Adam Donahue

Avatar’s got it all. If you haven’t watched and aren’t convinced to watch yet, this might be worth reading. It has dialogue that’s flexible enough to switch from sensitive to funny to grim to you name it. Its weakest character arcs are still strong and compelling, and it’s most powerful character arc, that of Prince Zuko, is arguably the greatest character arc in television history. It has tight pacing and it typically finds a way to pack in some world building or character development to most of its primarily plot-based moments, whether only episodic or grand scheme. It has many episodes predicated on competitive forces of morality, such as one of the best episodes, “The Southern Raiders”, which not only is a huge episode for character development, but it also poses both an idealist and a realist perspective on what it means to forgive someone who has deeply scarred you emotionally. It will sometimes come to a definitive conclusion on a moral question, but even then, it does so in a delicate and sensitive manner. Its combat and bending are also pretty objectively entertaining, and it actually selves into the different rules and aspects of the bending disciplines, using them to describe different traits in a person or a nation such as ambition, resolution, or compassion. It has romance as well, though I would say it’s one Avatar’s weaker aspects, but it’s still worth watching those subplots. Even the worst episodes in Avatar are still worth the watch and arguably the rewatch, and I would argue they are still between mediocre and good, just not by typical Avatar standards. And it’s true that more of the worse episodes are towards the beginning, but if you’re feeling uncertain about starting or continuing to watch, there is a saying: “Book 1 walked so Book 2 could run so that Book 3 could fly”, essentially meaning that it will only get better from Book 1. Yes, it’s by Nickelodeon, but just because it’s for kids does not mean it’s for kids only, as it actually a very mature and thoughtful show that simply lacks the unnecessary blood and gore that you’ll see in Game of Thrones. In summation, Avatar the Last Airbender is a show with impeccable characters and arcs, flexible dialogue, tight pacing, compelling arguments of philosophy or of society, and a beautifully constructed world that will have you continue watching until 2 in the morning not because of tantalizing cliffhangers, but because the show is so damn good. That’s my two cents, now go watch it.