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Oh, fandom. Sweet fandom. I have some things to say to you! They all have something to do with Mai and her relationship with Zuko, so there's kind of a theme here.
( warning: spoilers for the first two episodes of season three. )
( warning: spoilers for the first two episodes of season three. )
Oh, yes! OH, YES. SO HOT AND AWESOME. But fandom has informed me that when Iroh interrupts Zuko's anguish to discuss tea, it is a gentle means of distracting him from aforementioned anguish; when Mai interrupts Zuko's anguish to tease him, it is because she is a heartless golddigger and/or whore. Apparently. I want Mai and Uncle Iroh to get together and mock Zuko over tea.
The creators have actually gone out of their way on a number of occasions to say that they don't and won't cater to 'shipping contingents, that certain relationships are not and will not be canon, and so forth. They specifically said that the infamous cave scene in Crossroads of Destiny was not a romantic scene and as revealed in 03x03: The Awakening (which I don't know if you've seen already? So I'll try to be vague!), Katara's exchange with Zuko re: the spirit water was included as a plot point, not as foreshadowing of a romantic triangle or a concession to Zuko/Katara fans.
(Nickelodeon's advertising department, on the other hand, has been no help at all. They've gone out of their way to promote to possibility of a Zuko/Katara relationship in teasers and supplementary materials, and Nickelodeon's decision to do such does not reflect the creators' intentions or desires.)
...and, um, now I'm afraid this will sound like I'm leaping all over you! I'm not, I promise! I LOVE YOU, CHIRA. It's just there's a very popular misconception within this fandom that the creators are deliberately teasing the possibility of Zuko/Katara when they've done everything they can to discourage this impression.
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I know you're vague talking to avoid "frothing" all over the place (NICE CONTINUITY, by the way, I give two thumbs up), but I have to suck it up and admit I'm not entirely certain what you're referring to when you say unnecessary romantic notions. I PROMISE I WILL NOT STAB YOU FOR ANY OPINIONS YOU EXPRESS, as that would make rooming with you at Katsucon awkward and potentially hatesexy.
(If it's regarding Aang and Katara, I will politely disagree! Acknowledging my huge and unavoidable bias right here and now -- I am Memlu and I have a huge and unavoidable bias -- I think a number of the running themes and subplots in the second season supported Aang's crisis and decision in the finale, as well as amped up the emotional value and the severity of his decision. If this is not what you are referring to, it ... is okay to stab me? On account of my frothing. And rabid shipping. I am not proud of myself.)
Also! As I rewatch season two, I am kind of uncertain re: how I feel about the Ba Sing Se storyline as a whole? ksld. I don't know how to express this without going into a huge tl;dr examination of my thoughts, and that's probably something best saved for another post, not your inbox. (Oops.)
PS Still not leaping all over you!! I don't hate you, Chira!
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(To digress, quickly, I would like to reiterate FUCKING SQUEENIX. Thanks, guys! I hope those cell-phone games won't contain any information important to the ongoing story or anything. And it is a damn good thing I already intend to purchase a PSP for Final Fantasy Tactics. why do they want my money so bad, cryyyyy)
I do feel they've shown that Aang's relationship with Katara is a crucial aspect of his story; season two in particular stressed how important she is to him and how his relationship with her feeds into his decision-making process as well as his ... emotional stability? Um. His relationship with Katara is heavily tied to the Avatar State in season two -- it's triggered when he believes she is in danger in the season premiere, and she alone brings him out of it on a number of occasions -- and it's established that she is to some degree an emotional anchor for him, as they've illustrated throughout the series, so there's a basis for the events of the finale.
(Again, though, I think it's important to note that I am heavily biased and my interpretations of (and opinions regarding) character interactions and story development will be -- and are -- skewed by my biases and expectations. Also! I completely and totally understand what you're saying, why you didn't like it, and your reasons for both, and I do not feel you need to agree with me nor do I feel that you are zomg wrong. I want to stress, again, that I was and am super-ridiculously-kind-of-mortifyingly-happy that you have shared this with me!)
THAT SAID. I definitely agree re: how the chakra sequence was handled as a whole, and I wish I could contribute more, but I just ... agree entirely? THIS IS A DELICATE PROCESS WHICH REQUIRES GREAT CARE AND STILLNESS OF MIND. I'm thinking three, maybe four hours should be enough time to cleanse your spirit of all worldly concerns and emotional trauma, then master a highly volatile state of being you are currently completely incapable of controlling.
"OMG THIS CITY IS FUCKING INSANE" "What do we do?" "...I dunno, hang out and be a tourist for a month?"
HAHAHAHAHA. CHIRA. You just saved me from crafting a needlessly tl;dr post! THAT IS IT EXACTLY. (As much as I love The Tales of Ba Sing Se for its hilarity as well as its KNIFE, KNIFE IN MY HEART, upon watching the entire arc in one go for the first time, it ... does not help the pacing of this storyline very much, and in fact kind of knots everything up? "Hey, we're on a tight time schedule here, this city is loony, our friend is still missing and we need to speak with the Earth King now about obtaining an army to launch an assault on the Fire Nation. Let's visit a spa!")
I'm slightly more forgiving re: the stupid decisions given the mean age of Our Intrepid Heroes is thirteen (so long as we don't count Aang's additional hundred, ahaha). Like, that doesn't excuse dumb decisions on the parts of the characters (or awkward writing on the parts of the, er, writers), but it gives me something to use an excuse. *g*
kdfjklg. The Earth King is. Um. Unbearably adorable? I HOPE HE AND BOSCO RIDE BACK INTO THE SHOW (AND OUR HEARTS) VERY SOON. He is so cute! I want to feed him cookies and love him forever.
I WOULD APOLOGIZE AGAIN but probably we can go ahead and assume this is understood by now. You don't have to put out more, Chira, but if you'd like to... ♥
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And when it centered on Aang's deep lurve for Katara while juxtaposing Katara's interaction with Zuko...
I'm still not entirely certain what you're referring to! I'm sorry: this is honest confusion on my part, and I think it's stemming from very different readings of the cave scene and the ensuing confrontation in the underground catacombs and/or the intentions behind them. I don't see much of anything suggesting the possibility of a future love triangle with what we're given in Crossroads of Destiny: Zuko and Katara do have an intimate exchange on the basis of a similar loss, but it is not a romantic exchange, and the confrontation between the Fire Nation siblings and Aang and Katara in the catacombs very firmly establishes an end to whatever uneasy sympathetic truce Katara and Zuko had and reaffirms Katara's devotion to Aang (which had never faltered). Events in what we've seen of season three so far have made it very clear that Katara (who has been steadily moving toward this for the last two seasons) is reciprocating Aang's attentions and affection.
And ... hahaha, omg, Chira, I definitely just almost used this as an excuse to start picspamming again. (SEE ALSO: why point two in the original post exists. "I want to talk about Zuko and Mai kissing! With pictures!! ...wait, my first point is in response to fandom, s-shit, I GOTTA THEME THIS THING.")
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