Sozin's Comet
Oh f-list. Oh my dear, dear f-list.
I would like to write an open letter to Mike and Bryan. I seriously have a question, and I want to hear their serious answer, but I'm afraid that as soon as they realized I'm a Zutara shipper they would dismiss me as an angry bitter loser. But I really, really want to know the answer to my question.
Which is: how do you explain "The Guru" in light of the series finale?
Most of y'all have heard my arguments on this subject; the first line of this comment (and the subsequent lines on subsequent issues, but we'll get there) sums it up nicely. According to the Guru, if you want to master the Avatar State (and okay, maybe Aang never really mastered it), you have to let go of all earthly attachments, including romantic relationships. As we all recall, Aang totally failed to do this at the appropriate moment, and when he tried to again he got lightning in the back for his efforts. Now, granted, Yang-Chin (the Air Nomad Avatar) did say that he had to remain in the world in order to save it (i.e., he couldn't be like one of the monks; he's a...bodhvasitta? Are those the ones that reach enlightenment and then stay behind? I think so), but he still has to remain focused on the world, and not his own personal life. So, no romance for the Avatar, if he wants to a) be effective in the Avatar state and b) be effective in the world.
B) is a subtler point, one that the Guru didn't explicitly mention, but one which canon itself clearly illustrates in the examples of Roku and Kurik. Now, we don't know what happened to the world while Kurik was Avatar, but we rest assured that the world was somewhat neglected as he spent all his time chasing after Koh, who had stolen the face of the woman he loved. Roku's example is much more obvious: Roku retired from the world in order to live on a little island with his wife and family, and the Sozin took over the world. Roku's decision to focus on a family and his wife--on a little life, rather than on I don't know the fate of the world--doomed the world for one hundred years.
(On a side note, this really pissed me off. Seriously, Roku? Seriously? You're a wimp. You screwed up beyond big time, and I have little to no respect for you.)
So, honestly, Bryke, tell me what y'all were thinking.
Secondly...oh come on, all of you know what I'm about to talk about...
THE STUFF I LIKED. I have 21 pages of commentary, and I stopped typing soon after the Zuko and Azula fight started, so I'm not even going to try posting it yet. Maybe I'll do a post of that later. But anyway.
Uh, the mind-bogglingly epic bending at the end. The art for the epic bending, if not the actual character art--the bit with Aang almost getting absorbed (Priori Incantatem, anyone?) was gorgeous, but some of the character art during the fights and stuff seemed a little sloppy. Azula fucking snapped--and Ursa-in-the-mirror. Sokka and Toph. Sokka giving up his weapons (as Quark pointed out). Sokka's sand-sculpture of Suki.
Did anyone else notice that the place where Ozai and Aang had their final battle was a lot like the ball court that Aang played on as a child? I dunno if that was intentional or not (I mean, I'm sure the setting was intentional, I just don't know if they meant to connect it back or not), but that connection is just--heartwrenching. Aang's innocent ball game = playing court for a duel over the fate of the world.
Also I'm glad that they took care of the "even if we kill the Fire Lord the army is still out there!" problem by having the Fire Phoenix Lord go with the army. Good plan.
Aang looked so old when he was all Avatar-state-y. It hurt. On the other hand, it also looked fucking awesome.
Metal!Toph! Like Metal Mario, only a thousand times scarier.
Iroh and Zuko reunion (also: Father Lord!). Oh my God. Zuko's voice. I've been actually liking Dante Basco this season, and now I actually love him.
Baby!Ozai.
God, what else happened...all the advice the old spirits gave Aang.
Ozai walking on the map of the world!
Jun!
Poor Toph's doomed trip with Zuko. Actually, that ticked me off a little, because Toph got screwed over for those four episodes she didn't get her field trip, and then her field trip sucks. But it was still cute.
OLD PEOPLE CAMP. Bumi in general. Pakku/Gran-Gran! Master Piandao--it occurred to me that we haven't seen very many men his age (I'd say late forties/early fifties); everyone seems to be late thirties/early forties, or else over sixty. Are they all dead?
Return of the Suungi horn!
OH MY GOD. The poor birthday boy on the airship. Also the fact that in Avatarverse, falling fifty feet into the water doesn't kill you. Neither does being slammed against rocks (as we said, time and time again, as Ozai got his butt kicked all over the place: "Unfortunately, hitting rocks at high speeds is not going to do the trick."). But aw man, I love those little dialogues that they throw in there. Hi-larious.
Um, the fact that it was Katara that kissed Aang in the end. Because that acknowledged that it was her decision to make. Also, Aang's Avatar robes. Also, the super-power firebending that EVERYONE got to have.
Eel-hound!
Oh yeah, the music in general.
Thirdly, for just a few things I thought were weird...
Lion turtle, I don't really know how to feel about; people are crying "deus ex machina" and "Aang gets to keep his moral high horse what?" and such, but I...went with it. Mainly because it was fucking beautiful.
THE FACT THAT KATARA WASN'T WITH AANG FOR THE FINAL BATTLE. Shipping completely and totally aside, I was shocked. Absolutely shocked. I mean, yeah, Zuko needs backup, and yeah, Katara's probably best for the job, but WHAT. THE. HELL. I--I--it just--what? I wasn't quite as weirded out as I was when she stayed behind on Day of Black Sun--at least this time she actually did something, something seriously useful--but it was still...weird.
The fact that we didn't actually get to see Ursa again.
Also, the fact that they bothered with bringing Haru and Teo et al. back for Day of Black Sun, only not to show even the tiniest hint of them fighting or something during the final countdown battle. Like, honestly. Why? We get the old people camp fighting--where were all these guys?
P.S. Aang, just because you took away his bending doesn't mean that he can't still push you off the rock. And while I have faith that you'd survive that kind of fall, if he instead just tripped you up so you cracked your skull and died from internal bleeding, well, y'know, not much you can do about that with Katara across the freaking ocean.
And I think that was it, which brings us to...
shipping.
Those of you who know me know I rarely ship non-canon ships (Quark, stop laughing, I'm serious here). Like, Draco/Ginny is just a side hobby for me, only because I was never as devoted to Harry/Ginny as I was to Ron/Hermione. But honestly? Harry Potter--canon ships all the way. Star Wars--I can't even begin to imagine how you would screw with those, movies, expanded universe, any of it (aside from Obi-Wan/Padme, but the prequels were pretty much not worth talking about in terms of writing and relationships; anything would have more sex than Anakin/Padme did). Artemis Fowl? I only ship the logical conclusions of the main characters (also, new book out, and I STILL HAVEN'T GOTTEN IT YET DAMNIT). Lord of the Rings? Again, how can you mess with those ships? Star Trek, canon (as far as you can take it). When I read books, watch movies--while I sometimes come up with crack ships for fun (example: I only ship Kakashi/Sakura because the fic for it is awesome), I am a stick-to-the-rules, accept-what's-given-to-me kind of person. I shipped Ron/Hermione from about two chapters into Chamber of Secrets (the first one I read); generally, I have a pretty good idea of how things are going to end up, what makes sense, but a lot of the time I enjoy shipping what I know is going to happen because the journey is still fun anyway.
So now, I live in the land of conundruum, because I am shipping a ship which is not canon. Yet the canon does not follow. And I mean, I've been following and accepting the canon for quite some time:
--I liked Maiko, for what it was, a teenage crush, an attempt on Zuko's part to re-integrate back into his old world, an attempt on Mai's part to regain that childhood happiness she had, to have back the boy she had loved before he went away. I enjoyed their interaction, but I also saw it as fundamentally flawed: namely, it's a relationship reaching back to the past, trying to ignore the changes that have taken place in both their lives since then.
--I never ever ever questioned the fact that Aang had a crush on Katara. Of course he had a crush on Katara. He's twelve years old, and she's very sweet and kind and pretty--and strong and butt-kicking.
Sure, Mai says she loves Zuko more than she fears Azula, but does she know him? He dumped her in a letter, and she didn't understand what was driving him, why he wasn't going to apologize, why he had to do what he did.
And while I totally accepted the fact that Aang was crushing on Katara, I never in a million years thought of actually shipping them together. Honestly. I look back on my memories of the show and--yes, I did get introduced to Zutara early on--I can't think of a time when it occurred to me that Katara returned Aang's feelings. That's the question I always had for Kataang shippers--yeah, your ship is more canon, blah blah blah, Aang obviously really likes Katara, but--does Katara like him back?
Mike and Bryan tell us yes. But...my head tells me no. Or maybe yes, but not--not really. Mike and Bryan tell us Maiko and Kataang, and my head says no. I, in fact, rebel against Katara and Aang kissing because it is just wrong on so many levels, and this goes against canon, and now I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO. Because I find canon very difficult to resist. But--but no.
So, onto the Zutaraness of this finale:
I loved the little moments--I had a fic in my head where Aang ran off and Zuko told Katara to let him go (also, didn't that happen in Stormbenders?)--Zuko's hand on Katara's shoulder, Zuko and Katara working together in the Melon Head Seige, her talking to him about his uncle (I know he'll forgive you, because I did. That could go either into a "he loves you more than I do, so if I can do it I'm sure he can" or a "and I hated you a lot, and he'd have to hate you a lot more, which I'm sure he doesn't" thing. Maybe a bit of both). Anyway, it was things like that where, when Mike and Bryan say "oh, Zutara was only dark and intriguing," I can point to canon instances and go "LOL HYPOCRITES." Because while I love the dark and intriguing elements--"The Southern Raiders" will be one of my favorite episodes for a myriad of reasons, the dark and intriguingness only one of them--I also love how Zutara can actually end up happy, and how it can work, and how they really are good together (even just as friends), and the show itself backs me up.
Jun made me LOL. St. Jun indeed.
Again, it totally threw me for a loop when Katara went with Zuko at the end. Like...Aang? I mean, Katara and Zuko obviously work well together (fact), and Zuko obviously has a crush on Katara (fact), and they're both very powerful benders (fact), but it still felt...well, weird. Especially in a Kataang-type way. I mean, I know they all want to get the job done, but she didn't even hesitate to accept. "Wanna help me take down Azula?" "I'm so there." Boom. Just like that. This obviously made the shipper in me very happy. Because--if she's so unhesitating about helping Zuko, then--I don't even know.
I have a note, when Zuko said the line about "and this way, nobody gets hurt," that says "Aw, Katara. Everyone's always trying to protect her." Which they are. It's so cute.
Also, I would like to again mention the fact that I loved Azula in this episode. So, so good.
So okay. I'd seen the image of Zuko lying on the ground, twitching, since like Tuesday; I actually watched that entire trailer (the one shown on Nick, not the NYCC one because I didn't want to) on Friday. And as soon as I saw that image, I knew that Zuko was going to take lightning in the chest for someone. I mean, duh, but I also knew it and it made me incredibly nervous. And the whole bending fight with Zuko and Azula--how you're expecting typical Avatar battle music, and yet instead you get this sweepingly sad instrumental, with the sounds of the awesomely-epic-super-poewr firebending which is just gorgeous, all of it hammering into you not the fact that this is the battle for the throne or that this is one of the important war-ending battles or the fact that this battle is super-powered, but the fact that this is a fight between a brother and his sister. So fucking tragic, and so fucking gorgeous. I was so tense, because I knew what was coming, and yet...
(also, it's another Iroh/Katara parallel there--first we have Zuko staying up all night, and now we have Zuko's loved ones being targeted by Azula when an attack is expected on someone else, except this time--)
And THEN IT HAPPENED. And--and--and--HE TOOK FUCKING LIGHTNING IN THE CHEST FOR HER. And there it was. RIGHT THERE. ZUKO. LIGHTNING IN CHEST. KATARA. I love the lightning bending in Avatar (Zuko deflecting back to Ozai? Possibly my favorite scene ever), and that visual beauty combined with--OH MY GOD ZUKO I DIDN'T WANT YOU TO DIE I WAS SO SCARED EVEN THOUGH I KNEW YOU COULDN'T DIE IT WAS STILL HORRIBLE.
I didn't like how Katara spent a good deal of the rest of the fight running around, but I guess yeah, she did need to find a decent source of water. (Couldn't she have done that while they were fighting? Just covertly?)
(it has been pointed out that Aang never did something half so awesome for Katara, aside from go into the Avatar State and hurt a lot of people, but to be fair he never had the chance to jump in front of lightning for her.)
And Zuko, still trying to help--
I loved the way she tied up Azula, and I love the fact that Azula fucking snapped (which was scary as all get out).
I didn't realize how much I wanted an on-screen Zutara kiss until Katara healed Zuko and it was like OMG PERFECT MOMENT. Like, seriously. This whole experience has been an exercise in--wow, I really am incredibly caught up in all this, more than I realized (rather like Harry Potter). But oh my God when she healed him, and--I--the whole thing was just so fucking beautiful. The whole sequence of events from their arrival on was just excellent. I--yeah. It was amazing.
AND THEN THE FUCKING MAIKO SCENE HAPPENED.
As I previously started, I respected Maiko for what it was. I could even maybe have dealt with it if it had been done better--my problem with Kataang was more fundamental than simply the way it was handled in the last few minutes--I actually was okay with the way it was done (aside from the part where it's just so wrong*), for reasons already stated.
But the Maiko scene was cheaply animated and poorly written and basically just went NEENER NEENER and was so contrived and...like, I'm still waiting for someone to go SURPRISE JUST KIDDING. I mean...it was just a poor scene, animation/dialogue/emotion/everything-wise. It was just so bad. It was like "lol here's Mai, who we haven't seen for six episodes, and suddenly everything is A-OKAY WITH EVERYONE" and it's like "what the fuck are you doing here did you miss the part where he TOOK FUCKING LIGHTNING IN THE CHEST FOR HER?" And even that aside, Mai and Zuko have serious issues, issues that can't be resolved just by her saving his life (unless you count "making out like the horny beasties that teenagers are" as resolution), issues that certainly can't be resolved in thirty-seconds of some of the crappiest animation I've seen in the whole series. The whole scene just looks off--the colors are icky and the dialogue is like LOL TWU WUV AMIRITE and it's a fucking slap to the face. And I don't say that lightly, because I have put up with a hell of a lot of shipbaiting and fan service because I thought that Zutara at least had enough of a chance to get a respectful disproving and not a garish smackdown.
Meanwhile, Kataang is just wrong, because he's only twelve, and while Aang likes Katara a lot I'm still not convinced she liked him back, or at least not to the passionate-makey-outy point that they apparently reached by the end. And just...it never occurred to me. Never. I just--no.
And so now I have this broken heart and this confused head and the detached part of me is thinking "what the hell is wrong with you?" and the rest of me is thinking Avatar is over...and Zutara will never happen on-screen. And no amount of fanfiction is going to change that. And Mike and Bryan are amazing storytellers and I am so thankful to them for this series
and I am so thankful for Zutara, because honestly kiddos, I got a livejournal because I wanted people to read my fanfiction, and I have had the time of my life even while stressing out about spoilers and stupid scheduling, and I never in a million years dreamed I would be this sucked into the whole fandom thing when I first sat down on my grandparents' couch to watch a Thanksgiving Day marathon of a show that had looked like just another Nick cartoon but was, in fact, one of the coolest things I'd seen on TV in a very, very long time
but I am also, at the end of the day, broken-hearted, for a myriad of reasons, and I hate the fact that I'm so upset.
to end on a positive note: thank you Quark, for putting up with my moping and for betaing my fic, and I'm not actually happy that you're happy but I want to be happy for you, does that count?
And sitting in my living room, yelling Katara's opening speech at the top of our lungs...
I believe Aang can save the world.
And in the end, he did.
And that's what really matters.
:-)
I would like to write an open letter to Mike and Bryan. I seriously have a question, and I want to hear their serious answer, but I'm afraid that as soon as they realized I'm a Zutara shipper they would dismiss me as an angry bitter loser. But I really, really want to know the answer to my question.
Which is: how do you explain "The Guru" in light of the series finale?
Most of y'all have heard my arguments on this subject; the first line of this comment (and the subsequent lines on subsequent issues, but we'll get there) sums it up nicely. According to the Guru, if you want to master the Avatar State (and okay, maybe Aang never really mastered it), you have to let go of all earthly attachments, including romantic relationships. As we all recall, Aang totally failed to do this at the appropriate moment, and when he tried to again he got lightning in the back for his efforts. Now, granted, Yang-Chin (the Air Nomad Avatar) did say that he had to remain in the world in order to save it (i.e., he couldn't be like one of the monks; he's a...bodhvasitta? Are those the ones that reach enlightenment and then stay behind? I think so), but he still has to remain focused on the world, and not his own personal life. So, no romance for the Avatar, if he wants to a) be effective in the Avatar state and b) be effective in the world.
B) is a subtler point, one that the Guru didn't explicitly mention, but one which canon itself clearly illustrates in the examples of Roku and Kurik. Now, we don't know what happened to the world while Kurik was Avatar, but we rest assured that the world was somewhat neglected as he spent all his time chasing after Koh, who had stolen the face of the woman he loved. Roku's example is much more obvious: Roku retired from the world in order to live on a little island with his wife and family, and the Sozin took over the world. Roku's decision to focus on a family and his wife--on a little life, rather than on I don't know the fate of the world--doomed the world for one hundred years.
(On a side note, this really pissed me off. Seriously, Roku? Seriously? You're a wimp. You screwed up beyond big time, and I have little to no respect for you.)
So, honestly, Bryke, tell me what y'all were thinking.
Secondly...oh come on, all of you know what I'm about to talk about...
THE STUFF I LIKED. I have 21 pages of commentary, and I stopped typing soon after the Zuko and Azula fight started, so I'm not even going to try posting it yet. Maybe I'll do a post of that later. But anyway.
Uh, the mind-bogglingly epic bending at the end. The art for the epic bending, if not the actual character art--the bit with Aang almost getting absorbed (Priori Incantatem, anyone?) was gorgeous, but some of the character art during the fights and stuff seemed a little sloppy. Azula fucking snapped--and Ursa-in-the-mirror. Sokka and Toph. Sokka giving up his weapons (as Quark pointed out). Sokka's sand-sculpture of Suki.
Did anyone else notice that the place where Ozai and Aang had their final battle was a lot like the ball court that Aang played on as a child? I dunno if that was intentional or not (I mean, I'm sure the setting was intentional, I just don't know if they meant to connect it back or not), but that connection is just--heartwrenching. Aang's innocent ball game = playing court for a duel over the fate of the world.
Also I'm glad that they took care of the "even if we kill the Fire Lord the army is still out there!" problem by having the Fire Phoenix Lord go with the army. Good plan.
Aang looked so old when he was all Avatar-state-y. It hurt. On the other hand, it also looked fucking awesome.
Metal!Toph! Like Metal Mario, only a thousand times scarier.
Iroh and Zuko reunion (also: Father Lord!). Oh my God. Zuko's voice. I've been actually liking Dante Basco this season, and now I actually love him.
Baby!Ozai.
God, what else happened...all the advice the old spirits gave Aang.
Ozai walking on the map of the world!
Jun!
Poor Toph's doomed trip with Zuko. Actually, that ticked me off a little, because Toph got screwed over for those four episodes she didn't get her field trip, and then her field trip sucks. But it was still cute.
OLD PEOPLE CAMP. Bumi in general. Pakku/Gran-Gran! Master Piandao--it occurred to me that we haven't seen very many men his age (I'd say late forties/early fifties); everyone seems to be late thirties/early forties, or else over sixty. Are they all dead?
Return of the Suungi horn!
OH MY GOD. The poor birthday boy on the airship. Also the fact that in Avatarverse, falling fifty feet into the water doesn't kill you. Neither does being slammed against rocks (as we said, time and time again, as Ozai got his butt kicked all over the place: "Unfortunately, hitting rocks at high speeds is not going to do the trick."). But aw man, I love those little dialogues that they throw in there. Hi-larious.
Um, the fact that it was Katara that kissed Aang in the end. Because that acknowledged that it was her decision to make. Also, Aang's Avatar robes. Also, the super-power firebending that EVERYONE got to have.
Eel-hound!
Oh yeah, the music in general.
Thirdly, for just a few things I thought were weird...
Lion turtle, I don't really know how to feel about; people are crying "deus ex machina" and "Aang gets to keep his moral high horse what?" and such, but I...went with it. Mainly because it was fucking beautiful.
THE FACT THAT KATARA WASN'T WITH AANG FOR THE FINAL BATTLE. Shipping completely and totally aside, I was shocked. Absolutely shocked. I mean, yeah, Zuko needs backup, and yeah, Katara's probably best for the job, but WHAT. THE. HELL. I--I--it just--what? I wasn't quite as weirded out as I was when she stayed behind on Day of Black Sun--at least this time she actually did something, something seriously useful--but it was still...weird.
The fact that we didn't actually get to see Ursa again.
Also, the fact that they bothered with bringing Haru and Teo et al. back for Day of Black Sun, only not to show even the tiniest hint of them fighting or something during the final countdown battle. Like, honestly. Why? We get the old people camp fighting--where were all these guys?
P.S. Aang, just because you took away his bending doesn't mean that he can't still push you off the rock. And while I have faith that you'd survive that kind of fall, if he instead just tripped you up so you cracked your skull and died from internal bleeding, well, y'know, not much you can do about that with Katara across the freaking ocean.
And I think that was it, which brings us to...
shipping.
Those of you who know me know I rarely ship non-canon ships (Quark, stop laughing, I'm serious here). Like, Draco/Ginny is just a side hobby for me, only because I was never as devoted to Harry/Ginny as I was to Ron/Hermione. But honestly? Harry Potter--canon ships all the way. Star Wars--I can't even begin to imagine how you would screw with those, movies, expanded universe, any of it (aside from Obi-Wan/Padme, but the prequels were pretty much not worth talking about in terms of writing and relationships; anything would have more sex than Anakin/Padme did). Artemis Fowl? I only ship the logical conclusions of the main characters (also, new book out, and I STILL HAVEN'T GOTTEN IT YET DAMNIT). Lord of the Rings? Again, how can you mess with those ships? Star Trek, canon (as far as you can take it). When I read books, watch movies--while I sometimes come up with crack ships for fun (example: I only ship Kakashi/Sakura because the fic for it is awesome), I am a stick-to-the-rules, accept-what's-given-to-me kind of person. I shipped Ron/Hermione from about two chapters into Chamber of Secrets (the first one I read); generally, I have a pretty good idea of how things are going to end up, what makes sense, but a lot of the time I enjoy shipping what I know is going to happen because the journey is still fun anyway.
So now, I live in the land of conundruum, because I am shipping a ship which is not canon. Yet the canon does not follow. And I mean, I've been following and accepting the canon for quite some time:
--I liked Maiko, for what it was, a teenage crush, an attempt on Zuko's part to re-integrate back into his old world, an attempt on Mai's part to regain that childhood happiness she had, to have back the boy she had loved before he went away. I enjoyed their interaction, but I also saw it as fundamentally flawed: namely, it's a relationship reaching back to the past, trying to ignore the changes that have taken place in both their lives since then.
--I never ever ever questioned the fact that Aang had a crush on Katara. Of course he had a crush on Katara. He's twelve years old, and she's very sweet and kind and pretty--and strong and butt-kicking.
Sure, Mai says she loves Zuko more than she fears Azula, but does she know him? He dumped her in a letter, and she didn't understand what was driving him, why he wasn't going to apologize, why he had to do what he did.
And while I totally accepted the fact that Aang was crushing on Katara, I never in a million years thought of actually shipping them together. Honestly. I look back on my memories of the show and--yes, I did get introduced to Zutara early on--I can't think of a time when it occurred to me that Katara returned Aang's feelings. That's the question I always had for Kataang shippers--yeah, your ship is more canon, blah blah blah, Aang obviously really likes Katara, but--does Katara like him back?
Mike and Bryan tell us yes. But...my head tells me no. Or maybe yes, but not--not really. Mike and Bryan tell us Maiko and Kataang, and my head says no. I, in fact, rebel against Katara and Aang kissing because it is just wrong on so many levels, and this goes against canon, and now I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO. Because I find canon very difficult to resist. But--but no.
So, onto the Zutaraness of this finale:
I loved the little moments--I had a fic in my head where Aang ran off and Zuko told Katara to let him go (also, didn't that happen in Stormbenders?)--Zuko's hand on Katara's shoulder, Zuko and Katara working together in the Melon Head Seige, her talking to him about his uncle (I know he'll forgive you, because I did. That could go either into a "he loves you more than I do, so if I can do it I'm sure he can" or a "and I hated you a lot, and he'd have to hate you a lot more, which I'm sure he doesn't" thing. Maybe a bit of both). Anyway, it was things like that where, when Mike and Bryan say "oh, Zutara was only dark and intriguing," I can point to canon instances and go "LOL HYPOCRITES." Because while I love the dark and intriguing elements--"The Southern Raiders" will be one of my favorite episodes for a myriad of reasons, the dark and intriguingness only one of them--I also love how Zutara can actually end up happy, and how it can work, and how they really are good together (even just as friends), and the show itself backs me up.
Jun made me LOL. St. Jun indeed.
Again, it totally threw me for a loop when Katara went with Zuko at the end. Like...Aang? I mean, Katara and Zuko obviously work well together (fact), and Zuko obviously has a crush on Katara (fact), and they're both very powerful benders (fact), but it still felt...well, weird. Especially in a Kataang-type way. I mean, I know they all want to get the job done, but she didn't even hesitate to accept. "Wanna help me take down Azula?" "I'm so there." Boom. Just like that. This obviously made the shipper in me very happy. Because--if she's so unhesitating about helping Zuko, then--I don't even know.
I have a note, when Zuko said the line about "and this way, nobody gets hurt," that says "Aw, Katara. Everyone's always trying to protect her." Which they are. It's so cute.
Also, I would like to again mention the fact that I loved Azula in this episode. So, so good.
So okay. I'd seen the image of Zuko lying on the ground, twitching, since like Tuesday; I actually watched that entire trailer (the one shown on Nick, not the NYCC one because I didn't want to) on Friday. And as soon as I saw that image, I knew that Zuko was going to take lightning in the chest for someone. I mean, duh, but I also knew it and it made me incredibly nervous. And the whole bending fight with Zuko and Azula--how you're expecting typical Avatar battle music, and yet instead you get this sweepingly sad instrumental, with the sounds of the awesomely-epic-super-poewr firebending which is just gorgeous, all of it hammering into you not the fact that this is the battle for the throne or that this is one of the important war-ending battles or the fact that this battle is super-powered, but the fact that this is a fight between a brother and his sister. So fucking tragic, and so fucking gorgeous. I was so tense, because I knew what was coming, and yet...
(also, it's another Iroh/Katara parallel there--first we have Zuko staying up all night, and now we have Zuko's loved ones being targeted by Azula when an attack is expected on someone else, except this time--)
And THEN IT HAPPENED. And--and--and--HE TOOK FUCKING LIGHTNING IN THE CHEST FOR HER. And there it was. RIGHT THERE. ZUKO. LIGHTNING IN CHEST. KATARA. I love the lightning bending in Avatar (Zuko deflecting back to Ozai? Possibly my favorite scene ever), and that visual beauty combined with--OH MY GOD ZUKO I DIDN'T WANT YOU TO DIE I WAS SO SCARED EVEN THOUGH I KNEW YOU COULDN'T DIE IT WAS STILL HORRIBLE.
I didn't like how Katara spent a good deal of the rest of the fight running around, but I guess yeah, she did need to find a decent source of water. (Couldn't she have done that while they were fighting? Just covertly?)
(it has been pointed out that Aang never did something half so awesome for Katara, aside from go into the Avatar State and hurt a lot of people, but to be fair he never had the chance to jump in front of lightning for her.)
And Zuko, still trying to help--
I loved the way she tied up Azula, and I love the fact that Azula fucking snapped (which was scary as all get out).
I didn't realize how much I wanted an on-screen Zutara kiss until Katara healed Zuko and it was like OMG PERFECT MOMENT. Like, seriously. This whole experience has been an exercise in--wow, I really am incredibly caught up in all this, more than I realized (rather like Harry Potter). But oh my God when she healed him, and--I--the whole thing was just so fucking beautiful. The whole sequence of events from their arrival on was just excellent. I--yeah. It was amazing.
AND THEN THE FUCKING MAIKO SCENE HAPPENED.
As I previously started, I respected Maiko for what it was. I could even maybe have dealt with it if it had been done better--my problem with Kataang was more fundamental than simply the way it was handled in the last few minutes--I actually was okay with the way it was done (aside from the part where it's just so wrong*), for reasons already stated.
But the Maiko scene was cheaply animated and poorly written and basically just went NEENER NEENER and was so contrived and...like, I'm still waiting for someone to go SURPRISE JUST KIDDING. I mean...it was just a poor scene, animation/dialogue/emotion/everything-wise. It was just so bad. It was like "lol here's Mai, who we haven't seen for six episodes, and suddenly everything is A-OKAY WITH EVERYONE" and it's like "what the fuck are you doing here did you miss the part where he TOOK FUCKING LIGHTNING IN THE CHEST FOR HER?" And even that aside, Mai and Zuko have serious issues, issues that can't be resolved just by her saving his life (unless you count "making out like the horny beasties that teenagers are" as resolution), issues that certainly can't be resolved in thirty-seconds of some of the crappiest animation I've seen in the whole series. The whole scene just looks off--the colors are icky and the dialogue is like LOL TWU WUV AMIRITE and it's a fucking slap to the face. And I don't say that lightly, because I have put up with a hell of a lot of shipbaiting and fan service because I thought that Zutara at least had enough of a chance to get a respectful disproving and not a garish smackdown.
Meanwhile, Kataang is just wrong, because he's only twelve, and while Aang likes Katara a lot I'm still not convinced she liked him back, or at least not to the passionate-makey-outy point that they apparently reached by the end. And just...it never occurred to me. Never. I just--no.
And so now I have this broken heart and this confused head and the detached part of me is thinking "what the hell is wrong with you?" and the rest of me is thinking Avatar is over...and Zutara will never happen on-screen. And no amount of fanfiction is going to change that. And Mike and Bryan are amazing storytellers and I am so thankful to them for this series
and I am so thankful for Zutara, because honestly kiddos, I got a livejournal because I wanted people to read my fanfiction, and I have had the time of my life even while stressing out about spoilers and stupid scheduling, and I never in a million years dreamed I would be this sucked into the whole fandom thing when I first sat down on my grandparents' couch to watch a Thanksgiving Day marathon of a show that had looked like just another Nick cartoon but was, in fact, one of the coolest things I'd seen on TV in a very, very long time
but I am also, at the end of the day, broken-hearted, for a myriad of reasons, and I hate the fact that I'm so upset.
to end on a positive note: thank you Quark, for putting up with my moping and for betaing my fic, and I'm not actually happy that you're happy but I want to be happy for you, does that count?
And sitting in my living room, yelling Katara's opening speech at the top of our lungs...
I believe Aang can save the world.
And in the end, he did.
And that's what really matters.
:-)