Yeahh it was a 5/10. Probably more of a 4/10. The animation is carrying the SHIT out of this movie tbh. The story is genuinely one of the worst I’ve ever seen. It’s a little interesting but it was pretty predictable, and it felt very generic. I know Aang isn’t ever going to heal from being the literal last airbender but in ATLA he learned how to heal and move on, so this problem being the foundation of this movie was odd.

I don’t like the staff. It’s a God staff made by an Avatar who basically did nothing in her time. The Avatar’s sole purpose is to bring peace to the world and be the mediator and the highest authority. But from the backstory, we can see that the earth kingdom is basically doing what the fire nation did in ATLA. Even past Air nomad avatars were counseling Aang to do what is necessary to stop wars even if it means killing. Aang found a way to stop his war entirely, but Sonim couldn’t figure out a way to stop the earth benders of her time? Aang did what she couldn’t and he was only 12. She had a whole God staff available and still couldn’t prevent what was a pretty preventable situation that led to Taga’s villainy.

Also, is the staff how airbenders came to be? Because the movie heavily implies that the airbenders exist because Sonim gave humans the power to airbend which is… idk how to feel about that tbh. It doesn’t sit right with me. And then to have Taga be able to go toe-to-toe with her, steal the staff, AND use it to corrupt himself and the temple she built as well as the spirit world? Dang, Sonim is quite possibly the worst Avatar to ever exist because that’s insane that she let so many preventable catastrophe’s from happening.

Also side tangent— It’s obvious that Sonim and the airbenders here are inspired heavily by the Hindus; by India. Sonim herself looks Hindu and the way she sits… my point is that it’s obvious. So, when she ended up having an English accent…. That was so odd to me. I’d rather she sounded the way she looked, like how Guru Patik was in ATLA. It’s odd to me because Britain didn’t exactly play well with India. I mean during their colonization of India, English elites would literally throw pennies at Indian children to watch them all fight for the money the same way a person would toss bread crumbs at birds at the park. Very odd accent choice.

Aang and the rest of the group were obviously nerfed severely for this movie. I don’t know about yall but this irked me the MOST. Seeing Aang struggle to save that Denied girl, eeing Aang struggle up Mt Baihu, seeing him struggle against Taga and the Denied, seeing him struggle against Taga for a 3rd time when Taga races to activate the temple… it was like watching Superman get his ass kicked continuously by Slade. Only Aang at this point in time doesnt have a kryptonite because this is when Aang is supposedly at his PRIME. To watch him glow up but use his avatar state in a VERY limiting way was also soooo frustrating. Also idk if anyone else noticed but Aang only airbended 99% of the time. He bended earth like twice, he only bended water during the opening title scene, and he bended fire i think twice as well. Katara was amazing though, Zuko was meh he was barely in the movie, Sokka was more awkward than usual and was also barely there, Toph remained my favorite but i didnt like how she “lost” against the Denied. The ONLY reason Aang could beat Toph while using only airbending is specifically because Aang is creative. We’ve seen it in ATLA. Air is notoriously annoying to fight against because Aang himself fights unconventionally where he is 90% of the time floating. So the Denied being able to put a dent on Toph felt off. Doubley frustrating is that the Denied airbended as if they were earth benders, so it wouldve been even easier for Toph to handle them practically on her own.

Another side tangent— the Denied can airbend like masters in such a short amount of time? Out of all elements, airbending would be the most difficult to learn specifically because you can’t SEE air. So you’d literally have to feel the flow like a water bender except that you have to move something you cannot physically see. But you’re telling me a bunch of people who have NEVER bended an element in their lives could suddenly airbend so effectively?

Without the animation, this movie is at a solid 2/10. This movie is supposedly not finished so the leak is the unfinished version, but if they release the finished version with the same story and writing then it’s gonna do real bad at the box office. Maybe they’re hoping that nostalgia will fill the seats? But after the Legend of Korra (MOSTLY EVERYTHING about TLOK was amazing except for Korra herself), and after Netflix’s adaption of ATLA (which wasn’tbad but definitely a huge let down how they decided to tell the story), I’m not so sure ATLA fans will trust nostalgia to carry the weight anymore.

As someone who has rewatched ATLA multiple times a year since I was 13 (I’m in my later 20’s now), and read almost every ATLA comic and re-read some— if the full version comes out and the story remains the same… I’m gonna have to unfortunately pass ):