Anthony Verran

As we all know, it is incredibly hard to create a live action show/movie from animated source material. Many try and fail and few stretch beyond the cracks and turn up to be successful. Key elements play a role in this daunting task. Such as properly casting the correct roles, writing a script that entertains and fits the voices of those roles, and most importantly, shares the same identity of that source material. Avatar: Last Airbender Netflix series seems to teeter on what it truly identies as. The Nickelodeon series is playful in nature but grim and emotional as well. Humorous at times to give the audience a quick laugh but reaches inside the audience and pulls at the heartstrings of those who connect with the characters. This is what makes it such an amazing watch. The Netflix series however, feels lost at times on what exactly it wants to be. The humor feels forced throughout the series. Sokka A.K.A the comic relief, never seems as such in the Netflix series. When it comes to the moments where you want to feel sorry or happy for the characters, it comes off as off-putting or awkward at times, leaving the audience unsure of how to feel unless you've seen the source material prior to watching. Don't get me wrong, theres a lot of positives to take from its very first season. The CG is quite good and the acting staff are well chosen. The world of the Avatar is displayed well and there's a lot of fun to be had when watching. As someone who adores Avatar, I'm torn as how events are displayed to me and the cast is rapid fired on screen. Let me laugh at the humor. Give me time to connect with the characters so I can feel the loss or gain from their time on set. These are key elements that is lost which is rather unfortunate. That being said, it is the best live action Avatar series that we've had thus far. It is rather entertaining to say the least, leaving the show for a good beginning of season two. It is a rock that needs to be polished to obtain the diamond from within.