Netflix‘s live-action adaptation track record had a few rough years (Cowboy Bebop, Death Note), but all of that changed with One Piece. Viewers reveled in the visuals and vibe that brought that ragingly popular manga to live as Monkey D. Luffy began his quest to become the pirate king by hunting for a prized and elusive treasure. Now, the streamer takes on a particularly fraught challenge: to adapt intellectual property that has already been done dirty on one occasion by M. Night Shyamalan’s live-action film.
Outside of that blunder, the animated Avatar: The Last Airbender series fared enormously well on Nickelodeon and paved the way for the beloved Legend Of Korra followup. So, Netflix decided to take the plunge with their own Avatar: The Last Airbender show, which will soon debut in bingeworthy format. The jury is obviously still out on quality, but here’s what we know so far.
Plot
Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender is officially billed as “a live-action reimagining of the award-winning and beloved Nickelodeon animated series,” so that everyone can hopefully forget about the Shyamalan effort. The story takes place in a world where the four nations (represented by the elements of Water, Earth, Fire, and Air) no longer live in harmony. This debacle resulted with the Fire Nation destroyed the Air Nomads in an effort to take over the world.
It’s now up to a young Air Nomad, Aang, to become the next Avatar, who will be capable of ruling over and uniting over all elements, thereby restoring peace between the realms. The series follows Aang’s action-packed journey to rise to his hopeful position in a world that appeared to doubt that another Avatar could rise again, since the Air Nomads have essentially become extinct. In the process, Aang will have to dodge the Fire Nation’s Crown Prince Zuko, who aims to deter him from the task, so that Fire can rule.
Netflix has provided more from the official series synopsis:
With the current incarnation of the Avatar yet to emerge, the world has lost hope. But like a light in the darkness, hope springs forth when Aang, a young Air Nomad — and the last of his kind — reawakens to take his rightful place as the next Avatar. Alongside his newfound friends Sokka and Katara siblings and members of the Southern Water Tribe, Aang embarks on a fantastical, action-packed quest to save the world and fight back against the fearsome onslaught of Fire Lord Ozai … They’ll need the help of the many allies and colorful characters they meet along the way.
Cast
The lead role, Avatar Aang, will be portrayed by Gordon Cormier. Sokka, will be portrayed by Ian Ousley, and his sister Katara, will be picked up by Kiawentiio (Tarbell). June will be portrayed by Arden Cho, and Daniel Dae Kim will embody the Fire Lord, and Dallas Liu steps up as Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation.
Release Date
Netflix will stream the first eight-episode season on February 22, 2024.
Trailer
The below teaser trailer previews sweeping visuals, although the CGI looks slightly wonky in places.