And I don't mean something like "Zutara over Kataang" or "Aang should have killed Ozai" I mean an ACTUALLY controversial take that could have the entire fandom come at you like
I'll start:
If the Harmonic Convergence that restored the Air Nation occurred during Aang's lifetime, he would be subtly discriminating the new airbenders. It wouldn't be noticeable at first, but over time, Aang's "compassion" would simply grow to become outright hostile to the new airbenders since he believes that they aren't "true" airbenders because of their previous lifestyles (he'd definitely hate Kai because of his previous lifestyle as a thief and would subtly discourage Jinora from pursuing him if she doesn't want to "taint" the family bloodline). No, not even Bumi would be protected. Aang would definitely be initially proud that Bumi is finally "worthy" to be his son, but he might encourage competition between his sons.
They say there's no hate quite as strong as Air Nomad love.
Reblog this post and share your own controversial opinions!
Hey... ARE THEY FIGHTING DEMONS USING MUSIC??? WHY DIDN'T ANYONE TELL ME YOU COULD DO THAT?
JINU YOU LITTLE--- YOU ABANDONED YOUR FAMILY??? I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW THAT WOULD BE UNACCEPTABLE WHERE I'M FROM!
probably crashed out at least once hearing Wan replay Your Idol
WAN DON'T YOU DARE PLAY "SODAPOP" IN THE SPIRIT WORLD! If any spirits come flying here, then just know that I warned you.
But---
Last chance, Wan.
But you gotta admit, it really is catchy---
...
... Fine.
Later:
... WAAAAAAAAAAANNNNN??? WHY IS FATHER GLOWWORM RUNNING TOWARDS YOU AT LIGHT SPEED??? HOW IS HE EVEN ALIVE??? KYOSHI! I THOUGHT I SAW YUN EAT FATHER GLOWWORM! DIDN'T HE DIE?
Since when did Aang surpass all the other Avatars by being selfish, supremacist, and refusing to do his duty to bring balance to the world because HIS morals were being challenged, falling asleep, and waking up on a lionturtle, who gives him all the solutions he'll ever need, without Aang needing to do a THING, and later being hit in the back by an ULTRA POINTY ROCK EX MACHINA, and letting his PAST LIVES do all the work FOR him, after being CURBSTOMPED by Firelord Ozai, and then just TAKING HIS BENDING AWAY, making sure that Ozai's still alive and jeopardising Zuko's reign in the process, ALL AT THE LAST SECOND??? Have we even WATCHED THE SAME SHOW?
Not to mention whoever wrote that CLEARLY DIDN'T READ THE NOVELS! Even KORRA did more for the Air Nation than AANG did! Who wrote this garbage on TV TROPES, BRYKE???
Did the definition of enlightenment CHANGE in the last hundred years? Or is it just me?
OK! OK! OK! I get why you're upset, just hear me out first! (Also I'm a teenage girl, not an old man.)
Now, if we remember the whole system with the four elements, fire is the element of power, earth is the element of substance, air is the element of freedom, and water is the element of change. And each Avatar has an element that they struggle with because its principles conflict with their personality.
That's why Aang struggled to earthbend, its mindset of facing conflict head-on contrasted with his avoidance of conflict. Similarly, Korra struggled to airbend because its mindset of avoiding conflict contradicted with her hot-headedness and brash attitude.
However, the problem is that while Korra (realistically) spends the entire first season learning to airbend (but this isn't about her though, this is about Aang), Aang struggles with earthbending for just one episode and then instantly grasps the concept and become really proficient (hey, maybe Toph's just a really good teacher).
This is the problem. The writers wanted Aang to struggle, so they gave them challenges that clashed with Aang's character traits, but then as soon as the episode ends, he's automatically succeeded in the given task. It's really annoying how Bryke especially don't want Aang to learn from his mistakes and grow as a person, because Raava forbid their Pwecious Boi(TM) is ever in the wrong!
Another element he struggled with is firebending, but not so much with the element itself as with the application of firebending. In The Deserter (1x16), Aang is given the opportunity to learn how to firebend under the tutelage of Jeong Jeong, but over time Aang becomes careless until he accidentally burns Katara while playing around. The episode ends with Aang swearing to never firebend again, and he stays true to his word until The Firebending Masters (3x13), when he and Zuko relearn firebending from the titular masters, Ran and Shaw. This episode ends with them learning that fire isn't an element of destruction, but rather one of life, warmth, and light, and thus becoming more confident in their firebending abilities.
Then there's waterbending, which is the only element besides air that Aang did not struggle with (apparently it was because Aang was quickly able to grasp the mindset of water), but he somehow managed to be a better waterbender than Katara? "Hard to believe" is how I'd put it. I really think there's a missed opportunity to have Aang struggle with the element, and here's why.
The world has changed a lot during the hundred years Aang was trapped in the iceberg. As Katara put it best, "Everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked." Aang had just found out that every single one of his people were exterminated by the Fire Nation, and the rest of the world was caught in a brutal war that lasted an entire century. Worse, in The Northern Air Temple (1x17), Aang discovers that a group of refugees have moved into the Northern Air Temple and almost completely renovated the interior for their own needs (this is a really grey area of morality, I personally believe that the Mechanist was wrong for destroying what was already there in the temple, but Aang was acting on borderline supremacist behaviour throughout the episode. Plus the Mechanist and Teo especially were genuinely interested in Air Nomad culture and wanted the best for their community).
That's why I believe that Aang should have had a mini-arc about waterbending throughout Book 1 (like how he did with learning earthbending and later firebending in the later seasons), which would be about realizing that the world has changed so much during the last century. The Gaang still steals the waterbending scroll, but this time around, instead of getting it right first try, Aang would struggle terribly the first few times because he's still in denial that he's the Avatar and truly the last of his kind.
This would be explored at the Northern Air Temple, which would still new development. He'd have a talk with Teo who reminds him of his people, and that they would never leave him, and that they would live on in his heart. (I personally think it was a missed opportunity that Teo didn't become one of the Air Acolytes. He'd do great improving the standard of living by inventing new machines that would be a benefit, not a detriment, to the new Air Nation and to everyone who is part of it. That's for another time, though.)
Then at the North Pole the whole deal with Pakku would still be there, but this time Aang would still lag behind Katara, this time not because of his laziness, but rather because he still doesn't understand the change. Then with a little help from Katara and Yue, Aang would finally understand that the world has changed, nothing will be the same, but he can face this. With a little help from Water Tribe philosophy, Aang would realize during the finale that what makes the Water Tribe strong is their ability to work with adversity, rather than resisting or fleeing, and their strong bonds with family that can hold them through anything. Also can we please please please have more Water Tribe Aang? The Gaang spent most of Book 1: Water in the Earth Kingdom!
And there you have it. My argument for why Aang should have struggled with waterbending. You can agree or disagree (you are, after all, entitled to your own opinion), but please don't be rude about it, and try to consider my perspective too.
And to think that Kuruk's problems would have been solved INSTANTLY if he just sang the opening theme song of Demon Slayer twice a day in the Avatar State!
One of the key themes of the ATLA franchise is the concept of the Avatar; master of all 4 elements, the fusion of humanity and Raava, the spirit of light and order, whose sole duty is to bring balance to the world, and be the bridge between both the physical and spiritual realms. Along with this comes the idea of reincarnation, which is the premise of the Avatar Cycle, the idea that the Avatar reincarnates in a cyclic order in any of the four nations (fire, air, water, earth). Another concept related to the Avatar Cycle (although originating from the fandom) is the idea of the Avatar fixing the mistakes of their past life, which is often indicated in differences in both habitual circumstances and personalities between both predecessor and successor, and therefore differences in morality.
But what if I were to tell you that the saying "history repeats itself" is also true among Avatar incarnations? Not exactly going the same way, but rather parallels between the lives, personalities, and accomplishments (and failures) of past lives?
In this series of metas, I will be going over parallels (or in some cases, foils) between certain pairs of Avatars that lived decades, or even centuries apart, and yet could not have ever been more similar.
Equivalent Elements: Avatars Kuruk and Korra
"Kuruk was the Water Tribe Avatar immediately succeeding Avatar Yangchen and preceding Avatar Kyoshi. Native to the Northern Water Tribe, he was a powerful and gifted bender who dreamed of changing the mortal world for the better by uniting the people and acting upon the foundations laid by Yangchen."
"Korra is the current incarnation of the Avatar and immediate successor of Avatar Aang. Born and raised in the Southern Water Tribe, where she mastered waterbending, earthbending, and firebending, she later relocated to Republic City to attain a similar proficiency with airbending under the tutelage and guidance of Tenzin, as well as to help her overcome her aversion to the spiritual aspects of the bending arts. With the assistance of Aang's spirit, Korra gained the ability to energybend and, after connecting with her past lives, she gained the capacity to enter the Avatar State at will, marking her transition into a fully realized Avatar."
These are the respective wiki pages for Kuruk and Korra, and you might actually notice they even look similar (which I guess makes sense, considering they're both from the same nation). You might actually notice that there are some similarities between them, from their heritage, to personalities, to their downfall as the Avatar. I'll get to each of these parallels in a moment.
First and foremost, unlike the previous four pairs I analyzed, both Kuruk and Korra are from the same nation: Kuruk is from the Northern Water Tribe, and Korra was born in the Southern Water Tribe, although her father was from the NWT royal family, while her mother was from the SWT. Therefore, they ended up learning the elements in the same order: water, earth, fire, air. Ironically, I guess you could say they are... polar opposites. (Get it? 'Cause they're from opposite ends of the world?)
Both Kuruk and Korra succeeded Air Nomad Avatars who ended global conflicts that originated in the aftermath of their predecessors' deaths (Yangchen ended the Platinum Affair; Aang ended the Hundred Years War). During Korra's era, the world actively questioned the need of an Avatar, while in Sozin's Comet Part 2: The Old Masters (Book 3: Episode 19), Kuruk told Aang that "When I was young, I was always a go-with-the-flow kind of Avatar. People seemed to work out their own problems, and there was peace and good times in the world." This implies that Yangchen established peace between the four nations which was also prevalent in Kuruk's time, at least in the physical world.
However, during the course of both of their journeys, it's revealed that Yangchen neglected her duties in the Spirit World, which led to an increase in dark spirit attacks during Kuruk's time. Aang, on the other hand, ran away from the Southern Air Temple, indirectly allowing his entire race to be slaughtered during the first Sozin's comet, in addition to indirectly favoring benders over nonbenders, and taking away Yakone's bending, which led to the rise of the Equalists and their leader Amon, Yakone's son, during Korra's time. Korra also witnessed the Harmonic Convergence, which brought back the Air Nation from extinction, while Kuruk hunted dark spirits during his visits to the Spirit World.
Both of their journeys had devastating impacts on their health. Every time Kuruk killed a dark spirit, a portion of his own spirit was harmed, which shortened his lifespan to just 33 years. During Harmonic Convergence, Unalaq and Vaatu destroyed Korra's connection to Raava, which ended up severing her connection to her past lives. However, she was able to fuse with Raava again before the Harmonic Convergence was over. Ironically, Korra was taught spiritbending by her uncle Unalaq, which could have really helped Kuruk to not die.
Korra was also poisoned by the Red Lotus, who tried to poison her with mercury in an attempt to force her into the Avatar State and die, ending the Avatar Cycle for good. She probably would have died had Suyin not metalbent the poison out of the former's body. In the end, Korra was paralyzed and was left to deal with the aftermath for 3 years. During the final year, she coped with her pain by travelling and participating in bending contests in the Earth Kingdom, reminiscent of Kuruk's travels and challenges centuries ago. Since she was 21 years old in Book 4 (the legal drinking age in the US) she probably would have indulged in alcoholism, too, if there was no Y-7 rating for The Legend of Korra (even though Book 1 literally ended with a double murder-suicide, and the poisoning thing).
Despite the Water Tribes' strong emphasis on family and community, Kuruk never told his companions about his spirit hunts, and Korra isolated herself from her family, her companions, and Tenzin during her recovery.
However, there is one difference: Korra was able to get medical attention for mercury poisoning (Suyin used metalbending to remove most of the poison from Korra's body, and Toph encouraged Korra to metalbend the rest of it out), whereas Kuruk was not (spiritbending wasn't discovered at the time to help Kuruk, and he wasn't able to heal himself fully). If Korra still had the connection to her past lives, I imagine Kuruk would somehow manifest in front to Korra to tell her that he was very proud of her.
In addition, in Beginnings: Part 1 (Book 2: Episode 7), Kuruk is the only one of Korra's past lives to mention Raava by name.
"Go back. Return to the beginning. Find Raava."
(I couldn't find the image sorry.)
Although all of her past four lives (Aang, Roku, Kyoshi, and Kuruk) told Korra to connect with the Avatar Spirit, Kuruk is the one who told Korra about its proper name (even though Korra mistook Wan for Raava). I actually have a theory based on this detail that I might come around to later.
We can even predict some of Korra's failures by looking at Kuruk. Kuruk ended up spending so much time in the Spirit World that he neglected his duties in the physical world, which led to the Earth Kingdom being overrun by criminals during Kyoshi's time. Although Korra didn't neglect either the physical or spiritual realms, she did leave the spirit portals open, which led to the ability of humans and spirits to coexist and travel between both realms. Unfortunately, this could lead to negative consequences like dark spirits, like Koh The Face Stealer, escaping from the Spirit World during the next Avatar's time. Only time will tell.
Speaking of which, since Korra opened both spirit portals, and created a third in Republic City, this technically means she can visit her past lives in the Spirit World. However, if I remember correctly, since Kuruk's spirit is still wandering the Spirit World in search for Ummi, and he is currently the only Avatar confirmed to end up in the Spirit World after death, this means that Kuruk is the only Avatar Korra can talk to when she visits the Spirit World. Again, only time will tell.
Accordingly, I can conclude that Kuruk and Korra have interesting, yet expected, parallels. From their heritage, to their journeys, to their obstacles and recoveries (or lack thereof), they are the same song sung in different verses. In the next part, I will analyze the differences between their respective predecessors, Yangchen and Aang, and discuss why they act as character foils.
One of the key themes of the ATLA franchise is the concept of the Avatar; master of all 4 elements, the fusion of humanity and Raava, the spirit of light and order, whose sole duty is to bring balance to the world, and be the bridge between both the physical and spiritual realms. Along with this comes the idea of reincarnation, which is the premise of the Avatar Cycle, the idea that the Avatar reincarnates in a cyclic order in any of the four nations (fire, air, water, earth). Another concept related to the Avatar Cycle (although originating from the fandom) is the idea of the Avatar fixing the mistakes of their past life, which is often indicated in differences in both habitual circumstances and personalities between both predecessor and successor, and therefore differences in morality.
But what if I were to tell you that the saying "history repeats itself" is also true among Avatar incarnations? Not exactly going the same way, but rather parallels between the lives, personalities, and accomplishments (and failures) of past lives?
In this series of metas, I will be going over parallels (or in some cases, foils) between certain pairs of Avatars that lived decades, or even centuries apart, and yet could not have ever been more similar.
Equivalent Elements II: Avatars Aang and Yangchen
"Aang was an Air Nomad born in 12 BG and the Avatar during the Hundred Year War, succeeding Avatar Roku and preceding Avatar Korra. As the Avatar of his time, he was the only person capable of using all four bending arts: airbending, waterbending, earthbending, and firebending. He was also one of a select few Avatars and one of the first in many cycles to learn the ancient art of energybending as well as the first Avatar known to have actively used the technique."
Yangchen was the Air Nomad Avatar succeeding Avatar Szeto and preceding Avatar Kuruk. She grew up in a rather isolationist time for the four nations in the aftermath of the Platinum Affair. After mastering all the elements in her youth, she was eager to make a difference in the world despite her inexperience. Following her confrontation with General Old Iron in Tienhaishi, Yangchen resolved to adapt to the complex political strategy of the four nations, using manipulation, espionage, and deceit to her advantage in an era where loyalty was bought rather than earned.
Here's a thing people need to understand: No two people are exactly the same, inside or out. They might come from a different background, they might look or dress different, they might behave differently, they might even hate ATLA (which is just not cool). And yet, all humans have the same desire: good health and success. They just achieve these goals via different means.
In ATLA, the Avatar's sole goal is to bring balance to both worlds, but each Avatar achieve this goal differently. This is true for both Aang and Yangchen, as despite being from the same nation, unlike their respective successors, they differ significantly in their personal morals.
First, let's get the similarities out of the way. Both Aang and Yangchen are Air Nomads (hailing from the Southern and Western Air Temples respectively) and therefore grew up surrounded by monks or nuns. Both had an older monk/nun and looked up to said figure as a family member (Aang had Monk Gyatso as a father figure, and Yangchen had Jetsun as an older sister). Gyatso and Jetsun were also revered in their own right as spiritual leaders; however, they both sacrificed themselves to defend their fellow people (Gyatso took down at least a dozen Fire Nation soldiers during Sozin's Comet, whereas Jetsun died while accompanying Yangchen during her first journey to the Spirit World). Both were identified at young ages (12 and 11 respectively); although they both began mastery of the four elements later. Finally, both Aang and Yangchen were involved in worldwide crises during their respective tenures at young ages (Aang ended the Hundred Year War at 12 (or 112, depending on how you look at it) and Yangchen was involved in the Platinum Affair at 17).
However, as I mentioned above, Aang and Yangchen differ in morality. Aang grew up believing that all life is sacred, and while Yangchen also had the same belief initially (as seen with her confrontation with General Old Iron), she grew to slowly give them up overtime, believing that being detached from worldly affairs was a detriment to the Avatar's duty to the world. Aang was reluctant to kill Ozai because of his title as the last airbender, and he felt a lot of pressure trying to uphold the legacy of the Air Nomads on his shoulders. Yangchen, on the contrary, had no such pressure, but rather slowly gave up on her spirituality to become the Avatar (she had a freaking god-complex! Who in Tui's gills gave her the right?!).
I think this conversation between them in Sozin's Comet, Part 2: The Old Masters (3:19) is the perfect example of their dichotomy:
Aang: Avatar Yangchen, the monks always taught me that all life is sacred. Even the life of the tiniest spider-fly caught in its own web.
Yangchen: Yes. All life is sacred.
Aang: I know, I'm even a vegetarian. I've always tried to solve my problems by being quick or clever. And I've only had to use violence for necessary defense. And I've certainly never used it to take a life.
Yangchen: Avatar Aang, I know that you're a gentle spirit, and the monks have taught you well, but this isn't about you. This is about the world.
Aang: But the monks taught me that I had to detach myself from the world so my spirit could be free.
Yangchen: Many great and wise Air Nomads have detached themselves and achieved spiritual enlightenment, but the Avatar can never do it. Because your sole duty is to the world. Here is my wisdom for you: Selfless duty calls you to sacrifice your own spiritual needs, and do whatever it takes to protect the world.
(Let's just ignore the fact that Aang is clearly lying about not killing anyone, shall we?)
This conversation makes it obvious that Yangchen's dark side isn't necessarily the culmination of the Anti-Air Nomad, but rather what Aang could have been had he actually killed Firelord Ozai as planned: powerful and venerated, but having long given up spirituality.
To add insult to injury, if you've read the Kyoshi novels, there's actually a glaring reason why Yangchen's advice wouldn't have worked in the long run: Kuruk. In Shadow, it's revealed that Yangchen neglected the spirits, which led to an increase in dark spirits crossing to the mortal world and attacking humans in revenge. Kuruk (then known as the greatest hunter and tracker in history) was forced to hunt them down and (because spiritbending wasn't invented yet) kill them. This caused his physical, mental, and spiritual health to rapidly decline, until he finally died at 33. Had Yangchen treated both sides fairly, her successor would have been spared (yes, her actions killed him). Aang thought that, had he actually killed Ozai, not only would he have broken his vow to the sanctity of life, and thus his culture would become extinct, but (if the Avatar can actually connect to their past lives' memories) he would've also indirectly harmed his successor (Korra) the way Yangchen did to Kuruk.
(Although this is debateable, if this is true then Aang would've either been traumatized to the Spirit World and back, or gathered the courage to call Kuruk out for lying to him. My bet's on the former.)
Therefore, I can conclude that while Aang and Yangchen are from the same nation, this isn't a guarantee that they are exactly the same person. Their different circumstances, and consequently their different views on the world and their duties, helped to shape their unique identities. In the next past, I'll discuss both the similarities and differences between Avatar Aang and his successor Korra, and discussing how the Avatar's tenure can shape that of his/her successor.
Yes, Zuko, how many times do I have to tell you I'm not finished yet? I still need to get to the big part!
