In the sixth episode of the third season of Avatar: The Last Airbender, Zuko and Aang learn of the cause of the war started by Fire Lord Sozin and how their destinies are intertwined. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to watch Avatar.
HHHHHHHHHHHNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG this episode was SO GOOD. Any of the blatant “parallel†stories that the writers choose to tell on Avatar have all been among the ones I enjoyed the most, and this is no exception at all. Not only do we finally learn the details of why the great war with the Fire Nation started in the first place, but we’re now approaching a critical moment in Zuko’s story: Will he choose to follow the destiny his father cursed him with, or will he use his legacy to restore balance to the world?
More than anything else in Avatar, this story has been about Aang and Zuko. I can recall a time when I believed that Zuko would be the only main antagonist to Aang. Now, we’re so far along in his story that I’m not sure what to call Zuko anymore. There’s no more complicated or challenging of a character than him, and this season has shown how his acceptance of someone else’s destiny is destroying him from the inside out. It seemed rather obvious from the get-go that Iroh was involved in sending his nephew on a spiritual journey of sorts, getting him to seek out the true history of his great grandfather. This brought me joy because I was coming to feel a bit depressed about the fact that Iroh and Zuko hadn’t spoken in so many episodes.
For Aang, it’s a chance for him to receive a crucial message about Avatar Roku’s “mistakes.†They’d been referenced before in “The Awakening†and we’d not heard a word about it since. What sort of mistakes could the Avatar make?
I haven’t decided yet if this episode serves as foreshadowing for the upcoming invasion or if it’s merely a cautionary tale for our two main characters. (It’s possible it’s both, I suppose.) Right from the start, a shock is delivered to both Aang and Zuko: They discover that Avatar Roku and Fire Lord Sozin grew up as best friends. Their story is not a particularly revolutionary subversion of adventure tropes, but Avatar hasn’t always aimed to do things differently. Instead, I’ve rather enjoyed how familiar archetypes and tropes are given to us, but they’re done extremely well. I got a distinct Star Wars feel to the history of Roku and Sozin, about friends/masters who grew close in strength, but were torn apart by power.
Yet for Aang and Zuko, it’s easy for these two young men to see themselves in this story. We’re given the discomfited and disheartening ceremony where Roku is told he is the next Avatar, and it must have been revealing for Aang to see that this great Avatar went through the exact same sense of disbelief and sadness upon learning who he was. For Zuko, he’s able to see a man born into royalty who struggles with his role in the fate of the world; for him, though, Sozin’s journey is nowhere near as redemptive as what Aang feels towards Roku.
It was exciting to see the first onscreen use of all four elements simultaneously by one character after a well-executed montage of sorts explaining how Roku came to become a fully-realized Avatar. It’s still unbelievable to me that Roku had twelve years to perfect all four elements, and Aang hasn’t even had twelve months to do the same. But, like Aang, Roku was able to build lasting friendships with the masters who trained him in the other elements (INCLUDING GYATSO!!!!), and I like what this suggests. Given what Toph asks at the end, I see this as partial foreshadowing: Aang is going to have lifelong friends in Toph and Katar.
But who does that leave as a fire bending master able to teach Aang?
With all of this talk of friendship, it was inevitable that there’d have to be some moment where Roku and Sozin would have to break apart. I found it unfortunately ironic that on a day where one friend is joined in union with another person, Sozin takes it upon himself to suggest destruction to that very man. Even though Sozin tries to frame it as if he has the very best of intentions for the world in trying to bring “prosperity†to the other nations, Roku is able to recognize imperialist nature of the suggestion. (Obviously, that word is used in terms of what imperialism means to us, but I think it’s actually a fine word to describe how the Fire Nation would eventually use their power to crush other cultures and attempt to assimilate them within their own by force.)
The seed is planted between the two friends, and the writers develop a metaphor about duty and friendship at the same time. Roku has a duty to keep the world in balance, but how is he supposed to keep that when the main antagonist is his best friend? Roku gives a stern warning to Sozin not to follow through with this idea, but was that the best that he could do? Maybe at that point, sure, since it was just an idea vocalized. I feel, though, that Roku is truly put to the test years later, when he discovers that Sozin has invaded an Earth Kingdom city. (Was that Ba Sing Se? Or another one?) Angered that his best friend has done something so unwise, he confronts the now-Fire Lord and orders that the expansion of the Fire Nation end immediately. It’s never outright stated in the episode, but I could sense a tone of heartbreak in Roku’s voice here. I can’t imagine the sense of betrayal one must feel when your best friend conquers a nation against your advice. I’m sure a lot of us have experienced betrayal of a friend, but this is almost on a spiritual level for Roku. So I get that when Sozin attacks Roku with a wall of fire, Roku only goes so far in retaliation. (I will admit how awe-inspiring it was to see Roku go into a completely controlled Avatar State. I can’t wait until Aang is able to do the same thing.) Sozin chooses to spare his friend’s life because of the past they shared, and it becomes clear now how, in one sense, Sozin was not living up to his duty as the Avatar. Shouldn’t he have stepped in to keep the balance of the world?
I must admit that I don’t know what sort of ethics the Avatar is supposed to operate under, and whether violence of assassination (what else should I call it???) is sanctioned if a person threatens to upset the balance. But surely, it was a mistake to not prevent Sozin from further expanding the Fire Nation, and we understand that now. (Um…what did Roku do for twenty-five years that did not involve going after Sozin??? That seems like a long time to just….hang out in your house???)
The irony of this all is played out at the end of the tale between these two powers. Aang had traveled to Roku Island to enter the Spirit World so Roku could share with him the history he’d never told Aang. Toph had claimed that there was an entire city covered in ash below the ground, and we learn that it is from the last meeting between Roku and Sozin. I thought that we would learn that Sozin had purposely started the volcano to get retribution for the destruction of the Fire Lord’s palace, but that would have been far too easy of a characterization. Instead, a completely natural volcano threatens to kill everyone on Roku Island and Roku does his best to use all four elements to stop it and save his people.
It’s when the volcano threatens to take Roku’s life that Sozin, who’d felt the tremors a hundred miles away, came to the aid of his old friend. Would we see reconciliation? Would Roku do something that inevitably inspires the Fire Lord to continue his quest for power?
Nope. As the two appear to actually control the volcano, Roku collapses from a blast of toxic gas. His hand outstretched, Roku begs his friend to spare his life now. But Sozin tells his old friend that he has plans for the future, and though it’s left unsaid, we now know the second half of that line: Those plans do not involve a living Avatar. Sozin betrayed his best friend and left him to die. Roku realized that he had let his friendship get in the way of what he wad bound to do, and this is how he passed his mistakes on to the next Avatar, who we see born just moments later.
The exact same story means two very different things for our current players in this global war. For Aang, not only is a testament to the power of friendship, but it shows that it’s wrong to believe that all Fire Nation citizens posses only the capacity for destruction and terror. In a way, season three has shown us this, that there’s no homogenized, easily-categorizable culture that these people belong to. More important, though, is that redemption is always a possibility; people deserve a chance to redeem themselves, or what good is all the struggle?
I can’t help but think that this is all about Zuko, and I’m more comfortable than ever in guessing that Zuko is going to face his final moral crossroads. He goes to confront his uncle, claiming to know it was him who sent him on this waste of a mission to discover how his great-grandfather died. The entire time, I of course believed that Roku was Aang’s spiritual metaphor, and Sozin was meant to represent Zuko’s journey.
That’s when Uncle Iroh finally speaks to his nephew, correcting him: Zuko looked at the wrong great-grandfather. His mother’s grandfather? AVATAR ROKU.
If it was ever clear that Aang and Zuko were eternally intertwined, here it is. Linked in the spirit world by a common bond, it’s now up to Zuko to figure out what he needs to do. Iroh speaks to him and uses a very specific phrase: restoring balance. It’s not lost on me that this is a very Avatar-specific terminology to appear in this conversation. It’s
an explanation for Zuko’s spiritual turmoil and Iroh’s always known this. Zuko is at war with the Fire Lord in his mind and the Avatar in his heart.
Please, Zuko, PLEASE CHOOSE YOUR HEART.
THOUGHTS
- OH MY GOD Aang’s pooping stance SOMEONE SHOULD INSTALL BATHROOMS IN THE SPIRIT WORLD.
- Seriously, how did Aang never think of air surfing?
- Gyatso looked SO MUCH like Aang when he was a kid.
- Bitter work! I love tiny throwbacks to past episodes.
Oelxr qvqa'g fnl gung nyy gur NGYN punenpgref ner qrnq, Naqern Ebznab, gur pnfgvat qverpgbe, qvq. Fb gurer'f fgvyy ubcr sbe pnzrbf.
Juvyr n Gbcu pnzrb jbhyq or terng, V'q engure frr na byq cnvagre jub gheaf bhg gb or n znfgre fjbeqfzra, nyfb fxvyyrq jvgu n obbzrenat.:)
*snort* Talk about deceiving appearances! XD
Gubhtu Gbcu jbhyq znxr zber frafr, nf cbjreshy rneguoraqref graq gb or ybat-yvirq – frr: Ohzv, Ningne Xlbfuv.
Heck yeah!!!
<img src="http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c251/Tauriel/Sozin_voiced_by.jpg">
One of my top favourite episodes of the entire series. SHITLOAD of mythology! Character development! Uncle Iroh finally speaks to Zuko! <3
There's only one thing that bothers me – we see Roku's headpiece fall from his bedside as they're fleeing the village during the volcanic eruption. So how the hell did it end up with Iroh??? And how the hell was he able to smuggle it into the Fire Nation prison? It just seems like the writers didn't think things through properly.
Interesting factoids:
1. Ta Min, Roku's wife, is voiced by Grey "Azula" DeLisle.
2. During Roku's wedding, you can see that there are also some Water Tribe and Earth Kingdom wedding guests. Nice subtle sign how there was much more interaction between the nations before the war.
3. The design used for Roku's earthbending master Sud is the one originally intended for Toph – and it's the same design used for the earthbender in the opening sequence.
There's only one thing that bothers me – we see Roku's headpiece fall from his bedside as they're fleeing the village during the volcanic eruption. So how the hell did it end up with Iroh??? And how the hell was he able to smuggle it into the Fire Nation prison? It just seems like the writers didn't think things through properly.
See, I was wondering this on the re-watch, and I've decided it must be some super sekret White Lotus thing or something. I DON'T KNOW. Or Iroh is magic. Orrrr, maybe Sozin quietly had some people go out and excavate the area around Roku's house so that he could take his royal artifact back? That's an awful lot of digging for one really tiny ornament though. OR MAYBE, someone traveled back in time just to rescue it and then hid it for two generations in Iroh's cell.
IT COULD HAPPEN
It was the Doctor!
You're so right!
And (rot13'd for spoilers), in my head canon gur Qbpgbe vf GBGNYYL cneg bs gur Beqre bs gur Juvgr Ybghf, orvat n gvzroraqre, fb Vebu boivbhfyl nfxrq uvz gb tb naq ergevrir gur urnqcvrpr. Vg znxrf cresrpg frafr, qbrfa'g vg?
Lrf, vg qbrf! GBTRGURE, JR UNIR FBYIRQ GUR ZLFGREL!
*high five*
This is officially my headcanon now too, seeing as my brain wants to draw CONSTANT LINKS between these two shows.
*silently slips into that Doctor + Iroh fic*
You guys are creative gold, y'know.
Well, if you think about it, Iroh was the crown prince before Ozai became Firelord. if the area was excavated later, Iroh would have been the one in possession of it.
I don't see any need for excavation. I just see Roku's wife taking the headpiece and giving it to her descendant, that way going down the line to Iroh. Or maybe the people who drew it completely forgot previous drawings and went "well, nobody will notice and it looks nice".
How could Ta Min have taken the headpiece when they were running for their lives? Neither Roku nor Ta Min even looked at it as they ran out of their house. They didn't have time to go back for it. Minutes later, it was all covered in ash and lava.
Like I said, wishful thinking. It went back to the royal family somehow and I still wonder how could anyone know where to look beneath the ashes to find anything.
And Iroh isn't descended from Roku, so it wasn't passed on that way. It had to have made its way back to the palace somehow. OR Iroh found it in his own search.
ROT13 spoilers:
Jr xabj gung Ohzv vf n zrzore bs gur Beqre bs gur Juvgr Ybghf. Znlor ng bar cbvag orsber nyy guvf unccrarq, Vebu ernq gur frperg uvfgbel naq nfxrq Ohzv gb Rneguoraq qbja gb Ebxh'f uhg gb ergevrir gur negvsnpg. Znlor n zhpu lbhatre Vebu jub jnf cynaavat ba tvivat vg gb uvf fba bapr ur(Vebu) orpnzr Sverybeq? Vg pbhyq'ir orra uvqqra va Vebu'f dhnegref va gur Eblny Cnynpr, naq jubrire gung pybnxrq svther jnf gung qebccrq bss gur zrffntr gb Mhxb nyfb ergevrirq gur negvsnpg sbe uvz?
I actually like that idea. It definitely makes sense.
I doubt Sozin wrote that it had fallen in Roku's house. I mean, he wasn't there and there were clearly MORE IMPORTANT THINGS HAPPENING. But one could assume that he had enough common sense to remember it was on the Island?
Maybe they had multiple crown things? I mean sure, there's only one crown prince but they could have had spares in case it got lost in a war or something.
It seemed like a very obvious continuity thing to be left unexplained, nevertheless.
Clearly, Iroh is magic.
You know, that whole crown thing used to really bug me too. (Still kind of does,) BUT…this is IROH we are talking about. He must have retrieved it on some journey and was saving it TO GIVE TO HIS SON LU TEN (who was the crown prince.) Obviously we know why he didnt give it to him 🙁
Now, how he got it is a complete mystery. Also, how it was somehow in prison with him is also a mystery, but I just assume that he had some insiders working with him. Despite being a "traitor" to the Fire Nation, he was at one time a prominent leader militarily and would have been crowned firelord. (Plus, he is SO charming, that I'm sure some remained loyal to him.) My other crack theory is that someone involved in the OWL smuggled it in. Perhaps the same person who left the note for Zuko?
Minor technicality that I have the urge to point out: At one point IROH was crown prince and Lu Ten was next in line after him, but at no point was Lu Ten ever crown prince *Sadface*
And Iroh has connections everywhere! Even if we didn't know of a secret order that Iroh is canonically high up in, I would suspect he had an underground club of tea-lovers at his beck and call because he is a boss.
Ah yes…shame on me for not being more precise in my word choices…Thanks for making my point more clear than I did 😛
(Oh, and yes. MAJOR sadface…Maybe Azulon gave the crown to Iroh and Iroh was then planning on giving it to Lu Ten when he did eventually become the crown prince…)
Woah, woah- Azula is BLACK CANARY?
Azula is also Lego-Harley Quinn, and soon to be Catwoman.
Hmm…new plausible crown theory:
-Sozin picked up the crown after betraying Roku on the island
-Sozin gave it to his son Azulon
-Azulon gave it to Iroh
-Iroh had been saving it for Lu Ten 🙁
-Iroh had one of his secret helpers retrieve said crown to give to Zuko
Sozin can't have picked it up – at that time, Roku's house had already been flooded by lava and ash.
Before my actual comment, I had to get this out of the way
Aang: I am your mother's grandfather's reincarnation.
Zuko: What's that make us?
Aang: Absolutely nothing!
(Mel Brooks is always relevant).
Genius.
LOL YES
I HAVE BEEN WAITING SO LONG FOR YOU TO GET TO THIS ONE. In a sea of highly anticipated episodes, this one has been a real standout, and that's saying something. Not that Book Three hasn't been great so far, but this episode is in a class of its own – a real mind-bending keysmasher that gives us so, so much delicious backstory that makes everything so much richer and more wonderful, that finally explains how the war started, and sets up one hell of a question for how things are going to proceed from here for our favorite troubled Fire Nation prince. SIMPLY AMAZING TELEVISION.
I love that the story occurs simultaneously, with Aang and Zuko both finding out the truth about Roku and Sozin – more of them being dual protagonists who mirror each other. Now we find out just how deep that goes: they're related spiritually, for Aang is the reincarnation of Zuko's great-grandfather. HOLY. SHIT.
It's wonderful enough for me just seeing so much of Roku's story; I've always liked him ever since he was introduced back in Book One. And young Roku is so adorkable. 😀 It's so surprising to see him and Sozin as best friends, that you wonder how that ever could have gone wrong. Especially when Sozin gives him the ornamental hairpiece that we've always seen Roku wearing.
"Some friendships are so strong, they can even transcend lifetimes." This line always makes me well up with tears. It's an incredibly beautiful and wonderful idea to me, made all the more poignant by what happened to Gyatso and his backstory with Aang that we saw in The Storm. I love that he and Roku were friends and that it crossed over into the next Avatar incarnation. You all know I'm a sucker for friendship tropes, so that makes this part really hit hard for me. I don't like the phrase "just friends"; it suggests that even the strongest friendships are lesser in depth and strength than romantic relationships. But I couldn't disagree more strongly with that assessment. So this part of the story affects me powerfully. The ending with Team Avatar, where they return to the idea expressed earlier about friendship transcending lifetimes, is beautiful and sweet and also makes me wibbly.
(cont)
We then see exactly how it went wrong: Sozin decided that he wanted to "share the Fire Nation's prosperity" with the rest of the world. Which is about the best spin you can put on his imperialistic crap, isn't it? Not that that's saying much – we all know what he means to do, and so does Roku. I begin to understand why Roku cast blame on himself for not stopping the war during his time as Avatar when he talked to Aang in Awakening; he clearly regrets not doing more to halt Sozin's plans, especially after seeing the colonies. I also enjoy getting a look at the throne room of that time period: it wasn't as forbidding and scary as it is in the present era. It was more open and welcoming, less intimidating. It feels like a relic of a different Fire Nation, one that didn't seek to subjugate the other nations. After Roku's destruction of it, Sozin rebuilt it to what we've seen in various scenes and flashbacks up to this point, and thus is what feels like the last vestige of the old Fire Nation erased. A new era had already begun, and the revamped throne room is a powerful symbol of what sort of leader is in charge of it.
It's heartbreaking to watch Roku struggle against the volcano; we figure he's going to fail to hold it back, and die trying, but the manner in which he perishes is even worse than we'd assumed. When Sozin showed up, I figured they'd both die in the eruption, and that would be the truth about Zuko's great-grandfather's demise that someone wanted him to learn. But no, Sozin demonstrates exactly how much of a heartless asshole he's truly become, and betrays his old friend by leaving him to die. The fact that Roku's dragon curls up around him, to stay with him in his last moments and die alongside him… yeah, that got me too. Especially when it cut to Aang's birth, reminding us that the cycle continued, that all hope was not yet lost. Roku's spirit will, and has, lived on.
The revelations aren't over yet, either. Zuko is left feeling "That's it?" and storms off to confront Iroh, whom he believes is the source of the message that led him on this supposed waste of time. But it was no waste of time: he has simply misunderstood which great-grandfather Iroh wanted him to be aware of. It was Roku's fate, not Sozin's, that Zuko needed to learn about; he needed to learn the mere fact that Roku was his great-grandfather at all. Armed with this new knowledge, Zuko must now choose between the two warring halves of himself. He has a chance to right what went wrong generations ago, and restore balance. What will he decide? Either way, an already fascinating character arc has become that much more compelling and crucial to the overall narrative.
Other stuff:
– Roku's home: omg it's Pompeii
– YES SPIRIT WORLD AANG IS BALD. THAT IS HOW THINGS SHOULD BE.
– Episode shoutout! He calls it "bitter work". 😀 I also love that he too initially had difficulty mastering his opposing element.
– ugh, I hate you Sozin. It's awful seeing the Air Temples in flames and knowing what happened. 🙁
– WTF how did Iroh get that hairpiece? THE WORLD MAY NEVER KNOW.
– Sokka, normally I appreciate your skepticism, but right now I agree with Katara: shut up and hold hands. 😀
"YES SPIRIT WORLD AANG IS BALD. THAT IS HOW THINGS SHOULD BE."
HOW DID I NEVER NOTICE THIS?
On the whole fighting the volcano thing, something which I always remember as another call back is that Aang's already faught a volcano. In the episode 'The Fortune Teller'. It makes me think it may be a subtle hint; if Aang was able, at age twelve, to do what Roku couldn't do when fully realised, that he'll be even more powerful, and able to achieve what Roku could not prevent?
Also, I love all that friendship lasting through time-lines. I especially like that Toph's the one who says it, since she's not usually for the whole introspection thing, and it shows how much she's come to rely on the friendships. (Also, she should totes get to hang out with the next avatar, y/y/y?!?)
Regarding Toph’s question about friendships lasting more than one lifetime, speculation for Korra based on what we’ve been told so far about it (rot13’d for spoilers):
Jbhyqa’g vg or NJRFBZR vs jr sbhaq bhg va “Gur Yrtraq bs Xbeen” gung Xbeen’f rneguoraqvat znfgre jnf Gbcu? 🙂 V xabj gung gur perngbef fnvq gung nyy punenpgref sebz NGYN ner qrnq, naq ol gur gvzr bs GYBX Xbeen unf nyernql znfgrerq rneguoraqvat, ohg V’q tvir nalguvat sbe rira n fubeg synfuonpx fprar jvgu byq tenaqzn Gbcu xvpxvat frira xvaqf bs fuvg bhg bs Xbeen qhevat ure rneguoraqvat genvavat… :Q
Be Mhxb grnpuvat ure ubj gb Sveroraq. Cbffvoyl jvgu Gl Yrr grnpuvat Xbeen ure gevpx nobhg cerffher cbvagf.
Seriously someone HAS TO teach me how to do this. I'M DYING HERE OF UNEXPRESSED EXCLAMANTIONS!!! And I mean on both sites.
Lrf, guvf vf rknpgyl jung V'ir orra ubcvat sbe! Vg jbhyq nyfb or terng vs gur jubyr 'orvat qrnq' guvat jnf whfg gur jnl bs uvqvat gur erirny bs Gbcu'f rcvp erghea.
V gubhtug gung Znex naq fbzr bs gur hfref urer qvqa'g xabj nobhg Xbeen, gubhtu, naq vg'f ba gur ab-zragvba yvfg hagvy ur svavfurf?
Cebonoyl va gur thvfr bs synfuonpxf sebz pheerag oraqref jub zrg gur bevtvanyf va gur cnfg, cneragf naq tenaqcneragf jub jrer gurer jura vg unccrarq. Rira fbzr bs gur fvqr punenpgref (ab bar fnvq nalguvat nobhg fvqr punenpgref orvat nyy qrnq nf jryy) gryyvat fgbevrf nobhg gur byq gvzrf. V guvax jr unir gb frr fbzrguvat bs gurz va fbzr jnl.
V zrna, rirel ningne vf obea gur zbzrag gur bgure bar qvrf, juvpu zrnaf gung rirel ningne trgf va n jnl gb xabj gur fnzr crbcyr gur cerivbhf rapneangvba xarj. Ningnef qba´g yvir ybatre guna abezny crbcyr fb vg fubhyq or ragveryl cbffvoyr.
Ningnef qb yvir ybatre guna abezny crbcyr; Xlbfuv yvirq sbe bire guerr uhaqerq lrnef. Vgf cneg bs gurve cbjre. Gur perngbef fnvq gung cneg bs gur ernfba Nnat qvrq fb lbhat vf ur hfrq cneg bs uvf yvsr sbepr fgnlvat va gung vpr oret sbe 100 lrnef. Ohg vg vf qrsvavgryl cbffvoyr gb zrrg crbcyr gur sbezre Ningne xarj, rfcrpvnyyl vs f/ur unq lbhat sevraqf, be qvrq va onggyr be fbzrguvat.
Naq lrg Ningne Ebxh ybbxrq irel byq orvat bs ntr jvgu Fbmva. Ur qvqa'g yvir nobir n uhaqerq lrnef vg frrzrq. Vf gung nyfb jung lbh zvtug pnyy na rkprcgvba va na Ningne'f yvsrfcna?
He looked old, but that didn't actually mean he was in bad health. After all, he runs easily out of the building without breaking a sweat, and all his movements look calm and capable.
V guvax vgf zhpu zber yvxryl gung juvyr n crefba'f culfvpny nccrnerapr znl or ntrq, gurl'er yrff yvxryl gb npghnyyl qvr bs fbzrguvat yvxr pnapre. Vgf uneq gb pbasevz, bs pbhefr, orpnhfr Ningne Xlbfuv, jub yvirq gur ybatrfg nyjnlf nccrnef va ure lbhatre sbez, cerfhznoyl orpnhfr fur'f zbfg pbzsbegnoyr jvgu vg.
Va guvf pnfr Ebxh qvrq orpnhfr bs orvat cbvfbarq; sbe nyy jr xabj ur pbhyq unir yvirq nabgure praghel be fb.
Qvq lbh abgvpr ubj gur bgure Ningnef nyy ybbxrq lbhat rkprcg Ebxh? Vg'f yvxr gurl pna rvgure znvagnva gurve lbhgushy sbez jvyyvatyl, be gurl npghnyyl qvr lbhat n ybg. Orvat gur Ningne, V nyjnlf gubhtug gur frpbaq bcgvba zvtug or gur pbeerpg bar, nf gurl'er cerggl zhpu jneevbef.
Vg'f fgvyy ernyyl pbashfvat gb frr gur rknpg bccbfvgr gb jung lbh'ir orra gbyq bire naq bire naq va rirel vafgnapr.
Jryy, jr xabj sbe n snpg gung Ningne Xlbfuv yvirq gb 300 lrnef byq- vgf va gur znguf naq gung'f nyfb jung Zvxr naq Oelna unir pbasvezrq. Vs nyy gur bgure Ningnef qvrq ng gur ntr gurve nccrnenapr fubjf, gura gurl qvrq ernyyl lbhat; sbe rknzcyr, Ningne Xhehx ybbxf bayl nobhg 30.
V svtherq gurl whfg unq pbageby bire gurve fcvevghny sbezf. Nsgre nyy, jura Nnat nccrnef gb Ebxh va 'Gur Ningne Naq Gur Sverybeq' ur'f jrnevat uvf abznq pybgurf naq unf n funirq urnq, qrfcvgr gung abg orvat uvf culfvpny nccrnenapr. Gurl zhfg fgvyy nccrne gur jnl gurl srry gurl ner. Znlor Ebxh'f whfg unccl jvgu uvf ntr.
(Ba n eryngrq abgr, unir lbh rire ernq gur obbx 'Zbeg' ol Greel Cenggpurg. Onfvpnyyl, jura n crefba qvrf, orsber gurl tb gb jungrire vf nsgre, gurve fcvevg ybbxf gur jnl gurl srry gurl ner. Fb na byq jvgpu ybbxrq yvxr fur jnf n fvkgrra lrne byq tvey.)
On the related note: Nope, haven't come across that book yet. I live in a Spanish country where those are pretty hard to come by and when you do they are too expensive to buy on a whim. I need a very good income to indulge it but I'm willing. Right now, even 'The Colour of Magic' is pretty hard to get (my hands are itching but my pockets are dying), and 'Mort' hasn't even reached the country apparently because it's not even listed.
We can thank this state of affairs to the monumental import taxes we have, one of the most expensive in the world. On top of that, our president is blocking a lot of the importations since the beginning of the year to, according to her, boost the local production. Bad move, as many necessary materials for the productions are imported.
JSYK, you don't have to read Discworld in order! Just grab whatever is most available.
I know, but I want the first book with the beginning of the story of the world and all the explanations. I was told I need to read the first two for that part, that's why I want to get that one so badly.
I mentioned the book Elexus mentioned is not available here at the moment and I dread the price it will be when it gets here. The series of SoIaF are too expensive for instance and Discworld is even more so. We get the books at six or seven times the original price in my country.
Aw 🙁
Qvqa'g Xlbfuv yvir sbe bire 200 lrnef gubhtu? Ohg V fhccbfr gung znxrf frafr.
Ebxh qvqa'g yvir sbe zber guna 100 lrnef naq ybbxrq ernyyl byq ng gung gvzr ohg abg byqre guna gur erfg bs uvf trarengvba. Va ybbxf, ur frrzrq gb unir whfg gur fnzr yvsrfcna nf rirelbar ryfr.
My comment got lost. Maybe due to the rot13?
I love that you ROT-13'd your smiley.
Now, we’re so far along in his story that I’m not sure what to call Zuko anymore.
Zuzu.
THIS. XD
It seriously cracks my shit up whenever Azula calls him Dum Dum. Maybe because Azula is always so intense and put together? But then she's like, "Zuzu, you DUM DUM" and I'm like, "Yeah, okay, they are obviously teenage siblings."
i can't help but call him that sometimes, it's really annoying XD
I remember when I first watched this episode and learned of Zuko's ancestry, the only thing that came to my mind was "But people ship him with Aang…"
<img src="http://s3.amazonaws.com/kym-assets/photos/images/original/000/121/471/Rainbow%20do%20not%20want.jpg?1304913165" border="0"/>
omg this comment.
This is still less gross than Azula's sexy-robe scene in "The Awakening". STOP FLIRTING WITH YOUR BROTHER!
Meh, as far as squicky pairings in A:tLA fandom go, Zuko/Aang is like, bottom tier. It's not technically incest (since Aang is the reincarnation of the Avatar spirit and not Roku himself), so I don't really see what's so gross about it, apart from the fact that Zuko and Aang are both underage. It's practically mainstream compared to the various Firecest and Watercest ships found throughout the fandom, not to mention pairings involving Koh the Face-stealer.
What?
Who even thought to ship someone with KOH of all people…things..creatures?
No kidding. My brain went to a dark, strange place that I will never recover from.
I knew of the Firecest but never the Watercest. I…really I have no words.
Allow me to assist you with that.
<img src="http://29.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_lipdoaUExh1qiq96ko1_500.jpg" border="0"/>
Whereas new episodes of the first half of season 3 were airing every Friday in the US, mid-way through that run the UK branch of Nickelodeon aired the first nine episodes across two weeks. The result was that this and the next few episodes aired here in the UK first. (This is a very common practice, though the second half of the season got its American TV debut on a weekday schedule leading up to the finale. The story of the schedule gets really complicated for the latter half of the season so all I’ll add to that is that UK viewers didn’t know when we would get any new episodes after episode 9.)
The result was that, for me going into this episode, there was no such thing as spoilers. That’s a very good thing as all good twists rely on the viewer being caught off-guard for the full impact. (Incidentally, TV Tropes has this episode’s revelation unspoilered on its Legend of Korra page.) There’s a lot of good stuff to talk about in this episode but I want to stick to the one theme.
Like the end of season 2, the seeds are planted to make it look like episode is heading in a specific direction. Roku tells Aang he needs to understand how the war started while Zuko thinks he’s being led to a secret about Sozin’s demise. Azula’s history lesson was probably sincere but that’s where “The Headband” shows its worth to the overall story. As soon as she mentions paying attention in school, we have every reason to doubt the official account of Sozin’s death. And so we go along, thinking that we’ll see some major twist about Sozin that will shake our previous understanding of the war. Eventually, two old friends come together in a dangerous situation that leads to one of their deaths.
…And just like Zuko in Ba Sing Se, Sozin chooses the path of betrayal. The story ends the way we already knew. Sozin is a very evil man who uses the comet to completely wipe out the Air Nomads. Unknown to him, Aang is already sleeping in an iceberg under the Southern Water Tribe.
Zuko’s reaction is basically that of the viewers. What was the point of all that build up? And then Iroh finally speaks. And his answer… “You have more than one great-grandfather.” Oh snap! This recontextualises not only the point of the episode but also Zuko’s entire character arc. This episode is a masterful example of leading expectations, pulling out a twist and still making it work perfectly in the context of the larger story.
In conclusion, the Avatar creators are better at being M. Night Shyamalan than M. Night Shyamalan. And M. Night Shyamalan was given full creative control of the movie. I think I see a problem there…
FYI FOLKS: Mentioning Legend of Korra is NOT a spoiler. I already know the show exists. That is all!
Oh, okay, thanks for letting us know. 🙂 I've been reporting all mentions of it… 😀
EDIT: And well, it doesn't exist YET, they're still making it… 🙂
So this is basically the episode where we see that Aang just got robbed. He never got that time to enjoy life as a teenager, and he's largely had to figure out bending on his own – sure, he finds masters to help him, but he never recieves formal training the way Roku seems to. Plus, Roku got to train without the fate of a war on his shoulders.
And then you add the "last airbender" aspect of Aang, and just, shit.
I do greatly enjoy seeing Sozin's rationale for the war, though. Oh look, it's a mentality of national exceptionalism, forwarding an imperialist agenda! On a kids show. Love it. And this may be an unpopular opinion, but I do wish we got to see more of Sozin, and less of Roku. I get why we see more of Roku since it's Aang's dream, but I easily want more backstory for Sozin than Roku. In this instance, I think the action sequence at the volcano simply isn't as interesting as exploring Sozin's background could potentially be.
And then I had a paragraph written about how much I just want Zuko to get on with it, whatever his decision so long as he stops angsting and brooding and such, but it's kinda just a paragraph of frustration that's not particularly fun or interesting, so I'll skip it. And instead go straight to my concluding gif.
<img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/2zdyagg.gif">
Off-topic, but the first few seconds of that .gif looked like the bending from the movie, with the whole "charging up" thing. It took me a few watches to realize that the first two motions were for earth and water and the bending was just out of frame.
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/firelord3.jpg">
Another design challenge was depicting various characters at many different stages of their lives. Storywise, it was tremendously difficult to tell Roku's epic life story and Sozin's ultimate betrayal of him in twenty-two minutes. It was not the usual fare for kids' animated TV.
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/firelord4.jpg">
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/firelord5.jpg">
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/firelord6.jpg">
These paintings, which depict the succession of the last five Firelords, hung in the palace hall. Since the first two weren't prominently featured, we never figured out names for them. The last three are Sozin, Azulon, and Ozai.
All right, time to play Name That Fire Lord!
Zanzibar and Marzipan.
Fire Lord John Belushi and Fire Lord Fu Manchu.
I love how Roku dressed in each nation's clothes when he studied their elements… <3
Kind of necessary for the Water Tribes. Cold up there.
Interesting. In the left-hand portrait of an unnamed Fire Lord, the sun behind his head is black. Maybe that's related to "the darkest day in Fire Nation history"?
Makes sense – total solar eclipses are pretty rare in our world, so it's not that far-fetched that they would be rare in the world of Avatar, too.
But yeah, good catch, I haven't noticed that before. 🙂
Perhaps that Fire Lord was the one in power during Chin the Conqueror's reign of terror during Kyoshi's time?
Man, I love these art posts. Seeing how much effort, care, detail and love went into designing this world and its characters always makes me smile.
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/firelord7.jpg">
I love the detail of these paintings so much. It's hard to see with how small I have to make them to fit in the comments (and they aren't terribly large in the book either), but they didn't just depict the characters, they've put in stylized representations for what they were famous for. Sozin has the comet, but he also has Fire Nation soldiers at his feet, because it was during his reign that this massive imperialist expansion began. We don't know enough about Azulon to know what's going on in his painting. And Ozai's at first looks generic…until you realize that he has gears and pipes in his design, representing the Fire Nation's more recent technological advances.
The scroll that Sozin holds in his left hand could also mean that he enacted various reforms or laws that were considered groundbreaking…just a theory in passing.
Nope, it's a turtle (or whatever hybrid passes for a turtle in the world of Avatar), the creators confirmed it. 🙂
sorry i'm just totally blind (too bad i cannot earthbend). i was positive his feet were separate heads. thank you!
So this time I’m actually going to have this written out before hand to save time, and allow me to articulate my thoughts more clearly. So, this is an episode I really, really like. I love backstory, and this is excellent backstory. Plus, I dig Roku and Sozin’s bromance (and I ship it. Come on. Though Sozin totally seems to be more into Roku than Roku is into him. Your mancrush is showing Sozin.)
About Roku. He’s kind of a dick, imo. Now, I don’t want to appear to be defending Sozin too much here, because I think its pretty obvious that whatever his grievances, they don’t exactly excuse genocide. I mean, WTF Sozin? But for all that they were friends for most of their childhoods, after Roku leaves for his training, he does seem to get caught up in his role as the Avatar, and his need to be impartial, and forget about their bromance. Shutting down the conversation Sozin was trying to have about ‘spreading the prosperity’ did no good at all. Even to say that it was something they could talk about would have been better… trying to work for a better world need not necessarily involve conquest, and depending on what Sozin was really trying to achieve, Roku might have been able to talk him into something different. But saying, ‘I’m the Avatar, and my world is law?’ Not great communication skills there Roku. Maybe he didn’t want to get into it on his wedding, but he could have at least put it off as a discussion for another time. If Sozin really did originally want to help the world, surely the balance of the elements/four nations wouldn’t prevent that? Even if they are meant to be separate, that doesn’t mean trade/financial aid/cultural communication etc does it?
(Also, now that seperation is pretty much fucked, isn’t it. No going back. After so long as FN colonies in the EK, you’re really going to tell me there aren’t a few Earth/Fire kids out there? And if Aang wants to repopulate the world with mini Airbenders, he’s gonna have to do so with someone from another element.)
So I think that partially explains why things just got worse. It just riled Sozin up and made him resent what had turned their friendship sour, namely in his eyes, the whole idea/concept/training of the Avatar. If not for that, Roku would have been at his side, as a loyal advisor and friend. The later scene only seemed to make things worse. I don’t know if Sozin really thought he could take Roku on, but it didn’t seem to be his nature to take things lying down, and as the Firelord, I’m sure he particularly didn’t take well to being ordered around by a man he had once called friend. And a death threat as well? He seems to have become a proud man over the years, and well… maybe that was the moment he decided they were enemies for good.
(cont.)
I think it is also interesting to note how powerful Sozin is. We see in the fight between him and Roku that he lets rip with a pretty massive firestrike which is bigger than pretty much anything we’ve seen from anyone else, even Azula. And at the volcano, he uses firebending to extract the heat from the lava and channel it off. We’ve never seen anything like that. Whether this is a hint as to how hard Ozai would be to beat is unknown at this time, but if all Firelords are that badass, I wouldn’t want to be Aang right now.
One thing I’m not a massive fan of it the intimation at the end that Zuko is only one of the ‘good guys’ (or at least potentially good) because he’s related to Roku. This is clearly a bunch of crap, as it really doesn’t explain Iroh, who is not related, or Azula, who is. However I’m going with the interpretation that it was meant to echo the general theme of balance that this show has, and to say that someone related to both the people who started the whole mess ought to have a hand in finishing it. Besides, Zuko’s face on hearing the news is hilarious.
Interestingly Iroh seems pretty damn well connected too for a man in a jail cell, able to arrange for the message to be delivered to Zuko, and to somehow get his hands on Roku’s headpiece, which last we saw was buried under a mass of ash and lava. Incidentally, clearly he knows Zuko well, to predict that he would end up setting that message on fire (or getting it otherwise near heat) to reveal the hidden writing on it. I wonder if he has White Lotus contacts in the capital. If Piandao was a member, it stands to reason he and Iroh may not be the only ones in the Fire Nation.
Another bit of personal fanon/speculation, related to Roku’s comment that some friendships transcend lifetimes. The design of Said, Roku’s Earthbending teacher, is the one from the opening credits, the one commonly said to have been part of the original concept for Toph. I like to think that means she is a reincarnation of him, so that she and Aang are once again friends in this life as well as their last.
So to summarise Sozin’s position:
Step 1: Leave your best friend for dead
Step 2: Kill millions
Step 3: ?????
Step 4:
Profit!!UTOPIA!Also, for comparison purposes, let’s see which side of the family Zuko gets his looks from.
<img src="http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i95/Gestalt1/Familyresemblance.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket">
Y'know, I think it's his mum's side. 😛 It also looks like we've found out where Iroh got the shortness gene from.
Yeah, but both Ozai and Azulon were also of slim build and narrow-faced, so Zuko gets that from his Dad's side, too… 🙂
Sozin must have married someone taller and thinner than him – he's pretty stocky. 🙂
As for Iroh's connections while in a jail cell… he IS a Grand Master of the Order of the White Lotus. I always thought that the White Lotus are a pretty massive ring of spies and information agents (although granted this is pretty much headcanon only; we don't really see much of the WL besides a few mentions). I am sure that there are OotWL people in the Fire Nation court, probably mostly stationed as servants but why not a guard or two as well? Hell, Iroh and Piandao together probably run most of the Fire Nation's White Lotus activity. I'm sure it wouldn't be that hard to drop a quiet word in the right ears and make sure Zuko gets the message.
Also, this video is now relevant:
WARNING: Being Youtube *SIGH* if you haven't seen the entire show, stop it a few seconds before the end, or you might get spoiler video images. And ditto that the sidebar might also be spoilery The video itself is just this episode though.
[youtube FgX78vODFqI http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FgX78vODFqI youtube]
Sweet Baby Jesus that is depressing.
omg, what a terribly sad video. I didn't cry watching the episode, but compresed into 4 minutes? omg
There are so many wonderful things about this episode it's hard to know where to focus or even to begin. But one thing I want to make sure to mention is how much this episode really brought home to me that Roku (and all other past Avatars) are past lives of Aang. The young Avatar Roku really does feel like the Aang we've come to know over all these episodes: his sense of fun and fairness and the way he acted around his crush… all signature Aang-ness. (I mean the blush? Flopping to the ground? It just resonated so well with what we already know about Aang)
Plus a friendship with Gyatso that stretched over lifetimes? Please break my heart with such beauty again AtLA! It makes me cry tears of happiness.
When Iroh says there's no time for tea, you know it's the end of the world.
I feel like lately I've had nothing to add to your reviews except "I like this, I love that"
…and this is no different! The parallels of this episode are fantastic. There's something wonderful about seein Roku and Sozin as teens – when neither of them really had any power – and you can see both of these powerful and iconic characters as simply people.
Man, what a revelation for Zuko though…methinks he has some soul searching to do.
Deeply deeply love this episode. I love backstory on non-major characters, which is also why I loved "The Beach" so much (count Ty Lee and Mei as non-majorly major characters, no matter how much I love them). Plus, any episode with Zuko in it is a winner to me 🙂
Sokka cracks me up. "Well, scientifically speaking, there's no way to prove that…" Oh, Sokka, just hold hands!
Yay Zuko for speaking to Iroh again! Yay Iroh for just being that awesome.
And now seperately, since I wrote so much for this episode, some <a href-"www.tftfn.tumblr.com"> Texts From The Fire Nation
<img src="http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i95/Gestalt1/tumblr_liw4och5ty1qi3k37o1_500.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket">
<img src="http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i95/Gestalt1/tumblr_lj7gn4WilA1qi3k37o1_500.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket">
(cont.)
<img src="http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i95/Gestalt1/tumblr_ljim85h4Kp1qi3k37o1_500.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket">
<img src="http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i95/Gestalt1/tumblr_lk1ezxaXd41qi3k37o1_500.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket">
<img src="http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i95/Gestalt1/tumblr_lk1fapCqXv1qi3k37o1_500.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket">
<img src="http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i95/Gestalt1/tumblr_lke22iJTc41qi3k37o1_500.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket">
LOL at 418, that's a good letter.
“Aang is going to have lifelong friends in Toph and Katara.”
And, of course, Sokka, but that goes without saying.
Seriously, those two are total Bros.
<img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/iz6mw6.gif"/>
Remember this scene?
Roku's dragon is red.
Sozin's dragon is blue(ish).
He looks so much like his father there, it's creeping me out.
I actually thought it was his father when the episode first aired.
The swaying of that gif makes it look like Zuko's on the worst boat ride ever with two chatty dragons.
A boat that's on fire.
… Cannot unsee.
Row, row, row your boat
Gently down the stream
Merrily, merrily, merrily, merrily
Life is but a dream
I would kill for that spoiler to come true.
Can I just say that I kind of love that Roku and Sozin are such teenagers in the first part of the story? There's a moment where Sozin sprinkles grass on Roku's face after he's thrown himself on the ground with girl troubles angst that never fails to make me giggle. Also, I find Roku's "Have a cookie!" line randomly hilarious for reasons I can't explain.
I giggle at "Have a cookie!" too. Just the way he says it is hilarious for some reason.
Also, the grass-sprinkling = <3.
Just this whole episode is so spot-on and awesome.
I prefer to think that whole line of thought was a con on Iroh's part, for the express purpose of getting Zuko to think that his father's line is not the only one he should honor of be bound by.
I mean seriously, look at Azula! Same bloodlines but….
Oh, I'm totally with you. Also, I wrote a fanfic about that exact thing, because even though I don't really write fic anymore, it was too awesome not to!
Erosion (No spoilers for the current show, just 100% speculation for Legend of Korra.)
Great fic! Hello Doctor Who reference, I see you there. That's totally what I always think of regarding the power of waterbenders.
This. It was probably just some random coastal town in the Earth Kingdom.
uhm, how does the rot13 work?
Go to this site, type in your text and then click on cypher: http://www.rot13.com/index.php
THANK YOU! I think I'll use it a lot now. 😀
Or get the mozilla add-on (don't know if there are ones for other browsers), which also decodes other things. 😀
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-us/firefox/addon/le…
Oh God, no time for tea? It's THE APOCALYPSE, I TELL YOU!!!
As a moderate side-note, there is an amusing alternate universe fanfiction hinging on the flashbacks during this episode. The title should make the whole thing clear, and by it’s nature there should be no spoilers for the actual show: The World Without The War
(apologies for any html snafus)
Thanks, tis amusing.
Yesss!
I have definitely been eagerly awaiting your reaction to this episode. It is one of my favorites, simply because on first watch it totally blew my mind. Everything seemed so predictable (Roku & Sozin, Aang & Zuko parallels, blah, blah – though totally awesome,) and then BAM – Avatar Roku was Zuko's great-grandfather.
Suh-weet.
I still get chills watching this story – it's told really well. The moment Roku's dragon curls up and is engulfed in lava and then the scene cuts to Aang's birth – whoa. Beautiful. (Nickelodeon…kids show…)
Sozin chooses to spare his friend’s life because of the past they shared, and it becomes clear now how, in one sense, Sozin was not living up to his duty as the Avatar. Shouldn’t he have stepped in to keep the balance of the world?
Not to be really picky, but shouldn't that be Roku?
Now is probably a good time to link to the vid I made for this episode: Mt. St. Helens, with the Mirah song by the same name. It’s about Roku and Sozin and their Tragic Friendship, and their respective regrets, and also Aang? And contains no spoilers for future episodes, and perhaps you might like it?
(commenting from my phone, which is why I’m not logged in. Urgent Nerd business just couldn’t wait for better Internet access!)
That was beautiful. The artist sounds so familiar, but I can't place her…Also, did you mix in sound effects from the episode into the song in the middle (during the interlude)?
Nope! Just used the song as it was. I’m glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
<img src="http://i1216.photobucket.com/albums/dd375/DoctorWhoGifss3/Doctor%20Who%20Gifs/ew.gif?t=1283990691" border="0"/>Why do you hate my brain!?!
After some of the things in MLP:FiM fandom, yours should be quite inured to such….
Oh, and yeah…Roku totally dropped the ball on this one. Not sure why he was chilling on his island while his "best friend" was plotting world domination. I think that volcano erupted because the spirit world was pissed at Roku's incompetence as Avatar.
I don't know, but I don't think Roku spent ALL HIS TIME on that island. He says "I spent most of my spare time here, at my home." It's pretty clear that he did travel the world and kept balance, but when he wasn't needed, he returned home.
He also said it had been many years since he had seen Sozin…seems to me he should have been keeping a better eye on hip, or perhaps using his unique position to influence Sozin in a positive way.
I always got the feeling that Sozin did back off on his conquest mission after their confrontation, and then restarted after Roku's death. "Without you, all my dreams are possible."
Oh, I think he did back down…notice I said "plotting world domination." Even if Sozin wasn't busy conquering towns, he was certainly up to something that Roku may have turned a blind eye to because of their prior friendship. Sure, he waited until Roku was gone (and the comet to arrive) to launch a full scale invasion and wipeout the Air Nomads…but there must have been some serious plotting going on. I still think Roku dropped the ball. He really should have leveraged his position as Avatar AND as Sozin's "best friend" to make sure Sozin's power trip didn't become a reality.
Even Roku admits that he should have seen the war coming and done more to stop it. Personally, I agree. (Though it does make for a more interesting show seeing he didn't…)
I guess Roku hoped that Sozin really did take his warning to heart. It might be just me, but I thought I saw a flicker of shame and sorrow on Sozin's face as he hung on that rock pillar after his fight with Roku. So even though he did plot world domination, he kept it secret and didn't do anything in the open – and Roku probably thought that he DID change his friend's heart… and only learned the bitter truth at the end during their fight with the volcano. Roku was clearly too much of an optimist when it came to Sozin and his plans…
Personally I thought that expression was more wounded pride – and if sorrow at all, only sorrow that thier friendship was over.
Possibly – but maybe Roku optimistically interpreted it that his words got through to his (former) friend. Not that he'd wait until Roku was dead and then go with his plans anyway…
Plus, I think trust is an inherent quality in the Avatar spirit. Just look at Aang. He's really, really, trusting of people (remember when Aang was in prison during Avatar Day?), and that can sometimes get him hurt, but in general, it's a good quality. Roku probably had that too.
Ah "The Avatar and the Firelord". In which an episode of mostly backstory is so fascinating and relevant to the present conflict.
Having just re-watched the first X-men movie last night, I gotta say that Sozin and Roku feel a lot like Charles and Eric, in that they're both the archetypal Best Friends Turned Into Bitter Enemies kind of story. It's hard to watch your friend choose a path that you know is destructive, a course of action that you know will lead to misery, and I really feel for Roku here.
RE. Avatar ethics in terms of assassination-I think it depends greatly on the personality and moral viewpoint of the Avatar in question. We saw that Kyoshi didn't really seem too phased by the fact that her actions led to the death of Chin the Conqueror and even unabashedly announce, "Yeah. I killed him. What now?" Roku seemed a lot more hesitant to use outright violence. I'm not going to fault or blame Roku for sparing Sozin based on their prior friendship, but I do think Roku could have done a lot more than trash his throne room and give him a stern lecture. Because seriously, what the heck was he doing those twenty or so years while Sozin stewed in his resentment and imperialist dreams? Sozin could have been expanding the colonies for all we know while Roku was off in self-imposed exile on his little island.
I love all the parallels in this episode between Zuko and Aang, Aang and Roku, and Zuko and Sozin. Especially Aand and Roku. Roku having the same inability to speak to the girl he likes, the same bewilderment and abrupt end of childhood brought on by learning he's the Avatar… just wonderful, wonderful stuff.
It's such a beautiful moment when Fang curls up around Roku and the ash cloud covers him and then everything goes white and then fade in to Baby!Aang, and Roku just sort of slips away.
BE STILL MY HEART.
The question about Avatar ethics and killing someone in the name of balance is particularly important because, well, just what does Aang think he's going to have to do? They keep talking about "defeating" Fire Lord Ozai, but… Ozai is not a character that you can just best in battle and he'll quietly step aside, and there always seems to be the implication that this is going to involve death somehow. It doesn't seem like this is going to work out well for peaceful vegetarian Aang, who doesn't even kill animals. I think Roku's story about being unable to kill his friend is the show's way of hinting at this problem, which Aang is eventually going to have to face.
The last one is brilliant. XD
[youtube or8KhPgWMQ4 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=or8KhPgWMQ4 youtube]
A nice little video about this episode.
No spoilers.
Yo, next time, warn for spoilers for ATLA vs Korra. Cause not everyone who's finished ATLA wants to know about Korra.
Well, I didn't mention Korra, because I didn't know that Mark already knew about it, so I didn't want to spoil on that… 🙂 And my post is pure speculation and wishful thinking, anyway.
But since Mark has confirmed here that he knows about Korra, I will, of course, put a warning before spoilers whether it's for ATLA or TLOK. 🙂
My point was that your speculation is based on things revealed from the creators about the show. Knowing the title is not the same as knowing those details.
Oh, okay, I'll remember it in the future. 🙂 Feel free to edit my post if you think it should include the warning.
"I’ve rather enjoyed how familiar archetypes and tropes are given to us, but they’re done extremely well."
That's possibly my favorite thing about Avatar: it takes one of the most cliche stories possible (group of kids with powers based on classical elements, one of whom is some sort of mystical chosen one, go on a quest to defeat an evil conquering empire…I've played a Final Fantasy game too, guys) and pours so much love, dedication, and raw talent into it that we remember just what it was about those old tropes that made so omnipresent in the first place.
Okay, again, HOW CAN ANYONE CALL THIS SEASON FILLER?! Were there ever any episode that displayed the depth and beauty of this world, this is one of the big ones!
You pretty much said it all: The episode is as much about the parallels between Aang and Zuko as it is about the struggle within Zuko’s heart. I mean, right down to his parents, he is utterly torn in his values, morals, and nature. That’s why I LOVE Zuko so much: His actions are full of conviction, but his inner-workings are so complex, he is hard to predict.
Doesn’t this make him the perfect representative of his nation and his element?
I edited out your last sentence for expectation spoilers. Please don't reference specific future episodes. Thanks!
So letting Zuko know that his royal, divine-right-to-rule family line also includes a link to Avatar Roku, to someone whose current incarnation Zuko has repeatedly tried to kill and capture, and pointing out that this war sprang from the destruction of an ancient friendship and an extremely dishonorable act that resulted in the last Avatar's death? That's weighty. That's a big deal to Zuko. That means heavy shit, and I think Iroh went about it this way because he knew it would.
Contrast that with how Azula would have reacted given the same information. I'm pretty sure she'd have laughed and gone 'so what?'
Well said, I agree with you completely.
Great comment!
It's a very clear "EEEK!!!" moment… XD
<img src="http://i29.photobucket.com/albums/c251/Tauriel/vlcsnap-2011-06-27-22h39m36s147.png">
OH. I think this was mentioned on the spoiler thread waaaaay back when Mark was still reviewing Book One, but isn't it poetic that Roku chooses to spare Zuko his wrath in "Winter Solstice: Part Two" when he is destroying the Fire Nation temple? Food for thought, anyway.
I love this idea! Roku would never hurt his great-grandchild!
Well, to be fair, he spared Zhao, too…
For what I know there are no indications for or against this… but, after this episode it has been my personal headcanon that Kuzon, Aang's friend in the Fire Nation one hundred years ago, was a relative of Avatar Roku and consequently prince Zuko. Maybe, his maternal grandfather, or a granduncle? I mean, the names are very similar!
And some friendships transcend one lifetime, right? 🙂
Kuzon is an anagram of Zuko plus the letter 'n'.
That's my point. I know the Fire Nation seems to have a thing with the letter "Z", but in my head Ursa named Zuko after her father/uncle/cousin Kuzon, just as Azula was named after Azulon and Iroh was apparently named after his mother Ilah.
It would make for a neat Lost-like connection and a further layer to the connection between Aang and Zuko.
But that's just my personal canon!
It's relatives all the way down!
A V A T A R
That's an awesome idea…Also, anyone else think that Roku's Waterbending teacher sort of looks like Hakoda? A great-grandfather to the S. Watertribe kids, maybe?
It does beg the question of: if the ‘bloodlines’ are what makes Zuko so conflicted, how come Azula’s such a confidently horrible person?
Maybe she just hasn't felt anything to be conflicted about yet. Through S1, we never saw Zuko express any sort of regret or second thoughts about the war. Heck, he got banished due to an an argument about how the war was fought, not that it was wrong. Methods, not goals, were his issue. It wasn't until stuff like Song's scarred leg was shoved in his face that he even seemed to consider the other side as people.
Alternatively, Iroh's lying. Zuko is related to Roku, it just has nothing to do with the war within him, and he's telling Zuko that the relation does matter because it ties in with his nephew's beliefs about blood and inheritance.
You know what additionally gets me about Roku's dragon? The first time we see it, Aang specifically draws a connection between Fang and Appa: Fang is Roku's 'animal guide' like Appa is to Aang.
So imagine Appa in Fang's place in that scene. Except we don't have to, do we? We know Appa would keep trying to get to Aang, and if Aang was left alone and dying on some volcano, Appa would stay with him.
All the tears.
Oh my god, now I'm bawling. Just the idea of Appa and Aang on that volcano, suffocating from the noxious gasses and burning ash….
Please pardon me, I've got to go … do some stuff. With a lot of Kleenex.
He might mean that each is meant to be a sovereign nation and not be subjugated by another. There's a big difference between cultural exchange and conquest.
Yeah, this. I'm fairly sure he was talking about people and culture, rather than land.
Especially since Sozin is saying, in very pretty language, that the Fire Nation culture is so awesome and superior and everything's so great, wouldn't it be equally awesome to 'spread' that culture to the rest of the world? And we've seen what that means, even within the limited confines of children's television.
So, I would love to post some deeply insightful thought, but after reading this review I suddenly realized something completely ridiculous…
All the Avatars are considered the same person right? And Avatar Roku is Zuko's Great-Grandfather. Thus Aang is Zuko's Great-Grandfather……
Edit: And I should always read the comments before posting things…because about 4 people out of the 10 comments I read have mentioned this.
This is so weird.
Loved this episode. Can't wait for Zuko to just defy his father already.
Can't think of any more. Too hot. Where is my beautiful cold rainy English summer???
Where is my beautiful cold rainy English summer???
Not over here in New England, unfortunately. I wish it were, because I'm moving out and it's hot and tiring!
In Ireland *grumble grumble*
Oh jesus, HOLD ME
It was 26 in my bedroom last night! I melted! I look like Rudolf the Rednosed Reindeer (I'm really fair, I burn if the sun so much as peeks out)!
And then I got woken up by a massive thunderstorm this morning. We're in a dip in the Chilterns, we don't get thunderstorms NEVER.
Thank god it looks like it's gone this morning, grey skies as far as the eye can see. I have all the windows open to try and cool the house down, goddamn. Have you got your horror stories?
At least in American schools, if WW2 is covered at all, the focus is primarily on the European Front. If the Pacific's covered at all, you'll usually only learn about three things: Pearl Harbor, Japanese-American internment, and the Bomb. Things like "Why did Japan attack us?" and "What was going on in China in the 1930s?" tend to get ignored when you have to cover a World War in two or three weeks.
I went to an American school, and learned the basics of Japan's role in the lead-up to WWII in US History. Granted, my school has a reputation for being very good (and it's a public school!), but still…
woah, there are american schools where WW2 isn't even covered?! we spent FOREVER on it, for good reason. well, a lot of the time was spent on the why it happened sort of thing, but… seriously.
in my state we do have two years of world history in high school, i guess, but still. :'D
I really love this review, but I have to disagree with one sentiment, respectfully. From Roku and Sozin's conversation after the wedding, I think Sozin really did want to bring peace to the rest of the world. What I saw were pure intentions, corrupted by years of power. Who's to say Sozin didn't initially want to just bring trade and peace between the four nations?
Think of it this way: possibly until opposition, Sozin only saw himself as a harbinger of peace, probably uninterested in dominating the rest of the world. When the earth kingdom fought back his thought process was probably something like "They must be very uncivilized to be so resistant. I must give them what they need, even if they do not want it." Only at this point, I think, did his intentions turn sour by presuming his way better.
If Sozin was initially drawn to the idea of world domination, I would not respect this show and the storytelling as much as I do. The road to hell, good intentions, all that. Not that I think he was in any way right. But from his perspective… well, I guess right and wrong are always subjective morals.
Ta Min, Roku's wife, is voiced by Azula, her sadistic great-granddaughter. >_>
Grey Delisle is such a genius.
It's really coming to a dire end when Zuko stops complaining about his trivial woes, acknowledges his willingness to fight fate, and offers tea to an uncle who feels there's no time for tea anymore. Clearly, this is an apocalyptic omen.
Do you mean the code, rot13? If so, here's a website where you can translate.
http://www.rot13.com/index.php
THANKS! *saved already*
If I remember correctly, Death is quite partial to camomile tea…
Though his passion is curry.
"His?" Why is Death a guy?
Va Fnaqzna, Qrngu vf na njrfbzr puvpx!
Yeah, well, on Discworld, he's a really nice guy (a bit on the skeletal side), who likes cats and has a white horse named Binky. And he has a human (sort of) granddaughter, Susan (who is a BAMF).
Right. There's nothing wrong with cultural mixing (you get awesome things and new culture out of it, after all). When you start talking about replacing one culture with another you find superior, thaaaat's when the sirens should be going off.
After all, Aang taught the Fire Nation kids an Earth Kingdom dance, there were people from other Nations at Roku's wedding, the Air Nomads specifically traveled all over the world visiting other peoples and cultures, Iroh went and learned how to redirect lightning by studying Waterbenders… the Four Nations have a lot of things they can teach and learn from each other, and enough mixing might turn things into a glorious hodgepodge, but the emphasis here is always on balance. The world is out of balance specifically because the Fire Nation decided it was the best and it should start drumming out anything not like itself.
Well, I agree with the intent… I was just unpleasantly surprised by the way it was framed in Roku's speech. I think if he said something like, "The four nations are equal!", this would better convey the meaning.
I don't think Roku was against cultural mixing. He didn't say that the four nations should remain separate.
It does beg the question of: if the ‘bloodlines’ are what makes Zuko so conflicted, how come Azula’s such a confidently horrible person?
Good question. IMO, Zuko's two heritages aren't the cause of his conflict–there are lots of different causes for that: his upbringing between Iroh, Ursa, and Ozai; love for his country vs discovering the horrors of the war; etc–but a frame that Iroh uses to show him that the path Ozai and Azula have taken isn't the ONLY path available to him.
I feel bad for the fact I almost forgot about this episode before I rewatched it. I was interested in seeing Roku and how life was before the war and the anti-avatar crusade that followed it. I wondered who the name of Roku's water and earth bending masters were? Anyways, even though this episode is short it packs a punch with the friendship between Roku and Sozin and how you as an audience know its going to fall apart at some point. The way their friendship fell apart was done with great detail and I felt anguished to see Roku's realization that Sozin was going to go ahead with his plan for expansion.
The end of this episode is my favorite twist in the entire series. You're like, WHATTTTT. Or at least, I was.
This is one of my favourite episodes of the series, and it’s easy to see why. Back story, moral complexities, friendship, character development and depth…I know I’m always a sucker for these flash-back stories, but can you blame me? They allow so much exposition, yet doing it in a beautiful, artistic way that truly furthers the story. Technically, you don’t need to include some of this stuff. You could have substituted ‘the Storm’ for Aang and Zuko just explaining in passing how sucky their childhoods were. You could have had the reveal of Zuko being related to Avatar Roku without the build-up. But this makes the entire story all the more meaningful.
My thoughts on this episode are so rambly and everywhere, basically consisting of “oh, I love this so much” so I’ll try to add some coherency to this. Firstly, the thing I really love about this was how it extrapolated on this season’s theme of the Fire Nation not meaning evil, and how such a change can happen within a country. We see a country which was once peaceful and prosperous. We see two boys who were best friends, both caring and kind individuals. It wasn’t like they were born evil, that they always had this plan to “TAKE OVER THE WORLD MUHAHAHAHA”. That’s something which I think is very evil. I find that many people, when they talk about countries like Nazi Germany forget that there were people among all the tyranny, and although they did evil acts, they weren’t necessarily evil people. It’s all the wiser to show them how good people can become dangerous; that’s what will teach people to question their own actions and prevent things like this happening again wherever they live.
I also love the subtle signs of why the Avatar is so powerful. We’ve had Iroh remark previously that the Avatar’s strength isn’t just in the fact that he controls all for elements, but has knowledge from all for nations. Here we see that it is also the friendship and experiences he’s gained from across the world which makes him a force for peace. He’s had his beliefs challenged, become accustomed to the different customs of the war. They have had their prejudices systematically eroded, and that is such a beautiful idea, it makes me wish there was a way to let everyone experience it to some degree.
There are a million other things I love about this episode. Of course, the parallels between Aang, Zuko, Roku and Sozin. Obviously some parallels are more apparent than others, but its only on re-watchings that some of them become truly clear. In transitions between ‘present’ scenes, characters’ faces often blend into one another, especially Zuko’s. At first, one might wonder why there would be such visual parallel to Roku made, but it becomes clear. Like Roku, Zuko had to leave his home at a young age. They both travelled the world, learning about other cultures- Zuko’s seen extensive parts of the Earth Kingdom, seen the Water Tribes, and has probably even studied the Air Nomads in his search for the Avatar. Finally, both he and Roku have the power to unite the world…
…because they are related!
What a reveal, eh? Seeing this show’s nature on spirituality, its a very interesting addition to see how it seems that conflict can be literally handed down the genetic line.
However, this reveal has always raised certain questions within me. Iroh says “You have more than one great grand-father, Zuko.” He’s right. He has four. Do the other two factor into this spiritual balance thing at all? And what about the grandmothers? Speaking of the female sex, what about our Dear Azula? Technically, shouldn’t she have the seed for this moral conflict too?
I think the heritage didn't apply to Azula because she was closer to her father, Sozin's descendant. Zuko, on the other hand, was very close to their mother, Roku's descendant, but wanted the acceptance of his father as well. While Zuko struggles to make their father proud of him, Azula is resigned to the fact that their mother thought her a "monster" and did nothing to change that. That being said, I think her relationship with her father corrupted her. She's more ruthless than Zuko- I don't think she would have objected to sacrificing Fire Nation soldiers, something Zuko did that caused him to be banished from his own nation, and Azula was smiling when Ozai scarred and banished him. She's Daddy's Little Princess to a T.
Binky is the Chuck Norris of horses, he doesn't get stolen.
Their pain isn't less important, and therein lies the big moral question. When you grant mercy, the chance for your enemy to redeem themselves and turn their lives around and do somthing good…sometimes they don't. Sozin didn't, and Zuko didn't, but maybe he will in the future but will it be too late then? Iroh has changed from a man who laughed about burning a city to the ground to the man we know now, so that redemption is possible. So you have to choose mercy or punishment, and then deal with the consequences.
Same here. I don't really like sins or whatever being passed by lineage, but the sense of two conflicting ideologies passes down because of they type of people your grandparents were? I can dig that.
Oh, GOD. Sassy Gay Friend to Sozin.
"What, ,what are you doing? Do you even know what you're getting into? You've known this international warfare dude for what, three days? Roku's been your best friend for yeeeeaaarrrs."
So … middle-aged Roku was kinda hot.
Just putting that out there.
:high5:
Add him to my list of legal Avatar crushes…
His wife is pretty, too.
Eh. I do enjoy this episode overall, but I can't help but be distracted by two things. Maybe someone can help me out here?
1.) How did Iroh get any sort of message to Zuko from FIRE NATION PRISON? Much less a suspiciously cryptic one with a secret and kind of subversive message on the back?
2.) "Without you, all my plans are suddenly possible." So why did Sozin go to Roku's aid at all? Why not leave him to whatever his fate may be? Did that just conveniently not occur to Sozin until that moment?
1) I assume Iroh has at least one contact from the White Lotus who is posing as a guard or something and is able to relay messages out. Even if it's not a WL contact, Iroh was a very well-respected general AND the rightful heir to the throne–surely some other people in the army might have qualms about Ozai's coup and are willing to help Iroh out despite his decline in status.
2) I always thought that Sozin saw the eruption and was like 'Oh shit, my bff!" I mean, even if they disagreed, I can see Sozin not wanting Roku to die. But then Roku is dying anyway and the opportunity is just waiting. Sozin probably wanted to help Roku out, or maybe just get the last word in, but the situation was too perfect to pass up once it became obvious Roku was doomed.
Yeah, I think it absolutely didn't occur to him at the start. His first instinct is to go help his long lost friend despite all the bad blood between them. But then all of a sudden, as they're racing to safety, there it is. A chance burst of gas and Roku is choking to death, and all Sozin has to do is fly away. The temptation was too much. I think the important thing here was the emphasis of this episode: these people are not 'born bad'. Sozin ended up being a terrible person, but he was still a person, still complex, still with old loyalties. If he'd been sitting around coldly calculating the moment of Roku's death as the revival of his expansion, then sure, he'd have stayed home.
But I think it's clear he wasn't. He was just suddenly presented with the solution to his desires: walk away. No one even knows he was there. No one would ever know what happened. It was a What You Are In The Dark moment, and Sozin failed it spectacularly.
Ba Sing Se literally means "Impenetrable City".
They don't Call it Na Sing Se…that means "Penetrable City".
From what I've experienced, not a lot of Americans seem to know much about the Japanese side of the war. They know pearl harbour and the bomb, but beyond that, seem very blank. Many I've spoken to didn't even know the Japanese were invading China.
Guess I'm the exception that proves the rule, then. (Well, my school system, and all the other students who retained the same knowledge about Japan and WWII.)
What?! Asia exists? There's such a thing as geography? Really?
Okay, my schools weren't that bad, but I've learned more about Asia, its cultures, history and politics by being an anime and manga fan than in school.
It's also something I knew I was lacking, because I grew up in a diverse neighborhood and played with kids whose parents came from all over the world in the playground, and I'd always wondered about how their lives differed from mine culturally…
Ninth grade was World Civ, with the focus on practically everything except Western Europe. Though unfortunately my strongest memory of that class was the Africa Fair, where I ended up ruining my voice the day of a concert.
finally i can share this video ^^
[youtube gs7ES0wdj_w http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gs7ES0wdj_w youtube]
her other videos are phenomenal too but super spoilery
That's an awesome vid! I would've loved more Epic!Sokka moments, tho!
FYI, I've watched this video like at least 10 times since you posted it because it is just THAT awesome. 🙂
This episode gives me CHILLS. Every time I watch it, I get to the part where the Fire Navy ship goes right over Aang's little bubble of suspended animation, and think "OMG SO CLOSE." Same thing when Fang forms a protective circle around his master…brb, crying forever.
It's funny how all the avatars before Aang had it easier than he did…plenty of time to train, peace between the nations, etc. Then the poor kid inherits 100 years of war that a past life didn't prevent, and a corrupt police force that another past life created. Thanks a lot, past lives!
Mark has confirmed in another post that he knows about Legend of Korra, so we can mention it, but I would assume the spoiler policy extends to the information released about LoK, such as plot details and characters.
I suspect that Iroh is probably just A Grand Master in the general organization, although I would be surprised if Piandao weren't also pretty high-ranking. Spoilers: (V unir n farnxvat fhfcvpvba gung Cvnaqnb vf erfcbafvoyr sbe gur pensgvat bs Nccn'f nezbe. Lrf, Grnz Ningne tbg gur pnfu va 'Gur Ehanjnl', ohg ubj jbhyq gurl or noyr gb trg gur nezbe znqr naq pensgrq jvgubhg nalbar xabjvat? Gbcu pna zrgnyoraq, ohg znxvat nezbe vf n fcrpvnyvmrq fxvyy gung V qba'g guvax pbhyq or nppbzcyvfurq whfg jvgu zrgnyoraqvat.)
There was a really fun fanfic I saw that posited the Fortuneteller from Season 1 also being in the Order and having a meeting with Iroh when he passed through the town. (This led to a Fortuneteller/Iroh hookup that Zuko managed to eavesdrop on, it was hilarious.)
Another thing I thought of was that even if the Order isn't involved (and it could well be), there is probably a quiet faction of Iroh supporters, especially within the capital. I mean, Iroh was both a respected general and next in line for the throne. While I'm sure Ozai did as much as he could to purge any supporters of his brother, it would make sense that there would still be some people around who were not pleased by Ozai's coup and are happy to help out his brother.
Your rot13 spoilers make a lot of sense. 😀
Yeah, I remember reading that fic, it was pretty good.
Not so much inherited "blame" as inherited "position-to-fix-things-or-make-them-worse".
Exactly. Whether you believe in inherited blame or not, the Fire Nation has a hereditary line of power. Zuko, because of his ancestors, is in a position of great power, which means he has a lot of responsibility. Fixing the world is, by default, in a large part his.
But I also agree with Griffin, that Iroh was probably trying to get Zuko to realize what Mark has been realizing all this season– that the Fire Nation is not simply a race of imperialist jerks, razing and pillaging as they go, and neither is Zuko. He can follow the beaten path and rule with an iron fist, as one of his ancestors did– or he can try to restore balance in the world, as his other grandfather did.
(Of course, by now this has probably been said at least four times. :P)
…Okay, now someone has to write that.
<img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/vpxmcw.gif">
Is it just me, or does the younger Ta Min looks a hellavu lot like Katara.
<img src="http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a76/wackinov/tamin.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket">
They certainly have similar hairstyles (well, in the Fire Nation for Katara).
Well, Katara clearly adopted a Fire Nation hairstyle to blend in…
It's interesting how Aang isn't the first Avatar to have to deal with a wannabe world conqueror, and to see how his previous incarnations reacted to that problem – Roku looked the other way because he couldn't bear to forcibly stop a friend, and Kyoshi coolly broke off her homeland and turned it into an island so it wouldn't be easily conquered, killing Chin in the process.
Aang certainly has no attachment to Sozin, so I can't see him following Roku's path, but what of Kyoshi's isolationist way? CONSIDER THE GEOPOLITICS, CHILDREN. 😛
I was gonna respond, and then SPOILERS.
DAMMIT
You can always go the ROT-13 route.
Yaaaay I've been waiting for you to get to this episode! A shining example of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" with the whole trope thing.
I loooooooooove this episode. The parallels and character-building, and setting up the ideas behind the war do a great job of continuing the humanization of the Fire Nation, like you said. I sense strong parallels between the Fire Nation and the real world, with Germany in WWII, and even modern-day Iran, where the regular people of the country are unjustly demonized by the government oppressing them.
AND ZUKO. I am very excited for his future as a character. YOU ARE NOT PREPARED.
This episode is my favorite! I nearly collapsed when I first saw it. Why? Because I after I finished ranting about how horrible it was that Sozin let his best friend die in a volcanic explosion, I spent about five minutes saying 'So Zuko is so morally conflicted because he is the decedent of the man who started the war AND the man who opposed it! Iroh knew it and was trying to help Zuko find balance because Ozai was only trying to give the Sozin side attention, and the Roku side needs love too. And he and Aang are related by spirit! Soul brothers! I bet he is going to go on another journey alone across the Fire Nation trying to find balance and turn his soul into a dragon themed Yin Yang because he can not exist without both forces in his life but he can try to find a balance. It's so symbolic and deep I can not beleive this was a kids show aired on Nick.'
Um, he doesn't actually say that the four nations were meant to be "separate". He says: "The four nations are meant to be just that – four." Meaning that they should remain unique and diverse, that neither should be forcefully swallowed by another. It doesn't mean that they shouldn't (willingly) mingle and share things.
Uhhhhn, this is one of my favorite episodes. It's stunningly beautiful, both visually and story-wise. I love Roku and Sozin's friendship — Rozin (Soku?) OTP — and I'm impressed how its dissolution is shown in only 20 minutes. I also love the way that the message about people of the Fire Nation not being inherently bad from the first five episodes this season is brought into Zuko and Aang's histories. I also like the implications of Zuko not knowing that his great-grandfather was the previous Avatar; either he was incurious, the Avatar is thought of as nothing impressive in an imperial Fire Nation, or the importance of the Avatar was actively repressed because Zuko is the heir. I realize the qualities of the Avatar aren't something inheritable, but Roku was obviously well-respected and I wonder if the politics of Ozai and Ursa's marriage are related to her ancestry, and Sozin's desire that he and Roku could lead the way into a new era together. It could be very symbolic to people who were aware.
And I always end grinning and crying by the end of the episode. Fang curling up around Roku before they die reminds me of "Jurassic Bark" (dutiful animal friends! I have a hair-trigger for these sorts of things) — QUICK, SOMEONE DIG UP THEIR DOLOMITE FOSSILS AND CLONE THEM.
And since I like potty humor, here's Aang.
<img src="http://i56.tinypic.com/ojdp2u.gif">
That reminds me:
<img src="http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/6924/zsponge.png">
Much lulz were had when this came out.
THANK YOU SO MUCH. The spongebob thing is an added bonus. LOLZ FOREVER.
Still doesn't beat Graham Norton ruining the effect of the end of "Time of Angels".
Oh yeah, that one was just awful.
OMG SASSY GAY FRIEND <3
Okay, I guess I'm going to be the bad guy here and say that the Fire Nation totally should have extended their influence upon the world! How stale would it have been if all four nations remain in a state of "balance"; i.e. static. This is a very American/Western notion, but I believe in change and dynamics. I'd rather live in a changing world than one that remains static just for the sake of "balance" (the Avatar is just a stick in the mud!)
Okay, I'm ready for you all to disagree with me and hate me, but I completely think that change could be a positive for all four nations!
You do realize that when Sozin was talking about “influence” and “prosperity” he means subjugating other nations by force? Because the Fire Nation didn’t extended its influence by lowering tariffs, trying to create a common market, or flooding the world with its art and literature to achieve cultural hegemony. They marched into another nation, sacked the coastal cities, and put up their own flag. That’s not progress. That’s gangsterism writ large.
And the Avatar isn’t a stick in the mud about progress. Roku had no problems with the Fire Nation industrializing or growing wealthier than the other nations. He had a problem with Sozin making a land grab for resources and Lebensraum.
I edited your comment to remove a reference to info from a LoK press release.
<img src="http://i56.tinypic.com/20gntrc.gif" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic">
My apologies.
Balance isn't necessarily static.
What an odd comment.
Americans invite people from other nations to come to America (usually) and share their idea, mix and mingle, practice their religions freely, and become a melting pot (ideally). No imperialism or colonies ('cept Guyana…and Peurto Rico…just about every Native American Tribe…that land grab on Canada in 1812…Hawaii…) THE POINT IS, AMERICANS DON'T THINK THAT THEY ARE IMPERIALIST AT ALL! AMIRITE?
Balance is by definition dynamic, else there would be no reason to balance, it just manages to keep the changes… well, balanced.
To reiterate what has been noted: if Sozin were serious about spreading prosperity and the like he would have invited people to FN universities and opened up joint ventures elsewhere rather than seizing chunks of the Earth Kingdom by force of arms. As presented this is an overt land grab thinly excused by propaganda.
If Roku had raised a stink over the Fire Nation becoming the proverbial economic 800lb Gorilla, or even setting up a trade post somewhere unoccupied (or leased/purchased above board), you may begin to have a point.
I have been waiting for you to get to this episode since you started this project. So much love for this episode, I can't even.
As if Lord Vetinari would let that happen.
Or you could get the add-on. https://addons.mozilla.org/en-us/firefox/addon/le…
I use Chrome. Is there any for that?
There seems to be one called "d3coder," but I haven't tried it out yet.
Thanks! I'm testing it to see if it works.
Aang isn't descended from Roku–he's the same person as Roku. Sort of.
But Aang hasn't inherited the blame for Roku's mistakes… it's just that he's the one who has to clean up the mess. Roku seemed to be warning him against making the same kind of mistake is all.
I HAD TO TRY ON BRIDESMAID DRESSES SO I MISSED OUT ON COMMENTING EARLY
But I'm gonna look totally awesome in four months, so it was worth it.
This episode was really amazing. We get to know that Roku had an opportunity to stop Sozin, the way Kyoshi stopped Chin the Conqueror. But while Kyoshi never had a familial connection with Chin, Sozin was more or less Roku's brother. I don't think we ever find out how it was that Sozin and Roku grew up together, but Roku's family must have been pretty high up to be raised with the future Fire Lord.
I think Roku underestimated the power Sozin would be given. Sozin was probably pretty young when he inherited the throne- when the monks came to reveal Roku as the Avatar, Sozin was concerned about his father, so that Fire Lord was probably on his last leg. So when a young man whose balancing force was probably his friend who becomes absent for 12 years inherits a ton of power… well, of course he's going to get a swelled head. The only reason he didn't continue expansion is that he knew Avatar Roku would go to town on him and would have the backing of the Earth Kingdom and the Water Tribes (Air Nomads would be neutral).
It's good storytelling, is what this is.
It's hard to think about "The Fox and the Hound" without tearing up slightly.
No-one's made the comment about a Dumbledore/Grindelwald parallel here! Dumbledore even avoided confronting Grindelwald for years, even though he knew he was gaining influence on the continent, because of his mixed feelings.
YESYESYESYES!!!!!!!
And this episode was where the movie screwed it up so much. Zuko being Roku's great grandson is such an important plot point, I am at a loss on how they are going to scrape together the remains of the next two movies (if they're ever made).
Yup, Zuko's hair is really pretty. He should never had gone for the bald-except-the-ponytail look! <3
It's the Fire Nation Citizen's Burden!
Man, every time Iroh tells Zuko "you have more than one great-grandfather!" and is all like "there's another one! Your mother's!" I want to shout at the screen. ZUKO SHOULD HAVE FOUR GREAT-GRANDFATHERS. Otherwise the Fire Nation royal line is in some serious trouble.
LOL, I know! This bugs me too! Zuko's great-grandfathers on his mother's side are… both Roku? Zuko's mom is the product of a sibling marriage? WAT
Well, it's not like he says "You have only TWO great-grandfathers"
Well, only two great-grandfathers of Zuko were important figures. The other two were probably just random Fire Nation nobles.
RIGHT
One of my biggest surprises when I first saw this episode was that Roku got married and had kids, After "The Guru", I was convinced that Aang's destiny as Avatar would include a clause that he couldn't marry or reproduce. It makes sense in a way: he is a monk AND he has the most important leadership position in his universe, but it seemed so sad. What about his crush on Katara or the future of Airbenders?
So I was pleasantly surprised at Roku's wedding scene and the fact that he had descendants. Even more surprising was re-watching "The Kiyoshi Warriors" with the pop-up "Avatar Extras" feature, and learning that Kiyoshi had married and had kids, too. According to the pop-ups, her daughter Koko took over Kiyoshi Island and the leadership of the Kiyoshi Warriors after her death, and that little girl who called Aang "Aangy" in the episode was named Koko, after Kiyoshi's daughter.
It just makes me want a Kiyoshi back story episode, too. Her life, and her family were probably really interesting…
P.S. If Aang chooses too, he can marry and have children without compromising his position or role as the Avatar. Still confused about the monk part, but we really know way too little about Air Nomad culture.
Aang was shown to be born in one of the Air Temples, as he was being held aloft by Air Nuns. I assume there is no ban on sexual exploration as long as there are no permanent ties and all children would be raised together with no one knowing their parents.
Aang simply misunderstood the Guru. The guru didn't say he had to give up Katara. Just that he had to put the world first.
Again, Guru Pathik talked about giving up earthly attachment, not love. Real love is not about attachment, real love is about freedom and giving yourself fully to someone. Aang misunderstood him at first and then refused to listen.
All right I literally have no idea how to put images in here but I want to post them. Links it is!
First this one: http://piandao.org/screencaps/ep46/ep46-31.png
Which is a beautiful set up for the whole episode of how intwined these two characters are.
And now a series: http://piandao.org/screencaps/ep46/ep46-45.png http://piandao.org/screencaps/ep46/ep46-46.png http://piandao.org/screencaps/ep46/ep46-47.png
OH HI PERSON IN THE BACKGROUND THAT IT TOOK ME MULTIPLE WATCHES TO NOTICE. I see you now.
This episode makes me think of all the other possibilities because, if the Avatar is just reborn the day that the previous one dies (this seems to be implied in the episode…I could be wrong feel free to correct me) you still have that Roku and Sozin share a birthday. Easily Sozin could have been the Avatar. I LOVE YOU SHOW.
Roku giving Aang relationship advice is precious. Just in general especially since his response of "being the Avatar helps" was amazing.
This is also the second time we see the Avatar battling a volcano.
Iroh pretty much stopped messing around in this episode and letting Zuko find things out on his own. Usually, even with Appa, there was much more choice involved and here he pretty much is just saying "go help the Avatar, you have to do this."
Wonder what would have happened with the Fire Lord line of succession if Sozin had become the Avatar, or for that matter, if the Avatar is ever the heir to one of the nations' thrones. I can't really see that working out too well, and as it sorta defeats the purpose of the Avatar representing balance if he has to look out for one nation's interests over another's, I'd guess that any Avatar born into a royal family would be dropped from the line of succession. But when would that happen? Avatars are supposed to be told about their identity on their 16th birthday, so would a royal heir Avatar be groomed for the throne until then? Be removed from the line of succession early on without explanation? Be told about their identity early?
I figure Avatarhood would be automatic disqualification for anything above possibly villiage headman. Taking 12 years off to travel the world would be a serious disruption in any case.
For that matter, the Avatar is normally ID'd in infancy or early childhood. Which means a remotely honest ruler would find some excuse to bump the kid out of the Line of Succession before he (or she) even knows what it is.
Village headman is probably acceptable, as Kyoshi set a precedent. (Incidentally, and related to the cultural mixing debate, I had the idea that the hometowns of Avatars would be more likely to attract residents from all nations, between the people there for diplomatic reasons and the friends the Avatar made during their training and duties wanting to stay close.)
I do hope that there's a way to remove the kid from the line of succession without hurting their self-esteem. Help them to understand that they won't rule not because there's anything wrong with them, but that they have a different but just as important destiny.
I actually read a fic once that is spoilery where the author had the Avatar being the first born of a royal family and neglected to really explain how they were disqualified from succession. Though it would be interesting to see how this would be bypassed if it happens.
Yeah, Roku says "I've seen the colonies." Surely this place was one Earth Kingdom and is now a part of the giant Fire Nation?
So, again, obsessed with the show but was never part of the internet fandom, so I never knew that this episode was so universally loved. This was definitely my favorite of Book Three by this point, and I'm sure I watched it ten times before the next one came out. I wish I didn't have to comment so late all the time because I never have anything new to add despite …brain…happy…awesome.
Yeah, URITE!
They are HOT…
That Fire Lord has also has Lotuses in the background. White lotuses.
As for the right one… He's standing on the clouds, holding a combined sun and moon. Perhaps he married a watertribe girl? And had good relations to the airbenders? What intrigues me is how an earth symbol is missing- note that following the order of the paintings, this guy is Sozin's father.