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Avatar: The Last Airbender - The World's Best Piece of Fantasy

In light of the new live action, Avatar: The Last Airbender coming out in February of 2024, I have decided to review my favorite thoughts and moments from the original animated series.

This is your one and only spoiler warning for the show! All good things, of course! Read and enjoy a fangirl, get excited for her favorite childhood cartoon getting a revival.

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Avatar: The Last Airbender aired in 2005. Almost two decades have passed since then, and this small Nickelodeon kids cartoon has stuck with its audience ever since.

At the time of its airing, ATLA(Avatar: The Last Airbender) has made its mark in pop culture. Not only that, it has forged a new standard for children's media and the possibilities of animation as a whole. The children's cartoon is widely admired and adhered to. It is revered and even given the title as one of, if not, the best piece of fantasy to ever hit the screen. This title isn't too far-fetched either given the timelessness of such a wonderful piece of work.

What makes ATLA stand out from most series is the way such a fantastical world was built from the ground up with such love and magic. The story put before us was truly a vision of an artist and a company that had a message to send and sent it with immaculate execution.

Although one thing truly does make this show so much more beloved than any others. That is, an entire generation grew up on this show. My generation grew up on it. I was three years old when it aired for the first time, and I was six years old watching the series finale with my older sister. I remember it so well. I remember years passing, and my sister and I were still watching those three seasons over and over again, pretending to be little water benders in the pool or earth benders in the living room.

It's hard to find words on how much this little kids cartoon means to me. How it shaped my beliefs and views on the world. It taught me to forever find balance in my life and seek balance and justice in a world out of balance and filled with injustices. Ultimately, that was the theme of the show, and it was displayed beautifully with a heroic tale and the most painful heartbreak. Growing up in such hard times, where parents dealt with a recession, politics divided families, and ultimately, a pandemic swept the world. This show brought a sense of peace in the darkest of times. I watched it as a child. Then I watched it as a preteen struggling with depression for the first time. Finally, I shared the show with my little sister as the pandemic started, and we binged it while we were stuck in the house.

Words can not express the hope it brought.

ATLA has one other quality that sets in apart in today's world. That is the story and redemption of Zuko. Now that I'm older, his story hits that much harder, and I believe it is him that expanded this show from children's TV to something adults can appreciate as well. His struggle with redemption and identity is a theme we can all relate to. He is the most human character I have ever seen.

Another element that expanded its viewership to adults is so simple but so important. The character development of all the main characters. This ties into the animation, the martial arts, and the art of bending in general! There is such a drastic change in the style and how the characters are shown on screen. In the last season, it becomes so sofisticated that this show breaks its title as children's television and roams into the genre of regular TV to be consumed by any and all audiences.

Finally, there is the finale. It is THE BEST finale of all time. No show has ever lived up to such a beautiful edge of your seat, perfect way to end this fantastical story ever. It rounded out the ending, it went full circle, and everyone's character arch was complete. Obviously, every show has its flaws, but ATLA, in comparison, is as perfect as it gets.

Of course, this is the opinion of one lowly writer speaking out into an abyss where no one will hear, but my appreciation for this creation is all the same. I love this show so much and can not wait for the live action to air. Good or bad, I hope the original gets even more love because of it.