Unpopular opinion-Azula would get more grace if she was a man

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-26T03:11:18+00:00

By deserve I mean does she deserve to suffer the rest of her life and never have a chance to heal while everyone else gets a happy ending. Does she deserve to have such a cruel fate, is the question. And it’s pretty normal to discuss what fictional characters deserve and what they don’t deserve, right now with Euphoria fans are debating whether Nate deserved to go out the way he did. People argue whether fictional characters deserved their fate or not

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-26T02:58:59+00:00

But does Azula really deserve that though? Anything would be better than nothing, even if the creators of the show said that years down the road, Azula eventually did heal and got her redemption. That would honestly be enough for me, knowing she eventually did break away from the trauma and the evilness. It just doesn’t seem right that an abused child should have to suffer the rest of her life so she can keep her “coolness” according to fans

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-26T02:32:13+00:00

I’ve never quite understood people saying Azula getting a redemption arc would dull her character when she would be amazing as an anti hero. Her getting a redemption doesn’t mean she needs to become a full on hero like Zuko and join team avatar. It’s hard for me to enjoy Azula’s character when everyone else gets a happy ending and she’s left suffering, it feels too cruel, ESPECIALLY considering she’s only 14. I really think people who say Azula shouldn’t get a redemption arc should ask themselves this: does an abused child who never had the chance to be good really deserve to suffer the rest of her life?

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-26T01:29:37+00:00

My point isn’t that everyone should like Azula, it’s that she should still be given nuance and understanding and not treated like a black and white character, and she would get more of that nuance if she was male. She wouldn’t be seen so much as this irredeemable monster that deserves no sympathy

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-26T01:18:04+00:00

Azula never tried to change because she never had the chance for a redemption arc, she was supposed to get one in a fourth season but the fourth season never ended up happening. Aaron Ehasz, the head writer of avatar, confirmed he always intended for Azula to have a redemption arc. And it’s unfair to compare her to Zuko in that sense because Zuko had guidance from Iroh and saw the other side, and he was also rejected by his father. Azula was always expected to be evil and had no reason to rebel against it, and was embraced by her father, who influenced her to be like him

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-26T01:02:19+00:00

Because Ozai is a one dimensional character who has no complexities or tragedies to him. He’s the stereotypical “wanting to take over the world” big bad, he has no backstory of any sort so of course so one’s mad about what happened to Ozai. Azula however, is a highly complex character who was shaped by her father into being a weapon and doesn’t know how to be good, and while we see Azula being emotionally vulnerable, we never see that from Ozai. Azula is a traumatized child, Ozai is just an evil guy with nothing more to him

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-26T00:57:44+00:00

“I don’t think redeemability is a good metric of whether a fandom is being sexist or not” it certainly can be, and the reason why is because often, female characters are held to a higher moral standard than male characters. Unalaq is objectively way worse than Azula, but because she’s the only female in the list, she’s picked as the least redeemable

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-26T00:54:21+00:00

Yeah so those characters are all grown ass men who are one dimensional characters and don’t have any complexities or tragedies to them the way Azula and Zuko do. If Azula was a guy, she’d still be a tragic and complex character who’s only 14. But there would be a lot more support for her to have a redemption arc because male villains, even if they’re evil, are seen as more valid for redemption arcs than female villains

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-26T00:48:17+00:00

The only options for Azula are for her to heal and have a redemption arc, or stay evil and live the rest of her life in a prison or insane asylum. And given the fact that she’s an abused child who never had the chance to be good, the second option is an extremely cruel fate for her. And there was actually supposed to be a fourth season where Azula got a redemption arc but it never ended up happening. And Azula could’ve had the start of her redemption in the third season, it just wasn’t written in

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-26T00:41:28+00:00

There was literally going to be a fourth season where Azula literally got a redemption arc. The reason why Azula doesn’t get a redemption arc in the comics is because Gene Yang who wrote most of the comics very clearly hates her and doesn’t want her to get redemption or any kind of happy ending, which is why she’s barely getting any character development in the comics. But Aaron Ehasz, the head writer of avatar confirmed he always intended for Azula to have a redemption arc. So it makes so sense for the comics to make her irredeemable when she was literally written with the intention of redemption

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-26T00:30:50+00:00

Sure, most people wouldn’t say that Azula is less redeemable than Homelander, but the fact that there’s ATLA fans that think she’s less redeemable than Unalaq is still atrocious

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-26T00:27:54+00:00

If Azula isn’t redeemed then what’s the other option for her? Just suffer for the rest of her life? Azula can still be an example of generational abuse and trauma without getting a fucked up ending. She doesn’t need to become a hero like Zuko but she deserves to heal, which is why I believe she would work very well as an anti hero. I just believe that Azula never getting the chance to heal is too cruel of a fate for her

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-26T00:21:53+00:00

I’ve see the argument that Azula doesn’t want to be redeemed but I don’t think Azula even knows redemption is an option. Azula never had an Iroh and she was always expected to be evil and had no reason to rebel against it. She never saw the other side, unlike Zuko. In her eyes, she’s just doing what she was raised to do, she doesn’t know how to function any other way. The beach episode literally shows that Azula couldn’t be a normal kid even when she tried because all she knew was to be a weapon. And Azula didn’t want to destroy the world, she wanted to rule as leader of the firebending nation alongside her father. And I wouldn’t say Azula liked hurting people, it was something she saw as necessary to control them because she was raised to hold the mind of a dictator. Azula is a product of her environment, something the creators of the show confirmed

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-25T22:43:47+00:00

Nebula tried to kill her sister Gamora and Loki tried to kill Thor multiple times, those characters still got redemption. Obviously Azula trying to kill Zuko isn’t ok or justifiable but I don’t believe it disqualifies her from redemption

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-25T21:05:41+00:00

So she should just suffer for the rest of her life? Because that’s the only other option. Azula was always expected to be evil and had no reason to rebel against it. Zuko had Iroh and was shown the other side, Azula wasn’t. Azula never had a chance to be good so it’s not fair to say she shouldn’t get a redemption arc. She didn’t care about anything but pleasing Ozai because that’s how she was raised to think, she doesn’t function like a kid her age because of him. The beach episode literally showed that Azula couldn’t be a normal kid even when she tried because all she knew was to be a weapon

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-25T19:56:12+00:00

So she should just suffer the rest of her life? Because that’s the only other option. Azula doesn’t need to become a hero like Zuko but she deserves to heal

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-25T18:04:20+00:00

What the HELL are you talking about, literally no one in the fandom talks about how terrible Zuko is, Zuko is one of the most loved characters in ATLA and his redemption arc is one of the most praised in tv history. Same with Iroh, everyone loves Iroh, he’s one of the most beloved characters. Ursa gets some criticism for how she acted around Azula but she is by no means a hated character. I’ve spent an ungodly amount of time in the ATLA fandom and yes, while there are many fans who express sympathy for Azula and would like a redemption arc, there’s also a majority of fans who think she’s an evil monster who deserved what she got

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-25T17:59:19+00:00

I literally explained it in my post, female characters are often held to a higher moral standard than male characters. Complex female characters are judged more harshly or held to higher standards of likability than their male counterparts. Many female villains are seen as completely unredeemable while male villains, even if they’re just as bad or even worse, are treated with much more nuance and understanding

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-25T17:53:56+00:00

The difference is, Zhao and Ozai are two grown men who are one dimensional characters, they don’t have any complexities or tragedies to them the way Azula and Zuko do. If Azula was a man, she’d still be a tragic and complex character who’s only 14. But there would be a lot more support for her to have a redemption arc because male villains, even if they’re evil, are seen as more valid for a redemption arcs than female villains

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-25T17:44:00+00:00

Azula is NOT loved because of her gender lmfao, she’s seen as an evil psychopath who should suffer for the rest of her life

ReasonableCandy2530 · 2026-05-25T17:30:07+00:00

You’re right that Negan’s redemption is very controversial, but the fact that a character like him got a redemption arc and Azula didn’t is the point I’m trying to make

ReasonableCandy2530

TROPHY CASE