#azula is more redeemable than iroh

[ilikepjo24]

Lol another dumb take on reddit

https://www.reddit.com/r/CharacterRant/s/ER8SmBToSm

WOW! There are so many things to unpack here...

"Iroh, the most-" Iroh!? IROH!? THE Iroh!? The "redeemed" warlord that only gave a fuck about being a warlord after it affected him personally? That Iroh? The Iroh that left a child to bare the weight of a nation just bc he, the mature responsible adult, wanted to sit on his ass instead of being mature and responsible? THAT Iroh? It seems awful like both those actions appear to be those of a selfish and unempathetic person. And let's not forget that even after his "redemption" he assaulted June. So how exactly is he the most understanding and kind person in the show, exactly?

Would you like to know who actually is the most understanding and kind person in the show? AANG.

The boy who found it in himself to forgive and learn to have affection for the dude that chased him around the world and almost hurt/killed him and his friends multiple times. The boy who found it in himself to forgive the nation that genocided his people enough to want to help them, teach them their old ways and bring them back to the light. The boy that found it in himself to spare Ozai, a sadistic, manipulative, abusive warlord that wanted to watch the world burn in an attempt to satisfy his narcissism. And may the record note that Iroh did not extended his own brother the same mercy. He believed Ozai needed to die, when Aang didn't. So Aang is more empathetic, understanding and kind that Iroh.

And do you know what Aang has to say about Azula?

That he believes in her ability to do good and be good. That he trusts her to do so. He could have had her executed. He didn't. He could have taken away her bending. He didn't. He could have said she's born evil and a bad egg. He didn't. He put in a good word for her. He said she did something good. That can be good. THAT'S what the actual most understanding and kind person in the whole franchise has to say about Azula.

"She smiles when-" So did everyone else and so does everyone ever alive when justice is served. Because for the audience, the event was unfair and traumatizing. But for the people of the Fire Nation it was justice. And it's only normal for people to be happy when justice is served. When a groomer goes to jail you don't think "oh, that poor groomer", you think "good, this piece of shit definitely deserved it". Similarly, in the Fire Nation, an imperialistic dictatorship, when someone disrespects their Firelord, which they worship as almost a god (if not more, bc we see them worship their Firelord more often than Agni), and that person gets punished they don't think "oh, that like boy", they think "good, this piece of shit definitely deserved it". That's not called "being a bad egg", that's called propaganda and borderline mass brainwashing.

"She mocks-" She's repeating what she heard from adults in her life. That's not being a bad egg, that's bad parenting.

"She tortures-" Not cannon in any way. We've heard that she threw bread at them. Not only was that told from Zuko's pov, who's known to be a biased narrator when it comes to Azula, but it's also not even that freaking bad. It's bread, when it hits the water it becomes soft. No one ever died because they got hit by a loaf of bread. And she doesn't burn them with.

"Her mother's comments-" Oh, you mean the "what is wrong with that child"? That comment? That comment that was thrown at a child after doing a very normal childlike thing? I used to to play execution with my Barbie dolls and beheading them by pulling off their heads and my least favourites would always be the ones that got executed. Kids break toys they don't value and/or like. Azula is not obligated to like or value a gift that wasn't for her. The doll was a gift for every little girl. It wasn't personal. It wasn't hers. She doesn't have to like or value it. She doesn't have to not break it. The only reason that she chose fire instead of execution is because she had fire handy. That comment Ursa made was absolutely not justified.

"She's never given an excuse-" Not only is this take proof that media literacy is dead, it's flat out anti-intellectualism. We see that Fire Nation schools brainwash kids by shoving propaganda in their faces and we know Azula went in a Fire Nation school. All that's left to do is put 2 and 2 together. It's 4. It's fucking 4. Azula was brainwashed in the Fire Nation school that she went to that brainwashes Fire Nation kids. Canon fact. Use your brain.

"Her vision of what she wants is twisted-" What, exactly, is twisted about wanting to be acknowledged by your family that is proud of you, being loved by your family that is supposed to love you anyway, and completing the mission you've been brainwashed into thinking is the right thing all your life? What is twisted about reaching expectations and having a happy family? I'll wait.

"We're supposed to sympathize with the spi- No, we're not. The spirit is very obviously a liar and a manipulator as we've seen throughout the whole damn comic. And it wants to eat her. The spirit is the villain of the story that has been continuously twisting reality to weaken Azula's ambition and will to fight back, so that it could kill her. By the end of the comic we're supposed to know that the spirit is a full of shit and we shouldn't trust what it says, since all it has said throughout the whole comic is lies. Not sympathize with it.

"Rationalizations of her behavior are believe yet unprovable and based on subtext." It's almost like she's not the main character. The show isn't going to take time diving into her background. They are going to only give us subtext and we have to use our critical thinking skills and come to a believable conclusion, as we do. Zuko loving Ursa isn't outright stated at the show at any point, but we know it's a fact because we see it in the way they interact. We know his mother matters to him because he thinks of her and misses her. That's subtext. And we know Azula is not to blame for the person she was bought up to be because Fire Nation schools canonically brainwash their students. That's subtext. You can't selectively decide that this subtext is enough to prove this point, but that subtext doesn't prove that point because it's not outright stated. That's called double standards.

"The show portrays her as being inherently evi-" The show? You mean the same show that didn't even portray the genocider, treacherous dictator (Sozin) and the abusive, manipulative dictator (Ozai) as inherently evil went out of its way to portray the manipulated, abused, brainwashed child as a bad egg? ...Sure. That's what happened.

"Mai and Ty Lee do the same stuff but are portrayed differ-" No, they are not. Mai is portrayed as somebody who abused the power they have over others, since she views ordering servants around as a fun activity, and as somebody who has no empathy towards their family, as she didn't hesitate to agree that her brother has less worth than a king. Ty Lee is portrayed as sadistic, since she's animated to smirk and sneer while taking down soldiers defending their homes. I think she even goes as far as to mock them at sons point, but take that with a pinch of salt. They are portrayed to be classist, sadistic, unempathetic people that only give a fuck about the select few and mystery everybody else. Y'all just refuse to see it because Ty Lee is cute and is constantly infantilized because of it and because Mai protected your lord and savior, Zuko, right after she was done being classist and unempathetic. They are not portrayed as better, you just go out of your way to portray Azula as worst.

"Even in LoK-" Azula is given Freudian Excuse. You just refuse to see it because, as opposed to Legend of Korra, the creators do not chew your food up and spit it in your mouth for you to swallow. You have to put the pieces of the puzzle together and make realization. Which can understandably be hard for people that have a brain the size of a peanut, like yourself.

"It feels weird for a show like Avatar to imply somebody was evil from birt-" It feels weird because it is weird and it is weird because it's something they would never do which is why they didn't do it. You literally just created this narrative inside of your head while understanding that it goes completely against the philosophy of the show. And now it's weird to you that it doesn't align with the show? Make it make sense.

This isn't asking for an Azula redemption arc (although "this fourteen-year-old who was acting under orders of a tyrannical fire lord can't be redeemed" seems incredibly harsh), this is just me wondering why the writers consistently, across mediums, refuse to suggest that she's even the slightest bit a product of her environment? But Zuko gets a pass for pretty much everything more or less? Alright then lol.

This is close to being the smartest thing you have said during this post. Unfortunately it is easy to notice that some of the creators just don't like Azula. That's it. That's the reason why. They don't like her and they don't want her to have a happy ending. So it's good that somebody else is riding this show now. Faith Erin Hicks, as we see from her comic, is not afraid to treat Azula as the victim she is, and is not afraid to lay the blame on the adults that failed her. As opposed to previous creators, she seems to be willing to apply the general philosophy of the show in Azula's character as well. Which is something she's able to do because Azula is not, in fact, inherently evil. She's a victim of abuse and a manipulated child that has done some very fucked up things but has all her life ahead of her to grow up and be better.

Give us a scene of Ozai molding her into the cruel person she is

Supporting and praising bad behavior is enabling it. A good parent would say "I understand that you were upset at feeling as though you were underestimated when you got efficient results, but it's important to keep your cool and respect your instructors since they have more experience than you. If you feel as though the inability of this instructor to stray from traditional paterns is holding you back, communicate that problem with me, and I'll find you a new teacher if it's necessary." Does Ozai do that? No. What does he do? Praise her. What will Azula do in response? Repeat the same behavior to receive praise again. What is that called? Nursing cruel/bad behavior.

Give us a scene of Azula being at least a normal child at some point.

Stealing sweets at a sleepover and recreating scenes from a movie/play with your sibling? I recall doing both those things as a child. We're talking about universal normal child experiences.

Don't vindicate her mother being cruel.

The narrative itself is not excusing Ursa. Azula herself goes to lengths to hold her accountable, actually. The only ones excusing Ursa's actions are Zuko, who's looking at her through rose colored glasses, because she's one of the first people to show him love, and he wants to sing the best of her, and the fandom, for the same exact reason.

Have Iroh say something slightly more insightful than "she's a crazy bitch leave her alone"

Personally, I don't value Iroh's opinion at all. I think he has to work through the issues that he obviously has with himself, instead of projecting those issues onto Azula, which is what he's doing. But since you care about his opinion so much, here's him saying Azula has the capability to find peace.

Here's an easy one: instead of smiling when Zuko got burnt, Azula looks visually horrified. That tiny, tiny change would've made her far more nuanced! It wouldn't be much, but not only would it make the fire lord's actions seem even worse, it shows us that deep down, she does--or at least, did--care! This is more in line with the show's themes and far more interesting than "she's just gonna be super evil hehe".

Here's the thing. Azula doesn't smile because she's just so "evil hehe". She's smiling because Zuko is receiving a just punishment for his actions. At least as far as she's concerned.

Think about it, in the Fire Nation they treat their King as a god. They pray/say an anthem/swear loyalty to the Firelord and the crown every single day. It should be needless to point out that nobody would question the actions of the Firelord. They would just assume that this is the correct course of action because this is what the Firelord is doing.

Azula not only is a subject of that Firelord but she is the daughter of her father. She was 11 when the Agni Kai. At that age, kids do not question their parents. The think things are right because the parents do it. If Dad is upset with Zuko, then Zuko must have done something wrong, because Dad can't be wrong, he's Dad, he's never wrong.

So both as his daughter and as his subject, Azula has been conditioned from the day she was born to think that he's always right. So when he decides to punish Zuko, that's just another instance where he's right. So why would Azula be upset with him for being right? Especially considering that if she were upset with him, it's possible that you would also receive a punishment for disagreeing with his methods.

So imagine you are Azula. You see your dad, who is always right, and is also your king, who is also always right do something. Anything. Do you think to yourself "Why would he do that? That's bad!" or do you think "He's right for doing what he does because he's always right."? She's under the impression that he's a just ruler and father, so why wouldn't she be satisfied at the sight of him rendering justice to the foolish subject that disobeyed? Especially when having a different opinion can result to being in danger?

Do we get anything from the answer to her personality being "bad egg"?

No, we don't. Which is why this isn't what they did. You just have a false idea of pretty much everything regarding Azula's character and how it was handled.

Thus proven.

[zuko-always-lies]

You post a lot criticising Zuko. Do you like Zuko or not?

(genuine q)

Well, let me break that down a bit:

Do I think we should have sympathy for Zuko?

I think as a 16 year old abuse victim he deserves a lot of sympathy and should get support.

Would I enjoy being around him?

No, I think the Zuko we see is a deeply unpleasant person and I doubt I would enjoy it if I were around him. However, I suspect I would also find Azula, Mai, Ty Lee, and Toph quite unpleasant to be around too, so that's hardly unique to Zuko.

Do I think Zuko is an interesting character?

I think Book 1 Zuko is actually quite interesting and in his own way quite likeable, even if he's a terrible person. Book 1 is where Zuko's writing peaks for me.

Beyond that, I honestly think Zuko becomes much more boring. The writers started leaning entirely on having viewers closely emotionally identify with Zuko and feel personal emotional catharsis when he "achieves redemption." If you don't, Zuko becomes much more boring and the flaws in his writing become much more apparent.

I also think Zuko isn't a particularly interesting or unique character in general. Azula, Ty Lee, and even Mai all manage to be way more interesting and unique than Zuko, despite getting vastly less character development time. At their core, Zuko's arc and themes amount to rejecting an abusive father in favor of a better surrogate father, which feels pretty standard to be honest. By contrast, I can think of only one character the least like Azula in any Western media, Miles Vorkosigan from the Vorkosigan Saga.

Honestly, the most interesting thing about Zuko is analyzing the difference between how the narrative frames him verses what his actions actually suggest about who he really is. That's probably why I write so many "Zuko critical" posts, because I find analyzing the difference interesting.

Do I think Zuko's arc was well-written?

No. The writers were very good at tugging at the heartstrings but beyond that I think "Zuko's redemption arc" is not nearly as good as people make it out to be. In particular, the way that the narrative after Book 1 stops holding him accountable for anything he does weakens his arc badly. That, along with making Iroh the center of Zuko's arc at all costs, made things drastically worse than the original writing plans for Zuko.

Do I think Zuko is the morally pure perfect Firelord the narrative tries to sell him as?

The finale tries to present him that way, but it falls flat for me. Zuko is a very badly flawed person who never addressed most of his flaws, and he's not the least bit suited to be Firelord. The narrative needs him to be the perfect, rightful prince who will redeem the Fire Nation from darkness, and if Zuko had been written differently and his arc had been taken in a different direction, he could be that, but he's not. I could never buy the person we see at the end of the show being a good ruler, and I could never buy him being happy as a ruler.

Could Zuko be an interesting character?

Hell yes. If the narrative had been less prone to gloss over Zuko's many flaws, and more inclined to force him to address them and deal with the consequences of his actions, he could be very interesting. Even if the narrative was willing to seriously acknowledge Zuko's flaws without having him ever improve on them, things would be more interesting. The Zuko-Azula relationship is actually super-interesting if you think deeply about it, but you need to ignore everything about how the narrative frames them for it to be interesting. "Good boy tormented by evil demon psycho younger sister" is boring as hell.

[the-badger-mole]

On the Unredeemed

Unredeemed villains are important in fiction. I feel like that needs to be said. There is a trend in recent years (probably since Wicked became a hit) of people wanting to see monsters redeemed. I'm not against that (per-se... glowers in Maleficent), but also, I feel like we do lose something when we lean into the idea that the monster gets to make good.

Fiction can be really useful for teaching us about life. I remember seeing a quote some time ago on Pinterest or something that said something along the lines of "fairytales are important not because they tell us dragons are real, but because they tell us that dragons can be slayed". That has been on my mind a lot recently when I see discussions about characters like Azula and (more recently) Ozai. They are fictional characters with super magic fire powers, but they represent something real- they represent the cycle of abuse in families, and while I understand the impulse to absolve someone as young as Azula, I think it's also important to tell the story where she isn't redeemed.

One reason that most Azula redemption stories bother me is because of the responsibility they tend to place on Zuko as her older brother, despite the fact that she victimized him probably more than anyone in her life (that we get to see. I don't think her soldiers believed her death threat for no reason). There are plenty of stories about the victims of abuse needing to be the bigger person to keep their families together and being villainized when they don't (I think by now we all understand that Terri was not the villain of Soul Food). We need stories about knowing when it's okay to walk away, and that illustrate the idea that "the blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb".

In a time when more people are talking openly about going low contact or completely cutting off family members- close family members- I personally think that seeing stories about coming out of the other side of it, of building a new family, healing from the past, and dealing with the residual guilt that comes with "turning your back on family" even when it's the right call, is helpful in the same way that those fairytales about slayable dragons are.

I'm not saying any of this to discourage Azula redemption stories. In fact I would love to see more. Stories that have Azula confronting what she did to the people she should have loved most, and have her considering what to do with the knowledge going forward, instead of just using her past abuse and mental health to gloss over the real harm she did. I want to see her grappling to accept the fact that no one- not her brother, not Iroh, not her friends- owes her forgiveness, and then dealing with all the complex emotions that come with just one of them actually forgiving her. But also, I want to see stories where Zuko gets to let go of his father and sister and go on to be supported in that decision. Because to him, they were dragons, and they were slain.

[hadesisqueer]

Just fully read Azula In The Spirit Temple, and I gotta say, it definitely is an improvement from her characterization in The Search and Smoke and Shadow trilogies; this comic understands her character more than those trilogies combined.

There is something I don't believe I fully like, which is the notion that she 'rejected redemption' from the spirit. That thing seemed to be overall a Lotus Eater Machine rather than something that actually was trying to help her Zuko gets Iroh and Azula gets a giant centipede disguised as an old woman that makes her have hallucinations —something she struggled with in the past— and give her 'redemption' through fake dreams and fantasies and lies. I doubt that thing had any good intentions at all, but anyway.

I do love things about the comic: there were some parts that reminded me a bit of Zuko before his redemption arc, and that while the comic doesn't redeem her and doesn't say she'll be redeemed, she's not approached as an unredeemable person either.

One of the things I loved was that flashback of Azula firebending for the first time and being seen by Ozai and Ursa doing so, and the implications later. Ozai was seemingly excited, Ursa wasn't. Take into consideration that Azulon arranged the marriage between them was to make a powerful line of benders. Azula and Zuko were children of the second son and they weren't originally born to rule, they were born to be weapons.

So Ursa looking serious and afraid —and young Azula looking confused, probably thinking her mother was scared of her— while Ozai is elated upon realizing that his daughter is a firebending prodigy and the implications is great, most of all when the spirit later shows Azula a warped version of the memory where Ursa looks actually happy and proud. Azula was like 'no, that wasn't how it went, my mother wasn't proud, she was scared of me, scared for me.' Because Azula herself realizes that her mother was scared of the path her father was going to make her take.

And then we have a few moments later Azula talking to her mother again, and her telling her mother that. That deep down she resented Ursa not just because she thought she loved Zuko more than she loved her, but because she thought she protected Zuko over her as well, that she saved him from being killed-- and then left. Azula tells Ursa that she abandoned her, that she wasn't there to protect her from Ozai and prevent him from turning her into his weapon, that she didn't have a choice and that if Ursa had been there to protect, she wouldn't have turned out-- like that.

Of course, I feel sympathy for Ursa, and Azula is hypocritical and refuses to take responsibility for her actions several times, blaming others for them or for leaving her. But in this comic we see for the first time something that's been obvious for many of us but wasn't acknowledged yet, and Azula acknowledges it herself: that she was an abused child. That Zuko wasn't the only victim of Ozai, she was his victim as well. That she felt neglected by her mother, and that while Zuko had had both Ursa and then Iroh to support him, Azula didn't have anyone to protect her from Ozai shaping her into his firebending weapon. And it's confirmed that Azula doesn't like being a monster, she hates it, and wishes someone had helped her. Azula wishes her mother had been there to help her and protect her from Ozai the way she felt she protected Zuko.

And it is shown, too, that Azula doesn't really hate Zuko, either. Or even Iroh. Otherwise, neither of them would have appeared in the dream the spirit gave her of the perfect scenario from her—her whole family happy and together, and proud of her and loving her. Zuko doesn't even have his scar; in her perfect world, she has a good relationship with her brother and he was never burnt by their father.

Even later, when she's shown fighting and arguing with an hallucinated version of Ty Lee, Azula doesn't even actively try hurting her; she manages to knock Ty Lee out and when the spirit asks her 'are you going to kill her?', Azula is startled by that suggestion and says 'why would I do that?', which shows that deep down she does care about Ty Lee. And Mai, in a way. Messed up, but she wouldn't want to actually hurt either of them, and it was already obvious in the show how much their betrayal affected her. Despite her messed up approach at it, it was clear and continues to be clear that Azula cared about them and did think of them as her friends. In her messed up way, again. And even now, she doesn't even entertain the idea of truly hurting Ty Lee.

And while she does reject 'redemption' (I still think that thing didn't truly want to redeem her tbh), she also-- kind of does choose it? Instead of attacking the Fire Warriors for betraying her, when she finds them-- she just looks at them being happy together, and instead turns around and leaves. She chooses to let them go and go on her own way, in a similar way Zuko let Appa go.

The comic did well with Azula's characterization of being a person who's hurt many people and done awful things while also acknowledging that she is also a kid, an abused one, that she wasn't born a monster and she dislikes being one and that she wishes someone had helped her, or acknowledge that she was hurt, too. It's shown that while she doesn't acknowledge this, she still really needs help.

It was good reading it, really. I don't think it necessarily means Azula will be redeemed in the future, but I don't think it means she won't be, either. Yeah, she messes up her chance at 'redemption', but Zuko had to be dragged crying and wailing by Iroh into doing the right thing several times, and he himself rejected his own redemption and betrayed his uncle in The Crossroads of Destiny. So Azula rejecting redemption now doesn't mean that in a future she couldn't still be redeemed. Zuko did get worse before he got it right.

Again, Azula in this comic reminded me a bit of pre-redemption Zuko several times and I find a few parallels between them. Honestly, while not perfect, I feel like this comic could be kind of read as Azula's equivalent to Zuko Alone in some way.

[waterfire1848]

Au where instead of trying to imprison them, Azula joins Zuko and Iroh in search of avatar

Hello, anon!!

Ozai still orders Azula to go and capture her brother and uncle but Azula decides against that because her want for a family overpowers her need to follow his orders. She thinks that if she can join them and capture the Avatar then her father will allow them all to return home and they can have something like the family they did before. When she arrives, she instantly abandons the royal precession and goes to find him, saying that she wants to join them rather than fight. (Zuko: Do you think I'm stupid? Azula: Occasionally. Zuko: 😡 Azula: I only want to help, brother. Would you really reject assistance from me? Zuko: Yes! Azula: You're so paranoid. I really do just want to help you, Zuko. If we all can capture the Avatar then we can all go home. You will be able to redeem yourself and have fathers love.) Of course, Iroh isn't a fan of Azula and thinks that she's trying to trick them, but he doesn't want to say anything yet as Azula hasn't done anything to prove that she's lying to Zuko. Zuko ultimately allows Azula to join their team and the three head out to search for Aang.

During their first few days searching for the Avatar, Zuko still hasn't gotten a clear answer from Azula about why she's decided to join him in his search. All he manages to get out of her is that she was allowed to leave and didn't just run away from the palace. While they're out in the forest, trying to figure out where the Avatar is and what their next move will be, Azula makes a suggestion to stop by a nearby town for supplies. Iroh, not trusting Azula at all, believes that she's hiding something and claims that Azula is probably trying to trick them. Despite her words, Iroh and Zuko don't believe her and don't stop at the town. Later the next night, Azula drags Zuko to the town while Iroh is asleep and shows him that there's nothing wrong with it. The siblings decide to take the night to get the supplies they need (yes illegally) and then return to Iroh the next morning. Similar to canon, Zuko decides that he and Iroh no longer need to travel with one another and that he needs to set off on his own. (Azula: With me. Zuko: Azula, that's not what on my own means. Azula: Yes, but you're crazy if you think you can survive out here without me. Zuko: I don't have a choice, do I? Azula: Not at all.)

The siblings set out across the Earth Kingdom, tracking the Avatar, and as they do, they start to talk about life in the palace before Ursa left. Azula wants nothing to do with talking about her mother but Zuko keeps asking her questions about the night Azulon died and the night their mother left. It gets to a point where Azula finally screams at him that she doesn't care because Ursa never cared about her. Zuko argues against this and says that she loved them both. (Azula: No. She loved you. She loved her precious little Zuzu who could do no wrong and deserved the world. What did I ever get? Glares and whispers of 'what is wrong with that child?' Zuko: Azula, you know she never- Azula: Oh, but she did.) Zuko lets the subject drop and they get back to tracking the Avatar, eventually finding him on the run from a group of Fire Nation soldiers. (Zuko: How well can you fight in a mask and black suit?) The siblings stop the soldiers from taking them but Zuko is injured in the process of protecting Azula from a soldier's fireball. Azula gets the chance to grab Aang and run but decides to take her brother away somewhere where he can rest.

When Zuko comes to, he finds Azula making soup and looking over maps of the Earth Kingdom. He's shocked that she's helping him out but Azula tells him that he's more useful to her on his feet than lying on the ground somewhere and that next time he needs to stay more alert. She tells him that she suspects the Avatar is heading to a nearby rock quarry to train with his earthbending master and then will head through the forest next to Chameleon Bay to get to Ba Sing Se. (Zuko: Ba Sing Se? Why would he go there? Azula: It's a safe place for him to train with his earthbender and waterbender and for them to make more moves. Logically, it makes the most sense. Zuko: Then let's go-ugh! Azula: You're in no condition to go anywhere. We'll head to Ba Sing Se together once you're better. I already found a town nearby where I can steal some passports to get us into the city. Once we're inside it'll be easy to find the Avatar. Zuko:... Azula: You're thinking about uncle, aren't you? Zuko: Once we get into the city, it'll be hard to get out or send uncle a letter. What do we do if we need to find him? Azula: I wouldn't worry. Uncle Fatso has a habit of turning up. Zuko: Azula- Azula, handing him a bowl of soup: Just eat. The sooner you feel better, the sooner we can get moving.) Zuko also learns that day that Azula is not a good cook.

While Zuko and Azula are heading to Ba Sing Se, they run into Iroh once more who joins them into the city. There's still some obvious bad blood between Iroh and Azula but the two put it aside to focus on their main objective. Later, the three sneak into Ba Sing Se with their fake passports but become stuck in the lower ring and unable to get to the upper ring. The only way up there is to pay for a ticket which costs money that the two don't have. The siblings and Iroh get jobs at a local tea shop. (Azula: I still don't understand why we don't sneak up to the upper ring at night. Zuko: We'll get caught. We can't climb those walls. Azula: Then we'll hide on the train or something. There must be a better option than this. Zuko: Don't worry. Soon we'll have the Avatar and we'll all go home. Azula: Home.) When Jet gets captured, Long Feng doesn't simply ignore what he's saying and has a Dai Li agent watching the siblings and Iroh where they confirm that the three are from the Fire Nation. Long Feng decides to wait until they have an opening. Throughout this entire time, Azula has never told Zuko or Iroh that Ozai sent her to capture them because he believes them to be traitors now. When they get word that the Avatar is so close, Azula decides to tell Zuko about what her true mission was. Of course he doesn't take it well (despite Azula telling him that she could have easily captured him whenever she wanted but didn't because she really does want Zuko and Iroh, or at least Zuko, to be part of the family again) and decides to try capturing Aang all on his own which leads him to finding Appa. When Iroh leaves to confront him, a few Dai Li agents go to the house and kidnap Azula. The Gaang hear a knock on their door a few hours after Long Feng is kidnapped. (Aang: ZUKO!?! Zuko: We need your help.)

[sokkastyles]

I've heard that Azula was meant to be male originally. I wonder how different the writing would be for the character and how different the fans would react to it. I am glad that they made Azula female tho.

I remember hearing that male Azula was also supposed to be the older sibling, which does change the story quite a bit. It makes Ozai's favoritism into a simple issue of succession. Male!Azula would be naturally favored because he would be the crown prince. Zuko would be raised to be subservient to his younger brother and that would be considered normal. Even Zuko being sent on a quest to find the Avatar becomes much more reasonable from that perspective as a practicality. Historically, second sons often went on those kinds of quests because it gave them something to do that wasn't "usurp my older brother for the throne."

Ozai would be even more aware that this was a issue, since he himself usurped his older brother. Actually, now that I think of it, it's really rather odd that Iroh, as crown prince, was the one out campaigning while Ozai stayed home, and that gave him an opportunity to stage a coup against his brother. A politically savvy Azulon would have sent Ozai out to man the siege of Ba Sing Se while Iroh was at home preparing to inherit the throne.

As for how fans would receive Zuko's older brother? I know a lot of people might argue that male characters are more easily forgiven than their female counterparts, and I have no doubt that a male version of Azula would have people ready to excuse his every move (see the inexplicable fandom that has sprung up around the likes of Billy Hargrove), but I also think the ways in which he would be excused would be vastly different.

Because with Azula there's a lot of "oh, she didn't really mean it," especially when it comes to the way she treats her brother. This idea that she actually really loves him, she just doesn't know how to show it, or twisting the things she does and says to him in canon so that they're actually proof of her love. I've been thinking about this a lot in terms of people saying they want to see Azula be "humanized," and what they usually mean is that they want to see her given redeeming qualities. Which to me reeks of a misogynistic double standard because most male characters aren't required to show kindness or be really loving deep down to be recognized as human. Being cruel and arrogant and sadistic are also human traits, and women are just as capable of these things as men.

I also think that because Azula is female and Zuko is male, there's a certain perception that she can't hurt him that much, either physically or emotionally. And the first one can be dismissed because the show takes place in a world where bending eliminates most differences related to physical strength. The second one is just wrong and relies on misogynistic beliefs about boys being less emotionally vulnerable than girls.

I do think that the Ursa blame would still be present if Azula were male, and possibly worse, because there would be that Freudian current about how Ursa damaged her son by not being the perfect madonna figure.

If Male!Azula were still the younger sibling, I think it would flatten the character in a way because it makes his cruelty and resentment of Zuko about envy for the throne. One of the most interesting things about Azula is that the fact that she is younger and girl makes her cruelty towards her older brother less expected, and more personal. And it takes something away from the character to try and excuse it away or soften it.

[lesviolyn]

how i used to view azula's character vs how i do it now (part 1)

then: she was smiling at zuko getting burned. she was born evil

now: this was iroh's biased pov. in her happy dream she had about her family, zuko appeared without the scar

then: she deserved it. she's evil

now: when mai said "i love zuko more than i fear you" she went insane cause this is how ursa viewed her

then: even after all that, she still attacked zuko. she can't be redeemed

now: zuko visited her after 1 year cause he needed her help finding ursa. he treated her awful post-war

then: she was crying cause she lost the fight. she deserved to be locked up

now: she wasn't crying cause she lost the fight. she was crying cause she lost everyone she loved. she saw zuko getting comfort while she was screaming in pain. i wish someone hugged her.

then: she's angry that she can't burn ba sing se to the ground anymore

now: after losing ursa, zuko, mai and ty lee, she thought maybe she still had someone on her side. her father. but then she realized that ozai never loved her

then: they should've locked her up

now: she literally just got out of the institution after 1 year. she was having hallucinations. yet they couldn't even understand what was going on with her. aang was the only one being nice to her

[azulasmommyissues]

Fire Nation Royal Family Analysis: The Archetypes. (Part 1)

Delving into how Sozin and Zeisan are like Azula and Zuko.

Within the Fire Nation Royal Family, two main archetypes can be noticed. The Golden Child and the Hated Child, both of which are victims in the cycle of abuse. Who fits where, and how can we recognise these archetypes?

Azula and Sozin obviously belong in the same archetype—that of the golden child. Meanwhile, Zuko shares many parallels with Zeisan. But in Iroh's and Ozai's generation, things *really* switch up.

To better understand the royal family, let's examine them all from the beginning.

[GEN. 1] SOZIN/ZEISAN

Sozin was the:

-powerful firebending sibling

-had prestige due to his position

-golden child

-not a Very Good Best Friend

-obsessed with said best friend (Roku) due to deeming he was betrayed by him, spent all of his elderly years searching for Roku's reincarnation

-influenced by his father's nationalistic beliefs, yet wanted to outdo him and appear more fearsome than him

-“his relationship with Zeisan was always poor, although this was the result of their parents' influence”

-perfectionist that becomes "sloppy when angry"

“Sozin and Zeisan's teachers and family always pitted them against each other, with the two siblings fighting for as long as they could remember. The competitions were meant to drive Sozin to greater heights and to draw firebending abilities out of Zeisan, though his sister never proved to be a firebender, with their teachers thus focusing their attention entirely upon Sozin.”

“During Sozin's early life, the Fire Nation experienced an era of industrialization and great prosperity, and trade flourished. While Zeisan sensed the corruption growing within their family, Sozin was influenced by his father's beliefs, according to which a nation's worldly power and landmass corresponded to greatness”

At the end of his life, Sozin expressed regret for his actions. That, believe it or not, did not bring back the airbender, or the dragons, and certainly didn't decolonise the earth kingdom.

_____________________________________________

ON THE OTHER HAND, ZEISAN:

-struggled to keep up, not gifted, NOT a firebender or prodigy like her brother

-despite the increased focus on Sozin, Zeisan refused to stop competing, studying, and growing, striving to prove herself worthy of her family legacy. honor!

-she studied and embraced air nomad philosophy and redeemed herself, realising the legacy of the fire nation wasn't one she wanted to take part in

-Instead of running away from her responsibilities, Zeisan wished to dismantle her family's legacy of corruption, eventually joining the air nomads, becoming allies to stop the fire nation nobility.

“Zeisan shared the intensity of her brother Sozin and doubted her own ability to be good, but she was focused on dismantling her family's corruption, demonstrating an indomitable will and desire to better the world. Zeisan was active and driven, constantly pursuing her own goals. She was very ambitious and sought to undermine her brother's rule.”

_____________________________________________

Now, this dynamic, to me, SCREAMS Azula and Zuko. Azula quite obviously being Sozin and Zuko quite obviously being Zeisan.

More specifically, Azula being the prodigy, the holden child, who grows obsessive, eith visions of her mother—(reminiscent of Sozin's own paranoia regarding Roku) While also feeling like she was betrayed by Mai and Ty Lee, her best friends, her “Roku” figures—a betrayal which was absolutely caused by her own behaviour, but caused her to spiral into the worst version of herself. Paranoid and destructive, much like what became of Sozin. She was also a perfectionist who, upon losing her mind, obviously lacked focus—and her relationship with Zuko was strained because they were always pinned against each other.

Zuko, on the other hand, is the disliked—abandoned child. Much like Zeisan, he seeked honor and appreciation within the royal family. He was no natural talent, but he had drive and ambition and he never gave up. Upon realising his family's corruption, he wanted to take no part in it. So he redeemed himself in joining the Avatar. The last of the air nomads. Just like Zeisan joined them, back then. So, parallels.

_____________________________________________

Something to notice is that, out of the two siblings, the one who takes (or is meant to take the throne) always has just ONE child. Sozin only had Azulon. Iroh only had Lu Ten. Zuko only had Izumi.

Each of them probably wanted to avoid the repetition of the cycle. They wanted to avoid their children having a relationship so strained like the one they had with their siblings. With that being said—let's examine Azulon.

_____________________________________________

[zvtara-was-never-canon]

Why do you think so many people ignore that Azula respected the Dai Li even though they were from the Earth Kingdom? Doesn't that prove she had the potential to no longer be racist?

Azula has the potential to not the be racist regardless of how she treated any non-Fire Nation character because the show explicitly says "Everyone is capable of great good and great evil" and it even ends with Zuko telling OZAI that he believes Aang is right and maybe he will change someday. Not everyone will see the error of their ways, but everyone has the potential to do so, Azula very much included.

As for the Dai Li, she "respects" them the same way I "respect" the broom I use to sweep the house. It's a tool that did it's job without issue and that doesn't need to be thought of for a second longer after it.

The highest compliment she can give them is "They're Earth Kingdom men, but their killer instinct is so firebending." Their nationally is treated, very explicitly, as the negative thing about them, while the stuff that reminds her of her own nation is the good. "You're one of the good ones" is still saying there's something wrong about what/who you are.

Azula literally says she (and her family) have the divine right to rule. She fully believes they have every right to invade these people's lands, force half of them to submit and kill the other half. Her using the Dai Li to do some of her biding in the Earth Kingdom because they're power system that already existed there is not the same as being able to respect them as people, it's simply her being practical.

How do you think european nations managed to colonize countries that had populations much, much larger than their own, at the same time and for entire centuries? They'd include some of these people in the plan, not as victims but as perpetrators. Using some of the local forces to keep the mass under the control (and thus not risking too much of your own forces if something goes wrong) is colonialism 101.

Azula already has trouble seeing Fire Nation people that are under her on the nation's hierarchy as equals, even when she genuinely LOVES them (see Mai and Ty Lee). She was never going to start magically seeing Earth Kingdom citizens as people just because she intimidated and manipulated the Dai Li into following her. She calls them "souvenirs" when she brings them to the Fire Nation and they were literally among the first groups that she threw under the bus when she had her breakdown.

She does not care. She does not respect them. They're useful tools, but that's it.

In my opinion, Azula is simmilar to Iroh when it comes to potential for redemption: it could only happen after she experienced some major tragedy that would rock her wrong and potentially kill the faith she had on her father's way of doing things. She was indoctrinated from birth to believe that foreigners are not as human as she is, so she doesn't have to care about their suffering, even if she/her family/her country is the one causing it. She'll see THEIR tragedies as "the way things are."

That's why Ehasz was pushing for her to be redeemed after she recovered from her breakdown with Zuko's help. She needs the old system to fail her and, more importantly, for a new, kinder system to save her. That's the only way she'll finally realize the old ways were absolutely TERRIBLE and couldn't give anyone anything but misery.

[oneatlatime]

Let's look back at my season 2 predictions!

When I got to the halfway point of season 2, I made a post detailing my predictions for where the rest of the season was going. They were delightfully subjective and conformed more to my hopes than to any legitimate foreshadowing.

I made 9 predictions (one per main character), and then I predicted three ways that the finale could go. I went into some detail in some of my predictions, so I'd recommend checking out the linked post. Keep in mind that I made these predictions before the Ba Sing Se arc started, and it shows.

For Azula, I predicted that she would be the finale's big bad, that she would be defeated, and that the Fire Lord would be introduced as next season's big bad. I'm giving myself one third of a point for this one. Azula was indeed the big bad.

For Toph, I predicted that she would get a subplot that revolved around either something she excelled at being challenged by an external force like those wrestling idiots, or something that she needed to work on that tied into her noble background. Once again giving myself a third of a point, because those wrestling idiots were involved and she did meet an obstacle that she beat by inventing metalbending. I correctly predicted the pieces involved but I got them in completely the wrong configuration.

For Appa, I predicted that he would come back after having many adventures and running into other sky bison. (What's the plural of sky bison? Devastated to say that I've never had to use it) I was right that Appa came back; I was wrong that he ran into remnants of sky bison(s?), but he did end up running into remnants of the Air Nomads, and dreaming about other sky bison(s?), so I'm giving myself three quarters of a point.

For Zuko, I predicted that he would be coaxed/dragged into being decent via a swordbending girlfriend, and that he would be redeemed by the end of Season 2. Hilariously, my prediction smashed Jin and Jet together, which breaks my brain a little. Also, he did the polar opposite of being redeemed by the end of the season. I'm going to give myself a quarter point, for getting the sword bit and the girl bit.

I predicted that Sokka would split from the rest of the Gaang and go on a multi-episode Appa hunting arc that focused heavily on his ties to his family. I was 100% wrong with this one. No point for me. Which is too bad, because I really liked the idea I came up with.

I predicted that Momo would do aerial reconnaissance for the Appa hunt with Sokka. I'm giving myself a full point for this one, because what was he doing in the Tale of Momo? Flying around looking for Appa. Admittedly Sokka wasn't there, but whatever, I need this point.

For Katara, I predicted some sort of moral crisis. Something to add some nuance to her world view. A good yet unapologetically patriotic firebender, or a downright evil waterbender. I was completely wrong on this one too, unless you count being talked into listening to Jet. No points for me.

I predicted that Aang would have to do some type of Avataring that involved delegating tasks to his friends, or putting his status as avatar first, probably due to unrest in the spirit world. This was by far my most broad prediction ("hey maybe the avatar will have to avatar it up" is a very safe statement), so no points for that. I was wrong about spirit world involvement, although I was right that his Avatar duties would conflict with his personal convictions. I'll give myself one quarter point.

For Iroh, I predicted that he would call on old resources to get himself and Zuko into a better situation. I got this one almost completely right, except two bits: I thought he would use blackmail or intimidation, when he actually used something more like the power of friendship, and I also thought that particular plot point would last longer than a single B-plot in a single episode. But what the hell, I'm giving myself the point.

All three of my predictions for how the finale was going to go were incorrect. There was no strike against the Fire Nation, there was no immediate dismissal of the eclipse as a possible time of attack, and there was no relegation of the eclipse to a single episode plot point. No point for me.

So, out of a grand total of 12 predictions, I scored:

3.91!

Ouch.

I'm going to be generous and round it up to 4, which is a third correct. Still ouch. I am less reliable than a coin toss.

But! I actually had a lot of fun both coming up with predictions and reviewing them. So I'm still counting this exercise as a win.

[justanotherthrowaway1950]

Sometimes I think the fandom forgets that Azula being an imperialist and Azula being a questionable sister are not really the same thing, even though they're connected a bit.

Azula can try her best to be a good sister, and she does try in Book 3, but she's imperialist who doesn't really get why Zuko is conflicted on the fire nation. She doesn't get why it isn't a good thing for Zuko to be back home or why Zuko being separated from Iroh is bad (look, I don't like Iroh, but he's still the best adult in Zuko's life by a mile).

Meanwhile, Azula not being an imperialist doesn't necessarily mean she'll be a good sister. Plus, there is a good possibility she'd end up fighting against Zuko anyway as an anti-imperialist (it completely ruins the point of Azula being the villain but it would make a good AU I think).

Agreed. Azula being a toxic/abusive sister and her being a genocidal imperialist and colonizer are related, but not the same. If she wasn't a genocidal imperialist and colonizer, she would still be a toxic sibling at best due to her superiority and inferiority complexes. Sticking with the franchise, Lin Beifong and Suyin Beifong are a good example of good people with a terrible sibling relationship. And if she was a relatively well-adjusted person when it came to her personal relationships and socialization, she would essentially be a female pre-redemption Iroh: a "kind" monster.

As to why people conflate Azula being a toxic/abusive sister and her being a genocidal imperialist and colonizer, I think it is because the show/franchise has a mostly Western audience, and so they tend to focus on and empathize more with Zuko's struggles to overcome his indoctrination and abusive family than the rest of the Gaang dealing with the consequences of imperialism, colonization, and genocide.

Other people have discussed this phenomena at length, but a lot of fan works and discourse has Zuko-based morality where if you are kind to him or help him, you have always been a good person or been redeemed and have completely worked through your indoctrination, even if that is not true or never really seen on screen or on panel (ex. Show!Ursa, pre-redemption Iroh, Mai, and Ty Lee.).

Though to be fair, the franchise encourages this type of thinking considering the Yang comics focus more on Zuko's personal drama than his regime's most important task, de-Sozinification, and Azula's solo comic makes so that her biggest issue is her refusal to accept and take accountability for hurting her loved ones due to her ego and pride instead of being a die-hard Sozinist.

[thedisdainfullysilentvisitor]

As much as I like the cartoon series, I like the live-action series equally. Maybe the writers didn't just want to 3D every scene, cause we got rewritten and new scenes. I like Bumi better in the cartoon series, but Iroh was forced to look a victim of his old self in the face. That victim became worse than him.

And I appreciate that Katara is actually acting like a babysitter to Aang, maybe that's why a lot of the Atla fandom doesn't like it. She and Aang don't go into the Cave of Lovers and kiss, cause that doesn't make any sense from where it was originally written. Sibling familial love, her and Sokka, made a lot more sense. Love that Omashu is the story of a lesbian couple too now.

Far as I understood it, Azula didn't feel like she had to compete for her father's love against Zuko in the cartoon, maybe that makes it so she can redeem herself easier? And Sokka's method of fighting off the enemy in the beginning actually kind of worked, really.

There's stuff I don't like about the live-action series, but it's better in some ways. Sokka isn't blatantly sexist. There's a lot more information about the Avatars and it's much more fleshed out. And I'm only on the fourth episode. Though ofc I was confused as hell about where the writers were going during most of the fourth one. Meshing multiple episodes and rewriting other scenes.

Katara's the best, though. Sokka's still funny. The Kyoshi warriors remain epic and badass. You can see Zuko's character better on-screen without looking through the psychology of him on youtube vids. And the CGI, man. You'd almost think those badger-moles were real.

And as cute as Sokka and Suki acted, I wanna see my girl Toph.

[zuko-always-lies]

Incomplete List of Metas (from 2021)

The Mai-Azula Relationship

On Azula Respecting Mai more than Ty Lee

The Mai-Azula Relationship, Part 2

Zuko being power hungry

Analyzing the “Azula Apologizes to Ty Lee” Scene from a Different Angle

The other thing Azula lied to Ozai about

Iroh's lack of honest conversations with Zuko

What Ty Lee Being at the Circus Indicates About Her Relationship with Azula

"At least I'm different now"

Why Suki might be OK with Azula

The Gaang thinks Zuko tried to kill them

Mai likes Azula more than Zuko does

Controversial Opinion: Mai Doesn’t Care (that Much) About Tom-Tom: A Meta Post

Ty Lee, Azula, Mai, the Dangerous Ladies, and the Hidden Narrative of Boiling Rock

Why a redeemed! Azula would still hate Iroh

Zuko and treachery

Unpopular Opinion: Zuko’s treatment of Mai is deeply toxic.

Ty Lee is a Free Spirit, but She Doesn’t Value Freedom

The Zuko-Ty Lee Relationship

Class and ATLA

I have to say, the canon behavior of the Northern Water Tribe is something else:

The Values that the Fire Nation Adults in “Zuko Alone” Teach the Children

Classism and the Fire Siblings

Status, Zuko, and Azula

The Mai-Ty Lee Divide

The number of characters Azula harms after capturing them is...

What Azula Thinks Zuko Wants (and How It Leads to Her Downfall)

Did Azula try to pick up boys before?

Jin’s Background

If in fact “Azula always lies,” than Zuko is a massive idiot for usually believing her.

[my-bated-breath]

Can people just admit that azula is a terrible person? While yes, she is a victim of ozai's abuse and indoctrination, she's not exactly innocent either. She also misblames Zuko for her own abuse and if her words at the beach are any indication, she's never gotten over the feelings of Zuko being loved more by Ursa (which isn't true) and still took it out on him to this day.

On my first watch of ATLA, I didn't spare too much thought toward Azula's redemptive qualities, but reading more analysis on her character later on definitely made me more sympathetic towards her. But I also think it's unfair to say that the show treated Zuko much better than it did Azula, or that the show was flawed for not giving Azula a chance to redeem herself, which I've also seen a lot of posts on Tumblr espousing.

I believe that an opportunity for redemption is due to luck and circumstances, which Zuko had with Iroh by his side. Meanwhile, Azula never had the chance to even see the world from a different perspective. I think this is the principal reason why a large part of the ATLA fandom wants to see her redeemed, and I think this is a testament to how balanced the show's writing and treatment of her, rather than the opposite. Because the show does paint Azula in a sympathetic light and illuminates her humanity. Again, her being cruel and antagonistic and thus, resented by the main cast of ATLA, is the result of circumstances that the show takes care to explore in great nuance later on.

That's a very long-winded way of saying that yes, I don't think Azula is a good person. Far from it, in fact. She never had the chance to become one, but the show acknowledges this.

[ao3feed-zukka]

I used to invent love when necessary

Read now on Ao3 at https://ift.tt/4DFSOM1 by sulkybender “You see this is why it works, right?” Sokka asks. “Your father doesn’t respect you.” He leans closer, blue eyes dark. “He doesn’t respect you because he knows you’ll always come groveling back no matter what he does. You’re his dog.” “Yes,” Zuko says, humiliated. “Say it.” “I’m his dog,” Zuko says. “You know more than you should, but you’ve done nothing with it, because you’re a coward,” he says. “You’re afraid of your own shadow.” Zuko nods stiffly. “Yeah,” he whispers. “I am.” Sokka leans back, satisfied. “Okay,” he says. “Perfect.” — After ten years of terrible mistakes, Zuko has one chance to redeem himself. Words: 1769, Chapters: 1/9, Language: English Fandoms: Avatar: The Last Airbender (Cartoon 2005) Rating: Mature Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Categories: F/M, M/M Characters: Zuko (Avatar), Sokka (Avatar), Katara (Avatar), Toph Beifong, Mai (Avatar), Aang (Avatar), Iroh (Avatar), Ozai (Avatar), Azula (Avatar) Relationships: Sokka/Zuko (Avatar), Aang/Katara (Avatar) Additional Tags: dark post-canon au, Ozai won, resistance fighters Gaang, Enemies to Lovers, and enemies as lovers, Slight degradation kink, Praise Kink, yes both somehow, Body Image, Self-Harm, Substance Abuse, Touch-Starved Zuko (Avatar), Smut, Political Intrigue, assassination plots, bombmaker Sokka, Depression, Self-destructive Zuko, forgiveness and unforgivable things, confronting the mistakes you’ve made, and trying to be a better person Read it on Ao3 at https://ift.tt/4DFSOM1

[impossiblycolorfulpanda]

Would you mind explaining why you ship Azaang? It seems interesting, but I can't put my finger on it. Since you dominate the tag, maybe you have some insights about the ship?

Short answer: It's a superior, more intimate, more suggestive, and more spiritually attuned version of Zukaang and a complete antithesis to Kataang. It mostly takes place in my Book 4: Air/Dark Avatar Ozai AU.

...

Long answer: I believe it all started when I read Aaron Ehasz's tweet about Azula having her own redemption arc with Zuko as her Iroh basically. I then read a fanfic called Azula's Redemption where she's redeemed through Aang by showing her how to open and master her own chakras. It ends with Azulaang being endgame.

It's commonly believed that Azulaang is another "opposites attract" thing but mostly with their personalities rather than elements, even though Aang can waterbend and that art was one of the easiest for him to learn. Azula also had a rather strong fixation on the earth kingdom and was able to bend the Dai Li to her will with ease.

It is often shipped along with Zutara because it gives Aang a love interest. Some fans also see the possibility of Azula reforming due to Aang. I've been studying both characters and their dynamics with other people. I came to the conclusion that Azulaang has as much narrative significance as Zutara.

Azula getting better is the ultimate goal in Azulaang but I wanted to complicate things a bit where Aang is mostly changed by Azula's influence as well.

I invented a little mechanic where Aang and Azula form a spirit bond. This bond unites them as fate, allowing them to understand each other better than anyone else and one will know when the other is lying. This bond is formed when Aang finishes opening his own chakras first and it gets even stronger once Azula completes her chakra session next. Why it didn't form in Ba Sing Se is likely because Aang's fire and light chakras weren't fully opened. Do you know how Katara was an earthly tether blocking Aang's last chakra? I picture Azula being something of an opposite entity where her presence keeps all chakras open.

I mostly place Azulaang within the Dark Avatar Ozai AU of mine. In case you're wondering about that, it's an AU where ATLA has a Book 4: Air but the story arcs from the back half of season 2 of Legends of Korra are put in Aang's saga instead. Some parts of the first 3 seasons are altered though, like when Aang meets Roku for the first time, he vaguely describes Vaatu but doesn't mention his name. In the Library, the gaang learn the names Raava and Vaatu but no more than that, at the beginning of season 3, Avatar Wan's two-part episodes debut while Aang is still in a coma, at the end of season 3, Ozai fights the lion turtle instead of Aang at a different location and his plans for the earth kingdom were a trick to keep the gaang distracted. Ozai wins by slaying the beast and consuming its soul.

The dark avatar doesn't just obtain all bending arts in the opposite direction of Aang's cycle but consumes/controls the very sources of the bending arts, the entire power system of the avatarverse, and the souls of all original benders after causing them to go extinct.

Again, I always imagine Azulaang taking place in that timeline because the reason why their spirit bond forms in the first place is because Ozai doesn't need to fuse with Vaatu, Ozai IS Vaatu. Vaatu is also the true orchestrator of the 100-year war through Sozin and is reborn as a human through Iroh's mother, Ilah. Another reason is that Azula will have every reason in the world to want to join Team Avatar, bond or no bond.

Aang is the one who loses his past lives but in return, after he's purified, Vaatu's natural abilities, instincts, and status are taken from him and combined with all of Raava's while still permanently fused with Aang.

There have been times when Azulaang was seen through a biblical lens with Aang as an angelic archetype and Azula as a demonic archetype.

I hope this makes sense and I didn't just ramble on.