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Netflix's Avatar: The Last Airbender Had To Remove One Big Thing From The Animated Show

Avatar: The Last Airbender

Highlights

Netflix's live-action adaptation of Avatar: The Last Airbender will change some aspects of the story, including the removal of the comet as a ticking clock.
The decision to remove the comet was made due to timeline complications with an aging live-action cast, allowing flexibility for the actors' growth between seasons.
While the comet may be removed as a ticking clock, it will still play a role in the live-action series, as seen in the latest trailer with the Fire Nation assaulting the Air Nomads.

Netflix's live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender series is set to adapt the first series in Nickelodeon's successful Avatar franchise. As with all adaptations, however, Netflix has opted to change some aspects of the story.

Avatar: The Last Airbender follows a 12-year-old boy, Aang, who wakes up after a hundred-year slumber. Aang finds that the world has descended to chaos, as the villainous Fire Nation has spent the past one hundred years attempting to conquer the world. Because he is the only person on the planet who can set things right, Aang embraces his destiny as the Avatar, master of all four elements. Along the way, however, Aang learns that he has a strict deadline to defeat the Fire Lord: should he fail to master all elements by the end of the Summer, the Fire Nation will be able to use a passing comet to enhance their abilities and finally end the war on their terms.

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During an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Netflix's Avatar: The Last Airbender showrunner Albert Kim said this deadline will not be featured in the live-action series. Although the comet was a major driving force in the animated series, the shift to live-action caused this aspect of the series to be changed. Kim said his change was made due to the timeline complications presented by an aging live-action cast.

The comet was their ticking clock. We removed that particular ticking clock from our show for now because we couldn't know exactly how old our actors would be for the subsequent seasons. We definitely thought about that going into season 1 so that we can accommodate for puberty, adolescence, time passing — all of those fun things that happen to real-life human beings that don't happen to animated characters.

The change allows the live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender series some breathing room. As Kim points out, the animated characters could stay the same age indefinitely — Aang stays 12 throughout the cartoon, as do his similarly-aged companions. Netflix's adaptation, meanwhile, stars real performers. The series star, Gordon Cormier, is currently 14 years old and first auditioned for the role at age 11. Since the second season hasn't yet been filmed — nor has it been ordered — Cormier's growth in between seasons could be noticeable.

Kim's decision to shift the timeline does not mean that the comet will be removed from the live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender series entirely. In the series' latest trailer, the Fire Nation can be seen assaulting the Air Nomads as a comet streaks through the sky. Impressive displays of Firebending — a key part of the comet's power — can also be glimpsed during these scenes. For example, Fire Lord Sozin (Hiro Kanagawa) is seen leading legions of rocketing Firebenders high above the Air Temples.

Although adaptational changes can be controversial, Kim's change to the source material is a logical conclusion. The Avatar: The Last Airbender cartoon's timeline is symbolic, with each season taking place in a corresponding season of the year (Aang learns Waterbending in Winter, Earthbending in Spring, and Firebending in Summer), but a live-action series has too many variables to make this a viable strategy. As Kim points out, the filming schedule for a live-action series might make the one-year deadline a tall order.

Netflix's Avatar: The Last Airbender premieres on February 22, 2024.