Avatar the Last Airbender: Re-Remembering a Childhood Classic

 “Compassion is a weakness”

    It's fascinating what our minds choose to latch on too, what they seek to remember. I… I remember a snow storm so deep and so long That my family and I were able to watch Avatar: The Last Airbender The animated series all the way through twice. That number may be a product of time or a conflation of two events. It doesn't matter. What matters is that, at some point six siblings and their parents. with a few friend, gathered around a TV in the midst of a snowstorm. Watching what had seemingly become a tradition. Experiencing the journey of the Avatar and his friends as they tried to do the impossible, save the world.
    Memory is a strange thing, I don't know how many times I had seen the series at that point but it was many. I knew the characters in and out. I knew who they were. I knew what they wanted and how they would get it. I knew their struggles, their pain. I knew them, and there was nothing more to know.
Do our memories belong to us, or do they belong to the places or people that create them in our minds? Isn't that the same thing? I thought I knew who Zuko was, until his father told me I didn't.

"Compassion is a weakness“

There are moments in life where our perception changes. Where what we thought was true reveals itself to have far more nuance than we previously believed.

"Compassion is a weakness“

    In these moments we have the capacity to change for the better or to accept the perceptions of others and stay where we are. These opportunities present themselves as turning points. We are given the opportunity to move forward, but it is our choice whether or not we do so .
As with Zuko, I was also given the choice to learn or to disregard . I already know who Zuko is . Though, I'm so glad that there is so much more to learn.
    Netflix’s live action series retelling of Avatar: The Last Airbender is a real treat. This new series not only recaptures the essence of the original anime, it also opens up new avenues of conversation with every character in entertaining and insightful ways.
    Our memories are important, though I would like to thank Albert Kim and his team for allowing me to learn that our memories are just as important as somebody else's. We just need to have the willingness to join their conversation.

I found the first season of this live-action series enjoyable, meaningful and thought-provoking. I hope in some way you do too.