Are you interested in The Last Airbender but have no idea what an Airbender is in the first place? Have you never watched an episode of Avatar:The Last Airbender in your life? Well, you’ve come to the right place to learn about this fascinating cartoon show.
In this first part of a three-part series, we’ll get acquainted with what’s what in the universe of Avatar.
The world of Avatar is set in a world based very heavily on Asian and Native American (particularly Inuit) cultures. In this world, some people are gifted with the power to control, or bend, one the elements-either water, fire, earth, or air. Also, an Avatar, a person who is gifted in bending all four elements, arises to make sure the world-and its elements-stay in balance.
Because people can bend different elements, the world split into four different nations-the Air Nomads (who are like the equivalent to Tibetian monks), the Earth Kingdom, The Fire Nation, and the Water Tribe (who are the equivalent to the Inuit people).
During the time that Avatar and The Last Airbender are set, war between the four nations, simply known as The War, has been going on for 100 years, with the Fire Nation greedy to take over control of all four nations.
To go more in depth about the different styles of bending and their real-life martial arts counterparts, here are a few videos produced by Nickelodeon. Also, go to the Avatar wikia to learn more about the world of Avatar.
