Summary
Avatar: The Last Airbenderand its sequel seriesThe Legend of Korraarguably represent some of the finest television products American animation has ever produced. What started as a simple adventure series in 2005 has morphed into a mini-franchise, with a cult following, ratings, and awards to show for it. Thus, one can only imagine fans’ joy when news broke that Nickelodeon was developing anotherAvatar: The Last Airbendersequel series.
After the success ofThe Legend of Korra,there’s no doubt over any new material coming from franchise creators Michael DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko. However, aprequel that digs into the lives ofprevious Avatars like Kuruk, Kyoshi, and Yangchenor even a pre-bending society might be even more intriguing. A pre-modern Avatar world, one even less developed than Avatar Aang’s, where there is relative political peace and more of a greater existential threat could be a world worth exploring.
Another Avatar Animated Series Sequel Is in the Works
Prepare for Twin Earth-Bending Avatars in ‘Avatar: Seven Heavens’
In the last week of February, few fandoms were happier than the “Avatarverse” fans (not you, James Cameron nerds). A press release from Nickelodeon at the 20th anniversary celebration ofAvatar: The Last Airbender, read thata newAvataranimated series was in developmentat the four-year-old Avatar Studios, titledAvatar: Seven Havens. From the official logline,Avatar: Seven Havenswould put a new perspective on the Avatar cycle, centering on a pair of earth-bending Avatar twins, living in a post-Avatar Korra world. It reads thus:
Set in a world shattered by a devastating cataclysm. A young earth-bender discovers she’s the new Avatar after Korra – but in this dangerous era, that title marks her as humanity’s destroyer, not its savior. Hunted by both human and spirit enemies, she and her long-lost twin must uncover their mysterious origins and save the Seven Havens before civilization’s last strongholds collapse.
With a perfect 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes and an IMDB rating of 9.3/10,Avatar:The Last Airbenderis amongthe highest-rated animated TV showsever and is widely regarded as the best of all time. Its sequel,The Legend of Korra,expanded the lore in bold and unexpected ways. It received slightly less praise, but it’s an arguable case of being a victim of its predecessor’s success. In other words,Avatar:The Last Airbenderset an extremely high bar thatThe Legend of Korrastruggled to clear, although it can be argued that it was better in some respects.
Avatar: Seven Havensis a long, long way from release, and the trio of Konietzko, DiMartino, and Nickelodeon certainly understand the intense pressure from fans to deliver.
It’s the Perfect Time for an Avatar Prequel
What Would a Pre-Bending World Look Like?
TheAvataruniverse can handle another sequel, but its lore is rich enough to demand a prequel. Previous Avatars whose acts had a significant impact in their lifetime deserve much more than being glanced at through flashbacks during various points in the shows. Looking into these eras could give fans a better understanding of the Avatar cycle and the struggles these iconic characters faced.
Take Avatar Kyoshi for example, whose era was characterized by social unrest and political conspiracy. An orphaned servant, she grew to become one of the most powerful Avatars in history — as told in theRise of Kyoshinovels — and the most powerful heroine. Add this to her unyielding sense of justice, and it is clear a Kyoshi-centered show begging to be born. Avatar Kuruk had a bit more screen time inThe Legend of Korraand Neflix’s live-action adaptation, but not nearly enough to satiate fans. Then there is Avatar Yangchen, known for her wisdom and diplomacy, who existed in a time of relative peace, but even then, the world was not peril-less.
Even better, there could be an entire season on the origin of bending! How cool would it be to see the first earth-benders learn from the Badger moles, the first water benders from the moon and the tides, and the first fire benders from the dragons? Not to mention the political dynamics of a pre-bending society and how that would differ from the politics fans are used to from the franchise. The lack of a grumpyFire Lord and his imperialist goalsdon’t mean a lack of conflict between tribes. Human history shows that societies are bound to have large-scale conflicts after a long time of relative peace and there’s no reason the ancient pre-bending societies are any different.
2D Animation Remains The Right Choice For Avatar
The decision to keep the new series animated — and in the classic 2D — is a good one, especially in an age ofneedless live-action remakes of animated classicssuch asHow to Train Your DragonandSnow White. Not only does 2D animation allow for a level of creative and visual storytelling freedom that 3D animation and live-action struggle to imitate, but it’s also the best kind for manipulating the elements, like in theAvatarfranchise. There’s no need to go far searching for an example – Netflix’s live-actionAvatar: The Last Airbenderseries exists. It received criticism for failing to capture the original’s charm and flexibility. Thus, it’s only natural that any future prequel series will be animated as well.
Despite this postulation, a live-actionAvatarprequel — or anyAvatarfilm for that matter — still has odds of succeeding. Imagine a story set during the Hundred-Year War about a group of rebels fighting against the Fire Nation, a movie describing Iroh’s journey from Fire Nation general to a wise tea-loving uncle, or one about how the first benders terrorized the non-benders. Now imagine equipping it with a $100 million budget and gettinga legend like Steven Spielbergon board. The hype train would be out of control.
