Iroh & Zuko - Light of the Fire Nation (Avatar: The Last Airbender)

I row on one fateful day in the middle of his legendary siege to the impenetrable Ba Sing se would hear that his son his beloved soldier boy lieutenant had died in battle an event that would indeed change iroh's life forever leaves from the vine falling so slow like fragile tiny shells drifting in the fall we hit our lowest point we are open to the greatest change sometimes the best way to solve your own problems is to help someone else the fire nation is a nation known for its fury and rage firebenders often lack the spirituality and the respect for culture that the other nations have they even killed off the last of the Dragons beings who truly represent the duality of fire and its forages at least that's what the road has been told after fire lord sozin dries the fire nation entered a period of darkness though the fire nation has several stars like masters Jeong Jeong and PN Dao there are two in particular that illuminated the entire country the story of Iroh and Zuko to me will forever be the most heartwarming story because of how it embodies forgiveness and an unwavering unconditional love son of fire lord azulon and brother to Ozai Iroh was once a famed general of the Fire Nation the great general Iroh the dragon of the West were names that followed Iroh until he became known as a traitor and the once great general I row in light of the war took his team to take down the legendary city of Ba Sing se and on his team was his very own son Prince Luton meanwhile back at the Fire Nation Zuko nephew to Iroh and son of Ozai and Ursa was still young on one fateful day a lieutenant was killed on the battlefield so after 500 days in the impenetrable city IRA decided to remove his troops ending the siege early and without completion back home Ozai asked his father to make him heir to the throne but as oolong would not only deny his request but would punish Ozai for even having such thoughts against his older brother especially after the death of his only son in retaliation azulon called for Zuko's death however Ursa the current light of Zuko's life protected her son and carried out a plan to kill fire lord azulon saving her son but effectively banishing herself it is important to note that Ursa constructed Zuko's very identity one that he would base his whole life around she would consistently instill into Zuko that he is someone who doesn't give up no matter the odds no matter the situation however with her departure Zuko was left alone with his sadistic sisters ulla and the now Fire Lord Ozai who Zuko aspired to please looking back on Iroh I want to focus on his decision to fall back if we look ahead in time I wrote el azucar that he must not give in to despair that in times of peril hope is what one gives to themselves times hope is something you give yourself that is the meaning of inner strength when I role lost Lu 10 he lost his world he lost his will to fight and Iroh did not allow anger and revenge to fuel and he did not lose hope IRA could have unleashed his fury on Ba Sing se and could have continued his fiery siege to avenge his son instead IRA went on a journey to find himself in his lowest moment he was open to a great change who was Iroh and what did he want at a crossroad of destiny IRA decided to choose good instead of returning to his father and his brothers son IRA searched the world including the spirit world for his son where he would discover a greater understanding about the world and would have a greater appreciation for the Four Nations at the different cultures and ideals even learning how to redirect lightning by watching the waterbenders IRA would even meet and spare the legendary dragons and would be given the title of dragon of the West but IRA had still lost his son and was stored so the general upon his return to the fire nation would put his focus on the neglected prince to make sure that he was in good hands and was always looked after during a war meeting in the Fire Nation war room when Zuko spoke against the general and later his father IRA was there when his father burned nearly half of his face IRA was there and when his father banished him IRA was there to tend to the scarred and now banished Prince so Zuko would scour the world to find what he believed was missing his honor embodied in the avatar throughout the first book Prince Zuko is introduced as the angry antagonist who competed with Admiral Zhao in his quest for the avatar well he seemed a little young to be commanding a ship and to be hoarding such a rage there are moments early on when Zuko is humanized for instance when he spares shout during their agony Chi and during the storm where he saves members of his ship instead of choosing to go after the avatar even through the lack of respect and trouble that Gaea caused him when Zhao was being attacked by the angin fused ocean spirit Zuko still extends his arm out to try and save there was good inside of Zuko the first book highlighted Zuko's desperation and his fury which he often released on his uncle often berating and yelling at him it was often hard to see where Zuko's morals lied and the second book was the hardest not only for the Fire Nation Prince but for Iroh as well though in different ways allow yourself to slip down that road and you surrender to your lowest instincts for Zuko it would give him a new perspective one that is based around humility as he and Ira were declared criminals of the fire nation he was not the prideful Prince of the Fire Nation anymore he was now a earth Kingdom refugee forced to feel the effects of the war from a ground level which is why he meets song in the cave of true lovers episode it is why in Zuko alone he learns that the war has affected everyone no one has felt the fire nation's greatness Zuko is shown the lifelong hatred that people had for his country and at the end of the chase episode Zuko in a short moment displays IRA's importance to him when the avatar was close to him but his uncle was hit by a Zula he doesn't think twice about being at IRA side and in the following episode bitter work IRA instructs suco about the importance of the four elements and the Four Nations as well as teaching him how to redirect lightning one of the most important skills that Zuko learns those ook Oh can't create lightning because he is not at peace with himself Zuko down to his design is a character who represents duality half of his face is scarred half of his face isn't Zuko wields two broad swords it is the duality of himself the duality of his family and all of his life's opposing teachings and teachers and the duality of good and evil that are battling inside of him Iroh and Zuko then become true refugees of the earth Kingdom and start a new life in Ba Sing se working in a tea shop where I rode later get offered his own tea shop in the tales of Ba Sing se Zucco's tale takes him on a date which presents a different side to Zuko one that highlights his awkwardness Zuko is always shown high-strung and upset so to see this new side of Zuko was foreign but welcomed though for Iroh his tale was one of the saddest moments in the series I rose tail fell on the day of his son's death where he sang a heartbreaking song for his little soldier boy this episode also demonstrated the depth of I rose kindness helping anyone and everyone he comes across again which really emphasizes how his son's death impacted his outlook on the world Iroh used to make jokes about burning this city to the ground and now he stands as one of its humble residents serving tea to all there's nothing wrong with a life of peace and prosperity I suggest you think about what it is that you want from your life and why though as this new life for the Fire Nation Prince was a life of peace it was not the life he wanted when he learned that Appa was missing Zuko went on a search and found him but before he could do anything with the Bison he was found by Iroh and his uncle would deliver one of the most spine-chilling words of the series is it a destiny someone else has tried to pause on you who are you and what do you want and this line is Zuko's one purpose for the entire series and what arrow has been following him for this idea of identity and desire Zucco's life changed at 13 years old scarred stripped of his honour and tasked to hunt the avatar down and even in spite of a new life built for him and his uncle it was not a life that he wanted the Fire Nation Prince up to this point had only one goal to find the avatar past that he never really had any desire in this world he didn't want to become the world's greatest firebender he didn't want to save the world he didn't want to help his father take down the other nations all he wanted was to be by his father's side again and to be a child once again to be Prince Zuko which explains why he never thinks anything through he just wants to find the avatar so he can go home where he hasn't been in three years so when iro begs for him to choose good this goes against everything he knows sending his mind body and spirit into a metamorphosis however when as well abates him with the one thing he wants his honor Zuko without a doubt chooses his honor and can you blame the young prince this is his life's goal finally fulfilled all he has to do is make the decision but in the process he abandons the one person who was by his side the entire time and later he would berate his uncle for not standing by him so after this choice I want to take the time to place myself into Irish shoes we can assume that since the death of Luton and the departure of ursa arrow has been by Zucco side arrow has been close to Zucco ever since he was a child and his own son's death brought him that much closer to his nephew Irish surely saw the way always I neglected the boy and cared for him after his brother scarred his own son permanently imagine the horror of your nephew who could do no wrong being burned by your own brother when the entire Fire Nation turned their back on the banished Prince I ro stuck by his side like a true father to Zuko a week after Zuko was burned who was by his side from the Fire Nation to the Western air temple to the southern and northern water tribes and to the earth Kingdom IRA stuck by him and even aided him in his search IRA was the only person in the entire world at this point who saw the potential of good in the Fire Nation prince who saw Zuko as worthy as someone who belongs in this world the only person only to be abandoned in seconds at the mere thought of regaining his honor and the acceptance of his father born in you along with all the strife is the power to restore balance to the world and over the course of the first five chapters in the third book Zucco's inner turmoil turns into rage towards the world around him he begins to doubt whether or not angers alive whether or not his father will find out that he didn't kill Aang and why Azula would lie about this the Prince of the Fire Nation has become emotional and anger than usual which is highlighted in the beach while Zuko does regular tasks like bring him in may ice cream but when things do not go his way he gets overly angry and when may talks to other boys he gets aggressive in jealous when he retreats to his family's old vacation house to see old memories of his family when they were once a family Zuko burns these memories to create a fire and I personally like to believe this is one of the final straws for the prince his idea as a family were completely flipped on its head so when all of the teenagers begin to speak on their lives and their struggles it truly paled in comparison to Zuko's when the banished Prince finally came home he would come to learn what he truly wanted and over his time back home that realization began to manifest itself into anger and confusion in theory Zuko had his honor back everything should be okay but he wasn't fulfilled he wasn't happy that confusion hit its peak when I wrote told him about the story of sozin and Roku and the Fire Nation this was the clearest sign of his destiny and still he tried to deny it it's in his nature in his blood that good and evil are at war with each other but in order to end the war and to find peace Zuko needed to choose good and he needed to choose good alone there was only so much Iroh could do to help him and so I wrote earning silent towards Zuko would force him to realize this and would force him to choose between Iroh and O's the father who'd placed all of his attention and care into him versus the father who Zuko sought after mentally this was Zuko's lowest point he was now alone his father's love felt superficial his honour wasn't restored and he didn't have IRA and so he was open to his greatest change growing up we were taught that the Fire Nation was the greatest civilization in history on the day of Black Sun Zuko would confront Ozai for me this was the second most compelling moment in Zuko's journey he not only stood up to his father but he finally understood Iroh and showed his appreciation for him without shame Zuko finally faced a man who was responsible for his suffering and forced him to listen my father just for talking out of turn my father who challenged me a thirteen year old boy to an Agni Kai how can you possibly justify a duel with a child Zuko decides to join aang and the team to help them take down Ozai but Zuko doesn't only do that he helps angered the true source and the history of firebending and teaches him firebending Zuko helps Sokka rescue his father and Suki and he helps Katara in her search for her mother's killer all of these events led him to Iroh Zuko needed to apologize for everything not only that she also needed Iroh to be proud of him and this reunion was the ultimate peek of not only Zuko but of their relationship I don't know how I can ever make it up to you I was never angry with you I was sad because I was afraid you've lost your way and soul Zuko apologizes and arrow without hesitation forgives him I truly believe IRA cried tears of joy during this moment for three years Zuko had been lost on a quest for honor not only that but the last time he saw his nephew he had returned by his father's side so his biggest fear could have been realized for all he knew Zuko had good and evil inside of him and he could have chosen evil it had been weeks since they saw each other and Iroh escaped but Iroh always had unwavering faith in his nephew I ruin new that timing was everything he could have told Zuko about his destiny back in book one when he was hunting the avatar down but what good would it have done now IRA finally saw his matured nephew his matured son who had a different heir to him he met the dragons Renan Shah he faced his father he joined the avatar he lost his way but he found it all by himself and IRA couldn't be more proud which would effectively end their arc Zuko would then faced Azula in the final Agni Kai and Aang would defeat osa ending the war and making Zuko the new Fire Lord to welcome a new era of peace in the world I think what makes Zuko one of the best written characters of television is the amount of time the writers let him make mistakes how many times Zuko makes the wrong decision because he is accompanied by Iroh we know what potential Zuko has for good that potential is right beside him every step of the way in the earth Kingdom when he lives as a refugee and starts a new life with uncle it seems like he has changed only to find Appa again and it appears as though he would have done anything to get his hands on a and then he lets up we'll go and then in the crystal catacombs when he chooses between iro and Azula he joins us Allah and the Fire Nation Zuko has failed and failed to the point where hope for him was lost where it truly appeared that he was a lost soul but he made his way back Iroh is a character many of us hope to become and a person we hope to have in our lives someone who loves unconditionally someone who will allow us to fail and make the wrong decisions Iroh knew from the start what kind of person Zuko could be the Zuko could become violent and aggressive like iroh's brother or become understanding and wives like himself so while Zuko's identity and character was shaped by Ursa his values and his morals are sharpened by his uncle Iroh is wisdom personified and a representation that anybody is capable of both good and evil he is the embodiment of light and kindness Iroh is someone who will see the best in us no matter how the rest of the world sees us just like he did suka and Zuko is a character many people identify with he doesn't have the purity or innocence of Aang or the sarcastic humor and genius of Sokka Zuko is awkward troubled lost and angry he is a character who has failed time and time again a character who has been through trials and tribulations through all of his trauma and pain and bad decisions there was someone still rooting for his growth and had faith that he could do good The Legend of Iroh and Zuko was a journey and is a story that is rooted in loss and failure but has blossomed into a story of unconditional unwavering love it is a story of learning and unlearning and I think above all it is a story of redemption for the two of them and for their country Zuko turned from banished Prince to redeemed King and I returned from fiery general to wise uncle and father fire is not only destruction but life fires power the duality of fire is the duality of Zuko like Iroh once said it is important to draw wisdom from many places from the four elements and from the Four Nations the Zuko travelled the world he made the journey through the nations and lived with the last airbender so who better to redeem and to will his nation back to glory and back to light than Zuko with the guidance of Iroh fire is the element of power the people of the Fire Nation have desire and will and the energy and drive to achieve what they want [Music] life happens wherever you are whether you make it or not

Channel: Sage's Rain

Views: 843,379

Keywords: avatar the last airbender, atla, cartoon, cartoons, zuko, iroh, prince zuko, general iroh, uncle iroh, fire lord zuko, lu ten, lu-ten, ozai, azula, sozin, roku, avatar roku, fire nation, firebending, fire, tales of ba sing se, leaves from the vine, earth kingdom, water tribe, aang, katara, sokka, toph, suki, mai, ty lee, destiny, love

Id: _q-Rq9gqqRQ

Length: 23min 51sec (1431 seconds)

Published: Tue Oct 01 2019