wherein (predictably) Liz gives in and starts watching Avatar: The Last Airbender

Happy discovery! Netflix has book 1 of Avatar: The Last Airbender available for streaming play.

A few random observations on episodes 1-3 (The Boy in the Iceberg; The Avatar Returns; The Southern Air Temple):

1. I have not laughed this hard in weeks.

2. Zuko cannot lie for shit. It's weirdly adorable.

3. Actually, all the named characters are adorable so far. Except for Commander Zhao. He's just creepy. Suave, in a shallow way, but basically creepy.

4. I am not anything like objective, since I know what happens in the end, but I have to say it is obvious from as early as episode two that Zuko is not really a bad guy. There's too much menace in the basic setup of the story for it not to have a villain, but Zuko is far too sympathetic -- and in ways that are clearly intentional on the storytellers' parts -- to be evil. This is made even more obvious by the introduction of Zhao, who serves as a foil against whom Zuko can be the underdog.

5. I am oddly surprised that I am not suffering mood whiplash. The show flips from deathly serious to slapstick and back again on a dime, and you would think each mood would deflate or negate the other, but for me they don't. I am not at all sure how the writers pull that off -- I would like to learn the trick!

6. Predictably, I like Zuko best so far. This is not to say that I do not also like Aang, Katara, Sokka, and Iroh -- as previously mentioned, everyone is adorable! -- but, well, yeah. I like honorable characters with lots of implied angsty backstory, I like awkward well-meaning dorks, and I like impetuous hotheads; Zuko fits all three categories. The shirtless fight scene doesn't hurt at all. *pets Zuko, carefully* *leaps back to avoid outraged flames*

7. For the record, I still fail to see the appeal of Zutara. Honestly, I think at this point I could make better cases for Zukka or... whatever Aang/Zuko is called (Zukaang? Aangko? probably Zukaang), let alone Kataang. Obviously, many people's mileage varies!

8. Probably I will have more to say later on, though, this being me, I may never get around to writing it down. Oh well.

Avatar episodes 4-6

Episodes 4-6 (The Warriors of Kyoshi; The King of Omashu; Imprisoned):

1. I had such a sympathetic embarrassment squick moment for Sokka when he first asks Suki to fight. I was not at all embarrassed about him dressing up as a Kyoshi Warrior, though. I think this is because of the expectation clash thing: in the first embarrassing incident, Sokka thinks he's going to come out on top, so I am watching him be unexpectedly embarrassed (to clarify, it was unexpected for him; I knew it was coming). In the second incident, he knows from the get-go that he's going to feel stupid. Also, in the first case I am watching him do something he ought to be ashamed of -- being a sexist ass -- whereas in the second, there is nothing wrong with guys wearing dresses and makeup. (He actually looks damn good in that face paint. He looked pretty good in his face paint back in The Avatar Returns as well. The boy can rock some make-up, you know?)

2. In re: Omashu -- what is up with these cities on unreachable mountaintops? It's great for defense, but not so much for getting adequate food and water supplies into the walls, nor for trade. And if your population grows, where are you going to expand? (I suppose, being earthbenders, the people of Omashu could just keep digging deeper and deeper basements, but that would cause structural support issues eventually.)

3. I am intrigued that Katara chooses to bend water out of Haru's mother's outdoor pump rather than press the handle. I am not sure if that's because she doesn't know what pumps are (the Southern Water Tribe's village is fairly primitive, and because they're at the South Pole and on a shelf of sea-ice -- you can tell by the way Zuko's huge, deep-draft ship cruised right up to the village wall -- any liquid water in the area is all saltwater anyway; they probably get drinking water from melted snow), or because she wants to practice, or both.

4. Aang and Gyatso in happier days... oh. *is heartbroken* And the flashing temple lights and the shocked people all over the world... oooh, world-building and foreshadowing and all kinds of nifty tantalizing hints! (The people running this show really know how to tell a story, don't they? *applauds*)

5. You know what I love? The whole setup of the earthbenders' prison. When Katara makes her inspirational speech and the warden is watching from above, I thought at first he'd have her shot and interrupted, but no. He lets her talk, because he knows he has the prisoners broken. He doesn't have to fight them; they've already defeated themselves. The warden may be a very short-sighted, self-centered, and foolish man, but he knows that one trick and he knows it well. (And I think some of his seeming ridiculousness in the introduction scene may be for effect, to show how little control the captives now have over their fates.)

6. It's interesting to compare Aang's admirers to Katara; if he's twelve and she's fourteen, the fangirl pack must all be about 9 or 10. The overall effect (for me) is to make all the relationships seem more platonic.

7. I am still trying to understand the Zutara thing. So, okay, seeing Katara interact with Haru, I can see how people might look at her and Aang and say, "Oh god, total age and maturity mismatch, must find her another guy!" but I think... she's not looking for a guy, you know? She treats Haru as a potential friend, nothing more. Also, if Katara must be shipped with someone -- which I do not grant; shipping is not the be-all and end-all of life -- I think she'd probably do better with somebody who can counter her seriousness. Remember that she's grown up with Sokka; she's used to counterweighting and playing off his goofy antics. I'm not sure she'd know what to do with somebody more serious than she is.

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In real life news, today is Halloween. Yay! I am not dressing up this year (it's my day off, so I decided to stay home and be antisocial), but I have put out a basket of candy and left the porch lights on. This is more efficient than trying to answer the door and hand out candy in person, because my building does not have doorbells.

wherein Liz gets longwinded about Avatar episodes 7-9

Still watching Avatar! Here are LOTS of thoughts on episodes 7-9 [The Spirit World (Winter Solstice, Part 1); Avatar Roku (Winter Solstice, Part 2); The Waterbending Scroll]:

( The Spirit World )

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( Avatar Roku )

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( The Waterbending Scroll )

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Dinner now. Then I will either get some writing done or watch another three episodes.

Also, Halloween has been and gone. My basket of candy was emptied by 6pm or so, after which Downstairs Neighbors L & M replaced it with their own bowl and candy, taking advantage of the small end table I set out on the porch to hold my basket at a reasonable child height. I brought in the end table at 9pm, after their bowl was also emptied.