Image: Avatar - The Last Airbender [Netflix]
One of our favorite cartoon series will receive a new adaptation next year. Avatar - The Last Airbender will come to Netflix as a live-action series. Will it turn out better this time?
The cartoon series "Avatar: The Last Airbender" by Nickelodeon has millions of fans worldwide and is considered one of the greatest childhood series for many. And when M. Night Shyamalan's live-action film was released in 2010, all these fans were not at all thrilled. On the contrary, the mere existence of this film is simply ignored by the majority. It is all the more interesting that a new attempt with a live-action adaptation is now being made. This time, Netflix is responsible for the adaptation, so the production is completely detached from the 2010 film. That means we can already breathe a sigh of relief.
When Will The Series Be On Netflix?
Recently, a teaser for the new series was announced on Netflix's official YouTube channels. It already features numerous main characters from the comics and the cartoon (Aang, Katara, Sokka), as well as many other familiar faces (Suki, Azula, etc.). Many fans are most likely excited to see the inspiring Uncle Iroh again as well! Towards the end, even the release date is announced: the series will start on February 22, 2024. It has been in planning since 2018, but now we can slowly count down the weeks! By the way, there will probably be eight episodes in the first season, as reported by the "Avatar News" page.
You can watch the trailer here:
About The Plot Of The Adaptation
From the trailer, we can already draw some conclusions, just like from initial statements from those involved. Based on the characters and locations introduced in the teaser, we can expect the plot from Book 1 - Water: the introduction of Aang and his journey, which initially takes him to the North Pole, where he and Katara want to learn waterbending.
Series creator Albert Kim provides insights into the decision to produce a series. According to him, emotional parts of the story from the original can now get more time. He also gives us a lot of hope for a wise adaptation of the story in a live-action format:
"I didn't want to change things for the sake of change. I didn’t want to modernize the story, or twist it to fit current trends. Aang is not going to be a gritty antihero."
However, one of the actors (Paul Sun-Hyung Lee as Uncle Iroh) shared that the plot of the first season in the series is going to convey a rather dark atmosphere, which was only felt from the second season onwards in the original series.
Which Actors Can We Expect?
In addition to the casting of Uncle Iroh, numerous other actors have already been announced. Aang himself will be played by Gordon Cormier, a young Canadian actor. With Kiawentiio as Katara and Ian Ousley, the famous trio is complete. The role of Zuko, the prince of the Fire Nation, will be taken on by Dallas Liu; he is known for his role in "Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings" from Marvel Studios. But there are also actors from the Avatar universe who are already part of the project. Daniel Dae Kim was already heard as the voice of General Fong in the original series, as well as the voice of Hiroshi Sato in the sequel "The Legend of Korra". This time, he will be joining as none other than Fire Lord Ozai! And who could play the cabbage merchant better than James Sie, who already impressed with his passionate performance of "My Cabbages!" in the original series? He has been officially confirmed as an actor!
All of this raises our expectations for the series. The result will be revealed in February! After all, a great success was already achieved with the live-action adaptation of the anime "One Piece". Perhaps "Avatar: The Last Airbender" will also gain many new fans next year!
Update, 24.01.2024: New Trailer
There is a brand new trailer on YouTube! This time, there are significantly more insights into the plot, the landscape, and action-packed fight scenes. Many of our favorite characters, Katara, Sokka, and Zuko, also finally get more screen time. The comment section shows that with these new insights, new excitement has sparked among fans of the original series. The expectations for the new live-action adaptation are rising, even among sceptics. Of course, the live-action adaptation of One Piece is also mentioned as a comparison. Whether the hype here will be just as big, we will be able to see at the series premiere on February 22, 2024!
