From a charismatic pro-bender to an invaluable member
of Team Avatar, Bolin helped Korra and his friends
save the world time and time again.
Now let's deep dive into his journey,
and explore how Bolin's skills evolved
to make him one of the most powerful
and unique earthbenders ever.
First, let's go back to his humble beginnings
in Republic City.
Bolin was born to an Earth Kingdom father
and a Fire Nation mother
two years after his brother Mako.
As the boys grew, they discovered they inherited
separate bending abilities.
While bending doesn't always pass from parent to child,
Mako was a firebender,
likely taking after his mother's lineage,
and Bolin turned out to be an earthbender,
probably inheriting from his father's side.
Sadly, after an attack from a mugger,
Bolin and Mako's parents were killed,
leaving the two brothers orphaned
on the streets of Republic City.
Taking on a parental role, Mako helped Bolin to survive
by accepting work with local gangs
and running small time scams to feed themselves.
Hey! Come back here! [sighing]
Don't worry, I'll catch him!
Give it back, you dirty thief!
Hey, I stole that fair and square!
The trick that helped them pull off their schemes
was often Bolin's growing earthbending skills
pitted against Mako's firebending.
Mm, bread taste so much better than what we ate yesterday. Mm.
We didn't eat yesterday.
After learning a pet store was planning to use
arguably the cutest fire ferret ever
as a snake's dinner, Bolin had to intervene.
That night Bolin used a little covert earthbending
to break in and free the fire ferret,
but unfortunately, he didn't take into account
how big the snake would be.
Help. [gasping]
Mako, however, was close by
to save his brother, and after some convincing,
their family gained a tiny new member,
Pabu the fire ferret got his name.
Soon, the brothers also found themselves in a scrape
at the pro-bending arena
when they were cornered by three full grown gangsters.
The boys defended themselves by combining
each of their abilities to create fiery earth blasts.
We even get to see Bolin unlock the skill
to create defensive earth shields,
just before his favorite pro-bender, Toza,
decided to step in and turn the fight
in their favor.
When the dust settled, Toza gave back his bribe
and impressed by Mako and Bolin's talent,
he offered them a home in the arena
to train to become pro-benders.
For the first time since losing their parents,
Mako and Bolin had a roof over their heads
and their careers as pro-benders had begun.
Over the next few years, the two brothers
formed a pro-bending team called the Fire Ferrets,
competing in Republic City's official pro-bending league.
When Bolin was 16, he met Avatar Korra
and immediately befriended her, showing the newbie
the ropes of pro-bending and in particular,
his atypical light on his feet, earthbending technique.
In a real match, you'd be a sitting turtle duck.
Not so upright and flatfooted.
Stay light on your toes, right up until the moment
when you need to dig in and strike, then pop pop.
Okay, let me try it again.
After Korra joined the Fire Ferrets
the team pulled out a win in their first match
and seemed to have a real chance in the tournament.
Bolin, in an effort to pay their expensive entrance fee,
naively took a job with his old gang.
Turning out to be a ruse
to provide the Equalists' Amon prisoners,
the young earthbender nearly had his bending removed.
Fortunately, Korra and Mako showed up just in time,
causing a distraction to save Bolin.
His pro-bending training
had certainly made Bolin a better fighter,
but the Equalists electrified weapons
were too much for him to defend against.
[groaning]
Thankfully, Korra and Naga were close by
to help Bolin and Mako escape.
While the threat of the Equalist revolution
loomed in the background,
Bolin continued to prove himself in the pro-bending arena.
He may not have been the leader his brother Mako was,
but Bolin nevertheless showed off his high durability,
being able to take a crippling hit
to the shoulder and keep on playing.
[ring announcer] And Bolin takes a zinger
to the shoulder. Looks like it's a clean hit.
Ow!
Bolin! [groaning]
[ring announcer] Mako in the drink
and out of the match.
And Bolin keeps playing with one good arm.
I gotta hand it to him, this kid's got grit.
In addition to his bending skills,
Bolin's physical strength alone is impressive.
In spite of having only a few years under his belt,
Bolin is still able to grapple
with the most experienced pro-benders and come out on top.
[ring announcer] Bolin strikes from mid-air
knocking Chang to the edge of the circle.
Another strike from Bolin and Chang's in the drink!
The Future Industries Fire Ferrets
win their quarterfinal match!
Later, when the Equalists attacked the pro-bending arena,
Team Avatar was taken completely by surprise.
If not for Bolin's uncanny ability
to communicate with Pabu,
he and his friends might have been goners.
Stop fooling around.
I'm not. I'm trying to save us.
[squeaking]
See? Pabu's not just a one trick poodle pony.
As the Equalist revolution ramped up,
the young earthbenders' challenges
were growing well beyond the pro-bending playbook.
Together with Korra, Asami and Mako,
Bolin helped Team Avatar through high speed chases,
intense mech battles and prison breaks.
It wasn't long though
before they were air raid bombings
and a full on Equalist assault in Republic City.
The team was then forced to split up
and Bolin accompanied General Iroh and Asami
to stop a fleet of her father's biplanes.
While their initial attempt was cut short with the help
of the polar bear dog Naga, Bolin got free
and demonstrated some incredible earthbending,
destroying the runways before most
of the biplanes could take off
[grunting]
Boldly riding Naga into battle,
Bolin then helped Asami capture her father,
and soon thereafter, Amon and the Equalists were defeated.
With the anti-bending revolution over in Republic City,
Bolin became the captain of the Fire Ferrets
after Mako and Korra left the team.
[groaning]
[ring announcer] Ooh, the Fire Ferrets go down
in the water, and right into the record books
for the fastest knockout in pro-bending history.
And the new Ferrets were so bad,
Bolin decided on an early retirement.
Giving him the time to accompany Team Avatar
to the Southern Water Tribe to attend
the Glacier Spirits Festival.
Using his natural charisma, Bolin helped Asami
save her company by striking a deal
with the genius industrialist Varrick.</
In their own quirky way, the two immediately hit it off.
I like you, kid.
You're a real straight shooter, just like me,
- Miss Sato, he's with you? - Um-hmm.
Brought your tiger shark with ya to do business, huh?
Now that's moxie!
Not long after,
Bolin also tried to charm the daughter
of the Northern Water Tribe chief, Eska
but soon found himself in over his head
with her domineering behavior.
While Bolin initially stuck around to fight off
wild spirits with Team Avatar, the rising tensions in the South
and Eska's insistence they get married,
forced him into an elaborate escape
with Varrick.
Bolin's willingness to be a team player also helped him
to slip by the guards, even if they had to use
a contingency plan.
That platypus bear is pooping money!
[screaming]
Back in Republic City,
with the rest of Team Avatar preoccupied
Bolin teamed up with Varrick again.
And was cast to play Nuktuk,
the male lead in a propaganda mover,
which would hopefully sway public opinion
to help the South Pole.
♪ When Unalaq starts trouble He'll punch him in the mouth ♪
♪ He's Nuktuk The hero of the South ♪
[cheering]
With Bolin's undeniable performance
in showmanship on display, Nuktuk was a hit,
and Bolin earned himself fame and fortune.
On the night of a big gala premiere,
Bolin noticed some suspicious activity
and quickly intervened
in the kidnapping of the president.
Transforming into a real life version
of his on screen persona,
Bolin ended up fighting the waterbending kidnappers
in front of a massive cheering crowd.
Unlike what we might think from a typical actor,
Bolin's experience in battle helped him to recognize
an actual threat and stylishly take out every foe.
[grunting]
[ring announcer] This is unbelievable!
Bolin is bending two full stacks of earth disks
at once, which would normally be illegal.
But then again, he's fighting three waterbenders
so all rules are out the window!
While the kidnapping turned out to be part
of Varrick's grand plan,
Bolin soon found himself back in the South Pole,
taking on the Northern Water Tribe military.
Strapped to a plane and showing off
some serious development in his skills,
Bolin bent dozens of bombs at the enemy defenses
with pinpoint accuracy.
I wish Varrick was filming this!
We could call it Nuktuk, Sky Warrior !
Later, as Team Avatar fought Unalaq,
Bolin's growing ability to sway opinions
helped him persuade Eska to join their side.
Honing the skills of pro-bender and mover actor,
Bolin realized being honest was the best move.
Wow, that was the best acting I've ever seen.
You completely fooled her.
Yeah, right, that... that was acting.
Eventually, Unalaq was defeated.
and while it didn't work out with Eska,
Bolin certainly gained some emotional maturity
to help him on his journey.
You will always hold a special place
in the organ that pumps my blood.
I will remember you fondly, my turtle duck.
With the end of the Dark Avatar and Bolin's apartment
in ruins from the destruction, he started to live
on Air Temple Island with Korra and Tenzin.
While there, he learned firsthand
of the emergence of new airbenders
due to the Harmonic Convergence.
Team Avatar then set out to the Earth Kingdom,
and Bolin joined in, displaying his charisma
along with an incredible fake mustache
during an impromptu live show to recruit new airbenders.
Bolin's ability to sway a crowd proved successful again
when the young airbender Kai joined their team.
Hey, hello.
If you're looking for airbenders,
you just found one.
I wanna join you guys.
Get outta town!
When the team journeyed to Ba Sing Se, Bolin and Mako
finally reunited with their extended family,
where they also learned the Earth Queen
was imprisoning airbenders.
Upon discovering their location,
and freeing the airbenders from the Dai Li,
we got to see Bolin's increasing ability
to unlock new techniques under duress.
Once they made it outside, Bolin displayed an earth launch
rivaling the force of an earthbending master
like Toph.
Everybody, hang on!
[screaming]
Team Avatar soon made their way to Zaofu,
the home of the Metal Clan,
where Bolin met his future girlfriend, Opal,
and used the opportunity
to try to learn how to metalbend.
Statistically, only about one
in 100 earthbenders can metalbend.
And unfortunately, no matter how hard he tried,
Bolin couldn't figure it out.
No. Okay, maybe-- Ow!
Trial by fire!
It's the best way to learn metalbending.
[grunting]
[groaning]
Ooh, nice shot, Bolin.
But I thought you were supposed to be practicing metalbending,
not earthbending.
It wasn't long, however, before Bolin witnessed
an even more rare skill at the hands
of the Red Lotus member, Ghazan.
Ghazan possessed the ability
to face change earth into liquid magma,
allowing him to lavabend
and cause immense destruction in battle.
In their early fights,
Bolin could barely defend himself against Ghazan;
however, later on, when under extreme duress again,
things changed when he was stuck between a rock and a hot place.
[grunting]
Bolin!
[screaming]
[grunting]
[Tenzin] Incredible.
Bolin discovered he was a lavabender
and during his final fight with Ghazan,
the two were an even match;
dodging and redirecting every attack
they threw at each other.
[grunting]
[screaming]
[groaning]
Once Ghazan and the Red Lotus members
were defeated, Korra needed intense rehabilitation,
and Bolin drifted from Team Avatar
in the years that followed.
The young earthbender ended up joining Kuvira and her army
as she attempted to unite the Earth Kingdom.
In classic Bolin fashion, he was slow to realize
that Kuvira wanted to become a dictator,
causing tension between Opal and his brother, Mako.
It wasn't long, however, before Kuvira began
to question Bolin's loyalty, and she threatened to send him
to a reeducation camp.
Despite quickly reaffirming his belief in Kuvira,
Bolin found Varrick afterwards, and upon agreeing
that she was crazy, the two made plans
to desert her army.
Varrick ended up devising a scheme
with a spirit vine powered bomb.
Unfortunately, Varrick didn't actually plan
for them to escape the explosion.
So Bolin acted fast and earthbent the two free
by tunneling under the train tracks.
[coughing]
[laughing]
Ha! Yes! Ya did it, Bolin! You did the thing!
Bolin and Varrick then began their journey
to Republic City to warn the world about Kuvira.
But they soon found themselves caught up with a band
of Earth Empire prisoners.
While Bolin's attacks were relentless,
it wasn't until Varrick created
a makeshift device to disable the mecha suits
that the fight turned in their favor.
Proving to be a selfless hero, we also got to see Bolin unleash
his most devastating wave of lava yet
as he saved the pinned down earth prisoners.
Thanks. You didn't have to come back.
Yeah, I kinda did. Let's go.
Once they return to Republic City,
Bolin warned the world leaders about Kuvira's plans
and reconciled with Opal agreeing to join
on a secret mission to save her family.
When Bolin met his girlfriend's legendary grandmother, Toph,
he was star struck.
He still managed to impress his metalbending hero; however,
when they broke her family out of Kuvira's prison.
I gotcha! [groaning]
When Kuvira finally arrived
in her skyscraper sized mecha suit,
Team Avatar was shocked to witness
the United Forces Battleships destroyed in seconds.
And soon thereafter, Kuvira aimed her sites
directly at the factory they were all hiding in.
Miraculously, everyone survived, and Bolin showed off how far
his earthbending has come as he held up a massive wall
of concrete long enough for his friends
to get to safety.
[grunting]
Go ahead, take your time. Just bending a giant wall.
Man, we gotta lot of people here.
Is that everybody?
[grunting]
As Team Avatar did everything in their power
to take the giant mecha down,
we got to see more of Bolin's growth
as he melted almost a half city block of lava.
And later with combined earthbending
of Lin and Suyin, the trio approached
Avatar levels of strength as they chucked
an entire building at Kuvira.
[grunting]
[gasping]
After Hiroshi Sato's sacrifice, Team Avatar was finally able
to get inside Kuvira's mecha suit,
and Bolin and Mako went straight to the power core to disable it.
As the mecha suit had no earth material
that Bolin could bend, we got to see him unlock
another aspect of his bending
as he brings along a few rocks and face changes them
into spinning discs of lava.
I'm ready!
Be with you in one second! Kinda busy!
When their attempts to shut down the mecha suit failed,
Mako sacrificed himself by electrocuting the power core,
and although Bolin broke his promise to leave,
he was able to save his brother just in time.
Soon after Kuvira was defeated
and as Team Avatar celebrated their victory,
Bolin showed off his charisma,
once again, acting as the officiant
in Varrick and Zhu Li's wedding.
You may now... do the thing.
Oh.
With the end of Kuvira's invasion,
Bolin took on another career change
and decided to partner up with Mako as a detective
on the Republic City Police Force.
The duo then joined up with Korra and Asami
when a gangster named Tokuga was attacking the spirit portal.
Mako was still injured from his attack
on Kuvira's mecha suit,
but Bolin quickly stepped into battle
and using his now refined lavabending,
easily disarmed the gangster.
While Tokuga got away, he had a brief encounter
with a spirit that mutated his body
and left him to swear vengeance upon Team Avatar.
Later, after some police investigating
and barely surviving an explosive trap,
Bolin and Mako learned that Asami had been kidnapped
by Tokuga's gang.
When they confronted Tokuga with Korra,
they finally saw the monster he had become
and learned of his plan to release poison gas
in an airship over Republic City.
Korra successfully stopped Tokuga
and helped Asami pilot the airship
into the Spirit World
where Bolin and Mako followed to catch the gangster.
Asami ended up safe and sound, but Tokuga managed to escape
into the Spirit World, and we can only guess
what evil schemes he might still be planning.
As the city celebrated the election of Zhu Li
as the new president, Mako marveled
at his brother's improvement as a cop.
But Bolin let him know that while he had fun,
he was quitting the police force.
Following Zhu Li being elected, Bolin found himself
in another career becoming her personal assistant.
It wasn't long after; however, the new president discovered
there was a rogue faction of the Earth Empire,
and Zhu Li agreed to let Bolin rejoin Team Avatar
to take on the threat.
In an attempt to diffuse the situation peacefully,
Kuvira was released from prison and brought on the journey
to try to talk down the rogue leader, Guan,
As might be expected, Kuvira immediately went too far
and had to be restrained.
This didn't do them any favors though,
when Korra left to find Toph and Guan's forces ambushed Bolin
and the rest of Team Avatar.
With no earth to bend, we got to see Bolin display
some of his scrappy fighting ability,
turning a chair into an improvised weapon.
After losing the fight, the group was then taken
to a reeducation camp,
where they were collectively brainwashed
with advanced tech into joining Guan's army.
As the only metalbender, Kuvira was able to escape,
and upon returning to Korra, they soon found themselves
battling the mind warped versions
of Bolin, Mako and Asami.
Not wanting to seriously injure her friends,
Korra walked away from the fight.
But later that night, a determined
and seemingly changed Kuvira stole a biplane
and launched a one woman mission to save her former enemies.
After tricking her way inside the enemy base,
Kuvira destroyed the brainwashing machines
and Korra arrived shortly
to help fight off Bolin and Mako.
Proving there was good in her,
Kuvira stopped herself from killing Guan
and after she forced him to surrender,
allowed herself to be arrested once more.
When the fight was over, Bolin and his friends
had their brainwashing reversed.
And for the first time in a good while,
there seemed to be a new age of peace in Republic City.
Following this latest adventure,
Bolin also showed a little more maturity
deciding to stick with his job
as personal assistant to the president...
at least until he's bored again.
As far as what the future holds for Bolin and the new abilities
he's sure to develop along the way,
that's all we know for now.
From a scrappy street kid to a charismatic showman
and arguably one of the most unique earthbenders
of all time.
Which of Bolin's skills do you think is the strongest?
Comment below and keep watching for more
of your favorite Avatar moments.