As there has been a recent Netflix live adaptation of a popular cartoon, it has gotten more
recognition. But some of you may not know what this cartoon is about or have never even
heard of it.
Avatar the Last Airbender (ATLA) aired on nickelodeon, on February 21, 2005. There are three
seasons in this loveable show, each having around twenty episodes per season. The creator of
ATLA is Michael Dante DiMartino. He co-created this show with the head writer, Aaron Ehasz.
Once this show was released, it became a popular show for young kids, teenagers, and even
adults.
So, what is Avatar the Last Airbender about? In this world of the avatar, there are four
nations. Each nation is based on one of the four major elements. Earth, water, air, and fire.
People who could control these elements were known as benders, not everyone could bend
though. The Avatar is someone who can bend all four elements. Once they died, they would
pass their powers onto someone in the next cycle. For example, if the avatar was an earth
bender and they passed away, someone in the fire nation would become the next avatar. It
happens at random; you never know which person will become the next avatar.
The show begins with a well-known character from the water tribe, Katara (Mae Whitman)
saying her famous line. “Long ago the four nations lived in harmony. Then, everything changed
when the fire nation attacked.” Which leads us to the beginning of the story. It starts out in the
south pole with a brother and a sister in a small fishing boat. Katara, the sister, is practicing her
water bending while her brother, Sokka (Jack De Sena) is trying to spear a fish. They get into a
deep argument about water bending, since it is not allowed, and their boat ends up being taken
away in a rough stream. Their boat crashes into an ice burg and breaks down. This leads to
another argument and the ice burg behind them starts to glow. A beam of light escapes the ice
burg, catching the eyes of a certain fire bender.
In the distance, there is a fire nation ship. The person who notices the bright light is the
prince of the fire nation, Zuko (Dante Basco). He is on a ship with his uncle, on a mission to find
and capture the avatar. Once he sees the light, he tells the ship to head in that direction.
Back to Katara and Sokka, the beam of light suddenly stopped. A young, 12-year-old boy falls
out of the ice burg. He wakes up and tells them his name, Aang (Zach Eisen). He is the last
airbender. They take him and his flying bison, Appa. Once they take him back to their tribe,
they find out that he is the Avatar. He was trapped in the ice burg for 100 years, making him
112 years old! He is a master of air bending, but he has yet to learn the other three elements.
He has a short time to do this because of a comet that will be coming, giving the fire benders
stronger power. His goal is to defeat the fire lord Ozai, or Zuko’s father. In order to do this,
Aang must overcome personal challenges and become physically stronger.
This begins the journey of the first season (Book 1: Water). Their goal is to get to the north
pole so that he can master water bending. The following season (Book 2: Earth) Aang and his
friends visit the earth kingdom so that he can master earth bending. They meet another
important character along the way named Toph. (Michaela Murphy) She is blind but is an
incredible earth bender. The last season (Book 3: Fire) Aang has to learn fire bending and it
takes him a while due to an injury and personal things holding him back.
It is an incredible show with lots of comedy, action, romance, and adventure. I would
recommend watching this show because it creates so many emotions and feelings towards the
characters. I don’t want to spoil anything more, so with that said we’ll move on.
After the tv show gained many views and positive feedback, there was a movie created to
replicate it. This movie came out in 2010, directed by M. Night Shyamalan. People thought this
movie would be good based on their love for the cartoon, but it was a disaster. The characters
were nothing like the original, the CGI was terrible and poorly displayed, and there were just
too many things wrong with it. This movie had 5% rotten tomatoes! Long story short, it did not
end well.
when the fire nation attacked.” Which leads us to the beginning of the story. It starts out in the
south pole with a brother and a sister in a small fishing boat. Katara, the sister, is practicing her
water bending while her brother, Sokka (Jack De Sena) is trying to spear a fish. They get into a
deep argument about water bending, since it is not allowed, and their boat ends up being taken
away in a rough stream. Their boat crashes into an ice burg and breaks down. This leads to
another argument and the ice burg behind them starts to glow. A beam of light escapes the ice
burg, catching the eyes of a certain fire bender.
In the distance, there is a fire nation ship. The person who notices the bright light is the
prince of the fire nation, Zuko (Dante Basco). He is on a ship with his uncle, on a mission to find
and capture the avatar. Once he sees the light, he tells the ship to head in that direction.
Back to Katara and Sokka, the beam of light suddenly stopped. A young, 12-year-old boy falls
out of the ice burg. He wakes up and tells them his name, Aang (Zach Eisen). He is the last
airbender. They take him and his flying bison, Appa. Once they take him back to their tribe,
they find out that he is the Avatar. He was trapped in the ice burg for 100 years, making him
112 years old! He is a master of air bending, but he has yet to learn the other three elements.
He has a short time to do this because of a comet that will be coming, giving the fire benders
stronger power. His goal is to defeat the fire lord Ozai, or Zuko’s father. In order to do this,
Aang must overcome personal challenges and become physically stronger.
This begins the journey of the first season (Book 1: Water). Their goal is to get to the north
pole so that he can master water bending. The following season (Book 2: Earth) Aang and his
friends visit the earth kingdom so that he can master earth bending. They meet another
important character along the way named Toph. (Michaela Murphy) She is blind but is an
incredible earth bender. The last season (Book 3: Fire) Aang has to learn fire bending and it
takes him a while due to an injury and personal things holding him back.
It is an incredible show with lots of comedy, action, romance, and adventure. I would
recommend watching this show because it creates so many emotions and feelings towards the
characters. I don’t want to spoil anything more, so with that said we’ll move on.
After the tv show gained many views and positive feedback, there was a movie created to
replicate it. This movie came out in 2010, directed by M. Night Shyamalan. People thought this
movie would be good based on their love for the cartoon, but it was a disaster. The characters
were nothing like the original, the CGI was terrible and poorly displayed, and there were just
too many things wrong with it. This movie had 5% rotten tomatoes! Long story short, it did not
end well.
Just recently, February 25, 2024, Netflix made a live adaptation of the cartoon. Instead of a
movie, they made a series with 8 episodes. People were extremely nervous about this
adaptation due to the poorly made movie. But luckily it succeeded with 100% rotten tomatoes.
I enjoyed this tv show, even though there were things that were different or didn’t exactly
follow the original script. But I think people judge too harshly because live actions aren’t always
going to be exact to the last detail. The actors chosen for the show were a great choice, I
thought they all did amazing. I’m excited for the next season and many others are too!
Why is Avatar the Last Airbender so popular? It is popular for many reasons, not only is it a
fun show to watch for entertainment, but it also has fun and lovable characters, it has a lot of
cultural references, lots of humor, incredible voice actors, and it overall has a beautiful art
direction to it. I think most of all, it tells a great story that is so creative that it catches the
attention of all ages. These are all factors that make it a popular, and also a great watch, so try
it out!
adaptation due to the poorly made movie. But luckily it succeeded with 100% rotten tomatoes.
I enjoyed this tv show, even though there were things that were different or didn’t exactly
follow the original script. But I think people judge too harshly because live actions aren’t always
going to be exact to the last detail. The actors chosen for the show were a great choice, I
thought they all did amazing. I’m excited for the next season and many others are too!
Why is Avatar the Last Airbender so popular? It is popular for many reasons, not only is it a
fun show to watch for entertainment, but it also has fun and lovable characters, it has a lot of
cultural references, lots of humor, incredible voice actors, and it overall has a beautiful art
direction to it. I think most of all, it tells a great story that is so creative that it catches the
attention of all ages. These are all factors that make it a popular, and also a great watch, so try
it out!
