#post comic maiko | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

f1reladymai · 2 months

Note

Do you think the Smoke and Shadow comic foreshadows Zuko and Mai as future rulers of the Fire Nation? It showcases their strategy skills along with improving their communication as they strive to find a solution to save the children of the fire nation capital. Even though they are broken up, they work well together and shows their compatibility as rulers. Thoughts?

omg my first anon, hello and thank you for asking me this question !!

I talk a little bit about this in my video essay, actually. while I hate the comics and I think it’s stupid that they broke up, it does give them a chance to grow as people and into their positions in the world. the writer confirmed that they got back together 3 years later, meaning they’re young adults when they reunite, and they would have grown from their teenage selves.

in The Promise (2012) we already see their communication improving (well, Mai’s anyway) when she says that Zuko can come to her with any issues he has and he should be able to talk to her about his feelings because she’s his girlfriend. this already shows that he has someone he can rely on who is willing to listen to him, someone he’s known for a long time.

in Smoke and Shadow (2015), we see this communication improving. one thing that gene luen yang got right is that Zuko would absolutely be pinning over Mai, given how much that loser (affectionate) was obsessed with her.

although she is with Kei Lo at the time, Zuko expresses how much he misses her and that he wants her back, as well as acknowledging how happy she looks. he does this instead of repressing his feelings, and Mai talks about her point of view of the situation, being open and honest (despite it not being what Zuko wants to hear).

it is not only their communication improving that shows the potential they have at running a nation together, but also who they’re going after in Smoke and Shadow (2015). one criticism that people give Mai is that she doesn’t care about people, and in turn, the Fire Nation citizens. however, in this comic we see her and Zuko working together to take down a terrorist organisation. while part of it is to protect Zuko, she calls her own dad (who is leading The New Ozai Society) “insane” for his political beliefs.

not only that, but she sends him to prison in the end and says that he deserves to go.

this is after she helped free her little brother, Zuko’s little sister and gaggle of other Fire Nation toddlers (with Zuko) !!

so, yeah. while I hate the comics, I think they do show some potential of Zuko and Mai working well together as rulers of a nation (even though “Fire Lady” doesn’t seem like an active role in politics, but we can pretend or hope that changes with Mai).

#noreen’s asks #anon #txt post #atla #avatar the last airbender #a:tla #avatar: the last airbender #maiko #Mai #Zuko #mai&zuko #Mai & Zuko #prince zuko #fire lord zuko #smoke and shadow #the promise #atla comics #atla meta

42 notes · View notes

justanotherthrowaway1950 · 7 months

Text

I know this is really belated, it has long been jossed by subsequent material, but I wrote a Tyzula fic that attempted to continue the Avatar comics timeline post-Imbalance while also incorporating the other extended universe material.

It focuses on the Fire Nation and talks about, among other things, the effects of Sozin's criminalization of queer folk, the abusive nature of Fire Nation asylums, and Zuko's struggles to de-Sozinize the Fire Nation. However, it gets really dark at times, and not everyone gets a happy ending.

So if you guys have time, I would be honored if you took a look at it. Thanks!

37 notes · View notes

avrelia · 2 years

Note

Hey - this is Maiko related and since I love your metas I thought I would ask this question.

How do you think Iroh feels about Mai and Maiko? I’ve seen some treat Iroh’s opinion as the voice of God when it comes to shipping - curious to hear your thoughts!

Most fans make Iroh a champion of Zuko’s love life and have him happily endorse the same ship they are shipping.

Of course, we see Iroh encouraging Zuko to go on a date with Jin, and basically arranging the date for him. Does that mean he would be just as ecstatic about his other relationships? Would he be championing Zuko’s relationship with Mai? Would he be happy for them?

I have a more complicated headcanon about Iroh. Now, his first concern would be Zuko’s well-being and happiness. And the second concern would be the future of the world and the Fire Nation. Iroh understands better than anyone what a heavy burden governing the Fire Nation is and without hesitation puts this burden on his sixteen year old nephew despite having a better claim to the throne. All because he believes it is going to be better for the world and the Fire Nation.

So I think in the question of Zuko’s romantic partners he is going to worry along the same two lines: will they make Zuko happy? And will they make a good companion to the Fire Lord?

In the series themselves Iroh and Mai don’t meet on screen. But we can see them interacting quite genially in the Smoke and Shadow.

Therefore my headcanon is that Iroh likes Mai well enough by herself. But he is not sure – at the beginning – that Mai and Zuko are good for each other and that their relationship is good for the country.

I operate on the assumption that the events that happened in the post AtLA comics are canon. That Mai and Zuko broke up a year after he became the Fire Lord due to the various pressures and their inability to communicate with words.

Was Iroh happy seeing Mai and Zuko together at the end of AtLA events? He was happy to see Zuko happy I think. And may be a bit worried at the intensity of their relationships. He sure encouraged Zuko to do on dates. But go on dates at 16 and whatever Zuko had with Mai were different. And I am pretty sure Iroh didn’t think Zuko was ready to get marry and start a family at 17, even though, in a royal family it would hardly be unheard of.

Was Iroh happy to see Mai and Zuko break up? Probably he was worried about Zuko’s state of mind and thought the relationship has run its course like many first loves do.

He would not encourage their reconciliation, but would not fight the kids coming back together, either. He would gently poke Zuko – and Mai, if the opportunity arises – in the direction of them figuring their lives and being their happier selves, together or apart.

And when they do grow in their happier mature selves, he would cheer for them both.

Thank you! It was a question I enjoyed answering very much.

Please ask me stuff!

#atla #iroh #atla mai #zuko #atla maiko #my asks #my posts #atla headcanons #atla comics

16 notes · View notes

starlight-bread-blog · 8 months

Note

Zuko abuses katara in the comics

First of all, next time you send me a negative ask get off anon or don't send it. It's listed as one of my rules in regards to asks.

I'm assuming you're referring to this:

This is horrible. I know how terrible this is. I'll never make an excuse for this Zuko. But my opinions on Zutara don't go beyond the actual shows (Atla & Tlok).

I read two comicses a couple years ago, so pardon me if I'm mistaken. I remember Toph suggesting Aang to steal someone's bending just cause he wasn't a great guy. I remember Aang agreeing to kill Zuko. I had a vague memory of a panel of Maiko that I found horrible, I don't have the context for these two, but it seems as though Maiko wasn't all that great in the comics as well.

The character's actions felt incredibly ooc. This is why I don't use Katara getting sidelined as an argument against Kataang. It's a comics problem, not a Kataang problem. And whatever these panels are, they're not a Maiko problem, they're a comics problem.

Same goes for this garbage. Post redemption, in the show, Zuko would never lay a hand on Katara. This is the same person who jumped in front of a lightning for her. Except it's not quite. It's not in the show, it's in the comics. It's not a Zutara problem, it's a comics problem.

#anti anti zutara #pro zutara #anti atla comics #atla critical #atla critisism #asks open #asks #zutara meta #zutara asks #zutara analysis #zutara forever #zutara #zuko x katara #zukoxkatara #kataraxzuko #katara x zuko #anti bryke

258 notes · View notes

darklinaforever · 2 months

Text

The horrible writing of Katara's character has nothing to do with Zutara. And even when we Zutara shippers talk about Katara's horrible treatment in the comics and TLOK, it's never when talking about the ship. But simply how the canonical character was managed and by extension his relationship with Aang which are real disasters whether you like it or not. There are literally tons of comparisons between Katara and the other members of the gaang that prove how she has been neglected as a character. I've already made several posts explaining my point of view on Katara's treatment, so I won't repeat myself here. But it's still an argument that comes up often, I have the impression among pro Kataang people accusing pro Zutara of being misogynistic for not accepting the life that Katara has led, when it's only a question of criticism. objective on how the character was managed! In any case, these people tend to only see the surface, refusing in-depth analysis to only see what suits them... Not to mention all this attempt to negate the fact that Maiko is a toxic couple and that Mai herself is a character with overall writing problems.

Anyway, can we really expect much from someone who is clearly a ghost blog ?

And then when we see what some pro Kataang say :

We wonder who is really saying misogynistic remarks... Especially sorry, it's mainly the pro Kataang who keep repeating that Katara is the avatar's girl, his forever girl over and over again, as if she were Aang's property. But apparently no, the problem is the Zutara who point out the misogynistic writing of a female character.

71 notes · View notes

sokkastyles · 8 months

Note

Hi, I just wanted to hear your take on maiko post atla since you read the comics. Thanks!

I have not read Smoke and Shadow, but I know that it's the comic where Mai, after breaking up with Zuko in The Promise because he didn't tell her he was struggling emotionally (or something), gets a new boyfriend for the purpose of making the guy she broke up with jealous. Then gets mad at him when he gets upset at her for intentionally trying to make him upset. The guy she broke up with for struggling emotionally. Then she keeps secret that her dad is trying to murder him - the guy she broke up with for keeping secrets - and when called out on that, throws his own abuse at the hands of his father back in his face as an excuse, instead of actually owning up to her actions. Like, the difference between Zuko and Mai here is that Zuko stopped enabling his horrible father and Mai didn't, and using Zuko's history of abuse against him this way is gross. Also, maybe Zuko didn't share his emotional problems with Mai because their relationship is characterized by Mai exploiting Zuko's emotions. Like, maybe she was jealous of Ozai for exploiting Zuko's emotions because she thinks that's her job? Idk, that was a whole mess.

#antimaiko #atla comics critical

139 notes · View notes

punkeropercyjackson · 1 month

Text

If Zutara is a feminist ship then it's absolute bottom of the barrel feminism SORRY like it's so downlow💀Katara's a fem girl with parentification trauma and open softness and Zuko's a masc dude who turned into a Team Dad to heal his inner child and break the cycle of abuse and high up walls so they're already a cisheteronormative ship based off that alone but there's also how while Zuko made up for what how he hurt Katara,his attacks and insults to her were racially motivated and that adds a thick layer of racialized misogyny AND directly goes against Katara's wishes to force Zuko onto her because she fought for a loooong time to break the mold of womanhood should only exist in 'what girls are SUPPOSED to be like' and frankly the emphasis on supposed 'realism' when it comes to girls and Zutara said by the shippers so often has transmisogyny underlaying it,if not then at least bioessentialism,with how cis and exclusive of unconventional girlhood it is and it dosen't help their case that they often feminize Toph when she gets older when in CANON she stayed gnc and ruthlessly talk badly of Aang because he's a boy who's feminine and gets hurt when bullied for it in-universe and he has a fucking right to even if he's cis!!!!They're making fun of him for being himself!'Fragile masculinity' my ass,if you saw a stud or a non-fully transitioned transfem you'd hurl and he thinks Katara's punk girl slay is the hottest shit ever and showed hints of crushing on Toph's butch ass too

But back on topic,this is why i can't stand Zutara man,there's nothing for me to relate to!I'm a punk femme woc like Katara and i headcanon her as trans,bi and autistic like me because i relate to her in some very important ways(though i hc her as transfem while i'm transmasc bigender)and this is also a big part of the appeal of Kataang for me because i'm the girl who had a crush on Aang instead of Zuko Zutara shippers always told you don't exist and i loved Taang because i was rowdy tomboy like Toph but i never had a beef with Kataang,i didn't see anything wrong with it!!!I minded my own damn bussiness and let Katara just vibe instead of making her some evil bitch!And while i'm in love with Zuko now thanks to the comics going into the Gaang's adult years,my canon self-insert ship with him is him and Ty Lee because i'm a super bubbly and optimistic pastel girl who's interests are considered 'stupid/silly/lame' by society and is high maintenance but nice to everybody instead of demanding and it turns out that me as a kid and me now are those ways due to autism and transgenderism!!!!

Zutara does nothing for the woc in me because Katara dosen't look like me since i'm black,i love her and Zuko as bickering found siblings,i have older sister/maternal feelings towards Aang like Zuko does older brother/fatherly ones,i see Mai as a comphet (trans) lesbian but love Maiko because she's weirdgirl rep and Zuko's in love with her and there's also black etchnic subgroups in each nation confirmed in Turf Wars so i don't got anything stopping me from making an Atlasona instead of ruining characters and dynamics!!!!!Zutara is such a less than nothing ship if you're 'not a normal girl' and the fandom's make it beyond crystal clear how they feel about us so that's why i hate it so much in addition to what ass is is!The only thing Z/k's were 'robbed' of is the ability to get a grip,a boyfriend,friends who think they're goddesses platonically like mine do to me and me them and media literacy seeing as Atla's title refers to Aang being the sole survivor of a genocide based off an irl one but they will do everything and anything to remove that out of the context in analysing him and the franchise as a whole

And not to diverge topics again but this is why i'm okay with shaming and mocking Zutara re Natla(and no i don't mean harrasing,i mean og posting)by me and anybody else,they deadass SHOWED PART OF THE AIR NOMAD GENOCIDE and ALSO ADDED 'TOKEN GOOD' FIRE NATION SOLDIERS and it's so beyond fucking racist and disturbing that they're trying to do any gotcha or praise of it involving their military war ship.You's grown and Zuko loves Aang the most anyway,you normie losers

35 notes · View notes

king-bumis-armpit · 21 days

Text

The Promise of Dessert

Written for Maiko Week 2024 – Parents

Summary: Zuko and Mai talk about having kids for the first time. Such a serious conversation can only be had with a plate of fruit tarts. Guest starring: chef Tom-Tom.

Author’s Note: This is very contradictory to the fic I posted yesterday, lol! They exist in separate timelines. Maybe OOC. Mai and Zuko have a very open and honest conversation. In my head this takes place before the Promise comics and very near the end of the show, but Tom-Tom is slightly aged up. But it could also take place after they get back together. Dealer’s choice ;)

Also, thank you to everyone who commented on any of my posts! I had never really written fanfic and published it before this week and you have all been so nice and encouraging. I’m out of pre-written posts and this might be the last thing I put up this week <3

TW: Very brief mention of infertility and a difficult pregnancy. It’s mostly fluff.

WC: 2,177

Mai shivered in the evening air. Where was your fire bending boyfriend when you needed him? She was walking home after spending the day with Ty Lee, and she felt completely drained.

It was fun and all, but truthfully Mai had been ready to leave much earlier than Ty Lee allowed. She loved her friend, but the acrobat was a bit much sometimes. They were hanging out with the other Kyoshi Warriors– many of whom Mai had also come to like– but they were not a quiet bunch. Mai had stayed up late last night visiting Zuko at the palace and she desperately needed a rest.

She had tried to leave at dinner time, but Suki guilted her into eating with them. And afterwards, Ty Lee insisted that Mai test her Pai Sho skills against Misaki, who was the best on Kyoshi Island apparently. Then, for some very important reason unfathomable to Mai, Kaori, another one of the girls, urgently needed to learn how to put her hair into symmetrical buns. That lesson took quite a long time, so when they finished Mai was sure that she was free. But alas! Hiro– or maybe Hina (Mai was still learning everyone’s name)– wanted knife throwing tips. By the time Mai was able to go, the sun was going down.

She yawned and stretched before entering her home. On the floor was a piece of paper. Mai thought it was odd, but she had half a mind to ignore it before she realized it bore her name. Raising an eyebrow, she picked it up, but all it said was, “Go to kitchen.” The handwriting looked like Zuko’s. She pursed her lips. That man and his notes.

Still, she was slightly more awake than before and she complied with the request. She pushed open the door and, sure enough, there he was. Zuko stood in his casual robes and apron of all things. He didn’t notice her at first because he was talking to Tom-Tom, who sat on the counter, also in an apron and covered in flour. Tom-Tom laughed at whatever Zuko was saying, and Zuko ruffled his hair affectionately.

Mai felt her heart do an odd sort of somersault. The scene was so domestic… She could almost imagine their future. There was no banishment anymore, or war, or pain. Just the people she loved.

Tom-Tom spotted her first. “Mai!” He jumped down and ran to hug her. She patted his head affectionately, as he gazed up at her. “Zuko and I made fruit tarts for you! Just don’t look in the trash. We messed up a lot of times. But this batch is perfect!”

Her little brother took her hand, and guided her to the kitchen table. It was much smaller than the one in their formal dining room, but it felt more intimate. Mai cast her eyes to Zuko, who was watching her with a sappy grin. “Welcome home,” he said, and she felt her cheeks flush.

“Thank you,” she replied, before turning her attention to the tarts. Some of them were burnt on the outside, and a few were a bit lacking in the titular fruit. Mai suspected that the boys had been overconfident on their first go and wasted supplies. But, to her, they were the most exquisite desserts she had ever received. “These look delicious! I didn’t know you two had it in you.” She gave Tom-Tom a peck on the forehead. “Thank you so much, I can’t wait to try one.”

Tom-Tom beamed up at her proudly. “You should try…” he furrowed his brow in concentration and examined the fruits of his labor intently. “This one.” He pointed to the one that had the most fruit and the least charring.

Mai picked it up gratefully and took a bite. “It’s so good! You could be quite the chef one day.”

Zuko had been watching her affectionately, but he pouted at that. “Hey! What about me?”

She laughed and walked over to kiss his cheek. “You too, of course. But I would rather you keep our Nation running.” He smirked and wrapped her in a quick embrace.

Then, he pulled out a chair from the table for her, and the three of them sat. Zuko and Tom-Tom also ate a fruit tart each, but Mai could tell that they had been sampling their wares before her arrival.

Michi appeared to take Tom-Tom to bed, and she gave Mai a cheerful look on her way out. Mai didn’t know how to feel about it. She assumed her mother wouldn’t be so at ease with her daughter’s boyfriend being over so late if he wasn’t royalty.

Zuko seemed to sense he was losing her to her thoughts, and he cleared his throat. “Your little brother’s a good kid. At first I was worried about spending so much time with him… I’m not really used to children. I thought maybe he would cry or need your mom or something.”

Mai chuckled. “He’s five now, Zuko. He still gets upset sometimes, but he’s not in diapers. What even inspired your joint mission?”

Pink dusted Zuko’s cheeks and he gazed very intently at the table before them. “I was thinking about all of the things that I knew made you happy. Both Tom-Tom and fruit tarts were on the list.”

“Were you making this list for a particular reason?” she asked.

The smile left his eyes, and he turned his gaze back to her. He grasped her hands tightly in his own. “I was thinking about all of the things you do for me. I couldn’t stop thinking about… when we were at the Boiling Rock…” he swallowed hard. “You risked your life for me, and I left you there.” His voice was heavy with regret.

“Oh Zuko,” Mai brought her hand to his cheek. “You don’t always have to be the hero. Let me save you sometimes. It’s my honor,” she teased.

Zuko smiled again, but it was smaller than before. He always carried too much guilt. “Either way, I wanted to thank you. You are– in the most literal sense– my hero. I wanted to make you your favorite foods, but I decided to start with fruit tarts. And I figured that if I enlisted Tom-Tom’s help, we could bond a little. I intend on being in your lives for a very long time.”

The thought filled Mai with a pleasant sort of warmth. She was getting drowsy again, but she didn’t want to go to sleep anymore. “When I saw you two together, I have to admit it made me really happy. Three of us sitting here together might be my best memory in this house.”

Zuko nodded in agreement. “It felt like we were a family.”

Mai wasn’t sure she was ready for this conversation. She deflected, “We already are a family.”

His brow furrowed. “Yes, but I meant… it almost felt like we were parents.”

Mai hummed noncommittally, but it was too late. Zuko latched onto the notion.

After a few minutes of silence, he added in a small voice. “Would you ever want to have kids? With me?”

Mai thought that she did, but should she say it? What if she changed her mind later? “Well, we’ll have to. Won’t we? For the sake of the bloodline?”

Zuko flinched. “I was actually thinking about this– oh! Uh. Not in a weird way.” He turned as red as the strawberries on the table before them. “I mean… my advisors may have mentioned it. They don’t like that Azula is my only other young relative. But I was thinking, if you don’t want kids, we could choose a different royal family. Or maybe form a new type of government all together.”

Mai’s jaw nearly dropped. “Wouldn’t it be easier to find another woman?”

“Another woman?” Zuko sounded painfully confused.

“You know, women. About half of the population?”

Zuko rolled his eyes. “I get the picture, but why should I find another one?”

Mai crossed her arms. In truth, he was being very sweet, but he was on the verge of promising something too big. “It would be a whole lot easier to marry someone else than construct a new government. Are you stupid?”

“That is not an option.” Uh oh, Zuko was using his grouchy voice. In particular, the voice he typically reserved for people who insulted her. Ironic. He seemed to realize how intense his tone was. “I mean unless you don’t want to marry me! Or be with me… Um… But if you do, want to be with me, like at all, I would strongly prefer that option.” He pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed, clearly frustrated by his inability to speak his mind.

Mai looked at him incredulously. “Of course I want to be with you. We were just talking about how I almost died for you.”

Zuko’s eye twitched. “Then why doesn’t that settle it?! I don’t care how many advisors or Ozai loyalists or reactionaries I have to knock down. If you don’t want kids, then we won’t have kids. Look at my family’s history! It’s probably time we put someone else in charge. My lineage or bloodline or whatever means nothing to me! I want a family with you, even that means just the two of us.”

Mai knew she was just being obstinate now, but wanted to poke him one last time. “And why am I so special? You can’t make a promise like this without really thinking it through.” she deadpanned.

Zuko was practically smoking at this point. “Mai, I have thought about it! It’s because I love you! Because you understand me like no one else in the world. Because I’m pretty sure I need you to survive. During my banishment, I would think about you and sometimes I would worry that we would reunite, but it would all be wrong. You wouldn’t like me anymore, or we wouldn’t have that same innate understanding of each other from when we were kids. But, we did.” He was looking at her like she was a miracle. “We both changed so much, but you still get me. You listen to my stupid outbursts and you manage to make sense of them. You keep me in line when I’m being unreasonable. I only feel this safe with you and Uncle. I need you.”

He was starting to tear up, and Mai realized that she felt safe with him too. He was her safe harbor in the world around them. She actually had thought about having kids with Zuko. She always vaguely wanted to. Now that he had given her the option, she knew for sure. This man would do anything for her comfort, including put his own desires aside. She could trust him with her future.

“I want one. Or maybe two,” she blurted out.

“What? Fruit tarts?” Zuko asked, caught completely unawares.

“No– I mean maybe– but that’s obviously not what I meant, you big idiot.”

“Oh!” A grin split Zuko’s face from ear-to-ear. “Hold on, why did you make me say all that stuff about our other options? I thought you were about to dump me. That was terrifying.”

“Well, I wasn’t entirely sure. I liked the idea of having kids, but Mom had a really rough go of it with Tom-Tom. It took her years to get pregnant again and it was not an easy time. And, if I changed my mind or we couldn’t, I didn’t want to give you that hope and take it away.”

Zuko wrapped an arm around her. “You are always free to change your mind. I will never take that choice away. And if you can’t get pregnant, then we’ll cross that bridge when we get there. But no new women, please.”

Mai laughed. “Deal. Honestly, hearing you say all that sappy stuff…” Zuko frowned, wondering how she would finish that thought. “It made me feel safe too. I think… I feel safe enough to see our future.” And then a thought occurred to her, “Our distant future. Right?”

Zuko laughed and nodded fervently. “Yes, let’s try to reach a more manageable level of assassination attempts before we start planning in earnest.”

Mai tried to reply, but a yawn escaped instead. Zuko looked at her sympathetically. “I’m sorry to keep you up so late. I thought Tom-Tom and I would learn faster. I told Ty Lee to keep you busy until I sent her a message.” That explains a lot, Mai thought. They stored the extra tarts for the next day, and Zuko walked Mai to her room. They shared an almost uncharacteristically chaste kiss before parting ways. They had been very vulnerable with each other, and they needed some time apart to recover.

But the promise of such a bright future, however distant, buoyed Zuko’s step on his short walk home. One day, they might be parents. And their family would be full of love, hope, and fruit tarts.

#atla maiko #mai #zuko #atla mai #atla zuko #maiko #atla #avatar the last airbender #mai x zuko #zuko x mai #maikoweek2024 #maiko week 2024 #zumai #Tom-Tom

23 notes · View notes

princessmotif · 7 months

Note

out of curiosity, what would it mean to you for fiction to replicate the maizula dynamic? like what features are most salient?

the heart of their relationship i think is replicable to an extent in that it's this sort of rotted love where you have known each other so long and so well that you couldn't not love each other but you have known each other so long and so well that you couldn't not hate each other as well. so that integral piece is absolutely something we can find in other relationship dynamics. like the rich girl/weird friend dynamic absolutely exists.

the sibling love triangle aspect with maiko's existence is also a hugely important and compelling aspect of maizula! this is techniaclly replicable in theory in terms of you can absolutely do love triangles where two members are related, but also it's so hard to duplicate the maizula-maiko triangle because mai is supposed to love zuko, and you can interpret her as actually loving him, and he feels like he's supposed to love her too, but they don't work fundamentally because he doesn't want to understand the worst parts of her, doesn't even want to admit that they exist, and she is so horribly caught up in azula who makes her feel so alive by acknowledging and knowing and seeing all these parts of her and bringing them out even more that she could say she chooses zuko because it's the right thing to do in terms of both heteronormativity and what choosing zuko represents, but i don't think realistically mai can actually turn away from azula and everything she's ever known and hated and loved and wanted to leave her alone and not known how to live without. not without regrets.

i think it's also so hard to replicate the way that their individual characters are and come together in the ship as a whole. like azula being a prodigious princess with such an insane relationship with gender and having such a tragic domestic origin and mai being a noblegirl who is so sullen and depressed and dead inside and has such an awful domestic life as well and who has to obey azula's orders but also absolutely doesn't do that because the power dynamic of their relationship is so complex by complete accident that while azula is higher ranking than mai socially and financially and in the military sense, mai absolutely has more power on an interpersonal level. that's something that you see a lot in lesser degrees in media with toxic female friendships sure, but never to the extent that one of the parties can literally have the other executed if she wants to, but she chooses not to do so even when she imprisons her former friend.

i wrote a mini essay on this here, but the way in which they play with the rich girl/weird friend dynamic is also INSANE on a level i have yet to see anyone else touch really except maybe rhaenicent.

speaking of other posts i've made abt their dynamic being so fascinating, this one about the "i love zuko more than i fear you" line vs what atla's show canon actually demonstrates is something i think is vital to understanding what makes them so insane. and i do think it's unique, if only because of what the narrative wants to tell you vs what it actually shows you.

also, one of the most important things which i touched a little on earlier is just... the politics of atla as a setting for their relationship. that makes it 10x more compelling that azula is this tragic figure who is on the completely wrong side of history, a child soldier who fights for imperialism and racism and xenophobia because she has been indoctrinated and abused and made into a weapon, and mai is someone who fought alongside with her until it inconvenienced her to do so, then switched sides in the name of love without ever actually analyzing or critiquing her own beliefs about what her country was doing. mai chooses the good and moral side by choosing zuko (who also doesn't actually reflect internally and... gets to kind of just keep doing a friendlier imperialism when we look at the comics and lok, but that's another topic), but does she actually want that? does she actually believe in that? has she actually let azula go? the comics can try to whitewash her morality more by pretending she cares abt tom-tom and she's totally reformed, but the show doesn't actually support that, and with no material in-between to show us mai's redemption beyond her betraying azula, not because she cares abt what's good and right but because she cares abt zuko, we as an audience have no real reason to believe that.

so yeah, maizula is endlessly fascinating to me, and i wish a ship would be more interesting than them

#maizula #save

40 notes · View notes

zvtara-was-never-canon · 4 months

Note

A zutara shipper was asked for zutara meta and replied with a list so long it had to be split into categories. The categories were as follows (I’m rephrasing the titles, they are not exactly like this in said post):

Zutara is canon/should have been canon/should have been better canon

Good Avatar creators support zutara, bad creators deny it

How different relationship in Avatar are depicted (Zutara among the others)

Actual zutara meta (I guess, at least)

Anti-kataang

Anti-maiko

We love Katara, we really do, we don’t just want her to fuck Zuko. Especially we disapprove her portrayal in LoK and the comics

Aang is bad

Mai is bad

Comics are bad

The shipper was asked for zutara meta. I marked the categories that fit this request in italics. But the shipper’s reply includes also the categories I marked in bold.

Again, the person was asked for zutara meta. The person answered with zutara, anti-kataang, anti-maiko, anti-Aang and anti-Mai meta. This is basically everything you need to know about zutara. Like, THESE ARE NOT THE SAME THINGS!

P.S. I am personally very amused with the fact that the shipper thought if someone dislikes Aang, Mai, kataang or maiko, that someone will necessarily ship zutara. Lol. LOL. I am a Katara fan, I hate how she was handled post-AtLA, and I don’t ship maiko (not a hater, just not into that kind of dynamics) – and still, I dislike zutara very much.

Once again, Zutarians just assume they're the default. That's what happens when you refuse to listen, really listen, to anyone else and just yell at anyone who doesn't immediately agree with everything you say - you lose track of what most people actually think.

And gotta roll my eyes at the delusion that is "The ship was totally secretly canon" and "Only the BAD creators don't like it" - especially because 9 times out 10 that last one is about bullshit like the fake Ehasz interview, since they love pretending the lead writer is "the zutara champion" instead of shipping Maiko.

("Nichya, you brought up the Ehasz thing a billion times, we get it" I had to hear that bullshit a billion times. If I must suffer, I'm taking it out on all of you).

#anti zutara

25 notes · View notes

atla-suki · 6 months

Note

sokka’s treatment in lok was astonishing tbh but i’m actually glad he was dead by the time the series started bc toph being a cop??? aang being an awful dad???? they would’ve ruined him and suki’s characters lbr.

as far as any possible kids go idk we didn’t meet suyin till book 4 we barely saw izumi i think they just didn’t want to make the new series be a atla reunion plus lok was only meant to be one season so they were making that shit up as they went along lmao. and back in 2012-14?? they didn’t know themselves what happened to sukka lmao.

sokka and suki are definitely the type to break up bc of long distance but then find their way back to each other a few years later especially as they settle into their roles in life.

while bryke definitely neglect suki and sokka to some capacity also they do have a soft spot for suki after bringing her back. many don’t consider her to be team avatar but they’ve stated they do so idk ! she shows up a lot in the comics which have obv been created post-lok and it’s been said that they’ll utilise it’s plots and characters in shall see in future projects (crane fish town becoming republic city maybe??? where suki currently is working?? and sokka later lives!!)

i’m p sure suki will be in it at some capacity anyway and that there’ll stick with jennie as she’s one of the few asian og va’s. she’s doing a lot of work atm for avatar studios.

also random but i literally found out today that it’s not bryke-confirmed that mai and zuko end up together. it was a comment on a panel by the old comic writer. it’s not technically canon. izumi is the spit of mai anyway but hmm! interesting!!

btw btw suyin’s father was def a sandbending outlaw who toph had a secret relationship with that couldn’t be public bc of her role as police chief x

oo big ask ok let me break this up into different paragraphs …

fist point - one thing i will admit about lok is that it fell short in incorporating the original characters into the new series in an interesting way with enough verisimilitude (realistic-ness) that it didn’t feel like they were just throwing a popular character into an episode for the sake of it. such as the whole ‘aang is a bad dad’ thing because they under-utilised him as a mentor figure to korra and instead focused on his supposed favourite son (i have thoughts on this re. aang NOT being a ‘Bad’ dad but i will make another post on it if u are interested (or have i alr made one? i’ll make another one.))

i have to agree that they would’ve probably done something shitty to sokka or suki if they were included. especially with the entire first season of lok being about bender/non-bender equality… i can just imagine they’d make sokka say something dumb about the equalist movement being 100% Bad instead of him actually supporting some of their completely valid arguments. idk. i’m sad there’s no sukka but at the same time…. quit while ur ahead yk.

second point - sukka long distance relationship is so real ESPECIALLY during their first few years together. i can see them just kinda calling it off because of commitment issues due to their work, etc. but not ever really losing feelings. they’d be endgame tho🥰

i can absolutely see suki being in upcoming projects! especially since she and the other kyoshi warriors expanded their reach across the nations - it would be hard to ignore them completely if we’re assuming they’re including comic canon into the universe. i hope jenny returns!!

third point - yeah! how crazy that maiko as izumi’s parents isn’t canon confirmed… though she’s so clearly mai’s daughter. i wonder if mai’s role will be expanded in upcoming projects / if she’ll be featured more. hmmm.

fourth - would honestly prefer this to the theory sokka is her father lol. it kinda baffles me that TOPH became a cop.. not bc she opposes authority - there’s something different about enforcing it than there is having to follow it. i can see toph in authoritative positions, and she fits them well. but i think it baffles me moreso because why would toph even work as a COP? isn’t that boring as hell for her?? go do something awesome like probending or professional underground fighting (adult blind bandit anyone?? this would make a good fic) or literally just construction idk i feel like toph isn’t a Hard Worker type that would want to be stuck in such a rigid career.

22 notes · View notes

shrinkthisviolet · 3 months

Note

🕯️, 🛼 ,🍄 , 🍬

🕯️: on a scale from 1 to 10, how much do you enjoy editing? why is that?

Maybe a 7? I’m a big believer in “you discover the story you’re writing while you’re editing it”, and fixing does feel satisfying, but…it does feel a little demoralizing sometimes to realize that stuff you thought worked…actually doesn’t 😅 it helps having an outtakes document though, so I don’t have to send deleted words into the void

🛼: Describe your latest wip with five emojis

😭🥺🔥🫂🧐

🍄 : Share a headcanon for one of your favourite ships or pairings

Since I’ve got ATLA on the brain (I’ve been watching NATLA with a friend and it’s been making me miss the OG)…here’s one for my dearly beloveds, Maiko:

Mai and Zuko got married pretty quickly after the war. They still had communication issues to work through, and had to figure out how to get back to where they used to be, but they knew there was no one else for each other but them 💞

(Comics? What comics? I’ve never heard of those)

Izumi was born several years later, when they felt more solid and secure in their relationship and felt more ready to have a child (and after the Sages stopped pressuring them to have a child. They took their sweet time, thank you very much)

🍬: Post an unpopular opinion about a popular fandom character

Ooh here’s one: Amunet Black is not funny or quirky, and Caitlin working with her should’ve been WAYYYY more criticized than it was. Really, Caitlin should’ve been going undercover to take Amunet down, like in your wonderful fic :D

fic writer ask game!

#fic writer ask game #maiko #avatar the last airbender #atla

10 notes · View notes

torchickentacos · 1 year

Note

i finished atla after putting it off for years like, literally last week and im interested in what you have to say about zuki since i dont really know much of what happens after the main story ends, do you have any posts about it? or you can take this as an open invitation to atla ramble [:

HIIIIIII ok every time I mention Zuki I get a weird look since it's a rarepair who barely interacts in the show, but if someone's read the comics it comes together a bit! BASICALLY, SPOILERS FOR COMICS UNDER CUT!!! long post, I cannot resist inserting the comic panels here and honestly they speak for themselves. just in case this post breaches cointainment, Obligatory "I vibe with most ships and my love of one does not equal hatred of anyone else's, and if you like them platonically LOVELY!!!!! I vibe with that too".

First off, Suki and the kyoshi warriors become Zuko's bodyguards post-canon, with Suki as the head of them. In the comics we see a fair bit of this, with a lot of Zuko scenes having her in it too. So, we've got a bodyguard/royalty dynamic, which I am absolutely WEAK for (see: zelink from breath of the wild).

But more than this, they're friends. And I do like Maiko, don't get me wrong here- and I adore Sukka as well- but I think there's a distinct difference in how Zuko interacts with Mai and Suki. Namely, he shut Mai out and lets Suki in, telling her about his worries-especially in a time where he's not doing well.

Also, another thing in the comics is this: there's a point where Zuko feels like he's sliding back and becoming his father, and goes to the point of almost fighting the rest of the gaang. But, oh, there's someone who stood by him the whole time when near nobody else did! guess who.

And realistically, I know they just wanted some romantic tension in the comics but didn't want to break up kataang, so they broke up maiko and did whatever this is, with Sukka being long-distance. BUt I honestly think Zuki, platonic or not, has a huge amount of suki's support that Zuko lacked in Mai. I think Maiko could be really nice, but I feel like Suki uplifts Zuko in a way that Mai maybe didn't or just couldn't.

I think it also opens an avenue for Mai's characterization, and I like exploring her through Zuki in a "If I (Mai) stay with Zuko, I can't ever have peace, I'll be fire lady and never know a day of self-sufficience or true independence, and I don't know if I want that from life". I think Mai is very prideful and truthfully? I don't think she'd want a life of palaces and being guarded. It was an aspect of her in ATLA, distancing herself from her rich powerful family, and I don't see her choosing that life again.

As for Sokka, I LOVE him and I LOVE Sukka, but it lacks spice for me. Sukka almost works TOO perfectly. No conflict, other than long distance, but Zuki has forbidden bodyguard royalty stuff which I am, pardon my language, an absolute slut for. I mean, furtive glances across crowded hallways and secretive shoulder brushes and letters slipped through doors, hoping, praying nobody sees the lowly earth kingdom warrior and the regal firelord??? 10/10.

Also. It's just funny as hell. https://twitter.com/M1KASAD/status/1284621851763838976

#zuki #ask #atla #thank you SO MUCH FOR LETTING ME TALK ABOUT THESE TWO #suki #zuko #atlaposting

59 notes · View notes

firelordteo · 2 years

Text

a post comics maiko doodle/shitpost feat. ty lee (before i resume working on my belated maiko week drawings)

#firelordteoarts #atla #maiko #atla zuko #atla mai #atla ty lee #it's true this is how they are after smoke and shadow ty lee even told me #these dumbasses are still so in love and pining for eachother #they want eachother but... how? after so many mess ups #someone get them an adult

130 notes · View notes

myreygn · 2 months

Note

Demon Slayer or atla for the shippy meme?

why not both! :D

¸¸♬·¯·♩¸¸♪·¯·♫¸¸¸¸♫·¯·♪¸¸♩·¯·♬¸¸

KNY

lowkey otp: uzusane!! i think i just started shipping them because i liked them individually and wanted to throw them together but i read some really good fanfics and they grew on me so much, pushing my rarepair agenda til i die!

highkey notp: giyutan and uzuzen, i just don't like the thought of these 20 something year olds meddling with teens. giyuu in my head is like a brother to tanjiro and tengen and zenitsu have an extremely entertaining dynamic but it doesn't read ship to me at all.

[softly] don’t notp: i'm getting kinda hooked on rengiyuu, i just thought about it because i needed to put some characters into an incorrect quote but ever since they've just been on my mind.

highkey otp but i’m scared of saying it because it’s not a very popular choice: NEZUSEN! and no this is not a typo, i'm talking about nezuko and senjuro. this comic by one of my favorite fan artists got me intrigued and i love the idea of them getting together some time post canon when they're all grown up, like a really nice reunion story would be so cute.

highkey otp and anyone on my tumblr knows it: it is so cruel that you'd make me decide but i think. and i hate to do this because it means i can't mention all of the other options but i think i have to go with sanekana. there's so many demon slayer ships that are so near and dear to my heart but sanekana is just. idk man. they're everything to me.

¸¸♬·¯·♩¸¸♪·¯·♫¸¸¸¸♫·¯·♪¸¸♩·¯·♬¸¸

ATLA

lowkey otp: agaiiiiin so many options... i have to say yueki, yue and suki. idk i just always have them in the back of my mind when i think about zukka and come on they would make such a kickass couple.

highkey notp: tokka. i think toph's little crush on sokka is adorable but they're siblings your honor i'm sorry.

[softly] don’t notp: this is my time to come clean and tell you that i never truly got over my maiko phase. not entirely, at least, like i have other ships that i definitely prefer but they're just hnnngh i cannot sit here and pretend like "i love zuko more than i fear you" means nothing to me.

highkey otp but i’m scared of saying it because it’s not a very popular choice: i need you to stay with me. this started off as a funny idea from a shitpost but. jetkojin. jet zuko and jin. i loved jin so much, i would've loved to see more of her and just imagine throwing her into the already spicy jetko mix, like we all love some jetko right but now make it POLY. marvelous experience.

highkey otp and anyone on my tumblr knows it: maileemaileemaileemaileemaileemailee- i feel like my life is more peaceful ever since i have accepted them as my otp, they're everything to me and i could not be happier.

#thanks for asking!#rey answers #anonymous #ask game #ship ask game #atla #avatar the last airbender #kny #demon slayer

3 notes · View notes