Welcome to the twenty-seventh installment of my Avatar: The Last Airbender rewatch! Today’s post will be covering “Zuko Alone.” Episode 2.07 provides us with lots of parenting fail, an off-screen assassination, and far too few turtle ducks.
Please note that while the summary will remain spoiler free (aside for everything up to and including the current episode, of course), the subsequent commentary (and comments) will not be. If you haven’t already seen the series, go do it now. This post will be waiting for you when you come back.
Note: I would like this rewatch to remain spoiler free for The Legend of Korra. Please choose your comments wisely. If you wish to discuss Korra, you can do so on these posts.
Summary
Zuko rides Song’s Stolen Ostrich Horse across a rickety bridge, which nearly collapses on them. The prince is thin faced and obviously hungry. Zuko nearly ambushes a man cooking dinner over a campfire, but then he notices the man has a pregnant wife. Some time later Zuko runs out of water and begins nodding off. He remembers a Fire Nation woman, but the image is gone in an instant.
Zuko and SSOH get over a hill and see an Earth Kingdom village in the distance. He heads into town much like a lone cowboy and catches the attention of some gambling men. Zuko approaches a merchant to buy water, feed, and food, but he doesn’t have enough money for the meal.
Two boys hide by the stall where Zuko and the merchant are. One of them throws an egg at the gambling men, but the kids run away before they can be spotted. The men—all armed soldiers—turn around to see Zuko and assume that the newcomer enjoys pelting people with eggs.
The soldiers confront Zuko, asking him if he threw the egg or saw who did it; the prince tells them no. In no time at all, Zuko’s charming personality has pissed them off. When the merchant returns with two bags of feed, the head soldier confiscates the bags and tells Zuko to leave town.
“Would it be okay to steal the pregnant lady’s food if she weren’t showing yet?”
The merchant comments on how the soldiers are just a bunch of thugs, but Zuko doesn’t respond. He climbs aboard SSOH and discovers the boy who threw the egg on the other side. The boy thanks Zuko for not ratting him out. Zuko ignores him—at least until the boy says he’ll take him home and feed SSOH. The prince tries and fails to ignore his growling stomach, so he lets the boy lead them to his family farm.
The boy’s father appears and finally gives his son a name: Lee. Lee tells his dad that Zuko stood up to the soldiers. When his mother, Sela, asks what Zuko’s name is, the prince flounders. Luckily for everyone, the dad, Gansu, announces that he doesn’t need to know Zuko’s name—anyone who stands up to those soldiers is welcome. Sela tells Zuko that Lee’s older brother, Sensu, is a real soldier fighting the war and not one of the bullies left in the village.
Sela invites Zuko to stay for dinner, but the prince declines. She then says that Gansu needs help with the barn, and they can eat afterward. This Zuko accepts, though it’s apparent pretty quickly that the boy has never had to replace shingles in his life. Lee decides that distracting Zuko with questions is the best way to go, but Gansu shuts him up pretty fast.
Lee acquiesces, only to decide at the last moment to ask Zuko how he got his scar. Zuko smashes his thumb, and Gansu scolds his son. It’s not nice to ask questions about a man’s past—it’s his own business.
I’d forgotten how much I’ve missed the universe stripping Zuko of all dignity.
We enter a full-fledged flashback to see Princess Ursa and a young Zuko feeding the turtle ducks. Zuko shows his mom how Azula feeds turtle ducks by chucking an entire loaf of bread at one of them. The young turtle duck appears to be fine, but that doesn’t stop mama turtle duck from coming over and biting Zuko’s ankle.
Ursa rescues her son from the turtle duck and tosses it back into the water. The turtle ducks head for another part of the pond, leaving an upset princeling behind. Ursa kneels beside her son and points out that mothers are like that—if you mess with their babies, they will bite you back.
Elsewhere in the palace, a young Azula attempts a complicated tumbling maneuver only to fall at the end. Young Ty Lee does it perfectly, which prompts Azula to push her over and laugh. A young Mai spots Ursa and Zuko walking by and gets all blushy. Azula notices this and whispers for Ty Lee to watch what happens next.
Azula runs over to her mother and asks her to make Zuko play with them—they need equal teams for a game. Zuko declares he won’t be cartwheeling with them, and Azula points out that cartwheeling isn’t a game. The prince is still adamant about not wanting to play with the girls, so Azula pulls out her best we’re-brother-and-sister-and-should-spend-time-together card. Ursa agrees that it would be a good idea for them to play together and tells Zuko to do it for a little while.
So adorable.
Azula plucks an apple from the tree and sets it on Mai’s head. She says the game is to try to knock the apple off, which displeases Mai. Azula shoots a bit of fire at the apple. Instead of knocking it off, it just sets the stem on fire. Zuko panics a little and rushes Mai to knock the apple off. The two of them tumble into the fountain together.
Azula and Ty Lee cackle over the two of them sprawled in the fountain. Ty Lee claims that the two of them are so cute together, which makes Zuko storm off. Mai is reduced to incoherent rage.
Ursa heads back to find her son because they have received a letter from Iroh, who is currently on the front lines. Zuko is soaking wet and doesn’t care. He just marches back into the palace ranting about how crazy girls are.
Not quite as adorable, but it still makes me smile.
Iroh’s letter praises the walls of Ba Sing Se and hopes that his brother’s family will see the city someday—if they don’t burn it to the ground first. The crown prince also sent back presents for Zuko and Azula. Zuko’s present is a pearl-handled dagger that Iroh received from the Earth Kingdom general who surrendered when the Fire Nation broke through Ba Sing Se’s outer wall. The dagger has an inscription on it: Never give up without a fight.
Azula’s present is an Earth Kingdom doll dressed in the latest fashion for girls. This does not please Azula, and the princess asks her mother if Ozai would be next in line for the throne if Iroh did not return from the war. Ursa scolds Azula and points out that Iroh’s death would be a horrible thing and Fire Lord Azulon is in great health anyway.
Zuko is also annoyed by the question and asks how she would feel if their cousin, Lu Ten, wanted Ozai to die. Azula sidesteps the question and says that she thinks Ozai would be a much better Fire Lord than “His Royal Tea-Loving Kookiness.” She then sets her gift on fire.
Well, at least she liked this one better than the last present Iroh sent her?
Back in the present, Lee sneaks into the barn where Zuko is sleeping. He takes Zuko’s swords and creeps away, but the prince follows him. Lee messes around with the swords in the field and takes on flowers and a dead tree. He is surprised when Zuko comments that he’s holding the swords the wrong way.
Lee offers the swords back, and Zuko takes them—but only to give him a lesson. He tells Lee that the dual swords are two halves of a single weapon. The prince demonstrates a few moves and gives the swords back to the boy. Lee tries again and laughs when Zuko gives him an approving nod. When the two head back home, Lee tells Zuko that he would have liked Sensu.
The next morning, Lee and his parents get ready to see the prince off. Zuko mounts SSOH and is about to accept some food from Sela when an ominous dust cloud appears on the horizon. It’s the Earth Kingdom soldiers, and Zuko rightly observes that they’re here for trouble.
I was going to take a picture of Zuko decapitating the sunflowers, but this one was so much cuter.
The head soldier informs Gansu that Sensu’s battalion was captured by the Fire Nation. He and his men talk about how the last time the Fire Nation captured Earth Kingdom soldiers, the Fire Nation stuck them in Fire Nation uniforms and put them on the front lines unarmed. Before Gansu and the head soldier can come to blows, Zuko puts SSOH between them. The head soldier and his men leave after calling Lee and his family pigs.
We flash back to a servant presenting Ursa with a scroll, which makes her cry. She tells Zuko and Azula that Lu Ten was killed in battle.
Back in the present, Gansu tells his wife and son that he’s going to head for the front lines to find Sensu. Lee runs to Zuko and asks him if he will stay if his dad goes away. Zuko tells him no, but he does give Lee the dagger and tells him to read the inscription. Lee is initially puzzled by Made in Earth Kingdom, but he does flip it over to find the Never give up without a fight inscription eventually. Zuko rides off with SSOH, leaving Lee behind.
“Now don’t do anything stupid with this, Lee.”
In yet another flashback, we see Zuko playing with the dagger. Azula mocks him for it and points out that he’s not very good at it. An embarrassed Zuko tells her to put an apple on her head—they’ll see how good he is then.
Azula ignores the challenge and announces that Iroh is coming home. She calls Iroh a quitter and a loser for falling apart after Lu Ten died. Zuko tries to stand up for their uncle, but Azula points out that a real general would have stayed to burn Ba Sing Se to the ground. Instead, Iroh will come home crying over the fact that his only child is dead.
Ursa arrives then and tells her children that Ozai has requested an audience with Fire Lord Azulon. Zuko runs off to change into his best robes, but Azula lingers behind. She points out that Azulon is no longer the powerful Fire Lord he used to be and that someone will probably be taking his place soon. Ursa tells her not to speak another word. As Azula runs by, Ursa asks herself what is wrong with “that child.”
Aw, look! Zuko really did have a childhood!
In Azulon’s audience chamber, Ozai quizzes his children about how Fire Lord Sozin won at the Battle of Han Tui despite being outnumbered. Zuko stammers for a moment, but Azula quickly cuts in and answers correctly. Ozai then asks Azula to demonstrate some new firebending moves she learned for her grandfather. The princess puts on an impressive show, which earns her a smile and praise from her father. When Azula sits back down, she tells Zuko that he will never catch up.
Zuko gets up and announces that he wants to demonstrate what he’s been learning as well, which makes Ozai frown. Azulon is clearly not impressed with Zuko’s feeble firebending attempts. The prince falls and says he’s failed, but Ursa is quick to go to him. She tells Zuko that she loved watching him—he is someone who keeps fighting even if it’s hard.
Azulon is tired of the show and orders Ursa, Zuko, and Azula out of the audience chamber so Ozai can just tell him what he wants. Azula grabs Zuko and drags him behind a curtain so they can eavesdrop on the conversation.
Ozai is appallingly blunt as he lays out the reasons why Iroh should have his birthright revoked: with Lu Ten dead, Iroh’s bloodline has ended; Iroh abandoned the siege at Ba Sing Se and hasn’t returned home; and Ozai is here, alive, and has children still. Ozai tells his father he is a humble servant, but Azulon will have none of it.
Azulon tells Ozai that Iroh has suffered enough; Ozai’s punishment has scarcely begun. Zuko is frightened by Azulon and runs away without staying for the rest of the conversation.
Azulon is not impressed by your mediocre talents.
Later that night, Azula bursts into Zuko’s room and announces that Ozai will kill him. Zuko doesn’t buy it, but Azula tells him she heard everything. She claims that Ozai’s punishment is to feel the pain of losing a firstborn son.
Zuko calls his sister a liar, but Azula counters that she’s only telling him for his own good. He tells her to stop lying since his dad wouldn’t do that to him.
That is when Ursa walks in and demands to know what they’re talking about. Azula claims she doesn’t know, but Ursa drags her out of the room for a talk. Zuko is left behind to mutter Azula always lies.
Present day Zuko murmurs the same thing in a nearby field. Sela shows up on a cart and tells Zuko he has to help her. The soldiers came back as soon as Gansu left. When the thugs demanded food, Lee pulled a knife on them. The soldiers took him for the army, and Sela begs Zuko to help them. The prince gets up and promises that he will bring Lee back.
Not exactly the news I want to hear in the middle of the night.
Zuko heads back into town to confront the soldiers. Lee is delighted to see him, but it’s obvious the kid was bait for this trap. Zuko dismounts and orders the soldiers to let Lee go. The soldiers scoff at him.
Zuko then gives the soldiers one of the best dressing-downs in the series: It doesn’t matter who I am, but I know who you are. You’re not soldiers. You’re bullies, freeloaders abusing your power, mostly over women and kids. You don’t want Lee in your army. You’re sick cowards messing with a family who has already lost one son to the war.
The soldiers don’t take his words well, and the fight begins. Zuko makes short work of the first three soldiers, but their leader is less cowardly than his men. He pulls out a pair of hammers, and Zuko draws his dual swords.
Zuko quickly finds it’s difficult to deflect boulders with swords, and soon enough he’s knocked to the ground. This queues up our second-to-last flashback.
Ursa wakes Zuko in the middle of the night. She pulls him into a hug and tells him that everything she did, she did to protect him. No matter how things seem to change, he is not to forget who he is. Ursa walks away, leaving a disoriented and sleepy Zuko behind.
Back in the present, Lee urges Zuko to get up while the soldier advances on the downed prince. Zuko wakes up and bends a whirl of fire. It knocks the soldier back, and Zuko quickly defeats him. When the soldier demands to know who he is, the prince declares he is Zuko, son of Ursa and Fire Lord Ozai, prince of the Fire Nation, and heir to the throne.
The townspeople are shocked, but an old man quickly calls Zuko a liar. The old man declares that Zuko is an outcast whose own father burned and disowned him. Zuko ignores the man and retrieves his dagger from the defeated soldier.
But when he tries to give the dagger back to Lee, Sela steps between the two of them and tells Zuko not to come any closer. Zuko goes to one knee and offers the dagger back to Lee, but the boy says no and tells Zuko he hates him.
At least you had one parent who really loved you.
In our final flashback, Zuko finally wakes up completely. He runs through the palace looking for his mother, only to come across Azula who has been playing with his dagger. She tells him that no one knows where Ursa is and that Azulon died last night.
Zuko doesn’t believe her and tries to get his knife back, but Azula dangles it in front of him, asking who’s going to make her give it back now. She lets Zuko take it on his second try. Zuko runs off and finds Ozai by the turtle duck pond. He demands to know where his mother is, but Ozai doesn’t answer.
A Fire Sage eulogizes at Azulon’s funeral, listing the dead man’s accomplishments and progeny. While the body burns, the Fire Sage crowns Ozai as the new Fire Lord, which was Azulon’s dying wish. Everyone bows before Ozai, though Zuko looks uneasy.
Zuko rides out of the town on SSOH. The villagers glare at him, and Lee turns away.
Be very afraid, Zuko. Your life is about to get a lot worse.
Commentary
There is so much going on in this episode that I’ve had a hard time trying to figure out where to start. With any luck I won’t screw it up too much.
This is our second episode in which we get flashbacks about Zuko’s past, and this time it’s not because Iroh wants to explain away his nephew’s social awkwardness/unrelenting determination. The events portrayed in this episode aren’t for anyone’s in-universe benefit, and I think that this makes them stronger. Zuko remembers these events, but he doesn’t do any editorializing on them. Iroh certain gave his own opinion on the past in “The Storm,” though I think he was as close to an unbiased narrator as we could get at the time.
Because Zuko isn’t telling these events to others, I’m more inclined to believe they’re real—to a point. The thing that makes me question the veracity of these flashbacks is the point of view breaks. There are three times where we see events Zuko should have no clue about: Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee hanging out before he arrives; Ursa’s brief conversation with Azula after Zuko runs off; and a few “camera angles” in Azulon’s throne room. Now, either Zuko is filling in the gaps for the benefit of the viewers (from his imagination or from things he learned later), or we are to believe these are from an omniscient, 100% unbiased narrator.
And honestly, I’d much rather it be the former than the latter. Because if it’s the latter, I want to strangle Ursa.
Who says “what is wrong with that girl” about her own daughter when said little girl isn’t even completely out of the room? A rotten parent, that’s who.
Oh, I totally fall into the camp of Azula-could-have-used-therapy-as-a-child, but Ursa was most definitely not helping. I’m not even talking about her blatant favoritism of Zuko, either. What I’m talking about is how Ursa repeatedly shut down Azula.
I’m not thrilled that Azula asked what would happen if Iroh didn’t return from the war or her assessment of Azulon’s reign, but I am just as displeased about Ursa’s handling of the matter. This pre-teen girl can grasp royal politics and accurately extrapolate upon hypothetical scenarios. Trying to keep her ignorant of what’s going on or telling her to stop asking questions/talking is not the answer. The correct answer is to teach her tact and to be honest about the current political situation and potential dangers.
Because if Korean historical dramas have taught me anything, it’s that the people that are ignorant of the politics of the noble class are the people that get their worlds ripped apart or die. Or both, sometimes.
We saw back in “The Storm” that Zuko had absolutely no understanding of the war room or how to even navigate internal politics. He didn’t even know enough to realize that he was actually shaming/challenging Ozai by speaking up like he did. And I’m laying a good chunk of that blame at Ursa’s feet.
It’s was very clear in Azulon’s throne room that Ozai had taken Azula under his wing. He was teaching her about firebending and history and military strategy. He was teaching her about lines of succession and royal politics and said enough in her presence that she could piece things together on her own. (Or she was sneaky enough to eavesdrop when said conversations where happening.) Even if she was a child, her father respected and nurtured her abilities (intelligence, cunning, firebending, etc.).
Ursa reprimanded Azula every time she said something a little girl shouldn’t say. And Iroh knew Azula so poorly he thought she would like a doll dressed in the latest fashion of their (inferior) enemies. Is it any wonder Azula drifted to the one adult that didn’t want to change her and valued her as she was? I’m sure Azula would have been much happier at the prospect of Iroh inheriting the throne if he had sent her a defeated general’s weapon like he had Zuko.
I think the thing that bugs me the most about Ursa (aside from her being a disappeared mom and a huge list of unanswered questions) is that Ursa apparently didn’t bother to teach Zuko the things he would need to, you know, handle having a psycho for a father (and grandfather). I doubt Ursa was ignorant of her husband’s true nature, and she certainly thought that Azulon posed a threat to Zuko. A woman who murders her father-in-law to protect her son without getting caught and then pulls an unprecedented disappearing act is neither stupid nor incompetent. And so I am angry that she did so little to prepare Zuko for his life as the fourth (and then third and then second)-in-line to the Fire Nation throne.
It’s great to teach Zuko that mothers will protect their children; it was arrogant of her to think she would always be there to shelter her son.
This, of course, does nothing to lessen the awesomeness of killing Azulon. It is just as amazing now as it was the first time I watched this episode. I remember being totally floored that the show was going to go there—that a grandfather would kill his grandson to make a point to the father—and then compound it by having the mother say no and assassinate the grandfather first. Don’t mess with mother turtle ducks indeed.
(As an aside, I really want to know how Ursa killed Azulon. Probably poison as we have no indication anyone thought it was foul play, but how? Did she waylay a servant and slip it into his food? Bribe someone else to do it? Where, how, and from whom did she acquire the poison/method of death? Did she have help escaping? And of course, where has she been and did Zuko ever find her?
I would have been fine not ever having those questions answered if they hadn’t had Zuko bring it up again in the very last minutes of the show. Instead I must gnash my teeth in dismay and frustrated curiosity.)
While Ursa had an assassination to redeem her, Ozai was made entirely of fail. I feel like it’s pretty obvious to anyone who’s seen any of the episodes he’s appeared in, but Ozai is not a nice guy. It makes complete sense that he would essentially put on a show for Azulon to say “hey, daddy, look, I have children that aren’t dead! And one of them is legitimately awesome. The other I will probably have offed in a training accident or marry off for my political benefit, but sometimes that happens.”
At least Ozai has the guts to come straight out with what he wants when confronted by his father. So he gets about half a point for that and then negative eighty billion for wanting to remove Iroh from the line of succession. Ozai, this play makes it quite clear that you want power and not that you’re concerned about your nation at all. With Lu Ten’s death, you would officially be second in line to the throne and your children third/fourth. And instead of being content with simply inheriting after your brother—since I doubt he’d take another wife (yay, another missing woman, it’s not like this show has any shortage of those) so soon after the death of his son—or having your children as Iroh’s heirs, you are all about taking advantage of your brother’s grief. What a stellar younger brother you are.
Good on Azulon for knowing his son well enough to know that Ozai was up to something. Bad on Azulon for deciding that the appropriate reaction was to threaten to kill Zuko. I’m getting the vibe that perhaps the Fire Nation royal family has not been a very happy one for at least three generations.
All things considered, I’m rather impressed that Iroh turned out to be not evil in the end. Granted, he did make a joke about razing Ba Sing Se to the ground (which both Azula and Zuko laughed at). We’ll probably never know what happened to him between the death of Lu Ten and his return to the Fire Nation, but I trust there are some pretty interesting stories tucked away in that time span.
Yeah, I really don’t have much else to say about Ozai or Iroh right now. Ozai: continues to be a horrible human being. Iroh: off wandering the world and not around to keep his crazy younger brother from usurping his place. Granted, I’m not sure Ozai would have been okay with Iroh coming back straight away to claim his spot in line. That probably would have been the recipe for attempted fratricide. Though Iroh could have taken him.
Right, so after fifteen hundred words of commentary, it’s time for me to actually get around to Zuko. He is allegedly the most important person in this episode considering the whole thing is named after him.
Dearest Zuko, it was really stupid of you to take an animal that needs to have non-grass food in order to survive. How quickly did you spend all those gold coins you stole from that rich Earth Kingdom guy? You should have been able to buy food for you and Song’s Stolen Ostrich Horse all the way to Ba Sing Se (or at least until your next target of opportunity) if you had any sense of finances. Then again, you are a prince, and you are most certainly not acquainted with the idea of money that doesn’t magically replenish itself from the royal coffers.
And yes, I’m still annoyed that you stole the ostrich horse in the first place and doubly annoyed that you can’t take care of it properly. To your credit, you do have enough sense to feed the creature carrying you over yourself, so you aren’t entirely an idiot. Just mostly one.
Zuko’s moral boundaries really confuse me right now, and I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if they confused him, too. He’s totally okay with stealing the food from a random traveler—until he sees that the man has a pregnant wife. He doesn’t rat out some random kid who was throwing things at Earth Kingdom soldiers even though getting involved with the soldiers is a really bad idea considering who he is. And he’ll accept feed for SSOH but won’t take the hot meal until Sela fabricates a way for him to earn the food. He even goes so far as to rescue Lee when the kid was stupid enough to pull a knife on fighting-trained adults.
I get that this episode is trying to point out that Zuko has a Dark and Troubled Past but he’s really a Good Guy deep at heart—and the things he does this episode helps that case. But Zuko is still jaunting about the countryside on SSOH, ditched Iroh because the man was trying to comfort him re: major life changes, and has otherwise been not a very upstanding person. He and SSOH both are in desperate need of food, and yet Zuko doesn’t actually steal anything in this episode? Why not? He hasn’t had a problem with it before, and now he’s got a whole town of potential victims he can rationalize stealing from. He could even chase down those soldiers and steal the bags of grain back from them.
The dramatic change between this and his last appearance really annoys me for some reason and I can’t figure out why. Meh.
One thing that hasn’t changed is Zuko’s princely pride, and I love that. I love that Zuko still hasn’t gotten over his change in status and that there are some lines he will not cross. He’ll steal if he can believe the target deserves it, but he won’t accept Sela’s offer of a hot meal. It was adorable how very hard he was trying to earn that meal, too. I cannot understand how Zuko couldn’t manage to hammer nails on correctly, but no one accused him of being a fast learner. What’s more entertaining for me is how many misshapen and misplaced nails he had in front of him. He is nothing if not persistent, even if he sucks at the task.
I liked his bonding moments with Lee, though the little kid was crazy to sneak away with Zuko’s swords. His parents have apparently not taught him anything about self-preservation considering the three dangerous and incredibly stupid things he does in this episode: throwing eggs at Earth Kingdom soldiers not known for their gentle hearts and forgiving ways, stealing a complete stranger’s weapons in the middle of the night, and pulling a knife that you haven’t even had lessons with on those aforementioned soldiers. The kid’s lucky he caught Zuko during one of his more saintly episodes or else he’d totally be dead.
As for the fight with the soldier, I really wish Zuko had shown more initiative. Now, he was really smart to fight without bending at the beginning (like he does in Blue Spirit mode), but his tactics were pretty much made of fail. He just charged in a straight line and then let the man chuck boulders at him. Where did all the climbing and the jumping and the running on rooftops go? Of course you’re going to lose if you just let the man throw things at you.
That said, when Zuko finally unleashed the firebending, it was awesome. I really did love his speech to the soldier where he reclaimed his name and his birthright, even if it did mean the townspeople turned on him immediately afterward.
The last thing I wanted to touch on this episode was the Azula always lies mantra that Zuko had. Not only is this an excellent call back to the siblings’ exchange in “The Avatar State” (Zuko: You lied to me! Azula: Like I’ve never done that before.), but it’s also blatantly untrue.
Azula tells the truth when it’s better than lying—and that’s the fun part. Like many great villains, Azula will use the best tools at her disposal to get the results she wants. Sometimes she’ll use the truth (“Dad’s going to kill you.”), sometimes she’ll lie (“Father regrets your banishment”), and sometimes it’s impossible to tell either way.
I love her for that. And I love Zuko, for not ever knowing what to believe.
- When the Earth Kingdom soldiers are rolling dice, one of them calls for “spider snake eyes.” Can I just put a big DO NOT WANT on that? I can’t even imagine what that would look like and I don’t want to ever be able to.
- Was it just me, or was Zuko getting KO’d by the Earth Kingdom soldier very similar to how Jet died?
- The turtle ducks are my absolute favorite hybrid animal in the ATLA series. More specifically the baby ones. I adore them with a love I’ve never had for any other fictional animals.
- I love the fact that the funeral clothes Zuko, Azula, and Ozai wear are white. Thanks for showing off your research, writers/animators!
- So do you think Ozai knew from birth that Zuko wasn’t going to be the great and terrible child he wanted? Otherwise why didn’t he name Zuko after Azulon instead of his second child? It would have been quite awkward to name the weakling after the Fire Lord. I’m amused by the prospect that Ozai took one look at Zuko and was all “Ursa, we’ve got to try again. This one just won’t cut it.” I liked your guys’ theories about Zuko nearly dying during birth (due to that whole “lucky to be born” comment we get from him during the siege at the North Pole).
- So how did this random Earth Kingdom man know Zuko’s backstory when Zuko’s own crew in season one had to be told by Iroh? Perhaps Azula put that on the wanted posters.
- Man, I know that there’s no Geneva Convention in this world, but dressing up your POWs in uniform and sending them to the front lines unarmed? That’s harsh. No wonder everyone hates the Fire Nation.
This installment has gone on far too long, so tune in text week when we’ll cover Book Two: Earth || Chapter Eight: The Chase. It’s time for our heroes, our villains, and our fugitives to all meet up!
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luunyscarlet
June 11, 2012 at 9:33 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
About Ursa, I agree that you do have good points in your review about her. I feel that after Ozai realized Zuko wasn’t making the cut (and started concentrating on Azula), she started coddling him to make up for the lack of daddy-love. You’re absolutely right when you say she did him no favours by doing that and keeping him ignorant about politics. Especially since Ozai didn’t bother to tutor Zuko in those areas after she left. Re her interactions with Azula, we are getting from Zuko’s point of view. Impartial witness, he is not. It’s possible that she shut down Azula’s questions because she was afraid that the servants might pass on what they heard to Azulon. Ozai is clearly NOT his favourite child. His ordering Ozai to kill his own firstborn shows that he has little love for him. Which makes makes me wonder: if Ozai killed Zuko, would Azulon really grant him the position of heir? Or would he have just gone, “Alas, my second son has gone insane and killed my poor innocent grandson. Guards, seize him!” After all, it’s just Ozai’s word against his. In one swoop, he gets rid of his despised second son and incompetent grandson.
Ursa’s assassination of Azulon is even more badass since Azulon’s held the throne since he was 20 years old. Sozin may have started the war, but Azulon was Fire Lord for 73-75 years. Which makes him responsible for the destruction of the Southern Water Tribe and conquering of the Western EK. The man has no doubt, survived PLENTY of assassination attempts. And he falls to Ursa. My vote is on poison.
Re Iroh, he would’ve last seen Azula when she was about 6. Frankly, he doesn’t really know her. And he’s got little experience with little girls. But his advisers claim that all little girls like dolls, so she’ll like his present, y/n? Zuko is a little boy, so he would probably like a knife for a present. Lu Ten certainly would at that age.
Re Zuko’s stealing, maybe he’s feeling a LIIITTLE guilty about all that theft? I dunno either.
Looking forward to “The Chase” ;)!
Audrey
June 11, 2012 at 6:39 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
I really love the idea that Azulon was trying to set up Ozai and get rid of his failure of a grandson all in one go. If that was his plan, too bad it backfired on him, because that was some villain brilliance right there.
Was Azulon really Fire Lord for that long? Wow, that puts him over ninety in these flashbacks. Way to be a really awesome (if evil) old man.
I could maybe cut Iroh a little slack re: Azula if I weren’t so sure that Azula didn’t make a huge shift in personality while he was off to war. I guess it really comes down to whether or not he was close to his brother’s family at all before Ozai stole the throne from him. Back in “The Cave of Two Lovers” he was just as adamant as Zuko about not getting caught by Azula, but I guess there was time between Ozai’s coronation and Zuko’s banishment for him to get to know Azula better.
somariel
June 12, 2012 at 6:23 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Canonically, Azulon was 95 at the time of his death.
luunyscarlet
June 12, 2012 at 8:47 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
And Sozin was 82 years old when he sired Azulon. Why so long to make an heir, Sozin? Seriously, this is one of the reasons why a good chunk of the fandom think you’re gay for Roku.
I suspect the SWT was celebrating for a WEEK when they heard Azulon died ;). And a good part of the EK as well.
somariel
June 12, 2012 at 6:21 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
I’m in the camp that believes that Azulon was Sozin’s fourth or fifth child, not his first, and became Firelord because he was the oldest living heir at the time of Sozin’s death.
H. Torrance Griffin
June 11, 2012 at 12:10 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
One minor point: Zuko, whilst your mother wanted you to remember who you are I think she would have forgiven you not announcing it in the middle of an Earth Kingdom town as a fugitive with no backup whatsoever. A tale of a deserter sickened by the war in general and a high command as bad as the supposed garrison in particular could have gotten some sympathy but… *sigh* the boy is tolerably bright by most standards but he simply does not think! For what it is worth I think he left the bulk of his loot with Iroh.
Concerning Ursa: What kind of mother mutters “What is wrong with that child?” One that is worried about her kid showing every sign of incipient sociopathy. Could she have done better by both kids (your point about her coddling Zuko is will taken)? Yes. However babbling openly about the deaths of people ahead of her dad in the Line of Succession is something to be discouraged firmly, while setting even unwanted gifts on fire is by definition a Bad Sign.
I do admit that I may be cutting her some slack because she comes off as such an improvement over her husband and father-in-law.Audrey
June 11, 2012 at 6:31 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
The announcement was most certainly one of Zuko’s more thoughtless moments, but I will forgive him for it because it was cool. And, sadly, it’s a nice bit of foreshadowing that there are some things that Zuko really just can’t let go of.
I still resent and admire the brilliance of the season finale.And think back to the episode where he and Iroh part ways, you’re right that he leaves most of it behind. At least take some more money–but that’s yet more proof he can be terribly impulsive.Ursa is totally an improvement over Ozai and Azulon, but I felt the need to point out some of my issues with her anyway. Azula is very intelligent, but if it’s not sinking in that there are things one doesn’t talk about except behind very secure doors, Ursa should explain that to her very firmly and not just say that you’re not supposed to talk that way. Azula clearly doesn’t care about what you’re “supposed” to do–so put it in terms she cares about: life and death and the like.
Though yes, Azula is most certainly the ATLA poster child for conduct disorder.
luunyscarlet
June 13, 2012 at 6:15 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
There’s this interesting article about prepsychopathic children right here if you want to check it out: http://mobile.nytimes.com/2012/05/13/magazine/can-you-call-a-9-year-old-a-psychopath.xml
It pretty much shows the AtLA writers really did their research with Azula’s behaviour ;).
somariel
June 13, 2012 at 8:57 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
I remember reading that and it really is quite interesting.
Audrey
June 22, 2012 at 7:17 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Thanks for the article! It was a fascinating read, and yeah–I can see a lot of Azula’s traits in there.
somariel
June 11, 2012 at 4:36 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
First of all, this sentence makes no sense: Lee is initially puzzled by Made in Earth KingdomNever give up without a fight inscription eventually.
Second, Ursa’s title in this episode is Princess Ursa.
With regards to Ursa shutting down Azula after her comments about the succession, it’s far more likely that it was a “Shut up before someone hears you and reports it to the Firelord” reaction than anything else.
Regarding Azulon’s punishment for Ozai, I’m firmly in the camp that thinks that Azulon was actually going to punish Ozai by making him give up Zuko to be raised as Iroh’s son and heir, thereby bypassing Ozai in the succession. I’m undecided on whether Azula was just trying to upset Zuko and Ozai saw a chance and ran with it when Ursa came to him or if Azula and Ozai had worked out a plan in advance. I do think that Azula probably used as much of Azulon’s exact wording as she could.
For how the old man knew about what happened to Zuko when his crew in Season One didn’t, I think that the truth about what happened to Zuko spread when Ozai lifted the gag order (remember that theory from my comments on “The Storm”?) after declaring Zuko a traitor.
Audrey
June 11, 2012 at 6:25 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Whoops, thanks for catching my royal title failure and my html coding failure. Turns out if you don’t close the italics tag properly, it’ll eat your words. I have no excuse for calling Ursa the Fire Lady, though. I have fixed both mistakes and will do better in the future!
And I hope that’s what Ursa was doing, but I also want to believe Azula–once told of the very real problems and dangers such talk could cause–would stop doing things like that. If that was what Ursa was trying to convey, she should have just said that flat out. Respect your child’s intelligence and be direct when it’s obvious the hints aren’t working, especially when the stakes are this high!
I have never heard that theory re: Ozai’s punishment before, but it intrigues me. That would be a nice way to remove Ozai even further from succession possibilities, though I doubt it would have given Ozai much pause to arrange an accident for his son later down the line. If that’s the scenario we’re working with, I’m fonder of the idea that Azula and Ozai were working independently. Alas, we’ll probably never know what really went down.
Yes, I remember that comment now! That news must be traveling pretty fast if it’s so widespread that a random Earth Kingdom villager knows about it. Poor Zuko.
somariel
June 12, 2012 at 6:38 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
I first saw that theory about Ozai’s punishment on the WMG page for ATLA on TvTropes, but I totally agree with it because it makes so much more sense than the other option. Whatever Azulon’s personal opinion of Zuko , he has to have been a savvy enough politician to know that getting rid of a grandchild right after losing another would be a really dumb idea. Royal heirs don’t just grow on trees, after all.
As for the speed with with which the news of what happened to Zuko is traveling, of course it’s going to travel quickly. It is about the son of the Firelord. Whether you’re for or against the war, news about the Firelord’s son is going to be of interest.
dracomaleficium
June 12, 2012 at 6:12 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Yay Fire Nation royals rant!
While I do agree with you on some points regarding Ursa, I blame Ozai completely for Azula’s development. And Azulon, too, to some extent. I’ve seen some really interesting research recently about siblings dynamics – the meat of it was that usually, the firstborn is going to be pretty conforming and aiming to please the parent, mild, well-behaved and less-likely to rebel – at least comparetively. They are also expected to protect and nurture the younger sibling, to “pave the way,” so to speak. The secondborns then feel the need to distinguish themselves somehow, to draw attention in other ways and ascertain their place in the household, often by acting up, displaying an ideology contrasting to that of the household, being more independent and outspoken and generally behaving in a more individualized way. This happens to be true in my own family (I am the older sibling) and in most of the families I know, though in different ways of course. I also find this to be true in nearly every A:TLA sibliings dynamic – also in the Iroh/Ozai relationship. It is clear which son Azulon favors. From those little glimpses, it is rather easy to assume that Iroh had been the favorite for a long, long time, and was, on the whole, the model heir. It is my personal headcanon that Ozai felt himself shadowed and belittled, neglected by Azulon (and pretty blatantly so, judging from their interaction in the Throne Room) – and, being this headstrong and self-assured, ambitious man, detested it. So he “acted up,” resorted to shadowplay, conniving and scheming, descending down the path to his eventual villainy all the time (and, ironically, giving Azulon further fuel for his dislike).
I like to believe that he transferred those ideas onto his own children; especially given that speculation about Zuko’s birth being difficult, which presumably left him weak and sickly for some time (again, my headcanon). This and Azula’s talents, which must have made themselves known fairly quickly, assured Ozai that the firstborn does not have to be the better child, so he “snatched away” Azula and started working his own influence over the girl, making her “strong” and fit to rule, at least according to his own standards. Judging from Zuko’s words about his family being actually happy at some point and from how the siblings interact in the flashbacks, this was a gradual, ongoing process, but very effective. By nurturing Azula’s natural sadistic tendencies and sharp intelligence, Ozai was, perhaps subconsciously, proving to his own father that secondborns are not useless and should not be put aside simply because of the order in which they came into the world – which was not their fault, after all. He was also ensuring her devotion and loyalty, something not quite as valued in the “weaker” Zuko, whom he had basically given up on at a certain point. Ursa, naturally, saw all that and that’s where I think her favoritism of Zuko comes from: she wanted to make up for the love that the kid lacked from his dad. Also, the qualities Zuko displayed and Ozai considered weak were, in fact, what she most valued about her son and which she failed to see in Azula, to her own growing horror. I like to believe that she wanted to stop the “brainwashing” of Azula, but found herself practically powerless to do anything about it. Her comment about something being wrong with Azula was, of course, misjudged, but to me it sounded more like a growing fear of what was happening to her baby, whom she did love just as much as Zuko, but found it impossible to connect with her. Her actions in the flashbacks seemed to me more like a desperate mother’s attempts to right, at least partially, the damage her husband was inflicting, though I do agree that her methods could have been better. Not sure if I could behave any different in this situation, though, to be honest. Especially if this had been going on for a long time. And naturally, Ozai would see this as an opportunity to further alienate Azula from the “weak” side of the family and link her to him all the more, convincing her that Ursa didn’t love her, that she preferred Zuko and thought Azula was a monster. What little Azula saw of Ursa’s actions would unfortunately only confirm those impressions, false though they were.
Phew. That was a long rant. Again, all of this is only my headcanon pieced together from the episodes and fandom itself and everyone is free to disagree.
CaitieCat
June 12, 2012 at 5:03 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
I’ll comment only to say that my sister and I reverse your birth order theory entirely: I’m three years older than my only sister, and she was mommy’s pet from the moment she slid out after a few hours of labour (mine was 33 hours, I don’t think she ever forgave me). She liked and likes the same music as my mother (my father was killed many years ago), they’d go shopping together in the same stores, they hang out and are all besties even still.
I’m the one who had a green mohawk, and joined the army, and went to university, and did all the other things my very working-class family didn’t approve of.
Anecdata: aren’t they fun?
dracomaleficium
June 13, 2012 at 3:05 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Well, obviously this principle would not be applied to all families everywhere. And yes, it does depend a huge deal on the upbringing, on the parents’ attitude to each child, on the child’s own personality as well as a whole lot of other things. The research did note that and served only to illustrate an interesting, observable trend – and I wish I could quote it or give links, but it wasn’t on the Internet that I read it and I haven’t noted down the sources. Besides, it’s not “my” theory, just something I read about recently and thought both plausible, based on my own experiences, and relevant to “Avatar,” which by and large enforces this quite strongly.
Audrey
June 22, 2012 at 7:37 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Thanks for both of you sharing your stories! It’s fun to hear different people’s takes on family dynamics and headcanons. I really do love speculation–playing the “what if” game is a favorite of mine.
CaitieCat
June 12, 2012 at 5:03 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
I think you’ve said most of what I’d say, Audrey, save only that I am really, really glad that Iroh didn’t send Azula something like, say, a puppy.
Just sayin’.
Audrey
June 22, 2012 at 7:18 am (UTC -6) Link to this comment
Actually, I kind of wish he had–because I can totally see Azula training the puppy to be an amazing warhound or something of that nature. Not that she needs any more highly competent people on her side, but it would have been awesome.
Momo
April 27, 2013 at 10:41 pm (UTC -6) Link to this comment
I love both your analysis of Azula as a child and her interaction with Ursa, and of the commonly repeated mantra “Azula always lies.” Both are novel interpretations I think. Everyone is like “Azula needed therapy as a child blah blah blah.” All the things she were saying were just true political/strategic sort of statements that are not kind/tactful, but are definitely unusual coming out of a child. The way she talks as a child just shows how precocious she was. It was Ursa who just kept shutting her down!
And Azula mixing in lies with the truth makes her unpredictable! It is all done with a purpose.
That’s why I don’t write her off as being of some clinically-defined, anti-social personality. Do you agree with that Audrey?
Some say she is anti-social, born that way from a child. I don’t think so.