Earlier this Season in Zuko Alone, Iroh spent over a year trying to conquer Ba Sing Se & he only retreated once his son died during the battle. It's strange to think that if his son had not died, then The Earth Kingdom would have likely been conquered, Iroh would have become Fire Lord, & Zuko likely would never have been banished at all 5 years before Aang was freed from the iceberg.
@@jlinkous05 There is no way Aang can win in that scenario: fighting Zuko, Azula, Ozai, and The Dragon of the West? He would have to take them out one by one.
Iroh's story represents the phases of life. He helps people of all ages he comes across. First, Iroh helps to cheer up a crying toddler (by singing Leaves From the Vine). Then he helps a couple of boys to learn how to admit their mistake of breaking the window (even though they run eventually after seeing the house owner😅). Finally he helps a man to believe in himself and find his path in life (by being a masseur). That's why the line "happy birthday my son, if only I could have helped you" is so much meaningful. And as we know it's exactly what he's doing to his nephew. He is helping Zuko so that he didn't lose his ways.
Before he helps the toddler, he helps an old man with his plant blooming. It's small, but because the merchant looked around Iroh's age I always interpreted that as you needing to help yourself first before you can help others.
The Leaves from the vines scene gets even more sad when u have more context. Makoto Iwamatsu's one of if not the last thing he records is 'Leaves from the vines'. Greg Baldwin, Iroh's Second voice always mentions himself as the 2nd Voice of Iroh and shows great Respect to Mako. And REFUSES to sing 'Leaves from the vines'. And finally the portrait of Lu Ten (the picture was based off of a young Mako) and it says "To General Iroh: see you after we win the war. Your loyal son, Lu Ten". Wanna cry a little more? In "the tale of Aang," the kid who said "Fluffykins, what are you doing here?" was a Make-a-wish kid with cancer. She initially just wanted to go to the studio and meet the cast/crew, but the creators wrote that part in for her and designed the character after her. P.S.: Dee's Tearbending Avatar state was hilarious. Its ok Dee anyone who doesnt cry in this ep shouldn't be trusted. Great reaction and Good day to u ladies 🥲🙂.
to add to this, it also explains how emotional the second version of the song is. Mako knows he doesn’t have long left, so he puts all of his heart into such a beautiful song. when iroh chokes up, that’s genuine emotion from mako, not acting
This is definitely making us cry!!! Wow this makes this episode even more sad. His voice breaking while he sings and talks never fails to crush my heart.. Uncle Iroh is top tier character ✨ Ps we missed your essays lately! Have a great day
@@MeeshDeeReacts it also hurts because iroh blame’s himself for his son’s death. that’s why he helps everyone else and says “if only i could have helped you”. survivors guilt is a bitch to deal with and it’s even harder to deal with if its family who died when you survived
What I find really sweet about katara telling toph she's really pretty is that in a couple of episodes you see that toph is basically a lie detector and she could sense katara was telling her the truth
This episode makes everyone cry. 17:13 "Iroh believes that anyone can change." It says a lot that he doesn't seem to believe his brother or niece can change.
i was confused on my first-ish viewings too: Sokka's boomerang IS bladed, but he has a few Water Tribe tools and weapons. He has a club, a machete, and a boomerang that ALL have the same color scheme/palette. He also has an off-color blade with animal teeth on it early in Season 1. Here Sokka uses his blue and white machete to trim his mustache
This is a late comment since I’m watching my way to your guys’ Korra reactions but one of my favorite things about the Tale of Katara and Toph is that at the end Toph smiles when katara is done complimenting her because she can tell if people are lying and she knew Katara was being genuine 🥺❤️
The show makes it really easy to hate the fire nation but Iroh shows that there are good people even in the worst places that punish sympathy and reward cruelty. Such a great character
You’d be surprised how much more expanded the stories are through the illustrated comics that came after/during the shows release. I used to have several of them.
I like love when Dee throws random words in Spanish 😂😂 “chismoso” My favorite tale is Momo because he was all alone in the southern temple, till the gAang discovered him, he built a strong relationship with Appa. Iroh’s story is sad, but he lost his son because they were attacking Ba sing Se, Iroh was ruthless till that point that change his life.
The tail of momo is my second favorite because I love momo, and I think he's a little underrated. Obviously, my favorite is Iroh's tail. It gets me every time now.
point of order: Toph sees through her feet. That's why she doesn't want them touched. touching her feet and lifting them off the ground effectively makes her truly blind.
Such a standout episode! This show defies the very notion of a "filler" episode here. Avatar: TLA is such a sleeper punch in the feels and dropper of life lessons. Most would never expect all of this from a Nickelodeon show about a kid with a destiny in a world full of elemental powers. Such an incredible show.
Hey there, Meesh & Dee! I have been following your Avatar journey and have been enjoying it! I hadn't subscribed, but when i saw you're now on a Harry Potter journey I finally hit that subscribe button! Keep the great reactions coming!
Happy Monday Meesh and Dee. I hope you two day are going good. This was a great episode. My favorite moments are Iroh and Zuko. I like how we get ro see Katara and Toph spend time together. Aang helping out with the animals and Sokka doing poetry. And a very sad moment with Momo looking for Appa. RIP to Mako the actor who voiced Iroh. I just like how this episode explains why Iroh is the man he's now. After the loss of his son. That was the moment that changed him. And seeing himself not being able to save his son. You now understand why he care and is so protective Zuko. Zuko going on a date was funny but interesting. It literally shows that despite him enjoying the date with Jin. The trauma and being part of the Firenation while still in a middle of a war. Still has a hold on him. Which you can see this is the first time he has done something normal. In which shows how you feel bad for him because he was brought up on war. But anyway I hope you two have a wonderful day. Stay safe, take care and stay amazing.