From a writing standpoint, Book 3: Fire should definitely been set in the Fire Nation. It's a location we haven't seen much of, and it's important for the characters to explore enemy territory and get a grasp on who exactly they're fighting this war against. It also gives us, the audience, a chance to finally see the Fire Nation and its people.

But from a story perspective, what we're given doesn't make much sense. Why would Team Avatar stay in the Fire Nation leading up to the invasion? Why wouldn't they use Appa to go around and recruit as many soldiers as they can for the invasion? Hakoda and his warriors do this, but wouldn't it be faster if the gang helped? They know most of the people recruited already, and they could have hidden Aang so that word didn't spread about his survival. They could have recruited more than what we're shown in canon.

Wouldn't this have been more useful than enrolling in a Fire Nation school?

It would have been safer too, considering Aang IS caught at one point

And then we have Sokka who maintains a strict schedule. But for what purpose?

What are they working towards that requires such dedication to this schedule? Hakoda and his men are able to reach The Black Cliffs on time, along with the others. And they don't have a sky bison.

So what's the point?

Well, the original Avatar Bible gives something of an answer at least

Zuko's role in season 2 is only mentioned twice:

So Appa was meant to be missing much earlier, and for much longer. This would mean that Aang NEEDS to be close to the Fire Lord on the Day of Black Sun, regardless of the invading forces ability to help. Staying in proximity to the capital prior to the eclipse makes sense, so lingering in Fire Nation territory would be important.

But then we get this tidbit about the GAang's other reason for being in the Fire Nation prior to the invasion:

Obviously, so much changed from the original conception of the show. The Fire Nation is not a 'barren land full of active volcanoes' and Zuko's Season 2 story line, living amongst Earth Kingdom commoners, was going to be saved for Season 3 to be the Fire Nation commoners.

But most importantly, Aang, Katara, Sokka and Toph (male version), were searching for Aang's firebending master.

And I really wish they stuck with that concept in the first half of canon season 3.

I wish they put feelers out for possible masters for Aang. Attempted to find firebending academies similar to Master Yu's. Tried to learn at least the basics of firebending, regardless of its application on the Day of Black Sun.

Because to be a fully realized Avatar, he did have to know all four elements. Learning firebending was going to be the most difficult for lack of a teacher, and that was highlighted when the team first arrived at the Western Air Temple. But it could have been a pressure for the team starting with season 3.

Each village they visited and each story we got could have still happened, but it would have been better served if the team attempted to find a master for Aang, and always came up short. It would also lead to the same realization they have at the Western Air Temple, that they really have no choice but to accept Zuko's help.

3: Toph and Katara sit in Appa's saddle in their Fire Nation outfits, looking at the very long, rolled-out, color-coded schedule Sokka has made, as Katara says, "Assuming that'll fit into Sokka's master schedule."

4-5: Text screenshots: "2nd Season - Spring: Season Overview: Throughout the spring, Aang, Katara, Sokka, and Momo journey through the unfamiliar Earth Kingdom mainland, a vast continent full of natural wonders and fantastical creatures. Zuko, Prince Azul, and the rogue Earthbender continue their separate pursuits, each hoping to capture the Avatar and win Fire Lord Ozai's favor. Early in the season, Zuko captures Aang's bison alive and gives it to his father as a gift. Unable to fly, the group relies on Katara's Waterbending to propel their raft down the Earth Kingdom's many rivers. They travel south toward the Earth Kingdom's last stronghold in the capital city. There, they meet the Emperor, a proud man who refuses to give in to the Fire Nation. When he meets Aang, the Emperor imparts his covert plan to invade the Fire Nation so that the Avatar may help his men in battle. The Emperor makes Aang promise not to reveal the mission to anyone."

6: Text screenshot: "Summer marks the impending arrival of a comet that will empower Firebenders with strength enough to decimate the Earth Army, ending the war. As the troops continue to fight toward the enemy's capital, Aang, Katara, Sokka, and Toph make their way through the Fire Nation, a hot, barren land full of active volcanoes, searching for a Fire Master willing to teach Aang Firebending.

Having traveled for several years, Prince Zuko returns to his homeland to find his people enslaved and living in poverty. Outraged that his father has committed such heinous crimes in the name of war, Zuko once again speaks out against the Fire Lord, this time vowing to take his throne and save the Fire Nation from ruin. In retaliation, Fire Lord Ozai deploys a team of his most deadly Firebenders to capture his son. Zuko grows his hair and takes refuge in a small village, living among his people for the first time in his life.

To write a believable child, DO NOT make them:

- dumb

- inarticulate

- prone to outbursts

- superlatively innocent

DO make them:

- totally incapable of accurately calculating delayed gratification or the long-term consequences of their actions

- intermittently sociopathic

- sometimes choose to lie in a way that cannot possibly be believed, due to a dearth of life experience making it impossible to determine the likelihood of their own statements

As of this morning I was reluctantly looking for jobs because I love my job and don't want to leave it, but see: $10k raise problem solver.

As of noon today this was no longer an issue, because my boss called me with the news that I was getting a $10K merit raise.

I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders. This is roughly $200 extra per paycheck. Enough to pay off debt faster, rebuild my savings, and spend a weekend a month in Milwaukee getting obscenely laid. The sex I'm going to have on $200 extra per paycheck. You can't even.

These are the things your character claims are just “how they are” but really, they’re bleeding all over everyone and calling it a vibe.

╰ They say they're "independent." Translation: They don’t trust anyone to stay. They learned early that needing people = disappointment. So now they call it “being self-sufficient” like it’s some shiny badge of honor. (Mostly to cover up how lonely they are.)

╰ They say they're "laid-back." Translation: They stopped believing their wants mattered. They'll eat anywhere. Do anything. Agree with everyone. Not because they're chill, but because the fight got beaten out of them a long time ago.

╰ They say they're "a perfectionist." Translation: They believe mistakes make them unlovable. Every typo. Every bad hair day. Every misstep feels like proof that they’re worthless. So they polish and polish and polish... until there’s nothing real left.

╰ They say they're "private." Translation: They’re terrified of being judged—or worse, pitied. Walls on walls on walls. They joke about being “mysterious” while desperately hoping no one gets close enough to see the mess behind the curtain.

╰ They say they're "ambitious." Translation: They think achieving enough will finally make the emptiness go away. If they can just get the promotion, the award, the validation—then maybe they’ll finally outrun the feeling that they’re fundamentally broken. (It never works.)

╰ They say they're "good at moving on." Translation: They’re world-class at repression. They’ll cut people out. Bury heartbreak. Pretend it never happened. And then wonder why they wake up at 3 a.m. feeling like they're suffocating.

╰ They say they're "logical." Translation: They’re terrified of their own feelings. Emotions? Messy. Dangerous. Uncontrollable. So they intellectualize everything to avoid feeling anything real. They call it rationality. (It's fear.)

╰ They say they're "loyal to a fault." Translation: They mistake abandonment for loyalty. They stay too long. Forgive too much. Invest in people who treat them like an afterthought, because they think walking away makes them "just as bad."

Ozai loyalists: Zuko? More like. Sucko. Go Ozai

Admiral Chan: That motherfucker invited himself to my son's party, broke my mother's vase because he was jealous, was told to leave, left, and then came back to burn down my vacation home.

Ohhhh but this could make for such an interesting AU.

For whatever reason, the Gaang didn't take action during the comet (maybe Zuko wasn't sitting in on the meeting in which the plan to set the Earth Kingdom on fire was made or something, idk, figuring that part out isn't as important to me right now). No one stopped Ozai, no one kept Azula from being crowned Fire Lord. Ozai comes home, and the Caldera is in utter shambles. His prized golden child has made ludicrous decisions, banishing half the people who live in the Caldera, she's disheveled and unkempt, and she's held none of her usual control and decorum. I imagine, in her fragile state of mind, if Ozai challenged her on what on earth is happening, she'd try to banish him from the Fire Nation; she's Fire Lord, after all, he can't talk to her that way. Everyone's against her, maybe even her own father is against her; just absolutely spiraling.

So Ozai does what Ozai does best, and puts his A+ parenting style into use and burns her, and banishes her. Just like Zuko, just like she had feared he might one day do.

Imagine if, when she's cast out and injured and horribly alone, her path crosses with Zuko's. And what if he sees her in this pitiful state, his baby sister who he's had the most complicated relationship with his whole life, and decides to help her. Because even if they've had their differences and she maybe tried to kill him a little back at the Boiling Rock and again at the Air Temple, he's not cold and cruel like his father. She's his baby sister, burnt and scared and alone just like he'd been three years prior. He's going to help her.

Inktober 27: Duty

More binding than chains.