History Characters / AvatarTheLastAirbenderFireLordOzai

[[WMG:[[center: [- ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'' [[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbender Main Character Index]]\\
[[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbenderTeamAvatar Team Avatar]] ([[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbenderAvatarAang Avatar Aang]], [[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbenderZuko Prince Zuko]], [[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbenderKatara Katara]], [[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbenderSokka Sokka]], [[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbenderTophBeifong Toph Beifong]]) | [[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbenderMentors Mentors]] | [[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbenderAllies Allies]] ([[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbenderGeneralIroh General Iroh]]) | [[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbenderTheFireNation Fire Nation]] | [[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbenderTheFireNationRoyalFamily Fire Nation Royal Family]] ('''Fire Lord Ozai''', [[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbenderPrincessAzula Princess Azula]]) | [[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbenderTheEmberIslandPlayers The Ember Island Players]] | [[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbenderOtherCharacters Other]] | [[Characters/AvatarTheLastAirbenderComicCharacters Comics]]]]]]-]

!!Fire Lord Ozai (敖載)
!!!'''Voiced by''': Creator/MarkHamill (English), Rolando Silva, Ricardo Soto and Daniel Seisdedos ([[UsefulNotes/SpanishAccentsAndDialects Latin American Spanish]]), Ami Mendelman (Hebrew), Axel Lutter (German)

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ozai_render.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"I '''do''' have the power. I have all the power in the '''WORLD'''!"'']]

Ruler of the Fire Nation and likely the most powerful Firebender on the planet, Ozai is [[BigBad the main antagonist]] of the series. A ruthless warlord and megalomaniac, Ozai is willing to burn the rest of the world to the ground so he can rule. He has little to no empathy for anyone, including his own children ([[PetTheDog though he acts decently towards them if they prove themselves useful]]). Aang must defeat Ozai before Ozai can harness Sozin's Comet and use it to bring the war to a permanent end.
----
[[foldercontrol]]
[[folder:A-E]]
* ZeroPercentApprovalRating: From the glimpses we get at Fire Nation soldiers' and citizens' conversations, it's clear that most are more loyal to the title of "Fire Lord" than to Ozai as a person. The Yu Yan archers use the term "Fire Lord propaganda" derisively, and their General regards his and Zhao's hunt for the Avatar as out-of-touch with the ground troops fighting the real war. Outside of the mainland, the people indigenous to the Earth Kingdom colonies (outside of a few individuals) don't respect him OR his title. It says something when Zuko is permitted to take the throne while Ozai is still technically alive. It's not technically ''zero'', because the New Ozai Society forms in effort to place him back on the throne; but they're a decidedly fringe group, and even they're more interested in restoring the Empire than in Ozai himself.
* AboveGoodAndEvil: He believes that the will of the Fire Lord is the be-all and end-all of what's right and wrong.
* AbusiveDad:
** [[BigBad Ozai]] not only had a favorite and an [[TheUnfavourite unfavorite]] child, but he brutally scarred the latter, Zuko, and [[spoiler:[[OffingTheOffspring has attempted to kill him multiple times]] (though as for this, only ''after'' he joined the revolution against him).]] Zuko found a better father figure in his uncle and mentor Iroh and eventually outgrew the need for Ozai's approval.
** Ozai exiled and disowned Zuko when he was thirteen, for speaking out of turn in a war meeting (the kid was not supposed to be there in the first place, but the level of punishment was overkill). In addition to ''burning a good fourth of his face off'', Ozai loudly and publicly called Zuko an embarrassing failure and a traitor without honor, for the high crimes of idealism, a degree of rudeness and reluctance to face his father in a duel. One line says all you need to know about how Ozai treated Zuko.
---> "You ''WILL'' learn respect, and suffering will be your teacher."
** Because the treatment he gets is more painful in short term, Zuko tends to envy Azula. Ironically, while we never see it, the audience can gather enough about the damage Ozai did to Azula. While superficially nicer to her, Ozai actually subjects Azula to rather cruel emotional abuse, and moreover [[EvilMentor cultivates]] her aggressive and ruthless tendencies in order to [[ManipulativeBastard make her his weapon]]; her mother, by contrast, tried to help her be more compassionate and fit in with others. [[spoiler:Because Azula fails to connect with her mother, this is what brings her eventual downfall.]] In the end, Zuko [[CallingTheOldManOut points out to Ozai]] that he is such a horrible father that the best thing he ever did to him was to exile him--because being treated as Azula is even ''worse''. Further, Ozai's abuse of Zuko is also abusive to Azula by extension, in a "this is what will happen to you if you don't live up to my expectations" kind of way.
--->'''Azula:''' You can't do this to me! You can't treat me like [[TheUnfavourite Zuko]]!
* ActionDad: While he is ''not'' a ''good'' father, he's certainly a very powerful one.
* ActorAllusion: Inverted: Ozai, who's voiced by Mark Hamill, is both the ArchnemesisDad of one of the heroes who maims his son and an EvilOverlord who can shoot lightning from his fingertips. That's right, Luke Skywalker is voicing a [[CompositeCharacter composite]] of Darth Vader and Darth Sidious. The {{Irony}} of this [[https://i.redd.it/pmi854a13n051.jpg has not been lost on anybody]].
* AllegoricalCharacter: He's not so much a character himself as he is a representation of the cycle of child abuse and ultra-militarism.
* AlwaysSecondBest: To Iroh, whom he could never seem to beat. Iroh's memoirs in ''Legacy of the Fire Nation'' mention that Ozai would often flip the board and burn the pieces whenever he lost a game of Pai Sho to Iroh, heavily implying that Iroh won nearly every game. And he could never get Azulon to pass the throne to him despite showcasing his children and pointing out Iroh's flaws. Even when he becomes the most powerful firebender in the world, there are plenty of folks who believe Iroh could still beat him, though notably Iroh himself is ''not'' one of them.
* AmbiguousStartOfDarkness: When he became evil is unclear, in part because we know so little about his personal history.
* AmbitionIsEvil: Fueled by his resentment towards Iroh, Ozai strives to be the best in school and in firebending. But his ambition made him more ruthless and sociopathic in the process, willingly to sacrifice family members to gain the throne and the world.
* ArchEnemy: He eventually becomes this to Avatar Aang, as it's the latter's destiny to stop him in order to put an end to the Hundred Year War. Even Zuko acknowledges this -- and while both Zuko ''and'' Ozai agree that Zuko has every right to kill him after all the abuse Ozai had done to him for so many year, Zuko knows Ozai and Aang are destined to fight, not him. To some degree, [[ItsPersonal it's also a bit personal]] as his grandfather was the one who wiped out his kind prior to Aang's reawakening from his 99-year slumber.
* ArchnemesisDad: Not Zuko's ArchEnemy, but he and his son have fought each other a few times. And during the eclipse, when Zuko renounces trying to be the son Ozai wants, Ozai reveals that he was willing to kill him when he was not even in his teens.
* ArmchairMilitary: Although Ozai is well-versed in military strategies and tactics, being highly successful in school, he has never actively partaken in a military campaign until the series finale. This is in contrast to his brother, father, and grandfather who were stated to be {{Frontline General}}s, not to mention his son and daughter who both were active on the field and had more successful wartime accomplishments (specifically, the sacking of Ba Sing Se) than he did.
* ArmorPiercingQuestion: He asks probably the cruelest one in the entire series. [[spoiler:During the Day of Black Sun, Zuko finally [[CallingTheOldManOut tells him off for what a horrible father's he's been]] and has reached the decision to join Aang. And just as he's about to walk out on his father forever, Ozai buys himself time in waiting for the eclipse to pass by asking Zuko the one question that he knows has haunted him for years, [[OffingTheOffspring so that he can keep him there long enough to kill him after the eclipse ends]].]]
-->'''Ozai''': [[spoiler:Don't you want to know what happened to [[MissingMom your mother]]?]]
* ArrangedMarriage: With Ursa. Unlike the standard, it wasn't for political reasons but rather an experiment in SuperpowerfulGenetics.
* AxCrazy: Expresses vicious, murderous glee in the process of [[spoiler:leveling the Earth Kingdom.]]
* BadBoss: He is as awful to his subordinates as he is to his least favorite child, as he is one slip up away from incinerating them. Hell, the very first time he was shown onscreen, it's implied that he supported the plan to sacrifice novice Fire Nation troops as cannon fodder.
* BaitTheDog: He refuses to let Azula join him in the final campaign of the war but realizes that she would interpret it as a sign of being mistreated like Zuko. Not wanting to lose her loyalty, Ozai placates his daughter by naming her the new Fire Lord... and then immediately crowns himself as the Phoenix King of the world, rendering the position of Fire Lord to be worthless. Azula enjoyed it at first, but then she begins to lose it.
* BeardOfEvil: He sports a blade-like goatee and is the BigBad.
* BeautyIsBad: Up until Zuko's homecoming, whenever Ozai appeared on-screen, his face was never completely visible, thus furthering audiences' expectations for him to look like the standard animated villain (i.e., having a somewhat more homely design than the heroes). The first full-on shot of his face (which, admittedly, is downright gorgeous) only reinforced the fact that he was absolutely the most despicable character in the entire series. ([[EvilSoundsRaspy The sound of his voice]] doesn't exactly help, either.)
* BerserkButton: Disobeying him or doing anything that he perceives as slighting or disrespecting him -- which is ''most things'' -- will set him off immediately.
** He takes such grave offense to the then 13-year old Zuko speaking out of turn at a war council that he challenges Zuko to an Agni Kai and, feeling slighted again by Zuko begging him for forgiveness rather than fighting, burns half of Zuko's face off and banishes him from the Fire Nation.
** It's telling that Zuko chose to confront Ozai during the eclipse when his firebending powers were sapped. When Zuko tells him the truth about how Azula was the one who took down Aang, Ozai angrily orders Zuko out. When Zuko refuses Ozai gets furious and threatens his life, only relenting because of the eclipse -- and the instant he gets his powers back during the confrontation he tries to kill Zuko.
* BeyondRedemption: His older brother, Iroh, gave up on him after witnessing Zuko's scarring in person. Zuko himself would eventually give up on his father's chances after learning about the genocidal plan for the Earth Kingdom with Sozin's Comet, and advocates for his father's death. This ties in with Aang's dilemma of his ThouShaltNotKill philosophy as Ozai's irredeemability means the only other obvious option for Aang to save the world is killing Ozai.
* BigBad: Even though his actions aren't directly driving the plot (that's mostly [[TheHeavy Azula]]'s job), his influence in the story as the genocidal ruler of the Fire Nation and [[{{Deuteragonist}} Zuko]]'s abusive father makes him the main villain Aang ultimately aims to take down to stop the Hundred Year War.
* BreakTheHaughty: His smug confidence evaporates in the final battle when Aang regains access to the Avatar State. He spends the rest of the fight getting progressively more alarmed after realizing how outmatched he is. As Avatar State Aang prepares to deliver a finishing blow he's visibly terrified.
* BreakThemByTalking: If he's not allowed to burn his enemies, then he will use words to beat them down. He often does this to his son, Zuko, verbally shutting him down with a story of how "he was lucky to be born" as punishment for daring to criticize [[ParentalFavoritism Azula]]. [[spoiler:When he loses firebending and freedom, he starts relying on this ability to gain leverage over the now-Fire Lord Zuko. In ''Smoke and Shadows'', he gets a taste of his own medicine when Ursa visits him and spells out his pathetic, insecure ego before him]].
* BrokenPedestal: Part of Zuko's HeelFaceTurn involves him realizing that his father is nothing more than a self-serving SOB. Him up to Azulon and Sozin.
* BroughtDownToNormal: During the eclipse, in contrast to his children who are BroughtDownToBadass. [[spoiler:Done more permanently at the end of the series: courtesy of Aang's energy bending, he can no longer fire bend after "Sozin's Comet."]]
* TheBully: Ozai is ultimately a bully armed with powerful firebending and the resources of a nation. He enjoys asserting domination over people he believes to be weak and portrays himself to be so powerful that even his own brother doubts he could defeat him. And like any other bully, he loses all of that smugness and flees in terror once he picks on someone more powerful than himself, which just so happens to be Avatar State Aang.
* CainAndAbel: The Cain to Iroh's Abel, though they never fought directly. Ozai preferred [[ManipulativeBastard machinations]] when dealing with his brother, such as actively trying to delegitimize Iroh's claim to the throne and take power for himself.
* CardCarryingVillain: PlayedWith. He makes no pretensions about himself or his motives and openly champions being as ruthless as possible as the way to go, but he also tells Zuko that [[WhatIsEvil Good and Evil are just points of view]] and seems to regard himself as AboveGoodAndEvil and likely feels that neither of them actually exist, though this only means that he can be as [[{{Sadist}} gleefully sadistic]] as he likes -- if good and evil mean nothing to him, then he is free to be as malicious as he likes, and ultimately he's just so cunning, egotistical, and pragmatic that it makes him a very three-dimensional villain in spite of this.
* TheChessmaster: Like his daughter, he's a very capable strategist and manipulator. However, by the time he takes action in the plot, Sozin's Comet has arrived and he gets too DrunkOnTheDarkSide to use it.
* ClassicVillain: In a world of {{Anti Villain}}s and nuanced villains, Ozai stands apart as the classical villain archetype. He looks evil, his desires are simple (i.e. power-hungry), and his beliefs are that good is weak and cruelty is strength, all serving as the polar opposite of Aang and thus, the Avatar's greatest challenge to overcome at the grand finale.
* ColdHam: Ozai is rather subdued throughout most of the series, his voice rarely rising above a harsh whisper. When Sozin's Comet arrives in the series finale and supercharges his Firebending, he quickly becomes {{Drunk on the Dark Side}} and throws off all restraint.
* TheCorrupter: He molded his daughter into the psycho-crazy monster she is now. It is also implied that part of the reason he treats Zuko the way he does is to make him into someone as horrible as he is, since he only treats him right when he (was told to have) killed the Avatar and turned on Iroh. That in turn, would also spite Ursa, who wants Zuko to NOT be like him.
* ControlFreak: Much like his daughter, he seeks to control everyone and everything around him, especially his family. He [[GildedCage restricts Ursa's ability to communicate with her family and loved ones outside the palace walls]] and he forces Zuko to fight him when the latter spoke out of line. The only instance he wouldn't get angry about disobedience is if he believes [[TheSocialDarwinist he's going to be killed by someone as equally ruthless and powerful as himself]].
* CosmicMotifs:
** Like most [[PlayingWithFire Firebenders]], the Sun, it being connected to his power. As such, he is rendered all but powerless during the Day of the Black Sun and has to drag out his confrontation with Zuko to get a chance to regain his destructive powers.
** Comets like his grandfather, planning to use the power boost Sozin's Comet gives Firebenders to burn the Earth Kingdom to the ground. This fits their association with destruction.
* CripplingOverSpecialization: Ozai is blessed with an incredible natural talent for firebending, and he relies heavily on this talent rather than learn how to fight without it. Compared to his brother and children, he has no technique beyond incinerating his opponents with large amounts of fire. Terrifyingly enough, this seems to be enough for him to outmatch all but [[GodInHumanForm Aang]] and [[LightningBruiser Iroh]]. [[spoiler:Ironically, this becomes his undoing once Aang takes away his firebending, leaving behind a weak man who couldn't break out of prison even if he wanted to]].
* CruelMercy:
** Ozai's the kind of bastard who, unless personally disrespected, would keep a calm tone while dishing out personally crushing punishments. A notable instance is when Vachir, the Yuyan Archer he sent to assassinate Ikem, reports his failure to ever locate his target. He spares Vachir but has him dishonorably discharged from the Yuyan Archers, to Vachir's great dismay. Also, depending on how you interpret his relationship with Azula; the perceived slights and discarding of her come his coronation to Phoenix King can be retribution for her lies about the Avatar's death.
** He is on the receiving end of this trope when [[spoiler:Aang spares his life but takes away his firebending at the series' climax. Though Aang sees it as a means to prevent Ozai from causing harm while upholding to his ideals, Ozai sees this as [[AFateWorseThanDeath the worst thing the Avatar could have done to him]] since he's now forced to see his hated son Zuko ascend to the throne while he is left to rot in prison, utterly weak and helpless to do anything about it.]]
* CurbStompCushion: While he stands little chance once Aang enters the Avatar State, he lasts far longer than anyone else ever has. He even continues trying to attack Aang while fleeing for his life.
* DarkIsEvil: Is the BigBad of the series, and all of his appearances before Book 3 have him obscured by shadows, on top of being a master of [[PlayingWithFire Firebending]] which explicitly uses [[ThePowerOfHate anger and hatred as fuel]].
* DespotismJustifiesTheMeans: Ozai's ultimate goal is to be the most powerful man in the world. Whether the world is better or worse off as a result is of little concern to him.
* {{Determinator}}: He refuses to give up, even still referring to himself as the "Phoenix King" [[spoiler:after losing his powers]].
* DidntSeeThatComing: He faces a couple in the last episode: [[spoiler:Aang regaining control of the Avatar State]] and then [[spoiler:energybending]].
* DidntThinkThisThrough: Even Ozai has a pretty major one ''before the series even begins''. He banished Zuko as an act of CruelMercy, by forcing him on a SnipeHunt and denying him access to his loved ones, as well as forcing him to live in a world that hates him. However, what Ozai failed to realize, is that, because Zuko is a genuinely good guy by heart, there would ''always'' be someone out there who would accept him. Iroh even came along with Zuko, and acted as a genuine paternal figure to him. Banishment allowed Zuko to reflect on his actions, find a positive father figure, meet some trustworthy friends, and even help stop Ozai to begin with. If Ozai just killed Zuko or kept him in a dungeon, then he probably would have defeated Aang.
* DirtyCoward: Despite being the most powerful firebender in the world, Ozai will not fight unless he's certain he'll absolutely win.
** [[spoiler:He tries to manipulate Azulon into disinheriting Iroh instead of confronting his brother directly. As Zuko notes, Iroh is the only person other than the Avatar who has the potential to defeat Ozai, which Ozai was not willing to risk.]]
** Sozin, Azulon, Iroh and Azula all spent time on the front lines with the military, and it's implied that Zuko would have too had he not been banished when he was only 13. Ozai, in comparison to every other Firebender in his family, stayed safely at home during the War, and only came out to burn down the already defeated Earth Kingdom.
** In the finale Ozai is perfectly happy to fight Aang [[WouldHurtAChild with intent to kill]] while confident that Sozin's Comet augmenting his powers and Aang being unwilling to kill him in turn means it will be an easy fight. Once Aang regains access to the Avatar State Ozai instantly realizes how outmatched he is and initially tries to flee. To his credit he stands his ground when it's clear he can't outrun Aang and even manages to get a few hits in, but when it looks like Avatar State Aang is about to kill him Ozai is completely petrified.
* DisproportionateRetribution: A recurring theme with him. He challenged his son to an Agni Kai for the crime of speaking out of turn, and banished and burned half of said son's face off for the crime of begging for forgiveness rather than standing and fighting.
* TheDreaded: To Aang, who fears the inevitable confrontation with him throughout the series. He is so feared by everyone, that few in the world have the tenacity to stand up to him or challenge him, with only Aang and Iroh being seen as able to challenge him one on one. [[HorrifyingTheHorror Even Azula, who herself is feared by almost everyone else, backs down when he commands it.]]
* DrivenByEnvy:
** Ozai resents his brother Iroh for being Azulon's favorite despite the fact that Ozai's bloodline is supposed to strengthen the Royal Family's firebending potential for generations to come. And it doesn't take long for Ozai to make his attempt for the throne once Iroh's son died in the battle.
** ''The Search'' reveals that Ozai's mistreatment of Zuko stems from [[spoiler:Ursa's wish that Zuko was Ikem's son instead of his. Jealous, Ozai secretly ordered for Ikem's assassination (which failed) and decided to "[[EvilIsPetty honor]]" Ursa's wish by no longer treating Zuko as his son. This also casts a darker light on Ozai's praise for Zuko in the beginning of Book 3; he's not only proud that Zuko "killed" the Avatar and betrayed his uncle but also extinguished his mother's influence in the process]].
* DrunkOnTheDarkSide: He acts this way once Sozin's Comet powers him up. In his own words, he's been given "ALL THE POWER IN THE WORLD!" and enjoys every opportunity to kill with it.
* ElementalMotifs: Fire, being a [[PlayingWithFire Firebender]] who [[EvilIsBurningHot exemplifies of all the negative aspects of the element]]. On top of his [[AttackAttackAttack fighting style being incredibly aggressive]], he is a power hungry, rage-filled ControlFreak of a tyrant who decides to [[spoiler:use [[CometOfDoom Sozin's Comet]] to ''[[FinalSOlution burn down the Earth Kingdom]]'' to ashes. After having his bending removed by Aang, he is left an EmptyShell, his inner fire gone out, not leaving so much as embers.]]
* EmptyShell: When Ursa meets Ozai at the end of ''Smoke and Shadow'', she describes him as having a heart so small that there's no room into to love anyone, and saddest of all is that [[SourOutsideSadInside he can't even manage to love himself.]]
* EqualOpportunityEvil:
** Say what you want about his morals, but Ozai is ''not'' a sexist. He favors his (also evil) [[DaddysLittleVillain daughter]] over his [[HeelFaceRevolvingDoor son]], has no problem with women serving in the Fire Nation military, and has no issue with making his aforementioned daughter the Fire Lord - in fact, it was his idea. The Fire Lord position was to become a ceremonial role with Ozai crowning himself king of the world, but still.
** He also presumably had no problem with [[spoiler:Azula bringing Dai Li agents to the capital as [[EagleSquadron "souvenirs"]].]]
* EvenEvilCanBeLoved: Despite Ozai's extremely twisted abuse of them, it's clear that Zuko and Azula can't help but love their father regardless, with Zuko even stating that not ''all'' of their childhood memories with him were negative.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: Subverted. Even ''his own father'' was mistaken in believing this was the case, which was why he ordered Ozai to kill his own son to know the depth of his brother's loss. [[spoiler:As it turns out, Ozai was ''willing'' to carry out the act, but was only dissuaded because his wife knows he wants the throne even more. Which led him to poison his father into a painless death. That said, Ozai's children were only tools to him. The most love he ever showed them amounted to [[LovingAShadow them being ideal inheritors of his legacy]], ruthlessly unfettered and disdain for kindness.]]
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Fire Lord Azulon ordered him to kill his own son, which Ozai deemed unthinkable. [[spoiler:Zig-Zagged when we learn he had planned on going through with it; but not out of malice against Zuko but rather just because the Fire Lord's order is law and going against it is treason. At the time, the only thing going for him was just to save his own skin]].
* EvilCannotComprehendGood:
** He often scoffed at morality, [[VirtueIsWeakness thinking of it to be a sign of weakness]]. He also finds peace and kindness laughable concepts and despised those who followed moral principles. Being a sociopathic tyrant, these things don't register in his head.
** Parental warmth is a completely alien concept to him. Ozai genuinely acts as though he did Zuko a favor by challenging him to single combat and badly scarring his face - when Zuko wouldn't fight back no less - as a way to teach him to know his place. When Zuko finally tells Ozai how cruel and wrong it was, Ozai simply assumes Zuko didn't learn from it.
** Ozai fails to understand why Aang would hesitate to kill and takes every advantage of his mercy. [[spoiler:Same after Zuko tells him that Aang is the one who should kill Ozai, not him]].
--->'''Ozai''': Even with all the power in the world, '''you are still weak'''.
** Subverted in ''The Promise'', where Ozai has a better understanding of Earth King Kuei, without ever even meeting the man, than the members of Team Avatar do just by knowing the politics involved. [[note]]In brief, the Earth Kingdom has been on the losing side of a war for decades, a war that is now over through victory they have no claim to. With a string of defeats and no accomplishments to balance them, Kuei is hungry for a way to salvage his dignity and taking a firm stance on the Harmony Restoration Movement will be his way of inflicting retribution on the Fire Nation.[[/note]]
* EvilCounterpart: Serves as one to Hakoda, father of Katara and Sokka. Both are the leaders of their respective countries, both are expert strategists when it comes to warfare, both can very distant with their children and they even have similar facial features. The crucial difference is that Hakoda cherishes his family and his own people despite his duties while Ozai is all too willing to throw his family away for personal power.
* EvilIsBigger: He's towers over almost everyone in the series, including his older brother, giving him an intimidating and imposing presence whenever he's on-screen (and that's when you don't factor in the fact his fights are always against ''children''). And his ego is even bigger, considering he commissions himself a personal airship that dwarfs the already large Fire Nation airships.
* EvilIsBurningHot: Comes with being an angry firebender.
* EvilIsHammy: In the finale, Ozai adopts new regalia for himself and begins to yell and wave his arms in enthusiasm for the power Sozin's Comet will beget him. He is voiced by Mark '''Ham'''ill, after all.
* EvilIsPetty: Having a lot of political and firebending powers, Ozai likes to twist the knife with minor issues.
** In flashback from ''The Search'' comic, when Azula complains that her firebending instructor Kunyo is a terrible teacher, Ozai immediately arranges Kunyo to be banished to the Fire Nation colonies in spite of Zuko's protest.
** [[spoiler:The sequel comics reveal that his mistreatment of Zuko is largely just his spiteful response to Ursa's claim that Zuko isn't his son. A claim that he ''knew'' was a lie.]]
* EvilOverlord: The Fire ''Lord'' directs his industrial army from the opposite side of the planet, hardly leaving his throne as his dominion spreads across the world's largest continent.
* EvilOnlyHasToWinOnce: If Aang doesn't defeat him before Sozin's Comet arrives, there won't be a world to save anymore.
-->'''Roku''': Sozin's Comet will return by the end of this summer, and Fire Lord Ozai will use its power to finish the war once and for all. If he succeeds, even the Avatar won't be able to restore balance to the world.
* EvilPlan: Ozai intends to finish his grandfather's legacy by using the power of Sozin's Comet to destroy the armies of the other nations and take the world for the Fire Nation.
* TheEvilPrince: In flashbacks, when he was still fire ''prince'', instead of ''lord' he was just as vicious and manipulative. Although he was the SpareToTheThrone he worked to supplant his older brother Iroh as heir. However, Iroh chooses not to challenge it even if his birthright was revoked due to the overwhelming grief he was facing from the loss of his son.
* EvilSoundsDeep: He speaks in an exceptional baritone, courtesy of Creator/MarkHamill, and is wicked to the core.
* EvilSoundsRaspy: There is a raspy undertone in Ozai's [[EvilSoundsDeep baritone]]. When he goes full LargeHam, you can actually hear [[WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries the unmistakable voice of the Joker]] breaking through.
* EvilVirtues: He's fixated on ideas of Respect and Honor, albiet very twisted ones. When Zuko speaks out of turn in his war room and refuses to fight him, Ozai reads this as disrespectful and punishes him accordingly. In fact, his take on what Honor is motivates Zuko for much of the series.
* ExpositoryHairstyleChange: Ozai's hair is best described as being long, symmetrical, combed back and even pretty looking in contrast to his older brother's more ruggish hairstyle, representing the Fire Lord's belief in perfection and superiority. [[spoiler:Thus it is fitting that when he loses to Aang and is stripped of his firebending, his perfect hair is reduced to a disheveled mess covering his humiliating face. In prison, his hair becomes more wild and shaggy as his influence over the Fire Nation wanes over time.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:F-O]]
* FaceDeathWithDignity: Being TheSocialDarwinist, he seems to welcome the idea that if somebody can best him in a fight, they're likely to kill him, and seems relatively unafraid of death. [[spoiler:When Aang has him pinned down in the Avatar state, Ozai-- despite clearly being afraid-- eventually clenches his teeth and braces himself for the final blow... only to be disappointed when Aang fails to follow through with it.]]
* TheFaceless: In Seasons 1-2, his face was always hidden by shadow or otherwise obscured, fitting his status as TheDreaded. When he finally shows his face in the Season 3 premiere, he didn't look so intimidating. In subsequent episodes after this, however, his actions very much affirm how horrifically and terrifyingly evil he is out of every villain Aang has faced.
* FaceOfAnAngelMindOfADemon: After being concealed by shadow and built up as a terrifying, inhuman figure throughout the first two seasons, Ozai turns out to be rather handsome. However, his pretty face does little to hide the monster he is.
* FantasticRacism: Unlike his ancestors, who merely believed that the Fire Nation was culturally superior to the other nations, Ozai seems to look down on the people of other nations as an inferior subspecies. He shows open disdain to the Air Nomads when he confronts Aang and he thinks they were exterminated because they were "weak".
* FatalFlaw: Wrath and Pride. He thinks the world revolves around him and virtually anything that doesn't go his way should be subjected to the same solution: KillItWithFire. Not only is it childish (in fact, it's no different from his childhood days of burning Pai Sho pieces whenever he loses to Iroh) but it is the central factor for Zuko's HeelFaceTurn in the series, with the final straw being the FinalSolution against the Earth Kingdom. His insecure ego eventually leads to [[AGodAmI his god-complex megalomania]] at the series finale, causing him to underestimate Aang and subsequently [[spoiler:losing his firebending in the process]].
* FateWorseThanDeath: [[spoiler:De-bended and left to rot in a cell. For a man who prides his firebending and the benefits of being Fire Lord, death is preferable to him over living the rest of his days as a weak, pathetic man at the mercy of his son.]]
* FauxAffablyEvil: When he's not being abusive, he sounds civil, but in a cold and unempathic way. He tells people what he thinks they want to hear, so long as what they want is to stay on his good side.
* FinalBoss:
** He's the final enemy Aang faces, and the one he's been training the entire series to defeat.
** The boss fight with him marks the end of the tie-in game, ''VideoGame/AvatarTheLastAirbenderIntoTheInferno''.
* FinalExamBoss: Ozai's comet enhanced firebending forces Aang to use all the bending elements he learned throughout the series to survive the fight. Aang also uses lightning redirection and seismic sense to stop Ozai's attacks.
* FinalSolution: Planned to wipe out the Earth Kingdom singled-handed with a towering wave of flames.
* FisherKing: The entire series isn't so much about beating the Fire Nation, it's about beating ''him'', since with his extraordinary power, the Nation could not be entirely beaten. [[spoiler: In doing so, Aang cleared the way for Zuko, a more desirable and wise Fire Lord, to take the throne and begin healing the Fire Nation and the damage it had inflicted.]]
* FlatCharacter: PlayedForDrama. Ozai is a generic tyrant whose only characterization comes from the effect his actions have on other characters; the people he oppresses, the family that gets abused by his hand, and Aang, who is forced into a moral dilemma over killing him since there was no chance to make Ozai see the error of his ways.
* {{Flight}}: A unique ability of his that he gained through firebending, a la jet propulsion.
* FreudianExcuse: It's heavily implied he's full of self-loathing due to being TheUnfavourite to Fire Lord Azulon and AlwaysSecondBest to Iroh (especially in Pai Sho games). ''The Search'' later reveals that [[spoiler:Ozai was also jealous that Ursa preferred his son, Zuko, to be the son of her former boyfriend than him, which is why he greatly abused his son throughout the series]]. None of this justifies his actions, but they show how Zuko's own self-loathing could have led him down a dark path.
* FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse: While hiding out at Zuko's summer home in the episode "[[Recap/AvatarTheLastAirbenderSozinsCometPart1ThePhoenixKing Sozin's Comet, Part 1: The Phoenix King]]", Team Avatar finds [[http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110329213952/avatar/images/4/45/Baby_Ozai.png the picture of a smiling and sweet boy]], which is [[EvilOverlord Fire Lord Ozai]], Zuko's [[AbusiveParents abusive and sociopathic father]]. The gang is confused at this, wondering how this innocent-looking baby in the picture would one day become the AxCrazy tyrant they're now up against. [[DiscussedTrope They even briefly wonder]] if it played a role in his decisions, but ultimately conclude Ozai is a horrible man who should be stopped.
* FriendlyFire: Pun not intended, but while it's not stated much, Ozai's plan to burn down the Earth Kingdom also endangers his own people: his soldiers and the Fire Nation colonists, proving for all his posture about the Fire Nation's superiority and might, he himself doesn't care a bit about it, only seeing the Fire Nation as a stepping stone to propel himself into greatness.
* FrontlineGeneral: The first and only time he has ever personally led an army to battle was during Sozin's Comet and his final plan to win the war was to destroy the already defeated but still stubborn Earth Kingdom from the safety of his airships.
* GetBackHereBoss: Inverted. Aang spends most of his fight with him running away from him and dodging his attacks while occasionally fighting back. When Aang gets his second wind, it flips again to playing this straight.
* AGodAmI: He doesn't outright name himself a god, but the idea that he was just a step away from world domination during the GrandFinale certainly gave him delusions.
* GodEmperor: Makes a claim at this towards the end with the new position of "Phoenix King".
* GodzillaThreshold: He's the one villain Zuko doesn't recommend holding back on. Aang on the other hand, isn't willing to take his life even if Ozai passes this threshold.
* GoldColoredSuperiority: Wears gold accents on his robes like most Fire Nation royalty, [[spoiler:as well as a golden, bird shaped crown after dubbing himself "the Phoenix King"]], and is the most powerful [[PlayingWithFire Firebender]] in the world, barring possibly Iroh.
* GoneHorriblyRight: According to Ozai himself, the main reason he scarred Zuko was because the boy won't fight him in an honorable duel, and thus punishing him for not respecting the traditions of the Fire Nation, as he states sometimes you have to fight your family for your beliefs. Of course, by the time he's saying this, he is in the Fire Nation prison, stripped of his bending abilities, his power and influence, because Zuko ''did'' take the lesson to heart, and specifically trained the Avatar and helped in his defeat. Zuko (alongside Katara) had also defeated Azula from seizing the Fire Nation, meaning Ozai would have still kept his bending and his throne hadn't he scarred Zuko.
* GloryHound: Despite practically winning the Hundred Year War after the fall of Ba Sing Se, Ozai wants to officially end it by using Sozin's Comet to burn down the Earth Kingdom. And he refuses to share the glory with his loyal daughter, instead forcing her to stay behind at the palace to be [[PuppetKing crowned Fire Lord]] while he gets to personally lead the air fleet and burn down the continent as [[GodEmperor Phoenix King]]. When Aang appears and disables his airship, Ozai abandons his fleet in favor of killing the Avatar, [[KillTheGod seeing it as a greater path to glory than his intial plans]].
* GreaterScopeVillain:
** In the first two seasons, he mostly serves as a distant embodiment of evil while Zuko / Zhao / Azula do the actual legwork. He takes on a more direct role in season three.
** He again takes this role in the post-series comics. Despite [[spoiler:losing his firebending and being imprisoned, his influence on his kids and the world at large is still very much felt.]]
* GreenEyedMonster: While Ozai doesn't have love for anyone else, he cannot stand being unloved by his family. Azulon prefers Iroh over him and Ursa prefers [[FirstLove Ikem]] over him, even going as far as wishing that Zuko wasn't Ozai's son. Ironically, his children are the only ones who are devoted to him and yet he ends up driving them away because of his jealously and wrath.
* HandOrObjectUnderwear: Only in [[NotWearingPantsDream Aang's dream]]. When Ozai tells Aang that he's not wearing pants, Aang tells him that ''[[NoYou he's]]'' not wearing pants, to which Ozai responds by grabbing a small rug to cover his crotch.
-->''My royal parts are showing! Aaaaaahhhhhh!''
* HateSink: Unlike other members of the Royal Family, who are given sympathetic or even tragic traits, Ozai is solely defined as a power-hungry man who torments his family to get what he wants. His FreudianExcuse is limited to a single picture of him being a sweet baby and hints of envy towards his older brother, Iroh, and he doesn't show off his combat prowess until literally the second half of the GrandFinale. All of this, combined with the various ways he abuses Zuko, Azula and even his wife Ursa, ensures that Ozai as the audience's most hated character in the show in spite of the fact he's the most powerful Firebender who would give Aang one of the greatest battles in the history of the franchise.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Subverted both times. He is nearly killed by his own lightning [[spoiler:after Zuko, and later Aang successfully redirects it. He only survives because Zuko intends to have the Avatar finish the job, and [[ThouShaltNotKill Aang is unwilling to redirect it back at Ozai]]]].
* HowTheMightyHaveFallen: [[spoiler:After Sozin's Comet leaves the atmosphere, Ozai went from the feared and powerful Phoenix King to being the butt of the jokes after losing his firebending. He is then thrown into the same prison cell where his brother used to be held, dressed in rags and completely miserable at his predicament. When Ursa returns and confronts her former husband, she realizes that without his dominating powers, Ozai is just a pathetic wretch who couldn't even love himself, let alone his family.]]
* HumiliationConga: [[spoiler:Stripped of every bit of power, mocked by teenagers, and left living on the mercy of the son he abused. Continued in the comic series where Ursa tells him exactly what a hateful, egotistical, insecure little man he is.]]
* {{Hypocrite}}:
** Ozai despises treason and will use it to justify banishing people he doesn't like or putting a bounty on their heads. This is despite the fact that Ozai secretly committed treason against his own father by [[spoiler:putting poison provided by Ursa into his father's drink]] and seizing the throne from Iroh, the rightful heir.
** Ozai has a very low opinion of Iroh, and when Zuko tells Ozai that Iroh has been more of a father than Ozai ever was, Ozai smugly comments that Iroh can pass down the knowledge of "tea and failure." This is incredibly rich coming from Ozai, who suffered as TheUnfavorite next to Iroh, did very little of note in the war during Azulon's reign, and [[spoiler:only ascended to the throne by conspiring to kill his father with Ursa in a deal to save Zuko's life.]] Even after his ascension he sits in his palace and acts as ArmchairMilitary, never actually conducting a campaign until the series finale. His wartime accomplishments such as the sacking of Ba Sing Se were much more attributable to Azula or even Zuko rather than Ozai himself.
* InferioritySuperiorityComplex: He was TheUnfavourite to his EvilOverlord and emotionally distant father, Azulon, who possibly was [[AbusiveParents an abusive father]] [[GenerationXerox with him]], compared to his older brother, the talented and powerful "Dragon of the West" [[BigGood General Iroh]]. It's less clear than with Azula what Ozai felt about this relationship, but it's not difficult to see the similarities in their cases, their personalities, and their temperaments. He is so bitter about not receiving as much respect as his brother that he demands perfection from his own children and punishes perceived weakness or insubordination in his eldest son with extraordinary brutality; when he promotes himself from Fire Lord to Phoenix King and plans to [[spoiler:exterminate the Earth Kingdom]] he essentially acts like a PsychopathicManchild revelling in childish fantasies of power and greatness, but he was so obsessed with the two mostly because of his insecurities.
* {{Irony}}:
** Despite it being implied he was TheUnfavourite to his father Azulon, Ozai is the son who is most like his father, both being AbusiveParents and the most powerful benders in the world. And both, despite being strong leaders, don't care for the people of their nation, being more interested in taking over the world. The only thing differencing the two is that Azulon at the very least, cares for Iroh and to a lesser extent, Lu Ten, whilst any care Ozai seems to have for anybody who isn't him is completely fake.
** Although he is the world's strongest firebender and with a disdain towards the weak, Ozai is remarkably weak in other fields of physical strength. He's never known to be a frontline general like his brother and father, and he can be forced into submission by his sword-proficient son when firebending is temporarily unavailable, while his daughter could easily fend off other benders without her firebending. [[spoiler:Amusingly, natural selection usually weeds out the specimens unable to adapt in new situations more so than the "weak," making Ozai's permanent loss of firebending even more poetic.]]
* ItOnlyWorksOnce: Ozai's lightningbending is far deadlier than Azula's, being much hotter and generated within a fraction of a second. However, he stops using it [[spoiler:when he sees that Aang knows how to redirect it, realizing that there's [[HoistByHisOwnPetard a good possibility of being struck his own lightning]]]].
* ItsAllAboutMe: He's a total egomaniac who only cared for his own personal glory, casually casting off his entire family for more power. Ursa deconstructs this in ''Smoke and Shadows'', claiming that while he only cares about himself, he has no room in his heart even for that.
* JerkWithAHeartOfJerk: Considering his [[ParentalFavoritism blatant favoritism]] of [[DaddysLittleVillain Azula]], one might think that he might have a case of VillainousParentalInstinct... except in the finale, he steals Azula's idea of burning the Earth Kingdom to the ground and rewards her the pointless title of Fire Lord while he takes all the glory for himself as the Phoenix King. You see at that moment that Azula was just as bad of a victim of parental abuse as Zuko and Ozai never saw her as more than a tool to help him gain power.
* KarmaHoudiniWarranty: After all those years of oppression, tyranny, and abuse towards his family, [[spoiler:Aang finally gives him what was coming to him in the GrandFinale]].
* KickTheDog: He ''loves'' to inflict this:
** Let's see. [[SarcasmMode Why does Zuko have that scar again?]]
** There's also that moment in his final battle with Aang when he mocks him and his people, the other Airbenders, telling them that they deserved their extinction for being weak.
* KillItWithFire: Aside from the obvious, his master plan is to use Sozin's Comet to greatly enhance firebending everywhere. [[spoiler:A more literal example comes later in the series; the final battle is kicked off when he begins to personally burn down swathes of the Earth Kingdom.]]
* KnightOfCerebus: Again, much like his daughter, he's a dead serious and frighteningly competent villain, except much worse as he lacks anything sympathetic.
* LackOfEmpathy: Ozai's only goal in life is to be the most powerful man in the world, so he casually tosses aside his father, his brother, his wife, his son, and eventually his prized daughter in the pursuit of ever greater power.
** This is even lampshaded by Iroh in the first episode of Book 2. When Azula arrives and tells Zuko that Ozai feels remorseful about banishing him, Iroh knew immediately something was up (which is proven) because he knows his brother well enough that him and regret do NOT mix.
* LargeAndInCharge: He outsizes a lot of his subordinates.
* LaserGuidedKarma:
** Zuko was banished when Ozai challenged him to a duel and the prince refused to fight. [[spoiler:When the boy makes his HeelRealization, he challenges his father instead but still refuses to fight, allowing that to be Aang's destiny.]]
** Ozai is a strong believer that [[TheSocialDarwinist Firebenders are the superior people to rule]] and he strives to be the strongest Firebender that ever lived, so much so that he didn't bother to learn any other fighting technique like sword fighting. [[spoiler:When Aang [[DePower takes away his firebending at the series finale]], it ironically turns him into the ''weakest'' member of the Royal Family because of his CripplingOverSpecialization]].
** Ozai wanted to not only rule as the "Phoenix King", but craft a legacy that will last forever even after he passes. [[spoiler:Over time, his people ended up rejecting and disowning him, and he is forever remembered for being a stain on his country]].
* LightIsNotGood: Wields [[PlayingWithFire Firebending]] that is said to come [[ThePowerOfTheSun from the sun]], can fire pure white [[ShockAndAwe lightning]] and [[FaceOfAnAngelMindOfADemon looks rather handsome upon his face reveal]], yet is a horrific sociopath whose actions drive much of the conflict. Best exemplified when he [[spoiler:crowns himself "the Phoenix King" with [[GoldColoredSuperiority a gold crown]] and evoking imagery of the noble bird]] as he personally plans to help ''[[FinalSolution burn down the entire Earth Kingdom!]]''
* LightningBruiser: During [[CometOfDoom Sozin's Comet]], the boost to his [[PlayingWithFire Firebending]] is enough to let him achieve {{Flight}} via propulsion, giving him enough mobility to keep up with the likes of Aang. That's on top of his raw power being enough to put the Avatar firmly on the defensive for most of the fight despite having several elements to use (though Aang's own [[ThouShaltNotKill unwillingness to kill his opponent played a factor]]), and being tough enough [[spoiler:to walk off an [[BlowYouAway air blast]] from Aang in the [[SuperMode Avatar State]].]]
* LikeFatherLikeSon: Ozai is exactly like his father Azulon. Both of them are AbusiveParents who use their son for their own ends, both are tyrants who ruled the Fire Nation with an iron fist, and both, despite being strong leaders, cared very little for the people of their nation and were more interested in world domination.
* LongRangeFighter: Reflects his fighting style if not his fragility. Unlike his brother and children who like to mix it up in close combat and are generally as dangerous without bending as they are with it, Ozai prefers to stay at a distance and blast his enemies with ranged attacks. In the absence of bending he even considers himself outmatched by Zuko to that point that he wouldn't bother fighting, though Zuko was armed with swords at the time.
* LovingAShadow: Ozai's "love" for his children simply amounts to them being his ideal successor to the throne and continuing the legacy that Fire Lord Sozin started. As long as they are competent, loyal and a complete copy of himself, he will shower them with respect and praises. Failure to live up to his impossibly high standards, however, and Ozai will immediately disown them for embarrassing him.
* MadeOfIron: Surprisingly enough for a SquishyWizard with no combat skills outside of his Bending, he proves tough enough to remain conscious and in fighting shape after [[spoiler:an [[SuperMode Avatar State]] [[TheHero Aang]] blasts him into a rock pillar via [[BlowYouAway air blast]]]].
* ManipulativeBastard: Plays on Zuko's emotions right until the boy pulls a CallingTheOldManOut. By "The Promise", he's gained a reputation for being this.
* MaritalRapeLicense: Strongly implied that since he and Ursa were in an ArrangedMarriage and Ursa clearly loved and wanted to marry someone else before she was ''forced'' to marry him, [[ChildByRape the conception of their children]] [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil might not be as consensual as one might think...]]
* MightMakesRight: Firmly believes that the Fire Lord's will is right by way of being the Fire Lord. In general this is how he settles all moral quandaries, which he elaborates on with an anecdote from when Zuko was young. At the beach, Zuko once saved a turtle-crab from being eaten by a hawk, only to realize that the hawk would starve without food. Both animals only want to live, and Zuko was unsure which to side with... only for Ozai to tell him that whichever choice Zuko makes would be morally just. Zuko is the only one powerful enough to decide which of the animals will live, and his choice is just by virtue of him being strong enough to make it.
-->"There is no right and wrong apart from what you decide. Who you choose to defend deserves to be defended simply because you chose them. When you are the Fire Lord what you choose, by definition, is right."
* MiseryBuildsCharacter: He believes '''strongly''' in this as way of upbringing to his children. When he gave Zuko his scar, he said "suffering will be your teacher".
* MythicalMotifs: Rare for a villainous character, and in contrast to the rest of his family (who are associated with dragons) Ozai is associated with the phoenix, wearing flowing red robes that resemble wings, and in most of his appearances, is surrounded by curtains of fire. [[spoiler: In the end of the series, he steps down from being Fire Lord, and starts calling himself the "Phoenix King", declaring his attention to burn down the world so it can be "reborn" from the ashes while wearing phoenix-themed clothing, and manning an airship with a phoenix shaped bow.]]
* {{Narcissist}}:
** A fairly textbook case -- needs his children to be obedient and perfect (as they reflect back on him), demands and receives unconditional worship from his underlings, totally [[LackOfEmpathy lacking in empathy]] because he's too wrapped up in himself, an implicit InferioritySuperiorityComplex from being a WellDoneSonGuy, and a propensity towards delusions of grandeur and megalomania, culminating in attempted genocide. And he never, ever [[NeverMyFault accepts responsibility for anything wrong he has ever done]], to the point that in the sequel comic he claims that [[TautologicalTemplar right and wrong is up to the Fire Lord to decide.]]
** This ties in with his favouritism: the reason he favours Azula is that she has the same qualities as him, such as firebending prodigy, a belief that LoveIsAWeakness and political savviness, and Zuko doesn't, even though he is one of the most powerful non-bending fighter, is the {{Determinator}}, proves to be quite strategic, and would have been as capable as his sister in firebending with the right method.
** He deliberately scars only one side of Zuko's face because one of the qualities he values is symmetry: Azula and him always maintain perfect symmetry in their appearance, which is a sign of control and superiority. [[spoiler:He temporarily loses that symmetry when Zuko deflects the lightning back at him, [[RuleOfSymbolism his hair falling out of place for the first time]]. And when Aang defeats him in the final battle and takes away his firebending, Ozai's hair is completely disheveled, which [[LaserGuidedKarma becomes his permanent look]] as a lowly prisoner under Zuko's regime]].
* NearVillainVictory: [[spoiler:He had the edge on Aang until inadvertently giving his opponent access to the Avatar state again.]]
* NeverMyFault: When Ozai tells Zuko the truth about Fire Lord Azulon's death, he lays all responsibilities of the murder on Ursa, saying that she committed "vicious, treasonous things" that night. ''The Search'' comic reveals that [[spoiler:Ursa only made him the untraceable poison, which ''he'' used to poison his father's drink]]. Given his hatred for treason, it seems to be the only way for him to rationalize his hypocrisy and illegitimacy to the throne.
* NiceJobFixingItVillain:
** [[spoiler:He tried to smash Aang's earth shield only to hit the chakra that Azula had blocked, opening it, and allowing Aang to regain the power of the Avatar State. Ozai then spends the rest of the fight fleeing in terror from the wrath of an [[GaiasVengeance absolutely furious]] [[SuperMode Avatar Aang]].]]
** Zuko outright states that if he never banished his son to go hunt for the Avatar, the series would have gone in a completely different direction. [[spoiler:Specifically, said son would never have met the Avatar, joined the Avatar and taught the Avatar firebending.]]
* NotSoHarmlessVillain: [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] by Sokka after learning about what Ozai planned to use Sozin's Comet for. Team Avatar once believed Ozai was merely a bad guy, but later realized that the Fire Lord is a deranged, purely evil and unhinged brute to boot.
* OffingTheOffspring: [[spoiler:Was planning on doing this to Zuko when he was about 8-10 to appease his father. Attempted to do it again when Zuko announced his intentions [[HeelFaceTurn to join the Avatar to help him defeat him]].]]
* OhCrap: [[spoiler:The two times his lightning is redirected, once by Zuko and once by Aang, he is visibly scared. The biggest instance of this, however, is when he smashes Aang against a rock during their fight and, by doing this, [[NiceJobFixingItVillain inadvertently opens the chakra Azula closed with her lightning attack far earlier]]. He is then faced with a fully realized, and [[UnstoppableRage absolutely furious]], [[SuperMode Avatar State Aang]]. The look of terror on his face is something to behold.]]
* OmnicidalManiac: His EvilPlan in the finale was to wipe out the Earth Kingdom, which holds at least half of the world's population.
* OrcusOnHisThrone: Strategically justified. He's more interested in waiting for Sozin's Comet rather than winning small skirmishes.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:P-Y]]
* PapaWolf: In a PetTheDog moment, he rescued a young Zuko from drowning after a tide sweeps him into the middle of the ocean. At least he initially cared for him enough not to let him die.
* ParentalFavoritism: Subverted.
** Flashbacks show that he clearly preferred his daughter Azula over his son Zuko, and in the present day that still seems to hold true (especially since unlike Zuko, Azula shares Ozai's power-hungry, sociopathic personality).
** However, Ozai throws her aside without blinking in ''Sozin's Comet'', revealing his ''true'' feelings about Azula; it's not he cares about her more, it's simply that her mix of prodigious firebending, strategic skill, and sadism make her a more useful tool than Zuko. If Ozai felt any genuine affection for Azula at all, it's clearly outweighed by his own lust for power. Even so, [[IHaveNoSon as far as he's concerned]], Azula is his ''only'' child. She's just ''that'' easy to keep in line unlike Zuko.
* {{Patricide}}: In ''The Search'', it is revealed that, [[spoiler:although Ursa is the one who made the poison, it was ultimately Ozai who murdered Azulon, as Ursa shortly left after giving the vial to him.]]
* PerfectlyArrangedMarriage: According to the [[AllThereInTheManual old official site]], Ursa was the perfect match for him, though they grew distant later on. Subverted in ''The Search'', which reveals that she pretended to love Ozai because the alternative would endanger both her original fiancé and both their families.
* PetTheDog:
** In a flashback scene of Zuko's youth in ''The Promise'', Ozai saved Zuko from drowning.
** Another memory scene in the episode ''The Storm'' showed young Zuko, Azula, and Ozai spending time together on a verdant pasture field and Ozai placing his hand warmly on Zuko's shoulder. Zuko later insisted with Team Avatar that not ''all'' of his family times were bad, and Ozai was hinted to have attempted to be an ideal father and husband in their earlier years.
** When fooled into believing his son killed the Avatar, Ozai is at least consistent with his previous demands and welcomes Zuko back home. From what we are shown, he doesn't even overtly play favourites with his children again until Zuko betrays him and leaves to join the Avatar. Might not seem like much, but considering everything else he's done to his family it comes off as uncharacteristically kind.
* PlayingWithFire: Is the most powerful Firebender in the original series (barring possibly Iroh), and serves as a grueling FinalBoss for Aang even after he's learned all the elements. [[spoiler:No longer the case after Aang [[BroughDownToNormal removes his Bending]].]]
* ThePowerOfHate: He's considered to be the strongest firebender in the world despite being only taught a corrupt version of firebending for his entire life, largely due to the fact he excels in anger, rage and hatred.
* PragmaticVillainy:
** [[spoiler:Though he admits he would have otherwise obeyed his father's order to kill Zuko, he instead went with Ursa's plan to kill Azulon, which would immediately give him the throne with only one life sacrificed, as opposed to thinning out his bloodline and risk fighting his brother over the throne when their father would finally die of old age.]]
** Subverted at his war council before the eclipse; he puts aside his pride to ask his formerly-disgraced son for insight on the people of the Earth Kingdom. He [[VillainRespect accepts Zuko's claim that they are proud, strong, and won't ever fully stop their rebellion]]. Ozai actually takes this to heart... before [[StupidEvil going with Azula's plan]] to [[FinalSolution burn the entire continent down]].
* PrepareToDie: A rare, terrifying example: it helps that he waited until he had a solid claim to winning.
-->"You're weak -- just like the rest of your people! They did not deserve to exist in this world -- in ''my'' world! Prepare to join them! ''Prepare'' to DIE!!!"
* PrinceCharmless: For Ursa. She would have preferred to marry her childhood friend Ikem, but was forced to marry this egotistical jerk, though Zuko believes that at least some of their time together was happy.
* PsychoElectro: He's quite skilled when it comes to lightning bending, but reserves it for when he ''really'' wants to kill someone.
* PsychopathicManchild: At the end of ''Smoke and Shadows'', [[spoiler:Ursa]] concludes that this is who Ozai really is deep down. A small, insecure man trying to be big and mighty at the expense of everyone around him, including himself. Ozai's reaction to these words only validates such beliefs, as all he could come up in response is a stuttering demand for respect which quickly [[VillainousBreakdown devolves into that of a whining child begging for attention]].
* PsychoticSmirk: When he smiles, it's never a kind, genuine smile. It's always an evil smirk.
* {{Pyromaniac}}: It's easy to see where Azula gets her psycho fiery side from.
* RankScalesWithAsskicking: He's [[WordOfGod confirmed]] in [[AllThereInTheManual Avatar Extras]] to be ''the'' most powerful Firebender. The only benders in the world who have a chance of beating him in a straight fight are Aang and Iroh, meaning that Ozai is at worst the second most powerful bender in the world. Aang is established to only have a chance if he masters each of the elements, and Iroh makes a point to express his doubts that he could beat Ozai. [[spoiler:Though that's a moot point after he loses his bending.]]
* ARealManIsAKiller: He mocks the heroes for their unwillingness to fight and kill him, respectively, viewing their hesitation as weakness.
* RedemptionRejection:
** Before their fight begins, Aang offers Ozai one last chance at redemption, saying that he has the power to end this century-long war and further bloodshed by standing down. Ozai admits that Aang is right... [[DramaticallyMissingThePoint that he has all the power in the world to do whatever he wants]], forcing Aang to resolve the matter by force.
** In the last episode of the series, [[spoiler:Fire Lord Zuko states that Ozai could use his time in prison to become a better person, like much how [[NiceJobFixingItVillain Zuko did during his time in exile]]. The former Fire Lord responds by denying his son information regarding his mother's whereabouts out of spite]].
* RevengeThroughCorruption: He always wants to raise his children in his image but when he learns that [[spoiler:his wife Ursa wishes Zuko to be nothing like him, he goes the extra mile to spite her. He treats Zuko like an unwanted bastard child whenever he shows compassion or forgiveness and rewards Azula when she emulates her father's example. When Zuko betrayed [[MoralityPet Uncle Iroh]] and allegedly killed the Avatar, Ozai unconditionally rewards his son with pride and respect, seeing it as the final blow to Ursa's wish]].
* SatanicArchetype: In Season One he was always shown completely in shadow, and often surrounded by fire. And like Lucifer, [[TheStarscream he is all too willing to usurp the throne from his father]]. The fact that he's taller than most characters also helps.
* SevenDeadlySins:
** '''Lust:''' Although he mainly married her for eugenics, ''The Search'' shows that Ozai quite enjoyed lording his power over Ursa and controlling his wife.
** '''Gluttony:''' He has very extravagant tastes in decor, as shown by the grand ceremony which marked his departure to commit total genocide against the Earth Kingdom and his intended ascension to Phoenix King, and by the cult of personality he's enforced throughout the Fire Nation.
** '''Greed:''' An AllegoricalCharacter who's ''insatiably'' power-hungry, and desires total domination of the whole world.
** '''Sloth:''' He spends the majority of the series hanging back in the Fire Nation, letting Azula and his other military officers do the dirty work for him. Unlike his family members, he relies ''exclusively'' on his natural firebending for combat. His refusal to ever see the world outside the Fire Nation (or even outside his palace) for himself with his own naked eyes runs counter to Iroh's lessons to Zuko about gaining an understanding of the world for oneself through first-hand experience to prevent self-stagnation.
** '''Wrath:''' ''All over the place''. His go-to solution to any problem is "burn and kill". He alienated his wife and son when their slights against him provoked him to abuse them horribly in ways which would affect them for years, even as a child he tended to burn things in tantrums when he didn't win, and his solution to the Earth Kingdom's unbending resistance to conquest is to literally burn the entire continent to ashes.
** '''Envy:''' He was implicitly always jealous of his older brother Iroh, who their father always favored, and who was more naturally charismatic and personable than Ozai, on top of Iroh being the rightful heir to their father's throne before Ozai usurped it for himself using foul play.
** '''Pride:''' Pretty much the only things he has any ''real'' pride in are himself and his nation due to his views of their inherent superiority to the rest of the world. At best, he can only value and respect other people, even if they are his own children, for their objective worth to his goals and their accomplishments.
** He also falls to the eighth sin of '''Despair''' after he's defeated by Aang. Stripped of his treasured firebending, dethroned by the son he hates, and thrown in a cell to rot, he ends the animated series as a husk of his former self who bitterly acknowledges his fall from grace and yet refuses to seek redemption to spite Zuko.
* ShadowArchetype:
** He's designed to be a dark reflection of Zuko's worst traits. Both were hot-tempered and impatient in their youth, and both resented being TheUnfavourite next to their sibling. The difference is that Ozai allowed his envy to consume him while Zuko managed to rise above his flaws during his journey. According to Iroh in ''Legacy of the Fire Nation'', there were many times he saw Ozai inside Zuko yet also many times where he saw Zuko becoming what Ozai should have been.
** He also serves one to Azula. Like Azula, Ozai aimed for perfection with sheer ruthlessness during his school days and would use family members as pawns to gain more power. The difference is that unlike Azula, Ozai didn't have [[IJustWantToBeLoved deep-seated desire to be loved]].
* ShockAndAwe: Very good at it, too. He can generate lightning ''extremely'' quickly; while both Azula and Iroh, master firebenders in their own right, require at least three motions to "charge", Ozai only needs two. Also, while Azula and Iroh shoot lighting from one hand at a time, Ozai can ''dual-wield'' his lightning. His lightning is also far larger than either of theirs and pure white symbolizing that it's hotter than theirs as well.
* SiblingYinYang: To his older brother, Iroh. Ozai is more LeanAndMean while Iron is the shorter BigFun. Iroh was a FrontlineGeneral and was just as capable at unarmed fighting as he was at firebending whereas Ozai preferred to be more in the politic theater and was overly reliant on his prodigious firebending while neglecting to master regular hand-to-hand combat.
* SlidingScaleOfParentShamingInFiction: Type IV. He burned his own son's face and banished him for three years for refusing to fight him, groomed his daughter from birth to be his minion, and conceived both of them by likely raping their mother, ultimately becoming the BigBad of the series.
* SmugSuper: After becoming the world's most powerful firebender, Ozai acts high and mighty over his enemies and subordinates, eventually developing delusions of godhood in Season 3 finale. It's only when he confronts [[SuperMode an enraged Aang in the Avatar State]] does that smugness disappear and he flees like a coward.
* TheSocialDarwinist: "You're weak, just like the rest of your people! They did not deserve to exist in this world! MY WORLD!" This is why he absolutely hates it when anyone has him at their mercy and they won't kill him, or when Zuko won't fight an Agni Kai against him after challenging the chain of command. [[EvilCannotComprehendGood Everyone]] ''[[EvilCannotComprehendGood else]]'' [[EvilCannotComprehendGood should be a]] SocialDarwinist too, damn it!
* TheSociopath: He doesn't seem to feel anything for anybody, even himself. Not his son, Zuko, his daughter, Azula, his brother, Iroh... he doesn't even bat an eyelid when admitting he [[spoiler:banished his own wife as punishment for the assassination of the previous Fire Lord, which she did to protect her son]]! Lampshaded by Ursa:
-->'''Ursa''': After all these years, I finally ''see'' you, Ozai. You're just a ''[[SmallNameBigEgo small, small man]]'' trying with all your might to be ''big''. Your ''heart'' is so small, you've no room for your son, or your daughter, or your brother... or even ''[[EmptyShell yourself]]''.
* SoProudOfYou: The only time he ever felt proud of Zuko is when Azula falsely told him that Zuko killed Avatar Aang in cold blood. [[YourApprovalFillsMeWithShame Ironically, that's also when Zuko suddenly didn't want his father's praise since he had to betray Uncle Iroh in the process]], not helped by the very fact being pointed out.
* SoreLoser: In his youth, he would throw temper tantrums and burn the board and pieces whenever he loses to Iroh in a game of Pai Sho. This aspect of his personality would evolve into his motif of burning everything that dares to rebel against him.
* SpareToTheThrone: He points out to Azulon that his bloodline is safe and secure, and thus should be given priority to the throne over Iroh and his now-dead lineage. Azulon refuses and takes advantage of this trope to punish Ozai by having him kill one of his two children. Too bad he chooses [[TheUnfavourite Zuko]] to be the sacrificial victim.
* SquishyWizard: Despite being in prime physical condition, Ozai seems to lack any real physical combat abilities (during the solar eclipse he was intimidated into keeping his distance simply by the brandishing of swords), instead preferring to use his fire-bending to fight foes from a safe distance. To be fair though he seemed ready to fight Zuko before he pulled out said swords implying that he had some means of fighting. [[spoiler:When he loses his bending, he makes up for it by being more cunning and manipulative than usual.]]
* TheStarscream: Back when he was Prince Ozai to then-Fire Lord Azulon. He was highly ambitious when he was young and the Fire Lord was the highest position of power he could achieve. He had two obstacles: Azulon wasn't dying any time soon and Iroh was first in line for the throne. At first, he tried to merely supplant Iroh's position and let time do the work but when [[MamaBear Ursa]] discovered that Azulon ordered Zuko's execution to punish Ozai for his insolence, [[spoiler:Ozai used her maternal instincts to help him ''murder'' his father in exchange for Zuko's life]].
* StrikeMeDownWithAllOfYourHatred: He certainly wants his enemies to kill him without mercy. After [[CallingTheOldManOut Zuko turns against him for good]] during the Day of Black Sun, Ozai taunts him to finish him off when he's defenseless. He grows furious when Zuko wouldn't even give him that pleasure. He reacts the same way when Aang refuses to kill him despite having the power to. It's also heavily implied that Zuko's refusal to fight his father was the real reason why Ozai banished him in the first place, not the war room incident that initiated the fight.
-->'''Ozai''': Really? Since you're a full-blown traitor now and you want me gone, why wait? I'm powerless. You've got your swords. Why don't you just do it now?
* StrongFamilyResemblance:
** Once he finally see his face, he's basically an older, unscarred Zuko, reflecting how Ozai personifies the capacity for evil within Zuko. Even as a babies they looked very similar.
** He also strongly resembles his father, Azulon.
* StupidEvil: The first in his line. Both his father and grandfather were evil imperialists, but Sozin was a WellIntentionedExtremist who wanted to be (or be seen as) a BenevolentDictator; and his genocide of the Air Nomads, while vile and inexcusable, made pragmatic sense, as they were a relatively small community, unlikely to ever accept Fire Nation rule, and after Roku's death the Avatar would be reborn in their ranks. Azulon is implied to have been a [[PragmaticVillainy tactical genius]] who at least had some affection for his family (sans Ozai). Ozai, by contrast, is as evil as they were without any sense; he banishes his loyal son, starting him on the path to ending his reign, and his solution to squashing rebellion is to burn down the Earth Kingdom. That is, the largest (both in landmass and population) area of the Fire Nation's Empire. Essentially becoming "King" of a land of ash, that produces no money or crops for the mainland; because he'd rather that than rebellious colonies.
* TallDarkAndHandsome: He's essentially an older Zuko sans the horrific scarring and a calmer/sharper disposition.
* TautologicalTemplar: In ''The Promise'', Ozai reveals to Zuko that the key to being a strong Fire Lord is accepting that every action the Fire Lord takes is the correct one no matter what others say. Of course Zuko calls him out for this for obvious reasons [[VillainHasAPoint but realizes that Ozai isn't wrong about the conflicting messages Zuko's sending out to the rest of the world]].
* TheyLookJustLikeEveryoneElse: Though still a bully and childish, Ozai is also an outright monster willing to commit genocide. The fact that he can do these things while looking like a normal man, rather than the built-up monster, is rather eerie on its own.
* ThickerThanWater: Nastily subverted. He routinely invokes this with Zuko and especially Azula but as we learn more about Ozai it quickly becomes clear that he does this to emotionally manipulate his own children into doing his bidding. The only person Ozai cares about [[ItsAllAboutMe is Ozai]] and his family only matters to him as long as it can help him acquire power.
* ToughLove: He never sees his abusive tactics on Zuko to be wrong, claiming that it would teach him respect and make him stronger. Zuko calls him out on it but would later remark that Ozai was right in a way... [[GoneHorriblyRight banishment helped him see the truth regarding his father and the Fire Nation's crimes against the world]].
-->'''Ozai:''' It was to teach you respect!\\
'''Zuko:''' [[CallingTheOldManOut It was cruel, and it was wrong!]]\\
'''Ozai:''' Then you have learned nothing!
* UnderestimatingBadassery: While capturing the Avatar would officially complete his victory in the war, Ozai stubbornly believed Aang should be easy prey considering that he's just a child, so confronting him was deemed inconsequential and nothing even his own forces can't handle. When he found out about the failed conquest of the North, he couldn't understand how Zuko and his own forces were bested by a child. After he found out the Avatar was alive during the Black Sun invasion, he was in no hurry to have him captured since the invasion failed and he's so close to winning the war anyways. When the confrontation came, Ozai assumed defeating the Avatar with the comet would be child's play (pun NOT intended), but he ended up being wrong. To be fair though he was more than a match for Aang before the latter entered the Avatar State, especially when he realized that Aang wasn't fighting to kill.
* TheUnfavourite: It's implied that Azulon favored Iroh over him similar to how he favors Azula over Zuko; the screw up and the prodigy. However, as we see in ''The Search'', Azulon didn't really treat Ozai as badly as we're led to believe, as he wanted him to also have a strong bloodline. Azulon nonetheless didn't take it kindly when it looked Ozai was trying to use Iroh's loss to advance his ambitions.
* TheUnfettered: Whereas Aang is TheFettered due to his duties as the Avatar and loyalty to his friends, Ozai values only his goal of world domination and will gladly engulf the world in flame to achieve it.
* TheUnreveal: {{Invoked}}. Ozai is built up as a terrifying figure of demonic proportions for the first two seasons, usually surrounded by shadow and fire whenever anyone is thinking of him. Then Season 3 hits and he turns out to be a normal-looking man, albeit a dangerously arrogant one with far too much power. This is symbolic of Aang and ''especially'' Zuko overcoming their awe and dread of him, since for all his Firebending and military might Ozai himself is just a man, and a delusional and childish man at that. Ultimately he's just a bully who needs to be stood up to and the product of a poisonous culture and legacy more than anything else.
* UngratefulBastard:
** His thanks to Ursa for [[spoiler:allowing him to usurp Azulon as Fire Lord, while saving their son's life in the process, was to banish her for treason. Despite this it's averted as she had to agree to banishment before the whole thing happened. For Ozai, this was necessary for him to tie up loose ends. He did, however, keep his word of ensuring their children's safety...for the time being]].
** Twice during Ozai's fight with Aang, the Avatar shows mercy when he had a chance at a killing shot. Ozai's response both times is to attack Aang.
* UnseenNoMore: He is cloaked in shadow for the first two seasons despite frequently appearing even with a speaking role. He's finally fully revealed in the Season 3 premiere.
* UnskilledButStrong: Ozai is the world's strongest Firebender, but unlike the rest of his family, he doesn't have any auxiliary fighting skills to complement his bending [[note]] in contrast, Iroh and Azula are both skilled martial artists even without their bending, while Zuko is a MasterSwordsman [[/note]]. Instead, he just prefers to overwhelm his opponents with incredible firepower. [[spoiler:This comes back to bite him when Aang takes his bending away, leaving him helpless.]]
* UnwantedSpouse: To Ursa. She didn't like the idea of marrying him and her true love was someone else. ''The Search'' implies this to be both ways; while Ozai clearly loved lording his power over Ursa, he also seemed disinterested in the marriage, aside from producing heirs for that matter. Once he has what he wants (heirs, and a claim to the throne) he quickly banishes her.
* UsedToBeASweetKid:
** According to Zuko, he wasn't always a power-hungry bully as far as he can remember.
** In a literal case, the heroes find ''[[http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110329213952/avatar/images/4/45/Baby_Ozai.png one of his baby pictures]]'' while hiding out in Zuko's old summer home. [[GoodCannotComprehendEvil They have a hard time understanding how this innocent-looking boy became the sociopathic monster he now is.]]
* TheUsurper: He wasn't the Crown Prince of the Fire Nation and Fire Lord Azulon despised his attempt to steal the throne from Iroh. Then, [[spoiler:thanks to Ursa's untraceable poison]], Azulon mysteriously died in his sleep and [[BlatantLies his last wish was apparently appointing Ozai to be the new Fire Lord]].
* VillainHasAPoint:
** Though his real intentions were obvious, Ozai was correct that Lu Ten's death meant the end of Iroh's bloodline and thus Ozai's bloodline would have to inherit the throne sooner or later. Additionally, Iroh's decision to end the Siege of Ba Sing Se due to the death of his son meant that the war would be prolonged much longer than anticipated. His rationale fell on deaf ears to an ill-tempered and cruel father who [[ParentalFavoritism favored his firstborn son over his second]].
** After his defeat and imprisonment, Zuko realizes through visiting him in prison that despite his inherent Machiavellian wickedness, his father actually has some very perceptive and genuinely useful advice on how to be an effective Fire Lord. He immediately deduces how King Kuei is going to react to the Harmony Restoration Movement (regarding the former Fire Nation colonies) and why, despite never having met the Earth King, simply because he knows the political situation - and he's proven to be completely right. Most notably, he tells Zuko that [[TheChainsOfCommanding the well-being of the Fire Nation's people will always rest on his shoulders]] so he cannot afford to be hesitant or indecisive when standing before a tough decision, as being slow to act in a crisis leaves both him and the people exposed to threats.
* VillainousBreakdown:
** During "Sozin's Comet Part Four: Avatar Aang", [[spoiler:after Aang achieves the Avatar State, Ozai's visibly terrified. After he loses his bending, he's left a pathetic shell of his former self.]]
** In the comics, [[spoiler:he has managed to regain composure during his time in prison and becomes a cunning and dominating ManipulativeBastard to Zuko's regime. It works for most of the prison visits until Ursa arrives, who then proclaims to Ozai [[ImNotAfraidOfYou she is no longer afraid of him]] and gives a ReasonYouSuckSpeech of how he is ultimately a small man who tries with all his might to act big before saying her goodbyes. Ozai's response as Ursa leaves him forever notably shows him stuttering and eventually screaming for her to come back and beg at his feet, rendering him completely powerless in both bending ''and'' words.]]
* VillainousCheekbones: Between them and the beard, it's pretty clear he's a bad guy.
* VillainousValour: The guy is an utter bastard and is visibly terrified when [[spoiler:Aang achieves the Avatar State.]] But even then, while he's outmatched, he doesn't try to run away or to beg and even manages to dodge Aang's attacks several minutes and to get a few attacks off.
* VillainousWidowsPeak: A more realistic, less dramatic one than most cases.
* VillainRespect: While he underestimated Aang until their final fight, as a SocialDarwinist, he respects the natural raw power of the Avatar and [[FaceDeathWithDignity is willing to accept a death by his hands]]. He loses this respect when the kid refuses to kill him.
* VillainsNeverLie: He's the only character who gives exposition on Ursa's fate. He's taken at his word by both Zuko and the audience, even though Ozai was blatantly trying manipulate Zuko at the time. (This may be because the story matches up with hints from Azula, who is herself a villain.) [[spoiler:As later seen in ''The Search'', surprisingly, he really was telling the truth.]]
* VillainWithGoodPublicity: He is very popular with his citizens, even after being deposed, as seen in "The Promise". This is thanks to him developing a [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cult_of_personality cult of personality]] where, as shown in ''The Headband'', Fire Nation schools routinely teach their students to adore him and even rewrite history to favor him and his predecessors. Over time, this did not last. [[spoiler:Decades into Zuko's reign, the Fire Nation has all but disowned him, and it became known he poisoned his own father]].
* VirtueIsWeakness: Believes that mercy and compassion are for the weak, which he uses to justify all of his evil acts.
* WorldsStrongestMan: All but stated to be the world's strongest Firebender and one of the most powerful Benders in general. [[spoiler:However, as Ozai learns firsthand, even his power is outmatched next to a fully-powered Avatar, although even that just emphasises how much power he has rather than lacks, since that is basically the only thing able to take him down.]]
* WorthyOpponent: Subverted with Aang. After Aang refuses to take his life, even after spending a prolonged amount of time pummeling him in the fully unleashed Avatar State, Ozai admits that he is the most powerful person in the world with a hint of awe in his voice. He even uses his own line from the start of the fight, "all the power in the world" to describe Aang's capabilities, clearly having developed a grudging respect. That said, he still sees Aang as weak for not killing him.
-->'''Ozai''': Even with ''all the power in the world'', you are still ''weak''.
* WouldHurtAChild: When Zuko was thirteen, Ozai [[AbusiveParents torched his face off for]] ''[[DisproportionateRetribution speaking out of turn]]''. He's also made a few attempts to [[OffingTheOffspring murder him]], though he was talked out of it the first time by his wife. He doesn't care if his greatest enemy is a twelve-year-old with so much power that potentially outclasses him, he'll stop at nothing to hunt him down.
* YouCouldHaveUsedYourPowersForEvil: Part of the reason why he belittles Avatar Aang (and the concept of the Avatar in general) is because Avatar has all the power in the world, yet never uses that power to rule or remake the world like he would have done.
* YouHaveFailedMe: He sent Azula to capture Zuko because he failed to capture the Avatar, or rather, lost to a ''child'' who defeated his forces attempting to conquer the North Pole.
* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness: A non-lethal, but still heartbreaking example. After learning from Zuko that Azula lied about the Avatar's demise, he steals her idea of burning the entire Earth Kingdom and assigns her the now pointless Fire Lord title while he takes all the glory by himself as the Phoenix King. This triggers a saddening VillainousBreakdown in Azula.
[[/folder]]
----

----

** [[spoiler:He tried to smash Aang's earth shield only to hit the chakra that Azula had blocked, opening it, and then spends the rest of the fight fleeing in terror from the wrath of an [[GaiasVengeance absolutely furious]] [[SuperMode Avatar Aang]].]]
** Zuko outright states that he did this. If he never banished his son to go hunt for the Avatar, the series would have gone in a completely different direction. [[spoiler:Specifically, said son would never have met the Avatar, joined the Avatar and taught the Avatar firebending.]]

* PersonOfMassDestruction: Planned to wipe out the Earth Kingdom singled-handed with a towering wave of flames.

Ruler of the Fire Nation and likely the most powerful Firebender on the planet, Ozai is the main antagonist of the series. A ruthless warlord and megalomaniac, Ozai is willing to burn the rest of the world to the ground so he can rule. He has little to no empathy for anyone, including his own children ([[PetTheDog though he acts decently towards them if they prove themselves useful]]). Aang must defeat Ozai before Ozai can harness Sozin's Comet and use it to bring the war to a permanent end.