#justanotherthrowaway1950meta

One of the longest raging debates in Avatar fandom is how ATLA should have resolved the Ozai conundrum.

One fraction of fandom believes that Aang de-bending Ozai and throwing him in prison for the rest of his life is a satisfying ending in line with ATLA’s messages of hope and using the bare minimum of violence to resolve conflicts.

Meanwhile, another portion of fandom believes that the ending was a cop-out considering the show long build up to the Aang/Ozai confrontation, the show not being afraid to show or imply violence, albeit off-screen, alluded to, or implied, and because in real life, de-bending your enemies is not an option.

But regardless of their differences, fandom is almost all united in despising the lion turtle granting Aang energybending, or more specifically, the lack of foreshadowing and proper set up.

So, what is my stance on this long raging debate? 

That Ozai should have been executed, but not by Aang, but by Zuko’s regime as part of Nuremberg-esque trials meant to hold accountable high-ranking members of Ozai, Azulon, and Sozin’s regimes like War Minister Qin and Azula, as well as perpetrators of the Fire Nation’s worst wartime actions like the Rough Rhinos, as part of a broader effort to de-Sozinize the Fire Nation and because both Ozai and Azula are way too dangerous to be kept alive.

In regards to de-Sozinizing the Fire Nation, while the canon roleplaying game and the recently released Ashes of the Academy detail Zuko’s efforts to hold the perpetrators of the Fire Nation’s worst wartime efforts accountable and reform his nation, the vast majority of post-Sozin’s Comet material fail to address such efforts.

Which is a glaring storytelling choice in my opinion since, beyond the fact that Zuko took the throne to reform the Fire Nation and restore relations between the nations, the Fire Nation by Korra’s era is so thoroughly reformed that outside of one holdout island, there is no indication that the Fire Nation struggles with resurgent Sozinism.

This, even though thanks to recent events, we know it only takes roughly 70 years for populations to forget the dangers of virulent right-wing nationalism and start to embrace it, with the rise of resurgent right-wing nationalism starting in the mid-2010s and WWII ending in 1945.

Coincidentally, Season One of TLOK takes place in 170 AG while the Hundred Year War ended in 100 A.G, with the latest and highly relevant to this discussion comic, The Mystery of Penquan Island, taking place no earlier than 174 A.G. 

I know ATLA’s intended audience is for kids, but if there were Numberberg-style trials for high-ranking officials of wartime Fire Lords’ regimes, publicly showcasing to Fire Nationals and members of the Fire National diaspora the horrors their leaders and fellow Fire Nationals encouraged and/or caused before executing them, showing that such behavior was unacceptable and would never be tolerated again, it would go a long way to explaining the state of the Fire Nation in Korra’s era.

Also, I think showing that it is possible to hold leaders and monsters to task without devolving into civil war or mindless violence, that coming to terms with your nation’s crimes does require forcing the masses to acknowledge the crimes their leaders and fellow citizens committed, and that true justice and healing sometimes does require righteous people to commit carefully dispersed violence is a powerful and timely message.

In regards to Ozai and Azula being too dangerous to be kept alive, not taking the EU into account, even if the former is de-bended and in jail and the latter out of her right mind and in an asylum after Sozin’s Comet, they remain potent rallying figures for reactionary forces. 

Moreover, there is always the possibility that they could break out or be broken out of their jail cell and asylum respectively and lead said reactionary forces, at best leading to several terrorist attacks, and at worst with the old regime back in power and restarting the Hundred Year War. 

Yes, killing Ozai and Azula would probably lead to violent backlash that Zuko and his allies would have to put down with force, but logically speaking, Zuko would likely already be facing violent backlash by nature of the highly brainwashed Fire Nation population (probably) viewing him as a traitor who betrayed his family and nation and snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.

So the choice isn’t between eliminating threats to Zuko’s regime and world peace and violent backlash, it’s between eliminating threats to Zuko’s regime and world peace and somewhat greater degree of violent backlash, with the right choice being quite obvious in my opinion.

And if we take into account the EU, between the existence of terrorist groups and networks like the New Ozai Society, the pre-Spirit Temple Fire Warriors, and Dai Li sleeper cells waiting for Azula’s return, Zuko seeking Ozai for advice that almost led to him restarting the Hundred Year War, and the numerous acts of terrorism and violence Azula committed, almost committed, and maybe will commit in the future after she manipulated Zuko into freeing her from her straightjacket, it’s pretty obvious that both Ozai and Azula are way too dangerous to be kept alive.

“Ok. What you said makes sense, but why should Zuko have to go through the trouble of holding Nuremberg-style trials to execute the Fire Nation’s worst when there is already a recognized international figure who handles such matters, the Avatar? Aang’s story is him maturing into the Avatar mantle and becoming a fully-realized Avatar by the show’s end. Why are you allowing him to shrink away from his responsibilities, again?”

Beyond the fact that Aang is a 12 year old who was forced to learn of his Avatarhood and become an active Avatar before his 16th birthday due to the Fire Nation’s actions, whereas Zuko is a 16 year old head of state who (somewhat) choose to assume such a position of power, Aang is the last Air Nomad.

If previous Air Nomad Avatars killed people, it did not negatively affect their people or culture. If Aang kills people, it essentially completes the Air Nomad genocide since he is no longer a practicing Air Nomad by virtue of violating one of their most sacred tenets. 

Not to mention, the world post-Air Nomad genocide for better or for worse associate Air Nomads with Aang. So if Aang executed people in the course of carrying out his Avatar duties, the world would believe Air Nomads are fine with killing so long as it's justified, no matter what Aang tries saying after the fact.  

Also, in the event that he tried to pass on his people’s teachings to his kids, they would probably ignore him.

I know this is engaging in retroactive thinking, but do you think any of Bumi II, Kya II, or Tenzin, especially Tenzin considering what we’ve seen of his teenage self, would take Aang seriously if he told them Air Nomads considered all life to be sacred knowing he executed several Fire Nationals?

“Hm. That’s fair, but you are forgetting one crucial fact: ATLA was a mid-2000s Nick cartoon, and more generally, Aang’s era is geared towards kids. Notwithstanding censors, why do you think Nuremberg-style trials are remotely appropriate or tonally consistent?”

Avatar, even in Aang’s era, does not shy away from graphic violence, though to be fair, most examples in ATLA other than Aang’s death are off-screen (ex. Zuko’s burning), alluded to (ex. Jet’s death), or implied (Katara finding Kya’s freshly burned body). 

Zuko’s regime executing various high-ranking officials of the wartime Fire Lords and perpetrators of the Fire Nation’s worst wartime actions doesn’t have to be on screen. It can be off-screen or alluded to.

Also, is having Zuko’s regime kill people convicted of crimes against humanity that much worse than Zuko, Sokka, and Tenzin, the latter an Air Nomad who shares Aang’s values, agree to hold terrorists in tortious prison cells for the rest of their lives?

If the franchise all but says torture is fine if the circumstances call for it, and that characters who condone it are moral actors, why is it impossible for the franchise to say killing people is sometimes justified because of the circumstances, and that characters who condone it or engage in such killing are no less moral actors because of it?

“Ugh. You’re such a liberal. Why is that even when monsters face accountability, it has to be done through elites and elite institutions? In my opinion, Ozai, Azula, and other high ranking officials of the wartime Fire Lords’ regimes, as well other actors who took monstrous actions, should have been publicly executed, French Revolution style.”

Beyond the fact that gratuitous displays of violence would never get past the censors and would be wildly inconsistent with ATLA's themes, messages, and intended audience, didn't the French Revolution lead to the Reign of Terror and eventually the rise of the Napoleonic Empire, which attempted to colonize most of Europe and would have succeeded if not for Napoleon being a dumbass and attempting to conquer Russia during winter? 

The Nuremberg Trials didn’t go far enough, and quite frankly, Germany got off easy considering a lot of Nazi officials avoided punishment and/or were able to attain positions of power and influence in West Germany and other countries like the United States. 

But I do think the Nuremberg Trials are a good model for Avatar to follow considering it was a success all things considered, along with the fact that it is aligned with Avatar’s politics and ethos. 

Remember, for better or for worse, Avatar is a small and big l liberal show. If you want to see revolutionary and/or leftist politics, you’ll be sorely disappointed.

So to conclude, I think Ozai should have been executed as part of Nuremberg-style trials held by Zuko’s regime in order to hold high-ranking officials of the wartime Fire Lords’ regimes and those who committed atrocities during the war accountable as part of his efforts to de-Sozinize the Fire Nation for two reasons.

First, the state of the Fire Nation in Korra’s era, or more specifically, the relative lack of resurgent Sozinism, only makes sense if Zuko and his regime aggressively pursued de-Sozinization, showing Fire Nationals what their supposedly great nation did in the process of “sharing” their prosperity with the rest of the world, and that such actions were never ok and would never be tolerated again.

Intro

People have spent a lot of time over the years analyzing ATLA, Korra, and their respective comics and lore books. ATLA and Korra, the latter to a lesser extent, have been praised countless times over for their worldbuilding, complex characters, and portrayal of complex topics such as abuse, genocide, colonization, and mental health issues in a manner digestable by children and tweens. 

Meanwhile, ATLA and Korra’s extended universe material have faced extensive criticism for failing to build upon the best parts of their shows at best, and retroactively harming them at worst. Moreover, fans often wish that the shows and their extended lore had an older intended audience so they could be more explicit.

However, there has been a relative lack of analysis of the Chronicles of the Avatar, an ongoing anthology series meant to elaborate on the lives of past Avatars. Which is a shame since, beyond the fact that there is a lot to analyze, good and bad, they also have a higher age rating, allowing them to be more explicit than either show or their extended material.

Kyoshi Novels

If the goal of the Kyoshi novels is to explain how Kyoshi became the ruthless pursuer of justice still feared and revered centuries after her death, then they succeeded wildly at that. Seeing Kyoshi go from orphan to servant to a wanted person and criminal on the run to an unsure Avatar struggling to engage in politics to a prideful Avatar who forgoes politics is a fascinating and highly enjoyable journey, especially since it is paired with extensive inner monologues showing Kyoshi’s ever changing morals. 

Or more specifically, her transformation from a straight-laced, law abiding citizen who would never take a life to someone obsessed with revenge and has no qualms about murder as far as she is concerned, and then her subsequent struggle to reconcile who she was with who she is now after all the tragedies she experienced and having Avatarhood foisted upon her before reconciling the two by willing to kill only when someone has shown themselves to be irredeemable or unable to be reasoned with. 

I enjoyed how the Kyoshi novels’ worldbuilding, or more specifically, how it expanded upon the politics of the four nations and what is possible with bending in a believable manner and without retconning much, if anything at all. 

For example, why is the Earth Kingdom state as seen in Aang and Korra’s time so weak and corrupt? It’s because the Earth Kingdom is so large that, in an era lacking quick means of travel or mass communication, it makes it hard for the state to extend its power. Therefore, governors and sages are able to exercise wide discretion with little to no practical supervision, often for the worst.

How and why was the Fire Nation Royal Family able to centralize power in the Fire Lord mantle, leading to Sozin being able to unilaterally declare war on the world and have the Fire Nation support him whole-heartedly? Well, between Avatar Stezo’s reforms that stopped the Fire Nation from splintering into the Fire Islands again, the ongoing clashes between the Royal Family and Fire Nation noble clans, and the Camellia-Peony War, Fire Lord Zoryu decided to engage in a multi-generation plan to crush the clans and centralize power in the Fire Lord.

Is it possible for benders to use their elements to stay in the air beyond air spouts and fire propulsion? Yes, see dust-stepping, mist-stepping, and jet-stepping. If so, then how come we don’t see benders in ATLA and Korra spam such a technique? Because, beyond the fact that the technique is only known to members of the Flying Opera Company, the precision requirements make it so that most benders can’t do it on top of it being highly impractical for militaries and militias to teach on a mass scale.

Why is Yun able to credibly engage an Avatar capable of bending all four elements in combat, albeit one who hasn’t mastered all four elements? Because he is an Earthbending prodigy with GOAT levels of precision and assassin training who eventually fuses with a spirit who at its peak was able to clash with a fully-realized Avatar and almost win, warping the Spirit World in the process.

I could go on, but the point is that the Kyoshi novels’ worldbuilding fits in seamlessly with previously established lore and doesn’t require any headcanoning on the part of the reader to explain, something that must have been very hard to accomplish considering the amount of content the franchise had already produced at the time of the novels’ publishing. 

And even when the Kyoshi novels do engage in retcons, not only are they logical, but they also enhance the themes and messages present in ATLA and Korra as well.

For example, one of the main themes in Korra is that there is no good or bad Avatar, only Wan’s eternally reincarnating soul trying its best to rectify the fallout from the many mistakes he made during his life. This, even though Kuruk tells Aang in ATLA that he was a bad Avatar because he went with the flow and falled to be decisive. 

However, we learn in The Shadow of Kyoshi (“Shadow”) that if Kuruk was a failed Avatar, it was only due to having to deal with the dark spirits created by Yangchen favoring humans over spirits basically on his own due to not wanting to ruin Yangchen’s legacy, which isn’t as spotless as most people in- or out-universe believed it to be.

I loved how the Kyoshi novels played with the concept of a fallen Team Avatar, or more specifically, showing the havoc an Avatar’s untimely passing can have on their companions. For example, seeing the toll killing scores of pirates in order to protect Earth Kingdomers, in the process sacrificing his mental and spiritual health, as well his relationship with his fellow Air Nomads, had on Kelsang is gut wrenching because you know for a fact that could have been averted if Kuruk hadn’t died.

Finally, I liked the nuance given to the various fallen heroes, as well as the depth present in all the villains.

Was Jianzhu always a power-hungry man who would have fallen so long as Kuruk died before he did and was in position to train his successor? Or was he a good man who cracked due to feeling guilty for failing Kuruk as far as he knew, his desire to honor Kuruk’s last request, and the pressure caused by the Earth Kingdom’s and his failure to identify Kyoshi?

Was Yun a good man who broke after suffering several, life-altering, traumatic events in rapid succession? Or was he an entitled, cock-sure boy who only believed in his professed values so long as he was the Avatar and wrongly decided to make his problems the world’s problem instead of focusing his rage at the man responsible for deceiving him?

Was Zoryu a good man who was forced to become a machiavellian of the highest order to avert a bloody civil war? Or was he always like that and only needed sufficient justification to show his true colors?

Why is Xu An Ping such a megalomaniac freak? Well, anyone with the ability to kill someone with a power so rare that it was considered a myth just by pointing at them would more likely than not develop a god complex.

Why was Captain Li a corrupt police officer? Because his gambling debts made him susceptible to bribery.

Why is Chaejin so hell-bent on taking the throne from Zoryu, even if it means inciting a bloody civil war? Because he essentially wants to get back at his father, who acknowledged him, only to do everything in his power to exclude him from their family. 

I could go on, but the point is that even the most irrational, vile villains in the Kyoshi novels have motivations that go beyond liking evil and/or doing evil for the lols. And while I do agree that the distinct lack of villains that do evil just because is a bad trend, Avatar for the most part has always had villains that do evil beyond liking it and/or for the lols, a trend I am glad the Kyoshi novels continued.

However, despite all the good things about them, there are four things that keep the Kyoshi novels from being perfect in my opinion.

First, the lack of POV chapters focusing on Rangi, as well the lack of inner dialogues by Rangi, and more generally, how she is basically the perfect Avatar companion and love interest. 

I understand that there is only so much time and page space available, and that if you give every slightly important character a decent amount of focus, the work will become bloated and lack focus. But Rangi isn’t just any character, she is Kyoshi’s best friend, lover, and firebending sifu. 

I would have loved a chapter or two focusing on her and her thoughts dealing with stuff like her, a law abiding citizen, becoming a criminal due to her duty to Kyoshi or her time in the Northern Pole as Hei-Ran was receiving treatment. I think it would have made her a much more realized character.

Likewise I wish Rangi and Kyoshi would have had more, longer-lasting, and deeper conflicts with each other. 

For someone who was raised to be a model, law abiding citizen and bodyguard meant to help the Avatar undertake the traditional journey to becoming a fully realized Avatar, it is odd that, beyond a couple of arguments, Rangi readily goes along with Kyoshi’s decisions and quickly reconciles with her whenever they have disagreements and/or wronged each other. 

Even after learning Hei-Ran had planned to sacrifice herself to Yun in order to help Kyoshi apprehend him and Kyoshi didn’t push back, the most Rangi does is yell at Kyoshi and tell her their friendship and relationship is over before essentially telling her she forgives her by making noodles for her.

I understand Rangi’s unyielding devotion to the Avatar and Kyoshi is supposed to be one of her key character traits, but I think one of the more interesting parts about Avatar is seeing an Avatar’s relationship with their companions develop through the highs and lows they experience together. Even Asami Sato, who in later seasons of Korra doesn’t really push back against Korra’s ideas or have true interpersonal conflict with Korra, had real, lasting interpersonal conflict with Korra in the form of the Mako-Asami-Korra love triangle. 

An Avatar-Avatar’s Companion relationship without real, interpersonal conflict is boring, and I think the Kyoshi novels are less for it, even though I like Kyoshi and Rangi’s characters, as well as their friendship and romantic relationship.

Second, the relative lack of interconnectedness between The Rise of Kyoshi (“Rise”) and Shadow, or more specifically, how Shadow moved on from Tagaka and the Fifth Nation threat and basically doesn’t have the Flying Opera Company in it until the climactic fight and epilogue.

In regards to Tagaka and the Fifth Nation, while I understand that they were crushed by Kyoshi and Jianzhu in Rise, with the former getting transported to Lake Laogai the last time she is mentioned, it was off-putting that a group of antagonists that had been a central focus of the first fifth to third of Rise and was treated as a threat on par with the daofei lacked any real follow up in Shadow.

While I don’t think it would have been a good writing choice to have Tagaka escape the Earth King’s custody or have the Fifth Nation be active antagonists again in Shadow, I wish we got proper follow up on them, like Kyoshi meeting with the Earth King’s forces and making sure Tagaka is properly secured and unable to communicate with the remnants of the Fifth Nation, or Kyoshi hunting down remnants of the Fifth Nation like she does with daofei.

Third, Kyoshi’s relatively quick rise in power, or more specifically, how she was in the span of a month and some change able to use the Avatar State at will and not be a complete liability when it comes to bending, and within a year, able to become a decent bender in all four elements.

I understand that having Kyoshi take longer to be able to use the Avatar State and become competent at bending would have ruined the pacing of both books. Moreover, beyond the fact that the muscle memory and instincts that come from her past lives gives her a leg up when it comes to learning the elements, that her constantly being in life-or-death fights accelerated her bending development and Lao Ge was the perfect spiritual guru for her.

But it was off-putting to me that, despite essentially only spending a month with bending masters and a spiritual guru and reading scrolls whenever she was in Yoyoka, she was able to become so competent. Personally, while her rate of development in Rise can be overlooked, her rate of development in Shadow is jarring. 

I wish we had gotten a blurb or two saying that Kyoshi actively sought out and received training from bending masters during the time skip, and that Lao Ge continued to visit her in secret to help her spiritual development.

Finally, I think Yun’s heel-face turn is too quick. Even though he went through a trauma conga line that would have broken the vast majority of people, I feel we were missing a few steps between him being angry at his current lot in life and for being lied to for so long and him slaughtering innocent people. 

This is because I never got the impression that pre-Father Glowworm Yun was the type of person who would discard his professed and practiced values if he wasn’t the Avatar or endured great suffering. 

Yun becoming an omnicidal maniac, in my opinion, would have come across better if he was seen slowly but surely going from killing very deserving targets to less and less deserving targets before he is shown killing innocents. It would have made Kyoshi’s realization that Yun won’t stop his quest for vengeance until he has painted the planet red hit much harder in my opinion.

But to make it clear, these are minor nitpicks. Despite the flaws I mentioned, I think the Kyoshi novels are well-written novels that expand the universe in a logical and consistent manner and do justice to Kyoshi’s character.

Yangchen Novels

Outside of a long unplayable flash game that most people have never heard of, Yangchen only had two appearance before her novels: a brief appearance in ATLA in which she tells Aang to sacrifice his spiritual needs because of his duty to the world and a couple of panels in The Rift in which she explains the backstory of the main (physical) antagonist of the story and tells Aang needs to do to stop his return.

Yet, despite not having much to build off of, the Yangchen novels manage to extrapolate a 3-D, fully realized character that credibly explores what an Air Nomad Avatar looks like when they are one of many airbenders, and not the last airbender.

If Korra’s story is about a warrior in an era that needs a spiritual leader and diplomat, and Aang’s story is about a spiritual leader and diplomat in an era that needs a warrior, then Yangchen’s story is about a spiritually-inclined Avatar in an era that needs a politician and spymaster. 

Hence, why the Yangchen novels take the form of a political spy thriller, a risky choice considering political spy thrillers are harder to write than coming of age stories, the form all other Avatar stories have taken, because the characters in such stories are only as smart as the author(s), though thankfully, F.C. Yee was more than up to task. The way he was able to analyze the Cohong system and the Cold War and use them to mold a believable work of historical fantasy with convincing politics is nothing short of amazing. 

Personally, Noehi telling Yangchen that unless there was a spiritual problem, the Bin-Er shangs were uninterested in her proposals for socioeconomic reform was a highlight since it showed the limits of the Avatar’s ability to rely on their martial prowess or spiritual authority to enact change.

I think his choice to make the White Lotus into a morally grey organization that doesn’t fully trust the Avatar and is ok with manipulating world leaders and war so long as their definition of balance is upheld was an inspired one. 

This is because the White Lotus up to the Yangchen novels’ publishing had been portrayed as a hands off organization that only intervenes during moments of great importance (ATLA), a transnational NGO (Korra), or an organization that helps the Avatar in non-overt ways (Kyoshi novels), but in all cases, always having the best interests of the Avatar and the world at heart. It was interesting to see the White Lotus be more than neutral or overtly good wise men and women.

I also enjoyed the fact that they learned from not giving Rangi any chapters focused on her and gave Kavik several chapters focused on him. I think doing so allowed the Yangchen novels to show his inner life, and therefore gave his relationships weight that was lacking with Rangi in the Kyoshi novels.

And I really enjoyed the antagonists, especially Kaylaan and Chaisee, who are in my Top 5 favorite villains in the franchise. 

Kaylaan is an excellent deconstruction of Water Tribesmen values and waterbending ethos. Or more specifically, how devotion towards one’s family can be twisted to justify great evil, as well as how adherence to waterbending’s guiding principle of going with the flow can be used to facilitate such evil.

In fact, I think Kaylaan’s encounter with Kavik in Joundri in which he effortlessly exploits Kavik’s devotion to family to turn him into a double agent is a Top 3 villain moment in the franchise surpassed only by Azula forcing Long Feng to submit to her and Azula electrocuting Aang in the Avatar State.

Meanwhile, Chaisee’s affable exterior combined with her callous, cold-hearted depravity and genuine love and devotion towards her family leads to one of the most nuanced and layered villains in the entire franchise.

I liked how F.C. Yee was able to give readers a wide variety of antagonists that challenged the heroes physically (ex. the four named combustion benders), mentally (ex. Chaisee and Feishan), and sometimes both (ex. Kaylann). 

I also liked how F.C. Yee was able to walk the line of having the antagonists’ motivations appear to be logical and sometimes rooted in higher ideals and principles while making it clear that at the end of the day they were motivated by some combination of greed, fear, wraith, paranoia, and boundless ambition.

However, despite all the good things about them, there are two things that keep the Yangchen novels from being perfect in my opinion. Namely, the slow and somewhat disjointed start to The Dawn of Yangchen (“Dawn”) and Kavik’s betrayal being treated too lightly.

In regards to Dawn starting slowly, I understand that introducing readers to Kavik and the events leading to Yangchen coercing Kavik into becoming an asset/companion of hers are important considering Kavik is the deuteragonist of both Yangchen novels, but I wish Dawn explained the current political status quo earlier. 

Maybe it is poor reading skills on my part, but it was annoying to keep hearing references to the politics in Bin-Er and the other shang cities without proper context until Henshe gives Yangchen, and by proxy the audience, an exposition dump during the rough mid-way point of Dawn. In my opinion, Dawn would have been a much easier read if the exposition dump happened during the beginning of the book.

In regards to Kavik’s betrayal being treated too lightly, it is less how Kavik feels about it and how Yangchen’s other companions react, and more about how Yangchen extends him way too much grace in her inner monologues in my opinion. 

I understand that Yangchen did coerce Kavik into joining her team, and it is in Yangchen’s nature to be forgiving and understanding, especially since she tries to adhere to her people’s teachings despite her Avatarhood. 

But I wish Yangchen’s inner dialogue had expressed more anger and trust issues towards Kavik, someone who expressed the desire to be a true Avatar’s companion instead of just an asset before his betrayal, before he allowed himself to get stabbed and threw away any possible reconciliation with his brother for the world’s and hers sake.

Remember, Kavik’s betrayal didn’t just result in combustionbending being unleashed on the world, it led to a chain of events that resulted in Yangchen getted banished from the Northern Air Temple, Nujian’s death, and a world war almost breaking out. Yangchen’s relative lack of anger and trust issues towards Kavik is jarring considering the fallout of his betrayal.

But to make it clear, these are minor nitpicks. Despite the flaws I mentioned, I think the Yangchen novels are well-written novels that expand the universe in a logical and consistent manner, respect the intelligence of its readers, and do an amazing job of fleshing out a character that was essentially a blank slate.

Reckoning of Roku

I understand what Randy Ribay was trying to do. 

Show how difficult it must have been for Roku, a spoiled sweet nobleman who grew up friends with the Fire Nation Crown Prince, to adjust to not only his Avatar training, but also having to think of himself as the Avatar first, and Fire National second. 

Lay the seeds of how Sozin, a man who grew up in peaceful times, would become the man who started a global war of genocide and conquest on top of being a persecutor of homosexuals. 

Explain how Gyatso and Roku became friends while also building off the implication that Gyatso was a bit of an iconoclast.

Moreover, I understand that writing this novel must have been much more difficult than either the Kyoshi or Yangchen novels because we already know the broad strokes of Roku and Sozin’s lives.

But with that being said, I think the novel not only falls at the tasks it sets out to achieve, but also creates several plot holes in ATLA on top aggravating some of the franchise’s worst aspects. This is due to its hamfisted delivery, reliance on cheap call backs and forwards to ATLA, inability to think through the implications of what is being portrayed and/or implied, and unwillingness to allow anything of substance to occur. 

For example, the way Sozin’s corruption arc, or lack thereof, is portrayed. Sozin is 16 during the vast majority of the novel. By the end of the main story, basically every important character sans Roku, from Dalisay to Kozaru to Malaya to Gyatso, can sense that he will be a terrible tyrant. In fact, Sozin is so obviously evil that Malaya decides to kill Sozin or die trying, even though she only heard of him a couple of days ago and physically interacted with him for a couple of hours at best.

While I understand someone like Sozin had to have had several red flags growing up, it’s so unsubtle that it retroactively makes Roku worse for not realizing sooner that Sozin is a terrible person capable of unreal depravity. Especially since, in the event that Gyatso interacts with Sozin further and remains in-line with his presented characterization, he will not only press the issue with Roku, but also force him to choose between their friendship and his friendship with Sozin. This even though we know the Roku-Sozin friendship falls apart for different reasons and Gyatso and Roku remain steadfast friends for life and beyond. 

And speaking of Gyatso, he is less of a character and more of a perfect manic pixie guy whose purpose in the story is make Roku and Malaya into better people, make hollow allusions to his final fate, and recognize and call out evil to his companions way before anyone else does. Gyatso lacks any flaws beyond the fact that he struggles with his grief and attachment to his late, older biological sister, and even then, he quickly overcomes them by talking about her to Malaya. 

This is why, for example, the novel’s attempt to derive pathos from Gyatso’s grief, as well as use it to develop the Roku-Gyatso relationship by having them bond over their grief for their lost siblings, fails. Gyatso is not allowed to be anything other than morally righteous and flawless, or truly struggle; even Roku feels resentment towards his parents for essentially wishing he drowned instead of Yasu and wonders if Sozin is truly his friend or if he is Yasu’s replacement goldfish.

In fact, the problem with Gyatso extends to the Air Nomads as a whole, who are portrayed as always being in the right and never really having any real flaws. The closest they come to getting criticized is when Roku points out to Gyatso it's odd that they segregate their temples and that their pacifism is as much of a choice as choosing to fight. But even then, Gyatso fails to truly acknowledge the merits of Roku’s points before their argument is interrupted and never revisited.

After seeing Air Nomads like Tenzin, Jinpa, Kelsang, and Yangchen who struggle to not only uphold their people’s values, but also with their numerous flaws and failures, it is disheartening to see Gyatso and the Air Nomads of this era as they are portrayed in this novel have any complexity and nuance stripped from them. Even Aang, who at times comes off as a perfect manic pixie guy, has flaws and struggles, such as his jealousy, laziness, and his tendency to prioritize his happiness and joy over his duty to the world.

Examples of the novel’s reliance on cheap call backs and forwards include, but are not limited to, Gyatso having a vision of his final fate unprompted, repeatedly having Roku trip, only to have Sozin keep him from falling, and Gyatso apparently being the one to invent the phrase, “Flamey-O, Hotman!” and have it adopted by the Fire Nation by the time Aang visits Kuzon in the Fire Nation in Dragon Days. 

I like call backs and forwards, but there is a difference between having them come about naturally, and them being the equivalent of dangling keys in front of a baby. The call backs and forwards in the novel unfortunately fall into the latter category, with the last example being particularly egregious since it makes the world much smaller.

In fact, Gyatso apparently being the one to invent the phrase, “Flamey-O, Hotman!” ties into my point about the novel not thinking through the implications of what is being portrayed and/or implied. 

For example, before the novel was released, ATLA and its related comics implied that blue fire and iridescent (rainbow) fire were the product of genetics, skill, and, in the later’s case, spiritual enlightenment, and not an indicator of raw power because that would mean Azula and Zuko, especially Azula since she constantly generates blue fire, are the strongest firebenders in ATLA, and not the older members of the Royal Family and possibly Jeong Jeong like the show implies and various word of god statements explicitly state. 

However, by making it so that Roku and Sozin can only generate blue fire while receiving a spirit amp, with the former only being able to produce iridescent fire after charging his flames, despite being amped hundreds to thousands of times, it retroactively upscales Azula, Zuko, and everyone they fight.

Another example is Sozin finding Wan Shi Tong’s library and being granted access to it. Why would someone who is obsessed with power, firebending, and proving himself to his father, not return to the library and digest all of the relevant firebending knowledge contained in the books and scrolls he found? Well, the novel doesn’t answer this, even though it raised this question by having Sozin find it in the first place.

Likewise, an additional, related example is how Wan Shi Tong’s library is responsible for Sozin learning to harness the power of The Great Comet. 

In ATLA, there is no prior knowledge needed to use the Great Comet to enhance your firebending. So long as you can firebend, it will be amplified. This in combination with the fact that the Twin Suns Festival mentioned in the Kyoshi novels implies that the Fire Nation always knew about the power boost the Great Comet gave. It just took until Sozin for the Fire Nation state to be willing to weaponize it. 

But The Reckoning of Roku (“Reckoning”) changes this by saying there is specific knowledge needed to be able to harass the power of the Great Comet, knowledge that the Fire Nation state did not have until Sozin. This explanation is incongruent with what is presented in ATLA and was implied in prior established lore.

A final example of the novel’s inability to think things through is how it portrays the natives of Lambak Island. Or more specifically, how people like Amihan and Ulo are portrayed as being evil for being willing to murder outsiders to protect their home and clan. 

It would be one thing if the Western Kingdom Trading Company party and Sozin’s party came to the island solely to explore it and learn. But not only did both parties come to the island to exploit it, with the Western Kingdom Trading Company party’s guards eventually destroying the Lambak clan’s village after repeatedly being shown mercy by Malaya, the novel ends with Sozin exploiting the villagers to extract their spirit touched ore with no guarantee that he won’t rescind their special status once he ascends to the throne and becomes overtly antagonistic to Roku.

I don’t know if it was intentional, but the treatment of Lambak Island resembles the thought process of people who try to contact Northern Sentient Island without authorization, as well as the comments hurling hate towards the natives when they invariably kill would-be intruders. I don’t understand why a franchise that prides itself on its progressiveness would fail to see the resemblance. Though to be fair, the concept of leaving land and/or people alone is something the franchise has always struggled with (ex. “The Mechanist” and The Rift.), so maybe it is less the fault of Reckoning and more a franchise original sin.

Finally, in regards to allowing nothing of substance to occur, despite all of the events that occur in the novel, the only things of consequence that occurs that is directly tied to the island that is the focus of the book is that it becomes a special territory of the Fire Nation and is having it’s special ore mined with the implication that it is part of the reason why the Fire Nation has such an industrial advantage over the other nations during the Hundred Year War.  

Roku connecting with Kyoshi and unlocking airbending and earthbending, Gyatso reconnecting with his airbending, and Roku and Sozin starting to drift apart did not specifically need Lambak Island. And despite all the time and focus spent on Yungib’s cave, in the end it doesn't matter since it was destroyed and Yungib is unlikely to ever exert such influence in the human world again.

Again, I understand that writing this novel must be hard considering we already know so much about Roku and Sozin. And I don’t think self-contained stories in and of themselves are bad. 

But I think in this instance Reckoning being a mostly self-contained story is a bad writing choice because of how much time was spent on Yungib’s cave and Lambak Island. The time that was spent exploring the island, the island’s natives, and Yungib’s cave could have been better spent, for example, fleshing out Sozin’s corruption arc.

However, that being said, there were a few things I liked about the novel.

First, I enjoyed how the novel fleshed out the details of Fire Nation society, finally confirming that there is a Royal Academy for Boys, giving details about the burial practices of Fire Nationals, going into detail on how the Fire Nation identifies the Avatar, and confirming the common headcanon that non-benders can not assume the Fire Lord mantle.

Second, I actually enjoyed Kyoshi’s ending. I know a lot of fans were upset to learn that Kyoshi’s immorality had caused her to stop caring about the inherent value of life, but I always thought that was her natural endpoint considering it is a common trope for immortals to seek death after realizing they are losing respect for life, if they haven’t already. I enjoyed seeing Sister Disha and the Air Nomads essentially force Kyoshi to realize that she had lost the humanity the Avatar needs, and therefore willingly reincarnate.

Finally, I enjoyed the portrayal of Sozin’s relationship with his father, as well as his misogyny. I think the best parts of the novel are those that show how Fire Lord Taiso’s constant emotional abuse, bias against the other nations and their citizens, and reminders that he would disinherit Sozin if not for Zeisan being a non-bender influences Sozin. This is because, in my opinion, they do a better job of planting the seeds of Sozin’s downfall than other characters being able to sense he is a tyrant to be and vocalizing their hunch. 

Likewise, I like the nuanced portrayal of Sozin’s misogyny in which he more than willing to use intelligent, martially inclined women for his benefit while at the same time not wanting them to get too big for their britches because it allows you to see where his descendents’ misogyny comes from, and more broadly, why gender relations in the Fire Nation during Aang’s era looks the way it does. This all while avoiding being hamfisted.

That being said, the few good things that Reckoning does not save it from being an aggressively mediocre novel at best, and actively harmful towards the franchise at worst. I hope Awakening of Roku (“Awakening”) learns from the mistakes of Reckoning and builds upon the good parts of Reckoning so that Roku can finally have the novel he deserves to have.

Final Rankings and Conclusion

Overall, I think the first four novels in the Chronicles of the Avatar are a more than worthy addition to the franchise, capable of standing on their own feet regardless if the reader has watched ATLA and/or Korra or read their associated extended universe material, and enhances them upon subsequent rewatches and re-readings. At worst, they are on par with ATLA S1, and at best, they surpass it, though they fail to reach the heights of ATLA S3, let alone ATLA S2, which I consider to be the best canon works in the franchise. 

Meanwhile, I think Reckoning at best fails to add anything to the franchise, and at worst actively detracts from it due to its hamfisted delivery, reliance on cheap call backs and forwards to ATLA, inability to think through the implications of what is being portrayed and/or implied, and unwillingness to allow anything of substance to occur. While I don’t think the novel reaches the nadirs that Ruins of the Empire does, which is the worst released canon Avatar material in my opinion, I think it is on par with the Gene Luen Yang post-war ATLA comics at best. And sadly, I don’t think Awakening will improve subsequent readings of Reckoning considering Reckoning is a mostly self-contained story and it is unlikely Lambak Island will be revisited in any significant manner. 

Note: While I don’t think The Legend of Korra (TLOK) is as good as Avatar: The Last Airbender (ATLA), I still think it is a pretty good show, and that 99.9% of its problems can be traced to Nick not giving Bryke a full four seasons with a proper budget from the outset. However, I don’t think any piece of fiction is perfect, hence why I criticize TLOK like I do ATLA.

Keynote: Antisocial Personality Disorder (ASPD) is the proper medical term as far as I know for what is commonly referred to as sociopathy and psychopathy. So I use ASPD throughout this meta in lieu of those terms.

I saw people recently share their Sonic the Hedgehog headcanons, so I decided to join in the fun. Though please forgive me if the following headcanon retread familiar fandom ground.

In my opinion, Sonic is the natural Ultimate Life Form created by the same entity that created the Chaos Emeralds and Master Emerald as a response to singular threat that is Eggman and all the world/reality ending threats he would directly and indirectly unleash in the future. As such, Sonic has no parents, nor was he ever a baby or young child. He was just "born" one day through the entity using what we call Chaos Control.

It's why the Echidna Tribe foresaw his existence and made the Hidden Palace Zone mural showcasing his prophesied fight with Eggman at the end of Sonic 3 & Knuckles.

It's why Sonic as early as Sonic 2 can restore space-time with just his speed, is easily able to learn, absorb, adapt to, and/or control Chaos Control, Wisps, Dark Gaia's energy, and cyber-energy. It's why he can be jailed for six months and suffer no psychological harm.

It's why he continuously grows in power every second to the point that Modern Base Sonic >Dreamcast era Super Sonic.

It's why he is able to match, and even at times, surpass Shadow, the artificial Ultimate Life Form created from an immortal, deity-like figure who can use Chaos Control without any emeralds.

It's why he neither cares for nor is burdened by his past or future, and why he, the most powerful person on the planet, is content with spending his days going on adventures and doing what HE considers to be right.

Note: To make it super clear, I have no relevant training when it comes to mental health, or in psychology in general. I am just a fan sharing my headcanon based on what I think would lead into interesting storytelling. So if you have any problems (ex. you think I engaged in ableism) with my characterization and/or diagnosis of Azula, please let me know in the comments.

Most people loathe the fact that Toph canonically not only becomes a cop, but also becomes a corrupt cop who abuses her authority to protect her criminal younger daughter. 

This is because, beyond claims of copaganda, people argue that it is out of character for someone like Toph, whose character is about flaunting authority and doing what she wants, to take a position of authority such as Republic City's Chief of Police.

However, I don't think there was a problem with Toph becoming a cop since I think Toph's issue with authority wasn't its existence per se, but instead the fact that she wasn’t the main authority figure, or one of the main authority figures, and therefore had to submit to someone else’s authority, even when doing so wasn't agreeable to her.

This is why Toph hated the way her parents sheltered her, enjoyed scamming people, and expressed verbal chagrin at Katara's mothering while at the same time enjoying being Aang's earthbending teacher to the point that she eventually opened her own metalbending academy, missed Sokka's leadership when he was training with Piandao, and admitted to Sokka that she did like Katara's mothering when she thought Katara was nowhere to be found.

Moreover, unlike the real world, policing in Avatar's world does not have the same negative history as in places like the United States, where policing arose out of slave-catching paroles.

In addition, it is highly likely that as Toph grew older, she wished to channel her need to fight and put bad guys down in a socially responsible way considering for better or worse she is associated with the Gaang, who are composed of several world leaders. 

Therefore, if she could have met those needs by, for example, starting an underground bending fighting ring or becoming a bounty hunter, she wouldn’t. 

Not when she deeply cares for her friends, even if she doesn’t show it, and therefore would never do something that would have the potential to seriously negatively impact them.

Also, considering she is a business partner with her dad in Earthen Fire Industries, and therefore makes frequent visits to Cranefish Town/Republic City, she would be acutely aware of not only of tensions between immigrants from the other three remaining nations, but also of the rising tensions between benders and non-benders as technology threatens uproot benders’ favored position in society.

Especially since she helped the Gaang in Imbalance take down a group of bending supremacist luddites who destroyed factories in Cranefish Town such as the one owned by Earthen Fire Industries.

So, taking all of the above into consideration and the fact that Toph is a simple person who doesn’t like complexity, it is easy to see a scenario where Aang and the United Republic Council, which would include Sokka, coming up to her and asking her and her metalbending students to help police the increasingly chaotic Republic City, with her as the Chief of Police, and her agreeing to do.

However, I think where Toph becoming a police officer fails is in the execution of her deciding to leave. 

Because whether she quit due to realizing that covering up Suyin's crimes made her unfit to lead like Lin says, or because she quit due to realizing that no matter how many bad guys she put away, she wasn’t making a real difference in her own worlds, none of them are consistent with her character arc of learning to care for and trust in others, as well as the world at large.

Hence, why I think people would not have a problem with Toph becoming a cop if her reason for quitting wasn’t due to personal corruption or becoming a jaded cynic, but instead because she realized that being a cop was not the best to stop bad guys and help her friends, and therefore quit so she could take direct action that she couldn’t take as a cop.

For example, you could have Toph in the early years of her tenure as Republic City's Chief of Police, after a bunch of apprehended thieves say they were pushed to criminality because they never received any reparations from the Fire Nation, and therefore lacked the means to make an honest living considering the dilapidated state of their home towns due to the War, go on a countrywide trip across the Earth Kingdom to see what is going on in regards to reparation payments. 

And during her trip, have her find out that the nobility and various government officials have been embezzling the payments and keeping it for themselves and their friends and family.

And then, after getting as many of them arrested, but finding out to her horror that without putting an end to the institution of nobility, or more generally, without giving the masses political and economic power, they will always get taken advantage of, have her tender her resignation and spend the rest of her life as an earthbending teacher who uses her wealth and political connections to help those the Earth Kingdom government can't or won’t while also advocating for and promoting democracy.

“Ok, what you said makes sense. But what if Toph becoming a cop and then quitting due to being corrupt or becoming jaded was a deliberate choice on the part of the writers? Because several characters in the franchise such as Azula and Yun have negative character arcs in which they become worse people over time.”

“And even someone like Aang, the purest person in the original show, has a negative arc when it comes to his kids: engaging in parental favoritism and putting too much pressure on his youngest, airbending child Tenzin.”

“So why can’t Toph being a cop who eventually quits due to corruption or cynicism be part of a negative character arc: namely, how her refusal to grow as a person, as well as her refusal to acknowledge that the world isn’t as simple as she wished it was until she was an old lady, not only harmed her, but also her family and the world at large?”

Because Azula, Yun, and Aang’s negative character arcs are consistent with their characters and logically flow from what was previously established about them.

Azula was a golden child who was raised to believe that fear and manipulation was the only way to gain loyal friends and family and choose to pursue her father’s love over her mother’s love, only to learn too late that using fear and manipulation on your friends and family is liable to turn them against you, especially when you the leading agent of a tyrannical, genocidal monarchy, and that her father never loved her, only what she could do for him.

Yun was raised to believe that he was the Avatar, only to learn shortly before being left for dead, or worse, to a nasty spirit by his father figure that he was not the Avatar, but instead his servant/friend.

Aang engaging in parental favoritism makes sense when you realize that only airbenders could continue the Air Nomad race and culture. 

Therefore, so long as him and Katara, a waterbender with non-bending parents, choose to engage in a monogamous relationship, Aang would have to favor any airbending child(ren) over any non-airbending child(ren) in order to make sure airbending and Air Nomad culture would not go extinct with his passing. 

Moreover, he would have to relentlessly drill said airbending child(ren), even if the pressure to succeed would end up tormenting them for the rest of their lives, because the fate of a bending art and nation would literally rest on their back(s).

Meanwhile, Toph, someone whose arc in the original show was learning to care for and trust in others and the world at large, became a corrupt cop and/or a jaded cynic because….?

So to sum up, I don't think Toph becoming a cop is out of character for her since she never had a problem with authority, only submitting to it. 

However, the problem with her becoming a cop is due to her quitting after abusing her power to protect Suyin after she not only committed several crimes, but also attacked her older sister who was trying to arrest her and her criminal associates. 

This is because it spits in the face of Toph learning to care about her friends since her abusing her power does no favors to the Gaang trying to maintain peace in Republic City, or the world at large.

On the surface, the resolution of the Yu Dao crisis was nothing but a success, both in the short and long-term. For allowing Yu Dao and the oldest Fire Nation colonies self-determination not only prevented ethnic cleansing and the Hundred Year from restarting, but also led to the creation of the United Republic as well.

A place that not only serves as the dominant economic and cultural hub in the world, but also eventually became a laboratory of democracy as well, being the first place in ATLA’s modern history to elect its leader by way of popular vote.

However, on closer inspection, the resolution of the Yu Dao crisis was not the complete success that the ATLA franchise frames it as, but in fact one of its biggest mistakes due to three, discrete, but interrelated, reasons.

First, the fact that the people pushing for self-determination in Yu Dao were more likely than not representative of the greater population, and that push for self-determination in-universe is seeped in racist, pro-colonist rhetoric. 

Second, the fact that the Yu Dao crisis was solved by “self-determination” sent several wrong messages that also led to severe consequences during Korra’s era.  

Third, the fact that there is no way that the Fire Nation could have paid the Earth Kingdom anywhere near the true value of the oldest colonies, thus retarding the Earth Kingdom’s ability to rebuild after the war, and is partially why the Earth Kingdom is in such a sorry state during Korra’s era.

In regards to the first point, Kori and her family and close friends are not representative of the entire Yu Dao population, being instead a minority of the population in which their proximity to political and/or economic power shielded them from the burnt of the Fire Nation’s tyranny.

And while they have a good point about how the Harmony Restoration Movement would lead to ethnic cleansing by forcing mixing families to choose between leaving their long-time homes and having their families broken apart, they are not the only people whose opinions matter when it comes to the oldest colonies.

This is because, even if The Search and related material gloss over it, Yu Dao, like the rest of the oldest colonies, have a massive Earth Kingdomer population, one that more or less serves an underclass exploited by Fire Nationals.

Yet, despite having ample chances to do so, none of the Gaang or Kori and her allies ever ask such people for what should be done in regards to Yu Dao’s future.

This, even though they would likely have different opinions than Zuko, Kori, and like minded people about how Yu Dao’s future should go after learning about the problems with the Harmony Restoration Movement in its current form.

Likewise, while there are non-Yu Dao Earth Kingdomers who do get to express their opinion on what should happen with the oldest colonies, they never get a chance to express what should happen after being presented with the reality that the Harmony Restoration Movement in its current form would result in ethnic cleansing, not even Kuei, at least not before Aang all but forces Kuei to accept Yu Dao has the “right” to self-determination.

(No, not every group that claims to be a distinct “nation” has a right to self-determination. For if that was the case, groups like white nationalists or Christian nationalists in the United States would have the right to self-determination, and I don’t think anyone but a fringe minority believes that to be true.)

But the fact that self-determination in Yu Dao was mostly decided by a small, unrepresentative portion of the population is made worse by the fact that it is steeped in racist, pro-colonialism rhetoric.

This is because Zuko, after Katara pointed out that there is massive socioeconomic inequality between the Fire Nationals and Earth Kingdomers, argues in part to keep the oldest colonies since they were better off before the Fire Nation colonized them, which is appalling for in- and out-of-universe reasons.

For in-universe, why would the (supposedly) former imperialist who got un-indoctrinated by spending months as a refugee witnessing first hand the Fire Nation’s “greatness,” and got painfully rejected by an Earth Kingdom village he saved because he was part of the family responsible for their suffering, express such sentiments?

Like what happened to the pensive, self-reflective person, one who is aware of his place in history and is hell bent on undoing all the suffering he and his people have wrought upon the world, that Zuko became post-Day of Black Sun?

Meanwhile, out-of-universe, if you were to switch out Zuko's words with some modern places, it would sound like something out of /pol.

For modern racists and/or imperialist apologists justify Western settler colonialism in part by saying that without their “intervention”, the places they colonized would have remained underdeveloped.

Like, is it that hard to see the parallel between your average /pol shitposter saying something like, “Before the West colonized them, the shitskins only had huts and sticks.” and Zuko saying, “Many of the Fire Nation families here immigrated over a hundred years ago, when Yu Dao was just a tiny village at the bottom of a valley.”?

In regards to the second point, the fact that the Yu Dao crisis was solved by “self-determination” sent several wrong messages, both in-universe and out of it, that also led to severe consequences during Korra’s era.

For by having self-determination in the oldest Fire Nation colonies be driven by Fire Nationals and those related to or allied with them without taking into consideration the vast Earth Kingdom underclass, as well the opinion of the rest of the Earth Kingdom, the Fire Nation suffered little to no consequences for starting the Hundred Year War, and in fact essentially won the War.

This is because the Fire Nation is modeled after Imperial Japan, and just like Imperial Japan had reasons for engaging in colonialism and/or imperialism beyond paternalistic notions of spreading their “greatness,” the Fire Nation likely had other, less “benevolent” reasons for waging the Hundred Year War as well.

For imagine you are a part of Fire Lord Sozin’s governing council in the lead up to the Hundred Year War and you are discussing the benefits of waging the Hundred Year War.

Would you tell him that the Fire Nation would be doing the world a great service by spreading its greatness? 

Or would you tell him that the Fire Nation would be able to achieve several economic and military goals vital to the Fire Nation’s continued existence, at least in its current form?

Or more specifically, by engaging in settler colonialism and imperialism, Sozin would be able to: (1) keep the Fire Nation industrializing at a smooth pace by obtaining cheap and/or slave labor, cheap goods, free land, and easier access to fossil fuels; (2) quell growing class tensions that are endemic to industrial capitalism; (3) divert attention from growing calls from the growing middle class to democratize the Fire Nation, as well limit or eliminate the privileges of the nobility; (4) and make sure their economic and military rivals in the Earth Kingdom would never be able to pose a threat to the Fire Nation again.

Now, imagine you are an advisor as part of Fire Lord Izumi’s governing council and you are preparing a report detailing the Fire Nation’s economic and military power at the moment.

What would it say? That the Fire Nation is a defeated nation-state unable or unwilling to flex its muscles and forced by its leadership to continue paying reparations for the foreseeable future?

Or that the Fire Nation is in amazing shape because: (1) the dominant economic, military, and cultural power in the world is a client state of the Fire Nation; (2) thanks in large part to the ill-gotten gains it got from the Hundred Year War, the Fire Nation is now a, or close to becoming, an advanced industrial state; (3) the Earth Federation is highly unlikely to rival the Fire Nation’s economic or military power for the foreseeable future; (4) and as a result of all this, the Royal Family’s, and by proxy the nobility’s, hold on power is secure for the foreseeable future?

So can anyone with a straight face say that the Fire Nation did not win the Hundred Year War?

No, and that is bad because it sends the message that all nation-states have to do to redeem themselves for engaging in settler colonialism and genocide is pay reparations and punish just a handful of leaders, and all is forgiven.

Moreover, it is bad because it sends the message that if you want more land, labor, and resources, just send your citizens to the area you desire and have some of them reproduce with the local population before then demanding self-determination after sufficient time has passed.

Hence, why I think the resolution of the Yu Dao crisis is responsible for the rise of the Earth Empire.

This is because while Kuvira might have been motivated by parental abandonment issues, it doesn’t explain why Earth Empire’s rank and file support her, or why the Earth Empire and those who support its ideology remain an ongoing problem, even after Kurivira publicly repudiates her previous actions and ideology.

But growing up learning about how the United Republic was created does. 

Or more specifically, learning how the Fire Nation managed to avoid any real consequences for waging the Hundred Year War while essentially managing to keep its colonies thanks your ruler, who was put back on the throne in part thanks to the infamous General Iroh, kowtowing to the supposedly now good Fire Lord Zuko and the Avatar, who is supposed to be a neutral arbiter, but seems be especially biased towards the Fire Nation.

Especially once you consider his steadyfast friendship with not only Fire Lord Zuko, but also General Iroh, (Fire) Lady Mai, and Lady Ty Lee as well.

(No, I don’t think the average Earth Kingdomer would care that Mai and Ty Lee were essentially forced to join Azula’s small, elite team.)

(Especially since their “partnership” with Azula ended with Ba Sing Se failing, and especially since they eventually found the strength to stand up to her when their loved ones were in danger, suggesting that they could have stood up to Azula at any point, but didn’t because Earth Kingdomer lives weren’t important enough to them.)

Finally, in regards to the third point, if you look at the where the United Republic is located, combined with the fact that the oldest Fire Nation colonies were home to hundreds, if not millions, of people, the value of the oldest colonies probably would be worth hundreds of billions, if not trillions of dollars, in in real life money today.

Especially once one took into account all the untapped resources such as iron mines and the fact that the area served as the Earth Kingdom’s southeastern waterport.

And even though canon such as the TTRPG says that the Fire Nation paid the Earth Kingdom for the loss of the oldest colonies, unless the Fire Nation was impossibly wealthy, there was no way they could pay the equivalent of several hundred billion, if not trillions of dollars, to the Earth Kingdom.

At least not without inciting a massive rebellion considering how many people and groups tried killing Zuko in the early years after the war.

This, even though the Fire Nation essentially got unpunished for the War, save for having to pay reparations, having its colonists in the newer colonies move back to homeland, and having to give up direct political control of the oldest colonies.

Hence, why it is likely that regardless of whatever the Fire Nation paid the Earth Kingdom, it was nowhere near the true value of the oldest colonies, and why the Earth Kingdom is in terrible shape during Korra’s era, at least partially that is.

For imagine how much easier it would have been for the Earth Kingdom to rebuild and modernize if they didn’t lose billions, if not trillions of dollars, worth of land, resources, and taxpayers and failed to get fair market value back?

“Ok, you make some good points about the resolution of the Yu Dao Crisis wasn’t as cracked up as it seemed to be. But how could Aang, Zuko, and Kuei have come up with a different solution to the Yu Dao crisis, and more generally, the issue of the oldest colonies, without committing ethnic cleansing, or allowing the oldest colonies to remain a part of the Fire Nation?”

By giving Yu Dao back to the Earth Kingdom while at the same time granting the Fire Nationals local control.

Or in other words, in a system akin to China’s old tributary system in which the oldest colonies recognized Kuei as their ruler, paid taxes to Ba Sing Se, and provided troops for the Earth Kingdom Army in exchange for political autonomy.

That way you don't get the issues associated with forcing people to leave their homes, even if they are descendants of colonizers, and you don't have the Fire Nation essentially win the Hundred Year War by having the Fire National-dominated oldest colonies declare independence and become a client state of the Fire Nation.

Moreover, the above solution still results in what would have become the United Republic becoming an economic and cultural powerhouse.

For if the territory was back in Earth Kingdom hands, considering their inability to project real force outside of Ba Sing Se, Kuei and Hou Ting would not have cared that much what happened in the former oldest colonies. Thus, the locals in charge of the oldest colonies would have more or less the same autonomy that the United Republic has in canon. 

And this, in combination with the fact that the oldest colonies would still be located in a highly desirable location with untapped resources and is a place where people from the Four Nations are able to work and live together in harmony, means that the oldest colonies would still become a hub of industry.

In addition, the fact that the Earth Kingdom would be able to get tax revenue from the equivalent of the United Republic, along with having a successful model of governance that isn’t a monarchy in its midst, might not only help the Earth Kingdom develop more than it did in canon, but also prevent the downfall of Hou Ting/rise of Kurvira as well. 

Especially since there won't be decades worth of resentment towards the Avatar and/or the Fire Nation due to Kuei "agreeing" to grant Yu Dao and the other oldest colonies independence.

Furthermore, you avoid having Zuko forget about his experiences and spout racist and pro-imperialist sentiments akin to those said by in real life racists and imperialism apologists to justify letting Fire Nationals and their close friends and family determine the future of the oldest colonies while ignoring the plight of the Earth Kingdomer underclass.

“Ok, maybe what you said makes sense, but if the Earth Kingdom is as pissed about the Fire Nation’s colonialism as you make them out to be, why wouldn't they treat the former Fire National colonialists terribly, even if they are citizens of the Earth Kingdom in your scenario?”

“Like, what is keeping the Earth Kingdom from engaging in state sanctioned murder of the Fire Nation colonists and their families, or expropriating all of their property and wealth, even if they sign agreements promising not to do so?”

Good point, but thankfully, unlike the real world, there exists a figure with the power to ensure that the rights of new Earth Kingdom citizens are protected: the Avatar.

Moreover, beyond the fact that Aang can protect the new Earth Kingdom citizens by himself, Zuko can ensure that the former Fire Nationals are protected by taking measures such as conditioning reparations on making sure the rights of the former Fire Nationals aren’t trampled on.

“Ok, but what about the Fire Nationals pissed about losing absolutely everything they thought they had gained after a hundred years of war? The Fire Nation is not a defeated nation; it only lost due to a coup d’etat led by Zuko. So it seems like letting the Earth Kingdom absorb the oldest colonies, even if the rights of the former Fire Nationals are protected, might be enough to lead to an open rebellion, or at least more resistance to Zuko’s rule.”

The only reason why Zuko didn’t face an outright rebellion in canon, even after Azula escaped with her bending intact, was because everyone knows that the moment Zuko is in trouble, Aang and/or the White Lotus will bail him out.

(In my opinion, if destroying Zuko’s regime and slaughtering his Fire Nation allies and supporters wouldn’t result in Aang and/or the White Lotus hunting her down like a wild animal, Azula would have done so.)

(For if not, why would the TTRPG say that she is trying to unlock the power of dangerous spirits to support her goal of retaking the throne when she could have killed Zuko, Mai, and Ty Lee, for example, several times over?)

So, even if they might complain about it, and more people might try assassinating him, it is not going to lead to any more resistance beyond more assassination attempts.

Especially since there is no other viable candidate for the throne that isn’t insane, de-bended and in jail, or doesn’t share Zuko’s views.

“Ok, but isn't your proposed tributary system just as radical, if not more than, as Aang, Zuko, and Kuei coming up with self-determination in order to resolve the Yu Dao crisis in canon? Like, why would Kuei, an absolute monarch, be ok with any of his subjects not being under his direct command?”

No, because the existence of Omashu, with Bumi being recognized as its king and having wide latitude in regards to governing the city, shows that not only is it viable for the Earth Kingdom to adopt an tributary system in regards to the oldest colonies, but also that it has already does so in practice as well.

Moreover, considering there hasn’t been any material released yet that states Kuei decided to exercise more control over Omashu and/or dethrone Bumi, Kuei would be more than fine with having his subjects having wide political and economic freedom so long as they ultimately pledge their loyalty to him.

“The Earth Kingdom adopting a tributary system in regards to the oldest colonies would make sense, if the Earth Kingdom was an actual functioning state. Because the early post-Hundred Year War Earth Kingdom wasn't close to a single cohesive state with a strong central authority, one that could consolidate the wealth present in the oldest colonies.”

“In fact, if the oldest colonies were returned to the Earth Kingdom, it is likely the quality of life present in those regions would have never reached the levels present in the United Republic considering how corrupt the Earth Kingdom was.” 

“So, even if is a little fucked, it was ultimately for the better that the Earth Kingdom did not get the oldest colonies back.”

You do realize this is exactly the same logic that in real life racists and imperialism apologists use to justify western imperialism and settler colonialism? 

Or the logic used by Western nation-states in the past to deny their colonies the right to control their own affairs within their own lands?

Moreover, one of the main points behind the tributary system is that the oldest colonies continue to have the political and economic freedom that led to the wealth present in the United Republic in Korra’s time without it potentially being jeopardized by the corrupt and bumbling Earth Kingdom state meddling in their affairs.

And besides, whose not to say that the oldest colonies staying with the Earth Kingdom, with its steady middle class, would not have led to Earth Kingdom becoming a single cohesive state with a strong central authority, one in which the problem of corruption was slowly but surely getting eliminated?

So to conclude, the resolution of the Yu Dao crisis did turn out well in the long run, but sent a bad message both in-universe and out of it.

For not only was Sozin proven right that forcibly spreading the Fire Nation’s “greatness” was a good thing, but the canon resolution of the Yu Dao crisis also essentially let the Fire Nation and those allied with them off the hook for waging a century-long war of conquest and genocide.

Moreover, the resolution of the Yu Dao crisis is not only likely one of the main factors behind the sorry state of the Earth Kingdom/Federation in Korra’s era, but also behind Kuivria’s rise as well.

However, the Harmony Restoration’s Movement’s solution to the problem of the oldest colonies is equally bad considering it would have led to ethnic cleansing at best, and the Hundred Year War restarting at worst.

Hence, why I think the Yu Dao crisis should have been resolved by having the Earth Kingdom adopt a tributary system of governance towards the oldest colonies.

A system that keeps the benefits gained from giving the oldest colonies self-determination in canon, avoids the problem of the Fire Nation essentially winning the Hundred Year War, avoids mass violence, and gives the Earth Kingdom a real chance at developing.