none of this is new information and I'm almost certainly not the first person to note it, but I think it's neat.
First, we can get a lower bound for the date from Mr Hawkins' first letter to Henry's parents, in chapter 68:
(TL: "As you are aware, we were able to halt Russia's advance towards the Ottoman Empire, and thus towards the sea, in the war that took place in Crimea.")
The key piece of information here is the perfective: 起こった戦争 implies that the war in question has already ended, which puts us sometime after March of 1856.
The upper bound is implied in chapter 107:
(TL: "I see. I doubt any [Anglican] parish will be willing to marry the two of you. How do you intend to marry her, Henry?" "In Scotland, you can get married anywhere, provided you have two witnesses.")
In 19th century England, the only marriages recognized by law were those conducted in Anglican churches, either between two adults at least 21 years of age or with the consent of both parties' parents. The immediate barrier they're discussing here is Henry's mother's refusal to recognize Talas as his fiancee, but I'm actually a little unclear on why that would be an issue: Henry and Talas are both presumably at least 21 years old. I guess Talas could conceivably still be 19 or 20 if she was first married in her early to mid teens and went through 1-2 husbands a year until meeting Henry.
It could also have to do with her being Muslim, though Anglican churches were certainly willing and able to marry people of other faiths for legal purposes: The advice given to Catholics in England at the time was to hold their wedding in a Catholic church, then have a second, legally binding ceremony at an Anglican church. England's non-insignificant population of Jews, Hindus, Muslims, and others also had to do the same thing to have their marriages legally recognized at this time, so it presumably wasn't that unusual a practice. Maybe it specifically being a mixed-faith, mixed-race wedding is the issue.
The other possibility is that it's not really a legal thing per se, and more just that no church would be willing to conduct such an obviously scandalous wedding between the son of a prominent family and a (probably undocumented) Muslim woman who doesn't even speak English.
Whatever the case, the part that's actually relevant here is Henry's proposal that they elope to Scotland, and the fact that they're currently going through with it. And unless they're planning to live in Scotland for almost a month beforehand--which they can't be, since they've brought Hawkins and Edward along for the ride, rather than going north by themselves and having those two join them later for the marriage:
...this must be happening before the end of 1856, per the Marriage Act of 1856 (Scotland):
Interestingly this means that the alternating chapters following Karluk's time with the Halgals must take place several months after Henry's attempted return trip from Ankara to Karluk and Amira's village: It took about six months to travel between London and Bombay by ship prior to the Suez Canal being opened in 1869, so if Henry and Talas are to make it to Scotland in time to get married before December 31st after having arrived in Ankara sometime during or after March, they must have headed back east and then to Bombay in late April or early May at the very latest. Meanwhile Karluk's POV chapters clearly take place in winter. Possibly Kaoru Mori is just playing a little fast and loose with the travel time here.
In any case, what does this actually mean for where the story's going? Well, we know Amira and Karluk's village is somewhere close to Bukhara. Luckily for them, Russia never approached the Emirate of Bukhara itself until after taking Tashkent in 1865. Whether the village is actually under the jurisdiction of the Emirate or not is a little unclear: The closest hint we get to its location is back in chapter 17, when Henry and Ali are discussing their route to Ankara after Henry gets out of jail and parts with Talas:
We know the town where Henry got arrested is pretty close to Karluk and Amira's village, since they got the news and made it there to bail him out within a few days, and it was close enough that Pariya's parents were fine with sending her along with them. It seems unlikely that the village is directly ruled by Bukhara or Kokand (or Khiva). We get some information as to its politics when the soldiers arrive after the battle with the nomads, in chapter 35:
(TL: "We're peacekeepers here on the order of the provincial lord! We heard this town was attacked by barbarians!")
But it's pretty unspecific. The word he uses for the local ruler, 藩王, literally means a feudal lord, so it's probably being used here to mean a provincial Hakim. The Emirate of Bukhara, the Khivan Khanate, and the Khanate of Kokand were all pretty decentralized, so most likely even if they are nominally under the control of one of those states it's in the form of the aforementioned Hakim sending occasional tribute at most.
It's entirely possible that the residents of Amira and Karluk's village will have to evacuate south towards Bukhara proper as the Russians expand along the Syr Darya through Kokand. What's guaranteed, both historically and from the clear implications of the plot, is that the Halgal clan, who've been displaced even further north, are going to get embroiled in the Russian expansion--and the alliance between the nomads and the village will surely drag everyone else into it, too.
idk fandom is always like "kataang is boring but healthy, ship this fanon ship with Aang and Katara that has more spice", and I'm like yeah maybe ur ship does have a nice arc right there and some good symbolism or potential, but is it really the spicy ship? because where I'm coming from, Kataang was actually the interesting ship because that's absolutely the relationship with the most crazy level emotional intensity.
if I'm being honest, while I can see where some other ships are coming from, due to how much depth atla gives the narratively important character interactions, I actually find other ships than kataang so... literally boring and tame in comparison.
And it's all due to no other ship having the level of sheer emotional intensity and depth that those two have. They're CRAZY about each other.
Like where is ANYTHING that matches this level of total obsessive protectiveness and uncontrolled emotional intensity????
or
I'm not buying Kataang is just the canon stale fluff healthy boring ship. Yes their relationship is ALSO cute and healthy, but those were fucking child soldiers totally obsessed with each other, and had the edge of possessive rage about each other that comes with people who came to depend each other after experiencing extreme neglect and grief. Other ships sound cool for a minute, but then I realize it seems so flat and stale bread in comparison to this wild shit they had going on in canon.
The fact that they are also such nice and peaceful people to others in general, and they are so respectful and loving (beyond their years) to each other specifically, only underlines how sharp those dark edges that they do have are.
One brilliant aspect of Kataang inside the narrative of ATLA is that on the surface it's the lead two characters getting together, going from friends to lovers. It can be very simple and accessible, which makes it absolutely perfect for the young target demographic of the show.
However, it's multi-layered and nuanced so that it's development is very appealing to those with a more mature understanding of romance which is why it draws in so many adults. They can see that deep emotional development through the show, and their deep connection spiritually.
It's much like other brilliant aspects of this show in how it both appeals to the young and has that depth to draw in the more mature audience. It is far from a simple, two-dimensional relationship.
agree with everything above, and yet another example of the sheer levels of emotional intensity they've experienced together, how much they rely on, trust and care for each other is when Aang realizes Aapa is gone, in the scene in the desert.
he immediately goes into a extreme state of rage, unlike anything we've really seen from the air nomad before, and enters the avatar state.
everyone is TERRIFIED. they're all standing away from Aang in this moment where he's experiencing extreme distress, scared for their lives.
everyone, except Katara.
she is the one who goes to him.
She doesnt need to say anything, she doesnt try to calm him down- to dismiss or fix his anger and sadness. she jut holds him, she cries with him for the loss of his beloved air bison. and it is the one thing that brings Aang out of the Avatar state - her comforting presence.
People that say Katara and Aang don’t have romantic chemistry are flat out oblivious and wouldn’t know flirtation if it smacked them upside the head.
Just because they have an age appropriate relationship and nothing over pg13 is going on in show doesn’t mean they don’t have chemistry or function well together.
They are one another’s comfort. They trust each other. They understand each other. It isn’t shallow, it’s nuanced and layered with grief and pain despite the joy they might bring one another. It is through that grief they are able to find joy at all.
These two characters constantly parallel one another. There is so much sadness and angst to kataang canonically. They are anything but pure fluff and the show displays this over and over. They are both genocide survivors. Their mother and father were slaughtered in their place. But there is meaning in suffering, and theirs is having met.
Instead of repeating a cycle, Aang and Katara, by choosing one another, are breaking them. Aang himself is constantly defying Katara’s trauma over her mother and her father. And let’s not forget that Katara literally said she would murder Zuko over Aang, and I believe she absolutely would if she was forced to make that call. Because kataang isn’t just a boring stale and childish crush. They are the embodiment of things both have lost due to war and hatred. They are actively going against what fate would have made of them both had they never crossed paths with one another. Even in the show, the Fortuneteller echoes the idea that destiny might be an intrinsic aspect of life to a degree, but it alone is not enough. You have to choose! And they do!
And come on, a lack of emotional intensity? We had a whole dramatic kiss before an invasion with the looming angst of a great possibility of death, which was played up even more in the Ember Island Players. We had Aang saying Katara brought him back to life, so many small physical moments of intimacy to accompany those grander ones.
We had a whole episode of Katara and Aang shamelessly flirting, dancing and attracting an entire party’s attention and looking at each other like that which let’s be real, is as much as a Y7 kids cartoon can imply that these two characters are seriously into one another
And this isn’t even mentioning these parallels where Katara and Aang are used as weapons and lied to and lured into a false pretense of safety by adults who then use the other as a means to emotionally torture them.
Both Katara and Aang are forced to do something they don’t want to do, to save one another because like OP said, they are fucking obsessed with one another and have a truly insane level of emotional connection that is not replicated anywhere else in canon material lol. Like these two are literally ride or die for each other from the second they lay eyes on one another. They are NOT playing 😭🙏🏻 that is HER man that is HIS girl and don’t fuck w them bc they will go insane and mad if they lose each other etc
And instead of leaning into the toxicity that a lot of ships with this level of emotional connection do, kataang once again subverts by maintaining the truth that they are cycle breakers, and that they keep one another human, keep one another grounded, in the face of adversity. Absolutely peak to me, truly a straight ship I can root for
This is a perfect time to read the brilliant and unforgettable graphic novel(s) Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi, about growing up in Iran during and after the Iranian Revolution, and the rise of the oppressive theocracy that persists to this day.
Both graphic novels are available free online (Persepolis vol. 1, Persepolis vol. 2)
It also was adapted to a wonderful film (co-directed and co-written by the author) which is available to watch for free on Sundance Now (sign up for the free trial)
No matter how progressive or well-read you are, there are always going to be moments in your life where somebody pushes back against something that's so culturally ingrained you never even considered it before. And you'll say "Huh, it never occurred to me to challenge this but you're right" and that doesn't mean you were "morally toxic" before, it means you're a non-omniscient human capable of growth.
It started off as a joke. Cissie asked Conner to patrol for her when he already had plans. He originally had said "No." But then she tilted her head and pouted out the infamous, "Oh, Conner. Pretty please?"
He caved.
_
Bart asked him for his help training then said, "Should I say please like Cissie did?" Then he very sweetly said, "Please, Kon?"
Kon caved again. And again. And again. It didn't even matter who it was. Raven and Beast Boy? Caved. Jon or Damian? Caved. Cassie? Caved. Lois? Cave, cave, caved.
_
There was only one person who didn't abuse this power over the super. Tim. Tim didn't care if he helped or not. Kon often didn't know if that was a good or bad thing. Tim would also intervene and say "No." For him and shoo the others away
_
Then one day
Conner was cleaning the barn just listening to the world around him. He could hear New York traffic, L.A music, he could hear his aunt humming her favorite song, and Clark taking flight. But suddenly he heard a painful groan from Gotham.
Conner turned his head reaching back out for the sound. He could have sworn it was Tim. Then he heard it again, accompanied by a choked out "It's over Scarecrow. Give up!" It was definitely Tim.
"Oh little bird." Another weary voice said, "It may be over for me now, but it will also be over for your precious mentor!" Then Conner heard a rustle of clothing and then a shout. He was flying before he even knew what happened.
"I'm coming Tim." He whispered. Focusing on the sound of falling.
He heard a voice so quiet, it could have been a prayer. "I don't want to die like this... Dick? Dad? Someone?" A gentle sigh, "Kon? If you're out there?. . . Please. . . Help me."
Kon caught up to his hearing, catching both Scarecrow (unfortunately) and Tim. He roughly dropped Scarecrow in front of commissioner Gordon then took to the high skies with an unconscious Robin. He could hear the commotion from his comms but chose to turn it off, afraid they would wake Tim.
_
When Tim woke up, he found Kon's head was in his lap while he sat in the batcave infirmary. Kon woke to hearing Tim's breathing and heart speed up.
"heyheyhey hey hey- Lean back. Rest." Kon demands.
"You came?" Tim was astonished, his eyes tremble looking Kon over.
"You asked." Kon stated like it wasn't completely chance.
"You saved me?" Tim's voice wavered.
"You said, please." Kon lightly joked.
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