In the seventeenth episode of the second season of Avatar: The Last Airbender, Team Avatar take matters into their own hands when it’s clear that the government inside Ba Sing Se will not help them find Appa. Unfortunately, when Jet appears and offers to help, no one is sure who to trust. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to watch Avatar.
Hello, Watchers! I have returned to these fine “Internets.†I know that I have a lot of comments to read and conversations to catch up on, but I just wanted to say that it appears so far that there were no disasters whilst I was away on the AIDS/LifeCycle. Which went very well for me, I might add! This was my fourth time completing the ride and thanks to many of you, I also raised the most money I ever have in one year: $3,420. AMAZING. THANK YOU ALL!
Anyway, I’m back, and I know that some of you expected a review of the mid-series finale of Doctor Who, but I’m still sorting out and organizing my thoughts, so I thought I’d jump right into Avatar in the meantime. You’ll have the review of “A Good Man Goes To War†this week, though.
It’s exciting to me that I’m rapidly approaching the season finale because, of course, I REALLY NEED TO KNOW HOW THIS ALL PANS OUT. For now, though, this is a story that directly compliments “City of Walls and Secrets,†continuing the unbelievably creepy undertones set up at the conclusion of that episode. I also didn’t expect the tone to take such a serious turn due to the cold open of “Lake Laogai,†in which we learn that Sokka has the artistic skills of a five-year-old. Which I relate to a lot, for the record, since I, too, cannot draw to save my life. AND I UNDERSTOOD SOKKA’S DRAWINGS, FOR THE RECORD.
As Aang takes off with Momo to drop fliers all over the city, we cut to Zuko and Iroh, where Iroh’s now infamous tea earns him the chance to have his own tea shop in the Upper Ring of the city. The writers use this to contrast the restless nature of Zuko with Iroh’s desire to finally settle down and find peace for himself. Because of this, Zuko is finally able to begin to face the difficult reality this suggests: that his pursuit of the Avatar is slowly starting to destroy him. Iroh can see this when Zuko finds the poster for Appa and knows the boy’s obsession has not lead to a single good moment in his life.
But we’ll get back to that in a bit. Joo Dee (the original one, this time) reappears in the show to give Team Avatar yet another warning about their behavior in Ba Sing Se. And I really want to commend the writers of Avatar for including such a bizarre and potentially disturbing subplot to all of this, especially as it’s one that allows the characters to act on their moral sense of right and wrong. They all know this is not Joo Dee herself telling them that they cannot spread posters of Appa, but at the same time, Aang is furious at the very notion. (There was a brief moment that I thought Aang was going to erupt into the Avatar state when he blew up at Joo Dee and good lord, that would have been an utter disaster.) It’s just that…I have to occasionally remind myself that this aired on Nickelodeon, and for all the visual gags or fart jokes or inane silliness, this show has given us some fairly upsetting, jarring, and bleak stories. For children. I just simply forget some times that the intended audience is people a third of my age!
That’s kind of an amazing thing, isn’t it? Nine year olds are meant to love Avatar, and yet here I am, a twenty-nine-year-old dude, who is just as fiercely in love with it as children. I mean, this has happened before in other contexts, with shows like Spongebob Squarepants or Adventure Time, or any number of Disney and Pixar flicks. (Up comes to mind as a great example of a movie that resonates well with children and made me bawl for ten minutes straight, and there is no dissonance between those two statements.)
But back to Joo Dee. We get our first mention of Lake Laogai from her, and while I initially believed that it wasn’t a real place, I knew the name had real effects for her. We see this just after her first scene, after Team Avatar directly defy her orders, and she reports this to Long Feng. Her failure upsets the head of the Dai Li and we get to see more of him being an unbearably creepy dude. His role as the head of a manipulative government power is certainly one note, but I’m kind of okay with the fact that Long Feng really isn’t developed as a villain beyond this. We already have Azula and the Dangerous Ladies as a much more rich and nuanced antagonistic force, and sometimes a story just needs someone who abuses his power in awful ways. Here, he seems to use the phrase, “The Earth King has invited you to Lake Laogai†in order to “shut down†the people that he controls.
Seriously. Kids show. Bless all of this.
And to make an already complicated and precarious situation worse, “Lake Laogai†also brings the second return of Jet, though now it’s in a far less sinister role. Well…ok, to us, we know that what he did to expose Zuko and Iroh as Fire Benders was technically right, and we also know that he’s unfortunately been the victim of the Dai Li’s brainwashing. But for Team Avatar, especially Katara, Jet is a reminder of the hope they once had for others to join them in the fight against the Fire Nation and how that hope was betrayed by Jet for his own self-interest in revenge. So, naturally, it’s perfectly understandable to see Katara lash out so angrily at Jet after he broke her heart.
I wondered why Toph had not brought up her ability to read people through breathing and heart beats before, but it is what it is. And it is glorious, providing another chance for her to be a valuable member of the group and to add a new layer of intrigue to the story. Jet has proven to be untrustworthy in the past, but who’s to judge what Toph is able to ascertain from his behavior? And certainly, people can change over time, no matter how rare, so that might also be a possibility, too.
Things look positive when Jet does lead them to a place where it seems obvious that Appa was being held. Conveniently enough, an older man with a broom gives up the supposed location of Appa as well, weeks away from Ba Sing Se on Whale Tail Island, and my own spidey sense tingled. This did not seem right. After weeks of searching, they were able to have a named place given to them in just a few hours? And how could he be weeks worth of travel away from Ba Sing Se when we just saw him?
This complicated set-up breaks into chaos, though, because Long Feng could not have anticipated Smellerbee and Longshot, who show up just in time to express their excitement that Jet is still alive after being arrested by Dai Li agents. Which angers Katara. Which causes Toph to read everyone and declare that both parties are telling the truth. Which causes Sokka to deduce that this is because both Smellerbee/Longshot and Jet believe they are telling the truth.
And now Team Avatar knows what they are actually up against, and it’s far more intimidating than they could have imagined.
Zuko, in the meantime, clashes with Iroh once again, giving up the same tired lines he’s been using for years to justify his crusade against the Avatar. You can see that Iroh is very, very close to losing his patience with his nephew because Zuko has seen and experienced so much and changed so little. Unfortunately, Zuko gives into the same routine that comforts him and appears that night as the Blue Spirit, capturing a Dai Li agent in order to get more information about the location of Appa.
Oh, Zuko.
Back with Team Avatar, the group decides to confront Jet in a way to trigger his actual memories about where he was taken and brainwashed, and I was legitimately surprised that Lake Logai was a real place, not just a phrase spoken to control, and that it is not only where Appa is probably being held, but it’s the location of that green room we saw in “City of Walls and Secrets†where Jet was brainwashed. THAT IS SO EXCITING. (Side note: It was also wonderful to see Katara use her healing yet again, though entirely in a new context than before. It totally makes sense that she could heal the mind or spirit as well as the body.)
That secret base under Lake Laogai is one of the cooler bits of world-building/settings that we’ve gotten from the show and is yet another opportunity for us to see how earth bending can be used, this time in constructing an underground prison of sorts. (Seriously, it is under a fucking lake. This show is so amazing.) I enjoy how massive and overwhelming it feels; we’re forced to take in the enormous size of the entrance chamber, the seemingly endless hallways and passages, the doors that open to ceremonies that are brainwashing young women to be the exact same fucking person. And I suppose that’s part of the allure of this show to me: So often, we are shown worlds or settings or situations that are dripping with impossibility, and yet Team Avatar can always find a way to keep up hope that the small group that they make up can conquer a force or power that is larger, stronger, and more powerful than they are.
As the two stories at work in “Lake Laogai†begin to collide, as so many of the past ones have, I was slightly frustrated at the idea that the writers seem to be teasing specifically me by hinting so strongly that Zuko and Team Avatar will confront one another again. Jet states that he thinks that he’s found the door Appa is behind, and we cut to a resting Appa, who sees a door opening, a figure standing in the light. And it’s ZUKO, not Jet, and FFFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU PLEASE REUNITE AANG AND APPA PLEASE MY HEART CANNOT TAKE MUCH LONGER.
Jet and Aang take off after Long Feng when Team Avatar is ambushed by Dai Li agents, and it’s here that we get to see just how sinister Long Feng’s brainwashing is when he mutters that controlling phrase, turning Jet on Aang, who is utterly confused as to how he is supposed to fight the guy who just correctly lead him to Appa. And as if I needed yet another thing to make my heart race, over in Appa’s cell, UNCLE IROH SHOWS UP. AND HE IS YELLING AT ZUKO FOR BEING UNABLE TO PLAN ANYTHING AND UNCLE IROH REALLY SCARES ME WHEN HE IS YELLING. omg seriously could he never scold me because I would probably wet myself with fear. But what he chooses to tell Zuko is important, and it goes back to what I brought up earlier: Iroh has finally lost patience with his nephew. The most patient man in the universe has lost it, and that is frightening. And I think Zuko realizes that, as he listens to his uncle tell him that he is pursuing a destiny his unloving father forced him into, and not one he has chosen himself.
Of course, just as I am reaching my emotional plateau at the possible conversion of Zuko away from his father’s destiny, the writers deal a devastating blow: After Aang snaps Jet out of his trance by referencing the Freedom Fighters, bringing back a flow of happy memories to Jet’s mind, Jet suffers an attack from Long Feng that, at first, seemed serious, but not that serious. But I was quickly shown how real shit is getting, because this is not just a wound or a bit of physical harm. As the rest of the group arrives to see Jet sprawled on the ground, Katara tries to heal him. And she cannot.
Wait, I thought. What. WHAT. WHAT. you cannot do this WHAT ARE YOU DOING HE ACTUALLY CHANGED ASDLKFJAS;LDK A;SLKDJF A;SLDKJFA DF;KLAJ
Smellerbee and Longshot tell the group to leave and find Appa, and Jet reassures Katara that he’ll be all right, but Toph reveals, just as they leave that chamber, that Jet was indeed lying.
AND THEN THEY DON’T EVEN TELL US IF JET IS DEAD. WHAT THE HOLY FLYING FUCK this show you are killing me
And yet, amongst all this chaos and tragedy, there is a tinge of victory. When Team Avatar heads to the surface after discovering Appa’s empty cell, Momo takes off into the sky, arriving seconds later on the back of Appa, and I could not help but yelp with joy at the glorious return of that wonderful furry beast. He bites Long Feng (HOW DID THAT NOT BREAK HIS LEG OFF) and then follows that up with a nice fling into the lake, just as Toph and Aang send the remaining Dai Li into that giant body of water. And I don’t want to ignore that while this reunion is amazing, there’s still a huge streak of sadness here as Katara realizes that in Jet’s final hours, she was ruthlessly vicious with him. Understandably so, as no one could have known what would happen, but vicious nonetheless.
For me, though, there was nothing more victorious and intriguing as a fan of this show than seeing Iroh and Zuko come to the surface, knowing Zuko had finally listened to his uncle about what he was doing to his life, and watching Zuko drop the mask of the Blue Spirit into the dark swirling waters of Lake Logai. Basically, I could not be more excited for what is going to come in Zuko’s future.
THOUGHTS
- why was i so excited to hear Longshot speak WHAT
- lolololol Aang was so jealous of Jet and Katara kissing LOL
- I like the Jasmine Dragon more than the Tea Weevil. JSYK.
- Toph is totally punk rock I LOVE HER SO MUCH
- “It looks just like him to me!†“Thank you, I worked really……….why did you feel the need to do that?†BLESS YOU, TOPH.
WOO I'M GLAD I GOT PREPARED FOR THIS EPISODE EARLY FOR ONCE YOU DID NOT CATCH ME UNAWARES WITH THIS SURPRISE! HA HA HA! 😀
Proof that Toph is quite possibly the best thing to happen to this show since Iroh's introduction comes in just the first couple minutes of the episode, when she messes with Sokka over her blindness again. Oh, Toph. <3 Never change. Sokka's drawings of Appa are hilariously bad, aren't they? It's a good thing Katara and Aang found someone competent to do the posters or the people of Ba Sing Se wouldn't know WHAT the hell to look for. Not that they'd find him, of course, RIGHT LONG FENG? Ugh, that bastard. Don't mind me, I'm still pissed at the jerk for kidnapping Appa just when he'd finally made it to the city and was so close to Aang after going through all that horror and trauma just to get back to him. 🙁
Meanwhile, Iroh's getting his own tea shop! 😀 😀 😀 I WOULD TOTALLY GO THERE AND SIT AROUND DRINKING TEA ALL DAY. IT WOULD BE THE BEST THING EVER. Pity Zuko doesn't quite appreciate this turn of events. 🙁 And now he knows that THE AVATAR is in the city! THE PLOT THICKENS.
Before we can deal with that, though, it's the RETURN OF JOO DEE. omg what. She's as creepy as ever, and not for a minute do I believe her story about taking a vacation (especially since the lake she claims to have gone to is the one in the episode title, and I doubt we're going there for some R&R). I don't blame Aang at all for exploding with rage at her, this city and its rules are fucking ridiculous, even without the context of knowing that Appa's actually being held by Long Feng and the Dai Li. I absolutely love Toph's reaction to this new defiance: LET'S DESTROY A FUCKING WALL FOR THE HELL OF IT. And then none of them actually exit through that part of the house, except Momo. Beautiful. <3
I hate you, btw, Long Feng. Just… so much hate. Go to hell and take the rest of the Dai Li with you. AANG NEEDS TO FIND APPA, OKAY? Also that was super super creepy when he said the trigger phrase and her pupils dilated.
Over in Iroh-land, Iroh lays out what I already suspected: that he wants Zuko to forget about the hunt for the Avatar and make his own life, possibly here in Ba Sing Se, away from the Fire Nation. He knows, as we all do, that Zuko's idealized view of how rosy and wonderful life will be once he's captured Aang and brought him back to Ozai just will not come to pass, even if Zuko does somehow manage to take Aang captive. He may win his father's forgiveness and be allowed to come back home, that is true; but can he really go home again? It's like Iroh said in The Storm, things can never return to "normal" for Zuko. I put normal in quotes because his family situation was far from healthy even before his banishment. His father will still be the same person he was before even if he forgives Zuko: an abusive, evil asshole who favors Azula and wants to subjugate the world. That's not going to change if Zuko brings him Aang. And Zuko has seen for himself just what his country, what his family, has done and is continuing to do to the world and the people in it. He just needs to really process that and think about what it is he truly wants, rather than feeling bound by his birthright and clinging to a naive fantasy scenario he surely must know deep down can't come to pass the way he wants? I love Iroh's statement that what Zuko's destiny is depends on him. Free will, fuck yes. This scene also highlights how far Iroh has come in the years since that flashback in Zuko Alone. Back then, he was the heir to the throne, cheerfully joking about burning Ba Sing Se to the ground. Now, he's perfectly happy simply owning his own little tea shop and living peacefully. He's not upset at all about having lost his own claim to the rulership of the Fire Nation, a sharp contrast with Zuko, whose anger seems to stem largely from the fact that he's the next in line to take over running the show, and yet is banished and on the run, hiding his identity and working as a waiter in an Earth Kingdom city. It's easy to guess what brought Iroh to this stage in his growth. :/ What will it take for Zuko to grow past this and start really thinking for himself? Iroh is trying his best to urge him along, but it doesn't seem to be working.
I don't think Jet was prepared for that greeting. I mean, yeah, he more than likely realized she wouldn't be pleased to see him, but she's grown so much as a waterbender since they parted. It's never stated outright, or at all, but that moment when she attacks him makes me really think about how far she's come since Book One and her growth into someone who can rightfully be called a Master.
(cont)
Of course, she has little reason to trust his words, though not for the reason she thinks. She mistrusts him based on his past behavior, which is completely fair given what he was trying to do the last time she saw him; we, meanwhile, know that he was trying to change and live a better life, but that he was also captured and brainwashed by the Dai Li and that he's likely doing this on Long Feng's orders. We also know damn well that Appa was never in the place Jet leads them to: we saw him get taken by Long Feng out in the open, in the place where Momo found the footprint (and slept in it all night in what is one of the saddest things ever on this show). And then the guy cleaning up volunteers the info that Appa was taken to Whale Tail Island, waaaaaaaaay down near the South Pole, and a clearer picture of what the hell is going on here emerges: Long Feng wants to send Team Avatar away on a wild goose chase while poor Appa languishes in whatever prison he's actually in, still right here in the city. UGH THAT BASTARD.
Thank goodness for Smellerbee and Longshot sparing them that unfortunate waste of time by happening along and showing Team Avatar that something is really seriously wrong with Jet, though! Thanks to Toph's ability to determine that they're both telling the truth, Sokka twigs to what's happened to Jet: brainwashing.
Zuko is back to more Blue Spirit shenanigans, but what really stands out to me in this brief little scene is how quick that Dai Li agent is to attack someone just for bumping into him. That was really chilling to me. Also really chilling is that brief glimpse we get at Joo Dee training. AIEEEE. Man, this city is fucked up.
I love the fakeout here, where you think that Team Avatar has found Appa already and now they'll have to escape together, but it's actually Zuko opening the door. "Expecting someone else?" Yeah, Appa is not especially pleased to see him, and I'm not really happy to see Zuko there either to be honest. WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING. Iroh, fortunately, has the same damn question and really lays into Zuko for this stupid stunt. I love when he sarcastically asks if he should put on a pot of tea for Appa. IROH BEING SARCASTIC IS ONE OF THE GREAT PLEASURES OF LIFE, IT MAKES MY SNARK-LOVING HEART HAPPY. <3 THEN HE YELLS AT HIM THE EXACT SAME SENTIMENT I VOICED IN SIEGE OF THE NORTH PART II ABOUT NOT THINKING HIS CUNNING PLAN ALL THE WAY THROUGH AND EVEN BRINGS UP THAT SPECIFIC INCIDENT. Iroh, you are magnificent and I adore you. He's had enough of Zuko behaving so recklessly in pursuit of something that may not even be right for him, and he wants desperately for Zuko to start thinking for himself about who he really is and what he really wants. It's gotta take a lot of frustration for the normally calm and composed Iroh to start yelling at him like this, and given what we've seen so far, I'm only surprised he didn't get on him sooner for some of the crap he's pulled.
I was very surprised, though, to find myself pretty sad over Jet's implied impending death. I think it's because… well, I didn't like him too much in Book One, because he was an extremist jerk, but he was trying to start over here. He didn't always go about it the right way, but he really did mean well, and he honestly thought he was doing the right thing in trying to expose Zuko and Iroh as firebenders. But all that got cut short thanks to Long Feng, who ruins everything. He got brainwashed and mind controlled, stripping his agency from him, and then murdered when he managed to break free thanks to Aang. It's the "redemption equals death" trope, and I think it's pretty well done here. Toph's quiet "He's lying" says it all, really. I just hope Smellerbee and Longshot (who spoke, omg) will be okay.
(cont)
I pretty much assumed, upon seeing the empty cell where Appa had been, that Zuko had once again angrily refused to listen to Iroh and taken off somewhere with Appa, all alone. That's what you expect at this point, given all that we've seen of them so far, and the fact that Zuko was getting pissed off when Iroh was chewing him out for his half-baked plans.
BUT THEN
THEN
"What is it, Momo?"
IT'S THE REUNION WE'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR! APPA'S BACK!
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AND THEN APPA IS TOTALLY AWESOME AND BADASS AND THROWS LONG FENG INTO THE WATER FUCK YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH AND EVERYTHING IS BEAUTIFUL AND NOTHING HURTS. AND WE ALL CRY HAPPY TEARS WHEN EVERYONE RUSHES OVER AND AANG SAYS HE MISSED HIM AND HE'S CRYING HAPPY TEARS. OR I DID, ANYWAY.
Welcome back, Appa. :') We all missed you! You can tell, too, just by Appa's eye closing and the noise he makes, that he's just as happy to be reunited as Aang is. It's a wonderful, beautiful moment. I love this show.
We close out with confirmation that Zuko has finally listened to Iroh, subverting my previous expectations based on Appa's empty cell, and Zuko drops the Blue Spirit mask into the water at Iroh's urging. I'm quite anxious to see where his path leads him from here.
Other stuff:
– "I can tell you're lying~" LOL TOPH IS TOTALLY TROLLING KATARA. I LOVE HER, HAVE I MENTIONED THAT IN THE LAST FIVE MINUTES?
– "WORST CITY EVER!" Under this management? Hell yeah it is. And Toph doesn't even really know yet just how bad it is!
– I like that it's the Rough Rhinos that burned down Jet's village. Nice touch of continuity there.
– One Toph >>>> lots of Dai Li.
Ahahaha, I am not surprised that you're prepared. Your comments are always so well-thought-out and interesting.
Awesome review is awesome. <3
Amazing comment!!!
I love Toph's constant trolling and one liners and wry, droll sense of humor.
Zuko is back to more Blue Spirit shenanigans, but what really stands out to me in this brief little scene is how quick that Dai Li agent is to attack someone just for bumping into him.
What really stands out to me is that Zuko defeated the guy in, like, 5 seconds flat. ZUKO. WITHOUT FIREBENDING. AGAINST THE DAI LI.
Fuck Yeah Zuko.
WHAT.
WHAT.
Will come up with something coherent later, but I call SHENANIGANS!
(Good to have you back, Mark! Glad to hear the ride went well!)
Wait, no Doctor Who today?
<voice Doctor> I WAS NOT EXPECTING THIS!!! </voice>
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Thanks, I was too lazy to find that GIF… 😀
Not gonna lie: I watched this episode over the weekend to get caught up, and Longshot speaking made me start crying. That was just … yeah. When the heretofore-silent dude speaks up? NOT GOOD EVER.
Same here. That final scene of he and Smellerbee standing guard over what may be Jet's last moments too – it really hit home that however much we might see him as a manipulator whose attempts to change were even tinged in revenge, for them he was their leader, the person who brought them together and helped them survive and make a life for themselves after the Fire Nation took everything away. They were willing to face down the Dai Li alone for him, even knowing what will probably happen. And there's something just heartbreaking about it.
For the record, this is totally the tea Uncle Iroh serves in his tea shop: Jasmine Dragon Phoenix Pearls
It was already one of my favorites, but the connection to Uncle Iroh's tea shop (best uncle ever, y/y?) just made it even better.
OMG
/OMG/
i literally came onto this website to check for avatar review and then went "oh, it's monday, that means a doctor who one"
AND WHILE I AM SURE DOCTOR WHO IS WONDERFUL, i have never watched it and am therefore much more excited about SURPRISE AVATAR REVIEW.
i lovelovelove continuing to see all these creepy goings-on! like, they brainwash all these people /under a lake./ how do you think they get joo dees, anyway? do they kidnap women? do they bring them in with the promise of an ~~~important or well-paid job in the government? it's kind of really sad BREAK FREE, JOO DEES!
and appa!!! of course i was happy to see him again <3
and like. ZUKO.
i can't even take it right now, i'm remembering what it was like at the time with all these AWESOME EPISODES and having to wait a week for it bawww and they premiered on friday, so it was kind of a "…oh… sorry… i can't hang out tonight… i have to, uh, babysit…."
Doctor Who is on a midseason break so there will not be new episodes to review; he just has yet to really review last week's episode. So no Doctor Who for a while (sad for me, but just letting you be awares!)
thank you! i did hear there was a break coming because my friend at work is trying to use the break as an excuse to get me to watch a lot of it before it comes back on, aha. :'D
Yeah, but Mark didn't post a proper review of the mid-series finale last week, that's why we've expected one today. 🙂
LOL I did too, I was specifically letting OP know since she doesn't follow DW.
There's a pretty cool fanfic by Artemis Rae which speculates on the kinds of women who become Joo Dee. At this point there shouldn't be any spoilers, so here it is!
Title: Eclipse
Summary: Don't look directly at it. Five ladies named Joo Dee.
Link: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4786616/1/Eclipse
Re: Why Toph hadn't brought up her polygraph abilities before, I rather suspect that it just plain wasn't relevant before. I mean, how often do you think (since she joined them) that ability would have come in useful other than this instance? Toph isn't the sort of person to just boast about all the cool shit she can do for no reason. I think being underestimated is pretty much her MO, if only because she's had plenty of time to experience the potential benefits it can give her.
I actually think being able to determine people's moods by their breathing and heart rate would be pretty useful to her in a fight. She would be able to tell if someone is nervous or aggressive or calm, and base her technique on that. But I agree that Toph would rather kick ass than tell everyone how she does it!
Well, obviously she wouldn't go around babbling about this (pretty unique) know-how she has! 😉
I love how Toph blasted away part of their house in a "VIVE LA RESISTANCE!!!" moment. XD
…and then they all just use the door anyways. I literally LOL every time I watch that scene.
LOL, force of habit, I suppose. 😀
Except for Momo!
Lord Momo of the Momo Dynasty (His Momoness) does not deign to restrict himself to conventional methods of entering or exiting buildings. HE'S A LOOSE CANNON WHO PLAYS BY HIS OWN RULES. *guitar solo, explosions, old timey black-and-white images of women fainting, etc.*
Comments, written in a slap-dash style because I really have to run!
– Sokka and I pretty much have the same artistic abilities.
– Toph is a true badass. I think the reason she hadn't brought up here status as "living lie detector" before was because it wasn't really necessary. SO GLAD SHE JOINED TEAM AVATAR.
– Jet's fate is really poigant, and one of the few character deaths I really… like? "Like" might not be the right word, but it makes sense in his character arc for him to go out like that.
– OMG LONGSHOT TALKED I THOUGHT HE WAS A TELEPATH
– Iroh deserves all the tea shops in all the world.
– Zuko's character arc continues to fascinate me. So he's letting go of the Blue Spirit persona and he freed Appa? Is a meet-up with the Gaang coming shortly.
– Multiple Joo Dee's are fucking terrifying. The 1984 parallels are getting creepier.
– APPA'S HOME
– bless this children's show forevermore
Toph's blind jokes really are the best thing ever.
"Uhhh Toph, you'd better go with Sokka."
"What?! You think I can't put up posters?!" *slaps paste on wall* *slams poster on backwards*
"…"
"…It's upside-down, isn't it?"
"…"
"I'll just go with Sokka."
And let's not forget…
"YEAH! LET'S BREAK SOME RULES!!!"
*Smashes side out house out with earthbending*
*Leaves through the front door*
You got that first line there a bit wrong. I'm sure what you meant to say is "Toph really is the best thing ever." I want to be her best friend. Or sidekick. I'm not picky.
Wait, you want Toph to be a mere sidekick??!! BLASPHEMY!!!
I'd do anything to be Toph's sidekick, myself…
Miss Direct said *she* wanted to be *Toph's* sidekick. If she had said she wanted *Toph* to be *her* sidekick, I think The Blind Bandit would have found a way to earthbend her into oblivion through the Internet.
*facepalm*
I can't read.
Sorry, MissDirect! 🙁
Sounds like you got… MissDirected.
YYYYEEEEEEAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!
…I'll just show myself out, shall I?
I laughed at this for like five minutes. One of the best puns I've ever heard. *highfives*
No need, I'm just glad my username lent itself well to a pun in this case. I'm rather shamefully addicted to puns…
LOL. XD
You're gonna carry that weight 🙁 🙁 🙁
I love the dark tone that Book 2 has, from basically Toph's appearance onward. Like, it's fantastic to have Appa back and see Zuko rethink his actions, but they're still in a city that is run by secret police who brainwash troublemakers, one of whom may or may not be dead. There's so much uncertainty.
Congrats on the successful trip! I hope next year is even better for you!
To be fair, the creators said that yes, Jet is, in fact, dead.
🙁 So sad.
The other night, a friend of mine and I were watching a 90's X-Men cartoon together and she commented that she didn't remember some of the flirtier aspects from when she saw it as a kid and said that she couldn't believe it was a kid's cartoon.
I laughed, because she and I have an agreement that I will listen to all of the audiobooks of a series she loves, and then she has to watch all of Avatar with me. I just grinned and said, "You wait 'til you see Avatar and then you will see what is in a kid's cartoon."
This is one of the episodes I was thinking of. SO MUCH FUCKED UPEDNESS. I love it.
Yes! Indoctrinate them all with the awesomeness that is Avatar! I really think that more people should see this show, not only because it is (in my opinion) the best children's show ever, and among the best TV (no qualifiers necessary) ever but because it really showcases that a children's show does not have to be dumbed down or sanitized to be successful or palatable to children. It demonstrates that a) kids can handle heavy shit and b) showing them this sort of thing can actually make them THINK and resonate with them in the way a lot of kid's shows just plain don't.
LOL the flirtier aspects of X-Men went over my head, too. A few months ago, I watched Ren & Stimpy for the first time in years, and all I could think was "What were my parents THINKING?" (though my mom did ban "Don't Whiz on the Electric Fence.") Most of the time, kids won't notice the stuff that goes over their heads. I like it when shows like Avatar write on two levels, an interesting surface storyline that will appeal to everyone, and a more nuanced undercurrent that older watchers can appreciate. Like Miss Direct says, it's great when kids shows make kids think. Shows that pander to their audience suck, no matter what their targeted ages.
I was watching Ren & Stimpy too with my 26-year old brother (he owns the dvds) and all I could think of was "THEY HAD THIS ON NICKELODEON IN THE DAYTIME?!" And one of the episodes was even banned. But that show was excellent anyway.
I had the same experience with the X Men cartoon (one of the BEST FRAKKING CARTOONS EVER btw). I watched it as a kid and a lot of the subtext went right over my head.
I used to watch X-Men with my brothers…I had a major crush on Gambit and shipped Gambit/Rogue LOL Dear Lord I was a shipper even when I was four…
I'm a little older than you, but I totally shipped Gambit/Rogue because I liked their accents. Shipping starts young!
One of the only things I can remember from that show (despite avid watching as a child) is a scene where Rogue+Gambit kiss but she has to hold her specially-suited hand between them or he will totes die. All the tears, forever.
Ahh I remember that scene too! There was also a scene where they DID kiss without any consequences, cause their powers were shut off somehow or something like that. And then I think they kissed at one point too and that ended terribly for Gambit. *sobs* Can't they just be happy?!
Yeah, it was like that in Animaniacs too. I was watching a clip on YouTube, a compilation of all the "Good Night Everybody"'s that Yakko does, and I finally realized what he meant by that.
Lots of innuendo in that cartoon.
While the show was on, there was a joke from the show I wanted to use for a church activity thing, but it got cut. Which I was fine with, though I didn't get why they wanted it cut.
It was a pianist *cough* joke.
I was about fifteen at the time.
*facepalm forever*
"Dear Diary,
My soul swarms with dark, moody confusion. I may have given up my one chance to regain my honor. But Uncle was yelling and I got so confused! (Btw, Uncle was wrong, I totally could have gotten out of that ice cave. Totally. I'd have come up with a solution any minute.) Also, can't stop sneezing, bet I'm allergic to that flying bison. Damn you, Avatar! Life is bleak." – Zuko
Foreshadowing!
However, the fandom when Longshot speaks:
<img src="http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lmlzwoyqbS1qjnw76.gif">
And when Smellerbee starts to cry *sniffle*:
<img src="http://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m482/manself/tumblr_lkjop9P0Qs1qaly65.gif" border="0" alt="Photobucket">
And that is probably why Appa didn't bite Long Feng's leg off.
Brainwashing? Ok. Child abuse? Ok. Blood and death? Nope.
Oh god, this episode. As elated as I was about Appa and Zuko both (and omg, Iroh's speech to Zuko is one of my favorite things in anything ever) its so hard to watch every time because of Jet :-(However misguided and ultimately selfish many of his actions were, he also helped all those kids in the forest, he also was trying to help his land throw out the invaders, he was trying to do right by the Earth Kingdom in his own way and his payment is to be brainwashed, used and ultimately apparently killed by the very people he should have been able to trust.
I also love Katara in this episode. Her anger at Jet is reasonable and right, but she is willing to put it aside (though not enough for her to feel happy with herself after the fact) to pursue the truth. That couldn't have been easy. but then I always love Katara. ):
His actions when he's dealing with Team Avatar do make you wonder, if he hadn't run into Zuko and Iroh on the way over, could the Freedom fighters have found happiness in the city? As deeply as they felt about the Fire Naiton being removed from their country, I'm not sure they could have. When they discovered the war was being ignored, the war which had taken so much from them, I can't imagine them keeping silent.
Ooh, sorry, that got away from me. 🙁
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/laogai1.jpg">
Would you believe there's pretty much no art for this episode? None! These three images are it. Of course, that's because everything else has been already designed in earlier episodes because this show loves continuity forever, but I have pretty much nothing to post for it.
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/laogai2.jpg">
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/laogai3.jpg">
SO, let's have random art spam of really early concept images to make up for it.
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/laogai4.jpg">
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/laogai5.jpg">
Jet. 🙁 🙁 🙁 And asfsf Longshot talks and Smellerbee is crying and that scene is endlessly depressing ffffffffffffffuuuuu Long Feng die in a fire.
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/laogai6.jpg">
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/laogai7.jpg">
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/laogai8.jpg">
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/laogai9.jpg">
The fight scenes are just getting better, aren't they?
Those early concept images are…weird to look at. But I do really love that one of Katara on the ice.
Thanks for always posting these.
I love the early concept art, I find it very fascinating.
Also, is Katara on that last pic some version of the Lady of the Lake? 😛
Uh. Spoiler?
For Arthurian legend?
Screw giving that Arthur git that sword, she's going to create Britain's Golden Age herself! And without the sword, because Sifu Katara, Master of Water needs no phallic weapon.
I still think it would be awesome to see Katara weilding a katana, the Waterbending-friendly weapon.
Yeah, random ladies lying about in ponds distributing swords is no basis for a real government, anyway…
Supreme executive power derives from a mandate from the masses, not from some farcical aquatic ceremony!
I think it's a tai chi sword, which totally fits.
Looks like one of mine, so yeah, probably!
That one with Aang in the Avatar State and the fire….inspired by Gollum?
Is it just me, or did the Dai Li headquarters under Lake Laogai TOTALLY look like the Chamber of Secrets?
Speaking of which, that one was supposed to be located under a lake, too. Coincidence? I THINK NOT! O.o
For some reason I never thought about it looking like the Chamber of Secrets, but that first image, at least, reminded me of this:
<img src="http://www.hp-lexicon.org/images/film/op/op-atrium-448.jpg.jpg">
<img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_XJFd_R-qRTk/Rr_QBOoCqJI/AAAAAAAAADQ/lmOKD1jATAs/s400/harrypotter2.jpg">
Good catch! That, too.
IROH IS ACTUALLY GETTING HIS OWN TEA SHOP.
<img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/sqnl95.gif" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic">
I CAN'T BELIEVE I ACTUALLY PREDICTED THIS WOULD HAPPEN. I am a true seer y'all.
So is Jet…dead? I mean, is this one of those 'cut away quickly and try not to show death on a kids show' things, or are they deliberately leaving it ambiguous so he can make a dramatic entrance later? So many questions.
But I don't even care. BECAUSE IROH IS GETTING HIS OWN TEA SHOP THIS IS SO PERFECT NOTHING IS WRONG WITH THE WORLD AND EVERYTHING IS BEAUTIFUL.
<img src="http://img706.imageshack.us/img706/909/a9vd07.png">
We giggled over this on the spoiler blog when you first posted your prediction.
<img src="http://img706.imageshack.us/img706/909/a9vd07.png">
We giggled over this on the spoiler blog when you first posted your prediction.
YAY! I get a star! :D:D:D:D I swear, I'm usually so bad at predicting stuff like this!
Though you just opened up a whole can of childhood trauma, because I never got stars in school when I was a kid. The stars always went to the kids that misbehaved when they actually did some work for once. No stars for the generally well behaved and hard-working kids!
…I'm way too happy about this aren't I?
Also, THIS PIC by the wonderful rufftoon:
<img src="http://fc08.deviantart.net/fs13/f/2007/057/3/6/Games_by_rufftoon.jpg">
Love those little wings… <3 😀
That's great! But WTF is Zhao doing in heaven? At least, that is what the little angel wings sort of suggest.
Maybe it's not "heaven for the good", just general afterlife.
Oh gods. I just got the "Go fish" joke. XD XD XD
"You said the f-word."
"We're playing "Go Fish". Deal with it."
Oh, that is funny on so many different levels!
oh jet
you weren't even PLAYING go fish
This is why Rufftoon is my hero(ine).
Oh Avatar writers, you and your mind tricks. Let us hope you never get together with Moffat because then we'd never recover (from the awesomeness I mean).
I think my favorite parts in all of this (other then all the great plot developments) was Toph. Observe:
"Yeah! Let's break some rules!" "Toph: Was this guy your boyfriend or something? Katara: NO! Toph: I can tell that you're lying." and "We finally get to leave Ba Sing Se! Worst. City. Ever."
That’s kind of an amazing thing, isn’t it? Nine year olds are meant to love Avatar, and yet here I am, a twenty-nine-year-old dude, who is just as fiercely in love with it as children.
I know I'm a bit of a broken record on the subject of Diana Wynne Jones lately, but there's an interview with her that has a section that is really relevant to this that I'm going to post here.
Q: Minor Arcana has been described as a kids' book for adults. I can’t tell the difference.
A. No, neither can I. I never could tell what meant an adult book and what meant a kids book. To some extent it’s the protagonist. They might be 14 or they might be 44, but otherwise, what’s the difference? I do not know. I don’t myself think that the difference resides in torrid sex scenes, which I find a total bore and hold up the action rather, like in old Hollywood films, where someone had to tap dance and sing, and I’d go, "Oh, come on, stop it. We want to know what happens next." Otherwise, I don’t know the difference.
Q: Some of the stories in Minor Arcana were published originally as children’s stories. They seem more complex and more explicit in some ways than the ones first published elsewhere.
A. That’s because most adult editors believe that adults have given up using their minds when they read, so they like the simpler stories. It seems to work that way. It is true that with kids things you can do much more complex things because people are prepared to allow you to.
There was one story in Minor Arcana that never got published anywhere else at all. This was the very early years, and this is one of the reasons why I have this don’t give up, don’t despair blueprint for life, because I did send it to a very large literary agent who didn’t even bother to read it, and just passed it back to me saying, "I don’t think we’re interested in this fantasy sort of stuff." I asked if she had read it. "Oh, no!" It was very depressing. That was the long story at the end called The True State of Affairs, and that was a very early one. That is not actually a very complex story, its just a situation explored and that I thought it was quite surprising in that no-one bothered with it.
But you know, the nice thing about writing for children is that kids are prepared to use their minds. So you can throw all the ideas in and get it really complicated and tangled, and cats-cradled, and they don’t mind. They don’t worry about the plot getting complicated, because they can follow Doctor Who, and anyone who can follow Doctor Who can follow anything!
And people wonder why I get so annoyed when I see pearl-clutching about whether the current series of DW is "too complex" for the younger viewers to follow…
"Too complex" my arse. When will adults learn NOT to underestimate children's ability to grasp subtle and complex stories when they're written well?
Neil Gaiman has a quote about this as well. Paraphrased, it's something along the lines of, "You write the story that wants to be written, and if it's too difficult for adults, you write it for children."
Wow, I confess I've never read anything by Diana Wynne Jones, but I'm intrigued. Would you recommend Minor Arcana? Or is there something better? 😛
I've never seen a physical copy of Minor Arcana, but I've read all the short stories in it save the one she mentions there, "The True State of Affairs", and they are indeed awesome. If you want novel recommendations, I will attempt to narrow this down (somewhat) to my favorites of favorites of the ones I've read:
Howl's Moving Castle and its sequels Castle in the Air and House of Many Ways, Dark Lord of Derkholm and its sequel Year of the Griffin, Hexwood, Dogsbody, Time of the Ghost, Deep Secret, the Chronicles of Chrestomanci series, and Eight Days of Luke. Note that I've enjoyed all the ones I've read of hers, and I've got less than ten to go of her published works (I phrase it this way because I believe they're going to posthumously publish her final novel, but I'm not sure how far she got in it before she passed away earlier this year); I only didn't name all of them because then we'd be here all day. 😀
Thanks! 😀 I will definitely make use of these suggestions!
I keep The Tough Guide to Fantasyland around for cliche mockery. It was TV Tropes before there was TV Tropes!
But, really, anything she does. She was a treasure.
Amen. I firmly believe that kids see the world as it is, because society hasn't had the chance to pull the wool over their eyes and trick their brains out of how things are. May we never grow up, please. Ahhh, Diana Wynne Jones. Such lovely stories, and such a great interview.
In her stories, she has this fantastic gift for weaving magic into the mundane and making it seem like normal. I love that she doesn't explain things out- just has her characters start talking and leaves you to grab onto the tailgate of the trolley, holding your hat and grinning with glee at the treats flying past your eyes.
Another magnificent lady who channeled the mindset that comes through in the interview is Madeleine L'Engle. Her Time Quintet contains some of my favorite books ever. And it's interesting, because I read some of her "adult books," and they just weren't as clear and satisfying as the "kid books." I think that is similar to the wrong-headedness of genre based on age group that still seems to prevail in most peoples' minds. On a similar note, here is a conversation on the wonderful blog on Cleolinda Jones's LJ pertaining to a nefarious article in the Wall Street Journal. http://cleolinda.livejournal.com/977715.html
Back on Diana Wynne Jones, but wandering away from what specifically pertains to your post… She was so prolific that I've barely begun to chip the iceberg of her many works. I always read a story, think "oh! That was great!" and then forget about it until I find yet another of her books at a book sale or the library. I did happen to check out one of her books after a long hiatus- and then later that day I found out she had passed away. Really sad. In fact, the book was Deep Secret, with the homage to Neil Gaiman in the Nick character, that eats when he's asleep in the morning. On whose blog I read that she had passed away. Yeah.
But, in the interest of spreading the love more, if you haven't read A Sudden Wild Magic , it's awesome. It reminds me of Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, but with British witches. It's just so random and wonderful.
Yeah. Her books make you pay attention and use your brain, and there's so much heart and humor and love packed in there. She was a genuine treasure, I feel the world is a lesser place without her in it.
Sudden Wild Magic is one of the few I haven't yet read, I'm really anxious to do so. It sounds AMAZING.
She was passionate about what children want and deserve from their literature. Adults would approach her at signings, wanting to know why she wrote such difficult books. In one case, when a woman protested, the woman’s young son spoke up and assured Diana, “Don’t worry. I understood it.”
And this is why Mark desperately, desperately needs to read DWJ.
<img src="http://i53.tinypic.com/zlw4jp.jpg"/>
I am kind of hoping that all these mentions of her work and her awesomeness will help get at least one book onto the Mark Reads to-read list. >_>
I wrote a big long rec for her on the Mark Reads rec post months and months back, but it only covers what I've read so far.. Everyone should go over there and comment/like it now.
I've never read any of her books, though I've heard nothing but good things about them, but I'd be lying if I said this isn't one of the saddest thing I've ever seen.
… which I find a total bore and hold up the action rather, like in old Hollywood films, where someone had to tap dance and sing, and I’d go, "Oh, come on, stop it. We want to know what happens next."
I'm sorry, but if you're watching an old Hollywood musical for the plot, — I hesitate to tell a person they're not watching a movie the "right" way, but seriously? — you're doing it wrong. In a musical, the "what happens next" stuff is merely the break between musical numbers, which are the heart and soul of the musical.
I occasionally write reviews of classic movies, and I think for nearly every single musical I've reviewed, I give a brief summation of the story and then spend the bulk of my time going through the numbers. Because that's where the heart and soul of those movies live: not in the plot or story, but in those moments when someone stops "to tap dance and sing."
Right? Who watches Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers for the plot?
I know the joy of watching a show with a target audience that distinctly doesn't include me – I started watching My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic about a week and a half ago, and it's also an amazing show. Perhaps the moral lessons are a bit more heavy-handed than those of Avatar, but the characters are truly delightful, and there's at least one laugh-out-loud moment in every episode. I have to echo the crowd when they say that it's impossible to watch that show and not like it.
Welcome to the herd!
Also, getting his own teashop was totally the first step of Iroh's clever new plan:
<img src="http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs12/i/2006/283/a/3/The_Plan_by_rufftoon.jpg">
(by rufftoon)
omg genmaicha tea
my favorite tea
I have been out of it for ages and am craving it ;____;
(I think Iroh would approve of my zeroing in on the specific tea as a reaction to this comic)
I prefer various Oolongs myself, but won't say no to a Tie Guan Yin or a Sencha… 🙂
I can't stop laughing it hurts
All upvotes to this post!
Hey… That's an EXCELLENT plan.
This would be feasible if they actually had more time before the eclipse or Sozin's Comet and thus the likely times for the series to end.
I'm happy that Appa is back and that Iroh gets his own shop, but they still aren't out of the woods yet, because they're still in the city….. :/
Why can't Ba Sing Se have batman? 🙁
<img src="http://i1222.photobucket.com/albums/dd494/Jaxx_zombie/6ca1c75b241c0d6082de9ebcbdda6843.gif" border="0" alt="Photobucket">
JUSTICE BAHAHAHAHA!
Iroh telling off Zuko= 50% Sassy Gay Friend, 50% Scary Dumbledore.
I love love love when Toph goes all punk rock about breaking rules. It's beautiful.
Also, surely I am not the only person who screamed APPAAA every time he appeared and burst into tears when he became the Appa Ex Machina at the end of the story…
I think this is really an episode that pushes very hard against the implied restrictions of being a "kid's show" without quite breaking through. Because on the one hand, you have this Orwellian nightmare that's all the more horrific for its subtlety, but at the same time you can't have a named character die on-screen. It's certainly hinted strongly enough that Jet is going to die, may in fact already be dead by the time Team Avatar leave the room, but you can practically feel the breaks squealing during that scene. IIRC, the creators did confirm that there was some executive meddling there – they'd originally wanted the scene to be completely unambiguous.
Still, as you pointed out, the instances in which this series does push past the perceived limitations of the format are remarkable. I think that's part of what makes "Avatar: The Last Airbender" so exceptional.
I think if the writers could have "safely" shown anyone's death, they could safely show Jet's. I mean…it would be a little more tramatic if he was a character that kids actually LIKED. I know there's a lot of love for Jet in Avatar fandom, but….seriously? Dude was an asshole. Deserved what he got.
<img src=http://img34.imageshack.us/img34/535/posterrg.png>
Translation of the writing: "Have you seen my flying bison? His name is Appa. He has six legs and weighs ten tons. If you have any information, please contact Avatar Aang in the Upper Ring, 96th district, house #217."
That's right. Zuko had Aang's home address, and went bison-hunting instead.
<img src="http://i56.tinypic.com/2m68pwl.gif" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic">
I cannot stop watching this and getting this huge grin on my face.
I once had a de-motivational (which I can't seem to find) of Zuko holding the flyer that said
"Zuko, you had Aang's address the whole time!" and then "Promote Literacy" underneath.
Well that's… odd. ^.^
Which characters make up Aang's name? Does it mean anything relevant?
The characters that comprise his name mean "peaceful soaring." Pretty fitting, I'd say.
安昂. I'm feeling a bit picky about saying the second character should translate so easily to "soaring", since the character has a bit more going for it than that. (And I realize this is the fan wiki translation, so I'm not criticizing you personally or anything.) So here's what zhongwen.com has to say.
<img src="http://img848.imageshack.us/img848/95/angh.png">
So basically, in terms of the character's "roots," the bottom half means "aspire" and the top "sun." As a verb, the character means rise, ascend; and as an adjective, it has two meanings: high/lofty, and expensive.
This is one of the more hilarious things about this episode. Zuko is clever enough to figure out that if Appa is missing in Ba Sing Se, than the Dai Le probably knows where to find him, yet he doesn't even think to actually read the flyer and get Aang's address.
That's just embarassing, especially since you've been getting mentored by the Fire Nation's most clever General for the past three years.
Oh, Zuko.
Possibly he foresaw problems with breaking in to the Upper Ring where security is tight? Or preferred to set a trap with Appa rather than confront the Avatar directly? (After all, his direct confrontations with the Avatar tend to fail miserably.
Well, he found the flyer IMMEDIATLY after he and his Uncle were offered a business and apartment in the Upper Ring. So I think it's just another instance of Zuko not thinking ahead.
Zuko, honey, no.
There are not enough facepalms to equal his stupidity.
Okay, let us run down the options Zuko has here:
A) Realize that he was sent on a Snipe Hunt to begin with and his old man has what amounts to Shoot on Sight orders on him, therefore he would be better off tossing that thing and serving tea well away from the Fire Nation.
B) Stake out the address on the flyer in the hopes of ambushing him away from the scary blind kid and Water Tribe thugs.
C) Forge a letter with info on the furball in order to lure the kid into a trap on favorable ground.
D) Find the HQ of the local Secret Police and steal a somewhat hostile ten-ton animal (which he had no way of knowing if they even had).
Even with Option A ruled out by Zu-zu's fixations, ask yourself what would you do in his shoes… and facepalm at what he actually did.
Prepare to have your mind blown in 3…
Remember that world map in the opening credits?
2…
The one that's been there since the very first episode?
1…
<img src=http://pics.livejournal.com/spectralbovine/pic/003d1d3q>
LAKE LAOGAI HAS BEEN THERE THE WHOLE TIME. THEY PUT A LAKE IN BA SING SE FROM THE VERY BEGINNING.
I LOVE THIS SHOW.
O…M…G…
O.o
This is what I love about this site. I've seen this show more times than I can count, and I've never noticed this before! Holy crap!
Mind. Blown.
Thank you.
HNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNG
…AWESOME.
MARK IS AN ADVENTURE TIME FAN?
<img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/wmct4i.jpg" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic">
ZIP! WHAT THE FLIP! It's totally radical!
This episode has all the sads.
Jet! Why?????
But really, what my mind focuses on is the fridge logic.
I mean… Toph's feet can sense heart rate… So does that mean… That she "sees"… er… everything? Like… Everyone is naked around her? With their clothes as another "layer" of vibration?
IDK. Just… IDK why I thought of that.
And.. speaking of Power Perversion… I found this, but I really don't know what to make of it. On one hand, it depicts a despicable act.
On the other, it has shirtless Jet.
<img src="http://www.deviantart.com/download/74936235/a_sexy_party_at_lake_laogai_by_jastice.png">
The BoulderI feelsconflicted.I'm sure the artist would appreciate it if you credited them, perhaps even giving a link back to their site.
Eh? As spectralbovine pointed out, I was talking about the character from the Arthurian legend.
You know, rising from the water, holding a sword, that sort of thing.
Ah, my apologies! We all know why that would be a potential spoiler, thanks for clarifying. I got a little too excited about using that wonderful gif.
Calling it a spoiler makes one wonder why it would be a spoiler, thus making the claim of spoilers potentially a spoiler in itself.
Yo dawg, I heard you like spoilers, so I put a spoiler in your spoiler so you can spoiler while you spoiler.
My spoiler is spoilerier than your spoiler!
SPOILERCEPTION
Nickelodeon was against showing kids being fatally wounded or outright killed, especially by a violent attack. It also couldn't be revealed during the rest of the story, so Toph sensing that Jet was lying (saying that he'd be okay) was how they chose to confirm it for the viewers. Also, in "Avatar Extras" a commentary bubble states, "For the record: Jet is dead."
While I'm annoyed at the idea of the studio holding the writers back, I think it actually worked in their favor this time. Personally, I found Toph's "He's lying" comment far more emotional than if they did the usual "character sighs and closes eyes" on-screen death that they probably would've done.
I agree with the Welsh Pirate (I'm so happy I could write that sentence). I hate the stereotypical "character sighs and closes eyes" death. Toph's comment actually makes you think to yourself, "he's lying; everything is NOT going to be okay and one of our heroes will NOT survive." This is more emotionally developed than seeing some body die because while a simple death brings finality, telling the audience that everything is not going to be okay creates fear, stress, and depression.
I'm glad to be back on track with the reviews once again. I was glad to see Jet again due the interaction with Katara which was amazing. I'm glad she showed how hurt she still was by Jet and how it takes a lot of convincing for her to agree to let him lead them to the lake. I'm always happy to see realistic character portrayal and I thought that was yet another example of characters behaving like everyday people. Now onto Iroh and Zuko!
I was happy to see that Iroh got an offer to have his own tea shop (I would totally go there everyday) and how Zuko is almost immediately against it once he finds the flyer for lost Appa. I knew at some point Iroh would lose his unshakable patience at some point, I just didn't knew when it would happen. The scene between him and Zuko in Appa's cell is yet another turning point for both characters. Iroh is fed up with putting up with Zuko's "destiny" and he points it out that Zuko is fulfilling a destiny that is not his own. I think Zuko realizes this and in so doing let's Appa go.
Speaking of Appa, we have been waiting for three episodes to find him, which is long when it comes to story arc in tv shows. But, with that said all that build up of looking for Appa paid off when he came down with Momo on his back. It filled my heart with glee to see Team Avatar back together once more.
<img src="http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSqcF_5I09vcFTBnGP8vLCIdtLz-BA3GsO6Lg0fZEzw3MV8dHSi5Q">
And just in case that was not cute enough, this is a theme that brings so much needed sunshine for Aang and Appa. http://youtu.be/MmInyB-7FhA
OMG, THUMBS UP FOR KATAMARI MUSIC!!!!!
I love Cherry Blossom Color Season!!!
So I love this episode, if for nothing else than the fact that APPA AND AANG ARE FINALLY REUNITED! ALL THE HAPPY DANCES EVER.
(also, this has nothing to do with anything, but I'm just celebrating: I graduated High School yesterday! I no longer have to go back to that hellhole of an educational institution. 😀 )
Congrats on graduating! And getting out of a place you consider a hellhole!
AAH I DID NOT EXPECT YOU TO DO AVATAR TODAY
This episode is the perfect match to City of Walls and Secrets in that it is also fucking creepy. Also, most of my predictions for the ep turned out so wrong. (I thought that the b-plot would be “Iroh tries to keep Zuko from finding the posters everywhere” or “Whoever offered Iroh a tea shop has ULTERIOR MOTIVES.”) But unlike CoWaS this episode has a mostly happy ending. It’s a happy ending tempered with the fact that a ‘good’ character just died but hey, at this point I’ll take what I can get.
So, funniest part of the episode has got to be the part where Aang blows up at Joo Dee, and Toph blows up half the house. “Let’s break some rules!” I love Toph so much you guys. Speaking of, her lie detector thing is neat. It makes sense in respect to how her powers are supposed to work, although I kind of feel like there must be some time before when that would have come up. Not really a complaint, though, because it’s used really well. It’s used to move the plot along, make jokes, and underscores the saddest part of the episode.
Jet showing up again was something you knew was gonna happen, but I half expected him to show up and be just off like the Joo Dees. He was almost normal—except that he seemed happy. I don’t think we’ve ever seen him just plain happy. He’s been cocky, smug, charismatic, determined, but never just content. Katara’s on her guard immediately.
I had expected Jet to get the Manchurian Candidate treatment, but somehow the anticipation just made that scene more intense, not boring. This whole plot is so 1984. The way that Aang snapped him out of it was perfect, but so sad. Jet’s identity is based entirely on him being a freedom fighter. In a way it proves that he couldn’t turn over a new leaf just by coming to Ba Sing Se. But it does prove that he’s still in there.
Then Long Feng kills him.
Fuck, what else can you say to that?
The B-plot was just as good. Zuko should just be the Blue Spirit the whole time. He seems to get his ass kicked way less. He finds out about Appa, somehow figures out where he is, sneaks into Ba Sing Se’s equivalent of the CIA, and tries to get Appa out. But Iroh steps in with a much-needed slap of reality. What the fuck was Zuko’s exit strategy? Luck, as it turns out. And we finally get a confirmation that he was flying by the seat of his pants during the whole invasion of the Northern Water Tribe. Good god, Zuko. BUT, for once Zuko decides to do the right thing and let Appa go. PLEASE LET THIS BE THE STARTING POINT ON ZUKO’S WAY TO BEING PART OF THE GAANG.
And then finally APPA REUNITES WITH THE GAANG! ALL THE WARM FUZZIES! :DDD
Yeah, WoG for this episode is that Jet is dead, they just weren't allowed to show it. If I recall, Bryke actually said the original plan was to have Longshot put him out of his misery (hence the bow drawing scene) before the Dai Li discovered them…I can't find the interview I read that in, though, so don't assume that's accurate. Unless someone else knows where it was?
At any rate; death, brainwashing, and possibly euthanasia. You know…FOR KIDS! ^_^.
whoa that's intense….
Somebody has probably already mentioned this, but I'm in a hurry so I can't check:
In case you didn't know, Mark… Laogai is the name the Chinese Communist Party gave their prison labor farms and camps in the 19th century. I remember studying this in my 20th Century History class this past year and when my teacher mentioned the term "Laogai," me and my friend Katri (another Avatar) fan looked at each other with our jaws dropped.
Seriously, THIS SHOW.
(More Wikipedia information on Laogai here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laogai )
**labor farms and camps in the 20th century
Sorry, I mistyped. Dunno how I made that mistake, 'cause it definitely started around the 50's and 60's.
Review on Monday? No wonder I wasn't prepared….
……….
………
Sorry, I can't spoil you.
Zuko’s hair amuses me. It just keeps growing, and growing. I know they’ve been there for a while. But it’s great that he seems to be the only one changing.
Sokka’s line ‘bite us in the blubber’ made me laugh. Also Toph taking out a wall, just because she can.
Behind Long Feng, why is the fire green? To go with the décor? I forgive him because his voice is like one long low purr.
I can actually understand where Zuko is coming from. Not the whole ‘capture the Avatar’ but the concept of wanting more from life, anyone would get restless in a repressive place like Ba Sing Se. But Iroh’s right too; he needs to work out what he wants first.
Toph fails at posters <3 I love how awesome the girls are in this. It’s such a great comparison to weepy females like Bella Swan. You break her heart? Does she a) jump off a cliff? Or b) throw ice spikes at you?
Tiny complaint: Sokka was a bit fast on the ‘brain-washing’ conclusion.
YAY return of the Blue Spirit! But seriously, ‘skinny’ that’s the best insult he can come up with? Oh Zuko. (Those earth-glove things are way cool though).
Does it not occur to them to put guards near the inside of the entrance to their super-secret awesome hideaway of brainwashing and greenness?
And what are they planning to do with the Avatar once they’d caught him? Brainwash the only hope the world has? Nice going.
Oh Iroh. Oh Zuko. It’s hard for him to forget his ‘mission’ when it’s been branded to his face.
…it’s always serious when the mute character talks. Oh Jet D: ‘He’s lying’
APPA!! Interesting, as not only did Zuko not try and capture the Avatar, he also let Appa GO. Actively helping him. Yay character development!
Behind Long Feng, why is the fire green?
He's monitoring the Floo Network!
Write 'there is no war in Ba Sing Se'
How many lines.
Oh, until the message sinks in
CONSPIRACY!
In one of the commentaries, the green fire is explained as a result of most of the Earth Kingdom using flammable crystals instead of “regular” fire. It can be seen as both a sign of patriotism and a sign of defiance against the Fire Nation, since the flames are green, which is traditionally associated with the EK, instead of the orange and red of the FN. Green is my favorite color, so needless to say that I want my flammable crystals right this instant.
That is so awesome! I love all the little things that make up this world (also, I was right, it IS partly to go with the decor!)
Also, green is my favourite colour too!
I think the ones Iroh had in the apartment were basically just dust and tiny chunks, but these crystals look really impressive:
<img src="http://i1133.photobucket.com/albums/m593/the_mauve_avenger/Avatar/LongFengScheming.gif">
There is actually a mineral you can burn (and I can't remember which one it is, but I did it in Chemistry class) that makes fire turn green. Ugh! If only I could remember! D: *all my frustration*
One of the coolest Chemistry experiments ever btw. XD
That would be copper! And while it can form crystals, they don't look like these ones (or get that big).
And also, if true fire (fire without any minerals burning) burns hot enough, it burns green as well.
When watching this with my family, the moment Katara could not heal Jet I said he was a goner. My brothers were unsure until Toph said that he was lying. Those two things were the writer's telling us that Jet was going to die without saying it out loud. A lot of kids shows just have people being 'captured' or 'sent to another world' and then never showing up again, because people do not think children can deal with death.
It actually bothers me when shows avoid death because my grandfather died when I was in the fourth grade of cancer. I remember my mother taking us there, driving all night to try and make it in time to say goodbye (He lived one state away) and arriving an hour too late. We waited in the car while she met with my aunt, then she drove us to her house and told us that Grandpa had died. (My father was out of town working, and drove in the next day) I didn't really get it until the funeral, and then it took me more time to get that he was gone forever.
I actually stopped watching cartoons for a while because whenever someone got 'Captured' I knew they had died, and got mad because they wouldn't say that, and because in real life we'd say they died. I felt like I was being called stupid and was being treated like a baby.
This show has been limited with what they can do, but at least they leave enough clues that you know Jet wont come back because he died. I only wish I got to see something like this as a kid.
<img src="http://i1226.photobucket.com/albums/ee407/instrumentalsftw/freedomfighter2.gif" border="0" alt="Photobucket">
You're a freedom fighter!
Am I correct in thinking that we'll be finishing this season by the end of the week? Please, nobody spoil Mark for the season finale. Please nobody spoil me, for that matter.
What happens if you spoil:
Aang gets angry.
<img src="http://i1133.photobucket.com/albums/m593/the_mauve_avenger/Avatar/AngryAang.gif">
Katara uses splash attack. It's super effective.
<img src="http://i1133.photobucket.com/albums/m593/the_mauve_avenger/Avatar/KataraWaveAttack.gif">
jkjkjkjkjk. She actually just attacks you with ice daggers.
<img src="http://i1133.photobucket.com/albums/m593/the_mauve_avenger/Avatar/KataraIceAttack.gif">
<img src="http://i1133.photobucket.com/albums/m593/the_mauve_avenger/Avatar/KataraIceAttack2.gif">
Yeah…So don't do it.
Remember: the Dai Li is watching.
<img src="http://i1133.photobucket.com/albums/m593/the_mauve_avenger/Avatar/DaiLiWatching.gif">
And everyone knows what happens when the Dai Li doesn't like what it sees.
<img src="http://i1133.photobucket.com/albums/m593/the_mauve_avenger/Avatar/JooDees.gif">
As a mod, I would like to officially endorse this post, and remind you all of the following:
<img src="http://i56.tinypic.com/20gntrc.gif" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic">
Only three episodes left in the season, so even if Mark decides to dedicate a day to Dr. Who, we should still finish Book 2 by the end of the week.
omg what if mai could waterbend and shoot real daggers as well as ice daggers omg
I just gotta say I love your username! "Hey Arnold!" FTW.
And so, with its seventh episode, the Missing Appa arc comes to an end! Three episodes of the season to go!
One idea that occurred to me much later: What if Zuko had left the mask with Appa? You could even some up with some logic to justify it if Zuko were much more of a schemer: Aang's here, so Appa'll probably be leaving one way or another. If HE frees Appa and makes sure Aang knows it was him (he knows Aang knows he's the Blue Spirit), it could make Aang think he has an ally (which Aang probably would want to believe, if Zuko judges by the "Do you think we could have been friends too?" speech), or make him paranoid, or just confuse him. What exactly does Zuko gain from this? He's still figuring that out, and might not know at all until an opportunity comes, but it does change his position in all this Aang-vs.-Long-Feng-vs.-the-Fire-Nation business from the nonentity he currently is. Xanatos speed chess, as they say Over There.
Of course, Zuko never thinks ahead at all, let alone playing for position. 😛
Iroh's questions, by the way? "Who are you?" and "What do you want?" They're from the '90s science fiction show Babylon 5. Which I still haven't finished season 2 of.
Finally!!! i have waited for this episode since Appa was taken.
I am very glade the show ended up having Jet being a good guy. When he was dying I felt really really bad for hating him. This show should not be screwing with my emotions.
Ah Toph! She is so cool. I don't think there has been a moment in this show where I yelled at her for doing something stupid.
It's ok Sokka I got your pictures too.
I have to agree with Mark, Iroh is scary when he's yelling. http://piandao.org/screencaps/ep37/ep37-1092.png
I'M BEGGING YOU, PRINCE ZUKO! It's time for you to look inward and start asking yourself the big question: who are you, and what do YOU want?
I find it really interesting that you saw that as Iroh losing his patience with Zuko because I'd never really thought of it that way, but looking back I can see where you're coming from. I guess I have a hard time thinking of Iroh angry. 🙁 I had always thought of it as coming from a place less of frustration at Zuko's unchanged attitudes and more from concern over his nephew's future, as we see when he references the North Pole fiasco.
I think his consern for Zuko is at the root of why he gets so frustrated at Zuko's inability to think ahead.
I love all of you. just…so, SO, much.
<img src="http://i119.photobucket.com/albums/o152/rupertgrint919/z3950205.gif" border="0">
I feel like Toph might have held back on revealing the implications of her being able to read heart beats, because she did not know Team Avatar that well, and there wasn't really a pressing situation before the appearance of Jet.
Also, Longshot is amazing. His voice, his timing, his composure, everything. Can we have the story of Longshot from the creators?
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Yay!! I'm glad that even with the Doctor Who review day you will still be able to finish Book Two this week without splitting anything!!
I don't actually remember if the last two episodes aired together as a finale, but even if they did they won't be split again YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYY
APPA!!! YAY! APPA! BUDDY! YOU'RE BACK!!!
Seriously, as traumatizing as Jet's (and possibly Smellerbee's and Longshot's) death was, once Appa appeared it was like "OMG APPA EVERYTHING WILL BE OK, THEY WILL SAVE EVERYONE AND HAVE TEA IN IROH'S SHOP.
How awesome was it that Iroh finally, after two long years finally told his nephew what he really thought about the Avatar Quest and the Fire Lord. Keep in mind that Ozai has only been in charge for maybe 8 years (could be less, depending on how old you'd say Zuko was in Zuko Alone) and clearly not as experienced in combat or ruling as I assume Iroh to be. Iroh is considerably more balanced and to see that his nephew, who has been shown many alternative and peaceful paths of life is still obsessed with capturing the Avatar to regain his honor in the eyes of his father… well shit, no wonder he snapped. Especially if this was shortly after Lu Ten's death anniversary and what would therefore be the anniversary of the end of the Siege of Ba Sing Se. Emotional turmoil
But yeah, holy shit, NEVER PREPARED.
GOD THIS EPISODE
Appa is back! After seven episodes. Phew. Important character development resulted, but my heart still cries.
Also, have you heard of my new garage band, Azula and the Dangerous Ladies?
Yeah, Zuko's plot line is pretty much the coolest ever, as you've said in the past. How they weave Team Zuko and Team Avatar together without really having them meet in this episode is really cool. I think it's also interesting that Toph has the same calm logical streak that Sokka does. Potentially because she wasn't around to be fooled by Jet at the time, but like you said, it adds another layer to the dynamics of the group and makes her even more important than before, somehow.
Man, you always say what I'm thinking so I never have anything constructive to say. Oh well, great job on the LifeCycle and thanks, as always, for the great review.
I truly love this episode. We see Jet's story end in such an unexpected way. I would never had guessed a tv show would give such a possible death. But then I am reminded of something. The reason this show is so amazing is it is a true fairy tale in every sense of the word. We see humans with weaknesses make their choices in life and must deal with the real consequences of their actions.
I also believe Iroh channels the soul of The Doctor for his tranquil fury. It is a fool's run when one makes either man angry and never assume they are without power when captured. What's even better is consider how both men got into a heavily defended fortress so easily.
Oh and Mark, I do not know if this is on the DVD extras, but this is a short made by Nickelodeon and there are no spoilers in this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFDbJfGZMhM
that is my favorite special short! It is so amazing!!
I agree with your thoughts on Iroh! Because really, when I was Zuko's age (and even now), if someone tried to tell me that I wasn't actually destined for a life of glory and instead should settle for a quiet and peaceful life, that I only thought I was destined for glory and honor because other people had convinced me so whereas what I really wanted deep inside was to spend the rest of my life in customer service and/or waiting tables …
Well, I probably wouldn't have listened to them either.
It's not a spoiler to tell you Jet is dead because the writers weren't allowed to show it on-screen due to Nickelodeon policies. Toph sensing that Jet was lying was their way to confirm it. You're meant to understand that Jet died underneath Lake Laogai.
It was revealed in a post-show interview.
Think so. Jeez, I wish I could find this interview again, I KNOW I read one where they talked about this explicitly…I couldn't link it here due to later-in-the-season spoilers but I could at least get the exact quote 🙁 But if I'm remembering right, yeah, there was a lot of pressure to make it all very ambiguous.
Smellerbee brushing Jet's hair back while Longshot stands guard…
*cries for an eternity*
"Give me a hero and I'll write you a tragedy," F. Scott Fitzgerald.
WHY MUST OUR HEROES END TRAGICALLY? D':
This episode is creepy. Every episode with Joo Dee is creepy. That woman ruins everything she comes in contact with. Seriously.
But….YAY! APPA!
Basically.
Anyone reminded of N64 Goldeneye Bunker level with Lake Laogai? /nerd
But yes. THIS EPISODE. Iroh, you scare me. I felt like he was scolding ME. Ugh. And Toph, you are SO hard-core. Please blow more things up.
This episode features one of the most aggravating moments of Idiot Ball there is.
Katara, you have spirit water. Why not try it on Jet?
The creators of the show DO actually address this issue in one of the DVD commentaries, but it involves a HUGE spoiler, so I'll just leave it at that.
The fire nation soldier who killed Jet's family is the leader of the Rough Rhinos.
How many american cartoons have this kind of continuity?
Can I just say that as someone who watched Avatar during it's original run when I was 13-14 until it finished, I find great joy watching you discover this show? Because I do and it says a lot about the show that I remember so much of it and still enjoy it now and I'm almost 20.
I'd ask if you have a favorite anything yet, but I think I'll wait until you finish the show 🙂
I feel like Toph might have held back on revealing the implications of her being able to read heart beats, because she did not know Team Avatar that well, and there wasn't really a pressing situation before the appearance of Jet.
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