The Book Shelf

I know that Jet and Katara had a much less established relationship than Mai and Zuko but I think that there's still a lot of character development surrounding this couple. (Also there's more relationship development between Katara and Jet in the show than Katara and Aang. BAM there's your Kataang salt for this meta.)

Maiko and Jetara are different kinds of toxic relationships, Mai and Zuko both want the relationship but lack the communication to be a functional couple, Jet is a manipulator who uses Katara’s infatuation in him to further his own goals. Both of these relationships appeal to Zuko and Katara's want's at the time of entering the relationship.

Zuko wants to feel the same happiness he felt in his childhood, after returning from his banishment. Mai offers that in the form of a relationship with his childhood crush. This relationship cannot work because Mai and Zuko do not understand each other on a fundamental level. Zuko has grown and developed since leaving the fire nation, his views and opinions have changed, making it difficult for Mai to relate to him.

In Nightmares and Daydreams. Zuko looks to be uncomfortable being waited on by servants.

When he expresses his anxiety over an upcoming war meeting, Mai's suggestion to cheer him up is to order around servants for their entertainment, showing a lack of understanding of who Zuko is at this point in his life.

This can also be seen in The Boiling Rock when Mai and Zuko have their final conversation before their conclusion at the end of the finale. When Mai tells him that by leaving he has betrayed his country Zuko explicitly states that they don't see things the same way. When Mai saves Zuko, it's out of caring for him not an understanding of his goals or ideas. This would have been a great place to end their relationship, instead of messily shoving them back together in the finale.

Mai has remained in the toxic environment of the Fire Nation, causing her to form a cold exterior and makes it difficult for Zuko to communicate with her. In episodes like The Beach, Zuko tries to show affection for Mai by bringing her gifts, including the shell and ice cream. Only for her to dismiss his attempts and leads to further disconnect between the two.

After Zuko's attempts at performing acts of service for Mai are refused, he starts to act more aloof, matching Mai. At the party, Mai tells Zuko that she's hungry, he responds "so what". Zuko gives this response very defensively, likely from his genuine confusion on how to please Mai. Mai tells him he should get her food. He does so with no argument, despite his initial defensiveness when he didn't know what she wanted.

Their disconnect climaxes in their argument at the party. Mai accuses Zuko of being "hotheaded" and "blowing up over every little thing". Zuko accuses Mai of "having no passion for anything". This argument demonstrates the communication barrier between the two. Zuko has grown more hotheaded because of the constant pressure he is under and the lack of genuine relationships, manifesting into aggression. Mai has no passion because she was raised in a restrictive household and progressively became more aloof as a defense mechanism.

Katara wants validation on her trauma regarding her mother's death, she is drawn to Jet because he open's up to her about his trauma with his own parents' death. What Katara wants is justified and knowing that Jet used her vulnerability to his advantage is enraging.

She also views Jet as heroic for his quest to free the innocent from the Fire Nation. Katara's desire to defeat the Fire Nation is inherently tied to the loss of her mother and the destruction of her home. Jet becomes more attractive to her because he tells her he's defending people who lack the resources to fight back. Even though Katara may not have realized it, she likely related to the people Jet said he was defending. The Southern Water Tribe also lacked the resources needed to fight back because the Fire Nation had immobilized them by capturing the water benders. Katara admires that they have similar goals and is immediately willing to do what he asks of her until she learns his true intentions.

Jet's betrayal of Katara is so infuriating because not only did he lie, he also used the most vulnerable part of Katara as a way to destroy the town to kill everyone. Making Katara an unknowing accomplice to the murder of the people she wanted to save.

Jet and Zuko are explicitly paralleled in the show. They meet on the ferry going to Ba Sing Se after Zuko and Iroh have been named fugitives by Azula. Jet shares with Iroh and Zuko he 's done some things in his past that he's not proud of and that he's going to Ba Sing Se for a second chance, mirroring Zuko and his reasoning for going to Ba Sing Se. Iroh then acknowledges that both Zuko and Jet can have a second chance.

There is also a lot of parallels between Zuko and Jet in terms of their relationship with Katara. Jet uses Katara's empathy to trick her into aiding him with flooding the town. This is paralleled with how Katara opens up to Zuko in The Crossroads of Destiny and later feels betrayed. You can see Katara has the same rage after seeing both of them after their betrayals.

The difference between Jet and Zuko is that Zuko was genuine. Jet used Katara's empathy and that's why he acknowledges her loss. Zuko has no reason to validate Katara's emotions as he's already secured his spot as Aang's firebending master. He chooses to because he wants to rebuild the trust he destroyed with Katara. Zuko can recognize Katara's resentment stems from the pain of the Fire Nation killing her mother, just like Jet did. However, Zuko offers her a chance to actively face her trauma instead of telling her to suppress it.

When Aang and Sokka find out that Katara is planning to find her mother's killer Aang compares her to Jet. Katara refutes this by saying the Jet attacked the innocent.

This claim Aang makes is incredibly invalidating, He knows how Jet manipulated Katara, using her vulnerability to destroy the village. Comparing that to Katara trying to get closure is illogical. It demonstrates how Zuko had a better understanding of Katara's needs than Aang or Sokka.

Zuko never told her what she should do. He told her he knew how to get information and asked if she wanted to act on that information. Facing her mother's killer gives Katara closure of some kind. She is finally able to forgive Zuko. Katara was able to be vulnerable with Zuko and he acknowledged her.

Katara and Mai are not explicitly paralleled the same way Zuko and Jet are but they still have very interesting connections in the way their relationships with Zuko work. Mai is an inadequate partner for Zuko because of the disconnect between the two. In the first scene these two share, Zuko tries to open up to Mai on his fears about returning to the fire nation and Mai responds with outright dismissal.

Katara is shown to be immediately empathetic towards Zuko. This can be seen in the catacombs scene, as soon as Zuko shows vulnerability Katara is willing to listen.

Also when Zuko is worried about seeing his uncle after betraying him in Ba Sing Se, Katara takes initiative, asking him if he's okay even though he hasn't shared any explicit anxiety. She then listens to his worries and confirms to Zuko that he has earned forgiveness.

Although Zuko is often oblivious in social interactions, he actually shows a pretty keen insight when it comes to mediating and understanding what the others need once he joins the gaang. He figures out that the loss of his firebending is connected to his change of coat, he helps Aang overcome his fear of fire at the same time he overcomes his own mental blocks with regard to his element, and he realizes that Sokka will go on a foolhardy mission to rescue his father no matter how much Zuko warns him that it’s dangerous, so he resolves to go with him. Particularly in “The Southern Raiders” he pretty astutely figures out that the source of Katara’s anger was her unresolved feelings about her mother’s murder, and knew how to help her. He also shows keen insight into what Katara needs. Aang, though he means well, responds to Katara with moralizing that just makes her angrier and more determined to go her own way. Zuko offers her the means and lets her lead the way, and defends her to Aang after Katara had made it clear she did not agree with Aang. Zuko, in fact, gets angry at Aang on Katara’s behalf, and interestingly, Katara, the person who regularly told off anyone who ever said a bad word to Aang and who, a few episodes ago, threatened to kill Zuko himself if he ever hurt Aang, says nothing in response to Zuko’s sarcastic words to Aang, only thanks Aang for understanding in a tone that implies that she doesn’t think Aang understands at all.

Zuko also seems to be aware of the tension between Katara and Aang at the end of the episode, as he purposefully leaves Katara on Ember Island and goes to speak to Aang himself about what happened when they confronted Yon Rha. This implies not only that Zuko knew Katara needed space to process her feelings, but that he knew that Aang and Katara would need time away from each other after the angry way they parted, and it also implies that Zuko wanted to explain Katara’s perspective to Aang, fearing that Aang would misunderstand. Aang actually misunderstands anyway, wrongly assuming that Katara had forgiven Yon Rha, and Katara angrily tells him that she will never forgive her mother’s murderer, but does forgive Zuko.

Zuko tells Aang that he was right about Katara, although that is contradicted by what Katara just said and the events of the episode. I know some people theorize that this was a result of a lack of unity in the writing, but I also don’t think it’s out of character for Zuko to say this, even though he also ultimately disagrees with Aang’s stance on violence. Zuko is again playing a mediator role and playing both sides a bit, because the episode positions him between Aang and Katara, but he also leaves Aang with a challenge to his moral absolutism.

So I don’t think it’s a stretch to assume that in the very next episode, Zuko was also picking up on some tension between Aang and Katara when he sat between them. I’m not sure he knows about Aang’s romantic feelings for Katara - although he would when he hears his actor on stage call Katara “the Avatar’s girl” and sees Aang nod. But he does seem to pick up on Aang’s irritation being about more than just a taken seat, as he responds with unprompted anger. Zuko also takes note of Aang’s increasing anger throughout the play, with a concerned expression on his face. 

Remember what I said about abused kids being hypersensitive to the changing moods of others? It might be that, or Zuko might be feeling anxious about his role in the play and feeling like he doesn’t deserve forgiveness, or it might be that Zuko is hyper aware of the conflict between Katara and Aang carried over from the last episode to this one.

Actually, this shot is particularly interesting because the rest of the gaang is laughing at the portrayal of Toph, including Katara, until Toph shows that she’s pleased by the play’s portrayal of her. Then we see Katara frown, her attention shifting to Aang. 

Katara is unhappy that her attempt to get even with Toph backfired, then when she notices Aang as the camera pans to her left, she looks even more unhappy. Then we see the shot above of Zuko looking at Aang with clear concern over the situation. I’m pretty sure that Zuko is aware that something is going on between Katara and Aang at this point. Especially since Aang’s anger at being played by a girl (which is made worse by Toph’s happiness at being played by a boy) is linked to his insecurity about his relationship with Katara, and the play keeps making jokes about it, meant for us to feel sorry for Aang for being put in the “little brother” zone.

I think Zuko was generally anxious going into the play. You can see when they walk in that he has his hood pulled up, to hide his face, because he’s aware there’s a chance someone will recognize him. So even before the play starts, with its incriminating and humiliating portrayal of him, he is probably already on alert and wants to draw as little attention to himself as possible. Aang’s outburst is the kind of thing that would draw attention, and Zuko tries to minimize the attention by insisting that Aang just sit next to him. Zuko also reacts with defensive anger, as he is wont to do when he is anxious or upset, which of course would have the opposite effect from drawing attention away from them. But Aang acquiesces in frustration, and Katara, interestingly, notices the dispute, but just like when Zuko defended her to Aang in “The Southern Raiders,” says nothing. Katara also is facing away, fidgety, and looks unhappy while the confrontation is going on. This is also consistent with (and probably contributed to) the way Katara reacts to Aang’s pushiness and accusations later on.

Zuko spends much of the back part of season three physically close to Katara, which is a visual way for the animators to show how close they have grown. It’s not necessarily an indication of romantic Zutara, although there is nothing wrong with interpreting it that way, and I find it hilarious how threatened some people are by shippers gushing over the idea that he wanted to sit next to her, particularly in this episode because this episode actually intentionally plays up the “love triangle” for the purposes of getting the audience to sympathize with Aang and root for him to “get the girl.” Regardless of whether we interpret it in a romantic context, I think it is a good indication of how Zuko feels about Katara once he has gotten her forgiveness. Given Zuko’s social ineptitude, it would make sense that he would be likely to want to stick close to the people he felt closest to, especially in situations where he is surrounded by potentially hostile strangers. Witness his behavior in “The Beach,” where he spent most of the time awkwardly glued to Mai’s side and it was when he was separated from Mai at the party that he ran into trouble with the other partygoers, who make fun of him. That might explain why Zuko, although he comes from the opposite direction when they enter the theater as everyone else does, walks all the way down the end of the aisle to sit next to Katara. 

It might also explain why he wants to sit in between Katara and Aang, as these are the two people who he now feels closest to. It also is very likely that he is subconsciously picking up on the tension between Katara and Aang, which comes to a head later in this very episode. It’s worth noting that Zuko is often positioned physically between Katara and Aang throughout this episode, which is meant to communicate to the audience Aang’s anxiety over Katara not returning his feelings (and Zuko plays an indirect part in that, or at least, his stage actor does).

Zuko is also positioned narratively between Aang and Katara as a mediator and comfort to Katara after her fight with Aang in the very next episode, “The Phoenix King,” in which Zuko tells Katara to let Aang figure things out for himself when he runs away after yelling at Katara.

Chapter one - The Soulmate-Sized Hole

Adrien tried to ignore the empty seat across the dining table. The food was there. The high-backed chair was pulled out, waiting for its occupant. But his father was a no-show once again. He’d promised to spend an entire 30 minutes with his son this morning, but now there were only a few minutes left before his tutor arrived for his daily homeschool lessons, and the chance had been lost.

At least he knew there was one person who would never let him down, never abandon him, always have his back: his soulmate. Determined not to look around the hollow room and its broken promises, Adrien scrolled through his phone, rereading his list of nearby Soulmate Savants. Only 537 days until his 18th birthday, and then he wouldn’t need Father’s permission to hire one. Only 537 days until he gave himself the gift of her name.

And then he would be able to find her.

He missed his soulmate terribly, and he hadn’t even met her yet.

The cool click of shoes on marble was Adrien’s cue to hide his phone; his father swept into the room seconds later, looking concerned.

Gabriel didn’t stop next to his seat, but instead walked toward his son with carefully measured steps, his hands behind his back.

“What’s wrong?” Adrien asked, because of course something was.

Gabriel adjusted his glasses, like he was stalling to find the right words. It was unusual for him, which made Adrien nervous.

“Your stalker was just here. Nathalie spoke to her.”

Adrien leapt to his feet, ready to… he wasn’t sure. Years of battle instincts told him he needed to do something, but that girl was just a teenager like him. He couldn’t fight her, might not be able to stop her from hurting someone, and that wasn’t something he was used to. He slumped back down into his chair, suddenly tired. “What did she say this time?”

They really were just three ordinary boys from West Virginia, and if you listen to Griffin’s Florida State lecture (the whole thing’s on youtube) he talks about how rough things were for them when they started their podcast. He mentions how they were in mourning over their mother, fighting all the time, and ready to separate forever, but held on and decided not to abandon each other in the thick of it. And things were still rough, because their father had to work stupid hours at the radio station to support himself, and the brothers were trying to make it in game journalism.

And then they started MBMBaM, a goofy bad advice podcast full of improvised bits and comedy segments, and it blew up. They started TAZ, a fun D&D podcast where they played with their dad, and were able to bond together and let him retire comfortably on the revenue it generated, and now Clint oversees the TAZ graphic novel series that’s still releasing issues and spends boatloads of quality time with his three sons. Monster Factory is just a funny game stream where Justin and Griffin try to destroy character creators as much as possible, but it’s one of their biggest IPs. Their TV show was short-lived but explosively popular among their fanbase.

They sell out entire stadiums and Lin-Manuel Miranda plays them We Didn’t Start the Fire parodies as they walk on and people lose their collective minds. Tom Holland fanboys over them at SDCC. People come from all over the place to hear them perform, and that performance never got less authentic. It’s just three brothers and their dad being goofy together and trying to make each other laugh. And the laughter and love they carried for each other was so contagious that it made an entire world of people love them, too.