The Mosley Review: Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender (Season 1)

And so the trend to try and adapt a beloved anime, manga or an American animated series to live action continues. It isn't uncommon that the fans demand it or someone has a vision to bring such beautiful piece of art to the big screen. It just the fact that each attempt has been a disaster or has completely missed the point of the source material. Not everything in animation translates to live action so changes have to be made for an audience to digest the information. Which in this case, was a travesty since the rich themes of identity, personal growth, fear, loss and the power of hope is what made the original animated series a masterpiece. Such themes that connected with children and adults alike is what made the series such a massive draw. Now we all know how horrible the 2010 film adaptation so there’s no need to retread those waters. You can say that expectations were tempered going into this new Netflix adaptation with all the problems that existed internally. To be fair, I will not continue this review by comparing every aspect of the original series to this new live action version, but I will always encourage you all to seek out the original series. That being said, I will save my biggest critiques at the end. Now, I went into this series with the single hope that it would be as close as possible to the original series. Well, this was a better adaptation that captured a certain percentage of what made the cartoon special, but you can feel the tug of war going on from the very first 3 episodes. This version wanted to establish that there is a dark and grittier edge to it, but also show the light hearted and fun nature of the adventure across the different nations and the lessons each character learns. In my opinion, for every great moment this series provides and gets right, there was an empty void where any connection to original show or even to the characters themselves was severed.

Gordon Cormier was really good as Avatar Aang. In many ways, he nails the character’s many emotional states as he slowly comes to grips with the loss of his Air nomad friends and mentor. He captured the pain in the Aang’s heart and also his childish humor in many scenes. I wish he had more time to actually grow out of his reluctant hero stage instead barreling through the most formative moments with his new friends. Lim Kay Siu was wonderful as Air nomad mentor Gyatso and I loved the emotional bond they had in the beginning of the show. Their chemistry was very strong and was the life blood for Aang. Kiawentiio was good as Katara and I felt she was done dirty in this show. She felt too sheepish at times and I wished she was more strong willed. She had her self doubts which is part of her arc, but I wish her steadfast nature was way more present. Everything was handed to her and she never really earns her upgrades in a selfless way as she comes off as more selfish when with Aang. Aside from a major missing character trait, Ian Ousley was excellent as her older brother Sokka. He nailed the characters' strength and humor, but I do wish he was a little bit more awkward. The family drama between Sokka and Katara was great and I liked the way it was resolved even if it was too quick. The 3 of them together make for a decent group, but I didn't feel as if they were really bonded. It felt as if they were following Aang as extra characters instead of being his friends and actual new emotional core of his heart. Utkarsh Ambudkar was awesome as the King of Omashu / Bumi. His playful nature was on full display and his message about making the hard decision as the Avatar and in his own way, as a King, was heard. He isn't the mad genius you love, but more the war torn and world weary older man. Maria Zhang was great as the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors, Suki. She was strong, had a good and ambitious heart. Her instant chemistry with Sokka was cool and I loved their training montage. I wish they took more time to develop the eventual love story between them instead of just jumping right into it.

Dallas Liu was fantastic as Prince Zuko. He nailed his obsessive desire to capture Aang and bring him back to the Fire Nation. His story was a bit more fleshed out as we get to see the deeper emotional toll of his father's banishment. Dallas also nails the physicality of the character and I enjoyed every action scene. You feel the desperation, pain and overall need to please nature of his broken spirit. Paul Sun-Hyung Lee was great as his guardian and beloved character, Uncle Iroh. He is such a layered character and in the amount of time we get with him, it isn't wasted. I really liked that his past as a warlord was brought up and you see his regret. He is always been the nurturing core for Zuko and he was exactly that for this version of the series. Daniel Dae Kim was perfect as Fire Lord Ozai. He was the tyrannical lord of the Fire Nation that we all know and I loved how cold and unflinching he was in his tactics. There was a moment where I thought we were about to see an emotional side of him come out, but I'm glad I interpreted it wrong. It wasn't a father's care that was being shown to Zuko, it was more disappointment and shame and that was rough. Ken Leung was awesome as Commander Zhao and he nailed the characters arrogance and hunger for respect and power. He wanted forge his legacy in the Fire Nation and I loved his ambition and dedication. He was an excellent adaptation of the villain. On the other hand, we have a character that is not supposed to be focused on so heavily in the first season. Elizabeth Yu was good as Princess Azula, but I believe she missed the point of the character. She is supposed to be the absolute polar opposite of her brother Zuko and truly her "father's daughter". Where Zuko shows doubts and emotion, she shows rage, venom and ice cold dedication to setting the world ablaze. Here she is doubtful, second guessing and sometimes winey as hell. The actress did what she could, but she is the second character in this show that I think was done dirty.

Takeshi Furukawa takes over the reins as the series composer and he did an epic job. He nailed the emotional beats and made the action even more intense. He incorporates some of the original themes from the animated series and a favorite song returns as well. I do miss the touch of Jeremy Zuckerman and Benjamin Wynn, but Takeshi did a wonderful job. Visually, the show was torn between vibrance and darkness and I wish they leaned more into the vibrance of the worlds without the dark overcast in almost every location. Like I said before, there were so many things that rubbed me the wrong way as this adaptation completely rushes past or condenses so many arcs for the sake of time. The first 20 minutes of the show was a mistake in my opinion, because we see the Air Nomads being wiped out instead of hearing about. Sometimes the stories about an event are more heartbreaking than actually seeing it. That 20 minutes could've been condensed to dialogue like the opening of the animated series. Princess Azula and her friends should have never been introduced in this season until the very last shot of the show. That's precious time wasted to build her up instead of forging Team Avatar. Aang needed to connect more with his new friends and rely on them instead of his dead mentor. That's why they never felt like a team or a new found family for Aang. This show really would've benefited from a 10 episode run instead of 8. In the end, it all boils down to the question of “Was this a faithful adaptation to the original animated series?” I would say that its a good cover album that takes too many artistic liberties and misses the many notes that made the first album a masterpiece. Fans like myself will like it better than the 2010 abomination, but will still see the major flaws. I highly recommend going back and watching the masterpiece the original series is, but if you don't, you'll still be entertained by this adaptation. Let me know what you thought of the show or my review in the comment below. Thanks for reading!