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0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Boy in the iceberg, Jun 5 2009
Most western animation for children is, to put it simply, really wretched. At best, it's tolerable.
But a shining exception would be the tale of the Avatar of all four elements, and to restore the balance in the world. "Avatar The Last Airbender - Book 1 Water, Vol. 1" serves as a solid start to the series -- it smoothly introduces the characters and sets up some nice story arcs, without skimping on development of either.
South Pole Water Tribe siblings Katara and Sokka stumble across a glowing iceberg with a young Airbender boy named Aang (and his flying bison) inside. All Airbenders were killed long ago. You guessed it (and so does Katara): Aang is the Avatar who mysteriously vanished a century ago, even though he has yet to master Earth, Water and Fire. And, uh, he's a total goofball.
Unfortunately, a Fire Nation prince named Zuko has been wandering the world in search of Aang, and agrees to let the Water Tribe alone if Aang surrenders. Of course, Katara and Sokka set out to rescue their friend, and since Katara isn't experienced enough in waterbending to teach Aang, they set out for the North Pole to find a waterbending master.
But along the way they run into new problems -- first Aang returns to his old Temple and finds it in ruins, with all the Airbenders dead. Then the three visit Kyoshi Island, where the female warriors take exception to Sokka's sexism, and Aang starts getting a bit full of himself. Meanwhile, Zuko's quest is put in jeopardy when an arrogant general challenges him to a firebending duel.
The highest compliment I can pay "Avatar: The Last Airbender" is that it's like a thoroughly solid action/fantasy anime. Even though "Book 1, Water: Volume 1" is only the first few episodes of the series, it's pretty obvious that this is not a simple kid's show -- it's got good writing, excellent animation, and a general look rawn from Asian and Inuit cultures.
The first episode is a bit lackluster -- there's a bit too much of Aang goofing around, riding penguins and exploring old battleships, as well as some gross-out humor. But things tart gelling with the explosive fight scenes and grim confrontations of the second episode, especially since we really get to know the Prince Zuko there and get a glimpse of the Fire Nation' power.
And the whole quest-storyline has become nice and tight by the third and fourth episodes, even as our heroes stop for one-off stories. There's plenty of action and explosive fire-battles (particularly Zuko's brilliant battle with the sneering Zhao), but the writers never quite forget to include some comedy (riding the elephant koi) and character development.
And they do a good job with the characters -- Aang soon proves himself a kind and selfless kid, but still a kid. And we get to see some of his inner turmoil when he revisits his old home to find it a snowed-in, abandoned ruin, and his old master Monk Gyatso gone.
Katara and Sokka round out the cast, and are the required bickering siblings -- Katara is short-fused but sensible, and Sokka is rather swelled-headed although it's soon clear that he's courageous and means well. And though he's the antagonist, scarred teenager Zuko is excellent -- his quest obviously has deeper motives behind it, and he clearly isn't a bad person.
"Avatar The Last Airbendeer's" first volume is a fairly smooth introduction to a solid action/fantasy series, and a good setup to an outstanding show. A bit wobbly at first, but it quickly picks up steam.
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