History ComicBook / AvatarTheLastAirbenderTheRift

* FalseReassurance: In flashback, when Yangchen claims that now that she is a fully trained Avatar she is perfectly capable of handling any situation, her mentor is quick to remind her that she only mastered her last element a week ago.

* GreyAndGrayMorality: General Old Iron vs Loban's refinery. Old Iron is a MisanthropistSupreme who wants to wipe out humanity, but makes a good point with the pollution. Loban is a greedy industrialist who's factory is polluting the environment, but also progressing technology and bringing together people of all nations.
* GoodVsGood: Toph vs Aang, when Aang tries to destroy the refinery. Aang wants to prevent the General Old Iron from destroying humanity and believes that the refinery is the primary reason. Toph is protecting it since she views it as the future, and believes Aang's old fashioned values are causing him detriment.

* ContinuitySnarl: A minor one relating to the technology as motorized forklift had been invented in the comic while WesternAnimation/LegendOfKorra still had horse-drawn vehicles like [[spoiler: in Yakon's escape]] until the proliferation of automobiles during the apex of Sato Industries.

** Toph's father Lao, having not been seen since his sole appearance in the animated series.

* TheBusCameBack: The cabbage merchant makes appearances in Parts Two and Three. We also see the beginnings of Cabbage Corp.

'''Lao:''' ''[BeatPanel]'' That's correct. This girl is '''not''' my daughter.

* ChekhovsGunman: Niyok and Nutha, sisters from the Southern Water Tribe and friends with Katara. They appear briefly in Part One, just long enough to establish who they are and suggest that Nutha is angry with Katara about something.\\\
Part Two reveals that while Sokka and Katara have been globetrotting the Southern Water Tribe has fallen on hard times and its people have to leave to find work, sometimes dangerous work, just to eat.\\\
By Part Three Nutha and Katara are on good terms again; Nutha acknowledges that Sokka and Katara have been doing important work and not just gallivanting, making the Southern Water Tribe proud.

** In ''[[ComicBook/AvatarTheLastAirbenderThePromise The Promise]]'', Aang broke his connection with Roku after realizing that Roku would always advise him to take drastic measures because he was too traumatized by his own mistake. Five comics later, he learns that his rash action had consequences for his connection to the rest of his past lives, and has to do it another way since Roku was the most recent one. [[spoiler:Aang reconciles with Roku in Part Three.]]

* PlotTailoredToTheParty: In Part Two, a collapse in an iron mine ensures that Toph is the only one capable of stopping the collapse or facilitating any escape, since Aang (who's outside) cannot metalbend and the walls are unnaturally thick with iron ore. In Part Three, Sokka has to retrieve Toph's metalbending students from Yu Dao to help.

** In ''[[ComicBook/AvatarTheLastAirbenderThePromise The Promise]]'', Aang broke his connection with Roku after realizing that Roku would always advise him to take drastic measures because he was too traumatized by his own mistake. Five comics later, he learns that his rash action had consequences for his connection to the rest of his past lives, since Roku was the most recent one. [[spoiler:Aang reconciles with Roku in Part Three.]]

* BerserkButton: The phrase "That's just how it's done" triggers bad flashbacks for Toph and she becomes a lot less agreeable after she hears it.

* {{Shoutout}}: The scene of Toph holding up the collapsed ground is drawn to resemble a scene in ''Comicbook/{{Secret Wars}}''. Gene Lang's comments, which had previously compared Sokka to Hawkeye, here draw parallels between Toph and the Incredible Hulk.

** When the owners of the factory arrive.

*** Which might be a call back, as Azula similarly defied TransformationIsAFreeAction at the end of season two.

* CoolOldGuy: Master Boma.

After the Yu Dao situation is finally brought under control, Aang receives visions of Yangchen, who tries to talk to him but is mysteriously inaudible. However, her appearance does remind Aang that it's time for the Air Nomad holiday held in her honor, and he takes Katara, Sokka, Toph, and the Air Acolytes to celebrate it for the first time in a hundred years. Unfortunately, the island where the celebration used to be held is now the site of a joint Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom mining operation, and the environment is in bad shape, though the current supervisor Satoru insists it's unrelated. Aang is now sure that Yangchen was trying to get him to shut the mine down, but things quickly get much more complicated, as Toph in particular is sucked into the conflict in a rather unusual way.

A sequel trilogy is set to start release September 23, 2015, it will be called [[Comicbook/AvatarTheLastAirbenderSmokeAndShadow Smoke and Shadow.]] It will focus on Zuko dealing with a rebel faction of Fire Nation citizens calling themselves the "New Ozai Society."

* AscendedExtra: Three of the Air Temple Acolytes; Xing Ling, Yee-li, and Jingbo play a bigger role, with their individual personalities fleshed out a bit more.

** The cabbage merchant now has a restaurant that serves cabbage-based food, but inevitably falls prey to his own RunningGag. But hey, at least his shop didn't collapse.
* AttackOfTheFiftyFootWhatever: Lady Tienhai and General Old Iron are massive spirits. The former is long dead, whereas the latter is still around and now isn't being placated by Yangchen's festival. How does Aang counter? [[spoiler:He earthbends a giant stone golem that he controls with Earthbending, with him in his four-element sphere as the golem's "head". It's still not enough, as Toph and her top/first metalbending students had to use metalbending to peel the iron plates off of Old Iron for Aang's earth golem to be effective.]]

* BadassBoast: Toph gives a fantastic one to her father, combined with CallingTheOldManOut, in Part 3, when he tries to reconcile with her [[spoiler:since he doesn't know if they'll live or die in the collapsing iron mine]]:
-->'''Toph:''' That's...your whole problem, Dad. If you knew me...the '''''real''''' me...you wouldn't be wondering...if we're gonna [[spoiler:live or die]]...because you'd '''''know'''''...I can keep this up...as long as I need to. I'm '''''Toph Beifong'''''...the greatest earthbender...'''''of all time'''''.

* BreatherEpisode: Acts as a break between "The Search" and "Smoke And Shadow"
* TheBusCameBack: The cabbage merchant makes appearances in Parts 2 and 3. We also see the beginnings of Cabbage Corp.

* CallingTheOldManOut: Toph to Lao, saying that she's not the daughter he raised her to be, but she's his daughter nonetheless, and worthy in her own right. He says nothing in response, deeply upsetting her.
* TheCameo: Kori, who started the events in ''The Promise'', appears at the beginning of part one, where she introduces the new diverse, democratically elected governing counsel of Yu Dao: two fire nation citizens and two earth nation citizens, and for added diversity two men and two women.[[labelnote:Note]] Of course it could be only two people were elected and they are standing with their spouse, its not really stated what's the case.[[/labelnote]] Why Kori is the one doing the introduction is unknown, however.
* ChekhovsGunman: Niyok and Nutha, sisters from the Southern Water Tribe and friends with Katara. They appear briefly in Part 1, just long enough to establish who they are and suggest that Nutha is angry with Katara about something.
** Part 2 reveals that while Sokka and Katara have been globe trotting the Southern Water Tribe has hit hard times and its people have to leave to find work, sometimes dangerous work, just to eat.
* ColourCodedForYourConvenience: In the opening of part one, the citizens of Yu Dao wear the colors of their respective nations. Later at Saotru's refinery the workers wear colored scarves representing their nation.
* ContinuityNod: Yangchen tells Aang that breaking his connection with Roku in ''[[Comicbook/AvatarTheLastAirbenderThePromise The Promise]]'' has damaged his connection to all his past lives.

* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Satoru's uncle Loban, [[spoiler:who's running a hidden iron mine underneath the legit crystal one. Even without the possibility of ticking off a powerful spirit, it's polluting the river and could potentially collapse the entire town]]. Averted for his business partner Lao Beifong, who cares about the workers and thinks of safety over profit.

* DoubleMeaningTitle: "The Rift" is all cracks or breaks, ranging from the separation of the old island that's now a refinery versus the sacred island where Yangchen's festival is being held to [[spoiler:Toph having to come face-to-face with her father after she ran away]]. It also refers to the "rift" between the human and spirit worlds.

* EnemyMine: Members of Team Avatar engage the Rough Rhinos in the unstable iron mine, but after the iron mine was starting to collapse, the Rough Rhinos, Team Avatar and the workers decide to halt their hostilities and just focus on surviving.
* EveryoneHasStandards: When Toph states that [[spoiler:the iron mine is dangerous]], the first thing her father does is order the evacuation.
* FallenOnHardTimesJob: Niyok and Nutha, as well as one of the Rough Rhinos, have had to take dangerous jobs to earn money because the fallout of the war has hit some places hard.
* FalseReassurance: When Yangchen claims that now that she is a fully trained Avatar she is perfectly capable of handling any situation, her master is quick to remind her that she only mastered her last element a week ago.

-->'''Toph''': Don't you think you're trying a little too hard to hold onto your past?\\
'''Aang''': Maybe. But don't you think '''you're''' trying a little too hard to '''run away''' from it?\\
'''Toph''': Not everyone's past is like yours, Aang. Some of us '''have''' to run away just to... just to '''live'''.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: [[spoiler:We again hear about loyalist Ozai die-hards gathering from Satoru talking about his parents. They will become a threat to Zuko's regime in the "Smoke and Shadows" trilogy.]]

-->'''Toph''': I would love to be in a partnership with you�I mean, the refinery.\\
'''Sokka''': Is it just me, or is there some serious [[BuffySpeak oogie-osity]] going on over there?\\
'''Katara''': I think it's sweet. We almost never get to see Toph's softer side.

* FunnyBackgroundEvent: During the factory tour, Katara uses her waterbending to swipe the meat shishkebab Sokka won't share.
* GaiasVengeance: General Old Iron wishes retribution for the death of Lady Tienhan, his friend. Avatar Yangchen started her festival to placate him, but with the Air Nomad genocide there's been no one around to perform it and the mining certainly isn't helping.

* [[IHaveNoSon I Have No Daughter]]: Lao refuses to acknowledge that Toph is the daughter he raised, even in light of the fact that she's essentially a world-renowned hero.

* ImplausibleDeniability: Satoru insists that the river pollution is from natural causes and not the fault of the factory. Toph confirms that he's telling the truth, or at least thinks he is. [[spoiler:His uncle is in fact responsible, not just for the pollution but also the earthquakes.]]
* InnocentlyInsensitive: Aang explains Air Nomad traditions by saying "That's just how it's done," the same words Toph's parents used to justify everything that she didn't like.
** Toph turns it around later, absent-mindedly stating that though the town and refinery are on Air Nomad sacred land, it's effectively unowned as no-one has been there for a hundred years. ''[[LateArrivalSpoiler Since the Fire Nation wiped out the Air Nomads.]]''
* KarmaHoudini: The Rough Rhinos. They attacked innocent villages and killed people for the heck of it. Their punishment? A steady job guarding a more or less sucessful business.

** Loban [[spoiler:ran a unstable mine of iron]], ignoring the security problem and even stopping Lao when the latter tried to get the workers evacuated. In the end of the issue [[spoiler:he is trapped underneath said mine.]]
** Lao always treated Toph as a fragile china doll and denied their relationship when she proved otherwise. [[spoiler:Right now she is the only one who can keep him and a lot of other people alive after the mine's collapse.]]
* LoadBearingHero: Toph uses her metalbending to stave off the collapse of the iron mine.

* MeatVersusVeggies: In Part 1, Sokka taunts Aang and the Air Acolytes with a shish-kebab and offers to share it but when ''Katara'' takes him up on it, he claims the offer's only open to the vegetarians. In a FunnyBackgroundEvent, she just swipes the thing with [[MundaneUtility waterbending]].
* NotImportantToThisEpisodeCamp: This time it's Zuko's turn to pass on the adventure, as he has to get back to ruling the Fire Nation [[spoiler:and also because his mother and her family are coming to visit]]. As one of his bodyguards, Suki is also out.
* NotSoDifferent: While Yangchen seems to understand why Aang broke his connection to Roku, she is quick to point out that his base reason was because Roku was too stuck in the past and that Aang himself has also become stuck as he desperately tries to keep the old ways of the Air Nomads alive even if he has very little understanding of what the traditions were for.

* PetTheDog: Lao is even more of a jerk than before, but does redeem himself a bit when he immediately insists the workers in the iron mine get to safety, over Loban's objections. He has a bigger one when he finally [[spoiler: apologizes to Toph.]]

* PlotTailoredToTheParty: In Part 2, a collapse in an iron mine makes sure Toph is the only one capable of stopping the collapse or facilitating any escape, since Aang (who's outside) cannot metalbend and the walls are unnaturally thick with iron ore.
* RealityEnsues: In ''The Promise'', Aang breaks his connection with Roku after realizing that Roku would always advise him to take drastic measures because he was too traumatized by his own mistake. Five comics later, he learns that his rash action had consequences for his connection to the rest of his past lives, since Roku was the most recent one.

--->"Let this be a lesson to you, kiddies. Never have a conversation when you're in the middle of a fight!"
* TheResenter: Nutha resents Sokka and Katara because they left the tribe. She conveniently forgets that if they hadn't left, they never would have got the Northern Tribe help and the men back.

* RoaringRampageOfRevenge: General Old Iron went on one of these when [[spoiler:Lady Tienhai was murdered.]]
* RunningGag: The youngest Air Acolyte insists on carrying a huge backpack by himself because...
-->'''Jingbo''': ''As the most junior Air Acolyte present, it's my honor to carry the festival supplies!''
** ...and keeps having to ask for help when he falls down.

* ShipTease: Toph quickly gets a crush on Satoru, but their relationship is soured as Toph's family issues come to the fore, and she accuses him of "acting like a sniveling flunky" to his uncle (who's her father's business partner). They're back on good terms by the end, but it remains to be seen if he'll go on to father Su.
** Yee-li and The Dark One have quite a bit in pt. 3.

* TalkingIsAFreeAction: Averted; as the three Acolytes argue as to whether or not it goes against Air Nomad culture to "squish" a person, the Rough Rhino Jingbo had [[CarFu hit with a forklift]] recovers and captures them and tells them it's not a good idea to have a debate in the middle of a battle. Luckily, they are saved by Toph.
* TheGoodKing: The king in Yangchen's time. He took complete responsibility for [[spoiler:Lady Tienhai's death]] and when General Old Iron attacks his only request to Yangchen is to ensure his citizens' lives.

* ThickerThanWater: Satoru's belief in this is a major reason behind his loyalty to his uncle, and leads to friction with Toph, who has a troubled relationship with her parents.[[spoiler: Satoru abandoned his parents because they were Ozai's loyalists, though.]]
* ThirdEye: General Old Iron.
* TimeSkip: It's been at least a year between the last comic and this one, long enough for the Gaang to have visibly aged since their last appearance.

-->'''Yangchen''': Remember, General Old Iron, I am the Avatar. I stand on the border between the spirit and human worlds, to ensure that border never grows into a ''rift''.

* TookALevelInBadass: Ho-tun, Penga, and The Dark One are adept enough with metalbending to not only teach in her absence (at least the novice-level class), but also rally to their sifu Toph in combat.
* UngratefulBastard: When Aang saves one of the Rough Rhinos from falling and being seriously injured, the mook thanks him, then pulls a knife on him. Aang quickly Earthbends him into the ground.

--->'''Loban''': Lao...? You look like you've seen a ''ghost''.\\
'''Toph''': '''Father.'''

--->'''Satoru''': Boss man Lao? You told me you didn't have a family.\\
'''Lao''': ''(BeatPanel)''. That's correct. This girl is '''not''' my daughter.

* AttackOfTheFiftyFootWhatever: Lady Tienhai and General Old Iron are massive spirits. The former is long dead, whereas the latter is still around and now isn't being placated by Yangchen's festival. How does Aang counter? [[spoiler:He earthbends a giant stone golem that he controls with Earthbending, with him in his four-element sphere as the golem's "head".]]

* AttackOfTheFiftyFootWhatever: Lady Tienhai and General Old Iron are massive spirits. The former is long dead, whereas the latter is still around and now isn't being placated by Yangchen's festival.

* MeatVersusVeggies: In Part 1, Sokka taunts Aang and the Air Acolytes with a shish-kebab and offers to share it but when ''Katara'' takes him up on it, he claims the offer's only open to the vegetarians. In a FunnyBackgroundEvent, she just swipes the thing.