The Legend of Korra - Book Two: Spirits

[RoJoHen]

Otherwise, my main disappointment is that Asami was left out of the climax. It's not really Team Avatar without her. She didn't even get a subplot.

This was my main disappointment as well. She sort of had a subplot at the beginning of the season with her company going under, but that was dropped around the time Mako went to prison.

I think the fact that Team Avatar was separated for most of this season really undermined the whole concept, which was admittedly intentional. Bolin even said as much to Asami. I hope that in the future seasons Asami gets more to do.

 

[Agent Richard07]

Apparently a challenge was issued and if it were to be met by the fans, the last two episodes would be released online.

[yt]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GS5IgJsjGqQ[/yt]

Blog Link: http://korranation.tumblr.com/post/67056426031/heres-our-big-news-straight-from-janet-varney

 

[Skywalker]

Yep! And the challenge was apparently beaten pretty quickly. Maybe twelve hours was a little too much time.

 

[Christopher]

Well, I don't think they wanted the challenge to fail. I suspect they wanted to prove that the fanbase was large and dedicated enough that they could easily make the deadline.

 

[Kelthaz]

That was disappointing. Too many DBZ battles and deus ex machinas coming out of nowhere to give Korra and Unalaq more power. Very disappointing.

 

[Christopher]

I don't think anything here was a deus ex machina. That refers to a contrived solution introduced without any setup or foundation in what's come before. I don't think that's the case. What we saw here was grounded in things that have been established going all the way back to A:TLA. Tenzin told Korra to do as the ancients did: rather than bending the elements, bend the energy within herself. That's almost a direct quote of what the Lion-Turtle said to Aang in "Sozin's Comet." The astral plane that Korra entered was the same one Aang accessed in "The Guru." And as I said, her giant astral form had a parallel in Aang's giant koi-spirit form in "The Siege of the North."

 

[FPAlpha]

For the most part a very good finale.

Could have done without the more static giant battle because i loved the dynamic Korra/Unalaq battle, that would look fantastic with today's SFX effects (and get Gina Carano to play Korra, she was the inspiration after all ).

Since i'm not well versed in Avatar lore (having only catched bits and pieces of The Last Airbender) i most likely missed many allusions in the greater Avatar universe but i'm not bothered too much.

One thing though still raised questions.. what kind of power did Jinora display there? She near effortlessly hit giant Unalaq with some kind of energy and i was wondering what that was.

Another question i wondered is, and they explicitly mentioned it, where Vatu now is? Rava said she can't totally destroy the darkness as well as darkness can't destroy the light so where is the Vatu spirit?

Once Korra defeated giant Unalaq the Vatu spirit was nowhere to be seen.

Anyway.. i had hoped the Dark Avatar concept would be kept around for the time being to have an equal enemy to Korra but oh well.. let's see what they come up with for the next season.

Overall i didn't like this season as much as the first. The Spirit and real world stories just didn't flow well together and i especially disliked the real world events as they often seemed illogical, silly and downright implausible ( i know, Korra is a show airing on a children's channel) but it didn't have to be. Good writing can appeal to both kids and adults (see early Pixar movies).

However the Spirit part of the season was awesome, especially the two parter with Wan, the first Avatar. I hope they use that artstyle for the whole third season as it looked gorgeous.

Last thing.. i just absolutely adore the music of the show. I hope we get a full and extended soundtrack sometime.

 

[Christopher]

One thing though still raised questions.. what kind of power did Jinora display there? She near effortlessly hit giant Unalaq with some kind of energy and i was wondering what that was.

Probably something that came from Raava.

Another question i wondered is, and they explicitly mentioned it, where Vatu now is? Rava said she can't totally destroy the darkness as well as darkness can't destroy the light so where is the Vatu spirit?

In the same state Raava would've been if Jinora hadn't recovered her: dissipated and neutralized for the next 10,000 years. It won't be until the next harmonic convergence that Vaatu would become active and able to challenge Raava once again. That's why they were saying there'd be 10,000 years of darkness if Vaatu won: because it'd be that long before Raava could be reborn/reconstituted and challenge Vaatu once again. Instead, it turned out the other way around, and we'll have another 10,000 years of Raava and the Avatar in charge.

 

[Reverend]

I don't think anything here was a deus ex machina. That refers to a contrived solution introduced without any setup or foundation in what's come before. I don't think that's the case. What we saw here was grounded in things that have been established going all the way back to A:TLA. Tenzin told Korra to do as the ancients did: rather than bending the elements, bend the energy within herself. That's almost a direct quote of what the Lion-Turtle said to Aang in "Sozin's Comet." The astral plane that Korra entered was the same one Aang accessed in "The Guru." And as I said, her giant astral form had a parallel in Aang's giant koi-spirit form in "The Siege of the North."

Yeah, they played fair for the most part...though perhaps that thing with Jinora might qualify. We still don't quite understand what the hell she did.

To be fair though, this may actually be set up for her story ar in book 3. We'll see.

That's why they were saying there'd be 10,000 years of darkness if Vaatu won: because it'd be that long before Raava could be reborn/reconstituted and challenge Vaatu once again. Instead, it turned out the other way around, and we'll have another 10,000 years of Raava and the Avatar in charge.

For me the interesting part is that the next time this happens, Vaatu will emerge from within the Avatar, once again bound to Raava.

I know the likelihood of them doing anything with that concept is slim, but I can't help wonder what would happen to an Avatar with both those cosmic spirits within them...also, what the world would look like after another 10,000 years. Would living with the spirits make humans regress, or would they continue to develop their technology?

I suddenly have a mental image of a universe that looks like 'Dune' crossed with 'Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within' and 'Bausicaa of the Valley of the Wind'.

 

[SG-17]

I don't think anything here was a deus ex machina. That refers to a contrived solution introduced without any setup or foundation in what's come before. I don't think that's the case. What we saw here was grounded in things that have been established going all the way back to A:TLA. Tenzin told Korra to do as the ancients did: rather than bending the elements, bend the energy within herself. That's almost a direct quote of what the Lion-Turtle said to Aang in "Sozin's Comet." The astral plane that Korra entered was the same one Aang accessed in "The Guru." And as I said, her giant astral form had a parallel in Aang's giant koi-spirit form in "The Siege of the North."

Yeah, they played fair for the most part...though perhaps that thing with Jinora might qualify. We still don't quite understand what the hell she did.

To be fair though, this may actually be set up for her story ar in book 3. We'll see.

That's why they were saying there'd be 10,000 years of darkness if Vaatu won: because it'd be that long before Raava could be reborn/reconstituted and challenge Vaatu once again. Instead, it turned out the other way around, and we'll have another 10,000 years of Raava and the Avatar in charge.

For me the interesting part is that the next time this happens, Vaatu will emerge from within the Avatar, once again bound to Raava.

I know the likelihood of them doing anything with that concept is slim, but I can't help wonder what would happen to an Avatar with both those cosmic spirits within them...also, what the world would look like after another 10,000 years. Would living with the spirits make humans regress, or would they continue to develop their technology?

I suddenly have a mental image of a universe that looks like 'Dune' crossed with 'Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within' and 'Bausicaa of the Valley of the Wind'.

Would the Avatar that exists 10,000 years in the future even be from Earth at all?

After the technological advancements seen in the past 70 years after the end of the 100 Years War, the 10,000 year time frame becomes more science fiction and less fantasy steampunk.



I wonder, even though Korra lost her connection to the previous Avatars from the First Cycle, could their individual spirits still exist within the Spirit World? Or did the destruction of Raava also destroy their spirits? It is unclear whether or not the past Avatar's human spirits exist in the Spirit World or only within Raava herself. The comics do mention Kuruk attempting to get revenge of Koh even after his death.

 

[Agent Richard07]

A lot is changing in the world of Avatar. Amon's movement to take away bending, technological advancement, the end/beginning of a new cycle, spirits living among humans again and Korra saying that there's a shift in the world's energy. And that's just in the first two books. This show seems to be all about shaking things up so I can't help but wonder if this new 10,000 year cycle will be shaken up again before the show is done.

 

[Kelthaz]

I don't think anything here was a deus ex machina. That refers to a contrived solution introduced without any setup or foundation in what's come before.

Vaatu's prison was, very conveniently for Korra, a magical tree that turns you into a super powered giant if you meditate inside it.

Also, Jinora's magical powers that saved Korra in the end. Yes, we know she has a strong connection to the spirits, but that does not explain her powers.

 

[Christopher]

Yeah, they played fair for the most part...though perhaps that thing with Jinora might qualify. We still don't quite understand what the hell she did.

But that wasn't a deus ex machina, because even while it wasn't fully explained, it was seeded from nearly the beginning of the season that Jinora had special spiritual abilities.

...also, what the world would look like after another 10,000 years. Would living with the spirits make humans regress, or would they continue to develop their technology?

I see no reason why it would bring a regression. I mean, I doubt that spirits would fill the same roles that technology fills. They wouldn't sit in your living room and broadcast radio to you. They wouldn't let you ride them around town like you can in a car. They're just a new constituent of the world's population. Their presence might inspire whole new sciences and technologies.

I wonder, even though Korra lost her connection to the previous Avatars from the First Cycle, could their individual spirits still exist within the Spirit World? Or did the destruction of Raava also destroy their spirits? It is unclear whether or not the past Avatar's human spirits exist in the Spirit World or only within Raava herself. The comics do mention Kuruk attempting to get revenge of Koh even after his death.

The dialogue only suggested that the connection was severed. Although if Korra could just cross into the Spirit World and talk to them there, that would negate the whole point of that change, I think. Maybe they still exist somewhere, but not necessarily there. The SW didn't seem to be just the afterlife; Iroh was there specifically because he chose to cross to the SW before his bodily death, and Zhao was presumably there because the spirit that took him brought him there.

I don't think anything here was a deus ex machina. That refers to a contrived solution introduced without any setup or foundation in what's come before.

Vaatu's prison was, very conveniently for Korra, a magical tree that turns you into a super powered giant if you meditate inside it.

What really mattered there was the character arc -- Tenzin persuading Korra that what mattered was who she was, her own inner strength, rather than the Avatar powers that came from Raava. Just as Wan became the first Avatar because of his own personal heroism, so Korra could achieve the same. The tree wouldn't have allowed just anyone to astrally project a giant spirit form; it was just the catalyst for Korra achieving that herself. The external stuff with the tree and the battle was just symbolizing that character and thematic resolution.

Granted, it would've been nice if the significance of the tree had been seeded earlier, but that's superficial. The more fundamental resolution came from the emotional and thematic arcs coming to a climax, so it didn't feel to me like it came out of nowhere.

 

[Agent Richard07]

Some of these spirits are dangerous. Just think... Koh the Face-Stealer may now be on the loose.

 

[Christopher]

Some of these spirits are dangerous.

All the more reason why their presence will probably promote new technology -- such as defenses against dangerous spirits.

Hmm... like, say, maybe something using proton streams to capture them and direct them into some kind of trap...?

 

[M.A.C.O.]

Some of these spirits are dangerous.

All the more reason why their presence will probably promote new technology -- such as defenses against dangerous spirits.

Hmm... like, say, maybe something using proton streams to capture them and direct them into some kind of trap...?

^ Capturing Spirits and developing ways to fight against them makes me think of 'Equinox' and Captain Ransom. Lmao

 

[Peach Wookiee]

Guess Bolin' s next mover might be "Spirit Catchers."

 

[M.A.C.O.]

^ The Sequel can be titled "Spirited Away". lol


I just had a thought. With Raava and Vattu being yin&yang / light and dark; one cannot exist without the other. Since Korra destroyed Vattu/Unallok in the physical world, does that mean that a cycle of dark avatar's will now begin?

 

[Christopher]

I just had a thought. With Raava and Vattu being yin&yang / light and dark; one cannot exist without the other. Since Korra destroyed Vattu/Unallok in the physical world, does that mean that a cycle of dark avatar's will now begin?

I don't think so. Unalaq and Vaatu believed that dissipating Raava would end the Avatar cycle. So since Korra dissipated Vaatu (and Unalaq) in the same way, that suggests there won't be a dark Avatar cycle.

See, one has to look at it in Eastern terms, which include a very, very long and cyclical sense of time. Saying that Raava and Vaatu's coexistence is eternal doesn't mean they have to be equally present at every moment, because eternity is really, really long. One or the other can be dissipated for a whole 10,000 years, but that's a temporary setback for an eternal spirit. However, on a human scale, it's much more permanent. If Vaatu had won, he would've brought 10,000 years of darkness and chaos, but only 10,000. Raava could've come back at the start of the next 10-millennium cycle and wrestled him back into submission, but as far as humanity was concerned, it would still have been the end of the world, since nobody human would still be around when the time came, and maybe the whole human race would be extinct.

 

[Reverend]

Would the Avatar that exists 10,000 years in the future even be from Earth at all?

After the technological advancements seen in the past 70 years after the end of the 100 Years War, the 10,000 year time frame becomes more science fiction and less fantasy steampunk.

That's more or less what I was thinking, hence 'Dune' & 'Spirits Within'.

Of course technological development isn't a straight-line progression. We saw in the flashback to Wan's time how relatively little advancement was made over the last 10,000 years with most of it taking place in the last century and a half...not unlike the real world I suppose.

Still at some point it's going to have to plateau or regress and maybe stagnate a bit, otherwise it's a story about non-corporeal space consciousnesses dropping monoliths on cavemen.

It would be cool I think to see where they could go with this IP into a science fiction setting. Is the spirit world bound to just this one planet, or does it border the entire universe? Would the spirits travel with the humans into colonising space (nature spirits would be handy for terraforming, no?) If they find life on other worlds, will there be alien spirits too? How would element bending work in this world? They already have power stations run on fire-bending, why not a spaceship?

The possibilities are interesting to say the least.