Netflix, despite the lukewarm response to the show, has ordered the next two seasons of Avatar: The Last Airbender. The streaming giant made a slew of changes to the story, which were not very well received by fans of the original show. However, the live-action series faired way better than the film that was produced under the direction of M. Night Shyamalan.
As the show moves ahead with its second season, it can work towards bringing to light some of the issues that were only implied in the original animated series, owing to the audience that it was aimed at. The live-action show has managed to sustain its slightly more mature tone and would be fertile ground to explore Toph’s introductory storyline in the manner befitting the medium.
The Netflix Avatar could explore the true extent of Toph’s predicament
A post on Reddit talked about how stupid Toph’s parents were very dismissive about her and her abilities, even after witnessing them firsthand. While this was approached in a child-friendly way in the animated version of the story, the show could take the approach that it did with certain parts of Season 1, and truly delve deep into Toph’s parents’ control issues regarding their daughter.
The consensus of the fans talks about how the Beifongs were much more concerned with control rather than nurturing the abilities of her daughter, who was the greatest Earthbender of her age. While there are a slew of counterpoints that talk about the family of a disabled 12-year-old being careful with their daughter, the consensus largely paints the Beifongs in a much more controlling light.
Season 2 of Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender needs a few changes
One of the main criticisms of the show on Netflix was the fact that it condensed a lot of plot points into a very short runtime, which made the show feel like it was going through the motions rather than telling a story.
What Season 2 of the show needs to do is focus on the characters rather than running through the stories, which would allow the personalities of the funny and mature cast of characters to come through, rather than the whole story feeling incredibly rushed.
Given the fact that the show will be introducing a fan-favorite character like Toph, the show needs to figure out how it can make the characters feel a little more authentic, given that it seemed to have suffered from a little too much telling rather than showing.
