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Oct. 19th, 2007 07:07 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rowanberriesAhem. This is, er, longer than usual.
SQUEE AVATAR!
It makes me happy. But let's be logical about this.
The series as a whole is so much more intelligent that I thought it would be! And let's face it: It's on Nickelodeon. I feel my initial prejudice was justified. But I already knew the premise for the powers, and that intrigued me. And then I started meeting the characters, the wonderful characters, and now I'm hooked. Let's start with the obvious. Hi, Aang! He's the all-powerful (technically) one true Saviour Of The World, who love animals and is pure and good and true and a twelve year old boy. All things that should make me roll me eyes and move on to the villains. But... he's a little monk! And he is genuinely peaceful (when not in a fight) and giggly and has a massive crush on his older girl friend - which subject I will talk about later - and just... the details, man. He doesn't eat meat, we find out at one point. His action sequences are beyond cool. Let's talk about the action sequences.
OMG. Given that this is a cartoon, the different fighting styles are just beautifully done and choreographed. The way they adjust for the different elements! Allowing for the different physiques of the characters! Even personality is accounted for. Zuko: Rage. Aang: Speed and agility. Katara: Peace, smooth movements and flowing spirit. Toph: Sheer bloodymindedness. :D
Back to the characters. Katara is one of those difficult ones. How do you make the girl the maternal, sweet, worried one and not make her a stereotype. Well... you don't, exactly. She's still used as a catalyst for male feeling and action, and yet she works on her own too, not to mention being kickass after whateverthehell speed training course she went on with the Water Master. >_> I don't know. I do like her, don't get me wrong. That's including her flaws, such as the classic I'm-always-right syndrome, but dude, fourteen year old. The healing thing... feels kind of tacked on, I guess, but of the elements, water makes sense. Plus, then, she wouldn't have been able to offer to heal Zuko. Now, then. I ship those two like nothing else, which is partly why the season two finale made me yell so hard at the screen. I just!
Look, here's how it was supposed to go: They fall into a relationship which initially consists of nothing more than angry making out and incredibly awkward silences. Aang is hurt and jealous initially, but it helps his do the letting go thing, and he gains control over the Avatar State. Katara, meanwhile, succeeds in healing Zuko's scar, which, being the metaphorical creature he is, leads him to believe his honour is restored, and joins the fight against the Fire Nation (moodily), kills his father (so the kiddies' role model, Aang, doesn't have to be a killer), while Katara takes out Azula with Iroh's timely assistance, but not before she scars him again in the exact same place, they all shrug, and he becomes the surly but just kind of the Fire Nation, and then there is peace.
Y'see? But, no. There's his chance, and then...
Oh, ZUKO. D:!
I started out the first season not liking him very much... then he crept up behind me, tapped me on the shoulder, and said >:| 'Have you seen the Avatar?' and I burst out laughing. And making me laugh is the key to my love, apparently. He's so silly and narrowminded but brave, and. And he does know how to be nice, just not when or why. He's a massive fuckup, and yet I can't leave it alone. Sigh.
...Anyway. Sokka, now. Oh, Sokka. He's another one I disliked... for about ten minutes. And then...! Oh, bless him. I know he's the comic relief. But he's the best goddamn comic relief there is! He gets high on cactus juice, he has awesome plans, he says 'Go team Avatar!' in all seriousness. He has a boomerang! He flirts with dangerous women! He learns. So few kids programs seem to have the concept of character development, but he does! Eee!
There's so many others. Iroh. (<3) Toph, whom I adore beyond reason. The teen girl squad, who much as I want them to eventually lose, are AWESOME. Mai is hilariously deadpan and accepting of her fate, win or lose (just as long as it isn't boring,) Ty Lee is adorable, if very clearly the sub to Azula's dom, and Azula hersef... *shivers* Now there's a gooood villain. I cannot believe, however, that Zuko's going to accept being her subordinate. Just... no. Thaaaaat'll be some fun right there.
The one this I'm not so sure about is the Katara/Aang ship. It's perfectly sensible and cute that he has a crush on her... but I don't want anything to come of it. Because for starters, he's twelve. And secondly... it's too mother/son. Noooo. They love one another, but it's family love. Romance gives it that oddly incestuous tone. It's perfect as it is.
I really need to watch season three, like, immediately.
SQUEE AVATAR!
It makes me happy. But let's be logical about this.
The series as a whole is so much more intelligent that I thought it would be! And let's face it: It's on Nickelodeon. I feel my initial prejudice was justified. But I already knew the premise for the powers, and that intrigued me. And then I started meeting the characters, the wonderful characters, and now I'm hooked. Let's start with the obvious. Hi, Aang! He's the all-powerful (technically) one true Saviour Of The World, who love animals and is pure and good and true and a twelve year old boy. All things that should make me roll me eyes and move on to the villains. But... he's a little monk! And he is genuinely peaceful (when not in a fight) and giggly and has a massive crush on his older girl friend - which subject I will talk about later - and just... the details, man. He doesn't eat meat, we find out at one point. His action sequences are beyond cool. Let's talk about the action sequences.
OMG. Given that this is a cartoon, the different fighting styles are just beautifully done and choreographed. The way they adjust for the different elements! Allowing for the different physiques of the characters! Even personality is accounted for. Zuko: Rage. Aang: Speed and agility. Katara: Peace, smooth movements and flowing spirit. Toph: Sheer bloodymindedness. :D
Back to the characters. Katara is one of those difficult ones. How do you make the girl the maternal, sweet, worried one and not make her a stereotype. Well... you don't, exactly. She's still used as a catalyst for male feeling and action, and yet she works on her own too, not to mention being kickass after whateverthehell speed training course she went on with the Water Master. >_> I don't know. I do like her, don't get me wrong. That's including her flaws, such as the classic I'm-always-right syndrome, but dude, fourteen year old. The healing thing... feels kind of tacked on, I guess, but of the elements, water makes sense. Plus, then, she wouldn't have been able to offer to heal Zuko. Now, then. I ship those two like nothing else, which is partly why the season two finale made me yell so hard at the screen. I just!
Look, here's how it was supposed to go: They fall into a relationship which initially consists of nothing more than angry making out and incredibly awkward silences. Aang is hurt and jealous initially, but it helps his do the letting go thing, and he gains control over the Avatar State. Katara, meanwhile, succeeds in healing Zuko's scar, which, being the metaphorical creature he is, leads him to believe his honour is restored, and joins the fight against the Fire Nation (moodily), kills his father (so the kiddies' role model, Aang, doesn't have to be a killer), while Katara takes out Azula with Iroh's timely assistance, but not before she scars him again in the exact same place, they all shrug, and he becomes the surly but just kind of the Fire Nation, and then there is peace.
Y'see? But, no. There's his chance, and then...
Oh, ZUKO. D:!
I started out the first season not liking him very much... then he crept up behind me, tapped me on the shoulder, and said >:| 'Have you seen the Avatar?' and I burst out laughing. And making me laugh is the key to my love, apparently. He's so silly and narrowminded but brave, and. And he does know how to be nice, just not when or why. He's a massive fuckup, and yet I can't leave it alone. Sigh.
...Anyway. Sokka, now. Oh, Sokka. He's another one I disliked... for about ten minutes. And then...! Oh, bless him. I know he's the comic relief. But he's the best goddamn comic relief there is! He gets high on cactus juice, he has awesome plans, he says 'Go team Avatar!' in all seriousness. He has a boomerang! He flirts with dangerous women! He learns. So few kids programs seem to have the concept of character development, but he does! Eee!
There's so many others. Iroh. (<3) Toph, whom I adore beyond reason. The teen girl squad, who much as I want them to eventually lose, are AWESOME. Mai is hilariously deadpan and accepting of her fate, win or lose (just as long as it isn't boring,) Ty Lee is adorable, if very clearly the sub to Azula's dom, and Azula hersef... *shivers* Now there's a gooood villain. I cannot believe, however, that Zuko's going to accept being her subordinate. Just... no. Thaaaaat'll be some fun right there.
The one this I'm not so sure about is the Katara/Aang ship. It's perfectly sensible and cute that he has a crush on her... but I don't want anything to come of it. Because for starters, he's twelve. And secondly... it's too mother/son. Noooo. They love one another, but it's family love. Romance gives it that oddly incestuous tone. It's perfect as it is.
I really need to watch season three, like, immediately.
no subject
Date: 2007-10-19 07:15 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-10-19 08:23 pm (UTC)It is the character development that sucks me extra into the show and makes me adore it, really. Because the first couple episodes are cute in a Nickelodeon-ish way and then the characters . . . change. And grow. And I LOVE THEM ALL SO MUCH. I can't even think of a character I don't like.
<3!!!+