Avatar: the Search - Part 1

[espanolbot]

A brief bit, which makes more sense within the context of the story and character development during the animated series.





I cover the possible implications of this in my review below, but it's not entirely sure whether Ursa meant it literally, but it acts as a way to get the search underway faster before Azula usurps Zuko on the basis that he isn't actually the rightful heir to the throne.

Also, Fire Nation mental hospitals SUCK.

Review with spoilers here,
http://espanolbot.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/avatar-search-part-1-review_21.html

Comments

[protogarrett]

I highly doubt they'll go the way they are supposedly leading but with the final page, if that sticks, my only thought is: "That's how you destroy a character's entire story arc in one page."

[espanolbot]

Yeah, pretty much if she meant it literally. If Ozai THOUGHT that Zuko wasn't his but couldn't prove it, it certainly goes towards why Ozai dislikes him so much.

[turtlefu]

Jeesh.

Honestly, I feel like these sequel comics have either 1) added nothing to the series, as they seem to just be cash grabs masquerading as non-essential continuations or 2) actively detract from the character development and themes of the original series.

The last one basically erased all of Zuko's character development during the third season. And now this seems to be doing things with Azula I don't like.
I understand the cathartic need to show a character that is mentally unstable getting better. But, Azula and Zuko were always supposed to be lessons in contrasts. Having her go on her own "path of redemption" (even if it is prolonged) may hold more weight to the theme of redemption, but it detracts from the theme of "choosing one's own destiny". Ascribing Azula's unsavory behavior to mental instability is 1) not at all accurate, because she was not paranoid until the end of the third season and 2) erases the fact that Azula made her choices (she was well aware of her actions and their consequences, but valued above all power gained through fear and intimidation).

[espanolbot]

Azula's always had problems though, she used to chuck rocks at baby animals and other things indicating psychopathic tendencies, the fact that a tendency towards starting fires is also seen as a sign of it in children is probably just a coincidence though.

Though in regards to what you said before, 1. they show the growth of the characters and the setting in the years following the series, and in the case of the most recent book actually give one of the more important characters some backstory and personality at last (Ursa), and 2. they add to the story by showing the things that Aang and Zuko have to deal with in their new positions as fully-realised Avatar and Firelord, respectively.

The Promise though is more an expansion pack for the setting in a worldbuilding sense, while the Search is more a character piece.

Though that's just my opinion.

[turtlefu]

I'm not convinced. Azula was always cruel, but cruel is not crazy. The Beach was very enlightening on her character: she is aware of what she does and comes across, and she cares, but she is also power-hungry and knows that she can rule through intimidation and fear. Azula's final moments were filled with paranoia, but this book took a relatively minor moment - her seeing Ursa's reflection - and turned it into a full-blown voice in her head. To ascribe her behavior throughout the series as being the result of mental instability completely ruins the thematic contrast between her and Zuko - that of choice, choosing your own destiny, and how others treat you the way you treat them.

I don't think they add enough. See, the important thing when telling a story is to know when to end it. Comics usually don't do that. But Avatar told a complete story and complete set of circumstances were resolved. Obviously, the characters did not cease to exist within their fictional world, but all of these sequels so far have been about "What happens NEXT!?" to appease the fans who liked the characters. The story is over. The characters are not, and it just seems way too non-essential to continue on.
It's like people calling for more cameos/wanting to find out about what happens to Team Avatar in Korra's time. My thoughts: Why? The story is over. It's Korra's turn.

Avatar, in three seasons, made this excellent self-contained story, and these feel completely superfluous. The Promise basically added unnecessary back story that Korra already answered for us, and ruined Zuko's character development.

The Search, so far, seems to just be muddling the thematic character work of the original seasons, all in the name of continuing something that is already finished.

[akodo_rokku]

My assumption is that Ursa is not a voice in Azula's head. She's in the Spirit World.

Also people want more Team Aang in Legend of Korra because Korra is AWFUL.

(Guh, I don't want to come across as a troll but my Korra Feels cannot be supressed.)

[turtlefu]

It doesn't matter how you feel about Korra.

Listen, this happens a lot in entertainment. Something is good, so we, the fans, want it to continue. Don't leave us, characters we have grown to love and care for! But the problem is that once the original plan or plot is exhausted, where do you go? Everything past it goes into fanservice territory, and then the aspects that are focused on become what the fans get the most attached to. Soon, the entire series becomes one big in-joke/circle jerk, and characters are reduced to their most simplistic elements because all of their planned character development is already accounted for. Fans can't let a good thing go away while it's still good, so they basically are the cause of running their own favorite thing into the ground and destroying it.
This is most common in TV Shows, where even if the original plot is resolved, the show got good ratings so it continues. House is a really good example. The plots got more and more ridiculous, the characters got more and more one-dimensional, all because it got good ratings but the creators became creatively exhausted.
The creators of Avatar made the decision to end it after 3 books because the story was told. It was over. We don't need to find out what happens to Ursa or what shenanigans Team Avatar gets into when they turn 30 or whatever. That's not relevant to the themes, character development, or plot of the original series. And take this into account that these series are not even written by any of the original writing staff, and what you basically get is "official fan fiction".
I really want somebody to sit there and TELL ME that the way Azula acts in The Search is at all consistent with her characterization in Avatar. Because it's not (I just re-watched the latter half of season 3 to see if there was anything about her downfall that I missed. There isn't)

The theory that Ursa is a spirit seems like nonsense to me because there is no precedence for it based on everything we know about the spirit world. The Spirit World is not heaven. Spirits don't just go around contacting their loved ones after they died. In fact, the only people who have migrated to the spirit world have either been Avatars or Moon Personifications. And any time something from the spirit world made contact outside was either through the Avatar or with the help of an unusually spiritual area (Swamp, Library).

[dahlia_moon]

We don't need to find out what happens to Ursa or what shenanigans Team Avatar gets into when they turn 30 or whatever.

Some of us do need to find out that though. It always frustrated me that TPTB never delved into Ursa's story while the cartoon was airing (I understand that logically it made sense to skip her story because it was Aang's story) so if we get it this way, I'm totally loving it. To each their own though.

[md84]

The way I see it, this is actually Azula's means of coping with the events of season 3. She'd rather imagine a huge conspiracy masterminded by her mother rather than face the fact that her downfall was due to her own faults and mistakes. Kind of like Doctor Doom's delusion that Reed sabotaged the experiment that ruined his face. The hallucinations are the part of her that realizes this is total hogwash, and they've gotten stronger because she is even deeper in denial. The reason she hasn't gotten better is simply because she has completely refused to see that she even has a problem in the first place. To her, it's all someone else's (specifically her mother's) fault.

[northstarfan]

Part of me is wondering if this is going to be Azula's exit story rather than her redemption arc because the revelation about Zuko could only cement her feelings that her mother didn't love her and feared her power.

[md84]

Depends on if Azula can accept that she can be fallible. Most villains ultimately can't do that, so the odds aren't in her favor. Then again, the series' overall tone is idealistic, so who knows.

[dorksidefiker]

RE: the "reveal" of Zuko's "true parentage"... I say it's a trick.

[janegray]

Well, it seems like some people aren't liking this, but personally, I love it.

...Assuming that the reveal about Zuko is just something that Ozai thinks, not the truth, that is. If it is just Ozai's wrong idea, I like it, it gives a reason as to why exactly Ozai disliked Zuko so much (ok, sure, the implied reason in the cartoon was that Zuko was far from the "perfection" he wanted, but that's a pretty weak reason to agree to murder your own son). If it's the truth, it's a dumb asspull for cheap shock value and I hate it.

[md84]

Well, we know that whatever the truth is, it doesn't stop him from being the Firelord.

What I want to know is if that's because:

1) It's not true either because it's only a suspicion or it's a fake

2) Nobody ever finds out for certain if it's true or not, or they just stop caring.

3) It IS true, Azula tries to reveal it to the Fire Nation...and the people don't care.

[long_silence]

I figure Ozai is manipulating Azula so that they can get Zuko off the throne. If he's known that Zuko wasn't his kid all this time he would have killed him a long time ago, probably would have killed Ursa too. He probably figured out that Zuko really is his son a long time ago and just wants to fuck with his mind right now.

And honestly? Even if Zuko isn't really Ozai's kid I don't really see how this changes anything. Yes, Zuko's character entire arc was about overcoming his heritage but his heritage is more than just his genetics, it was everything he'd been taught from birth to believe about himself as the Fire Nation's prince. I just don't see how him not genetically being Sozin's great-grandson changes any of that. He was still conflicted about who he thought he was supposed to be and what he thought was the right thing to do.

[marco]

I think you put that quite eloquently.

[silverzeo]

I always wonder how Azula manage to make lightning when she has gone nucking futs...

[long_silence]

Maybe it's like how originally waterbenders needed the moon to bloodbend, but with enough practice some of them learned to do it whenever they wanted. Azula needed complete emotional control and balance to learn how to generate lightning, but after she mastered it and practiced it for hours on end she can do it whenever, even though she's imbalanced and batshit crazy