People talk about Azula like she came out of the wombacting like rumplestiltskin because why did I just read that someone said Azula 'sabotaged' good moments with her mom as if this seven year old deadass watched her mom try to reach out to her and thought "aha! A foolish endeavour, mother of mine, but I see through your ruse of affection for its true intention! You seek only to dull the blade of mine own wits and for that I must rebuke thee and thine efforts... better luck next time, nemesis of mine!"
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Thinking about how Azula didn't break down into tears when she lost to Katara. But rather when she saw her brother receiving a form of love again, while she's trapped on the sidelines, physically bound to witness.
Hey! Here I am a Catholic person because I grew up with religion and decided to stay in it of my own free will.
And yes, it's hard to describe, you look to one side and you find those negative aspects that everyone notices, but you turn to the other and you're strangely an equal to others...
I really understand you, there's quite a bit of duality in Catholicism.
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Cut to a portrait of Lady Ursa. Camera zooms out to reveal Zuko kneeling in front of her picture.)
Zuko: I know I made some bad choices. But today, I'm going to set things right. (He grabs his broadswords and backpack before looking at his Mother's portrait for one last time. He throws on his cloak and walks away.)
I'm not going to lie: everyone ignores how incredibly weird this moment was, mostly because they completely forget about it
Nice screenshot. You can really see how much Ursa resembles Azula in that portrait, which is difficult to see in the show unless you pause on it, because it goes by so fast.
Anyway, is it weird? I dunno, he thinks his mom is probably dead. He last saw her at like age ten. My mom died when I was ten. I'm notably also a dramatic theatre kid like the fire siblings but I was doing similar things in my late teens. Talking to a picture of her, etc.
The weird thing is not him bowing before the picture, it what he's saying to it/to Ursa:
"I know I made some bad choices. But today, I'm going to set things right."
He's positions all the bad things he did as "having let down Ursa" in some way, and positioning his "redemption/joining the Avatar" as a way to "make things up" to her.
Of course, if you apply the lens of filial piety to the situation, it potentially gets more interesting. At least theoretically, Zuko's chase for the Avatar is about fulfilling his father's wishes for him. When Zuko turns against his father, he positions himself as still exercising filial piety by positioning himself as fulfilling the "wishes" of his "true father" Iroh and of his mother.
Kiyi is not a Princess - A Look At the Fire Nation's Line of Succession
It's not even that much about Kiyi. But the creators seemingly got so lost in the sauce that their ideas about how absolutist monarchies work are as good as taken out of Disney movies now. So, let's set the record straight.
The Fire Nation line of succession
When it comes to royal lines, there were multiple elements that went into setting the line of succession: descent, sex, legitimacy, religion etc. For the Fire Nation, the ones we have 100% confirmed are descent and legitimacy (this last one seen with the Camellia-Peony War, where Chaejin was excluded from the succession because he was born out of wedlock). I would have gone on a whim to say sex counts as well, however, it is a bit foggy. In the Reckoning of Roku, it is mentioned that Firelord Taiso believed Zeisan (Sozin's younger sister) would have been a more competent ruler but could never become Fire Lord due to being a nonbender (I didn't actually read the book, so if someone who did wants to pitch in with the exact wording, please feel free to). This implies that being a Firebender is a requirement, but being a woman isn't. However, it also implies that Taiso would have been fine with ignoring the descent part (Sozin was older) if he deemed fit. Skipping the firstborn in favour of the second one isn't unheard of when it comes to succession so sure. And he is the absolute monarch, if he wants to pass papers to change the line of succession, he can. It is unclear to me if there is any power in place to veto or block a Fire Lord's ruling on any matter so for all we know, if he wanted, he could have. Plus, the fact that Ozai got crowned over Iroh because it was 'Azulon's dying wish'. For the religion part, it seems like the Fire Sages have to perform the coronation and acknowledge the monarch.
So to make it more digestible, the line of succession (while Azulon was still alive) is: Iroh â Lu Ten (firstborn of the heir) â Ozai â Zuko â Azula. With Lu Ten dead, Iroh MIA (at the time) then we have Ozai â Zuko â Azula. When Iroh came back, he gets added at the end of this line of succession. I am a bit unclear on Iroh in current times because it looks to me like he rescinded his role in the line of succession altogether with deciding to live in Ba Sing Se and letting politically inexperienced Zuko rule instead of taking over for a few years to create some stability.
Right now, we have Fire Lord Zuko and his heir presumptive (aka an heir that can be displaced if the monarch has children) Azula. Unless he wrote a decree to take her out of the line of succession â which would require a lot more brain cells than the writers are willing to give Zuko, not that he had a lot of them when it came to politics to begin with âthen she's next in line. It doesn't matter how much anyone wants it or not, if Zuko drops dead tomorrow, Azula gets the throne.
Now, onto the other matter.
How does one become a Princess?
Option 1: You marry into the royal family. For example, Ursa was styled as a Princess, as she married Prince Ozai.
Option 2: You're born in a royal line. For example, Azula is a Princess because her father is a Prince, her grandfather, at the time of her birth, was the ruling monarch of the Fire Nation etc.
Bonus Option it's complicated: Royals had a habit of having children out of wedlock sometimes. Said children, if acknowledged, could be granted titles (Count of X, Dutchess of Y etc.) . Getting acknowledged and a title does not automatically put you in the line of succession, though. For example, Firelord Chaeryu was forced to acknowledge Chaejin and avoid dishonoring his noble mother and her house, but he excluded Chaejin from the royal family.
So Kiyi is not a Princess. Simple as that. Neither of her parents are of the royal line.
Could she become a Princess?
Well, this gets interesting.
Let's start with the fact that Kiyi got a pretty bad deal in a class-based monarchical society.
First thing, while her mother is a noble, her father is a commoner. Even if Ursa's family became destitute after Roku's death because of political reasons, it does not change the fact that she is still nobility unless Sozin revoked Rina's title, which I am not 100% sure he did. We don't know anything about Jinzuk besides the fact that he was the magistrate of Hira'a. While magistrates do not have to be part of the nobility, they can be. He could have been a second/third/fourth son of a small noble family with limited power/resources, given the position he was given was in a place like Hira'a, which is what I am inclining towards. He could have also been just some guy, but someone appointed him, and as a rule of thumb, you don't just go into the street and pick a random person to appoint to an administrative and leadership role, even if it's a small town. Given that Azulon was set on Ozai marrying Ursa because she was Roku's granddaughter, whether or not Jinzuk was a noble, it doesn't matter all that much in the grand scheme of things. However, in Kiyi's case, it does if Zuko wants to give her a title. It's more stigma than anything because people can be given nobility titles for specific services to the crown etc. But this is not her only issue. Which leads me to...
Second thing, Kiyi is a bastard. Which, in my opinion, would hold even more stigma than her father not being a noble. Ursa never divorced Ozai. As far as we know, polygamist marriages aren't a thing in the Fire Nation, so her marriage to Ikem/Noren is invalid. Could she be granted a divorce retroactively by the Fire Sages? Actually, yeah. Because Zuko named Shyu as High Sage, which was like the one sound political move he ever did tbh. We don't see what the Fire Nation's stance on divorce is, but given that Shyu is a Zuko loyalist, he'd probably grant Ursa retroactive divorce from Ozai. I am not a legal expert, however, as far as I know, retroactive decisions tend to be reserved for correcting a mistake or omission in the written record. She was still married to Ozai when she went and married Ikem. Though technically, she married him under a fake identity (and so did he), which might make the marriage void regardless in the eyes of the law. Idk how Spirit involvement affects legal matters in the world of Avatar, but as things stand right now, unless we pretzel-twist ourselves to make excuses, Kiyi is born outside of legitimate wedlock.
Now, Zuko might not care. In fact, he probably doesn't. He could still give Kiyi a title, including that of Princess. It was not uncommon for illegitimate relatives of rulers to be offered roles/titles once acknowledged. The real question is if he would put her in the line of succession. Kiyi has no business being there because she does not have royal blood.
Could Zuko do whatever he wants, give her the title of Princess and shove her in the line of succession while taking Azula out of it for good measure? Sure, he can. He'd probably love that, in fact. But that leaves two things open.
One, nobility would not take kindly to a bastard child of a commoner with no royal blood being in the line of succession. If we also add the angle of taking Azula out of it, it would just increase their ire. There is already a long list of why the nobility is probably angry at Zuko (and should attempt to assassinate him a lot more than they do), but I think this one in particular has other implications. There might be nobles who are neutral about Zuko. Shamelessly discarding societal norms on a whim might make their perspective swing towards negative. It could make him lose goodwill he might have or potential allies.
Two, it will make the commoners wonder. If this random girl, raised as a peasant, with a commoner father, born out of wedlock, can be put in the line of succession just like that â while discarding a princess of the blood if we are at it â then⌠is the royal line not that special? The whole premise of a monarchy is that the monarch and their descendants have the divine right to rule. Being part of that bloodline gives you the right to rule. So if that can be discarded, if that bloodline is not all that important⌠should Zuko be Firelord? And most importantly, does the Fire Nation really need a monarch at all?
Kiyi is not a princess, and for the well-being of Zuko's reign â which is already barely holding together â he better not make her one.
It's just what I found weird, how is it possible that Zuko goes around complaining that not everyone accepts his rule, but it just so happens that they seem to accept Kiyi as a princess quite well.
If we take into account the current canon Ursa only enjoyed a title for marriage rights, which are already invalid because Ozai is no longer a lord of fire and is a prisoner.
Oh, right, one last thing, Ikem and Kiyi are the real winners of this story, they never did anything to earn the rights they enjoy. Imagine that one day you are a peasant and the next you have a degree, live in a palace and enjoy privileges that do not correspond to you, especially Ikem, who until now we have not seen him do anything, or work and it is not that he is 100% in charge of Kiyi or Ursa's security.
Apparently Faith Erin Hicks has claimed on social media that the "Azula fans" line was just meant to be a joke and wasn't intended as a dig at Azula fans.
For me personally, I think authors should try to stay away from social media and shouldn't be looking at twitter, bluesky, tumblr, reddit, etc. takes right after something comes out. It's a good way to poison yourself and start distorting your stories. Of course, the Avatar Comics have been plenty distorted already, ever since the beginning, but that's another story.
This is also a reminder to everyone to not harass her, or anyone else involved with producing the comics.
Even if it was really a hint to Azula's fans, it shouldn't affect us, we know how we really are
Apart from the fact that it is not a justification to go and attack the people involved in the comic, that is quite wrong and especially coming from our own fandom.
I don't, because the official media have had ample time to do it if they were so inclined, and it's not like "redeemed Azula doing Batman shit" (or doing anything, really) couldn't be a viable concept that might sell some comics.
I'm also torn on whether I want them to - every panel of the comics I've seen, and every detailed (or vague) review I've read/seen, suggests that whoever is generating current content has at best an extremely limited understanding of (1) the themes of the original show, (2) the characters of the original show, and (3) Azula, her motivations, and her narrative role in the original show.
So on the one hand, if they do ever put an Azula "redemption" into official media, I'm confident it will be done badly. On the other hand, there are a lot of fan takes are bad and stupid and surface level and that I hate, and the people with those surface level takes would at least have to abandon takes that "Azula was pure evil from the start and couldn't ever be redeemed under any circumstance or for any reason."
The Spirit Temple stuff kind of suggested Hicks kind of got Azula. Not entirely but it was at least interesting. But after Ashes, I have no confidence in her writing Azula.
I don't think it's necessarily Hicks. This is sounding exactly like Bryke pulling their shit. Cause they've been doing this for a while. Like, you remember how they let Yang tear apart an Azula fan in a con one time? And looking at people funny for admitting Azula was their favorite?
At this point I have already lost hope, they release a comic of Azula showing her duality, even if it is in a very tripped way, and then a comic of Mai arrives who is only friends with her because her father forced her.
I assure you that at least for Azula their friendship did become sincere, the comic itself shows that Azula does not want to hurt Ty Lee even if it is fake, and it also hurts that Mai has chosen Zuko to later separate.
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I would love to have a story where Ursa, as a good Fire Imperialist, is so ideologically opposed to Firelord Zukoâs regime that she becomes the antagonist despite her connection to him.
that could potentially be a crazy dark/mind thriller kinda of story, it makes it so much more complicated that theyâre mother and son - and son believes his mother would never harm him. It will fuck with a person
Azula as villain never made much sense to me anyway post-war, because she demonstrably will support whatever the Fire Nationâs current ideals and policies are, without question. Her primary loyalty is to the Firelord, who all seem to have a very Louis XIV âL'ĂŠtat, c'est moiâ deal going on. (Louis XIVâs famous quote, which translates to, âI am the state.â Interestingly, Louis XIV was known as the Sun King.) That doesnât mean she wonât also be an annoying little sister to Zuko, and that thereâs not tons and tons of stuff for their relationship to process through to become healthy, but I donât really see her as fomenting rebellion or unrest under his rule. She would support his regime. She believes in the divine right to rule - and she knows that heâs the one who has the birthright, not her.
Ursa, on the other hand, absolutely could be a problem, and it would honestly be so far out of left field that neither sibling would expect it, but Azula would be constantly rubbing her brotherâs nose in how she was right about mom all along
There is the little problem of Azula fatherâŚIf sheâs going to be loyal to anyone right after the war, itâs likely to be him. Zukoâs currently imprisoning him. And even beyond that, normally she would be OK with Zuko ruling, but he kind of committed high treason, allied with the Fire Nationâs enemies to seize the throne, and then turned his back on the last 100 years of Fire Nation history.
I could still see her doing which you suggest her, but I donât think it would be a happy fate for her at all, unless Zuko had some real complex growth fast.
I don't see Ursa as a villain, but I do see her as an antagonist, it could be a good play that defines very well at what point an antagonist crosses the line to villainy, but as I said before I don't see Ursa crossing that line.
Apart from the fact that there are some elements or details of Ursa's character that can work for such a story.
Hello and welcome once again to the Avatar: The Last Airbender Rarepair Month event!
This event is a month long, spanning the entirety of the month of May 2025, and will be devoted to any and all forms of content celebrating the Rarepair ships of AtLA.
Content can include but not limited to fanfiction, fanart, moodboards, edits, music videos and playlists.
Prompts:
Week 1 - Fairytales & Legends + Mental Health/Support Systems + Seasons- May 1st to May 6th
Week 2 - Musical instruments & Poetry + First Time Bending Experiences + Love Languages - May 7th to May 12th
Week 3 - Education/Teaching + Confessions + The Four Elements - May 13th to May 18th
Week 4 - First Kill (Hunting or War) + Writing Letters/Secret Messages + The Human Spirit - May 19th to May 24th
Week 5 - Retirement + Chores + In Sickness and In Health + Free Space - May 25th to May 31st
The rules for entries are as follows:
-Must be 18+ to participate, as we will be accepting NSFW entries (make sure to tag appropriately for content warnings)
-A rarepair must have 100 or less fics on ao3 to be considered acceptable.
-For this event we are excluding any Canon Character x Reader submissions.
-We will, however, accept Canon Character x OC submissions.
-All content is acceptable, please be courteous of other people's submissions and do not leave hate or discourse in the comments and tags. This is a celebration of rarepairs and encouraging more content for rarepairs in the fandom. If you don't like something someone made, just keep scrolling.
-When submitting your content, make sure to tag us @atlararepairmonth
Hello and welcome once again to the Avatar: The Last Airbender Rarepair Month event!
This event is a month long, spanning the entirety of the month of May 2025, and will be devoted to any and all forms of content celebrating the Rarepair ships of AtLA.
Content can include but not limited to fanfiction, fanart, moodboards, edits, music videos and playlists.
Prompts:
Week 1 - Fairytales & Legends + Mental Health/Support Systems + Seasons- May 1st to May 6th
Week 2 - Musical instruments & Poetry + First Time Bending Experiences + Love Languages - May 7th to May 12th
Week 3 - Education/Teaching + Confessions + The Four Elements - May 13th to May 18th
Week 4 - First Kill (Hunting or War) + Writing Letters/Secret Messages + The Human Spirit - May 19th to May 24th
Week 5 - Retirement + Chores + In Sickness and In Health + Free Space - May 25th to May 31st
The rules for entries are as follows:
-Must be 18+ to participate, as we will be accepting NSFW entries (make sure to tag appropriately for content warnings)
-A rarepair must have 100 or less fics on ao3 to be considered acceptable.
-For this event we are excluding any Canon Character x Reader submissions.
-We will, however, accept Canon Character x OC submissions.
-All content is acceptable, please be courteous of other people's submissions and do not leave hate or discourse in the comments and tags. This is a celebration of rarepairs and encouraging more content for rarepairs in the fandom. If you don't like something someone made, just keep scrolling.
-When submitting your content, make sure to tag us @atlararepairmonth
This episode was the deciding factor in whether I shipped Kataang or Zutara. A lot of people say that this a very Zutara centric episode, but honestly I feel like beneath the surface it really is a more of a Kataang one. Why? Katara and Aang hardly tak to each other in this episode, and when they do, they are fighting. Well this scene right here was what put things into perspective. Even though Katara is a gentle soul, stubborn at times, but still very caring, she harbors a lot. And sheâs bitter. The death of her mother is something that has been popping up from the beginning of the series and we see early on how hurt she is by it. In this scene, Aang urged her to do the unthinkable. Forgive the man who murdered her mother. She tells him that he doesnât understand, but Aang knows better than anyone what it feels like to lose the people you love. But Aang learned early on that guilt is something that will interfere with both your mind and spirit, and when he was unlocking his chakras, he had to forgive himself in order to carry on. He has the whole weight of a nation on his shoulders, yet he doesnât even have the desire to harm the Fire Lord. Aang understands Kataraâs situation, and Aang also understands Katara as a person. He knows that she harbors regrets as well. Just like how she regretted ever trusting Zuko. Aang knows that acting out on bitterness will only harm Katara further, and he knows the venomous Katara he is seeing at the moment isnât the one he has known for months. Aang wants her to let go, not because heâs soft, but because he knows that in the long run it will better benefit her. Zuko though plays off Aangâs comments and mocks them. The thing about Zuko is that, like Katara who is blinded by rage, he is blinded by redemption. From the moment he joined their side, Zuko fought for trust. He fought for his honor in their eyes and Katara was the hardest to win over. Zuko isnât necessarily just thinking of Katara in this scene though I imagine he can sympathize with her, he is still thinking a whole lot about himself. But thatâs just who Zuko is. Zuko concerns himself with others, but Zuko is still trying to figure out who he is and how heâs going to repair the people he hurt. In the end, Zuko did gain Kataraâs forgiveness, but ultimately Katara followed Aangâs advice. Both relationships are incredibly dynamic, but it was this episode that set my ship in stone within my head.
We even have Word of God Bryke that in the moment when she could have killed Yon Rha and condemned herself to a lifetime regretting that action, it was Aangâs words that saved her. Zuko was physically present with her then, but Aang was with her in spirit and he was the one who understood all along that what she needed was closure, not revenge.
This is also partially a response to @themarkedprinceâs tag:Â
((Zuko secretly takes this advice to heart. He remembers it when confronting his father in prison post A:TLA)) Â
I was thinking about Katara, Azula, and Zuko mimicking people, and I started to wonder if, up to this point, Zuko thought of forgiveness as being childish because the last time Zuko begged for forgiveness, it didnât really turn out that well. So, heâs thinking that forgiveness is stupid and childish because he was a child begging for forgiveness and mercy at some pointâand the rest speaks for itself.Â
Anyway, Iâm wondering if seeing Yon Rha asking for mercy maybe reminded him of his own experience with begging for mercy and forgiveness in that heâs expecting Katara to finish what she came there to do since itâs what Ozai would have done in her place. An eye for an eye, after all. But, that doesnât happen.Â
Then later, heâs accepted by his uncle, which still surprises him because heâs not yet used to this whole forgiveness thing. Heâs only known anger, redemption arcs, and honor quests. But, as Katara demonstrated, one can move on without necessarily forgiving someone or taking revenge.Â
This leads to Zuko saying this line to Ozai in the finale:
Banishing me was the best thing you could have done for my life. It put me on the right path. Perhaps your time in here could do the same for you.
 Zuko brings up the possibility of Ozai righting his wrongs, but he makes no mention of redemption or forgiveness because he realizes now that forgiveness, moving on, and redemption are not mutually inclusive terms. This is a theme that gets elaborated on in LOK with Asamiâs forgiveness does not mean trust dynamic contrasting with Korraâs trust does not mean forgiveness.Â
These are the hard lessons in life people. Many viewers out there believe that Aang should have just killed Ozai and I see their point. There are people out there in real life who treat the virtues of life and those who carry them with abuse. Often these horrible people only want others in misery for whatever reason, but it is still not happiness. On the other hand the âgood guysâ many times find that the best choice is to end their problem by killing that person. However, the good guy ends up being upset because they chose to make this hard decision. Iâm pretty sure Aang understood that. It would have been easy to take a life, but then you are left with the aftermath. So he searched for a different way and even when he had it even he was tempted to just end it. In the end it was his own will to change things. He became responsible for his choice and walked the hardest path there is in this reality. To be a good person. To forgive a life. To give a second chance.
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As Google has worked to overtake the internet, its search algorithm has not just gotten worse. It has been designed to prioritize advertisers and popular pages often times excluding pages and content that better matches your search termsÂ
As a writer in need of information for my stories, I find this unacceptable. As a proponent of availability of information so the populace can actually educate itself, it is unforgivable.
Below is a concise list of useful research sites compiled by Edward Clark over on Facebook. I was familiar with some, but not all of these.
â
Google is so powerful that it âhidesâ other search systems from us. We just donât know the existence of most of them. Meanwhile, there are still a huge number of excellent searchers in the world who specialize in books, science, other smart information. Keep a list of sites you never heard of.
www.refseek.com - Academic Resource Search. More than a billion sources: encyclopedia, monographies, magazines.
www.worldcat.org - a search for the contents of 20 thousand worldwide libraries. Find out where lies the nearest rare book you need.
https://link.springer.com - access to more than 10 million scientific documents: books, articles, research protocols.
www.bioline.org.br is a library of scientific bioscience journals published in developing countries.
http://repec.org - volunteers from 102 countries have collected almost 4 million publications on economics and related science.
www.science.gov is an American state search engine on 2200+ scientific sites. More than 200 million articles are indexed.
www.pdfdrive.com is the largest website for free download of books in PDF format. Claiming over 225 million names.
www.base-search.net is one of the most powerful researches on academic studies texts. More than 100 million scientific documents, 70% of them are free
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