So the moment we've all been waiting for - and by "we" I mean nerds of the world - has arrived. After several long years, the Avatar mythology has returned to T.V., and I for one love it! As I hope everyone knows, it follows the adventures of the new Avatar, a Waterbender named Korra. I've gotta confess, I already like her more than Aang. I think it's because I see so much of myself in her, or vice versa, right down to the fiery "whatevers" and stubborn willfulness. Aang was cool, but I never understood the Zen thing he had going on.
Sequels have the annoying tendency to be crappy replicas of the original, and that's because they're only trying to capitalize on the elements that made the original successful. Sometimes they pull it off, but nine times out of ten, they fail. Miserably. But The Legend of Korra is cool because so far, it's a successful sequel. It keeps enough of the original mythology to appease fans, referencing events and characters from The Last Airbender, yet it's enough of its own story to avoid being a lame copy. It gives the new characters room to develop their own identities independent of Aang and the rest of Team Avatar. And the story that's unfolding is very engaging.
Apart from all that, I dig how the show's producers have made it steampunk. The Last Airbender certainly had steampunk elements, but it definitely had a more agrarian feel to it. The Legend of Korra is an amazing fusion of turn-of-the-century industrialization with Eastern mysticism and religion. I'd even venture to say there's an element of magical realism to it.
I think the characters are great. I've already talked about Korra a bit, but now I want to look at the supporting cast. I adore Tenzin's kids. They're too funny. I was watching "The Revelation" and thinking that it's ironic how they're Aang's grandchildren, but they're also like Korra's siblings. I know it's a cartoon so it might be kind of dumb to think of these things, but is that a weird situation for Korra? Or does she find it awesome to have a continued place in Aang's story?
And then there's Mako and Bolin. Raise your hand if you, like me, think they're Zuko's grandsons. Seriously, they look just like him, especially Mako. Take away Zuko's terrible scar, and bam! You have Mako. Bolin, on the other hand, reminds me a lot of young Fire Lord Sozin. I know we're just three episodes in, but I've been glued to my seat every episode to see if I'm right, and if I am, to see just how the Fire Lord's grandsons, who are technically royalty, wound up orphaned street urchins.
Obviously, Mako's gonna wind up with Korra sometime in the future. I mean, the hints couldn't be more glaring if they tried. You know what I think? I think that's Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko's way of appeasing all the fans who thought The Last Airbender should've ended with Katara and Zuko getting together. I happened to be one of the people in that camp because it made more sense to me. Yeah, yeah, fire and water are natural enemies, but then again, opposites attract. And consider how all the great romances started with the two hating each other with a passion...But most of all, in that series, there were hints that Katara and Zuko belonged together, like how they constantly found themselves in situations where they cried in exasperation, "She's (He's) not my girl (boy) friend!"
Obviously, that wasn't DiMartino and Konietzko's vision, but they couldn't ignore so many fans' wishes. So it makes sense to me that they would pair up Mako, who in all probability is Zuko's grandson, with a Waterbender who is, in many ways, just like Katara. I, for one, usually don't go for the love angle in a story, but I kind of like the way The Legend of Korra handles it. It gives you enough to keep you interested, but it doesn't rub your face in it like lame, Twilight-esque romances. And yes, I realize I'm a thirty-one year old woman taking an invested stance in the fictitious romance set forth in a children's cartoon...
On a side note, though, I'm pretty disturbed that we're only three episodes in, yet there is already an abundance of pornographic fan art circling the web...I know I'm kind of dorky for my interests in things like Avatar, but seriously. It's a show for kids, people! Deep breath in. Okay, I'm better now.
So I guess the bottom line is that if you haven't seen it yet, you need to. It - is - awesome!
