Disability in AtLA - Teo

[@shanec3098]

As a kid I always thought that the reason why Teo's wheelchair was so "odd" i guess? Was becasue his dad designed it by himself without any reference.

[@caidenlipoth1247]

That was my thought as well.

[@rebekahbrickett2008]

Also The air temple has a lot of open space so fitting though small spaces was probably never a concern

[@shannonhensley2942]

Could also just not be able to bend his knees.

[@fennwenn3317]

The length of Teo's wheelchair does seem weird, but I think it makes more sense when you consider that the air temple has a lot of wide, open spaces and not as many tight corridors to maneuver around. Teo and his dad probably never needed to think about that design consideration.

[@KeepCalmContemplateYourChoices]

I always thought his legs got injured with debris from the flood, which is why he has the bandages and wheelchair

[@corneliahanimann2173]

As someone who is more into cars, with his legs extended the center of gravity can be lowered to be closer to the floor, which would actually give him more stability. I feel like the showrunners are beautifully taking care of 2 things at once that sometimes won't exactly cooperate. I watched the show once with a guy that studied aviation and I asked if he thinks the glider would work, and he pointed out that it might be too small and also said a few choices they made about the glider seem to be just for the looks of it and not just the usefulness of it. ATLA does this quite well, where they give things a environment/culture related design, but still do their best to give things a feel of reality and just enough that a regular person would go "wow this is so smart" and an actual engineer or professional in that area would say "no, technically you'd have issues" And the other thing is that they seem to live in a time where maybe these things couldn't be designed to their full potential as we nowadays do with cars etc.

[@elizaRose8900]

With the long wheel chair and the bound legs a thought accured to me . What of we are assuming the wrong injury. He got hurt in a flood as a baby. He was probably tossed around like a sock in a washing machine so What if his legs / hips where shattered rather than it being a spinal injury. How would his father in that situation care for that damage in a baby. A baby who is screaming and wiggling and making the breaks worse because he doesn't know better . He would have to bind his legs together in his best attempt to realline and stableize the bones. Which probably didn't heal well. Perhaps even healing in a way that keeps him from bending his knees , i mean it's not like they have physical therapy for all the joint and muscle damage that would have also accured. That could be why his legs and his chair are like that

[@theBeastcub]

This makes perfect sense.

[@theBeastcub]

A baby with broken hip and leg bones certainly would require very specialized difficult care to heal correctly, possibly care more advanced than the world of Avatar even had.

[@AnnekeOosterink]

@@theBeastcub Or, if it could be healed it would require the skills of a waterbender who can also heal, and waterbenders are inaccessible for anyone not already at the north pole.

[@cultofthebloodgod429]

@@AnnekeOosterink I don't think water healing would work on shattered bones tbh and if it did how would they properly align his little baby legs so that they could heal them without having bone fragments healing in a weird way that would either stop him from moving his joints completely or it being incredibly painful to move them

[@od3910]

@@cultofthebloodgod429 that's true. It seems like water bending is great for rehabilitation and physio

[@arachnits]

while i'm glad that teo is good disabled rep, it makes me sad that hes one of the few characters in a wheelchair that i can name off the top of my head who has a strong and memorable presence in the story. maybe its just because i need to explore more good content that feature them? but like i'm glad that this is one of the good examples i can use, because not only does it show how that no matter the setting, you can include disabled characters even when take place in the distant past, because its a fantasy world and theres no excuse why they cant be treated equally because we know that they have the technology. it shows that you can insert disabled characters into any narrative or setting even when it 'doesn't seem realistic'. well disabled people exist, and if you cant think of a way to write them in where they don't constantly suffer or aren't supported by the setting as normal, then you probably aren't thinking hard enough.

[@TechBlade9000]

As long as wheel and axle level tech exist no excuse for saying disbaility support is unrealistic

[@renaigh]

the idea that Historical Disabled People weren't cared for at all is a Modern Myth perpetuated by reductionists.

[@bobtheball5384]

The only other character I can think of would be Helen from Sonic x, I'm unsure if that's good rep since I was very young watching the show, but I do remember really liking whenever Helen appeared.

[@peggedyourdad9560]

@@renaigh Yep, I’m pretty sure there’s even archaeological evidence suggesting even cave people cared for their disabled community members.

[@cultofthebloodgod429]

I always assumed that the reason Teo's legs were constantly bandaged is because the injury the mechanist was referring to was more his legs getting crushed by falling debris from the fire nation burning his home down

[@87andRisetmntfan]

I think Teo’s chair is designed to be more like a race car/go cart, and so has the high seat to be ‘car safe’, and the long length to let him go faster. It’s not designed to be too safe because he likes to live dangerously. I think he’d rather take a bit of discomfort (he’s probably gotten used to), turning issues, etc., if it meant he could live his dream of doing extreme stunts. If you’re driving at a fast pace you lean into the turns, which are big. And there is no sharp turns. I think the reason he didn’t update his chair was shown in the ep. where he has to fix his brakes. He was never going to stop doing his fast stunts. (Also who needs to turn on the ground well when you can summer-salts in air I guess? XD )

[@syrusangi8743]

Not to mention he has shown to be capable of lifting his lower half on his own to gain more moment to rude as seen when he was with Haru n the Duke, so he may not have have much problem maneuvering around tight corners albeit with a bit of help depending on the circumstances

[@kaitlynboss3497]

I think realistically he would have had a wheelchair for ground life and that one for air life. Considering how much time he spends up there I would say it's believable that they'd go through the trouble of having a specialized chair.

[@liquidwood4064]

the bandaged legs might also be a fantasy take on compression socks! they are really impractical-looking though

[@chanterelle483]

That's a good take. If I recall correctly, bandages are used for compression, too (when compression socks aren't available).

[@Daily_life_With_liz]

good call mate

[@caminski4177]

The tape is very weird but I kinda think it’s a byproduct of the chairs design. His legs stick out really far but they also are on a very thin platform. Assuming Teo has no use of his legs at all (which is very common for characters in wheelchairs in shows) then it would be very bad if one of his legs fell off the chair. My head canon is that the tape is actually tying his legs in place on his chair. I assume it’s hooked into the chair underneath him and he can easily unhook when he needs out.

[@lahlybird895]

Unfortunately as a blind person I did not know he was in a wheelchair until I rewatched the series of audio description last year I love him now Mentioning it can have a bit of a downside

[@Crimson_Cheetah]

Can I ask where you watched ATLA with audio description? Last time I watched it on Netflix there was none, but that was quite a while ago so it could have changed. I’d love to experience the show with descriptions.

[@pie1o1morris46]

May I ask how you feel about Toph's representation?

[@lahlybird895]

@@Crimson_Cheetah I got it from the audiovault

[@lahlybird895]

@@pie1o1morris46 she is a very interesting case When I was young she was the only blind person I had so I of course loved her, though she was never my favorite character. There's a lot I didn't understand about the show back then. But I think I admired supered blind characters back then, probably because even little blind girls want superpowers at some point in there lives. Kinda like how I used to like the 'cure' story line as a child. Then I got older and realized how aweful the blind character with vision powers trope really was. This lead to a somewhat unfair anger directed at all such characters, which yeah included toph. Now I recognize the nuance of the characters involved. Firstly, no, toph doesn't represent today's blind people very well. We do not have vibration based super vision. That said... Well she IS allowed to be blind some times. Her blindness is never ignored or forgotten about in the show. Infact it's quite the opposite. The shows how being blind effects small things such as how she hates flying, can't put up posters, or can't catch airborne objects. Things most characters with this trope just sidestep. She also is not always powerful, her superpower can and HAS been nigated. Such as in the desert where she's more like someone who lost there glasses. Also in the water or when her feet are covered or burned. This works in two ways. On the one hand this could be considered an advantage because it means she's not super powered all the time and therefore the way Oakland would do it would be pretending that her senses in this field kind of act like excessive technology . On the other hand however this is also a disadvantage to representation because people with visual impairments blind people fully blind people cannot just turn sight on and off. She works functionally well though if you're going to make a superpowered site-based blind protagonist this is a better way to do it than some of the other ways. But like I said above when I made the comparison to the desert she works less as a character who's always blind and therefore the show would be about ways for her to cope and do normal things like a normal side person and she's more like a character with glasses who wears her glasses most of the time giving her strong sight throughout most of the show except in some episodes where this character would lose her glasses and has to deal with actually being blind. It doesn't quite work because she still blind about anything that isn't touching the ground so the analogy is kind of half there but half isn't maybe a character blind in one eye with glasses he still has a blind side I don't know ... I think the thing I hate most about her is everybody's assumption that she can't write. Yes I know Braille doesn't seem to be a thing in this universe and I know her parents were kind of awful ableist people who didn't want to teach her anything and I know that since her son doesn't extend to things she can feel that aren't made of Stone she probably wouldn't be able to read ... Not this world is full of carvings and engravings and statues and stuff so the fact that you wouldn't know what letters were shaped like kind of annoys me and even blind people can write without using Braille I've done it I'm not great at it but I've done it the fact that everyone automatically assumed she can't write despite this not being confirmed before that kind of always annoyed me and it does not help that they're right. I sort of wish she had more skills other than just being a powerful earthbender ones that shows how she's learned to deal with the world where she is still missing a major sense most of the time and in most directions other than down and out from the ground. So well not a good representation of blindness in general she is a pretty decently written blind character who gets the respect she deserves and is not completely ignored by the show itself and all that's about as good as we can ask for in a fantasy setting It's clear whoever is in charge of this stuff cared about making this part of her a part of her and actually making it matter and didn't just do it for cool diversity points or anything

[@pie1o1morris46]

@@lahlybird895 I see, thank you very much. 🙂

[@Zephirite.]

I'd love to see your take in Ming Hua from Legend of Korra. The creators were adamant that she was born without arms, not wanting to correlate her villainy with 'disfigurement' (but they have no issue tying her lack of arms to her mastery of waterbending..) There are jokes about her being the driver despite not having arms, and she only uses them in combat. Like the rest of the Red Lotus, she's even got some sympathetic quips. Fun fact: She's voiced by Gray Griffin! (Azula!!)

[@Zephirite.]

Usually I'd be miffed shows always feel the need to explain how/why a character's disabled, but it makes sense they'd clarify that Teo's injuries were caused by the war--especially since it explains his people's presence and dead mother.

[@ckl9390]

There's also the late-medieval/early-industrial technology level that they're working at. Trying to make Teo's chair fit that aesthetic may have influenced the design choices.

[@badideagenerator2315]

I'm pretty sure wheelchairs which resemble modern ones appear in the legend of korra, so the unusual shape is probably because of the technology available at the time.

[@Sly-Moose]

I never even realised the backrest was too tall for him. This is why talking about these types of things are important.

[@Radhaun]

as someone who doesn't use a wheelchair but has a difficult time using any chair that doesn't offer back support, I definitely wouldn't have thought of the range of motion problem. I've always thought wheelchairs without backrests looked uncomfortable because the idea of not being able to lean back and rest is exhausting for me.

[@redravenriot3650]

As a kid I always thought the full leg wrapping was because under there, his legs were just butched, all crocked from whatever injury he went trough. Gotta keep them together, like a cast. I dunno how much that would hold up, probably still not that much, no expert on this. But if it holds any level of merit then we might got someone who's in a wheelchair without a spinal injury, yay diversity!

[@flowerchild2496]

Also! If his legs are numb the wrapping might stop them from moving around and falling off the chair

[@horse14t]

@@flowerchild2496If that's the case could be extra protection too so that he doesn't get some kind of cut and have it get infected and potentially life threatening because he never knew it was there.

[@meihatsume1165]

I really love teo’s character! I’m so happy someone made a video about his characteristics 😁💜

[@Xaforn]

Always great to see a character with a disability with fantastic design. Definitely notice they aren’t as rare as they used to be.

[@brokenquill9277]

Actually Sokka does mention that his chair is cool

[@skyhideaway]

ATLA got so many things right - from cultural themes being portrayed so accurately to disabilities and chronic illnesses being shown in a realistic and positive light, and of course, characters just being amazingly written either way. I really like that even though healing is a thing in the Avatar universe, no one mentions "healing" people like Toph or Teo. Because healing is used as an aid for injuries, not disabilities. It's not used as a magical plot device to make a disabled person "whole" or "well" again.

[@jacobgoodisman7241]

I'm in a wheelchair myself, genetic neurologic condition, and I love this channel. I look forward to seeing more. The length of Teo's wheelchair never bothered me since he was the son of the inventor mayor of the town and could have important halls and turns widened. The house I grew up in is modified like this: maybe 3 major renovations later this house is kind of a prosthetic. That said, there are still places the wheelchair can't go and I imagine rooms Teo hasn't seen and doesn't want/need to get into. Its a neat aspect that 'rooms Teo can't get to' is a major aspect of the episode.

[@kamronthompson1499]

I thought tao's legs where heavly burned to the pount that he could not walk. That was my headcanon for why he had the bandeges

[@Daily_life_With_liz]

his home was destroyed in a flood, but idk how a flood destroys someone from the waist down

[@laylasalaam3371]

@@Daily_life_With_liz Ik its months later but, when the flood hit his home, he was a newborn. I know that newborns are known for having very weak necks that constantly need to be held. Due to this, many babies that aren't treated right or have had some accidents where their neck was thrown about, can have spinal injuries later on.

[@bingletime]

teo's wheelchair looks a lot like what a guy i know uses to go mountain biking! i think that's pretty neat :)

[@theBeastcub]

I always saw it as a cross between a wheelchair and an adaptive bike (the hand pedal ones that are low sitting tricycles with one's legs out in front alongside the front wheel)

[@FlamingSwordOfDoom]

re: wheelchair length it also looks like the air temple doesnt really have as many tight corners? it seems more circular. so maybe our modern architecture would be bad, but he's not swiveling

[@BlindStarLily]

As far as disabled characters go, I honestly prefer Teo to Toph. I’ll probably get a lot of flack for this, but being blind myself, I really don’t feel represented by Toph. I mean, I get it, she’s a powerful earth bender who can navigate the world with that, yada yada yada, whatever. But to me, that doesn’t feel like a good representation of what it’s like to be blind. Yes, I feel my way through the world the way she does. Yes, I am underestimated a lot and my parents are sometimes guilty of acting like I’m a fragile doll. But Toph to me feels the way Dare Devil feels. She’s a blind girl that can see, and that seriously bothers me a lot, especially because people tend to compare me to her for the soul reason that we’re both blind. Maybe it’s just me though, because I know two other blind girls around my age who love Toph. Personally though, I think she’s over idolized. Though I can definitely appreciate the blind jokes made throughout the show. Don’t worry folks, blind jokes are plenty fine to laugh at

[@Crimson_Cheetah]

That’s understandable. I personally really like Toph because her earthbending doesn’t negate her blindness entirely, and I can relate to her in many ways. But I completely share that pet peeve of blind characters having their blindness erased by a superpower and things like that.

[@BlindStarLily]

@@Crimson_Cheetah I just think I prefer it when a disabled character is, y’know… disabled. Don’t get me wrong, I love ATLA as a whole and think Toph is funny and all, but ehhh. I think the best blind representation I’ve found in media thus far is a character in the Miss Parigren series. There’s this blind girl named Lily who’s just a blind girl. She’s got good personality traits, she knows how to dress herself and do her hair (Which I can’t believe I have to even say as a plus), she uses a cane (A straight cane if I’m not mistaken, which is the same kind I use c: ). The only real problem I have with her is that she doesn’t use headphones with her screen reader, but that is such a minor thing compared to how well she was written. The cool thing about her too is that she’s best friends with a girl named Nor who can manipulate light. There’s this hideout that Nor has, and only Lily can navigate to it because all the light has been stolen from the area. Overall, I definitely prefer Lily to characters like Toph and Dare Devil

[@Crimson_Cheetah]

@@BlindStarLily Very much agreed, although I also think there should be disabled characters with magic and powers in media. There’s gotta be a way for that to exist without rendering their disabilities null. That character sounds great! I should check that out sometime.

[@BlindStarLily]

@@Crimson_Cheetah Oh absolutely it should happen. I find it completely ridiculous how every disabled character’s ability just, ‘fixes them.’ Gods, typing that made me feel icky. One example I like of magic not curing a disability is a character named Victoria in the Mystwick School For Musiccraft series. She’s a paraplegic, I believe paralyzed from the waist down, though it might be the knees. Either way, she’s just a cute side character in a wheelchair. Tbh she’s kinda like Teo now that I think about it, but she does have magic abilities. Then again, all the characters in the series do, but I digress. Victoria’s a fun character. I personally really like her and also how accessible the magic makes things. It doesn’t let her walk, of course, but it helps her out. For example, in the first book, there’s a scene where the characters are getting down from a large blimp via a ladder. Obviously, Victoria can’t climb down the ladder, so a levitation spell is used to gently lower her chair to the ground. I’m assuming it’s also how she got into the blimp. Heads up, if you do want to read about Lily, she’s a very minor role in the story and doesn’t show up until like, book five of six, so you’ve got a lot of reading to do, haha!

[@Crimson_Cheetah]

@@BlindStarLily That sounds lovely! I gotta start looking for more good disabled rep like that lol.

[@Inksanity]

The short backing on your wheelchair stood out to me due to the fact I have chronic upper back pain, I hadn't considered the way a full backing could harm the range of motion needed to push it.

[@emmaballantyne9937]

So, kinda grotesque but I always assumed that the wrappings were for burns on his legs, since alot of people were injured with burns because of the fire Nation. I also assumed that they were kinda, melted together? To add to the wraps. So yeah, a little terrifying to imagine, but that's what I thought the reason for the wraps were personally.

[@syrusangi8743]

I swear it hardly occurred to me that he was crippled at times. You don't really notice his disability before his personality shines through. Also, there's an armless waterbender in the Legend of Korra series albeit she's a side character n villain, she's a formidable fighter regardless bending water into make shift upper limbs while fighting her opponents so she ain't lacking whatsoever

[@egg_bun_]

I've never heard a SINGLE person talking about him, so thank you, finally!!

[@taylorgallagher2832]

I absolutely love Teo! He’s such an amazing character.

[@Zephirite.]

Could Teo's extra wheel and extended legs have been for stability? (Like a tripod) Or would that only make sense when he's flying? I guess he should've two separate chair designs.

[@evelynkrull5268]

The wheelchair and bandages make me think of a wheelchair of an almost-amputee i knew as he healed. They found that the circulation had resumed above the required threshold the literal morning of his scheduled double amputation. Anyway he had many pins in his legs and skin grafts, his legs couldnt bend in these pin braces so his legs were out similar to this, except elevated. He now is walking, though i dont know what lasting effects this may have left as I moved away from my hometown not long after his accident. Maybe (though I wish it was explained) the mechanist's accidents has ongoing effects in his son either via continued accidents or failed 'enhancements'

[@sandwichsketches]

Aang: flyings not the only think i can do, watch this! Teo:... :) Aang: *starts running on a wall*

[@farfetchedreality4767]

I didn't even realize Teo had a disability the first time I watched the show. Like I knew he was in a wheelchair and that he couldn't move without it but he just moved around so freely and my brain didn't register it.

[@EvilDMMk3]

When it comes to that ramp my wife was reminded of a saying she heard once “safety regulations are written in blood.“

[@janecowie3626]

about the weelchair size, you do have to considder that a air temple is generaly bigger than a house, though yeah he prolly hates corners

[@jailbreak-bob1670]

Aang & Teo Are Like Captain America & Falcon.

[@ToHoldNothing]

With this episode, my brain somehow remembers a 2000s animated series you could look into if you haven't considered it already: Pelswick. Lead is in a wheelchair, implied to be due to a car accident, and he generally doesn't let it get him down. I only saw a bit, but it seemed like a decent attempt at representation for 20~ years ago

[@anthonycrowley2264]

if you haven't already, you should do a video about Massimo Marcovaldo from Luca in regards to disability representation(I think he's pretty good representation myself)

[@cathycat4989]

I am not a wheel chair user, but I put a lot of thought into contingencies concerning my life. How would I continue to live if I became deaf? Brain damaged. When I get old? If a loved one becomes disabled. I feel like thinking about these things make them less scary. They're all part of life, changing in ways we can't control. That's good, but also sometimes bad, and scary, but also beautiful. It's a mix. We shouldn't hide disability, or sickness, or sex, or death as a society. Imagine if kids got to learn about these things in a more positive way. I'll bet people would be more prepared for big life/body changes whether those changes are puberty, illness, pregnancy, loss of a limb, etc. So I thought about what I would want a wheel chair to be like, and honestly... Do they come with cup holders? I need my coffee.

[@turma8eac]

Toph was so awesome

[@chanterelle483]

Thank you for this video, it's very informative and I am glad to hear your perspective. May I also add, I love the design of your avatar. Have a nice day!

[@ToHoldNothing]

And one that's probably much easier to cover in its entirety would be Lydia from the PBS series Arthur. I didn't get to those episodes until I binged through it in 2020~, but she's very fun, both in her introductory episode and the other 2 where she brings up how princesses are all able bodied (without using that exact expression) and similarly with a beauty pageant and some petty sniping that goes on, showing she's well rounded

[@germainelowpt7206]

I personally think that they wanted the wheelchair to be designed more for flying, showing that he love that so much that he is ready to navigated the world with less ease as long as he can fly the best. I am disabled myself and how many times did I have to explain that I don't want a generally optimal thing, but something that is optimal for what I consider important in my life . Like Teo, my health is not my top priority, and that is ok. We are to often considered like bad patient if we don't sacrifice everything for our health

[@moonfirechan7685]

If the live action remake gets rid of Teo I'm going to scream.

[@rolandjaycutter3504]

The 1 thing that always stood out to me about Teo's chair, how dose he turn with that wheel arrangement?

[@jayemover_16]

I highly doubt Teo's knees can bend, hence his wheelchair design. He also has the added helpfulness of the spaciousness of the Air Temples not making him unable to turn around. The bandages I can't really explain. Design choice, nothing practical.

[@emilyonizuka4698]

I was wondering if you'd ever consider talking about this trope that I swear is a thing, except I can't find it on tvtropes or think of any specific examples. I guess it's like disability/illness and spirituality. like the idea that people with disabilities or chronic illnesses tend to be more spiritually inclined. okay the only example I can think of is the novel tuesdays with morrie by mitch albom that I've read but am not a fan of, and I'm pretty sure there are better examples out there since that one is a terminal illness and not a chronic illness.

[@Zenala]

I'd love to know any opinions on the water girl from the Red Lotus! What do you think about her?

[@eldritch_moth3191]

Curious to hear your thoughts on the disabled rep in rouge one

[@sheleavitt06]

There was that mute character too with Jet’s crew.

[@theoddishmushroom1534]

He actually spoke once, however, I don't know anything about being mute, so maybe it's normal. Let me know!

[@gazelle_diamond9768]

Longshot wasn't really mute, he just... didn't speak ever since he lost everything to the Fire Nation, up until the Lake Laogai episode.

[@theoddishmushroom1534]

@@gazelle_diamond9768 Ohh okay. Thanks for the info!

[@Luvelyte]

Have you heard of yuki Yuna is a hero? What do you think of the way they handled disability?

[@neptune0740]

One thing I’m curious about though is, what is the difference between this flying wheelchair’s design being permissible versus others not being permissible? Just since I’ve seen a lot of discourse on if flying wheelchairs are okay to be designed in a fantasy setting. I don’t know much about avatar and I’m doing research on wheelchair design in fantasy so that’s why I ask.

[@Daily_life_With_liz]

me and my dad love Teo

[@hassanalkhalaf1115]

I'm curious to know your take on Fernando in the show 3%. He's in a wheelchair but it was revealed that his biggest wish isn't to be cured unlike other disabled characters in media

[@ritaerror7829]

Nice video, buuuuut... Maybe try to lower music volue? Or higher your voice? Your voice is a lot quieter than standard videos, and this won't be bad if other sounds weren't so loud...

[@ronjaj.addams-ramstedt1023]

Hey if you are still around, do you experience this problem also with Oakwyrm's newest videos? Asking because some 3 or 4 months ago (February-March 2022?), if memory serves, he talked about changing his voice audio setup, and my subjective impression is that the soundscape has been more even and sort of calmer since.

[@ritaerror7829]

@@ronjaj.addams-ramstedt1023 well, I don't think there still is this problem. Unconsciously I watched video about fairies and didn't even notice that it was the same channel... So probably it was tuned good.

[@DoremiFasolatido1979]

Yeah...let's ignore all the entirely irresolvable situations that that kid would've been in with that device and with others, and also the fact that for all its conflicts, the ATLA world is absurdly and impossibly idealistic. The ones living there would've helped that kid two or three times...and then they would've left him where he sat until he starved to death. Because humans are animals, not people. . I do love the show...but sometimes it just hurts my brain with how irrational and ridiculous it is.