We open with a shot of the moon from a window. A bamboo flute plays softly. We get a few other shots of the house, and see a shadow run past. Then someone bursts in through the window and Korra gets up. Two more break down the doors, so Korra attacks with firebending. One of them tumbles behind her and blocks her chi. Korra falls to her knees... and in walks Amon. He speaks the page quote and reaches out with his hand-
Korra sits bolt upright from her nightmare. Naga licks her and she tells him that it's OK.
The next day, we see the council chambers of the Republic City government. Here, we meet the five members of the council, Tenzin being one of them. We meet Tarrlok, who suggests creating a task force dedicated to hunting down Amon. Tenzin says that it's too aggressive and will further divide the city. I love how Tenzin doesn't even bother to offer an alternative suggestion, thus showing how weak his position on this is. When he's asked who will lead the task force, Tarrlok naturally suggests himself. Thus showing how skilled of a politician he is*.
Tenzin keys off of this, saying that it's a bid from Tarrlok for power. Tarrlok denies it of course, then he talks about how Tenzin's father once dealt with another thread to the city, Yakone. Tenzin is incensed by Tarrlok trying to use Aang against him, and he considers this situation different from that one. Then Tarrlok turns to the other council members and says that "eventually, he will come for all us benders."
Wait, "us benders?". The entire ruling body of Republic City is made of benders? And the entire police force too? That's... disconcerting.
Tarrlok makes his pitch to the council members, talking about how Amon will come for their friends and family. Which means they don't have friends or family who aren't benders; it just keeps getting better. So they vote for his plan.
Cut to Korra practicing airbending forms while listening to smooth Asian Jazz. Amon cuts into the broadcast, saying that he has become public enemy #1, thus proving his point about bending oppression. I guess. He declares that his revolution will not be stopped, that non-benders don't have to live in fear, and that benders will be the ones who experience fear. And all throughout, we get close-ups of Korra sweating and looking increasingly terrified at the radio.
Cut to Mako being hit by someone on a moped. The woman gets off her bike and comes over to help. He looks up at her and notices that she's... Lust. Well, not quite, but close enough. It's like if Lust and Azula had a smoking hot daughter. Anyway, he's a bit sheepish, but then she recognizes him as Mako of the Fire Ferrets. It turns out she's a fan. She introduces herself as Asami and then decides to ask him out to a posh restaurant. She even promises to buy him a set of swanky clothes for the occasion.
Best near-vehicular manslaughter ever.
Cut to Tenzin, his family, and Korra sitting down to eat. Tarrlok comes in uninvited; kind of a dick move. Indeed, he even invites himself to dinner, citing that airbenders don't turn away hungry guests. Pema shoots Tenzin a look for some reason, while Tarrlok takes a seat beside Korra.
Tarrlok introduces himself to Korra, acting like he wasn't expecting her to be there. He says that he's the representative from the Northern Water Tribe. Um... what? Not only is the Republic City council made only of benders, it would seem that, with the exception of Tenzin, nobody on the council is actually a native of the city. The city is being ruled by people from beyond its borders.
Maybe we should just let Amon win and get it over with.
After humoring Ikki's pointless questions, Tarrlok starts paying Korra compliments on her infiltration of Amon's rally. She's surprised to hear an authority figure actually supporting her, but Tarrlok says that her presence makes the city better. Tenzin is tired of listening to this obvious ego stroking and asks him why he's here. So he asks Korra to join his task force, saying that he needs someone like her, who is fearless in the face of danger.
So Korra says no, much to Tarrlok and Tenzin's surprise (and likely the audience's as well). She says that she's here to learn airbending and she should focus on that. Tarrlok tries to remind her of her Avatar duties, but Tenzin cuts him off and throws him out. Tarrlok says that he's not giving up on her yet.
Cut to Mako's date, where he's fitted for a suit, but he keeps his red scarf instead of taking the white one that goes with his new outfit. At dinner, Asami says that she's a Pro-Bending fan and wants to see them play in the tournament. But Mako lets on that that's not going to happen this year. She gets him to tell her about their financial problems. When the waiter addresses her as "Ms. Sato," he asks if she's related to Hiroshi Sato, inventor of the Satomobile. Asami admits that she's his daughter, then invites him to meet her father.
Cut to the morning, where Korra's hanging out with Naga. Bolin arrives, and they talk about how she missed practice that week. But that's OK since they're not going to be in the tournament anyway. He gives her a cupcake and a rose as a gift for saving him from Amon. She claims that it was nothing important, but he disagrees, talking about how terrified he was of Amon. He even admits to having nightmares. This naturally unnerves Korra.
A delivery comes for Korra from Tarrlok, and Tarrlok's aid asks her to reconsider his invitation. She says no again. Bolin is a bit jealous until she explains the situation.
Cut to a Satomobile factory, where Mako is having his meeting with Hiroshi Sato. Hiroshi asks him pointedly about his financial issues, but says that it's nothing to be embarrassed about. He once had little but his idea for a car, and thanks to a generous loan, was able to get his idea off the ground. Asami gets him to tell Mako about their plan to save the Fire Ferrets. See, Sato is going to sponsor them in the tournament, so long as they wear the company logo on their new uniforms.
Hurray for corporate shilling!
Cut back to Air Temple island, where Tenzin is inspecting a car that arrived for Korra. Tenzin goes to see Korra, who's practicing airbending forms, then asks her to sit down for a second. He's fine with her turning Tarrlok down, but he's unsure if she's doing it for the right reasons. She continues her song and dance about wanting to focus on airbending, but Tenzin isn't buying it. He tells her that it's alright to be afraid, but that they need to talk about their fears, as it can "throw us out of balance." Whatever that means. Korra says nothing to this.
Cut to later that night, when Tarrlok's aid shows up to talk to Korra. Before he can even explain why he's there, she spins him around and kicks him in the butt. I guess that's what Tenzin meant by "out of balance:" being an asshole. He's there to invite her to a party Tarrlok's throwing in her honor. Yeah, that's not a trap or anything. But it plays on Korra's ego, so naturally she agrees to go.
Cut to Korra and Tenzin's family in more formal attire. Her arms are bare, of course. People applaud Korra's presence, and she's surprised that all of this was done in her honor. Tenzin remains suspicious and says for her to keep her guard up. Tarrlok appears and praises Korra some more, then leads her away from Tenzin, leaving the old man to engage in Komedy!
Tarrlok introduces her to Hiroshi Sato, thus explaining how that ties into everything. Hiroshi says that they're expecting "great things" out of the Avatar, and Korra looks unsure of herself. Then Mako shows up with Bolin and Asami on his arm. Naturally, Korra becomes jealous because... because... wait, when exactly did she start being attracted to Mako? Anyway, she asks how the two met, and Bolin answers for them. They then tell her that Sato's sponsoring them in the tournament. Great, more stuff for Korra to do; she looks uncertain at this.
Things continue to go downhill for Korra as Tarrlok invites Chief Beifong over to talk. Lin tells her that this party doesn't make her special, that she hasn't done anything to deserve it. Then walks off. At first, Korra looks angry, but the realization that what Lin said was true sinks in and she becomes more despondent.
Tarrlok then springs the trap. Having isolated her from Tenzin, he takes Korra to the grand staircase and leads her to members of the press. Tenzin watches as they start firing questions at her. The first question is harmless enough (it wouldn't be a good trap otherwise): her assessment of the threat level of Amon to the city.
When she says that he's "a real problem," one of Tarrlok's obvious plants asks why she isn't in Tarrlok's task force? You know, what with being the Avatar and all. The plant then asks why she's "backing away" from the fight. Well, her ego won't let that pass, so she says she's not backing down from the fight. Others ask her if she's going back on her promise to protect the city, some ask how Aang would have handled it, and for the kicker, one asks if she's afraid of Amon.
After the day she's had, her ego and self-confidence can't take that kind of abuse and she cracks. She yells that she's not afraid of anything, then joins the task force.
Well played, Tarrlok; well played indeed. Tenzin lowers his gaze at seeing her manipulated like this, and even Korra realizes that she screwed the pooch.
Cut to Korra nervously twiddling her fingers at a task force meeting. Tarrlok says that they're going to strike at an Equalist training ground, where chi blockers are secretly trained. That's illegal, right? Chi blocking is illegal. Right? I mean, because otherwise, you'd just be attacking people for training in chi blocking just because of who their leader is.
We get a nice dissolve from a map to the actual building. Korra and the people climb out of the truck, then take a look at the basement of the building. There they find people in hoods and masks training. At the rear of the room is a large picture of Amon. Seeing it causes Korra to freak slightly, but she calms down.
Their truck apparently came with water tanks, as they draw ammunition for the first attack. Korra takes a moment to steady herself, then the fight starts. Water is used to freeze and suffocate some, while earthbenders breach the walls and take out others. A few chi blockers try to escape using gas packs, but Korra freezes them before they explode then gives chase. She trips on a cable, but is able to take out one of the chi blockers who try to jump her. Tarrlok saves her from another.
As Korra and Tarrlok congratulate one another, she looks a lot more self-confident at this point. She's getting things done.
We get a quick scene of Mako and Bolin noting the lack of Korra's presence at practice again. Well, that was time well spent; next scene.
Cut to a press conference where Tarrlok updates the people on their progress. One of the reporters asks Avatar Korra why they haven't capture Amon yet. Really? It's been what, a day or two; maybe a week at the most? Korra, clearly feeling her confidence after her recent performance, steps up and calls Amon a coward for hiding from her. Then she actually calls him out, demanding a 1v1 duel on Avatar Aang's Memorial Island at midnight.
Well, after Korra decides to commit suicide by Big Bad, cut to Mako and Asami on another date in a carriage. This is here to provide exposition about Mako's red scarf; it was his father's scarf. Asami apologises, then tells him that her mother died when she was young.
Well enough shipping: time to watch Korra get herself killed. Korra's getting on a boat to go to the island. Tenzin says, "this is madness!" <Insert obvious meme here.> Tarrlok is in complete agreement with Tenzin, but she's going anyway. As she rides off in the boat, Tarrlok says that he's got airships on standby in case something goes wrong. Right, because nothing can possibly go wrong faster than it would take for you to respond and stop Amon from ripping out her bending and/or killing her.
Cut to Korra on top of the building at Aang's feet. She's clearly skittish, jumping at the sound of the wind as well as the clock chimes of midnight, but her confidence overrides it. She stands there. And stands there. And nothing happens. So she says, "Guess you're a no-show, Amon. Who's scared now?"
As she's walking by the open doors of the building, a bolo lashes out from the darkness and pulls her inside. This sequence is beautifully animated, as her firebending is the only lightsource. She quickly sees that she's surrounded by dozens of chi blockers. The villain cheated; who'd have ever guessed. She tries to fight back, but she's quickly overwhelmed and chi blocked.
The chi blockers pick her weakened body up. And quite literally like something out of her nightmares, Amon emerges from the darkness as though he were part of it. He approaches her. Korra is obviously terrified as his hand reaches for her head...
But he doesn't do anything. He simply tells her that this isn't the time for their fight. After all, they've still got 2/3rds of the season to go. He says, "Although it would be the simplest thing to take away your bending right now," to Korra's increased horror. He says that doing it now would make her a martyr, so that benders across the world would come after him.
Then he says, "But I assure you, I have a plan. And I'm saving you... for last. Then, you'll get your duel. And I will destroy you. Then... you have my permission to die." OK, that last sentence wasn't there, but it may as well have been. And I like the use of "destroy" here, because it's not a euphemism for "kill." She doesn't fear death; her punishment must be more severe. Torture, not of the body, but of the soul.
So Amon knocks her out. We get some random flashes of grown-up versions of the Gaang, as well as shots of someone we don't know. Meh, it was probably someone who wasn't mentioned in this episode...
Korra comes to as Tenzin arrives. He asks what happened, and she tells him that she was ambushed. He asks about her bending, but she still has it. And then she breaks down, crying in Tenzin's arms. And here, she finally admits to her terror at Amon, how helpless she felt in his hands, and so forth.
Terror of the Avatar
Oh that was good. Very good.
Because this is a 12-episode series, it doesn't work like traditional episodic storytelling. Even episodic stories done in an arc format. Generally, in episodic stories, most or all of the plot threads are part of the overall action. Each has their own bit of setup, rising action, conclusion, and so forth.
This series isn't like that. It's more like an HBO series than regular episodic stories. In that kind of series, there's not merely an overall arc; there's a single story being told. And sometimes, that means that you just have to have a plotline simmer for a while before it pays off. So you'll have some element in one episode that's not important to this one, but will be in the next. You do it that way because, time-wise, it needs to be here, so that it can already be established for later.
This specifically relates to the Mako subplot of the episode. It's effectively irrelevant to this episode; Asami and Hiroshi Sato's introduction is all setup for later episodes. What makes this interesting is that it is integrated into this episode's main plotline: it helps pile onto Korra at the party, thus pushing her where Tarrlok wants her to go.
The plot of this episode is really an examination of Korra. It's all about fear, and fear has two parts: why we're afraid and how we handle it. The first part is covered in the page quote. Remember: that's not really Amon saying it; that's what Korra thinks. She feels that losing her bending is equivalent to, if not worse than death.
And for one borne to bending, one who learned three bending techniques practically since birth, that makes sense. Korra fears Amon because without bending... she would be nothing. It's the only thing she's ever known. It's what she was taught, what the OWL focused on teaching her. And that shaped who she is; she thinks bending is the coolest thing in the world. I suspect she thinks the Equalists are mostly just jealous of bending, since they can't do it. She has had no life other than bending, and thus she cannot imagine life without it.
Not to mention the fact that the Avatar is defined by bending. Korra identifies as the Avatar; she has always done so. The Avatar is the person who can bend multiple elements; that's how Korra thinks of it. Amon has the power to not just strip away her bending, but to effectively destroy the Avatar.
And if he can do that to her... what then? She will have failed the world. Compared to Aang's 60+ year reign, she is nothing; a failed Avatar who allowed a guy to destroy her before she really got started.
The episode paints a very clear picture of how she handles it. She feels this fear, but her pride won't let her show it. She won't tell Bolin about her own fear of Amon; she keeps the fear inside, hidden from others. This lets her present to the world the face of a confident Avatar, worthy of Aang. Her fear of Amon now mingles with her fear of failure at being the Avatar. She thinks her fear makes her weak.
This comes to a head at the party. She sees how people expect great things from her, as Hiroshi says, thus making her feel even more like a failure, more unsure of herself. And given her confidence up to now, I imagine that there is nothing Korra hates more than feeling unsure of herself.
But note what it is that really makes her submit to Tarrlok's offer in the end: being called a coward. She's afraid, but her pride will not allow anyone to see her that way. Because deep down, she thinks she is a coward. To prove that she's not afraid of Amon, she forces herself to face the Equalists.
And... it's easier than she thought. It's just ambushing some chi blocking thugs. It was easier than breaking into the rally before. Easier than fighting those two chi blockers. She can win this; she's the Avatar after all. Her easy victory fuels her confidence and pride, which smothers her fear. Amon is nothing to be frightened of. And to prove it, to prove herself to be the Avatar, she throws herself at Amon. She calls him the coward, the worst insult Korra could imagine.
But it's all a front; the fear is still there. Alone, on the building, fear finds her again. But Amon doesn't show, so she leaves. Only it's a trap; she's taken into the darkness and chi blocked. And there, broken, she comes face to face with her nightmare. Her pride fails, her confidence turns to ashes. Because Amon knows her secret; beneath the lies, the front, even the Avatar title, she is nothing more than a frightened little girl.
This scene is probably the main reason why people consider this series darker than ATLA. It's desperately human, a sequence that plays on our darkest fears; the interplay between Korra and Amon is almost rape-like. Aang may have had difficult fights, may have been run ragged, beaten down, and even killed once. But he was never broken.
Amon broke Korra... without even touching her.
Korra's flaw as a character isn't her fear. Aang would probably have been scared shitless at Amon too; as an airbender, he practically defines himself by bending. The difference is that he wouldn't have run from his fear the way Korra did. He wouldn't have buried it under pride; that's one of the things that allowed Korra to be maneuvered into joining the task force. Aang wouldn't have allowed easy victories to make him forget his very real fear and rush to face Amon.
Korra's flaw is her pride, ego, and self-confidence. Her unvoiced fear merely allowed those to get the best of her.
