I see you…

Book 1: Water

Chapter 13

The Blue Spirit

WHAT HAPPENED?

Thanks to the storm from the previous episode, Sokka and Katara have become quite ill. While on his way to find a remedy, Aang is ambushed, captured, and brought to Admiral Zhao (recently promoted from Commander).

I’ve got chops for days!

The Blue Spirit infiltrates the fortress where Aang is being held and cuts him loose, but the guards sound the alarm and the two are trapped. Queue one of the best action sequences in the show to date. After complete awesomeness, they are cornered and the Blue Spirit holds Aang hostage.  Zhao lets them to leave, but has one of his archers knock out the masked man.

You don’t want this problem…

To his surprise, Aang sees that it’s Zuko and is about to leave him, but decides to save him. Aang leaves, collecting the remedy and giving it to Sokka and Katara, feeling defeated by his adventure.

WHAT TO TAKE AWAY

I had an interesting thought, but I’m sure it wouldn’t have worked out the way I think it would. When the YuYan archers are chasing Aang, they might not have caught him if Aang hadn’t stopped to get the frozen frogs. In fact, I was wondering how the archers were able to keep up with him since Aang could using airbending to increase his speed not too long ago. Speaking of, the YuYan archers were pretty impressive in the way they captured Aang. I was almost cheering for them to catch him.

These guys could give Hawkeye a run for his money!

The Blue Spirit and Aang work well together, and my jaw dropped when it turned out to be Zuko. So, not only is he a skilled firebender, but he’s also adept at stealth and swordplay. And he didn’t once use firebending to infiltrate the compound. Some people say it was obvious that Zuko was involved, but I was naturally surprised, and that’s a very good thing. I’ve said before that Zuko was quite resourceful, and this adds so many layers to him. Aang proved to be quite resourceful, too. The two of them managed to fight off a small army and escape a fortress almost in one piece. Had Aang known it was Zuko that was breaking him out, I’m not sure if he’d be so open to working with his arch nemesis. And that’s exactly what this is: a prison break.

We’re not out yet!

I can’t say enough about how impressed I was with Aang and Zuko as they fought together. However, I find it hard to believe that Zuko never made so much as a groan or grunt when fighting. He’d been fighting for a while, running, jumping, and hitting the ground pretty hard. And once again, Zuko refrains from using firebending to escape, and what ensues is an awesome fight scene. This is the type of stuff we need to see more! These are versatile characters and we need to see them wiggle their way out of tough situations.

At any rate, when Zuko wakes up, why does he take the time to listen to Aang and his story? Was he considering being friends with him, but was overwhelmed by his need to regain his honor? Either way, it was nice to see them sit together in a non-threatening way before Zuko attacked. And it’s also a bit of foreshadowing for an awesome moment that comes later.

Ha! Water beats fire!

This is the first time that Zuko actually helps Aang against a common enemy, if not for selfish reasons. As much as he wanted to capture Aang, he would rather help the Avatar then let him fall into Zhao’s hands. But this begs the question of what to do with Aang when they were in the clear? I don’t think Aang would let Zuko take him, especially after all that. It’s clear that Zuko didn’t think this plan through, but at least he was able to give himself another chance to capture the Avatar. I wonder if Iroh ever figured out what Zuko was up to.

If anything, it provided the audience a bit more development for Zuko. An enemy of an enemy can be a friend, but we’ll see how the group fairs when they meet the Fortuneteller.

For now, enjoy Aang getting caught!

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