever explicitly said so. It was just another assumption based on a paradigm that marginalizes non-heterosexual people. If we want to see that paradigm evolve, we need to take a stand against it. And I didn’t want to look back in 20 years and think, “Man, we could have fought harder for that.” Mike and I talked it over and decided it was important to be unambiguous about the intended relationship. We approached the network and while they were supportive there was a limit to how far we could go with it, as just about every article I read accurately deduced. It was originally written in the script over a year ago that Korra and Asami held hands as they walked into the spirit portal. We went back and forth on it in the storyboards, but later in the retake process I staged a revision where they turned towards each other, clasping both hands in a reverential manner, in a direct reference to Varrick and Zhu Li’s nuptial pose from a few minutes prior. We asked Jeremy Zuckerman to make the music tender and romantic, and he fulfilled the assignment with a sublime score. I think the entire last two-minute sequence with Korra and Asami turned out beautiful, and again, it is a resolution of which I am very proud. I love how their relationship arc took its time, through kindness and caring. If it seems out of the blue to you, I think a second viewing of the last two seasons would show that perhaps you were looking at it only through a hetero lens. Was it a slam-dunk victory for queer representation? I think it falls short of that, but hopefully it is a somewhat significant inching forward. It has been encouraging how well the media and the bulk of the fans have embraced it. Sadly and unsurprisingly, there are also plenty of people who have lashed out with homophobic vitriol and nonsense. It has been my experience that by and large this kind of mindset is a result of a lack of exposure to people whose lives and struggles are different from one’s own, and due to a deficiency in empathy––the latter being a key theme in Book 4. (Despite what you might have heard, bisexual people are real!) I have held plenty of stupid notions throughout my life that were planted there in any number of ways, or even grown out of my own ignorance and flawed personality. Yet through getting to know people from all walks of life, listening to the stories of their experiences, and employing some empathy to try to imagine what it might be like to walk in their shoes, I have been able to shed many hurtful mindsets. I still have a long way to go, and I still have a lot to learn. It is a humbling process and hard work, but nothing on the scale of what anyone who has been marginalized has experienced. It is a worthwhile, lifelong endeavor to try to understand where people are coming from. There is the inevitable reaction, “Mike and Bryan just caved in to the fans.” Well, which fans? There were plenty of Makorra shippers out there, so if we had gone back on our decision and gotten those characters back together, would that have meant we caved in to those fans instead? Either direction we went, there would inevitably be a faction that was elated and another that was devastated. Trust me, I remember Kataang vs. Zutara. But one of those directions is going to be the one that feels right to us, and Mike and I have always made both Avatar and Korra for us, first and foremost. We are lucky that so many other people around the world connect with these series as well. Tahno playing trombone––now that was us caving in to the fans! But this particular decision wasn’t only done for us. We did it for all our queer friends, family, and colleagues. It is long overdue that our media (including children’s media) stops treating non-heterosexual people as nonexistent, or as something merely to be mocked. I’m only sorry it took us so long to have this kind of representation in one of our stories. I’ll wrap this up with some incredible words that Mike and I received in a message from a former Korra crew member. He is a deeply religious person who devotes much of his time and energy not only to his faith, but also to helping young people. He and I may have starkly different belief systems, but it is heartwarming and encouraging that on this issue we are aligned in a positive, progressive direction: “I’ve read enough reviews to get a sense of how it affected people. One very well-written article in Vanity Fair called it subversive (in a good way, of course)… I would say a better word might be “healing.” I think your finale was healing for a lot of people who feel outside or on the fringes, or that their love and their journey is somehow less real or valuable than someone else’s… That it’s somehow less valid. I know quite a few people in that position, who have a lifetime of that on their shoulders, and in one episode of television you both relieved and validated them. That’s healing in my book.” Love, Bryan

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“What is this feeling?”

@korrasamiweek2024: Day 1- Jealousy

Starting off Korrasami week with a 3-pager! Enjoy! 💖

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The Legend of Korra ended with Korra and Asami holding hands so Arcane could have Caitlyn and Vi go absolutely feral in a jail cell today

What a difference 10 years of representation makes

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Closeup of Korra and Asami sketches for dodger. They wanted Asami wearing goggles on her head. You can see them separately here. I’m not taking anymore commissions at the moment since I have some things to sort out for the next few weeks but when I decide to open again, I’ll post about it here.

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I lost some sleep to finish this one, but finally! I’m done! 🫠

This started off as a series of sketches but I had to go ahead and make a whole short comic about it because I loved Asami’s face.

In this South Pole Expedition AU, communications are lost at Future Industries South Pole Research Base. Asami is notified and asks Korra, Bolin, Mako, Opal, and Jinora to assist her on an expedition to the South Pole. They arrive at Wolf Cove in the Southern Water Tribe to meet Tonraq, who informs them of their attempts to contact the base.

The crew sets off on a half-day journey to the base. While everyone else sets up camp nearby, Asami and Korra conduct a preliminary investigation, only to find a ravaged research station with no sign of life. Something is terribly wrong, and it is up to them to find out what happened.

I have a few more ideas, and once i get the sketches looking the way I want, I’ll post them. 😅

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Gav’s Tavern Hi, I hope you like this. It is different from what I usually do. Also it was a lot of work.

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…but Kara Danvers, you are my hero

I'll love you forever, even from afar: the one where they were never really "just friends"...but rather destined to be each other's "forever maybe's" [S2-S6]

Lena,

I often feel alone in this world. Most days it’s because I feel like I’m wearing someone else’s face, living someone else’s life, and only ever giving half of myself at a time; moonlighting as Kara Danvers one moment, the next taking Supergirl off the shelf and putting Kara Danvers in its place. I fear that during my time on earth, Kara Zor-El has gotten lost along the way. When I’m with my friends, I hide the part of me that is full of shame—the part that feels burdened by a life that I feel was chosen for me. When I’m Supergirl, I am kind, gentle, but never soft. I have humanity, but am never human, because people do not wish to see me as such. Even with my sister, I hide who I was on krypton; confident with a passion for science (because I feel I have taken too much from her, and science was always her thing).

I often feel alone, but today’s loneliness is because I fear the world has lost its empathy. They stand and judge as if they know you; as if they have ever met you. They make judgements based on your last name and the people associated with it, but conveniently forget all the good you do. Even my friends, my closest companions, look at me as if they do know know me at all. They talk to me like I’m stupid, naïve, for believing in your innocence. They look at me with those eyes; like they’re trying to explain to a child that their dog running away wasn’t their fault. For some reason, the fact that I know you well is not enough for them. What they do not seem to understand is that it is not optimism or faith—it’s a certainty because I know what kind of person you are. I know you’re innocent, because when I look into your heart I don’t see someone capable of being part of Cadmus.

I just wish you wouldn’t take my belief in you as an abnormality. Because you deserve every last ounce of it.

Always in your corner, Kara

[2/2]

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Supergirl may have saved me…

I'll love you forever, even from afar: the one where they were never really "just friends"...but rather destined to be each other's "forever maybe's" [S2-S6]

My dearest Kara,

You will probably never receive this, but I meant what I said earlier: that Supergirl may have saved me, but you were my hero.

I know you and Supergirl are friends, so I hope you don’t take offence to anything I say. I will always look up to Supergirl, and I do appreciate her saving me, but she isn’t who I think about the most.

As much as Supergirl does for me, I can’t help but be reminded of everything that being an Luthor entails. When I’m around Supergirl, I’m always reminded of my last name…of who I am; and the good and bad that comes with it. But when I’m with you, I don’t feel like Lena Luthor: CEO and family member of the Supers’ greatest enemy. I feel…like Lena. Just Lena. Just a girl, standing in front of another girl, scared that there might be something there…but also hoping that perhaps it’s more than “just something”.

I spent a lot of time thinking while in that jail cell, and even now I still can’t understand why you stood by my side…or how you remained fixed in that decision. I have little doubt that everyone in your life called you a fool, called you too trusting. And yet, despite all that—despite video evidence—you remained unwavering, and you will never know how much that meant means to me. I suppose I will never know the answer, and perhaps you don’t either, but I promise to do my best to deserve it. I promise to earn the light that you give me.

I don’t think I ever properly thanked you. Truthfully, I’m not sure I ever could. But still, thank you for your belief in me. Thank you for not seeing me as just another Luthor. Thank you for making me see that my last name doesn’t define me. Thank you for making me feel deserving of all that you give me; for every ounce of kindness, love, and appreciation. Thank you for seeing me the way that I want to be seen. Thank you for making me feel special; for never making me feel less than extraordinary. Just…thank you. For everything.

Sometimes it scares me how easily you were able to tear down my defenses, how you were able to become a person of such importance in so little time. I remember the first time you invited me to game night, I told you I didn’t come to National City to make friends. I tried to push you away, but you wouldn’t give in. Although, if I’m being honest, part of me always hoped you would fight for me—and you did.

When you are around, I feel like you give me everything, and in turn, so do I.

Forever your “maybe someday”, Lena

[1/2]

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having friends notably older than you is fantastic actually, cause you can drop in a little mention of how old you would have been at the time of a story they tell and watch the existential crisis set in

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Sometimes you meet someone, and it’s so clear that the two of you, on some level belong together. As lovers, or as friends, or as family, or as something entirely different. You just work, whether you understand one another, or you’re in love, or you’re partners in crime. You meet these people throughout your life, out of nowhere, under the strangest circumstances, and they help you feel alive. 

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“How do you do it?” “Do what?” “Stay so damn strong.”

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“You cannot love someone until you love yourself first’. Bullshit. I have never loved myself. But you, oh god, I loved you so much I forgot what hating myself felt like.

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Headcanon that Yangchen was in honest to god tears when she had to observe her successors love lives because she’s the only one with the ability to flirt:

Kuruk, attempting small talk with Ummi: hey girl, how are you liking this, um, day???????

Yangchen, sighing tiredly: he’s so charming until he meets a girl he actually likes

Kyoshi, walking by Rangi and waving: hey Ran- *trips on a rock and falls flat on her face*

Yangchen, hiding her face in her hands: no, it’s too painful, I can not watch anymore of this. That girl is so lucky Rangi already likes her

Roku: Ta Min! You, uh, have eyes

Yangchen: *repeatedly bangs her head against a wall*

Aang, during the cave of two lovers: haha, I definitely wouldn’t wanna kiss you!

Yangchen: guys let me go down there. I swear I can save this just let me possess him for like three minutes. You guys don’t understand our entire race is based on his ability to get a woman LET ME DOWN THERE-

Korra: wow, Asami, you’re the best friend I’ve ever had!

Yangchen, on the verge of an episode: HOW IS IT PHYSICALLY POSSIBLE TO HAVE A CRUSH ON SOMEONE WHILE ACTIVELY PUSHING THEM IN THE FRIEND ZONE GET A GRIP KORRA

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Hercules Korrasami

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Superfriends Thanksgiving at Lena's apartment

Nia: So how's the game?

Kara: I have no idea

Nia: what?

Kara: yeah I'm just pretending to watch the game so I don't have to help out with stuff

Nia: I don't believe you that is...brilliant

Kara: ...

Nia: and Lena has no idea

Kara: nope every once in a while I just have to yell and scream stuff at the TV

Lena: comes into the apartment and kara yells at the TV

Lena: is your team winning hon

Kara: oh yeah Anderson just scored again

Kara to Nia : there is no Anderson

Nia: I still have much to learn from you master

Kara: yep