The Big Picture
Netflix’s
Avatar: The Last Airbender
has tonal issues and changes, missing what made the original special.
Kyoshi, instead of Roku, possessing Aang lacks symbolism and significance in a key scene.
Roku’s possession of Aang symbolizes his rejection of the Fire Nation and the punishment for imbalance.
Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender has received a rocky reception since it launched at the end of February. The animated series by Nickelodeon is frequently listed among the greatest cartoons ever made thanks to its strong world-building, fantastic characters, and ingenious blend of Eastern and Western philosophies in a way both adults and children can understand. While Netflix’s version certainly fairs better than the infamous 2010 film The Last Airbender, it suffers from tonal inconsistencies and numerous changes, great and small. The result is a show that, while not the worst ever made, fundamentally misses a lot of what made the original show so special.
One change that most audiences can agree was good in theory was having Aang (Gordon Cormier) interact with his previous lives, such as the Earthbender Kyoshi (Yvonne Chapman) and the Waterbender Kuruk (Meegwun Fairbrother). In the animated show, he primarily interacted with the previous avatar, the Firebender Roku (C. S. Lee). Aang first speaks to Kyoshi as the Fire Nation attacks Kyoshi Island. Kyoshi possesses Aang’s body to drive them back. Unfortunately, this scene takes away a pivotal moment for Roku and doesn’t present it in the same light.
Avatar: The Last Airbender (Live-Action)
A young boy known as the Avatar must master the four elemental powers to save the world and fight against an enemy bent on stopping him.
Release Date February 22, 2024
Creator Albert Kim
Seasons 1
How Do Both Versions of ‘Avatar: The Last Airbender’ Use The Past Avatars?
In episode 2, “Warriors,” Aang, Katara (Kiawentiio), and Sokka (Ian Ousley) travel to Kyoshi Island to learn from the records of Avatar Kyoshi how to master the power of the Avatar. While meditating at her shrine, Aang comes face to face with Kyoshi’s Spirit. She tells Aang about the Avatar State, how being the Avatar means being a warrior, and that the Northern Water Tribe will come under attack soon. When Aang hesitates to follow her aggressive advice, Kyoshi offers to show him the power of the Avatar and possess his body as Prince Zuko (Dallas Liu) and General Zhao (Ken Leung) launch an attack on the island. She easily defends Katara from Zuko, then goes into the village and tosses aside Zhao’s warriors, forcing a retreat.
Meanwhile, the animated show has Aang meet Roku first, as he travels to Roku’s Temple on Crescent Island to commune with him during the Winter Solstice. It is a difficult meeting, with the temple’s caretakers, the Fire Sages, attacking Anng, and Prince Zuko and Admiral Zhao following him as well. Yet Aang manages to meet Roku’s spirit, who tells Aang about the return of Sozin’s Comet in a few months. If Aang can’t master the elements before then, the Fire Nation will use the comet to end the war. Roku then offers to help Aang fight off Zhao’s forces, allowing Aang and his friends to escape.
Ultimately, Kyoshi fulfills a very similar role to Roku when Aang meets him during the Winter Solstice: she grants him a vision of what is to come, stresses the importance of mastering the elements quickly, and possesses his body to defeat Fire Nation soldiers under the command of Zhao. Aang meets with Roku in episode 6, “Masks,” but the context is changed to Aang needing to get a totem that belongs to Koh the Face Stealer (George Takei), who has imprisoned Sokka and Katara in the Spirit World. However, making Kyoshi possess Aang instead of Roku robs the moment of a lot of symbolism and thematic significance.
The Significance of Roku Possessing Aang
Image via Netflix
The first piece of significance to Roku being the one to possess Aang is not only that he was the previous Avatar, but that he was also the last one to come from the Fire Nation. When Roku appears before Zhao and his men on Crescent Island, it holds the symbolic metaphor that their nation is rejecting them. Roku represents the Fire Nation before the war when they lived together in harmony with the rest of the world instead of waging an imperialistic war of expansion. Zhao’s expression reflects this as he is confronted by the possessed Avatar. With Kyoshi, Zhao is merely confused, but seeing Roku makes his jaw drop in shock.
Roku also turns his anger towards the Fire Sages, who, in the century since his death, have rejected their duty to the Avatar. Except for the youngest sage, Shyu (James Rha), the Fire Sages have pledged their loyalty to Fire Lord Ozai (Daniel Dae Kim) and his war. This spits in the face of one of the Avatar’s key philosophies: that the needs of the entire world supersede loyalty to any of the individual kingdoms. For their betrayal, Roku uses powerful lava bending to destroy his temple, and its destruction serves as a physical statement that the world itself — embodied through the Avatar — is punishing the Fire Nation for throwing things out of balance.
Finally, Roku simply has more stake in providing Aang with more direct assistance than Kyoshi. As the previous Avatar, it was his duty to try and stop the Fire Nation from launching this war, but he was unable to. His death allowed Firelord Sozin (Hiro Kanagawa) to launch his attack on the Air Nomads, wiping them out with the power of a comet that passes every one hundred years. Through becoming Aang’s spirit guide, Roku could help the young Air Nomad succeed where he failed.
Why Kyoshi Possessing Aang Pales in Comparison
In comparison, Kyoshi’s battle with the Fire Nation doesn’t have the same significance. Sure, she is the previous Avatar from the Earth Kingdom, which is the current major enemy of the Fire Nation, but the era she comes from has no connection to the ideology of the Hundred Year War. The best interpretation the Fire Nation could get from her arrival is that she has returned to defend her home, which has no significance to the Fire Nation aside from Aang’s presence. It’s far away from the mainland and has no significant resources, meaning that an occupancy would divert troops and supplies from the war. That’s why, in the animated show, the Fire Nation left the island once Aang fled.
Kyoshi’s actions also aren’t as impressive as Roku’s. Sure, she creates a sphere of the four elements around herself when she intimidates Zhao, but all this amounts to is tossing around his soldiers until he calls a retreat. She’s not going to use Lavabending to destroy her island like Roku did with the temple because Kyoshi created the island to keep her people safe in the first place. It gives a strong message of “Stay away from my people,” but this pales compared to Roku’s statement, “This is but the beginning of your punishment.”
Ultimately, Kyoshi was chosen for this scene because the show wanted to give a fan-favorite character an action sequence. And Kyoshi deserves her fanbase: she is a fascinating character who lived in a time of warlords and civil unrest, forcing her to make hard, decisive choices. She also offers some good contrast between how Aang behaves now and what he needs to become. It’s just unfortunate that the show chose to give her Roku’s defining moment in Season 1 and thus rob it of its many layers of symbolism and significance.
Avatar: The Last Airbender is streaming on Netflix.
Watch on Netflix