you know what they say, a scene achieving multiple things is a hallmark of a good writing. the scene manages to damage the competency of the white lotus, the royal guard, the fire nation intelligence, azula, and ozai. the real ozai would not talk to these randos. he would not even let himself breath the same air as them. wtf is this show lmao.
Regarding Azula: I think the show wants to clumsily foreshadow her eventual breakdown by making what was cleverly hinted in the original blatantly obvious.
The problem is that none of the things they're going into had anything to do with her breakdown. Her breakdown was over her own monstrousness. How she tried so hard to be perfect, and her father loved her for it, but she could never win her mother's approval. And how there may be something missing inside of her in terms of feeling compassion for others (which is a thing that causes issues for people. I think they're usually termed sociopaths). She's so awful her own mother abandoned her, and she can feel a wrongness inside of her that she can never fix that this little fact points to. That's entirely different than what they're foreshadowing here.
In this, the only thing they seem to be hinting is that Azula is a spoiled little brat that's angy that her big brother is getting attention..which would never happen, Ozai hated that little shithead.
@@jenniferhanses I politetly disagree; to me her breakdown was about abandonment issues, but mostly about her whole "loyalty by fear" mentality being shattered which causes her not to know what the hell to even do anymore
@@jenniferhanses I would argue that Ozai cutting her out of the invasion and leaving her with the entirely meaningless title of Firelord contributed to her breakdown. The main factor was of course the "betrayal" by Ty Lee and Mai. Her mother issues were more only coming to the forefront once the breakdown was well underway. Still I think the original hinted that Azula's mental state was far more fragile then it initially seemed. However it was something that only really became clear in retrospect and by extrapolation of Zuko's experiences. The issues with the live-action show is that they make it so blindingly obvious as is typical for them.
One of the biggest problems with ozai praising zuko to manipulate azula is that in a show that spells out everyone's feelings at all times, to have a character pretend to praise one of their children without telling you it's fake praise makes you think the show is consistent in its stupidity and you can't tell the difference between real ozai praise and fake ozai praise
Thank you for thinking so highly of my last comment. I went back and edited it for spelling since it got that much attention. And great job on the problem with Azula. Because the clever, manipulative girl who thinks far, far ahead was always my favorite of Avatar's ladies even if she is the villain. And I was gutted by what the live action did with her. I think you hit everything wrong with it though, so I have nothing to add. :) There have apparently been a lot of attacks on Azula and her girls' looks, which is unfortunate and inappropriate to attack the actresses. But I kind of suspect part of the problem is that a lot of people know the characters are all wrong, but aren't able to articulate all the characterization and plotting issues, and so get stuck on how they don't look the part.
I think there is a greater issue with the actresses appearances in that they simply don't fit the characters, who were specifically designed to physically match their core character traits, which is odd since the casters of this show usually do a better job with that sort of thing, being one of the few aspects of the show I've praised, so that makes them stand out even more. Making it so that the two girls who had the most exaggerated sharp features are played by actresses with more rounded features just automatically looks off, and especially makes them come across as not particularly threatening. Even if it's not always accurate, our brains are trained in such a way to associate certain physical traits with corresponding personality traits, a softer and rounder face looks more juvenile and less threatening. I think that ends up bleeding into a lot of needlessly insulting comments where people just don't dig any deeper into it and just end up calling the actresses fat, which I find uncalled for. I still think they were miscast and don't fit the appearances or personalities of the characters they're meant to be portraying, which I'll get to in a later part, but that's hardly grounds for insulting people just doing their jobs, especially kids like this.
@@FishStickOnAStick I do agree that the actresses don't fit the previously established looks. But I think the problem is partially one more of age. With cartoons, you can do anything, and so Azula and Mei have sharp edges. The actresses are more age appropriate to the characters, and so still have "baby fat" in their faces. A lot of plastic surgery and aging issues among Gen Z seem to be because they're trying to get the "sharp cheekbone" look that older people have, not realizing that they're removing the fat that keeps them youthful as they age, creating problems for themselves down the line (if you've seen the memes about why does Gen Z look 20 years older than they should?). It also plays back into young girls watching make up tutorials meant for older women, so that they think contouring is all there is. So I do agree, but I also think this is a more complicated issue than just "the actresses aren't a perfect match." Cartoon to live action, this is one of the things that we lose out on. There's also the matter of the show just blatantly changing the characters. I think Omashu was the last episode I actually watched because I just couldn't any more with the live action. But, as you say, they've changed Azula to be Zuko's character from the previous series. And they've changed Ozai into I don't know what where he's sad about burning his own son's face and things like that (and Ozai suddenly favoring Zuko and using Azula to promote Zuko's story is another reassertion of actual sexism where the boy is to be valued of the girl, and the girl is merely a tool for training despite being more skilled and loyal to the father's goals. You can say a lot about Ozai, but he wasn't sexist, and Azula was favored based on merit, but now ...). Anyway, the round face is more childish and vulnerable, and that may be honestly what they're going for in rewriting the character.
The amount of nonsense packed in this one segment is impressive. I've watched the animated series in the meantime for the first time, and there I like Zhao more as a villain than Ozai. What they did to him in this show... good lord. I also question what in the world those resistance fighters were thinking is going to happen after they infiltrate the palace? That they'll just stroll in and take down Ozai without any issues? They had no plan whatsoever... Why is no one in this show allowed to be smart?
So they hint at Ozai having some sob story to justify his actions, while also making it so Azula is being manipulated by Ozai into her craziness? This writing seems schizophrenic in what it's trying to achieve.
Nothing is revealed on Ozai's past in this season, but I'm going to take a guess that it has something to do with some tragedy involving his mother since she's a character who died off-screen far in the past in the original show, so they can do whatever they want with her to ruin her and the rest of the royal family more than they already have.
Well, Ozai probably always had a sob story in his past. We saw his father. We saw his great-grandfather who he may or may not have known. It seems like Azulon had Ozai and even Iroh when he was quite old since it's been 112 years since Aang was born, and according to the wiki, Roku and Sozen were 70 when they died. Maybe Sozen is actually the great-great grandfather, since he should have had kids and grandkids by that point, but not even Iroh was alive then. So if Azulan was his grandkid and just born when Roku died, he would have been in his 60s or 70s when Ozai was born. His wife would have been much younger. Anyway, I don't think anyone who married into that family had a happy marriage. And both Iroh and Ozai would have been trained for conquest of the world from birth. We don't know what happened to them, but it was probably not nice. And while Iroh maintained a much more balanced outlook and developed relationships and attachments to people, it seems like Ozai was never able to do that. Ozai almost certainly had a crap childhood. It's just not the focus of the original story. It really depends on if you think we should feel sorry for our villains who should be complex, or if it's okay to just write people off as evil, which Ozai did many, many evil things.
I have a feeling, a guy feeling that when Mike and Bryan were on the show, there was an entirely different script and once they left, it was completely rewritten. Simply because the writing is ALL over the place. Take for example, Kyoshi Island. They left in the part where Suki is hostile with Sokka yet removed Sokka's sexist arch, effectively and literally making Suki combative for NO reason. Where as in the original, she HAD a reason to be hostile, as Sokka *repeatedly* (twice) Belittled her way of life and fighting style, effectively insulting the ENTIRE Kyoshi Island culture. Again with the whole Aang running away thing, he DIDN'T in this show and yet everyone keeps acting like he did.
Makes me think that after Mike and Brian left, the Netflix writers decided to make Aang not run away in post production or something because "flaws are bad". After forgetting that the script basically rails him for running away. Because of course they would.
Azula being insecure about Ozai's favor only gets dumber when you remember that the entire first half of Book 3 is built on the premise that Azula KNOWS she's the favorite child, and uses it to both gain leverage over Zuko, while also absolving herself of any blame in case Aang isn't really dead.
How much you wanna bet it'll be Azula who ends up hiring Combustion Man because she's scared if Aang is found alive it'll ruin her reputation with Ozai. And also because Zuko is too nice in this stupid show to hire an assassin.
@@FishStickOnAStick I don't know which thought scares me more, that you could be right, or that this show might actually make it to a 3rd season somehow.
What I will NEVER be able to understand is this: They HAD the original material, it's available for *anyone*, hell I'm pretty sure the entire ATLA series from start to finish is ON THEIR PLATFORM, it used to be. Not only that, NOT. ONLY .THAT. But they had the ORIGINAL co-creators of ATLA at their doorstep! and they CHOSE to ignore ALL of this, in favor of making......this. You have to TRY to fail this hard.
@@calemr But what makes this even more egregious is that they flat out ignored Mike and Bryans suggestions, effectively stripping away their creative authority over their OWN SHOW in favor of "ok, but what if Avatar but game of thrones?"
I agree with you, but at the same time, they don't want to just remake the cartoon, scene for scene. I'm not going to fault them for making the show different in some aspects. The problem is that most of their changes were not additive or enhancing to the story being told. If anything they distract from the deep characterization and themes of the original.
@@jenniferhanses Precisely put, ATLA did not NEED to be remade in the first place. Sure, there were some plot points that COULD have been expanded but the Genocide of the air nomads was never one of them, all we ever needed to know was that it happened, not every little detail of HOW it happened. The problem is that they have purposefully removed plot points and conflicts that already existed just fine and replaced them with plot points and conflicts that make no narrative sense. For example: they kept in the plot point of Suki's hostility towards Sokka, yet removed the major overbeat of that plot point being Sokkas' sexism and disregard for the culture of the Kyoshi warriors. Suki does not HAVE a reason to be so overly hostile to these people she just met, and this one teenage boy in particular. It comes across as Suki being kinda....sexist. Again, they rewrote the plot point of Aang running away, which is fine, yet kept the animosity and hostility of people bitching at him for running away. They are removing important, plot driven episodes (the entirety of Jet, the pirate episode,) they gloss over the storm and favor Zukos' part of that story more than Aangs when that episode is MEANT to be a parallel between them. All in favor of "tell don't show". The writing is just all over the place, to the point that feels like the original script was completed and then scrapped and something new was hastily scribbled in it's place. Even if you were to watch this, in a vacuum, with no prior knowledge of ATLA, this show is just....poorly constructed and boring.
Lol these videos are so damn cathartic because I couldn’t stomach the show enough to find so many plot holes in the writing. Thank you for your service
Ozai and Azula spending time personally infiltrating a small resistance group that couldn’t even get to the palace without their help just makes them seem jobless and lame to me. don’t yall have more important things to do?? every scene in this show that deviates from the source material is half-baked and ridiculous. it feels like the writers room was full of dudes going “wouldn’t it be cool if this happened” and then no critical thinking whatsoever
What would be kinda cool with the "fire nation rebels" concept would be like a Decembrists thing, where their problem isn't even necessarily with the war itself as it is with how Ozai wages it, and their solution is to have a movement to depose Ozai and place someone else like Azula or Iroh on the throne. Take some inspiration from real-world rebellions under similar political context.
i cant wait for when zukos agni kai is discussed, like w ozai almost complimenting zuko as mentioning in this video and then the agni kai, the live action really just ruins the whole toxic vibe the fire nation royalty has with whatever theyre doing
I can't wait to see the rest of this breakdown of the show. I have been watching the original series with a friend, their first time seeing it, as we go through the series I have been breaking down with them about the seperation in story telling, character development, and so forth. Even they can tell a vast difference between the two shows, and I only showed them the first 2 episodes of this netflix show.
The martial arts in the show we're not done well. They need to decide if they want this to be a magic show or a martial arts show if it's martial arts get the fight choreographer from into the Badlands
Simple comment on Zhao that I may have commented on your previous video: Zhao is closer to the character Wormtongue from the Lord of the Rings movies than he is to Zhao from the Avatar the last Airbender series. Sidenote: The episode Masks has him deliver a line that made me stop watching for about 20 minutes while I regained some sanity.
Great analysis! I love your deep-cuts on ATLA, you discuss every gripe I have with the show. Howecer, although I hate Azula's portrayal in NATLA, I do think her characterization is accurate to her original character to an extent. Zuko and Azula are quite similar after all, but Azula has always had the high ground, so she doesn't appear as desperate for her father's affection as Zuko. But she is. She has shaped herself in his image as a manipulator to gain his favour and loses her shit when he dismisses her in the Phoenix King. The problem with Netflix Azula is that her insecurities are front and center. She is a victim of Ozai first and a villain second. Her introduction (though clunky) is the only time she feels like early Azula to me. Manipulation, check. Unwavering loyalty to Ozai, check. Evil smile, check. And this is all you need to create a S1 Azula. She can be eager to play a bigger part in the war, but she would NEVER be jealous of Zuko, who is a banished loser whereas she has Ozai's "affection", and she would NEVER disobey Ozai. There are consequences for that after all. She is arrogant, but not stupid By showing Azula's insecurities, NATLA ruins the incredible parallel between Zuko and Azula. As Zuko grows more skilled and confident, Azula loses her sense of self. By the end of the show, their roles have shifted. I completely agree, Azula IS Zuko in NATLA. She has all of his bad traits that distinguish them from each other. The writers (sort of) understood her character as a destructive perfectionist, but don't seem to grasp how she is a foil to Zuko at different points in the story. Making her THIS insecure ruins the comparison between the siblings. Other mistakes were made as well: Ozai and Iroh complement Zuko's firebending, but Ozai tears Azula's practice down as not good enough. Sure, because he wants her to improve, but what does this say about the dynamic between Zuko and Azula?
I hate this show. I had to stop watching part way through the second episode. But if you're the kind of person who uses "girl power" with a sneer in your voice, you aren't going to have anything of value to say.
Hey Fish, long-time viewer of the channel (there since the Creepypasta reviews at least). Is there a chance that you'll review Pastra's rewrite of Jeff the Killer soon? While not perfect, it's a massive step-up in quality imo. Not to spoil anything, but it has a lot of improving elements you mentioned in your old reviews.
Hiiii Mr. Fish, I wad wondering if you could cover the new Jefé the killer remake that horror RUclipsr Pastra is creating when it comes out. I've been watching him for a while so I'm hoping it'll actually turn out half decent
I love these! So glad to see another one, and hope you keep going. That said, I kind of liked Azula's introduction. No, she should not be in this season at all, (and I think she's quite poorly cast, I won't mince words about it) but, knowing the showrunners emphasized this adaptation would remix some things, I was open to seeing how they'd do it different. I agree that the band of Fire Nation rebels is an interesting idea, and I really clicked with that- which is probably why I'm less harsh on this scene. Even though, like you said, the logic of it doesn't really hold up under scrutiny. (How could they already know the Avatar has returned??) Some defenses: These guys are clearly not royal assassins. There are old people in the group. They're just a bunch of commoners. And clearly not well organized ("We don't have the numbers- Who cares?! We have our passion!") A girl Azula's age joining the ranks is not crazy. And they wouldn't need to be interrogated, because Azula's already got all the info Ozai needs. Them not recognizing her is a little suss, but how many times in countless media have we seen royals go sneaking out on the streets and the only thing they need to be incognito is a hood!🤭 (House of the Dragon, Princess Jasmine) If I could make a couple a changes to improve it, firstly, I would NOT have featured Azula in the pre-marketing at all, to at least leave something, *anything* in this show as a damn surprise for long time viewers. It strengthens her reveal, and the function of the scene to let the AUDIENCE discover something, at the same time as the characters. (A season-wide problem with this show is everybody catching up to things the viewer already knows. Because the writers are always giving everything away). Secondly, I would have preferred that Azula infiltrate the group of her own volition, rather than on Ozai's orders. It would show how she takes initiative, and give her more agency, independent of her father. Impressed by this, THEN he would send her after Zuko and the Avatar. No forced manipulation necessary. Again, they are telegraphing sympathy for Azula way too early!
not trying to say like thus show to the fullest, they actually gave effort and first attempt (besides the movie) to make the show in live screen, and if they repeated the scene exactly, then we all still be pissed ,
Hello! First time viewer, really enjoyed this critique of the live action ATLA. I want to say something and I hope you take the time to reflect on what I'm saying before reacting, I mean this primarily to educate. Please don't use words like the r slur, I know it's very common for people to use but as a disabled person it's a very offensive and dehumanizing term that's often weaponized against people in my community and is very harmful.
I mostly agree with your points, but I have to say that anyone can be manipulated, even someone like Azula and especially when it comes from someone she greatly respects. On top of it, in my experience perfectionism can be a way to hide your insecurities and I always saw that in Azula. Under her arrogance lays a deeply insecure person who is afraid that if she isn't perfect, then she's worthless and lesser than her brother. Her confident demeanor could be described as fake it 'til you make it and you can sometimes see her mask crack, like her anger when her moves aren't perfect - that is not how a truly confident person reacts to making a small mistake. She could absolutely feel threatened by her father appreciating Zuko more than her, she would just do her best to hide it even from herself. Now I'm not saying that Netflix going so on the nose about it was a good idea, especially in season 1, and they definitely had some out of character lines from her, but Azula's insecurities being manipulated by her father as a concept is not something that's out of character for her (edit: emphasis on just "for her", I do think it's stupid and missing the mark to have Ozai intentionally do this to his already perfect for war daughter, but either way I wanted to focus just on Azula's reaction in this comment).
All good points, but my main issue is how openly and obviously vulnerable Azula is making herself, when in the original show she only reached that point once she was utterly broken, not to mention how completely idiotic she is. Starting her off at this point just makes her seem like an incredibly weak character and completely worthless as an actual threat. Like Zuko could reduce her to a blithering mess by simply insinuating that Ozai loves him more than her, while she was the one who originally held all the cards in terms of emotional manipulation. I'm not sure why they made both Zhao and Azula into unthreatening morons, maybe they just think that our main characters actually overcoming smart antagonists wouldn't be satisfying.
i mean, its not like anyones saying she isnt insecure. there are a few different moments in the og show that showcase that. the thing about it is thats bothering people is that shes REALLY good at hiding it, (which is substantial given she can pretty easily get past toph The Human Lie Detector, something no one else can do) and those moments happen WAY later than theyre happening in the remake. taking away her discipline and making her an obviously insecure teenager right off the bat takes away so much of her thunder as a villain its actually insane. she is a mess, but she is a very well controlled mess. she is not a rebellious teenager, she is a war criminal that sees her father as the ultimate authority.
It’s not the best but it’s still good. I have lots of problems with how the live action went because I was such a fan of the original. But live action anything won’t hold up to the original cartoons. I didn’t even want to watch legends of Kora but I’m glad I did. Idk I think the live action will evolve. I think the actors and actresses have potential. There were 3 episodes that I was really impressed with. I hope they find the sweet spot and everything comes together.
While I agree that Netflix's adaptation of ATLA sucks, I feel some of your critics are unwarranted because you're making assumptions based on the animated version. Netflix's and Nickelodeon's Azula are two very different people. In the former, Ozai's favorite child is Zuko and Azula lives in his shadow despite his banishment. Her father doesn't see value in her for a manipulation or bending skills, and she has to earn his respect before being sent to Omashu. If you want to critic the new family dynamics, that's fine. But to say Azula is this and this, when she clearly isn't anymore is not a fair critic. You also said everyone Ozai has lost is because he killed/banished them. In the Nickelodeon show? Yes. But in the Netflix show, we still don't know. You can compare the shows, but to critic the characters in the Netflix version like they have same motivations, personality, or backstory as their Nickelodeon counterpart doesn't make sense.
Fair. And I was thinking about this when he said Azula was born lucky, and Zuko was lucky to be born. Yes, that's a direct quote from the show, but it's not meant to be taken as a fact, but only an opinion from Zuko's point of view. In writing, that's known as "The lie the character believes" and it's meant to exhibit his insecurity, as well has how he feels about their relationship.
@@robchuk4136 Even if it's true (as shown in the comics), it still only applies to the Nickelodeon universe. It's not canon in Netflix's version, so you can't find fault with characters when they behave otherwise.
you know what they say, a scene achieving multiple things is a hallmark of a good writing. the scene manages to damage the competency of the white lotus, the royal guard, the fire nation intelligence, azula, and ozai.
the real ozai would not talk to these randos. he would not even let himself breath the same air as them. wtf is this show lmao.
Regarding Azula: I think the show wants to clumsily foreshadow her eventual breakdown by making what was cleverly hinted in the original blatantly obvious.
To be honest azula breakdown was too fast in the original.
The problem is that none of the things they're going into had anything to do with her breakdown.
Her breakdown was over her own monstrousness. How she tried so hard to be perfect, and her father loved her for it, but she could never win her mother's approval. And how there may be something missing inside of her in terms of feeling compassion for others (which is a thing that causes issues for people. I think they're usually termed sociopaths). She's so awful her own mother abandoned her, and she can feel a wrongness inside of her that she can never fix that this little fact points to.
That's entirely different than what they're foreshadowing here.
In this, the only thing they seem to be hinting is that Azula is a spoiled little brat that's angy that her big brother is getting attention..which would never happen, Ozai hated that little shithead.
@@jenniferhanses I politetly disagree; to me her breakdown was about abandonment issues, but mostly about her whole "loyalty by fear" mentality being shattered which causes her not to know what the hell to even do anymore
@@jenniferhanses I would argue that Ozai cutting her out of the invasion and leaving her with the entirely meaningless title of Firelord contributed to her breakdown.
The main factor was of course the "betrayal" by Ty Lee and Mai. Her mother issues were more only coming to the forefront once the breakdown was well underway.
Still I think the original hinted that Azula's mental state was far more fragile then it initially seemed. However it was something that only really became clear in retrospect and by extrapolation of Zuko's experiences. The issues with the live-action show is that they make it so blindingly obvious as is typical for them.
One of the biggest problems with ozai praising zuko to manipulate azula is that in a show that spells out everyone's feelings at all times, to have a character pretend to praise one of their children without telling you it's fake praise makes you think the show is consistent in its stupidity and you can't tell the difference between real ozai praise and fake ozai praise
This is actually a great point, lol
Thank you for thinking so highly of my last comment. I went back and edited it for spelling since it got that much attention.
And great job on the problem with Azula. Because the clever, manipulative girl who thinks far, far ahead was always my favorite of Avatar's ladies even if she is the villain. And I was gutted by what the live action did with her. I think you hit everything wrong with it though, so I have nothing to add. :)
There have apparently been a lot of attacks on Azula and her girls' looks, which is unfortunate and inappropriate to attack the actresses. But I kind of suspect part of the problem is that a lot of people know the characters are all wrong, but aren't able to articulate all the characterization and plotting issues, and so get stuck on how they don't look the part.
I think there is a greater issue with the actresses appearances in that they simply don't fit the characters, who were specifically designed to physically match their core character traits, which is odd since the casters of this show usually do a better job with that sort of thing, being one of the few aspects of the show I've praised, so that makes them stand out even more. Making it so that the two girls who had the most exaggerated sharp features are played by actresses with more rounded features just automatically looks off, and especially makes them come across as not particularly threatening. Even if it's not always accurate, our brains are trained in such a way to associate certain physical traits with corresponding personality traits, a softer and rounder face looks more juvenile and less threatening. I think that ends up bleeding into a lot of needlessly insulting comments where people just don't dig any deeper into it and just end up calling the actresses fat, which I find uncalled for. I still think they were miscast and don't fit the appearances or personalities of the characters they're meant to be portraying, which I'll get to in a later part, but that's hardly grounds for insulting people just doing their jobs, especially kids like this.
@@FishStickOnAStick I do agree that the actresses don't fit the previously established looks. But I think the problem is partially one more of age. With cartoons, you can do anything, and so Azula and Mei have sharp edges.
The actresses are more age appropriate to the characters, and so still have "baby fat" in their faces. A lot of plastic surgery and aging issues among Gen Z seem to be because they're trying to get the "sharp cheekbone" look that older people have, not realizing that they're removing the fat that keeps them youthful as they age, creating problems for themselves down the line (if you've seen the memes about why does Gen Z look 20 years older than they should?). It also plays back into young girls watching make up tutorials meant for older women, so that they think contouring is all there is.
So I do agree, but I also think this is a more complicated issue than just "the actresses aren't a perfect match." Cartoon to live action, this is one of the things that we lose out on.
There's also the matter of the show just blatantly changing the characters. I think Omashu was the last episode I actually watched because I just couldn't any more with the live action. But, as you say, they've changed Azula to be Zuko's character from the previous series. And they've changed Ozai into I don't know what where he's sad about burning his own son's face and things like that (and Ozai suddenly favoring Zuko and using Azula to promote Zuko's story is another reassertion of actual sexism where the boy is to be valued of the girl, and the girl is merely a tool for training despite being more skilled and loyal to the father's goals. You can say a lot about Ozai, but he wasn't sexist, and Azula was favored based on merit, but now ...).
Anyway, the round face is more childish and vulnerable, and that may be honestly what they're going for in rewriting the character.
Hi. Fellow martial artist and former instructor. Thank you for your comment. I missed it on the first video but I'm glad it's highlighted.
Simple comment on the Sokka-Suki issue: Those interactions do NOT survive a gender-swap.
Oh no. If the roles were reversed, there would be riots on the streets.
My god you're so right
You mean involuntary choke outs and voyeurism isn't sexy?
😂
The amount of nonsense packed in this one segment is impressive. I've watched the animated series in the meantime for the first time, and there I like Zhao more as a villain than Ozai. What they did to him in this show... good lord.
I also question what in the world those resistance fighters were thinking is going to happen after they infiltrate the palace? That they'll just stroll in and take down Ozai without any issues? They had no plan whatsoever... Why is no one in this show allowed to be smart?
So they hint at Ozai having some sob story to justify his actions, while also making it so Azula is being manipulated by Ozai into her craziness? This writing seems schizophrenic in what it's trying to achieve.
Nothing is revealed on Ozai's past in this season, but I'm going to take a guess that it has something to do with some tragedy involving his mother since she's a character who died off-screen far in the past in the original show, so they can do whatever they want with her to ruin her and the rest of the royal family more than they already have.
Well, Ozai probably always had a sob story in his past. We saw his father. We saw his great-grandfather who he may or may not have known. It seems like Azulon had Ozai and even Iroh when he was quite old since it's been 112 years since Aang was born, and according to the wiki, Roku and Sozen were 70 when they died. Maybe Sozen is actually the great-great grandfather, since he should have had kids and grandkids by that point, but not even Iroh was alive then. So if Azulan was his grandkid and just born when Roku died, he would have been in his 60s or 70s when Ozai was born. His wife would have been much younger.
Anyway, I don't think anyone who married into that family had a happy marriage. And both Iroh and Ozai would have been trained for conquest of the world from birth. We don't know what happened to them, but it was probably not nice. And while Iroh maintained a much more balanced outlook and developed relationships and attachments to people, it seems like Ozai was never able to do that.
Ozai almost certainly had a crap childhood. It's just not the focus of the original story.
It really depends on if you think we should feel sorry for our villains who should be complex, or if it's okay to just write people off as evil, which Ozai did many, many evil things.
I have a feeling, a guy feeling that when Mike and Bryan were on the show, there was an entirely different script and once they left, it was completely rewritten. Simply because the writing is ALL over the place.
Take for example, Kyoshi Island. They left in the part where Suki is hostile with Sokka yet removed Sokka's sexist arch, effectively and literally making Suki combative for NO reason. Where as in the original, she HAD a reason to be hostile, as Sokka *repeatedly* (twice) Belittled her way of life and fighting style, effectively insulting the ENTIRE Kyoshi Island culture.
Again with the whole Aang running away thing, he DIDN'T in this show and yet everyone keeps acting like he did.
@@FishStickOnAStickSo Ozai’s a momma’s boy, is he also going to be a failed artist?
Makes me think that after Mike and Brian left, the Netflix writers decided to make Aang not run away in post production or something because "flaws are bad". After forgetting that the script basically rails him for running away. Because of course they would.
Azula being insecure about Ozai's favor only gets dumber when you remember that the entire first half of Book 3 is built on the premise that Azula KNOWS she's the favorite child, and uses it to both gain leverage over Zuko, while also absolving herself of any blame in case Aang isn't really dead.
How much you wanna bet it'll be Azula who ends up hiring Combustion Man because she's scared if Aang is found alive it'll ruin her reputation with Ozai. And also because Zuko is too nice in this stupid show to hire an assassin.
@@FishStickOnAStick I don't know which thought scares me more, that you could be right, or that this show might actually make it to a 3rd season somehow.
What I will NEVER be able to understand is this: They HAD the original material, it's available for *anyone*, hell I'm pretty sure the entire ATLA series from start to finish is ON THEIR PLATFORM, it used to be.
Not only that, NOT. ONLY .THAT. But they had the ORIGINAL co-creators of ATLA at their doorstep! and they CHOSE to ignore ALL of this, in favor of making......this.
You have to TRY to fail this hard.
See also: Almost every adaptation ever made.
@@calemr But what makes this even more egregious is that they flat out ignored Mike and Bryans suggestions, effectively stripping away their creative authority over their OWN SHOW in favor of "ok, but what if Avatar but game of thrones?"
I agree with you, but at the same time, they don't want to just remake the cartoon, scene for scene. I'm not going to fault them for making the show different in some aspects.
The problem is that most of their changes were not additive or enhancing to the story being told. If anything they distract from the deep characterization and themes of the original.
@@jenniferhanses Precisely put, ATLA did not NEED to be remade in the first place. Sure, there were some plot points that COULD have been expanded but the Genocide of the air nomads was never one of them, all we ever needed to know was that it happened, not every little detail of HOW it happened.
The problem is that they have purposefully removed plot points and conflicts that already existed just fine and replaced them with plot points and conflicts that make no narrative sense.
For example: they kept in the plot point of Suki's hostility towards Sokka, yet removed the major overbeat of that plot point being Sokkas' sexism and disregard for the culture of the Kyoshi warriors. Suki does not HAVE a reason to be so overly hostile to these people she just met, and this one teenage boy in particular. It comes across as Suki being kinda....sexist.
Again, they rewrote the plot point of Aang running away, which is fine, yet kept the animosity and hostility of people bitching at him for running away.
They are removing important, plot driven episodes (the entirety of Jet, the pirate episode,) they gloss over the storm and favor Zukos' part of that story more than Aangs when that episode is MEANT to be a parallel between them. All in favor of "tell don't show".
The writing is just all over the place, to the point that feels like the original script was completed and then scrapped and something new was hastily scribbled in it's place.
Even if you were to watch this, in a vacuum, with no prior knowledge of ATLA, this show is just....poorly constructed and boring.
Lol these videos are so damn cathartic because I couldn’t stomach the show enough to find so many plot holes in the writing. Thank you for your service
Ozai and Azula spending time personally infiltrating a small resistance group that couldn’t even get to the palace without their help just makes them seem jobless and lame to me. don’t yall have more important things to do??
every scene in this show that deviates from the source material is half-baked and ridiculous. it feels like the writers room was full of dudes going “wouldn’t it be cool if this happened” and then no critical thinking whatsoever
I love these videos so much, please never stop
What would be kinda cool with the "fire nation rebels" concept would be like a Decembrists thing, where their problem isn't even necessarily with the war itself as it is with how Ozai wages it, and their solution is to have a movement to depose Ozai and place someone else like Azula or Iroh on the throne. Take some inspiration from real-world rebellions under similar political context.
i cant wait for when zukos agni kai is discussed, like w ozai almost complimenting zuko as mentioning in this video and then the agni kai, the live action really just ruins the whole toxic vibe the fire nation royalty has with whatever theyre doing
I can't wait to see the rest of this breakdown of the show.
I have been watching the original series with a friend, their first time seeing it, as we go through the series I have been breaking down with them about the seperation in story telling, character development, and so forth. Even they can tell a vast difference between the two shows, and I only showed them the first 2 episodes of this netflix show.
Expecting anything else other than a "ooooohhhh cool shot" or "oooooh member the white lotus??? I member" is a waste of time.
I'm calling it now, they are planning on giving Azula Zukos Redemption Arc.
hell yeah part 6 is out
I think they will try to make a redemption arc with Azula, not Zuko.. as he is already a good guy compared with the first book!
The martial arts in the show we're not done well. They need to decide if they want this to be a magic show or a martial arts show if it's martial arts get the fight choreographer from into the Badlands
I just want to say, you're videos are great and I'm glad you're still uploading. I hope it's at least cathartic.
Can't believe I miss this video can't wait for part 7
2:58 huh, that’s a weird way to pronounce best. What accent is that?
I hope you continue uploading! Im dying to see your thoughts on bumi ❤
Justice for Sokka!
0:16 two hours is nothing. I’m subscribed to Mauler and Little Platoon
i’ve been waiting for this video
Hurray! The video series is back! Hopefully. It's too enjoying to dissect this show.
Ahhh, my Saturday morning cartoons.
Please, more ☺️
Finally we back
Just stop making live action adaptations of this show already...
Simple comment on Zhao that I may have commented on your previous video: Zhao is closer to the character Wormtongue from the Lord of the Rings movies than he is to Zhao from the Avatar the last Airbender series. Sidenote: The episode Masks has him deliver a line that made me stop watching for about 20 minutes while I regained some sanity.
I am so glad to find out that I am not the only one who found this show awful. whenever I say I dislike the show people start saying shit to me lol
It's baaaack : D
Great analysis! I love your deep-cuts on ATLA, you discuss every gripe I have with the show.
Howecer, although I hate Azula's portrayal in NATLA, I do think her characterization is accurate to her original character to an extent. Zuko and Azula are quite similar after all, but Azula has always had the high ground, so she doesn't appear as desperate for her father's affection as Zuko. But she is. She has shaped herself in his image as a manipulator to gain his favour and loses her shit when he dismisses her in the Phoenix King.
The problem with Netflix Azula is that her insecurities are front and center. She is a victim of Ozai first and a villain second. Her introduction (though clunky) is the only time she feels like early Azula to me. Manipulation, check. Unwavering loyalty to Ozai, check. Evil smile, check. And this is all you need to create a S1 Azula. She can be eager to play a bigger part in the war, but she would NEVER be jealous of Zuko, who is a banished loser whereas she has Ozai's "affection", and she would NEVER disobey Ozai. There are consequences for that after all. She is arrogant, but not stupid
By showing Azula's insecurities, NATLA ruins the incredible parallel between Zuko and Azula. As Zuko grows more skilled and confident, Azula loses her sense of self. By the end of the show, their roles have shifted. I completely agree, Azula IS Zuko in NATLA. She has all of his bad traits that distinguish them from each other. The writers (sort of) understood her character as a destructive perfectionist, but don't seem to grasp how she is a foil to Zuko at different points in the story. Making her THIS insecure ruins the comparison between the siblings. Other mistakes were made as well: Ozai and Iroh complement Zuko's firebending, but Ozai tears Azula's practice down as not good enough. Sure, because he wants her to improve, but what does this say about the dynamic between Zuko and Azula?
Where have you been 😊
I hate this show. I had to stop watching part way through the second episode.
But if you're the kind of person who uses "girl power" with a sneer in your voice, you aren't going to have anything of value to say.
Nutz
[insert number of views] views in [time since upload] minutes [youtuber name] fell off
If I had a nickel for every time someone fell off, I'd have two nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice.
Hey Fish, long-time viewer of the channel (there since the Creepypasta reviews at least).
Is there a chance that you'll review Pastra's rewrite of Jeff the Killer soon? While not perfect, it's a massive step-up in quality imo. Not to spoil anything, but it has a lot of improving elements you mentioned in your old reviews.
Look, I'm gay and even I hate this show.
I’ve just decided not to see it
Hoo boy.
Can we put Fish back in the ice ball please? I don't want the Avatar to return..
gang plank galleon
Hiiii Mr. Fish, I wad wondering if you could cover the new Jefé the killer remake that horror RUclipsr Pastra is creating when it comes out. I've been watching him for a while so I'm hoping it'll actually turn out half decent
9:10 Obviously you never heard of child labor. Very common then & still common in unjust parts of the world. No I'm not defending this meh show.
I love these! So glad to see another one, and hope you keep going.
That said, I kind of liked Azula's introduction. No, she should not be in this season at all, (and I think she's quite poorly cast, I won't mince words about it) but, knowing the showrunners emphasized this adaptation would remix some things, I was open to seeing how they'd do it different. I agree that the band of Fire Nation rebels is an interesting idea, and I really clicked with that- which is probably why I'm less harsh on this scene. Even though, like you said, the logic of it doesn't really hold up under scrutiny. (How could they already know the Avatar has returned??)
Some defenses: These guys are clearly not royal assassins. There are old people in the group. They're just a bunch of commoners. And clearly not well organized ("We don't have the numbers- Who cares?! We have our passion!") A girl Azula's age joining the ranks is not crazy. And they wouldn't need to be interrogated, because Azula's already got all the info Ozai needs. Them not recognizing her is a little suss, but how many times in countless media have we seen royals go sneaking out on the streets and the only thing they need to be incognito is a hood!🤭 (House of the Dragon, Princess Jasmine)
If I could make a couple a changes to improve it, firstly, I would NOT have featured Azula in the pre-marketing at all, to at least leave something, *anything* in this show as a damn surprise for long time viewers. It strengthens her reveal, and the function of the scene to let the AUDIENCE discover something, at the same time as the characters. (A season-wide problem with this show is everybody catching up to things the viewer already knows. Because the writers are always giving everything away). Secondly, I would have preferred that Azula infiltrate the group of her own volition, rather than on Ozai's orders. It would show how she takes initiative, and give her more agency, independent of her father. Impressed by this, THEN he would send her after Zuko and the Avatar. No forced manipulation necessary. Again, they are telegraphing sympathy for Azula way too early!
Bad Series Accademy 😅
not trying to say like thus show to the fullest, they actually gave effort and first attempt (besides the movie) to make the show in live screen, and if they repeated the scene exactly, then we all still be pissed ,
Hello! First time viewer, really enjoyed this critique of the live action ATLA.
I want to say something and I hope you take the time to reflect on what I'm saying before reacting, I mean this primarily to educate. Please don't use words like the r slur, I know it's very common for people to use but as a disabled person it's a very offensive and dehumanizing term that's often weaponized against people in my community and is very harmful.
I mostly agree with your points, but I have to say that anyone can be manipulated, even someone like Azula and especially when it comes from someone she greatly respects. On top of it, in my experience perfectionism can be a way to hide your insecurities and I always saw that in Azula. Under her arrogance lays a deeply insecure person who is afraid that if she isn't perfect, then she's worthless and lesser than her brother. Her confident demeanor could be described as fake it 'til you make it and you can sometimes see her mask crack, like her anger when her moves aren't perfect - that is not how a truly confident person reacts to making a small mistake. She could absolutely feel threatened by her father appreciating Zuko more than her, she would just do her best to hide it even from herself. Now I'm not saying that Netflix going so on the nose about it was a good idea, especially in season 1, and they definitely had some out of character lines from her, but Azula's insecurities being manipulated by her father as a concept is not something that's out of character for her (edit: emphasis on just "for her", I do think it's stupid and missing the mark to have Ozai intentionally do this to his already perfect for war daughter, but either way I wanted to focus just on Azula's reaction in this comment).
All good points, but my main issue is how openly and obviously vulnerable Azula is making herself, when in the original show she only reached that point once she was utterly broken, not to mention how completely idiotic she is. Starting her off at this point just makes her seem like an incredibly weak character and completely worthless as an actual threat. Like Zuko could reduce her to a blithering mess by simply insinuating that Ozai loves him more than her, while she was the one who originally held all the cards in terms of emotional manipulation. I'm not sure why they made both Zhao and Azula into unthreatening morons, maybe they just think that our main characters actually overcoming smart antagonists wouldn't be satisfying.
i mean, its not like anyones saying she isnt insecure. there are a few different moments in the og show that showcase that. the thing about it is thats bothering people is that shes REALLY good at hiding it, (which is substantial given she can pretty easily get past toph The Human Lie Detector, something no one else can do) and those moments happen WAY later than theyre happening in the remake. taking away her discipline and making her an obviously insecure teenager right off the bat takes away so much of her thunder as a villain its actually insane. she is a mess, but she is a very well controlled mess. she is not a rebellious teenager, she is a war criminal that sees her father as the ultimate authority.
now go back to sleep and wait a year for another creepypasta review
It’s not the best but it’s still good. I have lots of problems with how the live action went because I was such a fan of the original. But live action anything won’t hold up to the original cartoons. I didn’t even want to watch legends of Kora but I’m glad I did. Idk I think the live action will evolve. I think the actors and actresses have potential. There were 3 episodes that I was really impressed with. I hope they find the sweet spot and everything comes together.
It's not good at all tf
While I agree that Netflix's adaptation of ATLA sucks, I feel some of your critics are unwarranted because you're making assumptions based on the animated version.
Netflix's and Nickelodeon's Azula are two very different people. In the former, Ozai's favorite child is Zuko and Azula lives in his shadow despite his banishment. Her father doesn't see value in her for a manipulation or bending skills, and she has to earn his respect before being sent to Omashu.
If you want to critic the new family dynamics, that's fine. But to say Azula is this and this, when she clearly isn't anymore is not a fair critic.
You also said everyone Ozai has lost is because he killed/banished them. In the Nickelodeon show? Yes. But in the Netflix show, we still don't know.
You can compare the shows, but to critic the characters in the Netflix version like they have same motivations, personality, or backstory as their Nickelodeon counterpart doesn't make sense.
Fair. And I was thinking about this when he said Azula was born lucky, and Zuko was lucky to be born. Yes, that's a direct quote from the show, but it's not meant to be taken as a fact, but only an opinion from Zuko's point of view. In writing, that's known as "The lie the character believes" and it's meant to exhibit his insecurity, as well has how he feels about their relationship.
@@robchuk4136 Even if it's true (as shown in the comics), it still only applies to the Nickelodeon universe. It's not canon in Netflix's version, so you can't find fault with characters when they behave otherwise.