Avatar: The Last Airbender Season 2 Review: Stunning Visuals Do Not Eclipse Lack of Animated Show’s Essence

Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender Season 2 is quite the mixed bag.

There are several great aspects, from highly anticipated characters to incredible visual effects. Despite these positive features, the live-action adaptation continues to lack the heart the animated show had. 

The most exciting part about Season 2 is the introduction of Toph Beifong, a blind earthbender who becomes Aang’s earthbending teacher, and there is no doubt that Miyako Cech is an excellent Toph.

Cech easily nails Toph’s witty sarcasm and carefree attitude. She is absolutely magnetic and puts in an incredible effort in portraying Toph.

Toph Beifong: I don’t run away from things, and neither should you.

Unfortunately, the show’s characterization of Toph does not entirely hit the mark. Some changes add a unique spin to Toph, such as her family’s history with past avatars and her mother’s active role.

The latter is especially fascinating because it establishes a more complex dynamic. Mother-daughter relationships are scarce on Avatar: The Last Airbender, so it is a lovely surprise that elevates Toph’s character.

Other changes are undoubtedly questionable — notably, Toph’s insecurity regarding her family.

Toph is fiercely independent and proud to be the world’s greatest earthbender. Her fallout with her parents is a critical moment in her development.

Toph still defies her parents on the live-action adaptation, but her family’s reputation impacts her to the point of having debilitating insecurities. As a result, Toph doubts her friends’ abilities to see past the Beifong name.

Katara (to Suki): You know, before we met you, Sokka wanted to go home. And the way you all fought to defend us, it made me see that I wasn’t dumb for believing the Avatar. For having hope that any one person can make a difference.

Toph stands up to her parents by escaping her home and joining Team Avatar. It signifies that they no longer influence her, paving the way for her to embrace herself. Consequently, their continued metaphorical power over Toph marks a regression in her character, especially because it occurs after leaving home.

Therefore, it makes no sense for Toph to harbor insecurities about her family’s name. Toph is already wonderfully complex on her own, and changes should enhance her character, not take away from it. 

The issues with Toph’s characterization are not a first for Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender. The live-action adaptation’s second season continues its brazen mischaracterization of Aang and Katara.

Aang is a cheerful character who always puts his best foot forward. He is a positive reinforcement and never gives up, no matter how dire the circumstances may seem. It is why his character becomes so unsettling when Appa disappears — it is so unlike him.

Yet it is unsurprising when Aang lashes out at Katara, Sokka, and Toph because the show portrays Aang as an impassive, somber character who trusts everyone before his own friends.

The show adds a melancholy to Aang that does not benefit him. He is most like his cartoon counterpart when he is with minor characters, but he becomes a solemn stranger around the people he loves most.

It is even worse, considering that no one has faith in Team Avatar the way Aang and Katara do, albeit for different reasons.

Katara believes Aang is meant to save the world with Team Avatar’s help, whereas Aang believes the group’s unbreakable bond is written in the stars.

However, Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender Season 2 does not portray an Aang who firmly believes in Team Avatar’s fate until the final moments. It is a disheartening aspect of the live-action adaptation, making it difficult to root for.

Katara: You hate the Fire Nation enough to pick on a bunch of helpless people, but you can’t do one thing to fight the real enemy?

The live-action adaptation has portrayed Katara as a watered-down version of herself, lacking her iconic fiery passion, headstrong personality, and unwavering conviction.

Thankfully, the show has significantly improved in its characterization of Katara by introducing the renowned Painted Lady persona on Season 2.

It is disappointing that the Painted Lady is not a Fire Nation myth because that storyline illustrates how Ozai would throw his own people under the bus to ensure the success of his tyrannical regime.

However, seeing Katara’s determination to help the people of Ba Sing Se — no matter the cost or consequences — alleviates some of the mischaracterization concerns.

Season 2 also portrays Katara in action when Team Avatar helps a group of civilians cross the Serpent’s Pass, fighting off the sea serpent alongside Aang and healing the creature when it becomes severely injured.

Otherwise, the narrative still sidelines or eliminates Katara during important moments, such as teaching Aang how to waterbend, helping Toph navigate teaching Aang, and leading the charge when Team Avatar falls out after Appa disappears.

Katara is a spirited fighter first and foremost, with highly advanced healing skills. Sadly, Season 2 continues to portray her as a passive healer first and a warrior second.

Furthermore, Avatar: The Last Airbender Season 2 continues its pattern of centering Zuko’s family, while Aang and Katara take several backseats.

One example involves Jeong Jeong, a minor but critical character from the animated show. Netflix scraps this storyline entirely, opting to depict Katara learning how to heal differently, while Aang never endures a firebending catastrophe.

Excluding this storyline is understandable, especially given that there are only seven episodes on Season 2. However, the show introduces Jeong Jeong to develop Zuko’s Ba Sing Se arc instead.

Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender greatly expands on Fire Nation characters like Azula, Ozai, and Iroh, while simultaneously neglecting Aang and Katara, the heart and soul of the original story.

There is a lot of potential in exploring secondary characters further, but it should not come at the expense of the leads.

It is ironic how much the show focuses on Zuko and his family, given that Zuko’s characterization takes a serious hit on Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender Season 2.

Zuko’s journey to redemption is one of the best character arcs on television history. It is artfully written with so much creativity and energy that the animated show foreshadows Zuko’s redemption as early as the first few episodes of Season 1.

One of the most crucial moments of Zuko’s arc is when he travels alone and meets a family in the Earth Kingdom, where he learns harsh truths about the Fire Nation.

Naturally, Netflix includes this storyline, even introducing subtle changes that portray the plot in an unprecedented light. However, not all of these changes are good. In fact, one critical alteration mischaracterizes Zuko to the point of potentially ruining his redemption.

On the cartoon, Zuko leaves Iroh behind because he is determined to reconcile his identity outside of the Avatar and the Fire Nation. The show establishes a different motivation: Zuko is angry at Iroh and leaves him to continue hunting Aang.

Zuko has a lot of anger he must resolve, and traveling alone signifies the beginning of his atonement. When his motivation is entirely selfish and adheres to Ozai’s wishes, it fundamentally changes his character. As a result, Zuko’s redemption might not be compelling.

Zuko: My father may have scarred me, but deep down, some part of me believed I deserved it.

The show also alters Zuko’s motivation for joining Azula in the crystal catacombs. Azula dangles everything Zuko has ever wanted: his father’s acceptance, restored honor, and homecoming.

It is why Zuko defects from Aang, Katara, and Iroh — he craves to live the life he always dreamed of. This path also pushes Zuko to realize that his dream is really a nightmare, setting him up to take accountability for his actions.

When Zuko allies with Azula on Season 2 Episode 7, “Something Broken,” the narrative portrays Zuko’s greatest desire as repairing his relationship with Azula. 

It is difficult to imagine how the show will approach Zuko’s redemption given how these two pivotal decisions fall flat.

Aang: If you took all of this away, and I wasn’t the Avatar, and you weren’t a waterbender, and we didn’t need to save the world, I… we would still be friends.

Despite the blatant mischaracterization issues, Avatar: The Last Airbender provides stunning visuals.

There are so many dazzling moments on Season 2. The crystal catacombs are particularly exquisite, and the solar eclipse calendar depicts an aesthetically pleasing contrast. 

The show also gets creative with bending. The earthbending details are highly precise down to Toph’s most basic senses, while Aang earthbends a stunning humanoid made of crystals from the catacombs. Katara’s waterbending is also visually brilliant.

In fact, the visuals are so magnificent that it is clear how the show prioritizes them over anything else, including the characters. Unfortunately, no matter how beautiful the effects are, it is impossible to ignore the characterization injustices.

Season 2 has also greatly improved at condensing the narrative, which allows the story to flow more naturally.

The library being a lost spiritual location under Ba Sing Se is a nice touch that ties in a few storylines while preserving their essence.

It illustrates that the best adaptations are not about stunning visuals or complete accuracy; it is about ensuring the characters remain the same even if the circumstances change.

Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender has not quite achieved this feat, but the final season still holds many cards that could push the show in the direction it needs to go to stick the landing.

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Avatar: The Last Airbender Season 2 is currently streaming on Netflix.

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