It's Janurary 3rd Somewhere. Not Here. But Somewhere

Episode 3 thoughts: 

Having Jet and the mechanist in one episode was a risk that didn’t entirely work, but is something I am impressed with. I would NOT have written these episodes together, but I think it's a pretty interesting take. It really pits Katara and Sokka against each other in a very interesting way, whilst placing Aang in a middle ground. 

I mean I HATE that they go “omg…you are the bad guy” like NO REALLY. But also like…assigning BAD and GOOD to people through just SAYING they are is soooo odd. Like no thanks. Let US work that out, have Katara be betrayed and hurt, not her just casually calling him a bad dude. 

Oh also the no bending zuko vs aang fight? Pretty interesting it showed Dallas’s tallents with martial arts in a really fun way because I could actually see it beyond the fire bending! PLUS the use of props in the fighting was fun! Zuko breaking that stick off and using it, Aang defending with the plates and baskets, it was all really dynamic! Oh plus zuko being hit by a broom. Oh and then the fights in the carpet drapes!?that was filmed interestingly (though the music was…a choice). 

Katara and Sokka riding the postal delivery carts up to the castle was a cute throw back to the original show, and also interestingly explored omashus own culture and how it can be used in ‘fights’. It was a neat addition rather than just walking there. 

 “You have my notebook” is such an odd line. I wish they went into more detail as to WHY this notebook is so important in the first few episodes because currently it means literally nothing. Like it seems to hold a log of his journey? Or his knowledge of the avatars? But like…a little more depth please! Cuss it IS interesting to know that Zuko put EFFORT into his research and it’s almost funny that he’s the one that teaches aang parts of what past avatars have done. Like its very comical! And Zuko losing it over it being missing is even more funny. 

Iroh unironically going “for the fire nation” was….a choice. And not a good one in my opinion. Especially since it FEELS like they are planning on keeping the white lotus plot line (they did show Iroh buying a lotus tile) so for him to so casually do that it just feels odd. Like him protecting zuko? Normal. Him doing that??? eeehhhhhhh.

The removal of the sexism pisses me off not because it just affects Sokkas character but because it has ruined almost every woman in the show.

Suki takes off her make up often, as if it isn't a large part of her cultural identity and personality, as if her being a kyoshi warior and her destinctly femenine clothes are something to be ashamed off or that hinders her. Because its only her that gets this treat amongst the warriors, and shes the only main kyoshi warrior for the audience.

Yue's entire character is removed. It is replaced with what I think is meant to be a sympathetic princess to the people, she joins the nans in the kitchens and make deserts for the children. Like a disney princess whose quirky and silly and held back only by her title of a princess. Gone is the battle between her desire to help and her duty to be a water tribe ideal woman. Gone is her realising that the best way to help her people is to not be an ideal woman, but to take action and to do what no one else can, to become one with the moon so that she can forever help not just her tribe but the entire world. It is depressing, it is deep, it isn't fair to her but when has the world ever been fair?

Katara aswell. Her bending is forever unlocked by men (Aang and Jet), her defiance of authority is lessened and her naievety is also changed. A lot of her motherhood role is also completlty gone since they have changed Sokkas sexism into elder brother smothering. Her fight with Paku holds a lot less significance since she has no RAGE behind her. No rage that has built for YEARS as time and time again people have said no to her face for being a woman, for being weak, for not being enough simply because of who she is. that doesn't exist for her anymore because the water tribes are just...nice. We see one bad person in the water tribe and its Hadoka and he's mean to sokka! Kataras rage comes from Paku saying no to her, and whilst thats swell, it changes her entire "I'm a master now" moment into just...lame girlbossery. Thats kinda how the entire last 2 episodes felt like for her character. A common girlboss character without the emotional depth to make it femenism.

I think my main issue is that both shows set themselves up as being femenist by nature. The og show wanted to tackle issues with sexism, using book 1 as its main demonstration with it, but the theme still follows throughout the narative. netflix's show outright said they were removing the sexist elements. When you place youself onto that pedastal, any sexist writing you have becomes emphasised.

The og show undoubtably has sexist moments! Irohs comments to June are the most obvious to me, a long with a couple comments from Zuko later on. You can certainly argue that the extreme lack of GOOD mother figures is an issue (Kat and Sokkas mother is dead, Zukos is 'dead', and Toph is awful and rather quite compared to her father). Theres other examples, although currently my brain cannot think of any since I don't often write indepth critisms.

The live actions main point of sexism is its female main characters. we literally meet Yue in the kitchen! Women can be in kitchens but that is certainly a choice! Theres this strange hatred for make up aswell, yes with Suki but also with Sokka. His war paint is removed. Its like saying make up cannot be worn by strong fighters which is rather sexist. Speaking off: not putting Sokka in the kyoshi outfit is just...dumb? If you want to show him learning the style, having him wear the outfit. Its an aspect of the style and philosophy. A man wearing make up and a skirt doesn't emasculate him yet the show makes it feel that way with the refusal to do it. "Oh but then you'd have Sokka and Suki kiss in the kyoshi outfits" who cares. "it will look like lesbians" it won't. Even if it did, who cares? you can't be 'femenist' and anti-lesbian. Putting Sokka in the Kyoshi outfit, having him respect it, is just as important as having Aang learn the other elements, or Iroh creating lightning redirection. Why? because it shows a respect of culture, and how you can blend that into your own way of thinking. It's cultural extchanged based on respect.

When you name yourself femenist, yet have explicitly sexist writing, your GOING to get dogpiled with critism based on that 'femenist' msg.

here's some more characters as quotes I've taken from a discord server I'm in cuss I enjoyed going back through our quotes channel and only got like 3 months in :) . Mostly said by me and wildly ooc Chishiya: If I had to pick between Kuina and a life time supply of diet coke, I honestly have no idea who I’d pick  Chishiya: swear to god I’ll find your address and knock your ass to sleep if you don't do it yourself  Arisu: come knock me out bby 😏😏😏 Hatter: I wanna fuck the sun Kuina: viva la Pluto fuck you

Arisu: joint wanking sessions guys  Usagi: excuse me?  Chishiya: joint. wanking. sessions.

Chishiya: do you like your balls?  Niragi: I like them licked yeah  Usagi: why is Chishiya glowing? Arisu: he's pregnant  Hatter: thats my queefsona  Chouta: BARKL BARL BAKR NO WATCH NOW I BEG TWERKS 

Arisus: talking to a random guy who imagines it’s you and him in fury porn ain’t that bad right? Right?

Usagi: love we’ve talked about this. Stop talking to weird men on the internet

Chishiya: unless your getting money for feet pics

Usagi: not helping you stupid mother fucker

I want one scene where the group gets right proper startled the fuck outa their skin. and all you have is Arisu jumping into Chishiyas arms. Who obviously jumped into Kuinas arms. Who obviously jumped into Usagis arms. So now you have a wabbly kneed Usagi awkwardly holding up the three of them up as the thing that scared them stares shocked because last it checked this wasn't fucking scooby doo 

I think what really set hoa apart from other shows for me ( other then my kid brain thinking season one had 90 episodes) was that all the relationships felt real? and like not even the romantic ones the platonic ones especially.  like yeah some of the scene can come off as something out of a cheese romance fic but they can also come off as just them being friends and bonding? and especially bonding with people that they've known for ages but haven't really like connected with if that makes sense? and I think it really reminds me of my old classes where yeah we’d not talk but when it got to certain times ( like before an exam or a last day of school) where we’d all just band together and chat and laugh and be a group? that's what I see in the relationships shown on the screen.  but maybe that was also what was missing in season 3 for me at least, because it introduced a lot of new characters who didn't know anyone/ new a few people. with Nina and Eddie the show showed that the og house residence already knew these people so it felt like we with Nina were being introduced into their lives and becoming friends with them and forming the deep bonds they already had. and then with Eddie we still follow Nina sorta so its not as jarring as if the pov suddenly switched to Eddie for season 2 ( and I think it made Eddie being the protag in season 3 a much cleaner transition then it could have been).  but with season 3 there were a lot of new characters that didn’t have already formed dynamics. and to go from the tight knit group of season 2 to people leaving, relationship drama, old couples that we loved being replaced by the new people ( and that's not the characters fault nor is it exactly unrealistic but its jarring all the same if that makes sense) it feels odd. it feels like almost a season 1 relationship building style with a season 3 plot and at times it made the show harder to watch because it couldn't explore as many emotions without redoing them from Nina's time, and it couldn't explore as many plot dynamics because the bonds weren't as strong.

but like season 3? pretty good considering they lost their old protag and then also Amber. though I do with we saw Fabians struggle with both of them leaving more because like sabuna was the 3 of them to behind with, and to be the last of the founders must feel horrid. and then for Eddie to rightfully take the lead and Patricia to take his place as like the love interest to the lead it must have been awkward? idk maybe they did explore that its been years since I watched season 3 

Joy absolutely brought fabian a shit-ton of fabs during the summer as a joke on his nickname. He’d be like “I’m so hot” and bam 5 minuets later she’s shoving a fab ice lollie in his hand cuss she’s just so kind

what types on fandoms characters write fanfics for except I take it off fandoms ive written for within my life.  Arisu: Final fantasy Usagi: Voltron  Kuina: Disney channel movies (specifically camp rock and lemonade mouth) Chishiya: paradise lost  Aguni: hamlet, Macbeth and Romeo and Juliet. man likes his Shakespeare  Hatter: mlp and paradise lost Niragi: mlp but the brony kind (I have not written this however it fits him) Karube: the illiad. oh and stardew valley chouta: pokemon

You know I do think it's interesting how strongly Fullmetal Alchemist (2003) makes the point that bringing someone back from the dead is inherently selfish.

I've seen it elsewhere but not nearly as unequivocally and plainly put. First, we have Majhal in episode 4 - an alchemist so obsessed with bringing back his dead love, he completely fails to notice that she survived and returned to him. And even once the truth is revealed... he rejects her, since she's not the ~perfect girl~ from his memories, but an old woman - an actual person, with an actual life.

And if you missed it there, we then meet Tucker, so obsessed with keeping his lifestyle and success as a State Alchemist he does, you know, that. And then he goes on to become obsessed with bringing her back - but not her, not really, as he straight-up tells Ed in the 5th laboratory - he wants the girl from his memories, the perfect, unchanging doll.

Both times, we see that those obsessed with bringing someone back from the dead aren't interested in bringing back a person, with thoughts and feelings and their own independent life to live - no, they want their idea of that person, the glowing angel who could never change, never grow, and never go wrong. And that also goes for Ed and Izumi too - Ed was so obsessed with bringing his mother back that he ignored Pinako, ignored the family that took him in, and selfishly put his brother's life at risk... for which he paid the price. Izumi lost her ability to have future children, any of them, stuck on a dream on the child she could have had. Both didn't want that mother/child - they wanted their loved ones, the ones they dreamed of, not the ones that were actually there.

Most times resurrection is brought up in media, it's with the lesson that "oh, the cost is too high", "oh, you're disturbing their rest", "oh, they don't come back right." It's rare to see it put so clearly, so obviously, so horrifically that actually, no, even the fact that you attempt it - even the fact that you want to - is an inherently selfish act, that turns your back on life and the living to chase a dream that may not have ever existed.

It's an interesting take on the whole idea, of death and life and memory and obsession. For all that 2003 dropped the ball on the ending, I do love the development they gave to the characters!

I get that the Doyel episodes are like...Emily centric or whatever. But In lauren it has SUCH a sweet arc for Derek. From being angry that Emily never revealed the truth, feeling almost ashamed that she could never trust him, to confessing that he is proud of her as she DIES in his arms? Like okay she doesn't die, but from his understanding she is close to death and then DOES eventually 'die'. Like that transition is insane and it's so in character.

He's always has a more logical way of treated the unsubs and the people in cases with the ocasional diversion from this treatment. He's also very heavy in his ideas of trust and family. And he puts all that aside and focuses on that one idea of family, because it doesn't matter about being logical in this instant, all that matters is that she understands that even arfter everything that has happened she is still his family and his friend. They can work this out in the future, but for that to happen she has to stay clinging to life and its just...It's really sweet. Sometimes I write Derek off as having a very lacking character arc compared to other characters but I think I'm very wrong about that, its subtle but its consistent and common in the episodes.