Toon Ninja Reviews - Avatar: The Last Airbender - Intro

(Masterpiece Theater theme plays)

Good morning, or should I say, good afternoon or evening, depending which time zone you are at. I am Rekka Dragon Jay and welcome to another episode of Toon Ninja Reviews.  Unlike the last ones, there will be no guest host this episode. I figured I do this in the style of Masterpiece Theater, well, the intro anyway, comfy chair and all that.  Anyway, let's get to the review and I think it's a toon you know all too well, a Nicktoon. Not just any Nicktoon, this one is the most action oriented in not just Nicktoons, but all animation in general.  Before there was Legend of Korra, there was...Avatar: The Last Airbender!

"Water...Earth...Fire...Air. Long ago, the four nations lived together in harmony. Then, everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked. Only the Avatar, master of all four elements, can stop them. But when the world needed him most, he vanished. 100 years have passed and my brother and I discovered the new Avatar. An Airbender named Aang. And although his Airbending skills are great, he still has a lot to learn before he's ready to save anyone. But I believe Aang can save the world."

- Katara, Master Waterbender; Southern Water Tribe

(Avatar: The Last Airbender title theme plays)

From February 21, 2005 to July 19, 2008, Avatar: The Last Airbender is one of the finest shows that ever come of the Nicktoons library. It lasted for 3 seasons, or in this case, 3 Books, 61 episodes, the first two books had 20 episodes each, while the final book had 21. Unlike other shows like SpongeBob Squarepants and Fairly OddParents, which solely focuses on comedy, Avatar is an action themed Nicktoon, which has everything that most action cartoons and Japanese anime have: Action, Adventure, Romance, Comedy, Mythology and Philosophy. Created by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, this legendary show gained many rewards, such as winning a dozen Annie Awards and some bumps, including the god-awful live action movie (more on that later).  Because of that, Aang became on of my favorite characters in animation and one character that I wish I could fight alongside with, as well as XJ9/Jenny and Danny Phantom.  But, I am getting ahead of myself here, so, let's get started, shall we?

As our favorite wise and noble Waterbender has mention: A long time ago, the entire world was in peace and the Four Nations live in perfect harmony. These nations consist on:

The Air Nomads: 4 Air Temples ruled by Airbending Monks, mostly peaceful because of their pacifist nature.

The Water Tribe: A tribe that live in both North and South Poles.  While the Southern Tribe are poor villagers, the Northern Tribe is a shining kingdom in the North. But they do have one thing in common, Waterbenders, who can bend both water and ice, whether it's to make or destroy or heal.

The Earth Kingdom: The biggest nation in all the world, where the battle hardened Earthbenders come from. It is ruled by two cities, the kindom of Omashu and its capital city and the heart of the Earth Kingdom, Ba Sing Se. And finally, we got...

The Fire Nation: An island nation, ruled by Firebenders. Although an industrial powerhouse, it is their dark, troubled history is what started their occupation in all the other nations.

The last Avatar around that time, Avatar Roku, originally from the Fire Nation, was the world's last hope. But, he vanished as the world needed him the most. By dying, the Avatar lifecycle continued to another Bender from another nation. But to prevent the Avatar from returning, the Fire Nation launched an attack on the Air Nomads. Little that they didn't know, one Airbender survived, but he wasn't seen or heard from for 100 years...until now.

Somewhere in the South Pole, Southern Water Tribe siblings Katara and Sokka uncovered an iceberg, that contained a young boy, who turned out to be, hence the title, the last Airbender.  They freed him and the first thing he wanted was penguin-sledding.  Anyway, the boy's name is Aang and he may not look it, but because of being in that iceberg, he is 110 years old, despite looking 10, as he was originally was 100 years ago.  Now free to travel, Aang, along with his friends travel to many cities, meeting friends and foes alike from Suki to King Bumi to Jet to Toph and so on and so forth while dealing with the Fire Nation itself and embracing his destiny as the Avatar, the one being who will bring peace and balance back to the entire world.

And that's the plot of the whole series itself. But it's not the end of the review.  This review is so epic, it must divided into multiple parts.  So, tune in next time, when I talk about the 3 seasons, or in this case, the 3 books, in a nutshell.  Don't worry folks, this review will be worth it. Until next time.

(bows; Fade Out)

(Avatar: The Last Airbender end credits play)

*Fade to Black