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Animated Television’s Covert Insurgence
By Nikita Amisola
Fifteen years following its initial release, Avatar: The Last Airbender continues to engulf the millennium’s mainstream with its recent resurgence. The show’s overnight revivification and consequent reintroduction to the orthodox can be attributed in part to the inherently perfect, or at the least, borderline perfect formula utilized by those spearheading the program—a formula complete with inoffensive but effective humor, riveting storylines, complex and 360-degree character arcs, and the careful yet tastefully galvanizing induction into socio-political realities. The ardent fan base, embodied by an onslaught of both former and novice devotees, further abet the success of the animated show’s reemergence after over 12 years since the finale first aired.
The most obvious success factor is the writing: an enjoyable show gambling among dramatic, fulfilling, suspenseful, or comedic plots compacted into digestible 20-minute or so episodes. But, it has a more subtle narrative, neatly tying all other elements (no pun intended) of the show together: war and the axioms thereof, a motif reiterated and recapitulated by the introductory theme. It tackles inequality, xenophobia, classicism, feminism, and trauma. The entire show is, in and of itself, a revolution against the system. The playful dialogue is the flesh hiding the meat into which the now-grown audiences have fully sunk their teeth.
However, you don’t have to possess ripened maturity to grasp the essence of the show. A child of seven or eight years could easily understand that the delineation between good and evil is crystalline, though not necessarily permanent. It explains why people within that intended age range rooted back then for the “good guys” and detested the “bad guys”—an opinion they most likely bore throughout the cusp of and inauguration into adulthood. Prepubescent children began their exposure to materials of the “real world”—pertaining to themes of death, genocide, heartbreak, and grief—through avenues like Avatar.
The power this show grants its audience is an unrestrained extension of trust: bestowing upon the youth the belief that they are capable of changing the world, all while preserving their juvenility with interjectory witticisms. Characters such as Toph—a blind yet powerful earthbender who constantly cracks jokes alluding to her blindness—have a strong command of humor and sarcasm. The series gives its viewers a set of unfledged protagonists—all of whom undergo the passions, pitfalls, and sacrifices entailed by a revolution.
With the advent of a deluge of issues, ranging from political to social, finding the youth at the frontlines should not come as a surprise. They have been deeply inculcated with the recognition of their sinew and capacities since late childhood, aptly conveyed by shows such as Avatar: The Last Airbender. It transcends the decade not only because of the sprawl of its rewarding narrative but also because it remains relevant amid these dark periods of terror, intimidation, and injustice. It proves that insurrection is the language of the youth. This generation is no stranger to revolution—they watch revolution unfurl while eating their mid-afternoon snacks.
