5.6/10. Well, we're back to mediocrity again. Sokka showing off a strawman chauvinist streak, getting his but kicked by badass female warriors, learning their ways, and then falling in love with his trainer was all very, very rushed and filled with narrative shortcuts and cliches. In the same way, Aang letting his notoriety go to his head on the island, with more uninspired Aang-Katara relationship drama on top of a stock lesson about how adoration is intoxicating but distracting, was weak broth as well.
It wasn't all bad. The giant coy and snake monster riding was set up nicely and well-animated by this show's standards. Similarly, the showdown with Prince Zuko happened way too quickly, but it had some neat moments of the Fire Nation taking on the Kyoshi warriors.
The real strength of the episode only came at the end, when Aang looked down at the Kyoshi village in flames and realized that he'd been the cause of this. It's as nice a resolution to a pretty hackneyed fame story for him as there could be, with there being real pathos in the realization that even as a local celebrity and chosen one, he can't enjoy himself and has to be careful about whom she shares his identity with because his simply being some place can leave it in ruins thanks to the people hunting for him. There's weight to that, and it's something that was missing from the rest of this cheesy episode.
Yet again, I find myself liking the ideas behind this show, but not so much the way the show puts them into practice.
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParent2016-11-03T19:52:28Z
5.6/10. Well, we're back to mediocrity again. Sokka showing off a strawman chauvinist streak, getting his but kicked by badass female warriors, learning their ways, and then falling in love with his trainer was all very, very rushed and filled with narrative shortcuts and cliches. In the same way, Aang letting his notoriety go to his head on the island, with more uninspired Aang-Katara relationship drama on top of a stock lesson about how adoration is intoxicating but distracting, was weak broth as well.
It wasn't all bad. The giant coy and snake monster riding was set up nicely and well-animated by this show's standards. Similarly, the showdown with Prince Zuko happened way too quickly, but it had some neat moments of the Fire Nation taking on the Kyoshi warriors.
The real strength of the episode only came at the end, when Aang looked down at the Kyoshi village in flames and realized that he'd been the cause of this. It's as nice a resolution to a pretty hackneyed fame story for him as there could be, with there being real pathos in the realization that even as a local celebrity and chosen one, he can't enjoy himself and has to be careful about whom she shares his identity with because his simply being some place can leave it in ruins thanks to the people hunting for him. There's weight to that, and it's something that was missing from the rest of this cheesy episode.
Yet again, I find myself liking the ideas behind this show, but not so much the way the show puts them into practice.