#esp bc sokka feels super connected to this kid and aang loves them

[bernard-the-rabbit]

Bumi II with his fav uncle Sokka

[ID found by clicking alt on the piece]

[parcai]

do you have any thoughts about toph? maybe her backstory, running away, bending, relationships with the gaang, idk anything toph?

having her call a perhaps more "feminine" boy (even tho he's literally not lol) twinkle toes was certainly a...choice 💀

making her aang's age was really fun + a good choice imo. it's just fun to see her be one of the better teachers for aang (imo at least) and also just straight up be a metal bending crazy prodigy 😭 entertainment off the charts in that sense.

i also think making her 12 was smart bc i think we should have more female characters that are immature and act like kids are just straight up stupid and stubborn at times 🤩😭 ik you've seen me talk abt this a lot, but i'm sick and tired of the female characters being written into mom-like roles and being serious and wise and girlboss when women aren't inherently more mature than men or nonbinary friends but are rather just forced to take that role to babysit the male protags. which is. gross and boring lol. so YEAH man!!! toph doing stupid shit that'd piss me off if i was there too, fuck yes!!! she's 12 let her BE twelve holy shit 😭💔

speaking if gender, i like that she's not stereotypically feminine OR masculine. 🤔 in fact i like that abt the whole show in general, but toph is def one of the handful that it esp. stands out in. she has little kid crushes on both zuko and sokka LMFAO (which like yeah i think most kids in her position would feel the same) but then she also goes and beats up people in arenas and encourages violence ndhdkdhsk and wears dresses and speaks all properly and then probably cusses (except it's nickelodeon but those r the vibes u feel?) and feels insecure abt appearances idk bro u know what i mean

her backstory is fun to me also bc i think it's super relatable for the intended demographic and even the older demographic that continues to enjoy it after their childhood. that whole idea of not having autonomy over your life resonates w a wide range of people, and her using defiance and pushing away from restraining environments is an important counterpart to sokka/katara who were shoved into responsibility and are super close w their families. (in general atla does an EXCELLENT job w making points from pure juxtaposition). while sokka/katara/others teach that family is important, toph reminds of the importance of trusting yourself first as well and knowing your own limits. i think that's an often underrated and overlooked concept, esp. in children's media.

i'm not physically disabled obviously but i've seen people talk about how it's a good starting place for expanding rep in that particular minority and i can see why. there is little belittling and babying off disability alone and i imagine that's super empowering. plus her connection w the earth is just straight up cool, even without the blindness, and her sense of humor is MDHDKSHSKSJK her + sokka = peak jesting at all times. her making blind jokes just really makes her whole personality 10x better 💀

i LOVE that she's one of the more nuanced characters, ESP. in the gaang (besides aang and before zuko joined). like TRUE earth in the elements and in horoscopes and religions and whatever else, right and wrong are always interlaced and to be the best you have to operate in shades of grey. toph making a case for zuko and then also for iroh, toph unafraid to criticize ignorance in the gaang, toph hailing from the rigid earth kingdom and understanding that cruelty is not always indicated on the surface, toph KNOWING that she rubs people the wrong way by hating and loving everyone equally. fucking legend behavior. fuck them up my dude!! 😤💖 put them in their place!

obsessed w seeing her interact w either aang or katara at all times. those were her best gaang relationships hands down