Avatar: The Last Airbender
Cast & Key People
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Our Review
The greatest animated series ever made, and I’ll fight anyone who says otherwise. On its face a Nickelodeon kids’ show about a monk of just twelve who must master four elements to stop an imperial war, in practice, an epic of 61 episodes about genocide, imperialism, disability, and the radical choice not to commit violence. Aang’s refusal to kill Ozai in the finale is one of the boldest moral choices in American kids’ TV, and the show builds it for three seasons without ever blinking.
Zuko’s redemption arc is the finest character arc in television, full stop. His season 2 Zuko Alone episode and the season 3 beach episode and the final Agni Kai with Azula, a villain who breaks because her family broke her, are masterclasses. Iroh’s Tales of Ba Sing Se segment (“Leaves from the vine”) is the most devastating four minutes in animation. And it’s funny! Sokka carries the comedy without ever undercutting the stakes.
Verdict: Non negotiable. Watch it, then watch Korra, then watch it again.
