The Last Airbender Can Make 1 Season 3 Fight Even Better With Its Aang Change

Warning: This article contains spoilers for the original animated Avatar: The Last Airbender season 3.

Netflix’s live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender introduces changes to Aang’s character that could make a big season 3 fight even better. Netflix’s live-action adaptation has already prepared audiences for a remixed version of the original animated series’ story. Major changes include earlier introductions to characters, like Azula, and removing the timeline for Sozin’s Comet, which is what the animated show’s three seasons built up to.

While Avatar: The Last Airbender‘s timeline change may seem drastic, it allows the live-action show to explore more storylines and lore from the Avatar-verse in a way the original series couldn’t. This includes elements like Zuko’s mother’s story and Avatar Kyoshi’s life, thanks to the comics and novels created outside the main original series. The Avatar: The Last Airbender showrunner Albert Kim also shared a big shift for the live-action Aang, namely that the Avatar State works differently.

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Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender Can Make Aang’s Final Battle With Ozai Even Better

Originally, Aang was expected to go into the Avatar State much more in the live-action show. However, Kim’s explanation that this state will be much more selective than in the original series puts emphasis on the effect of Aang using it. Reserving Aang’s use of the Avatar State for bigger moments can also raise the action and responsibility that comes with being the Avatar. One major moment like this is what the original show culminates in, namely Aang’s fight with Fire Lord Ozai.

Aang’s fight with Ozai is in the original series finale, indicating it’s a culmination of all his training. By saving the Avatar State for crucial moments, it will help make Aang’s fight with Ozai an even more epic display of the young Avatar’s power and his mastery over his abilities. If Aang is made to be more careful with the extent of his power, the final moment in his fight with Ozai when Aang spares his life will be an even greater sign of his development as a character.

ATLA live action vs animated feat. Katara

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Changing Aang’s Avatar State Rules Makes Him An Even Stronger Protagonist

In the original series, Aang enters the Avatar State numerously from as early as the pilot episode. He is also shown to almost enter this state out of anger. This aligns with the challenges he faces while learning to bend all the elements. However, because Netflix’s adaptation has a time jump set up should a second season be greenlit, the story doesn’t need to rush his journey with his powers. By extension, use of the Avatar State can be more calculated, reserving VFX budgets for other elements that can ensure the show’s essence is captured, like locations and bending.

Moreover, the rules about the Avatar State require specific circumstances for it to activate. Thus, Aang will be much more developed physically and mentally because this will force him to be more diligent in his understanding of his Avatar abilities, as well as his connection to the Spirit World. While it’s clear he will enter the Avatar State, per the Avatar: The Last Airbender trailer, Netflix’s series can tie his use of this to how he learns each element, for instance, which reinvents the significance of using the Avatar State in a way that’s better suited for live-action.