The latest phenomenon to be adapted from cartoon to live-action by Netflix is Avatar: The Last Airbender. While some fans have been nervois about rebooting the beloved show, many fans have remained hopeful. With promising early looks from the Netflix version, there was optimism that they would be faithful to the original series.
Based on the beloved cartoon, the show is set in a world where there are four nations, each with its own “benders” who are capable of controlling one of the four elements: water, earth, fire and air. The Last Airbender is a fantastic series, and many emotional moments made an impact in the new live-action series, as the young actors attempt to take on iconic animated roles. In particular, these quotes from the series leave a lasting impact.
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8 “You Will Always Be My Friend.”
Monk Gyatso
- Spoken In Episode 1x01
- Spoken To Aang
One of the most significant changes in Netflix’s version of The Last Airbender is the way the series begins. Aang’s backstory, the beginning of the war, and the fall of the Air Nomads are the focus of the first twenty minutes of the show. It's a smart choice, making the audience feel the losses which Aang has suffered after being gone for a hundred years.
His greatest loss is that of Monk Gyatso, his friend and mentor, who had small roles in flashbacks in the original show. His role is expanded and fascinating, as he is reluctant to tell Aang he is the Avatar. He knows the pressure it will put on his young friend, and he attempts in a truly heartfelt moment to remind him that their relationship will never change. Unfortunately, this is the last time they ever speak. Gyatso’s death is a sad moment because of this interaction, a loss that was felt in some of the best episodes of the animated series.
7 “I Know How Hard It Is To Lose The People You Love.”
Katara
- Spoken In Episode 1x01
- Spoken To Aang
One of the most beloved characters throughout the show, Katara, arrives with her brother to find Aang buried and asleep in the ice, just as she did in the animated series. Sokka wishes to leave Aang, but Katara, driven by kindness and empathy, brings him back to their tribe and starts getting to know him.
The relationship between Aang and Katara is the heartbeat of the franchise. In this moment, Katara stands by Aang as he deals with the crushing weight of loss thrust upon him. She tells him about her own struggles since losing her mother, and her father being away in battle. It's another heartfelt moment that turns iconic given how these two progress from this initial connection.
6 “Hope Does Not Come Without A Cost.”
Avatar Kyoshi
- Spoken In Episode 1x02
- Spoken To Aang
Aang is given his first and most brutal advice of the first season when he communes with Avatar Kyoshi on her island. It is there that he begins to learn more about his place in the world and in the war. Those words come from an Avatar who never pulled her punches, and doesn’t mince her words with Aang.
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Before using him as a conduit to save those on her island from the Fire Nation attackers, Kyoshi yells at Aang about not running away from his responsibilities, and delivers this dark message about hope. It's a stark reminder to viewers that this rendition of Aang’s story, while still holding much of the fun of the original show, is a more brutal retelling. This darker story isn’t afraid to delve into the deeper meaning of the war and the oppression that the world is suffering.
5 “We Don’t Have To Be Afraid Of Our Pain.”
Jet
- Spoken In Episode 1x03
- Spoken To Katara
This is a fascinating and surprising message coming from a character who was much shallower in the animated version of The Last Airbender. Jet helps Katara as she attempts to find something inside herself that can help her master more difficult forms of water-bending. As they talk about shared losses to the Fire Nation, Jet asks Katara about happy memories of her mother, before she died.
When Katara tells him about her mother, Jet reminds her to think of that. He tells her not to be afraid of pain, but to use it. This is a surprisingly healthy mental outlook on loss, as well as another great reminder of what the characters in the show are fighting for.
4 “That’s Not Right, Warriors Don’t Hide Their Faces In A Fight.”
Zuko
- Spoken In Episode 1x03
- Spoken To Iroh
One of the fascinating things about The Last Airbender, in both versions of the series, is how Zuko is handled as a character. While his rage, inexperience, and hatred are made apparent in the first season of both shows, the live-action version also shows some significant moments that show his honor.
When he and Iroh sneak into Omashu while hunting for the Avatar, they see the damage done by a Fire Nation terrorist bombing in the city. Zuko decries this act, claiming his father would never approve and that it isn’t right. This foreshadows his eventual turning against the Fire Nation, as he discovers more about the truth behind their war and comes to realize what is right and wrong.
3 “How About A Friend?”
Iroh
- Spoken In Episode 1x04
- Spoken To Zuko
One of the strongest elements of The Last Airbender is the relationship between Iroh and Zuko, explored in-depth in the first season of Netflix’s live-action adaptation. The duo go through some struggles, and Zuko saves Iroh, at the cost of going after Aang, in the fourth episode.
It is also during this episode that their past is explored, including how Zuko comforted his uncle after the loss of his son during the war years earlier. While this isn’t when Zuko’s banishment and injury are shown in flashbacks, the episode ends with the beginning of his voyage to hunt after the Avatar, and Iroh’s arrival to join him. When his nephew tells him that he doesn’t need a babysitter, his uncle asks this question instead. It's one of the most iconic moments from this new adaptation, and helped prove that a shorter episode count didn't stop character development from being done well.
2 “Do You Think We Could Have Been Friends?”
Aang
- Spoken In Episode 1x06
- Spoken To Zuko
Episode six of the live-action series brings Aang and Zuko together in a position to talk for the first time, after Zuko dons the Blue Demon mask and breaks Aang out of Commander Zhao’s prison. However, he isn’t very responsive to Aang’s attempts to talk. Instead, he tries to attack him twice, once following this line spoken by Aang.
This helps show both of their struggles as the leads of the series. Aang must deal with a changed world, and try to bring it back to the world he knew before the war. Zuko is struggling to accept those ideas, despite being at odds with his father and sister’s idea of war. It also teases the future where the pair do become friends. That major theme stood across the animated series, ending with Zuko eventually making friends with all of Team Avatar.
1 “Is That All You’ve Got?”
Katara
- Spoken In Episode 1x07
- Spoken To Master Pakku
Katara's biggest moment of the live-action series comes when she decides to challenge Master Pakku's ruling, which states that he will not allow the women to fight alongside the men. Her battle with him is a culmination of her journey to become a water-bending master, even though she doesn’t defeat him.
This realistic battle, punctuated by Katara’s refusal to give in, showcases why Team Avatar is so important. Each member is a great hero in their own right. Sokka and Katara are inspired by Aang to greater heights than they might ever have achieved without him. Fortunately, the future of the show looks bright, as does the future of the franchise as it expands in new directions.
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