Avatar: The Last Airbender live-action show on Netflix (now sans its creators).

[Kalbear]

2 minutes ago, ASOIAFrelatedusername said:

And honestly why not just follow the original?

Because live action doesn't work that way as far as production and costs go. It is hard to have actors for one season as a bit part and then major parts later - contracts don't work that way. It is hard to adapt 20-minute episodes into 60-minute episodes easily without them feeling disjointed and inconsistent. It is hard to adapt a purely weekly episodic show with commercial breaks to a streaming, binging show and expect the same behaviors. It is hard to pay for a whole lot of characters who have only a couple lines here and there when you're filming, and it is hard to have a lot of different sets and locations. 

And when I say 'hard', it means 'expensive'. All of those things are basically free in animation or very cheap, especially when you can hire voice actors to play many different parts. 

I mean if you want slavish copying of the original you can just watch the original. It's not even changing in language. 

[ASOIAFrelatedusername]

18 minutes ago, Kalbear said:

Azula's pretty glory-obsessed too, but sure - Zhao isn't as coldhearted. My point is that both Zhao and Azula serve similar story beats - which is a representation of the really bad parts of the Fire Nation and an antagonist for Zuko other than Aang. We need Zuko to both attempt to try and get Aang AND attempt to resist the Fire Nation. Azula and Zhao fit that niche. 

Is Azula though? She definitely wants approval from her father but she definitely seems less interested in military glory. I cannot imagine Zhao dealing with Ba Sing Se as she has.

The resisting the Fire Nation part really comes only in later though, when Zuko becomes an outlaw. In book 1 it really only presents itself as being less of an ass.

EDIT:

14 minutes ago, Kalbear said:

Because live action doesn't work that way as far as production and costs go. It is hard to have actors for one season as a bit part and then major parts later - contracts don't work that way. It is hard to adapt 20-minute episodes into 60-minute episodes easily without them feeling disjointed and inconsistent. It is hard to adapt a purely weekly episodic show with commercial breaks to a streaming, binging show and expect the same behaviors. It is hard to pay for a whole lot of characters who have only a couple lines here and there when you're filming, and it is hard to have a lot of different sets and locations. 

Honestly I don't care that much about the production problems of a giant cooperation and I don't think that I should need to. The ranters and ravers complained about Jeyne Westerling and not having three seasons of A Feast Dance for Crow Dragons and so shall I likewise do when I find something objectionable.

On the plus side though: The show looks really good. Even accounting for the advances in technology, it looks SO much better than the abomination. For now my only real concern is the number of episodes and Azula being introduced too early.

 

Edited January 23 by ASOIAFrelatedusername

[Kalbear]

2 minutes ago, ASOIAFrelatedusername said:

Is Azula though? She definitely wants approval from her father but she definitely seems less interested in military glory. I cannot imagine Zhao dealing with Ba Sing Se as she has.

Azula wants absolute power and glory and to cement her position as the heir to the Fire Nation. She is definitely achievement-driven, though not for the same reasons as Zhao. As I said they aren't the same character - I'm not claiming they are - but they serve similar purposes.

2 minutes ago, ASOIAFrelatedusername said:

The resisting the Fire Nation part really comes only in later though, when Zuko becomes an outlaw. In book 1 it really only presents itself as being less of an ass.

You need Zuko to be shown to be willing to oppose the Fire Nation early. Even if he's not doing it incredibly actively like he does later, you need to set that up in act 1 so that in act 2 it makes more sense why he goes as far as he does. And Zuko repeatedly goes against the Fire Nation orders in order to save his honor and redeem himself in act 1, even if he's not actively fighting against them like he does in Act 2 and 3. 

My point is that you need to have someone for him to oppose in the Fire Nation or later on his turn against them feels real absurd. (it still kind of does, honestly, when he just goes to talk to Aang and they take the piss out of him for it, but at least we saw more of it)

[ASOIAFrelatedusername]

2 minutes ago, Kalbear said:

You need Zuko to be shown to be willing to oppose the Fire Nation early. Even if he's not doing it incredibly actively like he does later, you need to set that up in act 1 so that in act 2 it makes more sense why he goes as far as he does. And Zuko repeatedly goes against the Fire Nation orders in order to save his honor and redeem himself in act 1, even if he's not actively fighting against them like he does in Act 2 and 3. 

And none of that needed Azula. And even still his actions were more directed against Zhao specifically then the Fire Nation.

[Kalbear]

Just now, ASOIAFrelatedusername said:

And none of that needed Azula. And even still his actions were more directed against Zhao specifically then the Fire Nation.

I didn't say it needed Azula; it needs someone. And if they wanted to save money and acting AND bring in Azula early and ensure they get the right cast for her, that'd be a way to consolidate it. Also his opposition to the Fire Nation is basically his opposition to his father, which both Zhao and Azula represent; he needs to realize he does not need to earn back his father's respect and he has to do so gradually by opposition to what his father is, but he has to have that opposition exist. Zhao represents that in act 1, Azula in act 2, but they both are there for Zuko to oppose. 

Put it another way - if you don't need to have Zuko oppose something you don't need Zhao or Azula. 

Doesn't really matter because Zhao is going to be part of things, but the point is that in a lot of shows when you know you have a major need for a character later you cast them and contract them now - and that also means you have to give them a fair amount to do depending on what billing you're giving them. That's just the nature of the acting business. 

[Maltaran]

2 hours ago, ASOIAFrelatedusername said:

 

That leaves one episode of stuff where you can slot in Jet, Haru, Jun, and/or Jeong Jeong. That is really cutting it close.

 

 

Jet and Jun are both in the trailer, and I’m reasonably sure I saw Jeong Jeong as well.

[ASOIAFrelatedusername]

5 minutes ago, Maltaran said:

Jet and Jun are both in the trailer, and I’m reasonably sure I saw Jeong Jeong as well.

Jun and Jet I saw, but where is Jeong Jeong?

[Werthead]

I believe we already have the episode titles:

1. The Last Airbender
2. Warriors
3. Omashu
4. Into the Dark
5. Spirited Away
6. Masks
7. The North
8. Legends

The characters confirmed to be in Season 1:

• Team Avatar: Aang, Katara, Sokka, Appa, Momo
• Team Fire Bastards: Zuko, Iroh, Ozai, Zhao, Dang, The Great Sage, Sozin, Jee, 
• The Squad: Azula, Ty Lee, Mai
• Team Kyoshi: Suki, Yukari
• Team Air Nomad: Gyatso, Tsutop,
• Team Southern Water Tribe: Gran-Gran, Kya, Hakoda,
• Team Northern Water Tribe: Pakku, Yue, Hahn, Arnook, Yagoda,
• Team Earth Kingdom: Bumi, The Mechanist (Danny Pudi!), Teo, The Cabbage Merchant,
• Team OG Flashback Avatars: Kyoshi, Roku, Kuruk
• Team Miscellaneous: June (and weird big snake thing), Jet, The Duke, Smellerbee, Longshot, Koh the Face-Stealer, Wan Shi Tong (the Owl Library Dude)

Mostly OG Season 1 characters with a few exceptions. I'm wondering if the Owl Dude is the Narrator or something. I suspect Team Azula is around purely in the flashbacks and we don't get much from them until the end of the season (recall that Azula is actually in OG Season 1, twice, but has no dialogue).

Edited January 23 by Werthead

[ASOIAFrelatedusername]

18 minutes ago, Werthead said:

• The Last Airbender
• Warriors
• Omashu
• Into the Dark
• Spirited Away
• Masks
• The North
• Legends

No idea what that will be about.

18 minutes ago, Werthead said:

Mostly OG Season 1 characters with a few exceptions. I'm wondering if the Owl Dude is the Narrator or something. I suspect Team Azula is around purely in the flashbacks and we don't get much from them until the end of the season (recall that Azula is actually in OG Season 1, twice, but has no dialogue).

I suspect a Zhao flashback/current time event where he goes to the library and finds out about the nature of Tui and La.

Edited January 23 by ASOIAFrelatedusername

[Werthead]

How the episodes may break down:

1. The Last Airbender. Probably 101-103 (The Boy in the Iceberg, The Avatar Returns, The Southern Air Temple).
2. Warriors. Probably 104 (The Warriors of Kyoshi).
3. Omashu. Probably 105 (The King of Omashu), but intriguingly a suggestion that it also incorporates 117 (The Northern Air Temple), as Teo's glider is seen flying over what appears to be Omashu.
4. Into the Dark. Possibly just 106 (Imprisoned), but that feels a bit slight, and I could see 106 being ejected altogether. It's possible this story might incorporate multiple miscellaneous episodes of OG Season 1, including possibly 109 (The Waterbending Scroll), 110 (Jet) and 111 (The Great Divide), although I can see 109 and 111 also being on the chopping block.
5. Spirited Away. Fairly obviously 107-108 (The Spirit World and Avatar Roku, a two-parter).
6. Masks. I would estimate 112-113 (The Storm, The Blue Spirit), as we see Zuko in his Blue Spirit guise, and it would be easy to combine this with his backstory and flashbacks involving Ozai and Azula.
7. The North. Probably 115 (Bato of the Water Tribe, where June appears) and maybe 116-117 (The Deserter, The Northern Air Temple, possibly sans the Mechanist stuff).
8. Legends. Probably 118-120 (The Waterbending Master, The Siege of the North Part 1 and Part 2).

Someone online suggested merging Warriors of Kyoshi with Jet, which might explain why the new title is just Warriors. That could work.

Edited January 23 by Werthead

[Ser Rodrigo Belmonte II]

Sounds incredibly rushed, they really should’ve done 10-12  1 hour long episodes. Also where’s the humour the show was known for ? It seems a bit too serious. The environments also look waay to Volumish. 

Edited January 24 by Ser Rodrigo Belmonte II

[fionwe1987]

9 hours ago, ASOIAFrelatedusername said:

it looks SO much better than the abomination.

What abomination? As far as I know, this is the first live action recreation of the show, no? If not, I may need to invite you to Lake Laogai.

8 hours ago, Werthead said:

How the episodes may break down:

1. The Last Airbender. Probably 101-103 (The Boy in the Iceberg, The Avatar Returns, The Southern Air Temple).
2. Warriors. Probably 104 (The Warriors of Kyoshi).
3. Omashu. Probably 105 (The King of Omashu), but intriguingly a suggestion that it also incorporates 117 (The Northern Air Temple), as Teo's glider is seen flying over what appears to be Omashu.
4. Into the Dark. Possibly just 106 (Imprisoned), but that feels a bit slight, and I could see 106 being ejected altogether. It's possible this story might incorporate multiple miscellaneous episodes of OG Season 1, including possibly 109 (The Waterbending Scroll), 110 (Jet) and 111 (The Great Divide), although I can see 109 and 111 also being on the chopping block.
5. Spirited Away. Fairly obviously 107-108 (The Spirit World and Avatar Roku, a two-parter).
6. Masks. I would estimate 112-113 (The Storm, The Blue Spirit), as we see Zuko in his Blue Spirit guise, and it would be easy to combine this with his backstory and flashbacks involving Ozai and Azula.
7. The North. Probably 115 (Bato of the Water Tribe, where June appears) and maybe 116-117 (The Deserter, The Northern Air Temple, possibly sans the Mechanist stuff).
8. Legends. Probably 118-120 (The Waterbending Master, The Siege of the North Part 1 and Part 2).

Someone online suggested merging Warriors of Kyoshi with Jet, which might explain why the new title is just Warriors. That could work.

I fully expect them to move things around, if 20 episodes are to be covered in 8, just because you cannot have that many beginnings, middles and endings. 

It makes sense to combine Kiyoshi Island, Jet's band of rebels, and maybe even Haru into one episode to give a sense of how the Fire Nation is being resisted all over the Earth Kingdom in various ways.

As for Azula, I see little evidence she's all over the story. I expect we get enough of her to do some Fire Nation worldbuilding beyond what the OG show did with Zuko, Iroh and Zhao, but I don't think she'd be a major part of the action this season. 

The show looks great, and the action looks surprisingly good, given how amazing the OG show's action scenes are.

All that said, the little snippets of dialog we get in the trailer from the main characters isn't very promising. The Team Avatar kids seem very wooden. 

[Maltaran]

11 hours ago, ASOIAFrelatedusername said:

Jun and Jet I saw, but where is Jeong Jeong?

There was at least one old fire bender who wasn’t Iroh

[ASOIAFrelatedusername]

The trailer does lack the same energy the show had, but that's probably because of the change from animation to live-action.

1 hour ago, Maltaran said:

There was at least one old fire bender who wasn’t Iroh

I suspect that was Roku.

[Ser Rodrigo Belmonte II]

14 minutes ago, ASOIAFrelatedusername said:

The trailer does lack the same energy the show had, but that's probably because of the change from animation to live-action.

 

The one piece live action adaptation didn’t have that problem though.

[sifth]

1 hour ago, Ser Rodrigo Belmonte II said:

The one piece live action adaptation didn’t have that problem though.

I mean, I can only speak for myself, but I hated the One Piece trailer and was shocked how much I loved that show.

[fionwe1987]

https://in.ign.com/avatar-the-last-airbender-live-action/200999/feature/avatar-the-last-airbender-producers-reveal-secrets-from-new-trailer

Trailer breakdown by the producers. The show apparently starts with the Fire Nation genocide of the Air Temples, including a scene with Sozin attacking Monk Gyatso, who is the voiceover at the start of the trailer, too.

I get why they're doing this, but I can't help but feel it's going to completely change the tone of the show, to actually show the Fire Nation doing it's genocide, rather than have us only see its aftermath, along with Aang. 

Edited January 24 by fionwe1987

[Heartofice]

The thing I really liked about the original show, was that it was at first a pretty light hearted and fluffy kids show, that also had underpinnings of some pretty complex themes and political backstory. That made it work on a number of levels. 

I do have my fears that this movie will just be unable to balance those things and make it all some generic modern day blockbuster which is all dire situations and conflict, with the occasional quip and prat fall to lighten the mood. A movie doesn't really have the time and space to do everything at one time, which is a shame. 

I am happy there is some sort of update however, I've tried going back and getting my kids to watch the show, but it's 4:3 and it doesn't really grab them. I don't think this movie is what I'd want though.

[Werthead]

It's a TV show, not a movie.

I agree that too jarring a tonal shift would be a mistake, so how they handle that will be key. 

Edited January 24 by Werthead

[fionwe1987]

40 minutes ago, Heartofice said:

The thing I really liked about the original show, was that it was at first a pretty light hearted and fluffy kids show, that also had underpinnings of some pretty complex themes and political backstory. That made it work on a number of levels. 

I do have my fears that this movie will just be unable to balance those things and make it all some generic modern day blockbuster which is all dire situations and conflict, with the occasional quip and prat fall to lighten the mood. A movie doesn't really have the time and space to do everything at one time, which is a shame. 

I am happy there is some sort of update however, I've tried going back and getting my kids to watch the show, but it's 4:3 and it doesn't really grab them. I don't think this movie is what I'd want though.

Have them watch Legend of Korra, which is available in 4k, widescreen. For friends of mine for whom the 4:3 ratio and "kiddish" nature of ATLA was the issue, one season of LOK was enough for them to get intrigued by the past, and they're all now slavish fans of the original, as well.

Also, as noted, this is an 8 episode show, with more run time than the 1st season of the animation, so they're not cramped for time. Sure seems a lot of that time will be spent on the Fire Nation, and backstory for how Aang becomes the Last Airbender, though.