#the boy in the iceberg

[aangarchy]

So we've established that Zuko just didn't know that Aang was trapped in an iceberg for 100 years and was understandably confused as to how the Avatar is a 12yr old little shit straight from the airtemples and also just never asked anyone bc he didn't want to be rude, right? Yea here's a follow up to that:

Zuko: hey so how long had aang even been hiding out at your village?

Sokka: pardon?

Zuko: before i came in and kinda destroyed the whole place, sorryaboutthatbytheway, how long was he there, like when did he come to you guys?

Sokka: oh he didn't come to us, and katara and i had only found him like a day earlier so

Zuko: you-? you found him?

Sokka: yea

Zuko: what do you mean you just found him?

Sokka: well we got lost on a hunting trip and katara got mad at me and yelled and y'know how when katara yells weird stuff happens like ice starts forming and breaking and stuff? Yea she kinda broke an iceberg and aang happened to be in there

Zuko: you're telling me that you found the avatar

Zuko: after 100 years of him disappearing and the most expert navigators and detectives trying to find him and failing

Zuko: after generations of firelords before hired every hitman they could get and all of them returning empty handed

Zuko: after 3 years of me searching every desolate corner of the world desperately trying to prove myself and losing sleep over it

Zuko: and you did it by accident???

Sokka: pretty much

Zuko:

Sokka:

Zuko:

Zuko: i need to sit down for a minute.

#like if u think abt it zuko rlly is a bit of a chump lmao #imagine spending 3 years searching for something and this snotty 15yr old w a boomerang and an annoying little sister finds it by accident #avatar the last airbender #atla #avatar #aang #avatar aang #zuko #prince zuko #sokka #katara #the boy in the iceberg

[sokkastyles]

Thinking again about how Katara is portrayed in "Ember Island Players" and how a lot of her objections to the play have to do with how it portrays her as an overly emotional damsel who needs Aang to save her from her wretched existence, and the disrespect of her entire culture and people that is used to portray her as someone who needs a man to rescue her.

Which on one level you can interpret as Fire Nation propaganda, but it's also a meta commentary on the series itself, because Katara does rely on Aang as a savior figure and there are certain scenes that are specifically designed to damsel her so that Aang can be a hero.

It's interesting that the show chose to portray Katara watching herself in that position and specifically show that she doesn't like it, in the same episode that they have the real Aang act like them getting together is a foregone conclusion.

In contrast, although the play changes Katara's relationship to Zuko into something romantic and lurid, they do get one thing right about it.

And that's that Katara is the one making the choices.

Of course they also ramp up the sexuality in a way that is gross, especially considering the context of this being a FN play meant to disparage the other nations, but on a meta level it's also meant to make us, the audience, feel disgusted by a woman who makes overt sexual overtures.

I've seen people (who are anti zutara) say that the play is showing Katara as the colonized woman who falls for the colonizer, but that's not what's happening here. Zuko is not portrayed as dominant by the play, and it wouldn't make sense for the FN to portray him that way, either, since one of the purposes of the play is to portray him as a weak and ridiculous traitor who is ultimately defeated. So the joke, both in-story and the one Bryke want to make at a meta level, seems to be about Katara being more dominant than Zuko. In the play, Katara says that she felt attracted to Zuko from the moment he captured her, yet Zuko is shown shrinking from her overtures. And I just have to find it interesting that this is the joke the show wants to make in an episode where the major conflict is Aang making a pushy overture towards Katara and her rejecting it.

Zutarians frequently talk about how zutara focuses on Katara's agency. I have to agree, and I don't know what the conversations about this were at the time, but I do find it suspect that the show seems to recognize this, but decided to make fun of it at the same time. The episode posits the threat that Katara might choose someone other than Aang as a major conflict in the story, shows us a Katara who feels trapped by her role as Aang's damsel, and then makes fun of her for it and expects us to root for her and Aang to get together.

Meanwhile, we also see the real Katara and Zuko get closer in a way that feels real and organic, we see them exchange banter, we see Katara confident and able to best Zuko verbally but also able to comfort him over his fears about the play, which again focuses on her as the main actor in the relationship. Although Zuko and Katara do have that one scene of them moving away from each other in reaction to being portrayed as a couple by the play, overall their relationship remains unplagued by the insecurity that the play brings out in Katara and Aang, which seems to indicate that the problems in their relationship go beyond the play's parodies and that there is actually some truth there, that Katara really does feel like she has less choice in her relationship with Aang and that Aang seems to fear her choices.

It's really not hard to see why zutara becomes appealing in that context.

#zutara #antikataang #zuko #katara #ember island players #the boy in the iceberg

[starlight-bread-blog]

In The Boy in the Iceberg, Zuko rejects the true firebending for the Fire Nation's distorted version of it. Their version of firebending is pure destruction, because the Fire Nation values aggression.

In Zuko Alone, Zuko is faced with the reality that something was wrong with his upringing. He was given a knife as a child, and that's wrong. A child shouldn't be involved in violence and agression.

In The Day of Black Sun Pt 2, Zuko recognizes the Fire Nation's indoctrination and that this ideology is wrong. No violence involving children is justified. And the Fire Nation's agression wasn't justified as well.

In The Firebending Masters, Zuko is blessed with a vision about the meaning of firebending, thus unlearning the Fire Nation's destructive firebending, and replaces it with firebending based on life.

In The Southern Raiders, Zuko sees first hand that those who can be deserving of vioelnce aren't boogeymen. Thus, he can see that at times, even violence towards people who deserve it, isn't a solution to heartache.

In Sozin's Comet, Zuko is confronted by the truth that the ultimate boogeyman, Azula, is human too. Now, he can fully release black and white notions and view the world from objective lenses, not from aggression.

#zuko #zuko meta #atla #atla meta #avatar: the last airbender #avatar the last airbender #azula #iroh #fire nation #firebending #atla zuko #uncle iroh #general iroh #the southern raiders #sozin's comet #the day of black sun #zuko alone #the boy in the iceberg #the firebending masters #prince zuko #fire lord zuko #firelord zuko #avatar the last airbender zuko #a:tla meta #a:tla #a:tla zuko #avatar zuko #avatar #avatar aang #avatar the last airbender meta

[oneatlatime]

The Boy in the Iceberg

58 seconds in and I can already see why people say this show is gorgeous. Look at those colours! Although the double image around some of the line art is distracting.

Can water do that? Just have random fast currents in an otherwise pretty still ocean? Also, Catara couldn't have grabbed a spare paddle and helped? Actually they seemed screwed anyway. If they were going any faster they probably would have landed harder, or not on ice at all.

Judging by Sokka's lack of reaction to Catara's temper tantrum, I'd say she has that exact rant at least three times a week.

It's a face!

Maybe the giant orb created the current to summon them there?

Catara has no self-preservation instincts at all. Giant glowy orb washed up in front of you, don't poke it!

Tiger seals.

Solitaire. Neat.

That haircut is not good. Also a very unique choice for a voice. Wait this is Zuko? The guy everyone's obsessed with?

I love Appa already.

"this is Catara, my flying sister." A man after my own heart.

They really would have been stuck without Aang to offer a ride. What was their plan to get home?

Zuko is a prince? Hunting the avatar to reclaim his honour. Not sure how those two go together but ok. I guess 100 years ago the avatar stole a time-travelling Zuko's honour.

Appa can swim through the night? Why does he have six legs?

I didn't know this was a dream sequence at first and I was wondering where Sokka and Catara were. For future reference: dreams are brown.

Aang should have frozen to death by now. That's nowhere near enough clothes. And Catara can't be only just noticing the blue lines now.

Seems like the village has hit a rough patch.

If this is how catara reacts to a bald child, she's gonna spontaneously combust the first time she meets a teenage boy who isn't her brother. And how is an air bender going to teach her water bending?

Between the Appa snot and the watchtower gag, I sense Sokka will become the butt of many jokes.

You know, if you want him to actually learn, maybe tell him what he did wrong rather than reciting philosophical stuff and then shooting fire at his face? His presumably scarred face? Scarred presumably by fire? Kudos to Zuko for not flinching.

Is there a stick in Zuko's hair that's supporting it upright or does his hair just do that? Does Zuko have Pippi Longstocking hair? Speaking of hair, why does Catara have her hair like that? Surely that gets in the way of seeing stuff? It does look good when her hood is up though.

Good sneaky exposition dump Zuko. Didn't notice it until I thought about it after.

There's something hilarious yet tragic about Sokka spouting the wartime equivalent of live laugh love quotes and losing the battle with potty breaks. He has no idea what he's talking about but he believes in what he's saying so much.

Did Aang spend an hour in there?!?

So pretty.

Appa has six legs and penguins have four wings. Is the rule in this show that animals have 50% more appendages?

Last airbender smothered by penguins, more at 11.

"I haven't done this since I was a kid!" "You still are a kid!" That line feels like something that's going to come back.

Was the whole 'being a bender is showing no fear' or however that line went actually about bending, or do you really just want to explore the ship, Aang?

Gerbils at the south pole?

Would the fire nation send people back to rig a lost ship or are all fire nation ships rigged at all times and the crews are just used to working around the traps? Actually that would be a great way to catch spies.

I would jump to brain-damage induced amnesia from being trapped in an iceberg for a few hours before I'd ever think of a century long cryo-sleep. "it's the only explanation." Really?

All of these backgrounds are so pretty.

Air bending gets you some serious air. Those hops are stupid big, even accounting for cartoon physics.

I really like the end credits music. And according to the credits, I've been mispelling Katara's name this whole time.

Some final thoughts:

Katara (with a K) is too idealistic and trusting and Sokka is too cynical and suspicious. A perfect sibling pair. Also I love Sokka's sense of humour.

I like Aang's specific flavour of goofiness. He seems secure in himself and genuine. He has attention issues though.

Appa is a sea bison actually. Common misconception.

I like that they introduce the antagonist like 10 minutes into the first episode, but they're going to have to flesh him out way more before I read Zuko as anything other than an asshole. Also the voice is going to take a while to get used to. It's not that it doesn't fit the character design, it's just that I've never heard an actual human talk like that naturally. It's kind of muppet-like. Maybe he damaged his throat when he got that scar?

The voice acting is just superb. Even single lines like Gran Gran have distinct character. I did have to rewind a couple of times to catch what the old man with Zuko was saying.

The shading on the snow, the clouds and the skies, it's all so beautiful. You could watch this episode on mute and still be satisfied.

Katara is the only waterbender in the whole south pole, Sokka is the only man in the whole village, and Aang is the only air bender in the whole world. Gonna be a lot of lonely kids in this show. I sense a theme. I bet Appa is the only sea bison too.

Sokka is my favourite so far, but I think Aang is going to grow on me. Katara is a little bit too much of a Little Sister (TM) and Zuko just feels flat. But that just means more room to grow for both of them as characters. Of course Appa reigns supreme. I hope there's more of him in the next episode.

Even though this was half of a two-part episode, the cut off didn't feel abrupt. Maybe not a full self-contained story, but they left off at a perfect place.

Rereading this before posting, I asked a lot of quetsions. That's good! So many hooks to get me into the show, all in the first episode. I'm looking forward to the next one.

#atla #avatar: the last airbender #the boy in the iceberg #avatar the last airbender

[dolphelecat]

Ok, but hear me out. Cornley puts on The Boy in the Iceberg by Pu-on Tim and previously performed by the Ember Island Players.

#cornley polytechnic drama society #cornley drama society #mischief theatre #avatar the last airbender #ember island players #atla #cpds #cds #the boy in the iceberg #pu-on tim #avatar #also who would play who? #i think robert would play toph #and annie would be going crazy playing multiple roles again #and obviously trevor would be the guy doing all the special effects #and maybe chris as zuko? #the idea no one asked for #the ember island players

[clanker-66]

#its always sunny in philly #its always sunny #its always sunny in philadelphia #iasip #the nightman cometh #avatar #avatar the last airbender #atla #the boy in the iceberg #ember island players

[mlem2460]

AY AY AYYY YOOOOOO

atla prompt:

gaang in ember island around campfire after play. toph hearing that zuko has a scar n wanting to kno bout this thing everyone sees all. the. time.

zuko letting her feel the scar so he doesnt have to use his words or explain things, as an awkward turtle duck does.

her smiling as he guids her hand towards her face. she starts feelin round as others r eager for her to "see" smthn they always see. her eyebrows furrow. zuko might be panicking a lil bit at this point. her smile drops. her face is deadly n blank. "this an old scar, sparky?" shaky head nod. gaang feelin atmosphere n feelin nervous. "how old"

.... "three years" barely whispered, barely holding on. deathly silent. shocked realizations. tophs expression hardens. she shifts her hand to fit a larger mold.

.... "zuko, why is it hand shaped"

zuko collapses n breaks down. toph drops to her knees n folds over him, in the most silently ferocious half hug half guard against pain. gaang freaks tf out.

#toph&zuko #zuko&toph #toph and zuko are siblings #toph can n will fight u #awkward turtleduck zuko #toph #atla #zuko #gaang #ember island #the boy in the iceberg #prompt #gaang finds out about zukos scar #zukos scar #zuko&gaang #im so tired #fuck #am i gonna end up writing this?? #... #fuuuuuuuuuuuck #gaang adopts zuko #zuko protection squard #uncle iroh is founder #toph is president #(shes really dictator) #self elected n ruling w an iron fist #but we're here for it #i need to sleep #kk #gn

[younggayanddoingokay]

The sources for the ember island players, not wanting to admit they got their asses handed to them by a tiny blind girl: oh yeah, the avatar’s earthbending teacher was like this huge, super buff guy. Just massive. And he let out this really intimidating scream right in your face that let him see everything around him.

The playwright, checking his notes: ah, but didn’t this ‘Toph’ have their hair in a cute little bun and wear a little green dress?

The sources:… he… does drag.

#atla incorrect quotes #toph #the boy in the iceberg #the ember island players

[juniperhillpatient]

I think I'll do little "takeaways" from at least some if not all of the episodes in my ATLA re-watch :) 'The Boy in the Iceberg' is one of the episodes I've seen the most times so no real surprises there but -

-I was already thinking this from reading The Corners of the World Our Mere Prologue on ao3 which has brilliant Katara characterization but WOW I need to lean into explosively angry & sometimes alarmingly impulsive Katara more in my future writing projects. She literally breaks the Avatar out of a block of ice in a fit of rage. Angry Katara my beloved <3

-On that note, Katara & Sokka's struggles over their different complicated reactions to their mother's death & the responsibilities they were left with are also set up super early & super well. A lot of fandom discussion over Sokka's development especially after he meets Suki later on surrounds his "sexism" & SURE that's PART of it. Still, there's also a massive issue in the way he doesn't respect the way Katara cares for him & takes on chores. This isn't just about "sexism" in a broad sense, there's a personal issue with the way he treats Katara. And Katara isn't blameless either. She doesn't respect that Sokka is trying to train the other children in case there's another attack. She sees it as a waste of time. This isn't a critique on either sibling personally, but a note about where their characters are at when the show starts - and their relationship & understanding of one another will grow as the show progresses.

-It's a little funny how much I did NOT get that they were setting up Katara/Aang the first time I watched this show because whether I personally like it or not it's pretty in your face that they're setting up the ship from episode 1 I just simply misread all of their interactions as 100% platonic the first time I watched so every romantic moment threw me way off lmao. Fiiineeee I see it now, the framing is totally romantic I don't have to like it but I'll acknowledge it lol

-I LOVE the way that Aang & Zuko's introductions mirror each other. Zuko is introduced directly after Aang & juxtaposing "Do you want to go penguin sledding?" we have "I don't need any calming tea! >:(" It's SUCH fantastic narrative framing & introduces the way that Aang & Zuko's journeys & characters are always interconnected & contrasting. Narrative foils my beloved <3 <3 <3

-Huge huge huge fan of how Aang's introduction leans heavily into how much of a CHILD he is. When he asks Katara a question it's not "where am I?" or "what happened?" or "who are you?" It's "will you go penguin sledding with me?" There's something about that simple request to do something FUN that's so adorable & endearing but also it's a GREAT setup for the major theme of the rest of the show about preserving childhood & fun even in the face of war.

-On the same note as the above takeaway, I really love the moment when Aang & Katara are penguin sledding & Katara yells "I haven't done this since I was a kid!" & Aang responds "you still ARE a kid!" That is another moment where this episode serves as a great thesis statement for the rest of the show.

-The end of the episode shows that Zuko's ship is approaching & the foreboding vibe + the genuine fear we finally get from Aang in the final scene is SO good. This show is fun & lighthearted but with serious undertones & I think the first episode sets that up so well.

-Love love love love this show <3 Avatar the Last Airbender my beloved <3

I probably won't do a whole long list of takeaways for every single episode (well, maybe I'll feel like it, we'll see) but I wanted to for the pilot. I love this show so much. That is all, for now :)

#atla re watch #the boy in the iceberg #atla

[thefacestealer]

ATLA 2022 REWATCH | THE BOY IN THE ICEBERG 

The Gaang’s first ride on Appa

#avatar the last airbender #atla #the boy in the iceberg #the gaang #appa #atla rewatch #mine

[theowritesfiction]

I think Sokka wrote 'The Boy in the Iceberg' and Pu-On Tim is an alias of his. I have proof and you'll see it soon.

#sokka #the boy in the iceberg #sokka crimes against humanity

[calamondinblooms]

I need a version of ATLA where every scene of Toph Beifong using her seismic sense is replaced with that clip of “The Boy in the Iceberg”’s Toph actor screaming at the top of his lungs.

#toph #atla #the boy in the iceberg #toph beifong

[frustrationinexcelsis]

Seeing the sources of famous memes in their original form for the first time is always such a weird experience.

Like, it’s almost impossible to take these scenes in their original context at this point.

#frustration watches #avatar the last airbender #the boy in the iceberg #but that all changed when the fire nation attacked

[starcrossedrose]

The soundtrack in this show is still a bop after all these years.

@solembum22

@firstdove15

#atla #Avatar The Last Airbender #the boy in the iceberg #1x01

[karilynx]

The Boy in the Iceberg Overview #5

While fishing, siblings Katara and Sokka discover Aang, a young boy frozen in an iceberg. After freeing him and his flying bison named Appa, they learn his identity as an airbender, long thought extinct, and bring him back to their village in the Southern Water Tribe. After witnessing the beam of light that shot through the sky after the two broke through the ice, Zuko, exiled prince of the Fire Nation tasked with finding the long-lost Avatar to restore his honor, becomes intent on capturing him. While playing, Aang and Katara mistakenly trigger a booby trap in an ancient Fire Nation ship, revealing Aang's whereabouts to the nearby Zuko.

#avatar the last airbender #avatar aang #zuko #prince zuko #the boy in the iceberg

[atlapanoramas]

Season 1, Episode 1 "The Boy in the Iceberg"

#atla #avatar the last airbender #the boy in the iceberg #book 1: water #southern water tribe #my panoramas #id in alt text