colossal
sometimes a small thing can cast such a large shadow
Official illustration by Adachitoka for Yato to celebrate Yato day in Japan
you can tell the writers had a lot of fun on this episode there are so many good and iconic gags i couldn’t upload them all at once and decided to compile them together
THE WAY ANYA AND LOID BOTH SAID ‘WOW’ AFTER YOR KICKED THE MAN INTO THE ROOF— TRULY PAPA AND DAUGHTER BEING IMPRESSED BY MAMA’S STRENGTH
anya truly is yor’s daughter
Online store is reopen with new prints and restocks!
today i’m sad about that one line from the creator’s commetary about how zuko is a tsungi horn prodigy and the little letter zuko, aged 7, sends iroh in “legacy of the fire nation” where he very politely requests that iroh come home and teach him pai sho tricks, because that casts such a different light on their interactions in book one. it was never iroh trying to push his own favorite things - pai sho and music night - on an uninterested zuko, it was iroh desperately trying to reconnect with zuko by recreating the activities he knows zuko used to enjoy. zuko, aged 7, once begged iroh to come home and play board games with him and now zuko wants nothing to do with him and you know that eats iroh up alive
it’s also noteworthy in that the things iroh tries to interest zuko in are specifically things that zuko enjoyed as a child.
there is a reoccuring theme in atla of how war forces children to grow up too early. aang, who is THE symbol of hope for the world, takes katara and sokka penguin-sledding and mailcart riding and to an illicit fire nation dance party just for the fun of it. aang is a harbringer of not just peace but also a symbol of the lost innocence of the protagonists, reminding the audience that even these powerful, world-saving children are still children who need to experience fun and play.
and iroh serves that same role for zuko in books one and two, consistantly offering zuko opportunities for fun and play that zuko typically rebuffs. it’s clear that zuko doesn’t think of himself as a child (like when he says “you’re just a child!” upon meeting aang but is surprised that aang sees him as “just a teenager”) and doesn’t see a purpose to play.
one of the most heart-breaking parts of this show, for me, was that zuko never plays during the course of the show. there are no moments when he is engaged in an activity for no purpose other than simply bringing him enjoyment. every action he takes is related to his survival. the closest he comes to playing is showing off his dao swords to lee, juggling (badly) for jin on their date (though he’s simply trying to continue a ruse that his survival depends on), and maaaybe exploring the ruins of the sun warriors. zuko is the only one who doesn’t participate in the beach activities with the gaang in the first part of sozin’s comet.
so it’s not only that iroh is attempting to reconnect with zuko with acitivies they had once enjoyed together, he’s trying to offer zuko a chance to experience the childhood he lost at age thirteen.
receipts for those interested:
bonus painful headcanon: zuko once told iroh that his jokes were funny so for three years iroh was as goofy as possible in an attempt to make zuko laugh again.
how they went from “I like it when you are with me, Uncle” to “you’re a lazy, mistrustful, shallow old man” cuts deep