History Recap / AvatarTheLastAirbenderTheAvatarAndTheFireLord

* BrokenAesop: Aang concludes that Roku and Sozin's story is proof that anyone is capable of great good or great evil. However, Roku, specifically did nothing evil in the story, his only action being to try and stop Sozin from carrying out his plans. In fact, Roku was shown to be inherently incorruptible due to his refusal to join in Sozin's ambitions from the start. Aang also asserts that Roku was "just as much Fire Nation" as Sozin to enforce his point that anyone be good or evil regardless of their nation, but this point is undermined by the fact Roku was also an Avatar and so his duty was to protect the world. Even when Sozin cites the fact Roku is still a citizen of the Fire Nations, Roku overrides this due to his status the Avatar, a role he was given at birth, not by his own choice. Though the moral may be more applicable to Sozin and his actions, Aang did not hear the story from his perspective at all, only Zuko does, leaving Aang’s conclusion rather unsupported by what he was shown.

** Roku and Fire Lord Sozin were contemporaries and best friends in their youth.

* TheReveal: Roku is Zuko's maternal Great-Grandfather [[note]] by extension, he's Azula's as well, though that's less relevant to the narrative [[/note]].

Roku never demontarsts a capcity for evil and acts in the interest of justice due to his role as the Avatar, a role he was given at birth. This heavily contradicts the idea that anyone can be good or evil

* EtTuBrute: The way Sozin [[LeftForDead leaves Roku to die]]. It's even worse when moments earlier, Roku saved Sozin from dropping into lava. What an UngratefulBastard!

* ImpliedDeathThreat: Roku allows Sozin to live after liberating a colony from him, and because of their past friendship. He then warns that he will put a "permanent end" to Sozin if he steps out of line again.

* IShouldHaveDoneThisYearsAgo: Roku has come to have this sort of attitude about killing Sozin. Roku being too hesitant to kill Sozin resulted in the current situation the Gaang is in.

* TheReveal: Roku is Zuko's maternal great grandfather [[note]] by extension, he's Azula's as well, though that's less relevant to the narrative [[/note]].

* {{Foreshadowing}}: Early in Roku and Sozin's shared flashback, Roku wants to talk to a girl he has a crush on but hesitates too much and she walks away before he can get a word out. This is an early indication of Roku's indecisiveness which comes back to bite the world ''hard.''

* ContinuityNod: While witnessing Aang doing his business, Sokka notes that the Spirit World does not in fact have toilets. He'd know.

* {{Foreshadowing}}: Early in Roku and Sozin's shared flashback, Roku wants to talk to a girl he has a crush on but hesitates too much and she walks away before he can get a word out. This is an early indication of Roku's indecisiveness which critically affects things later.

* CurbStompBattle: Sozin "vs" Roku...if you can even call it that. Roku effortlessly dodges the only attack Sozin gets a chance to launch, then responds by levelling half of Sozin's palace and leaving him dangling from a rock pillar by his own cape.

* WritersCannotDoMath:
** A common complaint many have with this episode. If Sozin really was the same age as Avatar Roku, the age gap between himself and his descendants is quite large. WordOfGod said that he was roughly 82 when his son Azulon was born. Granted, this is technically possible, but it is still quite strange.
** A similar problem occurs with Roku's descendants.

* LonelyAtTheTop: Regardless of how he was the ruler of the Fire Nation's growing empire, and lauded as a war hero by his people, Sozin found himself miserably alone, now that his friend Roku was dead (even if it was by his own hand).

* LonelyAtTheTop: Regardless he was ruler of the Fire Nation's growing empire and lauded as a war hero by his people, Sozin found himself miserably alone, now that his friend Roku was dead (even if it was by his own hand).

-->'''Sozin:'''I know he's hiding out there, somewhere... The Fire Nation's greatest threat. ''The last Airbender''.

** A common complaint many have with this episode. If Sozin really was the same age as Avatar Roku, the age gap between himself and his descendants is quite large. WordOfGod said that he was roughly 82 when his son Azulon was born. Granted, this is technically possible but it is still quite strange.

* TragicVillain: Though he is ultimately a villain, Sozin is humanized through his friends, and shown to have good (if perhaps [[WellIntentionedExtremist misguided]]) intentions behind his country's expansionism. Though he is eventually successful in war, he ultimately ends up a lonely and disillusioned old man who sacrificed his friends and personal happiness for the great cause he championed.

* WellIntentionedExtremist: Sozin wanted to spread the greatness and advances of the Fire Nation throughout the entire world. He just unfortunately went about it in the worst way possible. The well-intentioned part was completely dropped by his successors, who are now simply on an imperialistic war of conquest.

* ShootTheDog: Averted. Because of their past history, Roku doesn't kill Sozin after his first invasion of the Earth Kingdom. This act of mercy later results in Roku's death, the extermination of the Air Nomads bar Aang, the genocide of the Southern Water Tribe's benders, millions of deaths, and a century of carnage and war.

''[[caption-width-right:333:The lifelong relationship between Roku and Sozin is explored.]]''

At the end of the episode, Toph asks if friendships can transcend life times where both Aang and Katara acknowledge and accept Toph's intuition (implying that Aang's next incarnation, Korra, will befriend both Katara and Toph).

The sixth episode of the third season of the show, 'The Avatar and the Fire Lord' explores the hisAang and Zuko both learn about the strong and close childhood friendship of Avatar Roku and Fire-lord Sozin. Sozin suggested to Roku that, as the pinnacle of civilization, the Fire Nation should control the destiny of the entire world to ensure universal prosperity. As Roku was the Avatar, he knew the importance of balance between all people and disagreed. When Sozin later greedily took an Earth Kingdom colony, Roku defeated him in battle and threatened to kill him if he again tried to do anything that crossed that line. When Roku's island volcano erupted years later, Sozin came to help. But, at the last moment, when Roku was overcome by volcanic gases, Sozin realized that he could rule the world if he let Roku die, and he abandoned him. Roku then died from the lava and was reincarnated as Aang. In his prison cell, Iroh tells Zuko that as the great-grandson of both Roku and Sozin, he alone has the ability to resolve their endless conflict and restore order and peace to the world.

At the end of the episode, Toph asks if friendships can transcend life times where both Aang and Katara acknowledge and accept Toph's inutition (implying that Aang's next incarnation, Korra, will befriend both Katara and Toph).