Why 'Avatar: The Last Airbender' is the Best Show Ever - Part IV: 'Evil and Good Are Always At War Inside You'

Written by Kate McHargue

This show deals with many issues and themes but one that is at the very center of it all is the idea of balance. It is personified in the existence of the Avatar, a person whose entire existence depends on balance of the elements and whose purpose is to create and maintain balance in the world. It is symbolized in the physical manifestations of the moon and ocean spirits Tui and La (more commonly known as Yin and Yang). It is a core belief for numerous practices including the Air nomad’s path to enlightenment and the fire bender’s use of lightning. Throughout the series, the audience is constantly reminded that balance is the ideal, it is the pinnacle of achievement and the natural desire of all things. Balance is the ultimate good and those who seek to disrupt it are evil. And ATLA as a show embodies this ideal, not just in its repetition of this theme, but also in the balance of the show itself.

That last statement might seem a little out there so let me explain what I mean when I say that Avatar: The Last Airbender is a 'balanced' show. While many shows ride the waves of comedy and drama and everything in between, few ever hit that sweet spot of being balanced between the two. Sure, comedies have been known to tug at heart strings and take breaks from the laugh track to unpack some deeper, darker themes. And dramas have often cracked the occasional joke and given audiences a reason to smile despite the death, destruction, etc. And I certainly don’t believe that there is anything wrong with staying faithful to a genre. But ATLA manages to do justice to both without it feeling contrived or needless. Since it is a cartoon that aired on Nickelodeon, it is obviously going to feature some light hearted and, at times, 'childish' humor. But when the plot of the story covers everything from war crimes to racism to genocide, sometimes the comedy must inevitably give way into drama. And ATLA does this seamlessly.

In a single episode, ATLA can include bad puns (courtesy of Sokka) and jokes about bodily functions (use your imaginations) before heading straight into an in depth look at a refugee crisis or life for prisoners of war at an internment camp. And neither one feels out of place! Hell, in the episode 'The Headband' (2.2) they manage to draw parallels between the Fire nation and Nazi Germany (exploring the dangers of intense nationalism and imperialistic colonization) before throwing a literal dance party! Complete with awkward, hormonal teenagers. The comedic relief in this show never detracts from or overshadows the darker themes it deals with and vice versa the moments that make you want to cry don’t make it harder to laugh when the jokes come back around. There is a perfect blend and balance of both light and dark that isn’t often seen, let alone in a show that was primarily intended for children. Much like life, this show provides a complex look at the good and bad in everything and the way in which life never stops for either. And while I’ll state again that ATLA is certainly not the first show to find a balance, I must admit that it is the show that does it best.

In my last post I described the way in which this show excelled at world building and I believe this balance is just another facet of that. Our world and our lives are a mix of the good and the bad and so often that mix is disproportionate, leaning one way or another. And while in an ideal world the good would always outweigh the bad, that simply isn’t the reality. ATLA is at once relatable and idealistic in its balance, showing us that struggle and pain may be inevitable but so too is the joy and opportunity that comes from living. Good and bad, light and dark, yin and yang; one cannot exist without the other and both are felt more deeply because of the disparity between them. Strange that it is a cartoon fantasy for children that so perfectly embodies this need for balance but, to quote Uncle Iroh, 'It is important to draw wisdom from different places. If you take it from only one place it becomes rigid and stale. Understanding others, the other elements, the other nations, will help you become whole.'

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