I didn’t like the way sokka looked at first in the trailers but after finishing the season I can confidently say sokka and zuko were by far my favorites and they really felt like the OG characters
The opening scene with the Earthbending is incredibly well done. My only real nitpick with this episode was Gran Gran's actress was... not good. Beyond that, I thought it was awesome, if a little rushed. Also, they sold the relationship between Gyatso and Aang so well in such a short time, I straight up had tears in my eyes when Aang saw his body in the ruins of the Southern Temple
Agree with the Gran Gran. That's what I'm talking about when ppl focus a LOT on the cultural background of the actors and not with their acting skills and how they embodied the character. Ppl are complaining for not getting a real Inuit ppl to act as Southern water tribe. Sokka's actor getting a backlash of it whether he was faking his cultural background or not tbh idc, bec he nailed it!
@@marvelousmia I heard that he didn’t want to do the voice out of respect of Mako. I think his voice is still fine for Iroh! Hoping for more metaphorical wisdom from him lol 😆
I’m wondering if it’s just because of how indigenous people tend to talk. In terms of physical acting I think she was great, but just line delivery fell a bit flat. But she talked exactly like how I’ve heard many indigenous elders talk, so I don’t know if I can really fault her for that? Probably just that you and I aren’t accustomed to their way of speaking, it’s like a foreign accent
26:24 they replaced Katara learning to freeze the crew all of a sudden, with Katara learning to pull water up that high all of a sudden. The animated series had her learn a move in the heat of the moment, so did this. Although, the animated series had her fail once, and this had her showcase the water pull move on a small scale beforehand. So the pros and cons balance each other out. I am fine with it. Dodging the use of the Avatar State just yet gives more weight to the Avatar State destruction in the Southern Air temple. The way the showrunners kept it here, we see the Avatar State's useful side and deadly side in the first 2 times Aang uses it.
I actually love your honesty, and I really respect that; I also agree with you about the Gran Gran part, but I do not mind that at all. As for Katara's acting and visual arts, she gets better later in the rest of the episode. Plus, I really love this new live-action, although it felt weird watching since I'm used to watching the animated version of Avatar; this is really good, and the emotions felt so real as well. Besides that, they did well with Appa and Momo designs, which look very realistic.
Realistically good about the animals. It's not too real like the lion king cgi which they have no emotions at all lol. They still have the same character and attitude as the cartoon
I thought it was weird that he was complaining about people defending the series, as he says mostly good things about it this video, because I've not seen people defend it to death like he's claiming. If anything, I've seen the opposite be more out of control, the people hating on it no matter what
It was never named in the show, but later on the OG creators revealed names for specific places, and one of those was Wolf Cove, which is of course where the Southern Water Tribe is.
Zuko and Iroh are probably hands down my favorite thing about this show. And that’s coming from a person that really enjoyed this for what it is and can’t wait to see what they do with Book: Earth.
THIS, such a simple thing to understand yet so many people are flaming it for not being an exact 1:1 replica of the cartoon. There were a lot of changes but IMO a majority of them make sense, it’s overall pretty great!
Real, my only issue in the adaption was it being a little too info dumpy. And some changes are a but shaky, but is fine for me as long as it makes sense.
@@MrQuantitySquare Yeah, they had 8 episodes to explain a lot of that stuff they dumped in ep1. A little mystery is a good thing. Gran Gran knew too much about everything.
I’d say 7/10 too, but if they can improve on what they’ve set up, s2 and 3 have a STRONG opportunity to be an 8 or 9. I thought it was a strong adaption of s1 though, despite its glaring flaws.
Aang : im gonna be the king of pirates i mean Avatar at early stage .. like he was struggling to choose that part, but in this episode goes fast on his decision
Yeah, and sometimes (sometimes) people aren’t being dishonest, just off the hype and seeing something that’s pretty good they initially feel like “omg it’s perfect” later they will know how they really feel.
I don't think there is a way to please or appease everybody. The movie was so hyped up and then such a let down...this has been hyped up and people are annoyed it isn't like the cartoon. If I want the original, I'll watch the original. I want to see the heart and message of the original story captured, the scenes and characters well performed. The show isn't perfect, but I think it's better than a lot of people are giving it credit for. I don't think anything could ever live up to the original series.
@@maureenseel118 There'll always be complainers. If it was more like the old show, people would compare it too much and complain it's not its own thing. If it tries to be different, people will complain it's not like the old show
as a big avatar fan, i want to say i loved the live action adaptation! they kept the original "soul" of the show and the bending was phenomenal!! it's clear how much love and effort went into it! but ofc there are those who will nitpick every frame, but personally i enjoyed this a lot ☺😊 edit: also they kept the ending credit music which made me S M I L E W I D E!!
It's that day and age we live in, NO MATTER WHAT, whether it's decently well-liked or not, there's always be a crowd of people that'll have something bad to say about it
I binged the full show today and I think your reaction is fair. Overall I was happy with how the show adapted Book 1. That being said, there are A LOT of events that are moved around and some things are taken out completely. However I think the story still progressed pretty close to the spirit of the show. Actor wise, Sokka's actor and Zuko's actor are by far my favorites. I think Aang and Katara were a bit weak but it may have just been the dialogue they were given. And they do improve as they settle into their roles. Commander Zhao comes in later. The character you mistook for him works on the ship under Zuko's command. The Live Action may not be perfect but I think it did the show some justice.
I just finished the first episode. My heart is pounding I’m so pumped. The dialogue has got some problems, but hopefully it will improve once they get past the exposition. So unnatural. For the most part, though, I loved this so much. I’m super excited to see where we go from here.
"It's different, but its supposed to be different" THANK YOU!!!! a lot of people are expecting a 1 to 1 shot of the show, and that just setting yourself up for disappointment.
honestly i hope they take the constructive criticism well because there are a few things that can be changed for later seasons such as pacing in some parts and the line delivery but either than that im really happy with it, and i honestly feel like its gonna get better. also i loveeee how they giving us some things we never saw in the animated series but always heard of.
This, example was at episode 7 when she and pakku was dueling, the line "Is that all you got?" was terribly delivered and in episode 8 where she was emotionally calling for aang, they need to put a fake tear in her eyes because you cant see a drop of water in those eyes
yeah like I know she's still a new teen actor but surely you would expect her acting to her a lot better. She has a lack of screen presence cause she's immensely lacking in energy and expression. Its just feels so obvious shes reading out lines. I'm sorry but she has barely any reaction to anything and it made me so bored whenever she was on screen. It may also be because of faulty writing cuz it feels like they really diminished her character by making her more timid and passive (which i dont know why since her fieriness and headstrong, maternal behaviour is such an essential part to her character and assistance in pushing aang forward?) . She feels like a totally different character compared to the other main figures who do somewhat resemble the original characters. Hopefully in the future seasons she gets better and they make her character more passionate and lively as she grows in confidence. The actress definitely fits the appearance of Katara though and looks similar to Sokka's actor. She also seems super sweet so I do feel bad saying this :/
I just watched the entire series and honestly I think you're going to really like this. I feel like it gets better and better by every episode and some of the creative changes get really cool actually. I would love to see you reacting to the rest!
Loved this version too. And enjoyed your enthusiastic review 💯 and honesty 👏 Love how they executed the bending, the acting, the cast 💯👏 the CGI locations and APPA! 🥰
Feel like they did ok with the pacing. It's only really the first 3 episodes in this and each cartoon episode was like 20 minutes. That and they managed to get a 20 minute prequel in at the start at the cost of a few fluff scenes (penguin sledding, Sokka trying to make Aang feel better at the air temple.) The changes are a bit weird if you watched the show but a lot of them make sense, especially in later episodes. Just have to be open minded and think about why they changed it after the nostalgia bias passes. Great reaction though, you'll love it if you keep up this mentality!
I've watched it once now, and I think my experience would change a lot on a rewatch, because unintentionally I was constantly thinking abouit what was different, but now that I know what happens I could judge the show fairly on a rewatch.
@@ri3121 yea, I found myself seeing a change and being very “that doesn’t make sense, why are they changing that?” Then by the end of the episode being happy with the direction they took it. They’re basically taking a slightly different path to arrive at the same destination.
i binged the whole thing. it's very different but i think a pretty solid story. definitely made me cry more than the cartoon did at this point at the series
I really fw the video bro you keep it 100. There’s some nitpicks I have with the show and some goofy looking/feeling scenes but overall I absolutely loved what they did with this show and I can’t wait to see what’s next for book 2 and 3. U can tell the people working on it really love the OG and wanted to do it justice.
Speed of story- yes it feels a bit faster, but remember that they reach the Southern Air Temple in episode 3 of the cartoon, or after about 45 min of air time. If you check the minute mark of the live action, it's probably about the same time. It feels faster because we're not a having a break every 24 minutes. The pacing is necessarily different.
I agree with you if you want to watch a shot by shot just rewatch the animated series. Like the stuff is still in there you just gotta look and listen for them. Some of the stuff they added I don’t see the big deal, I guess people just want to complain about something. First and second episodes by far has to be my favorite.
Just finished binge-watching the Netflix series last night, and I honestly enjoyed it overall with some nitpicks like you did. The first ep was a bit clunky for me, but the ones in the middle part of the season are really where the show shines for me. Hope to see more reactions from you bro!
Watched a vid of someone who went to the premier who talked with the crew and creators and said the creators were pretty self-aware regarding the first ep. They all thought it was their weakest. Personally, it's probs a 7.5 for me. I have another episode that's a bit lower but I enjoyed everything nonetheless.
Nick, you're my favorite reaction man on RU-vid. I will agree Avatar is visually stunning, but I can't swallow this monologue tone writing that dumbs it down a flawless piece of art.
I'm so glad you're reacting to this. ATLA is one of my favourite series. My step-brother plays Hakoda and I laughed a little too hard with the comment of being excited to see Sokka and Katara's dad and him being a dilf.
That gran gran speech made me cringe so hard. I was laughing then I was like "eeehhh whyyyyy" xD but regardless.. great. It isn't the best, probably it really could be better but I learned from One Piece - you change stuff for the live action. So cool, they missed few things and changed some details... still, having input from countless hours of watching the cartoon over and over again makes huge difference for the experience for sure.. at least for me, But I wanna see what they did with it. So far it's good.
@@Zanroff oh yeah, that flying stuff .. that's kinda.. umm.. knowing Korra where it was a huge thing (spoiler, damnit)... but ok, I guess I'll let it slide..
@@Daesma999 It's kind of cool, and makes sense that an air bender can fly to some degree. However, they didn't establish any limitations on it, at least in the first episode. I'm guessing he can't fly as fast without the glider? Maybe gliding long distances is easier. I'm only one episode in.
@@Zanroff seems still like he's just bending enough air around for him to glide in the air and stop the fall as much as he can like he does in the show. So far I also only watched the first episode, not sure when I get to the rest
Based. I have seen it all and I think it is good enough to have a much improved season 2 with all the feedback and criticism from the community. It has flaws but it can improve.
I've heard and read that the Fire Benders are able to use the fire to fly in someway when the comet is out since their power is increased but idk how true that is.
I like how it was the memory of Gyatsu that got Aaang to calm down from the avatar state. Not some girl he had a crush on but rather his old mentor and father figure telling him that he is good.
Really loved this reaction and how much common sense you have about it. It’s not perfect but it’s really good on its own! I finished the series, and honestly loved almost everything about the show, other than some pacing but again, it was changed for a reason and I don’t entirely hate their choices
Thank you Nick for giving this a try. Because some ppl just hate it for no reason without even giving it a chance because of the thinking, all live action is bad.
Luv ur reaction dude thank you for keeping it real. I was iffy on the grangran scene 😭 but the rest satisfied me and the pacing bec it made sense and i gotta give props to the ppl who were able to risk cutting some scenes from the cartoon given that this season got only a few ep its a tough job
I absolutely loved the show! I binged it when it came out here in South Africa and I'm a fan. I also had my thoughts about some things but overall I also have it an 8/10 if I were to rate it. Cannot wait for season 2
One of the big things people don't point out, Gyatso was a rival and friend to Avatar Roku, So when he talks about always being Aang's friend, he's speaking of Roku as well
Kind of wished they didn't show the opening yet. Also, alot of hand holding and exposition so far, like not leaving things to mystery (not just for us but for aang too). The bending is awesome though.
Everyone stick with it to the end! All of the changes/shifts make sense and are pretty balanced and I love the depth they added to characters that didn't get much love in the animated series. I think they definitely delivered everything that was essential and were still able to add more lore into it. I think people are also forgetting that season one in general isn't as exciting as the other two. I think they did a great job getting as much as they did into 8 episodes and I hope they have more to work with for seasons two and three 🎉
7:40 he was using his powers, he's not afraid of the powers, he's afraid of the responsibility of being the Avatar. if your grand dad showed up one day and said you had to go away to another city, to be it's only police officer, because you're the next of kin for the previous officer, would you go?
I think people forget that when sozin destroyed all of the airbenders, the fire nation had a numbers disedvantage. Its not like they brought all of the firebenders there. It was a skilled group hand picked my the firelord. Can't wait for more zuko
Your saying Sokka is immature rather than sexist honestly makes a whole lot of sense! Never thought of it that way before, but you're totally right. Hence why this show has toned that content down a bit, this is definitely a more mature Sokka, even if he still has a little ways to go.
This live action to me felt more like Avatar than the live action for one piece felt like One piece judging based on the first episode for both shows this episode 1 was much better
I think One Piece did it better, even though One Piece is more cartoony, it offered a little more freedom for an adaptation so I think it made better choices. Avatar the first episode was alright, the bending looks better than the movie but it definitely detracts from what bending was like in the original which is a little dissapointing
I think katara is a little less motherly, but I think that’s just because of the sibling dynamic being different. Sokka being more mature makes it a little different.
Thank you so much for saying that, I’ve been dying trying to explain it in simple terms and that’s exactly what it is. Sokka being more mature means there’s no need for Katara to fill in that role early on- but I actually LIKE that, she’s depicted kinda timid naive and idealistic (her speech to sokka about helping people and hope) She’s timid here cz she feels powerless after what happened to her mother and her guilt from not being able to save her. THAT set her arc up nicely where she can grow into the motherly confident Katara we all know her to be. In the cartoon she doesn’t change all that much in personality, aside from her bending journey. She was always confident, it just took a couple life death scenarios to get her there.
Zhao was never part of his crew. They're both commanders of different ships. Lieutenant Jee has always been in the animated series but I don't think he was ever named.
An online discussion about whether ATLA was anime, a friend suggested the difference between ATLA and traditional anime was like the difference between sparking wine and champagne. The only real difference is where it's made. We then decided to call ATLA Sparkling Anime.
It feels fast because everything was contained in a single episode,however,it still somewhat matches the pacing of the show if you watch the cartoon episodes back to back,everything on the netflix version 50 minute runtime is comparable to the average of 20 minutes runtime (minus the opening and ending credits) of the 3 episodes of the cartoon where these things took place,with the exception of the Zosin flash back wich we cant deny had some really cool scenes and helped showcase just how brutal things were and how deadly fire benders are when they have the upper hand,all of that was around 10 minutes,10 minutes that the cartoon spent with Aang messing around the village just to fill the runtime of the cartoon episode and entertain the kids watching it,there were also way less comedy bits (if any) that were a big focus on the cartoon,especially on the earlier episodes because it was a comedy-adventure kids show,like Aang just playing and messing around during half an episode or katara an zokka arguing a hell of a lot more. It is not perfect by any means (personally i just dont like how Aang's tattoos look at all,or the fact that they once again white washed zokka and katara but atleast they arent bad actors) but it got bending right and that in it of itself is enough.
I give the whole show an 8/10. It is almost perfect for what it wants to be! And Zhao is an error on your side, he comes later in the series. Jee is the commander on Zukos ship
I am agree with you! This show is enjoyable, if we want that like the cartoon, we'll watch the cartoon! The backstory of the Comet and how Sozin started it all are really great, the fact that Sokka is less immature doesn't bother me, I think the Katara "OP"'s moment, is just like in cartoon, she did her waterbending movement clumsily but she nailed it. Appa still the cutess sky bison alive and Aang is the real Aang we always know and not Oong!
In order to make a good avatar show at some point : they need to do the following - Season 1: beginning to the solstice Season 2: aang starts water bending to the North Pole Season 3: book 2 earth intro to the library (loosing appa) Season 4: desert to the end of the season l Season 5: all of book 3
I did watch the whole cartoon and understood it was a masterpiece but it was a long time ago. As someone who doesn't remmember all the details this was so good. For example I don't remmember sokkas sexist commets and his character development but what they did in this version was ENOUGH for me. The music the effects and the soul of the og is there and you can see that and thats what matters. Just wish there was no corny moments but lets be real in every show there are scenes that we skip
I love how much you enjoyed it. Do not agree about Katara knowing to much. But yeah watching the 8 I like how this book was handled. Fave episode... "Into the Dark" You'll see if you have not yet. Poor Cabbage man.
18:55 as long as in further episodes, this speech is from Katara's voice, i am fine. Gran gran giving this speech in episode 1 kinda fits in because she would be the most knowlegeable on the war stuff, and she is kind of the elder, so it makes sense she would be the one to tell all this. Doesn't explain how corny it sounded, and the subtly wierd way She seemed to speak like those motivational speeches where the speaker raises his hands and emphasizes every other word with an accent. That's the one gripe i have. But if its always her voice, ehh.... Would put me off a bit.
I know exactly what you mean when you were talking about Man of Steel, I actually liked those movies and I can’t understand why people were hating so hard
I don't think Katara was OP in this episode. Remember in ATLA #1, she was already pulling up balls of water, she even caught a fish with one. And she was the one that freed Aang by disintegrating an iceberg. All this Katara did was learn to pull a ball of water. She just lifted the last one from a longer distance. Maybe it felt like that because she seemed to have progressed pretty quickly after talking to Aang.
Just watched the first episode. Definitely some cringe stuff. I would have done a few things differently (they did a lot of telling and not showing.) , but It did bring a couple tears. Aang's staff showing up out of nowhere was dumb. I don't know how everyone in production missed it. I wish Aang didn't know the air benders were dead until the Temple. I feel like that would have made for a better reaction.
I don't think that the Gran Gran scene would have been cheesy if they made some different directing choices. Gran Gran's hair is obviously a wig-I don't know why so many of the costumes very much look like costumes...HOWEVER, the idea of passing on history through oral tradition/story makes total sense here. This is something Gran-Gran probably told Sokka and Katara all the time around the fire or what have you.
Love this reaction. Giving it a chance, acknowledge what they did well, but being honest and criticizing it where it should be criticized. It’s getting on my nerves how people are being so split, either calling it hot garbage or saying it’s perfect as if it can’t be in between. I think the set and fighting are awesome, the casting is good in places; Sokka, Iroh, Zuko did the best in my opinion. Sometimes the acting and line delivery is unnatural and sounds scripted, but hey, they could always improve on that. Love the honesty and fun.
i like the bending effects they look awesome but it seems like they used all the money on bending bruh the background CGI is visibly there and the iconic scenes like appa not being able to fly and katara and sokka fighting eachother and katara freeing aang accidentaly followed by sokka poking aang with a stick like he's an alien isnt there and it bothers me that if they'll skip so many scenes like that. I mean where even is boomerang?? i mean it looks like a solid 8 but im scared they might fuck it up with the "lets go fast"
Sometimes it is aggravating when people nitpick how a show isn't exactly like the original. If it was, it would be boring. The differences could make it better, even only if it is for run time. They added some interesting ideas in this. You seem to have the same feeling on it, but I hear so many argue over that. The changes can be problematic like the live action movie.
I’ve finished the show myself, and I think overall it’s a 7/10. I agree with your rating of 8/10 for episode one, and my personal favorite is episode 2. But after that, the show just kinda falls off. That being said, it’s never downright BAD imo. I hope you continue it!
Honestly not of fan of Katara's character, she's not the 'motherly', stubborn type that we are use to in the show. But Zuko is great! Sokka grew on me a lot, Iroh and Zuko together is really grows in the show. Azula and Ozai I actually really like, it makes sense why they made them the way they are in the show. I finished all the episodes already lol but it is tough determining if I don't like something cuz of the cartoon or the show itself. You'll get it when you continue to watch lol hope you keep doing Reactions to this!
