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Was... was that evil waterbending chick a double arm amputee? 
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Jun 28, 2014 04:42
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achillesforever6 posted:Just finished watching the 3 episodes and goddamn its much better than season 2. Like the new bad guys and also how hosed up the Earth Kingdom is, whoever brought up the North Korea parallels was spot on Well it's also that Ba Sing Se is based strongly off of the late Chinese Qing dynasty, one of two dynasties in which a foreign host (the Manchurians) seized control of the Empire from the native Han population. Because of this, several brutal reforms were put into place to quell rebellion, the most notable of which was the Queue Order, which forced all men in the empire to adopt the Manchurian-style Queue, where the hair is shaved at the front of the head, and worn as a long braid in the back:  The penalty of not doing so was death. It was a sign that the Han were forced to submit themselves to the Manchurian rulers. The latter days of the Empire was overseen by several despotic or incompetent rulers, such as the young boy-emperor Puyi (who also appeared to be the basis for the previous Earth King, from the original ATLA series):    Or the Dowager Empress Cixi, who is popularly regarded as a despot. She may also have been the inspiration for the Earth Queen:   The full history of any dynasty is complex of course, but some of the common threads that runs through the Qing are oppression, stagnation, and resistance to change. So this may also have been a big influence in how Mike & Bryan conceived Ba Sing Se. Though yeah North Korea is also a very apt comparison. EDIT: Also I know you guys probably hate him but holy crap Kai is such an adorable little scamp. Might also be because Kai is part of my Chinese name. 
ShadowCatboy fucked around with this message at 14:05 on Jun 28, 2014 |
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Jun 28, 2014 14:00
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pentyne posted:edit: Speaking of the respective nations, isn't the Fire Nation supposed to be Imperial Japan? Earth Kingdom is a blend of China/North Korea, The Air Nomads are Tibetian, and the Water tribes are...Inuits? Er, not exactly, no on a couple of counts. I wrote up a lot of cultural analyses previously, someone helped archive them on tumblr. The Fire Nation is based heavily on the Chinese Qin Dynasty given its expansionist and militaristic nature. Though ironically, IIRC the Qin associated themselves more with the element of Water rather than Fire. The Earth Kingdom, being the biggest of the four nations, its influences are drawn from a medley of different cultures and include Tang Dynasty China as well as Korea (a couple women were shown wearing Korean-style hanbok), but Ba Sing Se is distinctly based on the Chinese Qing dynasty (not to be confused with the Qin).
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Jun 29, 2014 05:33
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To be fair, the North Korea comparison was pretty decent in the original series given the severe information control being conducted by the Dai Lee. You know, "There is no war in Ba Sing Se," along with the use of "handlers" (Ju Dee) who are required intermediaries between foreign visitors and the rest of the populace.
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Jul 1, 2014 05:16
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Waterbending is based off of Tai Chi, and the healing subskill is related to adjusting the flow of Qi throughout the body along the meridians. Blockage of proper Qi flow is known to block bending. Amon just does it permanently with waterbending-based Qi manipulation rather than striking along the meridians and pressure points like Ty Lee did.
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Jul 3, 2014 12:01
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Combustion Man emitted explosions from his Third Eye chakra, which is supposed to have spooky powers when "opened" in eastern metaphysics. EDIT: Just sayin' that there's a legit reason for these things.
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Jul 3, 2014 20:41
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poo poo, and this after all that hullabaloo in season one complaining about too much pro bending
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Jul 4, 2014 05:35
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Came up with a hypothesis here: 1. Suppose during the Genocide 170 years ago, a number of Air Nomads escaped to the Earth Kingdom and disguised themselves as Earth Kingdom citizens (growing their hair out and wearing hats, gloves, and headbands). 2. Those Air Nomads had kids with Earth Kingdom citizens, and over time their descendants mostly forget their Air Nomad heritage. They never manifested Airbending abilities because this broken cultural link meant they lacked the spiritual power to become Airbenders (the reason all Air Nomads were Airbenders is because they were deeply spiritual as a culture, remember). 3. Harmonic Convergence reawakened the latent spiritual energy that resided in the descendants of Air Nomads. The whole "Airbenders reappearing" thing isn't random. It's their original heritage reawakening. 4. Zaheer, unlike most, knew about his original bloodline, which is why he studies Air Nomad scripture, philosophy, and even their fighting style. Even though he couldn't shoot bursts of wind 13 years ago, he trained heavily in the forms. Acrobatics, avoidance, and evasion can still be powerful skills in hand-to-hand combat, which is how he originally held his own in their gang of four. It also explains why he seemed to expect the renewal of his abilities. 5. Once people realize that all the new Airbenders reappearing were descended from Air Nomads, they'll all want to go back to the Air Temples to "reconnect with their roots." This also may be a legal precedent to bar the Earth Queen from claiming them as her citizens, freeing them from her clutches. 6. The fact that there don't seem to be any Airbenders popping up in the Water Tribes may be because the poles weren't as accessible or easy for the Air Nomads to hide in. Thoughts?
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Jul 12, 2014 06:28
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Here guys have some fun pics I dug up from Bryan's blog. D'awww dat Bolin.  Ryu, the Korean staffer who the goonbender was based on. EDIT: Aang hit his growth spurt:  
ShadowCatboy fucked around with this message at 07:39 on Jul 13, 2014 |
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Jul 13, 2014 07:33
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Sydin posted:Also since it's unlikely that Zaheer was able to get a hold of air nomad literature while in prison, he must have been a student of their history and philosophy long before he ever got airbending. Sure it's not the traditional style, but Zaheer combining his extensive knowledge of airbender teachings with his own well developed martial arts puts him miles ahead of other new airbenders. Not to mention if he really did study airbender teachings beforehand, he probably had some time in prison to learn to apply the theory to reality before making his escape. My current hypothesis is that Zaheer is a descendant of the original Air Nomads who fled into the Earth Kingdom 170 years ago, as are all the other new Airbenders popping up everywhere. Harmonic convergence just reawakened their latent Airbending abilities.
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Jul 13, 2014 08:25
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Android Blues posted:I adored pro bending and it still feels weird to me that, despite Mako and Bolin having thrown their entire lives into the sport as of season one, they just kind of flit away from it in season two. I get that it's a result of them wanting to put the characters in new situations but it's still slightly jarring from a "wait, wasn't this like, your core motivation?" perspective. The pay was so lovely that they were living in an attic. Mako got the opportunity to get a more stable career, and he took it.
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Jul 15, 2014 03:41
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Ferrinus posted:Like others have said, though, Season 3's a huge improvement for Korra over all. One thing that surprised me about the most recent episodes was that Korra, like, straightforwardly and unquestionably won a fight and succeeded at a goal. It didn't occur to me until after a friend pointed it out, but through Books 1 and 2 Korra was always getting owned - she won, like, one fight against some mooks at the beginning of Book 1 and then for all of time she was either getting beaten or appearing to win until her enemy just distracts her to cut and run or pulls out some master plan that destroys her. There were no filler episodes in which Korra could tackle some problem and genuinely overcome it, because everything was bent towards building up Korra's enemies as increasingly fearsome. Eh, the same could be said of Aang. He only "won" battles in the first season because he was able to temporarily disable the baddies and run the hell away. This is also including the fact that the foes he was facing was just one cranky Fire Nation royal plus a bunch of dudes who were stuck ferrying around the exiled Prince.
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Jul 15, 2014 22:00
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Holy poo poo question popped up on an Avatar facebook fanpage: If Iroh lives in the spirit world and the spirit portals are now open, does this mean Zuko can go and visit Iroh again?
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Jul 16, 2014 01:11
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Jul 18, 2014 23:54
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gently caress the dude with the sky bison pelt. Just seeing that made me sick. Seriously, the idea of Bosco & sky bison being killed for steaks is one of the darkest things in this show. EDIT: Yeah I know, murder-suicide, but those guys were assholes. ShadowCatboy fucked around with this message at 05:26 on Jul 19, 2014 |
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Jul 19, 2014 05:16
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More fanarts:     
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Jul 19, 2014 19:22
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beep by grandpa posted:I loving hated season 2 and hated most of season 1 but this season is super good. I've enjoyed every episode so far. Hopefully they can fix that for the DVD set. 
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Jul 21, 2014 03:27
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Rewatching this past week's episodes, and Bolin is so cute the way he's all dejected about not being able to metalbend. Here's a thought for metalbending training: would it be possible to make blocks that are like 50% iron and 50% slag to show rookies how to bend metal? Then over time use blocks that have higher metal content and less slag. As the block becomes purer metal it becomes closer to "true" metalbending. Basically you'd get a gradient between earthbending and metalbending so earthbenders can train their way up in slow stages.
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Jul 21, 2014 08:07
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ImpAtom posted:That is what they're doing in this episode. They said the metal is specifically designed to be easier to bend. That's because it's magic meteor metal though, not because it's a graded system.
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Jul 21, 2014 08:28
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AshB posted:I think they've set up for some solid Bolin character development. They've shown Korra has developed as a character already. I do like that they kind of kicked the focus on Mako and Asami to the curb because they're both pretty boring. It would've been cool if they did something with Asami though. I don't hate her; she just doesn't have a personality. Yeah, some of the best characters had both strong distinguishing characteristics, but also evolved over time as they grew up and matured. Aang was the playful, innocent pacifist, but had to learn to take responsibility and face his problems head-on instead of running away. Zuko was an angry, angsty teen who had major daddy issues and desperately sought approval, but had to learn to develop a moral center for himself. Still, I think there's some complexity to the characters that we tend to overlook. Like, we all know that Mako is the responsible, serious, Mr. Mom type figure... he's had to take care of Bolin ever since they were little. This on its own might come off as a little boring, but it also explains why he behaves the way he does and why the plot's progressed this way. With how carefree and irresponsible Bolin can be, Mako probably grew up thinking he's the only one who can protect his little brother. I think this is why he came off as such a jerk initially: Mako's so used to taking charge and getting poo poo done on his own that he ultimately doesn't trust anyone else to help him with anything. He doesn't like letting go of control in dire situations. It's why he initially didn't trust Korra when she wanted to join their team, why he wanted to go off and search for Bolin on his own when the Equalists kidnapped him, etc. It may also explain why Mako felt like he was getting more and more distant from the others this season. With Korra stepping up and taking charge as the Avatar, Asami dealing with Future Industries on her own, and Bolin's material needs being met by living at Air Temple Island, Mako probably doesn't know what to do. Mako never had the time to build a group of friends, and for most of his life he only knew how to relate to his closest companion in a top-down fashion. Suddenly with a group of friends helping each other out he's trying to figure out where the hell he fits in. So yeah, thinking about it... Mako does have some character development, in the sense that he's gradually learning to let go, trust others he has to work with, and juggle more relationships than he's used to. It's subtle, but it's there. Asami is a bit harder to figure out. I'll have to look her over some more later.
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Jul 28, 2014 19:19
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Bloody Pancreas posted:In the original Team Avatar, Sokka was both a source of one-off comedic jokes and incidental plot development (Aang having to find medicine, Aang getting over his fear of Earthbending, etc). It was only later that he developed his niche as an ingenious tactician. Well there were glimmers of Sokka's keen intellect early on. In Book 1 it became apparent that he was a skilled tracker and knew how to reconstruct a battle scene, and he also was a staunch rationalist who didn't care much for mysticism, whether it was fortunetelling or even bending. He's always been very sharp yet down to earth.
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Jul 28, 2014 19:23
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I'm actually rewatching Book 1 of Korra now. Is it just me, or would a Pro-Bending console game be kinda awesome? I've never liked sports games but man, that'd be kinda sweet.
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Jul 28, 2014 19:38
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Bonus points if they include relevant ads for the loading screens. "Flamey-O Instant Noodles! The Noodliest Noodles in Republic City!"
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Jul 28, 2014 19:48
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I've mulled over the Su Yin conspiracy a bit and I find it a little disturbing. I'm not saying there's any evidence for it, but there's a couple hints outside of the circus pic that make it seem possible. Like, when Lin woke up cheerful as ever (cheerful is NOT an emotion I'd attach to Lin) wearing Metal Clan regalia... did anyone else get some Lake Laogai vibes? The fact that Team Avatar was separated from Lin was also a big one. Could the Earth Queen have been putting pressure on Zhao Fu? Did the Earth Queen send some Dai Li there as part of a plot to capture Korra? 
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Jul 28, 2014 23:22
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So on the subject of China-themed animation, has anyone heard anything about Master Jiang and the Six Kingdoms? Cuz I have no idea what the hell the plot is, and I don't know whether this looks awesome or just contrived.
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Jul 30, 2014 06:18
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Apparently the traditional animation in the trailer was done by just two animators: Li Wei and Pei Fei.
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Jul 30, 2014 06:42
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I couldn't help but think of Zaheer grumbling "This is why I voted Tea Party" and making Iroh sad.
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Aug 1, 2014 20:52
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Rincewind posted:ATLA Annotated has Korra's-- it tends to post translations after every episode, so I assume the others are forthcoming. Oh god this blog.  Noooo Kai look away!!! 
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Aug 2, 2014 04:05
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i hate meatloaf posted:We never got any reason for why Amon had a red dot on his mask, so it could reference the red lotus symbol - there is a red dot in the center? That's definitely a reach, but hey. In Beijing opera, a mask with a red pearl on the forehead represents initiation into the Buddhist monkhood, and can be seen as representing spiritual connections.
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Aug 3, 2014 12:17
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Hey guys, I'm reposting all my Chinese culture/history posts on a tumblr just to archive them. I already put up all the food/recipe posts, and plan on making more in the future. Already got another Fire Nation dish and a Water Tribe dish in mind. http://mrcatboysa.tumblr.com/
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Aug 3, 2014 19:26
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To explain a little more fully, the use of white and yellow for Amon's mask is also meaningful. White Beijing Opera masks are worn by villains, and the color suggests sinister, treacherous, and crafty intent. Some white masks also are used for characters who are portrayed as tyrants. Yellow symbolizes "fierceness, ambition and cool-headedness," though other sources also cite cruelty as a yellow trait. However, one might interpret the color to be gold instead: gold masks are used for gods, spirits, and monsters. Also, fun fact about Chinese opera and masks... it's not all about singing and acting. Beijing and Sichuan opera can also include the art of bian lian, literally "face changing." This is a magician's art of instantly changing one mask for another in a split-second. It's an art that's traditionally only been passed down from father to son. Normally the face-changer will raise his long sleeve and obscure his mask for a moment, and in the instant it takes to twitch the sleeve aside his face has changed. However, this is not always the case. In fact, face changing can occur multiple times in quick succession without obscurement. Also, there are puppets. Which change faces. And breathe fire. EDIT: Clip from the original series with fire-breathing puppet. ShadowCatboy fucked around with this message at 22:50 on Aug 3, 2014 |
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Aug 3, 2014 22:44
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Nichael posted:Kind of unrelated, but why are the voices so off in this clip? To get around the automatic copyright detector thingy to prevent takedowns.
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Aug 3, 2014 23:14
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Babygravy posted:God dammit I had to watch that several times to try figure out how he was changing the masks.. And I've still got nothing. The crazy part with that first vid is that at ~3:40 he's able to replace one of his masks after he's removed them all. And the guy after him changes his entire outfit in an instant. Twice. EDIT: Here's another really sweet performance: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mzx8Z8K2JW4 ShadowCatboy fucked around with this message at 04:02 on Aug 4, 2014 |
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Aug 4, 2014 03:57
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Genocyber posted:I saw him pull off one of his masks into one of the umbrellas. If you can't hide what you're doing completely then you're a terrible magician. What's the time index of this?
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Aug 4, 2014 04:14
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Not sure that it's actually drawn into the umbrella. The lady spins around with it and there's nothing in the underside.
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Aug 4, 2014 04:31
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Yeah I'd still say that the majority of the problems with the film still lie with Shyamalan. The fact is, Shyamalan is a loving terrible writer. A huge chunk of dialogue that he churns out is pure poo poo, largely because he can't tell the difference between narrative and dialogue. His style of directing is also dull, and honestly kinda archaic. Also, IIRC Sifu Kisu couldn't convince Shyamalan that the choreography and the martial arts training needed to be done properly, so Shyamalan just said gently caress it and went with a stunt coordinator instead. In truth my biggest pet peeve is that all the authentic cultural and historical references were stripped from the film. Maybe the producers had a hand in that, maybe they didn't. But if so, I really hope the producers don't sleep well at night.
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Aug 8, 2014 01:57
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Ravane posted:The Last Airbender movie is the only source of american media that has pronounced the word "avatar" correctly, as far as I have seen. Gotta give them that. And they pronounced everything else incorrectly because they thought that pronouncing Chinese words using Japanese phonetics was more "authentic."
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Aug 8, 2014 02:08
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Raenir Salazar posted:I could look at most of the changes for the Avatar movie individually in a vacuum and think "I can sorta see what they were going with this." Because well, film adaptions do have that right to be independent interpretations of the source material, if they weren't each in turn undermined by the implementation. Like, changing each nation to reflect a different ethnicity? I can see that as being vaguely an interesting or at least justifiable in a creative sense but then why make the protagonists white people? Generally you do a "reinterpretation" or "reimagining" of source material when the original material has become outdated and needs to be readjusted to fit contemporary mores and themes. The reimagined Battlestar Galactica series was possible because the source material was 25 years old, ridiculously campy 70s pulp sci fi, and Ronald D Moore wanted to re-align the series with post-9/11 current events. There's no goddamn point to do a "reinterpretation" or "reimagination" of source material when the original series was still not only a masterpiece on its own, but was still alive and kicking through season 3 when production started. Honestly, switching out the cultural elements from Avatar was one of the worst things they could do. ATLA's central premise is that it's an East-Asian, Sinocentric world with corresponding themes drawn from Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism, etc. These factors were integral to the series' storyline as well as its depth of world development, and swapping them out gutted the film of everything that made ATLA great. ShadowCatboy fucked around with this message at 08:48 on Aug 8, 2014 |
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Aug 8, 2014 08:40
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Too bad the Earth Queen probably didn't hear Zaheer's pithy speech about freedom, what with the vacuumbending insulating her head from sound as well as air.
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Aug 8, 2014 18:39
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You know, I wonder if Zaheer could've astrally projected himself while he was in prison. Would've made his stay less boring.
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Aug 10, 2014 00:48
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