Late for the Party…

I have a habit of getting into things significantly after they’ve ended.  In this case, it really only ended last month, technically, but I think episodes were leaked out before then, so I’m probably a couple months late, at least.  What I am talking about is Avatar: The Last Airbender.  OK, I first saw the show a couple years ago, when a friend of mine introduced it to me, but I didn’t like it much back then.  I only watched the first episode, and I thought it was too juvenile or something.  But I can see now that I was the juvenile one back then.  I was up a too high on my anime high-horse, stuck-up.  But after becoming a frequent lurker at TV Tropes, and hearing how much most everyone there likes it, I decided to give it another chance.

It’s a lot better than I first thought.  I can now see why so many people outside of it’s target demographic enjoy it.  Admittedly, the basic story seems to be, at this point, standard fare, but it’s the likable and well-developed characters that really make the series shine.  The consistently solid animation and action-packed battles also don’t hurt, not to mention a good deal of romance, and even some fanservice thrown in for good measure.  For a “kids show” it’s really quite mature.

My only complaints about the show are minor things, like the way the characters’ names are spelled.  For instance, why is it spelled “Mai,” but pronounced “Mei?”  That, however is pretty much irrelevant to the actual show, so meh.

A while back, there was, apparently, talk of a sequel, but since then, the creators have said there (probably) will not be one.  Personally, I think there should be.  In such a rich and well thought-out world, there’s definitely room for more, whether or not any of the original characters make an appearance (though that would be nice.)  If you agree, go to this link: http://www.petitiononline.com/Avatarcc/petition.html                                                                        They won’t spam you, and you can keep your e-mail address private.  Even if it doesn’t work, and, knowing internet petitions, it probably won’t, one could always contact Nickelodeon directly, something I don’t quite have the guts to do.  Still, even if they don’t make a sequel, I think the Avatar team should make something else.  I may not have seen much of it yet, but I know television needs more shows like it.