But the entire point of Zuko's character arc is that he fails time and time again, and there's somebody to forgive and guide him. Zuko believes in second chances - one, they worked for him, and two, Iroh, his surrogate father, taught him to. He probably doesn't like Azula, and it's very possible that he doesn't love her, but if anything, he understands. I mean, he isn't dumb enough to think that the entire "there's two sides in you" only applies to him, and him alone - logically, Azula should have the same conflict.
I doubt Ozai would have raised the taxes on the Fire Nation peasants, as that would have made both him and the war unpopular, and he needed to be popular in order to continue the war.
Well, he really didn't. He only had to pay his elite guard well (after all, a single good firebender probably amounts for a company of untrained, ill-equipped revolters) and keep the people ignorant of what's going around them. Of course, massive propaganda campaigns were probably going on all the time, but Ozai really only had to keep the uprisings quiet and pay the soldiers and nobility well. Considering that the only thing in the world that posed a threat to them was a fully-realised Avatar, I don't think Ozai would've lacked the manpower to keep the pesky peasants in line.
Oh, definitely. But I wonder how much political power a woman, even the Empress, would have had?
The avatarverse doesn't really touch on the position of women enough to say anything significant, but I'll go out on a limb and say: the general populace probably wouldn't protest. After all, women are studying, working in the military, and being the greatest earthbenders in the world (and of course the most powerful being in the entire world reincarnates into a woman (I remember the creators stating that half the Avatars had been women and half men, but I might be wrong)) The nobility might protest, but on reasons of gender or the breaking of the Fire Lord's position, I know not.
Alternately, due to general opposition, Mai instead works behind the scenes, starting up an intelligence agency thing. Ninja! (it'd just be awesome if Mai was a ninja, that's all.)
That might work outside the Fire Nation, but, again, would the Fire Nation really thank the Avatar? For making their state not the most powerful in the world?
Maybe, if it means stopping the war. I mean, Fire Nation tactics seem pretty suicidal; after all, Zuko got fired (couldn't resist.) because he objected to sending a green unit into a situation where they'd get slaughtered.
That would come later, I think. In a time when he needs to cement his grasp of the throne, absolutism would be a massive help, surely?
Well, then again, it would be very in character for Zuko to go "THIS IS MORALLY CORRECT, SCREW EVERYTHING ELSE". Zuko is portrayed as pretty principled - pragmatism isn't exactly in his nature (of course, when compared to the rest of the Gaang...) Of course, Mai might convince him otherwise.
It's a trilogy! The first one is The Promise, where the Gaang tries to rebuild the world and there are tensions between Zuko and Aang, and the colonies and the mainland, and the rest of the world and the Fire Nation. It seems to be fairly popular, but still, it still seems to be kinda... mmh. I don't know; I haven't read it.
The second one is The Search, and I already told about that, and it's going to be released sometime in the near future, and the third will follow sometime - they tie the first series in to Korra.
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Date: 2012-08-20 05:59 pm (UTC)I doubt Ozai would have raised the taxes on the Fire Nation peasants, as that would have made both him and the war unpopular, and he needed to be popular in order to continue the war.
Well, he really didn't. He only had to pay his elite guard well (after all, a single good firebender probably amounts for a company of untrained, ill-equipped revolters) and keep the people ignorant of what's going around them. Of course, massive propaganda campaigns were probably going on all the time, but Ozai really only had to keep the uprisings quiet and pay the soldiers and nobility well. Considering that the only thing in the world that posed a threat to them was a fully-realised Avatar, I don't think Ozai would've lacked the manpower to keep the pesky peasants in line.
Oh, definitely. But I wonder how much political power a woman, even the Empress, would have had?
The avatarverse doesn't really touch on the position of women enough to say anything significant, but I'll go out on a limb and say: the general populace probably wouldn't protest. After all, women are studying, working in the military, and being the greatest earthbenders in the world (and of course the most powerful being in the entire world reincarnates into a woman (I remember the creators stating that half the Avatars had been women and half men, but I might be wrong)) The nobility might protest, but on reasons of gender or the breaking of the Fire Lord's position, I know not.
Alternately, due to general opposition, Mai instead works behind the scenes, starting up an intelligence agency thing. Ninja! (it'd just be awesome if Mai was a ninja, that's all.)
That might work outside the Fire Nation, but, again, would the Fire Nation really thank the Avatar? For making their state not the most powerful in the world?
Maybe, if it means stopping the war. I mean, Fire Nation tactics seem pretty suicidal; after all, Zuko got fired (couldn't resist.) because he objected to sending a green unit into a situation where they'd get slaughtered.
That would come later, I think. In a time when he needs to cement his grasp of the throne, absolutism would be a massive help, surely?
Well, then again, it would be very in character for Zuko to go "THIS IS MORALLY CORRECT, SCREW EVERYTHING ELSE". Zuko is portrayed as pretty principled - pragmatism isn't exactly in his nature (of course, when compared to the rest of the Gaang...) Of course, Mai might convince him otherwise.
It's a trilogy! The first one is The Promise, where the Gaang tries to rebuild the world and there are tensions between Zuko and Aang, and the colonies and the mainland, and the rest of the world and the Fire Nation. It seems to be fairly popular, but still, it still seems to be kinda... mmh. I don't know; I haven't read it.
The second one is The Search, and I already told about that, and it's going to be released sometime in the near future, and the third will follow sometime - they tie the first series in to Korra.