9/28/20 - Book 1: Chapters 17-20
Book 1: Water
Part 5 - The Siege in the North
Avatar taught me what a season finale was.
When “Siege of the North first aired in December 2005, I was ten years old. Spring of that year had seen the (then) end of Star Wars in Revenge of the Sith; that summer had seen the release of the sixth Harry Potter book and the death of Albus Dumbledore; and that fall would see me starting fifth grade at my toxic, Catholic middle school.
When I was ten, my understanding of “seasons,” was constricted to the cycle of these winters, springs, summers, and falls. Forget network television.
Unlike the premiere, I do not precisely remember when I saw the Book 1 finale for the first time - but I remember the marketing.
Nickelodeon advertised “Siege of the North” as an event. I distinctly remember the shots of the Water Tribe warriors and the Gaang standing ready for this new Fire Nation attack being shown off in commercials between SpongeBob and Fairly OddParents.
And it lived up to the hype - the naval siege, Katara and Zuko’s duel, Aang’s final tidal wave gambit - that hour of television was one of the most epic and cool things I’d ever seen as a kid, and I still get goosebumps writing about it now.
A full decade later, I remember watching the Book 1 finale with my grandmother, Mee Maw. I won’t pretend it wasn’t initially a struggle to get an older person to watch a cartoon that wasn’t the simple slapstick of Looney Tunes or Tom and Jerry, but it was so worth it once she got on board. I have a clear memory of her sharply turning to me at the end of “Siege” Part 1 and asking
“Wait, there’s more, right?”
There was of course, and after this showstopper there’s still tons of great show left to cover; but for now, let’s dive into the closing episodes of Book 1: Water.
1.17 - The Northern Air Temple
I just love that Avatar is the kind of fictional universe that has travelling storytellers sharing tall tales at a campfire for a quick buck.
“Are you saying I’m a liar?” “I’m saying you’re an optimist. Same thing basically”
Teo and Aang’s glider chase is a nice low-stakes action piece
I’m attuned to it now, but as a child Teo being differently abled was never a factor for me; it was just handled so matter-of-factly in the episode - normalization starts with representation.
A lot of Book 1 feels like “lesson” episodes - this feels like the gentrification episode; how do we reckon technological and necessary advancements with historical preservation and respect? The episode, I feel, doesn’t give us any firm answers, but I think it’s important to give younger kids that philosophical question to chew on.
Aang & Co. first meet the Mechanist in the same squat circular building where Aang and Katara’s children would battle the Red Lotus some 70 years later.
Bryke describes the Northern Air Temple as something of a second draft at Air Nomad culture, architecture, and aesthetics. The black stone contrasting the white snow, the more intricately tiled towers; this definitely feels like one of the more visually grand Air Nomad vistas.
The refugees’ gliders use a kind of box-kite design as opposed to Aang’s fan-based design. The replacement glider the Mechanist gifts Aang in Book 3 is a nice hybrid of the traditional design and the more modernized style.
I appreciate Aang’s slow warm up to Teo - I wish the latter had gotten to be explored more as a character, and didn’t have just this one major appearance.
In the original broadcast on Nick - the flashes of the Mechanist’s weapons are too brief to see what he’s been building - almost like the camera itself is ashamed to look upon his work. With the benefit of Netflix and a pause button, it would seem the Mechanist is responsible for designing melee weapons and the tundra tank, in addition to the war balloon prototype.
According to the wiki, Teo is 13; the Mechanist says he became beholden to the Fire Nation before Teo could remember - if that’s so, the pair has been occupying the Temple for the better part of a decade.
The Mechanist is something of a sendup to Lu Ban (c. 507-444 BCE) an ancient Chinese inventor and polymath who invented the world’s first gliders and “piloted kites.”
War Minister Qin is one of my favorite low-tier Fire Nation villains - he appears here as the Fire Army’s rep; he is the official leader of Azula’s siege of Ba Sing Se, and he is the coward who directs Aang and Co. to the Fire Lord during the Day of Black Sun.
Beyond an intimidation tactic - I question the strategic value of fielding foot soldiers up such a perilous mountainside.
This episode’s climactic battle marks the debut of the tundra tanks, one of the Fire Nation’s more iconic war machines. We see them climbing the mountainside vertically - a visual we see echoed in Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) with a battalion of walkers also climbing a cliff face vertically - both that film and this episode were directed by Star Wars creative juggernaut Dave Filoni.
The endnote of the Fire Nation recovering the war balloon is one of my favorite long-term storytelling payoffs… Stay tuned if you’re new.
1.18 - The Waterbending Master
With three episodes spent in the North Pole, I believe this is the most time the Gaang spends in one location all season; and all series until they finally reach Ba Sing Se.
Prickly Aang is hilarious - his brief spat with Sokka at the outset of this ep is cute.
In contrast to the Southern cutter ships, the primary ships of the Northern Water Tribe seem to be flat-decked catamarans.
As revealed in The Shadow of Kyoshi, the gorgeous snow-venice capital city of the Northern Water Tribe has a name - Agna Qel’a. The iconic defensive wall enclosing the city from the sea was built for the Hundred Year War, but remained in use into the time of Avatar Korra.
We finally get to see Music Night on Zuko’s ship! Also - Iroh diegetically sings “Four Seasons” - a lyric-ed version of the musical theme that comes to represent Sokka and Yue’s relationship.
Chief Arnook is a minor character in the grand scheme of the show, but his bearing, design, backstory, and voice make him rather memorable to me.
Arnook is voiced by the late character actor Joe Polito, most otherwise known to me as the private eye, Da Fino, in The Big Lebowski.
Likewise, Pakku is a grumpy, badass icon; Bryke specifically remark on their appreciation for his VA, Victor Brandt, and I’d tend to agree.
It’s been nearly a half-season since we’ve seen them - I appreciate we get another appearance of the pirates in this ep.
“It’s a lovely night for a walk” - What I wouldn’t give to take a night walk & talk with Iroh…
It’s actually rather shocking that Nick let Bryke get away with a straight-up assassination attempt on children’s network television.
One has to wonder what precisely Iroh and Zuko’s plan was, and whether or not it was triggered by Zhao finding the broadswords.
“You’ve disrespected me, my teachings, and my entire culture…” - Damn dude are you really this committed to sexism? Pretty closed-minded considering some of the things we learn about Pakku down the road…
Katara proves herself an undeniable prodigy in this Northern arc - her duel here with Pakku is one of the best action sequences in the show.
“I know. I don’t care.”
“Study closely!”
“You can’t knock me down!” - Remember when Katara single-handedly invented feminism?
Pakku’s icicle finisher is one of the more devastating waterbending moves exhibited over the course of the show.
This episode is another lesson ep - hot take, sexism is bad - but I do think it’s also an exploration of what is worth keeping and what is worth evolving in our own cultures.
“It’s past sunrise, you’re late.” - Emotional fulfillment!!
All these years later - the shot of Zhao’s invasion fleet firing up is still quietly terrifying.
1.19 - The Siege of the North: Part 1
The establishing shots of the Northern Tribe are just gorgeous…
“...With fierce determination, passion, and hard work, you can accomplish anything.” - Did I mention I stan Pakku?
Note - as I said, Katara is in a waterbending league of her own; but I am curious just how long it took her to go from prodigy to master under Pakku’s teaching, i.e. - what was the time gap between this episode and the last?
Zhao’s cloak is so delightfully extra.
Arnook calls the oncoming siege “The battle for our existence,” - once again calling the Fire Nation’s ultimate objectives into question. It would seem (especially considering Ozai’s endgame tactics) that while conquer is their primary aim, failing that, the Fire Nation is more than down for extermination.
The red mark Arnook gives his warriors seems to be a crude “water” insignia.
“I’m going to make a difference this time,” - Go wee monk lad, go!!
The threat of Zhao’s armada is realized immediately when their very first projectile impacts the Water Tribe emblem on the sea wall.
Aang vs. the Hammer Bros is a nice brief action scene.
The visual callback to the abandoned Fire Navy ship in the south is excellent - and underscores just how screwed the Northern Tribe is in the reveal of Zhao’s full armada.
“Like 100 years ago?” “...85.” - Arnook has his wartime humor.
This is Zuko’s last ditch attempt to capture Aang for a while - he never gets nearly as bad as his sister, but it’s heartbreaking to recognize how broken and unhinged he is in this finale.
I believe this is the first explicit mention of Iroh’s loss of Lu Ten in this ep.
“You’re just a simple rube from the Southern Tribe. What would you know of the political complexities of our life? No offense.” **Cue Looney Tunes fight cloud** “You’re just a jerk without a soul! No offense!”
Hahn’s repeated struggles with Zhao’s name are a nice recurring gag.
I simply adore the lore surrounding the waterbenders learning their art from the Ocean and Moon spirits.
The bait and switch of Aang imagining a giant spirit attack and the ultimate conclusion of this finale is retroactively reminiscent of Luke Skywalker in The Last Jedi joking about facing down the enemy with his “laser sword” - simplistic hyperbole that eventually comes through.
The Spirit Oasis is just another, iconic, excellent setpiece in a spectacular finale.
Turtle seals. Good.
“You little peasant,” Zuko and Katara’s brief duel in the Oasis is nigh perfect.
“You rise with the moon. I rise with the sun.” - Excellent balance of corny nonsense and badassery. Only Dante Basco could make that line work as well as it does.
1.20 - The Siege of the North: Part 2
We get our first extended look at the Spirit World in this episode as Aang tries to seek help from this other realm; while more thoroughly underlined in Korra; the Spirit World is such a gorgeously bizarre, unstable, fluid aether - the creativity woven into its every appearance is undeniable - it’s even beautiful manifesting as a warm, murky swamp.
The Baboon Spirit that Aang encounters is another excellent two-line performance - huge “damn humans get off my lawn” energy.
A line that’s always stuck with me is Roku’s comment that the Ocean and Moon spirits “crossed over very near the beginning.” While canon experts know that the Avatar has existed for roughly 10,000 years - the age of the world of ATLA itself is left in mystery. As far as I’m concerned - these spirits are properly primordial and fundamental to the flow of things - making Zhao’s gambit that much more dangerous.
Back in the tundra, we have Zuko acknowledge Azula (not even by name - simply “my sister”) for the first time onscreen.
In hinting at his plan to Iroh, Zhao mentions Iroh’s visit to the Spirit World. To my knowledge, it has never been articulated in the storytelling of the show, but Bryke have indicated that Iroh crossed over to search for his son Lu Ten after the latter’s passing. At this point, one of the more significant pieces of ATLA lore I’d like to see explored is Iroh’s personal transformation from general to sage after the death of his son.
There is a giant Princess Mononoke-esque wolf stalking the Realm of Koh. “Siege of the North” marks the last ATLA work of then-to-be Star Wars powerhouse director Dave Filoni’s work on the show. Filoni has a documented appreciation for wolves and wolf aesthetic (seen later in Star Wars Rebels in the form of loth-wolves). I’m not sure if this is a coincidence but I for one just find it fitting.
Koh is yet another memorable one-shot character - deliciously sinister, unsettling, but not explicitly evil, just self-serving. In his encounter with Aang, he displays eight faces he’s stolen (though according to the wiki, his collection numbers in the millions); among what we see are his “default” black and white face based on a Noh mask; and the face of Ummi, a lost love of Avatar Kuruk. In the comics it is revealed that Koh is the “son” of an even more ancient and powerful spirit - the Mother of Faces.
I distinctly remember putting together Koh’s clues about the koi fish like, a split second before Aang as a kid - it made me feel smart.
The full-moon waterbending sequence is awesome - every bending art can be impressive, but this is a visual explanation of why the people in the ice city can repulse the Fire Nation. Pakku’s waterspout in particular is one of the cooler single displays of bending in Book 1.
“Hey, this is some quality rope!”
So - when Zhao messes with the koi fish: first, simply removing Tui from the pond causes the sky to turn red (retroactively explained as a lunar eclipse); and waterbending is nullified. When he actually kills the spirit is where it gets darkly interesting for me; when Tui dies, the sky goes black and the moon itself disappears from the sky. I don’t know how the audience is intended to read this, but for me it underscored Iroh’s warnings about messing with nature - don’t mess with the fundamental forces.
To the note of the Moon Spirit - the audience gets Yue’s backstory over halfway through this final ep, with less than half an ep before her sacrifice.
Furthermore - once Tui is killed, note that Yue’s blue eyes are the only things with color in the world. I think this is how Iroh identifies her as being “touched by the Moon Spirit.”
The entire Ocean Spirit rampage sequence is just so good.
This is the first time since the winter solstice we’ve heard Aang speak with the Voice of the Avatars. The drop into the pond to link with La…
There is no official name given to the massive entity formed by Aang and La - Bryke affectionately nicknamed it “Koizilla”; circling back to Princess Mononoke, the being definitely draws inspiration from the Night-Walker in that film.
We see rare displays of explicit human worship of spirits in the waterbenders as Koizilla stalks through the city - even Pakku bows down.
I do lament Yue for being something of an underdeveloped character, but her goodbye to Sokka and appearance in Moon Spirit regalia is a nice, sad moment.
Zhao’s adamant refusal to let Zuko save him is just… absolutely in character. Off to Spirit Hell with you.
“So proud, and so sad.”
“I have a task for you.” - Oh! You’re heeeere. HaHA. You look so prettyyyyyyyy. Finally - the Best Villain is in play.
History & Culture Corner: Modern Inuit Culture
Since this week’s batch of episodes spent so much time in the Northern Water Tribe, I figured it would be prudent to close Book 1 with some brief research about the culture that inspired the Water Tribes - the Inuit.
Firstly - stop using the word Eskimo to describe northern native peoples. According to my reading, the term is, if not a slur, a pejorative title given to these polar cultures by European colonizers; a term corrupted from Algonquian and Cree languages for “eaters of raw meat,” or “he eats it raw.”
Inuit is the term preferred by these cultures in the modern day - simply meaning “the people.”
Like practically all cultures faced with colonizers on their doorstep, Inuit populations were decimated in the centuries following the expansion of European presence in their traditional territories. Today, there are only some 148,000 Inuit people, spread across Canada, Denmark, Greenland, and the United States. One of the few modern political victories of the Inuit peoples was the establishment of the new Canadian territory of Nunavut - a predominantly Inuit province to the far north created in 1999.
The history of the Inuit stretches back millennia to approximately 9000 BCE, but today I’m going to focus on the state of the polar peoples in the modern day.
Modernization and industrialization force-marched the Inuit people into a society drastically different from the one they had persisted in for thousands of years. Colonizers shifted the focus of living from the family sphere to the economic sphere, and the ripples of forcing an independent, humble people into the clockwork of capitalist machinery are still being felt today.
Beyond economics, European ideals of religion and education have been forced upon the Inuit. Anglican and Roman Catholic missionaries have insisted their faiths upon the Inuit, and now the Arctic is largely Christian with small elements of traditional faiths still intact. Likewise, modern Canadian schooling is assimilating many Inuit children into the national structure, and removing them from the traditional master-apprentice teaching styles of the Inuit.
I freely admit to being no expert, and if nothing else my reading has taught me I need to do more research on the Inuit - they are a fascinating and ancient culture that is vastly more complex and nuanced than what can be expressed in a feature on a blog post. I take hope in the fact that in the modern day - while native peoples are still screwed over for pipelines and land claims - that we can course-correct colonial attitudes enough to preserve and cherish this culture as a living, breathing, joyful expression of life - instead of as a footnote in history mislabeled “Eskimo.”
- -
I want to give the struggles of the Inuit people their weight, and so I’m not going to make a jokey-joke transition here.
Thank you for joining me on this journey through the first season of Avatar. On top of all the other positive influences this show creates, I commend it for inspiring myself and others to learn more about the cultures that inspired the Four Nations. Our own world, like the world of Avatar is rich in tradition, history, and custom, and I think we can only make ourselves better by continuing to learn and grow by engaging with those different from ourselves.
Next time, I’ll endeavor to be a bit less meditative, and we’ll strike onwards into the opening acts of Book 2. Until then, be well, be safe, and may the Force be with you,
- JMC