Avatar: The Last Air Bender and World Building

YouTube's recommendation algorithm auto played OSP's 'Planet of the hats' video while I was going about my day. Ever since then, I have been thinking about world building and how it is essential and inevitable to the narrative experience, as it aims to enrich and also give us some much-needed context. While in some genres, it is explicit (fantasy and sci-fi), an argument can be made that there is some form of world building in any piece of entertainment.  

What I could consider a well-built world is how rich in detail and 'lived in' it seems, and how everything makes sense as a whole. The Matrix and Blade Runner 2049 are prime examples of sci-fi movies with well-built worlds. Tolkien was so good, he basically created the entire western fantasy genre. Star Wars can be argued to be both a sci-fi and a fantasy franchise. All of these franchisees have an identity or gimmick, or you could call it a through line around which the entire world is imagined. This internal logic or status quo or rules are well-defined. The story could be about upsetting the status quo, in the case of the Matrix or what happens if the status quo is upset, in the case of Blade Runner 2049.

If the gimmick is not well-defined on purpose and left vague enough for the author or creator to throw in a deus ex machina or several whenever they feel like it, that kinda cheapens the whole experience. The Star Wars sequels had this issue and as much as I love Harry Potter, its magic system is not at all defined in the slightest. I still love the Wizarding World, just that I try not to think too much about it.

Just to add, video games by nature do it much better. Mass Effect and Elden Ring are two games, where I have spent countless hours reading about the world and lore.

Avatar: The Last Air Bender

Now, what does Avatar: The Last Air Bender (ATLA) have to do with any of this? If you are not familiar with the world of ATLA, the main gimmick is that a few people can control or bend one of the four elements – Fire, Earth, Air, or Water. Each element has its own region. The Avatar is the only one who can bend all four elements, is tasked at keeping peace among the four nations.

"Water. Earth. Fire. Air. Long ago, the four nations lived together in harmony. Then, everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked. Only the Avatar, master of all four elements, could stop them, but when the world needed him most, he vanished. A hundred years passed and my brother and I discovered the new Avatar, an airbender named Aang. And although his airbending skills are great, he has a lot to learn before he's ready to save anyone. But I believe Aang can save the world."

The backdrop is set against a war and as such this show deals with its effects including genocide, imperialism, gender discrimination, oppression, fate, destiny, and free will while managing to be a kid's show. Moreover, this show has some of the best character arc's ever written for TV. It's amazing how it respects and trusts its audience enough to not dumb everything down, when it's targeted demographic were kids who watched Nickelodeon.  

Of course, all of this is enriched by the world it has built. The entire concept of bending is not hand waved. It is well-defined to the point, each elemental bending differs visually and by nature. The limitations as well as abilities are shown enough to give the audience a sense of what is possible and what is not. Everything from the architecture to politics are built around the concept of bending and that concept holds up pretty well.

The world here is inspired by Asian cultures of China, parts of East Asia. There are influences from cultures in India, South East Asia as well as the Arctic. The bending movements itself is based on martial arts.

I want to conclude this by saying, if you are a fan of well written characters, a beautifully built world to get lost in and a refreshingly great story, give ATLA a try. I tried to keep this post as vague as possible in order not to spoil anything. The world and characters of  ATLA are something I have enjoyed immensely and still continue to do so whenever I rewatch the series.