Strong Women

Growing up, one of the things that resonated the most with me in the Avatar the Last Air Bender series was the amount of intelligent, brave, and strong female characters in the show. In most shows, female characters are lackluster or fit into a box, leaving me to favor a male character instead. Avatar broke down gender roles and easily gave me my favorite female characters in a way that was organic and reflective of my own struggles as a girl carving my place in society. They were not afraid to make their female characters more than we are often told we can be. And, they did it simply because women (girls) are more than the flat archetypes they have been ascribed too over and over.

Now, with the release of the live action series of Avatar the Last Air Bender, I am said to see executive producers Dan Lin, Lindsey Liberatore, Michael Goi, and Roseanne Liang collectively missed the mark. They have toned down, erased, and changed what made the ATLA girls so great. It's as if there is a fear of allowing a show to have strong female leaders in fighting roles. Truthfully, there are many character critics to be had with the show, but my focus today is Suki, Katara, and Azula.

Starting with Katara, the live action series has erased her passion by stripping her of her intelligent leadership, sass, and temper. Throughout ATLA, each character has a crucial piece of who they are that undergoes growth, and one of Katara’s is her wrath towards the war, injustice, and sexism within society. Much like Zuko, she is fueled by anger. Viewers often see the two’s arcs mirroring each other to some degree, even by having opposite elements. Her anger makes her brave and bold in situations where she is clearly outmatched, usually with her refusing to give up. It causes her to take on obstacles others would shy away from and grow as a person. It also leads to some outbursts that resonate with many young girls who feel dismissed readily by elders. It is why she ends up challenging Pakku.

Next, the live action series stripped away her leadership. In the oringal animated series, Katara is the leader of the group. She is shown constantly putting the wellbeing and safety of the group first. While at times it lends to her motherly temperament the group often laments, it is what the group relies on to keep safe. Not only is she strong, but she is capable of making intelligent choices for the betterment of the group in dire situations. She thinks quick on her feet and finds resources for them to utilize. Though younger than Sokka, Katara is placed in the role of older sibling. Instead, in the live action, the leadership role is loosely assigned to Sokka. It feels as if there is no real set leader to the group, but the awareness and safety focus is allotted to Sokka. And rather than butt heads because Katara treats him like a child and Sokka treats her with sexist disdain, the siblings are butting heads because he treats Katara like ‘a little girl’.

Lastly, gone are demonstrations of Katara’s whit and sass. In the original sereies, both of the water tribe children are quick thinkers with snide remarks to spare. Their quick quips are a very enjoyable part of the dialogue. There may be one hidden somewhere in the live action, but I cannot recall a single quip from Katara that demonstrates just how feisty and brave, while also reminding us she is clever. It was as if the creators were afraid only one character in the trio could have sass, and thus gave it all to Soka in the form of sarcasm (yes, he has always been a sarcastic character). Katara instead is a whining (she was indeed always whiny, she’s a child), often scared, and unsure young girl that experiences limited growth throughout the first season.

Furthermore, we do not have a character set up that will facilitate the conflicts with Toph in Book 2. I also have a hard time imagining this Katara taking on Zuko and Azula repeatedly and without balking. In the original series, Katara is bold enough to approach Zuko and make it clear she will indeed end his existence should he think of harming Aang again. This Katara seems unlikely to threaten anyone.

Rather than spending the time showing Katara getting into fight after fight and becoming stronger, the live action spends its on Azula’s back story (I will get to why that’s a waste later). It was an ineffective use of time and really robbed the audience of several great fights Katara partakes in. It also means we do not see Aang learning to water bend. This washed down version feeds into the thought that girls portrayed in action media are not allowed to take away the spotlight from the males in the scenes around them. They should be smaller, quieter, weaker. It’s a reminder that society does not like loud, bossy, headstrong girls. That girls are not afforded tempers that lend to fighting the same way their male counterparts are. That they aren’t allowed to be the leader when there is a big brother who could be given the role.

Next to be butchered was Suki. Suki, the intentionally utilized feminist icon in the original series, is turned into a lovesick puppy rather than a fierce and confident warrior. The key lessons Sokka learns with Suki are taken away, which was tragic enough. Additionally, rather than Sokka learning about the world from Suki, Suki is the one learning from Sokka. In fact, her whole arc is reduced to her pining after Sokka. While, she did like and find Sokka cute in the original series, it was a small side piece of the dynamic between the two, not the main dynamic. In the original series, Sokka is the unlearned outsider who has seen little of the war and world, while Suki is seasoned in both.

Suki represents women who can stand and exist on their own and break free of any expectations and contrived notions from gender roles. She finds pride in her leadership, people, and duties. She is the embodiment of a warrior. In the live action series, this is gone. Her leadership is reassigned to her mother, and Suki is just a girl following her duties to protect her village but wishing to find love. This Suki comes across as unsure of her role and unfocused in her duties.

In the live action, when Sokka does challenge Suki, it is a quick and small fight rather than the repeated and thorough butt kicking she provided him in the original series. There was a very powerful message for both Sokka and young girls watching the original show when Suki repeatedly defeated Sokka with ease. She was the teacher and he the student as she broke past every perception he had of women in one well placed strike. In the live action, it was as if the directors were afraid showing a girl defeat the main male cast member too much and too well would offend male audience members. So, she was washed down to be palatable.

In the live action, when Suki teaches Sokka to fight, the humility of the situation for Sokka is brushed over as if it never mattered. This is a key moment of humbling and compassion from Sokka in the original series and in the live action it is turned into him quickly learning, gaining an upper hand, and winning over the girl. This is simply a girl teaching her crush, not a warrior having a patience with a young man that wants to mirror her greatness.

Then, after the fight she removes her makeup! Even my husband gasped with me. We are not supposed to see Suki bare faced until much later in the series and we are just as surprised as Sokka is. Why? Because Suki lives and dies by her duty as a warrior, and part of that living reality for her at the time is the constant garb of the warrior. Later, it is removed because of the new role she has been placed in within the war. But, it’s difficult to tell a male audience they should like a girl when they cannot see if she’s actually pretty. We can’t have Sokka (a male lead) with a young woman we have not seen the actual beauty of.

In the live action, Suki is quickly turned into a stereotypical side token love interest. In the original series, she is the girl who always dominates Sokka’s battle skills. This is the girl who scales a prison wall and takes the warden hostage with ease when the two boys were struggling to determine what to do. This is the girl who is sure of herself, her duties, and role. Instead, the only thing this Suki is sure of in the live action version, is that Sokka has shown her there is more to the world than being a warrior, there’s love. A tale, sadly, as old as time. After all, what are women outside of being in love with the male leads in media?

Lastly, we have Azula, perhaps the most offensive change. There never seems to be a problem with males in media being natural born prodigies. Often, male characters are just talented because they simply are. This was Azula in the original ATLA series. In fact, it’s repeatedly stressed to the audience that Azula is naturally gifted. During one instance Zuko sums it up well by saying, “My father says Azula was born lucky, he says that I was lucky to be born.”

Azula does not have to fight or strive for Ozai’s affection or praise. It comes with ease. This serves to contrast Zuko’s relationship with their father. Azula is the perfect child. While Ozai’s praise and pride in Azula is partly what drives her to achieve perfection throughout the original series, it is not done to gain it. Azula already has Ozai’s favor. Azula is driven to retain it and to measure up to her own legacy. Azula is taught through the admiration, not fear, of her father that power is the ultimate achievement and sets to follow his example. This is a girl who has set the bar so high for herself that perfection is her only option. We see this demonstrated with her blue flames.

Azula’s aptitude plays a large role in demonstrating the struggle of Zuko, dating back to even when they were very little. There is not a single moment in the original series where Azula is having to worry about winning until the betrayal of her friends. Her cold calculated confidence and raw talent is a large portion of what makes her terrifying as a villain. Azula sets her mind to something and just does it. Later in the series, she overtakes the city of Ba Sing Se, a task the great General Iroh could not accomplish, as a side quest. Azula’s confidence (in battle) and belief in herself is only rattled by the betrayal of Mai and Ty Lee, when she realizes not everything is within her control as she was taught. Prior to that interaction, things had always gone her way. The perfect child miscalculated. Which leads to the marvelous and heart wrenching unraveling of her character.

Instead, in the live action series, time is wasted minimizing Azula’s character by making her fail, be weak, and pining after her father’s affection. While it may have been done to make the character of Azula more relatable, it only serves to rob pieces of Zuko’s character arc and upset the mirroring dynamic the two siblings are meant to have. Zuko is meant to watch Azula get what he desperately wants without having to even try, as he repeatedly fails and is labeled an embarrassment. There’s a larger role and commentary here as well. Ozai is an abuser and his two children reflect a child who chooses to follow his footsteps and a child who does not. Azula chooses to be a monster because she’s shown that it is what greatness is, and Zuko challenges that narrative when he realizes the harm being a monster causes. Azula admires and strives to be like Ozai, finding kinship in his motivations. Zuko fears Ozai and does not understand why he is the way he is.

The live action presents the audience with a watered downed version of Azula. They show her repeatedly struggling and failing, then verbally announce through clunky dialogue how talented she is despite it. They try to give her actions a deeper meaning than the self-driven quest for power she learned from her father and grandfather. The live action Azula is focused on gaining the favor of her father and the crown. In the original series, Azula never mentions, questions, or worries about the future of the crown. I imagine, if she did have any thoughts of it, it would simply be an understanding that it would be hers one day. No doubt, just like she watched her father steal the crown from his weaker brother, she knows she will take the crown over Zuko. Instead, in the live action series, Azula is angry and hateful towards Zuko because he is set to take the crown that she desperately wants. This further robs Azula of her confidence and command that makes her a well written female villain in the original series.

The live action makes sure to show the audience that Azula is still a weak girl striving for greatness that is defined by a male character’s opinion and praise of her. In sharp contrast, in the original series, Azula views greatness as her natural birth right and defines her own expectation of it. She often challenges and criticizes the actions of her father, generals, and other esteemed male figureheads. Azula is the one setting the bar in the animated series, but in the live action, she is reaching for a bar her father set. In the live action, she’s only good because of practice and a need to please a male leader. By doing this, a lot of her autonomy feels stripped away.

There has been a lot of criticism around how the actress looks. Elizabeth Yu may not have the sharp cartoon facial structure of Azula, but face shapes really are not what is going to make or break a character. I would argue the reason she does not look like Azula is actually the makeup. It’s another thing that the audience was robbed of. Azula is conquering and battling throughout the original series with a full face of makeup and nails. Let me repeat that, Azula is glammed up in every battle. When we contrast Azula to the other female characters around her, it becomes apparent she is wearing lipstick, and several scenes display her winged eye liner. This is later confirmed when she attempts to do her own makeup during her break down. Not only is Azula perfect in performance, but she is also in appearance. She is praised more than once for being a beautiful and clever princess. Not a strand of hair out of place. Azula’s makeup also lends to her looking older and would have helped the actress in the live action. The audience is meant to forget at times that Azula is a 14 year old girl.

She’s a child forced to grow up quickly in the face of the war, and one that excels at it. It’s a key piece of who she is and again, another reason her character journey is so tragic. So far, this nuisance is stripped away in the live action to leave behind only a little girl that is struggling to achieve much of anything, including victory over her opponents. I find it hard to imagine that this will fair well in actually creating a terrifying villain for the audience later on. While, we have yet to see much of it, I also fear that her cruelty and quick whit will be watered down and washed away. She’s another character that thrives on sarcastic mockery, which I have a feeling the creators will hesitate to give too much to a female character.

It's easy to note, a key thing taken from every one of these females is their confidence. Hopefully, through the course of the entire live action series, we will not continue to get weakened versions of the strong female icons fans loved in the original series. But, I remain doubtful and worry about how Toph will be handled. Toph who, aside from the avatar, is the strongest bender in the series. In addition, she has the highest battle IQ. But, battle IQ has only been demonstrated so far by Zuko in the live action series. Which is really its own tragedy because Aang so far is a lack luster fighter when he was running circles around everyone in the original series prior to mastering any other forms of bending.

For kicks here's a lovely fanmade video demonstrating and celebrating the strong female characters of the original animated series: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTs9Y_lL_JA&t=87s

For extra fun, see Suki take over the prison here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzkL7TsEeK4