Avatar has lost it's damn mind

 Not the blue one

So of all the children's cartoons that we have grown up with, most get put to bed upon reaching maturity for whatever reason- typically because that level of show, writing, production just doesn't appeal to older ages. Which is fine, they're not meant to. They are designed to keep younger minds entertained and therefore it is totally fine for a show as formulaic and uninspired as Miraculous Ladybug to persist for as long as it did. (They recycled at least a minute of animation for every episode!) But what about the shows that do stick with us? The shows that appeal to younger and older generations? That seem to grow as we do, and hit sometimes even stronger upon hindsight? Well, then we have the rare gems like the brilliant 'Avatar' franchise- and the wierdoes trying to capitalise off it with strange and twisted ideas about what best makes that original tick.

'Avatar: The Legend of Aang' was an anime-styled Nickelodeon cartoon following the journey of a fated Bender of all elements trying to restore balance to a world turned on it's head ever since the tyrannical Fire Nation took over. He is joined on his quest by Sokka, wise cracking warrior-to-be from the Water Tribe, and Katara, a Water tribe bender with staunch moral compunctions. This trio are not the most complicated and twisting characters ever put to screen, but considering how nobody seems capable of adapting them faithfully to any medium- they might as well be! Flawed kids thrust into a world they're not ready for who end up rising to the occasion- what does that sound like to you? Does that sound like a Game of Thrones successor? No? Well that can't be right- because the showrunner for the new live action adaptation seems to think that a perfect comparison!

In a recent interview the showrunner claimed that this show needs to cater to fans of Game of Thrones in it's grounded grittiness, and walking the tightrope of nailing that feeling is their job... Which is... horrendously off base on both what Avatar is and what Game of Thrones was! Avatar is a children's show first and foremost- it's world is rich but not complex or shackled by grounded and realistic political stakes. In many ways, the very premise of the show breaks down its world to the most basic identifiers. You have the tyrannical fire nation who represent evil and everyone else who represent good. Game of Thrones, on the otherhand, was all about telling the story of what happens after the great big obvious evil is slain and the shades of human who inhabit that space between the 'ages of heroes'. Martin focused exclusively on the philosophies of power and what it means in various angles of life, and how it chips away at humanity and basic morality. There's much to it than just that- but even in that most surface level observation- Avatar could not be further away as a franchise.

But hey, let's 'benefit of the doubt' this. Let's assume what he meant to say is he simply wants this show to become so popular that it rivals the viewing numbers of one of the biggest shows of all time. Maybe he's a dreamer and I'm choosing to interpret this in the worst way possible. Sure. But then how do you explain the comments made about Sokka? You know- the comments wherein cast members think the new show has toned down elements that could be considered 'iffy' such as Sokka's sexism. Which on the surface sounds rather affronting. Sokka's Sexism? Wasn't this a children's show? What they mean is, the conceited way in which Sokka saw his role of physical superiority in the early series, which is beaten out of him throughout the first series as every woman he meets humbles him. Because you see- that is what is called 'character development'. But it seems this series... just doesn't have characters? Is that what I'm supposed to take from these comments?

But hey- I'm sure the show will have plenty of time to conjure whole new character arcs for it's cast to go on now that- oh wait- no they've stripped the heart of main character too... The Showrunner has gone on record with IGN to brag about how they made it's narrative "A little clearer". (Right, because the animated show for children was so complex!) Now instead of Aang going on adventures and side-activities fleshing out the world and his own childish-nature, the very impetus for him running away from his duties as an Air Temple Monk and getting trapped under water for 100 years in the first place, he is instead fed a "vision" of what is happening at the Water tribe and B-lines there to stop it. He's more serious and less human this time around. That's what we all wanted right? Right?

Now of course I know that a live action show is going to have to cut some corners for the mere fact that it's super expensive to make these episodes, so they can't have side-activities drawing attention away from the core narrative. No 'Tales from Ba Sing Se', no cabbage guy I guess- what about Jin, the girl who Zuko gets close with in Book 2? She probably doesn't factor in enough to the core plot to get a scene, despite how well remembered she is as a representation of the path Zuko could have gone if he dedicated himself to running away completely. Is there space for nuance anymore in a story where we wring out the characters to all but their core most ideals? Aang is the hero, therefore that is all his character is. He's no longer also a child who wants to experience the freedom of not having the weight of the world on his shoulders- he's just a block of wood.

I'm making assumptions, sure- but you have to understand that there's a beating heart to the way that characters are supposed to be written which sounds all but absent in the direction that these show runners are taking it. And never are these choices being made with the right intentions- to make a better story. You might conflate 'clearer' with 'better', but when I read that what I interpret is 'simpler for consumption by the growing caste of media illiterate viewers'. This doesn't even sound like a show interested in capturing the spirit of the beloved original, but rather in making a fantasy drama to compete with other similar fantasy dramas. And when your goals are as vapid as that- well then, comparing yourself to Game of Thrones suddenly makes some sense, doesn't it?

Remember that the show runners of the original Avatar series were actually attached to this project at one point and they choose to drop out over 'creative differences'. Who's willing to bet that we're seeing the face of these differences laid out before us with these comments that deftly miss the point of this franchise that so many of us love? The more I hear about it, the less I'm getting the sense that this is going to be the next One Piece- when everything is sounding more like Season 1 of Halo. A show so painfully off it's course that the showrunner was replaced and they're having to spend all their marketing practically begging people to give them another chance because this time they've got it for sure! Avatar doesn't have enough season-worthy material to waste it's first making fundamental tonal mistakes... Oh god, just imagine what they've done to tone down Azula! One of the only character's on TV to threaten to outright kill someone in her first dedicated scene! Man... I'm not looking forward to the next few weeks...