The Pitch: *Ahem* Cue the dramatic music, please…
WATER! EARTH! FIRE! AIR!
Way back, the 4 nations lived collectively in concord. Then, the whole lot modified when the Fireplace Nation attacked. Solely the Avatar, grasp of all 4 parts, might cease them. However when the world wanted him most, he vanished…
So goes the enduring intro from the unique Nickelodeon sequence, Avatar: The Final Airbender, and as one may count on, Netflix’s new live-action adaptation follows the identical premise. Aang (Gordon Cormier), the titular Avatar and final airbender, is tasked with restoring peace to a warring, magical universe. After inadvertently trapping himself in ice for 100 years, he awakes to seek out the world he as soon as knew on fireplace — actually. The Fireplace Nation is within the midst of a number of genocides of their pursuit of energy, and Aang and his associates are all that stand of their manner.
Although, at coronary heart, he’s nothing greater than a fun-loving child in over his head, Aang should come to phrases together with his duties. Joined by budding waterbender Katara (Kiawentiio Tarbell) and her older brother Sokka (Ian Ousley), Aang should hone his expertise earlier than it’s too late, all whereas working from a younger, conflicted Fireplace Nation prince, Zuko (Dallas James Liu), who’s tasked with capturing him.
The Flying Bison within the Room: As any Avatar fan (or any obsessive so-bad-it’s-good movie fan) is aware of, this isn’t the primary try and carry the world of The Final Airbender into the realm of live-action. M. Night time Shyamalan beat Netflix to the punch by properly over a decade — and was immediately ridiculed for the trouble by followers, critics, and nearly anybody unfortunate sufficient to catch a glimpse of the movie.
From each a fan and filmmaking perspective, the backlash is fairly comprehensible. Within the movie, names get the fallacious pronunciation, the dialogue is laughable, the as soon as vibrant world is uninteresting, and Shyamalan forgoes the unique sequence’ humor and lightness for drab dramatics. Luckily, it appears as if the crew over at Netflix has studied Shyamalan’s blunder, and made a degree to method the supply materials in virtually the precise reverse manner.
Placing the “Avatar” Again into the “Final Airbender”: Not like 2010’s The Final Airbender, Netflix’s Avatar brims with life. Regardless of leaning into the devastation and destruction of the narrative simply as a lot (and probably much more) than the present’s unique run, the important moments of pleasure and levity stay firmly intact. Simply as necessary, the world feels expansive and lived-in, with plausible, distinct pockets of tradition occupying every nook of the story.
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