It's an old post, but I wanted to say this to somebody who is still active in the Avatar fandom.
I personally thought that Ursa, and Azula, were highly underused characters. They got some development, and there is definitely a story there, but they didn't get nearly enough development. Not by a long shot. In fact, the whole Fire Nation Royal Family should have gotten much more screen time than they did. That family is so beautifully, deliciously messed up that it's bloody Shakespearean, is what it is. Richard III, Hamlet, Julius Caesar, Macbeth... not to mention the other plays about the War of the Roses (Richard II, Henry IV, Henry V, and Henry VI). There's also more than a passing resemblance to "I, Claudius." Neither Sozin nor Azulon is the alternately ruthless and oafish Augustus... though if he hadn't had a life changing experience and his throne stolen from him, Iroh would probably have wound up like that.
More on topic to the post... this is a lovely essay, and sums up much of what I thought was wrong with "The Search." I haven't been impressed with the comics starting from when they took all the character development Zuko had gone through in the show and threw it out. Not that I disagree with all of what he did, necessarily, it's just that they picked a funny time to go down to the cynical end of the sliding scale of idealism and cynicism. I'm not opposed to some "Game of Thrones" in my Avatar, but I prefer that the character make sense and not go against their previously established selves without a good reason. "The Search," and Ursa's part in it, just compounded the problem. I didn't put it in so many words, but I think I wondered while I was reading through them, "is this even the same story?" I don't think it is. I really am starting to think that while Bryan and Mike might have been the idea men for A:tLA at the beginning, the real work of telling the story (and making it a good story) was done by the others on the writing and directing staff.
Side note: I haven't finished reading "Retroactive" yet, but I've read a fair chunk of it, and I've loved it. It's a very interesting take on the story, and I'm glad to see that Azula is getting her due, finally. Such a wonderful character (not just a wonderful villain, but a wonderful character), and she never really got the development she deserved. I have had to resort to fanfiction to get my fix of her. I read so many different interpretations of her, and I have liked most of them, for different reasons; mainly I am happy that her story is being told, just as I would be happy for Ursa's story to be told, as it has been occasionally (and also occasionally done well).
Man, this is the first post I've made on LJ in years... lol!
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2014-08-22 03:03 am (UTC)I personally thought that Ursa, and Azula, were highly underused characters. They got some development, and there is definitely a story there, but they didn't get nearly enough development. Not by a long shot. In fact, the whole Fire Nation Royal Family should have gotten much more screen time than they did. That family is so beautifully, deliciously messed up that it's bloody Shakespearean, is what it is. Richard III, Hamlet, Julius Caesar, Macbeth... not to mention the other plays about the War of the Roses (Richard II, Henry IV, Henry V, and Henry VI). There's also more than a passing resemblance to "I, Claudius." Neither Sozin nor Azulon is the alternately ruthless and oafish Augustus... though if he hadn't had a life changing experience and his throne stolen from him, Iroh would probably have wound up like that.
More on topic to the post... this is a lovely essay, and sums up much of what I thought was wrong with "The Search." I haven't been impressed with the comics starting from when they took all the character development Zuko had gone through in the show and threw it out. Not that I disagree with all of what he did, necessarily, it's just that they picked a funny time to go down to the cynical end of the sliding scale of idealism and cynicism. I'm not opposed to some "Game of Thrones" in my Avatar, but I prefer that the character make sense and not go against their previously established selves without a good reason. "The Search," and Ursa's part in it, just compounded the problem. I didn't put it in so many words, but I think I wondered while I was reading through them, "is this even the same story?" I don't think it is. I really am starting to think that while Bryan and Mike might have been the idea men for A:tLA at the beginning, the real work of telling the story (and making it a good story) was done by the others on the writing and directing staff.
Side note: I haven't finished reading "Retroactive" yet, but I've read a fair chunk of it, and I've loved it. It's a very interesting take on the story, and I'm glad to see that Azula is getting her due, finally. Such a wonderful character (not just a wonderful villain, but a wonderful character), and she never really got the development she deserved. I have had to resort to fanfiction to get my fix of her. I read so many different interpretations of her, and I have liked most of them, for different reasons; mainly I am happy that her story is being told, just as I would be happy for Ursa's story to be told, as it has been occasionally (and also occasionally done well).
Man, this is the first post I've made on LJ in years... lol!