Legend of Korra, Season 4 Episode 1 Discussion

LarsInCharge

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Didn't see a thread (and I checked User Reviews this time :)) so I figured a discussion thread for the season 4 debut this morning is worth making.

Long story short:
Everyone trying to put the world back together, with the Air Nomad "Batman with the Justice League" team, our new main villain in former good guy Kuvira and her Earth army of mercenaries which includes Bolin, and the sleazy new Earth prince and his reluctant bodyguard Mako. Meanwhile, Korra ran away from everyone, continuing an Avatar tradition of running away at the start of seasons after nearly being killed at the end of the last one, and now fights in underground (literally underground) tournaments.

So, with those in mind, our new villain is telegraphed pretty heavily, with the nagging suspicion that the airplane that stole the supplies didn't just happen to fall into the bandits hands on accident, and that bandit was WAY too skilled for that fight.

As far as our main, the idea seems to be "Get stronger because I got my rear end kicked in 3 years ago, and that sucked." Though she's obviously not back at full strength mentally, since Mercury is a helluva drug, her body seems to be kicking pretty well.

Prince Sleazeball being a recurring character is going to irritate me. Seeing him and Mako makes me think about every single escort mission in every video game ever, where the escortee is too stupid to live.

All in all, a good pile of plot threads to get working, and a decent start for the finale of LoK.

Thoughts, ideas, hate mail, discussion?
 

Scarim Coral

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I think the Kuvira motive is a interesting one well mainly she is pretty much obtaining power over the Earth Kingdom land. Geez did the Earth kingdom really had that much influence over the entire domain? Since I thought only Ba Sing Se was under chaos last season? Still her motice is kind of similar to the first Fire Lord that started the hundred years war (siege control over everything).

Yeah I do agreed that the airplane bandit was way too convenient to be a simple raid. Speaking of which, why didn't Kai attack the bandit sooner like before letting him land on the Bison?

I want to know why Varrick joined her? I guessing she promised him some power if he joined her?

Also it pretty obvious that Bolin is going to defect once he learn the truth given what the trailer has shown us and who he is.

Too bad that they didn't give us the second episode as an two parter but I don't blame them over the hiccup from last season by given us several episodes at once!

Lastly I'm pretty sure that the next episode will be a flashback from Korra perspective as in what happened to her in the last three years.
 

Kopikatsu

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I'll admit that I didn't consider Kuvira using the bandits herself to strongarm nations into joining her, even though there was explicitly a scene of her drafting them into her army. Although I did think it was weird that some seemingly generic bandit had a plane and was able to pretty soundly defeat Kai, who was already established as being something of an airbending prodigy.

Not really sure what Korra is doing. Training her body back up after being out of commission for a few years? She was definitely 'holding back' in that she limited herself to only earth bending, but I think she really was fighting her hardest.
 

Robot Number V

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Kopikatsu said:
I'll admit that I didn't consider Kuvira using the bandits herself to strongarm nations into joining her, even though there was explicitly a scene of her drafting them into her army. Although I did think it was weird that some seemingly generic bandit had a plane and was able to pretty soundly defeat Kai, who was already established as being something of an airbending prodigy.

Not really sure what Korra is doing. Training her body back up after being out of commission for a few years? She was definitely 'holding back' in that she limited herself to only earth bending, but I think she really was fighting her hardest.
I think this might help explain what's going on inside her head.


Basically, I think she's retiring from being the Avatar...Or trying to. After seeing this image, I figured Korra's arc in this season would involve her deciding that the world didn't need the Avatar, but I'm surprised it's moving this quickly. I can only assume that Kuvira will rise up as a sort of second Firelord, reminding the world that it does need Korra after all.

PS: The first few episodes of this show are LITTERED with stuff slamming home the Avatar has become outdated. The very first thing that happens to her when she leaves the White Lotus compound is she gets arrested...for doing something Aang could've done with ease...because the police don't care that she's the Avatar. And what does she tell Tenzin about pro-bedning? "This is what I should be learning! Modern styles of bending!" She's already feeling outdated. And the Equalists thing bending itself is no longer needed in the modern world.

And fucking christ, the last scene of season 3. Jinnora looking like Aang was obviously NOT a coincidence. Jinorra is literally taking Aang's place, which is what Korra has always been taught was her job. Hell, her reason for EXISTING. And what did Korra get for trying to accomplish this purpose? A damn wheel chair. No wonder she's fucking crying.

OK, I'll stop geeking out now. I'm just really happy they actually succeeded in characterizing Korra as well as they did Aang.
 

LarsInCharge

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Robot Number V said:
Kopikatsu said:
I'll admit that I didn't consider Kuvira using the bandits herself to strongarm nations into joining her, even though there was explicitly a scene of her drafting them into her army. Although I did think it was weird that some seemingly generic bandit had a plane and was able to pretty soundly defeat Kai, who was already established as being something of an airbending prodigy.

Not really sure what Korra is doing. Training her body back up after being out of commission for a few years? She was definitely 'holding back' in that she limited herself to only earth bending, but I think she really was fighting her hardest.
I think this might help explain what's going on inside her head.


Basically, I think she's retiring from being the Avatar...Or trying to. After seeing this image, I figured Korra's arc in this season would involve her deciding that the world didn't need the Avatar, but I'm surprised it's moving this quickly. I can only assume that Kuvira will rise up as a sort of second Firelord, reminding the world that it does need Korra after all.

PS: The first few episodes of this show are LITTERED with stuff slamming home the Avatar has become outdated. The very first thing that happens to her when she leaves the White Lotus compound is she gets arrested...for doing something Aang could've done with ease...because the police don't care that she's the Avatar. And what does she tell Tenzin about pro-bedning? "This is what I should be learning! Modern styles of bending!" She's already feeling outdated. And the Equalists thing bending itself is no longer needed in the modern world.

And fucking christ, the last scene of season 3. Jinnora looking like Aang was obviously NOT a coincidence. Jinorra is literally taking Aang's place, which is what Korra has always been taught was her job. Hell, her reason for EXISTING. And what did Korra get for trying to accomplish this purpose? A damn wheel chair. No wonder she's fucking crying.

OK, I'll stop geeking out now. I'm just really happy they actually succeeded in characterizing Korra as well as they did Aang.
I'm not gonna lie. I watched the first four episodes of Season 1, listened to recaps of the rest of the season, and was promptly annoyed by the ending of the season. Season 2 only made things worse. I didn't even pay attention to Season 3 until the last couple episodes.

If they continue on this path, it will redeem the entire series in my eyes. This is a direction I didn't think they would take, and to take it in this way, in a way that is mentally and emotionally terrifying, is a bold move. For the first time since the series began, I feel like the stakes are more than a "good guy versus bad guy" dynamic, and more about deeper issues that even the original series didn't touch. For the first time, it is making good use of having older characters, and the deeper relationships as a result.
 

crazygameguy4ever

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Personally i kind of so-so on the new season's first episode.. it's not by any means bad .but I don't know.. something about it makes it seem like a case where they're dragging things on.. aS much as I love the series, maybe it should have stopped at a 3 season.. maybe follow it up with a full length feature animated movie or something instead.. Introducing yet another new villain rather then one recurring one through out the series doesn't seem like a good choice in some ways.. especially since the villains are mostly unrelated. The first season had Amon,the second had Korra's uncle Unalaq, and the third had the Red Lotus.. now we have the dictator wannabe Kuvira.. this latest villain seems way too obvious as the main enemy... all she had to do was wear a t-shirt saying "In case my lack of subtlety was to much for you, I'm this season's villain".. seems like a disappointing final villain. it would be like Batman Arkham City ending with a battle against the Mad Hatter.. just out of place. I hope the season get's better as the final season goes on and the main villain get's more interesting..
 

Sniper Team 4

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I like that twist at the end, how Korra has run away. It makes since, considering what she's been through. She probably feels like the world doesn't need her anymore, and so her entire purpose is gone. With that, she just starts looking for something to dull the pain. For some people, it's crawling into a bottle. For Korra, it's fighting. She's always been a hands-on Avatar, and very proud of her bending. This is her getting addicted to it so she doesn't have to deal with the pain.

As for the new Fire Nation--I'm sorry, I mean Kuvira's Army, it's not a surprise at all. I figured that was going to be the main conflict the moment I saw the first trailer. If I were the village chief, after signing over the town, I would have spit on her and quit, telling her to find her own lap dog. I guess she's just too blind by her own ambition to realize she is literally doing the exact same thing as Sozin.
I agree with the OP that the plane was most likely a gift to the bandits, and if it is, I'm betting that's how they end up stopping Kuvira. You can't just beat someone like her in a fight, because she has a huge following of people who truly believe that what she's doing is right. You need to destroy her support, like what happened to Amon. As such, I'm betting that they will find some way to expose the fact that she's been supplying the bandits.
Or maybe not, and maybe the bandits really did just have good timing, but that seems unlikely. I do wonder what Zaheer thinks of his 'new world order,' with bandits running around, preying on the weak and helpless. Is he happy with all the starving children and ruined families?

So I'm guessing that earlier clip of Korra saying good-bye in a wheelchair will be shown in a later episode then. All in all, I enjoyed the episode. The time skip took a bit to get used to, but it's nice to see how everyone has grown.
 

Shock and Awe

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It seems to me that the show may be running to many plot threads. I find all of them fairly interesting, but its a 23 minute show and keeping track of it seems three or four threads per episode is going to make getting invested in particular events difficult. They are going to need to bring some of these together to make wise use of time. That being said, its looking interesting. You have the Metal Army playing a very good realpolitik game to gain control of the Earth Kingdom unify it under their flag. You have the supposed 'legitimate' king of the Earth Kingdom about to be crowned, the myriad of interpersonal conflicts and dynamics, and the Avatar is MIA fighting in underground(hah) competitions and her mind is still a bit out of it.

That last thread is going to be the biggest element of this season I think. There is one thing that makes a great soldier or fighter, and thats the mental state. You can have great muscle memory, techniques, and strength, but if you're mind isn't in the right place then you are going to lose every time. With the mercury poisoning you may see a bit of instability in Korra, and the fact that it seems her job is being done by multiple other groups can't be good for the self esteem.

Its gonna be a good season.
 

LarsInCharge

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Sniper Team 4 said:
I like that twist at the end, how Korra has run away. It makes since, considering what she's been through. She probably feels like the world doesn't need her anymore, and so her entire purpose is gone. With that, she just starts looking for something to dull the pain. For some people, it's crawling into a bottle. For Korra, it's fighting. She's always been a hands-on Avatar, and very proud of her bending. This is her getting addicted to it so she doesn't have to deal with the pain.

As for the new Fire Nation--I'm sorry, I mean Kuvira's Army, it's not a surprise at all. I figured that was going to be the main conflict the moment I saw the first trailer. If I were the village chief, after signing over the town, I would have spit on her and quit, telling her to find her own lap dog. I guess she's just too blind by her own ambition to realize she is literally doing the exact same thing as Sozin.
I agree with the OP that the plane was most likely a gift to the bandits, and if it is, I'm betting that's how they end up stopping Kuvira. You can't just beat someone like her in a fight, because she has a huge following of people who truly believe that what she's doing is right. You need to destroy her support, like what happened to Amon. As such, I'm betting that they will find some way to expose the fact that she's been supplying the bandits.
Or maybe not, and maybe the bandits really did just have good timing, but that seems unlikely. I do wonder what Zaheer thinks of his 'new world order,' with bandits running around, preying on the weak and helpless. Is he happy with all the starving children and ruined families?

So I'm guessing that earlier clip of Korra saying good-bye in a wheelchair will be shown in a later episode then. All in all, I enjoyed the episode. The time skip took a bit to get used to, but it's nice to see how everyone has grown.
I'm not sure attacking a metal bender with a metal plane is a smart move. Running into the "Magneto Principle" there.
 

Sniper Team 4

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LarsInCharge said:
I agree with the OP that the plane was most likely a gift to the bandits, and if it is, I'm betting that's how they end up stopping Kuvira. You can't just beat someone like her in a fight, because she has a huge following of people who truly believe that what she's doing is right. You need to destroy her support, like what happened to Amon. As such, I'm betting that they will find some way to expose the fact that she's been supplying the bandits.
Or maybe not, and maybe the bandits really did just have good timing, but that seems unlikely.

I'm not sure attacking a metal bender with a metal plane is a smart move. Running into the "Magneto Principle" there.
I reread that and I guess I was a little unclear. I didn't mean for them to use the actual plane to attack Kuvira. I meant that they find out that Kuvira gave the bandits the plane, and that she's been 'supporting' certain groups, and they use that information to bring her down.
 

balladbird

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So Kuvira is basically a fantasy version of Cao Cao? I can dig it... I'm interested to see how things play out!

Aside from that, it was a decent ride. I enjoyed seeing what the characters have been up to, and their new timeskip designs, but we didn't really learn enough new for discussion, aside from the Kuvira thing... which was interesting enough for me!

on to next week!
 

Schadrach

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Anyone know if there's a workaround to nick.com blocking streaming the new LoK based on your ISP? I'm on Suddenlink (the only option for broadband where I live), so I can't watch it because they're fighting with Viacom over the fee schedule for their channels.

I know with South Park you can literally just use southpark.cc.com instead of cc.com and watch it.
 

klaynexas3

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I'm pretty sure Korra is just trying to disappear, basically like Aang when he ran away the first series, only this time around it's because she believes no one needs or wants the Avatar, instead of just her not wanting to be the Avatar. She's done with it, and I like it. It shows clear character growth, even if it is just a lateral step when you think about it.

As with Kuvira, please be as interesting as Zaheer, not another Unaloq.

Also, I feel like Opal is too ahead of the curve for her own good. I can understand not trusting Kuvira to an extent, but she already seems to know more than she should, or at least than we do, and it's unsettling in that she should not be as aware she is, and it feels like she's breaking a fourth wall and it just breaks me out of the world way too much. Maybe that's just me though.

Also, king-whats-his-fuck is annoying, and I know he'll be fine. He's got that annoying feel that his existence is harmless, so the show would never actually kill him, because he's so pointless.

I'm hoping for some more surprises this season, but even if they just continue as is, I think it'll be an alright end.
 

The Madman

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I liked it. I was expecting a sappy 'three years later' montage and was pleasantly surprised when instead the show just cut straight to the present, letting the viewer fill in the details of just what exactly they might have missed. I also like that it just showed us Korra at her worst, that was an unexpected emotional gut-punch. If I had to guess the next episode will have some back-story details on what led Korra to that point, but regardless it was still a well done little twist on what I'd expected.

Otherwise not much to say. The episode was mostly just setup. Establish the basics of who is where and what they're doing so that later episodes shouldn't be too bogged down by it. Kovira seemed pretty neat from what little we see of her but I'll have to see more to really judge whether she'll make a decent villain or not, if indeed she even is the villain.

In any case I'm intrigued and want to see more. Friday can't come soon enough!
 

Tanis

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WHERE IS TOPH?
That's all I was thinking, because I'm a dork like that.

But, still, I enjoyed it as an opening salvo.

I hope the next episode is Korra centric.
 

TheSYLOH

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The Madman said:
I liked it. I was expecting a sappy 'three years later' montage and was pleasantly surprised when instead the show just cut straight to the present, letting the viewer fill in the details of just what exactly they might have missed.
Judging from preview footage we are going to get a hell of alot of flash backs over the three year period.
So even if you DO want that montage, you could probably construct it.

As for Kuvira....
This could be interesting.
So far none of her methods seem particularly extreme, her goal is justifiable.

If handled correctly she could be interesting.
I will absolutely HATE IT if she's behind bandit attacks though.

As for Korra, this is where the show could shine.
A look at PTSD and depression. You can feel the self loathing at the start.
I'm cautiously optimistic.
 

EmpReb

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I Caught up on all of Korra for this past weekend. I have to say its its self up pretty well for this final round just I just feel an overall lack of main enemy. Its like we have to kill one off every season and yet get no where. Heck we even almost lost the whole world yet to be bent in by 4 super benders. I don't know yet how things will play out and I am quite sad of Nicks handling of this series(bad time slots and such) still there is enough promise I will ride it out and add it the animes I am watching. Pysch-Pass 2 what I am more interested this season. Can't Get enough Dominator kills to fill my craving for that show and watching Extended season one to bring up the hype train.
 

manic_depressive13

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klaynexas3 said:
Also, I feel like Opal is too ahead of the curve for her own good. I can understand not trusting Kuvira to an extent, but she already seems to know more than she should, or at least than we do, and it's unsettling in that she should not be as aware she is, and it feels like she's breaking a fourth wall and it just breaks me out of the world way too much. Maybe that's just me though.
I don't see it. Kuvira was pretty blatant about the fact that she was willing to let innocent people starve if the governor refused her terms. She's only interested in helping people if it expands her sphere of influence. I don't think it's unrealistic that Opal is morally opposed to that considering the new air nation has dedicated itself to selflessly helping others.
 

Kopikatsu

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EmpReb said:
I Caught up on all of Korra for this past weekend. I have to say its its self up pretty well for this final round just I just feel an overall lack of main enemy. Its like we have to kill one off every season and yet get no where. Heck we even almost lost the whole world yet to be bent in by 4 super benders. I don't know yet how things will play out and I am quite sad of Nicks handling of this series(bad time slots and such) still there is enough promise I will ride it out and add it the animes I am watching. Pysch-Pass 2 what I am more interested this season. Can't Get enough Dominator kills to fill my craving for that show and watching Extended season one to bring up the hype train.
People are assuming Kuvira is the main villain, but... she's skilled, but I highly doubt she can hold a candle to the Avatar. Even Zaheer was unable to actually take Korra in a straight up fight, hence the need to kidnap her without conflict.

If Kuvira really is the villain, I expect it to be focused more on the geopolitical issues within the world instead of just 'Go and beat Kuvira up to teach her the power of friendship'.

Schadrach said:
Anyone know if there's a workaround to nick.com blocking streaming the new LoK based on your ISP? I'm on Suddenlink (the only option for broadband where I live), so I can't watch it because they're fighting with Viacom over the fee schedule for their channels.

I know with South Park you can literally just use southpark.cc.com instead of cc.com and watch it.
Is watchcartoononline.com region locked? If not, you can watch them there.
 

Scrythe

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Schadrach said:
Anyone know if there's a workaround to nick.com blocking streaming the new LoK based on your ISP? I'm on Suddenlink (the only option for broadband where I live), so I can't watch it because they're fighting with Viacom over the fee schedule for their channels.

I know with South Park you can literally just use southpark.cc.com instead of cc.com and watch it.
I've been watching on GoGoAnime [http://www.gogoanime.com/category/avatar-the-legend-of-korra], since the nick.com videos absolutely refuse to load for me, despite the usual troubleshoots. If that doesn't work, you might have to just grab a VPN somewhere.