The 15th anniversary for Avatar: The Last Airbender is quickly approaching, and to celebrate, we’ve scoured the four nations for the top 10 cosplays of the much loved animation.
Avatar originally aired in 2005 on Nickelodeon, and quickly became a cultural phenomenon as millions connected with the series’ story about a kid monk named Aang who embarks on an epic journey to bring balance to humanity.
The story takes place in a world where people can bend the elements of earth, air, water, and fire, however when the Fire Nation decides to use their power to take over, our protagonist the Avatar (who can control all four) is tasked with stopping them.
To celebrate its upcoming 15th anniversary, we take a look at all the skilled fans who have brought element bending to life with our top 10 Last Airbender cosplays list.
10. Avatar Aang
https://www.instagram.com/p/B43-YtvnUjC/
Cosplayer ‘rinya.cos‘ brought the series lovable monk protagonist to life with this insanely timed shot of her jumping in the air which makes it look like she’s bending the air beneath her.
Aang comes from the Air Nomads who live in temples in the sky, although before the series starts, the entirety of his people are wiped out, making him the last airbender in existence.
His character sports a blue arrow tattoo that runs from his forehead down to the back of his hands – a tradition for the monks in the series – which she perfectly captures.
9. Appa
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bn468h-lNm1/
In one of the most creative Avatar cosplays we’ve seen, ‘allipugs‘ gives us her unique spin on Avatar Aang’s pet and traveling mount Appa, the adorable air Bison.
The beloved creature is native to the air nomads, and is able to fly using its massive tail to propel him up. It becomes a form of transportation for the monks who live in the sky.
Using clever design, the cosplayer recreated his tail using a cape, and his iconic horns with crafts, while sporting white hair to simulate his fur, and even used makeup for his nose for a modern twist.
8. Prince Zuko
https://www.instagram.com/p/B5YTti3I-ZA/
Talented costume designer ‘nishi.artist‘ is a prolific Avatar cosplayer that we have written about several times before, such as her stunning take on Legend of Korra’s protagonist.
However, her Zuko cosplay is one of the best we’ve seen, as she captures the troubled, brooding character in his third season outfit when he’s undercover in Fire Nation territory.
She always takes her designs to the next level with incredible photography in which she poses for in exotic locations, making her pieces feel like they jumped straight out of the animation itself.
7. Sokka
https://www.instagram.com/p/B266GBIDQgL/
Sokka and his sister Katara both discover Aang frozen in ice in the first episode of the show, and accompany the Avatar on his journey to master the four elements, and bring balance to the world.
Cosplayer ‘dgrerro‘ wowed fans with his insanely accurate portrayal of the show’s much loved comic relief character, as he perfectly recreated every detail of his Southern Water Tribe outfit, even down to his necklace.
The cosplay captures Sokka with his iconic water tribe haircut, and becomes the character by posting with his trusty boomerang, which is a running gag in the show.
6. Suki
https://www.instagram.com/p/B3GwWaSgO2G/
Suki is first introduced in season one, and teaches Sokka a lesson about underestimating her as a fighter, as the fierce character belongs to the Kyoshi warriors – an all-female group that protects their island.
Cosplayer ‘reyla_cosplay‘ shared her mindblowing take on the popular character, and impressed Avatar fans with her perfect depiction of her group’s warrior makeup and armor.
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From her golden headband, to her black armor which she creatively made using clothing material, her cosplay will make you think the character has jumped right out of the screen.
5. Princess Yuei
https://www.instagram.com/p/B4qrqn9DcrW/
By the end of the first season, Aang and his group make their way to the Northern Water Tribe so he can learn how to master the element of water, however Sokka has his breath taken away upon seeing Princess Yue for the first time.
We were amazed by cosplayer ‘bijoux_bunny‘s take on the character, as she took her costume to the next level by posing on a rock that has the ocean waves behind her, which seems like a scene straight from the animation.
She not only accurately creates the princess’s Water Tribe outfit that protects her from the cold, but nails her royal hair accessories as well as her intricately designed hairstyle from the show.
4. Fire Nation soldier
https://www.instagram.com/p/B2mQEpFjHPi/
Throughout the series, the main threat the heroes face is the Fire Nation, who were responsible for killing the Air Nomads, and invade the other nations as the story progresses.
While not a specific character, cosplayer ‘cpt_roodbaard‘ impressed fans after sharing his breathtaking costume of a Fire Nation soldier on his Instagram.
Using a smoke machine, the artist simulates a burning flame in his hand. When pairing his amazing recreation of the soldier’s armor with some impressive photography, this is easily one of the best cosplays we’ve seen.
3. Ty Lee
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bu_6sQVH1dO/
Popular cosplayer ‘Raine Emery‘ is prolific in her own right, amassing over 34k followers on her Instagram as her professional costumes take it to the next level.
However, her take on Princess Azula’s “friend” and sidekick Ty Lee is absolutely stunning, as she took the photo above shallow water to capture her reflection on the bottom.
Not only is her costume perfect down to every detail, she’s a dead ringer for the deadly acrobatic antagonist, truly bringing her to life.
2. Katara
https://www.instagram.com/p/B5elO4PjGzD/
One of the core aspects of the animation is bending the elements, which is admittedly hard to recreate in cosplays without getting creative.
However, ‘jaberford‘ took it to a new level with their absolutely breathtaking recreation of Katara water bending the element all around her.
Her costume a perfect imitation of the character’s Water Tribe outfit, including her blue choker – which fans later learn was a betrothal necklace given to her grandma.
1. Toph
https://www.instagram.com/p/B3nbipUjYC0/
We love this outfit so much that we already wrote about it once before. It is the top pick on the list for our favorite The Last Airbender cosplay.
The talented ‘Aara Lee‘ truly becomes the character with her mind bending costume that is a faithful recreation down to every little detail.
Her love for the character truly shows, as she also mastered Toph’s fighting stance, and has a video on her Instagram showing her pull them off in motion, making this the best Avatar cosplay we’ve seen so far.