In the eighteenth episode of the first season of Avatar: The Last Airbender, Team Avatar finally arrives at the North Pole and discovers the Northern Water Tribe, where both Aang and Katara find difficulty in learning under the water bending master there. While Sokka begins to fall in love, the Fire Nation prepares for an invasion to capture the Avatar once and for all. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to watch Avatar.
I have to say this first because I almost peed myself due to how excited I was:
WE FINALLY GOT TO SEE MUSIC NIGHT ON PRINCE ZUKO’S SHIP.
Oh my god, could Uncle Iroh sing songs to me forever. I think that because I constantly demanded to see such a thing, this scene sent me into a euphoric state of happiness. And strangely? Still not the best scene in this episode.
I’m starting to see the grander scope for season one, now that I’m just short of the ending. I didn’t really think about the fact that Team Avatar have been traveling a really long time, so it was about time that they came upon the Northern Water Tribe. A lot of this first season now feels like an extended game of chess, where we get background on the characters and the writers assemble the pawns into their places for the final confrontation. So, on top of being the ultimate set-up for this showdown, the writers also give us a powerful story about Katara’s fight against gender discrimination. AND IT IS BEAUTIFUL.
“The Waterbending Master†gives us our first look at the Northern Air Temple, which is not disappointing in the slightest. Despite being localized in only one small spot on the globe, it’s here that we see (and later hear about) how powerful the water benders are at the north pole. We get a glimpse at first as they attack Appa and Team Avatar, believing them to be enemies, but it’s not long before they realize who their travelers are.
I was slack-jawed as Appa slowly swam into the temple, guided by the Water Tribe ships, and we saw just how magnificent and elaborate this water temple is. Saying it’s gorgeous would deny both the function and practicality of the design, and I’m short on words to describe the place. It’s massive and seems so all-encompassing. There are so many simply unbelievable entrances that require water bending to work and…holy shit, THIS IS AMAZING. THIS IS WORTH WAITING AN ENTIRE SEASON FOR.
Like “Bato of the Water Tribe,†it was great seeing Sokka and Katara get a chance to feel at home among their people, despite that everyone in the water tribe is a stranger to them. I liked that they all wore very similar jackets, suggesting that despite the two tribes have such varying cultures in specific terms, there are things that they do share. In that sense, though, a large part of “The Waterbending Master†deals with how Katara’s water tribe differentiates on a particular point: what gender role she should abide by.
I don’t want to comment too much in a personal way on that specific plot point, since I’m a dude and I’d much rather read the thoughts of women on this, but I just imagined….if I was watching this as a young girl and this episode just showed me that you could be a girl and be aggressive and tough and that did not make you any less of a girl….my god. My god. This was on Nickelodeon!!! Millions of people watched this, and Katara is SUCH A BAD ASS for refusing to accept that she is not worthy of being taught.
In the same breath, I rather enjoyed that Aang stuck up for Katara, refusing to be taught himself, but then he stepped aside and let her fight the battle herself when it came down to it. I was initially a tad worried that he might step in and that might have sent the message that a girl needs a boy to finish her battles, but Katara does this all by herself.
Just amazing.
But, as usual, I can’t resist jumping ahead in order to freak out about this show. I PROMISE I WILL GET BETTER AT THIS SOME DAY. For now, though, I just couldn’t help feeling so excited and amazed that a mainstream television show so explicitly carried a message as powerful as this.
Anyway, this is also the first episode that is also blatantly serial in nature, as only one real plot is resolved at all. Simultaneous to Katara’s fight against Master Pakku, we have Sokka’s growing crush on a local princess, Princess Yue. (I LOVE HER HAIR BY THE WAY.) Sokka has this adorable sense of self-worth that causes him to stumble (literally and figuratively) as he tries to win the affection of the gorgeous princess. I think he imagines that he is a suave ladies man, but we see here that he’s much clumsy about it. Of course, my heart instantly relates to such things because I am that stereotypical awkward dude when I have a crush on someone. Suddenly, my humor or wit and my coordination decides to take a vacation at the mere hope that I might be physically or emotionally attracted to someone. Why does that happen, by the way? Science has explained virtually everything ever already, so is there a reason why some of us become bumbling fools when we’re faced with the prospect of an awesome person?
It’s just really awesome to me that this plot, while it has a serious ending, is not as heavy or deep as the other two stories in “The Waterbending Master.†I commented before that I actually enjoy all this relationship stuff that’s popping up on the show, because we can’t forget that these people have entire lives and personalities that have much more depth than beating the Fire Nation. It suggests that these things are not mutually exclusive. That’s an important message to me! I don’t like when people imply (or outright state) the idea that our lives only should have one real focus in them. And maybe this is only something a few of us experience, but their can be this bizarre prescriptivism online about what we should be doing with our lives, that we should be focusing on only one passion and everything else needs to take a backseat or else we’re too “distracted†or “unfocused†or “not committed enough.â€
I mean, even on a personal level, I had someone send me a message on my Tumblr (anonymously, of course, ARE YOU SURPRISED) that I ended up deleting because the anger it inspired in me was not worth my time. But someone said they didn’t like how silly I was on Tumblr, that they came to that site in the hopes it would just be a continuation of what I do on Mark Reads and Mark Watches. I mean…first of all, I am pretty fucking silly on this site. Shit, I opened this review praising Uncle Iroh’s singing over everything else. But it speaks to a larger issue that I sometimes have with fandom, where any story that deviates from the main mythology is useless and pointless and a waste of time. While I’m perfectly fine with people who dislike those kind of turns (as I’m not partial to them all the time myself), I don’t like the weird shaming that comes along with it.
That goes along with the Tumblr thing I brought up. I didn’t have a space to talk about all of the far-less-serious things in my life or to tell stories that weren’t about the TRULY AWFUL SHIT that has happened to me and…well, I needed that. It was a chance to let my guard down or not over-analyze things. And why should I have to focus on only one thing? Why can’t I do both?
It’s a fun thing to see Avatar do, to be serious and silly in almost the same breath, to show us that serious issues are not cancelled out by having fun or experiencing a crush or falling in love or eating bugs while flying because haters gonna hate. (I expect a GIF of this soon.)
Of everything in “The Waterbending Master,†though, I was most fascinated by where Iroh and Zuko’s story is heading. Having figured out that Aang is in the North Pole, Admiral Zhao decides that it is best not to rush into the Northern Water Temple to attack, instead choosing to make a more calculated effort. In doing so, he assembles as many Fire Nation soldiers as possible, which includes stealing all of Prince Zuko’s crew aside from Uncle Iroh. Man, I’m sorry, there is literally nothing to like about Zhao. Which I’m perfectly fine with, as there needs to be some sort of identifiable villain amongst this bunch, and he suits that role fine. But I’m at a point, especially after this episode, where I hope the earth benders open up the earth and it eats him sometime. It probably won’t be until season three, but still. CHRIST, JUST STOP EXISTING.
I didn’t think that there was even the most remote chance that Prince Zuko had actually perished when Zhao had the pirates from “The Waterbending Scroll†torch the entire ship with Zuko on board. Still, this was our sign that Zhao means business, a huge moment of SHIT IS GOING TO BE ABSOLUTELY REAL FROM HERE ON OUT. Like…this was an attempted assassination plot and the show did not try to sugarcoat it at all. Zhao tried to have Zuko killed!
I haven’t quite figured it out yet, but I was completely shocked that not only did Zuko survive, but his uncle organized him to be aboard the same ship as him so that they can take the Avatar away from Zhao.
Oh god, I am seriously unprepared.
Now, about the finale: I know that it was all aired at once, but I’m going to be evil and split them into separate reviews. I have not seen them at the time I am writing this, but I kind of want to give them a proper amount of attention and NO ONE WANTS TO READ SIX THOUSAND WORDS IN ONE REVIEW. Which I would probably do, so…oh gosh, I just realized that, yet again, I’ve split up a finale over the weekend. HOW DOES THIS KEEP HAPPENING.
Either way, that’s more Avatar reviews for all of you? That’s a good thing AMIRITE.
THOUGHTS
- My god, the story of where Katara’s necklace comes from is HEARTBREAKING. What a huge moment not only for the greater story, but for Katara herself.
- I didn’t talk about it and it deserves to be mentioned: I absolutely love Katara’s transformation in terms of her bending ability, as anger and passion mix to show us how truly talented she is. That is so fantastic, y’all.
- There are few things that bring me more joy than Iroh being most upset that he lost the cook on his ship. Bless that man forever.
- So Sokka’s story with Princess Yue is entirely unresolved. Since it appears that Team Avatar will actually stay in one place past a single episode (the first time ever!), I wonder what else we’re going to see from Princess Yue, as I’d like to see her story developed further as well.
- Oh my god SOKKA’S CARVED FISH. My god, I want one.
- UGH ZHAO FIGURED OUT THAT ZUKO WAS THE BLUE SPIRIT. DAMN IT.
- I will now refer to all people I don’t like as Master Poophead. Thanks, Aang.
- That little dance Sokka does when he claims he’ll carry everyone on his back…seriously, it’s the small moments like that that make me appreciate the show.
- I AM SO EXCITED FOR THE SEASON ONE FINALE!!!!
Mark. I know the girl who does the voice of Princess Yue. She and I went to the same summer camp. She was there for singing. This basically means that I am almost best friends with the Avatar in real life.
I AM SO JEALOUS.
THAT IS SO UNFAIR AHHHH
Something that struck me much later after my first watch of this ep: According to what Jeong-Jeong said, healing was a talent that only some waterbenders had. So what about all the girls who couldn't heal, could only use kinetic waterbending? Aren't they a bit screwed?
Well, Jeong-Jeong may not have had much contact with the Northern Water Tribe, what with the whole war thing. Tends to make learning about other cultures a bit tricky.
Agreed, he may have only seen men in his travels and very few women in his travels. Perhaps the men of the northern water tribe learn basic healing to tend to war time wounds? Also: *SPOILERS* (by that I mean I have spoilers.)
I've always interpreted that as Jeong-Jeong not really being informed about what waterbenders can do – I mean, the Northern Tribe seems to be pretty insular, the Southern Tribe has been whittled down in numbers over the years… He was probably going off stories and rumours more than anything. And if only the men of the tribe fight – presumably they would then take the wounded back to the healing huts/whatever – when would the Fire Nation get to see someone using healing powers? It's understandable they would think it really rare.
That last is a good point. Especially if the men mostly look down on healing as Pakku seems to.
Here's the thing. It's one thing to be a "talent" and another thing to be "something you can learn do." I can learn to play the piano, that doesn't mean that I am talented at it. When Katara first healed herself, she practically went "WTF is this?" She just knew how to do it innately. That is talent. You can have talent without technique, and you can have technique without talent.
So yeah, they probably just forced all those little girls to learn to heal or else.
Pricks.
Also a good point… and the scenario you draw is heartbreaking 🙁
THE DAMAGE CAUSED BY RIGID GENDER ROLES, Y'ALL
They probably lost good potential-fighters who happened to be women and good potential-healers who happened to be men.
THIS. It makes me mad to think about it, especially compared to what we've seen of the Southern Water Tribe.
I love that the show went there. PATRIARCHY HURTS MEN TOO!
Yup. Even aside from wrecking a fellow's love life because he target of his affection would not put up with things, the weakness born from failure to cross-train is self-evident.
I know she's a fictional character but I'm so proud of Katara.
<img src="http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l7zfhia7jZ1qceiz6o1_500.gif"/>
An interesting bit of trivia: At the end of the fight when Paku traps Katara with the icicles is an homage to a fight scene from House of Flying Daggers.
Omg omg omg whenever someone posts a fight-scene gif I just jazzhands so hard you don't even know. And I'm pretty sure Katara vs. Pakku was my favorite duel of season 1, so. Extra jazz. A whole nightclub of jazz.
A dumptruck of jazz?
A music-night-on-Zuko's-ship of jazz.
Haha – I made a bunch of fight scene gifs from this scene for this post on my tumblr account (there aren't any spoilers in that post, but there definitely are in the rest of my tumblr account). Here they are, if you want to see them:
<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v661/Saki-chan/Katara/badass.gif">
<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v661/Saki-chan/Katara/bending.gif">
<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v661/Saki-chan/Katara/flip.gif">
<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v661/Saki-chan/Katara/hand-to-hand.gif">
<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v661/Saki-chan/Katara/just-getting-started.gif">
<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v661/Saki-chan/Katara/NEVER-GIVE-UP.gif">
<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v661/Saki-chan/Katara/NEVER-SAY-DIE.gif">
<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v661/Saki-chan/Katara/pakku-takes-notice.gif">
<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v661/Saki-chan/Katara/YOU-CANT-KNOCK-ME-DOWN.gif">
<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v661/Saki-chan/Katara/whip.gif">
I already said it in my comment, but I freakin' love that part. Badass Katara makes me grin so hard my face hurts.
I'm not sure why but Katara's "You can't knock me down" line reminded me of Locke's "Don't tell me what I can't do!"
I always feel like she should totally be able to just melt the ice and escape! it is just because her hands are trapped that she can't?
Yeah, I think you have to do the movements (the martial-arts inspired ones) to be able to bend, in general. You can't just bend with your mind. Although that would be awesome.
Everyone who wants to do an activity with Sokka at a place for some time, raise your hand.
ME ME ME PICK ME.
<Donkey> Oooh! Pick me! Pick me! </Donkey>
ME.
Oooh! If I weren't married… and if I didn't hate going outside and being cold… and if he wasn't fictional…
…well, I totally would.
So many people raising their hands! Sokka says "Climb on everyone, Sokka's ready for takeoff."
Oh my!
I think you forgot the [/georgetakei] tag there.
If I raise my hand, the internet can't see me. So, I shall raise my thumb. #hihihigeddit
WE FINALLY GOT TO SEE MUSIC NIGHT ON PRINCE ZUKO’S SHIP.
I laughed so hard when you wished for this back in "The Waterbending Scroll."
haven’t quite figured it out yet, but I was completely shocked that not only did Zuko survive
If you rewatch very closely, Zuko puts up a fire shield a split-second before the explosion goes off. Because he recognized the pirates' reptile-parrot. ZUKO IS A BADASS.
My god, the story of where Katara’s necklace comes from is HEARTBREAKING. What a huge moment not only for the greater story, but for Katara herself.
Reason #45,678 why Avatar is awesome: it has a full-scale plotline for a PIECE OF JEWELRY. That poor necklace has gone through SO MUCH to get here.
I absolutely love Katara’s transformation in terms of her bending ability, as anger and passion mix to show us how truly talented she is. That is so fantastic, y’all.
Katara is my least favorite of the trio because her self-righteousness grates on me sometimes, but, oh man, "YOU CAN'T KNOCK ME DOWN!" is a pretty fucking amazing moment. GO KATARA YOU ARE A BADASS.
I AM SO EXCITED FOR THE SEASON ONE FINALE!!!!
Do you ever get tired of people telling you that you are not prepared? Because, um, you are not prepared.
I never noticed the fire shield! He is pretty smart when he's not chasing Aang!
NO ONE WANTS TO READ SIX THOUSAND WORDS IN ONE REVIEW.
I do.
WELL OK. SOME PEOPLE DO.
But it will be fun!
Wait, if you split it up does that mean your review for the second part won't happen until Tuesday? Because that would just be MEAN.
If you did a SPECIAL REVIEW on Saturday I'd be okay with you splitting them up, but otherwise NO DEAL.
IT WON'T BE FUN YOU'RE A LIAR!
This is like when you're five and you're at the mall with your mom and she's shopping for shoes and you want to go to the toy store and she's like "We'll go there in a minute" and 2 hours later you're still in the shoe store.
Yes, it is exactly like that.
Oh, and by the way? Tomorrow you're totally going to be regretting saying you'll split the finale up. Like, regretting that decision SO HARD. No one will be upset if you change your mind! We will all understand–we may even throw a party in the comments.
Seriously, you have no idea. Your body is not ready. You are not prepared.
AAGH responded to the wrong subpost (FAIL for me)
All the thumbs-up for this comment.
I do as well. And yeah, you're going to be regretting that decision. Just letting you know, if you plan to pull these shenanigans more than once, you'll regret it greatly. The shit will be real and you'll be stuck in the middle of it like you have no idea.
Make it twelve thousand and we got a deal!
I don't really want to read six thousand words in one review. But I sure would like to see two full reviews that are both released on Friday…
Pretty please?
yay big episode 😀
finally made it to the north pole–i'm kind of sad that this season is ending already (IT TOTALLY FEELS LIKE YOU JUST STARTED)
oh dear oh dear the end is near
so first of all:
pakku, excuse me, what is your problem. the girl empowerment episode was forever ago. i guess someone didn't get the memo. where are your manners, good sir
i really love aang's reaction when pakku refuses to teach katara. i mean, sure, it's kind of an over reaction considering that he has to learn water bending to… i don't know… SAVE THE WORLD AND STUFF, but still. i thought it was great. (i love aang. have i mentioned that? 'cause i do.)
and it's pretty sad seeing all of those little girls crowded around for the healing session, looking perfectly fine with the fact that they'll never be masters 🙁
also, can i just say:
"go back to the healing huts with the other women where you belong" is the equivalent to every "in the kitchen" joke in the world.
not cool, pakku. not. cool.
Still thinking about what was previously revealed RE: water healing — isn't it amazing how he makes it sound so second-rate and petty? This miraculous and possibly rare skill?
very true. he is a grumpy old man.
At the same time, I don't think it's fair to call the male members of the tribe masters if they're ignoring an entire discipline in their training. It's really sad for the girls to be limited and not even know how bad that is. A million points for Katara.
If I can quote the abridged series (imagine a Scottish accent from this moment forth):
"Get back to the kitchen and MAKE SOME BABIES."
After which Katara proceeds to kick ass.
"i can't hear you over the sound of your own menstruation!"
lolololollolololol
What do you mean no one wants to read 6,000 words of you talking about Avatar?
Mark, I read fanfiction. Sometimes, really bad fanfiction. I have no problems with reading 6,000 or so words of you talking about this show. But I guess it is good for you to give each episode an equal amount of attention. That said, DAMN IT MARK, I DO NOT WANT TO WAIT UNTIL TUESDAY TO SEE YOUR REACTION TO THE END OF SEASON ONE. But I can deal with it.
BAD FANFICTION IS OFTEN SO VERY LONG
And I still want to know how it ends so I read it all and it melts my brain.
Harry, Hermione and Luna having some kind of ~magical and special~ bond that makes them supah dupah strong and pretty and whatever? UGH BUT HOW DOES IT END?
James Potter's little sister who is a complete overreacting mary sue and in love with Sirius? UGH BUT HOW DOES IT END
I swear, fanfiction makes and ruins my life at the same time.
It's not a temple — that word is never used in this episode. I guess you'd call it a city.
And it's definately not an *Air* Temple. (LOL typos.)
It is a city, not a temple. It's just the Northern Water Tribe, not the Air Temple. That was last episode. 😉
Why do all the season finales get split over weekends? Simple Math.
In Doctor Who you did 15 reviews per season. 13 episodes + 1 Special + 1 classic.
You did 5 reviews per week.
So it became cyclic. Once the review for the first season finale got split over the weekend, it ensured that the the same would happen with all the remaining seasons (since 15 is divisible by 5)
The same problem arises here. All the ATLA seasons have 20 episodes which is divisible by both 5 and 4.
So this pattern will continue repeating. All the remaining season finales will be split unless you break the pattern.
<img src=http://images.wikia.com/tardis/images/0/06/Sigma.jpg>
Break the circle, Mark!
Well, there are more two-parters in Season 2 and 3– notably, Season 3 has two major two-parters (Ep. 10/11 and 14/15 and then the series finale, four episodes long– 18, 19, 20, 21 all at once) so that should shorten the schedule up completely. Even if Mark decides not to watch those two-parters at once, the finale still cuts things down a bit.
To Mark: Yes, you do really have to watch that finale all at once. That's not really four episodes, that's a two-hour movie they split into bits to fit into the format of the rest of them. Don't ruin it by splitting it up.
No wait but I totes want him to split it up! That means MORE AWESOME REVIEWS FOR US with Mark’s awesome reactions to what’s going on.
Oh, Mark, you're close to the finale… You're so close to the finale and then on two season 2… So close to the finale…. SO CLOSE. Do you have ANY IDEA HOW CLOSE YOU ARE. DO YOU? DO YOU REALLY WANT TO SPLIT IT IN TWO REVIEWS.
It's not us who will suffer, Mark. It is YOU. You shall suffer from AWS (Avatar Withdrawal Syndrome). In fact, I DARE you to suffer from it. Every Avatard has suffered from it at least once. Especially during the break between season 2 and 3 (those were 9 months, Mark. That's as long as pregnancy). No Avatar for you during the week. You might as well narrate how much you're dying to watch what happens…
You are SO CLOSE TO THE FINALE OF SEASON 1. SO CLOSE. YOU ARE NOT PREPARED TO WHAT'S COMING. Remember Bella giving birth? Remember how UTTERLY UNPREPARED you were for that? WELL YOU'RE 1000 TIMES MORE UNPREPARED FOR WHAT'S TO COME!
Good luck, though. Don't have a heart attack. 😉
Also, wasn't there a big break within the 3rd season? I vaguely remember something massively annoying.
Oh, god, yes… That was totally uncalled for. Between that epic episode and the other epic episode… O_O
And then they released two of the episodes on DVD before actually airing them, at least in the US. Way to fail, Nickelodeon. Way to fail.
Not to mention them releasing the novelization of the finale months before it came out. Got spoiled on TVTropes because of that ; _ ;
The spoiling dodging was horrible during that time. It was like HP7 where I swore to avoid the internetz before I finished the book, but for a period of weeks.
Ugh YES. They split Season Three into two parts, broadcasted the first half in the fall ending in November and then we had to wait until JULY for the rest.
WORST. HIATUS. EVER.
It came during a vacation. It started airing the night before I left on a planned family week-long trip. When I came back, I happened to turn on the TV while barely awake and there was the finale.
I remember the rerun schedule before season three sucked too. I started watching this show after catching the end of the second season finale and they were constantly putting on the same season one episodes, with a smattering of season two.
Yes. They aired the first 10 episodes of Season 3 in a row, one every week, and then it was something like 4 months before they aired any more. Even when the episodes were airing in other countries. Then they released two episodes on DVD before they started airing again. It was a massive scheduling fail and honestly, a pretty good reason to pirate the episodes, because other countries were freely airing them while somehow Nickelodeon US decided not to.
(I know we don't talk about pirating here, but seriously, people are often inclined to watch something if you just make it available to them. )
I know Venezuela got those episodes first, XD
Not just Venezuela. All of Latinamerica got the final before the US. Dubbed. In Spanish. Getting the things before the gringos, accustomed are we not.
We also got the second season of Invader Zim mere months after the first. You know, that one who wasn't broadcast in the USA for about, like, five years or so? Yeah.
I love the fact that you used the word "gringo". XD
I'm… less than comfortable with the term "Avatard". I mean, does the final "D" come from a place that ISN'T a reference to developmental disabilities? Apologies if I'm wrong, but this is the first time I've seen the term and it rubs me the wrong way.
I really wish I could answer that. I didn't invent the term and almost all the fans I know use it to call other Avatar fans including themselves. I adopted the term, but I've always had the impression that "D" is placed in the wrong place. Perhaps it was invented by someone who hated the show, I don't know.
I think it was born because the ATLA fandom was in some kind of cold war against the Naruto fandom, and since they called themselves Narutards, well, the ATLA fans called themselves Avatards. Nevertheless, that isn't the only term for an Avatar fan. If you don't like it you can call yourself Avtarian too. (There IS a difference between those, but I went through too infandom many fights about it that I don't want to remember it right now).
And the hiatus were horrible. The worst thing ever. Why did you have to make me go back to those awful times? :'(
I hate that word too, thanks for bringing it up.
Nope, it's a play off the usual slur against developmentally disabled people. There's been a half-joking proposal suggested in replacement, that I know of, but it's a very very very mild S3 spoiler.
I submit we call ourselves… ATLAfen.
Wait, that's boring.
Gaangsters? 😛
Gaangsters is awesome!
I like Gaangsters… XD
I third the motion of Gaangsters as new fandom name.
Gaangsters is amazing! I will call myself that from now on. 😀
I must say: I loved Katara's hair when she got pissed off.
I agree. I was actually really impressed with the animation of her hair when she was struggling against that ice-spear-prison thing Pakku put her in.
I love Katara with loose, long hair.
"Science has explained virtually everything ever already"
Oh, Mark, no. Even in jest, this is not a sentiment I like seeing bandied about. Science is awesome, but it will never be done. It's a touchy issue for me. Especially when I'm into genetics/molecular biology and people like to go herp derp but the Human Genome Project is done; what more do you want? (I am quite probably overreacting to this one line, I acknowledge. It just hit a button that makes me twitchy.)
That out of the way, OMG WE'RE HERE! Northern Water Tribe! They open gates made of water like the earthbenders do, only more spectacularly! They have a beautiful palace made of ice! JFC I love this show, and especially this location.
<img src="http://img833.imageshack.us/img833/9221/northerntribe.jpg">
<img src="http://img831.imageshack.us/img831/332/northerntribe2.jpg">
<img src="http://img810.imageshack.us/img810/5476/northerntribe3.jpg">
Iroh singing! YES PLZ.
Waterbending masters! About time.
<img src="http://i54.tinypic.com/2eaoylc.gif">
Although that no-girls-allowed thing is weirdly bullshit. I mean, why? Honestly, it seems a bit of a contrived plot point. Just, really, wartimes are the worst times to get all particular about who should be allowed to "serve." Don't get me wrong, I love Katara proving herself and being a BAMF, but it'd be cooler if the set-up were more like he only took one student at a time, and ~obviously~ Aang would be the better/more worthy student. Whatever, even if I don't care for the premise, the fight was pretty awesome.
<img src="http://i56.tinypic.com/2hi76uf.gif">
Meanwhile, there were things happening with Sokka and Yue, and they were cute. HE'S REALLY CONFUSED, Y'ALL.
Hey, the power of tradition, right? Women who wanted to fight in the US Civil War still had to pretend to be men. Bloodiest war in our history and all.
The Water Tribe's sexism made a lot of sense to me, actually. It is extremely realistic- even that the Fire Nation does let girls in the army but other, non-evil nations do not- but it also made sense with the rest of what we've seen of the Water Tribe. I mean, even the Southern Tribe- all the men went to war, the women stayed home. The boys go ice dodging on their 14th birthdays, the girls… nope! Bato lets Katara be part of it but it clearly isn't something she would usually do. The Southern Tribe is better than the Northern one, it seems, but the whole Water Tribe clearly has this prejudice.
I'm not really sure where you are getting unrealistic from, here. Not logical, not well thought out, a really bad idea, sure, but it is probably one of the most realistic parts of the show, in my opinion.
I think from a writing standpoint, it's shoehorned in in order to get a cool 'let's let Katara fight sexism and prove herself!' In terms of the storytelling, the way it was done doesn't work for me.
My issue is not that it's unrealistic, it's that, as I said, it comes across as such a contrived plot point for me. I fully agree that the entire Water Tribe seems to have a lot of gender essentialism going for it. But look at Bato – he was doing a boys tradition, but it's not like he stopped Katara from participating or patronized to her. I just think there are better ways to show the sexism without resorting to no females can learn waterbending ever!
Hmm, I guess I can see where you are coming from. But I dunno… it doesn't seem contrived to me. Bato has a personal relationship with Katara, the Southern Water Tribe is shown to be better than the Northern one in this regard, and also… the Southern Tribe actually has been decimated by the war. The Northern Tribe is prospering, so they probably see no reason to change their traditions. It's easier to stop half the population from doing something, from gaining a fighting power (making themselves threats to the status quo) when there are hundreds of people than when there are, at my very highest estimate, 50. The Northern Water Tribe hasn't needed to change their traditions because they are prospering with things the way they are.
I guess I just don't personally feel that it's contrived or shoehorned… it feels to me to be what Katara's whole arc thus far has been leading up to and it makes a lot of sense.
I actually made the same point about the different tribes – I think we interpret both societies the same.
My point is I'd much rather see an exploration of why the NWT is the way they are rather than just forcibly showcasing that they're sexist.
I don't expect to change anyone's minds or anything – issues of what works for storytelling differs for different people. I gave a short suggestion in the original comment for how I thought the episode could have played differently with Katara still being able to prove herself.
Essentially, the story I would prefer seeing is just not the one I got.
I actually thought it fit into wider themes of the episode what with the conservatism of the tribe fitting into multiple plot threads.
1. Katara can't learn to bend because of Pakku's beliefs
2. Sokka can't be with the Princess because of their different statuses
3. Gran Gran fled the Northern because she was put in an arranged marriage
4. Gran Gran fled because of an arranged marriage with Pakku making the whole plot come full circle.
Honestly I think it's the only way a plot like this could have been resolved in a 25 minute episode, and I dunno I actually really liked the way it was a unifying theme that tied together these different plot threads, AND giving us awesome backstory on people we haven't seen since the first couple of episodes.
Sincerely, I'm glad it worked for you. This just seems to be an episode where the story just isn't the one I want, or it's not the way I want it written. And that's okay – I generally wanted different things out of Cornell's Doctor Who episodes than what we got and was thus unsatisfied with them, even though his were fan favorites. I loved the previous Avatar episode a lot, even though it's not a fan favorite.
I appreciate each of the four points you mentioned, and I do like how they tie into each other; it's just that the way point 1 was written and portrayed in this story was something I wish were done differently.
I always loved the last episode.
And to each their own!
Bato was from the SWT, which – while not having 100 % equality (women stayed at home, men went fighting the war, Sokka's bigotry early on) – are much more equal than the NWT. That's why Kaana went there instead of marrying Pakku. We don't know how the bending/fighting rules exactly look at the SWT, but nobody stopped Katara from bending at least.
With the Southern Water Tribe and the "all the women stayed home" thing, I can maybe kind of see that as more of a "survival of the tribe" thing than a gender role thing, considering just how few of them were left at that point.
If I squint hard, anyway.
That is how the tradition was brought about from an evolutionary standpoint. Women make the babies so leaving them behind ensures the survival of the tribe.
Well, it makes sense – doubly so if your tribe's numbers have dwindled down, like in the case of Southern Water Tribe…
Ha, dammit, I just made this comment, and then realized you'd beat me to it.
Since when is sexism or any other kind of prejudice logical or anything other than bullshit? I don't see how giving one of the Avatar world's cultures this particular prejudice is a "contrived plot point." Excluding women from professions despite their ability has been a reality throughout history and is still a reality in the world today. Why not incorporate it into a fictional world?
It's the way it's handled. The Southern Water Tribe is also sexist, but they didn't have to force it in the writing the way I felt this episode does.
I'm completely in favor of exploring these issues in fiction. I just think there are better ways of discussing it than that way it was done here.
Fair enough. The "contrived plot point" hit me the wrong way, but I can see how you think the execution is contrived. For me, it seemed a believable variation on the sexism of the Southern Water Tribe — that another tribe might come from the same perspective but with a more rigid, institutionalized, rule-bound approach to it.
As to the execution, I was okay with it until the end, actually. I do think Pakku's conversion, "seeing the light," so to speak, and then agreeing to teach Katara, was quite contrived. I didn't really believe a man of his age, so attached to these gender divisions as he was shown to be earlier in the episode, could change his mind about it that quickly, and for the reasons given. I took it as one of those occasions — fortunately, few and far between with Avatar — where I'd have to shrug it off with "Okay, kid's show." Pakku has learned his lesson, sexism is bad.
Actually, I don't think that Pakku did change his beliefs at all. He made an exception for Katara only because he had loved her grandmother, and other than Katara he's never seen teaching a girl waterbending afterwards (unless of course, it's simply not shown on screen).
So it's more along the lines of selective sexism?
Goodness, how I wish we had spoiler-tagging like TVTropes does…I can't argueproperly without them!
I agree, I think Pakku basically bent the rules to let Katara train with him, both because of her grandmother and because he was impressed with her abilities. But I doubt he's going to change his mind entirely about how things are run in the NWT. That kind of pisses me off, but it's also realistic, because you don't change like that in one day.
Well it's interesting that Katara's Gran ran away because of rigid rules of the tribe that would have her be married to Pakku. So it's not just because she's the granddaughter of someone he loved. She's also the reminder of someone he loved and lost because of his tribe's rigid gender rules. Granted without his tribe's rigid gender rules he would never have been engaged to her in the first place but what's important is that as a personal issue that hits very close to home and is still very emotional it's also just about the only thing that can potentially put a crack in Pakku's belief system. Pakku's extremely stubborn and douchey and he can afford to be so because he's extremely respected and powerful in his society. His views are not going to change overnight, but he has something to think about now andthere's at least the potential there for him to change.
lol is this too obvious?
It is more realistic, and for that I like this take on it better. Maybe I'm being unfair: I've been so trained by mediocre and bad TV to spot the Special Message Episode that I'm not giving this one credit for some nuance. In the end, it's one of those cases where I'm not really sure what the creators intended with Pakku's change of heart, so maybe I'll just pick the interpretation that reflects best on the show. I'm happier loving every bit of Avatar than not!
I think it's probably because the Northern Water Tribe seems to have gone isolationist regarding the war. They seem to mostly have sat there and not done anything. They're too formidable for the Fire Nation to tackle, and they're out of the way, so they've probably been left alone until the Fire Nation is done with the Earth Kingdom.
Which doesn't make things look that great for them, I mean, the Southern Tribe set off with half a dozen boats and no benders and at least tried to kick ass, and the Northern Tribe is just sitting on these master benders? Great contribution there, guys. :/
It makes sense to me from what we've seen of the Southern Water Tribe, though. The men all go off to fight, leaving Sokka as the oldest male in the village, and he feels he has the responsibility to lead them all. This suggests to me that a lot of emphasis is placed on masculinity in the Water Tribe culture, even if they don't go quite as far in the South as "girls can't bend." The fact that the show opens with Katara calling her brother sexist says a lot.
When I look at the two water tribes and their policies on gender roles, it made me think of economics. In the States, historically speaking, poor and working-class women have always gone out into the workplace because their families just wouldn't survive otherwise. It was the middle and upper classes that could afford to keep "separate spheres" and obsess over the "proper" roles of men and women. The Southern Water Tribe is still sexist, obviously, but when you barely have the people and resources to sustain yourself, you can't put so much formality and institutional structure behind said sexism.
That said, I get what you're saying about the didacticism of this plot point. For me, it just didn't matter. I loved the fight scene with Pakku, I loved Katara setting aside her pride but only to a point, I loved the way it made the North Pole something other than a perfect haven for the Gaang, because life is just complicated and messy like that. But obviously that's just me. 🙂
Actually, the no-girls-fighting kind of made a lot of sense. It seemed to me that the Northern Water Tribe had suffered the least damage from the war, being in such an inaccessible and easily-defended place. If you'll notice, the Northern Water Tribe also doesn't seem to send any warriors out to fight the Fire Nation like the Southern Tribe and the Earth Kingdom.
What I mean is that a lot of Water Tribe traditions would be preserved. If they were fairly sexist before, they're not going to change that much.
<img src="http://pics.livejournal.com/spectralbovine/pic/003czq2r">
OH HAI THERE MASTER PAKKU.
Wai hallo der.
I NEVER NOTICED
OMG
I love it when the pieces of the entire puzzle of a story come together. It was so much fun watching this show to see and recognize who the other characters in the opening sequence turned out to be. 😀
Isn't the Airbender in the opening credits supposed to be how the creators view Aang as an adult?
I'm pretty sure the creators said it's someone else… I'm not sure if I should reveal who it is. We've already "met" him in the story, but I think half the fun is figuring out who the people are yourself. 🙂
Did they mention it on one of the commentaries? It's been a while since I listened to those so I can't quite remember.
Actually, it was never confirmed who the Airbender was, according to the Avatar Wiki. (Feel free to delete this if it is spoilery, although as it was never confirmed in-show and I will copy/paste the relevant part from that page of the wiki without any spoilery parts, I don't think it is). "The show opens by showcasing the various bending methods: Waterbending, Earthbending, Firebending, and Airbending, with each being done by a character seen in the series. The Waterbending is done by Master Pakku, the Earthbending by [name-of-character-we-haven't-met-yet], the Firebending by [lalalalalala], and the airbending by an anonymous monk. The monk was thought to be Aang, until it was noticed that he had a moustache. [BTW, if anyone has a screenshot of the airbender that shows his 'stache, please post it, as I've never managed to catch it myself!]… Avatar Extras for 'The Boy in the Iceberg' say 'This is the first time Aang appears in the series…' 'not counting the opening sequence', when Aang appears in the iceberg. Since the opening sequence of the first episode doesn't show Aang performing the Air Scooter, it means that he appeared as the shadowed Airbender.'"
So yeah. In my headcanon it's Aang with a moustache just for the heck of it. One of the animators was really bored that day and drew a stache to see if anyone would notice. Why? BECUASE HE/SHE COULD, DARNIT.
Something about the way the character is drawn just makes me thing he's supposed to be in his thirdies. So in my headcanon, Aang grows a sweet 'stache and goatee when he's an adult.
Or that (which is admittedly more likely and the thing that I actually think happened.) But I like the idea of a prankster ninja animator, just messin' with The Almighty Creators and/or Gaangsters by putting a random moustache in.
His technique makes me cry for how bad a tai-chi practitioner I am by comparison.
Then again, I'm only a girl.
(And, yes, when I started watching this series, I totally hoped that someday I'd be able to do waterbending. Hasn't happened yet, but I live in hope!
That is totally the reason I started learning Tai-Chi. I mean, I love it for its own sake now, but waterbending is totally what made me start it. And someday, I am totally going to dress up like Katara and get one of the old dudes in my class to be Pakku and we can re-enact their fight from this episode.
…What? I can dream. 😛
Right there with you. It is a good dream, and you should feel good for having it!
I went to China last year to study in the village where tai chi started, and I was so hoping I'd find a scroll while I was there….
Don't worry, this is perfectly natural. I have spent time in my room with screenies of a water bending scroll in front of me, and my sister once tried to convince me she could be a candle flame. (Her technique was very clever, it actually made it look like the flame was following her finger).
Two kids that live near me:
Kid one: I CAN AIRBEND!
Kid two: What no way that's not possible!
Kid one: *looks around, waits until he feels the first breeze* *blows*
-Breeze blows through the street-
Kid two: HOW DID YOU DO THAAAAAT
(mind you, it was a windy day. Kid two figured it out in about ten seconds)
Hey Mark, guess what? YOU ARE NOT PREPARED.
What, Mark not prepared? It can't be!
Iroh sings a stirring love song! It's totally okay to open your review with that, Mark. I've honestly had "Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall" stuck in my head since you started reviewing. I love music night!
I forget how much I love this episode until I rewatch it. I love that they returned to sexism again, and let Katara stand up for herself. I also loved that Katara also went to healing lessons even though she didn't necsesarily want them; healing is important, too. Even though Katara was frustrated by Master Poophead — and what is with all the teenage bed-moping in this episode, since Zuko did it, too —
<img src="http://i51.tinypic.com/10hshl0.gif">
she doesn't give up, and she refuses to be treated like a lesser person just because of her gender. I love it when her real personality takes over, and she goes after Pakku.
<img src="http://i56.tinypic.com/jq23y1.gif">
She has no chance of beating him, but she doesn't give up, going all out to prove that she can fight, and that he's a stubborn jerk. Her improvement over the course of this season has been amazing. She's always practicing in the background, and she got her usual boast of power from anger, resulting in a great fight scene. I'm sure by the time I submit this, a million people will have posted this gif, but idgaf. This scene
<img src="http://i56.tinypic.com/mrz8l5.gif">
is the most badass thing we've seen from her yet. I love the look of shock on Pakku's face. Katara's fighting may not have won him over directly, but she proved herself to all of the people watching — boys and girls were cheering her on.
I'M EXCITED FOR YOU TO WATCH THE SEASON ONE FINALE!!
A totally random thing about that first GIF you posted. Those two sleeping bags of theirs are the same ones Gran Gran gave them in the very beginning, and they've been using them the entire season (this is why Aang doesn't have one). I love the consistency in this show.
I always wondered why Aang doesn't have one! Doesn't he get cold? He never seems to. Maybe he can make his own warm-air? I DUNNO.
I love how you hear "Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall" again whenever Sokka and Yue are together. It's really sweet and subtle.
I only noticed that for the first time on this rewatch.
I didn't notice that! awesome!
Re: that second GIF, I love how that moment calls back to the very first episode, where Katara gets all mad about Sokka's sexism and does waterbending without realizing it. Her talent and power is shown from the very first moments of the show, even if she doesn't know how to use it yet. Katara <3 <3 <3
Oh my God. I had Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall stuck in my head ALL DAY yesterday and last night and most of today. In Iroh’s voice, too! Music night is awesome!
Also, Mark, seconding all the YOU ARE NOT PREPARED. I cheated (gasp!) and watched both episodes of the season finale last night and you are not prepared, even though I’d seen them two or three times it was still crazy. Shit gets SO REAL.
(You all probably already know this, but the episodes are mostly free here, but the finale isn’t. Sadly.)
I love Paku's face at the very end of the gif
I love how this episode treats sexism, especially because it confronts a different kind of sexism than we saw before with, basically, Sokka being a stupid, uneducated boy who needed someone to teach him some things. The Northern Water Tribe's sexism is institutionalized, and ingrained in their "culture," as Pakku called it. Considering how many places in the world where there is still sexism (and other -isms) justified by "well, this is a part of our culture" I think that it's something that's really important to address.
Katara shows that she can clearly pay respect to her heritage as a member of the Water Tribes and that she has just as much a right to be a part of this part of her culture as any male does. Like you, I'm glad that Aang didn't step in to help Katara, and even though she did some horribly impressive shit when fighting Pakku, I liked that she didn't win. She is, after all, still a fourteen year old girl with little to no training, and I feel that having her win would have been overkill. She did, however, demonstrate that she is talented, capable, and a quick learner. (How much time has passed, and with the help of a scroll and a tiny bit of instruction from Aang, she's come this far?)
In all, this is really refreshing, and I really wish that there had been something like Avatar around when I was a young girl, because I know that I personally really struggled with coming to terms with my gender identity. So much media was telling me, even subliminally, that as a girl, I wasn't as good at certain things as boys are, or that if I wanted to be good at sports or fighting, or be smart, I couldn't like dolls or pink or be 'girly.' The female characters in Avatar are strong but feminine, and varied and fleshed out, and it makes me really pleased that young girls today have this show to watch, at least. Huge kudos to the writers (many of whom are male — I know the creators are, but I forget if they wrote this episode or not) for nailing this one.
Sokka/Yue is totally adorable. I WANT TO DO MY HAIR LIKE HERS.
I know what you're saying in your first paragraph, and I agree that the difference in portrayal is important. But the way you contrast it just makes me want to point out that that's not to say Sokka's sexism isn't born out of institutionalized sexism. It's more that we saw the Southern Water Tribe fractured, so there wasn't really much in the way of a big society in the first place. The fact that it seems like all the menfolk went out to fight while apparently women stayed behind with the children in the Southern Tribe may imply a very similar culture.
I definitely agree that Sokka's attitude is a product of institutionalized sexism as well, but but the context of one boy versus an entire culture at work against Katara. Although we really haven't seen very much of the Souther Water Tribe, I would hypothesize that the sexism is less ingrained there than it is in the Northern Water Tribe, for several reasons (one of them being that Katara obviously hasn't internalized the sexism the way that a lot of women do, especially in these sort of cultures). Also, the small size of the Southern Tribe means that they can't divide labor the way that the larger Northern Tribe can, particularly with all the menfolk being away at war. So I would agree that the Sourthern Water tribe is sexist as well, but not as stringent.
I think that showing the difference is really important, especially for young boys, because I certainly know enough young, teenage boys with attitudes like Sokka's — they have these ideas put in their head by their culture/the media/whatever, and they also feel a societal pressure to conform to a certain brand of 'masculine' behavior, and being immature, uneducated, and wanting to prove themselves, they think that being a 'man' means rejecting everything 'feminine.' And showing that that attitude (one I see a lot — but maybe my shithead little brother just had a lot of crappy friends) and that it's wrong is really important, imho.
I will concur that Sokka got his ideas of masculinity from his culture. His father left him with words of wisdom that were gendered and encouraged stereotypes like "Women are weak things." Of course Hakoda may generally respect women and not have meant it that way. Notice however that Hakoda said, "Look after your sister" as opposed to a gender neutral message that encouraged equality or built up Katara, i.e. "Look after each other. Listen to your sister." Men don't grow up thinking that their hyper-masculinity norms are an issue until they get them into trouble with the law, or they look up and realize they're always angry. They see themselves as protectors, providers, and then don't equate that to being controlling or demeaning.
That said, I really like the point that Katara cannot overcome an institution for sexism on her own. The entire Tribe is going to point her to the healing huts. It's not as easy as throwing a pair of pants back in one person's face anymore.
I AM LATE but I AM HERE NOW
This episode. THIS EPISODE. Have I mentioned THIS EPISODE?! It is glorious and amazing and I want to marry it and have it’s episodic children. When episodes like The Great Divide come along, I want to shake my head sadly at them and send them to an night school class on being an awesome episode taught by this episode and then when they become better episodes I will take them out to dinner and give a toast to this episode for showing them the way. (That class would cover several units, notably including: Character Arc Fulfillment, Subverting Expectations, Suspense, Dealing with the Big Issues Well, Epic Action Sequences, How to Write Teenage Romance, Awesomeness Through Backstory and the final unit would be DAT CLIFFHANGER.)
<img src=http://i.imgur.com/EQssf.gif>
(source)
Seriously, this episode is amazing and wonderful and I LOVE KATARA SO MUCH. I want to teach her waterbending and I do not even know how to waterbend. Also, I am probably non-fictional. But seriously, she is so great in this episode. I love how it is a culmination of her character arc through the first season. She finally makes it to the Northern Water Tribe, finally, finally meets other waterbenders, a waterbending master who could teach her… and he refuses because she is a girl. JERK. They are all JERKS. So basically, I wanted her to punch him in the face and then he would realize she is TOTALLY AMAZING and his sexism would crumble in the face of her epicness and it would all be daisies, right?
But no, because Avatar is even more awesome than that because it deals with the reality of the situation. I love that Aang would be willing to give up his own training for Katara’s sake, but Katara can’t let him do that. The sad, horrible fact of the matter is that she can’t let him do that. She can’t risk what would happen if Aang doesn’t learn waterbending in time. So she tells him to do it and goes to the healing tents to learn there. And I love how even though it is so not what she wanted, she is still respectful and willing to learn. Because her healing power is awesome and it is something she should learn and it isn’t Yugoda’s fault that the men are sexists assholes. So, I was really happy that Katara still respected Yugoda and learned from her. It’s not that she was against learning the “feminine” aspects of her talent- she wants to learn it AND the supposedly “masculine” parts. That made me happy.
<img src=http://i55.tinypic.com/2enm97o.jpg>
(source)
I also love that Sokka, who at the beginning of the season was so sexist, proposed the solution of Aang teaching Katara. It’s a little moment, but I’m proud of him. He’s not as upset about it as Katara and, to a lesser degree, Aang are about it, but he still doesn’t think it is right and doesn’t believe they should bow to the silly sexist rules. Of course, it did sort of backfire. But then Katara gets to be so awesome! I love how we see her through the episode, again and again swallowing her pride and her knowledge that what Pakku is doing is wrong for Aang’s sake. She would have apologized. But, finally, she was pushed too far and it got to the point where she couldn’t take it anymore.
And the fight was so awesome! Our first time seeing such truly high level waterbending. And Katara is such a badass. Oh god, she was so amazing. And even as I say that, I’m glad she didn’t win. I mean, she’s a novice. She has never been taught! It wouldn’t be realistic for her to win and it wasn’t the point. But she was awesome and she never backed down and wasn’t scared. Even Pakku had to say that she is a truly talented waterbender. But, of course, he still won’t teach her. And, actually, I liked that as well. Again, it’s realistic. If someone is truly that bigoted, you can be as AWESOME AND BADASS as anything at them and they will find a way to have it change nothing in their minds.
<img src=http://i.imgur.com/je6ot.gif>
(source)
And so, what actually changed his mind was discovering that Katara is the granddaughter of Kanna, who was once a part of the Northern Water Tribe(!!!), engaged to Pakku(!!!!!!), and ran away because of the RAMPANT SEXISM(!!!!!!!!) and went to the Southern Tribe. Oh my god, you guys, Gran Gran is A HUGE BADASS. She ran away from everyone she knew, her home, at a time when the world was at war, travelled across the freaking globe (with no help from a flying bison!) and pulled it all off because she was just that fed up with their freaking sexism. Ahhhhhh Gran Gran is the best. No wonder she was so chill with Sokka and Katara leaving to travel to the Northern Tribe. She’s all, “Been there, done that! Take a sleeping bag, believe me, you’ll need ‘em! Have fun!” You guys, Gran Gran is the best. THE BEST.
(cont)
Meanwhile, in stories that do not involve Katara or Gran Gran kicking sexism’s ass and taking names, and therefore will not get nearly as many words devoted to them as they would in any other episode, Sokka has a crush! On a princess! I really like how awkward he was with her and how she was so utterly charmed by it. They are so totally 16 years old, it is both adorable and sad. But then it’s like, wait a minute, did we mention this society marries women off to men not of their choosing at age 16? Because yeah. I felt so bad for Yue when she ran away crying after Katara talked about Kanna leaving the tribe to escape the marriage she didn’t want. I’m okay with assuming that Yue is not so happy with her marriage and that it is most likely arranged, though I guess that was never exactly stated. Her reactions wouldn’t make as much sense otherwise, in my opinion. And I felt bad for Sokka thinking it was a class thing. And then bad for both of them because their romance was so cute and age appropriate but then, suddenly, doomed and sad. Aw. They were going to do an activity together! He carved her a bear-fish! (Love how that contrasted to the carving of a necklace, by the way. Sokka carves you a fish that looks like a bear and comes with no strings attached! Other people carve you necklaces that are lovely but mean you have to get married.)
<img src="http://i.imgur.com/ohBoS.gif">
(source)
Over with the Fire Nation, Zhao decides to blow Zuko up. Because… he can. Seriously, there was no real tactical reason behind that. He had already taken all of Zuko’s men, it’s not like Zuko is a particular threat. But, he figured out Zuko was probably the Blue Spirit, and, let’s face it, Zhao just hates Zuko’s guts and wants him to suffer. CONGRATS ON YOUR LIFE, ZHAO. But I really like how the pirates came back, both in a “ooh, continuity!” kind of way and also because it is very cool to see how Zuko treating them badly came back to bite him later.
<img src="http://i.imgur.com/LYve3.gif">
(source)
So yes, Zuko’s ship is blown up. And ugh, Iroh running back and thinking Zuko died is just heartbreaking. Heartbreaking! How dare you try to kill Zuko, Zhao, but more pressingly, HOW DARE YOU MAKE IROH SAD?! Unforgivable. But then Zuko isn’t dead (but all banged up! Ouch.) and him and Iroh are working together to use Zhao to get them to the Avatar! HAHAHAHA oh wait, that isn’t good.
Quotes!
Sokka: So, uh, you’re a princess! You knew, back in my tribe, I’m kinda like a prince myself!
Katara: Ha! Prince of what?
Sokka: A lot of things! Do you mind? I’m trying to have conversation here!
Katara: My apologies, Prince Sokka.
Aang: Good morning, Master Pakku!
Pakku: No, please, march right in. I’m not concentrating or anything.
Sokka: So, I’m still hoping we can see more of each other.
Yue: Do an activity, you mean?
Sokka: Yes! At a place, for some time!
Yue: I’d love to. I’ll meet you on that bridge, tonight.
Iroh: It’s a lovely night for a walk. Why don’t you join me? It would clear your head… Or, just stay in your room and sit in the dark. Whatever makes you happy.
Katara: Everybody’s happy!
Sokka: I’m not happy.
Katara: But you’re never happy.
Katara: I’ll be outside, if you’re man enough to fight me!
Aang: I’m sure she didn’t mean that!
Sokka: Yeah, I think she did.
Sokka: Are you crazy, Katara? You aren’t going to win this fight!
Katara: I know. I don’t care.
Aang: You don’t have to do this for me. I can find another teacher.
Katara: I’m not doing it for you!
Pakku: I carved this necklace for your grandmother when we got engaged… I thought we would have a long, happy life together. I loved her.
Katara: But she didn’t love you, did she? It was an arranged marriage. Gran Gran wouldn’t let your tribe’s stupid customs run her life. That’s why she left. It must have taken a lot of courage.
And then THAT CLIFFHANGER. AHHHH?! AHHHH!
Awesome review, shyfully, and I agree with every single word of it! 🙂 Nice selection of GIFs, too.
Sokka: Are you crazy, Katara? You aren’t going to win this fight!
Katara: I know. I don’t care.
Aang: You don’t have to do this for me. I can find another teacher.
Katara: I’m not doing it for you!
FAVORITE. QUOTE. EVER. Especially Katara's last line.
Perfect review is perfect. <3
Another great review! I always enjoy the quotes you have. I am also a big fan of Iroh (who isn't a fan of that man?).
I know that I had my own shows about girls kicking major butt when I was a kid, but I seriously wish that Avatar aired when I was in elementary/middle school. Katara is just so awesome! I love the fact that she decides she wants to stand up and prove she can fight even though she knows she has little chance at winning. Could you be any cooler Katara?
As for music night, I'm only saddened that we didn't see more of it. I want to hear the Captain's love song!
Is it weird that I recognized Raine just from the silver/orange motif in the ridiculously tiny version of your avatar?
I love this episode because it seriously has some of the best fight scene choreography ever. Seeing all those attacks and counterattacks done by changing the water into its different phases was just amazing.
As far as I can tell, it's not *absolutely* forbidden for girls to learn waterbending, it's just pretty frowned upon. By all those people cheering Katara on during her battle with Pakku, it seems like they disapprove of his rigid conservativism as well, it's just that they never really spoke up about it.
Girls can waterbend, but they're only supposed to learn the healing abilities– you know, non-aggressive stuff.
It might be, now that you mention it, that if Pakku weren't the master someone more mavericky would have taught her. Also, was Pakku the only master? Maybe he was the highest master and forbade anybody to teach Katara. IEven if he was the only one, if Aang could teach her, then she could learn from another waterbender. But because Pakku is in charge and it is a powerful tradition, they don't. It could be that the Water Tribe was on the verge of change, as rigid as seemed on the surface, and Katara helped push it along. Maybe Pakku was even aware of the culture changing and was trying to prevent it. Especially during a long war against a powerful enemy that sought to wipe out your culture. Not that that justifies anything.
You have a point, and I think you very well might be right. Not to mention, I think the underdog affect might be at work.
"I just realized that, yet again, I’ve split up a finale over the weekend. HOW DOES THIS KEEP HAPPENING."
I don't know how you can stand it. I had to give in and watch them both one right after another.
Music niiight! I am so glad we got to see it finally! PREDICTION: Zuko will eventually play the tsungi horn for some reason. Even though there's no more music night.
Zhao is an irredeemably evil bastard, but at least he's a smart bastard. If every battle ended up with him being easily outwitted it would get boring fast. Realizing that Zuko was the Blue Spirit and having his ship destroyed was pretty great–but even more great was how Zuko got out and Iroh smuggled him onto the warship. That boy's gonna end up looking more scarred than Mad-Eye Moody by the time he's 20. If he lives that long.
One thing I've gotta say: I am so glad that they tackled sexism in a "good guy" civilization. It would be easier to wrap up neatly when only the bad guys are blatantly sexist/racist/whatever, but it gets the point across more when you show that even the good guys are doing it wrong. It's not just "bad guys do bad things," it's "this type of behavior is wrong." And goddamn does Katara kick ass and take names. Also love the implication that Katara's grandmother was just as awesome.
I’ve split up a finale over the weekend.
NOOOO MARK DO NOT DO THIS WE WILL ALL DIE OF SUSPENSE HERE.
Also you've got last episode on the brain apparently — you've got one reference to the "Northern Water Temple" and another to the "Northern Air Temple" when in both cases you mean the Northern Water Tribe.
There are a few female characters in the history of television that I have been able to look at and say, "If I had a daughter, I would make sure to expose her to this woman, to give her role models that are worthy of her." Katara is one of those female characters. I would want my daughter to see her and to know that she can be a fucking badass and in no way does it lessen her womanhood.
I know someone above commented that Katara is often too self-righteous, and I can definitely agree with that, but just for her badassness alone, I'd want my non-existent daughter to be exposed to her existence.
That was me, and I am totally onboard with all non-existent daughters being exposed to Katara! Also existent ones.
There is so, so much to love about this episode. I love the sub-plot with Zuko and Iroh. I love Zhao being EBIL and CONNIVING. I love the subtle animation in the way Zuko's eye dilates in fear when Zhao picks up one of his broadswords. I LOVE MUSIC NIGHT. I love how awkward Sokka is. I love his budding romance with Yue. But, above all, more than anything else, I love love love Katara being a badass that is not going to put up with your institutionalized sexism, Northern Water Tribe. I already really liked her character. But this is the point of no return from which I TOTES FELL IN LOVE. And so today's gifs are going to reflect that.
GO KATARA
<img src="http://i55.tinypic.com/j5gv9l.gif" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic">
<img src="http://i54.tinypic.com/2dh7hjd.gif" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic">
<img src="http://i51.tinypic.com/2cyh4rk.gif" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic">
And Katara haters can just DEAL WITH IT
<img src="http://i53.tinypic.com/29z7muw.gif" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic">
P.S. It warms my heart to see little girls who look up to Katara and want to dress up as her for Halloween and whatnot. Which segues into GDI SHYAMALAN. YOUR DAUGHTER WANTED TO DRESS UP AS KATARA FOR HALLOWEEN. BECAUSE SHE LOVED THIS SHOW. YOU MADE A MOCKERY OF IT AND I HOPE YOUR DAUGHTER GIVES YOU SHIT ABOUT IT EVERY DAY.
P.P.S. I would really, really not be bothered by a huge season finale review tomorrow. Seriously, I will read all 6,000 words I am so greedy smmmfffhshfslfjdk. Still your decision, obvs.
I had kids dressed as Avatar characters, including a Katara, come to my door on Halloween when the show was still airing. They got extra candy from me.
I would have been so cool about it (by cool read enormously geeky) if that happened. I would call the candy fire flakes and everything. XD
And Katara haters can just DEAL WITH IT
You mean there actually are Katara haters? I iz baffled. How can anyone hate Katara?
Because she is too perfect/a Mary Sue/stuck-up/too girly/a leading female character in a major media presentation.
I've dealt with Katara haters before. Basically, here's some stuff from one such person.
"She never listens to Sokka, and while he has his moments, he is arguably the most responsible of the group, or at very least the most insightful… And then there's her bitching and crying about everything. Aang burns her accidentally? She cries and runs off. And then the aforementioned occurrences of her just being overly emotion. Aang is the AVATAR and all of his people were massacred. Now, he feels his guilt, and has struggled with it, but he got over it. Katara just plain doesn't have her shit together. But, she'll waste no time in telling the others why they suck and why they're immature."
the "…." was some spoilery stuff, but it was equally inane.
Wow. That's unbelievable. This person must have watched some weird twisted AU version of A:TLA…
HOW DARE SHE SHOW EMOTION. I MEAN REALLY. The hand-burning-thing is what really gets me, because it's obviously a more realistic reaction to being hurt than the typical heroic get-shot-walk-it-off scenes you see in everything else.
It also makes me all the more grateful for our beloved Booter-Freak, who is happy to point out fandom sexism (link which you should read but ONLY IF YOU'VE WATCHED ALL THREE SEASONS BECAUSE THERE ARE SPOILERS FOR EVERYTHING EVER).
Yeah, they're out there.
And I don't mean the people who get annoyed by her occasional self-righteous attitude. That's a valid criticism, and that, to me, only makes her a stronger character. It's just one of her flaws. And it's okay if that flaw bugs someone.
When I say I haters, I mean the people that wish death upon her, because she is useless and mary sueish. Oh, and she has emotions. God forbid.
But emotions are icky and girly dontcha know 🙁
I totally agree. Sometimes Katara does things that bug me, but that only makes me like her more because she seems so much more real. I love how this show's characters have flaws and are so fleshed out.
…well, i don't like her immensely. i'm very fond of all the characters in ATLA, but Katara is definitely somewhere in the lower ranks.
You know, she's a girl. And girls have cooties. She's also emotional from time to time. Must be PMS, AMIRIGHTGUYS? And she's such a killjoy with her morality and causes and reasoning and standing up to Aang and Sokka when they get too goofy/unfocused. And she doesn't take shit from others, while nice girls have to follow a man's orders. But mainly because she's a girl who doesn't accept that she should come second.
For me however, Katara is my favourite character of Team Avatar, despite the fierce competition of outstanding characters.
Not only did he butcher the show, but the Katara in the movie is just. Just.
Just.
Everything. Everything is wrong and sexist and racist and somehow, somehow, Katara, the character his daughter liked best, seems to get the absolutely gut-wrenching worst of it. The sexism in that movie is astoundingly blatant.
Katara in the movie basically just exists to tell the audience in the plot, doesn't she? She's just… completely wimpy and passive and basically had all her awesome moments completely taken away from her. :/
Someone did a "Cast of Avatar watches The Last Airbender" fanart where Katara goes "Aang! I can't believe you took my overly emotional speech about hope! That's, like, *all* I had! Now I'm just *there*!"
I'd post it, but it's spoilery for other things.
Just post the link.
Good point — here it is. Spoilery for all three seasons.
As is the followup.
Hahaha, the followup cracks me up every time.
Yeah, basically every time where she stands up for herself or fights for others in the series were taken and given to Aang. Very impressive message of empowerment, right there.
Preeetty much. And when she does try to do things, she fails so hard that it's just squickily embarrassing. I think she manages exactly one successful bending thing in the entire movie.
The thing was, it was such a bad movie, that I was so struck by the horribleness that I almost couldn't care about the sexism and racism and such while i was watching it. I just found myself screaming "EMOTE" at the screen. "SHOW DON'T TELL".
Now I'm imagining Sokka watching the movie and yelling synonyms for "emote" at the screen, sort of like he did with Appa in the second episode.
Thank you for this image, even if I can't seem to come up with words myself.
I have an excellent makro about emoting ready for when we do the TLA film… 😀
I'm so excited to hear from you about the season finale! All these reviews you do fill me with excitement! It fills me with a need to rewatch the series and see exactly what you're seeing. I missed a lot of this awe and excitement (started with Book 2) and I reading about your excitement? Priceless.
The Katara-Pakku fight is probably my favorite part about all of Book 1. She's so frustrated and full of female rage. It's passionate, it's creative, and it makes me smile and cheer just thinking about it. So often female rage is thrown off (like Pakku did) as "female troubles" or pms, and the fact that they had that and Katara didn't back down?
But, you know what this means? You're almost to Book 2. And you know how everyone's been saying Book 2 and 3 are even BETTER than Book 1?
It's true.
(You should watch them both tomorrow, and have two reviews. Just posted on the same day. So we read you're reactions to Book 2 that much faster~!)
Hey Mark,
Long-time reader, very infrequent commenter. (I think I suggested that you watch this show… sometime during your HP reviews? I get the impression I was the second to third person to do so, so I've been super thrilled to see you doing this show!)
Anyway.
There's a lot of small points about gender here that I really like in this episode — I am 100% on board with everything you said about Katara's great storyline here and how she is in no way shown to be less a woman because she wants to fight — or that she's any less a fighter for being a woman. It's GREAT.
But a couple other small points that I really like:
– Healing is the "feminine" form of waterbending, but I didn't read this episode as denigrating that, denigrating the femininity of it. Katara doesn't dislike it because it's girly, but because it's *not what SHE wants to do*, and I love being able tto see this distinction instead of just "I want to do what the boys do!"
– In the interactions between Yue and Sokka, I really like that (a) Yue initiates the kiss, but I like even more that (b) Sokka asks to stop and discuss what's going on instead of proceeding with the makeouts. It is SO RARE to see this kind of behaviour modeled, especially a GUY doing it — our culture tells us that guys should be aggressive, physically and sexually, and that "talking it out" is for girls. But when Sokka is confused by what's happening with Yue, he actually stops and says so, shares that feeling, and clearly wants some kind of discussion before they do anything else. How awesome is it, to see that? How awesome is it that hordes of young minds were exposed to this!
also can I just say that Katara's fight just KICKED ASS
and that music night was truly glorious. I have been sitting on my hands ALL SEASONS so I wouldn't tell you that yes, you would get to see it >.>
I can't wait to see what you think of the finale — or of season 2! I really cannot wait for your thoughts on season 2 >.>
Hey Mark,
Long-time reader, very infrequent commenter. (I think I suggested that you watch this show… sometime during your HP reviews? I get the impression I was the second to third person to do so, so I've been super thrilled to see you doing this show!)
Anyway.
There's a lot of small points about gender here that I really like in this episode — I am 100% on board with everything you said about Katara's great storyline here and how she is in no way shown to be less a woman because she wants to fight — or that she's any less a fighter for being a woman. It's GREAT.
But a couple other small points that I really like:
– Healing is the "feminine" form of waterbending, but I didn't read this episode as denigrating that, denigrating the femininity of it. Katara doesn't dislike it because it's girly, but because it's not what SHE wants to do, and I love being able to see this distinction instead of just "I want to do what the boys do!"
– In the interactions between Yue and Sokka, I really like that (a) Yue initiates the kiss, but I like even more that (b) Sokka asks to stop and discuss what's going on instead of proceeding with the makeouts. It is SO RARE to see this kind of behaviour modeled, especially a GUY doing it — our culture tells us that guys should be aggressive, physically and sexually, and that "talking it out" is for girls. But when Sokka is confused by what's happening with Yue, he actually stops and says so, shares that feeling, and clearly wants some kind of discussion before they do anything else. How awesome is it, to see that? How awesome is it that hordes of young minds were exposed to this!
also can I just say that Katara's fight just KICKED ASS
and that music night was truly glorious. I have been sitting on my hands ALL SEASONS so I wouldn't tell you that yes, you would get to see it >.>
I can't wait to see what you think of the finale — or of season 2! I really cannot wait for your thoughts on season 2 >.>
Not only is healing not primarily what Katara wants to focus her energies on, but it's also humiliating for her to be in the "beginner" class with the little kids, when she knows she's already a pretty strong waterbender and could be learning more advanced stuff if Pakku would teach her. I remember taking gymnastics at 9 years old and my classmates were 5 and 6… I felt old and awkward and way too tall. Heh.
ALSO YES to your comment about Sokka and Yue. He's not just like "YAY MAKEOUTS," he actually stops to ask what's going on. I love that.
I have a billion art bits to scan, but first, I HAVE A QUESTION! …Are you planning to watch the movie? And if so (you poor, poor soul) will you watch it after the finale, as the movie is pretty much them trying to jam season one into 100 minutes of terrible film, or when the whole series is done? Because if I were to make a suggestion (or at least, a suggestion other than 'noooo, don't watch the movie, save yourself') I'd recommend watching it before you start season 2. That way, the last Avatar related thing you do won't be a pile of steaming dog poo.
But the best thing is probably not to watch it at all. Agooony.
I think someone on an earlier review said that the movie had some spoilery bits about season 2.
The movie has season 2 and season 3 spoilers in it. They are subtle but they are there.
Now I'm curious as to what these are, but not so curious that I will rewatch it before the liveblog. Hah.
Agree about the subtle season 2 and 3 spoilers — but I have the perfect remedy for watching the movie after the series: watch the series again! >.>
worked for me…. =D
I am watching the movie as a liveblog after I finish the whole show. So we can all suffer together.
It helps if you're watching the film slightly inebriated – it makes it easy to make fun of it and shout abuse at it (which it deserves), all in all making it actually enjoyable (although NOT in the way M. Night intended… 😀 ).
Or how about watching the Rifftrax version? I have a feeling it's the only version I'm going to be able to stomach.
Even with the Rifftrax, it hurts. D:
I can confirm, this is true. Not even Rifftrax can save this.
I initially watched it while really super tired (I get goofy when I'm that tired, and everything seems hilarious) and doing a running commentary to a few friends over instant messenger on whatever stupid thoughts popped into my head. That made it kind've tolerable.
May I recommend a stuffed Appa in preparation for the experience?
And a little stuffed Momo too (wantwantwant)
You can apparently get one for a zillion dollars.
My roommate picked one up at the Mall of America for ~$20. Why so high-priced, internet?
I really don't think the movie is all that bad. I should mention that i saw the movie before seeing the entire series. In fact i only saw the first 4 episodes before seeing the movie. after seeing the series, its obvious the movie is no where close in epicness, and the acting is kind of bad. But i was entertained. enough so that i wanted more. Its thanks to the movie that i decided to continue with the series. And i am ever so glad i did.
This is the only positive thing I've really heard about it, that the idea behind the badness was intriguing enough that people have gone and seen the series because of it.
But I'd have to disagree on the movie's badness. As I said in another comment, even if you put aside that it's an adaptation, and ignore the really really blatant and problematic racism (and sexism), it's just not a good movie at all. The script is unbelievably bad, the acting nearly so, the effects (especially the bending) range from adequate to 'what were you thinking?', the editing is very poor, and it has the worst case of 'tell instead of show' I've ever seen in visual media. There were a few scenes where a few simple changes could have made them watchable, in some cases even pretty good scenes if they weren't so rushed, but alas.
It has a musical cue I'm in love with though. And I'm very glad you were introduced to the series!
YES! Everything needs more Karkat.
"Mark Does Stuff" needs more Homestuck.
And it helps that Karkat's reaction face here is pretty much what I looked like after reading that Mark is ONCE AGAIN splitting up a finale over the weekend.
You'd think he plans it this way…
That would be pretty cool, but what in the name of socks would that even be called? Mark Reads? Mark Watches? Mark… Processes Static and Dynamic Audiovisual Input?
"Mark Does All Of The Things. Aaaaaaaall of them."
Actually, Mark loves time travel right? Then, wouldn't it be right up his alley?
By the way, have a topical picture: http://ib.skaia.net/post/view/2805
You know, that is exactly what I thought when I read Homestuck. His schedule is very full though, so.
I agree, I smiled in glee to see a homestuck image here.
UGH. I did the coding correctly, I'm positive. It did this to me before on the spoiler blog… And I don't want to type out the names of the blogs because one of them has a spoilery title. Double ugh!
bitly or tinyurl or other such sites to hide the url names?
Oh, that's a great idea!
From a storytelling perspective, I'm really glad they didn't end the Katara/Master Pakku plot by just having Katara prove herself.
I mean, I'm bloody glad she did. But I'm really happy they found an even more creative resolution that still rejects sexism while at the same time showing that Katara can be a veritable badass regardless of her gender.
"Study closely."
Now Pakku is an ass, but that is one badass line.
Also, though the Northern Water Tribe is stunning, I can't help but feel a bit of indignation on behalf of Sokka and Katara at how prosperous the NWT compared to their own tribe.
Yeah, for a grumpy sexist he is pretty badass.
On the other hand, he clearly reevaluated his views on gender equality after Katara impressed him with her fighting abilities. I think that's a great thing to portray – a character overcoming a negative trait to become a better person. It shows that even "background adult characters" in a children's show can have actual character development (even though you'd think they usually remain the same – like Zhao is still the same evil douchebag he was when we first met him).
Except Pakku only had his change of heart when he learned who Katara's grandmother is, right? As far as I could tell, he didn't give two thin dimes if Katara can fight like nobody's business.
I mean, yes, he came around in the end, but it had, from what I could see, nothing to do with Katara's level of skill.
This is exactly what I was thinking. It actually miffs me a little bit….
Master Pakku: Well, I'm impressed. You are an excellent waterbender.
Katara: But you still won't teach me, will you?
Master Pakku: No!
She'd already proven to be a good fighter but he still refused until he knew who she was. To me it seems like he's only teaching her because of favoritism, because she's his lost love's granddaughter. I don't like that.
Well, it's more realistic than him suddenly changing his entire belief system in a day, ne? But I do feel like there was also an element of coming to feel less positive/secure in that system after Katara pointed out that he lost his love because of it.
Upon seeing the necklace, he got to thinking about how Kanna left because of how the sexism rampant in the tribe. She was forced into a marriage she didn't want, but she would have had to continue with it because that is what their tribe believed. That kind of sexism has left him alone for his entire life, and he lost his love because of it.
MTE, thanks for saving me the effort.
I agree with you. Does Pakku agreeing to teach Katara mean every girl in the water tribe will be allowed to learn combat waterbending? Probably not. I doubt it.. not for a generation or so. Maybe once Pakku's generation is gone and younger water benders who perhaps witnessed Katara or heard of her take the reins will it become more acceptable. Maybe it's not all favoritism, maybe some of it is thinking: "She's from the south. We must accommodate HER culture." and "She's with the Avatar.. and as we've seen with Roku.. The last Watertribe Avatar can come out and be all like 'TEACH'."
He doesn't teach her because he wants too.. or because he's impressed.. and that's sad and shouldn't be liked. It's a mixture of both these opinions and those of Avit and Hupu probably.
Well, if he suddenly decided to take a 180° turn and started accepting girls among his students, that wouldn't be too realistic, would it? Especially since it's such a huge part of their culture and it's very deeply in-grown. People don't go through such a major change overnight.
Pakku has shown willingness to change his views – not radically, but slowly turning towards gender equality. Which is not ideal from our outside perspective, but from his point of view, maybe even that is pretty radical. Katara was "the first swallow" – maybe in a few years they will start teaching girls waterbending on a larger scale.
My opinion on this is that he had probably technically changed his mind about her capabilities halfway into the fight, but at that point it was a matter of pride that he wouldn't teach her, cause he was pissed off about being called out in public – and then the audience ends up rooting for his challenger! And the necklace soothed his pride, more than his sexism.
It's not realistic for someone to change their belief structure in a day or a moment (one thing this show is, in the long run, amazingly good at showing/telling) but it's still a nice moment.
I like this. I never thought of it this way before, but I will see it this way from now on. 🙂
Yes. I agree Katara still has some work to do.
MARK EVERYTHING YOU HAVE SAID IN THE PAST TWO REVIEWS IS MAKING IT SO DAMN HARD NOT TO SPOIL!!!!! Not that I will, because I'd rather not be eaten by the Silence in my closet that you'll sic on us if we do, but…SO. SO. HARD.
Um, leaving with just; THE FINALE. YOU ARE NOT PREPARED. SO, SO, NOT PREPARED.
"No nephew of mine is going to stow away on a ship without some backup." FUCK YEAH, IROH! I LOVE YOU AS MUCH AS YOU LOVE TEA AND ROSE LOVES DRUGS AND AS MUCH AS I LOVE ROSE LOVES DRUGS.
FUCK YEAH KATARA!
That is all.
Tea is to Iroh as drugs is to Rose. 😛
Best SAT question ever:
Tea : Iroh :: _____ : Rose
A. The Doctor
B. Mascara
C. Chips
D. Drugs
OH GOD B AND D I CAN'T DECIDE
DRUGS IN THE MASCARA
IT'S THE ONLY WAY
I would be so tempted to actually put that on the SAT and not have it count, only to look at all the confused answers it brings.
In a way, that makes it even less likely that the NWT would change their sexist ways. I mean, that pesky gender equality is something the enemy does. Those barbarians.
I WATCHED THIS EPISODE TODAY. I THINK THIS MEANS WE ARE INTERLINKED.
It is definitely not the fact that I recorded it on Sunday and kind of forgot to watch it til now IT IS DESTINY
I was so excited for you to get to this once I realised it would be this episode you'd be watching today 😀 And the finale! I am sad about the finale being split up, man. Please give in and watch them together? ;D If you do you will begin Season 2 just as I start my stupid exams and it will make them that much more bearable. Think of a young stranger–any mental image accepted, middle-aged biker, elderly stud-muffin, demonic toddler–sitting in an exam hall doing an English exam just wishing lonesomely for a review. A very special review. Of an amazing show. And not concentrating on the exam.
also, I now have Iroh's song stuck in my head. "For the last time uncle, I am not playing the tsungi horn!"
"Also, though the Northern Water Tribe is stunning, I can't help but feel a bit of indignation on behalf of Sokka and Katara at how prosperous the NWT compared to their own tribe."
Part of this is because the Southern Water Tribe is a younger colony. Basically some Northern Water Tribe members who were unsatisfied with their way of life (probably the politics and conservative nature of their traditions) decided to split off and form their own Water Tribe in the south. When the Fire Nation started the war, the Southern Tribe was still too small to properly defend itself since it didn't have as long a time to build up their defenses, and was decimated with Fire Nation raids. This is why their population is scattered all over the South Pole, and why Katara is the only waterbender in the South.
Not a spoiler, just background info they didn't include in the series.
Oh, I understand that. But the war has been going on for a century…and it's disheartening that the concept of allies isn't being applied here, especially since all the men from the Water Tribe left to help fight with the Earth Kingdom (I think?). That said, I can appreciate that it's realistic, and one of the things I love about this show is how we see differences in how groups of people choose to deal with the reality of the war.
WHY DOES EVERYONE SEEM TO BE FORGETTING THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF THIS EPISODE?!?!
Namely, the Koala Otter.
<img src="http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b304/timemachinelives/koala-otter_480x480.jpg">
OMG. LOOOOOOK AT IIIITTT!!!
IT IS A KOALA.
AND AN OTTER.
AT THE SAME TIME.
Every time I watch this episode I miss the next ten minutes or so because I'm running around the house screaming "KOALA OTTER!!!!!"
Where is my koala otter, everybody?
where is mine?
I love the chimaeric animals of the world of Avatar. <3
Yes! I don't think I've commented at all on any of the Avatar reviews because I have a wonky schedule and everyone else says everything by the time I read the reviews, but I decided that if no one else mentioned it I would finally break down and comment. (Which I guess I just did.)
<img src="http://i1133.photobucket.com/albums/m593/the_mauve_avenger/KoalaOtter.gif">
OMG YOU HAVE A GIF.
I love you forever.
GAH HOW ARE THEY SO CUTE AND WHY DON'T THEY REALLY EXIST ; ;
I want one. So very, very much. :D:D:D
Clearly your koala otter is in the same place as my penguin seal. We should go on an Epic Quest to find them.
I want one of each, so I shall join this quest!
I'll bring the TARDIS.
I'll bring the Redvines! (That way we won't need wands.)
Wands? Where we're going, we don't need… wands.
I am packing as I type this.
HOW HAVE I NEVER NOTICED IT BEFORE???? He is adorable!!! *melts*
Which I would probably do, so…oh gosh, I just realized that, yet again, I’ve split up a finale over the weekend. HOW DOES THIS KEEP HAPPENING.
Don't you know? It's the feared Curse of Mark Watches Stuff – doomed to keep splitting the series/season finales over weekends for eternity.
Its like the DADA jinx.
Or the infamous Nominating-For-President Curse. Except for Buttercup. Buttercup has a prophecy about him in the Department of Mysteries. Because… he's Buttercup.
"NO ONE WANTS TO READ SIX THOUSAND WORDS IN ONE REVIEW"
I think reading a 6000~ word review would be less painful than waiting an entire weekend for it. y/n?
Three-day weekend, since he'll have a DW recap on Monday, right? That's a looooong time. 🙁
HOW WILL WE COPE T_T
BUT IT'S THE NEIL FUCKING GAIMAN EPISODE ON SATURDAY!!! We'll be discussing it to bits and won't even notice the weekend fly past!
Monday will seem very long after I read the DW recap, though! (I'm more of a lurker than a commenter.)
I'll have to cope by watching the finale again that night. That'll do it.
YES!!! Plus, I live in New Zealand so I never get to read them til Wednesday since you guys are so behind. (Yes, I know it's really the same length of time, it just feels worse)
I know I just quoted this conversation back a few episodes ago when it actually happened, but I feel it's important to bring up again here:
Sokka: Maybe instead of saving the world you could go into the jewelry making business.
Aang: I don’t see why I can’t do both.
Because you know what I did when I was a kid? I was defined by studying and academics, somewhat like how Aang is defined as the Avatar (only not on the same scale I am in no way trying to imply that being a nerd is as stressful or confining as being THE AVATAR). But you know what Aang and I both did other than our main "quests"? ARTS AND CRAFTS (knitting and friendship bracelets and lanyards, oh my). The point is that real kids have hobbies and are rounded. There's no reason why Aang should JUST be the Avatar, and there's no reason why Sokka shouldn't have a crush on Yue. Real people aren't just defined by or confined to their main task in life. And that is why Avatar is a great show. 🙂
Yeah, and why is the NWT more rigid? They're bigger and older and have been able to afford these stupid traditions thus far. Whereas it looks like the SWT gives its female residents more respect, which I believe stems from the fact that they're smaller and younger and have to rely on each other more.
That's my point – I want more nuance. I want more explanation.
Yeah, that would have been nice. I saw the comment daigo posted, and it's like… that's really cool! and a pity that they didn't include it after all.
I'm super-special late since I had to be somewhere at 4, but i wanted to comment on Katara's lines in particular when she takes on Paku. (And who really reads my comments anyway, I'm okay with that, I JUST LIKE TOT ALK, OKAY! :D)
"You can't beat him!"
"I know. I don't care."
YES! It was never about BEATING Paku, and I love that, it's so refreshing for a story to handle the realities of this.
"You don't have to do this for me! I'll find another master."
"I'm not doing it for you."
THANK YOU KATARA! Do this for yourself and no one else!
Otherwise, I hate you (in a loving way!) for splitting the review….but you're right, MORE REVIEWS ARE BETTER!…though since you don't do Avatar on Monday, that's a longer wait *entitled grump*
I agree with all the comments about Katara being a badass -and- feminine, and the writers never feeling the need to compromise one for the other. In reading interviews about the upcoming Korra (and there's nothing spoilery in this comment, never fear) I noticed that the authors have talked a lot about subverting gender roles a bit with badass female characters. I LOVE them for it – largely because I know how difficult it is to get a major production entity (though I have never worked with Nickelodeon) to agree to anything that isn't rigidely adherant to mainstream gender roles, so I wouldn't be shocked if those guys had to fight for it.
I'm in the video game industry – and I also had trouble coming to terms with gender roles/identity as a teenager – and the combination has led to an outspoken feminism that I suspect my coworkers, 90% of whom are male, find very obnoxious. Too bad for them, though, because we're working on a game for children that purports to be partly educational, and I want to make sure it isn't gendered to a harmful degree just because "most cartoons are." I don't want one of the bits of 'education' that young girls take away from our game to be 'you are expected to look and act girly, no matter what you actually want.'
Also also: I LOVE THIS FIGHT SCENE HOLY CRAP. This is one of the episodes that I put on when I just want to see something cool, along with <spoiler.> And as one commenter mentioned, I adore that Yue acts on her feelings and Sokka is conscientious enough to stop and ask when he doesn't understand. But KATARA FIGHTS A WATERBENDING MASTER. AND THEN THE REST OF THE FINALE. And season 2! Oh my god Mark, you are not prepared.
Also also also: How do I register so that it'll let me post comments of a decent length? Both twitter and IntenseDebate cap me at a much lower character limit than I see in many other comments. halp!
I've seen people say that they write their comments in notepad or some such and paste them in to get around the character limit.
I don't know if the Notepad copy/paste solution works, but the Intense Debate help forums I've gone to suggest that the only real solution (short of ID deciding to go through some massive restructuring) is to switch browsers. It's said that Internet Explorer generally maxes out at around a few thousand characters, Firefox at about seven thousand, and I don't think they even have information on ID character limits for any other browsers. 🙁
Thank you! I'll try Chrome.
I'm in the video game industry – and I also had trouble coming to terms with gender roles/identity as a teenager – and the combination has led to an outspoken feminism that I suspect my coworkers, 90% of whom are male, find very obnoxious.
Are you me? I'm in the same boat, so I salute you for making that stand. Keep it up! We'll change things bit by bit. 🙂
^5!
I'm glad to hear about those in the game industry working out for gender equality. I'm not a gamer to any degree, but even I can notice that the majority of famous video game characters are guys or Princess Peach, the latter of which isn't exactly the epitome of strong female characters. But you can have them. You really can; look for Chell and Samus.
I agree. The game industry still hasn't caught up to the idea of "strong female CHARACTER" as opposed to "STRONG female character," that a character is stronger with depth and flaws and growth and personality, not just because they happen to have sexy armor and a giant gun. (This is why I don't really think Bayonetta counts – an argument I've had many times before! But some people find her portrayal to be empowering, it's just .. not for me.)
Not that this is really the place for me to have brought up games, I guess. >.> whoops.
A suit of hair that flies off your body to attack your enemies, leaving you oh-so-nearly naked (hee-hee!) to the male gaze, is not empowering.
Shut up, Bayonetta.
And no, it's not okay if it's done "ironically", any more than it's okay for a game to have "ironically" terrible controls or "ironic" crash bugs.
I hated the camera especially unironically.
It's not dead, it's just restin'! Pinin' for the volcanoes!
i love you. i truly, truly do. you made my day =D
Or a sailing gag, as it were.
HAR HAR HAR
Splitting the Season One finale in half? Too cruel sir. That's Snape level cruelty. Especially since we don't get Avatar reviews until Tuesday.
I doubt you'll post the review as one post, but there's no way your'e going to be able to only watch one half of the finale and wait four days to see the conclusion. No man is that strong. And hell no, you are not prepared.
And the scariest part of all? Season One is the "weakest" season. Season 1 is great in and of itself, but Seasons 2 and 3? Off the charts. Some of the best stuff committed to celluloid. Can't wait for you to start on Season 2. Your Avatar posts are the highlight of my day. Just know that you're making a difference and you're not alone in your depression, geekdom, and pursuit of fine entertainment.
Moment of silence for the S.S. Crankypants. You served your master well and honorably.
This will now be the name of Zuko's ship forever for me.
Best. Name. Ever.
This is going to be a longer comment from me because this episode packs so much into it that it deserves my time to analyze. I was happy to see music night on Zuko's ship because there were so many references to it that I was building up a lot in my mind. That short scene was magical and so worth the wait. Plus, I love Zuko's first line is he doesn't want to play the zuzo horn :). Even though I am re-watching the series, the entrance into the northern water tribe still takes my breath away. The scale of the place is so large and epic, I was taken aback for a minute. The use of the ice in the buildings was ingenious.
With the gender discrimination of Paku towards Katara, I felt very much the same way she did. I was angry that he wasn't even going to consider her as a student. As a female raised in the modern times in a liberal enviornment, I never really felt discriminated against because I was a girl. But, I can still understand why Paku didn't want to teach Katara. He was adhereing to old and outdated customs, which were an integral part of who he was. His fight with Katara shows for one how badass Katara has become over the season and that she can hold her own with someone like Paku. This series does an amazing job of having strong female characters like Katara and the Warriors of Koishi as well as issues with gender discrimination like how Sokka was in the beginning.
Speaking of Sokka, I thought his crush on the Princess Yue was cute. We've seen Sokka allude to his ability to flirt with the ladies, but we never saw him try those methods until now. His nervous and awkward conversation with Yue at the dinner reminded me when I first started flirting with boys. It shows us the viewer that Sokka is a teenager and sometimes frustrated about things such as love. I thought the craved fish was adorable and his reaction very well thought out. I actually cheered when Yue kissed him.
Finally, my reaction to Zhao and his actions. I knew in the back of my mind Zhao would come back and do something in a large scale battle. Then, I saw him in Zuko's room I knew some major action was going to go down. When I saw Zhao notice the swords, I said "Oh, no you didn't." Because I could see the wheels of evil Zhao's mind were turning. Then the blowing up of the ship made me freak out before the scene with Iroh and Zuko. Everyone has been saying it and its never been more true: You are so unprepared for what is about to go down, Mark.
It's spelled "Tsungi Horn", actually. 🙂
We've seen Sokka allude to his ability to flirt with the ladies, but we never saw him try those methods until now.
Even though, at the Southern Water Tribe, he obviously couldn't have any real experience flirting with girls. I can't help imagining that it's something his dad would've talked about when he was a kid, and as he grew up he just started going, "Oh, yeah, I know aaalll about the flirting" even though he had absolutely no idea.
Also, I love the way that it was revealed that Zuko was still alive, but I've always been a bit sad that we never get to see Iroh reacting to seeing Zuko after the explosion. He was so sad and damn it I want to see him happy.
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/waterbendingmaster1.jpg">
There's an unbelievable amount of art for this episode, but not too much commentary, so I guess people will have to put up with some more of my rambling.
So! This episode. I think it has one of my favorite fight scenes in the entire show (and the creators apparently agree!). Two waterbenders fighting each other is just an amazingly beautiful thing, almost more of a dance than a battle. I love how they redirect each other's attacks in constantly evolving ways.
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/waterbendingmaster2.jpg">
Pakku was first designed for the main titles. He is the Waterbender seen in silhouette at the opening of every episode. In our opinion, Pakku is one of the best marriages of a character's voice and design in the series.
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/waterbendingmaster3.jpg">
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/waterbendingmaster4.jpg">
In designing the Northern Water Tribe, we wanted to show how the people were a little fancy and cosmopolitan, in contrast to Katara and Sokka's more rugged tribe in the South.
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/waterbendingmaster5.jpg">
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/waterbendingmaster6.jpg">
This is one of those episodes that I wish had been around when I was growing up. I love everything about Katara's story in this one. I love that she talks Aang out of quitting lessons for her (and I love that he immediately says he's going to). I love that she's willing to swallow her pride and apologize (because SHE SHOULDN'T HAVE TO) but not willing to be humiliated or belittled in the process.
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/waterbendingmaster7.jpg">
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/waterbendingmaster8.jpg">
I love that she challenges Pakku when it's completely and utterly clear that there is no way she can win against him, and I love that despite this, she keeps getting back up and fighting until she quite literally can't fight any longer. I love that both Aang and Sokka let her do this without trying to jump in and help her out. And I love that apparently being badass and not being willing to put up with sexist garbage runs in the family.
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/waterbendingmaster9.jpg">
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/waterbendingmaster10.jpg">
I mean, look how hard it was to get to the North Pole with a flying bison and the Avatar? Can you imagine being Katara's age and traveling to the South Pole, entirely on your own, leaving behind everyone and everything you know, presumably for good, because you're not willing to put up with this shit? Oh yeah, and not being a bender either. Kana was pure badass.
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/waterbendingmaster11.jpg">
<img src="http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y29/kartikeya/Avatar/waterbendingmaster12.jpg">
Katara's duel with Master Pakku is one of our favorite action scenes from the series.
Gorgeous artwork. I particularly love the architecture of the Northern Water Tribe – it's basically Venice in ice with Asian influences! <3
On Kana: HELL. YES.
The artwork is gorgeous, thank you for posting it =)
Man, not gonna lie, I nearly cried on hearing that Katara's duel is one of the creator's favourite action scenes. It is so amazing to see creators put so much love into a female character's fight.
Wow, that water bending fight scene story board is simply gorgeous. Like, I want a poster of it to put up on my wall gorgeous.
These are so beautiful, particularly the storyboard of the fight (and I love your rambling :D). Waterbending is just so beautiful- any battle involving waterbending is one of my favorites. Two waterbenders is basically the height of awesome for me.
Also, FUCK YEAH KANA. \o/
Oh Sokka, you are so adorkable. ^^
I swear, when we first saw the whole ice city thing…I just sat there with my mouth hanging open. WOW. If Zhao does start a full on siege, it is gonna be incredible to see. SO EXCITE!!
Not only Katara shows respect for healing abilities, but so did Jeong Jeong — indeed, he seemed quite awed by it. I see what you mean about the tightrope they're walking here, but I think the context from "The Deserter" helps in not denigrating healing in favor of fighting.
Northern Air Temple?
Are you sure about that, Mark?
Is this Homestuck??? I see these characters everywhere.
Yep!!!
Yes, it is! You really should read it! …If you don't mind suddenly losing, like, all of your free time that you already don't have much of in the first place…
People always say 'you should read it', but they never link it. So here http://www.mspaintadventures.com/?s=6 is the link to the first page of the epic comic, the trolls, such as Karkat pictured above, do not make an appearance until much much later in the story which starts off rather slowly, but soon becomes more amazing than anything ever. Probably.
You're right, I probably should have linked it.
I have really bad luck with linking the comic to people to get them to read it though. I've tried two or three times, and any of my friends that don't already read it that I try to get to read it will stop before they're even nine or ten pages in. It is frustrating. And somewhat disheartening.
I guess most of my friends have negative patience or something.
Thanks for linking it for Mark though.
My thoughts on this episode can be summed up in a few things –
– FUCK YES KATARA I FREAKING LOVE YOU. <3 <3 <3 She is SO GODDAMN BADASS HERE. She doesn't take anyone's sexist shit! And so many points to the show for letting her do it herself, rather than Aang standing up for her, and props to Sokka for just suggesting that Aang teach her. I'm also glad she went to learn about the healing, because it too is valuable (trust me, Katara, I've played too many RPGs to NOT value the healer as much as the badass fighters, haha, and those who can do both are to be treasured).
– OMG THE CITY IS SO BEAUTIFUL, I WOULD LIVE THERE. <3 Well, aside from the sexism.
– I like Princess Yue, and Sokka's crush on her is so cute and funny.
– I agree with you in general about "why can I do both?", Mark, as it applies to people and shows. Re: episodes that deviate from the main mythology, I tend to take them on a case by case basis. If the episode is boring, yeah, not gonna be a fan. But if it has some characterization stuff, and/or is just a lot of fun and hilarity, or just a really good self-contained story? Yeah, I totally dig those.
– FUCK YOU, ZHAO. Seriously.
– Iroh, you are the best. <3 <3 <3 Love you lots and lots for ever and always. Keep being amazing.
I'm pretty sure the exact moment I started reccing this show to all of my friends whether or not they liked fantasy or cartoons or fiction or anything at all remotely related to Avatar was during the Katara vs. Pakku showdown, when she gets up and does that little foggy exhale and then proceeds to wipe the floor with absolutely everything in reach, including the actual floor.
Also I have used the "do an activity" pick up line on a bunch of potential friends and it has worked every single time.
I shall have to keep the "do an activity" line in mind, then.
The only redeemable thing about Zhao is that he's voiced by Jason Isaacs.
<img src="http://i52.tinypic.com/2cyfb5c.jpg" border="0" alt="Image and video hosting by TinyPic">
(credit for this wonderful image goes to echinodermata. I would never dream of taking the credit for it myself.)
(I stole the original picture of Zhao from the Avatar fan wikia, btw)
You're beautiful. Every Zhao episode, please.
NO ONE WANTS TO READ SIX THOUSAND WORDS IN ONE REVIEW.
WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT, THAT WOULD BE AMAZING.
I dont know if this has been answered, and feel free to shame me if it has, but do you plan on watching The Last Airbender Movie?
Not because its good or anything. I am a fan of a lot of things that others consider to be bad. And a devil's advocate for many others. This movie is practically a "Idiots Guide for How Not to Make Movies". But…you know….pretty colors.
The tattoos were pretty!
"This movie is practically a 'Idiots Guide for How Not to Make Movies'".
I wholeheartedly agree. And the worst part is that not only did Shyamalan watch the show, but the whole reason he was introduced to the show was when his daughter wanted to dress up as Katara for Halloween. I hope every penny he made on that movie will be spent on his daughter's inevitable therapy bills.
I'm sure Shyamalan made Stephanie Meyer proud, though.
OKAY FIRST:
". And maybe this is only something a few of us experience, but their can be this bizarre prescriptivism online about what we should be doing with our lives, that we should be focusing on only one passion and everything else needs to take a backseat or else we’re too “distracted” or “unfocused” or “not committed enough.”"
I know exactly what you mean here!
SECOND: Who knew Sokka was going to have the best love life on the show? Not me! I can't complain though, I love his awkwardness.
What else?
"In the same breath, I rather enjoyed that Aang stuck up for Katara, refusing to be taught himself, but then he stepped aside and let her fight the battle herself when it came down to it. I was initially a tad worried that he might step in and that might have sent the message that a girl needs a boy to finish her battles, but Katara does this all by herself."
It's also important to note he stepped aside out of respect for Katara when she told him his lessons were too important.
So, yeah, Katara. I love this episode a lot. I think the specific gender issues of this water tribe that we learn about here-arranged marriage and girls being totally forbidden to even learn about certain things-are of a kind of conservatism that a lot of this show's audience prolly can't directly relate to but exists nonetheless. I have some concerns that people will make parallels of the situation to real-world ones in ways that are kind of othering and only existing in "other" cultures, but anyways this is a fantasy show, and it reminds me of the greatest movie ever, so I can't do anything but love it regardlesss.
I don't really know what I can say about Katara other than her development being fantastic. I hadn't realized till my rewatch (uh, how could I?) how gradually they built up her bending skills on the show and how far she's come since the first couple of episodes. She's brutal, but I'm sure she knew of course that she would be no match for the master but had to fight him anyways.
Also how she genuinely cared for Aang and at first was willing to sacrifice her ego in the short term for the greater good because his education was "too important" and that totally unsurpringly didn't work out for long. You know I love it tons when the characters on this show are badasses and make inspiring speeches that spark rebellions, but sooner or later they would probably end up in a sitch where they'd feel they'd have to compromise their ideals like many people do all the time IRL. For obvious reasons I'm really happy that didn't last for long and she told them all off, but it was pretty realistic to see her temporarily make those kind of choices nonetheless.
In conclusion Katara and Katara's Gran are awesome.
Re: Zhao – Am I the only one who actually likes him? I mean, he's so DELICIOUSLY evil and villainous and badass! I mean, there are antagonist characters that are absolutely unlikeable (DOLORES UMBRIDGE I AM LOOKING AT YOU, BITCH!), but there are villains you just love (or love to hate, take your pick). Likeable, cool villains. Badass villains. Zhao is definitely one of them, IMHO.
Of course, I think it's totally because of him being voiced by Jason Isaacs. 😉
And the sideburns. Zhao wears sideburns. Sideburns are cool.
No, no, I agree with you. He is deliciously evil. 😀 😀
I think those go past sideburns, into full Muttonchop territory.
He is deliciously evil, although he's a successful grown man with this weird, petty vendetta against a pretty powerless 16-year-old kid, and in that sense he starts to stray into Umbridge territory.
Plus, he brought music night to a screeching halt. That's just wrong and bad!
Yeah, well, Zuko is not exactly "powerless". He pretty much kicked Zhao's arse in their Agni Kai… Zuko is clearly a pretty good firebender, even though he's still in his training.
Zhao does not have sideburns. The Sideburns have a Zhao between them.
upvote!
LOL, that's so right! XD
No, you see, Everyone likes Zhao in the sense that they like to hate him. He's got this evil, dickish, smug air about him, and we're all like "I can't wait to see him taken down several pegs in a short amount of time," and so you take in every scene that he's in with such gusto.
AFAIK the Celts had women fighters and it;s a right in Islam, I dunno about the Romans*. Different cultures are different!
*correct me if I'm wrong
Romans had very rigid gender structures, it is the main reason why ours were in such a way for a long, long time.
I suspected that was the case but I didn't want to speculate since it's one of the empire I know the least about or in case there was actually some weird island I didn't know about where women defended the land and not men. They followed Greece as an example, I can't say I'm surprised.
Okay, Mark, this review was awesome. I TOO LOVE MUSIC NIGHT, and the song Iroh sings is fantastic. You can hear the instrumental version in the background over the rest of the episode.
I don't know why I do this because I love your reviews. But for some reason I must point out stuff where I disagree with you FORGIVE ME:
"… just how magnificent and elaborate this water temple is."
It's not a temple; it's just a city. The Airbenders have temples.
"In that sense, though, a large part of “The Waterbending Master” deals with how Katara’s water tribe differentiates on a particular point: what gender role she should abide by."
I don't think that Katara's tribe (the Southern Water Tribe) is less sexist than the Northern. As you'll recall, Sokka was brought up with some pretty crazy ideas about girls and what they can do. In the Southern Water Tribe, it's the men who are soldiers and go off to fight, leaving the women and children at home. I think the Water Tribes in general have a very patriarchal culture.
This is a very interesting point to me because THE FIRE NATION has women soldiers. For all their warmongering, there is that to think about. They seem to be militaristic, but not so far discriminatory based on gender.
How did you get so far in to season one so quickly? I'm very excited for the finale.
You're probably the only person ever to be impressed at how fast Mark's reviews go by.
Pardon the imprecision — I meant that healing is coded as feminine in the show. Of course there's nothing inherently feminine about it! But because it's coded feminine in the show, it would have been really easy to portray it as less-than and have it read as less-than because it's (in the show) feminine, or by association with its practice by women. So that's what I was happy to see not happen — Katara doesn't reject healing because it's coded feminine, or because fighting is inherently better, but because she's an individual and she wants something else.
It worked for me, anyway — I know it may not have been as satisfactory for everyone. There are some aspects I'm not altogether happy with, but overall I felt it was a pretty decent job of making the distinction =)
I thought the quotes around feminine were sufficient, so I really appreciated your original comment and the point you're making.
I get what you're trying to say now, I think, and I'd like to add that I'm not sure even the show is trying to show healing as particularly feminine… it's just something the NWT was making all the girls learn.
But I'm just tinkering with your wording and I think we're making the same point really.
OH MY GOD THIS EPISODE. Here is my reaction, copied from my Tumblr, after watching it:
"UGH KATARA YOU ARE THE BEST. NO WAY IS SHE APOLOGIZING TO A SEXIST OLD MAN WHO REFUSES TO TRAIN HER BECAUSE SHE’S A GIRL. IN FACT SHE WILL FIGHT HIM INSTEAD!
“SOMEONE NEEDS TO SLAP SOME SENSE INTO THAT GUY!”
OMG BE MY BEST FRIEND AND SHOW ME YOUR BADASS WAYS KATARA.
I totally thought she was going to suck it up and apologize so that Aang could get trained! But then she’s like, NOPE IMMA BE A TOTAL BADASS INSTEAD BECAUSE SEXIST ASSHATS NEED TO BE TOLD. And then she did fight the guy, even though he tried to dismiss her and send her back to the kitchen with the other women, and she kept fighting even though of course he was going to win. KATARA YOU ARE MY HERO.
I MEAN SERIOUSLY. I am so happy Katara exists as a role model for little girls growing up with this show. I am 24 years old and I want to be Katara, I can't imagine how much I would have loved her when I was 8.
24 and loving Avatar yay go us!
I've always wondered what the age demographic of Mark Watches is.
This is mostly because I just got into Avatar and at 24 it's hard for me to recommend it to friends I think might like it. They sort of give me a funny look and say no.
I'm also a 24 year old "GAangster". I wish I could date Katara. If she was in her 20's that is. And not a fictional cartoon character.
That came off creepier then I intended, I apologize.
I'll be 28 next month. I still don't have a Real Job :/
I'm the youngest one on this comment so far, a 15-year-old (last month, AAMOF) GAangster/MarkDoesStuff-reader/Harry Potter & Hunger Games-lover/geek. And I would very much like to be Katara.
I'm 42, and I was watching this episode thinking it would have been AMAZING to have Katara when I was a little girl.
I will be 24 on Sunday, and I too want to be Katara! She would have been my favorite character EVER as an 8 year old. So fabulous.
Randomly, I just realized the 'Four Seasons' song that Iroh sings shows up instrumentally when Sokka and Yue are talking on the bridge.
Yes.
Is Yue one of Sokka's loves? O I C WOT U DID THAR COMPOSERS.
I realized that too! So cute.
And the costumes and set design were pretty good, too. As for the music, I found it largely forgettable…
It is largely forgettable. However, go to Youtube, and search for 'Flow Like Water' (NO ONE WHO HASN'T SEEN THE MOVIE SHOULD DO THIS ~~~spoilers~~~.
The Northern Water Tribe might be the most visually perfect place in the show. I have not thought about that statement at all, and will probably regret it, but it's just so wonderfully picturesque. And snowy. I would live there. And yes, Katara v. Pakku is amazing, probably the best fight in the series where lives aren't at stake.
Oh, and Zhao is AWESOME. He just is. Jason Isaacs. You cannot go wrong.
…This is beautiful and flawless.
YOU are beautiful and flawless and you should feel good about yourself.
🙂
Indeed! Fighting is awesome, but every group needs a cleric! Somebody's gotta pass out the heal potions.
Most people have already said most of what I was going to say, but a couple things about this ep that I love love love:
I love that Katara was willing to walk away from his sexism at first. I think anyone who's encountered a sexist person in a position of power over them specifically (as opposed to the general sort of societal power) knows that feeling where you have to have your say and then leave it. You know the argument won't be worth it, you know you won't change their mind, and you DO know the risk you're taking by continuing won't be worth the reward. The Master is willing to let his sexism get in the way of SAVING THE WORLD but Katara isn't.
And then she's told to apologize. And I honestly think she might have done it, however WRONG he is, for the same reason as above. But then he made it personal with his smarmy, condescending "little girl" and THAT was the last straw. Before, he was being a jerk, but at least he was being the same jerk to all women. But this was a direct, personal insult, not just dismissing her but deliberately trying to insult and degrade her. THAT could not stand, and good on her for drawing that line.
I wish she'd been able to convince him with her skill alone, but its rarely that way. First she proved to him that she was a worth waterbender, and then her necklace had to remind him that this sort of pigheaded stupidity has already lost him something important and irreplaceable. At least, at the last, he was willing to learn. And he seems to have embraced the lesson once he learned it instead of paying obvious lip-service. He seems genuinely pleased to have Katara as his new and awesome student 🙂
Also, since realizing the Four Seasons musical cue in that last scene, the song makes me tear up a little every time I listen to Uncle singing it 🙁 And it also makes me think about the way his and Zuko's relationship changed as of this episode.
I'm so excited for you to watch the finale. Trust me, you're not prepared. I'm probably not prepared either come to think because it's been a while since I've seen Season 1's finale.
I have nothing to add except I want Yue's hair really badly. That is one styling do.
I love this episode so, so much.
I still remember first watching this episode, and being overwhelmed by the beauty of Northern Water Tribe. The stark white buildings, the elegant canals, the way they’ve shaped a vibrant city out of ice; it’s stunning. As we are introduced to the world, it seems like it’s everything the gAang could want. They are honoured and welcomed here, and are immediately offered the best water bending teacher in the city. Sokka finds somewhere he can practise as a warrior, not to mention a pretty face. (Also, can I say that I love the initial conversation between Sokka and Yue? Sokka’s being so absolutely ridiculous, and you can see Yue fighting to giggle. It’s the true awkwardness of young flirting.)
We very quickly get a sense that not everything is going to be going well, however. Zhao has realised Aang’s plan, and is quickly mounting an invasion force- taking care to strip Zuko of his crew, so that if anyone’s going to be catching the Avatar, it won’t be our favourite anti-hero. In the tribe itself, we realise that not all is sunshine and rainbows. Yue seems to like Sokka’s company, but she’s already engaged, having been placed into an arranged marriage, knowing she cannot back out of it as it will probably have been planned to strengthen political bonds within the tribe. This is just a prelude to the true truth; that the whole tribe is incredibly sexist, and will not let any woman learn to fight, even someone as naturally gifted as Katara.
It’s a feminist plot, plain and simple; but even better, it’s turning things on the head. The sexist ones are the good guys. The proud republic fighting against Fire Nation tyranny. Master Pakku, in many ways the epitome of the ‘old mentor’ trope, at first appears like he shall be the normal “fierce trainer with a heart of gold underneath” character, and indeed he is- except even as the character who would normally be considered the wise one, he too is blinded by prejudice. I love the fact that this show takes the time to show things are not black and white, and that even the good guys can have major flaws.
(cont.)
It’s the way the plot is handled which I enjoy so much, though. I love that at first Katara steps down. Yes, she’s angry that she’s being denied what she considers her right, but she knows that this is time to swallow her pride and let Aang accomplish what he must (Katara: I’ll just…go be a magical nurse.) It’s incredibly mature of her, even though I wouldn’t have blamed her for going all pissy on Pakku right there. Instead she goes and learns to heal, and even though it’s annoying that she can’t learn to fight, you have to admit its a good idea. When you’re going to be in as dangerous situations as Team Avatar, it’s probably best to have someone that can keep you from dying.
Not content, however, she tries to train with Aang at night, and in most things, this is probably exactly what would happen. I can imagine a series of weeks or months with her training in secret, and becoming epic; eventually she would have no choice but to reveal her talents, and she would impress the entire city by defeating Pakku. Amazed, everyone would realise how wrong they would be, and gender equality would reign supreme!
Yeah, that’s not what happens.
They get caught immediately, and Pakku is so insulted that he refuses to teach Aang any further. In a way, I am somewhat reminded of some of the clashes which are occurring between some more fundamentalist Islam groups and more general western culture. How are you meant to respect another culture’s religions/beliefs/ideals when they so directly clash with yours in a way that seems immoral? It’s a difficult situation in the real world, one which cannot easily overcome without violence occurring, especially on groups like women who you are trying to help.
I appreciate that Katara realises that she should try to sacrifice her own desires so Aang can fulfill his destiny, but she’s never been one to hide her temper, and bursts. She challenges Pakku to a dual, which is one of the most epic fight scenes in the series….and fails. I love that. She puts up an amazing and fierce fight, and I commend her for it, but if she had actually defeated a master who’d had a life time of training, it would have been too unbelievable. None the less, she was impressive- but Pakku still isn’t swayed. Until she see’s Katara’s necklace.
I’ve seen at least one person who dislikes this particular twist in the story, and I can see where they’re coming from. Here Pakku doesn’t overcome his prejudice because of Katara’s own talents, but because of her lineage, and I can see how they might find that annoying. However, that is not the concept the writers were trying to convey. Pakku was too blinded to see Katara’s genuine talents; he couldn’t understand how horribly he was affecting her. No, he had to realise that his prejudice had hurt a woman he loved, and just as significantly, himself. This is something which cannot be stressed enough. Prejudice doesn’t just hurt those discriminated against, its hurts everyone. It causes tension, which often leads to violence in the future- looks at racially oppressed groups who often had to kill (or thought they did) in order to gain their natural rights. It causes people who could be working and beneficial to society- in this case, women who could be valuable fighters- to be restrained and the entire society loses out. And for Pakku, his prejudice lost him a woman he genuinely loved. It is only when he makes a realisation that he’s hurt himself that he’s finally able to see Katara as just as a person, not necessarily one with a uterus.
While we get a happy ending to the main plot, the B story line ends horribly. I mean, wow, talk about grim. There is nothing more startling than watching Iroh standing on that pier, staring at the burning remains of his ship, knowing that Zuko, his surrogate son, has died in an explosion. Shit.Of course, he’s not really dead, but still….that’s such a poignant scene, and I can imagine that for a few minutes Iroh was genuinely scared that Zuko hadn’t managed to escape.
THIS SHOW THIS SHOW THIS SHOW.
1.) I love that Katara calls bullshit on the ingrained sexism of the NWT society IMMEDIATELY.
2.) I love that this is tied into her grandmother's story, since she also called bullshit.
3.) I love that Pakku's stubbornness when it comes to sticking to dumb traditions is somewhat explained.
4.) I love that Katara is a COMPLETELY AMAZING PROFESSIONALLY UNTRAINED BENDER who can hold her own against a master.
5.) But I also love that she is not so overpowered that she defeats him, because that would be completely unbelievable.
6.) I love Aang for being both a good and a respectful friend.
7.) I love the mechanics of the Northern Water Tribe, because DUDE. DUDE. WHAT.
8.) I love Sokka's adorable awkwardness and his fish-bear carving and his face-stuffing and his everything.
9.) I love Iroh's music night!
10.) I LOVE IROH
11.) I love the giant crab that they steam for the feast. WHAT.
12.) Yue has amazing hair.
13.) More things.
14.) This show makes me love everything in existence, basically.
Except Zhao. Zhao can fucking fuck the fuck off. I hope Zuko gives him an "accidental" flat tire whenever he walks by him on that ship.
Zhao has tires? I KNEW IT! ZHAO IS A ROBOT!
You should always watch the finale episodes together. It's just torture not to.
But other than that, I had a real issue with the Northern Water Tribe saying they wouldn't train girls! It's so stupid! Useless!! They are fighting a war against Firebenders for goodness' sake, they have an element advantage!!! How does it make any fucking sense?! I mean, sure, maybe 100 years ago when there was peace it would make some kind of stupid sense in their culture, but after 100 years of war and strife and battle, you are seriously not going to train half of your army? ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?
Don't get me wrong, I am all for Katara's empowerment, but the situation needed to show it… I dunno, it left a bad taste in my mouth.
Also, I wasn't the only one who looked at Yue's hair and immediately thought of Sailor Moon or Princess Kaguya, right???
As a girl, I love this episode. Katara knows she will lose the fight, but that's not her goal. Her goal is to show she is worthy of being a student based on talent, not gender. Her goal is to show the tribe that girls can be fighters too. She doesn't hate healing because it's what the girls learn, she hates it because she was forced into it. She still takes the lessons, she still learns, but she still tries to learn how to fight too. She's strong in her beliefs and will challenge an unfair system. I liked that she lost too. Katara is not a master, we know that. But she didn't need to win. Some people disliked the necklaces involvement, but for a man like Pakku, this is a realistic way for him to accept her. He saw how good she was, and remembers how he lost the love of his life because of sexist tradition, and takes Katara as a student because of that. He does not take every girl, because this is all very new for him. But you see that Katara started something, and you know over time it will get bigger. It's very real showing that change takes a lot of hard work and time.
Beautiful!
Dear Markwatches Fandom:
Mark does not owe us anything. He provides a service, for FREE, which we love. Whenever you act entitled to his time, or to speak on his personal life or the way he runs this site, then fairies die, kittens mutate, Katara cries, and we hate you. Stop. The proper response to someone giving you something awesome for free is . . . "thank you for the awesome."
On another note, Katara fights like a complete BAMF! We're finally at the northern water tribe. Squee!
all of this!
Um, I don't think anyone meant to imply that we're entitled to Mark's reviews and his time… Chill, man.
I think she is addressing the entitled idiot who complained over of Mark's tumblr, not us lot?
Which: Yes.
Yes, thanks AmyAlices, I meant the Tumbl idiot. Most of the commentators here are of the really great variety.
Oh. I don't use Tumblr, so I wouldn't know. What happened there?
PREACH.
Just one (which will be answered tomorrow anyway, but I’m impatient), are you reviewing “Siege of the North” parts 1&2 as a single episode?
Do you…read the reviews in their entirety? Mark answers pretty clearly.
Ok, re-read it again. My confusion was that I thought he was lumping this episode in with the finale. Makes more sense the second time I read it.
So yeah this was like my favorite episode ever growing up. Seeing this as a young girl (who also happened to grow up surrounded by sexist boys) really inspired me. It intruduced me to the whole idea to femminism and standing up for myself. Seriously.
Until I saw that show I would have to sit around and watch while all the other kids in my neighborhood (seriously I was the only girl) play football. And I wasn't allowed because I was a girl and I would get hurt (even though I was older than a couple of the guys by 3 flippin years). After watching a few rounds and trying to understand how to play, I stood up and practically whispered "can I play guys?" Nobody heard me so I was going to sit down again but the ball landed right next to me. I picked it up and one of the kids said, "throw it here." "Can I play?" I asked. "Sorry its even teams." A couple minutes later one of the kids had to leave. Everyone decided it was time to draw new teams. So one more time I asked if I could play and one of the older kids said, "fine but don't cry when you get hurt."
This is easily one of my favorite episodes. I love seeing female characters who can be strong and aggresive without losing their feminimity, and yet you so rarely see it. It's common in media for "strong" female characters to come off as emotionless or downright sociopathic. But this show executes it wonderfully and this episode is a shining example. Katara should be the template of how to write a warrior-woman, in my opinion. Somebody please hire Mike and Brian to write a Wonder Woman movie!
I can pinpoint the exact moment I fell in love with Katara, and that's when she water-whips Pakku in the back of the head.
Totally agreed with all of this.
I know I'm just echoing everyone else here, but one of the things I love most about this episode is that it really defines Katara's character. This is a 14-year-old girl with no formal training in combat/waterbending, and yet she's strong enough, talented enough, determined enough and dedicated enough to her beliefs, principles and overall desire to learn and perfect her art that she is both willing and able to go toe-to-toe with a waterbending master who has at least six more decades of experience than her, and even though she lost, she still made him work hard for his victory and practically forced him to respect her. She's a great example of a strongly written female character and the kind of heroine I wish I'd had when I was a kid.
Ah, I want Pakku to meet Suki some time. Actually, I want all of the Northern Water Tribe to meet her and the other warriors of Kyoshi. 'Cause dang.
word.
Suki vs Pakku sparring = AWESOME IDEA.
In the Avatar art book, they say that in the Fire nation, women aren't allowed to join the actual conquering/combat armies. They get assigned to guarding the homeland and training new army recruits (so most firebenders are trained by elite females). Even though they do allow women in the army, there is still some inequality there, too.
Yes, everything is starting to come together in this episode. I watched "The Waterbending Master" a few hours ago in preparation for this entry, and then found I couldn't resist watching the last two episodes of the season, too, and MARK, YOUR PREPARATION IS INADEQUATE. YOU HAVE NO IDEA.
*cough* Anyway. Look at all the characters we've been following all season maturing and changing and converging on the North Pole! Sokka's courtship of Yue, while vastly awkward, is also a vast improvement on how he was with Suki, or even the advice he gave Aang in "The Fortuneteller". And Katara's waterbending improvement speaks for itself, of course. Loudly and awesomely.
Meanwhile, Zuko, Zhao, and Iroh are heading north at cross-purposes. So much conflict! So much to resolve! What will happen with Sokka and Yue? What is Zuko's plan? Will Iroh's treachery be discovered? AAAAH INVASION OF THE NORTH POLE ZOMG. Mark, how are you not watching the last two episodes of the season right now?!
I love the homage to West Coast First Nations and Inuit peoples in the art design. It's EVERYWHERE! I mean, check out the totem-pole-esque things in front of that building, or the tops of those waterfalls. Also, their boats, their clothing, etc. etc. etc. Growing up in Canada, where those images are still found in a lot of places, I love seeing it represented on a major television show. I myself am not a First Nations person, but those images and ideas have become as much my culture as anyones. LOVE THIS ART!!! The water tribe is my favourite element, visually, for this reason.
I know people say this every review, but seriously, thanks soooo much for posting these.
I know what you mean, I love it too! When I heard they were doing a movie, I was actually kind of hopeful that they'd choose Canadians for Sokka and Katara. Hahaha yeah … that didn't work out.
Wow, I need more sleep. I totally thought you were saying "West Coast Fire Nations" at first and I was so confused.
I love this show and these reviews, but this has always kind of bugged me. As the Gaang travel, we get to watch Sokka and Katara change costume. They take off layers of clothing as they move north, into warmer territory, then add it again as the weather starts getting colder. Aang never changes his clothes…. Do the Air Nomads just have super special clothing that's good for all weather, or what?I live in the Great White North, I cannot wear my winter clothing in the summer, nor can I wear summer/spring clothing in THE NORTH POLE! It doesn't make sense…
The official reason is that Aang has a special breathing method so he doesn't get too cold. Basically A Wizard Did It
It's not uncommon in martial arts movies for monks to be able to ignore extreme weather conditions. Think about Pai Mei in Kill Bill: Volume 2. He was just sitting there looking perfectly comfortable while The Bride was balled up and shivvering violently. So it doesn't really bother me that Aang, as a monk, is completely unbothered by the cold.
MARK YOU ARE SO NOT PREPARED FOR THE FINALE. NOT. EVEN. PREPARED.
Uncle Iroh: [to Zuko] It's a lovely night for a walk. Why don't you join me? It would clear your head.
[no response]
Uncle Iroh: Or, just stay in your room and sit in the dark. Whatever makes you happy.
I just love how kind Iroh was in that scene – it's hilarious (ah, emo-Zuko), but it's also a pretty heart warming example of how supportive of his nephew Iroh is, even when he's not helping the kid stow away on a hostile ship. <3 their relationship.
*heads off to find Avatar DVDs and tire my eyes out*
Yep, Zuko's definitely earned the right to be mopey sometimes. But honestly, the members of the Gaang don't exactly have it easy, either. I think that the reason Zuko's emo is tolerable even in that comparative context is that the show doesn't take it 100% seriously, but is willing to say that his relentless anger is actually kind of funny sometimes.
True, especially when Iroh trolls him. So many LOLs.
The only thing that I didn't like (if I'm remebering this right, it's been some time) about the Katara storyline, is that it didn't make the jump from: Katara can want/do it to Maybe more girls (and women) could want/do this (and that you should have the right to do so, even if you're not extraordinary at it, what would the reaction to Katara's efforts have been like if she'd been about as good as the average guy?) and that we don't see other girls ("ordinary" (to the men there) girls and not outsiders with special status) follow/want to follow in her footsteps. (Or do we, as I said, it's been some time, so if I'm wrong then I take it back.)
On the other hand, this is frustratingly realistic. Progress takes time! And often it is incredibly hard for an individual to change perceptions about a group they belong to (but you're not like those other girls!, on the other hand bad stereotypes are all to easily reinforced) in a positive way.
I'd also never see it as Katara's job to start a revolution. She already has enough on her plate! And the rest of the show does show that the writers don't make Katara the one special female character, so I'm sure that whatever irritation moments I lived through were entirely a product of some of the not so nice things about the Northern Water tribe. (I fully support that there wasn't a scene where all the girls gave up healer training, or something like that, because they should get to CHOOSE.)
This episode rocks on so many levels as Mark pointed out.
WOO HOOO STRONG WOMEN. I'm 25, but it's still so wonderful that strong bad-ass characters like Katara exist for me to look up to and emulate. And the characterizations are so nuanced. They have conflicting emotions, and the writers know they don't have to say "wow, you're really <insert personality trait here>" for people to get it.
I love how they spend so much time on the animation that you can really tell the difference between Master Pakku's focused discipline and Katara's mostly self-taught, rough style in the final fight. And the imagination! You can tell for most of this stuff that they just sat in a room for hours on end, potentially buoyed with alcohol, and went "OH MAN it would be so cool if <insert crazy awesome move/animal/character here> happened/appeared!"
And Sokka just wins. Here you really see that they give almost equal time to all of the main characters. Oh yeah, and he is ADORKABLE. Here you can really see why it's really hard to hate him, even in the beginning. It's like the characters don't change, so much as we get to know them better as the season goes on.
And that's a really great point about Aang's total lack of chauvinistic pigness. It's so refreshing to see in a hero. Even in the best stories- book or visual media- the hero generally has a streak of this. It's become so prevalent that we almost don't notice it.
Anyway- I'm so excited for you to see the finale! Although, I wonder if you will actually hold off on watching it or just post the review on Tuesday… for your sake, I hope you watch it sooner than you post it.
KJSHFSLKJDFH THIS EPISODEEE
FOREVER ONE OF MY FAVORITE EPISODES
KATARA IS THE HBIC AND TOTAL BAMF LSKFJASLDKFJ
DAT FIGHT
Seriously though, I love Katara. This episode is what really made Katara win me over. I knew she was not afraid to speak her mind about sexism and the like, but MAN. Even though she lost, she still kicked Pakku's ass. And I like Pakku. Even though he is a sexist douche. And I like Zhao. OH GOD WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME. Actually, I think it's because of Rufftoon (aka Johanne Matte) and her art. She actually worked on Avatar with a million other amazing artists and did some comics for the old Nickelodeon magazine. DON'T LOOK AT HER ART UNTIL YOU FINISH THIS SERIES, THOUGH. It's pretty spoilery. Actually, MAJORLY SPOILERY.
STORY TIME! EVERYBODY GATHER 'ROUND THE CAMPFIRE. AND DON'T FORGET TO GET YOUR PET LEMURS TO PUT MONEY IN MY HAT.
A kid in my karate/jujitsu class made a sexist remark (I don't remember what it was now). He was a higher belt-level than be, and had been training for quite a bit longer. That day, I was partnered with him for sparring and won the match.
A year or two later, I heard him make another sexist remark. This time, I just dropped him for push-ups for talking instead of practicing – because by that point, I was HIS sempai (meaning a higher belt-level) and was teaching him and some other students their katas at that point in the class. 🙂 Karma can be a funny thing.
Oh, oh, I forgot another of my favourite quotes from this episode:
Katara: "Everyone's happy!"
Sokka: "I'm not happy."
Katara: "But you're never happy."
I vote for Zuko and Sokka to start the Never Happy Club! Who's with me? 😛
You, sir, are most definetly not prepared for the finale, and you wanna know why?
Well, in terms of awsomness, the ending Mr. Shamwow used for the movie is a piece of putrid cat barf left out to rot in the hottest day of summer for 20 years. I mean seriously, the season 1 finale is so awsome that it will blow your mind and cause you a rage attack against Mr. Shamwow for ruining something so awsome.
That is the power of this show.