part 2

onto my main points:

gonna divide this in points to keep it organized, but first, while writting this i am trying to keep in mind a few things:

- a 1:1 faithful adaptation is impossible and i do not expect it

- an exact adaptation is completely pointless and unncessary for me (like the HTTYD movie, its cool to see, and its also a waste) so i WANT changes to be introduced

- the new showrunners are building off of what the previous one did so there may be things they wanted to do differently but couldnt (and we cant really know)

- the 7-8 1h episode format is EXTREMELY detrimental for atla specifically, theres very very limited time to condense a lot of things (its a show with a lot of filler episodes that still add to the characters and are important), so stuff has to be cut out, very unfortunately. im blaming netflix and modern streaming for this, not the natla writers

1. Katara

i was afraid, i was terrified for her, she is my favorite character and i did NOT want to see her disastrously flattened out like in season 1, so i am pretty thankful for what we got instead!

1. 1. The Painted Lady

i miss the painted lady in the fire nation, i think it was best fitting for the character that it is and it unfortunately looses some weight when taken out of that context, but the compromise to add her in ba sing se was well done imo. i *specially* liked that its intriduced as a core part of katara, we see the seed and the idea being planted in her, we see her through multiple episodes and not a one off thing. and with the addition of the fire nation refugees (this time we KNOW them and we know theyre not only civillians, but war deserters too, this adds layers) the message remains: katara has a strong sense of justice and empathy, no matter who is it for, and drive to take action. she does not turn her back to those that need her.

1. 2. Bloodbending Foreshadowing

when katara tries healing poison out of the kid's blood i think it's safe to assume that this is a reference to her learning bloodbending in the future, and what's important here is that this is shown in a positive light (healing someone). it would be very refreshing if they paint such an important part of her character as something that is not inherently evil (genuinely, that portrayal in the og show is reductive and offensive to both hama and katara).

1. 3. Katara's Personality

this is something that is bleeding out from her portrayal in season 1 (removing sokka's sexist behavior and her parentification, therefore removing a big and relevant source of her anger), which i hated and still do, it took away a point of connection for the audience and one of her many layers. but i understand that this is something that cannot exactly be re-introduced now, so we need to accept it. i do, however, really like how they instead chose to expand on other areas of her character! we have a lot more room to see a katara that is diplomatic and smart, that is witty and funny and likes making jokes, that is deeply empathetic and knows how to connect with people, that has a strong bond with her brother and, most importantly: *still* is strong (physically and metaphorically, her fight scenes were so cool), that wants to fight for what is right, doesnt back down when faced with adversities and wants to help everyone. this season we had so much focus on her and her importance to the narrative, and i absolutely cannot complain about that.

1. 4. Katara and Suki's Friendship

beautiful adition, literally no notes on it, wish we could have gotten even more of them connecting with each other and becoming close friends (cause in the end it did fall short). they clearly vibe a lot together and the detail of suki suggesting katara join the kyoshi warriors was PERFECT

2. Aang

to start off: i do NOT like aang's character in the original show and anything else that came after it. better said: i deeply dislike the way the narrative handles such a potentially interesting character (lot to say about this that i already have complained about). HOWEVER, i do really like natla aang! i find that they managed to keep the naive, trusting, funny boy persona while showcasing that he has worries and concerns and way too much weight put on him, that he needs to work on his emotions and is immature at times. he makes mistakes and treats his friends unfairly but realises it and tries to make up for it. he has moments of introspection and clearly wants to be better. natla aang has a very obvious crush on katara and wants to confess, but its clear how much he values the friendship and how nervous he is about it (in the og show his crush is presented almost immediately and leaves no space to appreciate the friendship because it always feels like his romantic feelings come before his platonic ones, which creates a dynamic that i dont like). i think the unrequited/unknown crush aspect is very cute! its relatable and understandable. as a personal choice i think it would inmensely benefit the character development if it remains unreciprocated, or at least as a open ended question in the show finale (but we will see how season 3 keeps handling it)

3. Iroh

something that has always received a lot of critique and complain from the original show is how iroh's redemption arc (after being a war general) happens entirely off screen and before the show even begins, so it always felt a bit jarring to hear from his past and then see the person he became but have no insight on his own process, like we are simply supposed to accept that he redeemed himself after being, objectively, a horrible person. i think the adition of him visibly experiencing all the pain and the remorse for what he has done was one of the best ones in the adaptation. iroh is no longer just happily spending a vacation in ba sing se, he is haunted by his actions and wants to do better even if he knows he cant compensate the deaths he has taken part in.

4. Zutara (romantic and platonic)

super biased take on my part, obviously, but the highlight of the show to me. here they managed to showcase a bit more of their (future) relationship, which is a beautiful friendship built on a lot of emotions (difficult ones!!) and understanding of the other persona and what they have suffered. they put emphasis on their thematic paralells (mainly painted lady vs. blue spirit and their mothers being taken away) and set the bases for a heartbreaking reconciliation, because now its not simply that zuko betrayed katara in the catacombs after they both opened up, the blue spirit *also* has betrayed the painted lady, the one he is supposed to protect and watch for, as showcased in the play he sees as a child. this can lead to very interesting moments in season 3 cause they were closer before the betrayal and theres more feelings at stake.

4. 1. The Crystal Catacombs

if i may fangirl for a moment... MY PLATE IS FULL, MY HEART IS BUSTING, TEARS ARE FLOWING. the original scene is already perfect but this??? the betrayal after teaming up together and defending each other? the hurt of knowing that HE knew who he was and kept it shut? the shame of not wanting to reveal his identity because he knew it would hurt and anger her? all the line additions enhanced the scene and made it so much more emotional, "perhaps it was meant for you" "i dont deserve it" "you will" (the foreshadowing of the future culmination of his arc uuuuu) i cant i cant. i like what i like and i am pleased. them being separated while looking so scared and zuko running for her? mmmmmmm i am fed.

What Fell Flat To Me

Final Words

rushed, so incredibly painfully rushed, everything happened way too quickly. Ill say it again, 7 episodes of roughly one hour is NOT enough, i hated that stuff needed to be cut out and remixed to fit the little time we had. the library not being in the dessert, specially, bothered me. it undermines tophs character because it showed that she had weak points and she could hardly nagivate an enviroment like that, in the adaptation it could have been perfect to explore her feelings of insecurity, fear and frustration a bit more, along with showing her putting the work to strengthen herself up.

even though katara's character seems to still have that anger and frustration bubbling underneath the surface, its not *as* obvious or overt as in the og show (again, this carries o from natla s1) which i miss.

the acting has improved a lot but the dialogues still feel a bit too fake and robotic, perhaps this is because they want to keep the essence of the animation but it doesnt always translate to live action (i was not EXTREMELY bothered by this tho, it was more an occassional thing to me).