As a huge fan of the original series, Avatar: The Last Airbender, I was overjoyed when, in 2012, I was able to return to the world of Avatar with a sequel series called The Legend of Korra. With a slightly-concerning obsession over Avatar's strong female characters like Suki, Toph, and Katara, I was even more thrilled when I found out the main character, Korra, would be female. Not only is Korra female, though, but she is also a complex and wonderfully written character. Oh— and she's bisexual!
Korra challenges many gender roles and norms often associated with being female, and she manages to be a significant role model for the show's young viewers. She is able to show viewers that being a woman doesn't mean limiting oneself to a rigid set of rules. She is strong and assertive, yet also vulnerable and compassionate. She is able to stand up for herself, but also admit to her mistakes. While muscular and often touting this "tough girl" sort of vibe, she doesn't reject her feminine side because of it. She just is who she is, and she is proud of it. Korra is able to teach young fans that while no one is perfect and everyone has flaws, their sexuality is not one of them. As a bisexual woman, Korra gives visibility to bisexuals and breaks many stereotypes. Her girlfriend, Asami, also acts as a wonderful role model for femme-identified queer women. While presenting extremely feminine, Asami is also an engineer, owns her own industrial
enterprise, is trained in hand-to-hand combat, and is fiercely self-reliant—
all of which help reinforce the notion that one does not have to give up one’s
femininity in order to be intelligent, capable, or taken seriously. Their relationship develops naturally over the course of season 3 and 4, and their relationship signified a huge accomplishment for queer representation within children's media.
Korra involved many mature themes and subjects such as death, terrorism, political struggle, facism, PTSD, and so on. At the end of its first season, two characters were even killed on-screen. These complex themes unfortunately aided in the show's decline in ratings, which resulted in Korra eventually being moved to online-streaming for the remainder of season 3 and the entirety of season 4. However, the majority of backlash seemed to be directed towards the series finale, when Korra and Asami ended up together.
Three major things happened at this point: people became angry that no kiss happened between the two girls in the show, a lot of people denied the relationship being romantic/sexual in nature, and the creators, Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino, posted on social media confirming that the series finale did indeed confirm Korra and Asami's romantic relationship.
In Konietzko's blog post, he explained that he and Mike "never assumed it was something [they] would ever get away with depicting on an animated show for a kids network in this day and age, or at least in 2010." He also writes about approaching Nickelodeon on whether they could make Korra and Asami endgame, and said "they were supportive" but "there was a limit" to how far they could go to depict the relationship. This meant no on-screen kiss. He admits that this falls short of the representation he wishes he could have given to bisexual people and the LGBT, but also hopes that it at least helped make some progress for future shows. While the creators confirming the relationship on social media appeased most fans questioning the validity of "Korrasami," and most were understanding of the limitations Nickelodeon put on the show, there were still many fans insistent on Korra and Asami's relationship being merely friendship. I think this mainly has to do with the fact that a lot of people tend to watch shows through a heteronormative lens, so queer relationships often fall under the radar. However, if Asami's character had been a man, I don't think anyone would have questioned whether Asami's bond with Korra was romantic/sexual or just friendship. Another justification I've heard people bring up is that they were both previously involved in a relationship with a male (Gotta love love triangles, am I right?) named Mako, so they can't be anything but straight. This type of argument is just pure bi-erasure, as is referring to Korra and Asami as lesbians rather than bisexual women. It is possible to be attracted to both men and women, and I think it's important for shows to depict that. If you've watched the show yourself and you're still questioning the validity or development of Korra and Asami's relationship, or if you're just curious to watch, I just found this well-made video, by youtuber Johnny 2 Cellos, and I think it's worth watching:
I feel it is also worth mentioning that Korra and Asami's story is being continued within a comic series called Turf Wars. Part One is out now, and Part Two will be released next year in January. The comics explore more of their relationship, as well as create a new plot for Korra and her friends. And yes— they finally get their kiss.
And of course now, you see them giving up on holding this sort of thing back, taking a note on the show "The Loud House", if I'm not mistaken. It's really amazing how the show broke through the almost unseen buildup of her being seen with the two guys she joins up with for the bending arena from a pairing perspective, into such a more creative and wonderful thing to see.
As a fan of avatar I loved the Legend of Korra series but was never really a fan of the titular character I found her bratty and impulsive never really learning her lesson from past mistakes. it wasn't until the last season and a half that she finally got a handle of her ego and actually grew. That was why I was so happy when Korrasami was cannon if you look at both characters and their growth over these last two seasons especially it makes sense that they would start dating because of the bond shown between the two I am so looking forward to what they do with the next issue that comes out in January.
I appreciate your comment! I, too, and looking forward to the continuation of the comics! BUT, I suggest rethinking your opinion on Korra, personally. :-) Here's why:
Korra's personality makes a lot of sense for a main character. She's stubborn and impulsive, but also confident, outspoken, and very strong willed. A lot of these traits are ones you would find in many male main characters. More importantly, though, they are traits found in Zuko in the original series. He also has a wonderful character arc, full of development and him joining the "good guys" towards the end of the series. He is consistently touted as many people's favourite character of the show. While I have seen people comment on his behaviour leading up to his character growth, I have never heard or seen anyone call him bratty. Korra, however, was constantly labelled as a brat, a bitch, and annoying. I can't help but wonder... If Korra was a male, would she still be called these things by fans? And I know it's not just her personality that people had an issue with, because fans treated Katara the same in the original series. She was outspoken, strong willed, and not afraid to back down. Somehow that made her an annoying, feminazi loudmouth to a lot of people. Clearly, people have a (possibly subconscious) issue with women who are confident and assertive. Not to mention that in the show, they are both teenage girls, and teenage girls get so much unnecessary hate on shows and in real life. It's often very frustrating to witness. I personally love Korra because she takes up a space normally occupied only by men, and she does a wonderful job of learning from the mistakes she makes from being too cocky or impulsive. Her character growth was much more gradual in the first two seasons, yes, but I think that also had to do with the fact that she had been isolated up until moving to Republic City, she was clearly insecure about not being able to unlock her airbending skills and the Avatar state, and she put so much of her self worth and her view of her own identity into the fact that she is the Avatar (compared to Aang who spent so much of his time running from his fate). This makes her so similar to Zuko, who was banished from the Fire Nation (and isolated from his family, friends, and people), was dealing with his own shortcomings as a firebender (especially compared to Azula), and was struggling with potentially losing his identity as the prince (and eventually Firelord) of the Fire Nation if he failed to capture Aang. So, why else would his behaviour be acceptable and understandable to viewers but Korra's wouldn't unless it had to do with gender?
Ok I understand your point that people (me included) give crap to Korra for being bratty, but I also thought that same thing about Zuko. I did not like that character until his redemtion arc. With Korra in a similar position to Zuko with more loved ones than Zuko telling her how she should behave (Zuko only had Iroh) she should have calmed down earlier. The only reason Zuko was like that was he had no supprot from his family and friends while Korra had all the support in the world but did not show growth until the 3 season of the show. Yes I admit I probably should not give her this much crap because she was never as bad as Zuko but I feel his redemtion was handled much better giving him more time and truly showing why he was the way he was. With Korra she was a brat and needed to change with the audience not knowing why it was just her personality at the end of the day I love Korra I just wish she was given more time to develop and grow much earlier.
As someone who’s seen every episode of the original Avatar series several times, I’m disappointed in myself for not watching the Legend of Korra series. I honestly wish I did watch this show when I was younger, because I now identify as bisexual and it would have saved myself a lot of confusion. And I think that’s part of the reason LGBT really needs to be represented in children’s television. When I was younger I was always into boys, but I had just always thought girls were “really pretty”. It wasn’t until the last year and a half that I put the pieces together and realized I seem to enjoy girls in the same way as I enjoy guys. Although I had known what bisexuality was for a long time, there was no prototype for me to understand my own bisexuality through. And watching two supposedly straight female characters fall in love would have been an excellent thing for me to be exposed to. I’m proud of the direction LoK is taking LGBT representation for those reasons.
And of course now, you see them giving up on holding this sort of thing back, taking a note on the show "The Loud House", if I'm not mistaken. It's really amazing how the show broke through the almost unseen buildup of her being seen with the two guys she joins up with for the bending arena from a pairing perspective, into such a more creative and wonderful thing to see.
ReplyDeleteAs a fan of avatar I loved the Legend of Korra series but was never really a fan of the titular character I found her bratty and impulsive never really learning her lesson from past mistakes. it wasn't until the last season and a half that she finally got a handle of her ego and actually grew. That was why I was so happy when Korrasami was cannon if you look at both characters and their growth over these last two seasons especially it makes sense that they would start dating because of the bond shown between the two I am so looking forward to what they do with the next issue that comes out in January.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your comment! I, too, and looking forward to the continuation of the comics! BUT, I suggest rethinking your opinion on Korra, personally. :-) Here's why:
DeleteKorra's personality makes a lot of sense for a main character. She's stubborn and impulsive, but also confident, outspoken, and very strong willed. A lot of these traits are ones you would find in many male main characters. More importantly, though, they are traits found in Zuko in the original series. He also has a wonderful character arc, full of development and him joining the "good guys" towards the end of the series. He is consistently touted as many people's favourite character of the show. While I have seen people comment on his behaviour leading up to his character growth, I have never heard or seen anyone call him bratty. Korra, however, was constantly labelled as a brat, a bitch, and annoying. I can't help but wonder... If Korra was a male, would she still be called these things by fans? And I know it's not just her personality that people had an issue with, because fans treated Katara the same in the original series. She was outspoken, strong willed, and not afraid to back down. Somehow that made her an annoying, feminazi loudmouth to a lot of people. Clearly, people have a (possibly subconscious) issue with women who are confident and assertive. Not to mention that in the show, they are both teenage girls, and teenage girls get so much unnecessary hate on shows and in real life. It's often very frustrating to witness. I personally love Korra because she takes up a space normally occupied only by men, and she does a wonderful job of learning from the mistakes she makes from being too cocky or impulsive. Her character growth was much more gradual in the first two seasons, yes, but I think that also had to do with the fact that she had been isolated up until moving to Republic City, she was clearly insecure about not being able to unlock her airbending skills and the Avatar state, and she put so much of her self worth and her view of her own identity into the fact that she is the Avatar (compared to Aang who spent so much of his time running from his fate). This makes her so similar to Zuko, who was banished from the Fire Nation (and isolated from his family, friends, and people), was dealing with his own shortcomings as a firebender (especially compared to Azula), and was struggling with potentially losing his identity as the prince (and eventually Firelord) of the Fire Nation if he failed to capture Aang. So, why else would his behaviour be acceptable and understandable to viewers but Korra's wouldn't unless it had to do with gender?
Ok I understand your point that people (me included) give crap to Korra for being bratty, but I also thought that same thing about Zuko. I did not like that character until his redemtion arc. With Korra in a similar position to Zuko with more loved ones than Zuko telling her how she should behave (Zuko only had Iroh) she should have calmed down earlier. The only reason Zuko was like that was he had no supprot from his family and friends while Korra had all the support in the world but did not show growth until the 3 season of the show. Yes I admit I probably should not give her this much crap because she was never as bad as Zuko but I feel his redemtion was handled much better giving him more time and truly showing why he was the way he was. With Korra she was a brat and needed to change with the audience not knowing why it was just her personality at the end of the day I love Korra I just wish she was given more time to develop and grow much earlier.
DeleteAs someone who’s seen every episode of the original Avatar series several times, I’m disappointed in myself for not watching the Legend of Korra series. I honestly wish I did watch this show when I was younger, because I now identify as bisexual and it would have saved myself a lot of confusion. And I think that’s part of the reason LGBT really needs to be represented in children’s television. When I was younger I was always into boys, but I had just always thought girls were “really pretty”. It wasn’t until the last year and a half that I put the pieces together and realized I seem to enjoy girls in the same way as I enjoy guys. Although I had known what bisexuality was for a long time, there was no prototype for me to understand my own bisexuality through. And watching two supposedly straight female characters fall in love would have been an excellent thing for me to be exposed to. I’m proud of the direction LoK is taking LGBT representation for those reasons.
ReplyDelete