Legend of Korra
FINALLY got to watch the Korra finale.
Wow, you guys. Just wow. I can't believe that after waiting SO LONG, it's already over. TWELVE episodes!? WHYYYYyyyyyyyyy.....*deep breath*
Anyway. I have FEELINGS. I will vomit them up as usual in no particular order.
1) You cannot compare Korra to the original Avatar. For one thing, the original was 3 seasons, always planned to be 3 seasons, and had a solid 3 season arc from the get. Korra is 1) in the future 2) dependent on a pre-established world with a few progressions and 3) plot vs character driven. Just because it was more plot driven than character driven does not make it LESSER. For me, the entire season felt like getting reacquainted with old friends through new eyes, and everything about it just made me love the originals even more. The writers let the character imprints help drive the new plot, and I personally loved that. I didn't feel like it took away from the new characters - sure, we didn't get to know them quite as thoroughly as we may have liked, they weren't nearly as fleshed out as they would be if it was over three seasons, but I felt like they were still strongly written, and very much their own people. Instead of starting blank, like with The Last Airbender, they were starting with a deep sense of history firmly established. It created a weirdly proud nostalgia that had me tearing up nearly once an episode, lol. So, yes, it is not TLA, but it is still 1) solid 2) entertaining and 3) bad ass.
2) I did feel that all of the plot 'twists' were predictable. There was nothing in the final 2 episodes I did not call. (The episode that impacted me the most was actually 1.10 and not the 2-part 11/12 combo. I liken this to SPN 4.21 being the height of the emotional impact between 4.21 and 4.22.) This didn't keep me from enjoying watching it happen, though. On the contrary, seeing Aang at the end was more than enough payoff. I don't care if I predicted it from day one, it was like HI AANG!!! HIIIII!!!!!!! *waves hands like a wild spazzy thing*
3) LIN. TENZIN. IROH. That is all.
... ok that is not all. IROOOOOOOHHHHHHHHMMG. I'm sorry, I am irrevocably, irreversibly, irreparably in love with Zuko, and the fact that Dante Basco voiced his grandson is SO AWESOME OMG. And he's a General! And he trusts Korra's instincts because Zuko would have trusted Aang! AND HE CAN FLY LIKE HOW AZULA USED TO DO AND HE CAN MAKE THE LIGHTNING AND HE THANKED THE AANG STATUE FOR HELPING HIM OUT AND HE WAS ALL ADORABLE AND OMG I JUST LOVE HIM OKAY. (Seriously - Zuko/Mai family line spin-off show. WHAR IS IT. GIVE ME IT. Like, did Zuko name his son Iroh? And Iroh is like, Iroh Jr? Or would he be Iroh the third?? Or did the REAL Iroh forbid Zuko from naming his son Iroh because that was silly and so Zuko named his son Roku, and then ROKU named his son Iroh? HOW DID WE GET HERE, I NEED TO KNOW THESE THINGS!)
4) Ok I will totally admit that I am way more in love with the descendants of all of the original cast than I am the new introductions. Although I will freely admit that in 1.10 when Mako threw lightning I SCREAMED 'YES!!1!!' at my computer screen and fistpumped straight up into the air so hard I scared the cat. And I am weirdly in lust with Asami, because DAYUM, that girl is a badass. I don't know if I want to meet her, be her, or turn gay so I can date her. IDK IDK. Just she is so freaking awesome.
5) THE TROLLING. Some people find it irritating, some people think it's insulting, blah blah WHATEVER I think it is hysterical. Troll on, Avatar writers, troll on. *golf clap*
6) THE ANIMATION. Have I mentioned yet that this show is bad ass?
7) And ... somehow this ended up being low on the list - Korra!! I like her. I love the way she is the exact opposite of Aang. I love how much trouble she had unlocking air, because it makes so much sense for her personality. (I do wish that the actual unlocking of air hadn't happened just because she was 'at her lowest' but that while she WAS 'at her lowest', she was able to embrace her destiny with peace. I feel like a key airbending lesson was sort of lost there. But that sequence gave Makko a real chance to shine and I liked that.)
8) HOW COULD I FORGET THE BROTHER FEELS. D: Omg you guys, did Nickolodeon just end a show with murder/suicide!?!?!? HOLY CRAP. Guess they decided not to be vague with the new series on if characters lived or died. O.o HOLY CRAP I SAY. Thank goodness we have happy MakkonBolin brother feels to balance out all of the death because DAYUM. DAAAAY-UM.
O.o
Aaaanyway.
Series overall rating :
If I was making a wish list for next season it would be for them to slow down and dig into the characters a little deeper for a minute before jumping into the next big bad. But for a 12 episode opener/teaser/comeback season?
*scuttles off to bed*
Wow, you guys. Just wow. I can't believe that after waiting SO LONG, it's already over. TWELVE episodes!? WHYYYYyyyyyyyyy.....*deep breath*
Anyway. I have FEELINGS. I will vomit them up as usual in no particular order.
1) You cannot compare Korra to the original Avatar. For one thing, the original was 3 seasons, always planned to be 3 seasons, and had a solid 3 season arc from the get. Korra is 1) in the future 2) dependent on a pre-established world with a few progressions and 3) plot vs character driven. Just because it was more plot driven than character driven does not make it LESSER. For me, the entire season felt like getting reacquainted with old friends through new eyes, and everything about it just made me love the originals even more. The writers let the character imprints help drive the new plot, and I personally loved that. I didn't feel like it took away from the new characters - sure, we didn't get to know them quite as thoroughly as we may have liked, they weren't nearly as fleshed out as they would be if it was over three seasons, but I felt like they were still strongly written, and very much their own people. Instead of starting blank, like with The Last Airbender, they were starting with a deep sense of history firmly established. It created a weirdly proud nostalgia that had me tearing up nearly once an episode, lol. So, yes, it is not TLA, but it is still 1) solid 2) entertaining and 3) bad ass.
2) I did feel that all of the plot 'twists' were predictable. There was nothing in the final 2 episodes I did not call. (The episode that impacted me the most was actually 1.10 and not the 2-part 11/12 combo. I liken this to SPN 4.21 being the height of the emotional impact between 4.21 and 4.22.) This didn't keep me from enjoying watching it happen, though. On the contrary, seeing Aang at the end was more than enough payoff. I don't care if I predicted it from day one, it was like HI AANG!!! HIIIII!!!!!!! *waves hands like a wild spazzy thing*
3) LIN. TENZIN. IROH. That is all.
... ok that is not all. IROOOOOOOHHHHHHHHMMG. I'm sorry, I am irrevocably, irreversibly, irreparably in love with Zuko, and the fact that Dante Basco voiced his grandson is SO AWESOME OMG. And he's a General! And he trusts Korra's instincts because Zuko would have trusted Aang! AND HE CAN FLY LIKE HOW AZULA USED TO DO AND HE CAN MAKE THE LIGHTNING AND HE THANKED THE AANG STATUE FOR HELPING HIM OUT AND HE WAS ALL ADORABLE AND OMG I JUST LOVE HIM OKAY. (Seriously - Zuko/Mai family line spin-off show. WHAR IS IT. GIVE ME IT. Like, did Zuko name his son Iroh? And Iroh is like, Iroh Jr? Or would he be Iroh the third?? Or did the REAL Iroh forbid Zuko from naming his son Iroh because that was silly and so Zuko named his son Roku, and then ROKU named his son Iroh? HOW DID WE GET HERE, I NEED TO KNOW THESE THINGS!)
4) Ok I will totally admit that I am way more in love with the descendants of all of the original cast than I am the new introductions. Although I will freely admit that in 1.10 when Mako threw lightning I SCREAMED 'YES!!1!!' at my computer screen and fistpumped straight up into the air so hard I scared the cat. And I am weirdly in lust with Asami, because DAYUM, that girl is a badass. I don't know if I want to meet her, be her, or turn gay so I can date her. IDK IDK. Just she is so freaking awesome.
5) THE TROLLING. Some people find it irritating, some people think it's insulting, blah blah WHATEVER I think it is hysterical. Troll on, Avatar writers, troll on. *golf clap*
6) THE ANIMATION. Have I mentioned yet that this show is bad ass?
7) And ... somehow this ended up being low on the list - Korra!! I like her. I love the way she is the exact opposite of Aang. I love how much trouble she had unlocking air, because it makes so much sense for her personality. (I do wish that the actual unlocking of air hadn't happened just because she was 'at her lowest' but that while she WAS 'at her lowest', she was able to embrace her destiny with peace. I feel like a key airbending lesson was sort of lost there. But that sequence gave Makko a real chance to shine and I liked that.)
8) HOW COULD I FORGET THE BROTHER FEELS. D: Omg you guys, did Nickolodeon just end a show with murder/suicide!?!?!? HOLY CRAP. Guess they decided not to be vague with the new series on if characters lived or died. O.o HOLY CRAP I SAY. Thank goodness we have happy MakkonBolin brother feels to balance out all of the death because DAYUM. DAAAAY-UM.
O.o
Aaaanyway.
Series overall rating :
If I was making a wish list for next season it would be for them to slow down and dig into the characters a little deeper for a minute before jumping into the next big bad. But for a 12 episode opener/teaser/comeback season?
*scuttles off to bed*