“There’s so much that I would fix”: The Near Perfect Run of Avatar: The Last Airbender Wasn’t Enough to Impress the Original Creators
There’s no cure for perfectionism. Whether it’s writers, directors, actors, or musicians, perfectionism is a bug that seldom loosens its grip. Look at the creators of Avatar: The Last Airbender, for example. They created something so extraordinary that stood the test of time and remains relevant even today.
The live-action adaptation by Netflix is a testament to its exceptional storytelling and world-building. Yet, the creators felt they could do better. While fans wait for season 2 and 3 of the Netflix show to arrive, they can always rewatch the original animated show and relive the nostalgic magic it exudes.
Changes that would have made Avatar: The Last Airbender Better
Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko are responsible for creating one of the most critically acclaimed and appreciated animated shows of all time – Avatar: The Last Airbender. Aang’s journey across nations to master the art of bending elements and ultimately becoming an Avatar capable of protecting the entire realm from the Fire Nation’s dominion.
However, the show had its ups and downs. Certain episodes did not resonate well with the masses and some missed the mark by an inch. Nonetheless, Avatar: The Last Airbender set the standards for other shows in animation and world-building alike. In hindsight, the showrunners feel that a few changes could have made the story better. On the podcast Braving the Elements, Zuko voice actor Dante Basco claimed that Avatar: The Last Airbender is one of the best shows to date. To this, Konietzko said,
“That blows me away—there’s so much that I would fix. There’s a bunch of stuff that I just think, ‘Ugh, I wish that scene was animated better; I don’t like the way this character’s looking in this episode,’ but you can only fix so much. Sure, it would be nice if it all was super slick and looked its utter best, but it still delivers this really powerful, complete package to people that goes straight to their hearts.”
The show ran from 2005 to 2008 on Nickelodeon. At the time, both showrunners were working with a studio that was abroad and had to undergo constant back-and-forths in terms of creative direction. Rather than nitpicking the tiny details, the showrunners must be proud of the work they put out into the industry which is now considered a landmark venture in animation and mythical genre projects.
The Creators Agree The Great Divide is a Bad Episode
The increasing speculation over the episodes on the comparatively dissatisfying end of the scale states that The Great Divide, an episode in season 1 of Avatar: The Last Airbender is by far the worst episode of the show. While DiMartino and Konietzko did not budge on other episodes that are considered fillers, they agreed that The Great Divide was indeed a filler that missed the mark by a lot. They claimed that no amount of changes or improvements could have salvaged the episode. The showrunners said,
“The most famous one is ‘The Great Divide’ one, which I’ll give them, I’ll say that’s pretty ‘filler-y. That’s terrible, I don’t think that would have saved it. You’ve got this big gap; it’s a big empty hole, yet it is filler. Even the episodes that I wasn’t as stoked on, there were always moments that I really liked.”
The episode sways away from the overarching narrative established till then and crashes on its face. It does not further the story or add to the character development of the featured benders. As previously mentioned, only a rare handful of projects pass the standards of perfection and consolidate their position in the list of flawless ventures. Avatar: The Last Airbender may not be utter perfection, but it sure comes close.
