3/22/21 - Countdown to the Comet - Book 3: Chapters 13-17
Book 3: Fire
Part 4 - Tying Up Loose Ends
Plenty of good shows burn out just from being on the air too long.
Typically this is a symptom of sitcoms - “You either die a Futurama or live long enough to become a Simpsons,” - but high profile dramas can suffer from strung out productions (The Walking Dead) and sloppy, truncated endings (Game of Thrones) as well.
Avatar is the extremely rare program where the creators set out with a vision they wanted to execute, and were given the chance to follow through on their terms. From the start, Avatar was set to run three seasons, and by a number of small miracles it was able to complete its run not just strongly, but in breathtaking fashion.
But more on the capital-e End next time. I reiterate this point about Avatar’s production because often - when an overripe tv show withers on the vine - its final season(s) can be a hot mess that feels forced. Not to continue to rip on Thrones, but it is clear that by the final season of that show, the intention was just to stumble across the finish by whatever means necessary.
In contrast, in Book 3’s latter half, Avatar’s creative team was given the chance to revisit, explore, and pay off so many longstanding ideas and elements of the show up to that point. Most central is of course Zuko’s acclaimed redemption arc, as he grows to bond and befriend the other members of Team Avatar, but these “Countdown,” episodes also include;
Further interrogation of the philosophies of firebending, transforming the style of power and violence into one that can emphasize growth and energy.
The reintroduction of Suki, a fan and creator favorite who had grown from a character-of-the-week to a full-fledged member of Team Avatar.
The start of Azula’s spiral, as we see the consequences of the princess’ high strung, perfectionist, and scorched-earth personality traits coming home to roost.
Easily the most potent Katara focused episode - in sharp contrast to her benevolence in “The Painted Lady,” in her quest for revenge we see the depths of her rage so long festering beneath her grief.
And it all culminates in one of the most artfully done recap episodes I’ve ever seen.
Instead of barely shunting their show over the finish line, Bryke and Avatar’s creative team blaze on towards the finale, taking the chance to further grow their cast and develop their world even with the long-awaited Comet looming. Instead of some so-so episodes to fill time slots, we are treated to some truly rich episodes to explore and wrap up many of the threads created by this wonderfully imaginative show.
But enough overture - let’s Countdown to the Comet.
3.13 - The Firebending Masters
This episode provides a nice parallel to Book 1’s “The Waterbending Master” - both eps travel to an ancestral home of their respective bending art, a location that features a yin/yang duo of original bending animals.
Up until this episode, Zuko noticeably grunts every time he firebends, as he is sourcing it from rage - once he learns the Sun Warriors’ teachings, he no longer does.
While the most ancient origins of bending are later revealed in The Legend of Korra, it is animal guides who helped humans develop mere elemental powers into a martial art, namely; badgermoles taught earthbending, dragons taught firebending, sky bison taught airbending, and the Moon (later incarnated in her fish form, Tui) taught waterbending.
This episode marks the second time Zuko has ridden on Appa - though the first time consciously; his ko’d body was rescued from the North Pole ice wastes when Sokka, Katara, and Yue went to rescue Aang (from Zuko) during the Siege of the North.
The Sun Warriors’ Ancient City is located on an island just north of the Fire Nation mainland. Given the nation is preoccupied with war, I still find it incredible no one (save the odd traveler like Iroh) has discovered the existence of modern day Sun Warriors alive within the compound.
Sun Warrior culture, architecture, and aesthetic is drawn from a diverse pool of inspiration, namely Mesopatamian, Mesoamerican, and South and Southeast Asian cultural traditions.
Particular ancient temple sites that helped inspire the Sun Warrior complex include the 15th century Candi Sukuh temple in Indonesia; the 12th century Angkor Wat complex in Cambodia, and the 10th-13th century Phanom Rung in Thailand.
While the title itself is not said in full, Zuko explains that Iroh’s reputation as a dragon-slayer is what earned his uncle the title “Dragon of the West.”
“...I don’t care what anyone else says about you, you’re pretty smart.” - Brief, wholesome, smiling Zuko before he recognizes the backhanded compliment.
The first Avatar - Wan - became the first practitioner (inventor?) of the Dancing Dragon form nearly 10,000 years before the events of this episode.
The final pose in the form is reminiscent of the Fusion Dance from Dragon Ball Z.
The idol in the Dancing Dragon chamber (confusingly also called a “sunstone”) is passively implied to be a dragon egg.
The sludge that traps Aang and Zuko is simply termed “viscous slime” on the wiki. The animals that lick it off Aang and Zuko are aardvark-sloths.
Only a few Sun Warriors actually get speaking lines in this episode;
The Sun Warrior Chief is played by Robert Ito - a Japanese-Canadian actor known for his roles on Quincy M.E. and Falcon Crest. I love his warm, charming performance here.
Ham Ghao, the distrustful, petty warrior who clings to the chief’s side is voiced by Brian Tochi; known for his roles in Revenge of the Nerds and the 1990s live-action Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles films. On Avatar, he also portrayed Than (the refugee father from “The Serpent’s Pass”).
Eternal Flames are common to many ancient religions (ex: the Hebrew Bible commands the altar flame must never go out). In the modern day, we can see this custom reflected in the Olympic flame used during the Olympic Games.
“Fire is life, not just destruction.”
The climb up to Ran and Shaw’s lair is quietly beautiful as a trek with fire through nature - with fire as a compliment to the verdant surroundings, not a violent aberration.
“Chanters!” **Cue closing credits theme, and chills from me**
Ran and Shaw are significantly larger dragons than those seen thus far in the series. Whereas Roku and Sozin’s dragons are comparable in size to a real-world bus, Ran and Shaw are easily the size of full subway trains.
“Ran” means “burn” or “ignite” in Chinese; “Shaw” (more accurately, “Shao”) means “burn” or “blaze.” Used in tandem, the terms mean “combustion,” “flaming,” or “kindle.”
For whatever reason, I’d always thought that Ran was the red dragon and Shaw was the blue - though upon looking it up I realized it is never specified precisely which dragon is which. In any case, it is the red dragon that dances with Zuko, and the blue with Aang; then the red “judges” Aang, and the blue, Zuko
Ran and Shaw, while both ostensibly neutral entities, make up the third pairing of red and blue dragon symbology seen throughout Avatar. During Zuko’s fever dream in “The Earth King,” the prince suffers visions of red and blue dragons representing Iroh and Azula respectively; and further, Roku flew a red dragon, while Sozin flew a blue - it seems red is generally representative of positive and blue, negative, but Ran and Shaw show the importance of balance between the two.
The “lessons” taught by the Masters are not all the same. According to Iroh in the ancillary lore text Legacy of the Fire Nation, for him, the dragons linked their bodies in the form of the taijitu (the yin/yang symbol) to teach Iroh “temperance in all things.”
“All this time, I thought firebending was destruction… but now I know what it really is... it’s energy, and life.”
When Aang throws his first fire blast after his lesson, there is a brief moment of slow motion as he recognizes this new ability; this slow-mo mirrors the first time he tried to fire bend and accidentally burned Katara. This moment marks the end of Aang’s mental block with firebending.
“Just kidding! But seriously, don’t tell anyone!” - Cute.
3.14 - The Boiling Rock, Part 1
Zuko tries to make tea for his new friends :’)
When Sokka initially asks about the Boiling Rock, Zuko is reluctant to discuss the topic - but honestly the BR doesn’t seem to be that much worse than most of the Fire Nation prisons we’ve seen thus far.
“I’m never happy.”
This episode marks the first time Zuko starts calling members of Team Avatar by name - namely (heh), Sokka and Appa.
It would seem the “hot squats” exercise Zuko assigns Aang are simply squats.
While the Mechanist’s prototype could be piloted by nonbenders, the mass-production war balloon needs to be powered by a firebender.
This scene of Zuko and Sokka discussing their relationships (“That’s rough buddy”) is funnily enough the basis for a lot of Zuko/Sokka shipping (Zukka, if you will).
Also, not to be mean but - your “first girlfriend”?; Sokka, you knew Yue for at maximum a few weeks.
You would think Sokka, our resident science lad would know what steam would do to the balloon’s flight.
While reaching the prison fortress within the boiling lake itself is a challenge (at this point in ATLA world history, aircraft are scarce), actually gaining access to the building once on the island doesn’t seem to be an issue.
Chit Sang is a fun minor character - looking out for number one but with good-enough nature not to be a pain about it. He is voiced by Ezekial Rollins, who has a distinctive voice; but as far as IMDb can report, Chit Sang and these two episodes mark Rollins’ only voice acting role.
Chit Sang was named for the father of May Chan, the writer of “The Boiling Rock, Part 1.”
The coolers used at the Boiling Rock are so intense that they apparently can strip firebenders of their bending for up to a week after being in one. It’s a testament to Zuko’s skill as a firebender that this is not the case for him.
The Boiling Rock draws inspiration from both real-world and fictional prison precedents.
Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay was home to the infamous Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary (informally known as “The Rock”). Alcatraz, like the BR, also boasted a history of no successful escapes, and the icy cold water of the bay provided an escape deterrent much like the boiling lake.
Additionally, there is the 1960s television show Hogan’s Heroes and the 1963 film The Great Escape (both popular prison escape stories) that feature confinement cells called “coolers.”
Speaking of pop culture prison stories, the Boiling Rock’s Warden is voiced by Wade Williams; known for his role as a correctional officer on Prison Break, and a long resume of prison-adjacent roles (guard, warden, sheriff, etc.) throughout his career.
It just struck me as strange that the prison’s yard has a massive Fire Nation insignia emblazoned onto the blacktop - like the equivalent of stamping an American flag on a US prison yard it just seems bizarre to me.
The episode marks the return of Suki after roughly 18 episodes - nearly a full season.
Suki makes the sixth and final (human) core member of Team Avatar, and in my opinion, she can often feel the most overlooked for being the last addition. Zuko’s joining the team after the Day of Black Sun feels like such a major turning point in the show that Suki can in contrast feel almost tacked on. I for one appreciate her as a strong capable independent woman and a fierce nonbender warrior, even if she is the least developed of the team.
I also realized that I have yet to mention Suki’s voice actor - Jessie Kwan, a Fillipino-American actress also known for roles in California Dreams and Higurashi When They Cry.
At time of writing, there is an upcoming graphic novel about Suki to be released this summer - Suki, Alone (6/22/21) - and I’m looking forward to learning more about the dark horse of Team Avatar.
Apparently the Boiling Rock is a dual-gender prison, with both men and women serving sentences in the same site, which seems… dangerous, to say the least. I thought it could be the case that the two cell-block structures were divided by gender until Suki, Zuko, and Chit Sang all met in one indoor common area.
I appreciate Sokka’s reunion with Suki as a sendup to “Aren’t you a little short for a stormtrooper?” from the first Star Wars film.
It’s brushed over with the tension of Zuko’s capture - but why was that one guard trying to get in to see Suki in the first place?
“How do you know who I am?” - Zuko, baby - the scar.
The Warden threatens Zuko with outing him to the rest of the prisoners - I somehow doubt prisoners of the Fire Nation’s equivalency of Guantanamo Bay wouldn't rally behind the rebel prince working to dismantle his father’s fascist regime, but ok.
“Actually, we met a long time ago.” - Suki rightfully drags Zuko for his raid on Kyoshi Island - in-universe, that attack only happened about half a year ago, the winter before this current summer; however in release order, it had been over three years since Book 1’s “The Warriors of Kyoshi.”
“This here’s my girl and my best buddy, they’re coming too.” - Just say you’re in a polycule Chit Sang, it’s fine. (Mind you, these friends are conspicuously absent when Chit Sang joins in on the second escape attempt).
“You’re going to fail a lot before things work out… even though you’ll probably fail over and over and over again… You have to try every time. You can’t quit because you might fail.” - When he’s not trying to be Iroh, Zuko can give good advice.
Two things on the original escape plan;
Are we just assuming no guards are watching the boiling lake? There’s a blind spot for the raft’s cast-off, sure, but surely someone could’ve spotted the cooler even without Chit Sang’s scream - the guards clearly have a harpoon for a scenario like this.
Furthermore - what was the plan once the group escaped the caldera? Wait for the next shipment of prisoners and steal the boat they came in on?
Some guards discuss the incoming shipment of prisoners - musing that one of them is supposed to be a pirate - the prisoner before Hakoda is actually one of the pirates from “The Waterbending Scroll,” all the way back in Book 1.
On the note of Hakoda - it’s of course a nice moment that Sokka now has the chance to save his dad, but poor Hakoda (purposefully) looks so muted without his standard Water Tribe blues.
3.15 - The Boiling Rock, Part 2
The establishing shots of the Boiling Rock in this episode feature the bubbling lake with the appropriate subtitle - “boiling,” - perfection.
Sokka is so stupidly tiny next to any and all of the real guards.
Hakoda makes it clear that the remainder of the Kyoshi Warriors and the invasion force are imprisoned in the Capital City Prison, where Iroh was held.
“Sokka, there’s no prison in the world that can hold two Water Tribe geniuses.” “Then we’d better find two.”
Chit Sang rats, but then covers for Sokka (possibly not knowing Sokka’s name?); Sang calls out the “bully guard” as the imposter.
The stakes are immediately raised by Azula’s arrival; “That’s not one of them.” “How do you know?” “Because I’m a people person.” - Queen.
The tattooed man Hakoda shoves to attempt to start the riot is simply known as “tough prisoner.”
The look between Mai and Zuko (when he locks her in) is more potent than anything they actually say to each other.
Suki’s “head-running” ability showcased when she chases down the warden was meant to be retroactively linked to the “dust-stepping,” technique created by Avatar Kyoshi’s outlaw allies, the Flying Opera Company. F.C. Yee, author of the Kyoshi novels, wanted to make that connection explicit, but ultimately didn’t include the link in the final book.
**Suki tying up the warden** - “That’s a surprise tool that’ll help us later.”
Further testament to the astronomical skill of Azula and her crew; Ty Lee balances and runs up the gondola cable to intercept the escapees; Azula hooks a handcuff on the line and jet propels her way to the fight.
Furthermore, Azula’s plank when dodging Zuko’s fire blasts might be the greatest single feat of physical strength across the whole show.
The guards almost cut the line with Azula and Ty Lee aboard. Cutting the line at risk to the Warden on his orders is one thing; endangering the Fire Nation princess - capable as she is - seems like a reach.
“Saving the jerk who dumped me.” - Bless Mai.
So, as discussed in my “Day of Black Sun” post - Fire Nation airships can be crewed by up to fifty people; seeing as how they were able to safely navigate back to the Western Air Temple, it seems they can be crewed by as little as five.
The Boiling Rock is regarded in the fandom as something of an ugly duckling - a long form, slow burn pair of episodes in the midst of some of the best eps of the whole show. Azula’s confrontation with Mai, and subsequent fallout with Mai and Ty Lee is the standout set piece that makes these episodes great for me.
“The best meat of all. The meat of friendship, and fatherhood.” - Sokka, what.
“I’m new. What’s up everybody?” - Chit Sang is really a gentle giant - cute.
“Seriously? You guys didn’t find any meat?” - Toph has her priorities in order.
3.16 - The Southern Raiders
The arrival of Chit Sang and Hakoda round out what I personally term the “Team Avatar Cousins” composed in this last stretch Book 3. On the roster before the airship attack, we have;
Aang // Teo - Fun-loving younger kids with a penchant for flying.
Katara & Sokka // Hakoda - Southern Water Tribe crew.
Toph // Haru - Long-sheltered earthbenders
Zuko // Chit Sang - Rebellious, fugitive firebenders
Suki // The Duke - Nonbender Earth Kingdom warriors
On the note of the airship attack, it seems it took Azula and her strike force about four episodes worth of time to track down Team Avatar, which almost seems long for Azula - she probably had other priorities in preparation for the Comet.
“You mean it’s not obvious yet? I’m about to celebrate becoming an only child!” - Great line; but now it seems especially clear that Fire Nation forces have clearance to straight up kill Zuko after his defection.
As the Temple begins to crumble around them, we see the split of the core Team Avatar from the cousins after four episodes; this also marks the last time most of Team Avatar encounters Azula.
This clash between Zuko and Azula is somewhat overlooked in light of their impending final confrontation - but their duel atop the airships is a kickass fight in its own right.
This marks the fifth duel between Zuko and Azula, and the first time he’s fought her one-on-one, the others are as follows;
Their duel on Azula’s ship in “The Avatar State,” (help from Iroh).
The duel in the Earth Kingdom ghost town of Tu Zin in “The Chase,” (help from Iroh and Team Avatar).
The duel in the Earth Kingdom Royal Tea Room in “The Guru,” (help from Iroh).
The duel at the Boiling Rock last episode (help from Sokka).
“She’s… not going to make it… of course she did.” - I appreciate this line as evidence of Zuko’s complicated feelings for his sister; she is a lethal menace but faced with the possibility of her actually dying Zuko’s shell cracks very briefly to show his concern.
This is maybe the episode that does the most heavy lifting for Zuko’s redemption arc - he is forced to face in microcosm, and on a personal level, what his nation’s war has done to the people of the world.
On the flip side, Zuko’s interruption of Sokka and Suki’s date night is a cute, awkward moment; Zuko’s reaction face, Sokka inhaling a flower, Zuko still sitting down like nothing’s wrong.
According to Bryke, the sound of Sokka eating the flower is actually a power drill.
The raid that killed Kya occurred in 94 AG, about five years before the start of the series. Sokka was 9-10 years old and Katara was 8.
The black snow of an impending Fire Nation attack is such a simple but effective visual cue - it will never not be chilling to me - even as an adult.
The Southern Raiders are a Fire Navy special forces unit specifically formed to eradicate waterbenders and terrorize the Southern Water Tribe. This late in the war, after the capture of Hama and her kin, that mission seems to be overabundantly cruel, as the Southern Tribe has been decimated within an inch of its life already.
The sea raven - the avian emblem of the Southern Raiders’ fleet - is never seen in animal form on-screen. Real-world sea ravens are spiny, bottom feeder fish ironically native to the north Pacific and northwest Atlantic oceans.
“Suki!” - Zuko sees how down bad you are Sokka.
In a quiet visual gag from the creators, the next morning Sokka can be seen braiding a flower necklace - an indicator that he got *ahem* lei’d.
“Um… and what exactly do you think this will accomplish?” - Bless Aang for trying to be rational here.
“Fine! Maybe it is [about revenge]! Maybe that's what I need! Maybe that’s what he deserves!” - Metal Katara is scary.
“Then you didn’t love her the way I did!” “Katara!” - Sokka doesn’t have many sad line readings but this is top three for sure.
“Let your anger out, and then let it go.”
“So, can I borrow Momo for a week?” “Why do you need Momo?” (Okay enough quotes for now - this episode just has some good ones).
So, in this episode, Katara is able to discreetly bend ink; we’ve seen Hama bend soup (and, of course, blood) - I’d be interested in an in depth look at how water-based a substance has to be for a waterbender to control it.
Whaletail Island, where the Southern Raiders are on patrol in this episode, was first mentioned as the false location of Appa almost a full season ago in “Lake Laogai.”
Furthermore, Whaletail Island is a former Air Nomad territory, located among the island chain near the Southern Air Temple.
This episode marks Kya’s only full appearance in Avatar: The Last Airbender. She is voiced by Grey DeLisle (Azula), and her name was actually one of the early draft names for Katara’s character.
The submarine Appa attack is sick but also not lethal - it is clear, if unspoken, that Katara only intends to kill the person who killed her mother.
Katara goes so far as to bloodbend the current commander of the Southern Raiders; Zuko clearly notices this, but doesn’t comment on this chilling ability (by this point, I’m curious whether the Fire Nation prison that held Hama passed on intel of her abilities).
To that end, as of this episode it has been precisely a month since Team Avatar’s encounter with Hama, as a full moon is necessary to use bloodbending.
Yon Rha and his mother live in a hilly rural region of the southern Fire Nation.
Yon Rha is voiced by Tim Dang, an Asian-American actor and producer with an extensive resume; known in television for roles in Star Trek: The Next Generation and Batman Beyond.
Yon Rha’s mother is voiced by character actress Bonnie McNeil.
“We weren’t behind the bush.”
In a way, it is crazy that Yon Rha remembers Katara; but also - and not to sympathize too hard with a war criminal - killing a parent nearly in front of their child has to leave trauma scars.
To that end, in the flashback, Yon Rha specifically mentions “his source” - who the hell ratted out an eight-year-old to the Fire Nation?
“She was protecting the last waterbender.” “What? Who?” “ME!” **Stops the RAIN** (We stan and fear Katara).
“There’s just nothing inside you, nothing at all. You’re pathetic, and sad, and empty.”
**Deep exhale** So anyway (after one of the darkest scenes of the show); we see Team Avatar has rendezvoused at Ozai’s beach house, setting up the next episode and the series finale.
For the collective memory of how dark this episode is, it is also a powerful meditation on the power and importance of forgiveness.
“Then I have a question for you - what are you going to do when you face my father?”
Again - raising the question of what Aang’s plan was on the Day of Black Sun. Was Aang at peace with killing Ozai at the time, and is his crisis of morals now because of Zuko? It’s a lot to put on a twelve year old.
3.17 - The Ember Island Players
While the last three episodes have largely sidelined Aang for Sokka and Katata’s “field trips” with Zuko; Aang has made significant progress with his firebending in the interval, taking to it rather quickly after overcoming his mental block.
So - perhaps needless to say there are oodles of easter eggs and fun details in what I consider one of the finest recap episodes ever made. From the poster for the in-universe The Boy in the Iceberg, we already have quite a few;
Pu-on Tim is an Earth Kingdom playwright, and apparently a testament to intercultural art still persisting during the Hundred Year War (at least if you end your play on over-the-top Fire Nation propaganda). Tim is named for and modeled after Avatar writer Tim Hedrick, the playwright’s name being a humorous play on “poo on Tim,” (Is that lowkey racist? Not sure).
Pu-on Tim apparently consulted a number of supporting characters to gather information for his play, including “singing nomads,” (Chong’s group from “The Cave of Two Lovers”); “pirates,” (the pirates from “The Waterbending Scroll,”), and “a surprisingly knowledgeable merchant of cabbage,” (fan favorite, the Cabbage Merchant).
The poster also references “prisoners of war,” but - perhaps surprisingly for a kid’s show - that’s vague enough to not reference specific characters clearly.
The visuals for the poster are a reference to the Avatar Book 1 DVD box set.
Zuko makes reference to the Ember Island Players “butchering” the play Love amongst the Dragons; that play was a favorite of Ursa’s, and she would often take Zuko to see it growing up (Ursa actually had an acting background before being brought to the Fire Nation court).
The mask for the “Dark Water Spirit,” in that play is the mask Zuko would later use for his Blue Spirit persona; further explaining how he could replace it so easily in Book 2.
Say what you will about the other elements of the play, but the stylized backdrops of Boy in the Iceberg are actually pretty gorgeous.
Actress Katara is older than her real counterpart, thicc, and overdramatic as all hell. She is played by Grey DeLisle.
Actor Sokka is portrayed as a dumb Water Tribe hick. He is voiced by Scott Menville, the voice of Robin on Teen Titans and Teen Titans GO!; in Avatar, Menville previously portrayed minor characters in “The Great Divide,” and “The Deserter,” all the way back in Book 1.
Actress Aang is none other than SNL alumna Rachel Dratch - which, now that I know that, I will never not hear her in this role. Dratch has an extensive comedy resume beyond SNL - I personally remember her fondly for her guest appearances on 30 Rock.
Voice acting legend John DiMaggio (Jake the Dog on Adventure Time, Bender on Futurama) voices the cake-fueled Actor Iroh and genderbent, buff, Actor Toph.
Actor Zuko is voiced by Derek Basco, brother of the “real” Zuko’s voice actor, Dante Basco. Derek also voiced Moku (another of the singing nomads) back in Book 2.
Muppet Momo is a lot - but it’s a cute detail to notice the limp arm Actress Aang has when she’s performing Momo.
Resident VA king Dee Bradly Baker provides the voices for Actor Bumi, Actor Jet, and Actor Ozai - he has the range, darling.
The play gets Katara swooning over Jet right - except that she’s swooning as he wipes out Gaipan village. Ah yes, the aphrodisiac of mass murder.
There is a well-known jab at “The Great Divide,” (Eh, let’s keep flying) during Act I of the play. As expressed in my reflection on that episode, that is the singular ep I think is even possibly worth skipping.
He doesn’t even have his own wiki page (and rest assured the Avatar wiki people are thorough) but it seems like the Ember Island Players have one, poor, lanky old man as their only stagehand.
The behind-the-scenes production name for Aang and the Ocean Spirit/La’s fusion at the Siege of the North was “Koizilla,” - that name comes full circle with a Godzilla sendup of Actress Aang in a Koizilla suit stepping and smashing all over the Fire Nation’s invasion fleet for the Act I closer of the play.
Buff Actor Toph (and the real Toph’s reaction) rules so hard, down to the “sonic scream” jabbing at the real Toph’s unbelievable abilities. This male Toph is also a sendup to the original plans to make Toph a male character.
“Wait what’s that! I think it’s your honor!” (Actress Azula is played by another voice acting star, Tara Strong; known for her roles as Timmy Turner on The Fairly OddParents, Bubbles on The Powerpuff Girls, Barbara Gordon/Batgirl in a number of Batman properties, and dozens of other roles besides. On Avatar, she also provided the voice of Tom-Tom (Mai’s baby brother) in “Return to Omashu.”)
The audience notably yawns during the Drill scene of the play; which is a testament to how dull the recreation is. Those episodes are some of my favorites of the show.
Poking fun at how the creators had to be careful with how they portrayed Jet’s death - “You know, it was really unclear,”
Pu-on Tim clearly ships Zutara, based on the Ba Sing Se scenes.
Sokka asks Aang to get him fire flakes and fire gummies. Rewinding to “The Deserter,” Sokka spat out a bag of fire flakes, complaining they were too spicy. Clearly, a few weeks of eating Fire Nation food has expanded his palate.
Azula is the one who kills Aang at the climax of Act II; while that’s not strange to Avatar’s real-world audience, as that’s what happened; at this time, in-universe, it should’ve still been the party line that it was Zuko who slayed the Avatar (perhaps the scene was amended in light of Zuko’s defection).
An easily forgotten scene - in light of the wild hijinks of the play - is Zuko’s chat with Toph about Iroh; namely Toph’s assertion that Iroh would be proud of his nephew’s recent choices. Since they never get their own “field trip,” Toph and Zuko’s friendship isn’t quite as developed as most of the rest of the team, but it’s clear the two have a nice bond.
“...Your scar’s on the wrong side.” “The scar’s not on the wrong side!” (Appropriately, even the poster for the play has Zuko’s scar placement reversed - over his right eye).
I was thirteen when I first saw this episode, as such, my first and lasting impression of Aang and Katara’s conversation out on the deck is… messy and awkward (which of course it’s meant to be). With the benefit of over a decade of perspective, I recognize it is an accurate representation of pre-teen/teenage romantic interaction - it just still makes my stomach churn every time I watch it.
“...and I think Combustion Man died.” - Sokka, you were there.
Considering the play covers events up to “The Western Air Temple,” The Boy in the Iceberg must have been finished in mere weeks at most. Furthermore, with Sozin’s Comet at that time only being weeks away, I question Tim’s logic in not just waiting to see how that event would play out and chronicle that too (unless he’d already written off the chances of Team Avatar).
Actor Zuko appropriately goes down in one last cry of “Honorrrr!”
As Sokka commented, for all the lousy elements of the play “the effects were decent,” - I would tend to agree.
The fan community has since taken Team Avatar’s quips about the play as valid takes about the infamous M. Night Shyamalan The Last Airbender. In my humble opinion? Rightly so.
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I am forgoing my usual “History & Culture Corner” these last installments posts because of the sheer amount to cover for these last sets of episodes - given I’m covering five episodes compared to my usual four this week, I’m still definitely running long already.
That said, we are now primed for the finale and the Comet. I haven’t watched “Sozin’s Comet,” in its entirety in over five years - since I shared the entirety of Avatar with my late grandmother and her sister, and I am - as usual - looking forward to revisiting these next - and final - episodes of the show.
I am happy to have taken this journey back through Avatar, and to have recorded my thoughts on the show as of this past year. It has been a nice way to anchor myself during the uncertainty of the pandemic and my move to Denver. I am thankful to have undertaken this project, and I’m excited to complete this journey next week.
I hope you will join me, one last time, for the conclusion of When the Fire Nation Attacked. Until then,
Be well, be safe, and may the Force be with you,
- JMC