Avatar: The Last Airbender (also known as Avatar: The Legend of Aang in several countries) is a multi award-winning American animated television series that airs on the Nickelodeon television network and on Nicktoons Network. The show is set in an Asian-influenced world[1] of martial arts and elemental manipulation; the series follows the adventures of Aang and his friends, who try to save the world from war with the Fire Nation.[2] The show's protagonist Aang is trapped in an iceberg when he is found by two members of the Southern Water Tribe, Katara and Sokka.[3] After being freed from the iceberg, Katara and Sokka join Aang on a long journey across the globe; their ultimate goal is to help Aang acquire the skills to defeat the Fire Lord and end the war.[4] In the series' terminology, each episode is referred to as a "chapter", and each season as a "book."
It made its debut on February 21, 2005; it is now available on DVD, the iTunes Store, and the Xbox Live Marketplace, as well as its home on Nickelodeon.[5] Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko co-created the series, and serve as executive producers alongside Aaron Ehasz. Avatar: The Last Airbender is popular with both audiences and critics,[6] garnering 4.4 million viewers on its best-rated showing and receiving high ratings in the Nicktoons lineup, even outside its 6–11-year-old demographic.[4][7] The series' success prompted Nickelodeon to order second[8] and third[9] seasons. Merchandise based on the series include scaled action figures,[10] a trading card game,[11][12] three video games based on the first,[13] second,[14][15] and third seasons, stuffed animals distributed by Paramount Parks, and two LEGO sets.[16]
Contents [hide]
1 Background
1.1 Premise
1.2 Plot synopsis
2 Characters
3 Influences
3.1 Cultural references
3.1.1 Avatar
3.1.2 Elements
3.2 Western culture
3.3 Asian culture
3.3.1 Calligraphy
3.3.2 Fighting styles
3.4 Asian film
3.5 Anime
4 Response
4.1 Ratings
4.2 Awards and Nominations
5 Media information
5.1 Promotion and merchandising
5.2 Feature film adaptation
6 References
7 External links
Background
Avatar: The Last Airbender is co-created and produced by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko at Nickelodeon Animation Studios in Burbank, California. According to Bryan Konietzko, the concept of the program was conceived in Spring 2001, when he took an old sketch of a balding, middle-aged man; he re-imagined the character as a child, and the show began to develop.[1] Bryan drew the character herding bison in the sky, and showed the sketch to Mike DiMartino. At the time, Michael was studying a documentary about explorers trapped in the South Pole. Konietzko described their early development of the concept:
We thought, "There's an air guy along with these water people trapped in a snowy wasteland... and maybe some fire people are pressing down on them..."
—Bryan Konietzko[1]
The co-creators proceeded to successfully pitch the idea to Nickelodeon VP and executive producer Eric Coleman just two weeks later.[17]
The show was first revealed to the public in a teaser reel at Comic-Con 2004,[18] and aired February 21, 2005. In the United States, the first two episodes of the series were shown together in a one-hour premiere event. At the conclusion of the first season, Nickelodeon ordered a second twenty-episode season that premiered on March 17, 2006, and concluded on December 1.[8] The series maintained its success during the second season, causing Nickelodeon to order a third and final season, which began on September 21, 2007 and will feature twenty-one episodes rather than the usual twenty.[9] The final four episodes will be packaged as a two-hour movie. Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko have also confirmed that a new series of Avatar, focusing on another incarnation of the character, is in the process of being made.[19]
Premise
A map of the four nations. The characters at the top, 群雄四分, mean "the heroes divide [the world or the country or the land] in four." The characters of the four lands are 水善 (Water Peaceful), 土強 (Earth Strong), 火烈 (Fire Fierce), and 气和 (Air Harmony). The phrase at the bottom, 天下一匡, reads "correct all things under heaven." The "correct things" phrase, with roots of the Confucian analect phrase 一匡天下, refers to reunification.[citation needed]Avatar: The Last Airbender takes place in a fantasy world, home to humans, fantastic animals, and supernatural spirits. Human civilization is divided into four nations: the Water Tribes, the Earth Kingdom, the Air Nomads, and the Fire Nation. Each nation has its own natural element, on which it bases its society. Within each nation exists an order called "Benders", who have the ability to manipulate the element of their nation. The show's creators assigned each Bending art its own style of martial arts; each Bending art inherited the advantages and weaknesses of the martial arts it was assigned. The Bending types are Waterbending, Earthbending, Firebending, and Airbending.[20]
Each generation yields one person who is capable of Bending all four elements. This being is referred to as the Avatar, the spirit of the planet manifested in human form. When an Avatar dies, they are reincarnated into the next nation in the Avatar Cycle. The Avatar Cycle parallels the seasons: winter for The Water Tribes, spring for the Earth Kingdom, summer for the Fire Nation, and autumn for the Air Nomads.[21] Legend holds the Avatar must master each bending art in order, starting with their native element. This can sometimes be compromised when the situation requires it, as Aang demonstrates in the show. For the Avatar, learning to bend the element opposite their native element can be extremely difficult. This is because opposing Bending arts are based on opposing fighting styles and disciplines. Firebending and Waterbending are opposites, as are Earthbending and Airbending.[22]
The Avatar possesses a unique power called the Avatar State. It empowers the Avatar with the knowledge and abilities of all past Avatars, and is used as a defense mechanism.[23] If an Avatar is killed in the Avatar State, the reincarnation cycle will be broken, and the Avatar cycle will end.[23]
Through the ages, countless incarnations of Avatar have served to keep the four nations in harmony, and maintain world order.[20] The Avatar serves as the bridge between the physical world and the Spirit World, allowing him or her to solve problems that normal benders cannot.[24]
Plot synopsis
Main article: List of Avatar: The Last Airbender episodes
A century prior to the series' opening, when Aang was 12 years old, he was frozen into a state of suspended animation. After being awoken by two children from the Southern Water Tribe, he finds the world nearly conquered by the imperialist Fire Nation, led by the Fire Lord Ozai. As the Avatar, he sets out to master the four elements, defeat the Fire Lord Ozai, and bring balance to the world.
Characters
Main article: List of Avatar: The Last Airbender characters
Aang (Zach Tyler Eisen) is the fun-loving, 112-year-old protagonist of the series. He is biologically 12 years old but was frozen in an iceberg for 100 years. He is the current incarnation of the Avatar, the spirit of the planet in human form. Being a reluctant hero, he admits his preference for adventure over saving the world and making friends over fighting the Fire Nation.
Katara (Mae Whitman) is a 14-year-old[20] Waterbender of the Southern Water Tribe. In the opening of the show, Katara discovers and frees Aang from an iceberg which he was trapped in for one hundred years. With her older brother Sokka, she accompanies Aang on his quest to defeat the Fire Lord, and bring peace to the world.
Sokka (Jack DeSena) is a 15 year old warrior of the Southern Water Tribe. With his sister Katara, he accompanies Aang on his quest to defeat the Fire Lord. The joker of the group, Sokka describes himself as "meat-loving" and "sarcastic".[22] Unlike his companions, Sokka cannot bend an element, but the series frequently grants him opportunities to use his true gifts: ingenuity and use of weapons, including his trusty boomerang and a sword he forged from a meteor after training under the greatest swordsmaster in the Fire Nation.
Toph Bei Fong (Jessie Flower) is a 12-year-old,[20] blind Earthbender. In the second season of the show, she leaves her wealthy family and home to join Aang on his quest, with a plan to teach him earthbending. Though blind, Toph "sees" with Earthbending; she feels the vibrations in the ground through her feet. After being captured by two Earthbenders, she learns to bend metal, as it is merely purified Earth.
Zuko (Dante Basco) is the 16 year old exiled prince of the Fire Nation and original antagonist of the series. In the first season, Zuko is obsessed with capturing the Avatar. Due to events in Zuko's past, his father, Fire Lord Ozai, deems him a complete failure. Over time, Zuko struggles to deal with his anger, self-pity, and familial relationships; meanwhile, he grows sympathetic to the peoples his nation has terrorized. In the third season, he defects from his father and the Fire Nation, and joins Aang and the team and is now Aang's firebending teacher. At the end of the series he is crowned Fire Lord of the Fire Nation.
Azula (Grey DeLisle) is the 14 year-old[20] princess of the Fire Nation. She is Zuko's younger sister and main rival and one of the major antagonists of the series. Cruel and self-centered since youth, Azula is a manipulative, sadistic, and self-admitted sociopath. Azula is considered a firebending prodigy, and is one of the few living firebenders capable of summoning lightning, as well as bend blue fire. She has no qualms about bullying and threatening her relatives, reserving any familial loyalty for her father, who greatly favors her over Zuko.
Mai (Cricket Leigh) is the 16-year-old Fire Nation warrior who travels with Azula. She has shown romantic interest in Zuko, going as far as being his girlfriend. She loves Zuko more than she fears Azula, betraying her to save him.
Ty Lee (Olivia Hack) is the acrobatic Fire Nation citizen that travels with Azula. She, like Mai, cares about her friend more than she fears Azula. She betrayed Azula to save Mai. She joins the Kyoshi Warriors at the end of Sozin's comet.
Iroh (Mako in seasons 1 and 2, Greg Baldwin onwards) is a retired Fire Nation general and Prince Zuko's uncle and mentor. Being the older brother of Fire Lord Ozai, Iroh was the original heir to the Fire Nation throne.[25] On the surface, Iroh is a cheerful and kind old man, but underneath his exterior remains a competent warrior and a devoted surrogate parent to Zuko, especially after losing his only child in battle. He is a Grand Master of the Order of the White Lotus, a secret society of men from all nations.
Suki (Jennie Kwan) is the leader of the young female warriors of Kyoshi Island, she is a tough fighter and staunch ally of Aang, Katara, and Sokka. Suki has a close relationship with Sokka. Her main weapons are fans, the same type of weapon used by Avatar Kyoshi herself.
Influences
Cultural references
Avatar is notable for borrowing extensively from Asian art and mythology to create its fictional universe. The show's character designs are heavily influenced by anime; the show, however, is not considered an "anime" because of its origination in the United States. Explicitly stated influences include Chinese art and history, Japanese anime, Hinduism (India), Taoism (China), Buddhism (India),[26] and Yoga (India).[27] The production staff employs a cultural consultant, Edwin Zane, to review scripts.
Avatar
The term "Avatar" comes from the Sanskrit word Avatāra, (Sanskrit: अवतार), which means "descent." In Hindu mythology, gods manifest themselves into Avatars to restore balance on earth, usually after a period of great evil. The Chinese characters that appear at the top of the show's title card mean "the divine medium who has descended upon the mortal world."[28]
When Aang was a child, he unknowingly revealed that he was the Avatar; he chose four toys out of thousands, each of which were toys that previous Avatars had selected. In Tibetan Buddhism, there is a similar test for reincarnations of a Tulku Lama. According to the book Magic and Mystery in Tibet by Alexandra David-Neel, "a number of objects such as rosaries, ritualistic implements, books, tea-cups, etc., are placed together, and the child must pick out those which belonged to the late tulku, thus showing that he recognizes the things which were theirs in their previous life."[29] The show's official site states "the successor is expected to show signs of continuity with the previous Avatar, such as being born within a week of the death."[20]
Elements
Avatar draws on the four classical elements common to most ancient philosophies (rather than the five classical Chinese elements) for its bending arts: Water, Earth, Fire and Air. Although each has its own variation, most ancient philosophies incorporate these four elements in some way: examples include the classical Hindu, Buddhist, Greek and Japanese elemental traditions.
In the show’s opening, each element is accompanied by 2 Chinese characters: an ancient Chinese seal script character on the left, and a modern Chinese character on the right:
Water (水) is associated with "" (Chinese: 善; pinyin: shàn), which means "benevolent" or "adaptive."
Earth (土) is associated with "" (traditional Chinese: 強; simplified Chinese: 强; pinyin: qiáng), which means "strong."
Fire (火) is associated with "" (Chinese: 烈; pinyin: liè), which means "intense" or "ferocious."
Air (气) is associated with "" (Chinese: 和; pinyin: hé), which means "peaceful" or "harmonious".[30]
Western culture
Film series such as Star Wars, as well book series such as Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings, were a heavy influence when it came to developing the story of Avatar. The creators wanted to tell their own epic Legend & Lore story.[31]
Asian culture
Calligraphy
Traditional East Asian calligraphy styles are used for nearly all the writing in the show. For each instance of calligraphy, an appropriate style is used, ranging from seal script (more archaic) to clerical script.[28] The show employs calligrapher Siu-Leung Lee as a consultant and translator.[27]
Fighting styles
The fighting choreography of the show draws from martial arts; the fighting styles and weaponry are based on Chinese martial arts, with each bending art corresponding to a certain real-world style. The creators use Bagua for airbending, Hung Gar for earthbending, Northern Shaolin for firebending, and Tai Chi for waterbending.[20] The only exception to this is Toph, who employs a Chu Gar Southern Praying Mantis style.[32] The show employs Sifu Kisu of the Harmonious Fist Chinese Athletic Association as a martial arts consultant.[33]
Each fighting style was chosen to represent the element it projected:
Tai Chi focuses on alignment, body structure, breath, and visualization. This technique is known as "Waterbending" in the "Avatar" series.[20]
Hung Gar was chosen for its firmly rooted stances and powerful strikes to represent the solid nature of earth. This is known as "Earthbending" in the series.[20]
Chu Gar Southern Praying Mantis has distinguishing movements and unique footwork that are employed by Toph Bei Fong to complement her blindness, giving her an anomalous style of Earthbending.[32]
Northern Shaolin Kung Fu uses strong arm and leg movements. This is known as "Firebending" in the series.[20]
Bagua uses erratic, circular movements.[20] In Bagua, Centrifugal force plays a vital role in generating power, and the nearly constant circular movement creates angles between the fighters. This makes it easier for the practitioner to defend and attack. This is known as "Airbending" and is the bending style of the main character, Aang.[34][35]
Asian film
The choreographed martial art bending moves were profoundly affected by Asian cinema. Avatar creators Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino stated the particular influence in a magazine interview:
Asian cinema is really good at action comedy. Shaolin Soccer is one of our favorite movies. It has tons of fantastic action and lots of funny moments. Some of the effects provided inspiration for how bending moves might look on the show."[1]
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