Avatar: The Last Airbender - The 5 Biggest Reveals From The First Netflix Trailer
After years of anticipation and skepticism, Netflix has finally revealed the first trailer for its live-action "Avatar: The Last Airbender" adaptation. And while die-hard fans may still be reserving judgment, it's a promising look at what's to come. The live-action series has been plagued by delays and production issues, which began back in 2020 when original series creators Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino left the adaptation, citing creative differences with Netflix. There's also the looming shadow of the much-maligned M. Night Shyamalan adaptation, which has cast doubt on any subsequent attempt at a live-action "Avatar."
And yet, despite all of that, the first trailer looks great. The cast — known for some time — looks great in the costumes, and the show seems to be staying incredibly faithful to the source material. Most of the scenes in the trailer are pulled directly from the animated series, with sweeping shots of Omashu, Kyoshi Island, the throne room of Fire Lord Ozai (Daniel Dae Kim), and the Southern Water Tribe. It's bright and colorful, the bending battles look great in motion, and it's clear that the production team holds a ton of respect for the original show.
There's still plenty that we don't know, but the trailer has given fans a lot to chew on while they wait for the February 22, 2024, release date. So in the interim, let's dive a little deeper into the live-action "Avatar: The Last Airbender" trailer and take a look at some of its biggest reveals.
We actually see the Sozin's Comet attack
Pretty much every scene in the Netflix "Avatar" trailer is something we've seen in the animated series, with one notable exception. The opening shot shows Sozin's Comet soaring through the sky at night, followed by a brutal battle between firebenders and Air Nomads at what appears to be the Southern Air Temple.
Sozin's Comet is a huge piece of the "Avatar" story. It passes over the world of the show once every 100 years, bringing with it a temporary but massive boost to the power of all firebenders. The comet gets its name from Fire Lord Sozin, the ruler of the Fire Nation who started the Hundred Year War. He used its power to launch a devastating first attack against the rest of the world, much of which was focused on the airbenders. The reason? Sozin knows that after the death of Avatar Roku, the next Avatar will be born an airbender. He attacks the air temples and commits a horrific genocide against the Air Nomads in the hopes of killing the new avatar.
This attack is a massive piece of the "Avatar" story, but it's not something we ever see in the animated series. Aang discovers the aftermath of the attack, but we don't see the battle. It's a cool addition to actually show what happened during Sozin's Comet, especially since Aang is the only airbender left in the present day. Seeing a whole force of airbending masters fighting to defend their home will be tragic, but also really exciting.
The Winter Solstice begins
After the shots of the Sozin's Comet attack, the "Avatar: The Last Airbender" trailer transitions into an extended montage, mostly showing clips from early stories in Season 1 of the animated show. We get glimpses at Sokka (Ian Ousley), Katara (Kiawentiio), Aang (Gordon Cormier), and Zuko (Dallas Liu). We see the gates of Omashu open, the Kyoshi Warriors training with their fans, and a brutal flashback to the Agni Kai duel where Fire Lord Ozai shamed and scarred his son. But a lot of the material in the trailer is pulled from the "Winter Solstice" episodes from the Nickelodeon series.
An early two-part arc in Book 1 of "Avatar," "The Winter Solstice" sees Aang enter the Spirit World for the first time, commune with his past life, Avatar Roku, and venture into Fire Territory to visit a sacred temple. The live-action trailer includes a blink-and-you'll-miss-it shot from the very beginning of that arc, where Aang finds a forest fully burned down by the Fire Nation. It's a beautiful recreation of an identical shot from the cartoon, and it's one of his most important moments of early character development. In that moment, Aang comes face-to-face with the kind of destructive force he's up against.
Other Winter Solstice clips include a shot of Aang flying down on his glider over the Fire Sages' crescent island and a couple of shots of Iroh (Paul Sun-Hyung Lee) and Zuko fighting back-to-back. This battle mirrors one from the animated "Winter Solstice," in which Iroh is captured by Earth Kingdom soldiers and rescued by his nephew. Clearly, the Winter Solstice is going to be a centerpiece of the live-action series as well.
The animals all look great
Zuko, Iroh, Aang, Katara, and Sokka are all beloved characters, but no one gets more love from "Avatar: The Last Airbender" fans than Appa and Momo. The giant flying bison and tiny flying lemur bat, respectively, are the stalwart animal companions of the Aang Gang, and thankfully, they both look great in the live-action "Avatar" trailer.
We get several shots of Appa in action, including one of him approaching Kyoshi Island and another that shows a daring escape. In the latter, Sokka is the one holding the reins, suggesting that this happens a little later in the season. The end of the trailer also features a prolonged scene of Aang, Katara, and Sokka all flying on Appa. The mountains in the background show that they're either leaving or approaching the Southern Air Temple. As they fly, Momo comes up beside them and perches on Aang. In the original show, the Southern Air Temple is also where the crew finds Momo.
Hopefully, the same design detail and faithfulness also went into the show's other hybrid animals. Otter penguins, hog monkeys, komodo rhinos, and many other iconic creatures pop up in Season 1 of the animated series, so we should be seeing plenty more fantastical animals when the full live-action season drops. With a budget of around $15 million per episode, according to some reports, the Netflix adaptation has a lot of visual promise.
Zuko has a new vision board for restoring his honor
One shot in the live-action "Avatar: The Last Airbender" trailer shows Zuko in his room aboard his ship, posting a sketch of Aang onto what seems to be some kind of bulletin board. There are other documents pinned up in haphazard fashion, as well as a series of maps. It's a nice visual representation of the chaos within Zuko, which he believes can only be quelled by the capture of the Avatar.
This little detail is new for the live-action series, but it fits perfectly with Zuko's original characterization. His obsession with Aang is all-consuming, to the point that he frequently puts his own crew in danger for the chance of catching his prey. In the animated series, the episode "The Storm" explains both Zuko and Aang's respective backstories in great detail. Since the Netflix show is only eight episodes long, that episode will likely be cut and its flashbacks redistributed throughout the rest of the season. We do see shots of Zuko's Agni Kai with his father — the tragic moment that led to his banishment. In live-action, it will be even more apparent how young Zuko really is at the start and how warped his senses of purpose and honor are. But of course, that's not all his fault.
The original Avatar: The Last Airbender music returns
It's a huge relief to fans that the live-action "Avatar: The Last Airbender" series looks so good visually. But the trailer also includes a non-visual detail with huge implications: The original theme music, or at least part of it, is back.
Back when the Netflix adaptation was first announced, original series composer Jeremy Zucherman was tapped to score the live-action version. However, after Bryan Konietzko and Michael DiMartino left the project, Zucherman followed them out the door. He's currently working at Paramount's Avatar Studios, where the co-creators of the franchise are working on new animated films and TV series. In his place, the new show will be scored by Japanese American composer Takeshi Furukawa, whose previous work includes "Star Wars: The Clone Wars," "Mythic Quest," and the video game "The Last Guardian."
With a new composer, it's to be expected that the music will be a lot different. And in all likelihood, Furukawa will contribute many original pieces to Season 1. But the trailer ends with a climactic rendition of Zucherman's main theme, reassuring longtime fans that Netflix isn't fully eschewing the music they know and love. What we'll probably get in the end is a balance — new orchestrations of old pieces mixed in with entirely new compositions. But just having some of the original score is a huge win. It instantly helps rekindle the old magic for this new version of a familiar world.