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This is probably going to be my last post on Avatar for a while, but after reading all the reviews about how disjointed the movie adaptation was and the utter crappiness of the script, I got to thinking about how I would adapt the season if I were writing it... (Because this is the kind of puzzle that bugs me. And the problem popped into my head and just wouldn't go away. :P)
Basic rundown of episodes --
Instant nix: 11 (The Great Divide), 14 (The Fortuneteller)... probably 15 (Bato of the Water Tribe), as much as I like that episode.
Must-haves (important milestones): 1-3 (Boy in the Iceberg, Southern Air Temple), 7-8 (Winter Solstice), 12-13 (The Storm, The Spirit), 18-20 (The Waterbending Master, The Siege of the North).
Transitioning side stories (compressable): 4-6 (Warriors of Kyoshi, The King of Omashu, Imprisoned -- imo these three episodes should be combined with some fudging into a single miniarc), 9-10 & 16 (Waterbending Scroll, Jet, The Deserter -- again, should be combined, with emphasis on 10/16 and minor elements from 9), 17 (Northern Air Temple -- probably needs to be cut, but personally I'd try to work in cameos during the final climactic arc)
Soooo we'd start out with a very compressed 1-3.
- Katara's voice-over prologue. Maybe. I could do with or without. I think including it would be a nice touch though, and it only takes what, 1 minute? (I checked. And for the record I'm talking about that first voiceover including the 30 second backstory, not the subsequent ones.)
- Katara/Sokka argue and end up finding/releasing Aang in the process.
- introducing.... Zuko & uncle! (up to here can be done in 5 minutes or less. in the episode it's a little bit closer to 6 minutes. If you leave just the important bits, probably 3-4 minutes is enough though.)
- after introductions all around and brief "meet the village" (including Katara's realization of Aang's true identity) -- penguin-sledding! (because it is totally necessary to the plot XD)
- which leads to the accidental signal flare from the abandoned ship and then to the attack on the village!
- they escape to Southern Air Temple!
- Zuko follows them. Aaaand introducing... Zhao!
- quick Gyatso flashback, including young!Bumi over on a visit or something (fudging)
- Momo, Gyatso, statues, Agni Kai, etc. While looking at the statues, start setting up for the next arc (talking to Roku) a little earlier than the series does it.
At this point we'd be 40 minutes into the movie or so? (Most of episode 1 compressed into a 10-15 minute intro, maybe 10-15 for the attack sequence, 15ish for Southern Air Temple) So yeah, let's say 40 minutes, with main characters/relationships/motives all introduced, and initial plot goals set in place.
Total time passed: 40 minutes
Then an even more compressed eps 4-6.
- They stop by Kyoshi Island on the way to Omashu (with maybe an offhand reference to "an old friend" of Aang's). Introduce the Warriors, some Suki/Sokka flirting. Witness Haru (from one of the villages on the island) being taken away to the metal prison. Alternatively, the Warriors ask for help regarding the prison and we see Haru in flashback or something. events ensue more or less as in series with Katara and her speeches (cut shorter though XD), except with the Kyoshi Warriors helping out in the final takeover. Zuko joins in at the last minute, necessitating Gaang's quick departure to draw him away; Katara loses her necklace, which Zuko picks up. This is about 20 minutes. (imo this is doable without rushing. It's just combining the two episodes into a single episode, essentially.)
- They head to Omashu, witness epic postal service (shouldn't take more than a minute at most), meet Bumi who gives Aang a spirit world test instead of the three trials (but still via suitably crazy methodology), Aang meets Fang, etc. Afterwards Aang recognizes Bumi as in series, happy reunion, blah blah, they set off for Roku's temple. This is maybe 15 minutes? 20 minutes if necessary.
- Roku's temple sequence can be pretty much done in 20 minutes, probably faster if we streamline the original episode (which was itself about 20 minutes) by perhaps cutting the one remaining loyal sage and letting Sokka figure something out instead (while cutting his later failed explosives plan). Also, stick in end of the brief necklace subplot here, and intersperse brief Zuko flashbacks during his pursuit, i.e. after Iroh reminds him about his exile. (This is the better place to put Zuko backstory for the movie imo, considering pacing issues and the inability to replicate the Aang/Zuko parallel in The Storm.)
Total time passed: around 95 minutes, give or take a few. (just over 1.5 hours.)
- They escape, yet again, into a storm, as Zuko follows. Ensue Aangst and flashbacks. (no need to be that long -- 3-5 minutes.) While taking shelter from the storm, Gaang stumbles upon a Fire Nation camp. Katara notices a waterbending scroll among the loot and steals it, they get caught, Jet&co. save their asses as in the show. 5-10 minutes.
- cue altered/simplified version of village flooding plot... As it turns out, Jeong Jeong happens to be hiding in that very village, so intercut a shortened version of the Jeong Jeong subplot. Roku and Zhao show up again as in series. Aang manipulates Zhao into burning down his own ships but is ultimately captured by Zhao's archers. Meanwhile, Sokka and Katara are caught up dealing with Jet/village from the other end, so can't go after Aang immediately. 15-20 minutes.
- Cue Blue Spirit sequence, which is about 10-15 minutes if we cut away all the "filler" from that episode. The Zuko twist is rendered more effective (maybe?) since we haven't seen him on screen for a while at this point. Aang reunites with Sokka & Katara afterwards.
Total time passed: about 135 minutes. (2.25 hours)
- Gaang finally makes it to NWT. Yue and Sokka hit it off (with good writing/acting, you don't even need to spend more than maybe 1 minute at most on this as long as you include little moments throughout the rest of the movie: frex see the Indiana Jones movies, instant chemistry XD) -- and here I think we need to bypass Yue's father and let Yue, as the princess, just immediately introduce them to Pakku without any ceremonial stuff. But oh noes, Pakku refuses! Katara vs. Pakku fight (which takes exactly 2 minutes in the original episode! yeah I checked!) ends in his agreement to teach both her and Aang (plus revelation about Kanna -- bringing the necklace briefly back into play). No need to see the actual lessons. Also, Zhao separates Iroh and Zuko. This is all 10-15 minutes tops, and yeah, this necessitates a bit of rushing for the Zuko stuff. I'd cut it down essentially to just Zhao/Iroh/Zuko confrontation and then as Iroh leaves with Zhao, ship with abandoned Zuko goes kaboom (or so we think), Iroh is devastated but manages to put on a face before Zhao (Zhao spouts off some sort of excuse like "oh dear what a terrible accident").
- Ash signals the arrival of fire nation in another Yue/Sokka scene. The rest follows the series finale more or less (including KOH because that is one of the creepiest/best parts, period), except maybe slightly streamlined (cut Han entirely and boil down the whole Yue/Sokka "we can't be together" subplot to maybe just a brief mention and/or brief reaction glimpses during the Pakku stuff earlier; most of the pre-battle mission briefing stuff can go; the spirit world trip could probably be shortened slightly too), and including a cameo from Teo & the machinists who've taken over the Northern Air Temple participating in the battle against the FN navy (even just one line referencing the takeover & a glimpse would do!). All in all, another 30 minutes or so. (roughly 10 minutes from the first half of the finale and then the second half of the finale more or less in its entirety.)
Total time passed: 175-180 minutes.
We end up with a movie just shy of three hours, about the same length as the theatrical release of Fellowship of the Rings (178 min.). And sure, my sense of timing is horrid so some of what I have is probably rushed, but keep in mind that's also with me stuffing in as much as possible -- personally, I wouldn't mind cutting out Jet and just introducing him as a new character when he shows up again next movie, for instance, and tbh, much as I dislike cutting them, I think Kyoshi Island & Haru could go as well. At least for the theatrical release, in case 3 hours is "too long" for what technically ought to be a kids' movie. (For comparison, the first Narnia was 2.25 hours, and the first Harry Potter was 2.5 hours. In fact none of the HP movies to this date are much longer than 160 minutes at most, i.e. 2.67 hours if I'm doing my math right. And Indiana Jones: The Last Crusade*, which imo manages a similar balance of plot/action/vivid characterization with a similarly lighthearted-but-not-shallow tone, clocks in at about 2.25 hours as well. Raiders of the Lost Ark is just under 2 hours. Star Wars: A New Hope, another good point of comparison, is just over 2 hours, as is The Empire Strikes Back. Return of the Jedi is a little longer at 2.25 hours.) Cutting out Jet and/or Haru/Kyoshi Island while giving a little more breathing space to the other scenes would leave the movie somewhere in that 2 - 2.5 hour range, and then you can stick 'em back in for the DVD release.
* Indy is on my mind since I've been rewatching the movies recently, but I really think they would be a good model for the Avatar movies. (EARTH TO PARAMOUNT and fucking Frank Marshall. -_-) (Of course, the Indy movies have their own race issues, but they are undeniably good entertainment/moviemaking.) I was actually pretty surprised to realize how quickly the "story beats" pass by in those movies without ever feeling rushed. Bam bam bam, with extensive action choreography in between. And quite a lot happens, actually, especially in Crusade and Raiders (within the first uh, 50 minutes I think, Indy gets outfoxed by Belloq, gets a new govt-related job pursuing the ark, reunites with Marion, loses Marion, has another confrontation with Belloq, finds the true location of the ark, finds Marion again....) In contrast, Crystal Skull is a few minutes shorter than Crusade, but actually feels longer and as if not as much happens. That's just in comparison though; Crystal Skull is still pretty good at this all things considered.
IMO Katara is at the heart of the first season. Of all the main characters, she and Zuko are the ones really driving the plot. (Season one is, in a way, Katara's hero's journey moreso than Aang's. Aang's journey is longer, narrative-wise, so the first season really is mostly the wakeup call/going past the threshold part for him.) This becomes especially obvious when you condense the season to its main plot points (quite a few are instigated by Katara or involve her prominently). It's telling in particular that one of the major finale standoffs is Zuko vs. Katara. i.e. Movie!Katara ought to have just as big of a role as movie!Hermione in Azkaban, if not bigger.
I actually think the series is a lot easier to compress than one might think; it's not really 20 half-hour episodes (10 hours), but rather closer to 20 * 20 min. = 400 minutes (not quite seven hours). (my files clock in at 22-23 minutes, but anywhere from 1-3 minutes are spent on the opening narration and "Previously on Avatar...") Cut out the two "filler" episodes and you get 360 (six hours). Consider that each episode spends about 5 minutes on jokes/comic relief (one can cut jokes without completely depriving a movie of all its joy/humor) and 5 minutes on set-up/closing scenes (most of which would be unnecessary in a movie), and you can slice that number in half again to 180 minutes (three hours), and just cut/compress some more from there.
Even being conservative with the estimates and say each episode is solidly 15 minutes, we have 20*15 = 300 min. (five hours). Cut the filler episodes as well as episode 15 and episode 17 (4*15=60), and we're left with 240 minutes (4 hours, just 20 minutes longer than Fellowship extended). What you're left with isn't exactly a nightmare to handle, especially when given the episodic style of the series you're going to HAVE to smush episodes together anyway.
(It's actually pretty amazing how much can be stuffed into 20 minutes.)
Alternatively, you can look at it this way and slice the season into beginning/middle/end:
1. Beginning: 40 minutes. (Introduction to characters/basic plot/motivations/etc.)
2. Middle: 40 minutes. (Major goals: Talking to Roku/intro to spirit world.)
3. End: 40 minutes (The final showdown).
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120 minutes. (which is a generous figure and based entirely on the double episode arcs, i.e. 1-2, 7-8, 19-20, which are all 40-45 minutes each. If that's still "too long", 30*3=90 minutes, and you still end up with a more coherent plot than Shyamalan's 103 minute disaster.) And then you just flesh out what comes in between and/or weave story elements into those important milestones, i.e. building around these three key points.
A live action movie would be MORE than doable, in other words.
If only the people behind it gave a damn.
Now that I've spent way too much time on thinking this out though, I'd better get back to my own work. -_-
Basic rundown of episodes --
Instant nix: 11 (The Great Divide), 14 (The Fortuneteller)... probably 15 (Bato of the Water Tribe), as much as I like that episode.
Must-haves (important milestones): 1-3 (Boy in the Iceberg, Southern Air Temple), 7-8 (Winter Solstice), 12-13 (The Storm, The Spirit), 18-20 (The Waterbending Master, The Siege of the North).
Transitioning side stories (compressable): 4-6 (Warriors of Kyoshi, The King of Omashu, Imprisoned -- imo these three episodes should be combined with some fudging into a single miniarc), 9-10 & 16 (Waterbending Scroll, Jet, The Deserter -- again, should be combined, with emphasis on 10/16 and minor elements from 9), 17 (Northern Air Temple -- probably needs to be cut, but personally I'd try to work in cameos during the final climactic arc)
Soooo we'd start out with a very compressed 1-3.
- Katara's voice-over prologue. Maybe. I could do with or without. I think including it would be a nice touch though, and it only takes what, 1 minute? (I checked. And for the record I'm talking about that first voiceover including the 30 second backstory, not the subsequent ones.)
- Katara/Sokka argue and end up finding/releasing Aang in the process.
- introducing.... Zuko & uncle! (up to here can be done in 5 minutes or less. in the episode it's a little bit closer to 6 minutes. If you leave just the important bits, probably 3-4 minutes is enough though.)
- after introductions all around and brief "meet the village" (including Katara's realization of Aang's true identity) -- penguin-sledding! (because it is totally necessary to the plot XD)
- which leads to the accidental signal flare from the abandoned ship and then to the attack on the village!
- they escape to Southern Air Temple!
- Zuko follows them. Aaaand introducing... Zhao!
- quick Gyatso flashback, including young!Bumi over on a visit or something (fudging)
- Momo, Gyatso, statues, Agni Kai, etc. While looking at the statues, start setting up for the next arc (talking to Roku) a little earlier than the series does it.
At this point we'd be 40 minutes into the movie or so? (Most of episode 1 compressed into a 10-15 minute intro, maybe 10-15 for the attack sequence, 15ish for Southern Air Temple) So yeah, let's say 40 minutes, with main characters/relationships/motives all introduced, and initial plot goals set in place.
Total time passed: 40 minutes
Then an even more compressed eps 4-6.
- They stop by Kyoshi Island on the way to Omashu (with maybe an offhand reference to "an old friend" of Aang's). Introduce the Warriors, some Suki/Sokka flirting. Witness Haru (from one of the villages on the island) being taken away to the metal prison. Alternatively, the Warriors ask for help regarding the prison and we see Haru in flashback or something. events ensue more or less as in series with Katara and her speeches (cut shorter though XD), except with the Kyoshi Warriors helping out in the final takeover. Zuko joins in at the last minute, necessitating Gaang's quick departure to draw him away; Katara loses her necklace, which Zuko picks up. This is about 20 minutes. (imo this is doable without rushing. It's just combining the two episodes into a single episode, essentially.)
- They head to Omashu, witness epic postal service (shouldn't take more than a minute at most), meet Bumi who gives Aang a spirit world test instead of the three trials (but still via suitably crazy methodology), Aang meets Fang, etc. Afterwards Aang recognizes Bumi as in series, happy reunion, blah blah, they set off for Roku's temple. This is maybe 15 minutes? 20 minutes if necessary.
- Roku's temple sequence can be pretty much done in 20 minutes, probably faster if we streamline the original episode (which was itself about 20 minutes) by perhaps cutting the one remaining loyal sage and letting Sokka figure something out instead (while cutting his later failed explosives plan). Also, stick in end of the brief necklace subplot here, and intersperse brief Zuko flashbacks during his pursuit, i.e. after Iroh reminds him about his exile. (This is the better place to put Zuko backstory for the movie imo, considering pacing issues and the inability to replicate the Aang/Zuko parallel in The Storm.)
Total time passed: around 95 minutes, give or take a few. (just over 1.5 hours.)
- They escape, yet again, into a storm, as Zuko follows. Ensue Aangst and flashbacks. (no need to be that long -- 3-5 minutes.) While taking shelter from the storm, Gaang stumbles upon a Fire Nation camp. Katara notices a waterbending scroll among the loot and steals it, they get caught, Jet&co. save their asses as in the show. 5-10 minutes.
- cue altered/simplified version of village flooding plot... As it turns out, Jeong Jeong happens to be hiding in that very village, so intercut a shortened version of the Jeong Jeong subplot. Roku and Zhao show up again as in series. Aang manipulates Zhao into burning down his own ships but is ultimately captured by Zhao's archers. Meanwhile, Sokka and Katara are caught up dealing with Jet/village from the other end, so can't go after Aang immediately. 15-20 minutes.
- Cue Blue Spirit sequence, which is about 10-15 minutes if we cut away all the "filler" from that episode. The Zuko twist is rendered more effective (maybe?) since we haven't seen him on screen for a while at this point. Aang reunites with Sokka & Katara afterwards.
Total time passed: about 135 minutes. (2.25 hours)
- Gaang finally makes it to NWT. Yue and Sokka hit it off (with good writing/acting, you don't even need to spend more than maybe 1 minute at most on this as long as you include little moments throughout the rest of the movie: frex see the Indiana Jones movies, instant chemistry XD) -- and here I think we need to bypass Yue's father and let Yue, as the princess, just immediately introduce them to Pakku without any ceremonial stuff. But oh noes, Pakku refuses! Katara vs. Pakku fight (which takes exactly 2 minutes in the original episode! yeah I checked!) ends in his agreement to teach both her and Aang (plus revelation about Kanna -- bringing the necklace briefly back into play). No need to see the actual lessons. Also, Zhao separates Iroh and Zuko. This is all 10-15 minutes tops, and yeah, this necessitates a bit of rushing for the Zuko stuff. I'd cut it down essentially to just Zhao/Iroh/Zuko confrontation and then as Iroh leaves with Zhao, ship with abandoned Zuko goes kaboom (or so we think), Iroh is devastated but manages to put on a face before Zhao (Zhao spouts off some sort of excuse like "oh dear what a terrible accident").
- Ash signals the arrival of fire nation in another Yue/Sokka scene. The rest follows the series finale more or less (including KOH because that is one of the creepiest/best parts, period), except maybe slightly streamlined (cut Han entirely and boil down the whole Yue/Sokka "we can't be together" subplot to maybe just a brief mention and/or brief reaction glimpses during the Pakku stuff earlier; most of the pre-battle mission briefing stuff can go; the spirit world trip could probably be shortened slightly too), and including a cameo from Teo & the machinists who've taken over the Northern Air Temple participating in the battle against the FN navy (even just one line referencing the takeover & a glimpse would do!). All in all, another 30 minutes or so. (roughly 10 minutes from the first half of the finale and then the second half of the finale more or less in its entirety.)
Total time passed: 175-180 minutes.
We end up with a movie just shy of three hours, about the same length as the theatrical release of Fellowship of the Rings (178 min.). And sure, my sense of timing is horrid so some of what I have is probably rushed, but keep in mind that's also with me stuffing in as much as possible -- personally, I wouldn't mind cutting out Jet and just introducing him as a new character when he shows up again next movie, for instance, and tbh, much as I dislike cutting them, I think Kyoshi Island & Haru could go as well. At least for the theatrical release, in case 3 hours is "too long" for what technically ought to be a kids' movie. (For comparison, the first Narnia was 2.25 hours, and the first Harry Potter was 2.5 hours. In fact none of the HP movies to this date are much longer than 160 minutes at most, i.e. 2.67 hours if I'm doing my math right. And Indiana Jones: The Last Crusade*, which imo manages a similar balance of plot/action/vivid characterization with a similarly lighthearted-but-not-shallow tone, clocks in at about 2.25 hours as well. Raiders of the Lost Ark is just under 2 hours. Star Wars: A New Hope, another good point of comparison, is just over 2 hours, as is The Empire Strikes Back. Return of the Jedi is a little longer at 2.25 hours.) Cutting out Jet and/or Haru/Kyoshi Island while giving a little more breathing space to the other scenes would leave the movie somewhere in that 2 - 2.5 hour range, and then you can stick 'em back in for the DVD release.
* Indy is on my mind since I've been rewatching the movies recently, but I really think they would be a good model for the Avatar movies. (EARTH TO PARAMOUNT and fucking Frank Marshall. -_-) (Of course, the Indy movies have their own race issues, but they are undeniably good entertainment/moviemaking.) I was actually pretty surprised to realize how quickly the "story beats" pass by in those movies without ever feeling rushed. Bam bam bam, with extensive action choreography in between. And quite a lot happens, actually, especially in Crusade and Raiders (within the first uh, 50 minutes I think, Indy gets outfoxed by Belloq, gets a new govt-related job pursuing the ark, reunites with Marion, loses Marion, has another confrontation with Belloq, finds the true location of the ark, finds Marion again....) In contrast, Crystal Skull is a few minutes shorter than Crusade, but actually feels longer and as if not as much happens. That's just in comparison though; Crystal Skull is still pretty good at this all things considered.
IMO Katara is at the heart of the first season. Of all the main characters, she and Zuko are the ones really driving the plot. (Season one is, in a way, Katara's hero's journey moreso than Aang's. Aang's journey is longer, narrative-wise, so the first season really is mostly the wakeup call/going past the threshold part for him.) This becomes especially obvious when you condense the season to its main plot points (quite a few are instigated by Katara or involve her prominently). It's telling in particular that one of the major finale standoffs is Zuko vs. Katara. i.e. Movie!Katara ought to have just as big of a role as movie!Hermione in Azkaban, if not bigger.
I actually think the series is a lot easier to compress than one might think; it's not really 20 half-hour episodes (10 hours), but rather closer to 20 * 20 min. = 400 minutes (not quite seven hours). (my files clock in at 22-23 minutes, but anywhere from 1-3 minutes are spent on the opening narration and "Previously on Avatar...") Cut out the two "filler" episodes and you get 360 (six hours). Consider that each episode spends about 5 minutes on jokes/comic relief (one can cut jokes without completely depriving a movie of all its joy/humor) and 5 minutes on set-up/closing scenes (most of which would be unnecessary in a movie), and you can slice that number in half again to 180 minutes (three hours), and just cut/compress some more from there.
Even being conservative with the estimates and say each episode is solidly 15 minutes, we have 20*15 = 300 min. (five hours). Cut the filler episodes as well as episode 15 and episode 17 (4*15=60), and we're left with 240 minutes (4 hours, just 20 minutes longer than Fellowship extended). What you're left with isn't exactly a nightmare to handle, especially when given the episodic style of the series you're going to HAVE to smush episodes together anyway.
(It's actually pretty amazing how much can be stuffed into 20 minutes.)
Alternatively, you can look at it this way and slice the season into beginning/middle/end:
1. Beginning: 40 minutes. (Introduction to characters/basic plot/motivations/etc.)
2. Middle: 40 minutes. (Major goals: Talking to Roku/intro to spirit world.)
3. End: 40 minutes (The final showdown).
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
120 minutes. (which is a generous figure and based entirely on the double episode arcs, i.e. 1-2, 7-8, 19-20, which are all 40-45 minutes each. If that's still "too long", 30*3=90 minutes, and you still end up with a more coherent plot than Shyamalan's 103 minute disaster.) And then you just flesh out what comes in between and/or weave story elements into those important milestones, i.e. building around these three key points.
A live action movie would be MORE than doable, in other words.
If only the people behind it gave a damn.
Now that I've spent way too much time on thinking this out though, I'd better get back to my own work. -_-