I'm not sorry I met you, I'm not sorry it's over

[herongale]

When there's nothing left to burn, you have to set yourself on fire.
Stars, "Your Ex-Lover is Dead"

Note: All Spoilers Under CutAvatar is not a series that needs me to recommend it, and I don't think I'm going to sway anyone's opinions no matter how convincing my praise. Nevertheless I feel compelled to talk about the last episode. So many

Comments

[cephiedvariable]

... you are so right. ♥

What gets me is that most of the people who get down on Aang for his idealism love Zuko who... uh, if it hadn't been obvious already, was canonically stated to be an idealist in the finale. I think the point was they would have had fairly similar philosophies, but Aang was raised in a culture that emphasized freedom, balance and peace while Zuko was raised in an emotionally stifling environment. THEY BOTH HAVE SUCH DELICATE HEARTS, LOL.

BUT WTFEVER, who cares what other people think: coupled with what you've said about Aang as a truly inspiring savior figure makes me extra glad this story was framed as a narrative for children. If you do it right, writing for children can reveal more universal truths than writing for adults ever could. Maybe we get too self absorbed with our own, petty flaws the older we get? lol? o__O

Ironically uses cynical and nihilistic icon.

[cephiedvariable]

these days, people want this modern concept of realism; one that involves death, bad endings, 'dark' and depressing stuff, and ugliness all around. Cynicism and pessimism and 'snarkiness' is seen as realism, while optimism and happiness is associated with idealism. And it gets really frustrating.

I also wish this mode of creative thought would, excuse the colloquialism, DIE IN A FIRE. A, uh, deep meaningful fire. :P

I love me a good ol' dark story full of death and decay and failure and all that, but I have a hard time seeing the value in a work of fiction if it's only goal is to promote empty nihilism. That's not to say that every story should be about hope, but hope is a part of the human experience too.

*MAKES INANELY OBVIOUS PHILISOPHICAL OBSERVATION*

[cephiedvariable]

I think the problem is that the contemporary bleak attitude seen in the West (well, North America, I mean) is not born of suffering, but of boredom. We've been going through something of a decay these past few decades. My roomate and I have endlessly played this metaphor out across various forms of media, but it works best with music:

We went from Rock to Punk to Grunge to Emo.

We believed in change, we got angry when it didn't happen. The anger grew bitter and paranoid, but now all we do is whine about it.

[cephiedvariable]

THANK GOD FOR THE OIL CRISIS, HUH? ABOUT TIME SOMETHING MADE US UNCOMFORTABLE.

Re: *MAKES INANELY OBVIOUS PHILISOPHICAL OBSERVATION*

[herongale]

Interestingly, Martin Amis makes an explicit case linking terrorism WITH boredom and ennui in his latest collection of essays.

It's hard for people who truly love the world and the people in it, who are filled with love and hope, to see the need to turn to violence. I'll look tomorrow and see if I can't find some of his quotes on the matter, because he is really interesting (and he always writes so beautifully too).

[herongale]

This is so beautiful and true that it's hard for me not to splutter "WORD."

You say everything about Aang that I felt inadequate to explain, and which you'd think would go without saying. Aang had that thing, true goodness, which sounds so small when put into plain words. But really, "true goodness" is the hope of all humanity, the thing we all need and wish for. It's far more important than justice, but infinitely harder to achieve.

"But I believe? Aang can save the world."

Katara gives this to us in her monologue that has been with us from the beginning, and this comes just a few lines after she tells us that the Avatar vanished just when the world needed him the most. It is hard to believe in a world that has let you down, in saviors thave have been shown to be gold statues with clay feet, in a "true goodness" that can come forth from failure and disappointment.

People see this with Zuko. But it is a million times more relevant with Aang. He DID keep his promise. It took him 100 years, but he kept the faith. He might