Category: Book One: Water

This is a very strange episode. Jet is a beloved character, one who recurs in an important storyline, yet he’s not a nice person here. He’s the antagonist, yet we’re not to see him as a villain.

ONE

A forest location. Momo chases a bug.

TWO

Berries are bait in a trap that Momo activates. Suspended from tall trees are two more traps with baboons caught in them. Aang, bending, jumps up and frees them all.

THREE

The traps are Fire Nation. Sokka wants the team to move on but without flying. His instincts tell him they’ll be spotted in the air.

Okay, I have a problem with traps appearing at both beats. They belong at the Three, which we’ll see when it mirrors at the Six. The Trouble, the Two, is actually the forest. Hidden amongst the trees are Jet and his Freedom Fighters, but also the Fire Nation. This is what Aang battles at the Eight.

Continue reading “Jet”

ONE

The gang flies on Appa, as they often do at the One. Travelling onward.

TWO

Aang worries. How is he supposed to master the elements before the comet arrives next summer? This is an ongoing Trouble. Possibly, when we look at the Enneagram for this entire season, or even the three seasons of the entire show, this worry will be the larger Two. It’s an essential question.

Also, though, this episode has another, more specific Trouble. Katara offers to teach Aang the waterbending she knows.

THREE

With the two benders busy, Sokka is at loose ends.  He uses a long fuzzy frond to clean Appa in the river, particularly between his toes. Sokka does regular human things at the Three. I really like how the story writers deploy him at key beats.

Continue reading “The Waterbending Scroll”

Remember, this is the name of the two-part episode that includes The Spirit World and Avatar Roku. I assume that, although each separate episode has a Story Enneagram, that the overarching story will also follow one. Let’s see.

ONE

Spirit’s One is also this section of the One. The gang travels north until something interrupts them.

TWO

As I guessed in my Spirit review, the overarching Two is Aang’s sadness and need to talk to Avatar Roku. We already know from the Roku review that the Eight is indeed that meeting. Finding Roku — how do you talk to a spirit? — is the Trouble of the story resolved at the climax.

You’ll remember, though, that this moment in Spirit felt extremely awkward and forced.  You’ll also notice, looking back, that the beginning of that story has a lot of padding that isn’t part of the overarching plot. The Two section is sloppy in both overviews.

Continue reading “Winter Solstice”

(Winter Solstice, Part 2)

ONE

As we’re in Part Two, this episode immediately picks up where Part One left off, in the village with the threat of the comet deadline hanging over. Aang has decided to go into the Fire Nation alone.

TWO

Katara and Sokka say nope. They’re coming, too. Appa approves and gives Sokka a big, wet lick.

THREE

Zuko, at the village our gang just left, insists on knowing where they went.

In Part One we had parallel Enneagram structure. Part Two is only Aang’s story. This allows Zuko to influence the plot as its Three/Six.

Continue reading “Avatar Roku”

(Winter Solstice, Part 1)

This is another episode with two Enneagram paths, one for Aang and one for Zuko. I’ll approach them in the order of the show.

Also, even though this is a part one, it is a complete story. It should have all the pieces of an Enneagram. Will the overarching “Winter Solstice” two-parter have an Enneagram? We’ll see!

ONE (AANG)

The gang rides high on a flying Appa, wondering what fluffy clouds feel like.

TWO (AANG)

Down below they see that the land has a burn scar and fly down to investigate.

THREE (AANG)

Aang is deeply saddened. As the Avatar he’s supposed to protect nature. But how? No one can train him. If only he could talk to Roku, the previous Avatar.

Okay, let me unpack some of this.

Continue reading “The Spirit World”

ONE

As always, Avatar sets the scene quickly. Where is our team now? They’re resting in a forested area. Sokka can only find nuts for dinner. They’re hungry, pickings are meager, and Sokka is the butt of the jokes. Remind me to look back sometime and see how many episodes begin with this formula!

TWO

The next thing that happens is Momo, who holds a rock that was mixed in with the bag of nuts, tries to break it open. Slam. Only the sound is a huge SLAM. The gang goes to see what’s making such a noise.

THREE

The next thing that happens is an earth bender, Haru, practices on the sly. When Katara says hello he runs away.

You probably have guessed I have a problem with these two beats.

Continue reading “Imprisoned”

ONE

The team arrives at the city of Omashu. Later it will become clear that they’re only here for Aang to have fun on his way to the North Pole. They have no other agenda at this point.

TWO

Aang knows he wants to stop at Omashu because he’s been here before. His friend, Bumi, lived here. More memories come later, but this is the introduction of a character critical to the episode and to the Eight. Trouble.

THREE

The arrow tattoos will be recognized, so Aang must wear a disguise. Using Appa’s itchy fur, the team crafts a wig and mustache that turn Aang into an old man.

Continue reading “The King of Omashu”

This is one of those episodes we always remember. The introduction of the Kyoshi Warriors is a beloved moment.

ONE

We start with Zuko on his ship. Hilariously, he — the angriest person in the show — meditates peacefully at a candle-lit altar. We know it won’t last long. Uncle Iroh pops in, disturbing Zuko, to tell him the Avatar is nowhere to be found.  Zuko reacts and fire erupts from the altar. Multiple sightings have been reported, but nothing certain. Zuko says the Avatar is a master of evasive maneuvers.

TWO

Jump cut, and you know exactly where this is going. It’s funny! Team Avatar looks at a map and their crisscross journey. They have no idea where they’re going. It’s the punchline to the One, but it’s also the Trouble. Their haphazard travels, purposeless beyond meeting Aang’s bucket list, are not something the Avatar can safely do. He needs to focus on his mission. This Two (and its Eight) help clarify that tension.

Continue reading “The Warriors of Kyoshi”

I didn’t remember how much of Avatar was told in parallel stories. Aang is our protagonist, but Zuko is a sub-protagonist, and his story unfurls in evocative ways, too. The Story Enneagram for this episode has double numbers because we’re experiencing two stories.

ONE

At a lakeside overnight camp, Aang wakes Sokka. He’s ready to get home today, for the first time in 100 years.

Cut to Zuko docked at a Fire Nation shipyard for repairs.

TWO

As soon as Zuko disembarks, he’s met by Commander Zhao. Now, this guy is Trouble. Zuko lies to him about how his ship sustained damage. (It was the Avatar, remember.)

Cut to the team flying toward the Air Temple. Sokka is hungry and the food storage is empty. This starts out as a typical Sokka bit — he represents us normies, surrounded and outnumbered by magic — but it is also Trouble. His hunger will set the Eight in motion.

Katara warns Aang to be prepared. The Fire Nation is ruthless. Aang shrugs off her concerns.

Continue reading “The Southern Air Temple”

I must remind myself of the first part, The Boy in the Iceberg, and that this episode is a continuation, a part two. This is to be the second half of the Story Enneagram, the arc of both parts together.

SWITCH

I assumed that the episode break would be the Switch, and that seems to be true. Katara and Aang inadvertently signaled Zuko on his Fire Nation ship, revealing the Avatar’s location. When they return to the village Gran-Gran tells Aang he must leave. Katara knew not to go on the derelict, and now Aang is banished. He walks away.

FIVE

Zuko arrives, his ship breaking through the ice wall that surrounds the village. Out he comes, down the ramp, and Sokka attacks him. It’s futile. Riding a penguin, Aang slides in to save the day. He saw the ship arrive from a distance. The villagers, especially the children, are in danger from his bending fight with Zuko, though, so Aang surrenders. The Fire Nation ship, with Aang aboard, pulls out.

So far, everything up until now feels like the momentum from “Iceberg” is finishing up. The confrontation between Aang and Zuko is what we expected. Sokka, using regular warrior skills, is basically powerless in an arena of bending. A world without the Avatar is powerless against the Fire Nation.

SIX

During the skirmish we have positive confirmation that Aang is indeed the Avatar. He says, “Looking for me?” We get the great moment when Zuko, who’s been seeking a one hundred year old man, realizes his adversary is a child.

At the Three, Aang in the iceberg is revealed. He’s got the glowing forehead arrow and the beam of light. Clearly he’s special, different. At the Six we now know why. The penguin-sledding boy is more than he seemed.

SEVEN

Aang, looking around at the vulnerable villagers, surrenders to Zuko. Zuko honors his promise, takes the Avatar on board, and leaves. “Set course for the Fire Nation.”

We don’t know enough about Zuko yet to realize what a triumphant moment this is for him. Yes, the villain has won, but we’ll learn so much more about his character and what drives him. This is a taste of Zuko’s storyline.

EIGHT

Katara and Sokka will follow after Aang in their canoe. Of course Appa comes in and becomes their transport. It’s a nice little moment. Also, it’s a call-back to the Two when their canoe crashed. Good continuity.

The rest of the episode is a bang-up battle with Aang on the ship. “I’m guessing you’ve never fought an air-bender before.” And we’ve never seen an air-bender fight. It’s amazing! Fire — punching fireballs at someone or throwing an arc of flame on a roundhouse kick — makes sense. It’s just a continuation of regular martial arts technique. Air bending, though, is more magical. It’s based in aikido — using your opponent’s strength against them — but wind is used in creative, unexpected ways. It’s a great scene, a great Eight. I won’t spoil it with jaw-jaw.

Zuko doesn’t quit, though. A key character trait of his, his indomitable will even when he’s losing, leads him to inadvertently knock Aang into the ocean. Aang, sinking, starts to glow. In later episodes we’ll learn that he’s entered the Avatar state. Right now, though, he just goes to another level of power. He water bends a whirlpool that lifts him from the ocean. As an air bender he’s been winning the fight. As the Avatar, he’s a destructive force who can’t be stopped. 

He’s quickly exhausted, though, depleted. Katara and Sokka help him onto Appa, and they all escape. Zuko’s ship, bow crushed under an ice block, is left behind. “I won’t underestimate him again,” he says. Beautiful climax, beautiful resolution. Very satisfying.

NINE

Now we have our team, flying through the sky. They’ll head to the Northern Tribe where Aang and Katara can study water bending together from a master. 

First, though, some fun stops along the way are planned. Aang is a reluctant Avatar. His psychological journey to accept his destiny is already clearly a main arc. A lot of questions started in this first double episode, a lot of excitement and delivery. You’re totally hooked.