Avatar: The Last Airbender – Page 4 – Enneagram and Encaustic

The Great Divide

ONE

Sokka sets up a tent, casting the rain tarp aside.

TWO

Katara, carrying some kindling, questions his judgment. Sokka fights back, telling her to worry about her own job. Aang, as the Avatar peacemaker, comes between them and suggests they switch tasks. How can people who disagree get along, and can Aang actually help them reach accord? That’s the Trouble.

THREE

Appa and Momo also fight over a piece of fruit. It’s hilarious because Appa, giant bison, holds the melon in place with his toe while Momo, small mammal, goes all ballistic on trying to free it. Aang halves the fruit, sharing it out.

This is basically a repeat of the Two, so why is it the Three? Well, first, it’s what comes next (and the material after that is clearly Four-ish). Second, food is part of the struggle in this episode and recurs in a Six-ish way. Mostly, though, I’m reaching.

Jet

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.

The Waterbending Scroll

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.

Winter Solstice

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.

Avatar Roku

(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.

The Spirit World

(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.

Imprisoned

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.

The King of Omashu

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.

The Warriors of Kyoshi

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.

The Southern Air Temple

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.