Avatar: TLA - Book 2 (and more winter crap)
Made some progress today thanks to being snowed/iced in. :) As expected, the sun going down led to the refreezing of the roads, making them far nastier than they were earlier. Good thing I didn't head out; wherever I was, I'd be stuck. And it looks like I'm stuck tomorrow, too - little sister doesn't get off work until late afternoon, right around sundown, which means that short of spending the day at Starbucks I won't see her, and we definitely won't have a shot of making it to and from Dad's.
She has to be at work at 8 am tomorrow, which means she'll have to leave for work no later than 7. She refuses to call in because it's only her third week of work and she doesn't feel right doing that. *facedesk* Certainly in a frickin' official state of emergency she's entitled to call in without fear of hurting her job!
Anyway, back to Avatar. Not that I had any reason to doubt your comments, but true to word, book 2 definitely was an improvement over book 1. Characters are fleshed out, lines between black and white become gray, themes become richer and more complex, the mythical connotations grow more and more weighty.
-- Toph's a snarky little badass, isn't she? I love the concept of a blind Earthbender, who's honed all her other senses in lieu of her missing one.
-- The show manages to maintain an ensemble feel despite having such a large and varied cast; seldom if ever does it feel like one of them is being neglected.
-- "I'm saying I'd rather kiss you than die! It's a compliment!" LOLfacepalm. :)
-- "I know you're going to tell me I should get along with my sister." "No, she's crazy and she needs to go down." LOL, Iroh. ♥
-- On that note, Azula definitely makes a better all-out villain than her brother: unlike him, she has no compunctions about taking down any and every person who she sees as standing in her way. Nor does she have the issue of her father's acceptance occupying her thoughts/conscience. Her goal is much more clear-cut. In a season filled with shades of gray, she remains unrelentingly, unrepentantly dark.
-- Loved the touch in "Zuko Alone" of the Earth family Zuko helped turning on him when they discover he's Fire Nation - often in stories a moment like this will result in the acceptance/understanding of the reforming villain character, but in this case the darker, judgmental side of human nature wins out, condemning Zuko despite what he's risked, simply because of the powerful belief in the labels that humanity has imposed. Fire BAD! (tree pretty)
-- With things like Aang's rage-induced explosions of Avatar power, the redemptive arcs of Zuko/Iroh, the repeated judging of them by other characters due to their Fire status, and the creepy atmosphere of Ba Sing Se and the Dai Li (sp?), the lines between good and bad become much more nebulous. Of course, given that the dominant theme of this series is unity, that all things are similar/connected despite the definitions/boundaries we impose (the divided nations, Ba Sing Se's walls, etc.), that's not surprising.
-- Another Zuko/Katara showdown. Except this time, we see the hints of a possible conciliation between Fire and Water, the realization that they're really not that different after all. It furthers what I think the resolution of the last book will entail. I certainly don't think it's coincidental that in the main group of heroes we currently have separate representatives/Masters of three of the four main elements - it'll only be once Fire (Zuko) is brought into the fold that they'll be able to succeed in their quest.
-- Feeling much more the significance of Aang, the last Airbender - the last of the nation the Fire Nation tried to destroy - being the one being who can unite all four elements/nations: try as Fire does to destroy Air, Air still survives, and it's only through Air's survival that the world will be united. The war will not be won by Fire destroying/conquering the others, or by Aang and Co. destroying Fire; it can't be done.
-- Zuko and Azula "united." Yeah, that'll go well. With this facade of unity, I'm even more interested to see the parallels between this sibling duo and the Water sibling duo. We already see that while Sokka/Katara have genuine disagreements (as well as typical trivial sibling ones), there's no malice or manipulation coloring their interactions with each other, that there is genuine love there - the exact opposite of Zuko/Azula.
-- Also makes sense on a symbolic level that a Water/Fire conflict (opposing elements - season 1 finale) manifests in the two trying to destroy each other, while an Earth/Fire conflict (sister elements - season 2 finale) results in a merging of the two... oh, hey, Zuko/Azula parallel, warring sibling elements seemingly combining.
-- Major SW/Anakin vibes with the whole "giving up personal attachment for the greater good" thing, and particularly Aang's struggle with it re: Katara. Like Anakin, Aang initially says "fuck that, I choose the one I love," but unlike Anakin, Aang is eventually able to put his attachment to her aside for the sake of saving others. (I don't doubt that the contrast has been noticed by the Avatar alumni currently working on TCW.)
-- I was actually moved to eyes watering a couple of times during the "missing Appa" arc. For a creature who only vocalizes growls and grunts, you still feel how intensely Appa misses Aang. And how Momo misses Appa, for that matter.
-- Regardless of whether you ship them or not, Katara/Aang had some beautiful and powerful moments - which I can see people interpreting either as shippy, or as Katara taking a sister/mother role for him. I particularly loved the moment in the desert where Aang loses control through his anger over Appa's loss, yet Katara sticks with him and brings him back "down to earth;" I was very much reminded of the Xander/Dark!Willow face-off at the end of Buffy season 6, one of the greatest moments in that series.
-- "And with the touch of Katara's hand on Zuko's forehead - albeit interrupted - a great war within the mighty fandom had truly enflamed." So far I really enjoy the mythical/symbolic connotations of both Katara/Aang and Katara/Zuko, so it's definitely good I missed the wars!
-- While I loved the season 1 finale, I like that the confrontation in this finale was centered more on the personal struggles of the characters than on a big epic battle.
On to book 3! Kind of depressing to think I only have one book left, but at least at that point I'll be able to jump into the fic/icon world.
She has to be at work at 8 am tomorrow, which means she'll have to leave for work no later than 7. She refuses to call in because it's only her third week of work and she doesn't feel right doing that. *facedesk* Certainly in a frickin' official state of emergency she's entitled to call in without fear of hurting her job!
Anyway, back to Avatar. Not that I had any reason to doubt your comments, but true to word, book 2 definitely was an improvement over book 1. Characters are fleshed out, lines between black and white become gray, themes become richer and more complex, the mythical connotations grow more and more weighty.
-- Toph's a snarky little badass, isn't she? I love the concept of a blind Earthbender, who's honed all her other senses in lieu of her missing one.
-- The show manages to maintain an ensemble feel despite having such a large and varied cast; seldom if ever does it feel like one of them is being neglected.
-- "I'm saying I'd rather kiss you than die! It's a compliment!" LOLfacepalm. :)
-- "I know you're going to tell me I should get along with my sister." "No, she's crazy and she needs to go down." LOL, Iroh. ♥
-- On that note, Azula definitely makes a better all-out villain than her brother: unlike him, she has no compunctions about taking down any and every person who she sees as standing in her way. Nor does she have the issue of her father's acceptance occupying her thoughts/conscience. Her goal is much more clear-cut. In a season filled with shades of gray, she remains unrelentingly, unrepentantly dark.
-- Loved the touch in "Zuko Alone" of the Earth family Zuko helped turning on him when they discover he's Fire Nation - often in stories a moment like this will result in the acceptance/understanding of the reforming villain character, but in this case the darker, judgmental side of human nature wins out, condemning Zuko despite what he's risked, simply because of the powerful belief in the labels that humanity has imposed. Fire BAD! (tree pretty)
-- With things like Aang's rage-induced explosions of Avatar power, the redemptive arcs of Zuko/Iroh, the repeated judging of them by other characters due to their Fire status, and the creepy atmosphere of Ba Sing Se and the Dai Li (sp?), the lines between good and bad become much more nebulous. Of course, given that the dominant theme of this series is unity, that all things are similar/connected despite the definitions/boundaries we impose (the divided nations, Ba Sing Se's walls, etc.), that's not surprising.
-- Another Zuko/Katara showdown. Except this time, we see the hints of a possible conciliation between Fire and Water, the realization that they're really not that different after all. It furthers what I think the resolution of the last book will entail. I certainly don't think it's coincidental that in the main group of heroes we currently have separate representatives/Masters of three of the four main elements - it'll only be once Fire (Zuko) is brought into the fold that they'll be able to succeed in their quest.
-- Feeling much more the significance of Aang, the last Airbender - the last of the nation the Fire Nation tried to destroy - being the one being who can unite all four elements/nations: try as Fire does to destroy Air, Air still survives, and it's only through Air's survival that the world will be united. The war will not be won by Fire destroying/conquering the others, or by Aang and Co. destroying Fire; it can't be done.
-- Zuko and Azula "united." Yeah, that'll go well. With this facade of unity, I'm even more interested to see the parallels between this sibling duo and the Water sibling duo. We already see that while Sokka/Katara have genuine disagreements (as well as typical trivial sibling ones), there's no malice or manipulation coloring their interactions with each other, that there is genuine love there - the exact opposite of Zuko/Azula.
-- Also makes sense on a symbolic level that a Water/Fire conflict (opposing elements - season 1 finale) manifests in the two trying to destroy each other, while an Earth/Fire conflict (sister elements - season 2 finale) results in a merging of the two... oh, hey, Zuko/Azula parallel, warring sibling elements seemingly combining.
-- Major SW/Anakin vibes with the whole "giving up personal attachment for the greater good" thing, and particularly Aang's struggle with it re: Katara. Like Anakin, Aang initially says "fuck that, I choose the one I love," but unlike Anakin, Aang is eventually able to put his attachment to her aside for the sake of saving others. (I don't doubt that the contrast has been noticed by the Avatar alumni currently working on TCW.)
-- I was actually moved to eyes watering a couple of times during the "missing Appa" arc. For a creature who only vocalizes growls and grunts, you still feel how intensely Appa misses Aang. And how Momo misses Appa, for that matter.
-- Regardless of whether you ship them or not, Katara/Aang had some beautiful and powerful moments - which I can see people interpreting either as shippy, or as Katara taking a sister/mother role for him. I particularly loved the moment in the desert where Aang loses control through his anger over Appa's loss, yet Katara sticks with him and brings him back "down to earth;" I was very much reminded of the Xander/Dark!Willow face-off at the end of Buffy season 6, one of the greatest moments in that series.
-- "And with the touch of Katara's hand on Zuko's forehead - albeit interrupted - a great war within the mighty fandom had truly enflamed." So far I really enjoy the mythical/symbolic connotations of both Katara/Aang and Katara/Zuko, so it's definitely good I missed the wars!
-- While I loved the season 1 finale, I like that the confrontation in this finale was centered more on the personal struggles of the characters than on a big epic battle.
On to book 3! Kind of depressing to think I only have one book left, but at least at that point I'll be able to jump into the fic/icon world.