This is a fanmade opening to Avatar: the Last Airbender; anime style.
Like a Gaggle of Geese, I wonder what a group of Zukos would be called?
An Honor of Zukos?
The meeting of the Zukos
zuko们的会面
Let’s talk about Zuko. And since it’s October, let’s talk about “Creepy Zuko”. And how Ozai’s abuse has effected his children.
Another magic circle for Avatar the Last Airbender. I’m a huge fan of both Avatar: the last Airbender and Cardcaptors. I’ve always really like Li’s compass for finding the Clow Cards, so I redesigned it to find the next avatar.
My pamphlet for earth bending. Air still to come.
Feel free to ask questions.
You know how in the series finale Ozai declares himself the Phoenix King? I’ve always found that odd, since dragon seems to be the prestige animal of the Fire Nation. However, once I realized what the phoenix in Avatar actually was, it all clicked.
The “phoenix” that Ozai is referring to is the “Vermilion Bird” or Zhūquè (朱雀). The Vermillion Bird is a mythological bird that is portrayed as bright red and perpetually on fire, basically the closest equivalent to a phoenix in Chinese culture. The Vermilion Bird also represents fire and the season of summer, the two most defining attributes of Sozin’s Comet.
So, essentially, Ozai is declaring himself the king of fire and summer and Sozin’s Comet and all things Fire Nation-y. We all could’ve figured that out without the cultural context, but it goes much so much deeper.
The name of Ozai’s father is Azulon, which I mentioned in an earlier post means “Azure Dragon”. The Azure Dragon is associated with spring. When Ozai declares himself “Phoenix”, he is basically calling himself the “natural” successor to the Azure Dragon. Summer comes after spring, after all.
Think about that. Ozai has been Fire Lord for 5 years already and he’s still obsessed with proving that he deserves the throne. That he was “destined” to have it. He knows he isn’t a dragon like Azulon or Iroh, so he decides he’ll be be even better than that: A phoenix! The ruler of summer! He’s the embodiment of fire—Yup, Mr. Fire Lord, the most Fire Lord man to ever Fire Lord, coming through. It’s all so very dramatic and pathetic and reeking of insecurity.
And if Azulon is spring, and Ozai is summer, then Zuko is autumn. Which makes sense, since Zuko’s reign is defined by the dismantling of the Fire Nation empire; the branches of their imperialism withering away. In Chinese culture, the season of autumn is represented by the element of Metal. The-Hot-Zone, @the-hot-zone, put it best:
For Zuko to also be associated with metal is… pretty fitting. Metalbending is an entirely new style of earthbending, and it completely changes how people view earth. This can symbolize the shift Zuko will bring to the Fire Nation: re-associating fire with life, with passion, with light. It’s about the new understanding of an element.
Also, the animal associated with fall is the White Tiger, which is pretty rad. Zuko’s fierceness is very tiger-like.
This is my second bending pamphlet. It explains some of the basics of Firebending. (EDIT:) The Air and Earth bending pamphlets will have to be a little different since they don’t get stronger or weaker.
The Boy in the Iceberg and The Avatar Returns first aired on February 21st, 2005.
94 posts