Avatar: The Last Airbenderhas found itself a well-deserved resurgence as of late, especially since its debut on Netflix in 2020. When it comes to characterization, story, world-building, and so much more,Avatar: The Last Airbenderis a masterclass in storytelling — and not just in the original animated series. The sequel seriesThe Legend of Korra, the comic books, and the Kyoshi and Yangchen novels are just a few other forms of media that the sprawlingAvatarstory continues to excel in. But now, after its revival and impressive performance on Netflix, an upcoming live-action adaptation of the original series is coming to Netflix. New animated movies andeven a video gameare also in the works. It is safe to say, it is a good time to be anAvatar: The Last Airbenderfan.
TheAvatar: The Last Airbenderfranchise is easilyone of the best seriesthat can be seen on television, let alone kids' television. Aang and the gang are one of TV’s best trios and are involved in a lot more stories than have been shown already. But it is somewhat disappointing that instead of exploring all the unique side stories in the franchise, futureAvatarcontent is going to be once again following Aang, Katara, Sokka, etc. That isn’t a bad thing; they are well-developed characters with massive fan bases that are thirsting for more amazing stories. But it is somewhat limiting that the world ofAvatar: The Last Airbenderis doing exactly whatStar Warshas done with the Skywalker Saga.
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Although both franchises are rich with lore, world-building, and characters, they have played it safe thus far. In terms ofAvatar: The Last Airbender, even when the lore has been expanded, it has been close or linked to the original series and its characters.The Legend of Korraeasily played it the safest with Korra being trained by Aang’s child, Tenzin. The series even went far enough to bring Aang in for numerous cameos to the series.
Although the series is Korra’s, it never truly feels just hers. Aang always seems to have a presence along with Katara making a few of here own cameos. The original series always has one foot in everything that has come after the original series. Even the comics are centered around the original cast of characters and their adventures during and afterAvatar: The Last Airbender.
There are many side stories and characters that could easily become their own series and/or book. Just one idea couple be an exploration of The Library. Not just the library itself or Wan Shi Tong, the Owl. But even just exploring the vast amount of knowledge and history throughout the library. Such a series would serve as a sort of anthology of the story world and the major events that had shaped it to be where it is. A more in-depth historical look into the nations would be great and even important for knowing the overall history of the Avatar. Fans might even like to see a miniseries planned out much like theAvatar: The Last Airbenderseries, with each season specifically focusing on the Air, Earth, Fire, and Fire nations.
But those are just ideas for the historical looks into theAvatar: The Last Airbenderfranchise. There have been some great side stories and characters throughout bothThe Last AirbenderandLegend of Korra. Zuko would be a great character to see star in his own show. He is part of the original series, which does go against some criticisms stated earlier. But he is much too interesting of a character with a family rich in history to not be explored more. What’s more, he is easily the most compelling character from the original series. Giving Zuko his own series would make for interesting stories to watch, read, or hear much like the Blue Spirit. It could go a couple of different routes, like exploring the legend that is alluded to in the episodes that it is featured in. Another idea could be to set the show during his multiple times alone, as he explores his own inner demons and motivations.
One of the best subjects for moreAvatarcontent is perhaps the darkest that has been introduced in the franchise. That is the ability of somewaterbenders to bend blood. Bloodbending is easily one of the most interesting things to come from the concept of bending. The few times it has been featured, it easily was able to carry the story. But bloodbending isn’t the only sub-bending that would be cool to further explore in another form of media. There are plenty of other sub-bending concepts not explored nearly to their full potential, and they to be the focus of their own story. How that is told is up for debate, but it remains an interesting idea in a long list of amazing concepts to come fromAvatar: The Last Airbender.
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