I'd like to preface this by saying I only paid slight attention to Last Airbender. As a series it was interesting, but didn't strike me as truly awe-inspiring. Legend of Korra has essentially shifted my paradigm into making me want to watch Last Airbender again to see what led up to Korra.
Each character feels flawed, not to the point of incapability to act but as human beings who must work through and learn from their flaws. Especially interesting to watch is when they go into family dynamics, and how children feel about their parents, siblings feel about each other, and how difficult it can be to accept your family for who they are at times.
The show also fascinates politically, because I've noted that it will not take the easy route of just solving problems with punches or a heartfelt plea. Each antagonist shows that they're ruthless and intelligent, playing the Avatar to their own ends despite her best efforts. Each one actually feels like they belong more in a Tom Clancy novel leading a rogue nation or terrorist group rather than playing the arc villain on a kid's show. That scores major points in my book, since it shows a willingness to not treat younger viewers as idiots as many contemporary cartoons have been accused of doing.
The main characters themselves are flawed, imperfect, and sometimes stupid human beings. Which makes them all the better, since anyone can have emotions cloud their judgement like the main characters have. Reading through all the arguments about Mako's relationship troubles, it strikes me as strange that people would react so strongly since many people have similar problems with knowing what to do in a relationship, even if they aren't sheltered.
It's not perfect. The short seasons and single-arc antagonists mean that the show can't go into further detail on what happens after the enemy is defeated, and at times the contrived coincidences do break suspension of disbelief. Yet, despite these flaws, the show stands tall on it's own.
As with Tenzin and Aang, Legend of Korra can be compared to it's predecessor, but should not be treated the same way. It is it's own show, with it's own story to tell. On it's own, it's an entertaining and fascinating watch that will hopefully become a standard by which similar shows can be measured to, but not made to be exactly like.
Fascinating, Because it Won't Pull Punches
I'd like to preface this by saying I only paid slight attention to Last Airbender. As a series it was interesting, but didn't strike me as truly awe-inspiring. Legend of Korra has essentially shifted my paradigm into making me want to watch Last Airbender again to see what led up to Korra.
Each character feels flawed, not to the point of incapability to act but as human beings who must work through and learn from their flaws. Especially interesting to watch is when they go into family dynamics, and how children feel about their parents, siblings feel about each other, and how difficult it can be to accept your family for who they are at times.
The show also fascinates politically, because I've noted that it will not take the easy route of just solving problems with punches or a heartfelt plea. Each antagonist shows that they're ruthless and intelligent, playing the Avatar to their own ends despite her best efforts. Each one actually feels like they belong more in a Tom Clancy novel leading a rogue nation or terrorist group rather than playing the arc villain on a kid's show. That scores major points in my book, since it shows a willingness to not treat younger viewers as idiots as many contemporary cartoons have been accused of doing.
The main characters themselves are flawed, imperfect, and sometimes stupid human beings. Which makes them all the better, since anyone can have emotions cloud their judgement like the main characters have. Reading through all the arguments about Mako's relationship troubles, it strikes me as strange that people would react so strongly since many people have similar problems with knowing what to do in a relationship, even if they aren't sheltered.
It's not perfect. The short seasons and single-arc antagonists mean that the show can't go into further detail on what happens after the enemy is defeated, and at times the contrived coincidences do break suspension of disbelief. Yet, despite these flaws, the show stands tall on it's own.
As with Tenzin and Aang, Legend of Korra can be compared to it's predecessor, but should not be treated the same way. It is it's own show, with it's own story to tell. On it's own, it's an entertaining and fascinating watch that will hopefully become a standard by which similar shows can be measured to, but not made to be exactly like.