“That’d make her look bad”: Avatar: The Last Airbender Creators Made Azula Irredeemable With 1 Scene That Not Even Her Ardent Fans Can Defend
Despite Avatar: The Last Airbender ending years ago, the questions and debates surrounding Aang and his life-changing journey keep coming up. The live-action adaptation is partly responsible for reigniting the debates and making fans relive the joy. Seeing the positive response to it, the creators are planning on an animated trilogy for the story too.
Avatar: The Last Airbender is a must-watch show for people who enjoy coming-of-age stories along with a looming danger that threatens to destroy the realm. Not just Aang, even the secondary characters in the show had their unique storyline and path to follow, which eventually made the show so much better.
Azula’s Irredeemable Action in Avatar: The Last Airbender Season 2 Finale
Beyond being a powerful and courageous character, Azula always saw the bigger picture and strategically played her moves. In the race to be dad’s favorite child in Avatar: The Last Airbender, Azula positioned herself two steps ahead of her brother Zuko, who had the reputation of messing things up too often. While she may not be the entire fandom’s favorite character on the show, she certainly lives up to her reputation and faces all challenges with her head held high.
So, when the time came to take the blame for the events in the finale of Avatar: The Last Airbender season 2, Azula wanted to ensure it didn’t come down to her. For those who don’t know (or forgot), the episode saw Azula strike Aang down with a lightning strike and hurt him badly. However, Katara, quite literally, came to the rescue and saved Aang with her healing abilities. It was Azula’s failure, but she told her father Lord Ozai that Zuko struck the Avatar down. Director Giancarlo Volpe explained on an episode of Braving the Elements,
“And now, what should have been a W for Azula is more of a question mark. Of course, she’s thinking she’s not gonna go back to dad and say “Dad, I’m so sorry. I had the Avatar dead to rights and I could have killed him, but Katara swooped in at the last minute, and I think she had healing water.” ‘Cause that’d make her look bad, but if she goes “Zuko finally got something right and killed the Avatar…” Now, Fire Lord is like “Wow! What a surprise, Zuko of all people?” And then when we find out he’s still alive, “Of course Zuko screwed that up” is what Ozai’s gonna think. This is the chess board that Azula is working with.”
This event further shows the far-sightedness and comprehensive thought that went behind scripting each aspect of the blockbuster show Avatar: The Last Airbender. Even though it made Azula into an evil and irredeemable character, the incident was important to show just how much Lord Ozai’s approval meant to Azula. She would give up credit for such an action only to protect her from future blame.
Azula and Zuko’s Relationship in Avatar: The Last Airbender
All siblings fight and quarrel. There is something inherent in the sibling relationship that despises calm and sparks newer arguments every day. However, Azula and Zuko in Avatar: The Last Airbender were not ordinary siblings. Their rivalry was stronger and beyond comparison. Zuko was the elder brother, the heir apparent to the Fire nation, but he was also the one who couldn’t do one thing right. On the other hand, Azula was the younger daughter, but the most competent and deserving of the power.
But, Azula had her own demons to face. Her strife to be in her father’s good graces and never lose control made her do terrible things. Exhibit A: scapegoating Zuko to take credit for an action that did not have the desired outcome. She is known to manipulate others to her own advantage and enjoys seeing her brother get scolded time and again. They have their moments of delicate comfort and camaraderie, but they are short-lived since their ambitions soon rear their ugly heads.
