#alta rewrite

Firstly, the goal of this is to rewrite ATLA from season 2 episode 19 until the finale. No major plot beats will be changed until the finale; I will just be adding small bits and changing a few things to give Aang the internal arc he deserves.

This rewrite will realize Aang's forgotten internal conflict of 'letting go of Katara' in order to gain control of the Avatar State.

A few disclaimers before I begin:

This is just my opinion, and so if you do not agree with it, or even agree with the idea that ATLA needs a rewrite, you are entitled to that opinion and are welcome to scroll away.

This will largely be a rewrite of season three, leaving season 1 and 2 intact, with maybe a few changes to set up things in season three. I do think the writers were gearing up to complete Aang's character arc satisfyingly, but for some reason, it got abandoned. All I shall be doing is picking up the pieces and making an approximation of what could have happened, but I shall not stray from their original ideas too much.

Not everything is concrete; some ideas I had were difficult to make airtight, but I did try. This is mainly for fun, so don't come for me if some things don't mesh well with the story at hand.

In this rewrite, the kiss that Aang and Katara share at the end will not happen, and hence, they will not get together by the end of ATLA, the series. It just wouldn't make sense at the end of my version. But that doesn't mean that they can't get together, or shouldn't, and if you want to accept my version, or parts of it, and also include that kiss, go for it, I have no issue, but I won't.

And on that note, this is not a pro or anti any ship and definitely not anti-Aang. It might get into anti-Bryke territory, but since I don't know who wrote what where, when judging the writing, I mostly just … say writers.

I’ll start by mentioning the changes I will make in each episode, though most episodes will go untouched, recap what happened in canon, the reason for the change and how I think it would enhance the story.

There are some changes I could make simply because I didn't like how things were handled in the series, but you can disregard those if you please. I will also try to be conscious of the show's time constraint, and for the most part (until the finale), I won't add new scenes that weren't there before, just changing the conversation or something like that.

For the changing conversations, the replacement dialogue is my personal example of how the scene could play out, but if you don't like it, you're welcome to ignore it.

You'll see what I mean as we go.

S2E19: The Guru

Change 1: Making the Unlocking of Chakras Harder

According to the Guru, unlocking the chakras is not a simple feat. If you think about it, yes the Guru guided Aang by explaining what the chakras do and how to unlock them, but that's not particularly difficult, or better yet, not something I'd say can't be done ever as the Guru threatens Aang at the end of the episode.

I personally think the chakra opening should be done in the Spirit World. The Eastern Air Temple, like the Northern Water Tribe can have a very spiritual place than they could go to. This would make opening up of chakras a spiritual journey for Aang, you know, the bridge between the human and spirit world.

This would also connect the season finales to the Spirit World (you'll see what I mean when we get to the finale in this rewrite) and Aang's spiritual journey. A thread that was forgotten past season one it seems.

And to make it even harder, I'd have the Guru be the one to guide Aang in the Spirit World. As we saw in the season 1 finale, Aang didn't really know how to navigate the Spirit World, but have Guru Pathik help him. Not uncover all of the Spirit World's secrets, of course, but have Aang have a deeper understanding of how to move around it and give the audience more lore on it.

This, again, will make much sense when we reach the finale, but I always thought the Spirit World was somewhat abandoned in season 2, outright disregarded in season 3 and then lobotomized in LOK. This brings back a piece of interesting A:TLA lore and also gives Aang a skill he must learn as well, i.e. understanding the Spirit World, which will come in handy.

Change 2: The Guru's Origins

Look, Roku being friends with Monk Gyatso was cute and really sweet, and I love the idea of friendships transcending lifetimes. But Guru Pathik did not need to be friends with Monk Gyatso.

I know it was probably to give him credibility or something, but I'd rather not keep this. Because the thing is, the Guru doesn't have to be connected to the Air Nomads. His teachings are primarily spiritual. He could be from anywhere. This also ties back to my opinion that the writers glazed the Air Nomads too much, but I won’t get into that here.

I'd like to think that the Guru doesn't live in the Eastern Air Temple, but had a vision that he'd help the Avatar there and so has waited for years in that temple for the Avatar to come to him. This is just adding to the canon lore established.

If I really had my way, I'd have them meet in the swamp. Mostly because it's the most spiritual place in the Earth Kingdom that we have seen so far, but this isn't really a requirement and the swamp is actually quite far from Ba Sing Se, and so wouldn’t make sense in the end.

Anyway, what I can concretely say is that Guru Pathik wasn’t friends with Monk Gyatso. This is just personal, but I feel very strongly about this.

Change 3: Not Being Able to Enter the Avatar State At All

When Aang chooses to go save Katara instead of letting her go and unlocking his seventh chakra, Guru Pathik says, "If you leave now, you won't be able to go into the Avatar State at all!"

Now, since this is just... not true given that Aang enters the Avatar State in the very next episode, I'd change it slightly to Pathik saying he won't be able to control/master the Avatar State unless he repeats this process all over again.

This sets up what Aang must do (more on that in the finale), and since we've seen that this process wasn't as simple as drinking onion and banana juice and talking, we can understand that this is a pretty bad consequence.

S2E20: The Crossroads of Destiny

Change 1: Aang enters the Avatar State Involuntarily

When Aang sees he and Katara are outnumbered and about to lose in the Crystal Catacombs, he decides to try letting go of Katara (one can infer because they don't really show him letting go of her, but I digress),coming out in the Avatar State and being shot down by Azula.

This isn't great because, as Aang tells Toph in The Day of Black Sun, Part One, Azula shooting him down locks his seventh chakra, stopping him from entering and controlling the Avatar State. All this does is remove Aang's agency from the situation. I mean, the show doesn't really point out a way for Aang to unlock his chakra so he just … can't get into the Avatar State (unless of course, he gets hit by a random rock, which makes perfect sense).

And so, I suggest that Aang should enter the Avatar State involuntarily, as he has in the past. You could have Katara be in graver danger than she was in the catacombs. I would suggest sinking her like General Fong did, which would be a callback to the first episode of the season, reminding Aang and the audience what's at stake.

With this, have Aang so desperate to save Katara that he gets into the Avatar State, and then is shot down. This would make Aang's failure at Ba Sing Se way more personal; he failed to control the Avatar State and risked not only his life, but the Avatar Cycle. It also means he did not fail by doing the right thing i.e. letting go of Katara.

But most of all, it doesn't disregard what the Guru said and therefore the show's own logic. Before Aang begins unlocking the chakras, Guru Pathik tells him that, "Opening the chakras is an intense experience, and once you begin the process, you cannot stop until all seven are open."

And when Aang leaves to save Katara, he tells Aang that "By choosing attachment, you have locked the (seventh) chakra. If you leave now, you won't be able to go into the Avatar State at all."

It's safe to say, that by the logic set up in just the previous episode, Aang shouldn’t even be able to willingly enter the Avatar State as he does in the catacombs in the first place. So consider this fixing the show’s logic as well.

Change 2: Toph joins Katara and Aang the Catacombs

With Katara quite literally in the ground, or almost, and Aang just shot down, clearly she or even Iroh can't save the day on their own. Someone needs to get Katara out.

Enter Toph. She and Sokka have just bust out of their prison, they went to get Bosco from Mai and Ty Lee, so you could easily have them ask where Aang and Katara are. They can then agree that Sokka and Kuei should go get Appa and that Toph can enter the catacombs and get them.

Have Toph free Iroh from his crystal cage and have them come in to fight together instead of just Iroh. This would also make Toph and Iroh's friendship relevant to the plot, as we'd see them work together to help Katara and Aang.

Toph would free Katara, Katara would go to Aang and if Toph tells them Sokka and Appa are above, Katara can carry Aang and Toph up the waterfall with her bending as Iroh attacks Azula, Zuko and the Dai Lee.

I feel like this would also make the whole waterfall escape make sense, though honestly, where was my girl Katara going to go, and explain how Iroh escaped from earlier in the episode from the crystal cage. But of course, this is just to fix the mess I made with sinking Katara.

You could have Sokka join them, too, if you want it to be a Gaang thing or something, but I don't know how Katara would carry all three of them, and now Appa is alone with Kuei.

But I don't think it's too much of a stretch to have Sokka here. Katara is a strong waterbender, and Appa is smart enough to follow instructions.

S3E01: The Awakening

Change 1: Aang didn't die

In the series, it is alluded that Aang died and Katara brought him back. In my rewrite, Aang doesn't die from that lightning, but is critically injured. You know, like Zuko is in Sozin's Comet.

Which, by the way, sorry, allow me to just get into a small tangent here. Azula shoots Aang with lightning, and he dies almost immediately, needing Spirit Water to be brought back. Azula shoots Zuko with lightning, but he stays alive for the entire duration of Katara and Azula's fight and is healed by Katara without Spirit Water.

Huh?

Is it because Zuko took control of the lightning? That can't be right because he REDIRECTED IT TO HIS HEART. Is it because Aang was in the Avatar State? In The Avatar State, Roku doesn't say that being in the Avatar State makes you more likely to die in fatal situations than when not, only that being killed in it breaks the cycle.

Anyway, I can live with this discrepancy. I just hate resurrection tropes, and I would do away with the Spirit Water if Katara hadn't offered it to Zuko earlier, showing just how deep her compassion goes and how much she trusted Zuko in The Crossroads of Destiny.

But, if you feel particularly strongly about this, you can still have Katara bring him back to life; it won't change the rewrite in any way.

Change 2: The Reason For Aang's Angst

This isn't a big change really; Aang is already feeling like crap for letting the world down at Ba Sing Se. I’d just make him feel worse because he got into the Avatar State unwillingly and almost died because of it, as he was warned before.

This would be helpful because Aang doesn't get introspective until episode nine, so if there's any emotional work we want to do regarding what happened in episode 20, it should be done here.

Another thing we can add here is that, though Aang is grateful Katara saved him, he's not very happy with it. This can be tied to his feelings of failure, but you can have him offhandedly mention how Katara did that in The Desert and The Serpent's Pass as well.

This will bring attention to the imbalance in their relationship.

Change 3: No conversation with Roku or Yue

As stated in Part Two, I have a personal beef with how the show treats the Spirit World post-season 2 (and also in LOK but that's a different story altogether) and though it doesn't have much relevance to this, I WILL be taking this opportunity to right some wrongs.

The Spirit World was one of my favorite parts in season 1, and one of the things we see in season 1 is that talking to Spirits isn't as easy as them appearing out of nowhere or randomly telling you their backstories.

One of the worst parts of seeing Roku all the damn time in season 3 is it makes The Winter Solstice and The Siege of the North look pretty stupid. The entire plot of The Winter Solstice was that Aang had to go to the Fire Nation, on the solstice, to a specific room, just to speak to Roku. And for Aang to get even a clue on how to save the Northern Water Tribe, he had to go to a very spiritual place and enter the Spirit World.

Having Roku and Yue then randomly appear to give Aang a pep talk he could have gotten from his friends when they found him, and to allude to the drama between him and Sozin as if an entire episode isn't dedicated to that, just doesn't justify breaking the rules you set up of your magic system.

Yue can appear in the finale (more to come there), but yeah, not here, please. That being said, you can still have the scene where the tides suddenly rise and help Aang out and then have Aang look at the moon and thank Yue. That can stay. Yue deserves all the appreciation in the world. That girl gave herself up for the world with zero hesitation (Aang, take notes).

Seriously, the Gaang has never had an issue uplifting Aang, and this wouldn't be any different. Give that moment to the Gaang!

Change 4: Aang Keeping Secrets

Okay, in this version, Aang knows he failed to master the Avatar State and that he lied to Toph, who couldn't tell because they were on Appa at that time. And so, it's safe to say, his friends would know he got into the Avatar State, but not that he got in there without control.

Katara was in the ground so she had no way of knowing, and as far as Toph and Sokka know, he's mastered the Avatar State. Katara could even bring this up when healing him, comforting him by telling him that it wasn't his fault, he did everything he could.

You could even flash back to that scene for a second when Katara is healing him pretty much the same as in canon, but this time add a flashback of the Guru saying he won't be able to control the Avatar State and have Aang look guilty or upset (not a tall order, since he's not his most sunshiney this episode anyway) so you can communicate this discrepancy without having him outright say it.

This plays on another weakness we know Aang has (lying), plays into Aang's arc of growing up and taking responsibility (lying is a form of regression on this development) and creates a future conflict in which this lie is revealed, an opportunity for Aang to be honest and atone for this sin (taking responsibility).

S3E06: The Avatar and the Firelord

Change 1: Make the day a Summer Solstice

Okay, as I have explained before, I don't like how Roku just appeared out of thin air and got to talk about his backstory. And so my solution is to make the day they speak the Summer Solstice or even the Equinox.

To be honest, it's quite hard to keep track of time in A:TLA. We know Sozin's Comet is in summer's end and so a little over two months after the Summer Solstice. The Equinox is five months before the comet so that's definitely way more time than they had between episode six and episode eighteen so I'll stick with the solstice.

I'd suggest moving this episode to number seven or eight? Just to make it closer to Sozin's Comet but, I'm not to worried about that, but if two months doesn't seem like enough for you, then by all means, move it as forward as you can.

Given what Aang knows about Solstices, it wouldn't be a leap for Aang to look to speak to Roku at this time. Why would he want to speak to him? Well, he needs advice on the whole Avatar State thing.

This makes him proactive in the episode, for one, and also in his ongoing issue with the Avatar State. It also makes helps him develop his spiritual skills. You could have Aang go back to the Fire Sage temple but this time not have to enter Roku's room because he's better at navigating the Spirit World after Guru Pathik’s help and it being a solstice is enough. Or some thing like that.

I was going to have Roku mention that they could meet in the Summer Solstice back in season one as well, but I think Aang figuring it out is much better. It also makes him seem like he wants to continue his spiritual growth and figure out his Avatar State dilemma. It's a win-win!

Change 2: Introduce The Idea of Taking Someone’s Bending Away

Now, this is perhaps my biggest change here because it alters Roku's backstory and struggle a bit more. 

I love the idea of taking someone's bending away. It's interesting, no matter how badly I feel it was botched in the main series. And so, if I want it, I'd have to have it make an appearance at some point. And here was the best place I could.

I would have Roku fight other people before going back to see Sozin. Maybe a montage of him saving the world and being a good Avatar, given all we see him do is master bending. In this example, I'd have him take the bending of someone, whilst in the Avatar State.

Obviously, Aang would be shook, and ask how Roku did it. Roku would say, flippantly, that it's one of the gifts Avatars have in the Avatar State. Something about chi and chakras and how being in the Avatar State is connected to the Spirit World and all that.

This makes sense since you can't bend in the Spirit World. It's one of those eerie and weird things that doesn't really make sense, but hey, if it's in the Spirit World and some Avatar nonsense, that works.

Roku mustn't overexplain this part; have him say something about the perks of being an Avatar or something.

Anyway, this also makes things a bit worse for Roku lol because Aang could ask why Roku didn't take Sozin's bending. Roku could explain how valuable firebending is to the Fire Nation royalty, and taking it away would make Sozin weak. He can also go about talking about how he cherishes the days he and Sozin would spar, and secretly, selfishly, didn't want to take Sozin's bending as that would also be taking the possibility of that happening.

You can also include that's it's very dangerous, or even show it as Roku does it. I like what the lion turtle says about Aang's spirit being having to be unbendable, and since Roku wasn't strongly motivated to hurt Sozin, he feared it wouldn't work,

Anyway, this makes Roku even more guilty, as he didn't just spare Sozin's life, but also his comfort and privilege for Roku's own selfish desires (something Aang can deeply relate to).

Change 3: Roku and Ta Min's Relationship

Another important change or enhancement I'd have is Ta Min (Roku's wife). Now, Ta Min and Roku know each other in teenagehood but Roku is away for 12 years during which time we can assume he and Ta Min aren't together, and it's only after Roku goes away and comes back that the two end up married.

This is just perfect!

Have Aang ask if he had to let go of Ta Min to get into the Avatar State, and have Roku explain the difference between the crush he had as a young boy and the love he and Ta Min found in adulthood. He can explain how shallow and self-centred his crush was and how deep and selfless his love became.

This shows the difference between attachment and love, how one is selfish and naive, and the other is more mature and giving. Aang needs to realise that 'letting go of Katara' does not necessarily mean 'stop loving Katara'.

This scene shouldn't be too long, just a mention at the wedding. Basically, replacing what Roku said about Ta Min in canon. And then have Aang make an introspective face. Or just a face to show that he is listening to Roku keenly.

If you ship Kataang, this is a good hint that they'd be able to work in the future when Aang's childish and selfish attachment transforms into a mature and selfless love. If you don't ship Kataang, you can just ignore that. They don't get together in the end of this rewrite anyway

Change 4: The Avatar State

Now, since Aang sought out Roku about the Avatar state, somehow, they must talk about it. I'm not sure how to go about this part, only that you can have Aang question whether he really needs it. Have him say how difficult it was to do the first time, and that letting go of Katara would be difficult as well.

This would also give Roku a reason for dumping his backstory on Aang (I'm sure you can tell I don't hold this episode in high regard, but only because this backstory is just handed to Aang like everything else is) and advise Aang to seek a way of reopening his chakra and letting go of Katara.

You can also have Aang defend himself and say he doesn't need the Avatar State for the invasion since Ozai won't be able to bend and he has the invasion group. He could even complain on how unfair it is, Roku mastered the Avatar state well into adulthood, he doesn't have the same pressures Aang does.

Roku could agree, and they could end the conversation with Roku saying that he hopes Aang is right, but he'll always support his decision.

This way, we get an idea of where Aang's head is at, when it comes to the Avatar State, and we still keep the invasion plan a secret from the audience.

S3E10: The Day of Black Sun, Part One

Change 1: Avatar State

When Aang wakes up, Toph asks what his strategy is for taking down Ozai and if Aang will 'hit him with a little Avatar State action'. In the show, Aang says he can't because, "When Azula shot me with lightning, my seventh chakra was locked, cutting off my connection to all the cosmic energy in the universe."

In this rewrite, this isn't true. His seventh chakra is locked because he chose to leave in the middle of opening his chakras instead of letting go of Katara.

So now, what does Aang tell Toph? He can't lie to her directly because A: he's a famously bad liar (see Bato of the Water Tribe) and B: Toph would know now that she isn't on Appa for him to lie to her as he did in The Crossroads of Destiny.

So I'd have Aang tell Toph, whilst looking deeply uncomfortable, that he can't get into the Avatar State. Have Toph ask Aang why, and before he can answer, let Sokka interrupt and say it's obvious that Azula is the reason he can't enter the Avatar State.

Now, even though the Azula locking his chakra excuse is a lame one for the narrative to suggest, it's a pretty good one for the in-universe characters to believe.

None of them (as far as we know), apart from Aang, knows about chakras. All they know is that Aang mastered the Avatar State with the help of the Guru (a lie Aang tells them in The Crossroads of Destiny), he got into the Avatar State in the crystal catacombs, got shot by Azula's lightning, and hasn't gotten into the Avatar State since.

It's therefore quite logical to assume that Azula locked his chakra. You can even have Katara support this by telling them about the twisted energy she could feel on his scar.

Before Aang can confirm or deny this theory, have Toph say her line about how all she heard was a bunch of spiritual mumbo jumbo and move to the next scene.

This manages to have Aang lie by omission, a great way to lie around Toph without being caught. It also means that no one will bother him about the Avatar State until the finale (more on that later).

Change 2: Firelord Ozai's Fate

You could have this discussed along with the Avatar State in The Avatar and the Firelord but it also makes sense here. You could have one of the foggy swamp benders or Southern Water Tribe warriors or earth benders to ask about Aang's plan for the firelord when the Gaang and Hakoda are up on the dias.

Aang can look at his friends and nod, showing that hey, they've talked about this, and have Aang say they plan to detain him as he won't be able to bend. Easy peasy.

For funsies, you can have someone else ask why not kill Ozai and Aang give his (very valid) reasons which his friends and most of the adults will support. He doesn't need to kill Ozai, just detain him.

Would you look at that? So you can mention the whole killing Ozai thing before the eleventh hour? Huzza! This whole argument, though interesting, took up way too much time in the finale imo, so this is me redistributing its airtime.

Change 3: What Aang Says Before the Kiss

I know, I know, Kataang doesn't end up together in the end of this rewrite. But the kiss stays.

All I'd change, or not even change, just add, is what Aang would tell Katara. I'd like to make this more of a love confession in which Aang tells Katara that no matter what, and with everything changing, he'll always choose her over anything.

Of course, Katara is confused but nonetheless pleased to hear this, and then she starts to say something before Aang kisses her as he does in the show.

This, again, lets us know where Aang is emotionally. To him, he can't let go of Katara, because why would he choose cosmic power over Katara. This lets us know that he hasn't really understood what letting Katara go means (understandable, it could mean a myriad of things, and I can't blame Aang for thinking the worst) and what he believes is happening.

Again, Katara is oblivious to this internal struggle, but it makes the stakes of defeating Ozai even higher, because this could be the one shot Aang has at taking Ozai down without needing the Avatar State.

S3E12: The Western Air Temple

Change 1: Reason for Aang Running Away From Serious Conversation

So, in the show, we have a mini conflict where upon arrival at the Western Air Temple, the Gaang want to talk strategy, but Aang wants to explore the temple.

I … don't have too much of an issue with this. I get what the show is going for by showing us some regression on Aang's part, but it feels so half hearted and… honestly wholly out of place. Since the fall of Ba Sing Se, there's been a maturation Aang has gone through. He failed at Ba Sing Se, and this time not from negligence, but despite being there.

And just the episode before, he is almost moved to tears by the fact that the rest of the invasion force would stay and be imprisoned as he and his friends run away. He promises them quite solemnly to make it up to them.

All this to say, Aang's very brief regression doesn't make complete sense. I do agree he'd run away, or at least try to avoid the Gaang, as he did in The Awakening. It's clear that is his instinct when hit with emotions he can't process. But even in The Awakening he didn't run away just to have fun, and the reason he was so emotionally distraught in the first place was explained.

Therefore, the change I'd make here is basically just have what the comics have of Aang and Katara talking about the kiss.

No matter how you spin it, that kiss going unacknowledged for five episodes was not a good idea. Of course, given that four episodes in those five don't have an organic place for this conversation, we're going to have it here.

I'd have Katara and the Gaang nag Aang and then have a scene where Katara finds him and they can speak alone. Have Katara angry at Aang for running off and have Aang vent his frustrations about the Invasion and how useless a Gaang meeting would be because Aang's chance is gone.

Of course, Katara would refute that. They still have other opportunities to defeat Ozai and even have her mention the Avatar State and how much stronger he could be if Aang were to try and figure out to get into it. She can even say that the Gaang will help him figure it out, they are a family and theres no problem they can’t solve.

This would then make Aang burst out and ask about their kiss, which Katara hasn't mentioned. Katara could then give the excuse she gives in The Ember Island Players about being confused, or even just have her evade the question.

Also, have her express her wish to not talk about this anymore. Aang could also, in an effort to explain the futility of their mission, bring up the fact that he has no firebending teacher.

In the middle of this argument, have Toph interrupt them and announce Zuko's appearance, which would naturally put a halt to this argument.

I think this works best because A: Katara and Aang talk about the kiss earlier, B: a reason for why they don't speak about it until three episodes later is given, and C: we get a concrete reason for Aang's (short-lived) regression.

S3E13: The Firebending Masters

Change 1: Aang's Inability to Firebend

I have mixed feelings about this episode. On the one hand, yes Zuko and Aang needed to have a bonding trip episode. Yes, the idea of them both trying to learn the true meaning of firebending is important. But did the show have to go about it as it did?

I'm not going to waste your time ranting about how convenient it is for Zuko to lose his bending after firebending so well in the previous episode that he managed to burn Toph's feet.

Instead, I'm going to talk about one thing I can fix, and that is Aang's story within this episode.

The episode itself, despite it's wonky setup, is perfect for both Zuko and Aang, and their individual issues with firebending. Aang is scared of burning Katara, and Zuko's inner fire was fueled by rage, an emotion he doesn't want to use anymore when it comes to firebending.

The episode starts with that idea, and then kind of just abandons Aang's thread. In this rewrite, I won't repeat that mistake. Aang's getting over his reluctance to firebend because of his fear of hurting Katara is the perfect first step in the right direction to his internal conflict.

For starters, just for my sanity, I'd keep Zuko's bending. This is a personal preference, so if you'd prefer his bending go, you can keep that.

Have Zuko try to instruct Aang to firebend, and have Aang unable to firebend in the same way Zuko is in canon. They can argue on whose fault this is: Aang thinks Zuko isn't explaining firebending well and Zuko thinks Aang’s fear is holding him back.

This makes sense because Zuko's firebending is powered by rage and negative feelings, feelings that wouldn't inspire much in Aang, especially given his own negative feelings about firebending.

In canon, all Aang does is watch Zuko as if he’s never had a firebending teacher and we haven't seen him firebend before. Having him actually try shows his subconscious reluctance and honestly just gives him some well-deserved agency. Zuko can still internalise this failure and think it's his fault because his reason for firebending isn't what Aang needs.

When Zuko tells the group, it doesn't just become a Zuko problem, but an Aang one as well, and not just indirectly. Especially when Aang explains or more like repeats that he's scared because he hurt Katara. Because this is the perfect time for Katara to give her thoughts on this.

Now, I've seen people romanticise the line Aang says in the Guru, where he asks, "Why would I choose cosmic energy over Katara?" Which, on its own, is pretty sweet. I'll give credit where credit is due.

However, this is quite the misinterpretation on Aang's part. He's not choosing cosmic energy for cosmic energy’s sake over Katara as a person. He's choosing a higher chance of defeating Ozai over his own attachment to Katara.

If Katara got the full context of the situation, do you think, honestly, she'd be ecstatic over this choice? For her sake? Katara, who sees Aang as the world’s only hope? Katara, whose own mother sacrificed her life for Katara's? Katara, who despite being angry at her father, understands why he had to leave?

Anyway, I'm going on a bit of a tangent here, but what I want to say is that it is very probable that Katara would express her wish for Aang to get over this fear. Especially if it came at the expense of Aang not being able to master firebending.

Then, have Toph suggest going to the sun warriors and the episode going as it did before.

Change 2: Aang's Lesson

In the series, after the dragons judge and show Aang the true meaning of firebending, Aang says, "All this time, I thought firebending was destruction. Since I hurt Katara, I've been too afraid and hesitant. But now I know what it really is … it's energy, and life."

This is a perfectly good lesson, and I'm not going to remove that. I'll just add a few other points.

For starters, his reluctance to firebend in fear of hurting Katara (the conflict he must face in this episode) is very similar to his reluctance to unlock his seventh chakra in fear of letting Katara go (his larger internal conflict).

In both scenarios, Aang, to some extent, is being selfish and using Katara and his love for her as a cover. In The Deserter, Aang burns Katara, but Katara is able to heal herself. Aang vowing never to firebend isn't the selfless and caring act he thinks it is, as it doesn't benefit Katara in any way.

The thing is, Aang must learn how to firebend if he's to face Ozai and bring peace and balance to the world. A world in which Katara lives. And so, by choosing not to firebend, he is, ironically enough, hurting Katara even more than if he were to firebend.

The same thing goes for letting go of Katara. Aang letting go of Katara (at least, in the way I define it in Part Two of this essay) does not negatively affect Katara. However, Aang failing to save the world because he couldn't get into the Avatar state, does.

What I would do in this episode is have Aang realise the reality of his firebending dilemma. This can happen in a scene where Aang talks to Katara at the end of the episode about getting over his fear and how selfish that fear was.

Have him say he learned from the dragons that fire in and of itself isn't good or evil. Just like power isn't good or evil. It's what you make of it. You can choose to burn someone or warm someone with fire, just as you can choose to harm someone or protect someone with power.

He can also give Katara an (overdue) apology for burning her in The Deserter and allowing her to comfort him when she was the one in pain. Katara can even look shocked but pleased that Aang realised this.

This foreshadows the growth Aang will have later on in the series and also hints that Aang is capable of letting go of his selfish desires and gaining a more mature perspective on what he needs to do for the sake of the world.

Of course, keep Zuko's storyline basically the same.

Part One

Previous: Part Two