One of the reasons Avatar is one of the few epic fantasies I’ve actually liked is that nobody is above indignity.
This is a thing a lot of genres do, but epic fantasies seem to be impressively devoid of any sense of humor, and often cave to the temptation to make the villains or heroes so badass that nothing embarrassing or stupid ever happens to them.
In Avatar (the last airbender, anyway, haven’t seen Korra), everyone has stupid shit happen to them. Even Fire Lord Ozai has his moments– “No, Fire Lord Ozai, YOU aren’t wearing pants!” Azula gets covered in mud. Zuko has… well, getting conked in the head by a boomerang is only the beginning of the stupid undignified shit he experiences. (Though he still doesn’t compare to Sokka, the emperor unto perpetuity of Shameland.)
And I love that. Because in life, sometimes you get covered in mud. Sometimes you get conked in the head when you’re trying to be brooding and dramatic. STUPID SHIT HAPPENS TO YOU. And in real life, you still manage to be badass, or terrible, even in your moments of human frailty.
I wish I saw that more often.
Yes! This, so much. That’s definitively something I’ve noticed too, and I love it!
Actually, in a way, I think it’s kind of addressed in the show itself:
Zuko was publicly humiliated, punished and banished for speaking out of turn at a meeting. This was considered a personal offense to the Fire Lord: they were so strict and enamored with their “dignity” that the slightest misstep by a child could turn into some sort of great insult. And if you’re insulted the proper response is to defend your honor in Agni Kai, a duel to the death (with a child if need be).
In contrast, among the Air Nomads, it was okay to throw mud pies at the head monks and laugh your ass off. It was even encouraged: creativity, fun and humility were seen as the most essential qualities. No one was above pranks - neither being pranked nor even doing the pranks. And it didn’t mean they didn’t know respect - we know Aang had enormous respect for his elders and their teachings. It’s actually a much truer form of respect than what you could find in the Fire Nation, where fear kept you silent.
So, I think there is a lesson here, that maybe we should learn not to hold our dignity in such high regard, that it’s good to know how to laugh at yourself? And when ATLA has fun with its serious characters, it’s also a way to illustrate this idea - the show is all the richer by not taking itself too seriously.
heteros: its just more realistic if gay characters dont say theyre gay…..like why would they need to talk about that
gays: this character is gay!
heteros: um where did they say theyre gay
I have to agree tho,I’d rather see a gay character be seen as gay because they’ve been shown to be gay in canon or mentioned it as part of character development not just “omfg wow look how gay I am lawl!”
if they dont fucking say “im gay” anywhere people like you claim theyre not gay no matter how much “character development” they get, shut the fuck up
like holy shit! heres some examples :^)
pearl (obvious choice): - sings an entire song about missing a woman and not being able to move on from her - got jealous of the man who started becoming a romantic interest in the woman she was in love with - had an episode where she showed interest in a woman
- like holy shit 99% of her character development involves loving a woman
and guess what the fandom does? “that doesnt mean shes gay!” “she just looked up to rose!” and ships her CONSTANTLY with men, one of which she shows huge discomfort with
ruby and sapphire:
- kisses each other in episodes
- flirts with each other
- their fusion literally says shes made of love
and the fandom? “theyre sisters” “its platonic” “its forced”
marceline and princess bubblegum:
- pb smells marcelines shirt
- the crew of that show literally confirmed they used to date each other
and the fandom still deny it!! because theyve been with men before
korra and asami:
- confirmed to be canon
and the fandom denies it and ships one/both of them with men because theyve been with men before
see a pattern here?
THEY’RE KID SHOWS PLEASE FIND SOME OF THOSE THAT ARE TENDED FOR OLDER AUDIENCES AND WE’LL TALK
oh im sorry i didnt realize that gay people were bad for children
today I learned that if you want to slash someone’s tires, don’t slash all four; only slash three because if you slash all four their insurance will pay for it but if you only slash three they have to pay for it all out of pocket
❤
today on satan makes a blog post
Life tip: if someone slashes 3 of your tires, slash the 4th one yourself and blame it on the person who slashed the first 3. Now, your insurance will pay for it.
Life tip: If you slash 3 of their tires, hide out nearby until they discover their slashed tires. Take pictures of them slashing their fourth tire. Show police when they arrive on scene. Convicted of insurance fraud and still have to pay for tires.
i feel like i’m reading a Spy vs Spy comic in text format
When my dad was a teenager, he accidentally started working for a restaurant that was a front for the local mafia. He flipped burgers for a semester and then, when he wanted to leave, one of the members pulled a gun on him and said he couldn’t.
“Oh, fuck off,” said the guy’s superior. “Really, man? He just flips burgers, and he’s not even good at it. Let him go, dumbass.”
I am Silver Tongue, I am an artist. I have many characters and you can check out my art in the art tag. I occasionally practice witchcraft though I don't do anything too complicated. I am girl 2 and don't know what else to put here.
Anonymous
