Thinking about the dangerous ladies again, specifically in the context of the love vs fear dichotomy that ultimately comes to a head at the Boiling Rock. Part of the tragedy of Azula's character, in my opinion, is that despite her ability to psychologically analyze and outmaneuver people like Long Feng, she often fails to accurately gauge how to best get what she wants/needs from the people closest to her.
The most salient example of this is probably when she tries to recruit Ty Lee to her mission. After Ty Lee refuses her initial (and very casual, I might add) request, Azula immediately pivots to the tools of fear and coercion, entirely bypassing something that probably would have been much more effectiveâactual honesty and vulnerability.
Had Azula just leveled with Ty Leeâtold her that her father tasked her with something important and it hadn't been going well so far, and that Ty Lee was one of very few people she trusted to help her get it done (maybe even that she was a little scared of what might happen if she didn't succeed)âI don't think there's a version of events where she still says no.
Instead, Azula begins with an appeal to Ty Lee's self interest (ie. Aren't you tired of this?/Don't you want to get out of here?) and when that doesn't work, she goes straight to intimidation because she doesn't trust that her friend loves her enough to willingly make a sacrifice for her sake when that is literally what friends do!
She's out here making veiled threats and setting nets on fire when a simple, "I really need your help," probably would have been more than enough. And it's so sad, honestly.

















