The Quill #4 Movie Recs 2

Water. Earth. Fire. Air. Long ago, the four nations lived together in harmony. Then everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked.

Have you ever watched Nickelodeon’s critically acclaimed 2005 animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender and thought to yourself, “Boy, this sure is garbage! It would be so much better if it were live-action!” Well, you and me both! How that cheesy cesspool of amazing character development and masterful worldbuilding ever reached our TV screens is beyond me. I mean, don’t the executives at Nickelodeon have any idea what people enjoy in stories? But never fear, for not all is lost! In 2010, film director M. Night Shyamalan took on the difficult task of turning garbage to gold with his live-action remake, The Last Airbender.

Masterfully summarizing the events of the show’s first season (in which protagonist Aang travels to the North Pole alongside his friends to learn the art of waterbending), this film is an Avatar hater’s fever dream. A heavy emphasis on bad acting? Changing the pronunciation of protagonist Aang’s name to “Ong”? Whitewashing the cast to remove all sense of cultural representation? The Last Airbender succeeds in accomplishing all of those, correcting the inexcusable mistakes that were made in the original. It has stood the test of time for nearly 15 years. It is no exaggeration to call this work of art the magnum opus of the human species, overshadowing any and all works that have preceded it by several miles.

There is no comparison to be made: M. Night Shyamalan’s The Last Airbender is the GOAT of the entertainment industry, and naysayers shall be shunned until the end of time. As a matter of fact, this film was so good that the geniuses at Nickelodeon decided to scrap all plans for a sequel, to end the series on the highest possible note. Naturally, this decision sparked heated discussions amongst the Avatar fandom. Why would the studio throw away such easy money? How could they rob the fans of such a promising, and arguably perfect, film trilogy?

Unfortunately, the natural order of the universe simply hasn’t been the same since this groundbreaking decision was made. Clueless souls have attempted, and ultimately failed, to replicate the sheer success of the 2010 masterpiece, such as the more recent Netflix adaptation. But both critics and casual viewers alike have dragged that hollow bid at a cash grab, and rightfully so. How dare they cast actors who accurately represent the ethnic background of their animated counterparts. How dare they strive for acting that is anything but soulless and uninspired? And lastly, how dare they pronounce the name of Aang, a character whose name has been heard by millions for two decades, any differently than the improved pronunciation in 2010? The audacity of these studio executives is unbelievable! We can only hope that someday, lightning will strike twice, and another flawless adaptation of a criminally flawed series will grace our television screens.

Wow, that was tough to write. Happy April Fools’, everyone!