Countdown to the Comet!
Okay, today's the last day before the last Avatar--wah! So I'm watching Ember Island Players, of course, and since this is a reflective ep before the last movie, let's reflect.
How clever is the show for using this ep to not only do a recap of everything but essentially give the kids a way to face themselves and wonder just how they expect to defeat the Fire Lord? It was especially significant given last night's ep ending with Zuko's one question to Aang. In that ep Aang had been in a very comfortable place, showing how the lessons he was taught as a kid by the air benders, the ones by which he's always lived, are correct: violence is never the answer. But then...how exactly do you expect to defeat the Fire Lord knowing all those air bender sages *didn't* find a way. They're extinct. And their martial art was pretty much all defensive as Fire is all offensive.
The Aang/Zuko contrast was, as usual, cool. I say Aang/Zuko contrast because the two of them were the most upset about the play, only for the opposite reasons. There were no surprises in the play for Zuko (well, except that apparently Jet died after being dragged away from the tea shop and that some people ship him and Katara--those were pretty big surprises). But even with his token protest in the beginning about being stiff and humorless, he pretty much knew the play didn't have to twist him around to make him look ridiculous. He's accepted the mistakes (and he's not cutting his hair no matter how much it is mocked with foofy wigs!) already. He was just squirming at having them shoved in his face again, he'd given up trying to defend them.
Not that that made his rejection of Iroh any less painful. "You smell bad and I hate you forever." "You didn't actually say that to him, did you?" "I might as well have." Wah! Zuko must see Iroh again. Sure Toph's right in saying that Zuko has redeemed himself in Iroh's eyes by joining them no matter whether he ever sees him again, but I think that scene brought home to Zuko even more that it *wasn't* just about making Iroh proud, but about giving him some love after hurting his feelings. As I said elsewhere, a truck full of golden retrievers couldn't give Iroh as much loving as Zuko's going to want to give him if he sees him again. Iroh would never ask for it, but I think that's because it seems like too much to hope for. We love you Iroh!
Anyway, so Aang. Aang's more complicated because in a way he actually hasn't hit that level of development yet. It seems weird to say because Aang's in some ways so beyond Zuko--especially he was last week--but he’s still managed to avoid some things about himself. The basic problem in the play was that he was seeing himself being portrayed as impotent and asexual. He was childish (hence being played by a woman).
Only the thing is, he is childish. Half the time that's what he wants. In WAT he's back to flying around the temple trying to not hear Katara scolding him to sit down and be serious. So the poor guy's caught between wanting to be a regular kid, being scared of the responsibility of what he really is. But then he's got this crush on Katara that for the first time makes him want to grow up and it might not be fast enough.
In FBM I noticed when I re-watched it how when they're flying to the temple Zuko is impatient and grumpy while Aang cheerfully tells him he should have a positive attitude. Once they get to the temple and Zuko senses there's something to be found there it's *Aang* who gets negative because maybe he fears what they might find there. That's when Zuko, much happier now, throws back the positive attitude line. Which makes the point that Aang, being all air bender, much prefers to put things off, to avoid conflict and danger. With Katara he doesn't mind letting her be mothering to him. Aang’s happier with the fight being a ways off. Zuko comes more alive when he’s going to meet the fight.
But in the play Aang’s suddenly hit with that in exaggeration. At the moment when it matters most that he be taken seriously he's not. It doesn't bother him quite the same way to not be taken seriously as the Avatar in the play--after all, this is a Fire Nation group and while Aang has insecurities about his abilities, especially his fire bending abilities, they're out in the open. It's with Katara where it suddenly matters that he's not taken seriously. Like if he fails or gets killed by Ozai she might never see him at all the way he wants her to see him.
And he doesn't even know how to fix that. He tries to push it by kissing her, which is maybe kind of aggressive so could work, but she doesn't melt into his arms, she just says, WTF, I just said I was confused! He doesn't have the fire he needs. When he insists (hilariously) that he is NOT A WOMAN in the play, the implication is, of course, that he is...what? He doesn't want to say a boy, because that could mean a little boy. But he can't say he's a man. Yet.
How clever is the show for using this ep to not only do a recap of everything but essentially give the kids a way to face themselves and wonder just how they expect to defeat the Fire Lord? It was especially significant given last night's ep ending with Zuko's one question to Aang. In that ep Aang had been in a very comfortable place, showing how the lessons he was taught as a kid by the air benders, the ones by which he's always lived, are correct: violence is never the answer. But then...how exactly do you expect to defeat the Fire Lord knowing all those air bender sages *didn't* find a way. They're extinct. And their martial art was pretty much all defensive as Fire is all offensive.
The Aang/Zuko contrast was, as usual, cool. I say Aang/Zuko contrast because the two of them were the most upset about the play, only for the opposite reasons. There were no surprises in the play for Zuko (well, except that apparently Jet died after being dragged away from the tea shop and that some people ship him and Katara--those were pretty big surprises). But even with his token protest in the beginning about being stiff and humorless, he pretty much knew the play didn't have to twist him around to make him look ridiculous. He's accepted the mistakes (and he's not cutting his hair no matter how much it is mocked with foofy wigs!) already. He was just squirming at having them shoved in his face again, he'd given up trying to defend them.
Not that that made his rejection of Iroh any less painful. "You smell bad and I hate you forever." "You didn't actually say that to him, did you?" "I might as well have." Wah! Zuko must see Iroh again. Sure Toph's right in saying that Zuko has redeemed himself in Iroh's eyes by joining them no matter whether he ever sees him again, but I think that scene brought home to Zuko even more that it *wasn't* just about making Iroh proud, but about giving him some love after hurting his feelings. As I said elsewhere, a truck full of golden retrievers couldn't give Iroh as much loving as Zuko's going to want to give him if he sees him again. Iroh would never ask for it, but I think that's because it seems like too much to hope for. We love you Iroh!
Anyway, so Aang. Aang's more complicated because in a way he actually hasn't hit that level of development yet. It seems weird to say because Aang's in some ways so beyond Zuko--especially he was last week--but he’s still managed to avoid some things about himself. The basic problem in the play was that he was seeing himself being portrayed as impotent and asexual. He was childish (hence being played by a woman).
Only the thing is, he is childish. Half the time that's what he wants. In WAT he's back to flying around the temple trying to not hear Katara scolding him to sit down and be serious. So the poor guy's caught between wanting to be a regular kid, being scared of the responsibility of what he really is. But then he's got this crush on Katara that for the first time makes him want to grow up and it might not be fast enough.
In FBM I noticed when I re-watched it how when they're flying to the temple Zuko is impatient and grumpy while Aang cheerfully tells him he should have a positive attitude. Once they get to the temple and Zuko senses there's something to be found there it's *Aang* who gets negative because maybe he fears what they might find there. That's when Zuko, much happier now, throws back the positive attitude line. Which makes the point that Aang, being all air bender, much prefers to put things off, to avoid conflict and danger. With Katara he doesn't mind letting her be mothering to him. Aang’s happier with the fight being a ways off. Zuko comes more alive when he’s going to meet the fight.
But in the play Aang’s suddenly hit with that in exaggeration. At the moment when it matters most that he be taken seriously he's not. It doesn't bother him quite the same way to not be taken seriously as the Avatar in the play--after all, this is a Fire Nation group and while Aang has insecurities about his abilities, especially his fire bending abilities, they're out in the open. It's with Katara where it suddenly matters that he's not taken seriously. Like if he fails or gets killed by Ozai she might never see him at all the way he wants her to see him.
And he doesn't even know how to fix that. He tries to push it by kissing her, which is maybe kind of aggressive so could work, but she doesn't melt into his arms, she just says, WTF, I just said I was confused! He doesn't have the fire he needs. When he insists (hilariously) that he is NOT A WOMAN in the play, the implication is, of course, that he is...what? He doesn't want to say a boy, because that could mean a little boy. But he can't say he's a man. Yet.