A:TLA (no, the real one)

Anyone who's read my SGA AU fic "Damper" may be surprised to hear this, but until yesterday, I knew next to nothing about Avatar: The Last Airbender. I knew there was serious race!fail in the casting of the movie**, and I've seen passing reference to the bending of substances, but that's about it. I may have seen an image of a kid with an arrow on his head once or twice, but that was without context.

As of yesterday, that's changed; I've now watched the first eight episodes and will continue through the series as time permits.*** It's not bad, so far, as animated series for kids go; I don't love the casual attitude to the destruction of ordinary people's property (as opposed to damage done in battle), nor the entitled attitudes of the leads (especially in the earthbender town — they wreck the place and then demand to be let go unmolested, wtf?), but they don't flinch from darker themes and I do like the variety of cultures and worldviews.

I also, to my surprise, kinda like Sokka. He's a jerk, but he rocks the deadpan snark, and he's obviously got a growth arc. I like the jerks who grow (says the Rodney fangirl, to no one's surprise).

I think I'm glad I didn't know anything about their worldbuilding before, though. I rather like the world I've got going in "Damper", and I'd hate to have had that influenced differently. (In fact, that's part of why I waited, once I got a comment mentioning a slight similarity — I didn't want to be influenced or to scotch any plotlines due to fear of similarity.)

I'm also amused to find, as I remember to go to DW to post, that the most recent fandom_icons post is A:TLA icons. It's meant to be! (heh)

** I feel kind of let down, in an obscure way. There's not much sacrifice in boycotting a terrible movie.
*** Pause for hysterical laughter.

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