Legend of Korra Book 4 Talkback - "Balance" (Spoilers)

[Steve]

Well, episode 1 is up, and we see the changes coming over the world. Kuvira is "the Great Uniter", having somehow taken control of the Metal Clan and using it as the basis for reuniting the Earth Kingdom as expected.

However, as of now she's not seen as a villain by the others, only by Opal - for usurping her mother presumably - and the governor of Yi State in the Earth Kingdom. Rather it seems they consider her work as helping to restore peace to the Earth Kingdom, with the late Queen's great-nephew due to take the throne; he's a self-absorbed dilettante that Mako has been assigned to bodyguard, much to Mako's dismay. It'll be interesting to see when the facade falls off and Kuvira is revealed as the threat she is due to be.

Korra is kept off-screen until the end. Everyone rushes to greet her when the Water Tribe ship returns... just for Tonraq to ask where she is. She supposedly returned to the city six months before. Or so she claimed.

And so we cut to an underground Earthbender fighting ring to see Korra getting her face smacked in by another fighter, cut hair and all, and she's incognito. It's rather clear she hasn't recovered mentally or spiritually yeah. Maybe not even physically.

And so the stage is set for Episode 2 next week. Dammit, I wish we'd gotten a one hour premiere like the last three books.

[FaxModem1]

I'm actually rather rooting for Kuvira for now. I'm sure that will change whenever the inevitable shoe drops and she starts invading Republic City or is revealed to be doing false flag operations or whatever, but she seems to be an effective leader if she has united over 90 percent of the country after it's monarchy has been failing them for over a century. She certainly seems like the better option as opposed to the royal dilettante currently residing in Republic City.

Now, I was a bit confused, is Kuvira and the Metal Clan working for the Earth Prince, or are they essentially taking over the Earth Kingdom and away from the Earth Prince?

[bilateralrope]

Well, episode 1 is up, and we see the changes coming over the world. Kuvira is "the Great Uniter", having somehow taken control of the Metal Clan and using it as the basis for reuniting the Earth Kingdom as expected.

It seemed more like Kuvira left the Metal Clan, probably taking a large chunk of them with her. Probably a conflict between those who wanted to sit safe behind their walls and those who wanted to help.

Now, I was a bit confused, is Kuvira and the Metal Clan working for the Earth Prince, or are they essentially taking over the Earth Kingdom and away from the Earth Prince?

Or is she going to keep him as a figurehead who may think he's in charge ?

Just like the Dai Lai and Earth King.

[FaxModem1]

Now, I was a bit confused, is Kuvira and the Metal Clan working for the Earth Prince, or are they essentially taking over the Earth Kingdom and away from the Earth Prince?

Or is she going to keep him as a figurehead who may think he's in charge ?

Just like the Dai Lai and Earth King.

If that's the case, why the strawberry pie incident?

[bilateralrope]

I doubt it was something Kuvira ordered. Maybe it was done buy her supporters who may not agree with her public views on the Prince.

Maybe she doesn't like him but finds him useful.

Maybe they weren't even her supporters. Just people who don't like the Prince.

All we know about the strawberry pie protest is that some people in Earth Kingdom clothing threw pies at the Prince.

[Steve]

It's likely that Kuvira is making a show of loyalty even as she plans to force reform. It's not too unexpected; Raiko's position is just four years old so new ideas are in the air, and reform after such a catastrophic failure as the collapse of Ba Sing Se is not unexpected. She's probably making a show of turning the Earth Kingdom into a Constitutional Monarchy with a new President to govern in the name of the Earth King/Queen, who will become a ceremonial ruler.

She may indeed be more Mussolini than Hitler in that regard. She's already making trains run on time....

I actually like Bolin being in her army. After all, she's not being overtly evil. Forceful, yes, quite harsh... but one can easily call it "harsh times require harsh decisions", which is what makes authoritarian and totalitarian ideology so easy to lapse into. As far as Bolin is concerned, he's doing the same thing Mako did. He's making a difference in the world, he's making it a safer and better place.

Hopefully next week we'll get to see what's going on with Korra.

[Mr Bean]

Finally saw it, oh no "the Great Uniter" that's a title I think reserved for Warlords and future Dictators. And the vibe I get is very much that Kuvira IS dealing with banditry and lawlessness in addition to creating her own false flag operations to secure support from regional governors. The big question is will she let the new Earth King take the Throne or will she overthrow the Prussians Aristocracy... wait no sorry wrong leader. But seriously what are the chances of bandits getting their hands on what looks like an Equalist biplane complete with trained air pirate able to steal several several hundred pounds of food. There are way to many things that bandits are not likely to have on hand to pull that off never mind the simple interception issue.

So yes I'm thinking Kuvira along with her new husband to be are either Red Lotus or just the husband is and Kuvira has the force of personality and raw talent to draw the Earth Benders together. Either way Varrick is on the train, while he's a great guy by default he's up to no good and having him on Team Kuvira is like bringing Kissinger to a card game... you don't bring such a man if you intend to have an honest game of chance and skill.

Guess for next episode, Mako assassinates the future earth King via a bee cannon of his own devising and/or the Earth King's real name turns out to be Caligula.

[Steve]

Yeah, given they made a point of her recruiting the bandits that attacked her train and then, what's this, bandits with a biplane?

I'm also betting that sky bison is a younger and untrained one, which is why Opal didn't join the fight; she was keeping the reins to prevent the bison from panicking.

[bilateralrope]

But seriously what are the chances of bandits getting their hands on what looks like an Equalist biplane complete with trained air pirate able to steal several several hundred pounds of food. There are way to many things that bandits are not likely to have on hand to pull that off never mind the simple interception issue.

They could be former equalists or former members of the Earth Nation military who took the plane with them when their former organization fell apart. It's been a few years, so the bandits have had time to learn what does and doesn't work against air benders. Add in some radios and tracking a flying bison doesn't seem too difficult. Especially if they know the farms it's likely to visit and its destination.

So the bandits being able to pull that off without help is possible. Unlikely, but possible.

So yes I'm thinking Kuvira along with her new husband to be are either Red Lotus or just the husband is

The Red Lotus stood against all governments. I don't see how a united Earth Nation fits with their agenda, regardless of who runs it.

[Steve]

So we finally see what led Korra to the ring that night. It took her six months to get back on her feet with Katara's help, and although physically she's mostly recovered she's lost a lot of her fighting edge, most of it mental. We get a repeat of her first grown up appearance (fighting three firebenders), complete with the start of the same musical track... and then she falters as an attack makes her visualize Zaheer.

Finally, at the previously-mentioned six month mark, she left, intending to go to Republic City. But haunted by the scowling visage of her in the Avatar State (chains and shackles included), she turned away. Having been recognized in a tropical island town and embarrassed failing to stop two Earthbending robbers, she decides to swap out her blue Water Tribe wear for the green EK look and cut her hair.

Apparently she's not just cut off from using the Avatar State, she can't feel Raava anymore. Even spirits in the Spirit World don't sense Raava in her.

So she trekked the world, constantly seeing the apparition of herself from the fight with Zaheer. Finally getting fed up with it, she followed said spirit into the ring we saw her getting her butt kicked in. In her head, she was being attacked by said visage, not the other fighter.

And the moment we all knew had to come. She gets brought to the swamp by an adorable puppy that growled at the Avatar apparition... and it turns out to be a spirit that talked to her in the Spirit World that wants to help. She follows him into the swamp and gets waylaid by the apparition, which kicks her ass and draws her into a pool of the metal poison. She waks up in a hut with a short old woman making food... who knows she's the Avatar. And yup, it is who you guessed it is. Toph is back!

And now I'm really eager for Episode 3.

[Mr Bean]

Saw the episode after seeing this thread update so yes Korra's defining trait that at least she's good at fighting is gone. I'm kind of tired of seeing the same plot line for four season now. Korra's great but she has to learn, season 2 Korra's great but she has to learn, season 3, Korra's great but she has to learn, season 4 she has to relearn.

That said the small moments make me overlook an identical plot like Avatar Aang's favorite shop on the island complete with endorsement picture. Spirit dog, her trying something smart like going to the tree of time and let us not forget. My dearest Korra IE Bolin writes like a 1800th century civil war general. The only thing he could have done to up that was end it with "Your obedient servant Bolin"

[Lord Revan]

it seems the story at least for the first part of the season seems to be that Korra needs to relearn to be herself again, which is nice as it allows to show that the final fight from season 3 was not without lasting impact (all too often in stories like this the hero simply recovers back to 100% off-screen) and it also allows character growth without ending with needless 1-uping in bending skills.

intrestingly this also the first time in the avatar series that a "main" hero character (Iroh was supporting) and the focus avatar is over 18 years of age if my math is correct Korra was 16-17 in seasons 1-3 making her 19 or 20 in season 4, it could bring intresting story options as societies treat "kids" in a different way then they treat adults for example even in the 1920s (which Korra's world is mostly based on) adults would have more responsibilities then teens.

[Ahriman238]

Part I'm not getting is why run that first time, at Republic City? Sure it's a scary apparition of her during a pretty dark time, but it's also an apparition of her the last time she was able to use the Avatar State. I kind of spent the episode expecting that she'd learn to embrace the vision rather than run or fight and bingo! Spiritual connection to repressed self restored.

Instead when it overcomes her, she sort of blacks out.

Katara therapy seemed to work wonders. I wonder if the years of dealing with Aang and the weird stuff he and friends would run into just gave her experience with every kind of injury and disorder. I do love that Korra is struggling to find meaning in this because, to an outsider, yeah, the Red Lotus were anarchists and the Avatar is probably the world's most powerful stabilizing influence, of course they'd try to kill here. But from her perspective these people she never heard of, who managed to briefly kidnap her as a child escape and hunt her across the Earth Kingdom to kill her. That's scary, the poisoning is it's own traumatic experience and we can see that she's still feeling the effects years later.

And it just had to be that swamp. You'd think Toph would hate it there, between the isolation and her inability to fell things normally through the mud and muck.

[Mr Bean]

And it just had to be that swamp. You'd think Toph would hate it there, between the isolation and her inability to fell things normally through the mud and muck.

Unless she has achieved a level beyond Earthbender / she's staying in the swamp temporarily for reasons of her own / option C.

[bilateralrope]

Katara therapy seemed to work wonders. I wonder if the years of dealing with Aang and the weird stuff he and friends would run into just gave her experience with every kind of injury and disorder.

Could be. Or it could be that bloodbending can be applied to help heal people.

Possibly both.

[Formless]

Part I'm not getting is why run that first time, at Republic City? Sure it's a scary apparition of her during a pretty dark time, but it's also an apparition of her the last time she was able to use the Avatar State. I kind of spent the episode expecting that she'd learn to embrace the vision rather than run or fight and bingo! Spiritual connection to repressed self restored.

Instead when it overcomes her, she sort of blacks out.

I love this episode because it works on several levels. Just the title alone (not a pun) is layered in meaning. But this in particular can be explained in several ways:

1. It not only represents a dark time for her, it also represents the ONE time in her life she went into the Avatar State uncontrolled and against her will. Aang did so several times in Water and Earth, and it gave him nightmares both because of the violence he became capable of, and the fact that he was not in control. Korra took six months just to regain control of her own body, she still doesn't have full control over her bending, and she she keeps having traumatic flashbacks to that time so she doesn't feel like she is in control of her very life anymore. Spiritual connections can't be forced on someone in those circumstances.

2. She thinks she is going crazy. I mean, wouldn't you? She keeps getting told by Katara that its all in her head, and now she sees this visage; is that in her head too? If not...

3. The visage looks angry at her. That's probably a reflection of her current self image-- that she is angry with herself for her failures, and has lost sight of her frankly amazing accomplishments. A lot of people I see who bash her character keep saying that she is a failure of an avatar for these failures and criticize she show for it, but I think they are missing the point. The show isn't over yet, and at this point in Aang's journey he had made lots of similar mistakes, including a near death experience that likewise left him unable to use the Avatar State. The city is where her friends are, but every one of them seems to be doing her job for her better than she can. Or at least that's the message she keeps hearing. Bolin and the New Air Nation is helping to fix the Earth Kingdom, Mako was patrolling the streets and busting the Triads before being assigned bodyguard duty, and Asami found a workaround for the city's infrastructure problem caused by the spirit wilds-- notable for being a problem Korra never found a solution to, and because Asami is her sole confidant. So the phantom is her realizing that the city will only make her feel more inadequate, especially after her failure to stop two simple thieves; a trivial task for season 1 Korra who still couldn't airbend.

4. Korra was fighting against the Avatar State at the time, and its possible that resisting made her realize just how dangerous it was to abuse that power like she did in the beginning of season 2. Now she sees herself as others see the avatar in that state, and it terrifies her just as much as anyone else.

5. It may even be that she inadvertently harmed Raava by resisting or otherwise drove the spirit out of her body, and she feels a certain level of guilt as well. I mean, she said that she was meditating practically every day, and Tenzin noted in Change that she would have to be at the end of her rope to meditate at all.

6. She is currently flying by instinct, as Toph implied, and she keeps thinking that this is something that she needs to overcome alone. Okay, that was intentional.

7. This visage represents her old identity, which she is now fighting against. The Earth Kingdom clothes, the haircut, the fact that she is now ~20 or 21 and finally going on the traditional Avatar journey that her uncle stressed was so important. He wasn't wrong, even if he was evil. It used to be that she identified as the avatar to the exclusion of finding an identity as Korra. I think the title of this book is about that, about her finally balancing her identity as a unique individual against the responsibilities of the avatar without being only one or the other. Consider the photograph of Aang looking incredibly silly for the camera. IIRC that was the first time we've seen adult Aang act humorously, and it was important to show that he never lost what made Aang, Aang. He was a complete person in his own right. So when the Visage dragged her into the hallucinatory quicksilver, it was symbolic of her old identity overwhelming her rather than unifying her with her with the Avatar Spirit.

And that's just the first seven things that come to mind. I could probably think of more.

And it just had to be that swamp. You'd think Toph would hate it there, between the isolation and her inability to fell things normally through the mud and muck.

Ah, but its also the same swamp that Aang first saw Toph in a vision. "Looking for someone you were? Found someone, you have." --Yoda

[Dominus Atheos]

So apparently when Katara said "my brother and most of my friends are dead" at the beginning on the series, what she actually meant was "my brother, my husband, and none of my friends are dead."

[Lord Revan]

In Katara's defense only member of team avatar known to be alive at that point was Zuko, just because we now know Toph was alive too doesn't mean Katara knew about it. Plus as far as we know all the secondary characters that Gaang met and befriended during their travels are dead, presumebly from old age.

[Steve]

I suspect that the line was written when they thought they were only getting Book 1 and didn't think they'd ever have a need for or reason to show the rest of the Gaang. And then Nick ordered more.

[Lord Revan]

I suspect that the line was written when they thought they were only getting Book 1 and didn't think they'd ever have a need for or reason to show the rest of the Gaang. And then Nick ordered more.

most likely true but my comment was essentially to show that the line could be true from Katara's PoV dispite what we know now, after all we got remember that in-universe characters don't get access to out-of-universe info or our omicient PoV and IIRC some of Lin's lines in seasons 1-3 suggested that Toph was dead (before it was revealed she was wandering the world but still alive).

[Sharp-kun]

So apparently when Katara said "my brother and most of my friends are dead" at the beginning on the series, what she actually meant was "my brother, my husband, and none of my friends are dead."

She probably didn't know about Toph given in s3 we were told she just up and disappeared one day.

[xerex]

So apparently when Katara said "my brother and most of my friends are dead" at the beginning on the series, what she actually meant was "my brother, my husband, and none of my friends are dead."

Id like to think Katara had more than 2 friends

[Ahriman238]

I still haven't completely given up on the idea that Korra needs to overcome her fear/rejection of the specter, thus accepting what happened to her. But it feels less likely after that episode.

Incidentally, notice that the friendly spirit saw the apparition to. And while in the alleyway it didn't interact with anyone but Korra, in the swamp it splashed water around, threw around Korra and caused some collateral damage. This seems to suggest that it isn't all in her head, though one incident involves a spirit and the normal rules seem t fly out the window where the swamp is involved, so who knows?

Also saw the Nostalgia Critic's review, and heard one thing I took as sort of self-evident but hasn't come up in this thread. So far as major political movements of the early 20th Century go, we've seen Avatar-verse versions of communists, religious fundamentalists, and anarchists. It looks like Kuvira and the Earth Empire are going to be fascists, or at least highly nationalistic under a dictatorial leader whenever Kuvira realizes she can lead better than this clown prince and seizes control to thunderous applause.

[Formless]

Also saw the Nostalgia Critic's review, and heard one thing I took as sort of self-evident but hasn't come up in this thread. So far as major political movements of the early 20th Century go, we've seen Avatar-verse versions of communists, religious fundamentalists, and anarchists.

I really have no idea where Doug and Rob Walker gets stupid shit like that first one in their brains. Amon was clearly a Malcolm X-like figure, not Lenin or Marx. Seriously, his greatest ally was an industrialist businessman . He didn't have a Martin Luther King figure to be his foil, but that's because in this story and this universe its Korra's job as the Avatar to figure out where the middle ground is when extremists arise to power.

Just throwing that out there. The Walker Brothers are quite shallow and dim reviewers/analysts when push comes to shove.

[Crazedwraith]

Isn't everyone being equal sort of what communism about? On as you say a pretty shallow/basic point of view.