Sozin's Comet: The Final Battle
Encyclopedia
"Sozin's Comet: The Final Battle" is the series finale
for the Nickelodeon
television series Avatar: The Last Airbender
. It was directed by Ethan Spaulding
, Giancarlo Volpe
, and Joaquim Dos Santos
, and written by Michael Dante DiMartino
, Bryan Konietzko
, and Aaron Ehasz
. Though intended to be split into three parts, the finale aired as a two-hour four-part movie on July 19, 2008. Prior to the week of July 14–19, no episodes had been shown since November 30, 2007. The Saturday airing of Sozin's Comet acted as a climax to a week of ten new episodes that concluded Avatar' s third season
.
The finale focuses on series protagonist
Aang
's non-violent personality and his reluctance to kill Fire Lord Ozai. The finale also follows the exploits of many of Aang's friends and allies, including Sokka
, Toph and Suki's struggle to destroy a Fire Nation airship armada, Zuko and Katara's battle against Zuko's sister Azula, and Iroh, King Bumi, and the Order of the White Lotus' attempt to reconquer Ba Sing Se.
Sozin's Comet received positive reception from critics and fans alike. The initial showing averaged 5.6 million viewers, a 195% increase in ratings compared with ratings from mid-July 2007. The premiere of episodes 52–61 throughout the week of Sozin's Comets release received over 19 million views, of which 5.6 million were from the premiere of Sozin's Comet. At the 2008 Annie Awards
, the director of the third part of Sozin's Comet won an award for "Best Directing in an Animated Television Production".
fight against a scarecrow, but Aang refuses to kill it due to his pacifistic
nature and non-violent
upbringing, and even berates his friends as they tell him that he may eventually have no choice but to kill Ozai.
That night, Aang sleepwalks to an island not to be found in the morning. After the group fails to locate him, Zuko takes them to June, a tracker
who might be able to locate Aang. Meanwhile, Fire Lord Ozai proclaims himself to be ruler of the world, under the title "Phoenix
King", and declares Azula to be the new Fire Lord, setting off to burn the world
and rebuild it under his new order.
Meanwhile, Aang awakens on a floating island. Frustrated with his inability to find a way to defeat Ozai without killing him, he asks four of his past lives for advice. Unsatisfied with their answers, he asks the island for help. The island, which is actually a giant "lion-turtle", provides Aang with the power of energybending and leaves him on the Earth Kingdom shores.
Meanwhile, Sokka, Toph, and Suki hijack a Fire Nation airship, and use it to destroy many others, effectively stopping Ozai's plan of incinerating the Earth Kingdom. In Ba Sing Se, the Order of the White Lotus, led by Iroh, lay siege to the Fire Nation forces within the city, with the sole intention of re-conquering it in the name of the Earth Kingdom. Aang reappears and begins to duel the Fire Lord. However, when Aang successfully redirects lightning he purposely misses Ozai to avoid killing him. Because of his pacifism, Ozai begins to gain the advantage.
After a fierce battle, Ozai slams Aang into a rock, hitting the scar on his back from Azula's lightning in the previous season and inadvertently releasing his locked seventh chakra
, allowing Aang to enter the Avatar State. With the combined power of his past lives
, Aang quickly overwhelms Ozai. Once Ozai is subdued, Aang refuses to kill him, instead locking him down with earth; understanding the lion-turtle's meaning, he uses Energybending to strip Ozai of his Firebending powers, removing his ability to wage war. Then Aang raises and lowers the nearby ocean to undo the damage from the Fire Nation; Sozin's Comet vanishes beyond the horizon afterward.
The Order of the White Lotus liberates Ba Sing Se in the name of the Earth King. During his coronation
, Zuko promises to aid the world in the postwar reconstruction. Sometime after the ceremony, Zuko visits Ozai's prison and demands he tell him the location of the banished Ursa, Zuko's mother. Zuko and Mai finally reconcile. A final scene depicts the main cast gathered in Iroh's new tea shop, the Jasmine Dragon. Aang and Katara kiss passionately upon the shop balcony as the series ends.
Co-creators Michael Dante DiMartino
and Bryan Konietzko
wrote the majority of the finale; DiMartino wrote parts one, three, and four, and Konietzko assisted with parts three and four. Aaron Ehasz
, a frequent writer for the series, wrote part two. Ethan Spaulding
directed part one, Giancarlo Volpe
directed part two, and Joaquim Dos Santos
directed parts three and four. Dos Santos was nominated for an Annie Award
for his directing of part three, "Into the Inferno". Although Sozin's Comet was originally written as a three-part story, the creators noticed that the length had grown beyond what they had predicted from the initial script. To avoid pacing issues, they split the final part in two, adding several scenes to fill the remaining time.
Although Avatar is not considered anime
because of its American origin, Tasha Robinson of the SciFi Channel
observed that "Avatar blurs the line between anime and [US] domestic cartoons until it becomes irrelevant." An IGN
reviewer commented that Sozin's Comet "had that classic anime-look that I've always loved to see when watching old anime movies. The story through the animation was perfectly done." The special's music was written and composed by "The Track Team", led by Jeremy Zuckerman
. However, unlike past episodes, a music track produced by a live orchestra was used, rather than one in midi format.
During the San Diego Comic-con, it was announced that a reunion between Zuko and his mother, Ursa had been arranged, and made into a storyboard. However, it was dropped just before the finale was finished, as requested by show co-creator Michael Dante DiMartino.
The cast of Sozin's Comet includes all of the key characters from season three
. Protagonists Aang
, Katara, Sokka
, and Toph
are voiced by Zach Tyler Eisen
, Mae Whitman
, Jack DeSena
, and Jessie Flower
respectively. Iroh is voiced by Greg Baldwin
and Zuko is voiced by Dante Basco
. Grey DeLisle
and Mark Hamill
voice the two antagonists, Azula and Fire Lord Ozai, respectively. The co-creators also lend their voices to two minor characters in the third part, "Into the Inferno".
Avatar: The Last Airbender borrows extensively from East Asian art
to create its fictional universe. Four "bending" arts exist in the universe; they are based on different styles and variations of Chinese martial arts
: Baguazhang
for Airbending, Hung Gar
and Southern Praying Mantis for Earthbending, Northern Shaolin for Firebending, and T'ai chi for Waterbending. Additionally, series borrows heavily from the Taoist concept of balance and order. The Avatar, an incarnation of a divine being, is supposed to maintain the world's order.
Nickelodeon originally broadcasted Sozin's Comet from 8:00 pm to 10:00 pm EST
on July 19, 2008. Just ten days later, on July 29, the "Book 3: Fire – Volume 4" DVD was released, which contained the four episodes as well as episodes 56 and 57, audio commentary from the series' co-creators, cast, and crew, and a comic book.
Sozin's Comet received many positive critical reviews; Ed Liu of Toon Zone stated that it made Avatar "one of the finest animated television series ever made", and IGN
stating that this "film" deserved an Academy Award. Toon Zone praised the skill of the animation directors in designing the sweeping movements of the battle scenes, as well as the slower scenes, "including one moving reconciliation and the quiet coda that ties off many of the remaining loose ends of the series". IGN reviewer Tory Ireland Mell wrote that she would "put it in the top ten films of all time". She also praised the artistic skill of the designers, stating that the "whole dark tone was gorgeous to look at", especially the "art of the Lion Turtle". She thought that Sozin's Comet lacked plot holes, as well as unnecessary plot devices, stating that the "story moved and kept us moving right along with it from beginning to end". She gave Sozin's Comet a 10 out of 10 "Masterful" rating.
Sozin's Comet has received its share of criticism as well. Reviewers commented about the difficulty in understanding the voice of a new character: the Lion Turtle. The Lion Turtle was designed by Bryan Konietzko and character designer Jae Woo Kim. Bryan Konietzko disliked how the Lion Turtle turned out; he felt that the art was not up to standards of the original design he had received. CraveOnline
felt that because "the series was for children, the writers were at a loss of ideas to work around the murder
angle," and the decision not to kill the Fire Lord introduced "so many convenient plot twists [that] set us up for a humongous deus ex machina
that allows the Fire Lord to be thwarted without dying".
The premiere of Sozin's Comet averaged 5.6 million viewers, 195% more viewers than Nickelodeon had received in mid-July 2007. During the week of July 14, 2008, it ranked as the most-viewed program for the under-14 demographic. The premiere of episodes 52–61 throughout the week of Sozin's Comet' s release received a total of 19 million views, and Avatar reached Neilsen's list of Top 20 Cable Results for the week ending June 20, 2008 four times. It also appeared on iTunes
' top ten list of best-selling television episodes during that same week. Sozin's Comet' s popularity affected online media as well; "Rise of the Phoenix King", a Nick.com
online game based on Sozin's Comet, generated almost 815,000 game plays within three days. A video game loosely based on the third season, Avatar: The Last Airbender – Into the Inferno, was released on October 13, 2008.
Joaquim Dos Santos won the "Best Directing in an Animated Television Production" caption in the 2008 Annie Awards
for his directing in "Into the Inferno". Additionally, music editor and composer Jeremy Zuckerman and the sound editing team were nominated a Golden Reel award for "Best Sound Editing in a Television Animation" for their work in "Avatar Aang".
Series finale
A series finale refers to the last installment of a series with a narrative presented through mediums such as television, film and literature. In many Commonwealth countries, the term final episode is commonly used in regards to a television series...
for the Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (TV channel)
Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...
television series Avatar: The Last Airbender
Avatar: The Last Airbender
Avatar: The Last Airbender is an American animated television series that aired for three seasons on Nickelodeon from 2005 to 2008. The series was created and produced by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, who served as executive producers along with Aaron Ehasz...
. It was directed by Ethan Spaulding
Ethan Spaulding
Ethan Spaulding is a crew person on the animated television series Avatar: The Last Airbender. He directed twelve episodes, and held various crew positions on several others...
, Giancarlo Volpe
Giancarlo Volpe
Giancarlo Volpe is an Italian American animator, director, and producer.Giancarlo is currently producing the CG television show, "Green Lantern: The Animated Series" working with animation legend Bruce Timm....
, and Joaquim Dos Santos
Joaquim Dos Santos
Joaquim Dos Santos is an American television director of animated cartoons, best known for his directing work on Justice League Unlimited and Avatar: The Last Airbender. He was a storyboard artist for Justice League before being promoted in the show's renamed third season...
, and written by Michael Dante DiMartino
Michael Dante DiMartino
Michael Dante DiMartino is an American animation director, best known as the co-creator, executive producer and story editor of the hit TV series Avatar: The Last Airbender on Nickelodeon...
, Bryan Konietzko
Bryan Konietzko
Bryan Konietzko is the co-creator and executive producer of the animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender. He has also worked as a character designer at Film Roman for Family Guy and as Assistant Director for Mission Hill and King of the Hill. He was a Storyboard Artist and Art Director for the...
, and Aaron Ehasz
Aaron Ehasz
Aaron Ehasz is an American television writer and producer whose body of work primarily consists of animated series, although he did serve as a producer on the live-action series The Mullets and Ed.-Career:...
. Though intended to be split into three parts, the finale aired as a two-hour four-part movie on July 19, 2008. Prior to the week of July 14–19, no episodes had been shown since November 30, 2007. The Saturday airing of Sozin's Comet acted as a climax to a week of ten new episodes that concluded Avatar
Avatar: The Last Airbender (season 3)
Season Three of Avatar: The Last Airbender, an American animated television series on Nickelodeon, first aired its 21 episodes from September 21, 2007 to July 19, 2008...
.
The finale focuses on series protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
Aang
Aang
Aang is a fictional character in Nickelodeon's animated television series Avatar: The Last Airbender. The character is created by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko and is voiced by Zach Tyler Eisen. Aang is depicted as the show's main protagonist, and as such has appeared in all but one...
's non-violent personality and his reluctance to kill Fire Lord Ozai. The finale also follows the exploits of many of Aang's friends and allies, including Sokka
Sokka
Sokka is a fictional character in Nickelodeon's animated television series Avatar: The Last Airbender. The character, created by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, is voiced by Jack DeSena...
, Toph and Suki's struggle to destroy a Fire Nation airship armada, Zuko and Katara's battle against Zuko's sister Azula, and Iroh, King Bumi, and the Order of the White Lotus' attempt to reconquer Ba Sing Se.
Sozin's Comet received positive reception from critics and fans alike. The initial showing averaged 5.6 million viewers, a 195% increase in ratings compared with ratings from mid-July 2007. The premiere of episodes 52–61 throughout the week of Sozin's Comets release received over 19 million views, of which 5.6 million were from the premiere of Sozin's Comet. At the 2008 Annie Awards
36th Annie Awards
The 36th Annual Annie Awards, honoring the best in animation for 2008, were held on January 30, 2009 at Royce Hall in Los Angeles, California. Below is a list of announced nominees...
, the director of the third part of Sozin's Comet won an award for "Best Directing in an Animated Television Production".
Part 1: "The Phoenix King"
Aang suddenly abandons his Firebending lesson with Zuko to have a beach party, causing Zuko to attack him in his frustration. Aang explains he plans to challenge Fire Lord Ozai only after Sozin's Comet and its enhancement of Firebending have come and gone, due to his own self-perceived lack of Firebending skills at the moment. When Zuko tells the group Ozai plans to use the comet's power to burn down the Earth Kingdom, Aang resolves to face him before the comet arrives. Sokka decides to have a simulationSimulation
Simulation is the imitation of some real thing available, state of affairs, or process. The act of simulating something generally entails representing certain key characteristics or behaviours of a selected physical or abstract system....
fight against a scarecrow, but Aang refuses to kill it due to his pacifistic
Pacifism
Pacifism is the opposition to war and violence. The term "pacifism" was coined by the French peace campaignerÉmile Arnaud and adopted by other peace activists at the tenth Universal Peace Congress inGlasgow in 1901.- Definition :...
nature and non-violent
Nonviolence
Nonviolence has two meanings. It can refer, first, to a general philosophy of abstention from violence because of moral or religious principle It can refer to the behaviour of people using nonviolent action Nonviolence has two (closely related) meanings. (1) It can refer, first, to a general...
upbringing, and even berates his friends as they tell him that he may eventually have no choice but to kill Ozai.
That night, Aang sleepwalks to an island not to be found in the morning. After the group fails to locate him, Zuko takes them to June, a tracker
Tracking (hunting)
Tracking in hunting and ecology is the science and art of observing animal tracks and other signs, with the goal of gaining understanding of the landscape and the animal being tracked...
who might be able to locate Aang. Meanwhile, Fire Lord Ozai proclaims himself to be ruler of the world, under the title "Phoenix
Phoenix (mythology)
The phoenix or phenix is a mythical sacred firebird that can be found in the mythologies of the Arabian, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Egyptians, Chinese, Indian and Phoenicians....
King", and declares Azula to be the new Fire Lord, setting off to burn the world
Risks to civilization, humans and planet Earth
Various existential risks could threaten humankind as a whole, have adverse consequences for the course of human civilization, or even cause the end of planet Earth.-Types of risks:...
and rebuild it under his new order.
Part 2: "The Old Masters"
Zuko's tracker, June, is unable to locate Aang, but he is reunited with his uncle, Iroh, who reconcile with each other after Zuko's betrayal in Ba Sing Se. He and several other characters (Katara's Waterbending master Pakku, Aang's first Firebending instructor Jeong Jeong, Aang's Earthbender friend King Bumi, and Sokka's swordmaster Piandao) are part of an otherwise non-aligned group known as the "Order of the White Lotus", which plans to liberate the Earth Kingdom capital, Ba Sing Se, from Fire Nation rule. Zuko and Katara decide to fight Azula in the Fire Nation capital while Sokka, Toph, and Suki attempt to destroy the airship fleet.Meanwhile, Aang awakens on a floating island. Frustrated with his inability to find a way to defeat Ozai without killing him, he asks four of his past lives for advice. Unsatisfied with their answers, he asks the island for help. The island, which is actually a giant "lion-turtle", provides Aang with the power of energybending and leaves him on the Earth Kingdom shores.
Part 3: "Into the Inferno"
The Comet appears in the sky, and Azula's coronation takes place. Azula banishes nearly all of her subjects (including her Dai Li agents) in fear of betrayal. Her paranoia and loneliness begin to drive her insane. Before she is crowned, Zuko and Katara arrive. Zuko accepts Azula's challenge of an Agni Kai, or "fire duel", because he feels that something is wrong with Azula and he does not want Katara injured. Just as Zuko is on the verge of defeating Azula, she shoots a bolt of lightning at Katara instead of Zuko. Zuko throws himself in front of her and intercepts the lightning, preventing Katara from getting hurt, but he gravely injures himself after he fails to correctly redirect the lightning.Meanwhile, Sokka, Toph, and Suki hijack a Fire Nation airship, and use it to destroy many others, effectively stopping Ozai's plan of incinerating the Earth Kingdom. In Ba Sing Se, the Order of the White Lotus, led by Iroh, lay siege to the Fire Nation forces within the city, with the sole intention of re-conquering it in the name of the Earth Kingdom. Aang reappears and begins to duel the Fire Lord. However, when Aang successfully redirects lightning he purposely misses Ozai to avoid killing him. Because of his pacifism, Ozai begins to gain the advantage.
Part 4: "Avatar Aang"
Zuko lies on the ground twitching as Katara and Azula fight. After several minutes of running, Katara freezes Azula and chains her to the ground. As a result of her defeat to two people she considers less than worthless, Azula's mind finally snaps and she screams and sobs in fury, breathing blue fire out of her mouth, yet unable to escape her chains. Katara then uses her waterbending to revive and heal Zuko.After a fierce battle, Ozai slams Aang into a rock, hitting the scar on his back from Azula's lightning in the previous season and inadvertently releasing his locked seventh chakra
Sahasrara
Sahasrara/ Sahastrara is the seventh primary chakra according to Hindu tradition.-Location:Sahasrara is either located at the top of the head in that one area, or a little way above it .-Appearance:Sahasrara is described with 1,000 multi-coloured petals which are arranged in 20 layers each of them...
, allowing Aang to enter the Avatar State. With the combined power of his past lives
Reincarnation
Reincarnation best describes the concept where the soul or spirit, after the death of the body, is believed to return to live in a new human body, or, in some traditions, either as a human being, animal or plant...
, Aang quickly overwhelms Ozai. Once Ozai is subdued, Aang refuses to kill him, instead locking him down with earth; understanding the lion-turtle's meaning, he uses Energybending to strip Ozai of his Firebending powers, removing his ability to wage war. Then Aang raises and lowers the nearby ocean to undo the damage from the Fire Nation; Sozin's Comet vanishes beyond the horizon afterward.
The Order of the White Lotus liberates Ba Sing Se in the name of the Earth King. During his coronation
Coronation
A coronation is a ceremony marking the formal investiture of a monarch and/or their consort with regal power, usually involving the placement of a crown upon their head and the presentation of other items of regalia...
, Zuko promises to aid the world in the postwar reconstruction. Sometime after the ceremony, Zuko visits Ozai's prison and demands he tell him the location of the banished Ursa, Zuko's mother. Zuko and Mai finally reconcile. A final scene depicts the main cast gathered in Iroh's new tea shop, the Jasmine Dragon. Aang and Katara kiss passionately upon the shop balcony as the series ends.
Production
Michael Dante DiMartino
Michael Dante DiMartino is an American animation director, best known as the co-creator, executive producer and story editor of the hit TV series Avatar: The Last Airbender on Nickelodeon...
and Bryan Konietzko
Bryan Konietzko
Bryan Konietzko is the co-creator and executive producer of the animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender. He has also worked as a character designer at Film Roman for Family Guy and as Assistant Director for Mission Hill and King of the Hill. He was a Storyboard Artist and Art Director for the...
wrote the majority of the finale; DiMartino wrote parts one, three, and four, and Konietzko assisted with parts three and four. Aaron Ehasz
Aaron Ehasz
Aaron Ehasz is an American television writer and producer whose body of work primarily consists of animated series, although he did serve as a producer on the live-action series The Mullets and Ed.-Career:...
, a frequent writer for the series, wrote part two. Ethan Spaulding
Ethan Spaulding
Ethan Spaulding is a crew person on the animated television series Avatar: The Last Airbender. He directed twelve episodes, and held various crew positions on several others...
directed part one, Giancarlo Volpe
Giancarlo Volpe
Giancarlo Volpe is an Italian American animator, director, and producer.Giancarlo is currently producing the CG television show, "Green Lantern: The Animated Series" working with animation legend Bruce Timm....
directed part two, and Joaquim Dos Santos
Joaquim Dos Santos
Joaquim Dos Santos is an American television director of animated cartoons, best known for his directing work on Justice League Unlimited and Avatar: The Last Airbender. He was a storyboard artist for Justice League before being promoted in the show's renamed third season...
directed parts three and four. Dos Santos was nominated for an Annie Award
36th Annie Awards
The 36th Annual Annie Awards, honoring the best in animation for 2008, were held on January 30, 2009 at Royce Hall in Los Angeles, California. Below is a list of announced nominees...
for his directing of part three, "Into the Inferno". Although Sozin's Comet was originally written as a three-part story, the creators noticed that the length had grown beyond what they had predicted from the initial script. To avoid pacing issues, they split the final part in two, adding several scenes to fill the remaining time.
Although Avatar is not considered anime
Anime
is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....
because of its American origin, Tasha Robinson of the SciFi Channel
Sci Fi Channel (United States)
Syfy , formerly known as the Sci-Fi Channel and SCI FI, is an American cable television channel featuring science fiction, supernatural, fantasy, reality, paranormal, wrestling, and horror programming. Launched on September 24, 1992, it is part of the entertainment conglomerate NBCUniversal, a...
observed that "Avatar blurs the line between anime and [US] domestic cartoons until it becomes irrelevant." An IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
reviewer commented that Sozin's Comet "had that classic anime-look that I've always loved to see when watching old anime movies. The story through the animation was perfectly done." The special's music was written and composed by "The Track Team", led by Jeremy Zuckerman
Jeremy Zuckerman
Jeremy Zuckerman is an American composer and musician mostly known for composing the score of the TV series Avatar: The Last Airbender. He studied at Berklee College of Music, Boston, and California Institute of the Arts and has collaborated with musicians such as David Lee Roth.Jeremy is one half...
. However, unlike past episodes, a music track produced by a live orchestra was used, rather than one in midi format.
During the San Diego Comic-con, it was announced that a reunion between Zuko and his mother, Ursa had been arranged, and made into a storyboard. However, it was dropped just before the finale was finished, as requested by show co-creator Michael Dante DiMartino.
The cast of Sozin's Comet includes all of the key characters from season three
Avatar: The Last Airbender (season 3)
Season Three of Avatar: The Last Airbender, an American animated television series on Nickelodeon, first aired its 21 episodes from September 21, 2007 to July 19, 2008...
. Protagonists Aang
Aang
Aang is a fictional character in Nickelodeon's animated television series Avatar: The Last Airbender. The character is created by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko and is voiced by Zach Tyler Eisen. Aang is depicted as the show's main protagonist, and as such has appeared in all but one...
, Katara, Sokka
Sokka
Sokka is a fictional character in Nickelodeon's animated television series Avatar: The Last Airbender. The character, created by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, is voiced by Jack DeSena...
, and Toph
Toph
Toph Bei Fong is a fictional character in Nickelodeon's animated television series Avatar: The Last Airbender. The character was voiced by Jessie Flower.Toph Bei Fong is a blind Earthbending master...
are voiced by Zach Tyler Eisen
Zach Tyler Eisen
Zachary Tyler "Zach" Eisen is an American actor and voice actor. His roles include Aang in the animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender, Lucas Nickle in The Ant Bully , Andrew in Nick Jr.'s Little Bill, and Pablo the Penguin in Nick Jr.'s The Backyardigans...
, Mae Whitman
Mae Whitman
Mae Margaret Whitman is an American television, movie and voice actress. She is known for her role as Ann Veal in the TV series Arrested Development, her role as Amber on the TV series Parenthood, her role as Roxy Richter in Scott Pilgrim vs...
, Jack DeSena
Jack DeSena
Jack DeSena is an American screen and voice actor. He is best known for his work on the sketch comedy series All That, having joined the show's cast at the start of its 7th season in 2001 Jack DeSena (born John Patrick DeSena; December 6, 1987, in Boston, Massachusetts) is an American screen and...
, and Jessie Flower
Jessie Flower
Jessie Flower is an American voice actress. She is most well known as the voice of Toph Bei Fong in the animated television series Avatar: The Last Airbender. She also voiced the character Meng in the season one episode "The Fortuneteller". She voices Peggy in Random! Cartoons episode Tiffany...
respectively. Iroh is voiced by Greg Baldwin
Greg Baldwin
Greg Baldwin is an American actor. Raised in Spring, Texas, he currently resides in the San Fernando Valley with Melissa Baldwin, his wife of twenty-six years and their two children, Sydney and Cooper...
and Zuko is voiced by Dante Basco
Dante Basco
Danté Basco is an American actor, voice actor, poet, and dancer. He is best known for playing Rufio in the 1991 live-action Peter Pan film Hook...
. Grey DeLisle
Grey DeLisle
Grey DeLisle is an American voice actress, singer-songwriter, and comedienne. To date, she has released four solo albums and has featured on the tribute album Anchored in Love: A Tribute to June Carter Cash and film soundtrack of Loggerheads...
and Mark Hamill
Mark Hamill
Mark Richard Hamill is an American actor, voice artist, producer, director, and writer, best known for his role as Luke Skywalker in the original trilogy of Star Wars. More recently, he has received acclaim for his voice work, in such roles as the Joker in Batman: The Animated Series, Firelord...
voice the two antagonists, Azula and Fire Lord Ozai, respectively. The co-creators also lend their voices to two minor characters in the third part, "Into the Inferno".
Avatar: The Last Airbender borrows extensively from East Asian art
Art of East Asia
Arts of the Far East include:*Buddhist art*Chinese art*Japanese art*Korean art*Tibetan art*Thai art*Laotian art*Vietnamese art...
to create its fictional universe. Four "bending" arts exist in the universe; they are based on different styles and variations of Chinese martial arts
Chinese martial arts
Chinese martial arts, also referred to by the Mandarin Chinese term wushu and popularly as kung fu , are a number of fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in China. These fighting styles are often classified according to common traits, identified as "families" , "sects" or...
: Baguazhang
Baguazhang
Bāguàzhǎng is one of the three main Chinese martial arts of the Wudang school, the other two being Taijiquan and Xingyiquan. It is more broadly grouped as an internal practice...
for Airbending, Hung Gar
Hung Gar
Hung Ga 洪家, Hung Kuen 洪拳, or Hung Ga Kuen 洪家拳 is a southern Chinese martial art associated with the Chinese folk hero Wong Fei Hung, who was a master of Hung Ga....
and Southern Praying Mantis for Earthbending, Northern Shaolin for Firebending, and T'ai chi for Waterbending. Additionally, series borrows heavily from the Taoist concept of balance and order. The Avatar, an incarnation of a divine being, is supposed to maintain the world's order.
Nickelodeon originally broadcasted Sozin's Comet from 8:00 pm to 10:00 pm EST
Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
on July 19, 2008. Just ten days later, on July 29, the "Book 3: Fire – Volume 4" DVD was released, which contained the four episodes as well as episodes 56 and 57, audio commentary from the series' co-creators, cast, and crew, and a comic book.
Reception
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
stating that this "film" deserved an Academy Award. Toon Zone praised the skill of the animation directors in designing the sweeping movements of the battle scenes, as well as the slower scenes, "including one moving reconciliation and the quiet coda that ties off many of the remaining loose ends of the series". IGN reviewer Tory Ireland Mell wrote that she would "put it in the top ten films of all time". She also praised the artistic skill of the designers, stating that the "whole dark tone was gorgeous to look at", especially the "art of the Lion Turtle". She thought that Sozin's Comet lacked plot holes, as well as unnecessary plot devices, stating that the "story moved and kept us moving right along with it from beginning to end". She gave Sozin's Comet a 10 out of 10 "Masterful" rating.
Sozin's Comet has received its share of criticism as well. Reviewers commented about the difficulty in understanding the voice of a new character: the Lion Turtle. The Lion Turtle was designed by Bryan Konietzko and character designer Jae Woo Kim. Bryan Konietzko disliked how the Lion Turtle turned out; he felt that the art was not up to standards of the original design he had received. CraveOnline
CraveOnline
CraveOnline is a male lifestyle website based in Los Angeles with sales offices in New York, Chicago, and San Francisco. The site is owned by media company AtomicOnline, the publishing division of Evolve Media Corp.- History :...
felt that because "the series was for children, the writers were at a loss of ideas to work around the murder
Homicide
Homicide refers to the act of a human killing another human. Murder, for example, is a type of homicide. It can also describe a person who has committed such an act, though this use is rare in modern English...
angle," and the decision not to kill the Fire Lord introduced "so many convenient plot twists [that] set us up for a humongous deus ex machina
Deus ex machina
A deus ex machina is a plot device whereby a seemingly inextricable problem is suddenly and abruptly solved with the contrived and unexpected intervention of some new event, character, ability, or object.-Linguistic considerations:...
that allows the Fire Lord to be thwarted without dying".
The premiere of Sozin's Comet averaged 5.6 million viewers, 195% more viewers than Nickelodeon had received in mid-July 2007. During the week of July 14, 2008, it ranked as the most-viewed program for the under-14 demographic. The premiere of episodes 52–61 throughout the week of Sozin's Comet
ITunes
iTunes is a media player computer program, used for playing, downloading, and organizing digital music and video files on desktop computers. It can also manage contents on iPod, iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad....
' top ten list of best-selling television episodes during that same week. Sozin's Comet
Nick.com
Nick.com is a website owned and developed by Nickelodeon, launched in October 1995. The website serves mainly as an online portal for Nickelodeon content, and offers online games, message boards, and individual websites for each show it has broadcast....
online game based on Sozin's Comet, generated almost 815,000 game plays within three days. A video game loosely based on the third season, Avatar: The Last Airbender – Into the Inferno, was released on October 13, 2008.
Joaquim Dos Santos won the "Best Directing in an Animated Television Production" caption in the 2008 Annie Awards
36th Annie Awards
The 36th Annual Annie Awards, honoring the best in animation for 2008, were held on January 30, 2009 at Royce Hall in Los Angeles, California. Below is a list of announced nominees...
for his directing in "Into the Inferno". Additionally, music editor and composer Jeremy Zuckerman and the sound editing team were nominated a Golden Reel award for "Best Sound Editing in a Television Animation" for their work in "Avatar Aang".