 |
In this episode, we begin by finding Aang pacing back and forth talking with Katara and Sokka while in mid-air flight on their flying bison, Appa.
Aang is concerned about learning how to waterbend, and thereby mastering at least one major element as the Avatar. Katara recommends that she teaches him a few tricks to waterbending, and so the decision is made to take a quick rest next to a decent sized lake to practice waterbending. While Katara teaches Aang, Sokka has been assigned the job to climb on top of Appa’s belly and use a large tree branch to scrub the mud and bugs between Appa’s toes. Appa doesn’t mind, but Sokka certainly does for obvious reasons.
Meanwhile, Aang is getting use to the techniques of waterbending, and actual starts to waterbend, and does it so well to the point that Katara seems to become slightly jealous. Katara and Aang’s waterbending practices get out of hand to the point of where it causes enough waves to blow Sokka off of Appa’s belly and literally waterbends all of there supplies up the river.
It is at this time that Prince Zuko's ship has changed course, as thanks to his Uncle Iroh and his personal quest for a board game piece known as a lotus tile. This leads Prince Zuko and his ship full of fire nation army men to a village full of merchants and pirates. This is the same small village that Aang, Katara, and Sokka were located in just a while before Prince Zuko and his crew arrived. Of course they ran away quickly from a group of pirates after Katara secretly stole a waterbending scroll from them.
Katara, Sokka, and Aang later find safety from the pirates in a location near a lake, and as on would suspect, Aang and Katara begin practicing on their waterbending again. Katara is determined to try the moves displayed on the waterbending scroll first. As Aang continues to encourage Katara as she continues to have trouble performing a technique from the scroll, Katara gets quite aggravated and starts yelling insults at Aang. Katara realizes that she has hurt Aang’s feelings and apologizes to him.
Nightfall occurs and Katara secretly goes towards the lake and tries again to perform the waterbending technique that is on the scroll while Sokka and Aang are asleep. But suddenly, the pirates and Prince Zuko capture Katara within only a few minutes ; and after later tying up Katara, the pirates capture Aang and Sokka. Zuko and the pirates both go over what "trade" they agreed upon, the scroll for the Avatar. Suddenly, Sokka starts to mention that the Avatar (Aang) is tons more valuable to the pirates than some waterbending scroll. The pirates decide to keep the Avatar for themselves, causing a now angry Prince Zuko to start firebending against the pirates.
A fight between the pirates and the fire nation crew takes place, with Aang and Sokka sitting right in the middle. Katara manages to escape from being tied up and both Aang and Katara start to waterbend one of the ships off the shore so they can escape. They take the ship and suddenly start kicking a few pirates off the ship. Suddenly a waterfall is right ahead of the ship they boarded, and Katara and Aang both stand opposite of one another on the sides of the ship and start to waterbend, causing a small whirlpool to form and keep the boat from falling over edge of the waterfall.
Suddenly one of the ships ran by the pirates ram the ship Aang, Katara, and Sokka are on and the three of them fall over the edge of the falls; but are thankfully saved, as Appa the flying bison does a slight nosedive to capture them on his back and they fly off into the distance.
Katara once again apologizes to Aang for her behavior and admits that she was a bit jealous, and she claims that the scroll isn’t important to her anymore, that is, until Sokka pulls the scroll out of nowhere and asks Katara what she has learned from the whole situation; which is that "stealing is wrong, unless its from pirates".
Finally the viewing public gets to see Aang grow in versatility. He now knows how to airbend and waterbend. I'm not sure what he’ll learn next, but it should make the rest of the other upcoming episodes very interesting. Also, it was a first to see Katara get a bit hostile with Aang, but as friends should do, she did patch things up in the middle and end of the episode. A few quick funny moments in the area of dialogue, but seemed to be slightly overshadowed by the action and thickness of the story.
Click banner for the Animation Insider forum talkback: |
 |