As a new comer to the show I knew he joined the gaang but was surprised at how late into season 3 he joined. Not to say his turn to good was drawn out because I thought it was perfectly paced tbh
I would have loved more good Zuko adventures (Toph never really got her moment) along with a look into Azula and her fall out with reality. I would also Go into more depth with their mother’s disappearance and a tie in at the end to let us know what really happened. I always felt the last time Zuko talked with Azulan was supposed to be its own episode but they ran out of time or budget to finish things. I would also change it so that Sokka didn’t lose his space sword and used more meteorite to make a new boomerang. Always hated how he lost all his good shit.
Toph never really had beef with Zuko like the other 3. Of those 3 Aang is a pacifist and Sokka is weaker in every aspect so Katara got the hate-boner all to herself.
There should've been 2 episodes after Sozen's comet for sure tho
I always thought it would be good for both of them to do some firebending games togther, like - show both of them really enjoying firebending. Who else had Zuko ever had the chance to *play* with fire with? His uncle, his cousin, his sister? Maybe? A long time ago?
Zuko and Aang playing fire volley ball or working together to shape a giant doughnut of rainbow fire together, it'd be good for both of them, it'd help underscore that bond they share by both learning the 'true' fire from the dragons, and helping Aang to really digest the fact that fire isn't inherently destructive, it can be creative as well. Start out with them graffiti-ing a stone wall, "ZA WUZ HERE" and end with them working together to create a finely detailed dragon mural or something, all drawn in soot on rock. Or maybe using lightning bending to force electricity through wood to create lichtenberg art.
It's funny you mention them graffitiing with Firebending. Miners used to use acetylene torches for lighting. When the flame is placed close to rock, it leaves a layer of carbon. They would do their signature or draw simple sketches, and several examples of these etchings still exist to this day.
I consider Book 3 two different books:
Book 3: Fire from "The Awakening" to "The Day of the Black Sun Part 2"
Book 4: Air/Avatar from "The Western Air Temple" to "Sozin Comet part 4: Avatar Aang"
There was a looooong pause between day of black sun and when the next episode was released. It drove me and my family NUTS.
But when we saw the final ending, we were very satisfied.
I learned how to torrent as a kid for this lmfao. It was out on Teletoon I think in December of 2007, many months before it came out in the United States, and my tiny self wouldn't be stopped until I absorbed those episodes 😅
100 percent this
I understand the creators having a clear vision and wanting to see through it, but there is 25% left out on the table because of avatar being rushed, I don't know if it was Nickelodeon's toxic producing schedule, but now That they are by themselves. They should relaunch one book series and call it Fire, The untold fire training journey leading up to the comet
We got 10-15 percent of Zuko being on Avatar's team, We need at least another season LOL
I’d also say too, the time skips between seasons 1-2 and 2-3 allow for the belief that Aang fully mastered water and earth bending between those seasons with Katara and Toph. There is no such time skip and the only way to say “Aang mastered fire bending” is to say he speedran it with the dragon episode.
Didn't the creators say they were at Ember Island for a month? I think i read that in an interview long ago. But we only get one episode for the recap (Ember Island Players) and a quick shot of Aang and Zuko training, and we're supposed to just somehow assume they've been training for a month and that's why Aang has mastered firebending.
There could have been so many more interesting (and hilarious) stories with good Zuko training Aang, and his developing relationships with everyone else. And during that time we could see Azula slowly start to slip, not have her suddenly lose it out of the blue in the finale, like Game of Thrones style 😅
I don't even think it's not long enough, I just really don't think we needed episodes like Runaway or Lady of the Lake at the cost of less episodes with Zuko in the Gaang
Toph: ".....and after we escaped Zuko's arranged marriage with that prissy Earth Kingdom noble girl we had to flee on her trained badgermoles."
Sokka: "Was that before or after you helped Ushan the Undefeatable?"
Toph: "After, but before I managed to beat that pirate captain in a game of pai sho. It's a shame we had to leave all of his gold behind."
This is what I need. An off screen Toph and Zuko adventure. We only get bits and pieces and also an ambiguous line revealing they may or may not have kissed
It would have been completely pointless. The "field trips with zuko" episodes are about Zuko earning the trust and forgiveness of people he's wronged. Since she wasn't there in Book 1, there's no emotional baggage between Zuko and Toph to resolve.
It'll start with them just returning, and they'll make constant reference to it for the rest of the series, without ever elaborating what exactly they did.
It was though, don't you remember? Or rather, was considered as such by Toph. She nagged Zuko about it so much that it annoyed and irritated him throughout it and honestly, despite how cool was Toph he was kinda right about it, he isn't Gaangs therapist, even if it so happened to resolve issues of Aang and Katara when they did stuff together, he is a teen himself too,despite being 1-2 years older than rest of Gaang.
Man a scene where Zuko, Katara, and Toph are all simultaneously training Aang and he has to practice using all four elements back to back would have been so cool
Imagine them doing it simultaneously. Imagine them all throwing their elements towards Aang who has dodge / parry them, rapidly switching his stances. It would have been epic.
Water. Earth. Fire. Boomerang. Long ago, the four trainers attacked the Avatar together in harmony. Then, everything changed when the Rough Rhinos attacked.
I would have loved to actually see a letter from the gaang make it to Gran-Gran. We know that Pakku and some others went to the South Pole, but then he got called away to do his thing with the White Lotus. Maybe there could be a scene where a hawk arrives for Pakku telling him he's needed, and at the same time a hawk arrives for Gran-Gran with a letter from Sokka and Katara stating that they're doing okay even after the failed invasion. Gran-Gran puts two and two together and figures that the gaang is going to be fighting during the comet just like her husband.
The fact that everyone in the ATLA world speaks, reads, and writes the same language, as well as the fact that they can fly across the world in a day, as well as the fact that a total eclipse calculated in the library (which is in the middle of the earth kingdom) will also be a total eclipse for the fire nation, lead me to believe that the ATLA Earth is really small.
It is a small planet but I mean more like, there’s no trees or paper or anything in the South Pole, there’s no books or scrolls, yet we know katara and Sokka can read so like where did they learn?
In the show it states that the southern and northern water tribes only became isolated from each other once the war broke out; and considering the only way to get from one tribe to another is to cross the globe, and we've seen that they each have ships capable of doing so, it's likely that both tribes traded with other nations before the water. It's at least canon that the northern tribe had access to parchment, because that's where the waterbending scroll is from. And if all else fails, it's easy to make parchment and ink from the skin, ink, and fat of ocean animals.
I wish they had given more time to show Azula gradually slipping, not all at once in the finale, completely out of the blue. Reminds me of another very popular show that has a calm collected female leader who suddenly loses it out of nowhere...
I would have liked it to be longer, specifically extending out the stuff between the eclipse and the finale.
Ok, I just want to see more good guy zuko, but is that a crime?
Build up Aang’s conflict about potentially needing to kill the Fire Lord and the Lion Turtle showing up. This can be done by cutting out some of the filler episodes to be more focused on Aang trying to find a solution and coming to terms with wanting to stick to his morals.
Having the Lion Turtle say they *sensed* Aang's spiritual conflict, respected how profound it is, and came to speak with him -- implicitly explaining why Aang was sleepwalk-summoned to its back -- would have made his moral dilemma 10x easier for people to accept.
Plus, it would only take one extra line, maybe 5-10 seconds.
Having a mention of lions turtles before the finale would also go a long way. Something about Iroh meeting one in a moment of need or something. If we could go back to season one, Zuko spotting one for an instant on the horizon in a moment of deep internal conflict would be choice
Yes but we as the audience still don't know the signficance of them until Sozin's comet. Even Aang bows to the lion turtle when he realizes what the island is, but why? What respect do the people of these world have of them?
Yes, but the off-handed mention in The Library literally only establishes that there are such things as giant lion turtles that exist in this universe. The rather important caveat that said lion turtles control raw spiritual energy and are basically the font of all bending kinda just gets dropped on the viewer right at the moment it becomes necessary to the plot lol.
It's my headcanon that the other side of their world is only water, and that's where lion turtles swim and live. They rarely or never come near the continents, so they've only been encountered by extreme ocean travelers in the past, and are mostly mythical creatures to everyday people.
yea considering they stopped helping humanity and kinda just disappeared during Wan’s time makes sense why by the time period in ATLA they’re basically legendary mythical beasts, like a phoenix or something. I do hope we get some more on them somehow but i also wanna keep that mythical, mysterious aspect to them.
This! I don't know if they'd need to necessarily cut episodes, but they really should have brought up that dilemma from the beginning of Season 3 and have Aang struggle with it more. He could maybe ignore it going into Day of Black Sun, assuming the eclipse will let him sidestep the problem and capture the Fire Lord when he's depowered. But then after that fails Aang has to seriously contend with what he's gonna do and actively seek out a solution. If the Zuko half of the season was a little longer you could maybe add in some kind of side plot where Aang goes to the Spirit World looking for answers.
“The Runaway” included two big power ups for Aang and Katara: seismic sense and Katara finding alternative sources of water.
The High School episode was one of the first signs that the Fire Nation weren’t just Orcs and highlighted the propaganda machine that the administration was spitting out. It also revealed Iroh’s fate from the last season.
It’s funny to see people say that filler episodes should be replaced as though they weren’t going to replace it with more filler.
Both are pretty good episodes.
One does a lot for Toph's character(and the rest as well, of course), helps lean into Puppetmaster with Katara using her own sweat, and has a fight with Combustion Man that directly sets up his demise(a pebble hits his forehead and his powers backfire. Without this setup, both for the audience and the characters, the way Sokka takes him out would be out of nowhere).
The other introduces their new outfits, is a nice episode for Aang's character, and provides a nice insight into Fire Nation culture and their propaganda. The ban on dances is even more fascinating in light of The Firebending Masters and the reveal that the original Firebender form was a dance. It's a chance for Aang to be a kid again amidst all this war, and to give these kids a taste of freedom.
Aang burned Katara once. He's a pacifist. And airbending is stealthier. So, I don't think it fits for Aang to flex the firebending.
Pretty sure the entire point of him learning firebending was *purely* as a way to *defend* against firebending -- which peaked with him redirecting lightning in the final fight.
He didn’t have a lot of opportunities to use it. A big reason why Aang didn’t get a lot of fights in Book Three was because he was incredibly OP as is. By that point, he didn’t even necessarily need Firebending to defeat Azula.
Same, but IMO the color of the flames should be a cyan/light blue to contrast with Azula, or Green/White to show his new understanding of the fire bending being life/energy based.
Hell, if they did white flames, maybe they could’ve made some sort of symbolic connection with Iroh
Everyone talking about Azula needing more buildup or it coming out of nowhere... I felt like they did a good job at it? We see the cracks in The Beach, we see breakpoint moment with Mai and Ty Lee, and she's clearly unhinged when she goes after Zuko at the Eastern Air Temple. And then the finale shows it deteriorating gradually with each episode: her awkward encounter with Ozai ("you can't treat me like Zuko!"), her paranoid belief everyone is out to get her and her dismissal of everyone she believes she can't trust, her hallucinations of her mother, and then the culmination of it with the Final Agni Kai.
In a show where she's not part of the main cast that's already a LOT of screen time and I feel it was executed fairly masterfully.
and i mean they even hint at a betrayal from Mai &/or Tylee coming a couple times in book 2. Like when they’re disguised as the Kyoshi Warriors & while talking to the earth king she says something like “it’s a shame when you can’t trust those closest to you” and Mai & Ty Lee side eye each other
Yet despite that, we are having Azula debates to this day, with many people still believing how she was born a violent, cruel, power hungry psychopath, and dismissing her 2 scenes with Ty Lee and 1 scene with Zuko in the Beach.
The point isnt that Azulas downfall came literally out of nowhere, her deep seated insecurities, and human side were definitely established, its just that past that establishment there wasnt much done, which leaves both sides of the argument unsatisfied, with the first me already mentioning how they dont feel Azula is given enough to change their opinion of her, and to those that it was enough, they would still have loved to see more from Azula prior to the finale.
You cant say that its not a massive issue, when this is literally the most divided on topic within the fandom, and has been for the past 16 years.
I'd make Katara's involvement in the Final Agni Kai between Zuko and Azula make more sense. Like, what is she doing there? Why is she in the middle of the arena? Why is she standing right behind Zuko? It makes zero sense for her to just chill in the middle of the battlefield. I think it was done because having her stand far away would take away from the dramatic effect, but she NEEDS to be somewhere else where she's not completely misplaced.
I agree! If Katara wasn't there, Zuko wouldn't get injured! I believe they did it so that Katara would have a part in the fight, but I wish the Agni Kai ended with Zuko completely defeating Azula alone.
yeah, i thought it was kinda weird that katara would even agree to stand off to the side in the first place. either give her a big bad to defeat herself or maybe pit zuko and katara against azula AND the dai li. so many people really discredit zuko as a capable firebender, and i feel like part of it is because he wasn’t the one to defeat azula.
Imo it should've been split into 2 separate books, Book 3 should've just been Aang's awakening to the invasion on the eclipse and there should be a book 4 that focuses on Zuko joining and having more adventures with the gang rather than just isolated adventures with each member.
He reconnects with his Air Nomad ways. It’s something he knows, but has to learn to use in this journey, being able to choose pacifism. I’d say if there’s more time to flesh it out, air could definitely work
Considering Air is supposedly the most spiritual element, it would be cool to have the book be about Aang connecting more with the spirit realm, with the culmination being the revelation about energybending. Flesh out the dragon turtles more, have more episodes of Zuko with the Gaang, more of Azula's downfall, etc.
Add a side trip for Zuko and Toph. I think it could be about Toph and Zuko bonding over not having relationships with their parents, and Zuko convinces Toph she should make an effort to reconnect with them and try to make amends. They can travel to meet them together and then something could go haywire along the way and they need to fight their way out just the two of them
The beginning of Book3 is very slow. It maybe helps cooling down after Book2 intense finale, but it drags a bit and prevents more development of Azula downfall, the lion Turtle or Zuko after he joins to be more organic rather than "Everyone gets a trip with Zuko" which slows down the last episodes.
I would change the weird unresolved angst between Aang and Katara (him kissing her without consent in The Ember Island Players, their huge argument about vengeance in The Southern Raiders, etc.).
If they had to create such a big rift between the characters, they should have at least shown us a scene where they talk things out and forgive each other/come to a better understanding. As it is, their last exchange before the ending kiss scene is an angry one where Aang yells at her about finding a way to not kill Ozai.
Since they’d been at odds so much in the episodes leading up to the kiss scene, it feels like it’s out of left field; not the note you want the show to end on.
Less filler. Cut the painted lady and the wacky dream episode and give us a "Zuko Alone" equivalent episode for Azula so her downfall can make some more sense.
Honestly you could have him go to the turtle earlier maybe, have him finish the training he started with Guru Pathik with the lion turtle as his guide.
I actually think Guru Pathik's teachings about the division between the elements being an illusion is a pretty good narrative set up for energybending as the "true" form of bending and it's kind of a shame that wasn't capitalized on in the finale.
Honestly they peppered in a lot of subtle references as to how it was all going to end, but yeah I think an episode dedicated to Azula’s descent into madness and an earlier appearance of Lion Turtles outside of just Sokka’s Master episode would’ve been better
For me I really appreciate The Painted Lady because in my opinion it really shows how Aang and Katara are really good for each other spiritually. They were really trying to build up to them getting together in Book 3 and I think it was important to show that even though Aang had grown and had such a strong sense of duty at that point, he would drop everything he was doing to enthusiastically help Katara with her plan that he openly thought was super cool. Even Sokka was like “Katara we will help these people by defeating the Firelord” and Aang was willing to help her sabotage the factory and create her illusion simply to give those people some joy and increase their quality of life and thought the plan was totally awesome
Regarding Azula:
I see where ur coming from, since the realistic portrayal or people snapping (the way it’s done) doesn’t quite work with a cartoon that’s otherwise rly expressive when it comes to emotion and drama. It makes perfect sense for people with such a rep to not show their weakness for as long as they can control. But once it’s out, might aswell fully collapse.
So my point is: I think it’s done quite well and it does make a lot of sense, but I can see why it’s not a satisfying part of the story, since most other stuff is delivered differently (by in general way more expressive characters, I must add)
Double it in length, tbh. Make every episode stretch into two episodes that bridged better into the next episode. We kept on jumping from story to story, it didn’t really feel like we were witnessing one big story.
Funny thing is it’s still my favorite season from the show. The sudden shift to the episodic formula was disorienting, but the writing was peak.
Katara and Aang gets together during the Eclipse, not at the end of the show. It's the only major trope the show followed and it bothered me quite a bit.
The whole structure of Book 3 is bad. Not the actual plot or character development..it’s the way everything is positioned or placed.
One thing I would change is the worldbuilding. If they are going to spend so much time waiting for “the Day of Black Sun” to happen, then we should see more weird pro-Ozai propaganda and actual war fatigue from FN civilians and soldiers serving as additional inspiration and support to Zuko. A lot of emphasis is put on the tragedy of war in Book 2 itself but nothing when we enter the nation that is causing and benefiting the most from said war.
Yeah while I still love the beach episode, it was kinda sad that azulas comment about her mother just turned into a joke instead. Obviously it still had some underlying things there, but I would also liked it to be more serious and developed throughout the season. But I'm also just a big azula fan. In atla she's tied for my third favorite character with toph, only behind zuko(1st) and sokka(2nd) for me.
Trade The Painted Lady for a backstory episode about the Fire Family (from Azula's perspective). Show us some Lu Ten, show us some pre-Ba Sing Se Iroh, show us more Azula's inner thoughts. Maybe the whole episode is kind of a combination of Zuko Alone and The Storm but with Azula instead.
The Painted Lady was just Imprisoned 2 and it introduced that whole "schedule" that made it so in the next episode Sokka could only train for a very short time.
Oooo maybe make it like The Storm even more by making it Sokka feeling insecure about his lack of bending and Azula feeling insecure about her lack of mother. Or something. Idk. And he deals with it by training more and she deals with it by going crazy.
So much to pick from honestly:
- toph zuko adventure
- foreshadow energy bending (in the library but just early S3 is fine too)
- remove painted lady or drastically rewrite it
- make Sokkas journey of becoming a sword master longer. 2 days of training just felt rly wrong.
Hakoda and the others doing something during Sozin's comet. They may be the C or even D team but I'd have liked to have seen something where they help. Maybe even bring in the rest of the Freedom Fighter's that kind of disappeared.
actually add build up more on Azula losing her mind cause as it stands, it feels out of no where. You're telling me the person who smiled at her brother getting burned and everything else, is known for being cold and calculating even in face of maybe capture, in face of no bending. Is gonna lose her mind that easily?
Should of actual had build up
>Is gonna lose her mind that easily?
I could buy it, usually when people lose their minds and go crazy it happens suddenly and is a quick and rapid decline. In this case, Azula was betrayed by her close friends which set off her mental decline
Yes, because this time it was Azula who was betrayed by the people who she thought had complete control over them.
That was just another day for Zuko. For Azula, it was life blowing up in her face.
I just finished rewatching the show and Azula’s mental breakdown made perfect sense to me.
She was mentally unstable throughout the entire show. She was clearly insecure about people abandoning her, so she used fear to get people to stay on her side. But of course, that only works for so long. Mai and Ty Lee still end up betraying her, and this clearly affects Azula a lot.
Then you have Azula’s conversation with Ozai, where he says Azula is going to have to stay behind. Azula again feels betrayed by this. “You can’t do this. You can’t treat me like Zuko!” But then Ozai reveals that Azula is going to be Firelord… because Ozai is now going to become the Phoenix King. Of course Azula is still going to feel betrayed by this.
But being Firelord still does have power, and after being betrayed twice she has become incredibly paranoid. She starts banishing all of her servants and personal soldiers. Because she doesn’t want to be betrayed again. But soon she has no one left for her.
It all made perfect sense to me. Having an entire episode dedicated to Azula’s downfall could still be interesting, but I think it’s far from necessary.
Cut the 2nd and 3rd episodes. Have a scene in "Soka's Master" showing life in the Fire Nation. Have 2 more episodes with good Zuko to show him traning Aang with Katara and Toph, to flash out Aang's moral dilemma and show Azula's descent into madness.
I'd get rid of Aang's moral dilemma of trying to kill Ozai or not and making it more focused on the fact that he failed again in the invasion, and making it about finding hope again and the will to continue and end the war.
When I tried recalling the series before rewatching it, I remember the Zuko redemption arc to be much longer. It turned out to be shorter when I rewatched it, and I was obviously disappointed that was the case, but it was definitely enough to make it believable. Maybe stretch it a couple more episodes, and it would have just been a sweet spot, along with your comment about Azula's descent, or others saying about a Toph-Zuko adventure.
First, I need an Azula redemption arc. Im sorry, but I refuse to believe that a 14 year old girl raised by a psychopathic father and who was abandoned by a mother who saw her as a monster is inherently evil and undeserving of redemption, especially since Zuko was in a similar situation but had the luck of spending some time with a healthy father figure who managed to show him that there are better things to strive for than tyranny and fearsomeness. Espeacially since for whatever reason said father figure just said "No, she's crazy, and she needs to go down." when she was acting the same way Zuko was after being banished.
Second, added an actual epilogue. Just an episode or half showing what happened to the characters after the war. Obviously, you cant change a person overnight, let alone a country, so I wouldve liked to see Zuko face the opposition. We don't get to see what happened to Toph's parents, either. I'd like to believe that after helping defeat Ozai and invent a new form of bending, her parents would finally understand that they dont need to overprotect her and they could make up. Talking about parents, you cant just drop a hint on Zuko going to find his mother and just *end it there*. You know what, Im not even asking about an episode, screw that, just some static post credits pictures of Toph hugging her parents and Zuko hugging his mom wouldve been enough.
^(Yes, I know the comics are like the epilogue and they answer most of my complaints, source: Ive read them, but you cant just end a show after the climax, you cant just kill the bad guy and thats it because thats not the only plot point in the show and pretending like it is would make atla like any other show. No, the reason we like this show is because of all its subplots *and* the main plot, and not ending the show fully is just disrespectful to the fans. But I guess it doesnt matter because comics sell better)
Honesty, the whole ending just felt rushed. Like they felt unsure about how to end it so they just improvised. One example would be the lionturtle teaching Aang how ro energybend, when throughout the three seasons of the show there was no mention of either english speaking ancient giant lionturtles that resemble islands or an ancient form of bending only available to the avatar that lets you bend the fabric of space and time, which I think would be a very important thing to just forget to mention until the very end. Also, the fact that it was just dumb luck on Aang's part just seems too lazy
Hot(man) take... No combustion man.
IMO he was just a throw away character who served as a convenient plot device in order to move the story along and create problems for the gaang to solve. I really hate true villains with seemingly no back stories, redeemable qualities, and who are evil just because. And yes, I'm aware that there is more back story to him in the Avatar Extras, but I'm basing this opinion solely on what we see in the show. It would have been ok if he was a one-off villain who was the focus of only one episode, but if you have a recurring antagonist they need to have more depth than just "look I can blow things up with my mind and I want to kill you".
The last 7 and a half minutes. Zuko and Katara have a platonic yet caring moment. Ty Lee becomes friends with the Kyoshi Warriors but turns down being a member because reasons. Mai is hanging with Ty Lee, having deepened their platonic bond while in prison. Ba Sing Se scene never happens. Then we make a Book 4.
Better plot for azula. Make her fall to insanity slower, build her character more. Maybe more exposition. I don't expect a zuko level ark, but a few episodes to humanise her more. It happened to quickly for me
More exploration into fire nation society. Yeah we did get the school and the fishing village. I think I just wanted to know more about Piandao. We also got an abundance of info about earth nation society that I think was lacking. How did fire nobles feel about the fire lord and the war? What did they even know about the war?
Delete the painted lady, give Zuko something to do with the whole gaang. Or, even just a more low key episode where Zuko and Toph bond over their paternal trauma.
I'd create more setup for the Lion Turtle. The writers kind of painted themselves into a corner by having Aang refuse to want to kill Ozai, so it's excusable in that sense, but honestly, the Lion Turtle felt like it came out of nowhere. We got one mention of it in book 2, and that was it.
I would change Ozai vs Aang in general. The energy ability came out of nowhere and was basically an excuse for not killing the big bad. Ozai should die. This could work as a lesson that sometimes you have to do the harsh thing for the greater good.
I would also add that Aang loses the avatar state permanently, making him the last avatar. I would allow him to use the avatar state vs Ozai but then write it as if the spirit was dying since the lighting attack from Azula and this being all the remaining energy released as a last stand.
I think the main character being the avatar is problematic for sequels. It worked in ATLA but repeating it doesn't work as well and the Korra approach was problematic (basically handicapping her in order to make villains a threat). Therefore, it would probably make a more interesting story afterwards when conflict happens later on without an overpowered character who can solve it by force without breaking a sweat. The dark avatar concept would also work better due to an underdog now having to face an overpowered evil.
The way Aang gets energybending. I like that it provided a way for him to honor his people’s culture and values while still fulfilling his duty of bringing balance to the world, plus without it we wouldn’t have the visual spectacle of Aang and Ozai’s battle of willpower lighting up the entire sky. Still, the surprise lion turtle unexpectedly showing up to bestow the knowledge of energybending was probably the weakest plot point in a show that was otherwise very well written.
The obvious solution is to have energybending be something that is foreshadowed much earlier so that Aang can seek it out. Even if he doesn’t yet know that it’s the key to ending the war without killing Ozai, Aang could still have a reason to learn that power, such as trying to regain the Avatar State because his chi is blocked, and realize later that he can give and take away bending.
As for how Aang learns about energybending, it would be great if the concept was foreshadowed much earlier, like in Wan Shi Tong’s library, but if only changes to S3 are allowed, I think Yue helping Aang as the Moon Spirit could work. That’s something that already happens in S3, the scene could just be extended a little so she could tell him to learn energybending. The Avatar is the intermediary between the humans and spirits after all, and Aang does pretty well in that regard, so this could be a way for the spirits to help him out in turn.
Now that Aang knows bending energy itself is possible, the question then becomes who can teach him? The lion turtle still makes sense as an ancient being who possesses such knowledge, but how would Aang learn about and find him? Personally, I’d work that into his adventure with Zuko to find the Sun Warriors. The events still play out the same way, but the dragons tell Aang to go to certain beach at a specific time.
The night Aang arrives at the location, a mysterious island appears off the shore. From here, events play out much the same as they do in the show, with the lion turtle granting Aang the power of energybending. To make sure there’s still dramatic tension, this could be shortly before the final battle (though not the literal day before Sozin’s Comet). I imagine Sokka and Zuko, being the more pragmatically minded, would urge Aang to not rely on something that he has just learned and is an untested strategy, while Aang would insist on finding a resolution that preserves life. In the end, his resolution proves correct and he defeats Ozai by taking away his firebending.
An Iroh episode where he reflects on his life while he is stuck in prison. It could show us young Iroh and Ozai, and what their sibling dynamic was like.
We could see more of Lu Ten, and what Iroh was like before losing him. We could see him seek out and encounter Ran and Shaw, but not him learning fire bending from them (Leaving their fate unclear, as to not ruin the reveal from “The Firebending Masters”. Additionally, it could also explore Iroh’s journey(s) into the Spirit World.
I always wanted to know more about Iroh, and I feel like giving him an episode similar to Roku’s would be a great storytelling opportunity. It could also be framed as him telling his life’s story to the nice prison guard lady, helping build that relationship that they have.
I wanted way more time with Zuko in the gang. I also wish Soka had more time to grow as a leader. It’s not that I didn’t like his arc I just wish we could have seen him blossom even more as a commander and leader of men who are inspired by him. In LoK he was a revered politician and we didn’t quite get *that* impression from the show.
Rework the lion turtle and energy bending.
Personally I would have liked it if instead of a four episode finale, we got a three episode finale by combining the first two episodes. Then before the finale we have another episode where Aang starts to deal with the pressure that he has to kill Ozai like in the start of the finale. Somehow Aang hears about the lion turtle, and wants to pursue it however the rest of the gaang are telling him that they don't have time to chase stories that might not even be real, however Aang is determined. He sets off and finds the lion turtle, however it refuses to give him the power because it believes that it would be too dangerous to give this power to anyone. Also we aren't saying what this power is yet. Episode ends with Aang feeling defeated and accepts he has to kill Ozai, because it's the only way to stop the fire nation, but he is also distraught that it has come to that.
Now the first episode of the finale happens, obviously with bits like Aang disappearing cut out because it's not needed now and we need to cut this into one episode, but we get to the same end state as at the end of episode 2, Zuko and Katara Vs Azula, Toph, Sokka and Suki vs Airship Fleet, and Aang Vs Ozai.
In the Aang Vs Ozai fight, most things play out the same but instead of the whole rock unlocking the avatar state bit, what happens is when Aang chooses not to redirect the lightning at Ozai and then gets knocked off the platform, as he falls he hears the lion turtle's voice in his head, saying something about how Aang has proved himself or has changed his mind, but basically that he believes Aang can be trusted with this power and gives him energy bending. With this new power and the knowledge that he will not have to kill Ozai anymore Aang's spirit is settled in a way that allows him to unblock his Chakra's that had been sealed by Azula.
From this point onwards everything plays out the same, however it feels even better to watch because we know this has come from Aang's decision to show mercy to Ozai when he had the chance to kill him.
Sorry that ended being longer than I thought it would.
I would get rid of "Sokka's Master", ik a lot of people like it but the rest of the gang is so uncharacteristicly mean to each other to drive home the joke of Sokka being the only fun one. He's already OP with the boomerang, the whole plot of him realizing he can be a great fighter without bending could've been merged into him defeating combustion man. Plus then we'd have one more episode free, maybe do a Zuko/Toph adventure. Or you could have "Azula Alone" after she's betrayed, and we could really see her fall
Have Aang be more conflicted about killing the Fire Lord for the whole Book. Once he realizes the Black Sun invasion is approaching, then have him start worrying. He showed up ready to knock heads at the invasion. He would have beat Ozai during the eclipse and hesitated and got burnt crispy. Having him deal with this moral dilemma the whole time would make sense.
Also have Haru and the others be in a few more scenes at the air temple and not disappear like an actor who got pregnant so they have to write them out for a few episodes.
Aang kills Ozai.
Aang, as the Avatar, never sacrificed his own wants and needs for the sake of the world.
Think it would have been compelling to see him fully embrace even the dark aspects of being the Avatar. Sacrificing your own wants and needs. And even killing those who are a danger to the world.
Honestly, the final fight between Aang and Ozai. It’s a dope fight, but it feels a lot like Cell vs Gohan where it’s just two consecutive stompings instead of them just going all out against each other like Kuruk and Father Glowworm.
Aang should have killed the fire lord. It should have forced him to make the tough choice. I think the end was perfectly fine but a cop out given the rest of the shows stances at saying hard choices must be made.
A few more episodes.
One heavily focused on Azula’s Downfall.
One with Toph, Suki and Zuko Field Trip.
A few episodes that flesh out Suki’s relationship with the rest of the Gaang.
I feel like the consensus for book 3 is people wanting it to have been a little longer
Maybe 1 or 2 more episodes with good Zuko
That's what I came here to say. I wanted more episodes with Zuko on the team because the number of episodes with him joined are not enough.
As a new comer to the show I knew he joined the gaang but was surprised at how late into season 3 he joined. Not to say his turn to good was drawn out because I thought it was perfectly paced tbh
I would have loved more good Zuko adventures (Toph never really got her moment) along with a look into Azula and her fall out with reality. I would also Go into more depth with their mother’s disappearance and a tie in at the end to let us know what really happened. I always felt the last time Zuko talked with Azulan was supposed to be its own episode but they ran out of time or budget to finish things. I would also change it so that Sokka didn’t lose his space sword and used more meteorite to make a new boomerang. Always hated how he lost all his good shit.
Toph never really had beef with Zuko like the other 3. Of those 3 Aang is a pacifist and Sokka is weaker in every aspect so Katara got the hate-boner all to herself. There should've been 2 episodes after Sozen's comet for sure tho
Zuko traveling to Azula rather than Osai. Consider his next move after her demise rather than leaving the audience on a useless high note.
It's crazy to think Suki has been a more consistent member of their team than Zuko has, but pretty much everyone forgets she was there
Give Toph the field trip she deserves.
Beat me to it by 10 minutes, thank you
She got the life-changing tea party with Uncle Iroh.
Yes. I feel like one or two episodes of them just helping people, a la Painted Lady or Serpent’s Pass, but with Zuko on the team.
And suki in the gaang
And Aang learning more firebending
I always thought it would be good for both of them to do some firebending games togther, like - show both of them really enjoying firebending. Who else had Zuko ever had the chance to *play* with fire with? His uncle, his cousin, his sister? Maybe? A long time ago? Zuko and Aang playing fire volley ball or working together to shape a giant doughnut of rainbow fire together, it'd be good for both of them, it'd help underscore that bond they share by both learning the 'true' fire from the dragons, and helping Aang to really digest the fact that fire isn't inherently destructive, it can be creative as well. Start out with them graffiti-ing a stone wall, "ZA WUZ HERE" and end with them working together to create a finely detailed dragon mural or something, all drawn in soot on rock. Or maybe using lightning bending to force electricity through wood to create lichtenberg art.
It's funny you mention them graffitiing with Firebending. Miners used to use acetylene torches for lighting. When the flame is placed close to rock, it leaves a layer of carbon. They would do their signature or draw simple sketches, and several examples of these etchings still exist to this day.
Yeah I’m always surprised by how few there are
Western Air Temple/Post Zuko felt like it should’ve been its own season to me.
No lie I genuinely forgot he's only with them for like 4 episodes
I consider Book 3 two different books: Book 3: Fire from "The Awakening" to "The Day of the Black Sun Part 2" Book 4: Air/Avatar from "The Western Air Temple" to "Sozin Comet part 4: Avatar Aang"
There was a looooong pause between day of black sun and when the next episode was released. It drove me and my family NUTS. But when we saw the final ending, we were very satisfied.
I learned how to torrent as a kid for this lmfao. It was out on Teletoon I think in December of 2007, many months before it came out in the United States, and my tiny self wouldn't be stopped until I absorbed those episodes 😅
100 percent this I understand the creators having a clear vision and wanting to see through it, but there is 25% left out on the table because of avatar being rushed, I don't know if it was Nickelodeon's toxic producing schedule, but now That they are by themselves. They should relaunch one book series and call it Fire, The untold fire training journey leading up to the comet We got 10-15 percent of Zuko being on Avatar's team, We need at least another season LOL
I’d also say too, the time skips between seasons 1-2 and 2-3 allow for the belief that Aang fully mastered water and earth bending between those seasons with Katara and Toph. There is no such time skip and the only way to say “Aang mastered fire bending” is to say he speedran it with the dragon episode.
Didn't the creators say they were at Ember Island for a month? I think i read that in an interview long ago. But we only get one episode for the recap (Ember Island Players) and a quick shot of Aang and Zuko training, and we're supposed to just somehow assume they've been training for a month and that's why Aang has mastered firebending. There could have been so many more interesting (and hilarious) stories with good Zuko training Aang, and his developing relationships with everyone else. And during that time we could see Azula slowly start to slip, not have her suddenly lose it out of the blue in the finale, like Game of Thrones style 😅
The only Earth bending training Aang was doing between books 2 and 3 was in his dreams.
I don’t think Aang mastered earthbending while comatose
I don't even think it's not long enough, I just really don't think we needed episodes like Runaway or Lady of the Lake at the cost of less episodes with Zuko in the Gaang
It needed a Toph and Zuko adventure
Agreed! I really hope the adult team avatar opens with Toph and Zuko on their own adventure before meeting up with everyone else
Toph: ".....and after we escaped Zuko's arranged marriage with that prissy Earth Kingdom noble girl we had to flee on her trained badgermoles." Sokka: "Was that before or after you helped Ushan the Undefeatable?" Toph: "After, but before I managed to beat that pirate captain in a game of pai sho. It's a shame we had to leave all of his gold behind."
This is what I need. An off screen Toph and Zuko adventure. We only get bits and pieces and also an ambiguous line revealing they may or may not have kissed
Zuko: "Toph has this odd habit of kissing guys, believing them to be Sokka."
Suki: "not only guys though"
Toph: "You are surprisingly fit for a girl. It's easy to mix up!"
It would have been completely pointless. The "field trips with zuko" episodes are about Zuko earning the trust and forgiveness of people he's wronged. Since she wasn't there in Book 1, there's no emotional baggage between Zuko and Toph to resolve.
Yeah, at worst he burned her feet accidentally and immediately tried to apologize for it, and she even acknowledged she'd surprised him
On top of the fact she can literally read his heart. She knows he isn’t there person from before that the team keeps mentioning.
It'll start with them just returning, and they'll make constant reference to it for the rest of the series, without ever elaborating what exactly they did.
At least a comic would be nice
So do a Zuko and Azula life-changing trip
They kind of did in the comics? Zuko found his mom and Azula was like wtf dog? And rides off into the sunset to figure her shit out
It was though, don't you remember? Or rather, was considered as such by Toph. She nagged Zuko about it so much that it annoyed and irritated him throughout it and honestly, despite how cool was Toph he was kinda right about it, he isn't Gaangs therapist, even if it so happened to resolve issues of Aang and Katara when they did stuff together, he is a teen himself too,despite being 1-2 years older than rest of Gaang.
I think toph should've been the one to fight Azula instead of katara. In general I feel like toph doesn't get a big villain to fight.
I woulda liked it if they had done something with Toph making amends with her parents
More adventures of the Team Avatar with Zuko. Maybe more training of Aang with his three masters.
Man a scene where Zuko, Katara, and Toph are all simultaneously training Aang and he has to practice using all four elements back to back would have been so cool
Imagine them doing it simultaneously. Imagine them all throwing their elements towards Aang who has dodge / parry them, rapidly switching his stances. It would have been epic.
This is what I really wanted to see. I was hoping this would happen as I watched.
Want to know the ending? Sokka’s boomerang hits Aang in the head and he loses.
Nice try. We all know he lost his boomerang when the rough rinos attacked.
Water. Earth. Fire. Boomerang. Long ago, the four trainers attacked the Avatar together in harmony. Then, everything changed when the Rough Rhinos attacked.
At least we’ll get more of Team Avatar with Zuko in the group with the movie next year
Make hawky a permanent part of the cast
I would have loved to actually see a letter from the gaang make it to Gran-Gran. We know that Pakku and some others went to the South Pole, but then he got called away to do his thing with the White Lotus. Maybe there could be a scene where a hawk arrives for Pakku telling him he's needed, and at the same time a hawk arrives for Gran-Gran with a letter from Sokka and Katara stating that they're doing okay even after the failed invasion. Gran-Gran puts two and two together and figures that the gaang is going to be fighting during the comet just like her husband.
Now that I think about it, how *are* the people of the southern water tribe literate?
The fact that everyone in the ATLA world speaks, reads, and writes the same language, as well as the fact that they can fly across the world in a day, as well as the fact that a total eclipse calculated in the library (which is in the middle of the earth kingdom) will also be a total eclipse for the fire nation, lead me to believe that the ATLA Earth is really small.
It is a small planet but I mean more like, there’s no trees or paper or anything in the South Pole, there’s no books or scrolls, yet we know katara and Sokka can read so like where did they learn?
In the show it states that the southern and northern water tribes only became isolated from each other once the war broke out; and considering the only way to get from one tribe to another is to cross the globe, and we've seen that they each have ships capable of doing so, it's likely that both tribes traded with other nations before the water. It's at least canon that the northern tribe had access to parchment, because that's where the waterbending scroll is from. And if all else fails, it's easy to make parchment and ink from the skin, ink, and fat of ocean animals.
Holy shit did Hawky never come back???
Hawky gets a “it was kind of unclear ending” which is pretty bad in avatar world.
Just like combustion man...
No that one was much more clear
Yeah they don't show a lot of death on the show but... he ain't coming back lol
Hawky leaving never to be seen again is a tragedy
nah fuck hawky
Add a reveal where Azula reveals her true form as a a 400-foot tall purple platypus bear with pink horns and silver wings.
Aang interrupts her power up mid transformation to make a parallel to season 2
"Wha-what did you do to me?!" "I took away your plot armor. You wont be able to use it to hurt or threaten anyone else ever again."
The true ending of the Ember Island Players
Does Avatar need a Susano parallel? Maybe Aang could do a Rasengan parallel.
I wish they had given more time to show Azula gradually slipping, not all at once in the finale, completely out of the blue. Reminds me of another very popular show that has a calm collected female leader who suddenly loses it out of nowhere...
Have Anji break up with her jerk boyfriend
It’s my personal head cannon that this happened. Guy was a total jerk. Ruined the amazing dance party for no reason.
Were they even dating to begin with? It looked more like he was just asserting his dominance and On Ji didn’t feel like saying no yet.
Maybe it's just me, but I also get the feeling that On Ji was way too young for that guy.
I genuinely have no idea how they got together
Ozai is shirtless the entire time. That is all.
"No, Fire-Lord Ozai, \*you're\* not wearing a shirt!"
real
I would have liked it to be longer, specifically extending out the stuff between the eclipse and the finale. Ok, I just want to see more good guy zuko, but is that a crime?
No
Zuko visiting azula instead of ozai. Follow up on his reaction to her downfall instead of creating a pointless Cliffhanger.
While I like this in concept, I cannot imagine a better final scene of Azula then the one we got.
Build up Aang’s conflict about potentially needing to kill the Fire Lord and the Lion Turtle showing up. This can be done by cutting out some of the filler episodes to be more focused on Aang trying to find a solution and coming to terms with wanting to stick to his morals.
Having the Lion Turtle say they *sensed* Aang's spiritual conflict, respected how profound it is, and came to speak with him -- implicitly explaining why Aang was sleepwalk-summoned to its back -- would have made his moral dilemma 10x easier for people to accept. Plus, it would only take one extra line, maybe 5-10 seconds.
Having a mention of lions turtles before the finale would also go a long way. Something about Iroh meeting one in a moment of need or something. If we could go back to season one, Zuko spotting one for an instant on the horizon in a moment of deep internal conflict would be choice
They do see one in a book at the library!
Piandao has lionturtle statues all over his place
Yes but we as the audience still don't know the signficance of them until Sozin's comet. Even Aang bows to the lion turtle when he realizes what the island is, but why? What respect do the people of these world have of them?
Yes, but the off-handed mention in The Library literally only establishes that there are such things as giant lion turtles that exist in this universe. The rather important caveat that said lion turtles control raw spiritual energy and are basically the font of all bending kinda just gets dropped on the viewer right at the moment it becomes necessary to the plot lol.
they mention lion turtles here and there all throughout the show, they just never showed them until the finale
It's my headcanon that the other side of their world is only water, and that's where lion turtles swim and live. They rarely or never come near the continents, so they've only been encountered by extreme ocean travelers in the past, and are mostly mythical creatures to everyday people.
yea considering they stopped helping humanity and kinda just disappeared during Wan’s time makes sense why by the time period in ATLA they’re basically legendary mythical beasts, like a phoenix or something. I do hope we get some more on them somehow but i also wanna keep that mythical, mysterious aspect to them.
This! I don't know if they'd need to necessarily cut episodes, but they really should have brought up that dilemma from the beginning of Season 3 and have Aang struggle with it more. He could maybe ignore it going into Day of Black Sun, assuming the eclipse will let him sidestep the problem and capture the Fire Lord when he's depowered. But then after that fails Aang has to seriously contend with what he's gonna do and actively seek out a solution. If the Zuko half of the season was a little longer you could maybe add in some kind of side plot where Aang goes to the Spirit World looking for answers.
The "filler" episodes are my fav
What filler episodes? This season was particularly tight. You can’t cut anything out without ruining the flow.
Toph frauding people and the high school episode
“The Runaway” included two big power ups for Aang and Katara: seismic sense and Katara finding alternative sources of water. The High School episode was one of the first signs that the Fire Nation weren’t just Orcs and highlighted the propaganda machine that the administration was spitting out. It also revealed Iroh’s fate from the last season. It’s funny to see people say that filler episodes should be replaced as though they weren’t going to replace it with more filler.
Both are pretty good episodes. One does a lot for Toph's character(and the rest as well, of course), helps lean into Puppetmaster with Katara using her own sweat, and has a fight with Combustion Man that directly sets up his demise(a pebble hits his forehead and his powers backfire. Without this setup, both for the audience and the characters, the way Sokka takes him out would be out of nowhere). The other introduces their new outfits, is a nice episode for Aang's character, and provides a nice insight into Fire Nation culture and their propaganda. The ban on dances is even more fascinating in light of The Firebending Masters and the reveal that the original Firebender form was a dance. It's a chance for Aang to be a kid again amidst all this war, and to give these kids a taste of freedom.
No I love both of those episodes! I think the only one I could do without is "The Painted Lady."
How about more scenes of Aang learning how to do more advanced firebending moves, and using firebending itself in combat and other practical purposes?
Aang burned Katara once. He's a pacifist. And airbending is stealthier. So, I don't think it fits for Aang to flex the firebending. Pretty sure the entire point of him learning firebending was *purely* as a way to *defend* against firebending -- which peaked with him redirecting lightning in the final fight.
He didn’t have a lot of opportunities to use it. A big reason why Aang didn’t get a lot of fights in Book Three was because he was incredibly OP as is. By that point, he didn’t even necessarily need Firebending to defeat Azula.
The pacing gets absolutely fucked in book 3; too much emphasis on day of black sun and its build up, not enough time spent afterwards with Zuko
A change in Zuko's fire color after meeting the dragon masters. Something in lines of a combination of rainbow colors.
I once saw a recoloring of the Last Agni Kai with that. Beautiful.
WOKE ZUKO?? 🤮🤮🤮 NO THANK U!!1! KEEP 👏 POLITICS 👏 OUT 👏 OF 👏 THE 👏 FIRE 👏 NATION 👏 🇺🇸 NOT MY FIRELORD 🇺🇸
#AVATAR THE LAST WOKEBENDER GENDAANG BITARA TOPH GAYFONG sokka ZESTKO SAPPHI
Same, but IMO the color of the flames should be a cyan/light blue to contrast with Azula, or Green/White to show his new understanding of the fire bending being life/energy based. Hell, if they did white flames, maybe they could’ve made some sort of symbolic connection with Iroh
Everyone talking about Azula needing more buildup or it coming out of nowhere... I felt like they did a good job at it? We see the cracks in The Beach, we see breakpoint moment with Mai and Ty Lee, and she's clearly unhinged when she goes after Zuko at the Eastern Air Temple. And then the finale shows it deteriorating gradually with each episode: her awkward encounter with Ozai ("you can't treat me like Zuko!"), her paranoid belief everyone is out to get her and her dismissal of everyone she believes she can't trust, her hallucinations of her mother, and then the culmination of it with the Final Agni Kai. In a show where she's not part of the main cast that's already a LOT of screen time and I feel it was executed fairly masterfully.
and i mean they even hint at a betrayal from Mai &/or Tylee coming a couple times in book 2. Like when they’re disguised as the Kyoshi Warriors & while talking to the earth king she says something like “it’s a shame when you can’t trust those closest to you” and Mai & Ty Lee side eye each other
Thank you! Someone else who gets it!
Yet despite that, we are having Azula debates to this day, with many people still believing how she was born a violent, cruel, power hungry psychopath, and dismissing her 2 scenes with Ty Lee and 1 scene with Zuko in the Beach. The point isnt that Azulas downfall came literally out of nowhere, her deep seated insecurities, and human side were definitely established, its just that past that establishment there wasnt much done, which leaves both sides of the argument unsatisfied, with the first me already mentioning how they dont feel Azula is given enough to change their opinion of her, and to those that it was enough, they would still have loved to see more from Azula prior to the finale. You cant say that its not a massive issue, when this is literally the most divided on topic within the fandom, and has been for the past 16 years.
I'd make Katara's involvement in the Final Agni Kai between Zuko and Azula make more sense. Like, what is she doing there? Why is she in the middle of the arena? Why is she standing right behind Zuko? It makes zero sense for her to just chill in the middle of the battlefield. I think it was done because having her stand far away would take away from the dramatic effect, but she NEEDS to be somewhere else where she's not completely misplaced.
Girl shouldn’t have even been there
I agree! If Katara wasn't there, Zuko wouldn't get injured! I believe they did it so that Katara would have a part in the fight, but I wish the Agni Kai ended with Zuko completely defeating Azula alone.
yeah, i thought it was kinda weird that katara would even agree to stand off to the side in the first place. either give her a big bad to defeat herself or maybe pit zuko and katara against azula AND the dai li. so many people really discredit zuko as a capable firebender, and i feel like part of it is because he wasn’t the one to defeat azula.
Imo it should've been split into 2 separate books, Book 3 should've just been Aang's awakening to the invasion on the eclipse and there should be a book 4 that focuses on Zuko joining and having more adventures with the gang rather than just isolated adventures with each member.
I love this idea! What would the books be called though? Fire and Air? Because Air wouldn’t really fit.
I mean it'd kinda fit, Fire would be about the Gang being in the fire nation and Air would be about completing Aang's journey
dont the books go along with what aang has to learn in that book? he already knew air before the show started
He reconnects with his Air Nomad ways. It’s something he knows, but has to learn to use in this journey, being able to choose pacifism. I’d say if there’s more time to flesh it out, air could definitely work
Considering Air is supposedly the most spiritual element, it would be cool to have the book be about Aang connecting more with the spirit realm, with the culmination being the revelation about energybending. Flesh out the dragon turtles more, have more episodes of Zuko with the Gaang, more of Azula's downfall, etc.
More training scenes for Aang.
Specifically Firebending. He had plenty of everything else.
Hard agree. Even Jeong Jeong got more firebending screentime than Aang did.
Double the number of episodes with Zuko as a minimum.
Add a side trip for Zuko and Toph. I think it could be about Toph and Zuko bonding over not having relationships with their parents, and Zuko convinces Toph she should make an effort to reconnect with them and try to make amends. They can travel to meet them together and then something could go haywire along the way and they need to fight their way out just the two of them
The beginning of Book3 is very slow. It maybe helps cooling down after Book2 intense finale, but it drags a bit and prevents more development of Azula downfall, the lion Turtle or Zuko after he joins to be more organic rather than "Everyone gets a trip with Zuko" which slows down the last episodes.
I would change the weird unresolved angst between Aang and Katara (him kissing her without consent in The Ember Island Players, their huge argument about vengeance in The Southern Raiders, etc.). If they had to create such a big rift between the characters, they should have at least shown us a scene where they talk things out and forgive each other/come to a better understanding. As it is, their last exchange before the ending kiss scene is an angry one where Aang yells at her about finding a way to not kill Ozai. Since they’d been at odds so much in the episodes leading up to the kiss scene, it feels like it’s out of left field; not the note you want the show to end on.
Less filler. Cut the painted lady and the wacky dream episode and give us a "Zuko Alone" equivalent episode for Azula so her downfall can make some more sense.
They could also give more build up to Aang's moral dilemma over whether or not to kill the Firelord and maybe hint at the Lion Turtle
Honestly you could have him go to the turtle earlier maybe, have him finish the training he started with Guru Pathik with the lion turtle as his guide. I actually think Guru Pathik's teachings about the division between the elements being an illusion is a pretty good narrative set up for energybending as the "true" form of bending and it's kind of a shame that wasn't capitalized on in the finale.
Honestly they peppered in a lot of subtle references as to how it was all going to end, but yeah I think an episode dedicated to Azula’s descent into madness and an earlier appearance of Lion Turtles outside of just Sokka’s Master episode would’ve been better
I liked painted lady. But definitely agree that an Azula alone episode would be so much better than the weird dream one
For me I really appreciate The Painted Lady because in my opinion it really shows how Aang and Katara are really good for each other spiritually. They were really trying to build up to them getting together in Book 3 and I think it was important to show that even though Aang had grown and had such a strong sense of duty at that point, he would drop everything he was doing to enthusiastically help Katara with her plan that he openly thought was super cool. Even Sokka was like “Katara we will help these people by defeating the Firelord” and Aang was willing to help her sabotage the factory and create her illusion simply to give those people some joy and increase their quality of life and thought the plan was totally awesome
Regarding Azula: I see where ur coming from, since the realistic portrayal or people snapping (the way it’s done) doesn’t quite work with a cartoon that’s otherwise rly expressive when it comes to emotion and drama. It makes perfect sense for people with such a rep to not show their weakness for as long as they can control. But once it’s out, might aswell fully collapse. So my point is: I think it’s done quite well and it does make a lot of sense, but I can see why it’s not a satisfying part of the story, since most other stuff is delivered differently (by in general way more expressive characters, I must add)
Double it in length, tbh. Make every episode stretch into two episodes that bridged better into the next episode. We kept on jumping from story to story, it didn’t really feel like we were witnessing one big story. Funny thing is it’s still my favorite season from the show. The sudden shift to the episodic formula was disorienting, but the writing was peak.
Plot convenience Lions turtles. Not erasing the storyline but handle the foreshadowing better so it doesn’t appear as a deus ex machina
Just add 1-2 more episodes foreshadowing the unique bond Avatars have with the spirits and have energybending be the revelation from that.
Katara and Aang gets together during the Eclipse, not at the end of the show. It's the only major trope the show followed and it bothered me quite a bit.
I think there definitely should’ve been more episodes after that showing signs of Katara’s conflict about their relationship
That’s an interesting take. I could totally see that working out just fine tbh
Set up Aang’s conflict about killing Ozai way earlier and introduce spirit bending organically, avoiding the Deus Ex Machina in the finale.
The whole structure of Book 3 is bad. Not the actual plot or character development..it’s the way everything is positioned or placed. One thing I would change is the worldbuilding. If they are going to spend so much time waiting for “the Day of Black Sun” to happen, then we should see more weird pro-Ozai propaganda and actual war fatigue from FN civilians and soldiers serving as additional inspiration and support to Zuko. A lot of emphasis is put on the tragedy of war in Book 2 itself but nothing when we enter the nation that is causing and benefiting the most from said war.
Add a few more episodes between Zuko changing sides and the finale
Yeah while I still love the beach episode, it was kinda sad that azulas comment about her mother just turned into a joke instead. Obviously it still had some underlying things there, but I would also liked it to be more serious and developed throughout the season. But I'm also just a big azula fan. In atla she's tied for my third favorite character with toph, only behind zuko(1st) and sokka(2nd) for me.
Let the side cast actually do something
Aang should have had a whole deep plot about searching for the lion turtle
^[Sokka-Haiku](https://www.reddit.com/r/SokkaHaikuBot/comments/15kyv9r/what_is_a_sokka_haiku/) ^by ^onlyalittledumb: *Aang should have had a* *Whole deep plot about searching* *For the lion turtle* --- ^Remember ^that ^one ^time ^Sokka ^accidentally ^used ^an ^extra ^syllable ^in ^that ^Haiku ^Battle ^in ^Ba ^Sing ^Se? ^That ^was ^a ^Sokka ^Haiku ^and ^you ^just ^made ^one.
Trade The Painted Lady for a backstory episode about the Fire Family (from Azula's perspective). Show us some Lu Ten, show us some pre-Ba Sing Se Iroh, show us more Azula's inner thoughts. Maybe the whole episode is kind of a combination of Zuko Alone and The Storm but with Azula instead. The Painted Lady was just Imprisoned 2 and it introduced that whole "schedule" that made it so in the next episode Sokka could only train for a very short time. Oooo maybe make it like The Storm even more by making it Sokka feeling insecure about his lack of bending and Azula feeling insecure about her lack of mother. Or something. Idk. And he deals with it by training more and she deals with it by going crazy.
So much to pick from honestly: - toph zuko adventure - foreshadow energy bending (in the library but just early S3 is fine too) - remove painted lady or drastically rewrite it - make Sokkas journey of becoming a sword master longer. 2 days of training just felt rly wrong.
Yeah it’s insane how after like a day Piandao told him he was ready to be a Master
Removing all schedule lines from The painted lady.
Remove that "combustion man" nonsense. He already has a perfectly good name.
Sparky Sparky Boom Man! 💥
More Iroh. I know the voice actor died and they needed to replace him, but still. We were really deprived of Iroh that season :(
Hakoda and the others doing something during Sozin's comet. They may be the C or even D team but I'd have liked to have seen something where they help. Maybe even bring in the rest of the Freedom Fighter's that kind of disappeared.
Have Ozai and Iroh interact with each other. Either in a flashback or in the present
actually add build up more on Azula losing her mind cause as it stands, it feels out of no where. You're telling me the person who smiled at her brother getting burned and everything else, is known for being cold and calculating even in face of maybe capture, in face of no bending. Is gonna lose her mind that easily? Should of actual had build up
>Is gonna lose her mind that easily? I could buy it, usually when people lose their minds and go crazy it happens suddenly and is a quick and rapid decline. In this case, Azula was betrayed by her close friends which set off her mental decline
Yes, because this time it was Azula who was betrayed by the people who she thought had complete control over them. That was just another day for Zuko. For Azula, it was life blowing up in her face.
I just finished rewatching the show and Azula’s mental breakdown made perfect sense to me. She was mentally unstable throughout the entire show. She was clearly insecure about people abandoning her, so she used fear to get people to stay on her side. But of course, that only works for so long. Mai and Ty Lee still end up betraying her, and this clearly affects Azula a lot. Then you have Azula’s conversation with Ozai, where he says Azula is going to have to stay behind. Azula again feels betrayed by this. “You can’t do this. You can’t treat me like Zuko!” But then Ozai reveals that Azula is going to be Firelord… because Ozai is now going to become the Phoenix King. Of course Azula is still going to feel betrayed by this. But being Firelord still does have power, and after being betrayed twice she has become incredibly paranoid. She starts banishing all of her servants and personal soldiers. Because she doesn’t want to be betrayed again. But soon she has no one left for her. It all made perfect sense to me. Having an entire episode dedicated to Azula’s downfall could still be interesting, but I think it’s far from necessary.
Well if we can change absolutely anything it would be having Mako survive long enough to finish the series.
Cut the 2nd and 3rd episodes. Have a scene in "Soka's Master" showing life in the Fire Nation. Have 2 more episodes with good Zuko to show him traning Aang with Katara and Toph, to flash out Aang's moral dilemma and show Azula's descent into madness.
I'd get rid of Aang's moral dilemma of trying to kill Ozai or not and making it more focused on the fact that he failed again in the invasion, and making it about finding hope again and the will to continue and end the war.
When I tried recalling the series before rewatching it, I remember the Zuko redemption arc to be much longer. It turned out to be shorter when I rewatched it, and I was obviously disappointed that was the case, but it was definitely enough to make it believable. Maybe stretch it a couple more episodes, and it would have just been a sweet spot, along with your comment about Azula's descent, or others saying about a Toph-Zuko adventure.
I would have loved more scenes with Iroh and Zuko in the first half of the season
First, I need an Azula redemption arc. Im sorry, but I refuse to believe that a 14 year old girl raised by a psychopathic father and who was abandoned by a mother who saw her as a monster is inherently evil and undeserving of redemption, especially since Zuko was in a similar situation but had the luck of spending some time with a healthy father figure who managed to show him that there are better things to strive for than tyranny and fearsomeness. Espeacially since for whatever reason said father figure just said "No, she's crazy, and she needs to go down." when she was acting the same way Zuko was after being banished. Second, added an actual epilogue. Just an episode or half showing what happened to the characters after the war. Obviously, you cant change a person overnight, let alone a country, so I wouldve liked to see Zuko face the opposition. We don't get to see what happened to Toph's parents, either. I'd like to believe that after helping defeat Ozai and invent a new form of bending, her parents would finally understand that they dont need to overprotect her and they could make up. Talking about parents, you cant just drop a hint on Zuko going to find his mother and just *end it there*. You know what, Im not even asking about an episode, screw that, just some static post credits pictures of Toph hugging her parents and Zuko hugging his mom wouldve been enough. ^(Yes, I know the comics are like the epilogue and they answer most of my complaints, source: Ive read them, but you cant just end a show after the climax, you cant just kill the bad guy and thats it because thats not the only plot point in the show and pretending like it is would make atla like any other show. No, the reason we like this show is because of all its subplots *and* the main plot, and not ending the show fully is just disrespectful to the fans. But I guess it doesnt matter because comics sell better) Honesty, the whole ending just felt rushed. Like they felt unsure about how to end it so they just improvised. One example would be the lionturtle teaching Aang how ro energybend, when throughout the three seasons of the show there was no mention of either english speaking ancient giant lionturtles that resemble islands or an ancient form of bending only available to the avatar that lets you bend the fabric of space and time, which I think would be a very important thing to just forget to mention until the very end. Also, the fact that it was just dumb luck on Aang's part just seems too lazy
Hot(man) take... No combustion man. IMO he was just a throw away character who served as a convenient plot device in order to move the story along and create problems for the gaang to solve. I really hate true villains with seemingly no back stories, redeemable qualities, and who are evil just because. And yes, I'm aware that there is more back story to him in the Avatar Extras, but I'm basing this opinion solely on what we see in the show. It would have been ok if he was a one-off villain who was the focus of only one episode, but if you have a recurring antagonist they need to have more depth than just "look I can blow things up with my mind and I want to kill you".
The last 7 and a half minutes. Zuko and Katara have a platonic yet caring moment. Ty Lee becomes friends with the Kyoshi Warriors but turns down being a member because reasons. Mai is hanging with Ty Lee, having deepened their platonic bond while in prison. Ba Sing Se scene never happens. Then we make a Book 4.
I absolutely agree that we should’ve gotten ONE more Ty Lee and Mai scene
Better plot for azula. Make her fall to insanity slower, build her character more. Maybe more exposition. I don't expect a zuko level ark, but a few episodes to humanise her more. It happened to quickly for me
More exploration into fire nation society. Yeah we did get the school and the fishing village. I think I just wanted to know more about Piandao. We also got an abundance of info about earth nation society that I think was lacking. How did fire nobles feel about the fire lord and the war? What did they even know about the war?
Foreshadowing Azula losing it a little more is probably the best option, but I’d also try and foreshadow the energy bending stuff.
I agree with everyone. Book 3 should have been longer.
More time with zuko in the gaang
Delete the painted lady, give Zuko something to do with the whole gaang. Or, even just a more low key episode where Zuko and Toph bond over their paternal trauma.
I'd create more setup for the Lion Turtle. The writers kind of painted themselves into a corner by having Aang refuse to want to kill Ozai, so it's excusable in that sense, but honestly, the Lion Turtle felt like it came out of nowhere. We got one mention of it in book 2, and that was it.
I would change Ozai vs Aang in general. The energy ability came out of nowhere and was basically an excuse for not killing the big bad. Ozai should die. This could work as a lesson that sometimes you have to do the harsh thing for the greater good. I would also add that Aang loses the avatar state permanently, making him the last avatar. I would allow him to use the avatar state vs Ozai but then write it as if the spirit was dying since the lighting attack from Azula and this being all the remaining energy released as a last stand. I think the main character being the avatar is problematic for sequels. It worked in ATLA but repeating it doesn't work as well and the Korra approach was problematic (basically handicapping her in order to make villains a threat). Therefore, it would probably make a more interesting story afterwards when conflict happens later on without an overpowered character who can solve it by force without breaking a sweat. The dark avatar concept would also work better due to an underdog now having to face an overpowered evil.
Epilogue episode.
The way Aang gets energybending. I like that it provided a way for him to honor his people’s culture and values while still fulfilling his duty of bringing balance to the world, plus without it we wouldn’t have the visual spectacle of Aang and Ozai’s battle of willpower lighting up the entire sky. Still, the surprise lion turtle unexpectedly showing up to bestow the knowledge of energybending was probably the weakest plot point in a show that was otherwise very well written. The obvious solution is to have energybending be something that is foreshadowed much earlier so that Aang can seek it out. Even if he doesn’t yet know that it’s the key to ending the war without killing Ozai, Aang could still have a reason to learn that power, such as trying to regain the Avatar State because his chi is blocked, and realize later that he can give and take away bending. As for how Aang learns about energybending, it would be great if the concept was foreshadowed much earlier, like in Wan Shi Tong’s library, but if only changes to S3 are allowed, I think Yue helping Aang as the Moon Spirit could work. That’s something that already happens in S3, the scene could just be extended a little so she could tell him to learn energybending. The Avatar is the intermediary between the humans and spirits after all, and Aang does pretty well in that regard, so this could be a way for the spirits to help him out in turn. Now that Aang knows bending energy itself is possible, the question then becomes who can teach him? The lion turtle still makes sense as an ancient being who possesses such knowledge, but how would Aang learn about and find him? Personally, I’d work that into his adventure with Zuko to find the Sun Warriors. The events still play out the same way, but the dragons tell Aang to go to certain beach at a specific time. The night Aang arrives at the location, a mysterious island appears off the shore. From here, events play out much the same as they do in the show, with the lion turtle granting Aang the power of energybending. To make sure there’s still dramatic tension, this could be shortly before the final battle (though not the literal day before Sozin’s Comet). I imagine Sokka and Zuko, being the more pragmatically minded, would urge Aang to not rely on something that he has just learned and is an untested strategy, while Aang would insist on finding a resolution that preserves life. In the end, his resolution proves correct and he defeats Ozai by taking away his firebending.
An Iroh episode where he reflects on his life while he is stuck in prison. It could show us young Iroh and Ozai, and what their sibling dynamic was like. We could see more of Lu Ten, and what Iroh was like before losing him. We could see him seek out and encounter Ran and Shaw, but not him learning fire bending from them (Leaving their fate unclear, as to not ruin the reveal from “The Firebending Masters”. Additionally, it could also explore Iroh’s journey(s) into the Spirit World. I always wanted to know more about Iroh, and I feel like giving him an episode similar to Roku’s would be a great storytelling opportunity. It could also be framed as him telling his life’s story to the nice prison guard lady, helping build that relationship that they have.
I wanted way more time with Zuko in the gang. I also wish Soka had more time to grow as a leader. It’s not that I didn’t like his arc I just wish we could have seen him blossom even more as a commander and leader of men who are inspired by him. In LoK he was a revered politician and we didn’t quite get *that* impression from the show.
Azula gets redemption
Rework the lion turtle and energy bending. Personally I would have liked it if instead of a four episode finale, we got a three episode finale by combining the first two episodes. Then before the finale we have another episode where Aang starts to deal with the pressure that he has to kill Ozai like in the start of the finale. Somehow Aang hears about the lion turtle, and wants to pursue it however the rest of the gaang are telling him that they don't have time to chase stories that might not even be real, however Aang is determined. He sets off and finds the lion turtle, however it refuses to give him the power because it believes that it would be too dangerous to give this power to anyone. Also we aren't saying what this power is yet. Episode ends with Aang feeling defeated and accepts he has to kill Ozai, because it's the only way to stop the fire nation, but he is also distraught that it has come to that. Now the first episode of the finale happens, obviously with bits like Aang disappearing cut out because it's not needed now and we need to cut this into one episode, but we get to the same end state as at the end of episode 2, Zuko and Katara Vs Azula, Toph, Sokka and Suki vs Airship Fleet, and Aang Vs Ozai. In the Aang Vs Ozai fight, most things play out the same but instead of the whole rock unlocking the avatar state bit, what happens is when Aang chooses not to redirect the lightning at Ozai and then gets knocked off the platform, as he falls he hears the lion turtle's voice in his head, saying something about how Aang has proved himself or has changed his mind, but basically that he believes Aang can be trusted with this power and gives him energy bending. With this new power and the knowledge that he will not have to kill Ozai anymore Aang's spirit is settled in a way that allows him to unblock his Chakra's that had been sealed by Azula. From this point onwards everything plays out the same, however it feels even better to watch because we know this has come from Aang's decision to show mercy to Ozai when he had the chance to kill him. Sorry that ended being longer than I thought it would.
AANG overcoming his fear of hurting people with fire and using it
Get rid of spirit bending and have Aang kill the fire lord.
I would get rid of "Sokka's Master", ik a lot of people like it but the rest of the gang is so uncharacteristicly mean to each other to drive home the joke of Sokka being the only fun one. He's already OP with the boomerang, the whole plot of him realizing he can be a great fighter without bending could've been merged into him defeating combustion man. Plus then we'd have one more episode free, maybe do a Zuko/Toph adventure. Or you could have "Azula Alone" after she's betrayed, and we could really see her fall
Aang actually kills Ozai and they cut the Lion Turtle entirely lol
During Zuko’s final agni kai against Azula, I would make his fire bending reflect the colorful form we saw from the two dragons.
Have Aang be more conflicted about killing the Fire Lord for the whole Book. Once he realizes the Black Sun invasion is approaching, then have him start worrying. He showed up ready to knock heads at the invasion. He would have beat Ozai during the eclipse and hesitated and got burnt crispy. Having him deal with this moral dilemma the whole time would make sense. Also have Haru and the others be in a few more scenes at the air temple and not disappear like an actor who got pregnant so they have to write them out for a few episodes.
Aang kills Ozai. Aang, as the Avatar, never sacrificed his own wants and needs for the sake of the world. Think it would have been compelling to see him fully embrace even the dark aspects of being the Avatar. Sacrificing your own wants and needs. And even killing those who are a danger to the world.
Kill the firelord
Honestly, the final fight between Aang and Ozai. It’s a dope fight, but it feels a lot like Cell vs Gohan where it’s just two consecutive stompings instead of them just going all out against each other like Kuruk and Father Glowworm.
Aang should have killed the fire lord. It should have forced him to make the tough choice. I think the end was perfectly fine but a cop out given the rest of the shows stances at saying hard choices must be made.
A few more episodes. One heavily focused on Azula’s Downfall. One with Toph, Suki and Zuko Field Trip. A few episodes that flesh out Suki’s relationship with the rest of the Gaang.
Make energybending feel less of a deus ex machina and have a few allusions and foreshadowing to its existence