#the way i wanted to draw smth for the series since season 1 and when i finally do its for the finale LMAO

[critai]

lesgeddit kageyama kun !!!

[dragonfly0808]

Don’t want to be mean or anything but why are you giving so much things to Flora? Without even talking about her story and all, why is she the best/second best dancer when there is Aisha (even Stella or Musa dance in the show, I’m not counting season 8 in it because it sucks). And why is she the second best singer after Musa when she literally never sing in the cartoon and the only canon singers are Musa, Bloom and Stella?? Also her being the best fighter is so weird like in the show she was probably the less probable one for that (I know you’re doing a rewrite and changed things but I’m still pointing it out). Like I’m really not trying to sound rude or saying you shouldn’t do things the way you want to do, it’s your opinion and everyone has the right to have their own. I’m just genuinely curious if you are doing that because she is your favorite?

Ummm… Like- I get the question but she’s really not the best at anything? Only Potionology after that she may be the second or third best but like-

Aisha is the best dancer, she’s literally teaching both ballet and modern dance right, she’s the best. I gave Flora ballet cause she just gives me ballet vibes (I genuienly don’t remember ever seeing Musa or Stella dancing…) and then for a singer I lit just said Helia is the second best not Flora. Again, Flora just gives me soft but good voice vibes but no one would be near Musa’s level. The ones I mentioned are all good in general but not near Musa’s level. Maybe Helia comes a tad bit close but still.

I don’t remember ever seeing Stella sing in the show and kinda ignore Bloom singing out of biterness cause it should’ve been Musa singing

Finally about the fighting, up to where i watched the series the girls were never seen physically fighting so I chose to make Flora the ‘fighter’ due to her relationship with Riven and coming up with the idea of Riven teaching her to box/hand to hand on s2 as a way to deepen their friendship and make what they were teaching each other (Riven helped her a lot to stand her ground) almost literal.

I also made her the fighter cause I felt like it would be empowering to her character for her to be the first to learn to fight physically due to her previous history. Also also, while I have given Flora a most of the emphasis on that, I have mentioned the other girls training with the boys a bit (specifically I remember bringing it up with Musa and Bloom).

And like- they do have their own things? Aisha is the best dancer, Musa is the singer/artist, Flora hasn’t ever sung or written songs in the rewrite I just answered that off of vibes cause, in the rewrite Musa and Helia would be the only ones to actually realistically sing considering the plot (also Bloom due to me mentioning her being in her theater club, that’s why she’s in the list of good singers). Flora is the potionologist that’s why she works at a lab.

Stella has fashion. Tecna technology/engeniering more recently and Bloom has history, mythology and drawings, all 3 of those things are never touched by Flora and, whilst I’ve shown her fighting hand to hand and *small spoiler* will show her in s4 with a dagger (since in s3 I mentioned her taking basic dagger technique in RF with Riven) she’ll never be shown with a sword, bow, or phantoblade or any other tech usually reserved for the boys cause 1) it was never established and 2) it wouldn’t make sense for her character. ALSO S4 will be big for the girls fighting more physically, specifically Flora, Aisha and Bloom.

Another reason for her being the 3rd best singer is that Lynphea just gives me the vibe of a very artsy planet, I personally relate nature with what I would call ‘soft art’ like ballet, singing folk songs and stuff like that. I could totally see Flora singing smth like The Hanging Tree that’s the main reason

And yeah she’s absolutely my fave I don’t think there is a single way I could possibly deny that but like… I can see where you’re coming from but I genuienly don’t feel like I give her everything. I pay a lot of attention to her when it comes to artsy shit cause again- I relate nature (Lynphea) to art but like- I don’t give her too much?

Do i? I feel like I might but if I do like- it’s not in an exagerate way, I do try very hard to give all the girls their own stuff and time in the spotlight but I am very aware of my bias towards Flora but I do not feel like it’s blatantly obvious most of the time

[banrions]

so.yeah. i am also rewatching the originals, bc why the fuck not? i’ve forgotten so many things and it’s hot out and i can do what i want. and this, is what i want apparently. 

season 1, here we go:

haaayyyyyyyylllllleeeeyyyyyyy babe. i love you. i know this show is abt to be shitty to you. i know this show is abt to be shitty to every woman who comes on it, and i am ready to be PISSED on your behalf all over again. 

rebekahhhhhhhhhhhh babe. i also love you. 

there’s smth abt the gothic imagery of hayley slipping around in that big old house in various dresses, listening in on doors as klaus and rebekah make plans abt death and murder and promises abt family and murder while she stands on the outside, taking it all in, paying verrry close attention, trying to figure out what her place is here, what she wants, what the fuck is going on, that i, frankly, love abt these early eps and i remember it being the main draw that sucked me in the first go around. 

as it was the first go around, i’m the most highly invested in hayley and rebekah bonding, and terribly and eternally sad that claire holt wanted to go home to australia and not be a series regular (like, go live your life babe, but it’s a real narrative bummer). 

cammmmiiiiiiiiiiiiiii gosh gosh gosh. i’m so ready to be broken by how much i love you and how much this show is an ASSHOLE to you all over again but man oh man, i forgot how annoying your uncle is at first. 

rebekah’s face when she sees elijah again is juustttt!!!!! i never was that invested in their relationship bc i found elijah and klaus irritating beyond belief but (i still do, lbr) but i also don’t in the same way anymore and i’m so interested to watch more of their relationship now. 

hayley slapping elijah when he comes back and telling him “not to make promises he can’t keep” was Good™

hayley’s faaaaace when rebekah tells her she is leaving. SHE LIKES THAT BEKAH’S A BITCH. SHE WANTS HER TO BE HER FAMILY. SHE DOESN’T GO INTO THE BAYOU FOR JUST ANYONE. she’s so sad and i liveeeee.

also rebekah’s faaaaace when she is abt to drive away and then she realizes that hayley is in dangerrrrr

UGH all my feelings abt bekah protecting davina are bACK and i’m sad

OHHHH I FORGOT ABT CELESTE AND THE ELDERS AND THIS MUSIC IS SO DOPE AT ATMOSPHERIC AS THEY COME BACKKKK

gosh i forgot how much the atmosphere and imagery and music of s1 that i loved so much. like i’m prepared to get furious bc i remember shitty things that are to come, but i remember why i liked it too. so, that’s rlly fun, for now. 

gosh, i don’t ship hayley and elijah, not rlly, bc most hets are boring. but i do enjoy their dynamic and it makes so much sense as to why hayley would cling to him in the early days. “he was kind to me” that’s all it took, that’s all she needs. she is all of 20 goddamn years old. (maybe 21, at most). an orphan. abandoned by the ppl who were supposed to love and care for her bc they were afraid of who she was and didn’t know how to handle it, didn’t want to try (werewolf/monster metaphors for queerness, yesss i will make it where i want it bc i CAN and i WANT TO) and she has been alone and desperate for family ever since. she learns under katherine and she pays very close attention, and she tries to barter information where she can and then she’s pregnant. pregnant, and linked to a psychopath. pregnant, linked to a psychopath and kidnapped by a bunch of witches. and then his brother comes along and she’s scared and young and he is kind. he makes promises of care and family and everything she has been desperate for since she accidentally killed someone and turned into a wolf at age 13. and i just... i don’t rlly need them to make out but i get it, hayley, i do and i care so much. 

i know that they all end up okay, and it was a terrible bind, but it is... so shitty of elijah to just, not save rebekah from celeste’s shitty plan. none of them ever pick her and i hate them for it. 

monique is... a real shitty niece. 

the thing that pisses me off the most abt the mikaelsons and the narrative that surrounds them is the show victimizes the men in a way that it doesn’t quite the women. they are all terrible monsters, and they are all victims of their parents, but klaus gets to whine and posture and dagger his sister and then stand in a cemetery and cry abt how it’s not his fault, it’s their fathers. and yes. rebekah immediately counters that with it her line abt it not being just him, and that’s good, and that’s important, but the weight of the narrative is always given back over to klaus (or elijah, iirc) over her. (that might’ve been different had claire holt remained a series regular, but i sort of doubt it).  

UGH. the thing abt rebekah leaving at the end of ep16 is that SHE DESERVES IT, THAT SMILE MAKES ME WANT TO /SCREAM/ with delight. but also, i hate it bc i want her on the show and i think the show suffers for not fully getting to develop with her in the mix, and it’s a bummer. 

also, HER GOODBYE TO HAYLEY ALWAYS KILLS ME. AND I’M FOREVER PRESSED WE DIDN’T GET MORE OF THEM. 

watching hayley boss around that shitstain oliver is a Good feeling

watching no one give davina a gift at the festival bc monique is a total bitch now who is all “i lost my mom, i lost my aunt” etc. sucks. BABE YOU KILLED YOUR AUNT. FUCK YOU. 

HAYLEY TAKING CHARGE IN THE BAYOU. HAYLEY BEING A NATURAL LEADER. HAYLEY BEING THE ALPHA. I LOVE IT.

i hate oliver. like. a lot. you tricked rebekah and i hated you, you try to take hayley’s pack and i REALLY HATE YOU. 

MONIQUE YOU LITTLE BITCH DON’T YOU DARE TRY TO HURT UNBORN BABY HOPE OR HAYLEY

hayley fucking wrecking mikael in that shitty dream bs that monique or whatever put on her is GOOD fuck that guy so hard

also, the whole ancestral magic is v cool in theory, but they are some dead ASSHOLES in practice. don’t fucking kill babies. 

GENEVIVE WHYYYYYY. FRANCESCA IS SUCH A BITCH

hayley’s letter voiceover as she’s screaming and giving birth and being held down by witches who want to kill her baby is as AWFUL as it was the first time except that it’s WORSE bc now i love hope already and i love hayley more than i did the first go around, and i even have some sympathy for klaus who is tearing into the place with every last little energy he has trying to save them. 

IN CASE IT WASN’T CLEAR, I HATE MONIQUE AND I CAN’T REMEMBER BUT I HOPE HAYLEY KILLS HER RIGHT BACK

i also cannot remember how hayey survives and turns into a hybrid so this is stressful. like i know it happens BUT

oh,right hope saved her mama from the womb. BEST KIDDO

davina, babe, do not trust mikael he is the WORST.

babe, no

babe nooooo

babe, still no, but babe. you’re also a little brilliant to keep him trapped like that. 

these ancestors are FUCKING ASSHOLES

charles’ acting is so good. like, being able to cry in a way that feels gutting as you pretend you are biting your sort of dad’s arm to drink his blood to save yourself from a werewolf bite. like, good job my dude, that’s bonkers and yet you were fantastic. 

god phoebe’s acting is also so good, when she’s holding hope and trying not to cry abt giving her up her voice breaks and she can’t keep talking and then she takes this little pause and stills her eyes and its... fuckING 

however, tv shows gotta stop naming baby girl’s hope for the ~symbolism~ it brings for their arcs. like, i kiiiiiiinda like it in this one instance, but also guys come on. we’re all done doing that now pls right?

HERE’S ESTER AND FINN AND NOW YUSUF IS HERE  AND HE’S A FANTASTIC ACTOR AND I’M READDDDY FOR SEASON 2

[ptw30]

What if they moved the she-ra's release date bc a)vld s8 trailer will be released on next thursday and there's smth that would rub us the wrong way so netflix is releasing in a few days later a show that already has lgbt rep and badass women to calm a bit the storm or b)the trailer is being released 2 days after she-ra so the audience can go "oh man this doesn't look good... BUT WE HAVE SHE-RA NOW"(1/2)

Either way I don’t think this has anything to do with other franchises releases, netflix didn’t care when they released s6 the day of incredibles 2 premiere. Not saying that your theory is wrong, it’s plausible, they may care now. But I think this has more to do with dw franchises and not others. They should have noticed that at least a half of vld’s audience is moving on to she-ra so that’s why i think they schedule stuff in regards to what the audience wants to see. Makes sense? (2/2)

No. Sorry, but it doesn’t. First, most of VLD’s audience isn’t moving to She-Ra. Second, Tuesdays are not good days to premiere shows, especially when DreamWorks has never premiered a show on Tuesday before - only Fridays. Third, She-Ra doesn’t have much of an audience, actually. 

Below the cut - lovely graphics and research from @sol1056. 

Internet traffic regarding She-Ra over the last thirty days. 

Voltron is blue. TDP is red. Castlevania is green. You can see the uphill tick when it was released last week. And She-Ra? Yellow. 

Please take in account. This includes NYCC. 

Here’s another graphic to give you a better assessment of page views. 

She-Ra is green here. It’s getting its ass kicked. Sorry, but She-Ra isn’t the big draw that DW wants you to believe, and it’s floundering in a time when it should be LOUD with hype. After all, VLD Season 1 was a HUGE win for DreamWorks. 

You know what? Let’s go a bit farther back to prove my point - 

(Castlevania green, Voltron blue, She-Ra yellow, and The Dragon Prince red.)

The news of Castlevania’s second season got as much buzz as the Voltron Season 7 premiere. You see where The Dragon Prince premiered. 

She-Ra’s first look? Still yellow - and still relatively quiet. 

Moving a release date is an attempt to make sure She-Ra is not lost in the FB2 hype and give its own day - or three - to hopefully shine - because it’s not doing so just yet. 

Moreover, you’re putting a lot of faith in a show that hasn’t even proven itself yet, a show that DreamWorks literally just said they don’t believe will do well on a Friday. Even if it’s not due to the FB2, DreamWorks still moved the release day to a Tuesday.   

To clarify - moving up a release date now, less than two weeks out, is not good news. It’s not “because fans wanted it.” You know how I know? 

Because anyone who asked for Friday, November 16th off to binge-watch She-Ra just got screwed. 

Seriously. 

I asked for December 14th the day it was announced. I asked for Season 5 premiere date off the day it was announced, and I almost did not get it. It was a month out, and my boss had the same date off. 

Moving a date up three days, giving fans less than two-weeks notice, is terrible treatment to your fans, especially when the release date is a Tuesday. Anyone with a full-time job is going to have a hard time getting up on a Tuesday and then working the rest of the week. 

(And btw - I’m from the time of original She-Ra fans. I was two when it premiered. If not for the horrible story that Voltron became, I’d be head over heels for a new She-Ra show.)

Fridays are great for binge-watching, especially children’s shows. In fact, DreamWorks doesn't premiere shows on Tuesdays - only Fridays - which tells you something in and of itself. She-Ra is different and from the numbers above, not in a good way. 

Two - or five - I haven’t heard anything about VLD Season 8 getting a new trailer next Thursday, so if you have - then your sources are better than mine. 

And finally, it’s already been speculated because Voltron Season 6 was on the Incredibles 2 premiere date AND Season 8 is on the new Spider-Man premiere date, that DreamWorks is burying Voltron, especially since 3Below is premiering a week after Voltron Season 8. 

Any good production company looks at what is premiering and when, and makes their own release schedule accordingly. A company would be foolish not to because if one doesn’t, then it ends up dropping a series the same day a multi-billion-dollar franchise drops its highly-anticipated sequel. 

Say what you want about She-Ra, but it’s not the Harry Potter franchise. It’s just not. 

[anneboleyns]

also no one asked (ok well someone asked me like a week ago on curiouscat but) but here are my hopes n dreams for the downton abbey movie:

1) it will never happen but i want a romance storyline for thomas lol, the whole shebang: meet cute, random misunderstandings/obstacles, obstacle(s) is/are overcome, happy ending and a motherfucking KISS, honestly we have edith/bertie, mary/matthew, mary/henry, carson/hughes, andy/daisy, isobel/merton, anna/bates, all following this pattern and i WANT IT. i know it’s different with a movie and he can’t get the episodes-long arcs those couples got, but they could pull smth off. i think if it happened to be jimmy or phillip that would be nice but obviously not gonna happen as neither ed or charlie are included in the cast lol, and also like i said since for a movie it would have to be a condensed plot it’s probably for the best it won’t be jimmy bec that storyline would deserve much more nuance, sensitivity, care, and explanation than the limited screentime available in a single film could give

2) not to be a bitch but i want michael gregson to be alive sdfhdsiukhsdfiusdfkdsf like can you IMAGINE, jesus it would be so frustrating but so satisfying bec of course that would happen to edith lmaoooooooo also i want marigold to meet him??? idk i adore edith and bertie but i really liked michael. like picture edith and bertie and marigold sitting in their drawing room in their castle having tea and there’s a fire and it’s cute and cozy and then their butler comes in like “there’s a man downstairs m’lady, insisting on seeing you” and edith going “let him in Jives” (or whatever the butlers name is) and she looks at bertie and says “i wonder what on earth this is about” and the door opens and it’s MICHAEL GREGSON and we see edith’s shocked face and then it cuts to like, violet and isobel arguing about violet’s cook’s views on sheep farming or something

3) can tom branson be happy jesus christ like, his entire storyline has always revolved around other ppl, he always felt like a side character in his own plots ?????????? and then he’s just a vehicle for mary’s happiness or robert’s success or downton’s issues for mary/robert/tom to solve, so rarely is it ever about HIM and HIS happiness, even with bunting that was about riling robert up so it was something for him and cora to argue about and so daisy could get an education. i just want him to get some attention i love one (1) irish socialist (bonus points if the movie opens with him burning the Abbey down while holding bundles of marxist literature)

4) mary and barrow’s relationship in the movie should mirror robert and carson’s relationship throughout the series.... likewise george and barrow should mirror mary and carson’s...... like. carson isn’t butler anymore. and carson was In Strum Mental in the running of that household, not an episode goes by without robert or cora or mary or someone talking to carson, and barrow is butler now, his role, literally, needs to be bigger, and his relationship with the upstairs crew should be more clearly defined and featured. u can’t change my mind. also he’s so fucking adorable with george and sybbie. slightly related: i want thomas to mention sybil, anna said herself he knew her better than any of the downstairs crew and esp bec he’s close with sybil’s daughter i want that MENTIONED. thomas being Soft and Fond ??? sign me tf up

5) i can’t stand carson or robert and if they both make it thru the movie alive ima be pissed. they function in the narrative as ties to the pre-wwi world and it’s past time one or both of those misogynist fuckwads are dispensed with. like any time one of them is onscreen i’m just Die Die Die Die DIe. i HATE

6) i really want scenes of george, sybbie, and marigold together. they are the next generation of crawleys and i want them to kind of be together, the 3 of them, as a group, the way edith, mary, and sybil were in the first season. we had The Crawley Sisters as a group, now it’s time for The Crawley Cousins. i want all 3 of them to have their own personalities and teasing of each other the way mary edith sybil did. i know they’re only children and the movie only takes place 2 yrs after the s6 finale so they’re still very young, but it’s enough to lay the groundwork and plant suggestions abt how the 3 of them’s relationship will be. it would be adorable and satisyfing

7) now u all know i adore thomas and i want him to be happy and i really am thrilled he’s developed and isn’t just the one-dimensional antagonist he was in season 1, i’m happy he’s allowed himself to become a bit softer and has a found family that he finally feels at home with. WITH THAT SAID........... there is next to no tension among the downstairs characters anymore. we need someone to come in, rustle some feathers, have hideous hair ringlets..... if you’ve guessed Sarah O’Brien u’ve guessed right. now listen i know she’s awful but i think it could be great. imagine her waltzing in and basically being like s1 thomas, just snarking at everything. i bet she’d be all saccharine and fake like “so thomas you’re butler now that’s sooooo nice!!! and look at the bates’ baby, i’m soooo happy for you!!!” and no one believes her and she’s just sneaking around causing trouble. she’d probably get into it w baxter bec she’s so soft and nice, but when obrien tries to fuck w molesley or thomas baxter becomes this image:

i can also imagine obrien being really nasty with andy and daisy bec they’re so young and cute and obrien.... isn’t, and barrow gets fed up and comes in like “SO SARAH, YOU DROPPED ANY SOAP LATELY?” and she goes pale and shuts up after that idfghdfiuhdyf

8) i want richard carlisle to come back bec iain glen is a fox. no other reason

9) i want madeleine allsopp to come back bec after the shannara chronicles i miss poppy drayton’s face on my screen. no other reason

10) omg i almost forgot, i want baby bates to be friendly with the upstairs children and i want baby bates to love thomas just like the other kids do, it would be great bec bates and thomas still hate each other but they would both love that kid and it would be super cute. i’ve also always loved thomas’ weird lil relationship w anna, like they’re not FRIENDS but i feel like there’s potential between the 2 of them to be friends. thomas noticed first when anna was bruised after her attack and asked what happened, anna noticed when thomas was sick during the conversion therapy s5 plotline and kept asking him if he was ok and telling him to rest. them in the hallway together after sybil died. thomas saying “no anna’s not an enemy. but she’s incorruptible so we have nothing in common” to edna. so i feel since he’s so good with kids and they seem to love him, it would make sense for the bates baby to be the same, and it would alter the bates/anna/thomas dynamic in a possibly interesting and satisfying way

11) I Want Anna Bates To Be Happy And Laugh And Smile And Also Have Her Hair Down. I Am Tired Of Watching Anna Bates Suffer. If Fellowes Hurts Any More Hair On Her Head I Will Burn ITV Studios Down Just Test Me Julian.

[flameohs-blog]

Can you do a meta for Zuko on his Uncle Iroh, and the most significant lessons / pieces of wisdom that he learned from him?

META    ↪ ACCEPTING / @proditeur​​

ohh boyyy… i’m gonna have to do yet another rewatch to answer this to the fullest. i honestly don’t have the time to do that right now but i do want to answer this question since my muse for atla seems to be really strong these days. i’m gonna start by splitting this into different sections because i feel like there’s A Lot i could say. i hope everything flows and ya’ll can understand my ramblings lol

zuko & uncle iroh’s relationship

obviously when we’re introduced to the series, one of the first relationships we see is the one between zuko and iroh. u can tell right off the bat that they care about one another a lot, mostly u can tell from iroh more than zuko in the beginning until that changes later on. it’s def one of the strongest relationships we see throughout the series. i don’t rmr if the series explained why iroh had left with zuko after his banishment like whether that was thru iroh’s own volition or if he was driven out by ozai as well. either way, we all know that iroh thinks of zuko as a son after his own died.

i think that’s because zuko and iroh share similarities and iroh sees that. iroh sees the potential zuko has. in the beginning, zuko is an angry individual. he gets mad easily. he gets upset easily. he gets frustrated. we do see other parts of his personality and eventually we do see him change and he becomes more like iroh in a way. here’s the thing, though. while i do believe that zuko learned a lot from his uncle…

i’m going to argue that zuko learned a lot from everyone he ever interacted with as well. not saying that his relationship with his uncle isn’t important because, i mean, it IS. their relationship was introduced to us from the very beginning so of course it’s important. the thing i’m trying to get at is that although it was iroh who was there to guide zuko in a way on his journey, it was actually zuko who helped himself. iroh never rlly told zuko what to do with his life, it was zuko who figured it out on his own. it was zuko who realized his mistakes and learned from them and grew as a person.

zuko as an individual

i’ve written this on my other blog and i’ll say it again: zuko’s redemption arc works because he was never truly a bad guy despite his mistakes with the gaang in s1-2. zuko is written as the initial villain but that’s only cos he’s hunting the avatar who has been established as the protagonist of our series. he treats aang & co as his enemies BUT he treats other people just fine for the most part. and we see that from the very beginning like in the very first episode where he promises to leave the water tribe alone if aang goes with him or in a few episodes later where he foregoes chasing appa (+ aang) bc the most important  task at hand is getting his ship and his crew out of the bad weather and into safety. 

the only reason he’s chasing the avatar is bc in his mind that’s what’s gonna gain his father’s approval. and zuko in the first 2 seasons wants nothing more than his father’s love & acceptance & approval esp since his mother is no longer in the picture. and, you know, i’m sure zuko knows from an early age that his father isn’t the best person and nor is he the best parent but… all that is put aside simply bc of the fact that ozai is his father. they are blood related. and ppl can pretend like that doesn’t matter but when you’re young, when that’s all you have, it fucking matters. i can’t explain it well atm but children want the love & acceptance & approval from their parents. it’s normal. toph is another example of this, she wants those things but doesn’t have them. their situations in a way are similar yet manifests in different outcomes.

zuko’s drive to find the avatar and take him to the fire nation is only because of his desire for his father’s approval. but the thing is that zuko was always torn between his allegiance to his father and, idk, his allegiance to be himself. zuko is not like ozai or sozin or azulon. he isn’t like azula either. he doesn’t rlly share the same ideals they do in regards to the fire nation being #1 in the world or superior to other nations or however u wanna describe it. even if he didn’t get banished, i rlly don’t believe he’d turn into the type of person the previous generations of firelords were. i think ozai saw this in zuko and that’s why he favored azula over him. it was azula who possessed the traits ozai thought was important, not zuko. but what ozai considers weakness in zuko turns out to be his greatest strengths.

underneath all that anger in the beginning, zuko was always… kind in his own ways. and he learns to be open to change and growth. in season 2 when we see him free appa from underground and throw away his blue spirit mask, it’s supposed to symbolize this awakening/change in him. but in the end of season 2, he chooses to side with azula again because like i’ve said before his desire for his father’s approval is greater than his desire for… idk… whatever else. he’s still confused. as much as i wanted zuko to join the gaang earlier, it wasn’t time for him to. we had to wait until literally halfway thru book 3 to see that and it was a lil annoying cos i would have loved to see him join earlier so they could have all had more interactions but!!!!!! i truly don’t believe that zuko throwing away the blue spirit mask was enough, hence the betrayal at the end of s2. someone could be there to guide you or influence you but ultimately your decisions in life are your own. 

lessons zuko has learned on his journey 

a) episode 2x09 - bitter work

there’s a scene where iroh is explaining all four elements to zuko and how each element contributes to different nations’ idk personalities or culture or whatever. and i always thought that scene was beautiful bc iroh isn’t insulting other nations, he’s describing their strengths. and then iroh says: 

“it is important to draw wisdom from many different places. if you take it from only one place, it becomes rigid and stale. understand others–the other elements–and the other nations will help you become whole.”

like i honestly think zuko kinda already knew that but it was never worded to him that way. we see him also learn it on his own when he parts ways with his uncle and he’s off traveling on his own. zuko has also traveled the world for years after his banishment. there’s no way he’s out there thinking the fire nation’s beliefs are the only ones that matter. he’s learned a lot from his travels imo. about himself and about others. 

this is also the episode where iroh teaches zuko how to redirect lightning so, yanno, there’s that. in one of the earlier episodes, iroh reminds zuko about the breath and how that could save his life in the cold and also another time where he instructs zuko to break zhao’s root during a duel or whatever. so def iroh not only offers advice/wisdom thru words but also thru teaching zuko firebending.

b) episode 2x17 - lake laogai

imo this episode was Wild to me mostly cos of the confrontation between zuko and his uncle. zuko’s still thinking of capturing the avatar even though at this point he and iroh are fire nation fugitives and on the wanted list. zuko is still confused and torn between being true to himself and being the son his father wants him to be. it’s iroh’s words that honestly hit a lil too close to home for me too lmao. zuko says smth about how he knows his destiny and iroh says:

“is it your own destiny or is it a destiny someone else has tried to force on you? it is time for you to look inward and begin asking yourself the big questions: WHO are you and what do YOU want?”

like i’ve said before, zuko isn’t thinking about what he wants. or maybe he has but it’s not rlly a priority for him. his priority is still pleasing his father and the only way he knows how is to capture aang. he thinks that’s what’s gonna make him happy but…

c) episode 3x06 - the avatar and the firelord

obviously zuko isn’t happy. at this point he’s returned to the fire nation and finally has what he’s wanted for years: ozai’s approval. i’m not gonna say love cos i don’t believe for one second that ozai loved his son lmfao! and nor did he love azula but that’s another story for another day. anyways, zuko thought that “killing” the avatar would make him happy and being back home would make him happy but uh. he’s changed over the years. he’s still confused about what he wants vs what his father wants. 

it’s hard for people to break away from their families, man. it rlly truly is. we as the audience know that that’s what zuko has to do but honestlyyy how many of us irl are kind of in similar positions???? it’s hard to breakaway from family (the ppl who r supposed to support u) when you don’t have other strong connections and lbr zuko doesn’t. he had his uncle and he fucked it up. but anyway this entire episode was WILD and i loved every moment of it. it goes thru the story of avatar roku and his friend sozin. but the plot twist is that roku is zuko’s great grandfather which, tbh, i was not expecting at all LMFAO. maybe it was obvious to every1 else but, man, was i in shock lol. 

the lesson in this episode is that everyone is capable of being good or evil (as aang learns) but the other lesson is that this is kind of what finally pushes zuko to change. i mean he was never truly evil as we’ve seen in the past and he’s made bad decisions but it’s this moment that drives him to come to the goddamn epiphany that, no, he isn’t happy in the fire nation. 

d) episodes 3x10 & 3x11 - the day of black sun

zuko isn’t happy in the fire nation.his father needs to be stopped cos what he’s doing is wrong. and it’s a big fckn risk to defy the firelord and leave the comfort of your home behind… like what if the avatar & co don’t accept zuko into the group? it’s a risk but zuko knows what he has to do and has probably known it for a long time. it’s hard to BREAK AWAY BUT ZUKO FINALLY DID IT. and you know what!!!!!! when zuko stood up to his father and told ozai that now it’s his (ozai’s) turn to listen to zuko……… it was literally the BEST thing ever lmfao. here’s a part of what zuko says:

“i’ve come to an even more important decision. i’m going to join the avatar and i’m going to help him defeat you.”

zuko says “I’VE come to the decision” and i think that’s important cos he came to the decision on his own. like ya his uncle was there for him but honestly like… no one told him to do any of that!!!!! underneath that anger, this is who he is: a kind, compassionate person????? now i don’t even know what i’m trying to get at anymore but i guess just the way he says “but i’ve come to an even more important decision” just gets to me like. it’s important that he made his own choice and wasn’t coerced into it bc that makes his choices more real and genuine. if zuko wasn’t a good person underneath all that anger and bitterness then would he have done this? no, lol. the audience loves zuko’s redemption arc because he never truly bad on the inside, he made mistakes, realized them, made the active decision to do better and be better for others, and does that continuously thru s3 and we can assume after the series ends as well. zuko in s3 isn’t the zuko in s1 and we SEE that and that’s what we love abt his arc.

e) tea

isn’t zuko seen serving tea to every1 in the finale at the very end. like i’m sure iroh taught him how to brew the right cup of tea lmfao!!!!! idk much about diff types of tea but uh there’s diff temperatures u heat the water and how long u steep it and idk guess it’s an art huh