"Avatar: The Last Airbender/Legend of Korra"

[Agent Z]

[Tofali]

https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/av...airbender_2024

The critic score seems like it will straddle between fresh and rotten if it settles on just 60%

[Tofali]

I've watched two episodes so far and I've loved most things that I've seen and a little amused with the negative reaction the show has been getting. That opening ALONE will make me forgive them anything.

[yogaflame]

This was an incredible adaptation. Not flawless, but still incredibly enjoyable. Very impressive. The cartoon is one of if not the best serial cartoons out there(even eclipsing my childhood favorite X-Men TAS), so I was wondering what the live action show could possibly bring to the table. The trailers piqued my interest, and now having finished the series, I am just enamored with how it came out.

Sure, there are a few little quibbles(Sokka's actor is obviously not Native American, especially when standing next to all the rest of the well cast Native Americans. His performance actually works well, so I can see why the casting directors went with him, but it still sucks. Princess Yue's wig is ridiculous. Zuko's scar is too minimal. For an almost 8 hour runtime, some things from the show do seem glossed over. And Azula's actor just did not work out well.), but even with those accounted for, the show really delivers. It's hard to believe they were able to pack in all the amazing locations/sets, costumes, and bending into this budget.

Aang was perfectly cast, the costume and airbending looked great, and I am glad we got to see his home at the Southern Air Temple so early in the show and see what happened. The cartoon took a lot longer to disclose that information, and it just works better this way. I know a lot of people were concerned that the playfulness of the character would get lost in the darker tone of this version, but they somehow threaded the needle perfectly. We see he's just a kid, but he's been saddled with an enormous responsibility, and even though he loves having fun and all that, the weight of that burden is appropriately conveyed, maybe even better than in the cartoon, which especially in Season 1 was perhaps too lighthearted and silly at times, considering we are dealing with a world war and near total genocide of a civilization.

Zuko and Iroh were explored and defined quite well. Maybe too well, in that I felt Zuko was more pointedly a villain in season 1 of the cartoon, and his eventual evolution into an ally was not telegraphed quite as obviously as it was here in the live action version. That said, Zuko's actor did a great job both in the physical and emotional acting. Iroh was great too. The added storyline explaining more about the banishment reasons and their boat's crew was superlative! Excellent writing and acting.

The Firelord and Azula were basically not present in the cartoon season 1, so their inclusion here was new, but particularly with Azula didn't gel. Hopefully by season 2, where she was a prominent factor in the cartoon, she will have better storylines and the actress will be able to step into the role better. Firelord looks incredible, but there's some work to do with him too. In the cartoon he's just a looming shadow for most of the show, so this more emotional and realistic version will have to give him more characterization to really make him sing. Firebending in general was beautifully rendered, and Azula's lightning was a special treat. If they can hone in on her characterization on top of those special effects, she could be incredible next season.

Zhou was even better here in the live action than on the show. Really cool stuff! Hard to believe that's the same actor who played the porcupine mutant from X3. Talk about a glowup!

Katara and Sokka seemed to get lost a bit in this version, but their vital points remained intact. I guess Aang and Zuko are the main protag/antag, so it makes sense for them to take less focus, but in the cartoon they never really faded to the background like here. That said, they both have cool moments and I look forward to seeing them come into their own as the seasons progress. Katara's fight with Master Paku was very well realized, and while brief, Sokka's relationships with Suki and Yue still connected. I do wish we got more from Katara/Jet. Combining Omashu, Jet, and the Mechanist's stories all into one might have diminished them all a bit, but I love that they still found time for the musical hippies(even if I wanted more!). Koh the Face-stealer somehow didn't have the impact either visually or storywise that I would have liked, which was unfortunate, but the Panda spirit looked very cool. And cabbage man even had a few moments!

The Temple raid by the Fire Nation, the revelation of Aang out of the ice, Appa and Momo, and then the final fight at the Northern Water Tribe were stunning. It's hard to believe they were able to pull all that off on a streaming series budget. Some of the recent MCU projects, both big screen and small screen, didn't look as good.

So overall, while it wasn't perfect, it definitely delivered and I hope they get the viewership needed to continue on through the rest of AtLA's content, and hopefully even continue on to Korra's stuff eventually. Game of Thrones left a big fantasy drama hole in it's wake(especially considering how poorly it ended), and this world is ripe for taking over it's spot(even if it's focused on younger characters).

[Confuzzled]

The internet is holding the Azula kid up to impossible standards. Grey DeLisle was IN HER THIRTIES when she voiced the character on the OG show. There's no way any teenager would be able to bring the same level of menace and twistedness. I do like that we got to see the events in Book 1 unfolding from Azula's perspective too, and a firsthand look at the level of manipulation that Ozai was putting her through to make her reach the point where we first met her in Book 2 Ep 1.



I loved what they did with Bumi here. Some fans are being weirdly show purist by saying he shouldn't have a realistic depiction and stick to being plain silly. I appreciate the show trying to emphasize the point of how brutal and unfair war really is and the toll it takes on people especially mentally but it's not going down well with a lot of people.

Also chills when spoilers:

Avatar Kyoshi took over Aang's body and commenced to whoop Zhao's men.

end of spoilers Did not see that coming at all.

[Frontier]

I really did not like their take on Roku.

[Confuzzled]

I really did not like their take on Roku.

What did you think about the show overall? I just saw a more nuanced criticism which makes me better understand why some fans are rejecting it but I still feel it's a labor of love on the part of the showrunners (even if the original creators left the project).

It's apparent that it's not easy trying to recapture the magic of the animated masterpiece.

[Frontier]

What did you think about the show overall? I just saw a more nuanced criticism which makes me better understand why some fans are rejecting it but I still feel it's a labor of love on the part of the showrunners (even if the original creators left the project).

It's apparent that it's not easy trying to recapture the magic of the animated masterpiece.

I think it was a well-intentioned adaption, some of the actors really nailed their roles, and I like a lot of the stuff with Zuko and Iroh, though I feel like certain characters and plots didn't translate as well as they could have and they missed the point a few times.

(Also it's kind of funny how they seemed to completely forget about Aang needing to learn Waterbending in an adaption of Book One...)

[Confuzzled]

(Also it's kind of funny how they seemed to completely forget about Aang needing to learn Waterbending in an adaption of Book One...)

Yeah, I think someone pointed it out to them at the last minute which is why they had Katara tell him at the end there that he STILL had to learn waterbending

Though TBF they constantly had the main trio splitting up with the show's decision to club various storylines together so that downtime Aang and Katara used to get for training was pretty much gone.

[Frontier]

Yeah, I think someone pointed it out to them at the last minute which is why they had Katara tell him at the end there that he STILL had to learn waterbending

Though TBF they constantly had the main trio splitting up with the show's decision to club various storylines together so that downtime Aang and Katara used to get for training was pretty much gone.

Yeah, I feel like the lack of downtime and trying to fit in so much definitely impacted the character dynamics/relationships and the vibe of the show.

[Kirby101]

I thought it was a good adaptation in the first few episodes, by the end, ithought it was just good.

[Amadeus Arkham]

Started and finished the show on the day of its release(February 22nd), and overall I really enjoyed it for the most part and found some of the changes they did to be an improvement over the original (like making the division that Zuko saved be the very same one that he takes on his journey). The acting and dialogue is definitely a little rough in places but hopefully that improves in a second season should they get one. Overall I give this a 7/10.

[Gray Lensman]

'm planning on picking up Netflix in order to watch the original, and then this - and Delicious in Dungeon. A reviewer I watch says he liked some things, hated others, and was undecided (based on how they go in later seasons) on others. The actors are at least trying their best rather than phoning it in, the bending is pretty good, although there is too much exposition for his taste. He could see fans of the show either loving it or hating it. He enjoyed it, but didn't love it.

[Godlike13]

The show is weird, they cut and mash a bunch of things, but then add a bunch of overwritten fluff that serves little purpose. They also removed all the silliness.

[Gray Lensman]

The show is weird, they cut and mash a bunch of things, but then add a bunch of overwritten fluff that serves little purpose. They also removed all the silliness.

From what I have heard, much of the additions were stuff from outside the show - stuff from the writer's bible, and from the comics.