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AlmostPerfect
(Before we start, GIFs are not mine.)
So I would just like to commentate on these two for a moment.
We all know Bryke is spectacular at villain portrayals. While Ozai was a little weak (he seemed to be your standard bad guy villain type with no moral ambiguity there really) they more than made up for it with the whole story arc with Azula. And I have full faith in the belief that they will be just as smart and creative with the storyline of Amon.
Let’s start with Azula though.
When she was first introduced, she was powerful, cruel, and hungered for perfection. She cast out her brother as easily as throwing a fireball, and followed her father’s orders to capture the Avatar with intent and precision. We really first began to see her more inner workings with the addition of Mai and Ty Lee; while she considered these girls her friends, she went so far as to put Ty Lee in danger to make sure she would come with her. The three were capable and deadly, and really it seemed like the Gaang and Zuko only made it away from them by sheer luck.
Then came Ba Sing Se.
Let’s just remind ourselves that this girl almost single-handedly infiltrated a city that her father and numerous other Fire Lords had been pounding away at for almost a century, then proceeded to take control of a highly elite team of Earthbenders and bring the entire city down from the inside out. Not to mention the fact that she technically killed the Avatar. Which is something in it of itself. No one had ever really thought of killing Aang; pretty much everyone who captured him only had intent of bringing him to Ozai and letting him finish Aang off.
She killed him with a smile on her face. We’ll get to the psychological aspect of that later though.
Then, when she and Zuko returned home, she was smart enough to give Zuko all the glory. On the surface, it seemed she was just doing him a favor. But if Aang came back, it would be Zuko’s fault, and regardless she would be sitting without any blame on her shoulders. Can we just sit back and marvel at how this girl is five steps ahead of every single person? I once saw a post describing how life was like a game of chess for Azula. That’s pretty damn accurate. Life was a game to her and she was always a step ahead of her opponents (and even her allies).
Before she went mad, of course.
There were hints leading up to it even before Boiling Rock. Her absent father. The mother that loved Zuko more. The constant pressure of being the perfect daughter and the perfect fighter and the perfect strategist. She had two friends. Two. Even Zuko managed more than that (as much as I love Zuko, the poor guy was terribly socially awkward). After Boiling Rock, her descent into insanity spirals out of control. Her mother was God-knows-where. Her brother and her two best friends had betrayed her. And then during the finale, her father abandons her right when she’s in the most vulnerable state she could be in. Sure, she’s always wanted to be Fire Lord. But not like that. Not just because her father is making a bigger name for himself.
And she has to fight her brother. And she almost kills him. And then she’s defeated once and for all by a Waterbender who at one time couldn’t hope to compete against her. She’s broken.
But the one thing about Azula that got me was that Bryke made you sympathize with this character. This seemingly evil character who had killed the main protagonist. This girl who seemed to have no good bone in her body. But I don’t think I’m the only one who winced when they saw Azula screaming and crying her eyes out on the ground during the finale, was I? That says a lot about the show and how it portrays people. Not everyone— even characters like Azula— is pure evil.
Now Bryke is taking it one step up with Amon.
I can’t say as much about him, because we’ve only had a few episodes of him, but it seems they’re just throwing even more punches. Because, really, when you think about it, the Equalists have a point. Benders and nonbenders should be on even footing socially. And that’s kind of what makes Amon scary. Because it’s so real. There are people like this out there. Who think they’re doing the right thing, and on the surface it seems like it, but go to far extremes to get what they want.
I think what intrigued me the most about Amon was his backstory. If he’d just been some random character telling his story, we would’ve sympathized with him. The same thing happened to Mako and Bolin, didn’t it? Parents killed right in front of them. With the addition that Amon’s face was burned as well. And we all felt bad for Zuko when that happened to him. (I won’t go into any theories regarding Amon and Koh though. We don’t have really much proof for that yet.) Amon hated benders from a young age for what happened to his parents. And hate twists you up inside and makes you do crazy things. Like wanting to take away all bending forever.
But he has a point. Nonbenders and benders should be on equal ground. And it’s such sticky political stuff that’s it’s wild that Bryan and Mike and everyone can handle it so smoothly. Shades of gray are hard to come by in kid’s shows, and Amon is great because he’s just a big slap in the face to the whole there-is-only-good-and-evil mindset.
Amon and Azula remind me a lot of each other. Aside from both being very good fighters (from what we’ve seen of Amon’s fighting, I’d say it’s advanced stuff) and great speakers, you can’t help but feel sorry for them because they both have such tragic pasts and warped mindsets. And I’m interested to see how Amon’s story plays out in comparison to Azula’s and if he meets the same end.
In short, I just really love both of these characters and the Avatar writers and creators and everyone are gods for creating them.
Couldn’t have said it better myself.
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