#WHY DID THEY RUIN SOKKA’S CHARACTER ARC LIKE THIS

[happypeachsludgeflower]

😑

[sapphic-agent]

Let's Talk About How Book 3 Ruined Aang

If you've seen any of my prior ATLA posts, you know that I don't hate Aang. In fact, I quite liked him in Books 1 and 2. He was flawed, as all characters should be, but the show didn't shy away from those flaws or justify them. He was called out for burning Katara and rushing his firebending, Sokka and Katara were rightfully upset when he hid Hakoda's letter, he willingly owns up to the fact that his actions helped drive Toph away, and his entire arc after losing Appa and finding hope again in The Serpent's Path was beautifully done.

(Hell, even in The Great Divide Katara says what Aang did was wrong and he agrees. It's played for comedy, but the show still makes the effort to point out that what he did wasn't the right thing to do. You're just meant to understand that he was fed up and acted off of that)

Those flaws and mistakes were addressed and improved upon and helped Aang to grow as a character.

But for some reason, that aspect of Aang's character was completely flipped in Book 3.

The best examples of this are in both TDBS and EIP. Both the show and the fandom are too quick to brush off that Aang kissed Katara twice without her consent, one of which after she explicitly said she was confused about her feelings.

(And yes, she is angry in response and Aang calls himself an idiot. But after this, it isn't really addressed. They go on like nothing happened for the rest of the episode. Aang's lamentation comes from screwing things up with her romantically, not that he violated boundaries)

The show never really addressed why what he did was wrong. Not only because he wasn't given consent, but also because both times he isn't thinking about what Katara wants. In both instances, Aang is only thinking about himself and his feelings. This is something that persists through a lot of the third book. And by Sozin's Comet it ultimately ruins any character development he had built up in the second book.

One thing I feel was completely disregarded was the concept of having to let go of Katara in order to master the Avatar State.

For me, the implication wasn't that he had to give up love or happiness necessarily. He was emotionally attached to and reliant on Katara, to the point where she was needed to stop him from hurting everyone around him and himself. This is obviously detrimental to his functionality as the Avatar. And the point of him "letting her go" wasn't that he had to stop caring about her, it was that his emotional dependency on her was stopping him from being the Avatar he needed to be and that was what needed to be fixed. I don't even think it's about the Avatar State itself, it's about being able to keep your emotions and duty as the Avatar separate.

(If you look at Roku, he loved and had a wife. It wasn't his love for her that messed everything up, it was his attachment to Sozin. He wasn't able to let Sozin go and not only did he lose his life for it, the world suffered for it. It's the unhealthy attachments that seem to be detrimental, not love itself)

And Aang realizes that in the catacombs, which is how he's able to easily enter the Avatar State and seemingly control it. He let Katara go.

So then why does it seem like his attachment to Katara is not only stronger, but worse in mannerism? He liked Katara in Books 1 and 2- obviously- but he was never overly jealous of Jet or Haru. He only makes one harmless comment in Book 2 when Sokka suggests Katara kiss Jet.

But suddenly he's insanely jealous of Zuko (to the point of getting frustrated with Katara over it), off the basis of the actions of actors in a clearly misrepresentative play. Katara showed a lot more interest in Jet and Aang was completely fine with it.

(Speaking of EIP, Aang's reaction to being played by a woman was interesting. He wore a flower crown in The Cave of Two Lovers. He wove Katara a flower necklace. He wore Kyoshi's clothes and makeup and made a funny girl voice. He willingly responded to Twinkle Toes and had no issue being called that. And for some reason he's genuinely upset about being played by a woman? Aang in Books 1 and 2 would have laughed and enjoyed the show like Toph did. His aversion to feminity felt vastly out of character)

I guess my point is, why did that change? Why was Aang letting go of Katara suddenly irrelevant to the Avatar State? It felt like him letting go was supposed to be a major part of his development. Why did that stop?

Myself and many others have talked about The Southern Raiders. The jist of my thought process about it is his assumption that he knew what was best for Katara. And the episode doesn't really call out why he was wrong. Maybe sparing Yon Rha was better for Katara, maybe it wasn't (the only one who's allowed to make that choice is her). Pushing forgiveness? That was wrong. But the episode has Zuko say that Aang was right when the course of action Katara took wasn't what Aang suggested.

Katara's lesson here was that killing him wouldn't bring back her mother or mend the pain she was going through and that Yon Rha wasn't worth the effort. That's what she realizes. Not that she needed to embrace forgiveness. How could she ever forgive that? The episode saying Aang was right wasn't true. Yes she forgives Zuko, but that wasn't what Aang was talking about. He was specifically talking about Yon Rha.

And that was wrong. Aang can choose the path of forgiveness, that's fine. That's his choice. But dismissing Katara's trauma in favor of his morals and upbringing wasn't okay.

I know it sounds like this is just bashing Kataang. But it's not simply because I don't like Kataang, in my opinion it brings down Aang's character too, not just Katara's. But let's steer away from Kataang and Katara for a minute.

The one thing that solidifies Aang's character being ruined in Book 3 for me is the fact that he- at the end of the story- does the same thing he did in the beginning.

He runs away when things get hard.

Aang couldn't make the choice between his duty and his morals. So he ran. Maybe it wasn't intentional, but subconsciously he wanted an out. And this is really disappointing when one of the things he was firm about in Book 2 was not running anymore. His character went backwards here and that's not even getting into the real issue in Sozin's Comet.

There's been contention about the Lion Turtle intervention. For many- including myself- it's very deus ex machina to save Aang from having to make a hard decision. And that in turn doesn't reflect kindly on his character.

Everyone- Sokka, Zuko, Roku, Kyoshi, Kuruk, and Yangchen (who was another Airbender and was raised with the same beliefs he was and would understand which was the whole point of him talking to her)- told him he had to kill Ozai. They all told him it was the only way. And he refused to listen to any of them, rotating through his past lives until he was given the answer he wanted.

And before anyone says that I'm bashing Aang for following his culture, I'm not. Ending the war peacefully, in my opinion, wasn't the problem. In a way, I think it allowed the world to heal properly. However, that doesn't make up for the fact that Aang refused to make a choice and face the consequences of that choice. Instead, he's given an out at the very last second.

Even if he couldn't kill Ozai and someone else had to deliver the final blow, that would have been better than the Lion Turtle showing up and giving him a power no one's ever had before. It would have been a good compromise, he doesn't have to have blood directly on his hands but what needs to be done needs to still get done. It would also show that being the Avatar isn't a burden he has to bear alone. That when things get hard, he can't run away but he can rely on the people closest to him to help him through hard decisions.

All these issues aren't necessarily a problem with Aang. Aang prior to Book 3 didn't have most of these problems. This is a problem with the way he was handled

[rifari2037]

10. Do you have any other A:TLA ships?

Yes, I have another ships. Is not like I ship them like I ship Zutara, but they are my favourite. It would be long answer, but here my thought about them.

Sokka and Suki (Sukka)

In my opinion, Sukka is the best written canon couple. They have conflicts in their journey and resolved all of those very well.

When they met at the first time, Sokka was misogynistic and Suki taught him a lesson. Sokka finally understood his mistakes, learned from it, and throwed away his ego. After judging women badly, he humbly asked to be taught by a woman.

In the end, Sokka also said sorry after thinking she was 'just a woman'. Then she told him that she was a warrior but also a woman. It was very good way to resolve their conflict.

I'm not sure who Sokka's first love was, Suki or Yue? But, it doesn't matter, because Suki and Yue were important characters for Sokka.

When Sokka and Suki met again in The Serpent's Pass episode, Sokka still felt guilty and lost over Yue's sacrifice. Sokka became overprotective to Suki because of his guilt.

When they almost kissed in front of the moon, Sokka stopped it. That's as it should be because you shouldn't kiss someone when you're thinking about someone else. And again, in the end they resolve their conflict and kissed. Sokka could finally move on.

They not only looked good together, but also accept each other. Sokka was so funny that he could always cheer up Suki. Sokka always did efforts to Suki too - even it turned out very ugly - and Suki appreciated him. They show a healthy relationship more than other canon couples.

It really disappointed me that I didn't see Suki and Sokka together in TLOK. I read a headcanon that Suyin was Sokka's daughter, but then what happened with Sukka? Because, I really hope Sokka and Suki were actually happily together.

Also, even though I don't considering the comic ever exist, but I do know some people ship Suki with Zuko based on it. I got some of their moments, maybe there are more.

I don't mind with the shipper, but I don't understand the writers. Like why? I know the writers hate how well-written Zutara than their canon ship and they ruined Zutara potential in ATLA. But why the writers had to bother Sukka in the comic, the only well-written canon couple, to gave another love potential to Zuko?

But, well, whatever their relationship was, I don't read the comic anyway.

Toph and Aang (Taang)

Yes, I love Zutara, but it doesn't mean I hate Aang. I just don't think he's a good match for Katara for many reasons, there's a lot of meta and analysis about it - and it makes sense to me.

Meanwhile, Toph and Aang have more potential than canon. Their arc is actually interesting if only the author would dig deeper and not be too obsessed with 'the hero gets the girl'.

Just like fire and water, air and earth are the opposite element. They are different, but they need each other.

Air is the element of freedom. In fact, Aang was Toph's first friend and he was also the one who offered her freedom, something she really wanted and needed.

Earth people are persistent. Aang wasn't weak, he was strong, but he was too soft. While Katara kept Aang in his comfort zone, Toph was the one who taught him to be tougher and stand his ground.

Aang has a connection with Toph, because he saw a vision of her before they met in person. While Sokka and Katara saw visions of their past, Aang saw visions of his future.

What if at that time Aang was actually seeing a vision of his future and his past?

Because in his dream, he saw Toph had no face, it parallels with his past life (Avatar Kuruk) that lost his lover when Koh stole her face.

It wasn't my original thought, I read this meta from a fanfic and I was stunned with this potential!

I learned that earth was an element that Aang often used in battle after mastering it, even though it was a difficult element for him at first.

Not only that, earth was the element that re-opened his chakra and made him enter the Avatar State. Maybe it's a coincidence, but it still shows that Aang has a connection with his opposite element.

But I think I know why they didn't plan on making Aang and Toph canon even though it would've been a great arc.

Like, no way the writer's inserting-self end up with character who originally a muscular sixteen-years-old boy.

Zuko and Katara (Zutara forever)

I know the question is about ships other than Zutara, but I couldn't help myself to include them on the list.😅 Zutara is too addictive to be missed. 💙❤️

[sokkastyles]

ATLA Live Action Ep 1 Thoughts:

When the writers meant they wanted it to be like game of thrones, clearly they meant "we want the battles to happen in complete darkness so nobody can see what is going on," and not, you know, the sex stuff.

Idk why this never occurred to me until now but ostrich horse is chocobo.

They are clearly going for a darker, more grittier feel here, but it clashes with the attempt to keep things true to the animated origin. Like, the earth kingdom OC looks straight out of some more realistic Adult fantasy show, whereas Sozin's character design makes him look like evil Santa.

So firebenders are able to do that to bodies, which I appreciate from a fanfic perspective and also confirms what people have been theorizing about the agni kai, that Ozai put his hand on his son's face. Not sure it was necessary to see it, though. The original does a good job of horrifying us with implied violence and the adults already get it, while showing it makes it less accessible to a younger audience. This is hardly a problem unique to this show, though.

Air nomads actually riding sky bison!

I like having more background with the air nomads and Aang's actor is great but front-loading the flashbacks doesn't work great for the pacing.

One thing I do really like is the emphasis on how the war damaged the harmony of the nations in more than just a spiritual way. No one has friends from other nations now. Zuko comes seeking "someone who does not belong" with the (false) promise that no one will get hurt if everyone keeps to themselves, keeps the status quo. The air nomads are a complete anomaly in a world of division. We are introduced to Aang, Sokka, Katara, and Zuko, and all are isolated in their own way by the war at the beginning of the story.

Overall there is something just weird about the pacing. Characters keep pausing at vital moments of action to deliver exposition or meaningful monologues. It just feels off.

Zuko so desperate for "glory" that he accepts Sokka's proposal to fight one on one (nice foil to the final agni kai by the way). Then his surprise when Aang shows himself reveals that Zuko himself did not know whether he would really find the Avatar in this village he's suddenly shown up to terrorize. God, it just emphasizes how low Zuko is at this point. This is probably his first real high stakes fight and he might have killed Sokka over absolutely nothing out of a false sense that he had something to prove. It's just...sad.

The scene at the Southern Air Temple looked great and had me in tears. I actually saw some criticism of this to the effect of them "ruining Aang's arc" because he comes out of the Avatar state himself, but first of all, let's be real and admit that if mastering the Avatar State was Aang's arc, he never completed it. Second, just because he could bring himself out does not mean he can control it, and he's still letting his emotions control him which is a learning curve for handling that power, it's just that he was able to control his anger in that moment by remembering the people he loved. Which is not that different from how the scene plays out in the original, only he isn't using Katara as a crutch. Which is a good thing, actually. It's much more fitting and poignant that he thinks about Gyatso here.

I don't think there was any mention of Katara wanting to go north. She has a few lines about wanting to help more and Aang teaches her about balance so she can bend now, apparently, but where is her drive? It feels like they're attributing her accomplishments to Aang and that bothers me. Maybe it'll be mentioned in the next episode, since they haven't talked about Aang learning waterbending yet, either. But I do miss the Katara who was ready to banish herself from the village the moment she met Aang not just because it was the right thing to do, but because of her own desire for independence and autonomy.

Liked the scene between Aang and Iroh. It gives us a glimpse of an Iroh who is stuck as to what to do and so he just gives Aang the Zuko treatment by offering him tea. I'd be excited if this means we get to see more development for Iroh.

[highfantasy-soul]

Re: Netflix's live-action Avatar the Last Airbender

I was 12 when the animated series started airing.

I caught episodes as they came on Nickelodeon, but I didn’t watch it religiously start-to-finish. I caught episodes when they happened to be on and I happened to be watching TV (I was NOT part of the generation that had unlimited access to shows - tv/computer/video game time was strictly monitored in my household) so there were some episodes I saw over and over again, and others I never did see.

I think it was around middle/high school (honestly can't remember - it was one of the two) that the show got put on Netflix and I started watching it from the beginning with my brother and some friends. Needless to say, I've been a die-hard fan ever since.

I think the animated show is incredibly well done and the storytelling is super on-point for what I love in media. Zuko's redemption arc is still the best arc I've ever seen, and the character growth is amazing.

I had never really fallen into the 'it's not perfect, but…' way of analyzing media, so I never dwelt too much on its flaws - I'd much rather focus on the things it got right as literally every piece of media has flaws and things that could be changed to make it better.

So yeah, hyperbolically, the animated version of ATLA is 'perfect' - but since people insist on anything that's not perfect being drug through the mud and hyperbolically being called 'garbage', I guess I have to dredge up the things I didn't care so much for in the animated version while analyzing how the live-action handled it (or avoided handling it).

I was super excited for the film adaptation - again, announced while I was in high school. I was looking forward to it so much - then, well, we know what happened there.

Things were changed that didn't make sense to change (the pronunciation of character names, the 'test' for figuring out who the Avatar is, the poor bending where movements didn't align to what was happening with the CGI, casting of white people when the characters were always meant to be indigenous and all asian ethnicities, among other issues people have made many essays about)

So, when this was first announced, I was SKEPTICAL.

While the trailer looked good, it seemed very safe - I recognized everything in it and it looked well made, but like, that doesn't mean the whole thing will be good - or justify its existence.

I tried to ignore any 'leaks' or interview quotes because those are always misconstrued so much and people hear one sentence and create a massive narrative in their head about what that sentence means and usually, all their bellyaching assumptions they made from that piece of info is just a non-issue once the show actually comes out.

I didn't give any credence to people screaming about "Sokka isn't going to be sexist anymore?? It's ruined!!" or "They're going for a Game of Thrones tone?? They don't understand Avatar at all!!" or "No side-quests?? They don't understand the point of the show!!"

First off, invoking the demon that is Game of Thrones is just a marketing tactic - that's all it is: MARKETING!! Just like EVERY YA book for years was 'The new Hunger Games' now it's 'The new Game of Thrones' even when the story at hand is NOTHING AT ALL LIKE THOSE THINGS!! It's literally, let me cradle your face gently in my hands, JUST a marketing ploy to get you to see a recent title you DO recognize and have (assumedly) heard good things about (ie popular) so that you then pick up the thing that they slapped that name onto.

Creators rarely have say in what their creation is likened to, they're told by marketing companies to go with it (if they're told anything at all) and they just say "yes, marketing team I have no control over, whatever you say".

Also, a passing comment in an interview is off-the cuff and when someone makes a comment like that, people read WAY too far into it and it's usually not nearly as deep as people make it out to be. That's why I just wait for the actual thing to come out and just watch it and judge it based on what it is, not some narrative someone else has created for it based on half a quote from some random interview.

So going into this: why the live-action adaptation? Why was it necessary?

In my opinion, the answer to this question is the thing many fans hate the most: altering the original story.

A beat-for-beat remake isn't necessary - the original is right there, so in order to 'earn' the right for this adaptation to exist, that necessitates changes to be made that add to the themes, deepen the lore, and delve into different aspects of the world in ways a child's cartoon can't.

So, I'm looking for not a 1-1 remake, but rather an adaptation that enhances the themes, irons out some uneven characterization/pacing, updates the story just enough to really get what they want to across, and delve more directly into some of the harsher aspects of the war.

I have always felt that Iroh's involvement in the Fire Nation military was glossed over a lot in the cartoon - I suspect because he's supposed to be a good guy and we can't have our good guys be overtly war criminals responsible for the deaths of thousands of people.

The effects of hard decisions made during war are shown in the animation, but the decision making process itself is rarely talked about until the very end with the gaang's struggle to keep helping people while also knowing where to focus their energy and Aang's struggle finding a way to stop the firelord without killing him.

something this adaptation can do is actually show the people making the decisions - and directly talking about the horrible effects of it. I'll get to it later, but that's one of the major themes in Episode 4 that I'll talk more on then.

Especially in Book 1, like many first books/seasons, the worldbuilding isn't fully fleshed out and the themes that really come to fruition later aren't as tight as they could be at the beginning. If the adaptation can go ahead and seed/tighten the themes that become big deals later on here at the beginning, it will 'justify' it's existence as the story retold after the whole story has already been plotted out.

Just like with the Percy Jackson and Wheel of Time adaptation, those writing for the show have the benefit of knowing how the story ends and all the stuff that's added to the world building as time goes on that wasn't necessarily known by the authors when they wrote and published the first books - the benefit of hindsight allows the show's script to take into consideration these additions and seed them early on to make the story more cohesive and reinforce themes.

So, this analysis is going to be long and filled with minute details, beat by beat for the episodes.

I have seen so many takes that I just sit and scratch my head at and think 'that was so obvious in the show - how did you miss/misinterpret that thing so wildly?' that I guess what I took for granted as obvious in the show, others didn't, so here's me being pedantic and over-explaining everything so maybe others can see that 1) they aren't the only ones who saw this interpretation and 2) maybe others will see the scenes a different way

Still trying to decide how to break up the analysis as the episode recaps are going to be LONG and since people now demand to see all the citations for stuff, the character analysis posts will be long too as I pull direct scenes to show why I feel the way I do.

I don't want to overload the posts and make it so they're just annoying to read, so I'll probably break them up into the sections of the episodes and maybe break up the character posts.

[Masterlist of my NATLA thoughts]

[duckiedaledeservedbetter]

finished a:tla netflix

here are some thoughts (idk, they might be controversial)

Things I liked:

Avatar itself is so good that even a bad adaptation is enjoyable, and i really enjoyed seeing the avatar world in live-action style, especially Omashu !!!

Ian Ousley was born to play Sokka idc what anybody else says, idc about the butchered character arc, or the personality changes or any of that, Ian Ousley is the live-action Sokka we deserve and he ate every scene (except one, which i WILL be mentioning later)

Like seriously Sokka has never given such big bro energy before and i'm living for it, Ian looks like Sokka, sounds like Sokka, and imo carried the show a bit.

I love a good long episode, none of this percy jackson 30 minute nonsense.

Fire Nation costumes HIT - like some of the other costumes were lacking but the fire nation uniforms and armor ? amazing.

They kept so much of the original music !!!

Honestly the bending was pretty good. i fully expected it to suck and be super cringey but there were really only a few moments of cringe for me.

Lieutenant Jee!!! best character!!! best casting!!! amazing, 10/10.

Like seriously though Omashu looked amazing, Agna Q'ela looked amazing, the southern air temple looked AMAZING.

Hahn was cute, i liked Hahn.

Blue Spirit accuracy omg i am so glad they stuck so closely to the original blue spirit storyline.

Gran gran was giving, ngl.

Again, Ian Ousley as Sokka. Show stopping.

Things I didn't like (sorry, the list is long):

sorry, gordon cormier did not do Aang justice. maybe it was the writing? idk, either way, Aang was not Aang-ing and he was honestly boring ? also i'm pretty sure Gordon is age-accurate (?) but if i had to guess his age with no prior knowledge i would guess 9. maybe 10. idk. i get that Aang is a kid but idkkkkkk I was just disappointed ig.

KATARA. ABSOLUTELY HORRIBLE. DON'T EVEN ASK, WE ALL KNOW EXACTLY WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT. Like, i never even liked Katara that much in the og show but dang, they ruined her.

besides katara, Iroh seemed the least character accurate to me. like, in the very first scene in the og show when Zuko is practicing his firebending iroh gets on his case for doing it wrong or whatever and he def has some attitude about it. like, Iroh isn't all chill all the time, let him have some attitude. also where was the wisdom? I felt a bit like i was watching endgame Thor - like iroh was kind of a joke? idk, i couldn't take his character seriously. the actor fell flat for me. bland. didn't sound like iroh, didn't really look like him. writing was weird.

THE PART WHERE THEY HEAL MOMO IN THE POND AND AND AND SOKKA - HUGS HIM ???? LIKE THAT ???? WHAT DID I JUST WITNESS ???? IM CRYING IT WAS SO CRINGE LIKE WHY DID I HAVE TO WATCH THAT WHAT WAS THE POINT

Maybe it was just me but Zhao's actor delivered all his lines like jokes with no punchlines. and he also was not remotely intimidating.

SORRY DANIEL DAE KIM I LOVE YOU BUT no. he didn't do Ozai justice (but really, who could possibly stand up to the performance of mark hamil?)

it wasn't funny. straight up. the whole show. just. not funny.

idk maybe i'm just a nitpicky bitch but none of the performances really hit except Ian's. that's my biggest complaint. they can change what they want (it is an "adaptation" after all) but none of the actors felt right. ig dallas liu wasn't bad ? ian ousley was great, but that's about it.

butchered bumi storyline. no thank you. i will be pretending that didn't happen.

i really just wanted to see live action sokka in kyoshi warrior makeup tbh.

ALSO STRAIGHT UP WHY DID EVERY SINGLE CHARACTER HAVE TO TALK ABOUT HOW SOKKA WASN'T A WARRIOR ??? LIKE YEAH VALIDATE HIS ENGINEERING PASSION AND WHATNOT BUT HE IS A WARRIOR? THAT IS PART OF HIS CHARACTER ? AN IMPORTANT PART ? THAT CARRIES HIS ARC TO THE VERY END OF THE SHOW ? LIKE HE IS A WARRIOR? A NON-BENDING WARRIOR ? idk man don't @ me i stan warrior sokka, it's literally a big part of the show, his growth from child to warrior, his training with piandao, his training with the kyoshi warriors, etc etc. like, it's important.

i feel like they took the wisdom and hard-hitting lines right out of the show. "youre just a child." "well, youre just a teenager." etc etc.

idk. it was fine overall. i watched it. i enjoyed it. i wish it could've been better-acted and more faithful to the original but you win some you lose some.

[seyaryminamoto]

From what I remember in your story, even taking Iroh's initial biases into account I thought part of his intense hostility leading up to his report to Ozai was that he was truly convinced that Azula's true nature was either no better or even significantly worse than Ozai's due to the Iroh's suspicions arc. Azula herself told Sokka she was worried that by throwing him of the trail of their relationship that she may have brought the worst out of him. Honestly this was probably my favorite exploration of their conflict, because if they were truly able to trust each other and talk they could have avoided so much pain and trouble, but both of them over the course of the story had developed genuine and/or biased reasons not to trust one another and viewed themselves as doing the right thing despite their actions ultimately resulting in the worst outcome. Azula was trying to prevent a known adversary from having ammunition to ruin their lives and future plans, and Iroh believed that he was essentially hindering the fire nation by turning what he thought were essentially two Evil Ozais with a good relationship with one another into enemies. I can't lie that I'm not slightly disappointed that in the latest chapter that this aspect of their conflict wasn't brought up more explicitly in the conversation with Zuko when Iroh was talking about his biases. Was I personally thinking that the dynamic was more significant than it actually was or is that dynamic being saved for a future conversation Iroh may have with Sokka and Azula?

Uuuuuh, as for the last question... I don't really know if I'll bring it up some more since I do think I've had Iroh acknowledge why and how he fucked up in that respect in the past + exteriorized that if Azula had acted differently he might just have done it too? Am I crazy for thinking so? Did I write that or didn't I? That's a complicated game to play when you're almost at 5 million words of a story... 🤣

Azula and Iroh miiiight have one more conversation in the future and maybe this will come up there, but I haven't written it yet so I won't make any promises on that front. Admittedly, I don't expect their future encounter to be particularly fruitful. Iroh is 100% genuine in what he has understood and learned, though, that can't be denied and I always have hoped to portray him not as a super wicked villain but as a character who thinks he understands far more than he actually does, with motivations that push him into making mistakes he very much comes to regret.

This being said, the Azula-Iroh and Zuko-Ozai parallels in this story are and always have been 100% intentional. Those two tugs-of-war have been going on forever, and the crux of them was very much the fact that Azula and Iroh distrusted and second-guessed and suspected each other soooo much... because they have similar natures, similar thought processes, and they're both intellectual, suspicious, hiding what's REALLY going on underneath the surface, and immediately wary when they recognize all those traits in each other too. Likewise, Zuko and Ozai have some REALLY ugly parallels and one of those parallels, already given away by the chapter you sent this ask over, is going to be the driving force of the conflict between those two, much as a similar thing was the driving force between Iroh and Azula, in its own way: the more they fight to push the other away, the harder they reject the other, the more they end up embodying the flaws they see in that other person, to an extent where they could do absolutely TERRIBLE things just out of wanting to push the other one as far away as possible.

So yeah, the point was never for Iroh to feel like some sadistic mustache-twirling villain who wanted Azula to suffer just for shits and giggles. He had his reasons to do what he did. Doesn't mean he was right. Doesn't mean he should've done it. What it means is it made sense in his head due to his biases, the information he had at hand at the moment, and the particularly awful relationship he had with Azula. Likewise, Azula's rejection of Iroh back in "Iroh's suspicions" caused her uncertainty and anguish because she KNEW she had taken it too far. She was afraid of the consequences. A part of her KNEW that if she acted differently, there was a chance, however slim, that Iroh might not have made the choice he did. And that's why this is such a messed up situation! :')

Ultimately, I want my characters to have motivations that just... add up. That can be traced. That, upon looking at their actions and choices, anyone can go "oh yeah, this is why they did whatever they did". This is good when it comes to establishing ultimate goals, and it's also good when you want to put characters to the test: how far are they willing to go, what are they ready to do to achieve whatever they're trying to achieve? How much are they willing to sacrifice for it? And the answers to those questions can be VERY extreme and painful. Just so, we can find characters who decide to back down and simply surrender over their goals when they realize that there are other things that matter more. But it's a manner of game a writer plays when it comes to gauging and figuring out what a character wants vs. needs, what a character will fight for and what it will take for them to surrender, and so on. Fundamentally, that's how I built up Iroh and Azula's chaotic dynamic. Whatever comes from that in the future, ultimately, their biggest problem may just be that they were just too smart for their own good, tried to outsmart each other a little too much, and never allowed themselves to just... accept each other properly. They came close to it once, yes! But... they failed. And it's depressing as hell, but complicated characters will always be challenging this way...

[wilcze-kudly]

🧡💛💖💔 For the ask game?

🧡 What is a popular (serious theory) you disagree with?

Hm, I usually let theories be. They're amusing, even if very wrong. If I had to pick one, it'd be the theory that Sokka is Suyin's dad. While Suyin's design and personality (and those of her kids) are definitely baiting Tokka shippers, I can't realistically see Sokka having a kid with Toph. Though Suyin is certainly the closes one can get to having a Tokka kid without actually being a Tokka kid.

💛 What is a popular ship you just can't get behind, and why?

Bopal. I've rambled about my dislike of the ship a few times. Bolin and Opal are, respectively, my favourite and second favourite characters of the show. So shipping Bopal should be a win-win for me right?

But it's just. So atrocious. The ship ruins both characters arcs in B4, turning what could've been a fascinating storyline into what essentially boils down to relationship drama. The ship is so forced that the writers had to write Mako pressuring Bolin into pursuing Opal and have the characters constantly go "look at this. We are doing love interest things. This is romance." It's just so awkward and feels very insulting to the characters and the viewers themselves.

Also, good god, Opal just constantly gets fucked over by the story. Wow just like her mom

💖 What is your biggest unpopular opinion about the series?

I have several, but picking one would be that I actually really liked the handling of the Spirits, Spirit World and the return of the airbenders by the series. The execution of the concepts could be a little wonky at times, but I did mostly enjoy those storylinez.

💔 If you had to remive one major character from the series, which would you choose?

Uh...it is with a heavy heart that I say... Asami. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely adore her but she doesn't really do much for the story? Other than providing the group with modes of transportation and being a badass. But Asami as a character doesn't really bring as much in a a storywise sense. She's kinda just there along for the ride lol.

[hojichasunrise]

Finally finished NATLA. Thoughts:

They ruined Yue's character. Why would a princess be helping casually in the kitchen. Why would a princess display 0 manners around someone she just met. personality completely different.

They had Yue faint repeatedly just to magically sit back up when they needed an exposition dump, then faint again.

They made Hahn a good person? Why is Yue suddenly a waterbender and traipsing around the spirit world? It doesnt add anything and feels out of place.

The interactions between Pakku and Katara were stilted and forced. In the cartoon she had a training period and earned his trust, but here it was just instantly granted that she was the person to report to during battle, yet she doesnt know AQa's defense layout or anything else because she just arrived.

battle pacing in Agna Qel'a is weird. too much standing around talking.

The dialogue is so Marvelized. quip quip quip quip quip.

Aang is joyless and talking like Iron Man. (not the actor's fault.)

Zuko is perfect, 11/10. Every change they made is perfect.

Combining arc beats (e.g. Jet + mechanist) worked surprisingly well.

They made Bumi into an asshole and his dialogue was repetitive, that arc dragged out way too long.

Wasn't atmospheric enough. everything felt like a set.

How did Momo, half the size of a housecat, push that girl out of the way? physics are not mathing.

Why did they take Momo to the spirit oasis to heal but not any of the battle participants or injured civilians. Scene ate too much screen time and sapped urgency from the battle. Makes AQ'a look stupid.

Jet was perfect.

Multiple issues with logic, too long to post. Writing is shallow.

Azula is snarking to her father too much considering she just watched her brother get half his face melted off for one instance of disrespect.

Pecs. 🙏

not enough in-series justification for why Ozai wanted Zuko out of the way in favor of Azula. We know why, but they aren't standing on their own for this beat and have to lean on the cartoon.

Katara and Sokka getting btfo by Koh felt... really strange. they were just there to job and create stakes.

Kuruk and Kyoshi were great inclusions.

Jee/the 41st was a great detail, best part of series.

Azula being the puppetmaster behind Zhao is strange. She knows things by magic I guess, they made a 14 year old girl not just plausibly cunning but straight up omniscient. Logic breaking keikaku doori with her and Ozai.

Ozai using AQ'a as a distraction to take Omashu makes zero logical sense and I don't want to write an essay so just think about this for 5 minutes. I almost screamed.

bf's contribution: "this feels like it was written during the writer's strike."

Visually it was beautiful and the scenery and costumes were great. Other than Yue and Pakku the actors were all fine. Zuko's actor was beyond perfect and his firebending was next level gorgeous.

Sokka's new backstory was a good inclusion. Sokka got a lot of great scenes and the actor is a perfect fit.

Gyatso was also astonishingly perfect. chef's kiss to the actor, his performance was beautiful.

Very much noticing the Kataang scenes were all removed and we got some Zutara allusions. I ship that so yay.

The Sokka/Suki scenes were spicy. However she removed her makeup in 3 seconds flat and that broke my immersion. Please ask a woman next time. otherwise yes I ship that. Just kiss already!

I like the beautiful older lady they put in charge of Kyoshi Island. Nice to see more females in leadership positions.

The lack of the Azula chime is criminal. Her using feminine charm to lure rebels into a trap was a great scene to introduce her. Glad to see rebels, it makes it feel more politically realistic.

The opening scene in ep 1 had Mulan's opening scene vibes in a good way.

Overall: enjoyable with a few caveats but writing quality falls apart upon critical inspection. Much better than I expected, rewatch-worthy. 8/10.

[cooledtured]

Netflix’s Avatar: Good or Mid?

If you ever have time, then you need to watch the masterpiece that is Avatar: The Last Airbender. It is an amazing show that tells the story of a group of kids who are essentially forced to fight in a war in order to stop the evil reign of a nation. Although it has over 50 episodes, I can understand why people might be put off from watching it. Netflix must have thought the same when they decided to remake the show into shorter, condensed seasons (8 episodes). The only problem with this though… is that it is live action.

I’m sure there are plenty of ATLA fans who either remember or forced themselves to forget the travesty that was the M. Night Shyamalan adaptation. To put it simply, that movie was so bad that it threatened to ruin the legacy of ATLA. It was what Dragon Ball Evolution is to Dragon Ball. So when fans heard that they were planning on making another live action adaptation, people were rightfully worried especially with all the news of changes that they were making. And in the end what they gave us is… not bad?

Fans have agreed that this newest adaptation is without a doubt better than the movie (not a high bar). The problem is that they can’t seem to agree on whether the show is actually good or not. After all, when compared to something objectively bad, anything better is going to look amazing. So is this newest adaptation actually good or are people just blinded by the fact that it’s better than the movie?

If someone with no knowledge of ATLA beforehand were to watch it, they would likely say that it’s either decent or good. It tells a fun story and keeps your attention throughout. A fan of the original however, will likely have a few problems with it. For one thing, they get rid of a lot of Aang’s personality in the show. One of the interesting things about ATLA is that Aang never actually wanted to become the Avatar in the first place. He just wants to continue being a kid who plays around which is why at the beginning of the show he’s trying to put off his Avatar as much as possible to continue doing this. Throughout the show though, he slowly starts to come to terms with what he is and what he has to do.

In the remake this arc is taken out completely and Aang is ready to go from the start. While it is understandable as they have less episodes to work with, it still hurts Aang greatly as he now becomes your typical chosen one. This also makes his interactions with another character, Bumi, come off as weird. While in the original, Bumi was someone trying to help teach Aang to continue having fun, here, he is someone that is berating Aang for not taking his role as Avatar seriously. However, as I mentioned earlier, Aang is serious from the start, making him seem both redundant and unnecessary.

Kyoshi Island is another example of the show suffering due to the adaptation. One of the changes the showrunners for the remake made was to tone down a major character’s (Sokka) sexism. According to them, they felt that it wasn’t progressive and didn’t reflect their own beliefs. The thing is, ATLA never glorified his sexism and in fact did whatever it could to show how wrong Sokka was. Multiple times the show does what it can to show that Sokka’s mindset is bad and that girls are capable of being much better than him. This culminates with the group arriving at Kyoshi Island and Sokka being humbled by a group of female warriors. Afterwards, he apologizes and even asks them to train him, finally realizing that it doesn’t matter whether you are a man or a woman.

In the remake, they turn what was an essential moment of character growth into your typical romance plot line. Rather than taking the time to destroy years of self-taught sexism, the show decides to focus on the fact that Sokka and one of the Kyoshi Warriors might be interested in each other. This highlights one of the remake’s flaws; being too afraid to give their characters flaws. As a result, they end up losing out on moments of potential growth.

This isn’t to say that the remake is bad. In the same episode of Kyoshi Island, they actually introduced a character known as Kyoshi early in a very amazing way that really showcases the kind of person she is. However, the show does a lot of things poorly, that makes me unable to call it good. Sure, it’s better than a movie. But is it enough?

Logan Floyd-Mcgee | Writer POP-COOLEDTURED SPECIALIST cooledtured.com |  GROW YOUR COLLECTION

[crellanstein]

Prodigious

I find it odd how the fandom focuses so much on Aang’s childhood being ruined when he learned he was the Avatar at 12, but there’s very little talk about how discovering she was the Avatar as a toddler affected Korra’s life and how she was raised.

But we’ll circle back to that...

Because this is a good starting point to talk about one of the most prevalent themes in the story, which the mainstream discussion of tends to only focus on a few characters -- That is the Child Prodigy. 

We’ll start with the two most obvious. The ones we always talk about.

Azula.

The clearest example of your typical child prodigy (if there is anything typical about a prodigy). Azula showed early mastery of very advanced Fire-Bending techniques, and is the only Fire-Bender to use blue flames, which was intended to make her stand out amongst the other villains but is also indicative that her Fire-Bending is more pure and powerful (blue flame is produced when burning pure O2 or fuel without contaminant at a very high temperature). 

All this lead to her being praised and favored by Ozai as a child, but as double-edged swords go, this also meant she had a lot of pressure on her shoulders to never fail, and she rarely did. Her ego matched her talent, and let’s be honest she was the baddest bitch the show had ever seen. Conquering Ba Sing Se, defeating the Avatar in combat, and dropping some of the most devastating lines of dialogue in villain history; she was a force nobody wanted to reckon with. 

And that become a problem for one asshole in particular...

Being jealous of his own child is just one item on a laundry list of reasons why this guy is the worst father in the history of fathers. Azula had begun to outshine him with her victories, and Ozai’s maniacal ego couldn’t handle that, so he left her behind to babysit the Fire Nation while he went out to burn/conquer the world, which also was her idea.

And while this wasn’t the only thing that aided in her demise, it certainly was the final straw which sent her spiraling down into this...

In the end Azula is a sad example of how certain unfair expectations are placed upon talented children, and the more they succeed, the more these expectations grow and weigh on the them until they either disappoint those looking down on them or surpass and embarrass their elders.

It is a lose-lose situation which inevitably destroys them.

There is a similar example of the child prodigy, but his story goes a little different.

Aang.

Even as a twelve/thirteen year-old boy Aang by far has the most impressive stats among any character in the Avatar universe.

Basically mastering 3 of the 4 Elements in less than a year, after mastering Air by the time he is twelve (not to mention inventing his own Air-bending move, the Air scooter). 

Aang is an example of a child prodigy who had too much thrust onto him at too young an age because of the talent he showed; because of this he panicked and ran away, and the world was worse off for it. 

Aang/Sokka/Katara’s story is all about how in times of War, responsibilities normally handled by adults are pushed onto kids who then have to grow up very fast in order to deal with it all.

The message is clear. War robs the young of their childhoods. 

Now, let’s talk about a different kind of child prodigy.

The Unacknowledged. 

Yes, of course I’m talking about Toph, the greatest Earth-Bender to ever live.

Because of her blindness, Toph’s family tried to keep her sheltered and safe by hiding her from the world. Refusing to believe she could ever be more than helpless. Anyone who has seen the show knows that is far from the truth.

But because her potential went unseen, there were some negative effects to her personality. Initially, she resented her parents, and rebelled; which established a certain level of independence, a bad attitude, and a hot-headed streak. Over time spent with the Gaang these behaviors subsided because she finally had friends and they accepted her for who she was. By the end of the series she was fully willing to accept aid from them when she needed it, like holding on to Sokka’s arm in environment where her bending couldn’t help her “see”. 

Toph’s story is a foil to Azula’s, both showed immense talent and badassery, but while recognition of Azula lead to ever-mounting pressure for her to succeed; the lack of recognition for Toph created a need for her to be acknowledged and set an undercurrent of frustration which leads to her acting out in the ways she does.

The lesson to take from Toph’s story is not to shelter your kid from the world out of fear for their safety, and to be open to recognizing their talents, not shun them.

Next are two more Unacknowledged.

Katara and Sokka.       

Their story, and the reason behind their circumstances, is one of the more complicated and nuanced ones in the series, so here we’ll focus on how it fits into the subject of discussion.

Because of the War, Katara was robbed not only of her mother but also of any Southern Masters to train her, and any role models Sokka could have looked up to left with his father to fight. Because of this Katara’s potential and Sokka’s genius went unacknowledged not due to neglect but rather due to circumstance. (Yes, I think Sokka is a genius, how many 15 yr olds do you know that can plan an invasion, design submarines, and spit poetry off the cuff?).

This is a further example of how War robs kids of necessary childhood experiences, and these two robberies had particular effects on both Katara and Sokka’s character developments.

Sokka had the responsibility of protecting his home put upon him at a young age. The men of his tribe leaving prevented him from completing his rite of manhood until the Gaang ran into Bato of the Water Tribe, and early on Sokka was constantly trying to prove himself as a man and a leader. Sokka is one of the smarter characters of the series, but he rarely got credit for it until the third season. Not to mention that because he wasn’t a bender he often seemed less useful than the others. The circumstances of war made his talent go unnoticed and because of that he often was unsure of himself and overcompensated to prove something.

Speaking of talent going unnoticed.

Katara is definitely one of the more talented benders of the series. After training herself for years with little progress, she essentially mastered Water-Bending in a few weeks under Master Pakku. While her anger towards the Fire-Nation mostly centers around the loss of her mother, it can’t be ignored that the delay in her training was a direct result of the Fire-Nations’ actions.  Toph’s anger and frustration vented itself as rebellion. However, the same frustration and anger is within Katara, but because she wasn’t as natural a bender as Toph she sought to learn and be respected, and when that was denied to her is when that anger bubbled to the surface in some terrifying ways. 

While Toph’s talent went unnoticed because of her families neglect, Katara and Sokka’s wasn’t acknowledged because there was nobody to acknowledge it. Because of that both brother and sister wanted to prove themselves to the world.

And then there is Zuko.

I know what you’re thinking. Zuko wasn’t a prodigy, his Fire-Bending skill didn’t catch up with Azula’s until the finale and he never mastered Lightning-Bending, but this section is about the Unacknowledged.

Zuko had many other talents besides Fire-Bending, he was a master swordsmen, and was able to successfully break into every secure facility he attempted in the show (which was almost every secure facility the show featured).  Unfortunately, these talents were never recognized, because the only thing the royal family cared about was bending ability (It’s possible the reason he learned the sword was because he lacked skill in Fire-Bending). 

As per usual with Zuko, this part of his tale is quite sad. Many can relate to being outshined by a sibling, and when it becomes all too clear that one cannot match another’s talent it’s quite understandable to focus on what they do excel at, but even then there is no promise of recognition for their own talent. Zuko was even mocked by his father during the solar eclipse when Ozai tried baiting him into attacking with his swords. 

This lack of recognition is one of many sad aspects of Zuko’s early life, but it is a definitive example of one of the hardest unacknowledged prodigy’s cross to bear. The Outshone prodigy, one whose talents are never noticed because a bigger and brighter star stands in the way of such recognition, and arguably the most frustrating type mentioned here. Toph/Sokka/Katara all came from situations were there was no recognition being given to them or anyone, but Zuko had to bear watching massive amounts of praise be piled on to his sister while he and his accomplishments went by the way side.

Ozai summed up the situation best.

“Azula was born lucky, Zuko was lucky to be born”

Alright now where have I been going with all this?

So, far we’ve covered a lot of wrong ways to treat a child, whether they show talent or not, and how the circumstances of war can also take many things from children.

But what happened to Korra?

(Before we get into to this I should state that I like Korra, and the purpose of this is not to bash her as a character or her arc, but rather to give a little of my insight into it.)

It’s well established that Aang was told of his heritage too young, and that was a detriment on his development into an adult, but what would have happened if he realized his powers himself not long after he could walk? We’ll never know, but we do get to see the effects it had on Korra. 

When she revealed herself as the Avatar, Korra set her entire life in a new direction, and because Aang tasked the White Lotus with finding and training her that direction was out of her control. There are two key differences between Korras’ and other Avatars’ lives.

1. She grew up in isolation on a White Lotus compound.

Every Avatar before Korra we know of spent a portion of their early lives traveling the world in order to master the elements; along this journey they not only learned how to bend the other 3 elements, buy also many things about the 3 other nations and the world they are tasked to protect as a whole. By confining Korra in safety and bringing the masters to her the White Lotus deprived Korra of this opportunity to learn and grow and understand the world and the people within in. It also deprived her of learning modern bending styles until she reached Republic City.

While this might have kept Korra safe from the Red Lotus, it grew within her a naiveté about how the world worked, and because of this when she actually did venture out into the world she was terribly unprepared for it.

2.  She was trained and mastered 3 of the elements by the time she was 16.

Most Avatars don’t know they have this power until they reach 16 and then they spend several years learning to control it. Korra’s natural talent in the bending lead to her training being expedited not by necessity like Aang’s, but due to her talent and eagerness. Korra excelled at the physical part of being the Avatar and because of this by the time she reached maturity she had become over-confident in her abilities and true to what her Fire-Bending master said in Ep.1 she lacked restraint.

I’m not saying her bending isn’t great, but rather because it is so great it’s her go-to solution to anything, and she enjoys that so she uses it with enthusiastic gusto and not a lot of thinking before striking.

This overconfidence coupled with her naiveté of the world is what lead to many of her rash decisions and actions, most of which had negative consequences, and I believe are the reason behind some fan are dissatisfied with her. Aang had been almost the complete opposite, even by the age of twelve he was an experienced world traveler and an incredibly humble guy. 

Some may have been dissatisfied by these character decisions, but they served a purpose, they are only the beginning of her arc. The internal challenge Korra must overcome through 4 seasons is to humble herself before the world, and learn from it. This was finally achieved in the 4th season when the metal poisoning in her body forces her to face others in the world as equals, only then had she completed her journey.

And why did it all go this way?

Because she is a very unique child prodigy, what she demonstrates in the first episode of LOK would be akin to a toddler playing the violin or hitting a three-pointer; she could bend 3 elements close to just after learning to walk. That is the kind of prodigious talent rarely seen because it is mostly impossible. How does a rational person handle a child like that? 

It’s a tough question, and something this essay has been circling around the whole time. Each example here is the wrong way to handle talented and different children, but what is the right way?

As always look to Iroh.

Who treated his surrogate son Zuko with both respect and compassion. 

Unlike Toph’s parents, Iroh worried over Zuko’s well being, but also allowed him to be independent, make his own decisions, and take his own risks.

Unlike the Nomad Leaders, he didn’t want Zuko weighed down by his position in the world and the responsibility that came with, and always encouraged him relax and take advantage of the moment.

Unlike Ozai, Iroh would always be there to support Zuko in his victories and his failures. Iroh shows him the right path but does not force him down it.

And even after Zuko betrayed and abandoned him.

Iroh was never angry with him, and embraced him upon his return.

He wanted Zuko to grow and be a better man. Even if Zuko wasn’t a prodigy like his sister. 

And that is the answer here. The way to raise a prodigy is the same way anyone should raise any child. Love, Support, a Guiding Hand rather than a Forceful Shove, Recognition of What Makes Them Unique, and Forgiveness When They Falter. The problem comes along when you start treating children differently because you see them as different or special. All children are different, all children are special.

Kids are kids, and they all deserve a proper childhood.  

[lesbiansanemi]

Actually!!! I’m not done talking about the lack of femslash in fandoms, because, inevitably, every time I do it, people always like to say “It’s because female characters are written more poorly than male characters, so no one wants to/can do things with them in fan works” and it always infuriates me because of how wrong it is, and you’re exposing your own internalized misogyny 

Are female characters sometimes written with less care and depth compared to their male counterparts? Yes. I’m not denying that. But when you say that’s why people in fandom don’t care about them, you are blatantly ignoring the hoops people will jump through to create content about male characters who are written just as badly. You’re saying that like fandoms like Supernatural and Marvel don’t exist and there are ppl churning out 300K word fics about white middle aged male characters that have the characterization of a flimsy paper plate, giving them proper arcs and characterizations. Why are you willing to do those kinds of things for those male characters but not for the female ones? Why are you willing to “fix” the bad characterization of male characters, but just chalk the female characters up to “poorly written, so I don’t want to do anything with them.” 

Anime is another example! Especially shounen! Y’all will bitch and moan about how female characters are treated like shit by the narrative and only exist to fall in love with male characters, but then rather than discuss it or work to fix that in your fics, you’ll write a 150K word slowburn about the MC falling in love with Background Male Character #3 who has just a bland of a personality and character arc. 

“We hate Uraraka because all she cares about is Deku” *proceeds to then write an entire series of fics about Kaminari and Shinsou falling in love even though they both have one-dimensional personalities as well and simple/unexplored backstories just like Uraraka, and they’re side characters rather than a protagonist* 

And even when the female characters are written well!!! You still ignore them! Adventure Time! Adventure Time has a canon wlw relationship, involving nuanced, flawed, wonderfully written female characters. And over a third of the fics written about them on ao3 are about their genderbent counterparts that appeared in like four or five episodes of the series. Just admit that you hate female characters at that point! There’s no reason to focus on their male counterparts over them! 

Y’all ignored the female characters in Merlin, complaining and bitching about Morganna and Gwen “getting in the way” of Arthur/Merlin becoming canon. You did the same thing with VLD, shitting on Acxa to the point of her character arc being shortened by the writers because you thought she was going to ruin your chances of klance becoming canon. Mai is a “cold stone Bitch who was abusive towards Zuko” you scream, because you want Sokka/Zuko content.

Are you seeing the pattern now? 

Yes, series don’t do right by their female characters more often than not, but to blame the lack of not just femslash, but content focused on female characters in general in fandoms on that is incorrect, and you’re giving yourselves an excuse for your own misogyny, while acting like you’re on the moral high ground because you know the female characters are written poorly 

It’s hypocritcal, and annoying, and I’m tired of hearing people say it. Just admit fandoms hate female characters, rather than trying to blame it all on canon

[juniperhillpatient]

Care to share one or more of your takes you would consider controversial for atla.

Ooh this is tough cause I feel like I’m constantly sharing my ATLA opinions so they’re mostly known 😅

A rundown of bullet point takes that I won’t budge on & think are straightforward but see people debating constantly anyway 👁👁

The Boiling Rock Betrayal was well written & did make sense people just over complicate it. Mai & Ty Lee deserved more detailed examinations of their views in other instances but it’s extremely plain what happened in this instance: adrenaline fueled actions were taken in an emergency / life threatening situation. Mai & Ty Lee weren’t wrong to save lives (it also wasn’t planned? why & how do people think it was?) & Azula was sympathetic for being hurt after the betrayal (but she was still unequivocally the villain here)

We don’t know enough about Ursa from the show to truly know what her relationship with Azula was like, making multiple interpretations of the dynamic equally valid

This is less about the show itself (though the comics & the writers being insecure about their canon ship don’t help) & more the fandom but K.at.Aang vs. Z.utara arguments are some of the most obnoxious pointless arguments I’ve ever seen & the slander toward both Aang & Zuko from opposing sides is REALLY sad considering their friendship & character arcs are at the heart of the show. It’s a kid’s show y’all calm down you can want whichever cartoon characters you want to kiss it’s not that serious. These arguments also tend to frame Katara as a prize to be won rather than one of the most badass characters in her own right & it’s uncomfortable

Anti Zuko takes from Azula fans & anti Azula takes from Zuko fans are both equally embarrassingly hypocritical & ugly

Hm okay a lot of these have had to do with the Fire Nation characters, let’s mix it up. Sokka isn’t a super genius OR a dumbass. He’s someone who would get bad grades for not doing his homework cause it’s boring but he aces every test. He’d explain some complicated physics subject to you then eat pizza out of the garbage in front of you. This one might not be *that* controversial but I do feel like I see debates over his intelligence lol

Southern Raiders is a great episode & it’s not about shipping (I mean it *can* be but that’s not the main point) it’s about opposing ideologies. Katara not necessarily forgiving Yon Rha but also not killing him is an AMAZING Katara moment where she makes the best choice for HER. If you hate this episode cause of shipping discourse or bad takes or whatever you’re missing out on an excellent episode that finally explores the anger & grief Katara has over her mother’s death. I see so much discourse over this episode but I try to ignore it cause it’s one of my favorite episodes & I don’t want fandom bs to ruin that for me

I loved Jet & felt like there was a lot to explore in this kid who’s charming & manipulative because he had to become that way because of trauma & wanted to care for other kids. I loved his dynamic with Katara & later Zuko & seeing how he’d changed. I initially thought his death, while it made me sad, was narratively fair to drill home the brutality of war. But the vagueness & later jokey callback changed my mind. Can’t drill home brutality if you’re gonna write it like *that.*

Final take & this is about the fandom at large: we forget this is an early 2000s kid’s show. It was fantastic storytelling visually beautiful & we wouldn’t still be talking about it if the characters didn’t grip us. The endless discourse & debates over things that don’t matter are tiring & ultimately a waste of time & energy - so that’s my final unpopular atla take for the day 😄 (also I’m NOT claiming to be guiltless when it comes to partaking in these debates lol) (also this isn’t about *analysis* which is always fun I’m talking more about discourse over dumb shit like why iroh gave azula a doll)

Thanks for the ask!

[low-budget-korra]

"a dark-skinned character(korra) is punished for her attitude/personality and is tortured to change her personality to a more submissive one, but when a light-skinned character(kuvira) has the same attitude/personality, the narrative does not punish her and forgive her because she had a difficult childhood :(. that character(kuvira) goes to prison for the crime she did but when she gets out of prison, she still has the same bad Attitude she had before(she is still the same arrogant bi*ch who thinks she knows better than anyone else).

The light-skinned character(kuvira) is 'punished" for being a criminal, not for her personality as they did with the dark-skinned character(korra). The lightskinned character's mistake is to be a criminal, the darkskinned character's mistake is to be the way she is, have a strong and confident personality."

" a dark skinned character (Korra)is punished for her personality and is tortured to change her personality to a more submissive one" Did you even watched the show? First of all, the ONLY time Korra was punished for her personality (not actually quite that because fear ain't one but there's a lil of arrogance there so) was in The Voice in The Night, book 1 episode 4.

Second of, Korra isn't submissive at all. Book 1 she wasn't, and at the very end of book 4, she also wasn't. I think you are confusing the terms. Book 1 Korra was impulsive, childish, naive and immature and this not the same thing as being dominant. Book 4 Korra was more thoughtful, more patient, more mature, more calm and if you think this makes someone submissive, you know nothing about this dominant and submissive shit. I'm sorry but you don't. Thinking about your actions before making them, doesn't make a person submissive wtf dude

And the "funny" is that if B4 Korra was the same as B1 Korra, y'all would complain that they denied her a proper character development and chooses to treat her as stupid and violent or wherever just because she is dark skinned. I bet a ear on that

Kuvira NEVER had he same attitude/ personality was Korra. Korra never put civilians life's in danger like that, Korra cares about people, Korra wanted to serve people and not only her personal goals, Korra never used people like Kuvira did with Baatar Jr., Saying that just because the writers spend the whole B4 trying to shove that in your throat doesn't make it true. I saw the show so many fucking times, i know those character better than I know some people in my own family so yes, i think i can say for sure that Kuvira was never like Korra. If you and the writers said that just because they were both stubborn and had strong will, you can also say Toph Beifong was just like Kuvira, Zuko was just like Kuvira. Let's just say it takes more than just 2 personality traits to make a actual good parallel. Just look at Zuko and Aang, Katara and Azula, Amon and Korra, now that was some fucking great well thought mirrors/parallels

Kuvira only had that terrible and unnecessary "redemption" because of the fandom, the fandom wanted that so the give it. And also, a little of immaturity of the writers to do so, especially in the way they did. That's why sometimes creators can't give the fans what they want. And Kuvira still is praised af for lots in the fandom. So no, i don't think this have something to do with her skin tone, they just wanted to make a "Zuko" of her, giving her redemption and all but is was the biggest mistake on tlok and that pisses me off like hell.

Zuko (light skinned character) also was punished like hell even before the story of the show start, physically and emotionally. Tenzin got beat up and almost died because of it, Azula was manipulated and emotionally abused by her father since ever but NOBODY talks about that because in those cases is good character development, character arc, history arc, important to the plot

But when it is with Korra some people wished her to had a stupid plot armor and ruined everything for her just because she is dark skinned.

And, like i said, i watch those show a lot of times, i now know more about them than what I do with my life and i know more those characters that some people in my life. I've been studying the show and it's character for 7years now so i know all the flaws as well. But saying that Korra only suffer because of her color is stupid, I'm sorry but it is. If the creators who - for sure aren't perfect - was those racists some of y'all call them, the protagonist wouldn't even be a dark skinned character. Katara and Sokka also wouldn't have some of the best developments in tla(Katara even had a better development than the protagonist) and the importance they had on the story.

I'm sorry is just that I'm sick of reading this. It ain't true.

I don't know you, and I'm having a shitty day so i may being throwing that on you ~ sorry for that~ but wanting a dark skinned character, a woman or lgbt characters to have plot armor just because of their color, sexuality or gender, ain't being woke. Especially when you love when thosees type of "suffering that led to awesome good character development" is destined to white, male and straight characters. I'm not saying is you specifically but I've seen a lot, a lot of people with your same argument being like that. And I'm just tired

[listless-brainrot]

I get haru’s chemistry with katara, but how does he connect with any of the other members of the gaang in your opinion? I'm genuinely curious

hey thanks so much for your curiosity anon!! i love talking about this and i’ve actually made a post about it already, lemme add it here but also elaborate further to include zuko and toph this time

haru’s character is one never intended to be anything beyond surface level given that he’s a background character but there is a LOT to deduce from his character and it’s really interesting how they managed to make a “boring” side character with a lot of main character potential, and i think i’ve finally managed to crack why and it’s because of how much of his character has in terms of potential with connecting and working with the main gaang

just gonna put it out here i’m also gonna pull some haru characterization from the videogames to help my case

let’s start with aang, who is actually kind of similar to katara in terms of complete cultural devastation, it’s of course much worse for him as he lost all of his people but that’s still a point of sympathy and i’m sad it’s not brought up as much as it should be because it’s absolutely integral to his character and position as the avatar. speaking of being the avatar haru clearly knows who he is and believes he represents hope in this world coming back, there’s that sense of wonder and true faith in his cause to end this war and just as katara gives haru that inspiration to fight and make a stand against this war, i think aang does that too, whether he realizes it or not. there’s also this cultural obligation to continue bending or practicing your culture when everything else has been erased or suppressed, whether it be to preserve the memory of someone you once held dear or just because you know its the right thing to do. i think haru would really understand that on a personal level, even if his dad and the earthbenders did come back, and in turn try to give aang hope as well. in terms of personality i’d also just love to see haru, who probably has some sort of reverence for the avatar and was taught to respect him and be polite all the time, see aang as this kid who’s optimistic and sweet while also being a wielder of all four elements and learn to see him as a person and even a friend.

i’m not going to go too in depth with katara, as that post already did a phenomenal job, but i will add on the fact that i believe that haru and katara would also bond over how they had to learn bending and its sources, especially if we cite the “haru bends using firebending techniques” meta, which is also super in depth and well worth the read, and especially considering how katara learned bloodbending if this was something actually expanded on within the show i think haru would be able to help her understand that she is much more than that pain and suffering, and even if the techniques were used to hurt people in the past, she can be much more than that now.

and man. haru and sokka. they’d get along so well like. “my dad who is the leader of my tribe/village was sent away due to the war and i have idolized/missed him so much since then and though it’s unspoken there is a lot of pressure on me as man of the house to protect what little i have left”?? cmon. “my dad who used to be a rebellious leader full of hope and strength was broken down over the course of his five year imprisonment and i struggle with who he has become now” haru and “my dad left me in charge of a tribe of women and children on my own and i want to be a warrior just like him but i wonder if he could see me now if he’d really be proud of me and who i had to become” sokka. that sense of imposter syndrome that comes with being the eldest and the son of a leader?? the sympathy and that personal understanding?? i would’ve loved to see it. also in the games haru often makes fun of sokka just as much as he makes fun of everyone else and it would’ve been really funny to see these two smartasses clash given their different styles of whiny attitudes. also haru is pretty book-smart, and knows a lot about earth kingdom culture and technology, and i think he’d work well with sokka in terms of strategy. however, given haru’s lack of an impulse control, the plans he suggests may be a bit debatable.

now we get to haru and toph, who i should honestly make an entire separate post on but. to summarize most of my thoughts, haru and toph are both earth kingdom kids who come from entirely different places and positions of power and class in the war, and have been affected by the war to differing degrees. haru is a peasant from a coastal farm living under fire nation control for five years. he’s our prime example of what average life in the earth kingdom was like under the fire nation. toph comes from the rich beifong family, with personal bending tutors and even guards. she’s so far removed from the war, and she joined to fight it on a whim. their personalities and viewpoints would clash so much, and i think they’d have a really hard time getting along at first. there would be a lot of misunderstanding and haru wanting to understand toph somehow but toph being toph thinking he just wants to parent her or something. it would’ve been interesting interpersonal conflict. but i think when they do eventually become friends they’d become really close, they’d have shared experiences and inside earth kingdom jokes the rest wouldn’t get and hell maybe even toph would try to teach him how to metalbend cause you can’t win the war with just one metalbender, and haru would finally be able to learn from a real earthbending teacher, whose style is so unrestrained and powerful because it developed in a place away from war. also they can bond over having strained relationships with their parental figures!

zuko is... hard to place with haru, i’ll admit. the fact that he’s fire nation is an inseparable fact given how much of haru’s life has been directly affected and ruined by it, as everyone else’s has. i think that, if he was treated more like an actual character, haru would offer a valuable perspective on the gaang later accepting him into their group. sure, he hasn’t been hurt by zuko personally (unless we count the possibility that after the prison break zuko may have followed the prison boats back to the village looking for katara and aang after getting her necklace but that’s another can of worms entirely), but he’s experienced the horrors of the fire nation soldiers firsthand. they’ve heavily taxed his village, they’ve taken all of the earthbenders including his dad, they’ve broken into and threatened to burn down his mom’s shop... these are things not easily forgiven, and it’d be interesting to explore his side. but in terms of them as people, i think what’s funny is that both haru and zuko are extremely dramatic and angry and their similarities, while tragic, would also be kind of funny to see. though, i think out of everyone on this list, haru and zuko wouldn’t get that close- i don’t think haru would let himself, but if there was an arc involving zuko gaining his trust on some personal level, maybe it’d be interesting to explore.

all in all, though- haru has been cited as lonely in many of his official characterizations. i’d just like to have some friends, and maybe he’d find them with the gaang.

[muertawrites]

Two Halves - Chapter Twelve (Zuko x Reader)

Part 11

Word Count: 3,000

Author’s Note: Let’s talk about Azula. I know a lot of people really want a redemption arc for her, and it’s something that’s written a lot in the fanfic community, but (like everything else) I have an unpopular opinion about her - I don’t think she deserves a redemption arc. This doesn’t mean I think she’s a bad character. I actually think exactly the opposite - she’s so perfectly written that I feel changing her to make her any less problematic would ruin her. 

Characters can be great without ever redeeming themselves, and Azula is a perfect example of one of A:TLA’s major themes - that there’s no such thing as absolute good or bad - in that she’s clearly vindictive, manipulative, egotistical, and sociopathic, but the way the series leaves her convinces the watcher to feel sympathetic towards her. It’s such a beautiful destruction of preconceived notions in fiction that I don’t think it needs to be touched. Azula is evil, but I love her that way. 

~ Muerta

Appa’s feet don't touch sand until late evening, by which time it feels like you've been flying for weeks.

A group of about twenty guards is waiting when you land, each of them wrapped from head to toe in white gauze; the woman at the front of the group removes her face covering and introduces herself as the warden of the compound, her expression hard and motionless behind sun-darkened skin. She leads you through a maze of buildings enclosed by high, interlocking stone walls, to an empty store room that’s been converted into a bedroom for your stay. 

“We only have what we need out here,” she explains. “The guards’ bunks are all filled, and we don't typically have guests. I'm sorry we couldn't give you more appropriate lodging.” 

“It's alright,” Aang assures her. “We’re used to sleeping rough.” 

Dinner is composed of a combination of dried meat and pickled vegetables, paired with water from a well in the center of the surrounding block of buildings; you're advised only to use it for drinking and not to bathe, saving it for the guards stationed at the compound. Even after the sun sets, the air feels arid and scorched, the sweat dripping down the back of your neck doing nothing to cool you. 

“It's awful out here,” you remark as you settle into your bed roll for the night. “I can see why Sokka went insane.” 

“Sokka went insane because of hallucinogenic cactus juice,” Katara corrects you, smirking at the memory.

“I can't believe I missed most of that,” Aang laments. “He must've been a handful.” 

“You had more important things to worry about,” Katara softly reminds him. She wraps her arms around his shoulders, placing a tender kiss atop the crest of his head; you look away, your stomach churning uneasily at the intimate display. 

You lay and attempt to sleep for the next few hours, finding yourself unable. The ground is too hard beneath you, your thin blankets too heavy and hot. You toss and turn over and over again, trying to find a comfortable position that seems not to exist. Your mind races and refuses to slow down. 

Despite your guilt over doing so, you go out to the well and fill a small basin, splashing your face with warm water in the hopes it'll make you feel better. Katara joins you a moment or two later, having noticed your unrest. She dips her hands into the water and runs them comfortingly through your hair to cool you off. 

“What's wrong?” she asks. 

You sigh as you lower yourself onto the base of the well, holding your knees to your chest. 

“I'm worried,” you admit in a murmur. 

Katara sits down beside you and rests her hand on your arm. 

“Aang and I won't leave until after you speak with Azula,” she promises. “And even then, we’ll be right outside the room the entire time. You're not doing this alone.” 

You shake your head, afraid to look her in the eye. 

“That's not it. When you go to the Northern Air Temple… they're going to expect me to get pregnant, too. But I'm not ready to have a baby, and I don't know if I'll ever be.” 

Katara curls her arms around you, pulling you into her lap in the motherly way she used to do when you were kids. She strokes your hair, and you nestle into the fabric of her night gown.

“What does it feel like?” you wonder. Your voice is nothing but a breath. “To… have sex?” 

Katara’s hands pause their ministrations. She sits absolutely still for a moment, gazing off as she mulls the question over. 

“... It hurts,” she says after a while, “but only at first. Then it feels exciting. It's sort of like getting hit by lightning, but gently, over and over again. You feel it in your whole body; it's unlike anything else. The best part is being so close to someone you love in a way that nobody else will ever be close to you. It’s like magic.” 

“But I don't love Zuko,” you reply. “I didn't choose him like you chose Aang. How could it be the same for me?” 

“You did choose Zuko,” Katara contests. “Do you think Dad would have forced you into marrying him if you fought hard enough against it? You might not have chosen him because you love him, but there's a reason you're together. I think you will love him. There's something about the two of you that just… fits. I've never been very good with intuition and even I could feel it the first time I saw you together. You will love each other; and we both know Zuko cares about you too much to force you into anything before you're ready. Trust him. Follow what you feel for him.” 

You sigh, shutting your eyes tightly as the weight of the desert heat squeezes down on you; nonetheless, Katara’s hands are chilled as they begin to rework the braid knotted down your back.

“I know he’ll protect me,” you say. “That's all he's done since we met. But I don't know if I want to be protected.” 

“You don't have to be,” Katara tells you. Her voice is soft and serious. “You've never let anyone tell you what to do; not even now.” 

“Keeping that up is dangerous though,” you whisper. “Doing the wrong thing could get me killed - it could get Zuko killed, or you, or any number of people I care about. And I've been really stupid about it up until now.” 

“Has Zuko ever talked to you about redirecting lighting?” Katara asks. 

You shake your head. 

“It's a water bending technique,” she explains. “The idea is that you take your opponent’s force and turn it back against them, but you have to keep your own energy steady to be able to do it.” 

She takes one of your hands between both of hers, pressing it tightly between her palms.

“Keep doing what you're doing,” she urges. “If one of us gets hurt, you can't let the loss break you; you have to use it to fight back. Anyone who wants to destroy you needs your permission to do so.” 

You sit up so you can look her in the eye; her expression is resolute, brows drawn together with  agency and concern. Your arms fall around her, pulling her into a tight embrace; she holds you close as you bury your face in her hair. 

“It'll be okay,” she promises. “You'll survive; it’s what we do.” 

The next morning, you meet with Azula’s psychological counselor before going to see her. 

The center of the compound is devoted entirely to the disgraced princess and her keepers, each of them living within the bounds of a large wall lined with guards every few feet. Her counselor’s home is divided from the main house by an ornate fence, painted red and black and gilded with gold detail; guard houses stand at either side of the gate. 

“This part of the compound is designed to look like a Fire Nation neighborhood,” the counselor explains. “We don't live luxuriously by any means, but a homey atmosphere is important to Azula’s rehabilitation.” 

“How has she improved?” Katara asks. 

You remember her retellings of what would've been Azula’s coronation, how she lost her mind with power and corruption. Thinking back on them, you almost pity her. 

“She's much more stable than she used to be,” the counselor states. “We know her vindictive behavior will never go away and that her condition prohibits her from understanding or feeling empathy, but she's learned not to act on those tendencies. She's also greatly overcome the anger her father instilled in her.” 

“I need something I can use as leverage,” you say. “Zuko’s told me that everything she does is a negotiation, and I need something to trade for her insight.” 

The counselor nods, tapping her fingers against the table you're seated around in thought. 

“The information alone won’t be enough incentive for her,” she concludes. “She’s seemingly lost interest in the outside world or trying to get out of the compound in the past few years, but I have a feeling she’ll use that to try and get more out of you. Perhaps offering her a chance to see her father will hold useful.” 

“She still wants to see him?” Aang gasps, incredulous. “After everything he did?” 

“She blames him for the breakdown she suffered at the end of the war,” the counselor elaborates. “She’s expressed a desire to confront him for years, and I’d like to help her find the catharsis in it without setting her back in her rehabilitation.” 

“We’ve spoken about the possible need for execution,” you say; your voice is meek, the shame making it difficult to meet the counselor’s eye. “Would the threat do anything? As a last resort?” 

“... I don’t know,” the counselor admits. “It truly depends on her mood. She swings between bouts of stability and episodes of deep, manic depression; were she depressed, the threat wouldn’t do much. She unfortunately is always on the brink of an episode, and I don’t think death is much of a fear to her.” 

You nod, unable to respond any other way. 

“Be civil,” the counselor advises, “but don’t let your guard down. She’s improved greatly, but she’s still extremely dangerous.” 

Azula’s home is quaint, consisting of only four rooms, but is every bit the palace she grew up in compared to the rest of the compound. The walls are painted deep, warm crimson, every inch decorated in elaborate murals; in the dining room where you meet, images of giant salamanders curl around pillars of forest and flame - they're terrifying, but as beautiful as any more traditional work of art. 

When Azula enters the room, she smirks at you. You're stricken by the fact that she looks nothing like her brother, her features much softer and rounder, save for her eyes and brow bones which are drawn downward in a permanent scowl; it occurs to you that while Zuko closely resembles  their father (something you've learned he resents), she’s almost a perfect mirror of their mother. Her clothes are simple - a shapeless dress over loose trousers - and her hair is knotted messily behind her head, loose tendrils falling carelessly around her face. Her cheeks are gaunt, years of living on only what the compound can provide clearly having taken their toll. 

“So Zuzu’s got himself a wife,” Azula chirps, sitting down across the table from you. “I suppose that's all you Southern women are good for - selling off to more powerful nations so you don't get yourselves pummeled.” 

You ignore her harsh words, bowing your head respectfully in greeting. 

“Zuko and I have actually known each other since we were teenagers,” you tell her. It isn't exactly a lie, but you decide that forfeiting her game is the best way to defend yourself. “It's an honor to finally meet you, Azula.” 

If she's put off by your deflection, she doesn't show it. She leans forward on her elbows, leering at you over the table like some sort of heinous, bloodthirsty predator; you stare back unfazed, reminding yourself that there's nothing she can do to you if you remain stoic. 

“To what do I owe the pleasure of my dear sister-in-law’s visit?” Azula wonders, grinning. “I doubt this is a family reunion given Zuzu’s absence.” 

“We need your help,” you tell her. “We’re facing serious problems with outside opposition and our advisors have failed us; Zuko suggested I come to you because of your intelligence in these matters.” 

Azula scoffs, her sickening smile disappearing as she leans back and crosses her arms over her chest. 

“I may be captive, but that doesn't mean I have to help you,” she spits. “I no longer hold any loyalty to the Fire Nation.” 

“We don't want to force you,” you reply. “Zuko and I are willing to offer something in return for your expertise.” 

“There's nothing you can give me that will convince me,” Azula states. “My brother lost any sympathy I had for him when he locked me up here.” 

“We both know you never had any sympathy for him.” 

Azula’s eyes shoot upward, meeting yours in a chilling glare. 

“He's the eldest,” you continue. “Despite your talent, he was still in your way - if he hadn't been banished, he’d have taken your father’s place. You hated him for that. You hated him for earning your mother’s affection. You hated him for things neither of you had any control over, and all you've ever wanted to do is have control. He defied that. So you took matters into your own hands and tried to kill him.” 

Azula glowers at you, her eyes icy as her face sets into stone. She's not used to being on the other end of this sort of needling; behind her muted, immobile shock, you know she's calculating her next move. 

“It wasn't fair,” you go on. “I've heard what people in the Fire Nation say about you - that you shaped the odds of the war while your father took all the credit. That's why we need you. Zuko himself admitted that he can't do it. This is your chance to show him once and for all who the true heir to your family name is.” 

Your sister-in-law studies you for a moment before tilting her head, the nasty smile she entered the room with returning. 

“Thanks to my shrinks, I'm no longer motivated by personal vindication,” she drawls. “And besides, what good would it do me for Zuko to take all the glory like Father did? He always liked to believe he took after Mother. He's wrong - he's just as cruel and underhanded as the rest of us.” 

At this point, you decide that bargaining is going to get you nowhere. Instead you turn your attention to the murals, standing so you can run your fingers over the scales of the nearest giant salamander; they're so realistic that even their grooves have texture, delicately carved between layers of thick paint. 

“These paintings are stunning,” you comment. “Are they yours?” 

Azula nods, though her expression remains shuttered and somewhat threatening. 

“Since that little brat took my bending, I had to find a new hobby,” she hisses. “When I run out of space on the walls, I'll start tattooing myself.” 

You smirk at her joke, but she doesn't reciprocate. Her eyes narrow, and though she doesn't move from her position at the table, she seems to prowl closer to you, caging you in with the sheer power of her presence. 

“I know why Zuzu married you,” she claims; her tone is matter-of-fact, her golden irises cutting through you. “You remind him of that Southern wretch he used to chase around during his banishment. He was enamored with her. But of course she chose the Avatar over him, since she wanted the alliance for your puny little nation, so it seems he rebounded with the next best thing. He's always been weak that way - falling for anyone dumb enough to buy into that kicked kitten act and let him use them for sympathy.” 

For a split second, her words bite you in a way you don't expect them to. Just last night, you told Katara you didn't love Zuko - now, at the thought that his affections could lie with anyone else, that you could mean nothing more than a placeholder to appease the ache of an unrequited love, your ribs feel as though they've caved in and are crushing your lungs. You do your best to keep your expression void, but the corners of your lips flinch with the ghost of a frown, your eyes fogging with a shadow of fear before you can stop them. Azula grins - she knows she found a weak spot. 

“I heard she's knocked up,” she spits. “Tell me, does Zuzu even bother to fuck you? Or is it just too painful, knowing you’ll never be the woman he loves?” 

The sting in your chest subsides the moment she speaks, the rest of her scathing going unheard as you look her dead in the eye, suddenly unmoved by the attack.

“How do you know that?” you murmur. 

Azula’s face falls. She doesn’t avert her gaze, but instead locks it with yours, frozen as if debating whether or not to admit defeat. It doesn’t matter if she does or not - she’s stabbed herself in the gut.

“How do you know Katara is pregnant?” you ask again. 

You pace forward, pushing back on the way she attempted to close you in with her criticism. Her poisonous grin once again makes a comeback, this time accompanied by a cackle as sharp as a spearhead. 

“You’re in far too deep, little girl,” she lilts. “All of you are. None of you can see the danger that’s been in front of you all your lives.” 

“Tell me what you know,” you command. “If you do, we might be persuaded not to execute you.” 

Azula huffs, tossing her head back as her laughter continues. By this point, the guards standing in the room’s corners have converged on her, taking her by the arms to hold her still; she doesn’t fight, instead leaning into their grip as if the touch is welcoming. 

“Zuzu could never bring himself to kill me,” she jeers. “Sniveling little cad he is. The world isn’t perfect because the war is over, and you’re a fool if you think that my grandfathers were the only men to ever destroy for the sake of their hate. Everyone has evil in them - some of us are just smart enough to embrace it.” 

As she growls out her last words, the guards drag her from the room, her laughter subsiding but her hideous, manic grin remaining splattered across her cheeks. The door slams as she's carried away, and you’re left with nothing but the looming silence of terror and dread. 

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