Nev heaven

A Comic About How Zuko Got His First Gray Hair (alternatively A Comic in which Aang Yeets a Baby)

This was spawned out of witnessing a humorous exchange between @cablesscutie and @gemgirl28 in which they discussed some steambaby headcanons and how Zuko would probably be over-protective and cautious with the first baby at least. Then Cablesscutie said, “Aang has never had one fear and gets that first steambaby for the first time and Uncle Aang just yeets that child so high and that is the story of how Zuko got his first gray hair” and I was like…. MUST. DRAW. So yes, I did shoehorn my own first Zutara child in there, but really this idea works with any zk baby if you ask me haha I didn’t draw the instance of the gray hair (that has to grow in) but this is certainly the precipitating incident. Were it not for this quote, I myself would probably not use the phrase “yeet” as I am far too elderly, but it was so perfect in this context, so it stayed. The power of Aang: what are his flings into the air but yeets. u.u 

You know that point at which you notice a mistake in your drawings, but it’s far too late to change anything… yeah. ANYWAY. I haven’t read any of the Avatar comics, but I’ve seen bits and pieces of Imbalance, and I really like the style, so I took a stab at emulating it. Unfortunately I suck at reverse engineering coloring/painting styles (and get impatient and give up), so alas… is what it is. Comics are hard, coloring is harder… I can’t tell you how long it took me to sort out Katara’s colors… I ultimately decided she doesn’t need to wear red to be a leader of the Fire Nation… I love the Water Tribe aesthetic too much to let it go (I’m sure as Fire Lady, or whatever title she’d be, she’d bring light furs and blues very much into vogue in the Fire Nation).

So Thank you again to cablesscutie and gemgirl28 for their galaxy brain headcanons and for letting me draw it. Also thanks to @neincraff and @kashicanhaz for some help with some of the dialog n.n (Check out all their stuff if you’re looking for great Zutara fanfiction!)

Just imagine Zuko is colorblind. He is red-green colorblind. So he can’t see the colors of his own nation. But, when he first sees the ocean, he finds comfort he’s at least surrounded by something he can truly see. However, it’s when he meets Katara’s eyes; he discovers his favorite color is blue.

It’s why he wore Katara’s necklace around his wrist because it not only reminded him of her but because he could actually see the color of the ocean in his own hands.

Also, imagine the meetings as Fire lord, and he can’t tell which dignitary is earth kingdom or Fire nation, so he has to ask Katara who is who.

zuko: i like that shade of red sokka

toph: yeah you look great!

sokka: well thank y-

sokka:

KATARA IS

SUKI IS

TOPH IS

despite sokka being totally sexist for the first season yall make him out to be the feminist character of the show while ignoring the WOMEN who carried the show and was representation of actual feminism in media.

suki is the leader of elite all girls warriors, she literally kicked the misogyny out of sokka, and single-handedly took on prison guards and captured the warden of the most secure prison in the fire nation.

toph is the world’s greatest earthbender who kicked ass the first scene we saw her in right after the boulder said he won’t fight “a little girl” and she held the championship title of earthbending fighters AND invented metal bending all while being BLIND.

and don’t even get me started on katara. miss girl started waterbending by barely holding up a bubble of water and then she could literally STOP THE RAIN, she taught the avatar waterbending (TWICE), and took down the northern water tribes misogynistic belief that girls can only be healers and proved that women can be warriors THE NEAR PINNACLE OF FEMINISM and a literal icon for dark skinned poc girls

i’m sick and tired of y’all attributing the leading feminist role to A MAN and disregarding the powerful women in the show who are actual symbols of feminism.

I’m native, and I can see how “Fire Lady” Katara can be interpreted. But we also have to understand that at the time it was created, it wasn’t meant to degrade Katara’s heritage. In fact, it was created as a way to elevate Katara’s power as more than just a housewife, and instead, be a co-ruler of a nation where she could both enact progressive feminists change in the fire nation while simultaneously representing her home tribe as well.

Hindsight is a powerful tool. But the fact is that the title is fanon created to give Katara more power rather than less, which she is often given in other ships, specifically her canon one. I ship Zutara, but I also get the cringe reaction when I see fire lady used as a title, so I created my own title for her as “Lady of the Moon,” where she would also be given a crescent moon as her crown instead of a flame. To properly celebrate and recognize her heritage as a waterbender and a woman from the Southern Water Tribe (there is a lot more detail in my decision/creation of this title, but that probably deserves an entire post of its own.)

Again, I also get an instinctive flinch reaction when I see the title of “fire lady.” However, when I remember the history behind it and its intention, I can swallow it better, knowing it was meant to elevate a native woman’s status as more than just a baby-maker for their husband to rebuild a nation that isn’t her own, but a woman who can create change on the international level, including offering insight into her culture and incorporating it in education and creating a dialogue which will Open her culture to the world where it can be better appreciated and understood.

Katara is an activist, feminist and passionate about doing all she can to help the world. Of course, it is not the woman of colors job to teach the oppressors the error of their ways, but she would happily help to increase awareness and education of all cultures, which she has in canon in the Fire Nation.

She deserves a platform where she’ll be taken seriously, and the north is sexist and wouldn’t. However, as the ruler of a nation where she and her husband rule as equals, she could use her power in the fire nation to create precedents for the rest of the world to follow, pioneer change in environmental policy, education, healthcare, and economic policies which would help former soldiers find work after being discharged with no other skills than war. She is passionate about politics, as we saw in season two when she was practically skipping to meet with the Earth King to strategize for Day of Black Sun.

Ultimately, Zuko and Katara are very well matched. Zuko can handle the big picture things while Katara can craft all the details. She loves outreach, so she would communicate with the people and genuinely understand their needs. Katara’s approachable and compassionate nature, whereas Zuko is awkward and can come across as angry or hostile. They make a good team because they balance each other's shortcomings.

Overall, I know you don’t actually hate Zutara; I read the tags, and I 100% agree that househusband Zuko is a vastly underused trope that should be utilized more, but this is basically what zutarians mean when they call her “Fire Lady.” Do I like the title? Not really, no. But I can appreciate its intention while also understanding the discomfort of newer viewers of the show- especially native viewers like myself- Who can immediately assume it is intended to belittle her culture.

TLDR; The title of “Fire Lady” was created when we were less knowledgeable about such titles' implications to native women. We were mostly children with very little understanding of such complex issues, which the source material also did a poor job of accurately representing. But the intention was always to give Katara more power than she was given in canon, rather than less, and highlight her ability to effect change in both the fire nation and her home nation as a ruler who worked beside the fire lord as an equal with equal power rather than a subordinate.