There's a new post on the comm doing crit of the season so far. I'm not venturing there again to post, but it's been an interesting read. So far, it seems our observation of Korra's weak bond with Mako and Bolin is a fandom-wide concern.
They have done a really good job with worldbuilding, and on Korra herself. I also like the issues they have brought up with the nonbenders and how Amon's followers do have legit gripes about the way they have been treated. I think they will address this, though I would have liked the non-bender of the group to be able to get Korra to relate to these issues (Asami may not be able to bend, but her life experience as a rich society girl is not the same as say, a shop owner's daughter who gets grief from the triads daily). Hopefully these things are addressed.
I've almost given up on the relationship aspect of the show however. I am resigned to the fact that they really really can't do romance, but they did do friendship really well in the original Avatar. I wish they would do better on that front. At the very least, I'm hoping for some mentoring Lin to Korra action, given that they do have a lot in common.
The Tenzin/Lin/Pema thing still really really bothers me. I would have loved it if they had dated, broken up and were ok with it all, with Lin coming by the Air Temple Island to tell embarrassing stories to Pema about young Tenzin; I'm not sure why they went with bitter!Lin route instead, unless it's to serve as some parallel to the younger triangle of Mako/Asami/Korra and that this time things will go 'right'. Of course, this implies that Pema was 'wrong'.
I'm no longer sure what to make of fandom opinions, but if Tumblr is any indication, with Lin's instant popularity, the Tenlin ship is blazing away with fanart, fanfic etc etc with a fervor that Tenzin/Pema don't inspire. I'm not sure who DIDN'T see that coming with this fandom anyway, given that Toph is one of the most popular characters from the original series, and people are going to love her daughter a lot too. Again, I question story choices; I'm not sure what point there is to making choices that most of the fandom disagrees with. I suspect most of the Tenzin/Lin shippers don't really even want Lin to be with Tenzin, just that they don't want her to be unhappy the way the show states she is.
Asami still reads like a character created to be 'cool', without much depth. I mean, just for example, they made Korra a master bender, a prodigy, and her design reflects that (I would LOVE to have her muscles), with hair tied out of the way and her 'snowboarder's physique'. In contrast, Asami serves as the feminine, secret!badass fighter, which I have a hard time buying with her physique. Certainly, I can buy that she's a great drag race driver, but the whole, "I have been trained in self defense for YEARS!" thing rings false, when she just doesn't seen to move like a fighter would. It's a character trait that seems to be thrown in as wallpaper, rather than organically integrated with the character.
The show still has more positives than negatives, but I was really expecting to love it a whole lot more based on the absolutely ace first two episodes.
They have done a really good job with worldbuilding, and on Korra herself. I also like the issues they have brought up with the nonbenders and how Amon's followers do have legit gripes about the way they have been treated. I think they will address this, though I would have liked the non-bender of the group to be able to get Korra to relate to these issues (Asami may not be able to bend, but her life experience as a rich society girl is not the same as say, a shop owner's daughter who gets grief from the triads daily). Hopefully these things are addressed.
I've almost given up on the relationship aspect of the show however. I am resigned to the fact that they really really can't do romance, but they did do friendship really well in the original Avatar. I wish they would do better on that front. At the very least, I'm hoping for some mentoring Lin to Korra action, given that they do have a lot in common.
The Tenzin/Lin/Pema thing still really really bothers me. I would have loved it if they had dated, broken up and were ok with it all, with Lin coming by the Air Temple Island to tell embarrassing stories to Pema about young Tenzin; I'm not sure why they went with bitter!Lin route instead, unless it's to serve as some parallel to the younger triangle of Mako/Asami/Korra and that this time things will go 'right'. Of course, this implies that Pema was 'wrong'.
I'm no longer sure what to make of fandom opinions, but if Tumblr is any indication, with Lin's instant popularity, the Tenlin ship is blazing away with fanart, fanfic etc etc with a fervor that Tenzin/Pema don't inspire. I'm not sure who DIDN'T see that coming with this fandom anyway, given that Toph is one of the most popular characters from the original series, and people are going to love her daughter a lot too. Again, I question story choices; I'm not sure what point there is to making choices that most of the fandom disagrees with. I suspect most of the Tenzin/Lin shippers don't really even want Lin to be with Tenzin, just that they don't want her to be unhappy the way the show states she is.
Asami still reads like a character created to be 'cool', without much depth. I mean, just for example, they made Korra a master bender, a prodigy, and her design reflects that (I would LOVE to have her muscles), with hair tied out of the way and her 'snowboarder's physique'. In contrast, Asami serves as the feminine, secret!badass fighter, which I have a hard time buying with her physique. Certainly, I can buy that she's a great drag race driver, but the whole, "I have been trained in self defense for YEARS!" thing rings false, when she just doesn't seen to move like a fighter would. It's a character trait that seems to be thrown in as wallpaper, rather than organically integrated with the character.
The show still has more positives than negatives, but I was really expecting to love it a whole lot more based on the absolutely ace first two episodes.
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