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edenfallingStill watching Avatar! I've taken to commenting as I watch instead of trying to sum up afterward, so here are some thoughts on episode 18:
The Waterbending Master:
1. The visual contrast between blue water/ice and open skies and the dark red of the windowless room where Zhao meets with his underlings is very stark.
2. A city made of ice? Huh. And with sculptures and flowing fountains all over. Interesting. I am not convinced of the practicality of the concept, especially when it comes to cooking, but we'll see. (I believe an ice house would not fall apart with the introduction of a cooking fire. I do not believe a big, open room made of ice would be conducive to sleeping, nor do I believe a kitchen in such a house would stay tidy very long. I suppose we handwave the the whole business by saying 'waterbending!' and not worrying too hard, but still.)
3. And Sokka falls in lust-at-first-sight with a white-haired girl in purple. Romantic hijinks ahoy... *sigh*
4. "Summer, fall, winter spring/ four seasons for love." Ah, music night on Zuko's ship! *collapses in quiet giggle fit* But wait, it's Zhao! Cue dramatic rumble and missed notes.
5. In re: that dinner conversation. Sokka is such a doofus. *cuddles him*
6. Iroh has apparently tried to talk Zuko into playing the tsungi horn repeatedly? Hee! Also, Zuko has a weird way of moping. Generally people lie on their beds or, I dunno, pretend to be doing something. Leaning against a wall in the dark while wearing a sleeveless tunic is odd, to say the least. (Decorative, though!)
7. Way to jump to conclusions, Zhao! Yes, you happen to be correct, but that's not what I'd call particularly strong evidence. (Especially when Zuko actually managed a credible lie -- practice, perhaps?) Then again, if he wants Zuko out of the way and wants revenge for that Agni Kai, I don't suppose Zhao is particularly worried about the accuracy of his accusations, so long as he can give at least some appearance of justification to his actions.
8. Interesting. Before the commercial break, it's all 'women can't learn waterbending at all.' After the break, this is qualified to, 'women can only learn healing, from Yugoda.' Not the same thing at all, but I suppose I'll let it slide; it was basically an exaggeration for dramatic effect.
9. Sokka, you are going to get frostbite if you don't get your feet out of that canal and go inside to warm up and dry off! Idiot. *thwaps him*
10. And Katara swallows her pride and anger and learns some healing. I feel for her, but good. That is a sign of maturity, at least for the moment; healing is useful, so she should learn how to do it.
11. Department of backstory alert! (Also, isn't it nice and convenient that Katara has her necklace back in time for this revelation? Good job, Aang, stealing it for her!)
12. And this time, Zuko is brooding on his bed in the dark. That makes more sense to me. But he missed his crew wishing him good luck. *sigh*
13. Oh, no, pirates! Pretty good assassination plan, if you don't mind making a huge noise. Incidentally, I am all kinds of amused by Zuko running around his deserted ship in bare feet and a dressing gown.
14. The iguana-parrot gives the game away. And... oh, that doesn't look good. But the windows blew out, and I know Zuko survives, so... my bet is that he got blown through the windows before the main explosion, which saved his life. If he'd still been in his cabin, though, down in the belly of the ship... that would have been bad.
15. And this time Katara does not swallow her pride, and I, for one, don't blame her. Pakku needs a good slap upside the head.
16. Zhao thinks he's played Iroh. I am not so sure. Iroh is sneaky.
17. Cool fight. Very cool fight. I like how every time Katara or Pakku throws water or ice toward the other, there's a good chance that water will just be repurposed and thrown back. It's all about ebb and flow: like water. *grin* (Also, is this the first time we've seen Katara with her hair loose? I am not sure, but it's not a bad look for her.)
18. Ha! Yep, Iroh's playing Zhao, not vice versa. "No nephew of mine is going to stow away on a ship without some backup!" You go Iroh! And Zuko, you poor baby, go put some ice on that black eye. *pets him gingerly*
19. You know, I don't think I've mentioned this before, but I like Sokka's and Katara's glove-mitten things a lot. They have three pouches: one for the thumb, one for the index and middle fingers, and one for the ring and pinky fingers. It's like a compromise between the warmth of mittens and the relatively greater dexterity of gloves. Yue's gloves, in contrast, are five-finger true gloves. (Also, Yue has lipstick. Seriously, what the hell? It's like Water Tribe Barbie. *sour face*)
20. I am not at all sure I buy Pakku's change of heart, but whatever, it's a cute expectation reversal scene with the 'you're late' joke.
21. Oooh, ominous shot of a massive fleet! *quivers with anticipation*
-----
I do love this series!
The Waterbending Master:
1. The visual contrast between blue water/ice and open skies and the dark red of the windowless room where Zhao meets with his underlings is very stark.
2. A city made of ice? Huh. And with sculptures and flowing fountains all over. Interesting. I am not convinced of the practicality of the concept, especially when it comes to cooking, but we'll see. (I believe an ice house would not fall apart with the introduction of a cooking fire. I do not believe a big, open room made of ice would be conducive to sleeping, nor do I believe a kitchen in such a house would stay tidy very long. I suppose we handwave the the whole business by saying 'waterbending!' and not worrying too hard, but still.)
3. And Sokka falls in lust-at-first-sight with a white-haired girl in purple. Romantic hijinks ahoy... *sigh*
4. "Summer, fall, winter spring/ four seasons for love." Ah, music night on Zuko's ship! *collapses in quiet giggle fit* But wait, it's Zhao! Cue dramatic rumble and missed notes.
5. In re: that dinner conversation. Sokka is such a doofus. *cuddles him*
6. Iroh has apparently tried to talk Zuko into playing the tsungi horn repeatedly? Hee! Also, Zuko has a weird way of moping. Generally people lie on their beds or, I dunno, pretend to be doing something. Leaning against a wall in the dark while wearing a sleeveless tunic is odd, to say the least. (Decorative, though!)
7. Way to jump to conclusions, Zhao! Yes, you happen to be correct, but that's not what I'd call particularly strong evidence. (Especially when Zuko actually managed a credible lie -- practice, perhaps?) Then again, if he wants Zuko out of the way and wants revenge for that Agni Kai, I don't suppose Zhao is particularly worried about the accuracy of his accusations, so long as he can give at least some appearance of justification to his actions.
8. Interesting. Before the commercial break, it's all 'women can't learn waterbending at all.' After the break, this is qualified to, 'women can only learn healing, from Yugoda.' Not the same thing at all, but I suppose I'll let it slide; it was basically an exaggeration for dramatic effect.
9. Sokka, you are going to get frostbite if you don't get your feet out of that canal and go inside to warm up and dry off! Idiot. *thwaps him*
10. And Katara swallows her pride and anger and learns some healing. I feel for her, but good. That is a sign of maturity, at least for the moment; healing is useful, so she should learn how to do it.
11. Department of backstory alert! (Also, isn't it nice and convenient that Katara has her necklace back in time for this revelation? Good job, Aang, stealing it for her!)
12. And this time, Zuko is brooding on his bed in the dark. That makes more sense to me. But he missed his crew wishing him good luck. *sigh*
13. Oh, no, pirates! Pretty good assassination plan, if you don't mind making a huge noise. Incidentally, I am all kinds of amused by Zuko running around his deserted ship in bare feet and a dressing gown.
14. The iguana-parrot gives the game away. And... oh, that doesn't look good. But the windows blew out, and I know Zuko survives, so... my bet is that he got blown through the windows before the main explosion, which saved his life. If he'd still been in his cabin, though, down in the belly of the ship... that would have been bad.
15. And this time Katara does not swallow her pride, and I, for one, don't blame her. Pakku needs a good slap upside the head.
16. Zhao thinks he's played Iroh. I am not so sure. Iroh is sneaky.
17. Cool fight. Very cool fight. I like how every time Katara or Pakku throws water or ice toward the other, there's a good chance that water will just be repurposed and thrown back. It's all about ebb and flow: like water. *grin* (Also, is this the first time we've seen Katara with her hair loose? I am not sure, but it's not a bad look for her.)
18. Ha! Yep, Iroh's playing Zhao, not vice versa. "No nephew of mine is going to stow away on a ship without some backup!" You go Iroh! And Zuko, you poor baby, go put some ice on that black eye. *pets him gingerly*
19. You know, I don't think I've mentioned this before, but I like Sokka's and Katara's glove-mitten things a lot. They have three pouches: one for the thumb, one for the index and middle fingers, and one for the ring and pinky fingers. It's like a compromise between the warmth of mittens and the relatively greater dexterity of gloves. Yue's gloves, in contrast, are five-finger true gloves. (Also, Yue has lipstick. Seriously, what the hell? It's like Water Tribe Barbie. *sour face*)
20. I am not at all sure I buy Pakku's change of heart, but whatever, it's a cute expectation reversal scene with the 'you're late' joke.
21. Oooh, ominous shot of a massive fleet! *quivers with anticipation*
-----
I do love this series!
(no subject)
Date: 2009-11-11 11:26 pm (UTC)The sexist ass is a sexist ass, but I couldn't help but feel it was quiiiite a stretch for Katara to conclude that her grandma left the guy for the South Pole because he was a sexist ass. I mean, maybe she just wasn't very fond of him, or maybe she was just very fond of their grandfather. >.>;;;
On the one hand, the female healer is so cliche... on the other hand, I think real ppl still tend to think doctors are men, so I dunno. The effect is sort of neutral, I guess?
(no subject)
Date: 2009-11-13 07:33 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-11-13 03:28 pm (UTC)I don't know how westernized the medicine gets, but since the whole series seems mostly asian-influenced, and I assume most chinese doctors were male anyway.... :\
It's kind of the thing with Azula—how awesome, that a younger female is favored over the firstborn son for her talent, hard work, intelligence, and general disposition (being in general what the Fire Nation seems to want in a ruler), buuuuuut she's the enemy, and only what the main charas think matter, so. How does that balance out? >.>
The only chara I can feel pleased about in an unbiased way in the matter of gender is Toph, really. I mean, it's either "well, of course the main chara is..." or "well, of course the goofy sidekick is...." or "well, of course the busybody moral compass is...." or "well of course the sympathetic supposed enemy is—"
There's kind of no way around it, though. :\