The more fans learn about Netflix’s live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender series, the more they’re about the final product, with the showrunner comparing it to Game of Thrones.
Avatar The Last Airbender is considered one of the best animated series ever created, rivaling all popular anime series in terms of quality and storytelling. So, when Netflix announced a live-action adaptation of the series, it was met with a lukewarm response – with understandable concerns after the last attempt at a live-action version of Avatar.
Game of Thrones is an awkward comparison that’s best avoided, especially after the disastrous final season. The showrunner of Netflix’s series has stated they may have changed the storyline and themes of the show significantly to aim at fans of the HBO series, sparking further caution ahead of its release.
Netflix’s live-action Avatar series under fire after showrunner comments
The latest interview with Albert Kim, the showrunner on the live-action Netflix series, has raised concerns about mature content being involved in a series that already appeals to all audiences.
#AvatarTheLastAirbender showrunner says they had to find a balance where the series appeals to OG fans and then people who liked #GameOfThrones "It couldn't just be for kids"(via @IGN) pic.twitter.com/iHbf5koZdD
— Culture Crave 🍿 (@CultureCrave) February 2, 2024
Speaking to IGN, he said: “My son, who was also a huge fan, was like, ‘I don’t know if you should do that,’ because he is in the contingent of fans that think you cannot improve upon the original. So he was a little wary.” Admittedly, this quote has aged fairly well, with the responses to most Avatar live-action news being overtly negative as more info is revealed.
“Seasons 2 and 3 are a lot more mature in theme than, say, Season 1 was. So for us, it was about striking that right balance, of making sure you were true to the DNA of the original. But at the same time, we had to make it a serialized Netflix drama, which meant it couldn’t just be for kids. It had to also appeal to the people who are big fans of Game of Thrones. And so, it had to feel grounded and mature and adult in that way too.”
The response can be summarised as “Oh no,” with fans believing the live-action creators potentially didn’t watch or understand the original series that, while presented for children, handled mature themes better than most shows aimed at adults. Unfortunately, this line of thinking may be confirmed with news of changing important character motivations spreading like wildfire.
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Kim also revealed that the the Air Nomad genocide will be included in the live-action series, but we only see the aftermath in the original show. “We were actually going to show it as opposed to just talk about it in the original series. So we kind of trusted both in the performers and also in the audience, frankly, that they could handle this kind of material, even at a young age. So it was just a matter of being true to the story. And then, later, we would just sort of turn the dials a little bit here and there,” he explained.
There’s a significant difference between witnessing a massacre happening and watching Aang lament the loss of his home, mentor, and friends, as it reveals he was frozen for a century from a viewer’s perspective. The fact we do not see the incident lets our minds wander and add context to what we see, with the harshest imagery being Monk Gyatso’s body surrounded by long-dead firebenders. We can piece together how that went down ourselves instead of seeing the battle.
When the statement made it to the Avatar: The Last Airbender subreddit, fans were equally disappointed with the message, with expectations of quality plummeting to depressing levels. They also pointed out that these changes in the story may be what led to the creators of the original Avatar series leaving the production of the live-action.
After a string of poor anime adaptations, such as the Death Note live-action film, Netflix impressed us with their One Piece live-action adaptation. Still, that feeling of cautious optimism seems to be fading away from Avatar fans as more information is revealed as the release date approaches.
We’ll need to wait and see how this all pans out in Netflix’s Avatar The Last Airbender live-action series when it hits the streaming service very soon on Feburary 22, it’s a shame to say that fans of the original animated show are lowering their expectations the more they learn about it.