How The Legend of Korra RUINED Aang

this video is part of the one legendary scene event put together to celebrate the legend of korra's 10th anniversary as the title of the event suggests i'm supposed to be talking about one specific scene and i will do that but first my name is hoodie song this is kato and bear with me as we go on a bit of a journey today's video is brought to you by my upcoming webcomic the king's way for many basketball is a fun game they played as a kid for some it's a weekly event to bet money on but for the few with enough talent drive and need basketball is an opportunity in their final year as high school athletes kingsley way and manu khan must overcome the demanding worlds of family school and romance while trying not to lose their love for the sport along the way will they defy the odds and become great or crumble under the weight of expectations the king's way is a sports drama that blends the exhilarating athletics of anime like slam dunk and kirikona basket with the complex relationships of a sane and love story follow me on twitter hoodie underscore rights to get updates about its release or if you're watching this in the future check out the link in the description to read it now the legend of korra is a story about legacy it depicts a world that suffered under the rule of evil only to witness the rising journey of avatar aang a true mythic hero set to defeat tyranny and liberate the masses it's been 70 years since aang ended that catastrophic war and he has since been laid to rest leaving an epic legacy no reasonable person could ever live up to this background is important to understand not just the legend of korra as a show but to understand the legend of korra as a meta-story as well the world of avatar loves aang and considers him their greatest hero to ever live likewise avatar the last airbender is by many considered one of the greatest television shows to ever be written not just as a children's cartoon but among all works of televised fiction it's a beloved series that reached almost unanimous critical acclaim and its legacy among fans has only deepened with time let's get this out of the way any story that is meant to follow the last airbender is going to be at a severe disadvantage now that is not to say that no story could work we've seen more than a couple comics be relatively well received but any follow-up act to the cultural juggernaut that was avatar had a titanic legacy to live up to it's no coincidence that cora's journey in her show mirrors that of the real world journey of creating a sequel to the last airbender you're never gonna please everyone especially with a sequel so you may as well do what feels best i think maybe we knew korra as a character and a series was going to be more challenging for audiences but that was what felt right to us in a brandon sanderson live stream the author discussed the idea of sequels claiming that a sequel by nature undermines the inherent story of its predecessor but that that's a choice worthy of making if you could tell a story better than what came before without betraying the emotional core of what made the original so great that is a complex idea that we'll break down over the course of this video at a glance it almost seems that the legend of korra's directive is in overt conflict with that principle it was a deliberate choice to make korra a very different character from aang in multiple ways that provided so many new opportunities with the stories and character dynamics korra's very concept as a character seeks to undermine the avatar archetype set up through aang the creators of the show clearly hold dear the story that they told all those years ago with the last airbender but going into this they wanted to do something distinctly different they wanted a character that was the total opposite of aang someone who instead of goofy and idealistic was stubborn and angsty those descriptors are from the words of the show runners i think they're somewhat applicable to both characters but definitely played to different degrees in their interview with polygon they described korra as being somewhat difficult to crack the avatar series has always held its inspiration on its sleeve it's no big reveal that the last airbender has deep inspiration from things like star wars and like george lucas himself the two showrunners seem to be heavily influenced by the work of joseph campbell avatar the last airbender is loosely a hero's journey while the strict framework laid out in campbell's book doesn't line up perfectly with the story you could see how aang follows these basic trends the catalyst of this series is him rejecting the call to adventure he undergoes a road of trials gaining allies and mentors resisting temptation and atoning for his past avatar was always intended to be a mythic story and aang follows the rubric of classic mythic heroes quora was not meant to be the same according to michael dimartino the development of korra deliberately tried to avoid the hero's journey structure so the question is why why do something that you know is going to be challenging for the viewers and that you know would be potentially polarizing for audiences let's revisit that principle from brandon sanderson a sequel undermines its predecessor when it betrays the emotional core of what made the original so great you know when you think of the last airbender aang's mythic journey does leave an oppression on the viewer but the real acclaim of that series belongs to a different character anecdotally speaking when i see people talk about that original series and what made it so great the number one thing i see cited so commonly is the character arc of zuko aang was a hero occasionally flawed but fueled by optimism and ideals that embody a sense of heroics zuko was complex he had conflicted sometimes contradicting motivations he was scarred and filled with angst stubborn to the wisdoms and teachings of his uncle i definitely have much more in common with her personality than i do with angs and her personal struggles and growth felt very real to me the testimonials from fans of korra were incredibly powerful and personal more along the lines of how some fans reacted to zuko's arc remember the caveat of that principle a sequel undermines its predecessor when it betrays the core of what made the original great now how true this sentiment rings to you is going to vary person by person but i believe that the showrunners of the last airbender would assert that the greatness of their original series was not in the hero's journey of aang but rather the slow burn grueling relatability of zuko to them and many fans of the legend of korra undermining aang's legacy was a small price to pay that then allowed for a character arc reminiscent of what made them love the original series now i generally like korra but if you don't like korra i could totally see how this intentional sacrifice is far too great and not only makes you dislike the sequel but find it insulting to the original series furthermore none or at least very little of cora's arc really requires the extent to which the sequel series went about dismantling eng's legacy it's one thing to present a story and character philosophically at odds with aang it's another thing to portray him in a distinctly negative light as a dead be dad but i assert that there is one character that did require this very thorough dismantling and who is fairly well received even by those who dislike the overall sequel series in the world of the legend of korra tradition is dying the customs once held honorably by a past generation are now being tossed to the side and this affects no one more than the son of aang korra deconstructs the avatar ideal and alongside her is tenzin representing the world as it shifts and evolves he is the old becoming the new when we first meet the character he is an honorable collected adult representing the air nation on the republic city council being the son of ang and a leader of his people tenzin actively promotes what he knows of the air bending lifestyle he dresses in traditional air nomad clothing he consistently meditates he eats a vegetarian diet so on and so forth despite that his insistent on maintaining this tradition often comes at the cost of betraying it for example he imposes strict limitations on how cora spends her time yet instructs her to let her mind and spirit be free tenzin is hypocritical which highlights a hole in the philosophy and a need for change no doubt a large amount of what tenzin embodies in the first two seasons of the show is out of respect for his father aang though they may act differently they seem to share similar worldviews such as the idea that korra should not use the avatar state for fun as it is a dangerous tool a thought that aang acted on consistently in his life and one that is promoted through tenzin at the beginning of the second season step one in tenzin's character arc was to take aang off of the pedestal this came in the form of boomi and kaya his siblings of the three tenzin was the only airbender to boomi and kaya this became a clear factor in the preferential treatment that their younger brother got from their dad they remarked to tenzin that these memories he forged of their father were not memories that they all shared the passing of tradition the vacations it was all just the two of them a special bond that they formed as airbenders that excluded the others tenzin had a hard time accepting this and as common with siblings it became an argument he held his father in such high regard that it was easier to dismiss his siblings than accept the favoritism that he grew up with it was only when he talked with his own daughter iki and counseled her through her relationships with milo and genora that he saw the parallels between his siblings subsequently he apologized to bhumi and gaia and acknowledged the faults of aang do you see the symbolism here tenzin had to let go of his father the past and it was only through his children the future that he could see the truth the capstone to this arc came at the end of season 3 in a beautiful ceremony for his daughter genora and her achieving the title of airbending master this scene also finally is my choice for the one legendary scene event tenzin was initially reluctant to go through with this as he didn't see genora as being ready to hold such a high position of responsibility but consistently genora was able to prove her value and capabilities this season she proved that alongside her siblings the new generation of airbenders would prosper she proved that she would be a great leader for the air nation tenzin had no choice but to acknowledge that his traditions were obsolete despite his and his father's shortcomings the future of the nation was bright thus genora gained her tattoos and more importantly she became the youngest airbender ever to receive such an honor a title once held by aang this is a breathtaking sequence but while it is deliberately portrayed as a positive forward movement for the air nation it's not without somberness or remorse for what's being left behind this is the final scene of the season a capstone to what has probably been the height of storytelling for the legend of korra and yet it is not delivered with celebratory fireworks or a gleeful party like what's to come at the end of season 4. there is a swelling of music genora's ceremony does feel good and feels like a great achievement for that character but that music is blended with this melancholic tone the mental struggles that cora went through the season are at their worst at this moment and tonally that clashes with the celebration at hand it creates a mix of happiness and sorrow both looking forward to the future but with the poignant reflection of what got us here this progress comes with the price for cora it's the emotional burden of everything she went through and for the air nation it's the abandonment of the person that restored their culture and saved the world in line with this change the air nation became something else they were no longer a conglomerate of pacifists locked away in their own little world of meditation ignoring the evolution around them they became nomadic once more but now with the intention of acting as a force for balance they would serve all people in restoring harmony and thus we say goodbye to the old world and hello to the new none of this would have happened without the deconstructive approach these showrunners took to their original material when they decided years later to revisit the avatar universe they came in with the explicit intention of challenging viewers and presenting a story fundamentally at odds with the last airbender they specifically undermined their own legacy knowing that that would come with a price but believing that price was justified so that they could tell a story greater than what came before i would not interpret this video as a defense of the legend of korra while i empathize with the difficult position they were in making the story and i admire the boldness with which they made these choices none of it matters for those who can't buy into characters like korra tenzin or genora if you don't like horror i don't expect this video to have changed your mind but i think there was at least a little more thought behind the decisions made in this series than some people give it credit for while the legend of korra does a ton of things that i disagree with i really do love it dearly specifically season 3 in my opinion is some of the greatest storytelling i've ever consumed and watching that sequence of genora's ceremony for this video without any build up or context of a full re-watch still manages to bring me to tears with its heartbreaking directing and beautiful soundtrack my name is hoodie song this is kato and thank you for watching before i go i just want to give a quick shout out to all of the incredible patrons over at patreon.com koit we're super active in our patreon discord server occasionally throwing some late night anime movie watch parties so if that's something you're interested in pledge just a single dollar to get an invite i'm also preparing to launch a new basketball webcomic called the kingsway over on webtoon canvas you can subscribe to the webtoon page now to get a notification as soon as it drops or follow my personal twitter at hoodie underscore rights for more regular updates this was part of the one legendary scene event put together to celebrate the legend of korra's 10th anniversary so if you want to check out all the other people participating in the event there's going to be a playlist link down in the description again my name is hoodie song this is kato and thank you for watching

Channel: Kato

Views: 396,938

Keywords: Kato, Anime, Analysis, Zero, and, Hoodie

Id: W100HRfa9Y4

Length: 12min 48sec (768 seconds)

Published: Thu Apr 14 2022