#the zoom in aang...

[garfield-milk]

the official atla Instagram is... something

[ashwithane]

i also drew some cursed aangs with @wyvern-witch

[woodlaflababab]

Book three Aang, my beloved. 

Just thinking about the way he handled Zuko's return. The fact that he remains quiet while the other's talk bc he's thinking things through. The fact that he was never against Zuko or for Zuko, but rather making decisions as the Avatar based on actual thought and valuing the input of those he trusts. Like, literally, the fact that it zooms in on Aang's face as Zuko walks away and you can see the resigned conflict in him, the fact that he's STILL thinking it through, even as he accepts his friend's judgment for the time being. 

Then when they all talk about it, while Katara and Sokka both discuss how awful Zuko is, Aang pipes in in defense of Zuko, but still accepts their input. Then when Toph starts defending Zuko, Aang joins the others in their frustration because even as he sees Zuko's good, he sees his bad in equal measure and believes, ultimately, given what they've seen, trusting Zuko is the wrong choice.

Every time they talk about it, Aang is thinking. He's on the side of 'keep Zuko out' but he's never there out of feeling, he's there out of putting together pieces and determining what's best. He very rarely actually adds input and is most often just listening. 

As soon as Aang hears Zuko say "I don't want you hunting the Avatar anymore" to Combustion Man, he is Paying Attention. When Zuko comes to talk to them a second time, Sokka and Katara are still taking aggressive faces, but Aang is open. Not accepting, but open and hearing him out. Even with every reason Not to trust Zuko, Aang is still thinking, and allowing himself to consider the bigger picture as it changes. 

And then even when he says he thinks Zuko is supposed to be his firebending teacher and that, for all intents and purposes, he could've stuck to that and the others would just have to go with it (bc what are you gonna do, stop the avatar?), he still holds off and asks each member their opinions, allowing everyone a voice, taking in every angle. And you KNOW if Katara said no in that moment, Aang would have accepted it. He wouldn't have necessarily been happy about it, but he was well aware that Katara could say no and looked genuinely concerned about how she felt. 

Ugh, I love Aang in the episode so so much. Even him vs the Combustion Man I love watching, the casualty with which he pulls off feats of airbending, ugh

Aang may not have wanted it, but you can clearly see, Aang was built to be the Avatar.

[queen-morgana91]

“At the end of the finale when Katara kisses Aang and the camera zooms out, we tried to make it look, and symbolize, a kiss that the bride and the groom have at the end of a wedding.” - Aaron Ehasz

[survivalove]

Air Temple Island, the Water Tribes & the Real Life Influences that bring them together

I was gonna screenshot a post I saw and add it to my post but I don’t feel like giving that individual attention (and the 300+ notes they got), so I just decided to make my own standalone post debunking this narrative that air temple island is this fully air nomad brothel (yes they said this) with ZERO water tribe motifs which katara is forced to live in until aang passed away.

frankly it just reminded me of how little people in this fandom actually bother to analyze the actual content, instead preferring to write entirely made up scenarios of katara being reduced to an air nomad incubator along with dozens other female acolytes (yes they also said this lmao. also them acting like both male AND female acolytes weren’t living on the whole other side of the island 😭)

when in truth, i’ve come to find a lot of elements of both water tribes as well as traditional inuit elements across air temple island:

1. the paifang

a traditionally chinese element that for some reason is exclusively found in the northern water tribe (why do they have a gate inside a throne room, you ask? ask the white people that made this show). the one on the left is actually one of two aang BUILT, at the main entrance and another at the temple entrance. this is just one example of water tribe design on the island.

2. the bagua mosaic

another structure is the bagua mosaic on the training grounds. bagua is a set of traditional chinese symbols of the cosmology, taoism. the bagua composes of 8 sets of broken or unbroken lines that represent yin and yang. where have we seen yin and yang in the original series? oh yeah, as tui and la of the water tribe! (because atla is a mess of asiatic and indigenous motifs joined together and spread out across each nation, mainly traditionally chinese elements at that.) aang building this right next to the air nomad training grounds is a symbol of the dual bending heritage their children will have.

3. gold and blue accents

now, gold and blue are the main colors of the exterior structures but is also very strong inside the air temple itself. note, the massive air nomad symbol designed fully in blue in the center and the blue banners and rugs throughout the temple. this is no doubt, for me, a visual depiction of both katara and aang’s representative cultures, but of course this is not limited to color only.

4. cloud carvings

now, this is a slight detour since clouds aren’t a significant part of either of their individual cultures (that we know) but i love the kataang monopoly they have on clouds as a couple so i’m talking about it. if you look at these images very closely what do you see? CLOUD CARVINGS!! specifically near the ceiling of the pavilion (left) and the arches and walls of the temple (right) just imagining aang painting and etching these very consistent swirls, like he’ll never be the selfish inconsiderate unromantic loser you people want him to be, but let’s get more into the southern water tribe style interior.

5. interior design

so here is a southern water tribe white lotus outpost vs the air temple island main dining room. first thing, the seat cushions and rug! while we don’t see air nomad eating quarters we do get to see enough SWT customs both in atla and lok, to know this is how they traditionally eat compared to the north (limiting myself on pics cuz mobile).

another thing is the dining table itself. both have what i believe to be built in fire pits (i couldn’t actually tell for the air temple island one cuz of the quality but if you zoom in you can see the lines go in the table plus the hanging kettle on it makes it obvious to me idk). the southern water tribe one however is clear and likely a more traditional version of what aang and katara have.

thirdly, the exposed timber on the ceiling. i actually looked it up and found this is a common element of these two inuit structures: left is an aasiaat peat house and right is an igloolik turf house. all this for me to believe not only did aang build air temple island to be a haven for the TWO of them but also that katara herself had a lot of input on the interior than people care to notice lol.

maybe instead of projecting these loser fantasies of katara being some unwilling air nomad baby making machine so you can feel better about your fantasies of katara living in a red palace with people that tried to wipe her out for a whole century, you all can go study the actual canon you were shown and the real life cultures the franchise takes from.

6. lastly, some of my own headcanons/stuff i want to see in the movie

the bathroom because I LIVE for a white marble tiled bathroom. i just know katara has to have a HUGE tub and they have one of those insane glass showers that can fit like 3 people, with cloud swirls everywhere because aang clearly got it like that

the KITCHEN, i imagine it being timber like the dining room and is probably on the other side behind the built-in shelf (get into the details like hello). in a perfect world, it would be open plan but hey

the bedroom, now we saw it in lok a bit but i wanna see it in the gaang movie too. i’m on pic limit but there’s a lot of artwork and flowers throughout the whole house which i give katara credit for because I can. like the desk, the bookshelf, that fancy looking vase thing? these two clearly have taste like don’t talk to me rn

I also didn’t show the rooms and aang’s study but there’s a lot of blue decor in those places which makes me think katara decorated the whole house, even the acolytes’ hall has blue sitting cushions and columns which i think is such a nice detail.

if you guys have any air temple island headcanons of your own please reply with some i’m feening lol

big shoutout to this user:

atla-annotated (their page is so great and filled with a lot of incredible information if you guys like this sort of stuff)

[sokkas-therapist]

favourite sokka bisexual moments???? (we stan a bi king)

Ohhh I have so many!! Sokka is the blue bisexual charecter and I live for it

This will always be my #1 bisexual moment!!

😭😭😭😭😭 anywayyy other than this here’s a list of some of my favorite bi sokka moments split up into categories! ⬇️

Very bisexual moments:

- the zoom in on sokka grabbing zuko’s arm in TBR (and literally all of the times that he unnecessarily touched him and grabbed him, like bro- lmao)

- literally his entire obsession with the boulder 💀

- sokka blushing when Chan hugged him

- when he said “smells manly” and stared at that shirtless runner 😭

- sokka just short-circuiting when Zuko did that breathing fire thing in the cooler

- sokka stumbling over his little speech while showing Zuko to his room, and his little smileee, and the way he kind of stopped to turn back and look at Zuko again then smiled to himself as he left *giddy leg kicks*

- and of course

All these little gay moments in the comics, lol

Things Sokka did that aren’t inherently bisexual…but are very bisexual:

- kyoshi warrior sokka!! (and the implication that he kept the dress bc he was still wearing it when they left Kyoshi island )

- his little jumpy claps when he gets excited about shopping 🥰🛍️

- him being so indecisive over whether or not he should get the bag to go with his belt, bc we all know bisexuals can’t make a choice to save their life (saying this as a bisexual myself, lol)

- OK I LOVE THIS ONE, at the very beginning of the Southern Raiders episode when Azula attacked, sokka had his hair down right? So they take off on Appa and his hair is still down, because that’s what makes SENSE. So then Zuko’s dumbass jumps off of the temple and ends up falling off of the airship; when they Gaang flies back around to catch him, SOKKA’S HAIR IS UP, then it cuts to Azula, and when it clicks back and Zuko is safe on Appa, HIS HAIR IS BACK DOWN AGAIN 😭 is this technically just an animation error? yes maybe, but will I pretend in my mind that Sokka got nervous around Zuko and couldn’t decide if he wanted to have his hair up or down (or thought he looked better with it down and wanted Zuko to think he looked nice too) so that is what I will continue to believe :)

Bonus:

- the most recent addition to this list, apparently right after Sokka straight up told Aang to leave Zuko in the snow to die… he held him in his lap so he wouldn’t fall off of Appa when they took off 🥲

[btheleaf]

Fandom: Legend of Korra Characters: Pema & Lin Beifong Words: 726 Rating: General Audiences Read it on AO3 @flashfictionfridayofficial

“This was all Kya’s idea, you know.”

Pema turned her tired eyes on Lin who was just coming over to sit next to her. “What was?”

“This.” Lin gestured a lit cigarette at the group playing their game and then up at the sky. “On the full moon.”

Pema looked at the moon and then back at Jinora, Tenzin, Bumi, and Kya who were still playing the game they invented earlier in the night and flinched as another ice ball exploded.

“Waterbenders like full moons.” Pema was so tired that she wasn’t sure if she understood what Lin was saying, but hoped that was a decent response.

Lin’s lips pressed together in what could have been a smile, but Pema really wasn’t sure about that either. She watched the ember at the end of the cigarette glow and fade before Lin tossed it down on the stones to stomp it out.

“Come on, Pema.” Lin finally exhaled the smoke. “You’ve been married to him for over a decade, you never noticed how he gets around the full moon?”

Pema shrugged. “I guess he gets a little wired.”

She looked back out at the courtyard and flinched again as yet another ice ball exploded. Bumi started yelling that Tenzin was cheating, and Kya told Bumi he was bitter because he’s old and, well, bitter and old. The healer punctuated the sentiment by sticking her tongue out at him. Pema wondered if she should sneak down and snag the wine bottles while Kya and Bumi weren’t looking.

“None of them really sleep when there’s a full moon. They get it from their water tribe genes. I’m surprised you don’t know.”

 “I’m not exactly in the business of staying awake all night. I do have four young children.”

“Three.”

Pema bristled. “She might have her tattoos but she’s still only eleven years old and you better remember that.”

“Touchy subject?” Lin put her hands up in a gesture of surrender when Pema didn’t dial down the glare. “I’ll back off.”

The two of them turned their attention back out to watch the group in silence. Kya sat in a chair and would pull water from the nearby spigot to form it into a hollow ball of ice. Pema didn’t know exactly what they were doing, but it looked like Tenzin, Jinora, and Bumi were fighting for control of the ball with their airbending while Kya zoomed it around in random patterns.

After watching for a while, Pema decided there must be a small hole in the ball somewhere that each of them was trying to get at. She curled her legs up to her chest and wished the four of them would go to bed. Tenzin, Kya, and Bumi were still injured from the Red Lotus attack, and Jinora’s skin must be hurting after the days-long tattooing sessions with Tenzin. She bit her lip in worry and flinched again as another ball exploded.

Jinora’s arm jutted out a couple seconds before the ball shattered like broken glass and she exclaimed with glee, jumping around while the others praised her. Bumi and Kya’s praise wasn’t quite so eloquent after all the alcohol, but they were trying to reel in the swear words, especially with Tenzin's pinpoint flicks of air to the forehead that he kept using as reminders.

“Looks like Jinora got the gene too,” Lin said casually.

“The gene that makes them stay awake during full moons?” The words came out flat because she was so tired, but truthfully, Pema thought Lin was being ridiculous.

“Mhm.”

“Everyone is still excited from the ceremony, that’s all.”

“Kya convinced Tenzin to have the ceremony today because she wanted to party all night." Lin pulled out another cigarette. "You’ll see as she gets older. The other kids are probably like that too.”

“Great.” Pema yawned.

Lin shrugged and lit her cigarette. “You get used to it.”

 “I’m going to go take the wine away. Pray to a powerful spirit for me.” 

Pema uncurled from her seat and walked down the hill towards the group. Lin chuckled and laid out on the grass; her eyes locked on a twinkling star. 

“Give her strength, Uncle Aang.” Disgruntled protests from Kya floated up the hill not a moment later and Lin laughed again as she stood. “Okay, okay. My wife, I’ll go cut her off.”

[chiefesskatara]

The parallels between Katara & Aang throughout Avatar The Last Airbender

This will be a long post where I present parallels between Katara and Aang from the show, Avatar The Last Airbender.

Survivors of genocide

Katara: [Sadly.] No. You're looking at the only waterbender in the whole South Pole.

Aang: [Sadly.] But you were right. And if the firebenders found this temple, that means they found the other ones, too. [Close-up of his sad face, as he closes his eyes.] I really am the last airbender.

Early on in the show we are introduced to the fact that both Katara & Aang are the last remaining benders of their homes. They were both children when they survived the genocides that was done to directly hunt them down. Katara and Aang show us how different their experiences of genocide can be.

The genocide of Aang's people was absolute, he does not meet a single air bender up until his third Childs birth, Tenzin. Katara was the last water bender in the entire southern water tribe. The water bending culture in the South Pole had been obliterated after the benders of her grandmothers generation were taken away or killed.

Aang grew up with other air benders and was brought up by his master and father figure, Monk Gyatso. After waking up from his long sleep in the iceberg, his culture and people had been wiped out and forgotten. The genocide of the air nomads was absolute, he does not meet a single air bender up until his third Childs birth, Tenzin.

And from there their friendship blossomed. From penguin sledding to training together to helping each other rebuild their homes/cultures.

Katara, the last water bender of the southern water tribe & Avatar Aang, the last air bender of the Air nomads.

The Southern Raiders: She runs nervously past her brother. Several Water Tribe warriors are shown running about in a frantic motion. The camera focuses on Katara again, who arrives at their igloo and pushes back the curtain. Young Katara: Mom! She runs in to discover her mother seated on the floor, a man towering over her. Kya: Just let her go and I'll give you the information you want.

The Southern Air Temple: Aang enters the room and looks around with a sad expression on his face. The scene switches to a closer shot of the skeleton in the snow and slowly zooms in on it. The skeleton is adorned with a round necklace that supports the symbol of airbending. Close-up of Aang, as he stares at the skeletons. Cut back to a close-up of the skeleton dressed in yellow monk robes. The camera focuses on the round, wooden necklace. Cut back to Aang, whose eyes are trembling with sadness and hold back tears. Aang: [Devastated.] Gyatso.

No hesitation

In this parallel we are presented with how far Katara and Aang are willing to go for each other.

Katara, without any hesitation, chooses to be banished from her village and gets ready to leave with Aang. In a similar manner, Aang chooses Katara in a heartbeat over this one chance of learning water bending from a master water bender. The rejection and disrespect thrown at Katara from Pakku was enough for the monk to dismiss him.

These choices are extremely hard to pick and puts them both in very tough spots. Katara potentially losing her whole family and Aang losing a master whom can teach and guide him as the Avatar. Yet, they both plead to the other to not make rash decisions based on them. The respect and love and understanding these two have for each other is outstanding.

Imprisoned

Imprisoned: Approaches Katara, kneeling to stare into her obstinate expression. She crosses her eyebrows, scowling coarsely at the man. Warden: Simply treat me with courtesy that I give you– And we'll get along famously.

The Blue Spirit: Zhao: Tell me, how does it feel to be the only airbender left? Do you miss your people? [Aang looks down sadly.]

Katara & Aang are imprisoned for their bending abilities, chained down & humiliated. They bravely face the imperial violence & work in together with the members of the other nations to free themselves.

Oma and Shu

The Cave Of Two Lovers: A man and a woman from feuding towns met atop a mountain. Despite the dangers of meeting, the loving couple found a way to continue their relationship in secret. After learning earth bending by observing the natural skills of badgermoles, they created a labyrinth, which only they could navigate successfully and served as a meeting place.

The narrative symbolism in the show represents the love between Katara and Aang. The rest of the elements, where two people can’t be together because of the war, where one of them is killed (Aang & Shu), which leads to a powerful display of bending in the exact same position between Katara and Oma.

Can't be together because of the war - Katara telling Aang that their biggest priority should be focusing on the war in "The Ember Island Players" episode.

Shu is killed in the war – Aang enters his Avatar State to fight against them, but is wounded in the back by Azula's lightning and falls to the ground, dying.

Oma, in a fit of blind rage and sorrow, destroys everything in her path – Katara unleashes a powerful display of her water bending abilities and creates a huge wave.

The Southern Raiders and Sozin’s Comet

The Southern Raiders: Yon Rha: [Falls to his knees.] I did a bad thing! I know I did and you deserve revenge, so why don't you take my mother? That would be fair! [Attempts to smile weakly.] Katara: [Sorrowfully.] I always wondered what kind of person could do such a thing, but now that I see you, I think I understand. There's just nothing inside you, nothing at all. You're pathetic and sad and empty. Yon Rha: [Humbly.] Please, spare me! [Cries.] Katara: But as much as I hate you ... I just can't do it.

Sozin's Comet: Aang: [With the voices of all previous Avatars.] Fire Lord Ozai, you and your forefathers have devastated the balance of this world, and now you shall pay the ultimate price! [Aang, under control of his past lives, combines all four elements together for his final attack. At the last second, however, he manages to regain control; he comes out of the Avatar State, lets his attack die out, and floats to the ground, freeing Ozai in the process. He now speaks in his normal voice.] No, I'm not gonna end it like this. Ozai: Even with all the power in the world, you are still weak!

Katara and Aang, two children who were stripped of their culture at a young age, and were able to have the chance to come face to face with the men who took away their loved ones. Yet, they both choose to let them go instead of taking revenge in the form of killing them.

Pride

Imprisoned: Katara: [Sits beside Haru, sets her fingertips on her necklace.] See this necklace? My mother gave it to me. Haru: It's beautiful. Katara: I lost my mother in a Fire Nation raid. [Hangs her head, turning away.] This necklace is all I have left of her.

The Awakening: Sokka: Here, [Offering a Fire Nation bandana.] tie this around your head. It will cover your arrow. Aang: I'm not going out if I can't wear my arrow proudly! [He lies back down.]

Katara and Aang who proudly showcase their cultures in the form of a necklace and tattoo's. They honour the people that were taken away from them and the sacrifices made in their name.

Exploitation

"Let’s talk about how in these parallels, Aang and Katara are explicitly being exploited by adults that they thought they could trust, in an attempt for these adults to harness destructive power from within the children. in either episode, Aang and Katara, devastated and tearful, are brought to their knees, begging for the pain and torture to stop (in Aang’s case, he’s preventing general Fong from hurting Katara; in Katara’s case, she’s protecting herself from Hama, who is willing her to bloodbend). ultimately, the two children reach their breaking points, which results in them not only generating great bouts of power, but picking up a bending technique/state that goes completely against their moral beliefs." Read the rest here

A beautifully written parallel analysis on Kataang and the corruption of their powers! Written by the lovely @kataraslove

Disguises

The Painted Lady: Katara: Well, what was I supposed to do? Sokka: Leave! Do nothing! Katara: [Angrily.] No, I will never, ever turn my back on people who need me! [Gets up.] I'm going down to that village, and I am gonna do whatever I can.

The Headband: Male student #1: [Shyly hiding his face behind his collar.] I don't think my parents want me dancing in a cave ... Male student #2: [Runs in front of the camera.] Yeah! What if someone finds out?! [Looks around nervously before exiting left.] Aang: Oh boy. Listen guys, dancing isn't something you think about. It's a form of self-expression that no one can ever take away from you.

The Painted Lady (Katara) and Kuzon (Aang) are both identities that Aang and Katara put on to understand the Fire Nation people, to help them through their troubles , and to understand that good resides in places that were once thought to be inherently evil. These alter egos are driven by a desire to help the greater good.

Avatar Aang, the bridge between the spirit world and the human world, went undercover as his friend Kuzon to a Fire nation boarding school. There he spends his days playing hide and explode, making a noodle picture of the fire lord and seeing how the children of the fire nation are fed war propaganda.

Katara took it in herself to become a hero inspired by the village's wood carved spirit: The Painted lady, after seeing in what state the villager's were left in. Deprived and devastated by illnesses caused by the pollutants in their waters. She hid her identity and used her healing abilities to nurse them back to health and with the help of her friends, they clean up the river.

Bending Abilities

And at last, some overlooked bending parallels between Katara & Aang that they most likely learned by training together!

[ladyloveandjustice]

I keep meaning to post about it, but I watched the first three episodes of the live action ATLA with my partner and friend and we decided that Zhao really has office manager energy, especially the way he talks for some reason, so it was fun riffing off him by saying things like "Please join my Linked In Zuko" "I'm very good at networking" "We'll table this for now" "Let's do this over Zoom" etc.

other than that it uh. wasn't very good? There were some fun moments and cool visuals but...I think the thing that bothers me the most--besides everyone turning to the camera and stating their motivations constantly instead of letting us spend time with them as characters--- is that because Katara and Aang didn't have like any chance to interact or bond before then, instead of her going "Aang I know how much it hurts to lose people we're you're family now you're not alone" when he find Gyatso she gets to say "hey aang! losing everything makes you strong! it's how you fight" like what an absolutely fucked up thing to say to someone who survived a genocide. That wasn't the show's message at all, what the hell.

Also hilarious was how Sokka has no reason to distrust Jet in this version. He just spends a total of one minute not even talking to him is like "he's probably evil based off zero evidence", Katara's like 'you're wrong!" runs back to Jet, Jet' s immediately like "i don't care if I kill civilians actually" and she just immediately runs back to Sokka and is like "no you're right how could I have doubted you :(" Girl of course you doubted him the only reason he distrusted the boy was because the writers told him to.

Glad for Zuko's budding deviantart career though, hope he gets a patreon. I'll prolly post more thoughts later.

[natlacentral]

The Actress Who Waited a Lifetime to Become Katara

Kiawentiio talks joining the cast of Avatar: The Last Airbender and playing a character that means so much to so many

The 17-year-old actress Kiawentiio (pronounced gya-wuhn-dee-yo) can’t remember a time when Avatar: The Last Airbenderwasn’t part of her childhood in some way. Growing up on the Akwesasne Mohawk reservation in Ontario known as Kawehno:ke (or Cornwall Island), Kiawentiio—who was born in 2006, a full year after the beloved animated series debuted on Nickelodeon—recalls having older siblings who would have the cartoon regularly playing in the background of their house. Years later, when all three seasons began streaming on Netflix, she revisited the series and developed a newfound appreciation for its narrative ambition.

So, when Netflix first announced that it was developing a live-action adaptation of Avatar in 2018, Kiawentiio told her team to get her an audition for Katara, the 14-year-old girl who is trying to fulfill her potential as the last Waterbender of the Southern Water Tribe after her mother was killed by the ruthless Fire Nation.

“By the time they actually did start casting, I got the call from my manager that was like, ‘Don't freak out, but we think we have the Avataraudition.’ And obviously, I freaked out,” Kiawentiio tells Harper’s Bazaarwith a laugh in a recent phone interview. Of all the roles she had auditioned for, this one was at the top of her bucket list, because she knew that it could have the same impact on the next generation of Indigenous children that it had on her. “Katara was one of the only people that I could really see myself in. With the role model that she is for young Indigenous women, it's hard not to be drawn to her, especially when the representation is so scarce.”

Kiawentiio got her wish in the spring of 2021. After undergoing an intensive audition process, complete with a seemingly never-ending number of Zooms and chemistry reads, she got the news that would change her life. “They sat me down for another Zoom call, and I was expecting them to tell me it might take a while, but [creator and showrunner] Albert Kim ended up telling me what the project was, who I was auditioning for, and then I landed the role, and I was crying,” she recalls.

Every diehard Avatar fan can recite the basic premise by heart: Long ago, the four nations—Water, Earth, Fire, Air—once lived in harmony, with the Avatar, the master of all four elements, keeping the peace between them. But everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked and wiped out the Air Nomads. A century later, Aang (Gordon Cormier), a 12-year-old Air Nomad who has been frozen and suspended in time in an iceberg, reawakens to take his place as the next Avatar. Feeling responsible for the destruction he was unable to prevent, Aang sets out on a quest with his newfound friends, Katara and her Water Tribe leader brother Sokka (Ian Ousley), to save the world from the onslaught of the power-hungry Fire Lord Ozai (Daniel Dae Kim), who is determined to place all the nations under his authoritarian rule.

Katara, as Kiawentiio puts it, is the heart of the Avatar crew tasked with using their bending powers to restore peace in the divided world. “I think the core factors that make Katara [who she is] are her hopefulness and her optimism, and she's the person in the group that can keep them moving forward in a positive direction, and I think without that, team Avatar wouldn't be able to see the light,” she says.

Below, Kiawentiio reflects on the defining moments of Katara’s arc in the first season (which was shot two years ago in Vancouver), how she has grown alongside her character, and why she feels a new day has come for Indigenous representation in Hollywood.

A lot of the dramatic tension of the first season boils down to Aang’s internal conflict: Does the Avatar need to act alone, or can they afford to have people who help them along the way? In Aang’s case, he doesn’t just want people in his life; he needsthem to help save the world. Why do you think Katara is immediately drawn to Aang and his mission? How do you think that relationship evolves over the course of the season?

I think the reason that she was drawn to him in the first place was this energy of bender to bender, honestly, and I feel like that type of energy [bonds them] not only physically, but just spiritually. It's really intertwined in who they are because Aang plays a huge part in Katara's growth physically with her bending, and I feel like it was just this calling of fate and where you're supposed to be. But in terms of how the relationship has grown, I think it really is just blossoming into a family. Team Avatar is a family in our show. They're not going to leave each other's side; they're always there for each other.

Midway through the season, Koh, the face stealer of the spirit world, temporarily imprisons Katara and her brother Sokka and traps them with some of their darkest memories, which allows us to see, rather than hear about, their backstories. In Katara’s case, she is forced to relive the day she lost her mother. How do you think that loss has affected her in the present day?

It's just painful and that is the point of Koh, right? It is to weaken his prey with their own pain and their own memories. The way I see it is she probably feels helpless. She can't do anything, and that's really what has held her back. What has stuck in her mind is the fact that she couldn't do anything [to save her mom], and to be stuck in that painful loop definitely puts a damper on her confidence that she's been working up this entire season.

That memory of the loss that she went through is a roadblock, and that's something that she has to try and overcome as we go through the series because it really is the main reason that she can't get to that next level [of waterbending]. In the episode with Jett, after he shifted her perspective on how she was thinking and how her memories were acting up, she really unlocks that good energy that her mom was trying to leave her with.

It's impressive how together Katara actually is, especially in our season, because the flashbacks and her memories are so brutal that it's like, "Wow, I can't believe you are still normal." [Laughs.] But that goes to show how resilient she is and how strong she is. I think that was one of the things I took away from her while playing her. I tried to implement her message in my life more to be more optimistic and to have that hope and strength.

When she arrives in the Northern Water Tribe, Katara realizes that the women of this tribe aren’t allowed to fight, which comes as a bit of a culture shock for her. But it’s moving to see how she is able to mobilize the women of all ages when the tribe is under siege by the Fire Nation. At the end of the day, they are the ones who helped defeat the enemy.

Arriving at the Northern Water Tribe was something that she was looking forward to all season, and I think in her mind she had this image of like, "I'm going to get there. I'm going to meet a master, and he's going to teach me everything I need to know, and I’ll finally be able to reach that next step [as a Waterbender]." And getting there and being told basically all your work is not going to be paid off [because you’re a woman] was, in my opinion, devastating. That devastation leads straight into anger, which I relate to. I feel like I get the same waves of emotions, and then that leads to wanting to prove them wrong, wanting to change things [like Katara does]. Honestly, that scene with the women [Waterbenders] is just so beautiful, and it was one of my favorites to film. But I think in her mind, she was just reality checking Master Paku: "We are literally in a war. We are not going to make it. Just use your resources." And not only was that the realistic thing that needed to happen, but the change that she's been fighting for [all season].

I read that you trained for six months ahead of production to commit Katara’s waterbending motions to muscle memory. You spent that time going over forms of tai chi and getting strong enough to handle the action sequences.

Boot camp was intense for me personally, just because I'd never really gone through that before and I don't have as much or any experience outside of the show with martial arts. But it was really helpful to be in the same boat as my character, training-wise. At the start of the show, she really doesn't know that much about bending. As we go along through the episodes, we could see her get more comfortable and more confident in her bending. As we watch Katara gain her confidence, I feel like off-screen I was also gaining confidence with those movements, getting stronger as we go and just getting more comfortable in general.

With the critical success of many Indigenous projects in recent years—Reservation Dogs, Rutherford Falls, Killers of the Flower Moon, The English, Dark Winds—it feels like we have reached an inflection point when it comes to accurate depictions of Native American communities. As someone who is part of this growing movement, what is your take on the state of diversity and inclusion for Indigenous communities? And what do you think is the next step that needs to be taken to move the needle even further?

I think we are making huge steps in the industry. I love being able to look around more and more and see more of our faces, and I do think that there's places that we could improve on for sure. But thinking of how far we've come, even from when I was younger, Katara was one of the only brown people that I saw on my TV, so it's really special to be a part of this generation that's being able to do these things.

I think the next step could be just normalizing things, like it doesn't always have to be an Indigenous story to have Indigenous actors, writers or directors. I think that's one of the things that can get touchy in this industry because we want to include everybody of course, but it doesn't have to be so specific. Why does the doctor have to be [only] the Indigenous doctor that came from [this tribe]? Why can't he just be a doctor that happens to be Indigenous?

Indigenous people or actors can be the main character. Obviously, our culture is always a part of who we are, but it doesn't have to be that the reason we are in this role is because we are Indigenous. We can tell our story as a person and still value and venerate our culture without that being the only reason that we're in the story to begin with.

With big blockbusters, I feel like it ends up being like, "Oh, the lead is white, the other lead is white, and then everybody else is a person of color." I feel like that's a theme that we end up seeing a lot. But another really good way to improve [on that] is supporting Indigenous storytellers. We have so many stories, and [telling them] is one of the things that is keeping our cultures alive, and there are so many stories that could be told from our perspective.

[atla-confessions]

Their third favorite is making snowmen/ice sculptures-- They don't quite have Toph and Sokka's artistic sensibilities, but they have fun with it!

a scene of katara and aang bending a sculpture & the process looks really cool and beautifully choreographed, shot pans to toph and sokka with pickaxes looking stressed & ice chips are flying everywhere.

then a cut to the final product - a really gorgeous & intricate sculpture vs a wobbly spiral of ice. zoom out — toph and sokka are standing next to the first (sokka looks like he’s just sparred with foo foo cuddly poops’ mother, toph’s picking her nose) while aang and katara are next to the second (smiling proudly with a little tada! motion). then pan to zuko and suki with a very melty snowman of avatar kyoshi. life sized, obvi. nobody knows how they managed to make it that tall (especially with zuko’s hot hands getting in the way of actually building anything), but it’s obviously kyoshi (because suki stuck her fans on it, not because it’s any good)

X

[azure-firecracker]

ATLA Live Action Episode 6: Overall Thoughts.

I have mixed feelings about this one. It made the least changes from the original, which means I have nothing really to commend it on that the original didn’t already do, but at the same time, I don’t have anything to complain about either. In isolation, it is a very good episode of television. In isolation, it’s the best episode yet, but I have a harder time crediting it because most of the good stuff in here is from the original. Onto the specifics:

This episode continued the trend I don’t love of Aang being just a vessel for cliché heroic lines. I get that the show is supposed to have a more mature tone, and maybe some of Aang’s more childish traits wouldn’t have translated well, but they could have at least put SOMETHING interesting in there.

In terms of the Aang/Roku scene, I didn’t love it. I don’t like this “the avatar must not have friends” dilemma the show is pushing. It’s tired. We’ve seen it in every fantasy show. A variation of this could work as part of Aang’s work, but it doesn’t work as his central conflict. It’s too overdone.

Also, Katara wasn’t in this episode, so I couldn’t get annoyed at them for butchering her character. Definite plus.

Another plus was June! Didn’t love her flirting with Iroh but she was fun and entertaining. Arden Cho did a wonderful job. I hope they bring her back more, she’d be a great recurring fun character to have around.

I did love all the stuff with Zuko. I loved the juxtaposition between younger, idealistic, naive Zuko and current, hardened Zuko. Even though live action Zuko is softer than animated Zuko, this episode really did a good job of showing how he has been hardened by his experiences, relative to what he once was. I liked his conversation with Aang, and how the two clearly have a connection despite their circumstances. I generally like it when those types of stories are played out in a non-romantic context because it’s so rare. A lot of the lines between them were a bit cliché, but they worked (except for the line going right into the flashback where Aang was like “You can’t have always been this way. That one was a little heavy handed).

In terms of the flashback itself:

Younger Zuko seems softer and more naive than animated Zuko, which works with the way we see Zuko here. He had a lot of good lines, especially his line about giving the weak a chance. I know some people didn’t like that he fought back against Ozai in the Agni Kai, but to me it worked. It showed that he was still trying to please his father, and just how willing he was to sacrifice his morals to do it (though not willing enough for Ozai).

Speaking of Ozai, I find it interesting how he’s portrayed here. The original show portrayed him as very uncaring, willing to banish Zuko for disobedience but not really caring if he came back. Here it almost seems like he genuinely thinks this is good parenting, like he genuinely believes this will make Zuko stronger. Obviously he’s still horrible and abusive, but I actually think it works better than the original. It goes hand in hand with how he seems to really think he’s doing the right thing for the world with the FN (because newsflash…that’s what imperialism is!) A villain who really thinks they’re right is always more interesting than one who just wants power and is horrible. I think they could do interesting things with him and I’m intrigued.

Iroh was really sweet in this episode. I liked that he tried to stop Ozai from having the Agni Kai, and that he was with Zuko afterwards. It always puzzled me why he didn’t do that in the first place, and while Iroh having flaws makes sense (he should have flaws!) that particular flaw didn’t seem right, so I liked that addition.

And rounding out the fire family flashback (haha alliteration!) we have Azula. She didn’t really do anything here but the bangs were a great choice! I found it a bit weird that the camera kept zooming in on her expression during Zuko’s burning, but her expression was very neutral. It’s another change I like from the original. I think Azula smiling in the original works and is super interesting, but this show is clearly taking steps to make her more humanized right off the bat, which I appreciate as an Azula stan who has to deal with…many people who don’t see her as human. I’m not sure what to make of her expression, but I did notice that it’s the same one she used when Ozai burned the spy in episode 3 (good job Lizzy Yu!) It seems like a mix of fear and joy and detachment, like she’s trying to relish it but also she knows it could happen to her, but she doesn’t want to admit that, and also she just wants to detach from what’s happening. It can be interpreted in many ways!

One minor thing: I didn’t like that this Agni Kai was outside. The really dark, all red, fiery throne room looked a lot more menacing. And they literally already have that set! Having it outside made it look so much more mundane.

Back to the present:

Blue Spirit escape sequence was great! Again, basically torn from the original so no surprise there. I appreciate that they didn’t feel the need to change everything, and the mask looked great. I also loved Iroh’s last line about the mask being the real you. That’s a theme that could come back for a number of characters (Aang, Zuko, Katara, Azula, Mai and Ty Lee…) And I did get this spoiled, but the addition of Zuko’s crew being the 41st was great. Lovely. Super sweet. A wonderful way to pull at the heartstrings.

I’ll give this episode a 9/10. A very strong episode of television, but I can’t give it a 10 because the strongest stuff is plucked from the OG.

[zukotheartist]

Atla live action spoilers

Here are the easter eggs i found (but i wasnt paying much attention so there are probably more). Going from the last ep downwards:

Pretty sure this one's a reference to Toph's Melon Lord, especially considering that right before these jokes they were talking about finding Aang an earthbending teacher

The Spirit World's lion turtles like the one that will give Aang the knowledge to take Ozai's bending away so he doesn't have to kill him

Maybe I'm reaching here but this one felt like a nod to the s3 episode "Zuko alone"

Referencing the few small scenes in og Atla where we see Uncle Iroh and the crew using musical instruments🎼 + a nod to Zuko's ability to play the tsungi horn

Not really an easter egg but I like how this line reminds me of s3 Zuko fighting Ozai and telling him that he'll help the Avatar and restore the Fire Nation's honour

Again, this one was probably Not an easter egg either but there's something about Aang saying the line "I hope you can help me, Avatar Roku" while the camera shows (and then zooms in on) Zuko's journal and more specifically on a spread that's mostly about Roku (Zuko's great-grandfather) and even has a drawing of him + one solo eye which could've been some random doodle, Roku's or maybe Zuko's own eye

An obvious reference to some of the skipped arcs/episodes from the og (pirates + canyon crawlers)

The music🎵 briefly playing here, while Uncle Iroh has a portrait and the casket of his son Lu Ten to one side and Zuko to the other, being Leaves From The Vine🍃

And then of course there's the cabbage man🥬! Played by the original actor too! But i've run out of photo space on this post so ajsjsjsksksk

Plus Kyoshi's whole "killing" speech because of that conquerer dude she murdered when creating Kyoshi island.

These are the only ones I personally spotted but I'd love to know the others!

[zukkaart]

For the ships prompts 5 and 14

Y'all are being Tyzula WHORES today (I love you anyway)

Couple #5: Ty Lee x Azula

Prompt #14: “You’re hurting me!”

For the prompt game!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

An untold meeting with the gaang, the Spring before Sozin’s comet

The three young women peered over a rock, the Avatar and his little group were seemingly setting up camp for the night.

“Alright ladies here’s the plan,” Azula side eyed them both as she spoke, “It seems like they each have tasks, we’ll wait for them to split up, then pick them off one by one,” The two women nodded in acknowledgment.

“Mai, take the water bending peasant, Ty Lee, you take the boy. The avatar is mine” With that, they parted ways.

~~~

Ty Lee crept along the tree line- staying silent and patiently waiting for the avatar and girl to leave.

“Okay, I’ll find something for us to eat, Aang do you want to get fire wood?”

“Sure thing Katara!” The Avatar zoomed off in to the woods, seemingly lifted by nothing. Ty Lee had never seen an air bender before- well- almost no one had nowadays. She was mesmerized.

Soon after the bender (Katara?) left as well. Finally.

Planting her signature dazzling smile she all but waltzed in to their camp. No need to be stealthy when her charms worked just as well.

“Hey cutie, long time no see,” She leaned over him where he knelt- laying out his sleeping bag,

“Aaah!” He yelled and turned around, reaching for that weird weapon he kept strapped across his back. She did always wonder what it was, it looked like someone attempted to make a sword, but did it very wrong.

Ty Lee danced around him casually as he tried to pin her down.

“You never told me your name cutie,” She leaned in and kissed him on the cheek, he wiped it off but didn’t look entirely appalled. She noted that,

“It’s Sokka, water tribe”

“Well Sokka water tribe. I’m Ty Lee” she cartwheeled a safe distance away from him. “Nice to meet you”

“I wish I could say the same, what are you doing here? I thought you were after that pony tailed freak,”

“Oh we are,” She folded her arms behind her casually, Sokka held his…knife? In a defensive position, “But the avatar is an even better prize”

“We?”

“You think I’m here alone? I’m just the distraction silly!” Realization passed across the dark boys face, he turned on his heel to take off in the direction that the avatar left, but Ty Lee stepped in front of him. “I don’t think so Sokka,”

With a few quick jabs she disabled his dominant leg, he collapsed to one knee.

“Sorry about that gorgeous, I can’t have you interrupting her highness, can’t we just sit and chat?”

“In your dreams circus freak,”

“Yes,” She replied with a giggle, “since we’re here, why don’t you tell me what that is?”

“What what is?” He glanced at the blade still in his hand, “You mean boomerang?” She saw a thought pass across his features, and before she knew it- he threw it towards her. She simply side stepped and it missed her.

“Well that’s not terribly effective, is it? I expected more from the Southern Water Tribe” She taunted. What a ridiculous weapon. “But dont worry, you’ll get your leg back in a few hours. We’ll be long gone by then, but hey, if you’re ever in the Fire Nation look me up,” She winked

“Ty Lee!” Azula’s voice came from the edge of the woods. She ran up to her as smooth as ever. “The Avatar got away, I couldn’t follow him without setting this whole forest on fire, Zuko is too close- we can’t risk tipping him off,”

“Okay Azula!” But just as she turned to leave, the world went black

~~~

Azula watched in horror as that weapon the boy was so fond of came seemingly out of nowhere and slammed right in to Ty Lee’s back. She crumpled, blood quickly beginning to run down her back.

“Ty Lee!” Azula rushed forward and caught her before she could hit the ground, pressing their fronts together, The smaller girls head lolled on to her shoulder.

“Sokka!” The water tribe girl came rushing from the tree line, seemingly to her brother’s aid, but froze in her tracks when she took in the scene before her.

“Sokka, what did you do?” Katara had yet to fully grasp the reality of war, she of course wasn’t dumb enough to think they had never caused any casualties, but she did her best to avoid it when possible, and Sokka always made a point to shield her from the direct kills. So seeing this… she didn’t know how to react in any way other than her nature.

Katara took a hesitant step forward, reaching out a hand. “Azula I can help, please let me,”

“Get away from her!” Azula snarled, tears beginning to flow freely down her face. “Ty Lee, Ty Lee wake up!” She began to shout desperately. She reached for the thing sticking out of her back.

“Azula don’t!” Katara moved closer, something like genuine concern splayed across her face. “If you just rip that out you could hurt her more, even sever her spine. You could kill her,”

“She’s already dead!” Azula screamed, slowly losing grip on her rational thoughts,

“No. She isn’t, but she will be if you don’t let me help you,” Azula could do nothing but hold her friend tighter as Katara hesitantly inched forward. She brought water to her palms. Azula braced for an attack, but she couldn’t bring herself to let go of Ty Lee.

“I’m not going to hurt her,” Katara said, finally kneeling in front of her. The water tribe boy hadn’t moved behind them, she wasn’t unaware of him but she was too distracted to ponder too much why he wasn’t attacking. She took the small mercy from Agni as the water benders hands began to glow.

“What are you doing?!” Azula yanked her away, the water splashed around them,

“I’m healing her, please don’t move. You could make it a lot worse.” Azula was hesitant, but she would take any chance for her friend right now. Katara then grabbed the object in one hand, glowing water in the other. She slowly edged it out as she supposedly “healed” her as she went. Azula did her best to keep her breathing steady, which was surprisingly easy due to her training.

The object was finally removed, and a couple of moment later Katara stood and quickly backed away. “There, she’ll be fine,” Azula didn’t have to be told twice as she scooped the still unconscious Ty Lee in to her arms and sprinted back off in to the woods without even a word.

Once she deemed them a safe distance she fell back on to her knees, tears beginning to wane just slightly. She was still hopelessly worried, but she took solace in the fact that at least there wasn’t a weapon sticking out of her and the bleeding had stopped.

Still, she held Ty Lee in to her chest as tightly as she could, and began rocking back and forth and muttering, “please don’t be dead, please don’t be dead, please-“

“Azula?” Came a broken voice, the princess sucked in a sharp breath.

“Ty Lee? What is it? What do you need?”

“You’re hurting me”

Azula noticed her crushing grip and half-laughed half-sobbed in relief as she loosened her grip.

“For Agni’s sake Ty Lee I thought you were dead!” Once she was sure the little acrobat wasn’t in fact dead- her worry was quickly replaced with anger and frustration.

“What? Why? Were you… crying?” Ty Lee reached up from where she still laid in Azula’s arms to brush her wet cheek with the back of her hand.

“Yes you idiot! I thought I lost you!” Ty Lee should have been startled at Azula’s anger- but she was used to her concern coming out as aggression.

“Hey, I’m okay. I’m right here. I don’t know what happened- but I’m okay,” The next thing she knew- the princesses lips were on hers. She pulled away for a moment, “Now I’m really confused, what is happening right now?”

Azula huffed and rolled her eyes, “Just shut up,” Were Azula’s only words before her lips crashed on to hers once more

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Eeek! This one was definitely short and sweet but I kind of love it. I hope you do too!

Xoxo

[mostly-mundane-atla]

If you could write your own indulgent episode of atla, what would it be about? By indulgent, I mean super indulgent. You write it in any style you'd like, happen whenever during the timeline, focus on any character you'd want (even making it completely about some ocs), anything!

Oh man, my tastes have changed so much since first watching the show (the value I put in it is more sentimental than anything tbh) that an entirely self-indulgent version would be completely unrecognizable. Instead of the love letter to animoo and kung fu movies we got, it'd be more like an amalgamation of Princess Mononoke, the Song of Ice and Fire books, the Táin Bó Cúailgne, Inupiaq orphan hero stories, Light Chaser Animation, Lone Wolf and Cub, the True Grit remake, Cultist Simulator, The Handmaiden, and my favorite operas. Also, it would have vampires. And maybe reference Homestuck. And the theme song would be a cover of Gimme Shelter by the Rolling Stones

For something that could actually exist in the Avatar: the Last Airbender we all know and love, however, i'd like to have an episode that leans into horror elements where Aang has to relive Avatar Kuruk's memories of fighting for his life in the spirit world. I'm thinking it would start with Aang in a very fitful sleep. We hear his heartbeat ring in his ears and it flashes to his dream where he is Kuruk fighting off dark spirits, and then it flashes back to Aang's sleeping face, but zoomed in a little, and this goes on, flashing to Kuruk and then back at Aang, a little closer each time, until Aang's eyes glow, suggesting he's in some altered form of the Avatar State.

The dream/memory plays out like a survival horror, where Aang as Kuruk is at all times just inches from death at the hands of beings that are not of the mortal world. Kuruk's voice is there too, asking Aang if he remembers Ummi from all those lifetimes ago. Aang says "she was stolen, wasn't she?" Kuruk also asks how Aang managed to push his mind into such a shameful time, but Aang says he just fell in.

Meanwhile in the mortal world, Sokka, Katara, and Toph are trying to figure out what's wrong with Aang. He's not just sleeping, it's more than that. He's not moving at all except to breathe and he feels cold.

Aang in Kuruk's body eventually finds the home of Koh the Face Stealer, intent on taking back Ummi's face or at least taking revenge. Koh, however, is not there, denying the avatar his catharsis, and no amount of shouted demands for the spirit to show itself compels it to appear. Kuruk falls to his knees in despair, he is swarmed by the same evil he was fighting off but now there is no will or energy to continue.

And Aang's eyes snap open.

Everyone tries to ask him if he's okay; if he can move; see; hear, feel, but he doesn't process any of it. He sits up and says in a shaky voice, "you know Avatar Kuruk didn't die an old man?" His body trembles as he says this and a tear rolls out of his eye. He's so terrified of failing the world. He's so terrified of dying.

Katara pulls him into a hug, and Sokka and Toph join. She promises him "but you will. We'll make sure of it."

[zuko-always-lies]

What is Aang's opinion on destiny?

This ask has sat in my box for well over a year, so I figured I should actually answer it. We see people talk about Aang's destiny to him or Aang talk to others about it a few times. The brief version is that for Aang, his destiny ultimately comes to mean both his duties and responsibilities as Avatar, and also something that he must actively decide and shape, instead of something which is preordained. Aang is "destined to be Avatar" and must do his best to fulfill the duty of that role, but what that looks like and entitles is up to him. It is very different from how Iroh and Zuko view destiny.

"The Storm":

Gyatso: Aang needs to have freedom and fun. He needs to grow up as a normal boy. Tashi: You cannot keep protecting him from his destiny. Pasang: Gyatso, I know you mean well, but you are letting your affection for the boy cloud your judgment. Gyatso: All I want is what is best for him. Pasang: But what we need is what's best for the world. You and Aang must be separated! The Avatar will be sent away to the Eastern Air Temple to complete his training. Aang is shown looking through a hole in the ceiling, shocked at the news that he just heard.

Destiny here is "Aang's duties as Avatar"

"The Fortuneteller":

Wu: [Her and Aang shielding their faces in surprise.] Oh my! [Cuts to shot of the bone lying in the fire and back to Aunt Wu who is fascinated.] Your destiny! This is incredible. You will be involved in a great battle, an awesome conflict between the forces of good and evil. A battle whose outcome will determine the fate of the whole world! Aang: [Casually.] Yeah, yeah, I knew that already. But did it say anything about a girl?

Destiny here is whether Aang ends up with Katara, but that's the only time we ever see Aang treat it as such.

Aang: [Disappointed.] You didn't really see love in my fortune, did you? You just told me what I wanted to hear. Wu: I'll tell you a little secret, young airbender. [Gestures to the sky.] Just as you reshaped those clouds, [Cuts to shot of Aang, who smiles; off-camera.] you have the power to shape your own destiny.

Aunt Wu tells Aang he can shape his own path.

"The Firebending Master":

Aang: Master, I need to learn firebending. Jeong Jeong: Only a fool seeks his own destruction. Aang: [To Jeong Jeong.] I'm the Avatar, it's my destiny to— [Gets interrupted.] Jeong Jeong: Destiny? What would a boy know of destiny? If a fish lives its whole life in this river, does he know the river's destiny? No! Only that it runs on and on out of his control! He may follow where it flows, but he cannot see the end. He cannot imagine the ocean. Aang: Okay, but it's the Avatar's duty to master all of the bending disciplines.

Destiny is again Aang's duty as Avatar.

"Sozin's Comet, Part II":

Aang: I need to look deep inside myself. Close-up frontal view as Aang starts meditating. Side-view of Aang as the spirit of Avatar Kuruk, a male Avatar from the Northern Water Tribe, appears before him. Kuruk: [Close-up.] I am Avatar Kuruk. [Cut to flashback to a close-up view of a younger Avatar Kuruk. The camera zooms out to show him surfing.] When I was young, I was always a go-with-the-flow kind of Avatar. [The camera pans round to follow his movements on the wave before holding steady as he surfs away.] People seemed to work out their own problems, and there was peace and good times in the world. [Cut to shot of the sun and the camera pans down to Kuruk with Ummi and they kiss.] But then, [Fade to a side-view of Koh in the Spirit World. Koh moves in front of the camera to reveal the face of Ummi.] I lost the woman I loved to Koh, the Face Stealer. [Fade back to close-up side-view of present-day Kuruk.] It was my fault. If I had been more attentive and more active, [Close-up of Aang.] I could've saved her. Aang, [Close-up of Kuruk.] you must actively shape your own destiny and the destiny of the world.

Destiny is again something Aang must actively take control of, instead of preordained path.