Adapting Nickelodeon’s Avatar: The Last Airbender for live-action has always been controversial. But for whatever it’s worth, Netflix got closer to capturing what fans love than those that came before.
The animated series has had over a decade to endear itself to audiences, making live-action interpretations a hot commodity. M. Night Shyamalan famously – or infamously – gave it the old college try in 2010, which has since been wiped from our collective memory. A caricature of the Nickelodeon series, The Last Airbender is better off forgotten. But that disaster only made the stakes even higher for Netflix’s rendition.
Even though the original creators of the animated series parted ways with the series due to creative differences, it still is an improvement. Some elements, such as Sokka’s (Ian Ousley) character development have been sacrificed, but Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender added depth to the mature themes of the series. Viewers feel the weight of the genocide against the Air Nomads and see Firelord Ozai’s (Daniel Dae Kim) concerted effort to turn his children against each other. This doesn’t ruin the animated series. It elevates it. But even so, Netflix has a reputation for cutting series short. To tell the full story, Avatar: The Last Airbender will need multiple seasons to do it.
How many seasons will Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender have?
So far, Netflix’s live-action series has put in the groundwork to cover the events of the animated series. Season 1 only spans 8 episodes, but still covers the events of the first season of the Nickelodeon series. In both shows, the season finale revolves around the defense of the Northern Water Tribe and the attempt to save the moon spirit. The new show takes some detours to get there, but the result is the same.
Fans can infer that any subsequent series will follow the same structure. The original series lasted for 3 seasons, culminating in Aang’s (Zach Tyler Eisen) battle with the Firelord (Mark Hamill). This instinct is supported by Netflix renewing the series for two more seasons, per Variety.
This decision hits the sweet spot for Netflix. The streaming platform is known for canceling high-budget series around the 3-season mark unless it’s a monumental success. With only a few seasons of content, there can be no backlash against the decision to end Avatar: The Last Airbender in that time constraint. That means no season 4 for Team Avatar fans. However, there is always the potential for putting into production a follow-up that is practically begging for the live-action treatment.
The Avatar sequel Legend of Korra follows Aang’s titular successor as she takes on the mantle of the Avatar. The series chronicles Korra (Janet Varney) in her teenage years after she has a better handle on the elements. This story arc could draw in older audiences and make for even more impressive fight sequences. There has been no official word on adapting Korra, but we can all agree it is a no-brainer. Until then, fans can watch Avatar: The Last Airbender, streaming on Netflix.