The Avatar Live Action Has A Writing Problem (Part 1)

[@frostyflames7864]

"You're the Avatar! You need to learn how to bend all the elements!" Season 1, the live-action adaptation of Book One: Water. No instances of Aang learning water bending.

[@TheMainChannelViewer]

Damn, 😮 that is true I didn’t even notice how they completely ignored the learning the element.

[@andrewgarfield9898]

Don’t worry I’m sure he already learned it and mastered it as well……off screen💀remember this show is all TELL and don’t show 💀

[@babayaga9805]

Katara: You should practice water bending too. The avatar needs to master all 4 elements Aang: maybe later One eternity later....no water bending....end credit rolls

[@LuisSierra42]

@@babayaga9805 applause

[@Anonymous-yh4ol]

That's why it wasn't called Book 1: Water. It was titled Season 1. A choice that allows room for material to be borrowed from the whole franchise.

[@hanasong8296]

It’s really rough. The worst was when aang goes “i like to good around with my friends and eat banana cakes”. But they choose not to include the scene of them sledding on the penguin otters which would be much more effective in selling his character

[@LuisSierra42]

I was crawling with cringe while watching that scene

[@Dryltd]

But two sentences cost way less money. Producer note.

[@B-MC]

Writers: I like goofing off with my friends. Producers: NO. He wants to be the avatar, it's very important, this is war, it's very serious. No time for fun, just have everyone tell him he sucks as the avatar. "But the original was light-hearted and fun..." "Then make all of his friends reassure him with vague platitudes. Whatever. No time. He goes somewhere, they tell him he sucks, his friends tell him they love him, then move on."

[@BasicShapes]

He's shown goofing around with kids his age from time to time. Which...to your point...definitely means they should have cut that whole bit of dialogue. "I like to goof around with my friends!" is never, EVER what a kid says. It's always what the kid's mother says. A kid would say something like "I don't wanna do this, I wanna go outside and play!"

[@Stefan-xt5sk]

I don't want to be special. I don't want the power. Can't I just keep pretending like I'm your friend? I like to goof off with my friends. I'm scared to be alone... So much cringey exposition which could have EASILY been shown in actions instead of telling us in long, boring monologues that no actor could present naturally. That's the worst part in my opinion. It infects everything and the solution seems so obvious and simple.

[@BatAmerica]

It's frustrating that despite good ideas (Zuko going to Iroh's son's funeral), this storyline still falls into the trap of exposition over visual storytelling. It's funny how the animated Nickelodeon show had more mature storytelling than the live-action show for adults.

[@blackmanwithcomputer]

It's animated, and has more time to tell its story. Of course it's better a subtle and visual storytelling.

[@alejandrosanabria1100]

@@blackmanwithcomputerthe overall time is also the same.

[@ducky36F]

I don’t know why Netflix seems to think the audience needs every single little thing explained to them. It is annoying.

[@blackmanwithcomputer]

@@alejandrosanabria1100 is it? Animation allows for far more to happen faster than live action. More scenes can be done. Yes, the live action has some new scenes to fit the tone of this adaptation, but it still drags and has a bad script to dump exposition because they know they don't have the time to adapt all the information that's needed. The Sozin scene in the beginning never happened in the animated series, yet we didn't really need that to understand what happened. For some reason, they felt that it was needed in this adaptation.

[@LuisSierra42]

@@blackmanwithcomputer The Dune movie had to condense a gigantic book in less than 3 hours and there is very little exposition

[@BAVy11037]

In this show the characters just keep telling their backstories and reading off of their own character descriptions from the wiki. "I am Aang; I like having fun; I am scared of my own power; I don't want the responsibility; I don't want to be alone"

[@songerie846]

"...and I am going to save the world" x infinity

[@GoodChoicess]

"This isnt a sad thing" -Yuey Seriously.... she even had to explain the mood of the scene. So weak. Plus, it IS sad! SO sad! At least it was supposed to be....

[@MichelleStreisand]

“Did I mention I’m an incurable prankster? 😉”

[@GoodChoicess]

@@MichelleStreisand Ahahaha you know what, you are SO right. The script of this show really is of the same caliber as that play. At best.

[@the13throse]

at that point they're practically insulting the audience's intelligence by assuming they have less ability to understand storytelling and a shorter memory than children

[@FandomVerses]

I smacked me head when Katara was telling Aang that Sokka was in charge of the village since their dad left. Then Aang said "he must have had to grow up fast, huh?" Why can't they let a scene speak for itself? Such as of a scene where Sokka and Katara fight over he fact that their dad left him in charge and us as the audience come to that conclusion. (Like they did in the animated show)

[@MageBurger]

Someone in a YT comment I saw pointed out at the end of Zuko Vs Zhao how Iroh’s little joke at the end does more than just comedy. Iroh says to Zhao “even in exile, my nephew has more honour than you. Thank you for the tea, it was delicious” When they’re walking away, Zuko asks “Did you mean what you said” where Iroh responds “Yes. I told you ginseng tea was my favourite” On first reading, this could be understood as Iroh just focusing on something unimportant to be a funny character, but that’s inconsistent with what we learn of him much later. The YT comment I saw said that Iroh’s joke was meant to imply that Zuko’s honour was unquestionable, which makes perfect sense. Iroh essentially hit two birds with one stone in answering Zuko’s vague question by confirming the truth of his tea comment, thus implicating the honour comment as equally true.

[@Dryltd]

They had Iroh use tea as a diversion constantly. Which is why few rip his character but he is a seasoned actor. Giving these young kids tough lines though. oh boy.

[@Gadget-Walkmen]

well said.

[@gonaye1]

The Netflix show uses Exposition-Bending, an art form that is not-so-ancient (but is still rather underwhelming) 🧐

[@skadi5802]

Made my day 😂

[@r3dr4te963]

And looks like they're also terrible at using it

[@woops9076]

Oh my sweet summer child, exposition bending is as old as story bending itself.

[@citriosis]

I love these replies 😭😭

[@rossdavidson5122]

So little dialogue. Too much monologue. Like, every "conversation" was essentially trading monologues.

[@emulationemperor8924]

"You're going to be seeing a lot of Avatar content on this channel over the next few weeks". Rather than a warning or heads up, that sounds more like a glowing neon highway on ramp

[@LuisSierra42]

Expository dialogue exposed!

[@loloice401]

1:02 I hate how any reference to a nation or people gets boiled down to a synecdoche, referring to all of the Earth Kingdom as “the earthbenders” and later on when traveling to the North trying to prevent the attack Aang emphasizes “the waterbenders”. Non-benders exist too!

[@etienne8110]

Amon approves.

[@the13throse]

@@etienne8110 well he definitely wouldn't approve of this writing choice

[@MayhapsYes]

70% of the dialogue is exposition. 😮

[@kpimkpim349]

Like the cartoon?

[@Dell-ol6hb]

@@kpimkpim349 no?

[@pyrouscomments]

@@kpimkpim349 way more than the cartoon, less than the movie

[@4sh024]

Not all dialog is exposition. Dialog in itself can be entertaining. Just take Quinton Tarantino, Martin Scorsese, or Robert Zemekis movies for example. Some of the best dialog of all time can be seen in many of their films.

[@pyrouscomments]

@@4sh024 Tarantino is a great example, his characters start a tangent completely in character, and he quickly launches a full scene

[@p_kix]

Excellent analysis. It's incredible how a 20-year-old children's show trusted its audience more than the Netflix live action version.

[@the13throse]

A reflection of changing times, sadly. This is Avatar rewritten for a modern audience--one with extremely limited media literacy that needs every part of the story explained to them painstakingly. It'd be insulting if people didn't prove it necessary every day on the internet.

[@B-MC]

It's extremely strange to me that they clearly saw the movie and said 'we need to make sure the bending looks right' and 'we need to make sure character names are said correctly' and 'we need to give it more time so we can hit all the fan beats' but then said 'also make it more dire to justify the rush' "What about the poor dialogue?" "Keep it. I like when the guy said As You Know I Conducted A Raid On The Great Library. Do that with everything."

[@RedNiel100]

I disagree, I don't think it's nearly as bad as the movie. Just to take one example: Gran Gran's monologue pretty much reads as "As you don't know, but everyone else here does..."

[@B-MC]

@@RedNiel100 Fair enough, I don't think the show itself is anywhere near as bad as the movie, just plenty of the dialogue 😆

[@Zan_JM]

The showrunner actually said he purposely avoided watching the movie so it couldn’t influence his decision making. Maybe if he had, then he would’ve seen that the dialogue is similarly bad, though not exactly as bad. So he knew that fans hated the casting and VFX in the movie, but I guess he missed that the writing was horrific.

[@B-MC]

@@Zan_JM that's so weird, when a lot of what's good about the show feels like a direct response to the movie. Except the dialogue. I can see how they don't want to accidentally copy it, but maybe watching it would have helped them not monologue so much.

[@zionleach3001]

Some people actually seemed to like it. But I have no idea where Netflix is getting thier writers and audio guys.The One Piece writer had to watch them like a hawk, just so they wouldn't screw up.

[@couragecoachsam]

I only watched snippets of ep1, but when Aang goes to confide in Appa after being told what being the Avatar really means, I could not stop rolling my eyes. Instead of talking as a kid would, he kept self-diagnosing his feelings like a therapist (or writer who forgot to recontextualize the purpose of the scene into something the character would say from his own perspective). 🤦‍♂️

[@russellchung3119]

The worst example of this is when Gran Gran just goes into the intro of the OG show 😂

[@songerie846]

Yeah that was super cringe 😅 was she like a fake old lady too?

[@BooDotBoo]

That was SUPER weird, lol.

[@wulle8509]

What annoyed me most about that scene is, that this intro being a story within the world is a cool idea, but the execution was really weird.

[@Cityweaver]

I THOUGHT at first she was only going to say "Long ago we all lived in harmony.... And then everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked" because that would honestly be hilarious. The first sentence of the story is *just* conversational enough that a person could reasonably say it as dialogue. But then, she kept going.... Oh no... no.... The most painful thing about it, for me, is that it was Suicide Squad all over again. By the time Gran Gran was saying the speech verbatim, the show had already given a new speech at the intro AND they literally showed the Fire Nation attacking. Why are they explaining "The Fire Nation attacked" THREE times?!?!

[@Dryltd]

I thought Gran Gran was fine. They should have broke from tradition and didn't do the new one in the opening. Gran Gran was just saying a story people would tell over 100 years. The opening ruins Gran Gran's lines by making it repetitive exposition.

[@thefinalstair]

“My actual plan is to make a multi part series unpacking nearly all of the creative choices….” YES LETS GOOOOOO 🤩

[@stilloslachen6519]

YES

[@TheRibottoStudios]

I just recently rewatched _Titanic_ and you can really compare and contrast exposition in both pieces of media really well. In NATLA when Sozin is monologues it feels weird cause we know he's talking to us not the character. But when Thomas Andrews is explaining what will happen to the ship now that she's been struck by an iceberg, it isn't off-putting because Thomas isn't just talking to us but everyone in the room. You'd think the scene wouldn't work because we already had this when Mr. Bodine tells Rose how the _RMS Titanic_ sank in a clinical, foresnic way in the beginning of the film. But it WORKS because by now, we've gotten so sucked into the story, the reminder of how screwed half the passengers are from none other than the shipbuilder himself is a great "oh this is actually happening". Moment. It helps sink the stakes in rather than shove information down our throats.

[@AnonymousOnimous]

I've heard this called "As You Know" dialogue by Tim Hickson, AKA: Hello Future Me. The idea is that the dialogue has a Doylist reason (to inform the audience) but has no Watsonian reason (it makes no sense why a character would say this. Beyond dialogue, I think Savage Books has given us viewers a great reminder that everything should have at Watsonian reason (in-universe justification from the perspective of the characters like Dr. Watson) and not just a Doylist reason (out-of-story justification from the writers like Sir Author Cannon Doyle).

[@Rob-ql2wf]

This show is more cartoony than its source material... does that make sense? Yeah I think so...

[@RedNiel100]

Example?

[@austyn5004]

@@RedNiel100 bad dialog, flamboyant pristine always clean costumes

[@matityaloran9157]

@@RedNiel100I wouldn’t use cartoonish as an insult

[@TheMainChannelViewer]

The old saying: Less is more, they did to much, showed way to much, added more than what was needed, it wasn’t anywhere near as bad as MNight, but I understand why the og creators left the project, from what I remember.

[@robinthestate6548]

Mnight?

[@kylepangilinan9075]

@@robinthestate6548 The creator of the supposed Live Action movie that very clearly does not exist. There is no Live Action ATLA Movie in Ba Sing Se.

[@robinthestate6548]

@@kylepangilinan9075 I don't know what you are talking about. I've never heard of a live action movie. /s

[@mrbigglezworth42]

@@kylepangilinan9075 It's not really "supposed live action" it was, and it wasn't particularly good.

[@violetleporid]

I think possibly the most impactful example of this is how Aang's character was changed to be more serious and spend less time goofing off. In the original he was penguin sledding and surfing near Kyoshi Island, but in this live action, all we get are several instances of dialogue telling us how much Aang "loves goofing off". The overexplaining is also super painful in the finale when they are explaining why the Ocean and Moon spirits have physical forms. There was no reason they couldn't just keep the original story that they gave up their spiritual forms long ago, but instead we had to get this overcomplicated explanation of the "barrier being thin" and so they happen to only have physical forms for this one day. I could go on about so many other things but I'm sure you'll get to them in your future videos, and I agree that I liked the show overall and I think several of the changes were positive changes, particularly in context. Can't wait for the next part so I can rant some more 😅💕

[@davismorgan99]

The example of the air temple avatar state was so powerful. Hearing Aang’s cries is so heartbreaking. You immediately understand why he’s so upset and the immediate shift into the avatar state is super impactful.

[@SnagTheRabbit]

In the show, when Katara asks Aang why he didn't tell them he was the Avatar and Aang replies "because I never wanted to be," you don't have to imagine why he doesn't want to be the Avatar. It's clear that Aang is just a child wants to be a child, not someone who has this immense responsibility on their shoulders. But in the Netflix version, Aang just straight up states out loud all the reasons he doesn't want to be the Avatar like he's reading them off a list. Instead of the cartoon slowly building up to that moment like in The Storm where all of Aang's guilt and frustration comes out, they just have him say out loud how he's feeling and immediately accept it. Almost all the writing is just character/worldbuilding exposition. Another moment that just rings so hollow is how they handled Monk Gyatso and his death. In the show, you see Monk Gyatso in flashbacks after you already know he's dead. That's why it so bittersweet and heartbreaking to see him goofing around, playing pranks and being a mentor to Aang because you know he's long dead. And you can see how Gyatso was Aang's only real friend and source of wisdom. But what happens in the Netflix version? Gyatso just spouts exposition, and then says "you're my friend" to Aang before dying. That moment just made me cringe so hard because of how god awful the writing was. Instead of showing Aang and Gyatso being friends, they literally force Gyatso to tell Aang he's his friend, then nothing else happens. How do you dumb down the writing so badly in your "adult" adaptation of a children's cartoon?

[@nunouno001]

The TV show basically has the same core problem as the movie because it makes the same mistake of trying to condense an entire season into a format and structure it was never designed for. Avatar: The Last Airbender was written as an episodic tv show where every episode has a self contained beginning, middle, and end; but there’s still an overarching serialized story that is built up as every episode also acts as building blocks to the various climaxes. Trying to adapt that structure to a 2 hour film or an 8 episode mini series just isn’t going to work because the story of Avatar: The Last Airbender wasn’t designed to be experienced in that way. If you’re seriously going to remake the story of Avatar: TLA, you have to redesign the entire story from the ground up so it works with this new format or tell an original story that isn’t obligated to follow the same beats and structure of a show made before streaming services changed all the rules of how we consume television.

[@jonevansauthor]

It's basically the same length though. ;)

[@nunouno001]

It’s not about length of time, it’s about story structure. Those are NOT the same things. Both shows might be around the same time wise, but one show was designed to be an episodic TV show where every episode had a self contained story with a beginning, middle, and ending that built an overarching serialized plot that was meant to be watched weekly during old TV seasonal blocks. The other show is a mini series with a single continuous ongoing narrative that acts as a 8 hour movie split into bit sized pieces so you can binge the show in one go. This is the story structure equivalent of shoving a square peg into a round hole and why the live action show has so many issues with adaptation, exposition, and pacing; because the writers are telling the story of Avatar in a way that it was never designed for. If you really want to remake Avatar, you can’t just adapt its story. You either have to adapt its original structure or you completely rework the story from scratch to work with the new steaming model format. The writers tried to blend the two together and did a bad job. Again, it’s not about time, it’s about how you use time to construct/pace your scenes and structure them in relation to each other.

[@125loopy]

The biggest mistake is the same in both: adapting a perfectly told story.

[@_tideaina]

Totally agree. It made some episodes feel slow while others were rushed and bursting with side characters

[@Stew91]

@nunouno001, That's not the issue at all. Avatar season 1 with 20, 20 minutes episodes and the Netflix series with 8 50 minute episodes are around the same length. The problem was the execution.

[@moonlegend101]

Thank you for making this video and pointing this out! I didn't notice the weird dialogue at first when i started watching, but by the time that Aang was expositing all of his fears about being the avatar to Appa instead of it being shown, I could tell something was really off. It's a shame that the dialogue felt so unnatural, because it really did feel like the actors were putting their heart into their lines.

[@snowshock8958]

Yeah I am glad that KZbinr has the decency of not wrongly blaming the actors but instead pintpoint the actual culprit writers, producer and director. Hopefully his video get a lot of views.

[@joshdunne8792]

"Piss poor script".. thank you.. I've seen pretty much universal praise more 9/10 10/10 imdb reviews than anything below an 8/10. And one other KZbin video pointing out the massive problems from Hello Future me. Also I'm in a Facebook group where again 99% of posts and comments are "It was great" "I loved it so good" and i have seen 1 other person post criticising the writing and even then the post was mostly positive. I've been driven crazy watching a few minutes at a time because everytime a character speaks I'm enraged and then i see the public opinion and I'm sad because others are enjoying it and i want to enjoy it but i HAAAAAAAATE IT

[@TheDanishGuyReviews]

I've only seen reviews and opinions of it from KZbin, and the kindest thing I've seen 15 different people say about it was "underwhelming".

[@dumberdummer]

The KZbin discourse has been wholely negative from my end so that's surprising. Maybe the folks who just want something on the TV aren't looking for a deep analysis.

[@ShesquatchPiney]

May the algo-gods bless you in these troubling times. The irony of making this "more adult" by over explaining every character and plot beat is delicious.

[@LaneMaxfield]

This actually reminds me of another adaptation: A Wrinkle in Time. The trailers looked gorgeous and as a long-time fan of the books, I thought a lot of the casting choices were inspired, especially Storm Reid as Meg. But when I watched it, the dialog just didn't trust the audience. Every bit of information needed to be spelled out, every emotional moment needed to be explained, and then, because they weren't sure 100% of the audience got it, they had to re-explain it and sum up the explanations. It killed a project I was genuinely excited for.

[@DSS712]

The way Aang goes into the avatar state at the air temple is evidence of the first major writing issue (telling over showing, as you explain) but the way he EXITS the avatar state evidences the second major writing issue of this show - an inability to create or utilize relationships between individual characters. In the original, Aang calms down as a direct result of Katara's presence - his heart broke when he realized he no longer had a community, and his heart was mended by finding a new community in Katara and Sokka. In the new series, Aang simply calms down on his own through a random flashback of the person who died. Not only is this problematic because it completely misuses what is meant to be the moment that solidifies the core character connection of the whole series, but it is also problematic because it follows a recent dangerous trend of glorifying independent strength while demonizing the strength that is built through relationships and vulnerability. In a way, this second issue is very related to the "telling not showing" issue. After all, if the writers want to show characters who are simply strong as individuals, it makes sense that dialogues are all written as if they were monologues - these characters arent meant to be able to bounce off one another amd be vulnerable with one another. The Aang that calms himself out of the avatar state through sheer willpower and thought aligns pretty perfectly with the Aang from the beginning of the episode who is monologueing to Appa, articulating his feeling and identity with flawless, accurate articulation.

[@marshallscot]

This show blows its load way too early every time. Finding out about Sozin's Comet in the fucking intro no less when this is supposed to be a reveal for later, explaining how it was even possible for the Fire Nation to kill all the Air Nomads.

[@kremit_frog4031]

Yeah, it doesn’t even feel like they planned for the future seasons. They ruined so many future plot points just to have bad writing anyway

[@songerie846]

If you haven't, check out Jessie Gender's analysis of the themes of the new show. I feel it might compliment your work. Thanks for a great video, looking forward to the others!

[@SHLVideos]

Anybody else distracted by how silky smooth this guy's voice is? And his enunciation is so sharp and on-point; I feel like George Takei is talking to me.

[@alicepbg2042]

I could listen to him all night

[@goldenretriever1528]

lmfaoooo i was just thinking "i bet this guy can sing really well"

[@_tideaina]

I need him to publish a book on writing and record an audio version himself

[@TheNicMMc]

I wonder if it’s due to the writers being so afraid of audiences’ misinterpretation or maybe it’s evident of how insecure they are not understanding the material themselves? Almost like a defensive flex when making a character explain something vs showing in the show.

[@dw1419]

I read somewhere that most modern TV shows are made with the assumption that people are going to be half paying attention to them and half scrolling on their phones at the same time, and I can’t stop seeing evidence to support that proposition everywhere.

[@mrbigglezworth42]

@@dw1419 When the content itself isn't worth your entire attention of course people aren't going to give it their full attention. It's a self-fulfilling problem that older shows didn't have. Older shows that have been getting more popular as people want to watch entertaining media and not half-baked drivel.

[@dw1419]

@@mrbigglezworth42 no disagreement here

[@SozioTheRogue]

I hated the open palm fire bending and Aang flying. Nothing pissed me off as much as those two aspects. Frustration with little bit is what I felt all throughout but it was more frustrating due to there being so many good parts too. Just sooo many meh ingredients to make a mixed bag of blah shosh

[@eloryosnak4100]

Another super easy fix to the "all of them" issue (imo) Would be to instead drop the "they dont know how many people" But instead could have, "How are we going to host *all* of the air nomads?" Panning shot "We'll just find a way" (Im not an avatar fan, so if that doesnt make sense fair, but i think the concept is sound)

[@FandomVerses]

I think that was too explain why there were women there.

[@eloryosnak4100]

@@FandomVerses Tbf I think if thats unusual my conceptual might still work, just shifting it a bit

[@zabi_aka]

I like your version better, the og question itself was so out of place, i almost wish they did something entirely different. Like for example, Gyatsy asked if the preparations by junior monks were done, aang said not yet why are you asking, and then we see the bysons flying in, and then the natural response would be "then you'd better run and help" or something along the lines

[@mylittlethoughttree]

Great video! Glad it's not just me that felt that way. I too liked a lot of the changes they made and saw there was great potential, only for the writing flaws to hinder most of them

[@douglaswolfen7820]

Exposition defeats the point of even watching the show, half the time. A good set up ought to have us asking questions. What event is happening? Who's coming? Was that _all_ the airbenders? The show should make us curious about these things, then it'll be satisfying when they're answered later

[@MrSteezewithease]

Loved your take! I appreciate that it's pointing out the limitations while not adding to the frenzy of negativity. I'm sure you'll get to this but I look forward to hearing your thoughts on their changes to time spent developing characters (Zuko up big time, a full dedicated episode?? Katara down to zero)

[@Dryltd]

Glad no Katara. That actress was struggling she would have been crucified if she had to carry a whole episode.

[@dw1419]

Ok but isn’t the solution to hire a better actress rather than give up on the character?

[@pavarottiaardvark3431]

It felt like there were a bunch of moments where they featured things from the show, but didn't seem to grasp *why* they mattered.

[@Dryltd]

That's what I am talking about just change a couple words here and there and it changes exposition to a reasonable conversation people have about past and current events.

[@OMGFrijoles]

The character cards should read Exposition Bro #1, Exposition Bro #2, and Exposition Bro #3.

[@AbisexualCarpenter]

Also I deeply dislike the idea of the fire nation doing the fake attack on the earth kingdom, because it makes the genocide of the air nomads seem more like tactics than just murdering a bunch of monks just to prove their superiority. They also make the genocide into a cool battle, a spectacle instead of just a tragedy

[@RedNiel100]

"Seem more like tactics" Sozin in the original literally said he exterminated the air temples to kill the next avatar, so it was always a tactical move.

[@dragonslayer3552]

6:11 yeah that's not a problem specific to this show... It's a problem with all modern media not only shows and movies but also video games, for some weird reason they all feel they need to tell you SO MUCH and explain even the most obvious things like the audience is stupid Like bro I'm actually sick of that just let me use my brain and think for myself I'm not brainless

[@blueflare3848]

“Show, don’t tell” is literally one of the first things you learn as a writer. That, and trusting your audience to piece things together on their own. It’s wild to me how many modern TV shows and movies ignore these rules.

[@dw1419]

I read somewhere that most shows these days are made with the assumption that people going to be distracted by another screen like a phone or tablet while “watching” and so they feel the need to dumb them down to an extreme degree. :/

[@dragonslayer3552]

@@dw1419 I wouldn't be surprised if that's actually their mindset

[@christophergarrett7082]

Another great example is the blue spirit episode. Aang asked zuko hey you think we could have been friends that's it.

[@ellentheeducator]

There's a lot of moments that would have worked out great by adding a line or two. Like, that first bit where Sozin is explaining his evil plan - "So why tell me all this? Just to gloat? Rub it in that I failed?" "Of course. You're going to die today. Don't you want to know why?" Sozin is now a particular kind of bastard. Not just generally evil, he's proud and showy and cruel. The kind of man that would organize a genocide in a single night.

[@treefairy42]

thank you for this!!!! this is my biggest issue by FAR with the live action and so far i havent seen anyone actually dive into it- most other analysis/reviews are much more big picture and honestly, the big picture is fine! i think putting jet and the mechanist in omashu was generally a good way to condense those stories and i loved the addition of zukos crew being the division he spoke up against sacrificing. the scene when he gets back to the boat actually made me tear up a bit. its just frustrating that in order to get to these little bits of gold you have to wade through endless lore dumping (the worst offender in my opinion being gran gran, seriously why does every adaptation make her some all knowing lore master) editing to add: omashu wasnt all good ideas though,,, the cave of 2 lovers not including aang was very weird and it does not bode well for the future of kataang in this version sigh

[@zabi_aka]

I'm ok with kataang not being there at all. It was kind of random in the anime inho

[@awsome182]

I also don't mind if they skip the entire Kataang plotline. I was never a huge fan of it in the original. Also, they didn't lead up to it in this first season at all. And Aang really appears so young. In a cartoon you can excuse this a bit, but in live action, it feels wrong to set up 12yo Aang with 14yo Katara.

[@treefairy42]

@awsome182 i dont mind kataang not happening either especially this season i just think moving the cave of 2 lovers to s1 was a weird choice in general and kinda necessitated not including aang for the reason you brought up so i just dont understand why they did it

[@shinkaiatsuya950]

I do agree that the show did feel too in your face about saying what was happening or inserting a flashback rather than showing. Did like your takes on how to fix some of the off choice writing.

[@cheesydawg371]

I tried the first half of episode one and gave up after the seemingly endless stream of telling and no showing. I plan to watch it with my dad soon who is a huge Avatar fan. Hopefully that'll make the experience more bearable.

[@JoshuaHopkins-j9o]

One of many issues with this show... and a personal issue for me... is the destruction of Sokka. He is the engine that drives the entire animated version. Not just from a viewers perspective... but it's so intentional that the writers actually acknowledge it numerous times "in universe" as the show goes on. He is the grounding force. One of the narratives prior to the release was that they would "dial back" he sexism... and you could see it in the complete 180 that they tried to pull with the Kyoshi arc. The show runners completely miss the point. Wouldn't it have been cool if he showed up all arrogant and superior with his manhood... then got put in his place by a bunch of girls... and then maybe learned a valuable lesson and humbled himself... potentially even forming an organic connection with a recurring character for future episodes... someone should have tried that. One of a billion examples why "made for modern audiences" always misses the point

[@Δ-Δ-Δ-Δ]

This channel has grown so much. It had like 20.000 subscribers when I subscribed myself and now it has 300.000. Congratulations!

[@Drahko12]

agree on your point, I feel the writing/script is in constant battle with itself on what the screenwriters wanted this show to be and the themes. I managed to reach to episode 7 and i could not finish with the last episode lol. I just could not do it the Katara fight in the live action was devoid of soul and the theme of the original animated show regarding her fighting against the rules of a patriarchal society. The live action one had none of this and it felt empty, only the visuals kinda made it cool but the animated one to me was better. The episodes of the spirit world was also lame, I don't know how the writers missed the point of that arc. There was also the lovers cave too, is just so many things that ruin the spirit of the original show because the writers either don't care or are incompetent in understating the original show. Could also be netflix execs trying to appeal to an audience that doesn't exist and carter them by removing themes they though were insensitive like Sakka's original arc regarding sexism or Katara's arc etc. I don't know, is sad because I think really the actors where the true MVP's that kept me watching up to ep 7, they really capture in their own way the characters it just their lines were mostly bad, in no way the actors fault.

[@mbibeau4635]

Gran Gran trauma-tanking exposition to Aang in somekind of lecture to the whole Water Tribe. My suspension of disbelief took quite a hit right there.

[@snowshock8958]

Yes please do it for all the episodes. The actual writers for s2 need it. I wanted the adaptation to be good. And so it is so frustating and sad that it was just meh. Just having them follow the "show don't tell rule" would have easily made the live action better.

[@nathanrohde3440]

Also they took away Gyatso's pile of bodies. For a pacifist the man was a badass.

[@Lifelight_]

Netflix does not know how to properly adapt an anime to live-action, Cowbow Bebop is proof of this because there were also entire minutes dedicated to an event that in the anime only took a few brief moments to tell. Typical case of better showing instead of telling. I will only say that once I finished watching the season I understood why the creators abandoned the project due to creative differences and confirmed that once it happens that is a sign that you should lower your expectations. The moment Kishimoto leaves the production of the live-action Naturo movie I'm out of there.

[@TheJadedJames]

I’m still mystified by the fact that we have a good One Piece adaptation but a **** tier Cowboy Bebop adaptation. Cowboy Bebop should be one of the easiest things to adapt

[@vikuse4e4ka]

@@TheJadedJames One Piece was good because Oda supervised everything

[@lucariosom1267]

@@TheJadedJames Thats only because Oda personally supervised it. The saving grace and the only thing that saved it from becoming the usual Netflix adaptation crap.

[@TheJadedJames]

@@lucariosom1267 Yeah, with Cowboy Bebop and Avatar The Last Airbender, I seriously questioned whether or not the writers of the live action even liked the original version because their changes went so far beyond “We need to change X to fit into a new format” & felt like they were trying to fix a beloved classic television show

[@blueflare3848]

@@TheJadedJamesExactly. They literally took one of the easiest animes to adapt and still fucked it up. It’s absolutely wild to me.

[@Calebgoblin]

Well said I don't think I'm gonna bother watching the show when I could just watch the old one again, but I'm glad to hear fair and balanced information about the adaptation regardless.

[@GoodChoicess]

I couldn't agree more, great video. Personally, I think the worst offense of this is when they had Yuey say "This is not a sad thing". Had to take a break after that one.

[@singvang1247]

OMG I'm so glad someone else sees these issues too. Can't wait to get your take on the Blue Mask episode. The exchange between Aang and Zuko post rescue really missed the mark! There's so much verbal diarrhea that it killed the moment compared to the way the animated version handled it.

[@adamferkovich8443]

I feel like anytime there was more than one actor on screen sharing the scene it felt less expository and more of a conversation, half of Yue's lines about being the touched by the moon spirit is pulled word for word from the animated show, but because it's her speaking to the camera and not Iroh pointing it out to her the scene feels clunky, like kids performing in a recital.

[@Claego]

I went into the show not expecting anything, and I really enjoyed it. Now, usually I'm very critical of new shows and movies that come out since Disney started putting out crap a few years ago but this time I legitimately enjoyed Netflix's Avatar and I'm just about done listening to critics bashing it. You're free to have your opinion, but frankly, I enjoyed it, and nothing can tarnish that. It was a [very] good show to me 7/10

[@nigelgreen9369]

Interesting, season one of the TV series was 23 minutes (including credits) and 20 episodes in length or 460 minutes or 7 and 2/3 hours long. In comparison, the live action was 8 episodes at 53 minutes, 424 minutes or just over 7 hours long. Both cover the same ground, however one focussed on a straight cut in terms of story, the other concentrated more on the world building with fewer exposition dumps. Given the amount of time is barely different, there really isn't an excuse for the 'tell not show' approach and perhaps that is why the original series creators and the director/producer of the live action parted ways. Hopefully they take this criticism and become better writers as there is plenty of good stuff to work with.

[@dw1419]

you can also have the characters progress a lot more in twenty 22 minute episodes that have a beginning, middle, and end, lessons learned etc. Vs eight hourlong episodes that often are a barely cohesive mush of events to get from point A to point B while including “ ‘member berries”

[@losttessa6998]

Just discovering your channel, you have a great voice! Belongs in commercials or narrating audiobooks or something

[@Halcon_Sierreno]

Can't wait to see YOUR series. 😊

[@santan546]

U are truly amazing. As a super fan,, your breakdown makes so much sense. And I agree with it all.

[@IncandescentWriter]

I literally said something like all this to my cousin right after the first episode. It's a sad thing to see.

[@Coufu]

Came for the ATLA review. Staying for the voice. Can’t wait for your more in depth analysis

[@ggiuliacosta]

LOVE YOUR WORK AND YOUR VOICE

[@BaldAndCurious]

So what was the writer's strike all about? Do they deserve what they got from the deal?

[@stuff4007]

If they wanted to adapt the live action for adults, they should have picked up with the characters AFTER the events of the cartoon! Power vacuums, new threats... At least we're getting that in the movie. But my gosh.

[@awsome182]

Exactly. They could have taken the plot from the comic books which play after the tv show and make a show about them. So they also could have casted older actors for the main characters. The actor for Aang is so young and really not a good actor.

[@henrywayne5724]

Oh, the algorithm is algorithming!!!!

[@FandomVerses]

The original show was a master class in introducing a new character in such a way you know what they are about with very little explanation or exposition.

[@adrianhartz24]

I want to love the show so much, but it has too many flaws that makes it hard to watch without getting bored... aside from the dialog problem, the pacing is too fast... and too many exposition... i think they should've take their time also give the actor a room to bond and build their personality/character... Sokka should've been more witty and hilarious, katara too gloomy and passive, aang's easy going nature feels too forced... still better than the m.night shyamalan avatar tho...

[@JaiTheCameron]

I feel that even with the bad writing some seasoned actors were able to carry their roles exceptionally well Ken Leung as Zhao for instance his scenes stood out the most and were more memorable to me.

[@henrymockingbird9645]

Even though I like the Netflix live action avatar the last airbender even I can admit that the writing is very exposition heavy and some areas I get it’s for viewers who are new to avatar the last airbender but that doesn’t make it any less annoying when it happens

[@henriquenakamura5752]

The writing in NATLA feels like late-season GoT. Somehow both rushed and slow.

[@ninthmetaphor2760]

This! I was having trouble putting to words what I didn't like about it.

[@Cloud7050]

I would like to see a breakdown like that because I can't help but feel things are off with the show, but I don't know nearly enough to be able to put my finger on it.

[@AmericanIlluminati]

That Yue explaining she’s the moon spirit scene was almost 1for1 from the cartoon.

[@AmericanIlluminati]

The live action has major flaws, but the complaints people are making be losing me.

[@zabi_aka]

I'm watching in Korean dub, and some of the dialogue was smoothed out compared to even koreans subs. Like in the dub Aang says i just want to stay friends with you, not 'keep pretending to be friends', and it definitely felt more natural. Of course they can't do much with the material they were given but I appreciated the effort

[@Funkin_Disher]

Oh youte gonna do a deepdive into Avatar? Might want to get in touch with Overanalyzing Avatar and collab.

[@DanCreaMundos]

well this was destined to happen, they needed the big public to be able to understand it, it wouldn't be profitable to only focus on the fans of the original series, that's what probably motivated most of the exposure and differences from the original

[@CDProjekt7]

You’re videos are very good, informative 😁

[@Dyrnwynn]

Its a very mixed bag. There's a lot of clunky exposition, half the dialogue is mediocre or even poor. Some things are repeated far too many times, and the pacing only flows well maybe half the time. However, there's a lit if good and a few great buts as well. Most if the actirs are decent to great, and most of the few that were sub-par seem to be earnestly trying and have the potential to get better. As for story changes, most if them I at least understand why they did it, and a few tweaks/ additions are genuinely excellent. The funeral for Lu Ten was good, and Zuko's ship crew being part of the regiment Ozai was going to sacrifice in the assault on the Earth Kingdom is a brilliant idea. The one change that I just cant get behind at all, and is *so* bad I'd deduct an entire point (out of 10) for: Aang never even tries to learn any Waterbending the entire season. Just...nothing. Nope. That doesn't work, sorry. I enjoy the show overall despite some serious flaws because it has genuine heart and an earnestness to it, but how did they think that made any sense?

[@TheShackTrack]

I think this is one thing that live action shows or real life acting shows in general do, they have a lot of exposition where it’s just telling and the dialogue is never organic

[@seatheparade]

Yes, exactly this! The show had heart and good moments esp with showing the weight of war and zuko & iroh's story, but sadly the extremely tell-not-show issue is too glaring. Overall it was an enjoyable watch but tbh I've other issues with the LA show apart from the over-expositionary dialogue. The fundamental change of Aang not actually running away that is genuinely confusing for me because the show's focus on the cost of war would fit so well with that. Aang's guilt would feel more earned. Maybe they changed it so the audience would feel even more bad for aang, but I think a child being made to hold the world together against colonialism and war is enough for viewers to feel for him. In fact maintaining aang intentionally running away that would make gyatso's speech in ep5/6 feel even more heartfelt. I feel this way about Katara's passion and rage being omitted and sokka's flaws don't feel strong enough so I worry the characters' growth won't feel as rewarding since they start out well adjusted already. Some parts they follow the animation too closely but those don't fit the tone the LA show is trying to go for so it feels disjointed. I do love a few changes the LA did tho, like zuko's crew being the fleet he was defending and the thematic combination between the mechanist and jet's story.

[@beyondthetale3512]

It is a pretty big red flag that the show starts off with 2 minutes of monologue-exposition by Sozin, and then followed by a scene which explained to us the exact same things, but this time in the classic avatar intro style. You would think explaining things once would be more than enough

[@onikaconstantine8861]

Yes, I really love live-action Avatar The Last Airbender netflix series.💕☺ 10/10❤❤❤❤

[@youngtydiscgolf]

I’m subscribing to you purely bc of this video! Loved it, you explain why I hate the writing in this show 🤣

[@TheNerdWithASuit]

I'm reminded that supposedly we are getting a live-action adaptation of She-Ra from Amazon, and I can't wait until we get a grey-looking washed out stale piece of gruel with no rainbows and instead of dives into the themes of abuse, insecurity, altruism vs individualism, and friendship with amazing characters like Adora, Catra, Glimmer, Bow, Hordak, Entrapta, etc. we get a bunch of exposition and needless scenes of sword action where you get to see blood this time. Oh yaaay.

[@Mcaark]

I'm not going to pretend like I don't fall into the same trap of excess exposition in my own writing. It takes conscious effort to overcome bad habits and produce captivating story telling... But I'm also unpublished, still on my first draft of my book, and not a fully produced Netflix series...

[@Victoria-_]

This is the EXACT same problem the live action PJO show had

[@JesseBakerH]

Avatar the last exposition explainer

[@allright8054]

I was going into it thinking it cant be that bad. Only took the first scene to be like damn, that is bad.

[@technicaldeathmetalhead]

Am I the only ATLA fan who actively does NOT want to see the live action? I think if a medium can't add to a work of art why add to it? What can they add that animation that's an actual passion project couldn't? Maybe I'm just a bitter old man shouting at the wind but I hate cash grabs in an otherwise awesome universe. I might pirate it though because the casting looks amazing and the worldbuilding (a massive part of the animated series' draw) does look amazing.

[@BirdNoise77]

You're not missing much. You're right about the casting though. The actors kill it, they all deliver their lines beautifully and with passion. It's just that their lines are shit.

[@edgbarra]

​@@BirdNoise77mm I didn't like so much aang's acting

[@ducky36F]

I wasn’t going to watch it, I only did because I was feeling sick and needed a distraction 😂😂 It honestly, is just very middling, it isn’t movie awful and has its moments, but it does over explain every little thing and has some changes that are just weird.

[@malek015Ai]

@@edgbarra Katara actress was souless

[@p_kix]

My biggest regret are the people who usually wouldn't watch an animated show, but who know the original is incredibly well regarded, trying this and dismissing the original as being mid as well.

[@zabi_aka]

4:35 ".... , you're beautiful, you look like Linda Evangelista, you're a model...😑"

[@CamCat13]

I'm writing a fan fic so I thought I'd see if they have anything to add. I have drugged through 2 episodes like a mud slug and barely started the 3rd. I'm not mad about costumes or casting. I'm most offended by the writing. The storytelling isn't there like it was in the OG. Aaron Ehasz was the GOAT.

[@veganjotaro]

6:38 I totally agree.

[@APoeticPariah]

I have to disagree with your analysis on the opening scene with Sozin. The fact that Sozin explains his plan to the earthbender right before killing him can be seen as a portrayal of how sadistic he can be. Instead of killing the earthbender without ceremony, he takes the time to let him know that he has been the Fire Lord's unwitting pawn.

[@Zeknif1]

Say what you will of Sozin’s exposition dump at the start of the show… at least he got around to killing the guy he told his monologue to. It’s actually something of a breath of fresh air if you ask me since so many big bass divulge their evil plan to their opponent and then leaves them to die to an inescapable death trap that the heroes invariably escapes. It’s like taking the monologuing to a bound or captured hero joke from The Incredibles but taking it to the other extreme and darker end of the spectrum. That all said, I will say the show overall was a mixed bag. Some of it I really liked, some of it I merely tolerated, and some of it really rubbed me the wrong way.