el did NOT die in the finale

it’s more than obvious. not only because of the evidence, but from a narrative point of view.

throughout the whole season, el wonders whether there is a life waiting for her on the other side of all this. two characters represent two very different answers to that question: mike, who optimistically believes there will be a happy ever after where everyone stays together, and kali, who believes death is the only way out. in storytelling, when you introduce two opposing answers to a problem, the resolution is almost never fully one or the other. that’s why el survives - and runs away - but does so alone.

if el had actually died in the finale, many scenes become pointless.

why have a scene where hopper tells el she can still have a life afterward, the same scene where kali’s view on the matter is visibly shaken, if there is no payoff? that moment is what pushes kali to help el fake her death.

mike doesn’t believe el survived right away. he thinks she’s dead for a year and a half. it’s only when it clicks for him that there was no way she could have pulled him into the void with the kryptonite around that he even considers the possibility she made it out alive.

and once he realizes what el did, he tells the rest of the party, just like she asked him to.

there are also the practical questions: if that was el, how did she get to the upside down unnoticed? why wasn't her nose bleeding when she used her powers? how did she even use her powers? she couldn’t have. but that’s the point. it wasn’t the real el.

if the writers wanted to tell a story about el sacrificing herself, she would have died in battle - a real, heroic sacrifice to save the world. the “death” they gave her exists so she could run away, as far as she possibly could.

the epilogue doesn’t focus on her death. there’s no funeral, no real closure around it. the focus is on her absence. on the hole left in her family’s lives. it’s never about el herself. and if she were truly dead, it would have been.

at the end of the day, the ending is meant to be “ambiguous” so people can read it however they want. but the evidence that el didn’t die in the finale far outweighs the evidence that she did. it’s pretty clear they didn’t want to kill off a major character, but also didn’t want a clean, happy ending.

am i annoyed that el was the one they chose to give this ending to? yes. but they did not kill her off.

Yo, Zutara fandom.

All I see are posts about the scarf scene and Oma and Shu. Why are you all sleeping on these?

Are you telling me the fandom that feasts on the best meta is blind to what kind of Crossroads of Destiny Netflix ATLA is setting up?

They're not gonna do Yon Rha. They linked Katara's trauma to Zuko. They have Yugoda deliver this line the very next episode after we see how Zuko got his scar.

This crap is gonna be personal.

Okayyyy so I came across this clip from the new Arcane bts stuff where Amanda Overton (one of the writers) said that Jinx herself had to decide what her second chance looked like. That it was no one else but her alone who had the right to decide what her redemption from her past mistakes looked like. And this got me thinking about The Sandman (obviously) and how Morpheus!Dream decided to take Death’s hand in both the comics and the show.

Although I don’t think he did it because he was regretting his mistakes (apart from killing his son) it’s true that in the comic he got to decide what his second chance looked liked. In the comics, he could not change and was tired of his function and could not handle his son being gone. So he took Death’s hand. That was his second chance. He died so that Dream could be reborn (or idk how that reincarnation works) and the world had a better Dream of the Endless, who was kinder and more in sync with how the world worked.

But in the show, Morpheus' second chance was different. He didn't want to die. In fact, he was willing to change and even apologised to the ones he had wronged (except Alex Burgess. Alex didn’t deserve that apology). He also spent his last days with the people who loved him, because he was finally opening his heart to all of them instead of having another doomed romantic relationship. He regretted killing his son, but he still had hope. He had hope for the first time in a long long while.

But once Lyta attacked his realm with the Kindly Ones, he could not watch his realm suffer because of him. And in the end he chose to sacrifice his life for his realm because there was no other way to save it or himself from the Kindly Ones. Although he did take Death’s hand, it came more out of desperation. So, I wonder if show!Morpheus even got to decide his second chance, or did the showmakers and writers take that away from him because they couldn't make a cohesive story.

Azulaang Week 2025 Day 1 - Balance

~~~~

Azula hated dreaming. In their purest form, dreams represented surrender to her. Surrendering to the reality of the dreamscape. It was ironic to describe a dreamland as reality, but they usually felt so real and distinct. Most important about dreams for Azula: they meant relinquishing control, and the dream of the Avatar escaping with her aid was beyond troubling. She couldn’t comprehend how any of it made sense.

Though if there was anything Azula did understand, it was control. Presiding with absolute dominion over her world kept her alive for years. It allowed her to not only survive but thrive in an environment that she would admit, albeit rarely in private, was a risk to all present. She was the least likely to face retribution, but even for her, one wrong move could lead to the end of her life as she knew it.

And that was an unacceptable outcome. She’d have to be better. Better than her father. More ruthless. More thorough. Execute her plans with more vigour than her family ever had. She’d put Zuko to shame.

Yet–

The more she considered the situation she found herself in aboard this airship, the more she felt herself wavering. 

Why? 

She’d done what Zuko couldn’t. She’d captured the Avatar and was en route to the capital. He wasn’t going to escape under her watch. No, it would be impossible. Why was she second-guessing this? It couldn’t be the dreams.

Could it?

Azula approached and dismissed the Dai Li agents guarding his cell before opening the door. He’d be in this room just as he had the last several times she checked. Those past few times, he’d simply faced away from her and ignored her presence. She didn’t care. Her agents didn’t question her methods. They knew she was ensuring that the Avatar was still present. Even they knew how slippery he had been to capture.

The door swung open, then promptly shut heavily behind her as she stepped into the pitch black room. It rumbled and growled with the noise of the airship’s engines that weren’t far from it. Lighting a flame in her palm, Azula peered around the barren chamber. She frowned at the empty cot and bucket on the floor next to it. Why wasn’t he in the cot? It didn’t matter. He was her prisoner. She wasn’t here to care.

The Avatar was slouched against the far wall, wrapped in a heavy blanket. If she didn’t know better, she’d think he was hiding something from her. She planned better, though. His hands and feet were shackled in solid metal when he was brought aboard. The chains would be enough to anchor him in the room, but they attached him to the wall to serve as a reminder to him that escape was impossible. 

There’d be no ‘blue spirit’ escapade on her watch. The chains were too thick to slash through, and she personally vetted every single member of the crew aboard this ship.

Seeing him broken and useless should have brought a smile to Azula’s face. It was how he deserved to be treated for standing in Father’s way. 

“Not bowing to your princess?” She shook her head and stepped further into the room.

An impertinent frown overtook the fake smile, tearing her falsified angry expression into one of concern. She hazarded another step closer, rolled her eyes, then pressed her back to the wall and slid to the floor. Azula needed answers.

Interrogating him alone broke several rules and standards, but she couldn’t bring anyone else into this chamber with her for this; no, it needed to be just her. 

“Why?” Her mouth moved before she could stop it.

He shifted under the blanket, and his head faced her. An acknowledgement. She didn’t have to continue. She could stop speaking at any point, get up, and leave him to darkness.

“Why, Avatar, in your infinite wisdom, does something feel uncomfortably off about this arrangement?” 

She didn’t expect him to answer. Why would he? She hadn’t threatened him yet. Just had him locked up in this cell, really. So when a chain jangled against the silence of the room and a hand feebly reached her wrist, she felt lightning course up her arm. Was it an act? Looking at his shaking hand, she realized it couldn’t be. Why was he so weak?

She brightened the flame in her palm and closely examined his face. It was sunken, his eyes were bloodshot, and his other hand was at his throat. He attempted to speak, but all she could hear was the struggle of a gasp. He looked near ready to drop dead. 

That wasn’t part of her plan. Why was he in such bad shape? Did airbenders need exposure to the sun to live? The Sky? What was missing?

No. 

In a fraction of a second, she was up, at the door, and throwing it open. The two agents were down the hall, and before she could question her own actions, she had a flame held to the taller one’s neck. 

“Tell me why my prisoner is nearly dead.”

“He-”

“Have you been monitoring him?” 

“Yes, Princess.”

“Then explain yourself. You have five seconds.”

“He bends every element. We have deprived him of all but the air he breathes.”

As her mind processed the information, she turned and asked the other agent with venom in her voice, “Which of you interpreted my orders as kill the Avatar by withholding water?”

“But Princess–”

“You.” She pointed a dagger finger at the shorter man who had just spoken. “Fetch me a waterskin or your next assignment will be to report the time it takes to reach the ground.”

Properly reprimanded, the man rushed away, leaving Azula alone with the taller agent.

“If he dies, you’ll assist in his previous task.” With clenched teeth, she willed the fire to die. “Dismissed. I will personally handle the remainder of your shift.”

Why did she care?

She can’t have the Avatar die on her watch.

Azula snatched the brimming waterskin from the guard, who quickly retreated from her presence. Wordlessly, she wrenched the door open, assessed that the Avatar hadn’t moved, and made her way into the chamber. With unceremonious dismissal, she tossed the skin on the floor in front of him and crossed her arms. 

“Well?” She tapped her foot. “Drink it. It isn’t poisoned. And don’t try any funny business. I’ll–”

His pathetic hand lifted the waterskin into his lap, but no further. Why wasn’t he– No. She would not lower herself to such a level. She turned her back and left the chamber, shutting the door roughly and standing ‘guard’. 

Her duty was to her nation, and that didn’t include serving prisoners. Even if doing so…would…keep them alive…

“Fuck.” She gently let her head fall backward and impact the door before sliding it open and stepping inside once more. 

Deliberate, steady steps carried her to the Avatar, where she kneeled and grabbed the skin before unstoppering it. 

“You will say nothing.” 

The water mostly made it into his mouth, and he drank greedily. Precious few drops splashed to the floor, but at least he was drinking. At least she was in control of this situation now. After another few moments, she drew the waterskin away from him and stoppered it. 

“That is enough.” She stood and turned away.

That was degrading enough. She won’t spend another second in this cell with him. 

“Thank you.” His words were rough and nearly slurred together. 

She froze. He was thanking her? Of course he was. As he should. She went well below her station to–

“Why?” His voice was still weak, but there was a certainty to his tone when he asked.

She had originally come here with a purpose. She asked him a question, and now he wasn’t going to let it go.

“Why help me? Why come to me for advice?” He shook his head as if he were confounded by it all.

Azula narrowed her eyes and spun back on the kid. “That’s none of your business! And as for why I helped you? I simply need to keep you alive for the Fire Nation. Nothing more.”

He didn’t look impressed. She didn’t care. She didn’t–

“I control this situation, Avatar. Me. No one else. That is why you are alive and will continue to be for the foreseeable future.”

“But…you’re taking me to the Fire Nation.”

This line of questioning was getting old, but she’d humor one more attempt. “Yes?” She responded impertinently and turned back to face him.

He kept very still and wore a frown on his face, as though the conversation was as taxing to him as it was annoying to her. She relented and sank to the floor by the door, blocking the exit. So be it. If he was going to talk, she might as well ask her questions.

“Avatar.” She began, “Let me ask you. Why, when I woke with a dream an hour ago, was the fantasy world involving me freeing you? Could you imagine a more unlikely scenario?” 

The boy sat in silence for what felt like forever before looking her in the eye and answering, “You dreamed of helping me escape?”

“I did.” She responded with a grimace. “And it cannot become reality. I need to get you back to the Fire Nation, and if you escape, I’d have to hunt you down. That involves risks.”

“Risks like–”

“I do not wish to kill you, Avatar.” 

“Could fool me…”

“I do not wish to have blood on my hands, despite what you and your little friends may think.”

It was the truth. In as many ways as she wanted to be like Father, killing her opponents was not her goal. She wanted to embarrass them, prove that she was better, more powerful, and have individuals remember her for who she is. How could she do so if they were all dead? No, she demanded, no, deserved absolute dominion. So she planned to keep the Avatar alive.

As though he were reading her thoughts, he interrupted her musing, “Azula, you know what the Fire Lord is going to do to me when you turn me over to him, right?”

“Of course. He’ll lock you up and parade you around the Nation to–”

His half-lidded, unamused eyes were telling enough. 

“What will he do, Azula?” He asked tiredly.

It wasn’t her business what Father would do, but…she knew that what she was thinking wasn’t the case. 

“He will…” 

Father’s actions, if she turned the avatar over to him, were his own. Except, she’d allow it to happen. She would always know that it was she who delivered the avatar to his fate. It would be no better than incinerating him on the spot herself. With practiced grace, she rose from the floor, left the room, and left the Avatar to his devices. 

Father would kill him.

She’d find another way. Approach from another angle. She won’t be known for delivering someone to their death. Even she was aware of just what the Avatar meant to the rest of the world. Killing him would only ignite a resistance her nation had never seen. Azula was no fool. She wasn’t Zhao. 

No. Her victory would be had by other means. 

“Avatar?” She called through the bars. “You must be starving.”

She’d just have to tip the scales in her favor.

~~~~

If you'd like to read more of my work, check out my other stories over on AO3!

@azulaangweek

Say it louder for the GA at the back

I figured out why the way Kataang is written makes me so uncomfortable (and why Zutara feels like the solution to its problems)

For context, I watched the show recently for the first time without knowing anything about it aside from people liking Toph and I guess Katara having haters or something idk. I didn't know there were ship wars and I don't ship usually so I wasn't rooting for anything, sort of just going with wherever the show took me. But with how many parallels they had and some pretty on the nose foreshadowing I assumed from the beginning that Zuko would be redeemed (since he was very obviously trying to be someone he wasn't) and from the necklace scene that him and Katara were going to have some romantic coded connection eventually. And then they had such compelling moments of understanding and being there for each other in important events that contrasted Aang/Katara not understanding each other on that same level and Zutara became like the 2nd relationship I've ever actively cared about in any media.

So when Katara and Aang kissed at the end and I felt super uncomfortable, I just associated it with being disappointed and annoyed at how much they dropped the ball on all the relationships. Going hard on Aang's feelings for her, never showing her side, and then dropping that plot to do all sorts of legwork for Zutara before dropping that plot as well at the last second. I did know a part of it was that I didn't like how the show treated both Katara and Zuko as prizes for their respective pining love interests. It felt like Mai's redemption was only there to justify her 'winning' back Zuko at the end, and that Aang saved the day, so he gets the girl. It felt less about realistic character motivations and more like they need to be mechanically moved into place. But with how viscerally uncomfortable it made me, I figured there was something more to it.

(Disclaimer: I love Aang as a character, he was one of my favorites. I know that he's a kid and he means well. But the way he acted with Katara was mad uncomfy at times and I genuinely hate how the whole plotline went down)

The problem is that the entire show Aang is shown to project his crush onto Katara. One instance I remember was when she was doing chores and was mad at him for not helping prepare, and he said she was just jealous of him getting attention from girls. But we see that this is not the case and she is basically unaware of him as a love interest at all many times later on. And it's like that over and over again. I know because I'm a romance enjoyer and was paying close attention to all these instances and was like, "Oh cute, surely they'll eventually show him grow as a character to be mature enough to meet her at her level, and then show her feelings develop for him in return." But no, for some reason they exacerbate the differences between them as the show goes on. More and more she is there for him, and it is CONSTANTLY framed in a motherly way- they even state in an episode she is like a mother to the group. And more and more he doesn't know how to be there for her, or her emotions are treated by the show as an overreaction or a big joke, or else something that needs to be contained/put aside.

But because we are in Aang's pov whenever romance is brought up between him and Katara, it gets us used to seeing things as he does and attempts to lull us into finding his behavior normal and not considering Katara or her feelings on the matter. Which is what he has been doing the whole show. He's a kid, he just sees romance as gestures and lines. It makes sense but it's something you have to grow out of to understand selfless love. And something the show should have had him grow out of if he was going to end up with her.

Think about it from Katara's perspective. This whole time he has been like a little brother to her and there has been no indication from her that she sees him in any other way. Every example in the show was him projecting because the way she acted was in line with what she was saying but framed purposefully vaguely to justify him interpreting it in this hopeful kid crush way. And because of this he kisses her on the lips without any indication from her that she is okay with that. Even the show knows this is wrong, before they stopped developing the plotline. If you've ever been on the receiving end of something inappropriate like this, you know it is overwhelmingly uncomfortable and humiliating. You end up feeling helpless and just try to avoid the subject and pretend it never happened because it may be seen as an overreaction to something intended as 'innocent'. But in the real world, randomly without warning jump scare headbutt kissing someone is at minimum Super Not Cool. It's not less weird or uncomfortable just because you know the person and know their intentions are good. You ask, or you wait for a sign of reciprocation before doing something like that.

This is the face she made after it happened. It's meant to be uncomfortable at this point. Which is supported by the fact that they utterly do not talk about what happened until the second to last episode. And once they do talk about it, she does what I saw as a realistically complex interpretation of how you'd let someone down easy that you're not into in a way vague enough to leave room for hope because 1) he's about to face the apocalypse, 2) saying "btw I don't love you back" is kind of a morale buster, and 3) he has a tendency to run away at really bad times. This feels like the obvious interpretation if you've ever had to turn someone down when you're backed into a corner like this and trying to avoid upsetting them in a volatile situation. He literally even said the play might have previously put him into the avatar state- what is she gonna do, turn him down bluntly and have the end of the world possibly happen because he can't handle her just wanting to be friends?

And he kisses her randomly AGAIN after she in no uncertain terms said she was not interested (even if just for the time being, it is still a no). Katara of her own autonomy makes it clear it upset her and that she didn't want it. And instead of having him mature from this and resolve what happened between them or literally ANYTHING, they instead REWARD him with her as a romantic partner in the end scene of the show. And regardless of how you interpret it, ending the show with that being their last romantic interaction reinforces this gross idea that women will grow into loving you and just need to be shown their own feelings and when they continuously show they aren't into you at all it just means they're confused. That women are just playing games and to keep pursuing them and not listen to what they say that they actually want. Btw this is well known to be how creeps think to justify harassing and assaulting women. The development of their romantic relationship was essentially:

Aang has feelings -> Aang randomly kisses Katara and she's visibly uncomfortable -> Aang randomly kisses Katara again and she's visibly and verbally upset -> Aang and Katara are together, inexplicably, guess she secretly was in love with him all along~ ???

______________________________________________________________

The narrative has a responsibility to both the audience and the characters to have the characters learn from their mistakes and flaws. To be punished for their flaws and only rewarded when they earn it. But S3 Aang has the same issues when it comes to what stands between him and Katara as he did in S1, and their relationship is never discussed or resolved before just deciding they're together now. It's funny because for the most part they did this well with Zuko. He constantly failed and was punished for being a bad actor. He is only rewarded with everyone's trust when he goes out of his way to earn it without expecting anything. Thus, the characters choose to befriend him, and he earns his relationships and close scenes. Katara is there for him when he faces Iroh and later Azula because of the trust and friendship he built by being there for her in return, helping her find closure. She chose to form this relationship as a result of his sincere efforts.

Where was Katara's choice when it came to Kataang? She continuously exhibits that she isn't interested but her feelings are never included in the equation. Aang doesn't trust her to make the right decision when she goes to confront her mother's killer and acts like he knows her own feelings and what she needs better than her. It's a consistent pattern of him not considering her side of things. It makes the ending, again, reinforce that it's not all that important to have a partner that accepts and understands you and what you need. To love is to really see someone, to consider them, not try to tell them what they need and how to feel. It is loving them for who they choose to be including the person who doesn't choose you. And if they won't listen to your advice and you can't accept the choices they make, you let them go. You can't deny them a choice to fit them into what you want them to be. (*cough cough* Aang with Katara in TSR and the show with all of Katara's pov to make her end up with Aang)

This is all juxtaposed with Zuko who finds out what the real problem is and constantly considers her and if she's okay at any given time and trusts and backs up her decisions. He doesn't try to tell her what to feel, he asks her what she feels and takes it seriously. The episode ends with Aang and her not on the same page but her and Zuko having this new bond because he saw and heard her and was able to be what she needed in a huge life moment.

There are some pretty big compatibility issues that come up as well that are once more contrasted by just how compatible Zuko and Katara are. Katara and Zuko can't understand sparing Ozai and Aang can't understand her not forgiving Yon Rha. Aang also tends to run away/conflict avoid when things go down and people need him (never really resolved) and Katara won't leave when people need her. Zuko also was shown to match Katara in this way, having an issue with avoiding conflict/doing nothing (sticking around to help that family for instance). He also matches Katara on the day-to-day invisible labor and tendency to keep the group moving forward (both responsible and mature). Katara is usually always the one saving or helping Aang through a crisis which is immediately contrasted when Zuko enters the group, as they are shown saving each other equally and showing up for each other emotionally.

It all paints a picture of Zutara being the opposite of Kataang in that it fixes every problem they have. You have two people who are on the same page and whose input on what relationship they have is equally valued and developed by the story. In every regard they put in equal effort for each other, and both align with and complement each other at the same time. And then you have Kataang where Katara does nearly all the work taking care of Aang and gets no consideration in return, no say. She is merely interpreted from Aang's perspective, which is canonically shown to be unreliable and wrong about her.

______________________________________________________________

I believe media has a responsibility to think about the kind of message it's sending, because it shapes the culture around it. What kind of message is it sending treating Katara like a wholly unimportant actor in what is literally the canon endgame ship of the show? Treating her as a reward who has no real say and has to be with the main guy cause he's nice and saved the day (despite her own feelings) feels like something an incel would concoct. Especially with how angry he was at the thought she might not like him back despite NEVER ONCE thinking about it from her side. Saying it was built up when the only clear feelings we ever saw were from one side frames women as passive accessories to their male counterpart with perspectives that do not matter. Like he got a trophy for winning. Like she's an object and not a person.

The weird entitlement to randomly kiss a girl just because you like her without thinking the position you're putting her in or if she likes you back also makes me feel sick. And I hate that they made a character I like do something like that multiple times. And I hate that it feels like Katara was forced to kiss him at the end of the show when she was clearly not wanting to both previous times and it never resolved. Idk it feels violating. Like. She wouldn't do that.

And what does it say about so many people treating Zutara as if it's a shallow ship when it's entirely based off of Katara's choices and feelings in the show? While the other ship only exists in canon by ignoring her perspective completely. The story has Zuko see and respect her agency way more than Aang who more projects his own ideology and feelings onto her, along with whoever decided to force that last scene in.

Katara and Lee ❤️💙

Am I the only one who can't wait to watch the crystal catacombs scene?

It better be good!!!

Similarities between this two

Forgiveness