Sozin's Comet facts for kids
Quick facts for kids "Sozin's Comet" |
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| Avatar: The Last Airbender episodes | |
Cover of the book adaptation, Sozin's Comet: The Final Battle
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| Episode nos. | Season 3 Episodes 18–21 |
| Directed by |
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| Written by |
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| Featured music | Jeremy Zuckerman Benjamin Wynn |
| Production code(s) | 318–321 |
| Original air date(s) | July 19, 2008 |
| Running time | 93 minutes |
"Sozin's Comet" is the exciting four-part ending of the cartoon series Avatar: The Last Airbender on Nickelodeon. It was like a two-hour movie that first aired on July 19, 2008. This special finale wrapped up the show's third season with a bang!
The story focuses on the main hero, Aang, who doesn't want to kill Fire Lord Ozai. It also shows his friends, like Sokka, Toph, and Suki, fighting a fleet of airships. Zuko and Katara face Zuko's sister, Azula. Meanwhile, Iroh and the Order of the White Lotus try to free the city of Ba Sing Se.
"Sozin's Comet" was loved by critics and fans. Many people think it's one of the best series finales ever. About 5.6 million viewers watched it when it first aired. The show has continued with graphic novels (comic books) since 2012. These stories happen after the finale but before the next series, The Legend of Korra.
Contents
The Story of Sozin's Comet
The finale is split into four parts, each telling a piece of the big adventure.
Part 1: The Phoenix King's Plan
Aang wants to put off fighting Fire Lord Ozai until after Sozin's Comet has passed. He feels he isn't strong enough to fight Ozai when the comet makes firebending super powerful. But then, Zuko tells everyone that Ozai plans to use the comet's power to burn down the entire Earth Kingdom. Aang realizes he must face Ozai before the comet arrives.
Aang is a peaceful person and doesn't want to kill anyone. He struggles with the idea that he might have to kill Ozai to save the world. One night, Aang sleepwalks to a mysterious island that vanishes in the morning. While his friends search for him, Fire Lord Ozai declares himself the "Phoenix King" of the world. He makes Azula the new Fire Lord and sets off with an airship fleet to destroy the world.
Part 2: Old Friends and New Powers
Zuko and his friends try to find Aang using a tracker named June. When that doesn't work, they decide to find Iroh. Zuko and Iroh have a heartfelt reunion after Zuko's past mistakes. They learn that Iroh and other characters are part of a secret group called the "Order of the White Lotus." This group plans to free the Earth Kingdom capital city from Fire Nation control.
Zuko and Katara decide to fight Azula in the Fire Nation capital. Sokka, Toph, and Suki get ready to destroy the airship fleet. Meanwhile, Aang wakes up on a floating island. He asks his past lives for advice on how to defeat Ozai without killing him, but he isn't happy with their answers. He then asks the island for help. The island, which is actually a giant "lion turtle," gives Aang a new power called energybending. This power lets him take away someone's bending. The lion turtle then drops Aang off in the Earth Kingdom, just as Ozai arrives with his airship fleet.
Part 3: The Big Battle Begins
Sozin's Comet appears in the sky, making firebending incredibly strong. Azula's coronation (crowning ceremony) begins. Azula has become very paranoid and lonely, seeing her mother in her mind. Before she can be crowned, Zuko and Katara arrive. Zuko challenges Azula to a one-on-one duel. He knows Azula is distracted and doesn't want Katara to get hurt.
Zuko is about to win when Azula shoots lightning at Katara. Zuko bravely jumps in front of Katara, taking the lightning hit himself. This saves Katara but badly injures Zuko.
Meanwhile, Sokka, Toph, and Suki take over a Fire Nation airship. They use it to destroy Ozai's airship fleet, stopping his plan to burn down the Earth Kingdom. In Ba Sing Se, the Order of the White Lotus, led by Iroh, attacks the Fire Nation forces. They want to take back the city for the Earth Kingdom. Aang reappears and starts his duel with the Phoenix King. Aang refuses to kill Ozai, which gives Ozai an advantage. Aang is forced to hide in a ball of earth as Ozai attacks him again and again.
Part 4: Avatar Aang's Final Fight
While Zuko is hurt, Katara fights Azula. Katara manages to freeze Azula in ice and then chains her to a grate. Katara then uses her waterbending to heal Zuko. Azula, defeated and chained, completely loses her mind and cries. Zuko and Katara watch her with sadness. The Order of the White Lotus successfully frees Ba Sing Se.
Ozai slams Aang into a rock, hitting a scar on Aang's back. This accidentally unlocks Aang's seventh chakra, allowing Aang to enter the powerful Avatar State. With the strength of all his past lives, Aang quickly overpowers Ozai. But Aang still refuses to kill him. Instead, Aang uses the energybending power he learned from the lion turtle. He takes away Ozai's firebending powers, making him unable to wage war. Sozin's Comet then disappears.
Later, Zuko is crowned Fire Lord. He promises to help the world rebuild after the war. He then asks his imprisoned father where his mother is. The final scene shows Aang, Katara, Sokka, Toph, and Zuko gathered in Iroh's new tea shop. Aang and Katara share a kiss, starting their romantic relationship.
Behind the Scenes: Making the Finale
The creators of the show, Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, wrote most of the finale. Aaron Ehasz wrote part two. Different directors worked on each part, with Joaquim Dos Santos directing the last two. The finale was originally planned as three parts, but it grew longer. To make sure the story flowed well, they split the last part into two, adding more scenes.
All the main characters from season three were in "Sozin's Comet." Zach Tyler Eisen voiced Aang, Mae Whitman voiced Katara, Jack DeSena voiced Sokka, and Jessie Flower voiced Toph. Greg Baldwin was the voice of Iroh, and Dante Basco voiced Zuko. The bad guys, Azula and Fire Lord Ozai, were voiced by Grey DeLisle and Mark Hamill.
The animation for the finale was very detailed. One difficult part to animate was the big fight between Aang and Ozai. The creators had to draw a fully colored storyboard to show the animation studios exactly how it should look. There was also a lot of fire in this finale, and all the fire effects were drawn by hand. It cost a lot to animate all that fire!
The music for the finale was created by "The Track Team," led by Jeremy Zuckerman. Unlike other episodes, a live orchestra played the music for "Sozin's Comet." This made the music sound even more grand. The music for the duel between Zuko and Azula was inspired by movies like Ghost in the Shell and Blade Runner.
Avatar: The Last Airbender uses many ideas from East Asian art. The four "bending" arts are based on different styles of Chinese martial arts:
- Airbending uses Baguazhang.
- Earthbending uses Hung Gar and Southern Praying Mantis.
- Firebending uses Northern Shaolin.
- Waterbending uses T'ai chi.
Sifu Kisu choreographed (planned) all the fight scenes. The finale also used ideas from Taoist beliefs about balance and order. The Avatar's job is to keep the world in balance.
Nickelodeon first showed "Sozin's Comet" on July 19, 2008. Just ten days later, a DVD called "Book 3: Fire – Volume 4" was released. It included the four finale episodes, plus two others, and extra features.
Images for kids
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A new bending technique, energybending, is shown. The blue and orange lights show the struggle between good and bad.
