#except at the end of every episode there’s a post-credits scene where it’s just mako or someone else cool going ‘RESPECT WOMEN’

[atla-suki]

sokka’s treatment in lok was astonishing tbh but i’m actually glad he was dead by the time the series started bc toph being a cop??? aang being an awful dad???? they would’ve ruined him and suki’s characters lbr.

as far as any possible kids go idk we didn’t meet suyin till book 4 we barely saw izumi i think they just didn’t want to make the new series be a atla reunion plus lok was only meant to be one season so they were making that shit up as they went along lmao. and back in 2012-14?? they didn’t know themselves what happened to sukka lmao.

sokka and suki are definitely the type to break up bc of long distance but then find their way back to each other a few years later especially as they settle into their roles in life.

while bryke definitely neglect suki and sokka to some capacity also they do have a soft spot for suki after bringing her back. many don’t consider her to be team avatar but they’ve stated they do so idk ! she shows up a lot in the comics which have obv been created post-lok and it’s been said that they’ll utilise it’s plots and characters in shall see in future projects (crane fish town becoming republic city maybe??? where suki currently is working?? and sokka later lives!!)

i’m p sure suki will be in it at some capacity anyway and that there’ll stick with jennie as she’s one of the few asian og va’s. she’s doing a lot of work atm for avatar studios.

also random but i literally found out today that it’s not bryke-confirmed that mai and zuko end up together. it was a comment on a panel by the old comic writer. it’s not technically canon. izumi is the spit of mai anyway but hmm! interesting!!

btw btw suyin’s father was def a sandbending outlaw who toph had a secret relationship with that couldn’t be public bc of her role as police chief x

oo big ask ok let me break this up into different paragraphs …

fist point - one thing i will admit about lok is that it fell short in incorporating the original characters into the new series in an interesting way with enough verisimilitude (realistic-ness) that it didn’t feel like they were just throwing a popular character into an episode for the sake of it. such as the whole ‘aang is a bad dad’ thing because they under-utilised him as a mentor figure to korra and instead focused on his supposed favourite son (i have thoughts on this re. aang NOT being a ‘Bad’ dad but i will make another post on it if u are interested (or have i alr made one? i’ll make another one.))

i have to agree that they would’ve probably done something shitty to sokka or suki if they were included. especially with the entire first season of lok being about bender/non-bender equality… i can just imagine they’d make sokka say something dumb about the equalist movement being 100% Bad instead of him actually supporting some of their completely valid arguments. idk. i’m sad there’s no sukka but at the same time…. quit while ur ahead yk.

second point - sukka long distance relationship is so real ESPECIALLY during their first few years together. i can see them just kinda calling it off because of commitment issues due to their work, etc. but not ever really losing feelings. they’d be endgame tho🥰

i can absolutely see suki being in upcoming projects! especially since she and the other kyoshi warriors expanded their reach across the nations - it would be hard to ignore them completely if we’re assuming they’re including comic canon into the universe. i hope jenny returns!!

third point - yeah! how crazy that maiko as izumi’s parents isn’t canon confirmed… though she’s so clearly mai’s daughter. i wonder if mai’s role will be expanded in upcoming projects / if she’ll be featured more. hmmm.

fourth - would honestly prefer this to the theory sokka is her father lol. it kinda baffles me that TOPH became a cop.. not bc she opposes authority - there’s something different about enforcing it than there is having to follow it. i can see toph in authoritative positions, and she fits them well. but i think it baffles me moreso because why would toph even work as a COP? isn’t that boring as hell for her?? go do something awesome like probending or professional underground fighting (adult blind bandit anyone?? this would make a good fic) or literally just construction idk i feel like toph isn’t a Hard Worker type that would want to be stuck in such a rigid career.

[girlwiththeglow]

Continuation of LoK Rewatch/Recap Book 1 Eps 6-12

One of the first things I did when I started this blog back in 2013 was to do a LoK rewatch/recap while waiting for Book 2 to begin (the wait for that was BRUTAL as hell btw) I had done up to episode 5 I believe in separate posts.

As I just finished rewatching Book 1 yesterday (20th time? lost count) I felt a small push within me to continue where I left off as I did have every intention to finish it but BOOK 2 excitement pushed that aside and well.... I never ended up finishing them. I suppose I’ll just sum it up briefly in one post just so I can get all my thoughts out of the way.

With 5 already written (check my first archive July-August 2013) I’ll just continue with 6-12. SPOILERS ahead....

EPISODE 6:- “...And The Winner Is...”

~ So, the standout of the episode is of course the REAL MVP that is Korra. Moments spanning from that sneaky power move to Tahno’s face with that water kick (slo-mo camera and separate angle and her “SUCK IT” expression); where she was hanging off the ring, holding up herself AND Mako and flinging him back in there and last but DEFINITELY not least, that badass fight between her and Amon’s Lieutenant where she held up her own and generally kicked ass in a proper one-on-one fight. There was also so much determination in her eyes when she saw Amon (and this was AFTER her last encounter where she was really scared that time he ambushed her) even in the face of that, fierce Korra unleashed that fire punch knocking Amon’s henchmen OUUUTTTT. That’s my girl!

~ Did I mention Tahno was a little bitch? Even though karma came calling for him and his cheating teammates...  THAT FACE still haunts me. Generally, this episode raised the stakes where Amon’s plans are concerned, where the public (and audience) is now well aware of his growing power and the ever-increasing threat he brings to benders. Lin Beifong too I remember just being like HELL YEAH, she and Korra teaming up - Lin especially showing off that she is quite capable with her metalbending - and her quietly growing respect for her was also a big highlight for me. I definitely remember feeling so tense and this exhilarating rush after this ep. This feeling of anything can happen and it was amazing overall.

EPISODE 7:- “The Aftermath”

~ A lot also happens in this eventful episode... Hiroshi Sato revealed to be the Equalists’ benefactor, Asami uncovering the truth and truly realizing the deep hatred and bigotry he has been harboring for benders all this time and... that tense moment where we weren’t sure if she was gonna join him or turn against him and ultimately making the latter decision... maybe it wasn’t too surprising but I feel like how it was executed with her just zapping them and using her self-defense to quickly take them down was kind of a jaw-dropper. We were never really sure and then it just kind of happens. (Part of me wonders if Bryke had stuck to their original decision to have Asami indoctrinated all this time and only befriended the team in order to betray them - and possibly, having to make the decision to become good and redeem herself throughout - if that would have made her more interesting. I feel like it would have given her a better arc throughout the Books and then the love triangle would have been handled differently for sure.) The unexplored angles JUST MAKE ME WONDER....

~ It was cool to see Korra accept that there was more to Asami than what she originally perceived (and for us too) and just added another compassionate layer to Korra, as she genuinely felt empathy for her in this unfortunate situation, even when she didn’t want to be right. At the end of the day, it was her duty to carry out her suspicions for the safety of Republic City... even at the cost of her friendships... it’s a tough call. In the end, Korra selflessly looks out for the team  with the open invitation for all of them to stay at Air Temple Island.

~ Action scenes in this ep, once again, just great. Tenzin using his airbending to dispatch the mecha-tanks, Lin using her metal spikes to crush them... they were on point.

EPISODE 8:- “WHEN EXTREMES MEET”

~ This EP. OH EM GEE. This ep! It was one of those heart-pounding episodes that actually kept giving you chills especially after the end. Noone could have foreseen the way this ep was gonna go... and it was frickin’ crazy/nerve-wracking.

~ The new Team Avatar was formed for the first time and it was really cool to see Korra have her friends’ support after she felt like a failure for not mastering airbending and feeling alone and burdened. The look of hurt and helplessness when Tarrlok called her out... she deserved a hug. They all worked well together and I enjoyed their action scenes in the car. Tarrlok’s plan to arrest them in order to get to Korra... how snaky can this one man be? I was about ready for his ass to be handed to him. Korra was about ready to let him have it then, with some pavements aimed to “say hello” to his face, however Mako was able to eventually talk her out of it before she too got arrested. The man was going after innocent people, locking off their power and trying to arrest them because they were out of their houses after curfew. Wicked man I tell ya.... and Tarrlok was well aware this would play right into his hands as we see when she goes to eventually confront him, frustrated with the inactions of the WORST CHIEF OF POLICE EVER...!!

~ That fight tho. Sure, we saw that steely, take-no-prisoners look when Korra confronted Tarrlok and we knew one way or another, she was gonna make sure she got her way. HOWEVER, Tarrlok was clearly SO rattled by her comparing him to Amon, he was OUT FOR BLOOD attacking her first. It was looking bad when she was getting scraped up his icicles and boy it just escalated from there.... ideally though, Tarrlok was NO MATCH for Korra’s sheer power and when we saw her use her earthbending and firebending and he had no water... I wondered if she was gonna burn his face off..... AND THENNNN.....THAT PAUSE. We knew SOMETHING was off, and then when he started moving her like a puppet and her groaning in pain, it allll became so clear and it was horrifying. Those final scenes were unsettling... he threw her like a rag doll against the wall and she was helpless to do anything. And that whole part about “never seeing Republic City again” and her just screaming in the back of the truck while he drove off.... And that whole camera panning up to the sky showing that it wasn’t a full moon..... and credits. CHILLS.

EPISODE 9:- “OUT OF THE PAST”

~ I really liked this episode. There were some surprising revelations and familiar appearances with flashback scenes that served to connect the past to the present. I liked that while Korra was meditating on Aang’s past (loved seeing the Gaang btw) to uncover what he had been hinting from earlier eps, the other subplot was spent focusing on everyone trying to find and rescue Korra.

~ Loved seeing Korra use her natural intellect and instincts to discover the truth about Tarrlok (being Yakone’s son) through finally connecting to Aang and of course when she overheard Amon tell his equalists not to underestimate her and electrocute the box before they opened it. She takes the cloth from her wristband and uses it to hold herself up thus preventing her from being shocked. Genius. Then she firebends with such immense power and successfully uses that opening to incapacitate them AND (narrowly!) escapes from AMON by herself. Then Naga being the best damn tracker there ever was being the first one to find her, never giving up on her master.

~ Tarrlok also had his bending taken away by Amon. It’s only until later we find out how significant this will turn out to be....

~ Seeing Yakone bloodbend the entire courtroom with just his mind.... Freaky as hell... Didn't like seeing him bloodbend Toph and especially Aang... That scene disturbed me because it looked extremely painful and maybe he had lasting damage after that who even knows.... :O Aang went into the Avatar State and finally ended his reign of terror by energybending his abilities.

~ I liked that when everyone was searching for Korra, Mako was the one who expressed his anxiety and worry the most. We’re talking about someone who was so guarded, he didn’t trust anyone else he met... until Korra. He was worried out of his mind, believing that Amon had done the worst to Korra. Mako witnessed Amon’s power for himself, watching his brother’s bending almost being taken and he also understood the threat he posed (it doesn’t help that he was personally affected by watching his parents being murdered, therefore he grew up becoming hardened and more cynical to how harsh life is) He may have been a little brusque, but that was brought on by the stress of potentially LOSING another person he cares so much about. (I don’t believe he would have hurt that Equalist either... honestly he just wanted to intimidate him into talking so he knew how serious he was.) This was an eye-opener for Mako himself (even though it won’t be revealed until the finale) how much he couldn’t stand to lose Korra.

They really shared a sweet moment when they reunited, and it warmed my heart when I first watched it.

EPISODE 10:- “TURNING THE TIDES”

~ This ep had a lot of great moments, ones that either made you laugh, made you gasp, and a few that left you pretty down.

~ You would think after Korra’s capture and rescue in the previous episode that this one would kinda be a breather right? Yeah.... not so...much.... turns out that this is the takeover. When all of Amon’s plans come to fruition and he pretty much acts on his plans like he promised. All the council people are captured, except Tenzin who is left as the default leader of RC, and while he manages to send out a distress call to the United Forces (contacting General Iroh - Zuko’s grandson!) he too is ambushed, with mecha-tanks subduing the rest of the police metalbenders and leaving Tenzin to defend the rest of the members. Team Avatar proceeds to come in at the right moment to save him and kick some booty..... unfortunately, Amon’s airships are at Air Temple Island (!) leaving Lin and the airbender kids to utterly dominate the Equalists. Shoutout to Meelo, you cute lil stinker you.

~ Pema gives birth at the wrong time (HOW INCONVENIENT PEMA) - Rohan is adorable though. So it’s a bright, hopeful moment in a heavy ep. They find out they have to evacuate right after or else the entire airbending legacy will be in jeopardy if Amon captures them. Tenzin and Korra share a hug before he urges her and Team Avatar to hide and to be safe. It was a nice moment and shows how they worry and care about each other, despite their occasional disagreements.

~ Lin Beifong (heroic and badass lady that you are) makes a huge sacrifice to hold off the rest of the airships from reaching Tenzin and his family.... in the end, she is captured and..... loses her bending as well! I remember just reacting to this with a “nooooooo damn you Amoonnnnn!” This was the downer part of the episode. Just never expected it to happen to Lin...

EPISODE 11:- “SKELETONS IN THE CLOSET”

~ I remember feeling shocked by the huge revelation in this episode. And funnily enough, I remember reading a fan theory online before this ep aired which actually predicted one of the major revelations but I dismissed it. It was the reveal that Tarrlok and Amon are brothers and the sons of the bloodbending crimimal, Yakone. Before we get here... let’s backtrack....

~ I have to point out the reflective quiet scene that was shared between Korra and Mako... which really speaks to the volumes of how much their relationship has evolved since they first met. Korra leans against Naga (contemplating on all that has happened and what will occur for tomorrow) and Mako goes over to check on her. She opens up about how she didn't believe she'd end up in the middle of an all-out war since four months ago she was at home practicing for her firebending test. Mako then says how they didn't know each other then and now he can't ever imagine his life without her in it. (quietly swooning over here, sorry). This is coming from the same guy who when he first met her he thought she was a crazy fangirl and barely even raised his eyebrows at the fact that she was the Avatar and now he then proceeds to share that "she is the most loyal, brave and selfless person he's ever known" - this is the closest admission he's ever come to so far hinting at how he feels about Korra and she, feeling touched, reciprocates her admiration for him too. While it is cut short due to the magnitude of what's happening, it is definitely a significant turn in their relationship and it shows how much Mako supports and appreciates her for who she is, and the positive changes she has brought to his life.

~ So General Iroh finally makes it to RC with his fleet reinforcements, and ends up joining Team Avatar to take down Amon’s forces. This is where the team splits up: Korra decides to stop hiding from Amon and wants to face him head-on; Mako (following up on their last scene and fully aware that he loves Korra) volunteers to aid her as there was no way in hell he was gonna let her do this alone if he could help it. The rest of the team will try to intercept and destroy the mecha-tanks/destroy runways etc. You can see from Asami’s expression (silent acceptance) that she understood now where Mako’s heart truly was once he expressed going with Korra. Their breakup was...real subtle and implied... though I do think that Bryke could have made it a bit more obvious what with certain parts of the fandom misunderstanding that scene...  Korra and Mako then leave in their stolen Equalist uniforms (which I have to say, they look pretty damn good wearing them) and sneaks into the arena...

~ The last half of this ep is spent on the revealing tragic backstory about Tarrlok, Amon (Noatak) and their father Yakone. As soon as they encounter Tarrlok locked in a cage, he simply lets the bombshell drop. BOOM.  Yakone was an obsessed, revenge-driven and abusive father who raised his sons to be exceptionally skilled bloodbenders so they can take over RC and avenge him due to Aang energybending his powers away. (he pretty much RUINS their childhood and scarred his sons for life) Noatak became Amon, this cold, detached, master PSYCHIC bloodbender and ended up carrying on what his father wanted... taking over RC and wanting to destroy the Avatar, with the added bonus of equality for non-benders. Tarrlok, on the other hand, ended up becoming something he hated... realizes this too late and urges Korra to stop him. It was just the saddest backstory we’ve seen thus far in the whole series and despite everything they had done, you did feel sorry for them. Korra comes up with the great idea to expose Amon to his followers thus ruining all he had built up.  And now it’s time to stop Amon once and for all....

All of this leads to the conclusion that is wrapped up in the Book 1 finale....

EPISODE 12: “ENDGAME”

~ Endgame - such a fitting title for the finale. I remember feeling so hyped waiting for this episode, and it blowing all my expectations out of the water. Several moments had me gasping, screaming, shouting, feeling ALL kinds of emotions. I’ve rewatched it several times since and it always brings out SOMETHING in me, that’s how much it still resonated. So let’s go....

~ Firstly, quick talk about the minor sub-plot. Bolin, General Iroh and Asami are captured by Hiroshi (I believe it’s the first time she’s seen him since she rejected him) and are saved by Naga (the BEST polar bear-dog that has ever existed). Asami and her father go head-to-head in mecha-tanks and they’re doing some serious damage to each other - I admit that I did feel bad for her that her own father sees no problem in attacking his own child... he is really off his rocker. Bolin, I agree that he is a horrible father. In the end, Hiroshi is taken care of and that’s pretty much it. Iroh-man (this was actually a meme created by the fandom back then) does some crazy stunts shooting fire from his feet and hands and jumping on airplanes, and throwing off Equalists, and ... man, Zuko you must be so proud of your grandson. Iroh should have joined the team... would have created a lot of possibilities...

~ The most nerve-wracking and intense parts of the finale involved Korra and Amon. EVERYTHING about it was a nail-biter, and I was constantly on the edge of my seat wondering what next and I was genuinely SCARED for Korra. 

When Korra and Mako hide in an empty room and Amon starts walking around ominously looking....  this part felt like a horror movie. You could see the close-up angle on Korra’s face and eyes and the sweat dripping down her head... some detailed animation there. Then....Amon is just bloodbending her (sharp note moment!) and Mako comes out of hiding to firebend him once he hears her in trouble but unfortunately, Amon was just too strong and paralyzes them both. Pretty much everything after that is .... *explodes* When Amon took Korra’s bending away, the sheer look of terror on her face.... with Mako, just watching helplessly unable to stop it... it was just so crazy and I just remember feeling so shocked in that moment... that this happened to our heroine. It had been building up to it from the beginning of the season but to actually see it happening was a huge blow....

I love how tightly packed the pacing and scenes were executed here because everything that happened after was so significant I can’t even skip over anything. So I’ll try to sum up my standout moments by character breakdown as best as I can without going so much into detail... (otherwise this will be an extremely longer post than I planned...)

- -  Mako’s actions in this episode all served to show his dedication and love for Korra and bravery in the face of danger. He musters up enough energy while Amon was distracted to lightning-bend him, thus completely blindsiding him, causing him to release his grip on the two long enough so that Mako could stall him further, carry Korra and run like hell before he got to them. Even while he is incapacitated by Amon, he gets praises from the latter for getting the best of him when no one else has and being a talented firebender. After Korra saves him, he supports her and tries to stop Amon while he’s escaping. When Korra is devastated at the loss of her other bending elements, in a heartwarming moment, Mako runs after her letting her know he is there for her, and assuring Korra that he didn’t care whether she was the Avatar or not, that almost losing her made him realize that he loves her. Even after she runs away, he follows her all the way up to the cliff determined not to have her deal with her grief alone, witnesses her going into the Avatar State where she shows all of her bending in a display of absolute power.  He’s so much in awe yet so genuinely happy for her that all he does is walk up to her with his arms out, wanting nothing more than to share his relief and joy with her that she’s whole again. The look on his face said it all… 

- - Watching Korra being brought down to her lowest point (the very thing she’s feared all season) and seeing her rise to overcome that and have the will to keep fighting was nothing short of inspiring. She is weakened by the loss of her bending, however she comes to and upon seeing Amon about to take Mako’s bending, reacts instinctively throwing out a punch full of air from a distance NOT KNOWING that she would unlock her airbending in an attempt to save the man she loves. (Cue shocked looks from everyone) Now realizing she can finally airbend then proceeds to knock the breath out of Amon with a series of punches in such a satisfying way (*cheering like crazy!!*) She breaks free from Amon’s bloodbending grip with a forceful air-kick flinging Amon out the window and into the water causing him to inadvertently expose himself, thus proving her right. I felt it for her when she believed that she was no longer the Avatar and that she gave off the impression that she didn’t feel she had value to others as just herself. She needed to hear that admission from Mako even in her state of grief. I honestly got very emotional watching her cry like that. When Aang appeared (cleverly done) and restored her bending with the appearance of the decades of past lives, and we just see her open her eyes connected to the Avatar State at last, it was honestly such a cathartic moment (*cue “The Greatest Change” playing, music swelling and Korra bending ALL the elements in such a powerful moment) and then she senses Mako’s presence, proceeds to jump into his arms and tells him she loves him too. That kiss to me was the icing on top of the cake, reaffirming that these two were indeed meant for each other.

And of course, last but not least, Korra displaying to everyone her newfound energybending in her Avatar State (Tenzin’s face was the best) and restoring Lin’s bending. Loved that whole scene and then Tenzin looks at her, tells her how proud he is of AVATAR KORRA.

Other STANDOUT MOMENTS:-

- Amon’s lieutenant catches him in the act bloodbending, and proceeds to denounce him as a traitor/fraud even attempting (and failing) to attack him. (Brave, yet foolish)

- Noatak and Tarrlok agree that their life in RC is over and try to repair their fractured sibling bond… Tarrlok realizes with detached resignation that their lives can never be normal again and…. kills them both… (shocking moment)

- Everyone who loves and cares for Korra gather in the South Pole, awaiting word from the best healer in the world, Katara, only to find out that she cannot restore her other elements.

 *Well, this is the end of my Book 1 recap/rewatch. It was fun rewatching my favorite Book and seeing the original vision that the creators intended to stick with... ya know, considering that this was SUPPOSED to be the original ending they planned. (*side-eyeing*) I guess I’ll come back and cover Book 2. As for the other books, well.... don’t know about those.