BUMI: the Monkey King
[WARNING!: THIS VIDEO CONTAINS SWEARING]
We first see Bumi at the end of season 1 of Legend of Korra, and we are left with three impressions.
He’s Crazy (just like the guy he’s named after)
He’s strong (as the commander of an Army)
And He’s fun
However, in season 2 we find out that he’s kinda a washed-up has-been, which I thought was really sad.
First, I was really excited to meet the character from his first impression. Tenzin was always the calm and collected side of airbending, so I was excited to see the wild and fun side of Air in Bumi. Second, Avatar is an amazing show that never looks down on anybody. Got a disability? No Problem! You can still be a strong person. You don’t have Bending? Not a Problem! There are plenty of skills you can learn that make you just a strong as a bender.
Sokka was a non-bender, but the show never put him down because he couldn’t bend. Sokka was still an important member to the group and did his part. Bumi on the other hand is openly ignored. Sure he doesn’t have bending, but he is often portrayed as a useless character. This really saddened me, because the show had always treated their characters with great respect. . .
Needless to say I was unhappy with Bumi’s characterization. . .
So, Here is how I would have rewritten Bumi
I would describe Bumi in three words: The Monkey King. Yes I would have based Bumi on Sun Wu Kong from the Chinese classic, Journey to the West.
Despite not being a bender, Bumi would be an accomplished martial artist as wild and free as the monkey king. He would represent the fun-loving and more wild side of the element of Air, to contrast Tenzins more subdued personality. And even though he isn’t an airbender, he still knows how to fight like one.
His fighting style would be Monkey Style or Momo Style if you prefer.
He would tends to fight with a staff to shows just how strong a non-passive airbender could be. I imagine him as the fun but crazy uncle who fits right in with flying children. Overall he would be a fun strong character, not a failure. Also, Bumi has kids. Many of whom are Airbenders.