Avatar: The Last Airbender is an animated action-adventure television series created by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, and produced by Nickelodeon Animation Studios. It first aired on February 21, 2005, and ran for three seasons until 2008. The majority of episodes were directed by Giancarlo Volpe, Ethan Spaulding, Lauren MacMullan, and the creators themselves, Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko. The creators also served as executive producers alongside Aaron Ehasz and Eric Coleman. Avatar boasts a large team of writers including the show creators, as well as Aaron Ehasz, John O’Bryan, Elizabeth Welch Ehasz, Tim Hedrick, and many more. Additionally, the character design team was composed of dozens of artists led by Aldina Dias, Hye-Jung Kim, Tomohiro Yamaguchi, and Ian Graham. Benjamin Wynn and Jeremy Zuckerman composed Avatar’s music. The series features the voices of Zach Tyler Eisen, Mae Whitman, Jack De Sena, Dante Basco, Michaela Jill Murphy, Grey DeLisle, Mako, and Greg Baldwin as Aang, Katara, Sokka, Zuko, Toph, Azula, Iroh (Seasons 1-2), and Iroh (Season 3), respectively.
Avatar: The Last Airbender follows the story of Aang, a young boy who is the latest reincarnation of a spiritual being known as the Avatar, on his journey to save the world alongside his friends Katara, Sokka, and later Toph. As the Avatar, Aang is the only person who can control all of the four elements in a spiritual practice known as bending. It is his destiny to use his abilities to restore peace and balance to the world as the Fire Nation aims to conquer it and destroy the Avatar.
From 2004-2005, the animation industry introduced us to popular animated shows such as Nickelodeon Animation’s The Backyardigans, Astley Baker Davies’ Peppa Pig, Underdog Productions and Fuzzy Door Productions’ American Dad!, Cartoon Network Studios’ Ben 10, Curious Pictures’ Little Einsteins, and several more. During that same timeframe, the industry also produced beloved animated feature films including Pixar’s The Incredibles and Castle Rock Entertainment’s The Polar Express, as well as DreamWorks Animation’s Shark Tale and Shrek 2.
In 2005 there were several notable world events, both positive and negative. Hurricane Katrina wreaked havoc on much of the southern United States. In February of 2005, former PayPal employees Chad Hurley, Steve Chen, and Jawed Karim launched YouTube before selling to Google a year later. U.S. President George W. Bush started the second term of his Presidency. Pope John Paul II passed away and was succeeded by Pope Benedict XVI. Prince Charles, now King Charles III, and Princess Camilla, now Queen Consort, of the United Kingdom got married.
This context is crucial to understanding the themes present in Avatar: The Last Airbender. The world was at a technological and social turning point. Animation was blossoming with studios such as Pixar and DreamWorks leading the charge. Animation found an audience with young children and Avatar was able to introduce mature themes to younger audiences through its animation. Avatar tells stories of grief, vengeance, betrayal, and hope. It addresses real-world issues including immigrant rights, discrimination, sexism, abuse, and more, in a way that younger viewers can connect to and empathize with. Avatar: The Last Airbender is not just an animation, but a masterfully crafted experience of learning and growth for the audience, as well as the characters. This unique method of storytelling solidifies Avatar as one of the most distinguished animations of the 21st century.
The animation of Avatar has a unique style that combines traditional western anime with American cartoon practices. It primarily bases its visuals on Chinese culture, however it also reflects East Asian, Indian, Inuit, and Sireniki influences. Avatar was created primarily with traditional animation practices, however some computer generated 2D imagery was incorporated as well. To appeal to the audience’s younger age and by extension, shorter attention span, the show consistently presents its visuals in a way that keeps the audience engaged. Characters feature sharp cel-shading that contrasts with the more detailed backgrounds. The environments are unique in the best possible way and the world of Avatar: The Last Airbender is simply stunning. Every episode utilizes color to set the mood. Intense scenes are full of bright reds and harsh lighting. Alternatively, scenes that reflect peace, sadness, or hopelessness feature dark blues and a limited palette.
The animation is always making the audience feel something. This feeling connects the audience to the characters and the stories that the writers are telling. A scene that demonstrates this is in the first season when Aang discovers the Fire Nation attacked his home. This scene could have come across as brutal and disturbing for young viewers, but the animators applied visual techniques that instead teach the viewer alongside Aang. Through lighting, staging, and character expressions, we as the audience learn to accept the grief and loss that Aang is feeling and focus on the new family that Aang has and his representation of hope for the future as the Avatar.
The show incorporates all twelve of the Principles of Animation in one way or another, but a couple of them stand out in particular. Appeal is crucial for Avatar‘s success. Every character is visually unique. We get to see characters change outfits and hairstyles. Characters from different regions of the world have distinct visual differences. Hair and clothing is visually appealing and reflects the mood of the characters. Exaggeration is another principle that contributed to the show’s success. Aang’s facial expressions are eye-catching and push the boundaries of anatomic realism. Aang, as well as the other characters, will have body parts grow or shrink to express emotion.
Avatar‘s animation is what makes the audience stay engaged throughout the series. It is hard not to call Avatar: The Last Airbender a masterpiece in this sense. Every one of the main characters goes through their own character arc that lasts the entire series. The worldbuilding is on par with some of the greatest fantasy worlds in pop-culture. Each episode teaches a unique moral that the viewer can learn from. None of this would have the impact that it does if not for the stunning and captivating animation.
While the animation is what brings Avatar to the next level, the voice acting is also crucial to the emotional impact of the show’s storytelling. Mae Whitman is an American actress who voices Katars. Whitman went on to voice Tinker Bell in Disney’s 2008 film of the same name, as well as its sequels and spinoffs. She also played Mary Elizabeth in The Perks of Being a Wallflower and Bianca in The Duff. Makoto Iwamatsu, better known simply as Mako, was a beloved Japanese voice actor and production designer, and was the voice of Uncle Iroh in seasons one and two. While Mako had a successful career that included a Tony nomination for best actor in a musical for his role in Stephen Sondheim’s Pacific Overtures, he unfortunately passed away in July of 2006 at age 72. Greg Baldwin took over as the voice of Uncle Iroh for season three.
Nickelodeon Animation Studio has produced several other critically acclaimed animations including SpongeBob SquarePants, The Fairly OddParents, The Penguins of Madagascar, The Legend of Korra, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and many more.
Avatar‘s unique visual style and character design are just a couple of the endless reasons why critics and general audiences consider it to be one of, if not the, best animation ever created. The world, the characters, and the visuals captivate the audience in a way that another medium cannot replicate. Avatar: The Last Airbender is truly a masterclass in animated storytelling.
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