What if Azula lost her powers?
What if Azula became the Dark Avatar?
What if Azula ended the Avatar Cycle entirely?
What is this about?
Let's check out the alternate timelines
that could have happened if Azula was never defeated
in this Agni Kai.
Timeline number one: What if Azula defeated Zuko?
You want to be Fire Lord? Fine. Let's settle this.
It quickly set the scene.
Sozin's Comet was amplifying their firebending.
And Katara was on the sideline, ready to help Zuko, if needed.
But what if she wasn't there?
What if Katara did not join Zuko?
Just you and me, brother.
That means that Azula wouldn't have Katara
to shoot lightning at,
which means Zuko might not have broken
his concentration.
Which means that Zuko could just redirect
the lightning at Azula. Right?
That was surprisingly easy.
Well, Azula would probably still trick Zuko
one way or another.
Azula always lies.
Perhaps she'd take a stab at Zuko's heartstrings
just long enough to catch him off guard.
We are brother and sister.
Then if in the moment Zuko decides not to redirect
the volt at his sister, it'd give Azula the opening
for a knockout punch.
I'm about to celebrate becoming an only child!
Could've been very similar to Avatar Aang
who didn't have the heart to fry Ozai.
Or perhaps Zuko just couldn't redirect
lightning properly.
After all, he's only done it once before,
and Ozai wasn't strengthened by Sozin's Comet at that time.
Without the pressure to save Katara's life,
it's very possible that Zuko's emotions
would be his own downfall.
Goodbye, Zuko.
And that Zuko's life could end in this Agni Kai.
Azula winds of being crowned the undisputed Fire Lord.
Fire Lord Azula... it does seem appropriate.
She wouldn't have enough firepower
to go after Avatar Aang,
not after he just stripped her father of his powers.
So she'd play it smart, like she always does.
We are the Avatar's humble servants.
Reformed Azula, diplomatic Azula,
whatever masks she put on, figuratively or literally,
she'd tread cautiously with Avatar Aang.
And Aang would probably give Azula a chance.
Everyone, even the Fire Lord in the Fire Nation,
have to be treated like they're worth giving a chance.
Still, though, Azula would have her core beliefs like;
a) firebenders were better than everybody else,
and b) she's better than any other firebender.
True power, the divine right to rule
is something you're born with.
It'd only be a matter of time
until those beliefs caused an uproar.
In the true timeline, Aang eventually realized
the Four Nations don't need to be separate to be balanced.
That eventually led to the formation
of Republic City. And granted, part of that
was thanks to Fire Lord Zuko.
But let's assume that Aang
would come to that conclusion one way or another.
Now take that intent to our hypothetical timeline.
Aang is trying to break down the barriers between nations
and build a stronger global community.
What would Azula do?
Fire Lord Azula would not be about it.
No way Azula would let Aang chase the face of her domain.
But how would she stop the Avatar?
With political maneuvers? Military threats?
Well, the Fire Nation military
would still be recovering after Sozin's Comet.
And the whole world is backing the Avatar.
But Azula has pushed Aang to his limits in the past.
Do you really want to fight me?
So maybe in a fit of overconfidence,
she'd challenge him to fight
for his unified future one on one.
The Avatar's mine!
Who would win?
Well, with Avatar Aang's energybending skills,
our money's on Aang taking away Azula's powers,
just like he did with Ozai.
[crying]
And all of that would lead to Azula
locked up and powerless, just like her father.
What did you do to me?
We've seen her locked up in the true timeline.
In our hypothetical situation, Zuko would no longer be around.
And would not be the result of her eventual escape.
So, time would pass, lots of time.
We're talking age of Korra type of time, okay?
She would wait it out, hating every second of it.
And waiting for that perfect moment to seek revenge.
I will not hesitate to bring you down.
As a VIP prisoner without powers,
she probably wind up
in a facility within Republic City,
the very place she fought to avoid.
From there, two major possibilities
might occur.
In possibility one, she seizes her big opportunity
during Amon's equalist uprising.
The only thing bending
has brought to the world is suffering.
This is a world
where jailbreaks aren't uncommon.
Couldn't you imagine the equalists
breaking Azula out of jail
to plot the demise of Avatar Korra?
Azula could easily be a spokesperson
for Amon's rallies.
Anyone who harbors these traitors
- will face the wrath of... - the revelation.
She, in this timeline, will have known life
with and without bending. And to serve her own goals,
she could easily spin a tale of a non-bender superiority.
Further down the line, if Amon were to escape,
as he did in reality,
then an abandoned, incriminated Azula
with decades of hate for the Avatar,
would probably find herself in a battle against Korra.
You want to fight the Avatar, then let's finish this.
And spoiler alert, we predicted a few possibilities
where Azula might battle Avatar Korra one on one.
But in this hypothetical, when Azula's been in jail
for decades and she's an old woman
who can no longer firebend,
even if Korra could only airbend,
she'd likely push this old woman to her breaking point.
It wouldn't end well for Azula.
The former Fire Lord might meet a grim ending
by the hands of Avatar Korra.
And decades after her predecessor, Avatar Aang
took away Azula's powers,
Korra might very well take away Azula's life.
She's gone.
Or Azula would just spend
the rest of her life in maximum security prison.
Either or. What if she waited for a different crisis?
Korra did face several horrendous challengers,
and one of the most powerful was Unalaq.
Let's open this portal and lead your father
and the entire Southern Water Tribe
in the right direction.
Keep in mind, this man is another manipulator.
Unalaq's not above keeping a secret
and playing nice with the Avatar despite his nefarious plans.
It's terrible when you can't trust the people
who are closest to you.
It feels like Unalaq and Azula would get along fabulously.
So let's just say that Unalaq is responsible
for freeing Azula.
You want to go free?
What is this about?
With his political influence,
perhaps he convinces Republic City
that Azula's harmless and has suffered enough.
So she's set free.
Then secretly Unalaq uses Azula to learn about the Avatar.
I have great plans for you.
What insights about Avatar Aang could help Unalaq
become the Dark Avatar?
Well, joke's on you Unalaq,
because once Azula gets a whiff of power,
a faint hope of getting her firebending back,
she'd be like an eel hound, stopping at nothing
to take Unalaq's place as the Dark Avatar.
And perhaps it'd be as easy
as running in between Unalaq and Vaatu in this one moment.
[groaning]
[laughing]
Thus presenting Avatar Azula.
Quite possibly the most terrifying outcome.
What would happen with the Azula as the Dark Avatar?
Oh, it sounds like the firebending's back on.
Her firebending would return,
so she'd probably make this a quick and easy task;
eliminating Raava with a signature bolt
of electricity... instead of water whips.
And she may still seek out 10,000 years of darkness,
especially if it involves destroying Republic City,
the symbol of her downfall.
Oh, and this moment, yeah,
this would definitely still happen.
Azula wouldn't hesitate
to destroy the Avatar Aang statue.
Would she win against Spirit Korra?
Consider the return of Azula's lightningbending,
one massive bolt to the water surrounding Korra could result
in a painful, powerful, shocking ending.
I'm sorry it has to end this way.
In this timeline, if Azula were to manipulate
her way into becoming the Dark Avatar, Azula wins
and the world suffers 10,000 years of darkness
at the hands of Avatar Azula.
Now, it's over.
But that'd be crazy, right?
Of course, all that depends on Zuko facing Azula alone.
Let's reset to the original Agni Kai.
In this next timeline, we're talking about
what might happen if Azula beat Katara.
There you are, filthy peasant!
I mean, it already came down to a photo finish.
Just look at how closely Azula
was to striking Katara with a knockout blow.
If the water Katara drew from was actually too shallow
then that could've been the end of Sokka's only sister
and Avatar Aang's future wife.
Goodbye.
Avatar Aang would go on a warpath.
Remember what happened when Aang found out
Appa was stolen?
Imagine how angry he'd be about Katara.
Just get outta here! Run!
So let's say that Avatar Aang begins hunting for Azula.
Azula has no choice but to abandon the throne
to go on the run.
She wouldn't want to end up like Ozai.
A non-bender can't hold the thrown, right?
Then it's time to leave.
While on the run, Azula could have all sorts
of schemes. For example, Zuko probably would've been healed
by some northern waterbender allies.
I'd really rather our family physician
look after Little Zuzu, if you don't mind!
And then he take over the abandoned throne,
which would also infuriate Azula seeing her brother in that seat.
So Azula might still kidnap some children in a plot
to undermine Fire Lord Zuko.
Or she might just stir up trouble
via the underground cult, the new Ozai Society.
Either way, Avatar Aang
would no doubt find her eventually,
which would lead to Avatar Aang versus Azula.
You and your forefathers have devastated
the balance of this world.
And since her father,
the Phoenix King couldn't even beat Aang
with some comet fueled firebending,
a regular non-comet fueled Azula
probably wouldn't succeed against the Avatar.
[crying]
This feels like another scenario
where Azula winds up powerless and in jail.
Sounds like the last time, right? Azula powerless in jail.
But the difference here is since Azula never, like
really defeated Zuko, you know, never finished the job,
then Zuko would wind up as the Fire Lord again.
All hail Fire Lord Zuko!
Which means that sooner or later, Zuko would come to Azula
asking for information about Ursa.
Where is my mother?
Prince Zuko would still want to learn more
about his mother's disappearance.
And Azula might still give him a lead.
After killing Katara,
the princess probably wouldn't be invited
onto the trail.
So let's say she takes advantage of Zuko's absence,
escapes and then follows his trail to Ursa, just like
she followed Appa's trail long before.
You can run but I'll catch you!
All this for the sake of her own agenda,
one that she had in the true timeline.
And that agenda is to... kill Ursa.
I think it's time for a family reunion.
We saw this attempt from a version of Azula
who had powers. Now without, Azula wouldn't just dive into it
like she does here.
No, she would have to be more cunning than that.
How would Azula try to kill her mother without bending?
If I want to catch my prey, I must be agile.
We know that Azula respected Ozai most of all.
And we know that Ozai had Ursa kill his father,
Azulon using poison.
So what if Azula took out Ursa using the same technique?
With the Azula's stealthiness and a surprise advantage,
it'd only be a matter of time
until Azula used poison to commit matricide.
Now that would be full circle, a deeply tragic circle.
My own mother thought I was a monster.
She was right, of course, but it still hurt.
And with his mother dead and Azula who might end up
standing there gloating as she does,
we think Fire Lord Zuko would take a deadly strike
at his sister ending the ruthless killer.
Family are the only ones you can really trust.
But there's got to be a more positive twist, right?
We discussed if Azula beat Zuko or Azula beat Katara
but what if she didn't even fight?
Instead, what if Azula resigned peacefully?
I'm done. I know when I'm beaten.
What if Azula recognized the odds against her
and acknowledged her troubled mental state
as a result of taking the throne perhaps a bit prematurely
and then she decides to pass the throne on to Zuko
to buy herself time?
You've got me. A princess surrenders with honor.
Azula would still want to be close to the throne.
She'd work to influence and manipulate Fire Lord Zuko.
She'd push him away from the construction
of Republic City.
I think you should take their precious hope
and the rest of their land and burn it all to the ground.
Or convince him to favor traditional Fire Nation values.
But all the while, she'd be terrified
of Ozai's unfortunate fate.
She'd be terrified of losing her bending.
So she wait until the passing of Avatar Aang
to make any real moves.
We have been presented
with an extraordinary opportunity.
Avatar Aang passes and Azula, for all she's concerned about,
is free to make bigger, drastic schemes.
Those moves could involve the Red Lotus.
Red Lotus?
After all, she would've had time to investigate
The Order of the White Lotus, especially since
it was her own uncle's charge that rescued Ba Sing Se,
a city she worked so hard to take control of.
Over the years, we imagine that Azula would align herself
with Zaheer. With her closeness to the throne,
she becomes an invaluable member
of the Red Lotus, much more than Aiwei,
another high level consultant whose usefulness ran short.
[grunting]
[screaming]
Let's take a big jump in to this moment
where the Red Lotus was planning to end
the Avatar Cycle entirely. Korra's been fed the poison,
and they're just waiting for her to enter the Avatar State.
Yes. When we dispatch you in the Avatar State,
the cycle will end.
Azula would probably be right in the center of it all.
I mean, decades earlier, she nearly killed an Avatar
in a very similar environment.
So, I mean, this is like deja vu for her.
But how would Azula approach a weak, poisoned Avatar Korra,
who was fighting against her own powers?
A general burst of lightning
could be used to push Avatar Korra
into the Avatar State.
I'll show you lightning!
But that electricity would probably channel
into the chains like a grounded lightning rod.
That could also heat up the metal of those chains,
giving Korra the chance to break free.
Then in offense, who's to say Azula
wouldn't meet the same fate as...
[screaming]
Or with Korra fighting in and out of the Avatar State,
perhaps it would just require one well timed lightning bolt
to the spine of Avatar Korra to finish it all.
This fight is over.
If she was in the Avatar State, however briefly,
then that would be the end of the Avatar Cycle... forever.
We defeated you for all time!
You will never rise from the ashes
of your shame and humiliation!
So Azula's master plan, the strike against the Avatar
that she attempted decades earlier
would finally hit its target.
Now that sounds like
a fascinating and brilliant plan.
But there's so many variables.
Azula is cunning, charismatic, aggressive, smart.
There could be unimaginable outcomes
had she never been defeated in that Agni Kai.
So tell us what you think might happen.
Comment below. Be sure to like and subscribe
and keep watching for all things Avatar.
What an exquisite performance.
I can't wait to see
how you'll top yourself tomorrow.