Natalie Nguyen

It doesn’t deserve the hate it’s getting. The cartoon series had 20 episodes in season 1. The live action had 8. There’s no getting around having to make changes in the plot and character development in order for the story to make sense. I still feel that it captures the essence of the original story. It is more dark than the cartoon, but if you really think about it, the premise of the cartoon is pretty dark and involves literal genocide. I think the public reception is stained by the original creators walking away from the project, which I understand. But they did still have a hand in some hiring and casting and if you see the cast in interviews, there is a genuine chemistry among them, as well as a passion for the source material. Unfortunately, all of us on the outside will never know what put off Konietzko and DiMartino. But even in their own exit statements, they did say it still had the potential to be good, and it was. I have no doubt that there were some offputting execs who created a stifling or even hostile creative environment, but within that, there were some creatives steering the show in the right direction. Hopefully all involved will hear the fan feedback, good and bad, and the show only continues to get better for seasons 2 and 3. Let’s be real - even the beloved cartoon started off a little clunky and directionless. I do share the gripe that Aang should’ve been learning waterbending much earlier. He’s not a lackadaisical unmotivated guy and Katara was a more talented self-taught bender in the series than she was in the cartoon. That element I liked. Her conflict in the North Pole wasn’t “Why can’t I learn real bending?” but “Why don’t you respect me for the talented bender I am?” Azula also had to put up more of a fight for respect as a powerful female bender, which I loved. It made her character less one-note and the girl power element more satisfying. My husband and I disagreed on this point. He liked the reliably OP evil villainess who never had to struggle. Curious to see where everyone else stands on that.