Sunday, January 11, 2015

ATLA/LOK Season and Finale Rankings

It has now been almost a month since the series finale, and I still cannot stop thinking about it.  I am fairly certain Avatar and Korra occupy at least 40% of my brain.

Now that there have been seven seasons in the Avatar universe, here is how I would rank them in terms of overall quality (along with a few notes as to why):

1) ATLA Book 2: Earth
  • Extremely consistent -- "The Swamp" and "Avatar Day" are the only episodes that come to mind that were below average
  • Fantastic character development for Zuko
  • The most re-watchable season, with extremely entertaining episodes like "The Blind Bandit," "Bitter Work," and "The Chase"
  • Introduction of Azula, Toph, Mai, and Ty Lee
  • Fantastic "Empire Strikes Back" season finale
2) ATLA Book 3: Fire
  • Culmination of Zuko's series-long story arc in "Day of Black Sun"
  • Zuko field trip episodes
  • Humanizing the Fire Nation
  • Seriously kickass season/series finale in "Sozin's Comet"
3) LOK Book 3: Change
  • Extremely consistent
  • Compelling villains
  • Return of airbenders
  • Phenomenal action sequences
  • Character development for Lin and Su
  • Culmination of Jinora's mini character arc
4) LOK Book 4: Balance
  • A deeply personal journey about Korra  
  • A fitting series finale
  • Standout episodes, "Korra Alone" and "The Last Stand"
5) LOK Book 1: Air
  • Magical reintroduction into the Avatar universe 
  • Compelling villain in Amon
6) LOK Book 2: Spirits
  • Weak first half of the season, but solid second half
  • "Beginnings" and all of the spirit world episodes
  • Varrick hilarity
7) ATLA Book 1: Water
  • Humor skewed toward younger viewers
  • Standout episodes: "The Storm" and "The Blue Spirit"
And here is how I would rank the season finales in terms of my personal enjoyment:
  1. ATLA Book 3: Fire ("Sozin's Comet")
  2. LOK Book 4: Balance ("Day of the Colossus/The Last Stand")
  3. ATLA Book 2: Earth ("The Guru/Crossroads of Destiny")
  4. ATLA Book 1: Water ("Siege of the North")
  5. LOK Book 2: Spirits ("Darkness Falls/Light in the Dark")
  6. LOK Book 3: Change ("Venom of the Red Lotus")
  7. LOK Book 1: Air ("Endgame")

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