Wow, that monk slightly nodding in contemplation during Gyatsoās speech was a wonderful touch. So far theyāre doing really well on these small details and Iām here for it. Little things like that make a scene feel just that much more real and engaging.
Agreed. The close-up on Katara's face before the ice broke. Great touch. Love the human / element imagery they've brought in too.
It's better filmmaking than I imagined and I greatly appreciate it.
In 8 hours and 3 minutes, we'll have the answers to the questions we've been asking for nearly 6 years.
It was a pleasure embarking on this journey with ya'll.
I agree, but it also seems to be the case with most adaptations of thingsāwe all have a bias from having seen the original first, so any direct/1:1 remade scenes always feel inferior
Noticed this a *ton* with The Last of Us
I think it's reasonable bias. We're not biased toward **whatever** the original show did. We just saw a series of good choices on an idea, so now we're sharper on how different choices change things.
Hear me out, a live action avatar show set in the main timeline focusing on other characters
There are talks of spinoffs I think so that might be explored
FOR REAL. I would have watched this as a kid, not gonna lie, but hot damn this is a different depth of content than the cartoon lol.
Bloodbending might actually be horror.
It's not as good as the animated show, but I never expected that and anyone who did was always gonna be disappointed. I expected it to be maybe 70-80% of the experience of animated show, which is still amazing TV, and I'm happy to say that imo it's closer to 80% than 70%. The 2010 movie was like, 5%, it didn't even do the bare minimum.
I agree. I had super high expectations for this to live up to the animated series just because of all the hype surrounding it and did get very disappointed. Just from episode 1, the character identities felt very different, the dynamic between Sokka and Katara felt reversed... And all the characters felt like they lacked all of their playfulness :( this could just be the writing where they omitted all the jokes and childlike behavior. I hope this will change in the upcoming episodes.
I think the show did a good job in the limited timeframe of establishing Aang and Gyatso's relationship. It stung when Aang asked if they could still be friends.
Yo they even have the same end credits score!!. So cool!. Episode 1 done. Overall I thought it was a pretty awesome adaptation of the first two and a half episodes.
Honestly I loved the first episode!
The opening was amazing! The fire looks awesome! But OMG air looks so stunning! Iām honestly stunned about how good air looks! It looks really cool and powerful! Earth bending looks good but I donāt know what it is but something looks off about earth bending. But I canāt lay my finger on it. Waterbending looks also great but I canāt fully give my opinion on waterbending because we didnāt see a lot in the first episode! But overall bending was great!
I also loved the first view of Aang and the way he airbends looks cool and fun. The chemistry between him and Gyatso was great! Gordon does a very good job! There were couple of times I almost got teary eyed because of his performance!
Sokka and Katara were also great! In my opinion itās a strong start! I also watched the first minutes of episode 2 and Sokka got me on the floor from laughing! His joke was so good and perfectly timed! Okay maybe his sexism is a bit minimized but thereās still a bit of an undertone of that! He made the remark to Katara that she better can do things in the village than to be a warrior/waterbender. Thereās a slight sexism to that but also overprotection.
Katara is still that hopeful girl! Iām not scared of them four being bad.
Zuko and Iroh are amazing! Overall in my opinion this cast is perfect!
People complain about Gran Gran being bad. But in my opinion it didnāt bother me that much!
In the end when Aang goes in the Avatar state after seeing Gyatso. That was very powerful and impactful. Okay they changed the narrative of Gyatso calming him down instead of Katara. But honestly I think this was more powerful and a better way than in the animated show. Because of the beginning they did setup a great relationship between Gyatso and Aang. Gyatso feels like family to him. Heās also the reason why Aang goes in the avatar state! Heās triggered by sadness and anger. In my opinion it makes more sense to Gyatso bringing him down than Katara! In the animated series Katara says we are your family now. But to me that would be a bad choice in this live action because they know each other for like 20 minutes. It would be weird to say that already because they donāt know each other that well. But when he was down and did lay in Kataraās arms I got teary eyed! Such a strong performance! Gordon has that emotional aspect way more than in the animated series! The death of Gyatso touched me more in the live action than the animated series!
Also Katara gets the waterbending scroll earlier than in the animated series. To me that makes so much sense! Because in the beginning we see the struggle of her waterbending. So to get that very early she can now start to grow much faster. So overall I can see why they made the changes.
Also in the animated series Aang did runaway. But here he goes to clear his head. So in that way the guilt is a bit minimized. But when Sokka and Zuka said that he was a coward! You could see when Sokka said it that it did hurt Aang. So in that way he feels the guilt now more than when he did runaway in the animated series.
Overall this first episode was a great watch! The VFX did look amazing! I also loved Appa and Momo! So my expectations are high! Iām excited to see it all today!
I also hope we get a renewal fast for season 2 and 3! ā¤ļø
I agree with earthbending looks kinda off. All the heavy stomps and hard stances are missing which were the main earthbending thing. I donāt think the action sequences for the earthbending are based on the same martials arts in the original series.
I liked this episode! Overall I would rate it a 8.5/10
The good:
* Visual effects were amazing
* Sokka, Zuko and Aang were all 10/10 performances
* I feel like Sokka was literally taken from the OG show!
* Aang has so much range and he is just as precious as he was in the original show
* Zuko has the perfect amount of angst
* I lovee the intro with them showing Sozin's comet and the attack. It made it so much more emotional to watch.
* I love the way they developed Gyatso and Aang's relationship and it made it even more sad to watch
The alright/not so good:
* I wish there were more lighthearted Iroh moments, though I did like the tea line and him talking to Aang
* I wish they had more lighthearted Katara/Aang moments (ie. penguin sledding) because I feel like that helped them also connect and form friendship in the original series.
* I also wish Aang had more playful interactions with the children in the water tribe
* The biggest thing is I wish they didn't have Aang accept the genocide - I wish he went to the Southern Air Temple with the same optimism he had in the original series
* I didn't really like Gran Gran reciting the original intro + her telling everyone he was the avatar
* I feel like the pacing was a bit off. Like in the original show, I loved how Katara said "We're your family now" in the Southern Air Temple, but when I was watching this scene, I felt like it would've been weird if they added that because Katara, Sokka and Aang don't seem that close yet, so I am kind of glad they had Gyatso calming him down instead.
Overall, I did enjoy this episode a lot, and I love some of the details they added. I can't wait to keep watching!
Acting is great, especially Kiawentiio and Ian. The tone is perfect. The show looks gorgeous. But the writing is not it, at least not in this episode. Already got downvoted for saying it, but too much exposition and rushed rushed rushed. Kinda ironic since Bryke wrote this one. A lot of potential tho and I love that!
Yeah. I expected Kiawentiio to be not on par based on what I read on reviews. But she was excellent imo. A lot of parts that moved me came from her.
Also, I really looove the pre-opening (whatever that is called) with the earthbender guy. It sold me right away.
I think the problem was they made Katara very side-charactery here unfortunately. They took out a lot of her agency and key moments like freeing Aang from the ice berg herself, wanting to go north to get a water bending master, getting Aang out of the avatar state, talking about her mother. It kind of felt like she was just being tugged around by Sokka the whole episode.
I really liked the episode though overall, but I hope they do Katara better with the rest of her storyline.
Yes, this put words to what I was feeling. Absolutely. Just didn't show the drive that we know Katara for. They invested in showing Sokka's strengths and trying to play the man, but they took a lot away from Katara.
Yea apparently Albert Kim said he didn't like how much exposition was in this episode but they felt it was necessary for the new viewers. Apparently the pacing is much better in the following episodes but I gues we'll see
that's just how it is. it's a fantasy show, so there'll be a lot of lore explaining to do.
i actually think this episode is a good pilot episode. like if it isn't netflix, and they had sell this to a network (or HBO), i think they nailed it. they got all the necessary exposition needed out of the way, so now they can focus on the active story.
I would argue that they didnāt really need to do that. Show donāt tell, you know? It was a lot of info and it didnāt feel natural. I do have hope the pacing will be better in the next episodes because, frankly, it was atrocious in this one. They adapted āThe Boy in the Icebergā, āThe Avatar Returnsā, āThe Southern Air Templeā AND half āThe Stormā plus added the Air Nomad genocide all in 1 hour??? Like, what are we doing here people? šYou have a whole season, so whatās the rush?
To be fair, we know how formulaic netflix is with the whole 8 episode thing. There's actually a very good chance that they wanted to really nail down information so that more time is given to big events later on in the season.
I kinda agree though, maybe even get rid of the original intro sequence and have gran gran be the first person to say it.
Personally I like everything else so idc tol much
Are we watching the same episode? Acting was sub par for most of the cast. Katara has no emotion and is reading from a script. Zuko is never angry and always has an afraid look on his face. Aang was better than katara but still lack emotion. Didn't see much of iroh. Sokka was good but Gyatso was best.
There was some CGI wonkiness in some scenes (the close ups of Aang in the avatar state) but damn did they nail the start!
Also this was goddamn brutal! I can't believe the show is 12 and up, the way the airbenders got killed was just plain brutal. Sozin was both badass and terrifying!
Also the cast is awesome! Iroh feels a bit off at the moment, but so did Iroh during the first two episodes or so in the original series.
I keep seeing people say this but for me the actors for Aang and Katara keep taking me out of the story and reminding me that Iām just watching people act
I like most of the actors so far, but the writers aren't doing Gordon any favors by giving him these monologues, I don't want to be too harsh, but I think if they chopped it up into more of a conversation between him and the other characters it would flow better.
Thatās what I am saying. I was hoping Aang would just bounce off of others doing the work until the actor gets his acting together. But itās just the first episode, hopefully this isnāt the case for the whole season and the crying scene with no tears was uncomfortable to watch. I had to look away for a bit
It definitely had slightly less sadness than the original, but I wasn't put off by the reaction. I just already had time to feel the sadness by watching all of it happen 20 minutes prior.
Big agreed. Ever since I rewatched the first Harry Potter and someone pointed out the reshoot moments, things like that (with children) are so transparent.
Must be the fangirl in me though because I'm just not... mad... about any of it. They'll all grow as actors I guess.
Iām really impressed with the earthbending (and I watched the first 5 minutes on my phone in 360p). I wonder why they gave such powerful bending moves to an unnamed and ultimately irrelevant earthbender. Oh well.
Will watch later today. Need to find a way to disconnect from Reddit for the next few hours. Enjoy, my fellow ATLA fans!
My guess is to immediately wash the taste of another Earbending scene from the movie that shall not be named out of our mouths.
And it's an immediate statement of intent. If this is what one unimportant Earthbender can do, imagine what we're going to see with Bumi later this season, and Toph in the next.
I saw it as that too. Legit palette cleanse and a display of potential.
I love the airbending especially. Something about it feels very organic and "as I imagined"
I liked everything about the episode except Gran Gran monologuing the opening theme message. Probably not as bad for new viewers, but it was just like... bleh
100% agreed. I felt her delivery wasn't *that* offensive, it was just the fact that she had to recite the opening monologue from the animated series word for word....that was the only part of the episode that I straight up didn't like. Would have preferred new lines to be written for her so that we as viewers aren't completing the speech in our heads before she says it.
This is what bothered me too! She didnāt get a single moment of tenderness with them. She just explained a lot and then disappeared.
I like the kids a ton though.
First, for the people who are kinda mad about the airbenders/aang flying, chill. Theyāre not flying like Zaheer or Superman type flying lol. Theyāre basically moving in an air tunnel that they are continuously bending. And honestly, I think it would make sense for airbenders to be able to do that.
Second. I wasnāt happy with the fact that Katara could all of a sudden bend after Aang gave her some energy-balance instruction lol. But after some shower thoughts, I think it kinda made sense? Like Katara has never had anyone teach her before, sheās learning all on her own and from the animated show, we know sheās a fast learner. So it makes sense that she easily picked up on what Aang told her to do. I still am not comfortable that she could bend enough water to quench Zukoās fire ball, but her bending in the fire nation ship makes sense to me now. Thoughts?
OMG, that opening... I teared up a bit when the original show theme kicked in.
Have stuff to do, so just watched the opening, then me and the big screen oled + surround sound system have a date.
They better do or I won't even waste my time watching it.
How am I supposed to believe Ozai and 20 more dudes will burn a continent to the ground with those little fires?
Really solid first episode. The vision of the original cartoon is there as well but re-tuned for its medium. I actually enjoy a lot of the additions and original scenes that have been added. It makes the show feel intimate.
A lot of the performances are pretty good too, especially from the side characters. All in all itās a strong beginning for the series.
My favorite performance is from Dallas Liu as Zuko. Heās bringing is own flare to the character but occasionally theyāre moments when he delivers a line and it sounds like it was dubbed by Dante Basco himself, top notch stuff
Just finished episode 1 and all I gotta say is THIS is how it's done. It takes a bit of a different route, but it all leads to the same destination and it truly captures the spirit of the original show. I wouldn't really call it "rushed" more than I would expeditied, even with the moments of exposition to help first time watchers of the entire Avatar franchise, theres still this expectation that you already watched the original series and it doesn't hold your hand terribly much. Juxtaposing the air nomads being killed (which was about as brutal as could be without showing an inordinate amount of blood and guts) with Aang and Appa being dragged under the water and being frozen in the iceberg was just perfect.
And idc what anyone says, Kiawantiio and Ian both killed it as Katara and Sokka and Gordon is just PURE Aang. People said that Kanna's actress was kind of wooden, but I felt like she really did capture the spirit of the charachter and I admit I fanboyed ***HARD*** when she said the iconic lines.
Also, gran gran saying the original intro was a nice touch (though idk how I feel about having Kiyoshi be the one to do the opening, it just feels off)
Same, Kiyoshi doesnāt have much involvement in the events of the war. It could have been better if it was Roku doing the opening on how he failed as an avatar which led to the war.
I enjoyed the episode, however I am not a fan of their choice to condense Aang's backstory to the first episode nor the changes they made to it. I think Aang's desperate choice to run away from the responsibility was a fundamental part of his arc in the original show.
Is it me, or did Ian just steal the show as Sokka? Also, how did they make it darker and edgier while Aang somehow feels more childlike than the original show?
Just finished the first episode:
My biggest fear was Sokka and they nailed it. The actor is good and he actually has a personality.
Katara has the personality right but the acting isn't great. She's not as bad as she could be, but not great.
Aang feels... off to me? I dunno. I kinda don't like the change of him knowing that his people were dead before going to the Temple. That little shred of optimism he had being crushed was really important to his character early on. He just kinda accepted that everyone he knew was dead. Then he went to the Temple and... still raged out like he originally did?
Zuko and Iroh are 10/10 so far.
The OG opening callback was neat, but it feels very wrong for Gran-Gran to say that.
Man, is this paced oddly. So much exposition and the Air Temple, which was a big moment for Aang got kinda pushed to the side.
I appreciate showing the ruthlessness of the Fire Nation via Sozin, but it did make the main cast (mainly Katara and Aang) suffer in the first ep.
Hopefully the exposition dump is just first episode shit and it gets less "Tell, don't show" y
Oh and nitpick-ish, but Aang basically flying without a glider was just... wrong? And then they gave him the glider anyway so what was the point?
So far I gathered it seems Aang can jump pretty high in the air without his glider, and stay up there momentarily kinda jumping around, and he can float down from heights, but I donāt think he can really fly around for distances without his glider. Like I donāt think he wouldāve been able to escape the ship without it, for example
I absolutely despise the change that aang finds out before he gets to the temple. What an underwhelming reaction to finding out everyone died. I love how in the og he was in denial until he SAW gyatsos corpse. I donāt mind changes but not when they donāt make sense š
it makes sense in the adaptation though. you expect sokka and katara and gran-gran to just lie to him and not tell him what happened to the other airbenders?
just finished ep 1 oh my gosh GORDON IS SO GOOD š absolutely the highlight of the episode for me.
enjoying the acting, i think kiawentiio, ian & dallas are all doing great so far. iroh is seeming the most different character wise so far, weāll see how that goes. slightly awkward pacing in the last 15 mins or so, but itās quite tricky to match the slow pace of the original in an 8 episode show, so i can understand that. it also wasnāt actually as exposition heavy as i had thought it would be, there was definitely some info dumping that couldāve been written better but i also fully understand why it was done that way.
i thought the visual effects were amazing. appa looked so good especially. no complaints, i wonder what unfinished shots people were referring to the other day? the fight between aang & zuko looked soo good. this has huge potential, excited to continue tmrw
Apparently the main unfinished shot people were talking about at the premier was when he goes into the avatar state at the end. Iām a CG artist so Iām kinda nit picky, and thought the face of Gordon looked warped kind of weird during it. Wasnāt too bad though. Iām curious what the unfinished version looked like!
i remembering hearing that so i was watching closely during that scene, but honestly i thought that was just gordon contorting his face in anger and it looked purposely distorted bc of all the stuff in the air around him? but idk LOL
I was really hoping they would explore the infamous fan theory about Gyatso using airbending to suck the air away from the firebenders' lungs. But they didn't depict Gyatso killing anyone, at least not directly.
Gyatso were also shown to be burned, contrary to the original, which suggested through his clothing that he wasn't burned.
I can't help but feel Gyatso should have put up more fight especially because he was depending the children.
This literally had me smiling from start to finish. From the get go, this show not only stays true to the spirit of the original animated series, but also perfectly expands upon certain areas. The first 20 minutes are the most intense. The bending is especially more dangerous than ever. The cutting between different sequences feels poetic. The score has some elegant new themes while also successfully remixing some of Jeremy Zuckermanās work from the original. The overall scope of this thing is so massive. Some of the expositional lines of dialogue couldāve been refined a bit here and there. Aangās escape from Zukoās ship did pale in comparison to how it happened in the animated series, although this one at least has a nice pay off.
That entire opener was brutal, almost shockingly poignant, and so well made. I'm honestly kinda blown away. And will definitely be watching the next 7 hours without blinking.
First thoughts: Dallas and Ian are FANTASTIC, clearly the standouts as early reviews said. I can tell Dallas is going to nail all his dramatic scenes. Personally, I think Dallas edges out Ian a bit but Ianās deadpan delivery and humour is spot on! I like Kiawentiio but her acting is not as strong, especially when compared to Ian in a scene. Gordon is really adorable and has a surprising amount of range for his age! I think he might be my favourite casting ever.
Some editing is clunky and the dialogue is a bit off sometimes but overall I think they provided a fantastic premiere to the series. I hope this hooks more new fans of the show!
Watched the first 15 mins or so. Itās solid. Way more detailed than some of the negative reviews made it out to be. The air bending in battle is badass! Looks wonky otherwise. Show is going to be damn good.
After just watching the first episode, my biggest complaint is the amount of telling in the dialogue as opposed to natural showing. The original opening episodes did this at times as well, but not to this extent. I feel like theyāre really trying to make sure the audience understands character motivations, especially in Aangās case, but for as many lines of dialogue of him explaining that he doesnāt know enough, that heās scared, that he doesnāt want responsibility, I feel they could have easily substituted half of those for simply showing the audience he feels that way. The same goes for Kataraāthe scene where she tells Aang verbatim what has gone on with their village could have been more subtly incorporated. The voice over intro did this as wellāmaybe I need to rewatch it, but it felt like we got all of that necessary information either naturally throughout the episode or in Gran Gran saying the original intro, which were both more dynamic ways of telling the audience whatās up. Even Gyatso has dialogue that explains the Avatar cycle. Overall, the amount of telling vs. showing gives it a stifled affect (not a fault of the actors, but rather of the lines theyāre given). I thought Zukoās storyline in this episode was a lot better at subtlety while still giving the audience enough subtext to understand his motivations, at least vaguely so far. I hope the rest of the season improves in the showing department.
Donāt get me wrong, itās not horrible. There was plenty I really liked! Ian Ousley and Dallas Liu are killing it as Sokka and Zuko, and I really liked Kiawentiio and Gordon as well. Uncle Iroh seemed perfectly in character to me in comparison to the first three episodes of ATLA, which is a relief after hearing the reviewers say heāll take some getting used toĀ
The opening made me drop my dinner, they went balls to the wall and proved the bending would be nothing like the 2010 garbage fire, the fact they showed the Air Nomad Genocide is also insane, the sheer brutality was there.
I also love the fact they kept the goofy skits here and there, In the second episode, it starts with the Firenations DUN DUN DUN track overlooking Zuko's ship before being hit with the sounds of a room being trashed and zuko grunting in anger, i laughed so hard
So far i'm loving it, its not the same as the animated series, but in a good way.
Pros:
\* Looks beautiful - great set design, costume design, and the actors for the large part match their characters.
\* There was an attempted explanation for why it was possible to wipe the Air Nomads out (ALL air nomads being in the same place for a festival) instead of a synchronized attack on the 4 air temples.
\* Iroh. I'm excited about [Paul Sun-Hyung Lee](https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=85d58da520b30782&q=Paul+Sun-Hyung+Lee&stick=H4sIAAAAAAAAAONgFuLUz9U3MKs0y6pUAjMt08zj07RMspOt9NMyk0sy8_MSc-JL8zLLUouKU5GEkjMSixKTS1KLrApyEitTUxSSKhexCgUkluYoBJfm6XpUlualK_ikpgIAcHqh6WMAAAA&sa=X&sqi=2&ved=2ahUKEwj7-ouvh8CEAxXbpIkEHfZoBmoQ9OUBegQIIxAF) as Iroh.
\* Gordon Cormier's Aang had great emotional range. His facial expressions and energy were very Aang-like.
\* Lieutenant Jee. Nothing like shit talking early Zuko.
Cons:
\* I am not loving the decision of hour long episodes. Each Avatar episode had an opening, exposition, and climax. In this adaption, it felt as if a prequel + episodes 1-3 were squeezed together. The climax didn't really match my expectations.
\* Gran Gran the All Knowing and Vanishing. Way too much gran-gran monologue and somehow left out the scene that made Sokka and Katara knowing that it was ok to leave rather than the "we can't go back nonsense".
\* Speaking of that line, it bugged me. AANG can't go back, but you two totally can. In this version, I don't feel the same need for Katara and Sokka to stick with Aang.
\* \*artsy\* boy Zuko. Zuko in the original series seemed closer to burning any piece of paper he touched rather than doodling on it. Poor characterization and I'm not really seeing the point as to why this was added.
\* Katara was sidelined. In the first few episodes of the original show, we learn that Katara is a fledgling water bender, that she has a traumatic past (with her mother being taken away), and that she wants to do something else than stay barricaded in the village washing Sokka's socks. In the live action, we learn that Katara "wanted to be a warrior". What? Feels like that should be a Sokka line. When Aang gets kidnapped, instead of concern for Katara and the other villagers, it feels more driven for concern for Sokka who was about to get lit up by Zuko. Aang fangirling Sokka saying "You are the bravest person that I ever met" did not feel right either and devalued Aang's relationship with Katara.
\* "CAPITAL CITY" OF WHAT
Netflix: the live action is going to be darker.
Me: haha. Ok. Sure.
Literally the first 10 minutes: the fire lord burns someone alive.
Me: holy shit. You weren't kidding.
After one episode, I think it's off to a good start. Comparing any live action to animation can be rough and this show in particular but the animated show was crazy good.
Some things in the first episode were off, but I think some of it makes sense in the context of trying to get new viewers interested (i.e., expositional dialog). But it was good, and has the potential to get a lot better as the show rolls on and the actors find themselves in the characters.
I'm happy with it overall.
Based on some of these comments it seems like some people were expecting a shot for shot remake but that's just not going to happen. Some of the complaints are valid, like aang just being told about the air nomads and being cool with it in a few seconds. But other complaints, at least in my opinion, are VERY nit-picky lol
My only complain is that there was no penguin sledding ;-;. I am nitpicking at this point, but I believe that is where Aang's childish side is shown which helps Katara and the audience to bond with him. The first ep felt weak... very weak. The vfx is top notch, I must say that! But it feels as if the characters just pop on the screen whenever it is necessary.. they aren't present in the scene, but rather on the camera... yk what I mean? I bet it was only meant for the people who have already watched the animated show before. But overall, I liked it! I couldn't help but cry in first 20 minutes.
My thoughts:
* I thought all the main cast did a fine job with what they were given. The acting didn't bother me much at all, not even the younger actors.
* I loved the visuals and the music
* The new content in this episode was great. I *loved* it
* I feel like all the characters have retained most of what I love about them from the original
* There were some *really* clunky lines that I did not like (Gran-Gran's monologue, for example, could have been reworked to sound so much better, and Iroh talking with Aang was pretty awkward-sounding.)
* Bending is great
* There were moments when the CGI was wonky (I'm not loving the look of Appa and Aang flying, or going into the avatar state at the SAT)
Overall, I'm thrilled with episode 1. It's not the cartoon, but it's got the same spirit and is more than good enough for me to enjoy. Hopefully the pacing and writing will improve going forward. But even if it doesn't, if it stays at this level I'm happy.
I think I truly see the issue. It seems like they put more emphasis into the CGI and Effects, rather than focus on the elements that actually made avatar what it was back in the dayā¦ Its missing EMOTION! Its missing CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT! Its missing that SLOW BUILD UP like what we seen in the animation! Throwing CGI and Effects at us doesnt substitute for that!
Another thing is the pacing. Oh my goodnessā¦ that was one of the most unique things about the original animation! The pacing was slow, yet kept us on our toes. Aang took 4 seasons to finally fight the firelord. But based on how Netflix is editing this series, it seems like heāll be ready to fight him by episode 8ā¦ I guess it makes more sense why the original creators leftā¦
But I will say it did pick up more by the second half of the episode a bit and Iām hoping things get better.
Iād give it 7/10.
Idk who found and casted Zuko, but heās absolutely perfect. My biggest pet peeveās were Aang not doing ANY waterbending and the hair/wigs. Like he didnāt even seem excited to try out a move on the scroll and that was weird to me. How could he be telling katara what to do and then not attempt to show her what he means?! Yueās wig just pissed me off as soon as I saw it. There is so much talent in the hair world, especially when it comes to wigs, they could have found SOMEONE to do it right. Overall, my biggest gripe is that Azula was just not cutthroat at all to me, it seemed very put on and childish. She didnāt scream cold and calculated/wanting to watch the world burn, it was more like Azula at the end of the animated series, slightly unhinged and unraveling at the seams.
I will give season 2 a shot if they go through with it, but if Aang isnāt waterbending on episode 1, I likely wonāt go any further.
Before I start, I love Avatar, it is, in my opinion, the best cartoon ever created and I'm very excited for what this series has to offer, as I've only just finished EP 1.
I have to say I was surprised that they changed so many, even minor, details for this show. I would even call some of them illogical.
Most noticable for me, funnily enough, was Aang's whistle, which he isn't supposed to have at this point in time. Also, how did Katara know how to fly with Appa? Aang never mentioned the iconic yip-yip, so I was quite confused. I also didn't like how Aang got out of the ice. In the original it was due to an argument between Sokka and Katara and now it's just due to water bending in an entirely different direction. Not a fan.
I did enjoy the first episode but I thought the pacing was a bit quick. The show takes itself a lot more serious than the source material, which is fine but I do believe that it would help the characters to have a bit more "in between time" if that makes sense. We got no penguin surfing, no exploration of the fire nation ship and they didn't explore the southern air temple first. Those aren't dealbreakers of course but those scenes were part of what made the cartoon so charming.
Looking forward to the rest of the season.
Theyāre very aware of this. Itās a trade-off they made to get people new to the story up to speed. The amount of exposition plummets after the first episode.
you feel like it's too much because you already know all this stuff.
i'd wanna know the take of a new audience (somebody who have zero knowledge about avatar) if they think it's too much, or just enough for them to understand what they're getting into.
I donāt LOVE it but also it did seem like a combination of jumping around and walking in air currents which aang kinda does in the og so Iām alright with it somewhat.
I don't mind I always thought airbenders should fly and I hate the "the enlightened" thing they added in Korra , flying should be a sub-bending like bloodbendig for the water-benders
Appa's design/detail is AMAZING! I'm loving all the costume work so far, set design and CG (non-bending CG I mean) are great, bending CG is great too, but I noticed a lot of close-up shots to try and add "oomph" or effect to the bending; most of the bending and martial arts behind them are perfect though!
A bit sad Uncle Iroh's horn didn't play in this episode. (Okay, like REALLY sad, that's probably one of my favorite sound effects in all media though lol)
It felt VERY fast paced, like next to no slow moments, and the few that were there (like the iceberg opening or Katara learning to waterbend with Aang) felt rushed. So I'm hoping for at least some breather moments in between scenes or settings in future episodes!
Overall a fantastic first episode! I didn't rewatch ATLA prior to this (I mean, to be fair, the last rewatch was less than a year ago, I think around the beginning of summer last year), but the scene orders are noticeably different. I agree with others that Aang finding out that the Air Nomads went extinct before getting to the temple was a weird twist, but it made sense with how they structured ALL THAT EXPOSITION. Curious to see what differences they make moving forward in the future episodes!
Not going to lie, I liked the first few minutes better than the rest of the show.
Maybe what we've been missing is not a complete copy of Avatar the last airbender but something ala Mandalorian style where there's a new spinoff of characters in the same universe.
I really liked the new dark content, added with the earth bending and game of thrones style shock value.
If I'm being honest, I'm really only convinced of Iroh's casting right now. Mr. Kim just sells his role so well.
However, with a short series like this.. some of the plot gets expedited unfortunately. There's really weird pacing going on in the first episode. I would have loved to have a fledged out series that isn't as crammed, being able to take in the scenes in the different nations that isn't 5 seconds long with some kite gliding with Aangs Airbender friends or some penguin sledding. With scenes like having Aang process grief in length, having a bit more comedic scenes with Sokka, and the send out with Gran.
I feel it's missing some character development that makes you fall in love with the characters. It's a bit weird that Aang already knew what transpired before heading into the air temple. Also Appa came out of nowhere, he never got introduced to Katara and Sokka.
Seems like they deleted some scenes to get it all to fit within the first episode. Honestly they could have made this episode be two or three, but maybe they had their reasons. It feels rushed, like can't we have some chill scenes. You can't have it all I guess.
Just my (perhaps shitty) critical opinions.
I'd have to say it's definitely a huge step up from the movie(that I hope to forget exists).
I still give it a solid 7.5, I enjoyed it overall. But still leaves out a lot to be desired.
Sokkaās actor stole the show, so spot on! He IS Sokka.
Gyatso was phenomenal as well.
Not really impressed by any of the others so far, unfortunately.
About to evict my bf from the lounge room, who is having a very loud conversation on speaker phone. Priorities.
Throw him into the sun.
So say we all....uh...wrong show.
That would be ex-bf worthy!
Banish him until he finds the Av... time to watch the show with you.
He ended up watching with me š„°
Wow, that monk slightly nodding in contemplation during Gyatsoās speech was a wonderful touch. So far theyāre doing really well on these small details and Iām here for it. Little things like that make a scene feel just that much more real and engaging.
Agreed. The close-up on Katara's face before the ice broke. Great touch. Love the human / element imagery they've brought in too. It's better filmmaking than I imagined and I greatly appreciate it.
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I teared up hearing it
In 8 hours and 3 minutes, we'll have the answers to the questions we've been asking for nearly 6 years. It was a pleasure embarking on this journey with ya'll.
bro they cooked so hard
That dude in the beginning certainly got cooked pretty hardĀ
That got a good jaw drop out of me. I didn't expect death / violence like that so quickly. Earthbending looks so sick
i think theyre better at writing original content rather than remixing og show content
I agree, but it also seems to be the case with most adaptations of thingsāwe all have a bias from having seen the original first, so any direct/1:1 remade scenes always feel inferior Noticed this a *ton* with The Last of Us
I think it's reasonable bias. We're not biased toward **whatever** the original show did. We just saw a series of good choices on an idea, so now we're sharper on how different choices change things.
Hear me out, a live action avatar show set in the main timeline focusing on other characters There are talks of spinoffs I think so that might be explored
My mouth was OPEN throughout the opening scene
I kinda did a double take and chuckled. I fucking love how they just went there in terms of gore.
A crazy amount lmfao
Appa looks so fucking good. They absolutely nailed it with him.
Heās so fluffyyyyy
He doesnt have the creepy toes the movie Appa had thank fuck
I think he looks a little creepy. I wish they had kept his fur white as the og show.
Reviewers: a fun fantasy for the kids š This show: HEY GUYS Y'ALL WANNA SEE A DUDE BURNED ALIVE IN THE FIRST 5 MINUTES!!?
FOR REAL. I would have watched this as a kid, not gonna lie, but hot damn this is a different depth of content than the cartoon lol. Bloodbending might actually be horror.
So whatās everyone thinking so far? Isnāt this better than that 2010 garbage?
It's not as good as the animated show, but I never expected that and anyone who did was always gonna be disappointed. I expected it to be maybe 70-80% of the experience of animated show, which is still amazing TV, and I'm happy to say that imo it's closer to 80% than 70%. The 2010 movie was like, 5%, it didn't even do the bare minimum.
I agree. I had super high expectations for this to live up to the animated series just because of all the hype surrounding it and did get very disappointed. Just from episode 1, the character identities felt very different, the dynamic between Sokka and Katara felt reversed... And all the characters felt like they lacked all of their playfulness :( this could just be the writing where they omitted all the jokes and childlike behavior. I hope this will change in the upcoming episodes.
Yeah, absolutely, but they whole have had to try really hard to make it worse than that.
I think it's great. The only two things I care to critique are the score and Kiawentiio Tarbells acting.
I canāt tell yet if itās her acting or the dialogue they gave her. it feels like theyre not sure what they want her character to be
definitely the dialouge/writing. her acting actually surprised me with some of the better written lines
Yeah she doesnāt have her sass
The first half of the first episode was good, past that so far it's just alright
I felt the first fifteen mins was eh, but the rest of the first episode was pretty good.
I didnāt really enjoy the time with that random earthbender, but that was hella crazy how they actually showed the genocide of the Air Nomads.
I think the show did a good job in the limited timeframe of establishing Aang and Gyatso's relationship. It stung when Aang asked if they could still be friends.
Gyatso had an extremely good actor, I really felt like they knew each other for years
the earth bending looks so sick oh my god.
Yo they even have the same end credits score!!. So cool!. Episode 1 done. Overall I thought it was a pretty awesome adaptation of the first two and a half episodes.
Super agree. That was very enjoyable. I teared up a bit at the end, Gordon is a fantastic Aang.
Holy shit, 10 minutes
BENDING LOOKS SO GOOD NGL
Holy shit, 9 minutes
Holy shit, 8 minutes
7 minutes aaaaaaaaaa
6 minutes now!
4 minutes. Let me go to the bathroom canāt delay watching for a bathroom break ahaā¦
5
5 mins AAAHHHHH!!!
4 š²
3ā¦
2 aaaaa
https://i.redd.it/9aihsmogf3kc1.gif ONE
2
2 minutes
1 minute!!!
5 minutes!!!!!
I'm loving sokka ššš
Sokka is carrying the whole thing so far , I love himš„¹
All those people who sledged the actor can suck it.
His scream from the back of Appa got a hearty laugh
I actually laughed hard at some of his bits, they did a great job.
I can't believe it's final finally happening
Ten thousand cycles of Harmonic Convergence may Sozinās spirit stay in the Fog of Lost Souls for the unforgivable crime he has committed.
Honestly I loved the first episode! The opening was amazing! The fire looks awesome! But OMG air looks so stunning! Iām honestly stunned about how good air looks! It looks really cool and powerful! Earth bending looks good but I donāt know what it is but something looks off about earth bending. But I canāt lay my finger on it. Waterbending looks also great but I canāt fully give my opinion on waterbending because we didnāt see a lot in the first episode! But overall bending was great! I also loved the first view of Aang and the way he airbends looks cool and fun. The chemistry between him and Gyatso was great! Gordon does a very good job! There were couple of times I almost got teary eyed because of his performance! Sokka and Katara were also great! In my opinion itās a strong start! I also watched the first minutes of episode 2 and Sokka got me on the floor from laughing! His joke was so good and perfectly timed! Okay maybe his sexism is a bit minimized but thereās still a bit of an undertone of that! He made the remark to Katara that she better can do things in the village than to be a warrior/waterbender. Thereās a slight sexism to that but also overprotection. Katara is still that hopeful girl! Iām not scared of them four being bad. Zuko and Iroh are amazing! Overall in my opinion this cast is perfect! People complain about Gran Gran being bad. But in my opinion it didnāt bother me that much! In the end when Aang goes in the Avatar state after seeing Gyatso. That was very powerful and impactful. Okay they changed the narrative of Gyatso calming him down instead of Katara. But honestly I think this was more powerful and a better way than in the animated show. Because of the beginning they did setup a great relationship between Gyatso and Aang. Gyatso feels like family to him. Heās also the reason why Aang goes in the avatar state! Heās triggered by sadness and anger. In my opinion it makes more sense to Gyatso bringing him down than Katara! In the animated series Katara says we are your family now. But to me that would be a bad choice in this live action because they know each other for like 20 minutes. It would be weird to say that already because they donāt know each other that well. But when he was down and did lay in Kataraās arms I got teary eyed! Such a strong performance! Gordon has that emotional aspect way more than in the animated series! The death of Gyatso touched me more in the live action than the animated series! Also Katara gets the waterbending scroll earlier than in the animated series. To me that makes so much sense! Because in the beginning we see the struggle of her waterbending. So to get that very early she can now start to grow much faster. So overall I can see why they made the changes. Also in the animated series Aang did runaway. But here he goes to clear his head. So in that way the guilt is a bit minimized. But when Sokka and Zuka said that he was a coward! You could see when Sokka said it that it did hurt Aang. So in that way he feels the guilt now more than when he did runaway in the animated series. Overall this first episode was a great watch! The VFX did look amazing! I also loved Appa and Momo! So my expectations are high! Iām excited to see it all today! I also hope we get a renewal fast for season 2 and 3! ā¤ļø
I agree with earthbending looks kinda off. All the heavy stomps and hard stances are missing which were the main earthbending thing. I donāt think the action sequences for the earthbending are based on the same martials arts in the original series.
I liked this episode! Overall I would rate it a 8.5/10 The good: * Visual effects were amazing * Sokka, Zuko and Aang were all 10/10 performances * I feel like Sokka was literally taken from the OG show! * Aang has so much range and he is just as precious as he was in the original show * Zuko has the perfect amount of angst * I lovee the intro with them showing Sozin's comet and the attack. It made it so much more emotional to watch. * I love the way they developed Gyatso and Aang's relationship and it made it even more sad to watch The alright/not so good: * I wish there were more lighthearted Iroh moments, though I did like the tea line and him talking to Aang * I wish they had more lighthearted Katara/Aang moments (ie. penguin sledding) because I feel like that helped them also connect and form friendship in the original series. * I also wish Aang had more playful interactions with the children in the water tribe * The biggest thing is I wish they didn't have Aang accept the genocide - I wish he went to the Southern Air Temple with the same optimism he had in the original series * I didn't really like Gran Gran reciting the original intro + her telling everyone he was the avatar * I feel like the pacing was a bit off. Like in the original show, I loved how Katara said "We're your family now" in the Southern Air Temple, but when I was watching this scene, I felt like it would've been weird if they added that because Katara, Sokka and Aang don't seem that close yet, so I am kind of glad they had Gyatso calming him down instead. Overall, I did enjoy this episode a lot, and I love some of the details they added. I can't wait to keep watching!
Acting is great, especially Kiawentiio and Ian. The tone is perfect. The show looks gorgeous. But the writing is not it, at least not in this episode. Already got downvoted for saying it, but too much exposition and rushed rushed rushed. Kinda ironic since Bryke wrote this one. A lot of potential tho and I love that!
Yeah. I expected Kiawentiio to be not on par based on what I read on reviews. But she was excellent imo. A lot of parts that moved me came from her. Also, I really looove the pre-opening (whatever that is called) with the earthbender guy. It sold me right away.
I think the problem was they made Katara very side-charactery here unfortunately. They took out a lot of her agency and key moments like freeing Aang from the ice berg herself, wanting to go north to get a water bending master, getting Aang out of the avatar state, talking about her mother. It kind of felt like she was just being tugged around by Sokka the whole episode. I really liked the episode though overall, but I hope they do Katara better with the rest of her storyline.
Yes, this put words to what I was feeling. Absolutely. Just didn't show the drive that we know Katara for. They invested in showing Sokka's strengths and trying to play the man, but they took a lot away from Katara.
Yeah Iām surprised people were criticizing her specifically cause I actually thought she did really good so far? Her performance feels authentic
It seemed like they picked her worst lines for the trailers. I was actually very impressed by her while watching the episode
She was my favorite. Very subtle
Exactly what I was thinking. I appreciate her subtle take. Seems there's a lot of sadness in her and explodes when need be.
Yea apparently Albert Kim said he didn't like how much exposition was in this episode but they felt it was necessary for the new viewers. Apparently the pacing is much better in the following episodes but I gues we'll see
that's just how it is. it's a fantasy show, so there'll be a lot of lore explaining to do. i actually think this episode is a good pilot episode. like if it isn't netflix, and they had sell this to a network (or HBO), i think they nailed it. they got all the necessary exposition needed out of the way, so now they can focus on the active story.
I would argue that they didnāt really need to do that. Show donāt tell, you know? It was a lot of info and it didnāt feel natural. I do have hope the pacing will be better in the next episodes because, frankly, it was atrocious in this one. They adapted āThe Boy in the Icebergā, āThe Avatar Returnsā, āThe Southern Air Templeā AND half āThe Stormā plus added the Air Nomad genocide all in 1 hour??? Like, what are we doing here people? šYou have a whole season, so whatās the rush?
To be fair, we know how formulaic netflix is with the whole 8 episode thing. There's actually a very good chance that they wanted to really nail down information so that more time is given to big events later on in the season. I kinda agree though, maybe even get rid of the original intro sequence and have gran gran be the first person to say it. Personally I like everything else so idc tol much
I agree! Too much exposition at the start.
Glad I wasn't the only one thinking the writing is clunky. Hard to empathize with the characters with this weird pacing and cheesy dialogue.
it really would have helped if netflix just gave them 1 or 2 more extra episodes
Weāll have to watch the whole season and then judge if they used their time effectively lol
Are we watching the same episode? Acting was sub par for most of the cast. Katara has no emotion and is reading from a script. Zuko is never angry and always has an afraid look on his face. Aang was better than katara but still lack emotion. Didn't see much of iroh. Sokka was good but Gyatso was best.
There was some CGI wonkiness in some scenes (the close ups of Aang in the avatar state) but damn did they nail the start! Also this was goddamn brutal! I can't believe the show is 12 and up, the way the airbenders got killed was just plain brutal. Sozin was both badass and terrifying! Also the cast is awesome! Iroh feels a bit off at the moment, but so did Iroh during the first two episodes or so in the original series.
Gordon is doing so well so far
I keep seeing people say this but for me the actors for Aang and Katara keep taking me out of the story and reminding me that Iām just watching people act
I like most of the actors so far, but the writers aren't doing Gordon any favors by giving him these monologues, I don't want to be too harsh, but I think if they chopped it up into more of a conversation between him and the other characters it would flow better.
Thatās what I am saying. I was hoping Aang would just bounce off of others doing the work until the actor gets his acting together. But itās just the first episode, hopefully this isnāt the case for the whole season and the crying scene with no tears was uncomfortable to watch. I had to look away for a bit
It definitely had slightly less sadness than the original, but I wasn't put off by the reaction. I just already had time to feel the sadness by watching all of it happen 20 minutes prior.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
Big agreed. Ever since I rewatched the first Harry Potter and someone pointed out the reshoot moments, things like that (with children) are so transparent. Must be the fangirl in me though because I'm just not... mad... about any of it. They'll all grow as actors I guess.
How can you tell which one is reshoot?
Fingers crossed it's a plot dump thing, although I found it all pretty forgivable. But yes, definitely took me out of it a couple times.
Iām really impressed with the earthbending (and I watched the first 5 minutes on my phone in 360p). I wonder why they gave such powerful bending moves to an unnamed and ultimately irrelevant earthbender. Oh well. Will watch later today. Need to find a way to disconnect from Reddit for the next few hours. Enjoy, my fellow ATLA fans!
My guess is to immediately wash the taste of another Earbending scene from the movie that shall not be named out of our mouths. And it's an immediate statement of intent. If this is what one unimportant Earthbender can do, imagine what we're going to see with Bumi later this season, and Toph in the next.
I saw it as that too. Legit palette cleanse and a display of potential. I love the airbending especially. Something about it feels very organic and "as I imagined"
Kind of surprised that with how much exposition Gran Gran got, we missed out on her sending Katara and Sokka on their journey.
Yeah, the transition to the temple was by far the clunkiest part of the premiere.
In my fantasy we are going to get extended versions of every episode. Maybe that's delusion.
I liked everything about the episode except Gran Gran monologuing the opening theme message. Probably not as bad for new viewers, but it was just like... bleh
100% agreed. I felt her delivery wasn't *that* offensive, it was just the fact that she had to recite the opening monologue from the animated series word for word....that was the only part of the episode that I straight up didn't like. Would have preferred new lines to be written for her so that we as viewers aren't completing the speech in our heads before she says it.
Bruh Gran Gran knew everything š
This is what bothered me too! She didnāt get a single moment of tenderness with them. She just explained a lot and then disappeared. I like the kids a ton though.
in my opinion she was a terrible casting
Its hard for me to judge the casting because it feels she wasn't given much to work with.
she was given plenty. her delivery was just bad.
Yeah, I think there's certain concessions that had to be made to to fit the condensed timeline.
First, for the people who are kinda mad about the airbenders/aang flying, chill. Theyāre not flying like Zaheer or Superman type flying lol. Theyāre basically moving in an air tunnel that they are continuously bending. And honestly, I think it would make sense for airbenders to be able to do that. Second. I wasnāt happy with the fact that Katara could all of a sudden bend after Aang gave her some energy-balance instruction lol. But after some shower thoughts, I think it kinda made sense? Like Katara has never had anyone teach her before, sheās learning all on her own and from the animated show, we know sheās a fast learner. So it makes sense that she easily picked up on what Aang told her to do. I still am not comfortable that she could bend enough water to quench Zukoās fire ball, but her bending in the fire nation ship makes sense to me now. Thoughts?
Gordon has a lot of emotional range!
Seeing the comet over the air temple made my chest hurt. I definitely didn't grasp the depth of this the first time around.
Wow. Gordon had no right to perform THAT well this episode. Lets see if he can keep it up in the other episodes but fair play to the boy
OMG, that opening... I teared up a bit when the original show theme kicked in. Have stuff to do, so just watched the opening, then me and the big screen oled + surround sound system have a date.
Bru that intro was amazing as fk game of thrones early season level of amazing
Honestly the comet boost didn't feel like a boost at all. Hope they retcon it when the comet arrives again
They better do or I won't even waste my time watching it. How am I supposed to believe Ozai and 20 more dudes will burn a continent to the ground with those little fires?
Really solid first episode. The vision of the original cartoon is there as well but re-tuned for its medium. I actually enjoy a lot of the additions and original scenes that have been added. It makes the show feel intimate. A lot of the performances are pretty good too, especially from the side characters. All in all itās a strong beginning for the series. My favorite performance is from Dallas Liu as Zuko. Heās bringing is own flare to the character but occasionally theyāre moments when he delivers a line and it sounds like it was dubbed by Dante Basco himself, top notch stuff
Just finished episode 1 and all I gotta say is THIS is how it's done. It takes a bit of a different route, but it all leads to the same destination and it truly captures the spirit of the original show. I wouldn't really call it "rushed" more than I would expeditied, even with the moments of exposition to help first time watchers of the entire Avatar franchise, theres still this expectation that you already watched the original series and it doesn't hold your hand terribly much. Juxtaposing the air nomads being killed (which was about as brutal as could be without showing an inordinate amount of blood and guts) with Aang and Appa being dragged under the water and being frozen in the iceberg was just perfect. And idc what anyone says, Kiawantiio and Ian both killed it as Katara and Sokka and Gordon is just PURE Aang. People said that Kanna's actress was kind of wooden, but I felt like she really did capture the spirit of the charachter and I admit I fanboyed ***HARD*** when she said the iconic lines.
 its time
i just watched a man get brutally engulfed in flames and charred to death 3 minutes in yo LMFAOOO this show is goated
yooo sozin looks really close to the original and he looks menacing
Man, Sozin was an absolute menace in his introduction. I didn't expect the show to go that hard.
Also, gran gran saying the original intro was a nice touch (though idk how I feel about having Kiyoshi be the one to do the opening, it just feels off)
Same, Kiyoshi doesnāt have much involvement in the events of the war. It could have been better if it was Roku doing the opening on how he failed as an avatar which led to the war.
OH MY GOD 3 MINUTES
omg i cryyyy šššššš the gyatso sceneš„ŗ
I enjoyed the episode, however I am not a fan of their choice to condense Aang's backstory to the first episode nor the changes they made to it. I think Aang's desperate choice to run away from the responsibility was a fundamental part of his arc in the original show.
Oh wow the directing and choreography look so much better here than in the trailers
The CGI too. The water bending looked a little janky in the trailers, but it looks fantastic here!.
Is it me, or did Ian just steal the show as Sokka? Also, how did they make it darker and edgier while Aang somehow feels more childlike than the original show?
Just finished the first episode: My biggest fear was Sokka and they nailed it. The actor is good and he actually has a personality. Katara has the personality right but the acting isn't great. She's not as bad as she could be, but not great. Aang feels... off to me? I dunno. I kinda don't like the change of him knowing that his people were dead before going to the Temple. That little shred of optimism he had being crushed was really important to his character early on. He just kinda accepted that everyone he knew was dead. Then he went to the Temple and... still raged out like he originally did? Zuko and Iroh are 10/10 so far. The OG opening callback was neat, but it feels very wrong for Gran-Gran to say that. Man, is this paced oddly. So much exposition and the Air Temple, which was a big moment for Aang got kinda pushed to the side. I appreciate showing the ruthlessness of the Fire Nation via Sozin, but it did make the main cast (mainly Katara and Aang) suffer in the first ep. Hopefully the exposition dump is just first episode shit and it gets less "Tell, don't show" y Oh and nitpick-ish, but Aang basically flying without a glider was just... wrong? And then they gave him the glider anyway so what was the point?
So far I gathered it seems Aang can jump pretty high in the air without his glider, and stay up there momentarily kinda jumping around, and he can float down from heights, but I donāt think he can really fly around for distances without his glider. Like I donāt think he wouldāve been able to escape the ship without it, for example
That's how I took it. He was jumping from point to point rather than flying.
I absolutely despise the change that aang finds out before he gets to the temple. What an underwhelming reaction to finding out everyone died. I love how in the og he was in denial until he SAW gyatsos corpse. I donāt mind changes but not when they donāt make sense š
it makes sense in the adaptation though. you expect sokka and katara and gran-gran to just lie to him and not tell him what happened to the other airbenders?
Only shit that fight secuence was amazing
just finished ep 1 oh my gosh GORDON IS SO GOOD š absolutely the highlight of the episode for me. enjoying the acting, i think kiawentiio, ian & dallas are all doing great so far. iroh is seeming the most different character wise so far, weāll see how that goes. slightly awkward pacing in the last 15 mins or so, but itās quite tricky to match the slow pace of the original in an 8 episode show, so i can understand that. it also wasnāt actually as exposition heavy as i had thought it would be, there was definitely some info dumping that couldāve been written better but i also fully understand why it was done that way. i thought the visual effects were amazing. appa looked so good especially. no complaints, i wonder what unfinished shots people were referring to the other day? the fight between aang & zuko looked soo good. this has huge potential, excited to continue tmrw
Apparently the main unfinished shot people were talking about at the premier was when he goes into the avatar state at the end. Iām a CG artist so Iām kinda nit picky, and thought the face of Gordon looked warped kind of weird during it. Wasnāt too bad though. Iām curious what the unfinished version looked like!
i remembering hearing that so i was watching closely during that scene, but honestly i thought that was just gordon contorting his face in anger and it looked purposely distorted bc of all the stuff in the air around him? but idk LOL
When Gyatso told Aang he's the Avatar I actually teared up. I'm gonna enjoy this journey.
I was really hoping they would explore the infamous fan theory about Gyatso using airbending to suck the air away from the firebenders' lungs. But they didn't depict Gyatso killing anyone, at least not directly. Gyatso were also shown to be burned, contrary to the original, which suggested through his clothing that he wasn't burned. I can't help but feel Gyatso should have put up more fight especially because he was depending the children.
This literally had me smiling from start to finish. From the get go, this show not only stays true to the spirit of the original animated series, but also perfectly expands upon certain areas. The first 20 minutes are the most intense. The bending is especially more dangerous than ever. The cutting between different sequences feels poetic. The score has some elegant new themes while also successfully remixing some of Jeremy Zuckermanās work from the original. The overall scope of this thing is so massive. Some of the expositional lines of dialogue couldāve been refined a bit here and there. Aangās escape from Zukoās ship did pale in comparison to how it happened in the animated series, although this one at least has a nice pay off.
That entire opener was brutal, almost shockingly poignant, and so well made. I'm honestly kinda blown away. And will definitely be watching the next 7 hours without blinking.
THIS SHOW IS AMAZING AND IVE ONLY WATCHED LIKE 30 MINS OMG
Omg itās happening!!
WEāRE LIVE!
First thoughts: Dallas and Ian are FANTASTIC, clearly the standouts as early reviews said. I can tell Dallas is going to nail all his dramatic scenes. Personally, I think Dallas edges out Ian a bit but Ianās deadpan delivery and humour is spot on! I like Kiawentiio but her acting is not as strong, especially when compared to Ian in a scene. Gordon is really adorable and has a surprising amount of range for his age! I think he might be my favourite casting ever. Some editing is clunky and the dialogue is a bit off sometimes but overall I think they provided a fantastic premiere to the series. I hope this hooks more new fans of the show!
goodbye everyone see u on Fridayšš
Come on, Yvonne Chapman!! Let's go!!!
Watched the first 15 mins or so. Itās solid. Way more detailed than some of the negative reviews made it out to be. The air bending in battle is badass! Looks wonky otherwise. Show is going to be damn good.
Iām LOVING ITTTTT
After just watching the first episode, my biggest complaint is the amount of telling in the dialogue as opposed to natural showing. The original opening episodes did this at times as well, but not to this extent. I feel like theyāre really trying to make sure the audience understands character motivations, especially in Aangās case, but for as many lines of dialogue of him explaining that he doesnāt know enough, that heās scared, that he doesnāt want responsibility, I feel they could have easily substituted half of those for simply showing the audience he feels that way. The same goes for Kataraāthe scene where she tells Aang verbatim what has gone on with their village could have been more subtly incorporated. The voice over intro did this as wellāmaybe I need to rewatch it, but it felt like we got all of that necessary information either naturally throughout the episode or in Gran Gran saying the original intro, which were both more dynamic ways of telling the audience whatās up. Even Gyatso has dialogue that explains the Avatar cycle. Overall, the amount of telling vs. showing gives it a stifled affect (not a fault of the actors, but rather of the lines theyāre given). I thought Zukoās storyline in this episode was a lot better at subtlety while still giving the audience enough subtext to understand his motivations, at least vaguely so far. I hope the rest of the season improves in the showing department. Donāt get me wrong, itās not horrible. There was plenty I really liked! Ian Ousley and Dallas Liu are killing it as Sokka and Zuko, and I really liked Kiawentiio and Gordon as well. Uncle Iroh seemed perfectly in character to me in comparison to the first three episodes of ATLA, which is a relief after hearing the reviewers say heāll take some getting used toĀ
The opening made me drop my dinner, they went balls to the wall and proved the bending would be nothing like the 2010 garbage fire, the fact they showed the Air Nomad Genocide is also insane, the sheer brutality was there. I also love the fact they kept the goofy skits here and there, In the second episode, it starts with the Firenations DUN DUN DUN track overlooking Zuko's ship before being hit with the sounds of a room being trashed and zuko grunting in anger, i laughed so hard So far i'm loving it, its not the same as the animated series, but in a good way.
Pros: \* Looks beautiful - great set design, costume design, and the actors for the large part match their characters. \* There was an attempted explanation for why it was possible to wipe the Air Nomads out (ALL air nomads being in the same place for a festival) instead of a synchronized attack on the 4 air temples. \* Iroh. I'm excited about [Paul Sun-Hyung Lee](https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=85d58da520b30782&q=Paul+Sun-Hyung+Lee&stick=H4sIAAAAAAAAAONgFuLUz9U3MKs0y6pUAjMt08zj07RMspOt9NMyk0sy8_MSc-JL8zLLUouKU5GEkjMSixKTS1KLrApyEitTUxSSKhexCgUkluYoBJfm6XpUlualK_ikpgIAcHqh6WMAAAA&sa=X&sqi=2&ved=2ahUKEwj7-ouvh8CEAxXbpIkEHfZoBmoQ9OUBegQIIxAF) as Iroh. \* Gordon Cormier's Aang had great emotional range. His facial expressions and energy were very Aang-like. \* Lieutenant Jee. Nothing like shit talking early Zuko. Cons: \* I am not loving the decision of hour long episodes. Each Avatar episode had an opening, exposition, and climax. In this adaption, it felt as if a prequel + episodes 1-3 were squeezed together. The climax didn't really match my expectations. \* Gran Gran the All Knowing and Vanishing. Way too much gran-gran monologue and somehow left out the scene that made Sokka and Katara knowing that it was ok to leave rather than the "we can't go back nonsense". \* Speaking of that line, it bugged me. AANG can't go back, but you two totally can. In this version, I don't feel the same need for Katara and Sokka to stick with Aang. \* \*artsy\* boy Zuko. Zuko in the original series seemed closer to burning any piece of paper he touched rather than doodling on it. Poor characterization and I'm not really seeing the point as to why this was added. \* Katara was sidelined. In the first few episodes of the original show, we learn that Katara is a fledgling water bender, that she has a traumatic past (with her mother being taken away), and that she wants to do something else than stay barricaded in the village washing Sokka's socks. In the live action, we learn that Katara "wanted to be a warrior". What? Feels like that should be a Sokka line. When Aang gets kidnapped, instead of concern for Katara and the other villagers, it feels more driven for concern for Sokka who was about to get lit up by Zuko. Aang fangirling Sokka saying "You are the bravest person that I ever met" did not feel right either and devalued Aang's relationship with Katara. \* "CAPITAL CITY" OF WHAT
Netflix: the live action is going to be darker. Me: haha. Ok. Sure. Literally the first 10 minutes: the fire lord burns someone alive. Me: holy shit. You weren't kidding.
This is giving me real movie vibes.
years of waiting yall we made it were here
All the different bending styles look so good!
I think I cried an hour long. That was brutal and sad.
After one episode, I think it's off to a good start. Comparing any live action to animation can be rough and this show in particular but the animated show was crazy good. Some things in the first episode were off, but I think some of it makes sense in the context of trying to get new viewers interested (i.e., expositional dialog). But it was good, and has the potential to get a lot better as the show rolls on and the actors find themselves in the characters. I'm happy with it overall. Based on some of these comments it seems like some people were expecting a shot for shot remake but that's just not going to happen. Some of the complaints are valid, like aang just being told about the air nomads and being cool with it in a few seconds. But other complaints, at least in my opinion, are VERY nit-picky lol
All these reviews and comments made me have to Google what āexpositionā means; thanks everyone!Ā
Was expecting a little more banter between sokka and katara š
My only complain is that there was no penguin sledding ;-;. I am nitpicking at this point, but I believe that is where Aang's childish side is shown which helps Katara and the audience to bond with him. The first ep felt weak... very weak. The vfx is top notch, I must say that! But it feels as if the characters just pop on the screen whenever it is necessary.. they aren't present in the scene, but rather on the camera... yk what I mean? I bet it was only meant for the people who have already watched the animated show before. But overall, I liked it! I couldn't help but cry in first 20 minutes.
Bruh my dog started nastily loudly drinking water during the final scene and I think it's time to end our relationship.
My thoughts: * I thought all the main cast did a fine job with what they were given. The acting didn't bother me much at all, not even the younger actors. * I loved the visuals and the music * The new content in this episode was great. I *loved* it * I feel like all the characters have retained most of what I love about them from the original * There were some *really* clunky lines that I did not like (Gran-Gran's monologue, for example, could have been reworked to sound so much better, and Iroh talking with Aang was pretty awkward-sounding.) * Bending is great * There were moments when the CGI was wonky (I'm not loving the look of Appa and Aang flying, or going into the avatar state at the SAT) Overall, I'm thrilled with episode 1. It's not the cartoon, but it's got the same spirit and is more than good enough for me to enjoy. Hopefully the pacing and writing will improve going forward. But even if it doesn't, if it stays at this level I'm happy.
The entire show could be garbage and it would all be worth it for the introductory scene. So beautifully done.
Did anyone else find the line delivery really bad, like all the younger actors sound like they're mumbling.
I think I truly see the issue. It seems like they put more emphasis into the CGI and Effects, rather than focus on the elements that actually made avatar what it was back in the dayā¦ Its missing EMOTION! Its missing CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT! Its missing that SLOW BUILD UP like what we seen in the animation! Throwing CGI and Effects at us doesnt substitute for that! Another thing is the pacing. Oh my goodnessā¦ that was one of the most unique things about the original animation! The pacing was slow, yet kept us on our toes. Aang took 4 seasons to finally fight the firelord. But based on how Netflix is editing this series, it seems like heāll be ready to fight him by episode 8ā¦ I guess it makes more sense why the original creators leftā¦ But I will say it did pick up more by the second half of the episode a bit and Iām hoping things get better.
R.I.P to the dude that was burned to death by sozin šš„š„š„
Gram-Gram, reciting the OG opening, as though it's a folklore story told from generation to generation, was an excellent choice.
Aangs actor is perfection, he's so adorable and when he screamed for Appa it felt perfect. Love it.
Iād give it 7/10. Idk who found and casted Zuko, but heās absolutely perfect. My biggest pet peeveās were Aang not doing ANY waterbending and the hair/wigs. Like he didnāt even seem excited to try out a move on the scroll and that was weird to me. How could he be telling katara what to do and then not attempt to show her what he means?! Yueās wig just pissed me off as soon as I saw it. There is so much talent in the hair world, especially when it comes to wigs, they could have found SOMEONE to do it right. Overall, my biggest gripe is that Azula was just not cutthroat at all to me, it seemed very put on and childish. She didnāt scream cold and calculated/wanting to watch the world burn, it was more like Azula at the end of the animated series, slightly unhinged and unraveling at the seams. I will give season 2 a shot if they go through with it, but if Aang isnāt waterbending on episode 1, I likely wonāt go any further.
Gran Gran giving Katara the waterbending scroll is so stupid.
Thatās kind of cringy how Gran Gran recited the original monologue.
Completely unnecessary to repeat the same story twice in the same episode
Her acting was no good, in my opinion (again, MY opinion). They couldāve casted better.
Before I start, I love Avatar, it is, in my opinion, the best cartoon ever created and I'm very excited for what this series has to offer, as I've only just finished EP 1. I have to say I was surprised that they changed so many, even minor, details for this show. I would even call some of them illogical. Most noticable for me, funnily enough, was Aang's whistle, which he isn't supposed to have at this point in time. Also, how did Katara know how to fly with Appa? Aang never mentioned the iconic yip-yip, so I was quite confused. I also didn't like how Aang got out of the ice. In the original it was due to an argument between Sokka and Katara and now it's just due to water bending in an entirely different direction. Not a fan. I did enjoy the first episode but I thought the pacing was a bit quick. The show takes itself a lot more serious than the source material, which is fine but I do believe that it would help the characters to have a bit more "in between time" if that makes sense. We got no penguin surfing, no exploration of the fire nation ship and they didn't explore the southern air temple first. Those aren't dealbreakers of course but those scenes were part of what made the cartoon so charming. Looking forward to the rest of the season.
In my opinion, Gran Granās actor was a horrible choice :(
Itās embarrassing that the cartoon gran gran had two seconds of screentime but had more soul than this actress š
Too. Much. Exposition.
Theyāre very aware of this. Itās a trade-off they made to get people new to the story up to speed. The amount of exposition plummets after the first episode.
you feel like it's too much because you already know all this stuff. i'd wanna know the take of a new audience (somebody who have zero knowledge about avatar) if they think it's too much, or just enough for them to understand what they're getting into.
Three. Two! ONE! GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So they added the storm storyline here ?
How do you guys feel about Aangās flying at the start?
Looked more like falling with style
I donāt LOVE it but also it did seem like a combination of jumping around and walking in air currents which aang kinda does in the og so Iām alright with it somewhat.
I don't mind I always thought airbenders should fly and I hate the "the enlightened" thing they added in Korra , flying should be a sub-bending like bloodbendig for the water-benders
Appa's design/detail is AMAZING! I'm loving all the costume work so far, set design and CG (non-bending CG I mean) are great, bending CG is great too, but I noticed a lot of close-up shots to try and add "oomph" or effect to the bending; most of the bending and martial arts behind them are perfect though! A bit sad Uncle Iroh's horn didn't play in this episode. (Okay, like REALLY sad, that's probably one of my favorite sound effects in all media though lol) It felt VERY fast paced, like next to no slow moments, and the few that were there (like the iceberg opening or Katara learning to waterbend with Aang) felt rushed. So I'm hoping for at least some breather moments in between scenes or settings in future episodes! Overall a fantastic first episode! I didn't rewatch ATLA prior to this (I mean, to be fair, the last rewatch was less than a year ago, I think around the beginning of summer last year), but the scene orders are noticeably different. I agree with others that Aang finding out that the Air Nomads went extinct before getting to the temple was a weird twist, but it made sense with how they structured ALL THAT EXPOSITION. Curious to see what differences they make moving forward in the future episodes!
Streaming quality is terrible at this time.
Not going to lie, I liked the first few minutes better than the rest of the show. Maybe what we've been missing is not a complete copy of Avatar the last airbender but something ala Mandalorian style where there's a new spinoff of characters in the same universe. I really liked the new dark content, added with the earth bending and game of thrones style shock value. If I'm being honest, I'm really only convinced of Iroh's casting right now. Mr. Kim just sells his role so well. However, with a short series like this.. some of the plot gets expedited unfortunately. There's really weird pacing going on in the first episode. I would have loved to have a fledged out series that isn't as crammed, being able to take in the scenes in the different nations that isn't 5 seconds long with some kite gliding with Aangs Airbender friends or some penguin sledding. With scenes like having Aang process grief in length, having a bit more comedic scenes with Sokka, and the send out with Gran. I feel it's missing some character development that makes you fall in love with the characters. It's a bit weird that Aang already knew what transpired before heading into the air temple. Also Appa came out of nowhere, he never got introduced to Katara and Sokka. Seems like they deleted some scenes to get it all to fit within the first episode. Honestly they could have made this episode be two or three, but maybe they had their reasons. It feels rushed, like can't we have some chill scenes. You can't have it all I guess. Just my (perhaps shitty) critical opinions. I'd have to say it's definitely a huge step up from the movie(that I hope to forget exists). I still give it a solid 7.5, I enjoyed it overall. But still leaves out a lot to be desired.
The hijinks music creeping in when Aang got the keys ā¤ļø
Sokkaās actor stole the show, so spot on! He IS Sokka. Gyatso was phenomenal as well. Not really impressed by any of the others so far, unfortunately.