The Legend of Korra – And the Winner is…

This week’s episode of Korra was a lot of fun. Amon and the Equalists staged an anti-bending demonstration amid the finals of the tournament. There were plenty of great action pieces spread throughout the episode, and plenty of characters had moments to shine. And though Korra had the most amount of screen time, she was upstaged by two characters that had far less; Pabu the fire ferret with his cute acrobats and people saving skills, and the tournament’s announcer giving a play-by-play of the Equalist member who attacked him.

The episode opens with team Fire Ferrets training for the finals. They have pictures of the White Falls Wolfbats captain Tahno as target practices (he’s the jerk from the last episode), and really psyching themselves up for the match. However, the joyous mood gets broken up by an announcement from Amon via the radio. As his voice crackles through the airways, you can still see the look of dread on Korra’s face as she hears him. It’s good to see that even though she has clearly gotten better at fighting, there is still a lot of hesitation in her abilities when it comes to Amon. She went through a traumatic event, and it will take time for her to feel up to par with the Equalist leader. On the radio, Amon states that the finals of the tournament should be canceled by the city council or he will cause trouble. Korra, sensing trouble from Tenzin and the council, goes charging in and demands they take no action. After some persuasion from the Fire Ferrets and Lin(!), Tarrlok votes in favor of keeping the tournament open with a majority vote. Once again, you can see Tarrlok’s slimy hands trying to grab more power and he’s more than willing to use whatever he sees fit to his advantage. After some preparations at the stadium, and some great character moments between Lin, Tenzin, and Korra, the tournament begins, and inevitably all hell breaks loose.

An unnecessarily grand entrance by the Wolfbats

At the tournament, the metal bending police position themselves along the entrances of the stadium, covering the crowd so that they are evenly spread out. They are a well trained unit, and seem to know what they are doing, but it becomes obvious that they have never faced a treat as serious as the Equalists. Lin and Tenzin are positioned centrally overlooking the arena. However, despite the seriousness of the situation they both get caught up in the tournament. The White Falls Wolfbats are constantly cheating during the match (the refs have been paid off), and Tenzin keeps yelling whenever a foul goes unnoticed, and Lin is more than happy to keep watching him. Despite how well they have trained in their bending arts, they have much to learn about being focused on the task at hand. During the match, the Wolfbats are using all kinds of dirty tricks to beat the Fire Ferrets, and the refs just ignore them. The commentator is great during these moments, clearly stating his opinions of the Wolfbats and the refs, but there isn’t much he can do. The Ferret’s loose a round, win a second (a great one v one with Korra and Tahno where she kicks his ass KO), but then get knocked out of the arena to lose the match. It’s once they are in the water, and the crowd is going wild with the Wolfbats victory, that the Equalists go on the offensive.

Amon and the Lieutenant

It turns out that the Equalists have dispersed themselves throughout the crowd. Quickly pulling masks over their faces, and metallic gloves that can stun benders, they pounce taking out all the police including Lin and Tenzin. This is a huge embarrassment. Just what was the point of having all those police officers there if they couldn’t accomplish anything? Korra and the Ferret’s get taken out while still in the water by the Lieutenant and his stun rods. While he ties them up to a post under the stadium, Korra has visions of Aang’s life again. There are quick shots of Aang in the avatar state, as well as shots of a man I can only assume is Yakone (he threatened Republic City 42 years before Korra’s arrival). When they wake up, Bolin mimes to Pabu to cut through the ropes binding them to which Pabu obliges. Up on the stage, Amon and some of his chi blockers enter the arena, facing down the Wolfbats. Tahno and his crew foolishly challenge Amon only to get taken out. Despite Tahno’s pleading, Amon robs him of water bending and dumps all three Wolfbats into the pool. Amon then gives a speech to the crowd where he tells all that he has dealt with the police, as well as the cheating Wolfbats, and says that they used anti-bending gloves to take care of all potential problems. He also talks about bending as unclean. That statement gave the Equalists a very ethnic cleansing vibe. There is also a scene earlier in the episode where Amon is overlooking his minions loading crates into satomobiles, and I assume they were full of the electrified gloves. From this scene coupled with his speech, I get the feeling that Amon might try to sell the gloves via a black market to non-benders. He could make a pretty penny, and I wonder if this is one of his goals! It would certainly help to knock his “noble mission” down a peg or two. However, he clearly has some skilled people working for him in order to make stun rods and gloves, and he would need a factory in order to create it all. There could be a possibility that he has some sort of connection to Hiroshi Sato. It would be an interesting twist, and I see no reason why it couldn’t be true. Hiroshi and Asami were in the crowd during the match, but were conspicuously absent during the Equalists’ chaos.

Anti-bender gloves

Tahno get's what's coming to him

After the speech, while making their escape to a waiting airship, Korra and Lin face off against the Equalists, and both ladies kick some unholy ass. Korra tries to take the fight directly to Amon, but he’s just out of her reach. However, the joy I got from seeing Lin and Korra working together was great. We haven’t seen Lin bend at all yet, but it was worth the wait. Despite being caught off guard more than once, when she finally kicks into high gear, Lin did not hold back. The metallic ropes she used to take out the chi blockers and save a falling Korra (twice!) were controlled with precision and deadly force. Korra was also more than a match for the chi blockers, even taking on the Lieutenant and beating him down. The two women played nicely off each other, and when they land back in the stadium, Lin clearly has warmed up to Korra. This can definitely be attributed to how the young Avatar handled herself during the tournament and the fight, but also to a conversation Tenzin had with her earlier in the episode. Last week, we found out that Tenzin was with someone else before he met and fell in love with his wife. That someone turned out to be Lin. The reason she was being so harsh to Korra was less to do about Korra, and more to do about Korra’s closeness with Tenzin. Tenzin and Lin do bury the hatchet in this episode, and the moments after the fight in the stadium between Korra and Lin was welcome and heartfelt. But, at the end of the day, Amon got away, embarrassing the police, and he managed to show the citizen’s of the city that they have a means via technology to take out benders. Only time will tell how impactful his live “commercial” will be, but I feel there is more at play here than just Amon. I smell a rat (in the shape of a one Hiroshi Sato), and this rat looks set to make a lot of money. Another great episode. 

Lin and Korra to the rescue.

Published by Dogfish

The Legend of Korra - The Spirit of Competition

In this week’s episode, the main plot involving Amon took a break as we delved into the inner workings of the Fire Ferrets and the pro-bending tournament. Things stated off fairly well, with the team showing great cohesion. During their training session their movement flowed well, and it translated nicely to the first few rounds of the tournament. However, when Bolin decides it’s time to ask Korra out, things quickly go downhill for the team. During their downtime, while Mako and Bolin are at home, Mako cooking and Bolin trying to wash Pabu, Bolin brings up the topic of dating Korra. Mako instinctively thinks about a relationship with Korra, and tries to compare it with his current relationship with Asami. It’s funny that he immediately jumped to thinking about dating Korra. It’s obvious the topic has been something he has been thinking about before, weighing the options between dating the avatar, or continuing his relationship with his nice new rich girl. Both girls are pretty, however, breaking either of their hearts could prove costly. If Mako were to dump Asami, he risks not only losing her father as a sponsor for the Fire Ferrets team, but he risks possibly gaining a very influential and powerful enemy. This could prove costly in the future. However, turning Korra’s advances away could mean untimely loosing a teammate, and also a close friend and ally in the future. Mako has a very difficult balancing act to do if he is to come out of his personal love triangle unscathed.

Love triangles after a good training session helps a team fall apart.

On the other side of this love triangle, Bolin decides it’s time to up his game with Korra. Mako first tries to discourage him, telling Bolin that it’s not a good idea dating a teammate, however, Bolin decides to go on a date with Korra. Their date goes well, but you get the feeling that Korra was only with him to be with someone, and to possibly hurt Mako. It’s obvious that she’s not into Bolin (though she blushes when he tells her how great he thinks she is), and her mind was clearly on Mako. Earlier, when she decided to ask Mako out, he turns her down, telling her that he’s not into her like that, and that he feels that teammates should not be dating. Later, a hurt Korra is eventually confronted by Mako when she is alone where Mako tells Korra that he likes her, leading inevitably to Korra kissing him. Unfortunately, Bolin sees everything, and runs away crying. There is a lot of innocence about Bolin, and I was glad that he did not get mad and shout at them; it would have felt out of character. The funny visual of his tears streaming down his face as he runs away was great. Mako eventually finds him drunk in a food coma at a restaurant and takes him home. There is so much tension now between the three of them that it inevitably spills over into the tournament.

Poor Bolin, at least he knows he's gorgeous.

During their first round of the tournament, when no one was trying to date each other yet, the Fire Ferrets dominated their opponents with precision. The training had paid off, as each member had a job to do in the arena, and they executed moves with ease. But when Korra asked Mako out only to get turned down, then goes out with Bolin which annoys Mako, these two members of the team get distracted by awkwardness and a little animosity. It falls on Bolin to keep the team afloat, and he does a good job. Bolin has never come across as a great fighter. I've always gotten the impression that Mako held the team in place with his combat skill. However, Bolin really shined in his opportunity. He was bobbing and weaving his way through attacks to take out his opponents, leading to a one on one spar match to decide the winner of the round. Bolin knocked his man out of the ring, and really made it look easy. It was good to see him take charge away from Mako (who he noted was distracted throughout the match), and shows some potential of becoming a confident leader in the future if the need arises. Things get worse though when Bolin is witness to the kiss, and the last match of the episode goes horribly wrong. Very quickly the Fire Ferrets distractions are exposed in the arena, with the opponents clearly taking advantage of the weakened team. Mako and Bolin get eliminated, but they really don’t care. Their hearts aren't in it anymore, and only Korra seems willing to go on. That turns out to be a good thing, because she is the only one left in the area. She immediately goes into ass kicking mode, using her water bending skills to line up the opposing team so she could eliminate them with a strong gush of water, winning the semi-final for the team. Her tenacity in the ring put the fire in the teams belly once more, and they get excited for the finals. In the dressing room, words are spoken, apologies are made, wounds are healed, and all is forgiven. There is a quick shot of the other finalists being jerks to them, and very quickly winning their semi-final with ease, but all the bad blood between the Ferrets has been washed away. They are friends again, and that bothered me.

The Kiss seen around the world!

This was a fun episode not doubt, but they were dealing with some very serious issues. Like Avatar Roku once said to Aang, “Love is hard when you’re young”. That is very true. Kids are dumb. Little things blow up into big messes, and get taken out of context. However, kissing the brother of the man who you know has a crush on you is a very big deal; especially when he has taken the time to take you out for dinner and show you a good time. Bolin was not only betrayed by Korra, but by Mako. Mako was clearly agitated by Korra going out with Bolin, and this betrayed his feelings for her. If he had not confronted Korra, then Bolin’s heart would not have gotten broken the way it did. But that may prove to be better rather than dragging out a relationship that clearly is not going to work. However, it still does not explain how Bolin was able to forgive everyone so quickly. I understand why he forgave Mako; ever since they were kids and Mako became Batman, Mako’s looked after Bolin, raising him into the man he’s becoming. Forgiving Mako was a given. But forgiving Korra was too easy. She did not earn his forgiveness. She betrayed him. She knew he likes her, yet she went on ahead with Mako. Sure she single handedly won the semi-final, but so what, Bolin single handedly won the quarter-final, and not once this episode (or series so far) has Bolin done something to earn anyone’s distrust. He a good honest kid and he deserves better. In the end, it just felt too easy; it was not earned. Maybe they will use this plot in future episodes to bring up the tension again, but as it stands now, its resolution was too clean and held the episode back. Other than that, the animation and music was once again top notch, and seeing the elimination rounds of the tournament was great. I can’t wait for the final! A good episode.

Posted by Dogfish

The Legend of Korra – A Voice in the Night

Last week when faced with the overwhelming strength and organization of Amon’s terror group, the seeds of doubt and fear were put into Korra. This week, Amon broke any resolve she had left. As I’ve mentioned in previous reviews, Korra has had a very sheltered life. She has been forced to live in a compound in the Southern Water tribe run by the White Lotus’. She has not come across a challenge she could not defeat. But since moving to Republic City, she has found an entirely new world with very real problems that the compound was a poor substitute for. Korra spent most of this episode in fear, trying to busy herself with training rather than face her concerns, all the while riddled with nightmares of being overwhelmed by Amon’s force. When Tenzin tried to give her an outlet to share her worries, she turned away from his help. Unfortunately, Tenzin missed a great opportunity to talk to Korra about Aang’s troubles. When it was time to face the Fire Lord, Aang’s doubt and lack of confidence led to sleepless nights riddled with nightmares and hallucinations. Aang was not sure how he would fare in his confrontation with the Fire Lord, and almost lost the battle before it had even started. With his friends help, he was able to overcome his fears and face them. This is a story I have no doubt that Aang would have shared with Tenzin, and in turn, it would have been wise for Tenzin to tell this to Korra. But, without this knowledge, Korra charges her way through this episode without any sage wisdom.

Korra broken and defeated

Tenzin was having difficulties of his own this episode. On the city council, where he sits as a representative for the Air Nomads of the city (there is a representative for each nation but there doesn’t seem to be anyone for non-benders!), Tenzin was faced with a proposition to build a task force whose sole purpose it was to take on Amon and the Equalists. This is very similar to the start of the United States’ FBI, which was created with the sole purpose of taking on organized crime. It was a good idea, but the councilman who proposed the idea, Tarrlok, has a very greasy/slimy feel to him (complete with ponytails and apparently perfume). No doubt he is going to use the task force to make himself look good in the eye of the public and use the people’s good will to gain power for his own nefarious purposes. Quite frankly, I’m surprised that something has not been done before. A threat as great as the Equalist movement merits quick and decisive action, at the very least an outreach program to those who don’t posses bending abilities. Tarrlok wants to use force to quash the movement, which sounds overly totalitarian for this republic. No doubt they need to come off strong against terrorists, however, they need to address the real issue that is giving the Equalists such drive; the treatment of non-benders. Tarrlok brings up a previous threat (couldn’t make out the name of the baddie he mentioned) that Republic City has faced in its past, but said that Aang acted swiftly to prevent any lasting issues. This seemed to sway the other council members to vote in favor of having the task force.

Tarrlok leading his Task Force

Tarrlok initially tries to bring Korra into the task force, but his request falls on deaf ears. After trying to buy her favor with increasingly more expensive gifts, Tarrlok organizes a gala in her honor, as well as a Q & A session for some well placed journalists, and as a result, Korra gets manipulated into joining. She doesn’t want to seem weak or scared, so when confronted with questions questioning her resolve to the city and its people, she feels she has no choice but to join, falling nicely into Tarrlok’s plot. Their first raid goes well, giving a momentary boost to Korra’s spirits to the point where she foolishly challenges Amon to a duel one on one (on Aang Memorial Island!). Tenzin tries to stop her, but she goes in head first without much thought to any other plan of action. Once on the island, Korra is forced to wait, her nerves on edge, but Amon appears to be a no show. Eventually, she is ambushed by the group and this is where Korra is broken. She is outclassed by the non-benders, bound in ropes with her chi blocked. She is positioned in front of Amon where he calmly and coolly tells her that he will destroy her, but when he feels the time is correct, not when she wants it. He didn’t have to lay a finger on her, yet he had her on her knees at his feet. A quick jab to the neck and she is knocked out. We catch quick glimpses of some old friends; old Sokka looking troubled, a grown up Toph in her police uniform, some shots of master Aang looking very badass, and some mysterious guy (possible baddie from the past) who I did not recognize. Korra might very well have been peering into Aang’s life while knocked out, and if so, this would be the first time she has had any spirit connection on the show. Aang was very connected to his spiritual side, but Korra has yet to find affinity for it (as mentioned in the first episode). This meeting with Amon might have been the kick in the ass (or jab in the neck) that Korra needed to finally take her avatar training to the next level. Only time will tell what is to come of these images.

Amon leering over Korra

Aang looking older and ready to kick some ass

The B story this week involved Batman… I mean Mako. While leaving work, Bruce Wayne, Mako gets run over by a very pretty girl (Asami Sato), who turns out to be the daughter of the rich inventor of the Satomobiles. All Mako’s immediate problems are over; Hiroshi Sato becomes a corporate sponsor for the team (putting his logo on their jerseys) and Mako gains a girlfriend (now that makes sense, not when the girls run for Bolin). Asami likes Mako a lot, and seems genuinely interested and in love with Mako. It will be interesting to see the inevitable Korra/Asami fight for Mako that will happen. Korra and Asami’s brief meeting was overshadowed because Korra had the task force and Amon on her mind. However for now, love is in the air, and as the show goes on, we shall see where these relationships end up. Bolin tries to get Korra’s attention by giving her a flower and cup cake as a thank you for saving him in the last episode. Sadly for him, Korra’s full attention was on Amon. Meelo has a great off scene moment where it appears he tries to piss into a fountain at the gala much to Tenzin’s horror, and Ikki effortlessly makes fun of Tarrlok without really meaning to (bye bye ponytailed man). Chief Lin Beifong briefly shows up, once again showing her seemingly misplaced animosity for the avatar. I’m sure there’s more to the story that we will eventually learn about. I also haven’t mentioned the opening recap after the opening titles for the last couple of episodes. It has a very 20’s old timey feel, and helps set the mood for the entire series; it’s a nice touch. This was another great episode. 

Asami, finding boys the only way she knows how, by running them over

Posted by Dogfish.

The Legend of Korra – The Revelation

This week’s episode, The Revelation, was slower paced than the pilot episodes, but this served it well. The story’s focus was on the Equalist movement, and Amon’s nefarious plans, leading the episode on a very 20’s noir detective feel (like Who Framed Rodger Rabbit). The episode opens with team Fire Ferrets (along with pet fire ferret Pabu) training in the early morning at the gym. Korra complains about the time of the training session, and when Mako mocks her because of her rookie status on the team, she effortlessly knocks him down using her physical strength. However, things quickly move on from here when it turns out that the team needs money in order to continue participating in the tournament, thus forcing Mako and Bolin to look for a source of income. Bolin decided to try to use some of the tricks he has taught Pabu to earn his money as a street performer (with fake mustache and obstacle course), while Mako gets legitimate work in the factories. The standout part of this was the abundant use of lightning. Lightning bending was once something that only a few select fire benders could accomplish. We never even saw Aang have a go at trying to lightning bend. However, the once exclusive ability has now been mastered by countless fire benders, some working in factories acting like human generators while others work/lead gangs. Mako has this ability down quite well, as he executes some quick lightning strikes while in battle, vastly different from the slow execution of lightning from the last series. So while Mako earns money legitimately at the factories, Bolin get approached on the street by the Triple Threat Triad (TTT) gang to be a hired goon, and gets swayed by money.

Bolin with little Pabu

When at home, Mako looks for Bolin, and when he fails to find him, assumes that his “love sick” brother might be with Korra at Air Temple Island. Obviously Mako and Bolin are close, so it’s good to see that he knows that Bolin has a crush on Korra which might explain the distance he kept from Korra in the last episode, but it’s also possible that Bolin has told Mako of his feelings for the Avatar. Either way, it’s going to be very interesting when Korra finally reveals her crush on Mako, and could/will be a potential source of friction between the brothers. When Mako goes to the island to ask Korra if Bolin is there, we see Korra glide her way through the air panel training that she so struggled with in the last episode, watched on by Tenzin’s daughters. It’s good to see the progress, and serves to show that some time has passed between the episodes. As Mako walks towards the training arena, Jinora points him out, asking Korra if he is the boy who drives her crazy. Clearly there is a level of closeness that has developed between the girls, and it’s good to see that Korra has someone to talk to other and Tenzin who can come off a bit stuffy. Korra joins forces with Mako (who is introduced to Naga) to find Bolin, and they are quickly led to TTT’s headquarters. Knocking down the door with a powerful kick, Korra and Mako quickly discover that all member of the TTT (Bolin included) have been kidnapped by the Equalists. Korra and Mako give chase on Naga (with Pabu now too), but the Equalists have a car and some motorbikes to aid in their escape. The chase sequence is well done, with the music complimenting the chase very well. The resulting fight scene is very well animated, and serves to demonstrate the skill and strength of the Equalists. Not only were both Korra and Mako out classed, but they has their chi blocked and were almost taken out if it wasn’t for Naga. After this embarrassment, Korra leads Mako to the Equalist protestor who she ran into in the first episode. After a sleeping montage and interrogation, Korra and Mako are led to a secret meeting Amon is holding.

Good Stakeout

Mako and Korra infiltrate the meeting to find all the kidnapped TTT’s tied up on a stage. Amon joins them and gives a speech to the rather large crowd, giving us a tragic origin story befitting a man with plans as bold as his. Amon has been tormented by benders in his youth, even losing his parents and face to a fire bender. Amon claims to have been instructed by the spirits to take away bending, and makes some harshly honest points about the history of the world and how bending has only helped to ruin it. He demonstrates his ability to silence a bender by taking away the bending abilities of the TTT prisoners one at a time. In the previous series, Aang learnt a similar technique from a giant Lion Turtle, who informed Aang that before people could bend the elements, they could bend energy (it was lost to time). So it is possible that Amon has been instructed by some spirits, however, I’m not sure if we can believe him quite yet. It would be very interesting if he turns out to be a bender himself, which is unluckily, but I didn’t buy his story yet, but it will probably turn out to be true. When it comes time to rob Bolin of his earth bending, Korra creates a cover using steam, and Mako takes his brother back. Mako and Bolin get outside, where they are engaged in a fight against a stun rod equipped Equalist who wipes the floor with them. In the last series, there were very few non benders who could take on and beat benders (just a handful from my recollection) however, 70 years has changed the world a lot, and the playing field is much more level. This opens up the world of combat quite a lot. Korra and Naga save the brothers who flee the area and go home, with Mako and Korra riding her on her back while Bolin is picked up in her mouth (“I… want… to be… on… your… back”). Amon lets them escape, and you get the feeling that if he hadn’t called off his troops, the Fire Ferrets might not have made it out of that alley. Back on the Air Temple Island, Korra tells Tenzin all she has seen, and it worries him greatly.

Amon and his minions

The animation was once again top notch. The music too really complimented the tension and action in this episode very well. It was a very well put together package. The big revelation this week (bigger than Amon’s speech) is the identity of Mako as Batman (without all the money, and with added little brother he had to take care of instead of traveling the world learning to become a martial arts expert). His witnessing of his parents death at age 8 clearly mirrors what Amon claims happened to him. I’m left wondering if this connection between Amon and Mako might make for an understanding between the two, and a possible temptation to the dark side much like Zuko at the end of season two in the last series. However, it’s good to know the goals of the new baddies in this series, and despite their loftiness, they have the means to do it. Another great episode in the bag.

Posted by Dogfish.

City Lights

So now its part two of our premier episode, titled "A Leaf in the Wind". Korra has moved into Tenzin's home, which is situated on an island (known as Air Temple Island) close to Republic City, but not attached. It's populated by Tenzin's family and some monks. There is a noticeable distance between the people who live on the island, and those who populate the city. The islanders seem aloof, not in touch with the city populace. They are set aside and sheltered, and when the inevitable revolt reaches the island doors, I have serious doubts about their ability to handle it, not physically, but emotionally. This attitude is exemplified in Tenzin's oldest child Jinora. She has clearly embraced (or at least is trying to) the air nomad lifestyle. She tries to be very centered, but does get distracted by her younger sibling’s silly antics. Regardless, from the few times we see her air bend it's obvious that she has a graceful mastery of the art. As the kids help to set up the first training session, Korra confronts Tenzin about her apprehension to air bending. All the other elements have come so easy to her, and she's worried about tackling air. This is the first glimpse at uncertainty we see from Korra. Everything has come so easily for her up to this point; she has always had some skill over the other 3 elements. However, it’s becoming abundantly clear that air is completely foreign to Korra; she hasn't found any affinity to it yet. Tenzin reassures her by telling her of the struggles Aang had with earth bending, and explains to her that the most difficult element to master is the one opposite to the Avatar's personality. Air requires patience and subtlety, something Aang possessed by the bucket loads. Korra has more of a gun-ho attitude, which may serve her well in the future, but for learning air, is only going to prove to be a hindrance. So when it comes time to move and think like an air bender, Korra get knocked on her ass, twice, despite Tenzin's explanation of how an air bender moves and thinks. She inevitably goes ballistic and blows up some of the air nomad training panels with a little bit of fire. She struggles so much that when Tenzin offers more advise, she tells him that she thinks the problem is not with her, but his terrible teaching (ouch!). We also see that Korra's difficulties lies not just with air bending, but the air nomad life style. During a meditation session, where she is supposed to sit, and um, meditate, she fails by being impatient. She wants quick, immediate results, tangible returns to the effort she puts in. But, as we have seen from the last series, air bending is all about inner clam, and if you doubt yourself it could cause serious problems. Tenzin's two daughters (even the hyper one) are able to mediate quite well. Jinora is doing an exceptional job, not even reacting to Korra's interruptions. Ikki's face twitches a bit, especially when Korra announces that she's done with meditation and going to get some juice (Daddy, can I have some lychee juice too?). However, it's Meelo who steels the scene with his amazing display of mastery over meditation; being sound asleep! It’s a classic gag where his father tries to use him as an example only to have Korra point out the painful truth. Egg all over Tenzin's face. So with Korra stomping off, Meelo collapsing sound asleep on the floor, Ikki giving her father the stink eye to his denying her some juice, and only Jinora showing any amount of composure out of the four of them, it was not an easy day for the air bending master or his student. Another point I should mention is Korra's constant self distractions during her training. She is always looking elsewhere, either into the distance, or around her. She craves excitement, not this slow boring mediating non bending stuff. This is where the sport of pro-bending steps in.  

Jinora, Ikki, Meelo, & Korra sitting before Tenzin

Our exposure to pro-bending is a very beginners guide. We learn the rules, hear the crowds, and get to meet some of the key characters, notably brothers Mako and Bolin. Bolin is an earth bender while Mako is a fire bender. Bolin seems more along the lines of Sokka, kinda blunt, not really understanding the finer arts of subtlety and surprisingly popular with the girls. Mako is clearly cut from the same cloth as Zuko. We've only see him for 25 minutes and already he's brooding like he's Batman. He has just the right kind of hair and aloof attitude that would have gotten him all the girls if he were in a 80s movie. Throughout the training with Tenzin, Korra constantly indulges in pro-bending. First she starts by reading newspaper articles about the previous days matches, visibly excited at the idea of seeing a match live. Tenzin quickly squashes that notion. Then, while a bunch of the white louts guards are listening to a live radio broadcast of the day's match, Korra secretly sits on the roof of the hut eagerly following along. All characters in the scene are engrossed in the commentary, following along, cheering for Team Fire Ferrets (made up of Mako, Bolin and random water bender guy). However, Tenzin swoops in once again, unplugs the radio, gives Korra another stern warning and then walks away. This however, does little to deter Korra, who quickly escapes by making use of her water bending abilities. There is a moment, just before she hits the water where she bends a tunnel of water towards her body in order to soften the blow of hitting the water from too high. It's effortlessly done, which means she's had plenty of practice. More importantly though, it goes back to the exact same move Aang used when entering water in the original series. Maybe it's because Korra is from the water tribe, but I like to think that this was influenced a little bit from her life as Aang. 

After swimming the distance to the city where she enters the pro-bending arena, Korra unsuccessfully tries to sneak around. However, Bolin, who happened to be walking around when she gets caught comes to her rescue. It's a funny moment. While we watch Korra getting yelled at by an old earth bender who threatens to turn Korra in, Bolin can be seen in the background walking, does a double take, runs his hand through his hair to slick it down, and then goes marching in. Clearly he's rescued other girls from a similar fate. He tells the old guy that Korra's with him, as in they're together. Korra quickly admits that she is there with Bolin, but not in that kind of way. It kind of blew up in Bolin's face with him going, oh no, I didn't mean like that, and I couldn't stop laughing, as I've tried similar moves on girls only to have it blow up in my face like it just did for Bolin. Bolin then shows Korra around the stadium, eventually leading to the arena, where she gets front row seats to the match. Bolin tries to impress her some more when his brother walks in. Mako quietly asks Bolin why he keeps bringing his fan girls into the dressing room (really, they go after Bolin over Mako?), and then Korra is introduced to Mako. She is already somewhat familiar with Mako from the radio broadcast she heard. She starts gushing over him, clearly taken aback from his skills that she's heard, and his good looks. Could Korra have been any less obvious about her attraction to Mako? I wonder how Bolin would feel, though it seems he gets enough attention from the girls, as seen when The Fire Ferrets walk onto the area,  a girl can be heard chanting Bolin’s name (I still don't get it but good for him). Mako is dismissive of Korra, and when the match begins, clearly focuses on the opponents at hand. While fighting, Mako is clinical. While Bolin is just as skilled, he lacks the focus that Mako posses and gets caught flat footed more than once. Random water guy sucks. No more on him. Mako's fighting style is very boxery; he had strong punches of fire to off balance his opponents, while being light on his feet. He's quite a talented guy, and holds the team down when both his other team mates get eliminated, even winning an entire round by himself. When Bolin climbs back into the changing area after Mako wins it for the team, Bolin triumphantly asks Korra what she thinks. What does she think? What does she think? She's so excited by it that she just grabs Bolin by his shirt and then shoves him away. Mako continues to be dismissive of Korra, but she gives him as good as she gets. This is the kind of training she has wanted; action packed, where there are immediate rewards to moves and where she has to be quick on her feet. She asks Bolin if he could teach her some earth bending moves. He's more than willing, but because of her water tribe outfit, he doesn't know how his earth bending moves would translate to her water bending style. She quickly informs Bolin that she is a water, earth, and fire bender. This news only helps us to cement Bolin as the current Sokka replacement with his well timed "Mm hmmm! I'm very confused right now." Of course Mako, who has been paying close attention, doesn't miss a beat and realizes who she is, immediately apologizing. A little bit of a training scene, and we find out the Mako and Bolin live at the stadium.

Korra, Mako & Bolin

The next day, after Korra blows up half the air nomad panels, she once again escapes to the stadium. There she finds Mako and Bolin sitting in the changing room looking glum. Water bender guy (him again!) hasn't bother to show up after his poor performance in the last match, which means The Fire Ferrets will be disqualified from participating. They need one more person to fill the ranks, and Korra gladly jumps at the challenge. At first she struggles with the constraints of the sport, knocking people out of the ring illegally, all the while being targeted as the noob in the arena. Then she makes the mistake of bending both water and earth at the same time. The refs call a time out where they discuss what to do. It's at this point we should travel back the Air Bender Island, where Tenzin is trying to figure out why his teachings aren't working on Korra. His wife gently tells him to give the girl some space. Tenzin quickly looks at is daughters and demands that their teenage years not be full of that much turmoil. Jinora responds with a well placed "I make no such promises." When Tenzin goes looking for Korra, he enters the White Lotus room to discover that they are busy listening to the radio matches once again, and not really watching Korra. When Tenzin asks them where Korra is, only the radio answers; "You've gotta be kidding me. She's the Avatar folks! Playing in a pro-bending match!" A visibly upset Tenzin tells the White Lotus to not bother getting her, he will go himself. Tenzin must have felt quite let down and betrayed. The White Lotus guards are not doing the job they are supposed to, Korra is clearly going against his wishes and teachings, and now he must be questioning his ability to teach as he has failed at every turn with Korra thus far. Back to the arena, Korra is getting it from all sides. She's used to more space, and probably a slower paced, older style of combat. However pro-bending is fast and furious and she gets knocked around quite a lot. When Tenzin arrives, he confronts her about his displeasure at her participation. He feels that pro-bending goes against the tenants of classic bending combat, and that it is counter intuitive to his teachings. For him, the two worlds cannot coexist, and he only has respect for one type of bending. Korra dismisses him, going as far to say that she realizes that this is the type of teaching she requires, and that she has decided that she doesn't need to learn air bending! A surprised Tenzin states the importance of the Avatar learning air bending to be complete. Korra chooses to walk back to the area to finish her match and is immediately pushed back, almost being knocked out. Tenzin is in the stands watching from the shadows. It's now, with her back against the wall, Korra calms herself and begins to use some of the air bending techniques Tenzin has been drilling into her. She twists and turns and surprises her opponents, leading the team to victory. A similar moment happened with Aang while he struggled to learn earth bending from Toph in season 2. With his back against a wall, Aang finally was able to earth bend to save Sokka's life. Tenzin is surprised at the turn of events, but happy. He realizes that he was wrong about pro-bending fighting; it's not as uncivilized as he thought. It's a great moment of youth learning from the elder, while in turn the elder learns from the youth. After leaving the stadium victorious, Korra goes back to the island to apologize to Tenzin for her behavior, and Tenzin apologies for his narrow mindedness. Both characters have learned something valuable during the events; for Korra, sage advice can be invaluable and help when stuck in tight spaces; for Tenzin, keeping an open mind at any age will only help broadening it; learning only ends with death. The final shot is of Korra siting in her window, smiling and staring at the stadium, while at the same time, Mako is longingly looking towards the Air Temple Island (hint hint).

Love is in the Air.... bending

Cue dramatic music, roll credits, show over, and boy was the two part premier fun. While we still don't know much about the various bad gangs, or the anti-bending revolution in the first two episodes, there will no doubt be time to explore these events. We are also still kept in the dark regarding the fate of much of the "Gaang" from the last series, but I have no doubt we will come to know the truth. Another factor in the show that I have failed to discuss thus far is the soundtrack. The Track Team, the guys behind the original series, have outdone themselves. The music compliments the show so well, and it’s obvious, after working on the show since 2005 that they get the world of Avatar. You could just close your eyes and listen to the soft music that plays while Korra is in the water tribe, or dance to the jazz music as Korra runs through the streets of Republic City. And finally, despite only appearing in the opening credits thus far, Aang’s presence looms all over this series. This is not only because Korra is his reincarnation, or that his son and grandchildren are front and center, but because Republic City is also a part of his legacy. The fate of the city is the fate of Aang's memory, and right now there is turmoil in the Republic. Things will have to change if he is to be remembered well. Aang's shadow looms over the city, and not just due to the giant Aang statue that adorns the harbor. We are reminded of the big shoes (like Kyoshi big) that Korra has to fill, but I think she's up to the challenge. Another great episode in the bag.


Posted by: DogFish

When Air gave way to Water

I had just turned 19 when Nickelodeon aired Avatar the Last Airbender. I had, of course, been used to the Nick line up, which consisted of great shows such as Rugrats, Doug, Hey Arnold, and the still great Spongebob! However, while watching the promo for this new series I was struck by how different it seemed. The animation was far more fluid, greatly influenced by the animation style of Japanese anime, and the characters seemed vastly layered. All this was taken from a minute plus promo that ran between shows. So I thought I would give it a shot, and when February 21st rolled around I sat on my couch expecting a fun action show, but not much more. And for the series premier I would have been right, if it wasn't for one character who stood out in my mind; Zuko. He was a lot like Dragonball's Vegeta, and not just because he was a prince. There was clearly more driving him than just ambition or power. There was a hunger he possessed that coursed through his very essence (a hunger that we learn more about as the show progressed), and he was voiced so well. So he was the hook, and I could not let the show go, and though it was Zuko who initially got to me, the show's growth over the seasons as well as the development of other characters such as Toph, Iroh and Sokka came to compliment Zuko nicely. In those early episodes, Zuko was a harbinger of the tone and maturity to come from this “kids” show. So when it ended in 2008, it was a little tough to let it go, like when I was a witness to Jedi for the first time, or traveled through the last pages of Deathly Hallows. But when the dynamic duo of Michael DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko announced The Legend of Korra series, I was very excited, eagerly anticipating the next chapter in the Avatar world. That announcement was in 2010. It has been a long wait.

The first thing that struck me while watching the early access premier on my computer was just how great the animation looked. Airbender was no slouch, but the animators have stepped up their game quite a notch since 2008. It’s very fluid; the characters move gracefully, animal interaction and movement is very natural, and even the way buildings appear in the distance while cars roll around on the streets with the hustle and bustle of people going their separate ways is very organic. The one scene that sticks out to me even a week after watching the show was when Korra is heading to the big city, and she’s stole away on a boat with her animal guide Naga. She is lying against the dog/bear with a look of content at what she has just accomplished, while having the look of wonder in her eyes of what’s to come. I felt great for her just from this simple look on her face. It didn’t last more than 20 seconds, but this scene is so elegant in its subtlety, that with all the beautifully crafted acrobats throughout the rest of the show, this scene was perfect. The other big standout part for me was how confident and sexy Korra was portrayed without being sexualized. Usually with Japanese anime, the few strong female leads are overly sexualized, with big curves, long legs, and skimpy clothes making them look like hookers. Not so here (though Korra does have some great curves!). Korra's appeal doesn't come just from her good looks or grace (though outside of battle she is lacking in the grace department), but from her confidence in her abilities and who she is as a person. She doesn’t seem like the character who would wear low cut shirts to distract guys in order to get her way. In fact, if she were to do something like that, it would feel very out of character. She is someone who has such self confidence, who has a great awareness of who she is that there is no need for her to strut her stuff, and that's why when she inevitably fails, it’s going to be a tough moment to witness. Being humbled always sucks, and more so when you're the Avatar, just ask her predecessor Aang.

Avatar Korra and Aang's first meeting

Aang struggled with who he was, and the responsibilities he faced. Largely this is because facing your mortality while having the weight of the world on your shoulders at the age of 12 is an incredibly daunting task. Trust me, I'm 26, it's no easier, and I don't have a world to save. So Aang did what any rational child would do, he ran. It took him two and a half seasons to finally be ready to face his challenges, and still it was an incredibly difficult task he almost lost. However, from the get go, Korra knows who she is, and she wants the whole world to know too; just look at her introduction. When we first meet Korra, she's a spunky 4 year old with some degree of control over 3 of the 4 elements who is being investigated by members of the White Lotus for claims of her being the Avatar. Her parent’s home is very humble, with traditional water tribe ornaments decorating their igloo, and the simple interactions, such as an embrace between her mother and father, show that this is a loving home. Korra immediately gets in the face of the 3 White Lotus members who are visibly shocked at Korra’s skill and in your face attitude with her declaration of “I’m the Avatar, you gotta deal with it!” From here, we skip to Korra age 17 taking her test on fire bending in the southern water tribe. It is now we see a familiar face. If you have been watching the promos, or saw any of the leaked footage, you knew that this weathered old lady standing on a platform observing was Katara, Aang's wife. You would also know that standing there, watching this new young Avatar strut her skills, Katara has been without Aang for 17 years. For someone who has followed the show from the start it was very moving, and made all the more impressive that there was not a single line of dialogue forced on us to address this harsh truth. Katara must be very sad, but you know from who she was from the original series, she would be very proud of Korra’s physical and emotional strength. Back to Korra; she passes her test with a triumphant “woo hoo”, which we soon discover means she mastered 3 out of the 4 elements (the opposite of Aang). Now it’s time for air, so enter stage right Tenzin, Aang and Katara's youngest child, and only airbender. He himself has three little airbenders of his own and a possible fourth on the way.

I find Tenzin an interesting character. When I first heard about him and saw him in the promos, I expected him to be a slightly more serious version of good old Iroh. However, our first interaction with him is his very defeated response of “Yes, like I’ve been telling you for the last 15 minutes, we are finally here,” to his daughter’s (Ikki) incessant questioning of are they there yet. While this is going on, his son Meelo is climbing all over him and chewing on his head. Tenzin’s head and shoulders are slumped in defeat; it’s a great visual. Katara is there waiting to greet her family, and Tenzin is more than happy to hand them over to her. Korra waits eagerly in the background as Tenzin catches up with Katara, however, she quickly grabs his attention. From their interaction it’s obvious that they have met before, but when Korra was much younger; there is a formal closeness to them. Quickly, it becomes apparent that Tenzin can't stay to teach Korra in the water tribe, but must return to his city - Republic City (the city is facing troubling times) - as he is a leader within the city. His attempts at explaining to Korra why he must go back home fall on deaf ears, with Korra's great dismissive response of “whatever” while walking away being just what I'd expect from a 17 year old. As Korra is forced to watch her dreams fly away (on a flying bison no less) she hatches a plan of her own; to go to Republic City and learn air bending there. With Katara's blessing Korra is off, and as mentioned previously, Korra’s journey is portrayed quickly, but very effectively. All up to this point, the show has had a very organic and natural feel.

    Jinora, Ikki, Meelo, with father Tenzin and mother Perma 

"Welcome to Republic City"! The city was founded by both Aang and Zuko after the war was over and has a very jazzy NYC/Chicago feel; there's even a giant Aang statue that adorns the harbor. Before Korra makes her way to Tenzin, she gets distacted by the city. However, the big city is not entirely what Korra was expecting; it's big yes and somewhat shiny, but there are some ugly truths. There is homelessness, as well as crime perpetrated by gangs, and even an anti-bending revolution. Korra is forced to deal with all of these on her first visit. She gives the homeless man a fish, but there isn't much more she can do at this stage to help him, even having to run away quickly as it becomes apparent that fishing in the city's central park is illegal. She then gets into, and loses, a debate with an anti-bending revolutionary she unwisely engages and childishly threatens. And when she tries to stop a gang from taking money from a shop owner, she inadvertently causes more damages and once again becomes a fugitive of the law (for about 5 minutes). So good first day! When caught by the metal-bending police, she is interrogated by Toph's daughter, Lin Beifong, and boy does Lin seem like a chip off the old block (I think I'm going to like her a lot). Lin is the tough take no shit from anyone kind of woman. Her daughter was a very tough individual who immediately butted heads with the original gang when she joined them in the original series. Lin, too, seems more than willing to butt heads, but you get the feeling she is motivated for vastly different reasons. She is the chief of police of a city the size of New York, and she has real and immediate problems to deal with. An all powerful being only adds to that. At first, Korra uses her status as Avatar, as well as the history between Toph and Aang to try to get out of trouble, but Lin isn’t moved, much to Korra’s disappointment. Eventually, Tenzin comes along to bail Korra out, and while leaving jail, Lin gives Korra the old “I’m going to keep my eyes on you” hand motion that Korra responds to in kind, much to Lin’s frustration. It was childish yes, but there to show us that in time, Korra and Lin may be more alike, and thus have some common ground to build a relationship upon. Outside, Korra tries unsuccessfully to convince Tenzin to let her stay and train with him. While he escorts her back to the dock of waiting White Lotus guards, Tenzin gazes at the statue of Aang. You can tell he longs for his dads presence, possibly for some sage advice, or maybe because if his dad were still around, Tenzin would not be the one making the difficult decisions. It’s at this point where he realizes that though Republic City is part of Aang’s legacy (just as Tenzin and his kids are too), Korra is a huge part of what Aang left behind; she is Aang reincarnated after all. Tenzin realizes that its time he takes on the responsibility of training Korra, not just for Korra’s sake, but for everything his father stood for. With great happiness and excitement, Korra hugs Tenzin, his three kids, and effortlessly picks them all up at once. The next day, Korra gives a speech to a waiting crowd of journalists about her plans for the city while Tenzin and Lin stand behind her. Korra once again shows her lack of experience at public speech, and stumbles her way through the answers, and just before she gets too in over her head, Tenzin steps in to end the questioning. However, in some deep underground layer, a dark, shadowy figure, wearing a golden mask, listens to the radio broadcast of the return of the Avatar. When one of his subordinates asks him what they should do, Amon, our new bad guy, responds very calmly that it’s time to accelerate their plans! What plans are they? I look forward to finding out over the course of the show. Very interesting indeed.

This was a great start, and it bodes well for the series to come. If you are a fan of the original series, or well written, animated, and charming shows, you will find a welcome home here. Thanks for reading. This is part one of the two episode premier review. The second episode will follow shortly in the week with its own review. I hope to continue to review the show as it airs. Thanks for reading. Oh, and one last thing. How painfully charming was that Zuko mom tease? I just want to know the truth already!!!

You Gotta Deal With It!

Posted by: DogFish