#makorra will never die

[coyest]

Makorra shippers really missed out on a golden opportunity over the past decade

Heads up: This is a lengthy rant about Makorra, missed opportunities, and fandom dynamics. If you’re interested, click below to keep reading.

Makorra shippers really missed out on a golden opportunity over the past decade. It is honestly frustrating because we had the chance to ride the wave and solidify the ship while it still had momentum. Instead, many of us left, and the ship never reached its full potential. The “we popping the biggest bottles when Makorra happens tomorrow” post by avatarskorra became iconic, a cultural touchstone of fandom history. Its continued use and adaptation in other fandoms prove just how deeply it resonated. That kind of legacy matters more than being endgame. Makorra’s lasting influence in memes, discussions, and cross fandom comparisons shows it left a deeper impression than many ships.

I know the harassment we faced was tough, and it took a toll on the fanbase. It is understandable why many Makorra shippers chose to step away or even switch to the endgame ship. Still, I can’t help but wonder if we could have stayed strong and fought back harder, using the negativity as fuel to keep the ship alive. The mockery could have been turned into a rallying point, a way to reclaim the narrative and ensure Makorra remained a presence in popularity.

If Makorra fans had stayed united after Korra ended, we could have transformed the mockery into fuel for visibility and relevance. Endgame status is not everything. Look at Klance, a crackship that remains more popular than Allurance, the canon pairing in Voltron: Legendary Defender. Klance stayed relevant because its fanbase never gave up. Similarly, Zutara, a fanon ship, continues to overshadow Kataang in popularity despite the latter being canon. If Makorra fans had stuck together, we could have turned the ship into a similar force, proving that relevance and legacy matter more than the show’s outcomes.

The “popping bottles” post gave Makorra a unique position to stay in the spotlight, even as a joke. The years of mockery surrounding it actually provided us with an incredible opportunity. Instead of seeing it as a loss, we could have reclaimed that narrative and used it to keep Makorra alive in fandom. I regret not recognizing this at the time and not knowing how to draw either. If I had, I could have contributed to keeping the ship trending, turning negativity into something we owned. No other non endgame ship has had such a clear chance to remain relevant.

I’m not saying we should’ve turned into those insufferable Zutara shippers. I’m not condemning them either. What we could’ve done was take all the mockery thrown at us and flip it into fuel. Instead of letting it break us down, we could’ve used it to keep Makorra trending, the way Zutara shippers have somehow managed to keep their ship alive all these years. If they can keep their non canon ship afloat for over a decade, there’s no reason we couldn’t have done the same. We had the momentum, the iconic moments, and the presence. We just didn’t use it. We had everything we needed to keep Makorra thriving but did not take full advantage of it. With the right energy and effort, we could have turned the mockery and the memes into a badge of pride against hate lol.

Most people have moved on by now, hence their 10 year anniversary was a flop. 🤭 They didn’t trend, didn’t do anything significant, just dusted off the same tired ancient post and made it semi viral again. So really, it’s a win-win for us. We still got a mention!

Makorra Will Never Die 🤪

[deviljho]

did you guys know that this exchange between me and my oomf in 2016ish(?) is STILL the sidebar image on the “popping the biggest bottles when makorra happens tomorrow” person’s desktop tumblr blog. bro what the fuck…

[dickpuncher420]

3, 14, 21 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 (also get well soonnn!!)

3. screenshot or description of the worst take you've seen on tumblr

omg can i slightly diverge from the question bc this isn't so much a take as something funny that happened to me years ago and i still have the screenshot bc it still makes me laugh

anyways. years ago before the renaissance when the zukka fandom was very teeny, there were very few zukka blogs and we were basically all mutuals because, well. teeny fandom. and there was this one blogger that i'm pretty sure didn't like me but we still followed each other, and one day i was looking at their blog and came across this post

which was without a doubt about me because i'd reblogged a makorra gifset like the day before with those tags alfkjdkfhjk. safe to say they probably blocked me after that

anyways. that's the time someone called me a sapphobic maggot because i reblogged a makorra gifset to my own blog. ah, good times

14. that one thing you see in fics all the time

i'm definitely not the first person to say this but there is a uhhhh definite trend in zukka fics to focus solely on zuko's trauma while sokka is just there to act as his emotional support/caretaker/punching bag. and like yes i am aware that zuko is the atla fandom's golden boy but like c'mon. can we Maybe examine why we keep writing the brown character as the caretaker in the relationship whose only job is to kiss all of zuko's hurts better and doesn't get anything in return??

also. fics that write sokka as significantly bigger/more muscular than slender waify zuko make me want to die. sorry

21. part of canon you think is overhyped

ok maybe not overhyped per se but i'll say that the whole "leaves from the vine" scene with iroh never really emotionally gutpunched me the way it seems to with other people? like yes it's terribly sad that a father is mourning his dead son but like. lu ten Did die as a warmonger who was trying to invade ba sing se. lest we forget

choose violence ask game

[megashadowdragon]

I have to be frank the claim that mako was a creators pet or Gary stu never had any merit

it amounts to people with an irrational hatred for mako daring to be flawed in a way that cant be romanticized

abusing labels to try and slap it on him

or claim that their distortion of how mako actually is ( Ron the death eater treatment)

should be how he is actually treated when its not

mako was never manipulative or a womanizer etc

he mishandled al ove triangle where korra kissed him

he should have talked to asami about it that's it

mako ending b1 in with makorra which he wanted isn't him being rewarded for those flaws he didn't need to be specifically punished t a love triangle mishap and neither did Korra ( this applys to b1 and b2

( to be honest the show should have ended with korra single with hints to makorra he didn't need to be specifically punish

( that's what the narrative pointed to when I see people make the karma argument it ignores that mako was not the only person responsible for the love triangle so claiming consequence for love triangle should mean ending the show single means all 3 of them should end the show single

( they were just dumb teenagers mako didn't need punishment for love triangle mishap ( and you can say that b2 breakup was enough consequence even if they get back together at the end of b4 (as they should have

the claims that makos mistakes in b1 or b2 should cost him trust is nonsensical

some people complain about mako doing well as a officer and possibl being promoting or whining about those two officers being incompetent/corrupt etc

saying its just having them be that way to make mako look good ( when that's what happened with katara in atla b1 with her water ending training she quickly became a waterbending master, the other students were portrayed as sloppy/bad ( getting insulted by the master)

or lazy ( in aangs )

to make katara look good

in fact with mako you can say its less egregious

aang had been ahead of katara in terms of waterbending previously

while with mako ( he had just been very successful in his job ( he used to work for the gangs) and getting a job as an officer in the 1900's was a quick process.

and lin called him out when he messed up ( with how angry she got

the claim about mako needing to be humbled has always been absurd mako was never really arrogant

I feel bryke just let themselves listen to the fans  ( wthe people who can only see mako as having had two girls be into him and a good job ignoring all the suffering that mako did need to go through  in his life ( and his lack of arrogance)

 they let themselves listen to the cool guy mako idea ( at least they didn't listen to the worst aspects of fandoms view ( I feel like bryke shouldn't have listened to the fandoms concerns 

[eraserheadadult]

to me, objectively, no exaggeration, we poppin the biggest bottles when makorra drops tomorrow is the single funniest post ever made on this website. it's a historical record it's a poem that will never die

[i-am-extremely-mad]

Since the OP has ensured that I cannot directly respond to his post:

https://www.tumblr.com/thatoneguy56fanfic/717973770556620801/canon-never-heard-of-it-but-thanks-for-helping

thatoneguy56fanfic

Ngl, that discussion about Mako yesterday has me wanting to write more post S4 Makorra content purely out of spite.

i-am-extremely-mad

#ao3 writer#legend of korra#fanfiction#makorra#I can’t stand Mako-haters#dude deserves more love from this fandom

Here's a better idea instead. Watch the whole show again so that next time you actually use what actually happened in canon as an argument. Here's how to best watch and understand the show:    

https://i-am-extremely-mad.tumblr.com/post/705097614657470464/fandomsandfeminism-im-still-not-really-over

I will address his response in this way:

thatoneguy56fanfic

Canon? Never heard of it.

But thanks for helping to bring this post more notes. Hopefully it’ll reach more Makorra fans so they know that there’s still people in the fandom that still ship them.

#there is no canon in Ba Sing Se #Mako is a good character and I’ll say this till I die

Hmm @thatoneguy56fanfic, only 17 notes so far... I don't believe that there will be much more. It's not like they'll be popping the BIGGEST bottles anytime soon.

[metacrisismako]

Hello good evening:

I am NOT a MAKORRA shipper (although I initially liked it when I first saw the series) and I have no intention of shitting on your work either. On the contrary, perhaps enrich it, through a different perspective. All my arguments are verified in my notes and, if I have made a mistake, I respectfully invite you to correct me.

In general terms, I can say that I agree with most of your essay. I liked what you said about how “…healthy relationships can have joys, sadness, pain, struggles, moments of healing, etc.” And, as a member of the LGBT community, I reject the use of any homophobic language or slurs.

BUT, there is always a BUT, I have realized that, by generalizing certain sections, you make the mistake of forgetting, I hope not on purpose, situations that contradict those general sections.

An example.

Asami is pretty much the only one who constantly asks Korra how she is, sits and listens to her talk about her problems, and offers her emotional support. (Mako doesn't.)

When Mako accompanies Korra to visit the man who left her in a wheelchair, doesn't that count as emotional support? Or when, at the South Pole, he suggests that he take a break from being the Avatar and they go to dinner (and Bolin brings ESKA AND DESNA)?

Before continuing, I want to mention a point that is often forgotten. No KREW member had a normal childhood:

—Korra grew up isolated in a compound, possibly isolated from other children.

—Asami lost her mother and, most likely, also grew up isolated from other children.

—Mako saw his parents die in front of his eyes and had to take care of his brother, alone, since he was 8 YEARS OLD.

—Bolin lost his parents and had to become excessively cheerful to keep the darkness away from his brother. The only reason Mako didn't become a villain or resent the world was because of Bolin, who was the light of his life.

With all this, none of them had the opportunity to be a child, much less a normal teenager. They had no opportunities to fail and grow, and when they reached adulthood, they found that, deep down, they were still children. And that is why , between Books 1 and 2, so many fights and fights occurred between them, and also, because they forgave each other so easily.

Returning to the sections:

Mako fails to support her emotionally due to often not hearing the core of her words, however, he expects her to support him emotionally anyway and becomes angry when she does not .

One question: When Mako was investigating the attacks on the Southern Water Tribe Cultural Center, to prove that the Northern Water Tribe wasn't involved, did Korra listen to him? Did you help him? I don't remember it.

This is related to another section:

Mako betrays Korra's trust TWICE.

Assuming those two times are:

—When he told Raiko about his plan to start a war (when he should be trying to prevent it).

AND.

—When he DIDN'T tell her that they had broken up, after she kissed him while she was amnesiac.

The truth is that when Korra came up with the stupid, and immoral, plan to involve the United Forces, behind the backs of the democratically elected president, the citizens, and the soldiers who, most likely, were going to die; Neither she, nor anyone else, showed Mako an ounce of confidence about her suspicions that, in the end, turned out to be true. He didn't help him, he underestimated him, even saying that his work was useless, and after putting him on the ropes, he threw a desk at him, in front of all his co-workers.

Later, when they see each other again, due to the discomfort generated by everyone seeing him, and the fear that it caused him to tell the truth (fear, let's say, that he will hit him), Mako does not tell him at that moment, nor later, the truth until he defeated Vatuu .

It's true, Mako betrayed her trust, but at times it seems like Korra doesn't care, and doesn't take Mako's opinion into account...

Asami and Korra never criticize each other's actions. Instead, they talk about what happened and support each other's decisions. Asami ALWAYS supports Korra, is always on Korra's side, and is able to talk through difficult issues with Korra. She shares her thoughts with Korra and Korra respects her for that. (Mako doesn't support Korra's decisions, often tries to stay in this strange neutral area, and gets angry because Korra doesn't like that he doesn't really share what he thinks or show support towards her.)

Being neutral is an opinion, and it's Korra who doesn't respect it, not him. He also doesn't have much of a say considering that, until relatively recently, his world was reduced to his brother, pro-bending and Republic City, and in Book 2 he travels to other countries and meets world leaders. Being neutral is not only an opinion, but to some extent it is an act of respect and moderation. Something Korra didn't do much with: "Are you on my side or against me?"

If Korra works so well with Asami, it was because with Mako she had opportunities to fail. Taking this into account, I don't understand why they seek to deny that part of Korra and Asami's past. You don't have to like it, but from there you say things like this:

They are so fluid in their fighting styles that they can predict each other's movements and therefore act in wonderful synchronicity. (Mako never manages to do this with any of them and instead criticizes them incessantly.)

And the fight against Amun? And the pro-control parties? Why did they reach the final if they didn't have fighting chemistry? It's a little ridiculous, because it denies a step in the evolution that led them to be where they are, and to be the incredible couple that they are. I would love for them to stop denying that there was something between Mako and Korra, and between Mako and Asami, and that something ended and became something else . That's it. There is nothing else to say. It does not reduce them in any way, and it does not magnify him either, it simply recognizes a part of the story.

Be careful, it's not that Mako is a saint and never sends shit, especially the ones he sent with Asami, but I will never understand the refusal of many KORRASAMI senders to give him a little bit of credit, or a normal life in his fanfics . Stopping making him do things he never did or something he is not, and giving him the opportunity, more than deserved in my opinion, to be HAPPY. At first you asked if there was a kind of unconscious prejudice in KORRASAMI and I wondered if the same prejudice did not exist against Mako, because in fanfics, many times, they end up being more toxic with Mako than he ever was with Korra and Asami , and even more toxic than ANTI-KORRASAMI themselves (and yes, those are toxic).

Yes, I'm honest with you, what I do is try to give as little opinion as possible. And not to fall into the trap of saying that one relationship, and only one relationship, is right. Stories are stories, because they have people who follow them, and they, not the characters, are the true beneficiaries of the work, who should not be criticized for liking something or not.

If I dared, for once, to break this neutrality (which is not at all easy to maintain) it was because I considered that, with respect and presenting arguments, anything can be discussed, and that anything should be discussed.

Anyway, I liked it, but I don't share your view on the evolution of KORRASAMI (especially the part where you said they flirt since Book 1, simply if it had been like that there wouldn't have been a love triangle). First of all, because neither Mako looked for Korra, nor Mako looked for Asami, much less she was kissing them without her consent; but hey, it's subjective).

Good night and make love and not war.

Korrasami is Canon

I literally do not understand when people trashtalk or write really cruel things about Korrasami shipping, especially when they make claims that aren't supported by the show itself.

I honestly wonder sometimes if folks who hate on Korrasami don't understand what a healthy relationship can look like? (Or is there unconscious bias influencing their hatred of it?)

Because Korrasami is a healthy relationship; it's relationship goals honestly. This doesn't make it a boring relationship either, as healthy relationships can have their joys, sorrows, pain, struggles, healing moments, etc. The important aspects that keep the relationship healthy is how the two respond to those situations together. To explain, I'll cover why Makorra is NOT healthy.

Majority of Makorra shippers' arguments cherry-pick random scenes that are incredibly brief with scant evidence of Makorra being "good" for Mako and Korra (it isn't). (P.S. Makorra shippers please stop using homophobic language and slurs when you talk about Korrasami shipping, it's a really bad look, okay? Thanks.)

All arguments ignore the huge amount of evidence that the Makorra relationship was severely harming both Mako and Korra. As well as the evidence that both are happier just being friends.

Mako and Korra fight all the time in screaming matches to the point they break things around one another. This is really not healthy.

They can't get through a conversation without one of them being furious at the other.

Mako fails to support Korra's decisions, critiques her decisions,and, does not give his thoughts when asked but instead parrots other people which isn't what Korra had asked at all.

Mako is indecisive about his feelings to the point of hurting both Asami and Korra.

Mako is too protective of Korra and does not respect her independence or her abilities.

Mako fails to support her emotionally due to often not listening to the core of her words, yet he expects her to support him emotionally regardless and is angry when she doesn't.

Mako's personality when he's with Korra becomes: bland dude with no thoughts of his own or screaming fury of a person. He's actually a much better person and kinder overall when he's NOT in a relationship with Korra.

Mako betrays Korra's trust TWICE.

Mako lies to Korra.

When Mako and Korra are just friends, they relate to one another better and don't scream as much at each other. Mako is also more respectful of Korra when they are just friends and NOT together.

All arguments ignore the plenty of evidence that Asami and Korra flirted with one another since Book 1. They tend to forget the brothers entirely in scenes with one another. Book 3 is literally the Asami-and-Korra-flirt-arc, like all they do is flirt in that book. Book 4 had an arc that contrasts how well Korra and Asami work together, and how horrifically critical of them Mako is during that arc.

All arguments ignore the buildup of Korrasami: Asami literally built Korra a whole dang park, designed and gifted her an airship, supports Korra no matter what, calls Korra amazing constantly, always follows through with helping Korra, painted her car blue in honor of Korra, and spends most of her time flirting and pinning after Korra since BOOK 1. Even at the end of Book 2, the first name she says when asking if the Krew is okay is Korra, and then she adds the others as an afterthought. This is all pretty blatant stuff that Asami does, and Korra responds in turn with her own flirting and pinning. Korra literally only writes Asami while she's gone for three years and admits that she feels like Asami is the only one who understands her. She even blushes for Asami in Book 4. Why does Korrasami work so well?

Korra and Asami have mutual respect for their abilities, strengths, weaknesses, and independence.

They support each other no matter what.

Asami is literally the first person to say yes to whatever Korra needs help on pretty much constantly, and she always follows through.

They talk through their arguments, and have never had a screaming match. In fact, the one time they do argue, Korra deescalates, and they talk it out and/or come to an acceptance relatively quick.

They are honest about their feelings with one another.

Asami is pretty much the only one that consistently asks Korra how she is, sits and listens to her talk through her troubles, and offers emotional support. (Mako fails to do so.)

Asami never, ever doubts Korra. (Mako does many a time.)

Asami never lies to Korra. (Mako does many a time.)

Asami reminds Korra she's awesome and amazing since Book 1 (even after she finds out Korra liked Mako too).

Asami never blames Korra for her failed relationship with Mako, instead she puts the responsibility on Mako who had lied to both of them and hurt them both with his indecision. Asami is never mad at Korra about this either, and her anger is only at Mako.

They are so seamless in their fighting styles that they can predict the other's moves, and so act in wonderful synchronicity. (Mako fails to ever do this with either of them and instead critiques them endlessly).

Asami and Korra never critique one another's actions. Instead, they talk through what happened and support each other's decisions. Asami ALWAYS supports Korra, and always sides with Korra, and is able to talk through hard issues with Korra. She shares her thoughts with Korra, and Korra respects her for that. (Mako fails to support Korra's decisions, often trying to stay in this weird neutral area, and gets angry that Korra doesn't like that he won't actually share what he thinks nor show support for her.)

Asami never betrayed Korra. (Mako does in Book 2).

Asami and Korra respect one another's boundaries.

Korra shares that she feels that Asami is the only one that really 'gets her' and understands her, and Asami feels the same about Korra.

I could go on and on.

Honestly.

Anyway, thanks for reading.

P.S. if Makorra shipper tries to shit on my post with unfounded vitriol and bad faith arguments, be advised that I don't have the energy or time for it. Blocks are very useful tools. Have a great day!

[kai-mk]

omg just remembered that a literal #makorra2.0 tag was created for this ship

[doubleca5t]

The fact that the makorra poster still has that post up AND has Makorra will never die as their header, US marines WISH they could be as resilient

Honestly kinda admirable

[kirbyspits]

Which would you have preferred? Makorra never breaking up? Or Makorra breakup w/ second chance endgame? As sad as I was when they ended things, IDK if I wanted them to be together throughout the WHOLE series. Granted, I would have broken them up under VASTLY different, less painful circumstances (along with rewriting most of B2). But regardless, the idea of them needing time to mature/figure themselves out individually in order to make their relationship work down the road appeals to me more

(Finally getting around to my ask box)!  

In 2012 I very much wanted Mako and Korra to be in a relationship, especially since it would be the first time I would see a romantic pairing in a children’s television show. I figured as long as the characters themselves didn’t change and they didn’t go too hard on PDA (like feeding each other cotton candy or nose rubbing😅🤢🤮😌🥰) then I was excited to see what a relationship would look like, especially in action packed show like TLOK.

I had a conversation about couples in tv shows with a  journalist friend and a huge romance genre fan—way more than I am. They weren’t surprised to find out about Makorra’s breakup in season 2 and was surprised they got together so early in the show. Apparently, the main reason why couples break up or die in subsequent seasons is because viewership drops after romantic pairings become romantic. Happy couples means no more story. I disagree with the idea that a relationship in a show will automatically make things boring—hi Outlander 😍—buuuuuuuuut I agree it’s incredibly difficult to keep things interesting and not go too hard on the cheesiness. The relationship stories I enjoy the most are angst & hurt/comfort because those stories bring out emotions and dialogue I wouldn’t normally be able to see. Since I usually read about that, I was really excited to see these types of stories animated. I thought I’d just have more episodes like 3,7,9,10,11,12, and I trusted Bryke. They’re the professionals.

Well, TLOK taught me I can’t trust that writers to know what they’re doing. Makorra in Book 2 was so painful to watch because it made me almost hate Korra. I didn’t like who she had become and I was so frustrated to see her behave that way. Mind you, I have head canons now that certainly help contextualize why she acted the way she did, but at the time I didn’t have it and felt the show had nothing to give me to help me see why Korra wasn’t overreacting. So the breakup was not a shock, especially considering how writers rarely continue a relationship, and I very much welcomed it.

What was surprising was bringing back the love triangle. After my conversation with my friend, I finally understand why they did it. I originally said it’s in character for how Mako and Asami would react if they were to get back together, but it was absolutely weird and frustrating to see an initiation of romantic interest in the first place. However, Bryke knew people like myself would lose their minds with a Makorra breakup and they know romantic subplots are incredibly popular despite how loud antis may be. They were just following the formula to bring romance back in the show to keep those fans engaged, though they must have underestimated the impact it would have on Mako and how fans would see the worst in him again.

Fans have to suffer watching Asami get screwed over again, thus becoming unsatisfied with any pairing other than Korrasami. Maybe Bryke thought they were laying the groundwork to build another relationship endgame, and we’d be happy to guess who would end up winning Mako’s affections, and when the reunion and eventual break up aired, will they try again in the future. Talk about failing to read the room, especially when the room is a majority women (actually don’t quote me on that. I thought I saw a statistic somewhere that ATLA fans were predominantly women by time TLOK aired).

That’s a quick recap of why things happened. Seeing how everything played out, I’m a bit more open to a breakup with a second chance relationship, and I’m not even sure how to maintain a relationship for three seasons and keep the pairing interesting. Outlander seasons 2 & 4 are my least favorite, and unfortunately it was when Jamie and Claire’s relationship was the most stable! I also noticed side characters tend to overshadow the mains once they are in a healthy relationship and become happy—hi Bridgeton. Granted Korra was already sidelined while single so we all know a relationship isn’t the only reason, but I could easily see this happening with Mako and Korra which would also frustrate me.

Overall because TLOK is 4 seasons, yes I do prefer a breakup since writers in general don’t seem to want to maintain a relationship for an extended amount of seasons. I’d rather a breakup than see my characters essentially be replaced by side characters. I also would just prefer the show to end. Bryke wanted the show to end, Nick pushed them to continue and on one hand we finally got some much needed representation back in the early 2010s, but we also essentially got sloppy seasons (2,4).

Still, I will forever cherish Mako having a hard time getting over the relationship. I love see how devoted he is and how much he really cares. I wish I had more Korra pining after Mako, but I’ll take the little screen time I have. I definitely think seeing them older and pretty much them doing what they do in Book 4 was satisfying enough to see an endgame there.

[shortmexicangirl]

no nuance november: the legend of korra edition

i already did atla so here we go:

it’s impossible to compare aang and korra because they're so different. aang is a pacifist who never wanted to be the avatar, korra is a fighter who always dreamed of it. one of atla’s main themes is how much they need the avatar, lok is about how much they don’t.

tlok’s biggest writing flaw was prioritising relationships over character development. tenzin’s arc was so good because it focused on himself. s3/4 korra had the best character development in the show because the focus was no longer on silly love triangles but on issues that had a deep emotional effect on her.

makorra was a terrible attempt at recreating zutara.

amon had the best villain build up.

tarrlok and amon’s murder-suicide was one of the most powerful scenes in the whole franchise.

mako is a better bender than zuko and would beat him in an agni kai (i’m a zuko stan but it’s TRUE)

asami would beat mai in a fight. “asami is useless without her glove” you say? mai is useless without her knives. they’re both my favs but only one of them is trained in hand to hand combat

stop saying zaheer is the best airbender just because he can fly. rewatch his fight with tenzin - there’s a very clear difference between a talented amateur and a skilled master. 

jinora is the best airbender. ever.

huan is the best out of suyin’s kids (“you’re crushing my individuality” was comedy GOLD)

baatar jr doesn’t look like sokka, he looks like baatar sr. duh.

no suki didn’t die young. that was false rumour. and besides, it’s out of character for her.

mako is over-hated. he’s a good person with good intentions, he just has bad execution. 

probably my most controversial: the writers tried too hard to make bolin the new sokka. sokka wasn’t just the comic relief, he was an extremely well developed character with his own problems/inner conflict/arcs and he contributed heavily to the plot, the gaang and the avatar world. bolin existed purely for comic relief and lacked depth.

VARRICK is the new sokka (and they absolutely would’ve been best friends)

and finally: varrick was the best character to come out of season 2 the entire show.

you don’t have to agree with them all, they’re just my opinions/hot takes :)

[animentality]

I never watched season 3 or 4 of legend of Korra but I have to give them fucking credit.

For swerving so hard on Makorra and slamming the hets with Korrasami.

Like straight people would not understand.

They always wins the shipping wars.

They always get everything they want and more.

Childhood friends, barely acquaintances, arguing all the time, stupid flirty banter, angsty moody unhealthy abusive relationships, anything and everything, they get on a silver platter because as long as a relationship exists between a man with a fully functioning penis and a woman with some semblance of a vagina, it will turn romantic and sexual.

There are literally only 3 exceptions. When it's a grown man and a child, when the man is a mentor figure or the woman's boss (or vice versa)/he's supposed to be with a different hot lady and not the hot lady that he sometimes talk to, or when they're fucking related.

And sometimes not even that will stop them from fucking or having some weird pseudo tension.

Its annoying.

Its so...nice to see more lgbt representation in media because FINALLY.

Finally we get our wins.

I applaud Korrasami.

I don't even care if it was developed well, all I know is that I hope it really rubbed some dirt in the eyes of those het shippers who like to play the "my ship is better because it actually has a chance to happen thanks to homophobia :)))" game.

You lost that one, you cocky little shits.

And I hope we as a society continue working to let gay people win a little more, because honestly I'm a bitter old gay who's sick and tired of the game and at this point, I don't even need to win anymore.

I just want them to lose.

And even if I'm not a part of that particular fandom, I still get that adrenaline rush like when shiro was confirmed to be gay or Adrian Tepes is bisexual and fucking bottoms or the Last of Us girl is a lesbian or Soldier 76 is gay or Bloodhound is nonbinary.

You wouldn't get it if you're straight. You really wouldn't and I know a lot of progressive straight people think they understand, but they do not.

A distinctive gay feeling that hets would not know even if they strained their brains to figure out is the crushing sense of dread, annoyance, and humiliation over knowing all of your theories and ideas and interactions with both the fandom and yourself are tinged with the bitter understanding that your experiences are always subservient to theirs.

You are less than they are, and you know it.

You are a vocal minority at best. They can ignore you totally if they want to, and most do. You do not matter.

Getting over that is a process. And progress has been slow, but we get our quiet victories, we get our loud ones.

If you cared about Korrasami and are queer, then you continue to celebrate that. Keep that victory close to your chest for the rest of your life, because you can die being happy in the knowledge that they didn't take this one.

Heterosexuals might still have us, infinity to one, but when you lose all the time, you take what you can get, and you revel in their misery because finally they see what it's like being on the other side for a change.

[babydotcom]

asami and sokka for the ask game

Vee my abhorred thanks for the ask! I haven't watched past maybe S2E5?? of Korra but I'll give this woman everything I got. Sokka under the cut bc I already know I'm gonna ramble.

First impression: hnnng pretty lady

Impression now: HNNNNG PRETTY LADY WHO ALSO CAN KILL ME HNNNNG

Favorite moment: The first time she uses that electrocution glove thingy in a fight. So hot.

Idea for a story: I know very little about this woman but I think a korrasami college au where she tutors korra so korra can keep her athletic scholarship and they fall in love would be nice :)

Unpopular opinion: The whole Mako/Asami>Makorra>Korrasami pipeline is weird. Like I get we're dealing with Nickelodeon here and Mako getting Sokka'd is Hilarious but damn that whole situation was stupid.

Favorite relationship: Asami/Me. Duh. But also I think Bolin and Asami were funny together. I don't remember very much though.

Favorite headcanon: She drives a mo-ped right?? Consider dirtbike racer Asami I guess :D

Sokka!!!

First impression: Aw man this guy sucks. He reminds me of my brother.

Impression now: AWOOGA HELLO favorite boy best boy I love him so much. There are few characters I have ever cared about as much as I care about him. I relate to him in all the worst ways and I desperately want him to be happy. He's simultaneously the most competent genius in the world and my poor little meow meow. He's great. I love him. I look up to him. I project onto him like a motherfucker.

Favorite moment: Any and all moments where he is being vulnerable. It's never for his own sake but this boy needs to let it out sometimes, jeez. The haiku club. Killing melonlord. The moment he realizes he is going to die with Toph on the airship.

Idea for a story: I won't say much bc I've already got this one in the works but I feel like we need to explore what his life looked like between the men leaving and Aang resurfacing. I don't know if you guys realize this but he was pretty much Chief for two years??? At age 13??????????????

Unpopular opinion: I've managed to only follow smart people but I think the greater fandom doesn't appreciate Sokka's intellect as much as it should. Like. This guy is not your average Joe goofball funny guy who only serves to be a sexist sidekick to his sister. He is bar-none the smartest character in the entire show, and his whole arc is about learning and growing into this world he's never seen before. He is cynical and mean and self-deprecating and kind of an asshole but that's all because he's a child of war and had to be the man of his tribe FAR before he was actually a man. S1E1 Sokka is 1% of who Sokka is but some of y'all act like he didn't grow.

Favorite relationship: Sokka has such beautiful relationships with all of the main cast so it's ridiculously hard to choose. Sokka and Katara have a lovely complex sibling relationship and how much they love each other bleeds into every single moment of the show. Nobody knows them like they know each other but they still have so much to learn as they go on this journey together. I like him and Toph because that's simultaneously his buddy and his little sister. It's the S&K relationship without the baggage which puts S in this position of Protector (which Toph would not like him thinking that way pre-finale) AND Pal and Toph is such a good friend for him? Like she's got all of his snark and brashness without the cynicism. S&Aang is so lovely because Aang is just everybody's best friend, and I like how he forces S to have fun. I think Suki and him make a good pair because she really challenges him and Sokka gets to learn that he can't and shouldn't protect everybody and that's a really important lesson for him. and S&Zuko.... y'all already know how I feel. The parallels drive me up the wall insane. They would be the same person except that Z&K have the same personality and S&Azula would be much more similar if Ozai hadn't fucked Azula up so bad.

Favorite headcanon: Non-binary Sokka all the way. I have a post about Sokka's relationship with masculinity already so I won't expound to much on it here, but it's incredibly unhealthy and I think that in a world post-war or in a modern au he'd really kind of reckon with that relationship and realize that he's putting up this front that isn't useful to him anymore and realize that there are a lot of ways to Be A Person. also the Inuit have a term for intersex people (as far as my sources have shown and this may be completely wrong and please correct me if you know better), sipiniq, and typically they were raised as boys until they reached marrying age and then they could decide to have children or not?? Again I could be wrong but sipiniq sokka is a very interesting concept to me and could line up really well with canon.

game here!

[the-eeveekins]

I've said elsewhere that about the most generous reasoning I could give for Bandai's pandering to the straight ships and the male characters is that they already know Sulemio fans are fully on board and spending money, but they're not seeing that from their usual fans of male characters so they're trying real hard in advertising to appeal to them to spend money on G-Witch.

But even then I can't justify the homophobia and sexism, especially when we know Bandai is intentionally avoiding anything the officially says Sulemio are married outside the show even while still advertising them together and making plenty of merchandise of them two of them together.

You hit the nail on the head about it being like selling Makorra or Masami merch after TLoK ended. The men in this show are so unpopular and they're trying their hardest to keep the homophobes happy that they have to keep trying pair them with the gay girls to sell them and act like these relationships that never happened in the show are somehow on the same footing as the two women who got canonically married at the end.

Like you said, it's insulting to anyone who actually watched the show and isn't deluding themselves like all these homophobes have been for months. I can only hope Sulemio keeps selling and the men keep not selling that eventually Bandai will be forced to give up and really focus on the thing fans actually want, or at least just sell the male characters without trying to "ship" them with Sulemio in the process. And hopefully someday the dinosaurs responsible for the decision to suppress Sulemio will retire or die off and we'll get people who will actually officially recognize their marriage, and vindicate Kana Ichinose.

still insane that even after we already know who suletta married and loves, they still want to pander to different ships and tiptoe around sulemio. it's like still getting official makorra or masami content after tlok ended.

tbf the "pandering" is also vague and usually one-sided. but come ONNN. this is just homophobia and heteronormativity at this point. "let people ship what they want" if it's at the expense of queer fans and the actually canon queer couple then i'm just gonna disagee with that sentiment :) their dancing around sulemio is frankly insulting and i hope i never again encounter media that treats their explicitly queer writing like this.

[ljf613]

Sooo... LOK for the fandom ask? XD

the first character i ever fell in love with:  Bolin. Mako took me a while to fall for, but Bolin was just so sweet and lovable I couldn’t help but adore him. 

a character that i used to love/like, but now do not:  IDK, Lin, I guess? Or Asami? Honestly, I was never seriously invested in either of those characters, but I did think they were kind of cool at one point. 

a ship that i used to love/like, but now do not:  Borra. I was into them for a hot minute in season one, although that says more about my exhaustion with tired “MC falls for edgy, brooding loner instead of the sweet guy who clearly adores her” storylines. 

my ultimate favorite character™:  Mako. I’m sorry for not appreciating you in season one as much as I should have. (I also love Suyin a lot.) 

prettiest character:  Oh, definitely Asami. I have my issues with the way her character was written, but her character design is flawless. 

my most hated character:  I don’t really care enough about the characters I dislike from this show enough to hate them.  Scratch that-- Yakone and Unalaq. I don’t like how they treated their kids. (Hou-Ting was kind of yikes, too.) 

my OTP:  Hukki. I love them sooooooo much. 

my NOTP:  Wuko. I have many, many problems with this ship, and I do not understand why it is so popular. (I’ll probably go into that rant another time.) (Again, no hate to the shippers.) 

favorite episode:  Korra Alone was pretty good, I guess? 

saddest death:  Did anyone I actually like die? I guess Asami’s dad, although it was kind of a cheap shot to just bring him Back For the Dead. 

favorite season:  Season one was probably the one with the best pacing. Season three was also pretty good. 

least favorite season:  Honestly, I know everyone hates on season two, but it definitely hate some redeemable bits (including Mako’s character development). I’m going to have to say season four. Other than "Korra Alone," there wasn't much that was done well here.

character that everyone else in the fandom loves, but i hate:  Well, I don’t hate Asami, Lin, or Korra, but I’m definitely not nearly as invested in them as so much of this fandom seems to be. 

my ‘you’re a piece of trash, but you’re still a fave’ fave:  Iroh II was done so dirty by the narrative. 

my ‘beautiful cinnamon roll who deserves better than this’ fave:  Pema has done nothing wrong, ever, in her life. (Also, like I said, the story did so many things wrong with Iroh.) 

my ‘this ship is wrong, nasty, and makes me want to cleanse my soul, but i still love it’ ship:  Don’t really have one of those for this fandom. 

my ‘they’re kind of cute, and i lowkey ship them, but i’m not too invested’ ship:  Edit: Makorra. It's a cute ship, and my favorite ship for both Mako and Korra, but I don't have super-strong feelings about it.

Send me another fandom

[megashadowdragon]

me  since book 1 of legend of korra when  ever people try to claim mako was a womanizer, gary stu ( which requires a misunderstanding of what a gary stu is nad  makos character   people have thrown that term around to any character they dont like ) , or creators pet , manipulator    ,  when that was never the case     ( he never was  mako is a human being who makes mistakes the narrative always acknowledged his flaws as things that needed to be worked on the idea that if a character makes mistakes and isnt specifically punished for them and good things happen to him afterwards   its rewarding him for his flaws is nonsense    the claim that he needed to suffer or have good things taken from him is bs  korra was just as responsible for the love triangle as mako and claim that mako ending the show single was karma is nonsense he shouldnt be punished for not being perfect and making mistakes ( which is why korrasami only became popular due to the hate for mako and a desire for lgbt rep not due to any actual chemistry or because it would make sense ( korrasami was thrown in at the last minute as a retcon and publicity stunt/political statement optimistic view : bryke genuinely thought they would be doing good  and helping people  they compromised the story  narrative by throwing it in at last minute  cynical  publicity stunt either way they tried to cover their asses by casting aspersions on critics

the narrative they made led to the idea korra would end the show single with possibly a hint to makorra getting back together I cant help but rolly my eyes when I think how certain fans would react to that there would be claims of queerbaiting when they queerbaited themselves nothing hinted at korrasami the only way you could see evidence is if you were wearing shipping goggles or ending up unhappy to be frank I would change  ) (  and this was the case ever since I watched b1 ( I was part of the fndm since the first episode came out)

“Censorship explains why we couldn’t get a kiss and an “I love you” in the finale or blatant romantic scenes, not the utter lack of Korra-Asami interaction as a whole. They had six (to six and a half) minutes of interaction in the last season, spread out over six interactions/conversations. They’ve had nearly no on-screen interaction since “Long Live the Queen,” actually. They had the 5 second “I can come to the South Pole” convo in “Korra Alone” (which Korra refused), the single letter, their interactions in “Reunions,” and then the tea scene in “Remembrances.” After that, they don’t speak again until the last two minutes of the finale. The episode after “Remembrances” is the Korra-Mako field trip to the Spirit Wilds and Zaheer’s prison and the culmination of Korra’s recovery arc. Where was Asami? She had two lines in the whole episode, and they were both to Varrick.”

the aspersions Bryan cast on the fandom for not accepting what amounted to a last-minute retcon have been functioning (whether intentionally or not) to shield the creators from any criticism for their own fault in the poor execution of their endgame ship, allowing them to take all of the credit for being “subversive” and none of the blame for breaking their existing narrative to do it.

fantastic-nonsense . tumblr . com/post/105933518980

fantastic-nonsense . tumblr . com/post/112100564400                         

fantastic-nonsense . tumblr . com/post/105933518980

it often feels that 

I never liked prince wu and the only reason  some people liked him  was because he bothered mako  if I could change prince wu I would follow what ikkinthekitsune said to have mako happy 

ikkinthekitsune . tumblr . com/post/147464055579/considering-you-understandably-have-some-issues

Biggest change to the initial setup?  No Prince Wu.  Instead of an obnoxious overgrown child of a Prince, our heir apparent is introverted, lacks the confidence to refuse just about anything, and is terrified of being in front of crowds.  He’s the (implied-to-be illegitimate) child of a distant relative of Hou-Ting and a Republic City citizen.  Oh, and he’s all of ten years old.  In other words, everything about him screams “Raiko chose this kid as a convenient puppet” (instead of offhandedly implying it once and forgetting about it as was done with Wu). All of the time Wu wastes on comic relief in After All These Years is used to explain the political situation: the prince is a figurehead meant to display the trappings of royalty and legitimize Raiko’s chosen advisors.  Kuvira’s supporters hate him not just because he’s royalty but also because they think he’s essentially giving the Earth Kingdom away to an imperialistic foreign power.  Mako’s there to protect him both because Raiko ordered him to and because he’s one of the few cops the prince is comfortable around; as such, Mako actually feels bad for the kid and wants to protect him. (This prince is legitimately terrified by the scary adults throwing pies at him and bursts into tears as soon as they’re out of harm’s way.  Mako comforts him and makes him feel a little better.) Korra Alone is close to perfect and stays pretty much as-is, albeit with Korra’s loss in the Earth Rumble ring being far less embarrassing – she gets some hits in, and the end makes it even clearer how distracted she was by Dark Avatar Korra. The Coronation follows up on the political changes.  Instead of being all excited about how awesome he thinks the ceremony is going to be, the prince is afraid – of being on stage (Mako assures him he’ll do fine), of being king (Raiko assures him that his advisers will do all the work), and of Kuvira (Raiko assures him that she’ll step down).  The prince thanks Kuvira and lets her speak the way Wu did in the show, except that it’s sort of implied that he’s looking for an excuse to not have to stay up at the podium for longer than necessary.  Kuvira, of course, uses the opportunity to take over… and specifically points to Raiko’s use of the prince to control the Earth Kingdom as a reason why she’s justified in doing so.  (The prince hides behind Mako when this happens.  =( )  Some of the time saved by not having Wu freak out about the loss of his throne is used to show us the meeting of the world leaders, where they talk about why they think Kuvira is dangerous (she’s very with-me-or-against-me) and what they can do to stop her (not much as long as she limits her ambitions to the Earth Kingdom).

The Republic City part of Reunion is way more tense because Team Avatar are looking for a terrified kidnapped child instead of an aggravating jerk.  (The prince still gets to ask Korra to go into the Avatar State because he wants to see her eyes glow, but it’s actually kind of endearing since he’s a little kid.)

and only people who wouldnt like it is mako haters who demonize him for being a human being who makes mistakes and twists him to be something he isnt  to point where they claim bs things like claiming he called asami a leech when no it was a figure of speech it was avatar equivalent to ripping off a bandaid.

or whining that he was a bit of a jerk at the start or not immediately nice ( when mako is someone who unlike bolin has an icy demeanor and is wary of bringing new people in to circle  but when you are in he will die for you he has been compared to zuko minus angst for a reason  he was a jerk with a heart of gold he isnt going to be immediately friendly with people  like bolin 

 ( I cant help but think of the people who would say zuko should have suffered at the end   )