In part one, we talk about some of the bigger mistakes Shyamalan made (there are far too many to mention them all and they have been well documented on other sites) and discuss how I would have done a Avatar movie series on a thematic level. Parts two through four are plot outlines for the three movies.
The second season of Avatar was the best of the series. Late in the first season, the writers really caught on that it was the ongoing plot that drove the series forward and when the second season began they clearly had a plan for the rest of the series. So of course, I am going to change it completely. It can't be helped, some things that work great on TV don't work in the movies and vise versa. The first half of the season will be chopped up and scrambled beyond recognition, but I will try to be as loyal as possible after we reach the library.
The Book of Earth (Run time: ~3 hours 10 minutes)
Zuko Plotline- Zuko and Iroh reach the Earth Kingdom. Azula shows up with Mai and Ty Lee and offers to take them home. (cut to Aang plot) Zuko and Iroh learn it's a trick and escape. Zuko, looking at his knife in the symbolic hair cutting scene, goes into his flashback from Zuko Alone. (cut to Aang plot) Zuko gets his training sequence from Bitter Work. (cut to Aang plot) Iroh contacts the White Lotus and they take the ferry to Ba Sing Se, meeting Jet on board. [This should put Iroh in the city about a month before Aang. It's always bugged me how quickly Iroh's tea catches on in the series. Another annoyance is that few people recognize Iroh, Zuko, and Aang despite all the wanted posters and very distinctive features. So there will be no wanted posters and more extras will have burn scars.] [Optional scene: When Iroh first sees Ba Sing Se, he flashes back to the siege and Lutan's death.] (Segment runs about 30 minutes)
Aang Plotline- They are still at the North Pole. One of the firebenders captured at the Spirit Oasis tells them the location of a buried library [heavy implication of torture]. Sokka convinces everyone to go there. (cut to Zuko plot) At their departure scene, they are told of a wealthy family, the Beifong's, on the way to the library which will give them fresh supplies. (cut to Zuko plot) Over dinner, the Beifong's break the news that Omashu has fallen and that the king surrendered without a fight. Azula shows up while they are at the Beifong house and Toph saves the day [surprising reveal as tiny, quiet, blind girl suddenly becomes boisterous, super-powerful earthbender]. After Azula leaves, Toph asks her father to go with Aang, he objects and she leaves anyway. Her father hires the bounty hunters. (Segment runs about 15 minutes)
The Library/The Desert- The Professor has been cut, but otherwise it should be a lot like the show. One of the books Katara reads from mentions a group of waterbenders living in a swamp. While they are in the desert, the Fire Nation discovers and destroys the ferry dock to Ba Sing Se. The Kyoshi Warriors are shown leading away a group of refugees. (Segment runs about 25 minutes)
Serpent's Pass- After getting out of the desert, Aang finally gets his training sequence from Bitter Work. The Kyoshi Warriors arrive just in time to see Aang finally move a rock and Suki exclaims "You're an earthbender!" Suki pleads for their help explaining that they are escorting a group of refuges to Ba Sing Se, but it's impossible to cross without an earth or water bender. [Toph: "I'm an earthbender." Katara: "And, I'm a waterbender." Aang: "I'm both...sort of."] On the way, the Sokka/Suki romance starts up. After crossing the pass, they encounter a high mountain chain. Suki states that they must go around it as the refugees can't make it over. Sokka states that it will take weeks to go around and stresses the importance of getting to Ba Sing Se quickly. Sokka and Suki share a passionate kiss as they agree to split up and meet again in the city. Shortly after the split, the Kyoshi Warriors run into the drill and are captured. Appa is barely visible flying through the background of this scene. (Segment runs about 30 minutes)
Ba Sing Se- Everything from The Drill on should be as loyal to the show as possible, but here are the changes. We will cut out Appa's Lost Days and Tales of Ba Sing Se. By the time we get back to Iroh and Zuko, they will have been off screen for about an hour and just about forgotten about. This should help with the idea that they are settling into their new lives. By the time they show up again, Iroh has already taken over tea making operations at the slum tea shop and Zuko is well aware that they are under surveillance from Jet. After finding out they will be stuck in the city for some time, Sokka convinces the rest of Team Avatar that he should be one to handle the search for Appa while the rest of the group focuses on training. He talks about how useless he is, that the most important thing is Aang's training, and at least this is something he can do to help. Later, the benders talk about how depressed Sokka is and decide the best thing for him is some training of his own. They hear about a great sword master and trick Sokka into going to him with a phony lead about Appa. Master Piandao agrees to teach Sokka swordsmanship and is later revealed to be from the Fire Nation. Piandao initiates Sokka into the White Lotus Society when he presents him with his space sword. Zuko is shown using a fireblast to open an entrance to the base at Lake Laogai. In the series, the Guru drops some very subtle hints about Energybending. I would make those less subtle. Iroh uses their connection to the White Lotus and his actions at the North Pole to gain Sokka's trust when he needs them to save Zuko. [The Chase was cut out so Toph can't be the one to trust Iroh first.] In the series, when Sokka and Toph go to warn the Earth King, Azula uses the Earth King as a hostage to force them to surrender. In my version, as soon as the Kyoshi Warriors are revealed as fakes, the Earth King says "I tol-" before being snuffed out by Azula. This sets off a fight in which Toph is beat thoroughly before they are imprisoned. [My biggest annoyance with the original series is that the Earth King never warns anyone that he let the invasion plan slip to Azula and the fact that Toph is the only major character to never lose a fight also bugs me. Both problems are solved by this scene.] (Segment run time about 1 hour and 30 minutes)
And that's my season two adaptation. I'm sure that many fans will hate that I took Piandao out of the Fire Nation, but I've got big changes planned for the first half of season three and the role of the White Lotus which necessitated the move and I think I gave the Kyoshi Warriors a better role than they played in the show. Stop back next week to find out how I would destroy season three.
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