Avatar: The Last Airbender

Avatar: The Last Airbender
File:Avatar-TLAlogo.jpg Avatar: The Last Airbender logo
Created by	Michael Dante DiMartino Bryan Konietzko
Starring	Zach Tyler Eisen Mae Whitman Jack DeSena Jessie Flower Dante Basco Mako
Country of origin	United States
No. of episodes	31 aired of 60 in production
Production
Running time	23 minutes approx.
Original release
Network	Nickelodeon
Release	February 21, 2005 – Present

Avatar: The Last Airbender (known as Avatar: The Legend of Aang in the UK and India) is an American animated television series airing on Nickelodeon since February 21, 2005; recently it has also become available on iTunes. Produced at Nickelodeon Animation Studios in Burbank, California, and animated in South Korea (as with most modern animated series), it was co-created and executive produced by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko. In the United States, new episodes air Friday nights at 8 p.m. Eastern Standard Time in Nickelodeon's Friday-night block of programming. Typically, new seasons of Avatar start in spring, then Avatar takes a new episodes break in the summer, new episodes return in the fall and the season ends in early winter.

Set in a fantastic, Asian-influenced world of martial arts and elemental magic, Avatar: The Last Airbender follows the adventures of Aang, the successor to a long line of Avatars, and his friends Katara, Sokka and later Toph, and their two animal companions Appa and Momo in their quest to save the world from the merciless Fire Nation, while avoiding capture from pursuers including Prince Zuko and other hunters from the Fire Nation.

A consistently high ratings performer in the Nicktoons lineup, even outside of its intended 6-to-11-year-old demographic, Avatar: The Last Airbender is popular with both audiences and critics. The series' success prompted Nickelodeon to order a second twenty-episode season, which began airing on March 17, 2006^[1], and a third season has been announced to begin airing in 2007^[2]. Notable merchandise based on the series includes DVDs of episodes that are progressively being released and a video game based on the series that is currently under development.

Overview

Premise

File:Avatar-TLAmap.jpg

A map of the four nations

Avatar: The Last Airbender is set in a fantasy world on a planet that is home to humans, fantastic animals, and supernatural spirits. Human civilization is divided into four pre-industrialized nations: the Water Tribes, the Earth Kingdom, the Fire Nation, and the Air Nomads. Within each nation, there is an order of men and women called "Benders" who have an inborn ability of learning to manipulate their native element. Bending is a powerful artform, combining martial arts and elemental mystics. The bending arts are waterbending, earthbending, firebending, and airbending.

In each generation, one Bender is capable of bending all four elements; this is the Avatar, the Spirit of the Planet manifested in the form of man or woman. When an Avatar dies, the Avatar Spirit reincarnates into an unborn baby of a mother native to the next nation in the Avatar Cycle. Starting with the mastery of his native element, the Avatar learns to bend all four elements in the order of the cycle, which parallels the seasons: winter for water, spring for earth, summer for fire, and fall for air. It is shown in the series that learning to bend the element opposite the native element is the most difficult, attributing mostly to opposing fighting styles and opposing doctrines of thought.

The Avatar also has a special weapon that resides within him or her. This weapon or spirit is called The Avatar State and is an extremely powerful power that the Avatar has. It channels the powers of the previous 'lives' of the Avatar into one massive energy that is shot at all enemies around him or her. Although great power comes from this weapon the Avatar becomes most vulnerable. If the Avatar is killed in this state the Avatar cycle will be broken and the Avatar will be no more. This state can only be triggered when the Avatar is in a very emotional state or in great danger. It can also be released when someone the Avatar loves, such as a friend, family member or love, is in trouble.

Throughout the ages, countless incarnations of the Avatar have served to keep the four nations in balance and harmony. The Avatar also serves as the bridge between the physical world and the Spirit World, home of the world's disembodied spirits.

Plot synopsis

A century prior to the series' opening, Aang, a twelve-year-old Airbender of the Air Nomads' Southern Air Temple, learned from his monk instructors that he was the Avatar. Usually, the Avatar is told of his/her true identity only after turning sixteen; however, the Air Nomads feared that a war between the four nations was on the horizon, and that the Avatar would soon be needed to help maintain balance. Shortly thereafter, it was decided that Aang would be separated from his guardian, Monk Gyatso, and sent to the Eastern Air Temple to finish his training.

Confused, frightened and overwhelmed by all that was happening, Aang fled from his home on his Flying Bison Appa. While over the ocean, a sudden storm caused Appa to plunge deep into the sea. Unknowingly entering the Avatar State, Aang used airbending to put Appa and himself in an air bubble. The air bubble quickly froze into an ice sphere, putting them in a state of suspended animation.

When the series opens one hundred years later, the Fire Nation is on the brink of victory in its imperialist war. The Water Tribes are in crisis—the Southern Water Tribe's warriors have gone off to war, leaving their home defenseless, and the Northern Water Tribe, though largely intact, is continually on the defensive. The vast Earth Kingdom is now the only true barrier to the Fire Nation's domination, but as the Fire Nation continues to encroach on its borders and conquer its territories, hopes for victory grow bleaker with each passing year.

In the present day, two teenage siblings from the Southern Water Tribe — Katara, a Waterbender, and her brother Sokka — discover and free Aang from his iceberg. Aang soon finds out that in his absence, the war that the monks feared had started. The very year he vanished, the ruthless Fire Lord Sozin took advantage of both the Avatar's absence and the firebending-enhancing powers of a powerful burning comet to launch a war on the three other nations. To Aang's shock and disbelief, the Fire Nation's opening gambit had been a genocidal assault on the Air Nomads. The Air Temples were stormed and the Airbenders slaughtered in an effort to break the Avatar Cycle, leaving him as the last known Airbender in existence.

Aang then realizes, as the Avatar, it is his duty to restore harmony and peace among the four nations. Along with his newly discovered friends Katara and Sokka, his Flying Bison Appa and his Winged Lemur Momo, and later the blind Earthbender Toph, Aang travels the world to master all four elements, while evading capture by Fire Nation's banished Prince Zuko and Princess Azula.

Although it takes years of discipline and training to master any one element, Aang must master them all and defeat Fire Lord Ozai by summer's end, when the return of Sozin's Comet will grant the Firebenders the power to finish the war. If these events come to pass, not even the Avatar will be able to restore balance to the world.

Episodes

Main article: List of Avatar: The Last Airbender episodes

Characters

Main characters

File:Avatar-book 1 Chapters 1 And 2 0003.jpg

Aang (Zach Tyler Eisen (Mitchel Musso in the pilot) - The fun-loving titular character of the series and the current incarnation of the Avatar, the spirit of the planet manifested in human form. As the Avatar, Aang must master all four elements to bring peace to the world. This burden was dropped on his shoulders early in life and eventually led to his being frozen in suspended animation for one hundred years until awakened by Katara and Sokka.

Aang is friendly and optimistic. Though he tends to be blind of others' feelings sometimes, he always learns his lesson in the end.

File:Katara.jpg

Katara (Mae Whitman) - A Waterbender of the Southern Water Tribe who, along with her brother Sokka, discovered Aang. She and Sokka accompany him on his quest to defeat the Fire Nation and bring peace to the war-torn nations. She is a very gifted Waterbender who, by season two, achieves her dream by becoming a master Waterbender. Her next task is then to train Aang to become a waterbending master also.

Katara is mature, loving, and responsible. But can be overbearing and always thinks her way is the right way. After the passing of their mother at the hands of the Fire Nation, Katara took on a motherly role over her older brother Sokka, and later, Aang.

File:Sokka.jpg

Sokka (Jack DeSena) - A warrior of the Southern Water Tribe who, with his sister Katara, accompanies Aang on his quest to defeat the Fire Nation. Unlike his three companions, Sokka cannot bend. He constantly struggles to deal with his lack of mystical power in a world ruled by benders. However, the show frequently grants him opportunities to demonstrate his true gift -- invention.

Sokka describes himself as "meat-loving" and "sarcastic." He takes great pride in his emotional and physical strength, though it is often overshadowed by others' ability to bend. He is extremely clever, relying on science where mystical and martial arts elude him, though his silly and immature manner often causes others to understimate his intelligence. At the start of the series, he is a male chauvinist, but after witnessing the strength of women like Suki, Princess Yue, and perhaps his own sister, his prejudice has slowly waned.

File:Tophnick.jpg

Toph (Jessie Flower) - A twelve-year-old blind Earthbender who flees her home to join Aang on his quest in season two. Her parents were incredibly overprotective, leading her to rebel and fight in underground tournaments. Her popularity as "The Blind Bandit" attracts a hopeful Aang, then looking for an Earthbender to train him. Though blind, Toph possess a unique ability to sense vibrations in the ground, essentially allowing her to see.

Toph has lived practically alone for all of her life, which made her somewhat selfish, arrogant, and a loner who wasn't afraid to speak her mind and be bluntly truthful. However, her travels with Aang, Katara, and Sokka have gradually taught her the meaning of teamwork and friendship.

File:Zukoseasontwo.JPG

Prince Zuko (Dante Basco) - The exiled prince of the Fire Nation bent on capturing the Avatar in his quest to restore his honor and to redeem himself in the eyes of his father, Fire Lord Ozai. After he is branded a traitor at the outset of season two, he begins to change from a spoiled prince to an outcast who is beginning to pity and bond with the same people his nation terrorized. He is an incredible warrior, especially in his guise as the Blue Spirit, which is reminiscent of Japanese ninja.

Zuko is hard, militant, and a bit obsessive-compulsive concerning the capture of Aang. He puts up a cold facade, but he has been revealed to be a caring individual--a trait which is usually revealed in the presence of his Uncle Iroh, who is truly more a father to him than Ozai. During his travels, Zuko has begun to put more people before himself in survival situations and his kinder side is beginning to show more.

File:Irohseason2.jpg

Uncle Iroh (Mako) - A retired Fire Nation general and Prince Zuko's uncle who is also branded a traitor in season two. Iroh is the older brother of Fire Lord Ozai, and was the original heir to the throne of the Fire Nation. Iroh is a powerful Firebender who accompanies his nephew in his quest to capture the Avatar. He looks on Zuko as more of a son than a nephew, especially after the loss of his own son during a raid on an Earth Kingdom city many years before the current storyline is set. He is as pained by his nephew's past as Zuko is himself, hating that the boy must suffer as he does.

Iroh is a cheerful and kind old man whose hobbies include drinking tea, playing Pai Sho, and singing. However, beneath this cheery appearance is a cunning and resourceful master of firebending who can rival the Fire Nation's best.

File:Azula.jpg

Princess Azula (Grey DeLisle) - The princess of the Fire Nation, Zuko's younger sister, Iroh's niece, and Fire Lord Ozai's favorite child. Azula has been especially cruel (possibly even sociopathic) all of her life, with her mind set on war, manipulation, power, and torturing others, including her "friends" and especially her brother. After the end of season one, Ozai sent Azula on a mission to arrest Zuko and Iroh and to capture the Avatar.

Azula is an extremely gifted and dangerous Firebender capable of using hotter blue flames and even lightning -- abilities possessed only by a select few firebenders. She has been referred to as a "firebending prodigy". Azula is uncaring and possibly psychotic, willing to put anyone's life in danger to get what she wants, almost never getting her own hands dirty in the process.

Major secondary characters

Main article: List of Avatar: The Last Airbender major secondary characters

• Appa (Dee Bradley Baker) - A 100-year-old bison who is Aang's animal guide; Appa is the main transportation of Aang and his friends as well as a decent fighter when the group is in danger. Appa hates being underground due to his large size and inability to fly.
• Mai (Cricket Leigh) - An impassive, bored, young woman and one of Princess Azula's childhood friends, little is known about Mai except that she appeared timid and shy as a girl, and also had a crush on Prince Zuko. She also appears cold (or, at least, shrewdly calculating) as she once called off a hostage trade for her younger brother in media res at Azula's "suggestion". Mai specializes in throwing weapons which she conceals on her person, coming to resemble a kunoichi.
• Momo (Dee Bradley Baker) - A winged-lemur who used to live in the Southern Air Temple, Momo is the only of his kind known to survive the Fire Nation's attack on the Air Nomads.
• Fire Lord Ozai (Mark Hamill) - Lord of the entire Fire Nation. Continuing the war that his grandfather Sozin started, Ozai is awaiting the arrival of Sozin's Comet so he and his Nation can harness its power once again and put an end to the war.
• Avatar Roku (James Garrett) - The Avatar before Aang and a Firebender. Throughout the series, Avatar Roku appears as a spirit to guide Aang through his journey so he can rightfully fulfill his duty as the Avatar. His benevolence helps show that not all firebenders are evil.
• Ty Lee (Olivia Hack) - A cheerful, optimistic former circus performer. Another childhood friend of Princess Azula's but, unlike Mai, openly shows a certain amount of fear towards Azula, who bullied Ty Lee into joining her search for the Avatar. Ty Lee principally uses her acrobatic skills in combat, and typically uses pressure points to disable her opponents.
• Admiral Zhao (Jason Isaacs) - A hot-tempered Fire Nation admiral also in pursuit of the Avatar and Zuko's principal rival throughout Book One. Zhao presumably died in the final chapter of Book One.

Minor secondary characters

Main article: List of Avatar: The Last Airbender minor secondary characters

Creatures and animals

Main article: List of Avatar: The Last Airbender creatures

Guest stars

Main article: List of guest voices on Avatar: The Last Airbender

Influences

Cultural references

Avatar is notable for its extensive borrowings from Asian mythology and art in order to create a fully realized fictional universe. Apart from its anime-inspired character designs, Avatar also draws on a motley mix of Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Tibetan, Indian, and even Inuit language, philosophy, religion and culture to flesh out the show's settings and peoples. Explicitly stated influences include Chinese art and history, anime, Hinduism, Taoism, Buddhism[3] and Yoga.[4] The show staff even employs a cultural consultant, Edwin Zane, to review scripts.

Avatar

The term "Avatar" comes from the Sanskrit word Avatāra which means "descent." In Hindu mythology, gods, especially Vishnu, often manifest themselves into Avatars to restore balance on earth after a time period of great evil. This agrees with the calligraphy written above the word "Avatar" in the show's opening, which means "the divine medium who has descended upon the mortal world."[5]

Reincarnation

In the show, when Aang was a child, he unknowingly revealed that he was the Avatar when he chose four toys out of thousands. These four toys were the exact ones that past Avatars had chosen for generations when they were children, revealing Aang to be the reincarnation of the Avatar. This same test is used by Tibetan Buddhist monks when a reincarnated Dalai Lama is expected. Visions of the monks reveal who the Dalai Lama is, and this test finalizes that he is, indeed, the reincarnation.

The "leaders" of each nation know which children to test by looking for signs of consistency with the previous Avatar. These consistencies include being born within a week of the death of the last Avatar.

Elements

Avatar draws on four of the five classical Indian elements of Hindu and Buddhist traditions for the four bending arts: Fire (agni or tejas), Water (ap or jala), Earth (prithvi or bhumi), and Wind or Air (vayu or pavan). The fifth, aether (akasha or akash) is symbolized by Aang as an intermediary of the Spirit World. Some names in the series, such as "Agni Kai" and King Bumi the Earthbender, borrow directly from these elements.

Calligraphy

File:Avatar-TLAcalligraphy.jpg

A particular type of calligraphy is used for almost all of the text in the show. With the obvious exceptions of the English text on the masthead, titlecards and credits, all writing used is Classical Chinese calligraphy, a very old form of written Chinese once used in formal communication and literature. For each instance of calligraphy, an appropriate style is used, ranging from the archaic to the clerical. [6] The show employs calligrapher Siu-Leung Lee, PhD as a consultant and translator.

Fighting styles

One final Asiatic influence is found in the show's action choreography. The fighting choreography draws from martial arts films, and the fighting styles and weaponry are based upon Chinese martial arts, with each bending art corresponding to a certain real-world style or styles. The creators use Tai Chi for waterbending, Hung Gar for earthbending (for the most part -- although the Earthbender Toph employs Southern Praying Mantis Kung Fu), Northern Shaolin for firebending, and Ba Gua for airbending [7]. The show employs Sifu Kisu of the Harmonious Fist Chinese Athletic Association as a martial arts consultant [8].

Each different fighting style is unique in its own way. A good way to compare the four styles is that

• Airbenders evade the attack. (Negative Jing)
• Waterbenders redirect the attack. (A Degree Between Negative and Neutral Jing)
• Earthbenders intercept the attack. (Neutral Jing)
• Firebenders preempt the attack with their own. (Positive Jing)

This, however, is only a generalization, and circumstances may cause this pattern to vary. Also, it appears that the ability to bend comes from both genetics and spirituality. This is hinted in the series when twin brothers in the episode "The Fortuneteller" announced that only one of them is an Earthbender while the other is not. This can also be seen with Sokka who ridicules all forms of bending and magic; who is the brother to Katara, a Waterbender, but he himself is not.

Nominations and awards

Avatar won two Pulcinella Awards in 2005 for "Best Action/Adventure Series" and "Best Series of the Year." It recently received 2006 Annie Award nominations for "Best Animated Television Production," and "Writing in an Animated Television Production," (Aaron Ehasz, John O'Bryan - The Fortuneteller) and won for "Storyboarding in an Animated Television Production." (Lauren MacMullan - The Deserter)

Media information

See main article Avatar: The Last Airbender media information for the following:

• Broadcast history (domestic and international)
• DVD release information
• Promotional and merchandising information
• Title sequence transcripts

Trivia

• In the opening sequence of the show, there are four Benders silhouetted, each one bending his or her natural element. The Avatar that uses the four elements is Avatar Roku, the Waterbender is Master Pakku, the Earthbender resembles The Boulder, except that his upper body does not match in size, the Firebender is Azula, and the Airbender has yet to be identified.
• The series was originally supposed to air during November 2004.
• The four Chinese characters above the title translate to, "The Divine Medium who had descended upon the Mortal World."

See also

• Avatar: The Last Airbender (video game)
• Avatar

Elemental nations Water Tribe Earth Kingdom Fire Nation Air Nomads

Bending arts Waterbending Earthbending Firebending Airbending

References

• Avatar: The Last Airbender (TV-Series). United States. 2005. {{cite AV media}}: Unknown parameter |crew= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |distributor= ignored (|publisher= suggested) (help)
• Upperdeck Entertaiment's press release, (contains season 2 premiere date)
• Upper Deck Entertainment's Avatar: The Last Airbender Trading Card Game website
• Nickelodeon's Official Avatar: The Last Airbender Flash Site
• Nickelodeon Asia's interview with the creators
• "Kung Fu Fightin' Anime Stars, Born in the U.S.A." (New York Times)
• Distant Horizon: Calligraphy Writings in Avatar
• The Comic Con teaser reel
• Volume 3 release date
• Paramount's King's Island press release
• LEGO press release
• Announcements of Upper Deck and THQ games
• Pictures of Mattel's toy line
• Volume 4 release date

External links

Official sites

• Official site
• Official site (Australia)
• Official site (UK)
• Official site (Latin America)
• Official site (Italy)
• Official site (Germany)
• YTV Avatar: The Last Airbender site

Related sites

• The Track Team (Series Composers and Sound Design)
• Harmonious Fist Chinese Athletic Assoc. (Martial Arts Consultant)
• Siu Leung Lee's Calligraphy (Calligraphy Consultant)
• Titmouse Inc. (Main Title Animation)
• Salami Studios (Post Production Sound)
• Encore Video (Post Production Services)
• DR Movie (Animation)
• Upper Deck Entertainment's Avatar: The Last Airbender Trading Card Game website
• Avatar: The Last Airbender Action Figures and Toys

Unofficial sites

• Distant Horizon (Fansite, information source)
• Firebender.com (Screencap source)
• AvatarSpirit.Net (Transcript source/Fansite)