Avatar: The Last AirbenderLooking closer at the animated series that follows Avatar Aang, the only person who can use all four bending arts: earthbending, waterbending, airbending, and firebending.
Vote up the fan theories that give you the warm-fuzzies.
Creative fans have now made the rich ATLA universe even more wholesome with their fan theories. Here are some of our favorites; vote up the ones that make you smile!
As we all know, Katara nearly heals Zuko's scar (in S2E20 "The Crossroad of Destiny") using the spirit oasis water from the North Pole, but then has to use it instead to heal Aang. (To be clear: if she'd used it on Zuko, Aang would've [passed]...)
After the series completes and the Fire Lord is defeated, Zuko becomes the new Fire Lord. Unlike his father, Zuko is known for having helped the Avatar in saving the world, and he is respected and loved. So, if the Aang Gaang so chose, they could pretty easily return to the North Pole and ask for more spirit oasis water to heal Zuko. Granted, the North Pole isn't going to be handing that out willy-nilly, but when the freaking Avatar and his friends who just saved the world showing up intending to heal the good Fire Lord... yeah, they would oblige.
So why does Zuko still have his scar in Legend of Korra? Simple: He chose to keep it. Why? For two reasons:
1. Although there is indeed more spirit oasis water, it is still a limited supply. Zuko's scar is not harming him in anyway, it is not cancerous. Healing it would be solely for the sake of vanity, and Zuko has grown enough to know there are better uses for that water.
2. After his entire journey, Zuko has used what's happened to him to grow. In his own words, "I've been through a lot in the past few years, and it's been hard. But I'm realizing that I had to go through all those things to learn the truth." (S3E12 "The Western Air Temple"). Zuko's scar is no longer a symbol of his lost honor, but it is now a symbol of his past journey which he had to go through to restore his own honor. Thus he is able to wear it as a badge of pride - "My father burned and banished me because I dared speak up for what was right. It helped me learn the truth of how the world sees us, and so I helped restore balance to the world."
I’ve always liked the idea that Iroh was ALWAYS a good person, and that most of the bad things he did before the show he was reluctant to do… it’s always been my headcanon that Iroh was morally conflicted from the beginning… but I just thought of a new headcanon: Prince Lu Ten was Iroh’s moral compass.
This is inspired by that post I saw (I think on Tublr) theorizing that Lu Ten was with Iroh when he met the sun warriors, because the dragon dance takes two people.
Initially I always assumed Iroh, without hesitation, went there on his own, and decided not to [eliminate] the last dragon. I also thought Iroh never agreed with the war but was just biding his time until he became fire lord…
But what if Lu Ten was the moral compassionate one. Lu Ten was a sweet innocent boy who loved his father. Iroh loved Lu Ten. Rather than punish Lu Ten’s goodness, Iroh nurtured it. If he had disagreements he would humor his son because it was his son.
What if Lu Ten was the one to have doubts about the war? He saw beauty in everything. HE convinced Iroh not to [eliminate] the last dragons, and keep it a secret, and Iroh did it for his son.
This was a turning point. They learned real fire bending, from the masters, not using rage. Iroh became a very powerful warrior, and well he was likely already compassionate but now even more so.
Lu Ten went with him to Ba Sing Se. What if that comment about Iroh “going soft after his son [passed]” had more truth to it than just grief?
Lu Ten fell in love with Ba Sing Se, the same way he fell in love with the dragons. He began trying to convince his father not to destroy the city. Iroh didn’t punish him or rat him out but they argued in private.
Lu Ten didn’t [pass] because he was young and brash… something happened. He got caught as a sympathizer, or things went bad when he tried to change Iroh’s mind- whether fire bender or earth bender. Lu Ten [passed] saving Iroh, and as he was dying he begged his father one last time, “Forgive them…”
Iroh didn’t pack up because of grief. He ended the siege because it was his son’s dying wish. The pacifistic, forgiving, wise Iroh we see is a man trying to honor his son’s memory- all of that, maybe even the tea- that was Lu Ten.
Iroh couldn’t save him because he didn’t take the time to understand and help him. And that’s why he’s always helping everyone. That's why he always listens.
In The Last Airbender, Zuko's uncle knew where Aang was THE ENTIRE TIME. Even though Aang randomly traveled in the first season,Iroh always somehow KNEW where Aang was. HOW? The Spirit World. When Aang dreamed about a storm coming, Iroh also told Zuko the same thing. Aang knew cause of Avatar sh*t but how did Iroh know? It would explain why he was always trying to calm Zuko down. And he never caught Aang because after blowing up an entire city, Iroh wanted to end the war from the inside. Next time you watch, watch how he plays chess at the beginning and end of ALOT of episodes. He controlled EVERYTHING from the jump yo.
Iroh's love for Making Tea represents his belief in the idea of the 4 elements working together in harmony to make a better world.
Throughout the show, Iroh has shown his actions that seem silly or weird have a double, deeper meaning when we know more about Iroh and I think his love of Tea is a perfect example of that.
It clicked with me when we see Iroh explain to Zuko how that learning from all 4 elements helps to create a more rounded view of the world and be a better person.
To make Tea, you need all 4 elements to work together to it succeed, you need the clay for the teapots and cups, the water for the substance of the tea, Fire to heat up the Tea and the air blown on the hot tea to cool it so you can drink it (even if you leave it out to cool naturally, it would get cold and taste worse to drink). If you take one element out, tea is either impossible or worse without it.
It's just fascinating thought and the depth of Iroh that people may dismiss if anybody looked at him on a surface level.
Why Zuko is a great fire-bending teacher for Aang.
Initially it seems Aang picks Zuko out of necessity. He needs to learn fire-bending before facing Ozai and he doesn't have many candidates to help him. Iroh's whereabouts are unknown and the rest of the fire nation want to hunt and [eliminate] him.
So he has to have a reformed Zuko be his teacher. However, aside from Iroh, Zuko would had always been Aang's best teacher. The reason is simple. Zuko is a great teacher because he isn't a prodigy.
In the first episode of the series it's established that Zuko hasn't fully completed his fire-bending training. He yells at his uncle to teach him the advanced set. This is despite being a teenager and should had already completed his training.
Zuko isn't a prodigy but it's specifically why he's able to teach Aang so effectively in such a short time.
Even if they weren't evil Ozai and Azula would be terrible instructors. They're both prodigies. Firebending comes naturally to them and they'd struggle to instruct Aang on a skill that is second nature to them.
Does anyone know the reason the Beifong family symbol is a flying boar?
Not sure what the actual reason is, but I was thinking about it the other day, and I realized that what is a flying boar but a flying pig (duh)? And it made me think of the expression, “when pigs fly” which refers to something that is impossible, right?
And I just think that’s so fitting for Toph - who literally does what was considered impossible - she invents metalbending!
Toph’s whole thing is going beyond what the outside world believes she’s capable of, and I just think the flying boar is such an appropriate symbol to represent that. Nothing is impossible to Toph Beifong.
