I guess this will be a disorganized list of my ATLA thoughts. Here goes. I never liked Sokka as a kid, probably because he was an icky
boy that was sexist to Katara, but now I find him very relatable. He likes sleep, food, and not dying. Let’s be real, we would ALL react like Sokka in these situations. I like when he gets to be cool and badass, since he’s usually the butt-monkey of everyone else’s jokes.
As a kid, I didn’t have the same gleeful lust (non-sexual) for problematic and unhinged women that I do now, so I have new feelings about Azula! I see myself in her (sentences that nobody should ever say). Unrelated to what I just said, she definitely has BPD. Anyway. I’m also a fan of her girl squad. If I were to self-insert into ATLA (I love self-inserting) I think I would just be the exact average of Azula’s girl squad. I’m a ballet dancer, which offers similar strength as Ty Lee’s acrobatics, I’m goth like Mai, and Azula. Anyway.
I love Iroh so much, I wish he was my uncle, but I think we all do. Okay, time for another thing that we probably ALL thought (hyperbole, but definitely a massive majority), and who the title of this post refers to…
Prince Zuko.
I feel like I’m getting my obligatory childhood crush on Zuko about a decade late. I didn’t have these feelings as a kid, unless you count vaguely percieving some Zutara tension while identifying heavily with Katara. (What a transition, Katara to Azula…)
But yeah, title. I like seeing him harrowed, in pain, and in danger! I particularly loved the season 1 episode where he’s beat up, bruised, and bloodied the entire time, then almost freezes to death in a cave. And in the episode I just watched, he’s sick. Fevered, trembling, at war with his own mind and body, and shirtless to boot! Love seeing that! I do want to be the one to nurse him back to health (like I said, hurt/comfort my beloved). Mai x Zuko isn’t my favorite ship in the world, but I appreciate it for allowing me to imagine that I’m Mai. That’s partially a joke, I guess I just like seeing Zuko be romantic with someone and… not severely fuck it up this time, lol. I’m fujoing out!!!… but they’re het. Hmm… Guess it’s just voyeurism?