Welcome back for another weekly review of Avatar! This week, we meet the King of Omashu. How does the episode hold up? Here are my thoughts.
1. Avatar finds its funny!
I had an absolute blast watching this episode. Every scene had immense energy, and JOKES! Not just jokes, there were a TON of GREAT jokes! Humor in the previous episodes was limited to the occasional sarcastic comment or situational irony (plus that bit of potty humor that was forced into that first episode), but here we get clever jokes everywhere, including the ever-popular cabbage merchant and the single cough. Not to mention, the central plot twist is itself a joke.
This is where Avatar really establishes its identity as a fun, exciting, genuinely funny show, even though it can deal with tough topics.
2. Earthbending.
We also see earthbending for the first time outside of the intro sequence, meaning we’ve now been exposed to all types of bending. In addition to the concrete, grounded Hungar style of Kung Fu used for the bending, the personalities of these people tends to be more grounded, and the entire culture of Omashu has a clear structure. And speaking of structures…
3. Omashu’s Architecture.
In past episodes, we’ve gotten some nice backgrounds. Given that they took place in the Arctic, or a single temple, or a small village, though, we didn’t get to see any architectural art. And wow, is that rectified with this episode. As Sokka said: “They have buildings that don’t melt here!”
The whole large city is composed of series of Asian-inspired buildings and long chutes, which intricately connect and disband. That first pan up where we see the whole city left me breathless. Now THIS is the art I have come to know and love from this show.
4. Aang’s past meets his present.
Spoiler warning: I really enjoyed how Aang’s flashback connected to the present situation. It allowed a link between his past and present, and one that truly hasn’t changed in all that time. Aang’s journey so far has focused on him realizing how much the world had changed, so this constant gave Aang hope, something (excuse the term again) concrete to latch onto. That ending scene where he embraces his old friend? Truly heartwarming.
5. No Zuko?
I was a little surprised that Zuko didn’t show up at all here. I mistakenly thought he appeared in every episode, though his plots may not always link up to the rest of the gang. I guess he’s more of a supporting character in this season, which I’m cool with since his current status quo — while important to establish in this season — isn’t anywhere near as interesting as where it would be in future seasons.
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What did you think of the episode? Let me know in the comments!
