A Look Back at 'The Legend of Korra'

Written by Shae Rufe

The Legend of Korra is easily one of my favorite shows. From the very beginning, we got a darker look into the Avatar realm. Lighter tones and humor were still there, but this was not the show my sister grew up watching. The Avatar was a young woman struggling to come into her own as the balancing force of the world. From the first moment we meet Korra, we learn that she is a force to be reckoned with. Unlike Aang, Korra has no problem jumping into a fight. Having mastered three of the four elements, this new Avatar is bold, head strong, and is a bit stubborn. With the help of Aang's youngest son, Tenzin, Korra does manage to master Airbending. This wasn’t an easy task for the young Bender. Having spent most of her life isolated from most people, Korra breaks free the second she can. Book One introduces us to Korra's first love interest, a Pro-Bending Firebender named Mako, and his Earthbending brother Bolin.

Together, the three must fight the Equalists who have a bit of a problem with the majority of the city being run by Benders. Having spent Avatar: The Last Airbender with mostly Benders, it was almost a shock to remember that there were people in the world who were, well, normal. Heiress Asami Sato joins the group; the non-Bending genius can hold her own against just about anything. Just like that, our new Team Avatar is established. Asami and Mako date, while Equalist leader Amon takes away the Bending abilities of many. It’s soon discovered that Asami’s father is part of the Equalists and the theme of familial betrayal begins. Amon, however, turns out to be a liar, and a Bloodbender…the first season ends with Korra setting things right, and Amon’s brother killing them both…

Book Two kicks off with a different antagonist. Thrown back to the very beginning, we see the original Avatar’s story. The fight between light, Raava, and dark, Vaatu, is one that has been battled for far too long. Vaatu is ready to escape…and he does with the help of Korra's own uncle. For a while, it looks like Korra was happy, she and Mako were together, she’d mastered Airbending, but happiness never lasts in this world. A civil war between the Southern and Northern Water Tribes have hit a bit too close to home for our Avatar. The release of Vaatu and the opening of the spirit portals have not helped. Eventually, Korra and Raava are separated and she has lost the ability to connect to her past lives. Of course, this isn’t to last. Korra eventually reunites with Raava and Vaatu is defeated for good. Sadly, Korra and Mako’s relationship didn’t last. The world is changed forever when the Spirit Portals are left open.

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​With so much destruction having happened, our young Avatar is starting to feel the weight of it all. Book Three brought us some new, yet old, faces. We get a closer look at Tenzin's siblings, Bumi and Kya. We also meet Lin Beifong's little half-sister, Suyin and her family. Thankfully there is no family betrayal, but there is a new threat. With the Spirit Portals open, the new Airbenders have awakened. Among them is Bumi and Suyin’s only daughter, Opal. A dangerous leader of the Red Lotus, Zaheer, has awakened as an Airbender as well. The Red Lotus’ purpose is to destroy the Avatar and plunge the world into anarchy. This is the defining moment of Legend of Korra. The series will never quite be the same after this season. Zaheer outright kills the Earth Kingdom Queen, and it is Suyin that sees to it Zaheer’s love interest, P’Li dies. Korra is nearly killed by the Red Lotus. This season was the darkest in Avatar history…yet, in the end, it did something remarkable. While Korra saves the world and defeats Zaheer without actually killing him, she is left far from unscathed. In a world where we constantly see the heroes survive everything, Legend of Korra took a moment to show that it can come with a cost. Showing that Korra was hurt and suffering from PTSD was something I’ve never before seen in any series. The recovery of our heroine would be a long one.

Book Four showed us that recovering from something like that doesn’t happen overnight. With several attempts on her life, and the latest being the worst, it seems 3 years isn’t enough for Korra to recover. She’s left her family and friends behind, attempting to recover on her own. It’s far harder to do things alone, and Korra soon finds herself meeting an old friend. Toph shows herself, and finally talks some sense into our Avatar. It’s shortly after making some peace with what happened, that Korra is swept away into another fight. Kuvira has taken these three years to ‘unite’ the Earth Kingdom under her command. However, she’s far more ruthless dictator that ‘uniter’. Korra promptly loses that fight, and Opal’s family is captured. Well, all but her oldest brother, Bataar Jr., who seems to be Kuvira’s fiancé. It takes a visit to Zaheer for Korra to finally get the closure she needs. And from here, the season closes with one of the most satisfying endings of all time. Verrick, our Water Tribe native, and dubious genius, finally proposes to Zhu Li, Prince Wu decides to let the Earth Kingdom govern itself, and Kuvira surrenders… At the very end, our Korra walks into a Spirit Portal, hand in hand, with Asami.

I cannot stress how important this show has been in breaking certain barriers. The ending with Asami and Korra leaving together, (creators have confirmed the two are indeed a couple) was a statement of so many things. It doesn’t show two gay characters leaving. It shows two friends having evolved into a relationship. While a win for so many things, this is a bigger win for me, because it showed two characters, which have both dated a male character, loving one another. To me, the message wasn’t that love is confined to gender. It showed that love is love, no matter what. With a revolutionary series that showed struggles such as war, battling mental struggles, and so much more, it seemed fitting to end on another strong note. As far as finales go, this one takes the cake as my all time favorite. While, Legend of Korra will forever be a great series, it is highly underrated for the many topics it tackled. It took a deeper look into many of the issues Avatar: The Last Airbender touched on, and threw them violently into the air. It wasn’t all betrayal and hardships. It was love, friendship, and the inner struggles of the vicious wars that have been fought. Equality, in this show, wasn’t about being the same, but being treated the same despite differences. Never before has a cartoon touched on so many strong topics as Legend of Korra did. This show has left a bigger mark on the world than many of us may ever realize. For a show designed for kids (and us adults to enjoy), the themes are a brilliant reminder that the world isn’t perfect…but it could be a bit better. At the end of it all, this show is still missed by many, but thankfully there is always the DVD’s.

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