The Legend of Korra - Book One: Air

[Agent Richard07]

Now everyone who lost their bending will have to be contacted so they can get it restored by Korra. It'll be quite a day and quite a line-up. I wonder if a non-bender will try to sneak in and try to get a bending ability. Maybe someone will, then Korra will discover that there's nothing to unlock and the poor guy will be escorted out thinking... "Hey, I tried!" That'll be the cue for any other non-bender in the line to leave quietly.

Now if a non-bender actually does manage to get an ability, that would be something.

 

[Christopher]

Now if a non-bender actually does manage to get an ability, that would be something.

I doubt it can happen, though. If energybending could be used to give bending to a non-bender, don't you think the first thing Aang would've done after the war would've been to turn a bunch of folks into airbenders so as to bring his nation back from the brink of extinction? Instead he's done it the old-fashioned way, by fathering and grandfathering new airbenders, and that means it'll be generations before the Air Nomad population reaches a stable level and can be taken off the critically endangered list. There's no way he would've settled for that if it were possible to give bending to nonbenders.

So it follows that Korra can only restore the bending abilities that a person already had before Amon took them.

 

[Agent Richard07]

If energybending could be used to give bending to a non-bender, don't you think the first thing Aang would've done after the war would've been to turn a bunch of folks into airbenders so as to bring his nation back from the brink of extinction? Instead he's done it the old-fashioned way, by fathering and grandfathering new airbenders, and that means it'll be generations before the Air Nomad population reaches a stable level and can be taken off the critically endangered list. There's no way he would've settled for that if it were possible to give bending to nonbenders.

Maybe it's possible to give anyone bending abilities and Aang just didn't know that. That's the kind of paradigm shift I was referring to and it's pretty much the only thing I can think of right now that can top Book 1's arc. We've seen enough examples of sub-abilities that benders didn't know about like metal and blood bending. We've also seen the "rules" being broken, like being able to bloodbend without a full moon. And even basic bending needs training, so maybe there's even more to bending than we realize.

Also, I was wondering if Tarrlok and Noalok's mother was a bender. I figured she wasn't and got to thinking that since those kids got bending abilities, Amon's attempt to make everyone equal would have been futile. Bending would just come back as children of "cleansed" benders were born.

 

[Christopher]

Maybe it's possible to give anyone bending abilities and Aang just didn't know that.

It is inconceivable to me that he wouldn't have tried. Both as the only surviving member of his people and as the Avatar charged with the responsibility to restore balance to the world, he surely would've pursued any possible avenue for restoring the Air Nomads. (If this weren't a kids' show, I'm sure he would've impregnated lots of women besides his wife. Hey, it was his moral duty! ) So he had a huge, huge incentive to consider the possibility that energybending could be used to create abilities as well as remove them. He would certainly have had the idea and have tried very hard to make it happen. So if he couldn't do it, given the literally existential stakes motivating the attempt, I doubt very much that anyone could.

Also, I was wondering if Tarrlok and Noalok's mother was a bender. I figured she wasn't and got to thinking that since those kids got bending abilities, Amon's attempt to make everyone equal would have been futile. Bending would just come back as children of "cleansed" benders were born.

I made a similar observation a week ago, in post #369. We do know that neither of Katara's parents was a waterbender.

And Amon's real name is spelled Noatak, which is the name of a river (and town and wilderness preserve) in Alaska.

 

[Agent Richard07]

Maybe it's possible to give anyone bending abilities and Aang just didn't know that.

It is inconceivable to me that he wouldn't have tried. Both as the only surviving member of his people and as the Avatar charged with the responsibility to restore balance to the world, he surely would've pursued any possible avenue for restoring the Air Nomads. (If this weren't a kids' show, I'm sure he would've impregnated lots of women besides his wife. Hey, it was his moral duty! ) So he had a huge, huge incentive to consider the possibility that energybending could be used to create abilities as well as remove them. He would certainly have had the idea and have tried very hard to make it happen. So if he couldn't do it, given the literally existential stakes motivating the attempt, I doubt very much that anyone could.

Well, maybe he didn't try hard enough!

Katara couldn't do anything for Korra, yet a solution presented itself anyway, so who knows.

Also, I was wondering if Tarrlok and Noalok's mother was a bender. I figured she wasn't and got to thinking that since those kids got bending abilities, Amon's attempt to make everyone equal would have been futile. Bending would just come back as children of "cleansed" benders were born.

I made a similar observation a week ago, in post #369. We do know that neither of Katara's parents was a waterbender.

So you did.

 

[James Tiberius Kirk]

Overall I like the finale, but I do feel it was a bit rushed and needlessly closed off some potentially good story ideas. I feel like at least a few episode arc of Korra sans water/earth/fire bending would have had the potential to be interesting. And I think it would have been worthwhile to explore what would happen if at least one character lost their bending permanently or medium to long term and had to cope; it would allow them to more deeply explore the theme of bending vs. technology that they've been playing with a bit.

 

[Christopher]

They could still visit the issue of bending loss. Maybe they could introduce (or bring back) a character who's had time to adjust to being without bending and decides to stay that way. Maybe Tahno, the pro-bending champion, could've learned humility from the loss and decided he didn't want to go back to being the abusive jerk he was when he had bending power. Maybe ex-benders could've formed a support group and developed a sense of pride about their status, and some are reluctant to give it up.

 

[RoJoHen]

I hope that Book 2 deals with the consequences of the Equalist movement. Just because its leader was a liar doesn't mean the movement itself didn't raise valid concerns. Is the world still ruled by Benders? What do non-Benders have to say about it?

 

[Hound of UIster]

- This ties in to a overall issue I have with the show. They've made the removal of bending essentially equal to death. Benders without bending are pathetic losers, unable to fend for themselves. It is not stated outright, but the implications are everywhere. And I find that very troubling. Think of how great of a kids show it could be if it showed a character lose their special ability, but STILL fight on - not feeling handicapped by their loss. Showing that they are not defined as characters by their bending. Oh well.

Otherwise a very good hour...

People who lose their hearing or vision or otherwise become physically disabled don't just "get over it" in a short period of time, nor are they very happy about it. None of the characters who lost their bending had very much time to reflect on it and "bounce back".

And she was about to jump and kill herself if Aang hadn't give stepped in. All that talk about "lowest point" was parental approved code speak for suicide.

Now everyone who lost their bending will have to be contacted so they can get it restored by Korra. It'll be quite a day and quite a line-up. I wonder if a non-bender will try to sneak in and try to get a bending ability. Maybe someone will, then Korra will discover that there's nothing to unlock and the poor guy will be escorted out thinking... "Hey, I tried!" That'll be the cue for any other non-bender in the line to leave quietly.

Now if a non-bender actually does manage to get an ability, that would be something.

Bending other than what type of element doesn't seem to be really genetic. It seems it's more dependent on the spirituality of the individual since Air Nomads were all 100 percent benders and there is the example of the twins in Earth Kingdom with one being a bender and the other not.

 

[intrinsical]

Still, I think the finale does set up a few interesting threads. For one, the introduction of Iroh and Bumi means season 2 will probably shift focus away from Republic City to the rest of the world.

With Mako snubbing Asami for Korra, I get the sneaky feeling that Asami will eventually follow in her father's footsteps and possibly re-create a new Equalist movement. This time the movement will be a lot more credible with a non-bender leader who lost her parent(s) and her happy life to benders.

 

[RoJoHen]

With Mako snubbing Asami for Korra, I get the sneaky feeling that Asami will eventually follow in her father's footsteps and possibly re-create a new Equalist movement.

Ew, I hope not. Asami hated what her father was doing. I hope she is simply able to get over it. Maybe she can hook up with Iroh.

 

[Christopher]

I hope that Book 2 deals with the consequences of the Equalist movement. Just because its leader was a liar doesn't mean the movement itself didn't raise valid concerns. Is the world still ruled by Benders? What do non-Benders have to say about it?

Technically the world was never ruled by benders. In A:TLA, of the various national leaders, three -- the Earth King Kuei, Chief Arnook of the Northern Water Tribe, and Chief Hakoda of the Southern Water Tribe -- were non-benders, and only one -- Fire Lord Ozai -- was a bender. (Well, two if you count Aang as the de facto "ruler" of the Air Nomads.)

And we don't know who the current rulers of the various nations are and whether they're benders. (The current Fire Lord is Zuko's daughter, who's likely to be a firebender, but that's unconfirmed.) All we know is that the United Republic of Nations, created from the former Fire Nation colonies within the western Earth kingdom, has been ruled by an all-bender council during the timespan of TLOK Book 1, though I'd expect that to change in the near future.

And she was about to jump and kill herself if Aang hadn't give stepped in. All that talk about "lowest point" was parental approved code speak for suicide.

I'm not sure I'd agree with that. It's one possible interpretation of that scene, but it's far from the only one. She might've entertained the thought, but I think Korra is too much of a fighter to give up like that.

 

[RoJoHen]

I didn't really mean "world" literally so much I just meant the, I guess, storytelling world of the Avatar universe. From what we saw of the Equalist movement, there are a fair amount of non-Benders who feel as though as they are not receiving the same kind of treatment as Benders. Amon may be gone, but he still had a lot of followers, and I'm sure there are plenty of "normals" that hold some animosity towards Benders. Amon's movement wouldn't have become such a threat if there wasn't some validity to his stance.

 

[JD]

With Mako snubbing Asami for Korra, I get the sneaky feeling that Asami will eventually follow in her father's footsteps and possibly re-create a new Equalist movement.

Ew, I hope not. Asami hated what her father was doing. I hope she is simply able to get over it. Maybe she can hook up with Iroh.

Same here. I really grew to like her character over the last few episodes, and I would hate for them to turn her into a villain. Obviously she's going to be hurt, and she'll probably not be Korra's best friend, but I'd rather not see her go the full villain route.

 

[RoJoHen]

It's also a completely ridiculous motivation for her to be a villain. I could maybe see her going "rogue" or something just so she doesn't have to be around Korra and Mako all the time, but I seriously doubt she'll become a bad guy.

 

[Christopher]

Of course Asami's not going to become an Equalist. Even when she was jealous of Korra and Mako, she still fought alongside them, still put what was right above her personal soap opera. If she didn't turn on them now, there's no reason she would later.

 

[intrinsical]

Don't get me wrong. The current Equalist movement is created in Amon and Kato's image. Angry, vengeful and violent. That isn't Asami's way.

I think Asami might create a new Equalist movement that is largely non-violent in nature, an organization that truly strives to give non-benders a say in how their world is ruled. However, I suspect Korra now has a bias against any Equalist movement, which would put Korra and Asami on different sides. How they resolve their differences, is something I would love to see. Would they physically fight each other, I hope so :P but I think ultimately Korra and Asami would come to respect each other's perspective and work out a compromise that is beneficial to both benders and non-benders.

 

[Christopher]

I don't know -- if anything, I'd expect Asami to be the one who's biased against Equalism, because her father betrayed her in the name of Equalism. Losing a boyfriend is one thing, but losing a father? That's hurt her much more deeply, and she'd probably blame the Equalists for the pain.

 

[Manticore]

And we don't know who the current rulers of the various nations are and whether they're benders. (The current Fire Lord is Zuko's daughter, who's likely to be a firebender, but that's unconfirmed.) All we know is that the United Republic of Nations, created from the former Fire Nation colonies within the western Earth kingdom, has been ruled by an all-bender council during the timespan of TLOK Book 1, though I'd expect that to change in the near future

Do we know that everyone on the council are benders? Obviously Tarrlok and Tenzin were, but if I remember right, we didn't see any of the others ever bend. Also, Sokka and an unnamed Air Acolyte were on the council 40 years before, and clearly neither of them were benders.

I'm not saying that they weren't all benders; I just question the assumption that they were.

 

[1001001]

My son and I watched the finale last night.

We both thought it was great. A very good series.

Seeing Korra in the Avatar state had us both cheering.

I'm very interested to see where it goes from here.