Hey everyone. Welcome yet to again my another review of the recent Legend Of Korra episodes! Without further ado, let us begin!

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What I Liked

Korra & Bolin Metalbending

Korra learning to Metalbend was a smart move because when you think about it her not knowing it is a significant gap in her bending vocabulary. It’s certainly questionable that Lin or no one else through to teach her this, but now Suyin is teaching her the basics and – being the Avatar – she gets it quite quickly.

Bolin on the other hand has apparently tried and failed in the past but desperately wants to. It’s a bit out of nowhere – as is Toph being his idol – but it’s comething I can get behind. I love Bolin, but I realise now that the way the creators are developing Bolin is that they seem to be throwing whatever they have and hoping it’ll stick, and naturally Bolin learning Metalbending is something that can stick.

Suyin/Lin Beifong Conflict

The large bulk of episode 6 was dealing with the conflict with Lin and Suyin, and while it did force almost everything else to a halt, I’m actually very impressed with the way they handled this.

So we learn that their conflict stems from Suyin hanging out with the wrong kind of people when she was younger and Lin disapproving. After getting involved in a robbery Lin arrests Suyin (in the process getting her scar) but due to her being the Chief of Police’s daughter Toph removes all charges and orders her to leave the city (an act that would supposedly guilt trip her into retiring a year later).

To start off, the idea that Suyin was friendly with shady people fits well with what we’ve seen of her city. With her chef being a former pirate and her letting Varrick stay in her city, it’s believable that in the years between the present and this event that she’s both matured and become sympathetic towards people in the wrong kind of life. Perhaps – due to her own experiences – she allows people with shady pasts in her city in hopes that it will change them for the better. I like that.

I’m quite glad their issue isn’t something huge or overly dramatic. It stems from a simple difference in attitudes that was sired from Toph’s laissez faire parenting, but whereas Suyin has moved on, Lin has kept all of her anger pent up inside. It’s actually quite smart that Lin is the one whose really the problem, as this aggression is largely her refusing to let go.

It makes sense then that by the two releasing that aggression in a brief (and naturally glorious) fight, that Lin comes out better for it. She’s happier, she makes up with Opal and she and Suyin seem to be on the road to recovering their relationship. I like all of this quite a bit and the way its resolved is much appreciated.

On a similar note, Suyin being convinced to let Opal join the Air Nomads was much appreciated for its maturity. Having Lin guide Opal to the right choice and simply talking to her parents about it was a mature lesson about honesty and civil conversation. This is the kind of stuff I love to see in kid shows.

Oh Varrick...

Magnet Armour? I so wanna see that again!

And Zhu Li’s expression at the end? Priceless.

So Zao Fu...

...Genuinely seems like a nice place without ulterior motives. Despite her shady past Suyin seems like a benevolent leader and as explained seems to offer former criminals a chance at a fresh start. I have to admit it’s a really nice change from every other place we’ve seen thus far that’s most certainly corrupt in some form; it’s nice to see a city that’s genuinely just a good place to live and its leader doesn’t have some horrible plan in the works (at least, what we know of).

......It’s probably gonna be destroyed in the next episode.

Damn Korra...

Talk about a complete turnaround from last season. The advice you gave Tenzin was incredibly smart and wise. She sounded like the teacher in that scene!

Tenzin’s Training

While episode 6 was largely set around Lin and Suyin, episode 7 was completely about Tenzin trying to train the new Airbenders and the problems he is facing. Initially he fails to capture their interests – these people have led very different lives beforehand so it’s understandably hard for them to appreciate the Air Nomads history – so he takes Bumi’s advice and tries to train them like a Military Sergeant.

Naturally – as it is rightly pointed out – he becomes just as bad as the Dai Li who originally enslaved them.

You definitely feel for Tenzin here because he doesn’t want to be malicious or horrible to his students, but with this new huge role on his shoulders he comes off as afraid, trying desperately to do the right thing in training his students and just doesn’t want to fuck off. You can forgive him for his mistakes because he’s just afraid, but we see at the end that he learns – through Pema - that the process for the Airbenders must be slow and steady, for they all need time for this new lifestyle to truly sink in. Again, a mature answer to a problem, I love it.

Jinora’s Tattoo

Over the three seasons I can’t help but notice the slow maturity of Jinora, Ikki and Meelo. Ikki is probably the least noticeable, but Meelo is certainly become tougher and more independent with each season (notice how easily he took out those hunters this episode? And not in a joking way?). Jinora however is the most noticeable, having become Korra’s spiritual mentor in season 2, discovering romance for the first time this season, and now she wants to get her Airbender tattoo, signifying her status as an Airbending master.

I DO find it suspicious that she claims to be as good as Tenzin, but honestly I can believe her being good enough. She’s clearly a prodigy and let’s not forget Aang became a master at a similar age (yea he was the Avatar, but it’s still food for thought). We may not have gotten a definite answer, but at least now it may possible happen soon.

Kai

At this point I think Kai has proven himself to us all and doesn’t seem to be the sly thief he was before. There’s still clearly a rebellious edge to him, but you get the sense that he’s finally taking his new role seriously. I’m glad they didn’t drag that whole plot point longer and simply finished it at around episode 4.

He’s certainly proven himself to Tenzin, who praises his skills during the battle with the Bison hunters. Guess if Jinora and Kai do get hitched when they’re older – said pairing I find to be absolutely adorable btw – I guess he won’t be disapproving!

My worry from last episode...

...Is slowly becoming less and less of one, thankfully.

Said worry I am speaking of was the fear that the season had bitten off more than it could chew again, however with the Lin/Suyin & Airbender training being largely finished now the show has time to focus on the rest of the plot points.

It was a bit of a shame that again we got no focus on Ba Sing Se, and we still don’t know what Zaheer and his team are up to, but we do have a fairly good amount of time to find out. I have however been indulging the possibility that this story will span over two seasons, as opposed to the two previous, stand alone seasons.

Either way I can get behind this, and things are seeming better for the season to complete at a steady pace.

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Now we come to the dislikes, and I am happy to report that I just have two nitpicks. These episodes have been excellent and I am very happy with what they’ve given us...but I do have some tiny, tiny complaints.

What I Didn’t Like

Tenzin and Kya’s Conversation About Zaheer

Is it just me but...was Tenzin’s reaction to the news that Zaheer snuck into his home a bit...less concerned than you’d imagine? I mean they’ve stated that Zaheer and his team are incredibly dangerous, and Tenzin’s “Oh dear! Well, hope somebody fixes that” response was a bit surprising. I half expected him to want to go and chase after Zaheer then and there.

Oh well, maybe this one’s just me, but it did seem a bit weird.

Opal

I know a few people didn’t agree with me on Opal, and I get it. She’s not a bad character, and I liked her ‘just be honest’ speech to Bolin...but for me she does still stray towards Mary Sue territory a little too much. Some of you will now try to point out her unwillingness to defy her parents, and this is true, but you see people that’s not a flaw that likely makes you feel less of her.

Allow me to explain my point; the way I see it three dimensional character don’t just have flaws, but they have flaws that make you dislike them or just like them less in some respects. They have flaws that genuinely makes a person seem flawed, which may seem a redundant point to some, but at times a character flaw can be used to make someone look better.

Case in point: Batman. How often is Batman portrayed as a workaholic, dedicating his entire self to fighting crime and caring for nothing else? Quite often, and while it’s technically a flaw, it’s never portrayed as such. All it does is make Batman look better, more heroic, more deserving of our complete and utter devotion and he totally shouldn’t try to fix this flaw.

That’s sorta my stance with Opal at the moment. Her one genuine flaw just makes her look better; she just doesn’t want to upset her parents because she’s such a perfect child. I can imagine I’m sounding harsh here, and I genuinely don’t mind her too much, but compared to the rest of the cast – who have degrading flaws like Korra’s temper, Mako’s aloofness, Tenzin’s always serious attitude, etc. – she is noticeable lacking in complexity.

And yea, her romance with Bolin leaves a lot to be desired, frankly. Kai and Jinora genuinely have more interesting chemistry, and they’re not even teenagers.

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Overall though, loved these episodes and I feel ever more confidant in this series. We’ve got six episodes to go, let’s hope things go smoothly there too. Until next time folks!