History Recap / AvatarTheLastAirbenderTheAvatarAndTheFireLord

* KarmaHoudini: As Azula points out, Sozin died peacefully as "a very old and successful man," facing no consequences for betraying Roku or for his genocide of the Air Nomads.

* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: Despite Sozin [[PetTheDog coming to save Roku and his village from the volcano]], Sozin abandons him to die after Roku inhales too much of the poison gas. Turns out a ruler who's convinced that he's a Well-Intentioned Extremist won't let a golden chance simply slip away of conquering the entire world, even more when said friend had promised to kill him earlier if he attempted to take even one colony.

* BirthDeathJuxtaposition: Roku's death at the volcano is followed by a scene of Aang's birth.

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

* DeadlyGas: This is how Avatar Roku died, via a face-ful of toxic volcanic gas.

* KneelBeforeFrodo: When Roku is revealed to be the new Avatar, the entire hall of people bow down to him.

* {{Mundanger}}: Fire Lord Sozin and his fire-bending army were helpless agains Avatar Roku but in the end what killed him was asphyxiation from breathing toxic fumes.

* MyCountryRightOrWrong: Sozin expects, and even demands Roku to have this worldview as a citizen of the Fire Nation. He forgets that Roku is the Avatar, whose job is to maintain balance between ''all four'' nations, which will involve working against the Fire Nation.

* WeUsedToBeFriends: Roku and Sozin had been friends since childhood, but their respective destinies as they grew had eventually put their ideals and responsibilities at odd with each other.

** While witnessing Aang doing his business, Sokka notes that the Spirit World does not in fact have toilets. [[Recap/AvatarTheLastAirbenderTheWinterSolsticePart1 He'd know]].
** Roku mentions Water was the hardest element for him to master; makes sense, since he was a native Fire Bender and Water is its elemental opposite, [[Recap/AvatarTheLastAirbenderBitterWork similar to how Aang had the greatest trouble mastering Earth bending,]] Air's opposite.

* TookALevelInBadass: Roku was TheKlutz in his early years but after mastering all four elements he became a OneManArmy / PersonOfMassDestruction. This is cemented by the fact that he was able to overwhelm Sozin, who always managed to {{Curb Stomp|Battle}} him when they were young.

* TookALevelInBadass: Roku was TheKlutz in his early years but after mastering all four elements he became a OneManArmy / PersonOfMassDestruction. What cements this is that he was able to overwhelm Sozin, who always managed to {{Curb Stomp|Battle}} him when they were young.

* TookALevelInBadass: Roku was TheKlutz in his early years but after mastering all four elements he became a OneManArmy / PersonOfMassDestruction.

* WhamLine: "Your mother's grandfather was Avatar Roku."

* JustThinkOfThePotential: Sozin tells Roku that he wants to share the Fire Nation's prosperity with the rest of the world via expansion. When Roku tries to talk him out of such ambitions, Sozin responds that Roku should consider the possibilities of it, to which Roku states that there are none

* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcomeOutcome: Despite Sozin [[PetTheDog coming to save Roku and his village from the volcano]], Sozin abandons him to die after Roku inhales too much of the poison gas. Turns out a ruler who's convinced that he's a Well-Intentioned Extremist won't let a golden chance simply slip away of conquering the entire world, even more when said friend had promised to kill him earlier if he attempted to take even one colony.

* TookALevelInBadass: Roku was TheClutz in his early years but after mastering all four elements he became a OneManArmy / PersonOfMassDestruction.

* HistoryRepeats: Zuko turned his back on Iroh and sacrificed potential friendship with the Avatar and his friends to help conquer the Earth Kingdom and expand the Fire Nation's empire for glory. And yet, he's not happy like he thought he would be. In this episode, we learn that Sozin was [[NotSoDifferent once in Zuko's shoes]], especially towards the end of his life.

* NotSoDifferent: Seeing his hopeless first attempt to talk to his future wife, Roku reflects on how love can be so challenging. Despite being younger than Roku in the flashback, Aang concurs.

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

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

* TotalitarianUtilitarian: Sozin's entire motive for his expansion is to spread the Fire Nation's advanced technology and enlightened values to the rest of the world, for the benefit of all. However, he will need to conquer everyone else to make them agree that his way is better.

* WeUsedToBeFriends: Roku and Sozin.

* WritersCannotDoMath: Sozin being the same age as Avatar Roku would make the age gap between himself and his descendants quite large--officially roughly 82 when his son Azulon was born. Granted, this is technically possible, but it is still quite strange. The problem is even more extreme with Roku's descendants, because he and his wife were both quite elderly when he died, ''ninety-six'' years before their first grandchild was born.

* 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 as 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.

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

* AlwaysChaoticEvil: Toph believes this of the Fire Nation ([[InTheBlood or at least the Fire Lord's descendants]]) when she learns from Aang how Sozin betrayed Roku and started the 100-year war. Aang disagrees, and believes that anyone could do great evil or good, no matter where they are.

* DeadlyGas: This is now Avatar Roku died, via a face-ful of toxic volcanic gas.

** While witnessing Aang doing his business, Sokka notes that the Spirit World does not in fact have toilets. [[Recap/AvatarTheLastAirbenderTheWinterSolsticePart1TheSpiritWorld He'd know]].

* 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 as 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.

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