#and Zuko is a person! his uncle cares about him! he has honor!

[magpie-trove]

I know everyone holds up Zuko’s redemption arc as gold standard but the thing is…it kind of is…..

[burst-of-iridescent]

I hate when people say(*writers*) when zuko is an emo bad boy. When zuko acts "emo" and "badboy" as they say it's him reacting to his trauma and abuse as a kid(most of time. Zuko is still badass. But badboy no). Is it an excuse? No. But when zuko is acting that way in canon, his obsession with honor, his yelling, his moodiness, his short temper. That is the product of having his empathy literally beaten/burned out of him by his father(and mocked and emotionally abused by Azula). The reason Zuko is doing this whole thing is because he wants to please his father. Become someone he's not. His struggle of who his father wants to be with who he is. It's because of the abuse of his father and his family. As the series goes on you get more and more flashes of the person Zuko was and the person he can become. By the end of the series it's such a great contrast and Zuko is much more happier because he's with the gaang. His family. He got out of that abusive situation he was in and finally became himself. A dorky, empathetic, caring, skilled swords men, a balanced person. Does he still have moments of anger? Yes. But over all Zuko becomes a fully balanced person.

gasp! but if we don't call zuko a bad boy, however will we make sure people don't get any ideas about shipping him with katara?

jokes aside, you're absolutely right and i roll my eyes so hard when people point to bad things zuko did, or his behaviour pre-redemption as indisputable proof of the kind of person he'd be post-redemption. like you said, a lot of zuko's actions and mannerisms before day of black sun is a direct result of the trauma he suffered, and though that doesn't excuse him - and neither does the show allow it to - discounting it entirely is to erase the abuse zuko endured and how that shaped him.

using the first half of book 3 as evidence of zuko being a supposed bad boy irks me in particular because a) the narrative makes it pretty clear that this is zuko as the worst version of himself, the opposite of everything he actually is and could be, and b) he is stuck in an abusive household at the mercy of his abusers, in an actively life-threatening situation.

zuko knows that he is in a situation where he has no real agency, freedom or control. he knows that aang is alive, that azula has turned him into a scapegoat and that his life will be forfeit if his father finds out the truth. that is an incredibly terrifying and stressful situation to be put in and it's worsened by the fact that he can't even admit it - not just because doing so would mean accepting that he gave up everything that actually mattered in the catacombs to gain nothing in return, but also because no one around him will allow him to do so.

his girlfriend can't understand his experiences or his turmoil and doesn't seem to particularly want to, brushing off his anxieties and encouraging him to stay the course. he is manipulated by his father and gaslighted by his sister, aware deep down that he is entirely under their control and that they have a vested interest in keeping him helpless, yet forced to pretend as though nothing is wrong. he is isolated from the one person who could help - his uncle - physically and emotionally, both because visiting iroh puts zuko in danger, and because zuko's choices have created a rift in their relationship.

all of this compounds the psychological stress zuko is experiencing, forcing him into a constant state of fight-or-flight, and this context is vital to understanding many of the decisions he makes and how he behaves in the first half of book 3.

(this is why i don't agree with the take that hiring combustion man is an ooc moment for zuko because even though i think the idea of combustion man himself is stupid - not to mention disrespectful to the hindu origins it's pulling from - it's a fundamentally desperate move, and zuko at this point is more desperate than he's ever been.)

that's why it's unlikely that zuko post-redemption would behave similarly since many of the factors that contributed to his anger, hostility and moodiness would no longer exist! judging zuko's future behaviour based on a time when he was constantly abused, gaslighted and threatened is just not an accurate or fair means of measurement, especially since we know what he's like at his best. the zuko we see with the gaang still has a bit of a short fuse, sure, but he's also sincere, honest, awkward, shy and far happier than he's ever been. because shocker, people tend not to act the same way in healthy, supportive environments as they do in abusive, traumatic ones. who would've thought?

people who make this argument also usually tend to compare zuko to aang, especially to glorify how aang remains cheerful and peaceful despite his trauma, and... no. just no. first of all, the show barely gives a fuck about developing aang's trauma the way it does zuko's so of course it seems to affect him less, and secondly, there's something to be said about how trauma responses like aang's are a lot more palatable and comfortable for audiences than responses like zuko's, or even katara's in the southern raiders.

anger or moodiness, or wanting to punish the people who hurt you, are not inherently wrong ways to react when you've been wronged and traumatized. praising aang for remaining cheerful and forgiving while calling zuko a bad boy for being angry and moody implies a sense of moral superiority that comes with reacting to trauma in the "right" way, which is both inaccurate and insensitive.

zuko will never be aang, and that's fine. he doesn't have to be. he ends the show reclaiming everything his abusers tried to take from him, having found himself and his destiny, in a place of healing that is all his own. that is an incredibly meaningful and powerful narrative, and the last thing zuko deserves is to have all of his complexity and development stripped just to be reduced to the tired trope of a "bad boy" when he was never one in the first place.

[zuko-always-lies]

Azula's Strong Emotional Empathy Skills

Often times, people assume that Azula is bad at empathy, or at least emotional empathy. However, I would dispute that, and argue that her compassionate empathy skills in particular are actually extremely strong and off the chart, at least when it involves someone she cares about.

ATLA gives several examples of Azula showing off her empathy skills. The first comes in "The Crossroads of Destiny":

Azula: We've done it, Zuko. It's taken a hundred years, but the Fire Nation has conquered Ba Sing Se. Zuko: I betrayed Uncle. Azula: No, he betrayed you. [She stands up from the throne.] Zuko, when you return home, Father will welcome you as a war hero. Zuko: But I don't have the Avatar. What if Father doesn't restore my honor? Azula: He doesn't need to, Zuko. [She puts a hand on Zuko's shoulder.] Today, you restored your own honor.

She notices Zuko is uneasy, and does a pretty good, if not entirely successful job trying to reassure him and make him feel better.

Next we come to "The Awakening":

[Meanwhile, back at the Fire Nation Capital, Zuko feeds turtle ducks in a lake with some bread. Azula joins him.] Azula: You seem so downcast. Has Mai gotten to you already? Though actually, Mai has been in a strangely good mood lately. Zuko: I haven't seen Dad yet. I haven't seen him in three years, since I was banished. Azula: So what? Zuko: So, I didn't capture the Avatar. Azula: Who cares? The Avatar is dead … [Zuko looks away.] unless you think he somehow miraculously survived.

It's easy to miss out on this with where the scene ends up going, but what's actually the inciting reason for the scene to happen in the first place is that Azula knows Zuko is out of sorts, and wants to reassure him. She knows exactly where he is likely to go when he's sad or anxious, the turtleduck ponds which reminds him of Ursa, and easily finds him there. However, in her attempts to reassure him, she begins to suspect that he's hiding something from her, and the scene gets derailed.

Next up is "The Beach":

Zuko: [Cut to closer view of Zuko and Mai. Angrily.] Doing nothing is a waste of time. [Rises from his seat next to Mai.] We're being sent away on a forced vacation. [Walks over and grips the railing of the boat.] I feel like a child. Azula: [Frontal view.] Lighten up. So Dad wants to meet with his advisors alone, without anyone else around. Don't take it personally.

Azula instantly tries to reassure Zuko here, although she's less skillful about it than in some other cases.

Next up is the famous "Azula apologizes to Ty Lee" scene. As I've argued elsewhere, Azula is very skillful in comforting Ty Lee there. She knows exactly what she needs to say and do to make Ty Lee feel better.

Then, after Zuko gets kicked out of the party, we get this scene

Azula: I thought I'd find you here. Zuko: [Side-view.] Those summers we spent here seem so long ago. So much has changed. Azula: Come down to the beach with me. Come on. This place is depressing.

Azula's empathy is really impressive here. She apparently not only realized that Zuko would end up in a bad funk and cared enough to do something about it, but she also knew exactly where he would go in his depressed emotional state.

We then have the famous "fireside" scene. Azula isn't always the nicest person here, but her ability to understand the emotions of others is on full display:

Zuko: [Turning around.] For so long I thought that if my dad accepted me, I'd be happy. I'm back home now, my dad talks to me. Ha! He even thinks I'm a hero. [Close-up of Azula, who smiles.] Everything should be perfect, right? [Aerial view of campsite.] I should be happy now, but I'm not. [Turning back to the others.] I'm angrier than ever and I don't know why!

Azula:[Frontal view.] There's a simple question you need to answer, then. Who are you angry at? Zuko: [Close-up.] No one. I'm just angry. Mai [Side-view of the three girls.] Yeah, who are you angry at, Zuko? Zuko: [Close-up.] Everyone. I don't know. [Becoming frustrated.] Azula: [Frontal view.] Is it Dad? Zuko: [Close-up.] No, no. Ty Lee: [Frontal view.] Your uncle? Azula: Me? Zuko: [Close-up.] No, no, n-no, no! Mai: [Close-up.] Then who? Who are you angry at? Azula: [Camera pans left, past Ty Lee, to Azula.] Answer the question, Zuko. Ty Lee: [Close-up.] Talk to us. Mai: [Extreme close-up.] Come on, answer the question. Azula: Come on, answer it.

Finally, we have this scene from Nightmares and Daydreams:

Azula: Hello, Zuzu. If you've come for a royal hair-combing, I'm afraid you'll have to wait. Zuko: So I guess there's a big war meeting coming up, huh? And apparently I'm not welcome there. Azula: What do you mean? Of course you're welcome there! Zuko: Oh, yeah?! I guess that's why no one bothered to tell me about it! Azula: Oh, Zuko. Don't be so dramatic. I'm certain Dad wants you there. You probably just weren't invited because it's so obvious you're supposed to be there. Zuko: Well, were you invited? Azula: Of course! I'm the princess. Zuko: And I'm the prince! Azula: Exactly, so stop acting like a paranoid child! Just go to the meeting. Zuko: Forget it! I'm not going!

Although Azula instantly moves to try to comfort Zuko, this is in many ways her least successful scene. She struggles to contain her frustration with Zuko's behavior.

Still, overall Azula displays an impressive record, and shows very strong compassionate empathy skills. However, it's only toward the people she's close to, as she has no reason to display them toward enemies.

[zutarasbuff]

My connection with Zuko & Zutara

I’ve always been so passionate about Zuko and the way his character has layers of complexity within the show. It is said that art inspires life. People often accuse Zuko stans of “having a lustful attitude toward a fictional character as the girls simply want him for his looks”. I believe it’s not the case. This is something I have always kept in my heart.

My reasons for being a part of the Zuko fandom are not just based on the show but on a personal level as well. Zuko helped me in coping with some of my worst nightmares, the trials that I believe were the hardest. One of my friends mocked my idea of Zuko as being too much obsessed with a fictional character. According to her, this was not normal and I should have gone to a therapist but I have seen the real world. I have seen how cruel the reality is, and in those moments it was his character that provided me comfort and strength.

Back when I was a child, I watched the season first and fell in love with the concept of “bending”. Honestly, at that time, I hated Zuko because of his mad hunt for Aang and the gang. I always wanted him to fail because, in my eyes, it was always Aang who was going to save the day (being the hero). As I grew up, I watched the season again and this time I looked at Zuko from a different perspective. It was something that I now noticed. I noticed how similar Zuko was to me because both of us had experienced the absence of our mothers in a very young age and this kept the trauma alive throughout our lives. In the show, we find that Zuko was emotionally abused by his father to be someone he didn’t want to be. I had gone through the same experience when I was always considered “not good enough as a daughter” no matter what I did to please my father.

Just like Zuko, I always had questions in my mind why did my mother leave me and where she was at the moment? Just like him it also turned me into a bitter person, a person who had a hard time trusting someone with all their heart. I looked at him and his struggle. Zuko is always ridiculed for his quest to “redeem his honor”, but the truth is if you have ever walked in his shoes, you will be able to find out that all he wanted was to be loved and accepted by his father because he had an absent parent. It is natural for a child to want the attention of a parent especially when one of the parents is absent. He did everything for Ozai. Just the way I made my career choices based on Papa’s willingness. I felt a strange connection with Zuko because both of us were the same. You will find that the hard shell of Zuko starts breaking when someone shows the slightest concern of care or love toward him. This is the sole reason why Zuko always pretends to be a cruel guy because he’s broken on the inside. He doesn’t want to give someone a chance to play with his emotions and make him vulnerable again because he knows the cost of it from his traumatic past.

This is how broken people are. I have gone through the same phase and in doing so I believe I must have hurt people who were kind like Mai and Uncle Iroh were to Zuko. It’s because people like us are afraid of falling in love and showing the slightest traces of weakness. We act strong because we have fought our demons hard. We are afraid of turning out to be the horrible version of our parents. Even Zuko kept on fearing that he might turn up to be like Ozai after being the Firelord. It’s because all his trauma, his hurt, his unspoken emotions, and his pain were still there and he knew it wouldn’t change.

As a lover, we find that he tries to save Mai from being blamed as the girlfriend of a banished prince, and for this reason, he breaks up but never forgets to care about her. As a person, who was broken in more than one way, I have done the same in the past. I built my walls so high so that no one could get hurt by my harshness, and my demons but even after that I never forgot to care for the people who were significant to me, because people like us know the consequences of inflicting hurt upon someone very well. Zuko to me is the guy who if was real would have understood me and people like me.

I know it might seem a bit bizarre to several people here, but I think I love this fictional person from the core of my heart because I know his traumas, his pain, and his hurt. It’s not easy to pretend that you are fine when you are clearly not okay. I love him because I believe that he would be the only person in the world who had an idea of my heart and traumas. When I ship him with Katara, I have this idea in my mind that she is the other person who lost her mother had issues with her father, and pretended to be happy despite all that she went through. Maybe it comes off as a selfish declaration but as a person who has gone through worse in life, somewhere in Katara I see a version of myself who is angry, hurt, and still feels safe with someone like him. I wish if a parallel world existed, both of them could end up together there, and get all the happiness they have always deserved.

[zvtara-was-never-canon]

Your thoughts on this? Anti maikos seem so convinced lol

"He vallues his sense of honor/morals/what's right over his relationship with Mai" HOW IS THAT BAD????????? Uncle Iroh gave Zuko the cold shoulder after the Ba Sing Se fiasco, does that mean he does not love Zuko? To properly show you love someone you can't have a mind and voice of your own?

This person is either 13-years-old or the kind that doesn't understand not every romance in fiction needs to be "I'll give up on literally EVERYTHING ELSE just for you" - hell, I like that kind of romance a lot, but not all love stories need to be that.

That's part of what makes Maiko feel more realistic as a romance to me. Zuko was banished and had to see a different side of the world, Mai wasn't. Zuko is a person that naturally NEEDS to speak, or shout, his mind, while Mai was taught to basically blend into the background.

Of course they're gonna have disagreements. Of course they won't always be on the same page. Of course their idea of what their relationship and life, both as couple and individuals, should be like.

That doesn't mean they can't find a middle ground, or realize the other was right, or go "I have no fucking clue why this means so much to you, but I love you and trust your judgement."

Zuko and Mai had a ton of issues, but they worked through them - that's a far more solid foundation for a relationship, both IRL and in fiction, than one that is based purely on infactuation and never has to be tested.

As for the "he broke up with her over-text" come on, he had good reason. Mai had never given any indication that she wanted to change sides and was friends with Azula. If Zuko broke up with her in person she could have done something to try and stop him. He couldn't aford that - there's a reason he only confronted Ozai at the last second, with the fucker unable to firebend.

And for him "never sparing a thought for her" - we see the flashbacks of Zuko alone that clearly foreshadow their romance. It was HIS memories. He had not seen her in at least 3 whole years yet the time his sister pulled a prank on them both to embarass Mai for having a crush on him still stuck. He also brought her up when talking to Sokka, when he didn't know he was about to see her again.

Zuko didn't bring up Aang basically offering to be his friends in book 1 for the longest time, yet he still clearly remembered it. He did not bring up Azula until the season 1 finale, but he clearly remembered he had a sister. He never explicitly talked about his mother to ANYONE until the day of the eclipse, and we only see her in two episodes, and once again none of it was in book 1, but he still clearly loved her.

The characters don't need to bring up everything that is important to them in every single episode to show that they care because good stories tend to assume the audience doesn't have amnesia.

[fiber-optic-alligator]

I don’t even know that much about atla but

Give me your giant zuko thoughts 👀

(Only if you’re comfortable with sharing ofc!)

OH I’VE BEEN WAITING TO YAP ABOUT THIS

Don’t worry, I’m completely comfortable with sharing! I love sharing G/T thoughts about characters, I don’t mind at all! Thank you for asking though!

Okay okay, so I’m going to be assuming you know the basics of Zuko’s story, but long story short, he goes from being a typical antagonist for the heroes to having one of the best written redemption arcs in entertainment history (in my opinion). So I feel things would go differently based on which version of Zuko you’re dealing with.

Something to keep in mind though is that a prime quality of Zuko’s character that sticks with him through the entire series is that he isn’t cruel. Yes he has a temper, and yes he can be violent, but it has always been shown that he is an extremely empathetic person with a good heart.

Book One Zuko might be a handful to deal with. He's angry, he has a one-track mind, and his temper is at the highest it will ever be. If you're a tiny under his care, I'd say steer clear of him when possible and don't ever try to get him mad. That being said, I fully believe he'd never hurt you. Book One Zuko cares A LOT about honor, and he'd probably see harming someone that's so much smaller than him as an act of cowardice. That doesn't mean he'll be very gentle with you. He'll rough you up a bit and you definitely will at times be fearing for your life, but he knows limits and he'd never put you in serious danger (Possible vore scenarios are spiraling in my brain). So basically, LOTS of fearplay and dealing with an angsty teenager with daddy issues.

Book Two Zuko would be...better. He's a banished prince traveling the Earth Kingdom with severe identity issues, but in doing so, he's learning more about himself and who he is meant to be. His gentler side comes out more during these travels, so you'd be exposed to less anger and more awkwardness. I don't think he'd know what to do with a tiny during this time in his life because this softer side of him really starts to show itself and he'd probably be terrified of scaring you. He doesn't want to scare people anymore; he doesn't even know what he wants for himself. I'd say that if you're dealing with Book Two Zuko, you'll get a better experience than Book One, but he'll be more disinterested because of what he is going through. He'll probably hand you off to Uncle Iroh or someone he trusts.

Book Three Zuko would arguably be the best to encounter. He's really mellowed out and is more in tune with where he wants his future to go, and his time with Team Avatar really allows him to fall back into a more gentle, empathetic temperament. If he were to find a tiny, he'd probably be very awkward and flustered at first, but then he'd immediately get onto your level and try to talk to you. If your scared of him, he expects it, and he'll try his best to calm you down. I can definitely see him being as soft as possible with his tone and words. If it takes quite a while to reassure you though, his short temper will show through, and he might grow frustrated and snap at you. Of course, he'd feel awful about it afterward. If this is the case, he'd spend as much time as possible trying to gain your trust. There's no way you're leaving his mind, and he'd keep making small gradual advancements until he can convince you he won't hurt you and your safe with him. After that, I think he'd be VERY protective. I could see him wanting to shelter you a lot, whether by holding you, letting you ride on his shoulder, or even allowing you to sit atop his head. He'd fight fiercely to keep you safe, but if you are fully capable of defending yourself, he won't smother you. Zuko is protective, but not clingy. He'd recognize that you are a person worthy of your own autonomy and independence, and he's not going to infringe on that (Again, so many possible vore scenarios here).

I could say so so much more, but then this would be an insufferably long post lol. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to write my brainrot about this silly guy down. Zuko is one of my all-time favorite characters, and I really want to write a g/t story with him. I know I'm primarily a Transformers blog, but there are so many other characters from different franchises I'd love to write about too! Maybe I'll make a generic g/t side blog for that kind of stuff :)

[agendertoph]

In ep 7, "The Spirit World", we get the first direct parallel that Aang n Zuko have in common, n that is that both of them care more about their friends than their greater mission

We know that Aang has lots of anxieties regarding being the Avatar, n we know he's also anxious to find any type of teacher to help him in his journey. Who would be his ultimate teacher is Roku, as told by his father figure Gyatso. So we know just how much Aang wants to talk to Roku. And Fang even showed him they can talk in a few days!!!

And yet! Aang doesn't wait around to be able to talk who could be his ultimate guide on all things Avatar. He tells Fang to take him back to save Sokka, one of his two best friends

Interesting to note that in this ep, Zuko is also, by circumstance, thrust into a quest to look for his uncle. Even without the advantage of foresight during this rewatch, we can definitely tell that Uncle Iroh is the most important person in Zuko's life, or better yet, the only person he cares enough for to deem as being important. That's why he didn't leave Iroh when he said he would, and even went out of his way to track Iroh down. We also know how much value Zuko puts into both the Avatar and his honor – one can't exist without the other in his mind, plus we've already seen him take detours in order to hunt the Avatar down

Yet still, even when presented with the possibility of being close to and capturing the Avatar, Zuko instead decides that rescuing Iroh is more important than that

Aang and Zuko are both choosing their very real relationships to the people around them before chasing after their desired immaterial goals (Aang n his desire for guidance/enlightenment, Zuko n his desire for respect/recognition)

[mugentakeda]

as soon as ursa registered that the person that just stepped into the garden was a messenger dressed in white, she knew her nephew was dead.

he'd only departed for ba sing se a few weeks ago. she'd gotten one hawk from him while he was still on his way to the faraway city- passionate descriptions about the beautiful earth kingdom terrain and scenery, his nervousness and dread, how much he already missed the kids and her and home.

she already knew he didn't want to go. just a month shy of 600 days did lu ten manage to hold off on joining his father in his divine quest, to get the capital of the earth kingdom to finally surrender. holding strong to his decision, despite pressure and badgering from every direction. ursa never cared. she knew ozai cared, firelord azulon cared, the whole council and nobility cared- but ursa has always cursed the council and nobility anyway. she knows her nephew's heart is true and hardworking even if he's not the most open about his patriotism, and knows that he's always been stubborn and independent. spirits, if she was a prince, she isn't sure that she'd want to spend her first big military venture in her father's shadow either. iroh had respected his son's wishes without a fight, just like ursa knew her honorable brother-in-law would, and left for ba sing se alone. that should've been the end of that.

azula told her (rather sourly) that the strange navy fellow that lu ten had been peers with while training under admiral jeong jeong managed to convince him otherwise. how, her daughter wasn't sure, and wasn't pleased. ursa had asked lu ten about it not much later, easily confessing to her nephew that she heard through the lychee-grape vine that he'd changed his mind about ba sing se- but he'd been cagey and evasive, and offered no real explanation. the evening later, he promptly announced at dinner that he'd be departing from the fire nation in the next couple days to join his father. and looked like he wanted to vomit afterwards, as firelord azulon put a weathered hand on his shoulder and shook him with satisfaction. she waited up late that night, praying he'd sneak to her chambers, so they could discuss the matter in whispers. but he never showed.

ursa had found him early the next morning, before agni even peeked over the horizon, tending to his beloved jogekama yari.

he sat up straight at the sound of her footsteps on the tile, and sighed heavily. as usual, lu ten knew it was his aunt without looking (unbeknownst to ursa, over the previous years, he'd been memorizing the sound of everyone in the family's footsteps. that way, he could mentally prepare himself for the interaction- lest the footsteps belong to ozai.).

I don't feel like being interrogated right now, auntie, he'd muttered. the young prince didn't sound angry, but terribly drained, and terribly defeated. the days where she could take one look at him and know exactly what was going through his head were long gone, sadly.

i'm sorry, she'd replied sadly. I just wanted to make sure you were truly alright. because… well, ever since I married your uncle….

his face pinched and he looked back down at his spear in silence. the hot morning air was heavy with foreboding. the rest went unspoken, as such things usually do in this suffocating palace they both call home. I think of you as my own.

she'd watched him grow up. she'd been there when his voice dropped, when he started growing sideburns, when he came home from shu jing armed with a mighty staff and bursting in pride, when the first sparks of lightning erupted from his hands and he made history. lu ten had been the only one to check in on her after she gave birth to zuko, and then the same with azula. he held them in his arms before ozai did. he'd been the one to choose azula's wet nurse when ursa was too sickened and depressed to eat well enough to breastfeed her baby girl. he was the one present for azula's first words and first steps- which is all now a secret between them that he's literally taken to the grave. her children's big brother in spirit, ursa's little brother and son from another mother.

the hands clutching the scroll tremble in despair and rage. what will happen now? her only teammate is gone. the one person in the whole world that truly went out of his way to look out for her and hers is gone. i'm not strong enough to hold him off on my own, my nephew, she thinks.

ursa bites the inside of her cheek until it bleeds to quell the tears welling up. you won't ever see him again. you're going to have to get used to living without him. he's never coming home. his father didn't keep him safe. it's over.

[balanceoflightanddark]

"And the less said about Dimitri, the King of Faerghus, the better."

What exactly do you mean by that? Not asking in an angry way, I'm just genuinely curious. Your Edelgard analysis was really well done. This line just stuck out to me is all.

...sighs...

I'll be perfectly honest, I am the last person qualified to be talking about Dimitri. See...I'm not exactly his biggest fan. At all. In fact in a lot of ways, I sort of see him the same way I see Zuko from the comics which I have talked about at length before.

But, I will attempt to be as civil as I can. Just letting everyone know ahead of time so we all know what to expect.

Alright.

Dimitri is in many ways the opposite of Edelgard. Whereas Edelgard is extremely controversial within the fandom, Dimitri is lionized (heh) by large parts of the fandom. Mainly, since he's Edelgard's rival (for lack of better terms), he's seen as the "hero".

And he is certainly presented that way. His story and route are the most classical narrative possible. A crown prince disgraced from his kingdom returns to take back his thrown from usurpers and bring peace to his land. He even gets to kill a monster (Hegemon Edelgard) at the end of his route. It's a familiar story which a lot of people can latch onto.

...the problem is that Dimitri acts as a sort of deconstruction of this kind of character. If Edelgard is the villain who is virtuous, then Dimitri is the hero who is morally bankrupt.

Now he doesn't begin this way, of course. He starts out as the head of the Blue Lions class in Garreg Mach, one of the classes you could end up teaching. He starts out as the classical prince. You know, caring about taking the throne. Wanting to restore honor to Faerghus. That sort of thing.

Well like Edelgard, he has a very dark past.

Dimitri is the sole survivor of an incident known as the Tragedy of Duscur, which resulted in the deaths of the entire Royal Family aside from him. Needless to say, he has a lot of baggage. Particularly against the Flame Emperor who masterminded the whole thing.

So when he finds out that Edelgard is the Flame Emperor well...

It's not too pretty.

When the war breaks out, he gives sanctuary to the Archbishop and the Knights and is basically all hellbent on putting Edelgard's head on a pike to avenge his family's deaths. Alright fair enough.

...there's just one problem. Edelgard wasn't responsible for the massacre since she was just a child at the time. It was her uncle who was the Flame Emperor at the time and masterminded the whole thing. Further complicating things is that Edelgard doesn't even have much beef with Dimitri to begin with. She's after the Church. So when Dimitri allies with the Church, he just dragged Faerghus and his whole people into the war for a chance at vengeance.

And he's pretty much driven by this need for vengeance during his phase as "the Boar King". It's here when...uh...he becomes pretty reprehensible. He tortures his prisoners, he goes on and on about butchering his enemies, and he treats his troops like absolute garbage. One of his most notable quotes is when he basically says he's going to use his people until the flesh falls right off their bones.

While it could be argued that this was before his redemption during AM or AG in Hopes and he does become a bit better before his route ends...he's still not the king that his people needs at the end of his story. For one, he upholds the Crest System in his ending, which I've delved into and basically said was downright abusive and encourages instability. The Church who enforced this system is still in power. We don't even see him dealing with TWSITD, since he lets them go during the last battle so he can deal with Edelgard. Mind you, Edelgard DID have a plan to deal with TWSITD once the war was over. Effectively, this whole mess can easily start again. Something that's reflected in a lot of the AM endings since there's a lot of widespread rebellion and fighting once he takes the throne.

What's worse, he enforces the traditions of Faerghus because "they're all they have left"...even though Faerghus's traditions emphasize warriors and militarism to the point it resembles Sparta in terms of brutality. Hell, it's part of the reason why Dimitri's so violent since he's a product of his environment. Doesn't justify a damn thing he did, but you at least understand where he came from. Which makes it galling that he lays the seeds for another Boar King to happen.

The only thing I can say about Dimitri is...I'm pretty sure his character was deliberate. In any other route he gets killed off swearing vengeance against his enemies and trying to continue to cut a bloody swathe through Fodlan. In many ways, he works as a deconstruction of that classical hero. Avenging his family becomes a rampage of revenge where more families suffer. He retakes the throne, but does not ensure peace. And his "villain" turns out to be the wrong person in the grand scheme of things. I feel Dimitri works best as a hero gone horribly wrong. Something that I feel that a lot of people overlook and are willing to whitewash him into being the true "hero" who brought democracy to Fodlan.

Which...he didn't.

[thecarnivorousmuffinmeta]

Do you think Zuko and Katara would work as a couple?

The last time I spoke about Zutara in relation to fandoms at large.

It'd have to be AU.

It's not impossible, I've seen great fics, and the characters do have traits they admire in one another and a lot of screentime alone in canon.

However, given canon, I'm not shocked it didn't work out for a number of reasons.

Canon

In season 1, Zuko's very clearly an antagonist and Katara meets him when he terrorizes her defenseless village in search of the Avatar who is in fact a child himself. He then hounds them across the globe, representing the Evil Empire, trying to snuff out the one last hope for the world for reasons Katara simply cannot understand. Add onto this that he kidnaps her one time, fights her in the North Pole where he kidnaps Aang when he's helpless and takes him into the tundra (where Aang may uh die), and they're not getting off on a good foot.

Katara may have been into Jet, resident bad boy, but she liked him when he was a bad boy for her cause and giving the Fire Nation what for. She was horrified when it turned out he was a tad bit unhinged and planning to massacre civilians.

On Zuko's end, Katara and Sokka are the annoying water tribe peasants who hang around the Avatar. They're useful in that the Avatar clearly cares about them and they're weaker benders/non-benders (making them easier to kidnap and things) but he has his Avatar blinders on so doesn't really care much beyond that.

Season 2, the Gaang is confused when it seems they have a new and more terrifying hunter (Azula) and Zuko and his uncle seem to uh not be on her side maybe. However, Zuko's still fighting Aang at this point which means a big old no from Katara. We then get to Ba Sing Se, when both are kidnapped, and here we have our shining moment. Katara offers to heal Zuko's scar, they talk about their past and Zuko about how he's given up and is redeemed and a fugitive of the Fire Nation, and Katara wants to believe in him.

However, he immediately stabs her in the back, helping his sister to nearly kill Aang, betraying his uncle in front of them, all for the chance to go home and be redeemed.

After that, Katara canonically is very clearly done with this man. She vaguely tolerates him when Aang takes him on as a teacher but very clearly doesn't trust him and only slightly thaws after their murder adventure together.

Zuko, for his own part, seems to feel awkward around Katara and then terrified after the murder adventure as uh... he knows he did bad and there isn't an easy way to make them believe he's super good for real this time. Last time didn't count, guys. He's mostly trying to get in her good books and not in a way that will lead to a realtionship.

(And add onto that that Zuko has his thing with Mai, Mai ends up imprisoned because of him, and that Katara has her thing with Aang and it gets very messy).

But it Could Happen

If you diverge early, or have a very AU world, then it might work out. Granted, part of Zuko's character is focusing on restoring his honor, which is mutually exclusive to all of Katara's ideals. It would feel--weird and cheap if Zuko defected early and I think it was a key part of his character that he did get a chance to get his honor restored and realized that it wasn't what he wanted and his family is terrible.

Similarly, if Katara's more understanding of Zuko's position... Well, that's not who she is as a character and from her perspective what's there to be understanding of. Zuko is literally trying to murder the Avatar or else imprison him for life and doom the world: where is the good in that?

So, I can't tell you where, when, and how would be a good point of divergence. However, I don't think as personalities they're unshippable, I think there is a lot there, it's just not inclined to happen given who they are and where they come from.

[maikingsenseofit]

The problem with Zutara: Katara through the lens of Zuko

In this last part, we debunked the claims that a lot of the symbolism and imagery in the show represented Zvtara, when they very clearly paralleled Kataang. The next part of this meta addresses claims that Zuko and Katara knew each other and cared for each other more than their canonical partners, and I couldn’t wait to get into this. You see, on a surface level and with very cherry picked scenes, anyone can try and make that case. And I’m not going to deny the significance of their eventual beautiful friendship. However let’s analyze how much Zuko and Katara really understood each other, and if they really cared for one another or made a better fit for each other more than Mai or Aang. I’ll be referencing common Anti-Maiko/Anti-Kataang arguments here.

During the Crossroads of Destiny episode, we witness something remarkable. Two people, torn apart by a war, brought together by circumstance. And Katara does something even more amazing, for the first time she sees Zuko not as an enemy, but as a boy whose circumstances have taken a great toll on him too. He’s not just the face of the enemy. He lost his mother too. And she does something even more incredible, she offers to heal Zuko’s scar with her precious spirit water, even though he had wronged her and her friends, chased them relentlessly, almost killed them sverral times, taunted her over a precious token from her mom, you get the story. So despite having no obligations, she reaches out and takes a chance on him.

They’re eventually pulled apart. Katara later realizes that her efforts and empathy did not mean anything to Zuko, as despite it all, he still sides with his sister in an effort to gain his precious honor. Meaning, contrary to popular belief, that at this moment he did not care enough about Katara to choose her amity over his personal quest. Hell, he thought betraying his own uncle was worth it in the quest for honor. So why is this important?

Because not once when Zuko returns to the fire nation, does he express any guilt over betraying Katara personally. Not once do we see him take the second to remember the pain he inflicted upon her, which is even more poignant because she was the first person to trust him, to broach that divide across enemy lines, and to offer something so precious to her to heal him. We see Zuko agonize about betraying his uncle throughout his time, but not Katara. Sure, he was in anguish over trying to be someone he wasn’t in the fire nation, but the audience never once sees Zuko remember or mention the water tribe girl through the lens of her significant act of bravery and compassion. Even more, he only remembers their interaction in the context of how the Avatar could be alive - and how this further jeopardizes his position as Ozai’s son.

So much for thinking about the water tribe girl who put herself at risk to help you, huh Zuko. (Btw I’m not actually hating on him and nor do I think this makes him a bad character or bad fit with Mai, I’m just pointing out some glaring misconceptions about how he thinks of Katara)

And this becomes all the more evident when Katara doesn’t immediately accept him into the group. Zuko is actually bewildered by the fact that she doesn’t become friends with him as immediately as the rest of the Gaang. But the cherry on top is when Zuko has the audacity to get upset and frustrated with Katara, exclaiming

“This isn't fair. Everyone else seems to trust me now. What is it with you?”

It’s here. Plain as day and written in text. Zuko could not even remember the most pivotal aspect of the start of his relationship with Katara, the one that shippers claim has even more poignance and development than any scene from the canon ships. What Katara is so clearly hurt and impacted by, so much so that she was the only one to initially remain distrustful of Zuko when everyone else wasnt, and constantly verbalized that distrust - did not even hold the same weight to Zuko. It was a fleeting moment to him on his journey to find and redeem himself, but represented everything to Katara. And it shows on her face and in her words when she says this next:

And the cherry on top of the cherry on top of this is that when Zuko enters Sokka’s tent, he STILL can’t fathom why Katara hates him.

Zuko: Your sister, she hates me! And I don't know why! But I do care what she thinks of me.

WAIT. DIDNT Zuko JUST hear Katara when she said he betrayed the precious trust she placed in him? How his actions led to her witnessing the death (and revival) of her best friend? How he relentlessly attacked her in the cave after almost immediately forgetting her compassion? And it must be asked at this moment why Zuko cares about what Katara thinks of him. Because even At this point, he still fails to acknowledge the extent that his actions had on her.

Had Katara never taken the chance to verbalize her feelings, Zuko would have carried on with the Gaang, not being aware of or having more remorse over his personal betrayal to Katara. Would Zuko have come to this realization himself if Katara never explicitly told him? If it didn’t impede his ability to form a strong alliance with everyone in the Gaang in order to work together to take down Ozai?

And that’s when I become puzzled over statements like “Zuko cared about Katara and understood her on a way deeper level than Aang ever did.” Because what we see her is quite the opposite of that. Zuko only remembered Katara’s spirit water and how it put a wrench in his plans, but couldn’t remember Katara herself. He couldn’t couldn’t recall his betrayal of her in the cave, couldn’t understand her initial hatred even after she pointed it out, and used the opportunity to hunt her mother’s killer to redeem himself in her eyes. Something that would have never happened until the narrative called for it.

Speaking of the last part, the other common Zvtara argument I see is “Zuko understood Katara’s pain and allowed her to feel it. Aang shut it down.”

At this point it’s becoming a game of selective ignorance. Because the shippers will claim that “Aang compared something as serious as Kya’s death to the trivial temporary loss of an animal” without acknowledging the literal next thing he says, which is:

“How do you think I felt about the Fire Nation when I found out what happened to my people?”

Which IS a fair comparison. Aang mentions the genocide of his family to empathize with Katara’s loss of her mother.

And they also pretend that Aang shut Katara down completely in order to force his values down her throat and discourage her from going on the trip, which is in blatant ignorance of when Aang says this:

“I wasn't planning to. This is a journey you need to take. You need to face this man. [Katara situates herself on Appa's head.] But when you do, please don't choose revenge. Let your anger out, and then let it go. Forgive him.”

And Yeah, Katara chose not to forgive her mothers killer. As she should. But let’s not forget what she does at the end, which is to let her anger out and then let it go. She ultimately did not choose revenge. And Aang knows this.

Because Aang witnessed Katara cry in regret when she learned about blood bending, something Zuko never witnessed. And he knows the toll that killing a person would take on Katara, someone who is inherently compassionate and wishes to see the good in everyone. Who was willing to put aside the injustices she faced at the hands of the Fire Nation to truly help the enemy she had every right to hate, like how she helped the village as the Painted Lady and reached out to Zuko in the cave. Something else Zuko never truly grasps till much later, because why else was it so hard for him to remember her poignant compassionate act?

And lastly, when Zuko blocks Azula’s lightning strike directed at Katara. While a lot of shippers claim, as they are free to do so, that Zuko did this because of his profound and undying love for Katara and that he couldn’t fathom living in a world without her, I can’t help but think back to this post where Zuko would have done the exact same thing if it was any member of the Gaang in her position. Much less that, but do you think he would hesitate to throw himself in front of Azula if it was Mai in Katara’s position?

Because it doesn’t matter who it was. As part of Zuko’s final act of redemption, he realizes that true honor comes from doing the right thing, not for personal validation. The reason for Katara’s presence isn’t romantic - but it exists narratively because this is the same girl he betrayed to join his sister in order to validate himself in his father’s eyes. Emphasis on HIMSELF. But after this entire journey, it doesn’t matter whether Zuko lives or dies. Because at this moment, Zuko realizes that saving the world and doing the right thing is worth more than a trivial Pat on the back from his father. There is a lot of poignance from the authors choosing Katara to be there, instead of Toph or even Momo. But to say that this act is because Zuko had this undying romantic love for Katara that was never fully realized is undermining his whole arc.

As I’m writing this I realize that my qualm isn’t about people shipping Zvtara in the first place. I too have such ships. But it’s the fact that people who ship them use this a tool to further the agenda that Zuko never loved and cared about Mai as much as he did Katara or Katara with Aang . I remember reading this post from a blog called the crooked pen when I initially joined the fandom, who attempted to upholster Zvtara through this argument:

Now literally replace that second sentence with Katara. Not once does Zuko mention Katara after Ba Sing Se during the time he was at the fire nation. He only remembers their interaction as an obstacle preventing him from reaching his goal. He obsesses over his betrayal of Iroh for a great deal, however. And This is after Katara willingly put herself at risk, knowing the consequences, by extending the olive branch and almost giving him her spirit water to heal. And people want to convince me that he had this unfulfilled, undying love for Katara that he never had for Mai, despite him taking the extra precautions to protect her physically through a letter, even if it meant hurting her and himself emotionally, and literally giving us the biggest smile we had ever seen from him when he mentioned her?

Which makes this second part even more frivolous because there’s a reason why he cares about the opinion of water tribe girl, and it’s not because he’s deeply and irrevocably in love with her and has much more to do with it being the last piece of the puzzle of a strong alliance, built on trust, to take down evil, once and for all.

Also please refer to @thethiefandtheairbender’s post about him “forgetting” her in prison, when in reality she was freed before everyone formally was at his coronation.

Anyways, this is one of the reasons why I personally never saw the potential in what people claim to be infinitely better than the original canon ships. The next part is Zuko through the lens of Katara. Let me know your thoughts!

[peony-pearl]

This scene for the ‘Timeline Collision’ au keeps rotating in my brain; I’d thought about making it a comic but hand and brain won’t work together on that right now so maybe I can write it and doodle scenes afterwards.

****************************

“Uncle!”

Iroh looked up to find Zuko running towards him at full speed; the young Fire Lord was about spent, his throat and muscles burning as his uncle gripped his shoulders. “I can’t find her,” Zuko wheezed in agony. “Her or Lu Ten; I’m worried.”

Iroh chewed his lip; his past self and his son had taken his niece hostage after her true alliances were made. They hoped to reel her in back to their side... or to dispose of the ‘traitor’.

“I gotta... I gotta find...” Zuko’s voice withered into a wheeze and a cough, and Iroh pressed his hands against his nephew’s shoulders.

“Stay down, I’ll go look for her. Is anyone else on their way?”

Zuko breathed, and he nodded. That was all Iroh needed to know before he darted off into the forest.

It was a harrowing trek - but he hadn’t completely become as domesticated as his younger self figured. He remembered quite well how to navigate slippery slopes and ravines, and how to not tumble head-first into a shrub that hid a cliffside. He was traveling upwards, up a mountainous hill. What were they doing with her?

Sweat beaded at his brow. His breath grew as ragged as Zuko’s. He worried his firebending wouldn’t be as powerful at the rate he was going. He fumbled through his supplies, finding his everyday tools for the teashop still hidden on him. Kindling, cheesecloth, twine; he sighed, both in relief and fear when he saw he still had his best knife on his person.

But fear was exacerbated as a scream permeated the air around him.

It was Azula.

Her own scream wasn’t out of fear - it was pain. It was a ragged, guttural scream that echoed into the cavernous mountains around him.

Iroh’s legs started without him realizing it. He started back up the climb, at times using his hands to grip into the earth around him. Now would be a good time to have Toph with him - but he didn’t, so he had to ignore the effects of the fine living in Ba Sing Se. He’d once seen these hands go uncared for many times before; he would again one day.

The ground began to level out; he heard another scream. His lungs felt like sparks were igniting with each breath, but he had to continue, even as his body shook from the climb.

“Fuck you,” Iroh heard Azula’s unmistakable growl.

His heart ached as he heard Lu Ten’s voice.

“I gave you a choice.”

“You gave me NOTHING!” Azula snarled. Iroh stumbled upon the scene, nearly heaving as they didn’t notice him in the distance. Lu Ten held a decent-sized rock in his hand. Beneath him, Azula curled up on the ground, her hands a bloody, smashed mess. Tears fell from her eyes, but she offered her cousin no other source of emotion to use her with.

Lu Ten shook his head. “We gave you everything. We gave you a whole new chance to start this world over. To reclaim the family honor! And you, and Zuko, and that blasted old man threw it back in our faces!”

“You won’t even call him your father.”

“My father still has his dignity. That shriveled old wretch is not my father. He’s grown into something pathetic, something disgusting. To see the visage of my father look so washed up and docile? Do you know how infuriating it is? For him to say it’s all for me? All for his own son that he would put his tail between his legs and say he was wrong about our birthright? That I was wrong? That what I died for WAS WRONG?!”

Azula shuddered as she tried to manage her broken hands, but nothing she did mattered. Her head pressed into the grass as pain shot through her.

She laughed.

“When he came home... when I was little I made fun of him. Now... I may not completely understand but... when my own father left me with nothing all I wanted was to see him. For him to come home and just... be my dad. I was hurting and so lonely and... I see what happened now. My father didn’t care. He still doesn’t understand when I tell him that what we were doing completely obliterated my perception of the world around me. I lost my friends, my sense of self... I just wanted my dad. Or even my mom. I just wanted... someone to make me feel like what I was going through mattered. I did everything right and it still took everything away from me. And when I think about how my uncle came home crying... I get it.”

Lu Ten knelt down next to Azula, still holding the rock. “But does he get you, Azula? Does he understand you?”

Azula winced under her breath. Lu Ten patted the rock.

“Well, no matter. Don’t worry; all this pain you’re in will soon be over. Just... take a deep breath, and close your eyes.”

Azula saw the shadow of her cousin raise the rock. She braced herself, tears melting into the dirt below her-

The rock fell - but not on her.

Azula heard it thud just inches from her face, and she gasped as the footsteps that had raced towards her registered in her mind.

The fluttering of fabric, the snarls, the sounds of feet digging into the ground, Azula looked up to find silhouettes in the dying afternoon sun - and yet she knew that silhouette fighting Lu Ten.

“Uncle?” She rasped, watching Iroh and Lu Ten in a duel - but no blows were exchanged as he’d grabbed Lu Ten’s hands, and didn’t let go. Lu Ten bared his teeth at the old man.

“UNHAND ME! YOU VILE -” he headbutted Iroh “- FOUL COCKROACH!”

Iroh stumbled back, but he didn’t waste time stopping Lu Ten from attacking. He swiped at Lu Ten’s legs with his, proving he was still agile. Lu Ten cursed at him, grabbing Iroh’s foot and pulling him down with him before recovering and slamming a flaming hand down onto the grass.

“What’s this?!” Lu Ten asked. “Where’s Zuko? Little Fire Lord can’t get involved and watch his sister and uncle die?”

Iroh recovered to his feet, but not to a defensive position. He looked at Lu Ten. He could hear Azula wincing behind him.

Iroh’s burning breath became worse.

“This is what you want, Lu Ten?” He asked.

“You know nothing of what I want. Once I get rid of you and this failure, Zuko won’t be too hard to find. With him I can lure the Avatar and take them out. Just get the waterbender first and then when the Avatar is all choked up... You know.” Lu Ten made a motion with his finger across his neck. “Too easy. Father’s gained plenty of knowledge from Ozai on how the little beast fights, so even if he retaliates, he’ll be ready.”

“... And this is what you want?”

Lu Ten scoffed. “Are you going deaf, old man? Are you going mad?! My entire life has led up to this. Not only have we secured Ba Sing Se in our timeline, but here, we can fix this mess. The mess YOU started!”

Iroh’s hands trembled. “... I can’t let you do that. I won’t let you hurt anyone else.”

“What do you care? YOU HAVE NOTHING! The moment your little tea shop friends found out who you were they LEFT you!”

“They had every right to.”

“Oh, don’t give me that shit. You’d really roll on your back like a damned dog, wouldn’t you?! You’re a coward.”

“... You’re right.”

The joy in Lu Ten’s face began to drain. His lit his hands ablaze as he began to approach the specter or his father.

“I’m tired of this. You two die here.”

Iroh closed his eyes. Tears fell down his cheeks as he stood planted in the ground as Lu Ten’s advance became a charge.

Azula watched him reach into his pocket, and as Lu Ten reared his hands back, Iroh moved.

He grabbed Lu Ten’s arm, stopping his attack just as he then gripped the back of his son’s neck, and he punched him right in his abdomen.

Or so, Azula thought he punched him. She watched Lu Ten immediately halt; his firebending ceased, and his eyes were wide as his chin landed on Iroh’s shoulder.

A broken gasp trickled from Lu Ten’s throat. Iroh held the boy closer to him.

In Iroh’s other hand was the knife he’d found, buried hilt-deep into Lu Ten’s stomach.

Iroh pressed his forehead into his son’s shoulder, his lungs finally squeezing out a sob.

“I’m sorry.”

Lu Ten fought to breathe; he stumbled, falling backwards as Iroh lost his grip on the knife, his hands already coated in blood. Lu Ten looked at the knife sticking out of his stomach.

“What have you done to me?” Lu Ten choked.

Azula stared in wide eyed disbelief.

Iroh’s hands reached out towards Lu Ten, who used one of his legs to scoot himself away from Iroh, but the pain was spreading. He looked up at Iroh, who met his gaze with unmitigated sorrow and regret.

“Oh, Lu Ten... I’m sorry.”

Tears began to fall from Lu Ten’s eyes, his face became pale as breathing became harder.

But the moment Iroh heard Azula wince again, his heels dug into the earth, rushing to help her up and struggling with his slippery, bloodied hands.

“BASTARD!” Lu Ten screamed, his voice becoming garbled with blood. He choked as Azula watched Iroh’s face as she was helped to her feet. “TRAITOR!”

“Uncle,” Azula breathed. He looked at her, trying to ignore the sounds of his son behind him.

“Zuko is at the foot of the mountain with reinforcements on their way. We have to go now before he... before I show up. I’ve got you, now run!”

[zuko-always-lies]

Azula Casually Being Kind to Zuko

Since she’s casually kind in many, many scenes.

“The Crossroads of Destiny”:

Azula: We've done it Zuko. It's taken a hundred years, but the Fire Nation has conquered Ba Sing Se. Zuko: (regretfully) I betrayed Uncle. Azula: No, he betrayed you. Zuko, when you return home, father will welcome you as a war hero. Zuko: But I don't have the Avatar. What if Father doesn't restore my honor? (Azula stands up and places a hand on Zuko's shoulder. Zuko looks at her sadly.) Azula: He doesn't need to Zuko. Today, you restored your own honor. (Zuko turns away from Azula and looks down pensively. Cut to a shot of Ba Sing Se as Appa flies away from the city. The Earth King looks on sadly as he leaves his home.)

“The Headband”:

Azula: So...I hear you've been to visit your Uncle Fatso in the prison tower. Zuko: (standing, incensed) That guard told you. Azula: (smugly) No, you did. Just now. Zuko: (sitting back down) Okay, you caught me. What is it that you want, Azula? Azula: (solicitiously) Actually, nothing. Believe it or not, I'm looking out for you. If people find out you've been to see Uncle, they'll think you're plotting with him. Just be careful, dum-dum.

“The Beach”:

Zuko: Doing nothing is a waste of time. (Zuko stands up) We're being sent away on a forced vacation. (Zuko walks over to the balustrade, leans on it and stares out to sea) I feel like a child. (Cut to close shot of Azula) Azula: Lighten up. So dad wants to meet with his advisors alone... without anyone else around. Don't take it personally.

and

Azula: What about me and my brother? (Crossing her arms in displeasure) Aren't you going to invite us? (cut to shot of Ruon Jian and Chan, who look at one another skeptically) You don't know who we are, do you?

and

Cut to wide shot of the Mansion on Ember Island. Cut to shot of Azula, approaching the mansion. Zuko is sitting on the steps holding his childhood handprint.) Azula: I thought I'd find you here. (Cut to shot of Zuko's profile looking at his small handprint, Azula stands in the background) Zuko: Those summers we spent here seem so long ago. So much has changed. Azula: (she gestures down the steps) Come down to the beach with me. (she starts down the steps) Come on, this place is depressing.

and

Zuko: For so long, I thought that if my dad accepted me, I'd be happy. I'm back home, now my dad talks to me. Huh, he even thinks I'm a hero. (cut to Azula, who smiles at these words) Everything should be perfect, right (cut to over-head wide shot of the four teens sitting around the fire) I should be happy now, but I'm not. I'm angrier than ever and I don't know why. Azula: There's a simple question you need to answer then. (she leans forward) Who are you angry at? Zuko: No one, (he looks down) I'm just angry. Mai: Yeah, who are you angry at, Zuko? Zuko: Everyone... (he covers his ears in frustration) I don't know. Azula: Is it Dad? Zuko: No, no! Ty Lee: Your uncle? Azula: Me? (Cut back to shot of Zuko who shakes his head in frustration) Zuko: No, no... No, no. Mai: Then who? Who are you angry at? (The camera quickly pans right, stopping on Azula) Azula: (sternly) Answer the question, Zuko. Ty lee: (pleading) Talk to us. (Cut to shot of Zuko looking confused and frightened) Mai: Come on, answer the question. Azula: Come on, answer it. (Cut to wide shot of group. For a moment there is silence) Zuko: (yells suddenly) I'm angry at myself! (Zuko throws his arms down and the campfire bursts into a column of flame. The girls cover their eyes to protect themselves from the fire. Cut to a close shot of Zuko as wind and embers fly through his blowing hair. The fire burns out and the scene grows dark. Cut to a wide shot of the group) Azula: Why?

“The Avatar and the Firelord”:

Zuko: Wait. I need to ask you something. What do you remember about our Great-Grandfather's history? Azula: (sighs) Ah, Zuko. (The camera angle changes to an overhead view of the hall, the siblings, and the majestic paintings.) It's so strange how your mind works. (The camera focuses on Sozin's portrait. It slowly pans up from the bottom of the painting. It rest's on Sozin's face, a comet arching in flight over his head. Azula continues to tell Zuko Sozin's history.) Fire Lord Sozin began the war, of course. He spent his early years secretly preparing for it, but he was as patient as he was clever. He famously waited for the comet, later renamed Sozin's comet, and used its power to launch his full-scale invasion of the world. (The camera angle changes. The siblings are shown, standing side by side, looking up at the painting, Azula finishes the story.) In the end, he died a very old and successful man. Zuko: (confused) But how did he die? Azula: Didn't you pay any attention in school, Zuko? (Azula begins to walk away. She walks off camera as she finishes her sentence.) He died peacefully, in his sleep. He was ancient.

“Nightmares and Daydreams”:

Cut to an up close shot of some long black hair in a pool of water. An ornate gold comb brushes though the hair. The camera pans right to reveal that it is Azula's hair that's being combed. Cut to wide shot of the ornate palace room. Zuko approaches Azula.) Azula: Hello Zu-zu. If you've come for a royal hair combing, I'm afraid you'll have to wait. (Cut to close shot of Zuko standing over Azula.) Zuko: So I guess there's a big war meeting coming up, huh. And apparently I'm not welcome there. Azula: What do you mean? Of course you're welcome there. Zuko: (close shot of Zuko, perturbed) Oh yeah? I guess that's why no one bothered to tell me about it. (Cut to close shot of Azula and the two maids brushing her hair. Azula eyes Zuko.) Azula: Oh Zuko, don't be so dramatic. I'm certain Dad wants you there. You probably weren't invited, because it's so obvious that you're supposed to be there. Zuko: (close up on Zuko, questioning) Well, were you invited? Azula: (close shot of Azula, looking smug) Of course. I'm the Princess. Zuko: (annoyed) And I'm the Prince! Azula: Exactly, so stop acting (gestures) like a paranoid child. (close up shot of Zuko looking annoyed) Just go to the meeting. Zuko: Forget it, I'm not going.

[nothing-more-than-hot-leaf-juice]

Moment that hurt the most.

This moment: 

{Image: Iroh laying on his back after getting shot by Azula and Zuko kneeling down next to him with his wrists covering his eyes as he bows his head.}

(The Chase, Book 2)

Because the fact that Iroh is hurt by itself is hard enough, but it’s the context that makes it more heartbreaking.

Up until this point, we’ve seen how much of a positive influence Iroh is on Zuko. He’s been the only one there for Zuko at all times. He’s the one who’s protected Zuko and given him unconditional love. And Zuko’s been angry and difficult, we’ve seen that. And in most series where there’s a clear villain, you’d expect it to be framed like ‘Iroh is way too nice to Zuko, who is a huge asshole.’ But it isn’t. Instead, as we get the context of Zuko’s banishment and as we see how Iroh treats Zuko in season 1, Iroh and Zuko’s relationship becomes clear to us as full of unconditional love, but with barriers that make it difficult for them to communicate that love. Through the series, we see those barriers get knocked down. 

In the first episodes, we see Zuko yell at Iroh and generally act like a brat, but it’s also clear that Iroh is the one person that Zuko is comfortable around. Iroh’s the one person who vouches for Zuko and is genuinely rooting for this kid. But it’s clear that he’s not rooting for Zuko to capture the Avatar necessarily, instead, he’s rooting for Zuko to stop hating himself and to stop endangering his own life.

But the thing is, Zuko doesn’t know how to accept it. At all. He’s convinced himself that he doesn’t deserve Iroh’s unconditional love. Zuko was conditioned by his father to believe that in order to be loved, he had to be worthy. 

Zuko is consistently surprised whenever Iroh is proud of him or whenever Iroh shows up to protect him. In The Southern Air Temple, when Iroh protects Zuko from Zhao’s illegal hit after the Agni Kai ended and said “disgraceful, even in exile my nephew is more honorable than you”. Zuko’s still surprised that after Zhao did an objectively dishonorable thing after the match, Iroh openly chose Zuko’s side and stood up for him.

“Did you really mean that Uncle?” 

Zuko’s used to people pushing him away. He’s used to having to prove his worth. He’s used to there being a bar for him to have to reach and then when he finally does, the bar just gets moved up higher. Iroh doesn’t have a bar for Zuko. He doesn’t want Zuko to improve himself to meet a standard, rather, he wants Zuko to improve himself in order to be happy and to find self-realization. 

There’s the more obvious moment at the end of season 1 with the “ever since I lost my son, I think of you as my own”. 

“You don’t have to say it, Uncle” 

This scene has already been talked about before, but let’s look at it again. Iroh tells Zuko that he needs to be safe when he goes down to the water and says “ever since I lost my son... I think of you as my own.” This is the first time in the series it’s mentioned that Iroh had a son. That detail itself gives us more insight into Iroh’s motivations. We can look at his actions in the context of ‘he couldn’t protect Lu Ten, so he’s going to do everything in his power to keep Zuko safe’. But it’s also clear that Iroh doesn’t expect or want Zuko to be Lu Ten. It is clear, and it has been clear for the entirety of season one, that Iroh unconditionally loves Zuko. Iroh’s followed Zuko across the world, accepted him for his faults while still wanting him to improve, and is the only person we’ve seen show genuine affection for him. 

This scene confirms that unconditional love, but it also reveals that Zuko doesn’t know how to accept it. We already know that Zuko cares about Iroh (mainly from the episode where Zuko forgoes chasing Aang in favor of rescuing Iroh from the earthbenders, which is one of the first truly selfless acts we see Zuko do), but this scene reveals that the reason Zuko pushes away from Iroh isn’t that he doesn’t want his Uncle’s love, but because Zuko thinks he doesn’t deserve it. Zuko says “you don’t have to say it” because he thinks that it’s something that’s harder for Iroh to say rather than something hard for him to hear. Iroh believes it. He loves Zuko and wants him to be safe, but Zuko doesn’t think Iroh has a reason to and can’t wrap his head around it. So he bows as a sign of respect and tells Iroh that they’ll meet again “after [he] finds the Avatar” because Zuko’s convinced that in order to earn love, he has to prove himself. Finding the Avatar is the task he was dealt to earn love, so he focuses on that when met with affection. Iroh hugs him and Zuko just doesn’t understand why. He doesn’t think he’s earned it. 

In season 2, the first episode dives a little deeper into this block that Zuko has. When Azula lies to them about Ozai wanting Zuko back, Iroh is able to look at the situation objectively whereas Zuko can only focus on the ‘my father doesn’t think I’m worthless after all’ smoke and mirrors. Iroh sees the situation for what it is: Ozai was needlessly cruel to Zuko and if Zuko returns, that’s what he’s going to be met with. For season 1, Iroh went along with Zuko on his Avatar hunt to make sure he didn’t make stupid, life-threatening decisions and to emotionally support him, but capturing the Avatar was never Iroh’s goal. He didn’t want Zuko to return to the father that scarred him and banished him for not wanting to fight. 

So when Zuko is going to take Azula’s offer to return home, Iroh’s protective instincts kick in, but he has to be explicit about it. He has to say the hard truth in order to keep his kid safe.  

“Father’s realized how important family is to him. He cares about me.” 

“I care about you! I mean, if Ozai wants you back, well, I think it might not be for the reasons you imagine.” 

Iroh all but explicitly says “Zuko, Ozai mistreated you and doesn’t care about you. If you return, he’s going to hurt you.” But he has to say it, because after three years Zuko still doesn’t want to believe it and is now making a decision that could endanger his life. 

And Zuko still rejects this. He lashes out and insults Iroh, accusing him of being jealous of his more successful younger brother. Zuko tells Iroh “you don’t know what my father thinks of me. You don’t know anything.” He’s still holding onto the notion that Ozai’s ‘love’ is something he can win, one way or another. Iroh is the one to recognize the fault in that logic and all he can do it be by Zuko’s side to protect him when shit goes down (which it does). 

When the fact that Ozai doesn’t care about Zuko becomes harder to ignore after Zuko finds out that Azula was going to take them as prisoners and his “father considers [him] a miserable failure”, he’s still not ready to accept unconditional love. That fact becomes clear in The Swamp and Avatar Day. 

“Do you like your new tea set?” 

The scene where Zuko gets mad about begging escalates when Iroh is publically humiliated in order to get them a gold piece. Zuko can’t firebend and the man’s dual swords are taunting him. Those are his weapons and he’s helpless to do anything for Iroh in this situation. Iroh dances as the man swipes knives at his feet and all Zuko can do is watch. What he was raised on was the mentality that he had to prove his parental figures his worth. Zuko was convinced that Iroh providing for him wasn’t how it should be and hates the situation. So he overcompensates: he goes on a crime spree and doesn’t just steal food, he steals gold in order to buy Iroh a fancy tea set. 

Iroh tells Zuko that he doesn’t need things to be happy and Zuko gets stuck. He doesn't see a clear way to prove his worth to Iroh anymore and he still doesn’t know how to just accept love without working for it. So he leaves. Zuko decides that “they no longer have anything to gain by traveling together” not because he doesn’t want to be with his Uncle, but because Zuko no longer sees how he is useful to Iroh. Zuko would rather be alone than be a burden, emotionally or otherwise. 

And in The Chase, we find out that Iroh has been following Zuko this whole time. Iroh knows that Zuko needs space to figure himself out, but is always going to be there to keep him physically safe. 

Despite the fact that he left Iroh, despite everything, Iroh was still there. Zuko didn’t really have time to grasp this fact, but Iroh showing up when he got knocked out showed Zuko that yes, this love is unconditional. Iroh’s just going to be there for him and that’s that. Zuko isn’t past the ‘love must be earned’ mentality, but this gesture means so much to him after he felt alone and directionless for weeks. 

Then Iroh gets shot by Azula as he’s standing right next to Zuko. 

And what’s going through Zuko’s head right now is something along these lines:

He knows his Uncle was there to protect him even when Zuko left 

He’s convinced himself that he’s been a burden on his Uncle, just like his dad treated him as 

He didn’t have time to thank Iroh for being there anyway 

Iroh got hit because he followed Zuko and acted as his protector

Zuko wasn’t able to protect Iroh 

So now this person, the one person who was there for him and who always believed in him despite everything is hurt and for all he knows, might not survive, is on the ground and unconscious because Zuko couldn’t protect his Uncle the way his Uncle protected him. And Zuko regrets everything at this moment. He regrets the fact that he left. He regrets not taking Iroh’s advice. He regrets not being a more skilled firebending. He regrets not being able to give back what Iroh gave him in terms of protection. 

And he’s convinced that he’s failed his Uncle. He looks at this situation and is terrified that Iroh won’t be okay, but he’s also convinced that it was his fault. Zuko thinks that because Iroh decided to side with him from the beginning, his life has been ruined. If Iroh had stayed in the Fire Nation instead of gone with Zuko on his banishment, Iroh wouldn't have spent years at sea, he wouldn’t have been branded a traitor, he wouldn’t be on the run, he wouldn’t have had to beg for coins on the street, and he wouldn’t have been shot in the chest by Azula. 

Zuko can’t wrap his head around why Iroh decided to go with him. After all, he’s the banished and disgraceful ex-prince. He’s scarred and untalented and he spends years desperately trying to prove that he’s worth something. Zuko’s been conditioned to think that in order to be worth anyone’s time or affection, he has to prove himself. He has to be useful. And to be the reason Iroh is hurt (which he isn’t but that’s what he thinks is the case), that just means he has to prove himself further. 

And for the rest of the season, he doesn’t leave Iroh’s side. He knows what it feels like to almost lose his Uncle and can’t risk that again. He takes Iroh’s advice and goes with him to Ba Sing Se. He takes care of Iroh when he’s unconscious, makes him tea, patiently learns lighting redirection (there’s a clear difference in how Zuko listens to Iroh as a teacher from the first episode of season 1 to Bitter Work), guards Iroh from the Rough Rhinos, and tries his best to stay quiet serving tea. 

This moment in The Chase is such a pivotal moment for Zuko. For the first half of the series, Iroh has been the parental figure Zuko needed and deserved, but Zuko didn’t understand that. In the moment where he almost loses Iroh, something clicks. Zuko starts to understand what was missing before. He starts to accept that this relationship is something he needs in his life. Zuko realizes that Iroh has been there and he’s going to keep being there and that’s something he isn’t ready to lose. There’s so much shame in the idea that Iroh would be hurt for him and he spends the rest of the season trying to make it up. 

And we know that it ends up not being enough to break Zuko away from wanting Ozai’s approval, but this moment reveals just how fractured Zuko’s self-image is, just how much he needs Iroh, and just how much he feels he doesn’t deserve unconditional love. This moment is pure vulnerability as the one person who stuck by Zuko’s side through injury and banishment is hurt. 

Zuko is convinced that it’s his fault and if Iroh hadn’t decided to be by his side, this wouldn’t have happened. 

[whentheynameyoujoy]

Yup, Sure Was a Finale

I had an epiphany. The reason why I never re-watched the final two parts of Sozin’s Comet even though I’ve popped in episodes at random many times over the years isn’t that I can’t bear the sadness of seeing one of the best, most engaging narratives out there come to an end.

It’s simply that the finale isn’t all that good.

Some honorable mentions of what was enjoyable.

(+) This

Just this.

(+) The Church of Zutara has another convert

“Are you sure they don’t get together?” Hubster, 2020

(+) The tragedy of Azula

And the fact that it’s acknowledged as such. I hope Zuko will do his best to get her help and have a relationship with her…

(+) Sokka being a big bro

And the whole airship sequence in general. It’s wonderfully paced and plotted, with moments of humor, real stakes, Toph being both badass and a scared crying kid, Sokka strategizing and protecting, Suki saving the day, and non-benders being instrumental in thwarting the bad guy firebender’s plans. Would be shame if Bryke never portrayed them this capable ever again…

And now for the main course.

(-) Blink and its over

The wrap-up feels too quick (hashtag Needs More ROtK-style False Endings). A part of this is due to how fast the story goes from the thick of the action to hastily tying up a bunch of loose ends, but the larger issue is how Book 3’s uneven pacing comes home to roost. After spending half a season on filler episodes that at best subtly flesh out established characters while dancing around a huge lionturtle-shaped hole, and at worst contradict the theme of “no one is born bad” with “you’re a hot mess because your great-grandfathers didn’t get along too well”, the frantic “go go go” rush of the second half screeches to a halt with “they won and everyone was happy because now the right people have power and it will be all good from now on yup nothing more to deal with baiiiii”.

Yes, I know, it’s a kids’ show. But goddamn, this particular kids’ show has proven so many times it can do better than the expected tropiness. Showing the characters in their roles as builders of a new world was the least that could have been done.

Oh well!

(-) Ursa

We’ll never know. There will never be a story that delves into this. Yup. Shall forever remain but an intriguing mystery. Is good, though. Mystery is better than a story where Ursa shares her son’s penchant for forgetfulness. Imagine how embarrassing that would be. Speaking of which…

(-) What does Mai see in this jerkbender?

Look, I like to harp a lot on the mess of inconsistent writing that’s Mai but let’s unpack this scene from her perspective, shall we?

Zuko forgot about her! It totally slipped his mind that the one person who prioritized the safety of his dumb ass was rotting in the worst prison in the Fire Nation—because of him! And she was rotting there long enough after the final Agni Kai for the news of Zuko’s upcoming coronation to spread and her uncle to feel sufficiently secure to release her. But then the coronation scene is attended by every single member of Gaang & Friends that was imprisoned?

So what this tells me is that either a) the invasion force had the ability to break themselves out the whole time and for some reason decided not to exercise it until after the war was over, b) Zuko forgot about them as well and no one thought to remind him there were prisons full of POWs until Mai arrived, or, and that’s even better, c) Zuko took care to free every single resistance fighter while making sure Mai would be the one to stay behind bars.

Never thought I’d say this but Mai? Honey? You deserve so much better.

(-) “What does Katara want?”

Asked no one in the writers’ room ever, apparently.

This is not so much anti Cataang as anti romance stories that pay attention to the needs, opinions, and wants of only one partner in general. Over the previous 60 episodes, Katara actively expressed romantic interest in Aang exactly, wait for it,

Once.

And it got retconned out of relevance by the following two interactions where the possibility of a romantic relationship came up, making the Headband dance pretty easy to reclassify as just one of those examples where Aang “teaches” Katara to have fun (as if one of the main obstacles to her having fun wasn’t him constantly fooling around and offloading his duties). And because the writers not only didn’t succeed in portraying Katara’s internal state of mind, but also failed to root her reluctance to pursue a relationship in outside circumstances that could change, her sudden state of unconfused once Aang steps into the spotlight has a single canonical explanation that as much as approaches coherency.

The fact is, though, that trying to interpret canon Cataang from a Watsonian perspective is an exercise in foolishness. Because there is no Watsonian justification for the ship and never has been. Bryke simply conceived of Katara as nothing but a tropey prize for Aang, never saw her as anything beyond that, and were perfectly happy to go on and immortalize her as a passive broodmare for the rest of her life.

And I fully intend to die mad about it.

(-) Iroh dips

OK, it’s been long apparent that the show doesn’t intend to do anything about Iroh’s complicity in AzulOzai’s regime in any meaningful way, and that his sole motivation for doing anything whatsoever is Zuko whom he views as a replacement son which is supposed to be good for some reason. But the finale has him abandon even that, and instead turns him full-on YOLO, idgaf anymore. It really throws Iroh’s supposed love for Zuko into doubt when his last act in the entire show is to take a half-educated 16-year old with no political savvy or an heir to secure a dynastic continuity and plomp him on the throne of a war-mongering imperialist regime where the entirety of the militarist and ruling class is guaranteed to fight him tooth and nail for power.

(I sure hope Mai’s ready to start popping out babies by tea-time otherwise the whole country is fukd in about a week)

Christ, how hard would it be to have Iroh keep the throne warm for a few years while Zuko is getting ready to succeed him? Not only would it make the whole FN reformation bit quite likelier to occur, it would require Iroh’s hedonistic ass to actually sacrifice something for once. And not having Zuko ascend to power, instead spending some time bettering and educating himself first, would be a wonderful message that no matter what you endured and overcame, you never stop growing. A kids’ show, remember?

(-) The conquering of Ba Sing Se

Gee, I feel so blessed to have my attention diverted from battlefields which actually matter to an old dude vanity project I would have been perfectly happy to assume resolved itself off-screen.

The White Lotus in general just bugs me. I was fine with the individual characters and their overall passivity when they were portrayed as lone dissenters living under circumstances where it wasn’t really possible for any single person to mount a meaningful resistance. But as members of a far-reaching shadowy organization that’s left the real fight to a bunch of kids for 59 episodes straight and didn’t turn up until a perfect opportunity presented itself to take control of the largest city in the world and bask in the spotlight?

Yeah, no.

Similarly to the lionturtle-ex-machina, the White Lotus represents a huge missed opportunity for a season-long storytelling. Here’s just a brief list of what they could have been doing throughout Book 3:

orchestrating a Fire Nation uprising;

gathering those directly persecuted by AzulOzai’s regime to help Zuko keep his hold on power once he’s crowned;

establishing themselves as a viable alternative to Ozai;

sabotaging Fire Nation’s war efforts from the inside;

countering Fire Nation propaganda (Asha Greyjoy’s pinecones, anyone?);

running a supply network to alleviate the suffering of Earth Kingdom citizens.

Instead, they sit on their asses until the time comes to claim personal glory.

You know what, good on Bryke for making me conclude that in comparison, the Freedom Fighters were perfectly unproblematic, actually.

(-) Fire Lord Dead-by-Dawn

Yes, a kids’ show, I know! But ffs, this is the same kids’ show that came up with Long Feng and portrayed courtly intrigue, kingly puppets, secret police, spy networks, and information wars. Was it really too much of me to expect something other than “enlightened despot solves everything”? Especially if said enlightened despot has persisting anger issues, no personal support system, no base of followers, and no political experience whatsoever?

If Zuko’s actually serious about regaining the Fire Nation’s honor (i.e. by dismantling the country’s military machine, decolonizing the Earth Kingdom, paying reparations to everyone and their lemur, and funding any and all cultural restoration projects Aang and the SWT come up with), then there is no way, no way in the universe that he doesn’t face a civil war, deposing, and execution within a month.

One reason why his future as a Fire Lord seems rather bleak is that little’s been shown about the actual subjects of AzulOzai’s regime. While we get a vague reassurance that “no Toph, they’re not born bad” (le shockings), they largely remain a voiceless uniform mass of brainwashed clapping seals. What is their view on the Fire Nation’s crimes? Do they associate their condition with their country’s war-mongering? How will they react when Zuko starts dismantling the country piece by piece to rebuild it, bringing it to economic ruin? What will they do when noble Ozai loyalists come out of the woodwork and begin rounding them up under the banner of “Make the Fire Nation Great Again?”

I have no idea, and Zuko doesn’t either because he’s unironically more qualified to rule the Earth Kingdom than his own people.

You know what would have been better? Fire Lord Iroh, White Lotus pulling the strings to maintain the regime, and Crown Prince/People’s Champion Zuko travelling the Fire Nation with Aang and an army of tutors to promote the new boss, only to realize that absolute monarchy is kinda crap for the people he’s one day supposed to rule and gaining their support by ceding some power to them.

I’d laser holes into my TV due to how much I’d enjoy watching that.

(-) All hail Avatar Rock

Literally and metaphorically. Aang doesn’t sacrifice anything, gets everything, and the clever solution of going about getting said everything is handed to him on a silver platter, requiring no active participation on his part whatsoever.

He doesn’t work to unblock his chakras, spiritually or physically.

He only speaks to his past lives to get a pat on the back and a bow-tied solution he could mindlessly follow.

Energy-bending doesn’t require any sacrifice from him, leaves no lasting marks, and only serves for the narrative to praise him as the rare individual that’s unbendable and thus so very very special.

The most infuriating thing is, however, that Aang is clearly shown as being able to beat Ozai without either the Avatar state, or energy-bending.

And he chooses not to. From this moment on, Aang no longer fights to save the world. He fights to preserve his beliefs, going directly against the instructions of his past lives and effectively reneging on his duties as the Avatar.

Again.

It’s not like you can’t portray Aang’s faithfulness to his spiritual beliefs as the key to beating Ozai and saving the world. But that’s not what the show did. There is no link between Aang sparing Ozai and securing a better future, quite to the contrary—Ozai’s survival ends up being a massive problem for the continuation of Zuko’s rule, and consequently a threat to the world at large. His survival benefits Aang and no one else.

Aang’s spiritual purity and his status as a savior of the world are allowed to coexist only due to a deliberate stroke of a writer’s pen.

And I hate it.

Welp, nothing to do about it now except to bury myself up to my tits in fix-it fics I guess.

[phoukanamedpookie]

Unpopular opinion: Zuko and Azula love each other fiercely.

“The opposite of love is not hate. The opposite of love is indifference.” —Elie Wiesel

Azula and Zuko are anything but indifferent to one another.

Wanna see indifference? Look at Iroh and Ozai. Neither of them would lose a night’s sleep if the other died. Ozai sends Azula to bring Iroh back to the Fire Nation, dead or alive, and he obviously doesn’t care which. When Azula brings him back, Ozai has him thrown in prison like any other traitor, and he doesn’t even visit Iroh’s cell to gloat.

And the person who more strongly argues against killing Ozai isn’t Iroh, but Aang. You would think that, if Iroh gave a damn about his brother, he’d say something like, “I understand that Ozai has done terrible things and needs to go down, but he’s still my brother, so if you can, please spare him.” But Iroh never expresses such a sentiment. Ever.

That’s indifference.

Zuko and Azula can antagonize the shit out of each other, but they’re never indifferent. 

For someone who can’t stand his younger sister, Zuko has several moments when he thinks or talks about her without prompting. When he captures Aang at the North Pole, the first thing he says to him is, “You're like my sister. Everything always came easy to her. She's a firebending prodigy and everyone adores her.” During his fever dream in Book Two, the voice of the blue dragon isn’t Ozai’s, as one might imagine it would be, but Azula’s. In Book Three, when he’s trying to figure out how to break the ice with Team Avatar, he asks himself, “What would Azula do?” In that same episode, after he confesses to sending Combustion Man after the Avatar, he berates himself for not pinning that on Azula.

Then there’s the fact that, in his way, Zuko has utmost confidence in Azula’s abilities. Again, when he’s talking to the rabbit-frog about how to handle joining Team Avatar, he specifically asks, “What would Uncle do?” and “What would Azula do?” Why them? Because they’re the two smartest people he knows. He might never admit it aloud, but he has a lot of faith in Azula’s intelligence.

Later in Book Three, when she falls off the airship, Zuko says, “She’s...not gonna make it.” Then Azula uses some firebending and a fucking hairpin to save herself from certain death. And Zuko’s like, “Of course she did.”

Unlike some folks in fandom, I don’t interpret this line as Zuko expressing genuine disappointment that Azula didn’t die. I interpret it more as, “Of course Azula found a way to cheat death with a goddamn hairpin. How could I even doubt for a second that she wouldn’t? It’s frickin’ Azula. That’s what she does. Look at her clinging to the cliff with her hair blowing in the wind, like a fuckin’ badass. She did it to make me look bad. I know it.”

Azula’s no different. For someone who teases and provokes Zuko as much as she does, she often goes out of her way to help him, advise him, reassure him, and spend time with him.

At the end of Book Two, while Zuko frets about Ozai restoring his honor, she tells him, “He doesn’t need to. Today, you restored your own honor.” Both she and Zuko return to the Fire Nation as war heroes strictly on the basis of Azula vetting for Zuko’s loyalty and prowess in the fight against the Avatar. When she notices that Zuko’s still in a foul mood because he didn’t capture the Avatar, Azula tries to convince him not to worry about it. Later, she warns Zuko about being seen visiting Iroh because it looks like they’re plotting together.

If Azula only wanted Zuko around to be her fall guy or to make him look and feel like shit, she wouldn’t bother with this. He’s perfectly capable of getting himself in trouble, making a fool of himself and working himself up into a foul mood, as shown many times throughout Book Two. If all Azula cared about was a clear path to absolute power, all she’d have to do is sit back and wait, and Zuko would take himself out of the picture.

Then there’s “The Beach.” Just, “The Beach.”

While Zuko’s being all angsty at the old family beach house, Azula knows exactly where to find him (“I thought I’d find you here.”) and gently persuades him to join her and their friends on the beach (“Come down to the beach with me. Come on. This place is depressing.*”). She doesn’t tease or put him down like we’d assume she would (that’s later), and he doesn’t dig in his heels or blow up like we expect him to (that’s later). In fact, she uses a remarkably soft touch here. She’s downright gentle. It would seem out of character if not for earlier glimpses of it with Ty Lee.

Later, while everyone’s sitting around the bonfire, she’s the one who sort of pushes him to look inward (something even Iroh has so much trouble trying to get him to do!), by saying, “There's a simple question you need to answer, then. Who are you angry at?” And she keeps probing, “Is it Dad?” (No.) “Me?” (No.) And keeps pushing, “Answer the question, Zuko. Come on, answer it.” After Zuko confesses that he’s angry at himself, she doesn’t let up. She asks, “Why?”

This is a revealing moment for the both of them. Deep down, Zuko doesn’t hate or resent Azula. He might find her Little Miss Perfect persona irritating as hell, but hat’s not the same. He might secretly envy how easily she seems to get and keep Ozai’s approval, but, again, that’s not the same.

Deep down, Azula does care about Zuko’s well-being, though that caring comes with a huge helping of, “Dude, get over yourself!” It’s almost comical how often Azula tries to get Zuko to join her in playing a game, sneaking around, or battling the Fire Nation’s enemies. There’s a lot of subtle hints that no matter how much Zuzu can get on her nerves, she sees the two of them as a team. And she’s proven right by how well they work together when pursuing the same goal.

Finally, there’s the last Agni Kai. With Azula’s defeat, there’s no triumph, no catharsis, as there was on the Day of Black Sun when he called Ozai out. Yes, there’s pity, but there’s also a kind of disquiet, as if he’s realizing for the first time how deep her trauma goes.

If there was no love or caring between them, there would be no tragedy. They would be an unstoppable team if they worked together, but the war puts them on opposite sides. Despite how they grew up, Azula is smart enough, and Zuko determined enough, to find a way to make things work, but they never got the opportunity to do that.