#atla: koh

[gennianydots]

Avatar Roku: The ocean and the moon are ancient spirits - they crossed over from the spirit world to the mortal world very near the beginning. There is only one spirit I know of who is old enough to remember…

Aang: …who?

Avatar Roku: The spirit’s name is Koh, but he is very dangerous. They call him “The Face Stealer.” When you speak with him, you must be very careful to show no emotion at all - not the slightest expression - or he will steal your face.

[chiptrillino-art]

In the Spirit World, roughly 400 years ago.

When you are just a little blue guy. But the greater gods found a liking in you. And then you ended up as chewtoy for Koh.

Spirit shenanegans at their finest.

[kuruk-weekend]

The lovely promo art is by @bellwethers. Make sure to check her blog and commission sheet!

KURUK ERA WEEKEND 2025 - PROMPTS

DAY 1 - FRIDAY, JANUARY 10TH

FIX IT AU OR “KURUK LIVES” AU

LOVE AND LOSS

AVATAR COMPANIONS

DAY 2 - SATURDAY, JANUARY 11TH

SCARS AND TROPHIES

DUTY AND SACRIFICE

DREAMS AND NIGHTMARES

DAY 3 - SUNDAY, JANUARY 12TH

FAMILY OR FOUND FAMILY

MENTORS AND MENTEES

DIALOGUE PROMPT: "THINGS COULD HAVE BEEN DIFFERENT"

EXTRA PROMPTS (TO SUBSTITUTE ANY PROMPT, ANY DAY)

LEGACY

HOMESICKNESS OR TRADITIONS

ADDICTION OR MENTAL ILLNESS

***

The prompts are supposed to inspire you, not to restrict you. So, do as you wish with them. Edit them, add to them, or ignore them. As long as your work has to do with the Kuruk Era and adheres to the rules, it's all good!

Thank you to everyone who voted and/or reblogged the promo material! We hope you have the best time during the event!

Do you have any questions? Do you want to be a mod? Do you want to join the Discord Server? Please send us an ask.

Check the rules below!

INTRODUCTION

As per your vote, Kuruk Weekend will happen between JANUARY 10th and JANUARY 12th, 2025!

When sharing your work, please tag with #kurukwknd25 and mention @kuruk-weekend. The ao3 collection is called Kuruk_Weekend_2025. Adding your work to the collection is optional.

What works will be accepted? Everything, as long as it adheres to the rules. This means one-shots, multi-chapters, art, moodboards, head-canons, meta-analyses or anything else you want to create.

RULES

1. Be kind! Only provide constructive criticism when asked and don’t hate on other people’s work. This means ship and let ship, don’t like don’t read, no kink-shaming, etc;

2. Your work must be your own! No AI and no plagiarism!;

3. Sexual content must happen between adults. Submissions containing ped*philia will not be shared. Works that discuss the theme will be accepted as long as appropriately tagged.

4. Submissions containing racist, ableist, sexist, queerphobic or any other hate content will not be shared. Works that explore hate as a theme will be accepted as long as appropriately tagged.

5. Tag your work! And use Tumblr’s community labels if needed.

[blluespirit]

Overall NATLA Thoughts

Okay, now that I've watched the series, I can give my thoughts.

Overall, I thought it was good!!! I had fun watching it! I'd rate it a solid 6.5/10. It's nowhere as good as the original, but it was definitely enjoyable and made some nice changes here and there that I liked. There were also some things I was also Not a fan of too.

I said in another post that it's best to treat this like an AU of the original. There will things that are great and things that are bad. That's the nature of adapting something.

Having said that, I need to get my initial thoughts off my chest... here we go.

Things I thought were good:

Sokka's characterisation - I really enjoyed him! I thought Ian did a good job! He played the funny moments well and retained the underlying seriousness/cautiousness. It wasn't perfect, but I enjoyed the changes a lot and think it was overall a solid performance.

Zuko's characterisation - Like Sokka, I do think I was most satisfied with their performances. A lot of Zuko's moments from the cartoon are sometimes... well, cartoonish and definitely wouldn't translate to live action, but I think Dallas did a nice job at balancing Zuko's desperate anger and that occasional sassiness well.

Zuko and Iroh moments were great. Had me on the floor crying. As it should have.

The bending looks a trillion times better than the movie - I understand it would not have been easy for the actors but, overall, I was very happy about it.

The scenery was stunning. It just looked so beautiful. I loved it so much.

Absolutely ADORE that they made Zuko a good calligrapher and artist. I read a fic about a million years ago where Zuko is a fantastic calligrapher and I thought it was perfect and made so much sense, and now I can say it's canon. This is perfect for me.

S U K I

The Freedom Fighters were ✨ perfect

They were so real for making Oma and Shu lesbians

Koh, Wan Shi Tong and Hei Bai looked fantastic, but I have more to say about all of them below, unfortunately.

I actually like the change they made that Katara is Aang's sole waterbending teacher.

Aang is not perfect, and needed more goofy scenes HOWEVER, I did like how they've had Aang's guilt more prominent in the story. The original didn't do a very good job with that, imo.

Zuko entering is breaking and entering era by breaking into an impenetrable Earth Kingdom prison is just perfect.

In Masks, I like how Aang and Zuko got a longer conversation - that was pretty cute.

I liked how they changed Yue a bit and got her out of the arranged marriage... how Yue saw Sokka in the Spirit World before meeting him in the real world.

Things I didn't like:

Far too much info-dumping/exposition. So much spelling things out. It was not as egregious as the movie, and I get there's a lot of information that needs to be conveyed well and quickly... but sometimes it really took me out of the show.

Why are Mai and Ty Lee here.... I was hoping the live action would give them a bit more depth (and they might as it goes forward!), but why put them in season 1 at all if they're just going to stand around???

Some odd changes - putting this as one point, but there are some bizarre changes that didn't make sense to me, as they did not benefit the story or deepen the characters. I have two main examples: a) making it so Aang didn't run away from home, and b) making it so Zuko actually fights Ozai in the Agni Kai.

Characterisation of Katara was Not Great. I don't think I got many hints of the reckless, compassionate, badass Katara until the end when she fights Pakku and rallies all the women together to fight (which happens off-screen). She was sweet and kind, but she just lacked the fire that OG Katara has.

Azula's characterisation - Azula is desperate to impress Ozai and so her character is just…. brewing with anger, frustration, desperation. I was SO excited to see the Azula we are introduced too… perpetually and irritatingly calm, calculating and ruthless. She's perfect, she's terrifying! She's literally the character of all time. But this Azula had more Zuko vibes? I don't think there's anything wrong with giving Azula more concrete motivation by wanting to impress Ozai and establishing that Ozai is abusive to both his kids, but I do think trying to do that right off the bat is a mistake.

WHY is Wan Shi Tong here. I love Wan Shi Tong, but like I said: Why Is He Here? Why could we not have his iconic, ominous as fuck introduction from The Library, and instead he's introduced in a random season 1 episode giving Aang Information(tm) about the Spirit World.

When Aang gave Koh the statue, and then he just takes it and immediately lets all the villages go, and neither of them even say anything, I actually laughed out loud. Like, I am so sorry, but what in the jesus fuck was that.

Speaking of Koh - I think Koh is better the less we know about him. Roku saying ~all Koh wants is a family like the rest of us~ just pissed me off?? I like my Koh the Face Stealer Terrifying and Unknowable, thank you.

NOTHING EVER REALLY HAPPENS WITH HEI BAI!!?? where's my precious spirit bear?? Like Aang never really does anything with him and the replacement Koh story is boring and it sucks.

Bumi.... sorry I just didn't vibe with him at all.

Things I can't decide on:

Fancy spirit knife to kill the moon spirit annoyed me a bit, but I guess they wanted to Kuruk something to work with and a little bit more interaction with Aang which I get but idk. I really flip/flop on this one.

I've been very on the fence about having Azula (and Ozai) being in the show in season 1 in general. I'm not sure if it benefited either of their characters.

Azula & Ozai's dynamic - Okay, so, I think they're trying to give Azula more depth, right? They're trying to establish what it was like for Azula to live with Ozai and that she's also (like Zuko) trying to desperately prove herself to him, but Ozai using Zuko's... achievements to do that just felt so weird. I get he's doing it to manipulate her, but that just felt so wrong when in canon it's very obvious that Ozai just didn't give a single fuck about Zuko. Ozai pits Azula against Zuko by saying he's a failure, he's a bad bender etc. Azula is born lucky, Zuko is lucky to be born - like, Ozai says that to Zuko's face. I don't know if I am communicating this point very well, but it just didn't seem right to me??

Zuko vs Zhao in the Siege of the North... I genuinely do not know how to feel about it! I didn't love it, I didn't hate it. I don't know how to feel about Zhao telling Zuko that his mission is a sham and that Azula is the prized one... It feels like it's saying the quiet part out loud? In the OG we all know that Ozai sending Zuko on that mission was an excuse to get rid of him, but we can work that out, no one actually says it. And then Iroh just fucking killing him/mortally wounding him instead of the Iconic scene where Zuko reaches out to save him despite everything Zhao has done to him, but Zhao's own pride gets in the way from letting him accept help from Zuko.

Zuko’s crew being the 41st is not necessarily a bad thing at all!!! But I do just want to say that in the original, the attack goes ahead, and presumably, those soldiers die. It’s horrible. Zuko’s sacrifice is in vain, and it was always going to be in vain because the Fire Nation as it stands would not allow Zuko's compassion to win. Ozai would not allow it. While not necessarily a bad choice (all the soldiers bowing to Zuko on the boat was so sweet I loved it!) but I think it does take away some of the horror of Zuko’s story (same as it does with making Zuko fight back in my opinion) because the whole point is that Zuko did the right thing - and he was punished for it, and those soldiers died anyway.

anyway...

Okay!! got that off my chest. I know I just had a big whine here, but I still had a lot of fun watching this show. I think some of the backlash is a bit over the top and unwarranted. It was never going to stand up to the original - and that's okay.

Enjoy it for what it is!

[gracepuenteart]

I realized I never posted this! Made it a while ago to go along with the other pieces from this set

[bluespiritshonour]

Mai and Zuko spirit shenanigans because neither of them are the least bit spiritually inclined.

Mai probably doesn't even think about spirits until she runs into Koh and thinks it'd be a good idea to fuck with him. Koh hates her.

Zuko's dynamic is the opposite. The Blue Spirit wouldn't leave him the fuck alone. And Zuko's not as smart as Mai. “You took my name! You owe me!”—and Zuko is so tired of this annoying little spirit. But he's also afraid because he must have upset a lot of spirits while on his hunt for Aang.

[totallyottie99]

Moraine- upcoming fic

[chiptrillino]

Trick or treat ! 🎃

a part of me thinks they should be kissing

[goodsirs]

Koh the Face Stealer in Avatar: The Last Airbender — 1.05 "Spirited Away" — 1.06 "Masks"

[queen-morgana91]

OK AANG

[sleepy-sham]

I made this like a year or so ago for a facebook group & it is still one of my proudest creations

more atla memes

[hearmeoutworthypoll]

Koh the face stealer from ATLA pleaseee

Stolen from the wiki:

Koh the Face Stealer is one of the most ancient and knowledgeable spirits in all of the Spirit World. He is a malevolent entity with the body of an enormous centipede-like creature and resides under an ancient tree in the Spirit World. His self-chosen name reflects his ability to literally steal the faces of other beings who express emotion and use them at will by "blinking"

He possesses a sadistic personality and constantly tries to goad the slightest bit of emotion out of his visitors, even if it is the Avatar, by frightening them with his monster-like appearance or taunting them with his many faces. However, Koh's actions suggest he is amoral rather than purely evil […] He also is cryptic and often speaks in riddles. Another spirit derogatorily described Koh as "chatty" due to his readiness to talk with humans

Stealing an entity's face will not kill them, as proven by a faceless monkey living outside his lair, and Rafa, another victim, did not require food or oxygen, though his victims will enter a state "somewhere between life and death" that can persist for years

[atla-milf-month]

ATLA MILF Month will happen in March 2025! This month will celebrate all the ATLA-verse moms and older women who... well, you know!

Click here to see the prompts! Click here to check the event rules! Do you have any questions? Do you want to be a mod? Please send us an ask.

Thank you for participating. We hope you enjoy the event!

[kuruk-weekend]

The great promo art is by @bellwethers. Make sure to check her blog and commission sheet!

KURUK ERA WEEKEND 2025 JANUARY 10TH - JANUARY 12TH

CLICK HERE TO CHECK THE PROMPTS!

Do you have any questions? Do you want to be a mod? Do you want to join the Discord Server? Please send us an ask.

[bat-snake]

Had me a bit of a weird revelation

[wyrmsfornerves]

Koh