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survivalove · 6 months

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Air Temple Island, the Water Tribes & the Real Life Influences that bring them together

I was gonna screenshot a post I saw and add it to my post but I don’t feel like giving that individual attention (and the 300+ notes they got), so I just decided to make my own standalone post debunking this narrative that air temple island is this fully air nomad brothel (yes they said this) with ZERO water tribe motifs which katara is forced to live in until aang passed away.

frankly it just reminded me of how little people in this fandom actually bother to analyze the actual content, instead preferring to write entirely made up scenarios of katara being reduced to an air nomad incubator along with dozens other female acolytes (yes they also said this lmao. also them acting like both male AND female acolytes weren’t living on the whole other side of the island 😭)

when in truth, i’ve come to find a lot of elements of both water tribes as well as traditional inuit elements across air temple island:

1. the paifang

a traditionally chinese element that for some reason is exclusively found in the northern water tribe (why do they have a gate inside a throne room, you ask? ask the white people that made this show). the one on the left is actually one of two aang BUILT, at the main entrance and another at the temple entrance. this is just one example of water tribe design on the island.

2. the bagua mosaic

another structure is the bagua mosaic on the training grounds. bagua is a set of traditional chinese symbols of the cosmology, taoism. the bagua composes of 8 sets of broken or unbroken lines that represent yin and yang. where have we seen yin and yang in the original series? oh yeah, as tui and la of the water tribe! (because atla is a mess of asiatic and indigenous motifs joined together and spread out across each nation, mainly traditionally chinese elements at that.) aang building this right next to the air nomad training grounds is a symbol of the dual bending heritage their children will have.

3. gold and blue accents

now, gold and blue are the main colors of the exterior structures but is also very strong inside the air temple itself. note, the massive air nomad symbol designed fully in blue in the center and the blue banners and rugs throughout the temple. this is no doubt, for me, a visual depiction of both katara and aang’s representative cultures, but of course this is not limited to color only.

4. cloud carvings

now, this is a slight detour since clouds aren’t a significant part of either of their individual cultures (that we know) but i love the kataang monopoly they have on clouds as a couple so i’m talking about it. if you look at these images very closely what do you see? CLOUD CARVINGS!! specifically near the ceiling of the pavilion (left) and the arches and walls of the temple (right) just imagining aang painting and etching these very consistent swirls, like he’ll never be the selfish inconsiderate unromantic loser you people want him to be, but let’s get more into the southern water tribe style interior.

5. interior design

so here is a southern water tribe white lotus outpost vs the air temple island main dining room. first thing, the seat cushions and rug! while we don’t see air nomad eating quarters we do get to see enough SWT customs both in atla and lok, to know this is how they traditionally eat compared to the north (limiting myself on pics cuz mobile).

another thing is the dining table itself. both have what i believe to be built in fire pits (i couldn’t actually tell for the air temple island one cuz of the quality but if you zoom in you can see the lines go in the table plus the hanging kettle on it makes it obvious to me idk). the southern water tribe one however is clear and likely a more traditional version of what aang and katara have.

thirdly, the exposed timber on the ceiling. i actually looked it up and found this is a common element of these two inuit structures: left is an aasiaat peat house and right is an igloolik turf house. all this for me to believe not only did aang build air temple island to be a haven for the TWO of them but also that katara herself had a lot of input on the interior than people care to notice lol.

maybe instead of projecting these loser fantasies of katara being some unwilling air nomad baby making machine so you can feel better about your fantasies of katara living in a red palace with people that tried to wipe her out for a whole century, you all can go study the actual canon you were shown and the real life cultures the franchise takes from.

6. lastly, some of my own headcanons/stuff i want to see in the movie

the bathroom because I LIVE for a white marble tiled bathroom. i just know katara has to have a HUGE tub and they have one of those insane glass showers that can fit like 3 people, with cloud swirls everywhere because aang clearly got it like that

the KITCHEN, i imagine it being timber like the dining room and is probably on the other side behind the built-in shelf (get into the details like hello). in a perfect world, it would be open plan but hey

the bedroom, now we saw it in lok a bit but i wanna see it in the gaang movie too. i’m on pic limit but there’s a lot of artwork and flowers throughout the whole house which i give katara credit for because I can. like the desk, the bookshelf, that fancy looking vase thing? these two clearly have taste like don’t talk to me rn

I also didn’t show the rooms and aang’s study but there’s a lot of blue decor in those places which makes me think katara decorated the whole house, even the acolytes’ hall has blue sitting cushions and columns which i think is such a nice detail.

if you guys have any air temple island headcanons of your own please reply with some i’m feening lol

big shoutout to this user:

atla-annotated (their page is so great and filled with a lot of incredible information if you guys like this sort of stuff)

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theotterpenguin · 4 months

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How LOK Fails to Do Katara Justice (part II)

In part one of this meta, I explained how Katara's character received the worst treatment in Legend of Korra compared to the other members of the gaang, and the sexist writing of lok!Katara so that she is only defined by her relationships to her husband and children. In the second part of this analysis, I will explain how the common arguments that are used in defense of LOK's poor writing do not provide an adequate in-universe explanation for Katara's drastic change from ATLA.

Defense of lok!Katara seems to boil down to three main points:

1) The “leave it to the kids” excuse: Katara is from the previous generation so she shouldn’t be expected to be involved in the plot - it’s time for Korra’s team to have a turn.

2) The “old lady” excuse: Katara is too old to be fighting wars or getting involved in international politics.

3) The “people change” excuse: Katara’s character, personality, and goals would change over time because she’s older now.

I would be willing to accept these excuses under the condition that they are also applied to the other members of the gaang. Ignoring the fact that the Order of the White Lotus is literally a bunch of old guys fighting in wars in ATLA, if Toph and Zuko are also portrayed as too old to be fighting and leaving all their problems to the next generation to fix, along with Katara, it wouldn’t be as much of a problem. If Sokka, Aang, Toph, and Zuko are all portrayed as having different goals and motivations and characteristics than when they were younger, along with Katara, then again, it wouldn’t be as much of a problem. (It might be bad writing, but hey, at least it’s bad writing applied equally to every character).

The problem is that it’s only Katara’s character that takes a complete 180 from how it was set up in ATLA, it’s only Katara’s character that is too old to fight to defend her family, it’s only Katara’s character who leaves all her problems to the kids and stays completely uninvolved from the geopolitical conflicts brewing around her.

Returning to our original three excuses, let’s see how well they match with rest of the gaang’s portrayal in LOK:

1) “Leave it to the kids” excuse:

I will be leaving Sokka and Aang out of this since they are dead at the time of the show (though it should be noted that flashbacks show both of them being heavily involved in global leadership roles and managing political conflicts).

This excuse is not even close to applicable to Zuko. As soon as he finds out Zaheer has escaped from prison, he flies off on a dragon to check the other prisons. He warns Lin to look after Korra, but this doesn’t stop him from investigating with Tonraq on his own, without Korra and co's involvement. As soon as he hears his family may be in danger, he flies off on a dragon to protect them.

This excuse doesn’t apply to Toph. She does state that she agrees with Katara that it’s time to leave things to the kids, but her actions say differently. As soon as she finds out Suyin has been captured, she immediately attempts to find her - on her own, without consulting with the younger generation. When she realizes Suyin has been moved somewhere else, she works together with Korra and co to save her family - twice actually. She also involves herself in Korra’s life by helping her train and recover from her PTSD.

Meanwhile, Katara does nothing when her home is dragged into a civil war, does nothing when her family is kidnapped, and does nothing when a bloodbender is using his abilities to oppress others (despite being the one to outlaw bloodbending).

2) “Old lady” excuse:

Again, also not applicable to Aang and Sokka because they’re dead at the start of the show.

This excuse does not apply to Zuko whatsoever. He never mentions that being old prevents him from fighting or getting involved in the political conflicts that arise. He has no problem fighting Ghazan during the Red Lotus prison break-in and has no problem riding his dragon. He stays involved in international relations despite being “retired” from his position as Fire Lord - helping to track down the Red Lotus, attending important international events, and holding meetings with leaders of other nations (Tenzin, Raiko, Tonraq).

Toph tells Korra that her fighting days are over due to having back problems, but has no problem fighting Korra during training and easily takes out Kuvira’s army.

Katara never fights during the entire show. And as far as I can remember, she never waterbends at all beyond healing on a few occasions.

I feel like it’s important to note that both excuses 1 and 2 are never even mentioned in regard to Zuko (or the Order of the White Lotus) - it’s only Toph and Katara that seem to be “too old” to fight and have to leave everything to the kids. Toph’s actions don’t align with her words, unlike Katara, but it doesn’t change the fact that these excuses are unequally applied to old women in Legend of Korra compared to the old men in Legend of Korra (and ATLA). Good old misogyny at work!

3) “People change” excuse:

Sokka: Begins his story in ATLA as son of the Chief of the Southern Water Tribe, desperately trying to fill his father's shoes when Hakoda goes off to war. He becomes the defacto leader of the gaang over time due to his fondness for schedules, his leadership abilities, and analytical thinking skills. Despite being a nonbender, he held his own with his trusty boomerang and strategic thinking. Ends his story in LOK having taken over from his father as Chief of the Southern Water Tribe, putting those leadership skills to use. His intelligence and strategic thinking made him an ideal candidate to be a Representative for the Southern Water Tribe on the Republic City Council, as he could be trusted to make smart decisions that were the best for his tribe. He was even elected chairman of the council due to these skills. A statue was built in his honor, which included his favorite boomerang.

Zuko: Begins his story in ATLA learning to heal from his father’s abuse and, in the process, slowly comes to understand the evils of Fire Nation imperialism. He replaces his father as Fire Lord and vows to start a new era of peace and harmony, ending the war and the Fire Nation’s colonialism and imperialism. He also vowed to work together with the Avatar to maintain balance. Ends his story in LOK having achieved peace and prosperity in the Fire Nation again. Turned previous Fire Nation colonies into the United Republic of Nations - meant to be a safe haven for anyone, regardless of nationality or bender status - by working together with Aang. Fights against the Red Lotus to protect Avatar Korra and his family. His statue, in contrast to Ozai’s former statue, is one representing peace and hope.

Toph: Begins her story in ATLA rebelling against her strict parents, who are overprotective of her due to her blindness. She learns to rely on and trust others over the course of the series, realizing that accepting help from others doesn’t mean she’s weak. She enjoyed pulling scams on naive civilians in the show using her earthbending seismic abilities and participated in the Earth Rumble in her youth. She also invented metalbending and worked as Aang’s earthbending teacher. Ends her story in LOK having created a metalbending academy to teach others the bending speciality, along with establishing the first metalbending police force. Metalbending is shown as having made significant contributions to technological innovation and progress in the avatar world. Helped to train Korra while she’s recovering from the her capture by the Red Lotus. Though she liked breaking the rules when she was younger, she found it more fun to be the person in charge of the rules - leading her to become Captain of the Police Force. Still suffering the consequences of poor parenting as a child, she became an overly-lenient parent, leading to problems with her daughters. She states that her fighting days are over, but still seems to enjoy fighting Korra.

(As a side note: I do not agree with how the writers chose to take Toph’s story. Do I think they should have - and realistically, could have - gone in a different direction that did more justice to Toph’s character? Yes. However, I also see how it could potentially be possible that she became a cop and uninvolved parent based on her background. I don’t like it, but I can at least see some logic behind her storyline - unlike Katara’s. If anyone feels differently, I'd love to know your thoughts.)

Aang: Begins his story in ATLA learning to become the Avatar by mastering all four elements, mastering the Avatar State, and acting as a bridge between the human world and Spirit World. Struggles with being the sole survivor of the Air Nomads and attempting to keep his culture alive. Works to keep balance in the world among the four nations by defeating the imperial Fire Nation. Ends his story in LOK having achieved his goals as Avatar, successfully keeping peace amongst the four nations and establishing the United Republic of Nations as a sanctuary for all, no matter nationality or bender status. Considered a spiritual leader and successfully kept peace between the spirit world and human world. Had an airbender child and airbender grandkids, traveled the world to spread his culture, including building a temple on Air Temple Island in the United Republic, and other characters repeatedly state that for his entire life, his dream was to revive Air Nomad culture.

Katara: Begins her story in ATLA trying to master her waterbending abilities, trying to teach herself on their journey. Views waterbending as a way to connect with her culture. She challenges the Northern Water Tribe’s sexism for the right to learn how to fight. Famously declares, “I don’t want to heal, I want to fight!” Passionate about standing up against injustice - causes a prison riot through an inspiring speech she gives, dresses up as a Fire Nation spirit to heal sick villagers, and goes after her mother’s killer. She is forced to bloodbend, a traumatic experience for her. Teaches Aang how to waterbend and is eventually bestowed the title of “master waterbender” by Pakku. Occasionally heals others when they get injured, but main focus is on development of her waterbending fighting abilities. Ends her story in LOK known as the best healer in the world, but fails to heal Korra and Jinora. Spends her time during the civil war on the sidelines, healing the injured. Marries and has kids with Aang. She’s lonely and her family doesn’t visit much. No known achievements beyond outlawing bloodbending (which she is somehow able to do without holding any political titles beyond that of the Avatar’s wife).

Hopefully it should be clear that Sokka, Aang, Toph, and Zuko's characteristics, goals, and motivations don't change as drastically as Katara's do. The writing of Katara in LOK did a disservice to her character. I've always deeply admired Katara for never failing to stand up against injustice, for her empathy and kindness even for those who are different from her, and for her determination not to let patriarchal norms define what she can and can't do. While LOK's portrayal of other characters provides a glimpse at how their character arcs in atla influenced the way they shaped the world, we never get a glimpse of the original Katara - only a lackluster imitation of someone with the same name.

If the Avatar franchise continues to expand with more post-ATLA content of the gaang as adults, I certainly hope Katara's characterization is improved.

#katara #katara analysis #atla #zutara #anti lok #lok critical #once again not shipping related only tagging zutara for visibility #my post #my meta

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comradekatara · 2 months

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Okay either Mako/that dumb fucking prince, or. Bolin/Korra?

LMFAO I think ive already explained at length why I hate that ship and character generally and the utter tragedy of saddling him onto my poor boy mako (just go into my wu tag) but bolin and korra is not a ship i’ve ever talked about and I do actually find it fascinating. not because I necessarily think that they’d make a good couple, but because of the way in which bolin’s character assassination happened in the same episode that they established him as a contender in the love triangle, and then seemed to immediately realize that two (extremely codependent) brothers fighting over a girl is kind of weird and thus desexualized bolin (at least for the rest of the season) by lobotomizing him.

in the first couple episodes, bolin is actually quite charming and grounded, but you wouldn’t know that from watching the rest of the show, because from the moment he goes on a date with korra forward, they only afford him the mental capacity of a five year old. like, I think that mako is supposed to be the book smart sibling and bolin is the street smart sibling, but bolin is actually unfathomably naive and foolish, and mako is just. both book and street smart. so it’s like. okay. well what is bolin doing here.

remember when he used to be someone with a brain and actual charm? no because his brain slipped through his ears after going on one single date with korra. a date that went spectacularly well, I might add. they never actually give us a reason to believe that korra would sooner have feelings for mako than bolin. all she and mako do is argue, while she and bolin have a lot in common and good chemistry. obviously i’m a korrasami truther, but like. what they did to bolin to justify makorra is just strange. this is what I mean when I say that lok has some of the clumsiest writing i’ve ever seen.

but also, I will say this: it’s very funny to me that bolin is into korra (definitely understandable) but never asami (the most beautiful woman alive). like mako is very understandably into both of them because who wouldn’t be. well, bolin wouldn’t be. because he’s only into brown girls. amen

#ephemeral-phosphorescence #asks #bolin #korra #mako #lok crit #they literally lobotomized him so that mako could fumble two gorgeous girls 😭 mess

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class1akids · 2 months

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Did you watch the new live action of ATLA ? Recently I've seen the live action and animated version of ATLA and all i can see is that the parallels between Zuko and shoto are insane?!

No, I haven't watched it. I've spent a few years in the ATLA fandom, I love the show, but I have been pretty disappointed in LoK and the comics, so I have no desire to see any further spin-offs and re-thinking and just want to keep the original in my head in its near-perfection.

I think I've written also about Zuko and Shouto - this question comes up a lot. There are a some parallels between them, but I think they come from common literary and manga tropes:

Abusive family

Toxic father / daddy issues

Absent mother / mother issues

Facial scar as symbol of pain endured

Healing arc

Found family

Ruined sibling relationship with a sibling possessing blue fire due to shared abuse / toxic family

Fire powers that unlock with healing

Unconventional use of fire power that symbolizes healing (Zuko's lightning redirect and Shouto's Phosphor)

But if you look beyond these tropes, I think the psychology between them is very different:

Zuko is a "black sheep" / failure character, desperate for his father's approval. In his attempt to earn that approval, he does pretty bad things, betrays his uncle and needs to go on a redemption arc to learn to let go of the need for his blood father's approval and embrace the father who truly raised him - Iroh.

Shouto by contrast is a "golden child" / "masterpiece" character (more like Azula in that sense), but he's never after his father's approval. His arc is about gaining autonomy and sense of self, healing, forgiving and reconnecting with his family. And his ultimate challenge is not to let go of his need for his family, but to learn to accept that in order to find himself, Shouto needs to learn to see and accept his father as a flawed human being as well.

Just think of their endgames. Zuko's endgame is to reject his father and walk away. Shouto's endgame is keep fighting for his family despite every let-down and rejection.

So I think despite the many similarities, both arcs deep down are quite different and unique. In ATLA Zuko and Azula both develop and change, Ozai stays as a static, one-dimensional evil character. In the Todoroki family, everyone is more dynamic. Shouto, Touya and Endeavor all change, but so does Rei, Fuyumi and Natsuo. While Zuko has Iroh’s unconditional love to counterbalance Ozai, Shouto has no “Iroh” character to guide him. Even if you could argue that All Might’s inspiration is the counterbalance to Endeavor’s abuse, All Might is quite a distant figure for Shouto. So his journey in that way is more about understanding and assimilating the human characteristics of both Endeavor and All Might into his own end goal of who he wants to be.

The ATLA Fire family is about Zuko's coming to terms that he'll never get the family he wanted. The Todoroki family is about coming together and reconnecting a fractured family.

#atla #bnha #todoroki family #zuko #todoroki shouto #zuko-shouto parallels #c1a asks

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leantailean · 2 months

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Izumi being Toph’s daughter could be the reason for her glasses.

No, really.

Okay just follow my crazy for a moment.

No one in Zuko’s family wears glasses, right? And Mai throws knives which requires sharp eyesight to do accurately. So why does Izumi have vision problems?

Let’s consider what probably caused Toph’s blindness. She says she was born blind, so we know it’s congenital. Her eyes appear opaque which sounds like cataracts. Toph mostly likely has congenital catatacts.

Predispositions to congenital cataracts do run in families. If Izumi inherited this condition, she would need immediate surgery to save her sight. Delaying surgery results in the eye never developing properly due to missing out on sunlight, which still results in blindness. But if Izumi’s was caught earlier, they could’ve surgically removed the cataract.

It may sound too advanced but there have been rudimentary catarcter surgies in India since 5th century BC. In ATLA they could even use bending to improve the prognosis!

If all goes well, the only long lasting side effect would be the need for corrective lenses.

Like glasses.

Hello! And thanks for the question!

This is a very interesting theory, but I believe that Izumi is Mai's daughter. She and Mai are practically look like the same person. She also resembles her grandmother.

Unfortunately I don’t know much about hereditary eye problems, (but if happens that someone who reads it knows some factual information about it and can give some links I would be very grateful.)

I don't consider the comics and LOK to be a canon (in fact, you're talking to someone who doesn’t even consider the atla third book to be completely canon because of some terrible writing decisions or how the writers treated some of the characters in the third book, especially Zuko , Iroh and Aang, lol🤓). I like to think about LOK as of some sort of AU. And in general, I have almost no doubt that Toph and Zuko actually have a common child in LOK. Like, just look at Lin. She looks like someone from the FN. Her facial expressions, movements, her stubborn, strong personality. Do I at least doubt that Lin is Zuko's daughter? No, for me this is the canon. It's possible that Toph and Zuko got together around the time he and Mai had broken up for a while, or it's even more likely that Zuko widowed and after that he could have got into a long-term relationship with Toph. I don't want to think about Zuko being a widower, or that Mai died - I adore Mai, she's my best girl, my second favorite female ATLA character after Toph. And I LOVE maiko. But we know that in LOK Sokka died early, and Aang died quite early, so anything is possible. But, in any case, Zuko and Toph could have had a long relationship, nothing in LOK contradicts that version. As I recall, Toph mentioned that Lin's father's name was Kanto. Imagine: Zuko secretly dating a woman who doesn't want to be drawn into FN court undercover games, so he sends her love letters and sign them as "Kanto", and there is someone who reads these letters to Toph. God, I love that.

However, Izumi is definitely Mai's daughter.

But this is a very interesting theory, thanks for sharing it!

#zuko #toko #toph #lin #izumi #zutoph #maiko #mai #avatar the last airbender #atla #ask #we need to talk about toko #lok #korra #lin beifong

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sokkastyles · 4 months

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Hi,

Hope you are doing well. Thank you for the response on Azula.

One of the things that I have seen on TSR, which you have also re-blogged was about Katara watching her culture being wiped out because of the raids. It actually makes her a victim of genocide, just like Aang, because she is in essence the last Southern Waterbender, till Hama shows up in Book 3.

I get the feeling that Sokka, who wants a logical explanation for everything, did not understand that.

Do you think there should have an episode where he gets to understand how important waterbending is to Katara, similar in concept to the episode "Sokka's Master"? Or an episode where he learns to deal with the grief of his mother's death?

I would like your thoughts on this.

I sat on this ask for a bit thinking about it because I think you hit on something about the way the show portrays Katara's relationship with her cultural heritage in general that kinda bugs me. Waterbending is a big part of that heritage and is tied to spirituality in the atla universe. Sokka's dismissal of Katara's bending in the first episode as "freaky magic water" is related to the dichotomy the show sets up to characterize both Sokka and Katara and to introduce us to the atla world. Katara, who represents hope and the magic of this world, Sokka who represents logic and cynicism. There's also a gendering of values here. Sokka believes in logic and physical skills like hunting which are commonly associated with men, while Katara is linked to the spiritual through her bending, water being a common symbol for the feminine. Even waterbending itself is based on Tai Chi, a more feminine martial art (which makes it kind of funny that the North forbids female waterbenders from learning it.)

The show has Katara call out Sokka's misogyny on a shallow level, but a lot of the fandom exaggerates Sokka learning not to be so sexist, which isn't so much an arc as it is something that the show occasional calls out when it wants to. Sokka learns to respect Suki because he loves her, but he still makes sexist jokes and never becomes an advocate for women or anything like that. Even his learning about the spiritual side of water tribe culture happens through Yue and not his actual waterbending sister.

It is unfortunate that a lot of Katara's associations with waterbending as a part of her cultural heritage are negative. If I were to make a parallel to Sokka learning from Piandao, the obvious choice is Hama as someone Katara learns a lot from, but that learning is associated with trauma. Even Katara learning how to heal was traumatic and resulted in her getting burnt, and whenever she uses her healing it's in a dire situation. This is also a good counterpoint to those who say it's a good thing that Katara in LoK gave up fighting because she associated it with trauma. The moments when Katara uses her healing are not less traumatic.

Do you know what would have been interesting? More acknowledgment of the importance of waterbending both for spiritual purposes and practical ones. Remember when Katara tried to catch a fish with her waterbending in episode one? That seems like something that a community that relies so much on fishing should be more aware of, doesn't it? Why is hunting and fishing seen as something only men do, if that ability exists?

Give me also Katara learning how to create vast ice structures after visiting the north and bringing that knowledge back to her village. Imagine what they could accomplish with Katara's bending and Sokka's engineering knowledge combined.

#katara #sokka #waterbending

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mostly-mundane-atla · 5 months

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So I learned about ati, which (I believe) is basically the concept of people born with the soul of their dead ancestor, and therefore named after him/her (regardless of gender). In-universe examples of ati in ATLA and LOK could be General Bumi II being named after Aang's friend Bumi I, Kya II being named after her grandmother Kya I, and even General Iroh II being named after his grandfather's uncle Iroh I.

BUT, I wondered, if all Avatars are reincarntions of Avatar Wan and are connected by Raava, does that mean the Avatar has his/her own ati? I headcanon that Water Tribe Avatars were still named after their deceased relative at birth (since their parents don't know their child is the Avatar yet) until they are identified as the Avatar (usually at 16). Then, the Avatar is given a new name unique to him/her, as not only does he/she have his/her own ati, but the new name is used to signify this new stage that would change their life forever. I imagined that the NWT and the SWT have both declared it illegal to name a Water Tribe child after a Water Tribe Avatar to respect their ati. This is why you wouldn't, say, find a single person in the NWT named Kuruk, or a single person in the SWT named Korra, other than the Avatars themselves.

I just want to know your thoughts on this headcanon I made.

Okay first off: i need to correct something here. The atiq is not necessarily an ancestor, just someone in the same community who has died. Your atiq can be related to you and it's pretty common that they are, but it's not always the case. (Also this is entirely stylistic preference, but the singular they is a lot more efficient than he/she either/or style pronouns. Not only is it faster to write but it's much easier to read, especially in a longer ask like this, includes those who don't use he or she pronouns, and doesn't put one gender before another. Just putting that out there.)

Second, yes, the atiq is a past life of a kind and your are considered a continuation of your atiq, but it's not your only identity. You are them, but you are also you. I could get into Inupiaq Christianity, in which the belief is your atiq simultaneously lives on through you and enjoys a peaceful afterlife just to underline this multifaceted sort "different versions, all true" approach to the nature of the soul and identity, but Inupiaq Christianity is it's own big topic and I'm not prepared to get into it.

So I'd say the concepts of having an atiq and being an avatar are not inherently the same or mutually exclusive, especially given how the series tends to play fast and loose with the idea of being an avatar. I think both can be true. Mostly because my culture's traditional spirituality, one i practice, which believes in the concept of atiq also holds the belief that just because there are two opposing concepts, that doesn't mean one of them is wrong.

#response #eskimo on main #the q in atiq is subtle and our language didn't include a written component for the longest time #so i don't see a point in correcting it to the standardized spelling

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uravity-the-infinity-girl · 2 years

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ways that hero society hurts pro heroes headcanons

does anyone wanna hear the shit i think that heroes go through and why i feel they’re victims? no? ok

firstly i headcanon hero society as having extremely fucked up beauty standards where heroes face the same sort of scrutiny for their bodies as celebrities do in our world, like if a female hero is too muscular there will be men complaining that she looks like a guy and if a male hero isn’t muscular enough he’s lazy etc

i bet you anything that it was not only the fact that media interferes with hero work that Aizawa chose to stay out of the spotlight i bet in some subconscious way he was afraid of the intense scrutiny that comes with being a hero

not only that but heteromorphic people are always chastised and rarely do well in hero ranking if they don’t appear attractive or fit within the public’s view of heroes, i’m thinking of gang orca for example who is ranked number 1 in looks the most like a villain like for someone who fights villains for a living and has probably been harmed by them first hand that’s bound to take some psychological toll. that moment always bothered me and i think it’s really unfair for heroes to be categorised like that when they’re dedicating their lives to try to be useful. you just know that people with quirks like shoji will find it harder to succeed no matter how great or compassionate a hero he is.

i know it’s common in fan fiction for Hawks to have to hide aspects of his quirk that are unappealing but let’s think about that with other heroes as well like Mirko, i imagine she’s grown up with agents and superiors telling her it’s annoying when her foot won’t stop thumping or weird how she eats carrots or Mic being told to keep it down constantly-i’m sure there are loads of heroes who are made to be ashamed of aspects of who they are and have to hide them in order to sell an image and be more profitable and likeable.

i also imagine that they’re all terrified of aging and that perpetual fear of losing their spotlight is probably a huge part of their psyche as from a young age they feel they have limited time to be successful like when hawks is talking about his prime calm tf down your life has barely started.

heroes are objectified so much by the commission being treated like weapons makes them feel like their bodies are what make them useful-just look at hawks’ reaction to losing his wings calling himself crippled and pathetic because he can’t be as efficiently used despite still being able to achieve so much with his intelligence, determination and physical skill alone. Mirko may not have the same self deprecating attitude towards her injuries however her dedication to continue fighting by whatever means she can is a testament to how heroes are taught to act with no thought for their own safety if they want to be useful. this is what makes AFO scary to the heroes, the fact they can lose their quirk and therefore their usefulness is terrifying. i like to imagine that many heroes felt or still feel about AFO as korra did about amon in s1 of lok.

furthermore heroes are expected to give their lives at the drop of a hat, mirko lives every day like it’s her last because for heroes their is no safety net or garuntee that they will survive they can’t just give up or protect themselves in the face of certain death or they literally wouldn’t be doing their job. you saw how disposable Lady nagant was to the president of the HPSC clearly they don’t have any care for the lives of even the heroes they work closest with. Mirko and Aizawa cut off their own limbs without blinking because they have to and they’ve been trained this way and it’s horrific how ready to die all of the heroes are without a second thought despite how young they are. arguably it’s admirable but if i learnt anything from she-ra it’s that they need to find a bit of self worth and need to be treated as people who’s lives and well being should be a priority rather than disposable weapons to be used with no regard to their safety.

and it’s fucking beautiful that All might chose to live, the man who has been through the most and given pretty much all there is to give. He’s given up his whole life, his bodily health, his self esteem, his friends, his image as a natural born hero and so much more just to protect people. All might was able to break the cycle of death be choosing to live rather than give his life up and Deku will break the cycle by choosing to save rather than defeat or kill.

i just think that being a hero is so exhausting and must take so much out of you, it’s important to remember how much they are victims of the system

#bnha #mha #keigo takami #hawks #mirko #miruko #rumi usagiyama #yagi toshinori #all might #shouta aizawa #eraserhead #gang orca #btw i’m not claiming these r canon #this is headcanons not a meta post😭

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taonpest · 1 year

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That scene in Barbie as the princess and the pauper where Anneliese and Erika put their hood on and laugh stupidly but it's Moebius and Mortanius

#legacy of kain #lok #my stupid thoughts #they have so much in common you see #they're old men with hoods getting manipulated by stinger forces am I right lads

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s3thwrit3sstuff · 9 months

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❝ situation might get sticky, icky ❞

male!reader x Tonraq x Water Tribe Men | nsfw, smut, p*rn without plot | dom. top. reader (AMAB) |not proofread | wc: 2k

warnings: sexual humiliation, gangbang, chastity cage (Tonraq), creampies, overstimulation

req: So for my request, based on LOK, can you write a one-shot featuring Tonraq and a male reader with gangbangs and humiliation, please? In the fic, Tonraq loses a bet with his Water Tribe friends and has to treat them to a gangbang session. The reader is the main man in charge of the session as he preps Tonraq by stripping him naked and applying a chastity cage to his cock. You can decide on the intimate acts he and the other men would do to Tonraq. But I would like it if at some point Tonraq was given a multilayered cloth gag made of the men's used loincloths. What do you think?

"You're going to lose" Tonraq scoffs, crossing his arms across his broad chest as he stares down at (Y/N) who is unabashedly laid across the pelts of the fur of their shared tent. "You have that little faith in me?" he pokes him with his feet. (Y/N) rolls away from his path, laying on his back and fluttering his eyes closed as he places one leg on his knee with his arms pillowing his head. "You suck at skiing, Plite will fair far better than you. It's just a fact", Tonraq's brow twitches and he breaths sharply through his nose as he slips his innerwear on and then his jacket. "You may be the heir of the Northern Water Tribe but sometimes, a common-born is better at certain things and you've got to live with it —" (Y/N) grunts as Tonraq presses his foot on his stomach, leaning on his elbows as he glares up at the chief's son. A sharp smirk causes Tonraq to dig his heel in. "Aren't you a brave one," (Y/N) said. Tonraq elects to ignore that tone in his voice and merely glances at the mouth of the tent when he hears the cheers of their fellow comrades calling for him. Tonraq's hair sways with every purposeful step though he pauses sharply just as he lifts the flaps of their tent to look over his shoulder, a haughty expression written all over his chiselled face. "Don't forget who you're speaking to, soldier". Tonguing his cheek, (Y/N) rolls his eyes and sits up properly. Soldier? That's what Tonraq whimpers out when he's begging to be filled by his dick? A frustrated sigh escapes the capable warrior as he combs back his hair with a derisive laugh. The chief had sent a small but elite group of the Northern Water Tribe's newest edition to their military to the further corner of their territory to intercept some illegal poaching. They'd done just that and were now waiting to see if the poachers had indeed had back-up like they had claimed. Bored out of their mind, and as young men do, they decided to entertain themselves with silly competitions like penguin sleighing, skiing treacherous rocky slopes, and iceberg rowing. Tonraq had to lead the entire thing. He'd proven himself a worthy leader and strong warrior of the North, and his ego was a fucking monster as a result of it. (Y/N) was the witness to most of Tonraq's boyish ego — along with his blubbering, pathetic, moans at night. A groan is (Y/N)'s belated, annoyed, reply and he's slipping on his outerwear to witness this 'glorious' competition. Following the indents in the snow and the sounds of boisterous laughter he finds himself on the edge of a snowy slope where a few waterbenders were making ice sleds.

"You look pissed" Plite muses. "What happened?" his pale eyes shoot past Tonraq's broad shoulders and scoff as he spots (Y/N) with his arms indignantly crossed. "A lovers quarrel?" Tonraq warns him with a glance but Plite doesn't catch it. His mouth is in an open smirk, a breath of disbelief escaping him as he laughs at the sight behind him. So Tonraq turns, brows furrowed and frown etching into his face before they disappear in a flash. (Y/N) was waving around his underwear, twirling it around his pointer finger as if it wasn't Tonraq's dignity that followed the brash display. He hates himself for the heat that pools in his stomach as their eyes lock. The gaze of the young men that he had victoriously led in the mission was no longer filled with awe or respect — it was unabashed lusting. They make way as he barrels past with his tall frame and squared shoulders.

"Clench your teeth too much and you'll burst a vein, Ton-Ton" he purrs, evading Tonraq's desperate swipes. "What the hell do you think you're doing, sold-" He had seen it coming, call it instincts if you will, but he was too slow to have stopped him. (Y/N) had his cum stained underwear pressed firmly between his palm and Tonraq's face. "You really think you're in any position to make threats?" Tonraq isn't stupid. He most definitely isn't weak either. He could easily escape this — even if (Y/N)'s grip is so strong Tonraq's cheeks ache. Tonraq was a powerful waterbender. He could easily knock him back. Put an end to this public humiliation. Regardless of that fact, they both revel in Tonraq's submission — in front of the other men as well. "You really are one dumb fucking bitch. What? You can't use your brain for anything else except for sucking dick?" Tonraq's emotions waver but (Y/N)'s doesn't. He inches closer, snow crunching under his shoes before his right places itself over Tonraq's. He winces and (Y/N) digs his weight. Tonraq obeys his whims and kneels in the snow. The shock is palpable. Plite, on the other hand, rolls his eyes and scratches the back of his head with a sigh. It was bound to happen. They were young men, bored out of their minds — Tonraq and his lover weren't exactly quiet when they "headed back to bed" early after dinner. Plite wasn't too bothered since they'd also been this way whilst training. "Spirits help me — Hey! Are we sleighing or not? It took forever to set this up" (Y/N) pretends to muse about the thought. His lower lip pushed into a pout as he tilts his head. Tonraq feels his grip loosen but chokes when the taste of his semen and his lover's clothed fingers evade his tastebuds. "Yeah! He'll sled, but" He straightens up to turn to the others, Tonraq bowing his head as tremors of pleasure snake towards the growing tent in his pants. "He'll keep that in his mouth and...whatever you bet before this doesn't matter. Win or lose, Ton-Ton's gonna treat his superiors to all the nice warm and wet holes he has".

"Does victory taste sweet, Plite?" he grunts, toes curling as gagging ensues from between his toned legs. "Hah — It would be sweeter if it was properly earned but this slut was hardly trying to win the competition" Plite dug his heels into the pile of furs and bucked his hips up. Tonraq's throat was tighter than any cunt Plite had ever sunken his member into. Slicked with drool and squeezed his cockhead with every drag in. The inky locks that were once the envy of all were now stuck to his forehead, darkened with perspiration while he was jerked back and forth. He laughed sharply and shoved Plite's shoulder. "Don't be a sore winner, you've nothing to complain about when your dick is getting such royal treatment" The jab is not lost to Tonraq. Despite it, he's sucking in his cheeks to work on making Plite cum down his already-stained throat. There are shadows in the corner of his eyes. Thick, muscled, legs move impatiently as they wait their turn to see their perverse captain take in their dick and their comrade's dick. The scent of sweat and musk is heavy in the air, it makes Tonraq's cloudy mind sink further into a state of ecstasy. The salty taste of precum makes him gulp and Plite curses as Tonraq's throat tightens around him as a result. (Y/N) leans over, teeth biting down on his shoulder. It sends shivers up Tonraq's spine. "Enjoying yourself, slut?" Tonraq moves to pull away so he could respond but Plite curses and grabs a fistful of his hair, pulling him down his dick again. Tonraq gags as his nose is pressed against the patch of pubic hair but like a good bitch he takes it with no complaints. (Y/N) feels up his throat, chuckling at the dick indent that he can feel. "Don't enjoy yourself too much now, not like your pathetic cock's going to get to cum anyways" The reminder makes his cock twitch. It's bumping into the cock cage it's confined in and Tonraq wants to smile but that's near impossible when he's sucking someone off. Thankfully, Plite finishes. He stands, panting as he looks down at Tonraq. Like he was taught to, Tonraq kneels to open his mouth to show just how good he is at swallowing cum. Next, he kisses Plite's cock, murmuring his thank you all the way to his heavy balls. Plite grunts, smirking as Tonraq mumbles thank yous between licking and sucking before shoving him back. Tonraq simply continues his repetitive mumbles, back flushed against (Y/N)'s chest as another man comes to take Plite's spot. "His cunt," the man says. (Y/N) chuckles and Tonraq's nipples are pinched. It makes him arch his back, keening as he tosses his head back. His cock cage is thrust forward by his own doing while (Y/N) coos into his ear. "Well? Get to it, bitch" Tonraq hastily gets onto his hands and knees. His face no inches away from (Y/N) who has two other men behind him. They're stroking their cocks, all hung and heavy and Tonraq feels drool slip past his lips. The man behind him kneels, spitting onto his puffy hole and wastes no time in sinking his fat cock inside of Tonraq's abused hole. "Shit" the man says "It doesn't even look like an asshole anymore, really does look like a cunt". "Is he still tight?" Plite wonders aloud as he wipes his cock with his loincloth.

"Nah," Tonraq's heart sinks. "It's sloppy, hey — tighten up for me" Tonraq grunts as a cock was shoved his way and as he opens his eyes (Y/N) was no longer in sight. Just the two men. "Open up," one guides their cock to his face and the other gently does the same to Tonraq's right hand. They're all over him. Sweat drips onto him and cum dries only to be reapplied again and again and Tonraq's in heaven at it all. Or, he would be. All these cocks are amazing. But he wants yours the most. He catches glimpses of you between the bodies. There's a cock siding between his curled arms at one point, another slipping between his tits when they wanted him on his back. Plite returns, clicking his tongue to tell the others to take their cocks away from Tonraq's sore jaw. "Ah! Yes! Fuck — Fuckfuckfuck — Fuck me! Your cock feels so good — Ngh! Ah-Uh! Uh! Uh! Ye-Yeah!" "Spirits above" Plite guffaws. "What a mouth" (Y/N)'s laughter makes Tonraq's eyes widen. He's behind Plite, the key to the chastity device just dangling around his neck and hidden by the shirt he wears. "You don't like how he sounds, Plite?" Plite shakes his head. "He sounds like a common whore, I thought what with him being royalty and all he'd sound nicer but...I guess not," Tonraq mewls as he feels his cock filling up reach him again only to be cut off once again.

"Please, please!" Tonraq's cheeks are wet with precum and tears. At this point, he was sure he'd pleasured the whole group they'd come with, some more than once. His cunt's barely keeping the cum inside anymore and all this talk about him, his pathetic cock, his sloppy asshole, his big tits, his status being downgraded — it's all overwhelming and he's jerking his hips in a desperate attempt to plead for release. "Please, please, let me cum, let me cum. I'm so sorry, sir — I-I won't be disrespectful again please just —" The taste of sweat and cum fills his mouth. (Y/N)'s two fingers burrow themselves deeper into Tonraq's mouth as he shoves the used loincloth in Tonraq's mouth. "Didn't you hear him? Plite says your voice annoys him," Tonraq sobs, torso twisting in retaliation so (Y/N) straddles his stomach as he sighs. His touch on Tonraq's face is soft and gentle, such a contrast to the men taking turns fucking into him. He leans in, kissing Tonraq's forehead before whispering into his ear: "One more load, Ton-Ton. One more and I'll give you what you want".

He weeps but nods. Always so good for you. (Y/N) continues to straddle Tonraq, watching him closely as his eyes roll to the back of his head, how his nipples are so sensitive and glossy from spit and cum, how he's completely marked with white and (Y/N) can't help the grin that grows on his face. The man finishes inside him and Tonraq's rewarded with a chaste kiss on his forehead. "Have you learned your lesson, slut?" He nods, eyes hazy a quick pinch to his nipple has him groaning as he forces himself to get through the haze. His hands carefully take off the chastity cage. Tonraq weakly thrusts his hips up, head lolling to the side as streams of cum leak out of his hole. "Cock...m'want your cock..." (Y/N) barely catches what Tonraq's trying to say but once he does he shakes his head, chuckling. "No, no, what's the point of fucking such a used cunt? I'm barely gonna feel a thing, no. Don't be greedy, Tonraq" Despite him wanting to be filled with his favourite dick, Tonraq stills whimpers and cants his hips into (Y/N)'s hands. "That's it, baby, thaaat's it"

#s3thwrit3sstuff #top male reader #reader insert #gay reader #male reader #male reader insert #male!reader #legend of korra x reader #tonraq x reader #tonraq x male reader

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erosauriarts · 5 months

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Avatar x BSD

Warning: It’s canon related violence similar to in show BSD.

Atsushi - The Avatar

I thought it would be fitting since Byakko is implied to be reincarnating????? Also the Netflix preview got me excited.

AU Premise

**None of the canon characters from ATLA or LOK are gonna be referenced UNLESS it’s to justify bending rules.**

Republic City exists, but it’s less western base, bc I didn’t like that lmfaooo (Basically Yokohama but as it was in the 1930-50s). White people???? Huh?? Ig they exist now??? 😨

Lore Plot:

Red Lotus killed the last avatar because they wanted to find the new one, for some enlightenment reasons (IDK radicals man). The hunt for the new one wanted to take and raise the new avatar to push their own agenda. The man that did it, passed down his legacy to Fyodor (water), and he was the one to find Atsushi. Atsushi was around 5-8 and was from the northern water tribe. Atsushi’s parent was the moon’s spirits guardians (funny ha ha bc his’s design in literally Yin and Yang to Aku). Fyodor takes Atsushi, and isolates him with the other spiritual believers. They raise him, misinforming him greatly over what being the avatar actually means. Though he has a pretty good connection to his bending, Fyodor being his water bending master. They located somewhere in the north-pole.

In this time, everyone is looking for the avatar, but in like that way where you are like “here kitty kitty pspspsp.” And they even have a bounty for him. Bring him back alive ofc! In this, Dazai (Air) and Yosano (Water) are adopted siblings from a young age from Mori (Fire). Dazai at 18 splits off and becomes a traveling nomad, bc he fucking felt like it. Yosano was 14 when Fukuzawa (Air) saved her. Mori would make Yosano blood-bend, and so when she got free, she swore to never blood-bend again. She now uses her bending, and became one of the best healers.

The Armed Detective Agency works similar to canon in this, but has a specialized duty to find the avatar and turn them over to the white lotus. It’s extremely hard to get into the ADA, and forces benders to really push themselves. (In a way higher than the police force) Dazai joins, and is basically the ADA’s lost cat that goes away and comes back with something either helpful or cursed.

Dazai got leads on Fyodor bc Atsushi accidently used the avatar state when he found some new (and/or) prob figured out what happened to his family. Dazai basically yoinks Atsushi from the isolated village, running back on all fours with the weretiger dangling from his mouth /j. Dazai shows up, drops the avatar off, then bounces. Even though Fyodor’s spiritual training and water-bending was severely indepth, Atsushi lacked alot of common sense. Atsushi’s abuse in this is more intense psychological punishment more then the physical one in canon. He’s.. alittle messed up, but besides the point. Regardless how much bad stuff he went through, he was genuinely sweet. The stress of the truth tho, threw him off balance, so he is hesitant to go into the avatar state.

Atsushi’s bending teachers / relationship

Water: Fyodor. Strictly mentor and caregiver. He sucked at caring for Atsushi’s needs, and only was interested in talking when Atsushi asked about spirtual connection and Philosophical debates. Spent most of his childhood till Dazai yoinks him at 18

Earth: Kunikida. He sucked at it originally, but Atsushi was so determine, he ends up asking for help to connect. Atsushi warms up to him, looking up to him for strength.

Air: Dazai. The third one, and he’s stressed. Dazai runs circles around Atsushi, causing so much mental strain. Atsushi gets frustrated, and nearly gave up, but Dazai manages to get a mutual understanding.

Fire: Kyouka. Though younger, Kyouka was the fastest firebender. She constantly beat Atsushi when the Port Mafia sent her out. (He gets saved by the ADA a lot lol)

Character Mentions

Ranpo: A none bender. Works with the Republic City police force, but spends most of his time with the ADA. He actively helps them get around the police.

Akutugawa: Earth Bender. He can bend metal, and is actually really scary (..er?)

Chuuya: I go back and forth between earth and fire. And I think earth bc of his boom boom, smash kapow moments in canon. I thought fire cause hehe red.

Nikolai: Air. He’s that one guy that does flips and is nearly impossible to get a hold off. Boys a slinky. He’s Fyodor’s right hand man… they even… KISS?

#art #bsd #fan art #bungo stray dogs #bungou gay dogs #atsushi nakajima #dazai osamu #yosano akiko #tanizaki junichirou #kunikida doppo #fukuzawa yukichi #ranpo edogawa #procreate #cross over #au idea #avatar #avatar the last airbender #ALTA

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fanfic-lover-girl · 7 months

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How Harmione Parallels Kataang

So I was reading snippets from Deathly Hallows, including the Harry & Harmione scenes after Ron left, and I noticed how much this non-canon ship is similar to the travesty that is Kataang.

It wasn't going to be as detailed or long as my Makorra vs Kataang post above but the thoughts just flowed.

Unequal Give and Take in the Relationship

Like Katara, Hermione gives way more than Harry to their friendship. Harry and Aang are the receivers usually. We never see Aang truly empathize with Katara when it comes to her mother and her darker side. When Harry sees Hermione breaking down in tears in DH, he literally just looks at her or ignores her crying when they sleep at night. Hermione on the other hand gives Harry hugs and pep talks whenever he is raging or sad. Harry is the exact same way with Ginny, by the way, his one true love (roll my eyes).

The instant they arrived Hermione dropped Harry’s hand and walked away from him, finally sitting down on a large rock, her face on her knees, shaking with what he knew were sobs. He watched her, supposing that he ought to go and comfort her, but something kept him rooted to the spot.

Motherly Vibes in the Relationship

ATLA literally had an episode where Katara pretended to be Aang's mom. Katara acts as the motherly figure in the group. In the Runaway episode, Katara acts like a nagging, mood-killer and Aang reacts to her like a mom when she scolds his posture. I recently posted about Aang's first earthbending lessons and how Katara was acting like a helicopter mom in those scenes. Hermione is not as motherly, thank goodness, but Hermione, like Katara, is posed as the boring, nagging friend. Harry does not enjoy her company as much as Ron's due to this nagging. He lies to her and avoids her due to her nagging. Whenever Harry is confused or emotional about something, I notice JKR usually uses the word "gently" to describe how she speaks to Harry. I notice Hermione is a lot more gentle and caring towards Harry compared to Ron a lot. She gives Harry tips on how to date Cho and coaches him on female nature. Like Katara, Hermione is the one who cooks and does the food shopping/stealing (well she did leave money at the coop and the muggle store so it is still stealing??) in their glorified camping trip. Even though Harry should know how to cook.

Threat of Violence/Intimidation

Katara is always the one who has to bear the danger of Aang's avatar state to calm him down. While Sokka and Toph run away in the desert episode, Katara is the only one left to approach Aang in this volatile state. It's not fair that Katara is forced to shoulder this burden alone. Also, I saw an avatar comic where Aang literally lavabends right in front of Katara in a tantrum when she tells him to practice firebending (it could be earthbending instead but the point stands). As for Hermione, Harry is not much better. You see this behaviour especially when it comes to Hagrid. Whenever Hermione has common sense and expresses annoyance about Hagrid, Harry often intimidates her to comply with his beliefs. I recall Hermione being frightened by Harry a lot. What a great friend. Not to mention when Harry went on his rage rampage in book 5, terrorizing Ron and Hermione. I don't care how much supposed PTSD Harry has. I understand things are rough for him, but that gives him no right to bully his friends and unleash his rage on them, especially Hermione.

Emotional Manipulation

For Katara, Aang was emotionally manipulative in Southern Raiders. He unfairly compares Katara's want for justice to Jet who tried to murder innocent people. He compares losing his pet to Katara losing her mother. Anyone who compares an animal to a human being is an idiot. Not sorry. Even at the end of the episode, he is still pushing forgiveness on her. As a Christian, I believe in forgiveness but someone should not force or guilt you into forgiveness. Harry is a bit more...messy to explain. He has used his parents' murder to guilt trip Hermione and Ron. For example, in book 1 when they were doing the magical puzzles to catch up to Moldy Voldy. The reason why I label this as emotional manipulation is because unless the plot calls for it, Harry does not care about his parents. Unless he wants something from someone. He is perfectly willing to use his dead parents to try to get Slughorne to give him the memory for Dumbles in book 6. He has a photo album he almost never looks at. He never talks much to Remus and Sirius about his parents. He never visits their grave until freaking book 7! So yeah, him using his dead parents to guilt trip Hermione, and Ron too, is 100% emotional manipulation. Also, Harry regularly uses the silent treatment or ostracization to guilt-trip people into apologizing to him. Even when he bears responsibility for the conflict. We see this with Ron, Seamus and yes Hermione. Hermione tries to protect Harry in book 3 when Sirius sends Harry that broom, and Harry, and Ron, punish her for this by ignoring her. For how long? At least a few weeks. How anyone sees the golden trio as a good friend group is a total mystery.

Selfishness / Lack of Empathy

This is kind of related to the first and fourth sections. For Aang, he is selfish when it comes to Katara. In season 3, he does not respect Katara's boundaries and gives her non-consensual kisses twice. In Ember Island Players, he nods along at the dialogue about Katara being the "avatar's girl" indicating that he is possessive of her. All he cares about is his crush and he does not care about Katara's feelings about her confusion and her desire to wait after the war to deal with romance. Aang never tries to appreciate her water tribe culture beyond the pilot episode. To the point where Tenzin completely ignores his water tribe heritage. Unlike Katara's other love interests (Jet and Haru), when Katara tries to empathize with Aang about the death of the airbenders, he never offers any recognition of Katara's loss and instead just tries to deny the airbenders are gone. Even in the northern water tribe, Aang makes Katara's anger at Pakku about HIM. Aang fails to recognize that she is fighting because of the injustice and sexism being done to HER and she's fighting for HERSELF. Aang sees how his friends lost their father figures in the invasion and in the next episode he does not care. Or at least he does not care enough to take their concerns about the next steps in the war seriously and goofs off instead. Enough of about Kataang, how does Harmione measure up?

Like Aang, Harry is very self-centered. Every time his birthday comes around he expects to be treated like a king and have his birthday be acknowledged by everyone. When he believes people have forgotten, he gets upset and pouty. Ron and Hermione's birthdays are mentioned only once I believe. Ron in book 6 and Harmione in book 5 or 6. He gives Ron a present for his bday. But what about Hermione? Zilch, nada. Hermione explicitly mentions her birthday in the text and I can't recall him giving her anything. I did a quick google search and I can't find squat! The dude makes a big stink about his birthday every year and can't even have the decency to reciprocate. I mention Harry's lack of empathy already in section 1. And it not only applies to Hermione but everyone. Including Ginny. If you really look at Harry, everything revolves around him. Harry shows very little appreciation for Hermione practically doing his homework for him. There is also a weird thing where Harry thinks to himself that he acts as a mediator for Romione but his actions show the opposite. When Ron and Hermione fight, he stays out of it and finds the whole thing annoying. Or even worse, when Hermione is feeling affectionate with Ron, Harry has a 'what about me' attitude.

Hermione was watching Ron fret over the fate of the Cattermoles, and there was such tenderness in her expression that Harry felt almost as if he had surprised her in the act of kissing him. ‘So, have you got it?’ Harry asked her, partly to remind her that he was there.

Secrecy

Both Aang and Harry hide things from their "love interest". Harry hides the fact that he was not practising his occlumency. Not only that, he actively tries to probe his connection with Moldy Voldy against Hermione's warnings. Several times he purposely hides house elf matters from Hermione, despite knowing how much she allegedly cares about the elves. For example, when he learns Slughorne is using elves to test his drinks for poison one of his first thoughts is to not tell Hermione. I don't even think Harry has a once of empathy or concern for the elves being abused like this. When Harry is fighting in the triward tournament, Hermione constantly nags him to prepare for his tasks and asks about his progress. If Harry was not such a nitwit, he would have asked Hermione for her help and she would have offered it. But instead, he lies to her and brushes her off. Aang hides Bato's map so that Katara and Sokka will not leave him for their father. At least Aang owns up to his lies. However, I do not believe Aang is fully honest about his avatar state situation after season 2. I think he tells them that he can't go into the state but I do not recall him ever revealing WHY. This inability could have cost them the war. What if there were no conveniently placed rock in the finale? Would Aang's avatar state be locked forever??

Conclusion

That's it from me. Both Kataang and Harmione are ships that lack proper respect, chemistry, maturity and trust. The girls give more to the relationship than the guys and the guys don't have any appreciation or care for their interests. Both these relationships are better off staying platonic. And even as a platonic relationship, they are still problematic. None of these kids are evil (not even horrid Harry) but these people need to either date other people and/or have some more emotional development.

Harmione is not a good ship. Harmione fans can claim how much better Harmione is than Romione and act superior all they want in the Romione vs Dramione war (all three ships are trash), but as far as I am concerned, both Hermione and Harry need serious help before they can date anyone. It's ironic really. Hermione mistreats towards Ron but then Harry turns around and mistreats her AND Ron. Harry makes it clear who's king in the golden trio. What karma. Poor Hermione.

If you want a better, more comprehensive meta on why Harmione does not work as a ship, check out this lovely gem of an essay. Have a great day!

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