 |
| The bald, bearded, stern older guy on the right is the character I identify with most-- often he is exasperated with his kids. |
Lately the kids have been watching The Legend of Korra,
an exciting sequel to Avatar: The Last Airbender, both animated shows originally
airing on Nickelodeon.
Set in a fictional universe in which some people can
manipulate, or "bend", the elements of water, earth, fire, or air, only
one person, the "Avatar", can bend all four elements, and is
responsible for maintaining balance in the world.
The animation appears heavily in debt to Japanese filmmaker HayaoMiyazaki, and is on one hand relatively simple, but employing a happy fusion of
early 20th century technology and Asian styling. Of note, the show
is an American creation, despite small doses of Tibetan Buddhism and large
servings of Chinese characters.
I’m happy the kids are into Korra as the storylines
are overlapping and complex, handling a range of childhood and teenage relationship
issues as well as terrorism and social unrest. Korra, the Avatar and main
protagonist, is a teenage girl who doesn’t necessarily act wise beyond her years
without a bit of prodding.
I give it a hearty thumbs up as the martial arts
battle scenes are exciting and have that what-will-be-destroyed-next
excitement.
A delightful mix of high and low themes, drama and humor,
magic and realism, and stern, but wise, paternal advice – hey, I need a role
model too!
No comments:
Post a Comment