Avatar: The Last Airbender (Season 1) Review, Recap & Ending Explained: Does Zhao Fulfil his Mission to Find the Avatar?

Avatar: The Last Airbender (Season 1) on Netflix is a live-action adaptation of the popular Nickelodeon animated series by the same name. Developed by Albert Kim, it follows Aang, a young Avatar, who needs to master the four elements (Water, Earth, Fire, and Air) to restore balance in their heavily conflicted world. Filled with elements of fantasy, action, and adventure, this series is entertaining and visually stunning. It features a big ensemble cast that includes Gordon Cormier, Dallas Liu, Kiawentiio, Ian Ousley, Paul Sun-Hyung Lee, Elizabeth Yu, and Daniel Dae Kim.

Spoilers ahead. 

Avatar: The Last Airbender (Season 1) Recap:

What is the plot of ‘Avatar: The Last Airbender’ on Netflix?

“Avatar: The Last Airbender” is a new adventure fantasy series streaming on Netflix. It is based on a beloved animated series by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko. The plot revolves around Aang, a young Avatar, who teams up with Katara Sokka to save the world from the looming threat of destruction posed by the Fire Nation. Through his journey, Aang learns to master Water, Earth, Fire, and Air to prove his mighty position.

What happens in ‘Avatar: The Last Airbender’ on Netflix?

“Avatar: The Last Airbender” follows many fantasy characters who have the power to bend one of the classic elements – water, earth, fire, or air. The lead character – Aang, is the last living airbender. He teams up with siblings – Katara and Sokka in the hope of world peace to protect it from the militaristic Fire Nation that aims to conquer the whole world.

Episode 1: Aang

Aang (Gordon Cormier), a young Airbender, is told that he is ‘the Avatar’ – who can shape the fate of the world. Unlike other people who would latch onto such an opportunity, Aang doesn’t want to be the Avatar. His master believes he is a little young for this work. Still, he gives Aang a huge responsibility. Soon after, a war erupts, turning their land into utter chaos. A century later, a pair of Water Tribe siblings – Katara (Kiawentiio) and Sokka (Ian Ousley), see a giant ice globe and discover Aang inside. Turns out, Aang stayed frozen inside this icy structure for all the years.

Aang learns that his village is destroyed and grapples with feelings of loss. Sokka fears that Aang may invite more trouble to their land and disturb the peace of the inhabitants. However, Katara believes it is their duty to help Aang. Meanwhile, Prince Zuko (Dallas Liu) – the exiled 17-year-old crown prince of the Fire Nation, believes Aang’s emergence is a sign of the Avatar’s presence. Zuko is hellbent to capture the Avatar to end his banishment and regain his honour.

When he reaches the Water Tribe habitat, Aang gives up himself to protect the locals. His sacrifice breaks Sokka’s heart. So, he decides to go save Aang from Zuko’s capture. Unfortunately, their troubles don’t end there. Zuko keeps looking for Aang. The Fire Nation remains a looming threat to the world.  So, Katara and Sokka decide to join Aang – as they travel away from their native land to protect him from the firebenders.

Episode 2: Warriors

Aang, Katara and Sokka decide to go to Kyoshi Island – home to elite warriors. Katara convinces Sokka to join Aang’s fight to save the world. Aang pays respect to his master, Gyatso. Eventually, they reach the island and meet the locals, who are suspicious of their presence. They live in a close-knit community of female warriors and purposefully allow no one inside. But they realize that Aang is the Avatar and let him in. The matriarch Yukari (Tamlyn Tomita) makes an exception for Aang and allows him to stay for 48 hours. Sokka starts developing feelings for Yukari’s daughter, Suki (Maria Zhang).

Aang struggles with his huge responsibility as the Avatar. Eventually, he manages to communicate with Avatar Kyoshi (Yvonne Chapman). Meanwhile, Uncle Iroh (Paul Sun-Hyung Lee) guides Zuko in their mission to capture Aang for The Fire Nation. They learn about the Kyoshi island, where Commander Zhao starts looking for Aang. Subsequently, they get into an intense fight against the locals. Suddenly, Avatar Kyoshi appears on the battleground and wipes out Zhao’s army. Aang decides to immediately leave the island to not cause any more damage. Yukari thanks Aang for restoring their faith in their collective power.

Episode 3: Omashu

Before Aang’s arrival in the new era, Zuko’s father – Fire Lord Ozai (Daniel Dae Kim), was about to get killed. That’s when Zuko’s sister, Azula (Elizabeth Yu), betrayed the rebels in their attempted coup. She opposes the idea of Zuko being the new Fire Lord. Meanwhile, in the present, Aang, Katara, and Sokka reach Omashu island of the Earth Kingdom and meet Jet (Sebastian Amoruso). Katara befriends him and manages to sneak into the town. Inside, they meet wheelchaired Teo (Lucian-River Chauhan), who leads them to the mechanist Sai (Danny Pudi).

Soon after, Katara notices Sai secretly speaking with a Fire Nation spy. Jet convinces Katara that Sai is against their well-intentioned goals. While Teo helps Aang in his training, Katara joins Jet’s gang of revels, whereas Sokka helps Sai in building his device. Soon after, Aang finds proof implicating Jet. However, Katara believes Sai is the traitor. The siblings fight over their disagreement. Eventually, Katara learns that Jet is the traitor who does not mind wiping out a large population for his plans. Meanwhile, Zuko and Iroh reach the island. Zuko starts fighting Aang. Iroh stops him before the villagers learn about his presence. Aang gets taken away by the local soldiers.

Episode 4: Into the Dark

Aang gets captured and taken to Omashu’s prison. There, he meets King Bumi (Utkarsh Ambudkar), i.e., Bumi, whom he used to train with as a kid. Aang requests to let him go to save the Water Benders. Bumi isn’t nearly as concerned about it. Meanwhile, Sai confesses that he helped the Fire Nation spies with minor designs for survival. Katara and Sokka seek Sai’s help to navigate their way through a dark tunnel – to save Aang. A tunnel man narrates the Tale of Two lovers, who built the tunnel to secretly meet. Eventually, Omashu was built as a result of their hope to live together.

The man warns them about the possible danger in the dark void. He tells them to remember – ‘Love is brightest in the dark.’ Still, Katara and Sokka decide to enter it to save Aang. They get stuck in a loop and learn to put their differences aside to find a way out. By then, Bumi gets in a fight with Aang. Suddenly, Katara and Sokka join Aang and help him win over Bumi. Meanwhile, Iroh gets arrested by the local militants. A soldier makes Iroh confront the dark actions he committed in the past for the war. He acted cruelly as a way to pay his debts to Ozai. Zuko saves him and returns to his goal to find Aang.

Episode 5: Spirited Away

Aang, Katara, & Sokka fight Fire Nation soldiers to protect themselves. Along the way to the North, they stumble on a recently destroyed land. Aang learns about their situation and decides to go rescue the innocent locals from the Spirit World. Once Aang’s spirit crosses over to the other realm, Katara and Sonka also get sucked into that world. They all come face to face with their painful memories. Katara sees how her mother died to protect her. Sokka meets a talking fox. Also, he looks back into his past to realize his father did not believe in him as their protector.

Aang revisits his past and meets his master. He guides Aang to find his way out of the fog of the lost souls. Aang learns that the ‘face stealer’ preys on people’s doubts and despair. To save the villagers and his new friends, Aang goes on a solitary journey to fight the spirit ‘Koh’ (George Takei). He decides to travel to Roku’s temple in the Fire Nation. Meanwhile, Iroh and Zuko learn that people know about the Avatar’s (Aang’s) existence. Zuko worries that others will get to Aang before he can. Iroh hires June (Arden Cho) to capture Aang at the earliest. Azula tries to gain the Fire Lord’s trust.

Episode 6: Masks

Aang travels to meet Avatar Roku (C.S. Lee), hoping for his help and guidance to save his friends. Roku offers him a multi-faced totem to tame Koh’s powers. While Commander Zhao takes charge of Zuko’s mission, June captures Aang and takes him over to Zuko. Aang thinks Zuko has not always been as ruthless as he is now. Zuko recalls the painful memories of being disrespected at his father’s council. Along the way, Zhao learns about Aang’s capture. So, he gets hold of the Avatar and takes him toward the Fire Nation fortress. He starts to assert his dominance over the Fire Nation army.

A masked man helps Aang to get rescued from the Fire Nation fortress. Eventually, Aang learns that Prince Zuko is behind the mask. Aang makes Zuko consider not being as ruthless as his predecessors and rather embrace his compassionate side. But that suggestion makes Aang angry. Soon after, Aang gets back on his journey to save his friends. Zuko recalls that he can set foot back in the Fire Nation only after he captures the Avatar. Iroh sways the minds of their army to trust and respect Zuko’s leadership. Meanwhile, Aang rescues Sokka, Katara, and other locals who were captured by Koh.

Episode 7: The North

Zhao’s men travel toward Zuko’s ship to make a case against him for treason – because he helped the Avatar flee from their fortress. So, Zuko departs from his army to save himself. Meanwhile, Aang, Sokka, and Katara travel and reach the North. They introduce themselves to the Water Tribe leaders – Chief Arnook (Nathaniel Arcand), his daughter, Princess Yue (Amber Midthunder), and senior water bending master Master Pakku (A Martinez). Sokka can’t shake the feeling that he has seen the Princess somewhere before. She soon reveals that she is the talking fox he met in the woods.

As a newborn, Princess Yue got very sick. That’s when the Moon Spirit answered her father’s prayer and imbued her with some of its presence. That is why she is part spirit and part human. Katara learns ways to improve her water-bending skills. But she soon realizes the reality in this world where women aren’t allowed to fight. She speaks out against it, but Master Pakku remains adamant about his age-old beliefs.

So, she gets into a fight against him and shows her impeccable skills. Although she stuns everyone, Pakku does not allow her to fight in the battle. Aang gets in touch with Avatar Kuruk of the Northern Water Tribe. He cannot help as Aang expects him to. But he tells Aang that he needs to fight alone to protect others. Aang takes his words to heart. Meanwhile, Iroh tries to pit Zhao against Lord Ozai. On the other hand, Azula & Zuko are both determined to capture the Avatar.

Episode 8: Legends

Commander Zhao hopes to be a conqueror that history will remember. He leads the Fire Nation into the North, planning to weaken the Water Tribe. Aang, Sokka, and Katara get a hint of this plan and beat the firebenders on one of their ships. But they soon realize how big of a battle they still have to fight through. So, Katara urges Master Pakku to let the women fight. He allows them to repair some damage and help the warriors. Soon, they start considering her to be their master. Zhao seeks advice from the Great Sage for his mission. Kuruk warns Aang about the inevitable dangers. So, Aang decides to get others ready for what awaits them.

Avatar: The Last Airbender Ending Explained

Does Zhao fulfill his mission to find the Avatar?

Zuko enters the Water Tribe nation fortress to capture the Avatar. Katara puts up a fight against him to save Aang. While he undermines her abilities, she gives him a run for his money. Zhao decides to unleash a spirit to use for his militaristic ambitions – even if it comes at the cost of ending the peace of the world. As Iroh suspected, it brings chaos to the world and kills the ability to bend the elements. Since the battle suddenly takes a dark turn, Aang enters a powerful state. He gives himself over to the Ocean spirit and allows it to channel its rage through him.

Zhao’s selfish actions change the course of nature, which puts Yue’s life at risk. Zuko fights Zhao and learns that his sister, Azula, caused all the harm in his life – to stop him from getting hold of the Avatar. So, Zuko stops Zhao from succeeding in his mission. Yue realizes that she needs to take action to save the world – since hers is a partial moon spirit. So, she decides to sacrifice herself for the greater good. Aang uses his powers to bring the world back to a safe space. Afterward, Iroh brings Zuko away from the chaos. Aang decides to let go of the past and prepare himself for the future. Meanwhile, Fire Lord prepares for his next mission while Azula takes charge of their army.

Avatar: The Last Airbender (Season 1) Review

With every new live-action adaptation project on Netflix, I keep asking the same thing – What was the need for this project – especially when the animated version of the same show (oftentimes a frame-to-frame replica) is available to watch somewhere? The answer lies perhaps in the effort to monetize an existing IP without making any efforts to elevate the source material. Maybe it also serves as a viewing material for those who consider animated shows as something catered to just the kids – while ignoring the abundance of adult-themed animated creative output still coming out in the landscape.

Nevertheless, “Avatar: The Last Airbender” is just that – a needless reboot, which may or may not appeal to viewers – based on their loyalty to the source material, among other factors. The Netflix series looks astonishing while avoiding kitsch. It has an ample amount of suspense to make us hold our breaths and look forward to the new twist, i.e., the usual razzmatazz. So, it gets most of the necessities right and is amply entertaining. Since I haven’t seen the original series, there is no sentimental baggage with which I can judge the Netflix adaptation. As a standalone project, this Netflix venture is fairly compelling. The acting performances occasionally hit a false note – when they seem overdone.

Still, the clear standout performance is by Ken Leung as the evil Commander Zhao. After his ruthless turn in HBO’s “Industry,” this is another performance that shows his potential to command the screen presence while capturing the minute details of the character’s psyche. He manages to emote the overt intensity of his character’s cruelty without any cheap theatrics.

Besides him, Paul Sun-Hyung Lee (“Kim’s Convenience,” “The Mandalorian”) impresses with his nuanced portrayal of Uncle Iroh, who has to constantly straddle between loyalty and integrity. From the young set of actors, Kiawentiio stands out as the strongest performer. Speaking about other departments, this season’s dialogues often stay true to its adventure film schtick where people say, ‘They call me XYZ’ instead of ‘I am XYZ’. Although that is not bothersome, the writing does not feel nearly as cohesive, nor does the editing. At times, you try hard to connect the dots, which could have been avoided with a smoother, neater narration style.

Read More: Everything Coming to Netflix in March 2024

Avatar: The Last Airbender (Season 1) Links: IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, Wikipedia
Cast: Gordon Cormier, Kiawentiio, Ian Ousley, Dallas Liu, Paul Sun-Hyung Lee, Ken Leung, Daniel Dae Kim

Where to watch Avatar: The Last Airbender