#bookdragonideas

But so much fiction/fantasy mixes up 'girls' with 'unstoppable forces of female badass' and there's not necessarily anything wrong with having a character who is an 'unstoppable forces of female badass'. But it gets old real quick. And it is not the same as portraying normal girls, or having good female characters.

And that's one of the many reasons I love Avatar the Last Airbender.

Because all the girl characters have flaws and weaknesses and sometimes act like idiots or jerks. They get emotional and make mistakes. They lose fights or arguments or are just wrong sometimes. Some of them are amazing warriors, and some aren't. Some are powerful or special and some are normal, with nothing special about them.

And I Love that.

I was around the same age as Katara when I first watched Atla. And I instantly connected with her as a character. I loved her optimistic attitude and her fighting spirit. And I could relate with her anger, and with her maternal instinct. I admired her fighting skills of course, but I loved how the show portrayed her compassion and kindness, the way she could both beat up a bunch of bullies AND enjoy a relaxing day at the spa. She was a baddass warrior that should never be crossed. But she was also a normal teenage girl who had a lot of the same internal struggles and problems that I did.

(I never connected to Toph on the same level, but I did relate to her on a few things. She's an adorable trash gremlin who would commit any crime for fun and I love that. But she struggles with being both independent and letting people help her, and I still struggle with that sometimes. I've learned that sometimes, you can help others by letting them help you.)

Yue is, in my opinion, a perfect example of a type of hero that seems to be disappearing. She is not a warrior. She is not a fighter. She's not even a bender.

Yue is a perfect princess, a perfect daughter. She is extremely feminine in a rather older sense.

And she was the only one who could save the world. She gave up everything for her people. She saved everything, everyone, the entire world. Without ever becoming a fighter.

Yue is a perfect example of a girl who was never more than a girl, and how that's okay. Not every girl has to be rough and tumble and fight for her rights in order to change everything. Sometimes it's okay to just be a quiet obedient girly girl. Sometimes that's all it takes to be a hero.

And I love that. Yue is strong in her own way. She is unique and interesting. She appears in only a few episodes and yet manages to be one of my favorite characters.

Song is another great example of this. Song is a healer in a small town. We don't see much of her but we see her compassion and empathy. She is gentle and generous. A healer not a fighter.

She watches Zuko steal her ostrich horse and does nothing.

Is that because she's kind and generous and knows he needs it more? Or is it because she's a healer girl who knows she can't actually stop those two from taking the horse? Maybe neither, maybe both. I have always thought that the scene where Zuko steals the horse and only the audience knows she saw it is one of the most thought-provoking in the series.

Suki is a badass warrior woman who is an awesome fighter and good leader. She is one of the best non bender fighter we see in the entire show. She was one of the smartest, most efficient, and powerful characters we ever saw.

She kissed a boy she had just met because she thought he was cute.

Now don't get me wrong I love SokkaxSuki. Its one of the best couples in the show.

But Suki totally did the old 'love at first sight' thing. And that is awesome. Because when she kisses him she delivers one of the best lines, not only from her, but, I think, in the entire show.

"I AM a warrior, but I'm a girl too."

Being a warrior doesn't mean that she isn't also a teenage girl. She might be a fighter, but she still gets crushes and likes to flirt with cute boys. And hey, she picked a good one. Not every boy is going to come break you out of prison.

So for one, they could just do a remake, but do it all stop-motion with real Legos this time. It’d be unnecessary, overly expensive, and isn’t technically live action, all the hallmarks of other live-action adaptations. But it would be kinda impressive. And the behind-the-scenes would be insane.

Second, they could force a group of people to watch the Original Lego Movie ten times in a row, and then lock them in a room with all the sets made from the movie. Then they just film the group attempting to reenact the original while playing with Legos. It’d be hilarious. Also, kinda a meta commentary on how most other live-action remakes feel like a bunch of adults messing around with a story they don’t fully remember, and at this point, definitely hate.

Third, and my personal favorite. Actual, shot-for-shot remake of the original but all live action. Human actors in a normal world, line-for-line recreating the original. They’d have to reclassify it into the horror genre. Kids would be traumatized. Some countries would probably ban it outright. Because, when you remove the ‘Lego’ element of the Lego Movie, you’re left with a violent, gory, terrifying world, where a mans head is separated from his body by a giant metal disc and then he continues to speak for several seconds before he dies.

(This was my brothers idea)

I do not know his name. Though I have asked, several times. He is quite large, and very terrifying.

But I do not believe he means me harm.

There have been several times....

In the storm.

With the pirates.

That.... thing.... I don't know what it was, but he ate it.

I would have been scared once. Would have trembled in my boots with fear.

But I have grown since then.

(I have faced far worse then him)

It has been many years. Yet still he follows me.

I believe I know why he does it. Why he follows me.

Sometimes I wonder if he'll ever leave.

I think he will. With the rest. More and more are leaving these days. I will miss him. When my shadow disappears from the sea.

I do not want him to leave without a name.

I will call him Loyal. For that is what he is.

Toothless is jealous. But. He understands.

I fear he understands too much these days.

He is so young. So old. So small. So fierce.

They are the last two now.

Toothless and Loyal. Loyal and Toothless.

.

Last night Loyal disappeared.

My memoirs are almost finished.

Toothless is still here.

I do not want to live in a world without Toothless.

A lone wanderer traveling across the Earth Kingdom. She would have taught metalbending to anyone who wished to learn. Beating up bullies and helping small towns recover and rebuild. Occasionally blackmailing one of the MANY world leaders who owe her into letting her crash at their place and eat all their food.

As she gets older she gets wiser. Becoming the Uncle Iroh to the younger generations. She's never as gentle as he was, but she remembers him fondly and never hesitates to dispense some cryptic wisdom on some hot-headed kid.

As years pass she stops wandering quite so far. Instead she stays for long months in the Fire nation or on Kyoshi Island. Occasionally she drops in on that new town/nation that Zuko and Aang are building. But she never stays for long.

She never marries. Never has kids. The rest of the Gaangs kids refer to her as Auntie Toph, and she loves them. But she decided long ago that she didn't want to be a mother.

She's there when Aang dies, holds Katara like Katara has always held her. Whispers to her that twinkle toes isn't gone. Not forever. He'll be back. He's the avatar after all.

She's there when Suki dies. Unable to save her in the heat of battle, unable to heal her afterwards. Sokka takes a few months to join her on her travels. She protects him, even as he fights with a recklessness that scares her. Suki would want him to survive.

Sokka calms down, goes home to his sister and his people and the white lotus. Toph keeps traveling.

She hears of her parents death. She spends the next week helping a lost child find his parents. And she visits the Boulder on her next trip through town. He much to old to be fighting her, but they rematch on the ring anyways. He mocks her the same way he always does and never says a word about her parents.

She gives him her parents wealth, he runs an animal shelter now and could use the funds.

She isn't there when Mai dies. Far on the eastern edge of the Earth Kingdom when the news of the Fireladies death reaches her. She takes Zuko on fieldtrip when she gets back to the Fire Nation. He owed her anyways.

They find Dragons.

The new Avatar emerges. A hot-headed young girl from the Southern Water Tribe.

She nothing like Twinkle Toes.

She's so much like Aang it hurts.

Katara is getting old. She hides it well but she's slower now. Not quite as fierce. Calming down as the years slip by.

Sokka dies and it rips Toph apart. He was her big brother. He died to save the world. She spends a few months with the sand benders. Spends a few more months deep in a swamp where occasionally she can still hear his voice. Once she hears Aang, sounding as young as the day they met.

Katare is so quiet now. She teaches the young avatar to heal. But not to fight. Saying that honor belongs to a younger teacher.

Honor make Toph think of Zuko.

She's there when he steps down and gives the throne to his daughter. It's a lovely ceremony. Afterwards they go on another fieldtrip. They find sky bison. Living wild and free in small island chains far from the mainland. Toph tells Katara who tells her children. And Airbenders fly with Sky Bison once more.

Katara passes peacefully in her sleep. Toph cries.

She goes on fieldtrips with Zuko every year now. Sometimes they find things. Sometimes they fight people. Sometimes they visit places that echo with memories.

The war was a horrible thing. Toph knows this. But a small dark shard of her heart is eternally grateful for Sozins greed. Without it she would never have known her friends.

The house on Ember Island lays in ruins now. The house Zukos family uses nowadays is smaller, more inconspicuous, a friendly little cottage.

They stay at the old house. Laughing when they find the rooms burned from when Zuko chased Aang. There's a small spot outside where the earthbent remains of Melon Lord stands. Toph can still remember Sokka's voice planning, Suki's light footsteps. Katara's fierce fighting and Aang hesitating before the final blow.

Zuko can't.

Zuko forgets more and more. Until the only thing they do on fieldtrips is go places. To remember. He asks where Uncle Iroh is. Thinks Mai is with them. Doesn't remember that his daughter is the Firelord now, not him.

A new threat arises. Zuko dies defending his nation and family. The world's mourns Firelord Zuko the great peace bringer. Toph mourns Zuko the awkward friend.

The new avatar dies. And Toph realizes that she doesn't know her own age.

The world is different now. There's so many new inventions. Toph thinks that Sokka would have loved to see this modern age.

A celebration for a hundred years of peace helps her remember her age for a few years.

Theres a new New avatar. A young boy from the sandbenders. His voice reminds her of Aang when she teaches him metalbending.

The next she hears of him is his marriage to some fire bending girl.

She spends time in the swamp, helps the swamp benders fight against those who would destroy the land. She gives council to the Sandbenders, as they seek independence from the rest of the Earth Kingdom.

She visits the house on Ember Island. It's part of a protected forest now.

She nearly kills a man on Kyoshi Island. He was telling a story of the end of the hundred year war. But he got it all wrong.

The four nations are no more. There are more than ten nations now. The Water Tribes split long ago. Three distinct Air Temples operate separately and with different principles and beliefs. The Republic continues to grow. The Sandbenders and Swampbenders are still sorting thing out, but they'll both be independent soon.

The two hundredth year of peace bring war. As tensions break and new weapons are being used. Bending is no longer the most powerful weapon out there.

The two hundredth year of peace bring war. But Toph is not there to see it.

Three years earlier she sits in a cave. She had spent the summer teaching some kids metalbending, and even just basic Earthbending.

It had been... nice.

But she's so tired now. She sits in the cave. There are no other people for miles around. But she's not alone. The memories of her friends, her family, weigh on her shoulders and echo in her her ears.

As she sits in the darkness she hears a sound. A quiet shuffling and then a loud crash! As walls are reshaped and her oldest friends find her.

Badgermoles live for centuries. And these Badgermoles remember her. They remember a small, scared little girl who was just like them.

In the darkness the Badgermoles snuggle close. Keeping her warm. Keeping her company.

Toph sits in a cave surrounded by Badgermoles cuddling her. Slowly she falls asleep.

She does not wake up.

Above the world goes on. War leads to peace leads to war leads to peace once again. The avatar lives and dies and is reborn, over and over again. History stretches larger and larger. Until the truth becomes legends.

Firelord Zuko, Avatar Aang, Chief Sokka and Warrior Suki, Master Katara the Mother of the Southern Benders. These names are preserved, remembered. Their stories become legends. Passed down from generation to generation. Written of in both fables and historical records alike.

The first ship to leave orbit is called Aang. To be a sokka is to be inventive. Hundreds of girls fighting groups are named after Katara and Suki.

Zuko the Tenth oversees the signing of a new peace treaty as the neutral party.

Only a few footnotes remember the Forgotten member of the ancient Team Avatar. The earthbender. A girl named Toph who disappeared from records shortly after the Hundred Year War, though rumors of her were recorded for nearly two centuries afterwards. Her story is a rather farfetched one. More likely she either died in the war or soon after. Perhaps, some optimists say, she settled down and lived a normal life afterwards.

Many centuries later a mining company makes a wonderful discovery. The ancient burial caves of the now extinct Badgermoles. But a mystery awaits within this archeological marvel. For nestled within the hundreds of Badgermole skeletons there lies a single Human skeleton.

She lies there alone, surrounded by Badgermoles. Almost as if she was one of them. Almost as if they respected her, honored her.

Loved her.

Whether you love Hidden World or hate it you have to admit that the last scene is very close to the last scene in the books as far as tone goes.

The books end with telling us that the Dragons were real and now they're gone. But that someday the Dragons will return and the world will need a Hero and the Hero could be you.

Hidden World ends by telling us that the Dragons are hidden and gone. But the secret is kept and someday the Dragons will return when humanity is ready for them.

Both end with a bittersweet hopefullness. An admittance that the Dragons aren't real anymore, they're hidden and gone and never to be found. But. But someday they'll return. Someday Dragons will be real again. Someday the world will be full of adventures and heros once again. And maybe, just maybe, it could start with you.

And both end with a subtle nudge to do better. Humanity should get better so that someday Dragons can live in peace with us again. You should get better so that someday you can be the hero the world needs.

And nine realms takes the bittersweet hopefullness and that subtle nudge to do better and spits on both and the audiences face as well.

Nine realms says that the Dragons came back, and whoops! You aren't the hero! These random brats are! Nine Realms says the Dragons came back and, Whoops! The world's still not ready for them!

Both books and movies ended in the perfect way. They ended with a promise to the audience. A promise for the audience. The ending made it feel real. Like this could have happened in our world. Like this could happen to us. Like maybe the next time you're in the woods you might find a dragon!

The ending added a sense of realism that made the fantasy more believable. It took a fictional story and made it feel more like a piece of forgotten history. It aided the suspension of disbelief.

Nine Realms rips that apart and reminds you in the worse and harshest terms that this is all fake. It gives a lousy, poorly designed story, with weak characters and cheap animation, and offers nothing narratively.

And the worse thing is... They have no excuse. Other spinoffs could have worked! Other sequels could have worked!

There's a kiddie spinoff show called Rescue Riders and it doesn't insult the source like this. (In fact they had the kids able to speak the Dragons language, so if anything it honors the original books that way)

The Christmas special managed to dodge hurting the narrative by having the dragons barely interact with the people and only coming back for one Viking equivalent Christmas.

A great idea for a Dragons show would be a book adaptation that focuses on Hiccup 1 and Hiccup 2! I would love to see that!

They could do a reboot of the whole thing and stick closer to the books this time.

They could do a show placed inbetween the second and third movie, covering Hiccups first year as chief!

There are so many things they could have done with this franchise. But nope! They chose the WORSE possible option.

And that's why I hate big media.

There's just.... so much amazing stuff that nobody talks about.

I just read Deltora Quest for the first time ever and I wish I had found it sooner. It's so good and plays all the tropes right. And yes, as an avid fantasy reader, I recognized most of the puzzles and riddles a mile off. But there was still so much that caught me by surprise! And even the stuff I saw coming was done SO WELL. The characters are wonderful. The world is fascinating. And the writing style is amazing!

10/10, highly recommend, come talk to me about it. I HAVE SO MANY THOUGHTS!

The Mapmaker Chronicles by A. L. Tait are my all time favorite series. I have literally memorized huge chunks of it with how much I've read and reread it! It is so good and so well written and I NEED to find people who have read it. Its the story about a boy with a prefect memory going on a quest to map the world and it so amazing. The characters feel real! The story is awesome! There's so much good plot twists and character arcs and moments that make me giggle with glee no matter how many times I've read it.

1000000/10, do yourself a favor and read this series!

Secondhand Lions. I grew up on this movie and it is such a good family film. When I was little I loved the fantastic colorful fights and the shooting at the traveling salesmen. Now I love the quiet found family story and the amazing parallels and foreshadowing. It is so funny and so heartwarming and has something for everyone. The writing is excellent. The characters amazing. And I too, would like to fish with a shotgun.

10/10, really good family film, yes there is a real lion.