You asked and then we went straight
to the source and the creators of the show
to separate fact from fan fiction.
Get ready for the answers
to ten of your burning Avatar fan questions.
First up, question one:
Some fans have speculated that anyone,
including non-benders, can do it,
as the process is described by Iroh as simply moving
chi through the body.
Can you feel your own chi flowing in, down, up and out?
I think so.
Come on, you've got to feel the flow.
The voice of Korra and host
of the Braving the Elements podcast,
Janet Varney asked the creators directly.
Non firebenders who might attempt
lightning redirection will be n for quite a literal shock
when they find out it's impossible
for them to perform this technique.
Lightning is very dangerous.
So, yes, lightning redirection is an exclusive ability.
Question two:
Similar to how an earthbender focuses
on the impurities within metal in order to bend it,
or how a waterbender can manipulate
a human body by bending the blood within,
these advanced techniques are based on two main factors.
One's own bending power and the content
of bendable material available.
For example, the pure platinum exterior
of Kuvira's giant Mecha was impossible to bend,
even for a master like Lin Beifong.
The joints are platinum, too. We can't metalbend any of it.
We've already seen sand, the base material used
to make glass being bent, as well as the bending
of the glass like mineral Jennamite and the crystals
in the catacombs below Ba Sing Se.
So, theoretically, if an earth bender is
strong enough, and the glass contains
enough earth minerals, yes, it could be bent.
But we'll have to stay tuned to future content
to see more of this concept unfold.
Question three:
The king is having a party at the palace tonight
for his pet bear.
You mean platypus bear?
No, it just says "Bear".
Certainly, you mean his pet skunk bear.
Or his armadillo bear.
Gopher bear?
Just "Bear".
This place is weird.
For starters, there are a few other non-hybrid animals
that make small appearances, such as the herbalist cat
in the Book one episode: The Blue Spirit.
Now it's just me and Miyuki.
Now, as far as Bosco,
the origin of the species remains
a mystery in the world of Avatar.
But we do know he is extremely rare.
How he came to exist in the show; however,
has a lot more to do with behind the scenes fun.
After the first season, the writers had made
so many hybrid animal jokes, they thought it would be funny
for a non-hybrid animal to make an appearance.
Not to be confused with Zuko's voice actor Dante Basco.
That's rough, buddy.
Bosco, with an 'O' was named after the dog
of staff member Lisa Yang.
Lisa's influence on the show didn't stop there,
as the character of June was based on her visually
and Mai was based on her personality.
Just take the bear.
Bosco!
Question four:
According to the creator's on Braving the Elements,
the average age for a child to show signs of bending is
around seven or eight. Nations don't really prepare
for this relatively common occurrence,
as bending could emerge both earlier or later.
She's a true prodigy.
Though, by puberty, almost all children
with bending abilities will know.
Fortunately, parents or teaches who are benders are able
to test their children with bending forms and moves.
When it comes to examples, like Aang and Korra,
well being the Avatar is a special case,
as their future mastery of the elements is certain
to show early signs.
I'm the Avatar! You gotta deal with it!
Question five:
Simply put, Azula is extremely powerful,
so her flames burn much hotter than typical.
Together, you and I will be the strongest couple
in the entire world. We will dominate the earth!
Scientifically, blue fire is measured
in temperatures around twice that of a normal flame,
so it's probably best to just steer clear
of this dangerous firebender.
[beeping]
Uh, I gotta go.
Question six:
You're not the only one who draws power from the moon.
According to the creator's on Braving the Elements,
the goal was to always avoid typical magic power tropes
and to keep bending rooted in science.
In fact, they wrote a whole chapter
dedicated to the effects of different natural phenomena
on bending into the series Bible.
So the answer is yes.
The creators cite the example in the storm
when we see Aang and Appa knocked around by powerful wins
after running away from the air temple.
[thundering, screaming]
If this was years later,
a stronger Aang could likely harness
the momentum of a hurricane, especially in the Avatar State.
Likewise, master earthbenders should be able to use the enery
from a real earthquake or landslide.
But we'll just have to stay tuned to find out
how these ideas could unfold in the future.
Question seven:
The green crystals from the catacombs
beneath the city create a natural light source.
It just so happened to be uniqe to the region of Ba Sing Se.
Similar to the real world Silk Road
that linked China to the West,
Ba Sing Se gained massive wealh
and influence through their exports
of this beautiful and very desired crystal.
You might have noticed in the show,
they actually emit a fire like green glow
and act like light bulbs you don't need to plug in.
You can't always see the light at the end of the tunnel,
but if you just keep moving...
[rumbling]
you will come to a better place.
Question eight:
[gasping]
Now we've also seen this technique used
multiple times in the World of Avatar.
And while the creators want the principles of bending
to be based in science, it is still a fantasy world.
So here's their nonscientific quote
of what they think is happenin.
Aang's move here is similar to a fish extracting oxygen
out of water molecules.
He uses his airbending and waterbending
in the Avatar State to then condense a large amount
of breathable air around him and his friends.
The fiction isn't that far off from reality,
as scientists have discovered various animals,
including a scuba diving lizard that can survive underwater
by forming breathable air bubbles.
Question nine:
For this answer, we have to again turn
to our favorite creators. Brian and Mike have confirmed
that Aang and Appa are not actually frozen.
Their survival, in fact, came from a powerful burst
of Raava's spirit energy that protected the Avatar
and his companion within the iceberg for 100 yeas
without aging them a day.
He's alive. We have to help.
Katara, get back here!
We don't know what that thing is.
When Katara breaks the iceberg,
the Raava energy escapes shooting into the sky creating
that huge beam of light that Zuko sees.
Helmsman, head a course for the light.
You might also notice that Aang and Appa don't thaw out
on the scene. They just land in the bottom
of the iceberg, completely dry and back
to their normal eating, sleeping and aging selves.
I need to ask you something.
What?
Please... come closer.
What is it?
Will you go penguin sledding with me?
Uh, sure.
Question ten:
There always seems
to be a revolutionary new skill presented
to each new Avatar generation like energy bending,
spirit bending or metalbending.
Try to focus on the fine pieces of earth within the metal.
I can't believe it. I'm metalbending.
With the prequel setting of the Rise of Kyoshi novel,
we know that specialized abilities have always existed.
But there was incentive for benders
to keep quiet about them.
Kyoshi herself once traveled with a band of thieves
who kept their abilities to nearly fly by means
of dust stepping, a closely guarded secret.
By the era of Avatar Korra, the rapid spread
of communications technology and the famed exploits
of master benders like Toph caused the knowledge
of more specialized bending to become known worldwide.
Cool. Metalbenders.
Toph's metalbending academy and future role as chief
of Republic City police was likely
the biggest contributor to the rise of metalbending,
as we can well see on display in the city of Zaofu.
That statue honors the first metalbender,
Toph Beifong,
who expanded the possibilities of what benders were capable of.
Here everyone is encouraged to reach his
or her highest potential.
And there you have it,
ten questions asked and answered.
But why stop there? What else are you burning
to know about the World of Avatar?
Leave us a comment with your question below,
so we can refer to the experts and get back to you.