EXCLUSIVE: Yang Continues "Avatar: The Last Airbender" in "The Search"

[CBR News]

Writer Gene Yang spoke exclusively with CBR about Dark Horse's upcoming "Avatar: The Last Airbender" graphic novel series "The Search," what's coming at the end of "The Promise" and how it all leads to "Legend of Korra."


Full article here.

[William Hodge]

Having watched the finale of Korra, I think I need to start picking these up. I love the world of Avatar the Last Airbender.

[Chaos_Alfa]

More Azula is always good <3

[Middenway]

This series has been great so far. I really can't wait to see them address this plotline.

[Dr. Chaos]

I wonder if they'll try to redeem Azula.

Her mother seemed to mean as much to her as she did to Zuko if what her conscience was trying to tell her in front of that mirror was anything to go by.

[PyroTwilight]

Oh. They're not finding Ursa in the Promise after all? That seemed like a big part of Zuko's story there. Well, can't complain, more Avatar.

[Mr. Holmes]

Yeah I've been thinking about whether there's an Avatar comic to read. I mean of course there is. I hope these are as good as the show and not just filler.

[de Sosa]

Will they show what happens to zukos mom?

[Personamanx]

Yeah I've been thinking about whether there's an Avatar comic to read. I mean of course there is. I hope these are as good as the show and not just filler.

So far each volume of the Promise has felt more or less like an episode of the original series. Not necessarily some of the better episodes though. Volume one was solid but the second one... not much happened. It was not too bad though.

The Lost Adventures collection is fantastic. Mostly reprints of various short comics from Nick publications but a lot of them are really solid and 200 pages for about 12 bucks ain't a bad price. The Promise costs 12 bucks per volume and you're only getting 70-80 pages.

[Theozilla]

Well Part 1 of The Search came out in comic shops today (it will come out in bookstores on April 2) and as usual the ATLA fandom (specifically the ones on tumblr) are blowing up. As for me, I think it is very good and I think it is a stronger part 1 of its trilogy than The Promise's Part 1 was (which I also quite liked, again unlike a lot of ATLA fans; it wasn't the greatest thing ever but IMO it was a good comic). THe Search is shaping up to be a great comic IMO. This reviewer gives a good and fair review IMO.
http://avatarthelastairbenderonline....part-1-review/
The first part of the review is spoiler free, the second part does have spoilers.
As for the big twist/cliffhanger at the end spoilers:

Zuko reads a letter her believes to be from his mother to her former lover, named Ikem, form before she married Ozai. Based on the contents of the letter, Zuko interprets it as Ikem his actual biological father.

end of spoilers

Now some people are somewhat understandably overreacting to this reveal, as fans tend to do, but to quote from the aforementioned reviewer's tumblr*spoilers:

based on what Ursa’s letter to Ikem says, it could refer to her and Ikem, but at the same time could also mean Ozai. “My one consolation is our son Zuko. When I look into his eyes, it’s as if I’m looking into yours.” Zuko certainly took it as Ikem is his father. If it is Ikem as Zuko’s father it is not that bad. Zuko has never met Ikem and so was never influenced by him in his life. Ozai has been Zuko’s father and Iroh has been his Uncle. This reveal does not change those relationships really. Iroh is not suddenly going to cut ties with Zuko over this. He was still raised by a descendant of Sozin and one of Roku. He had the influences of both sides regardless of Ikem being his biological father. Also there are 2 more books to go in this series, there is obviously more to this reveal. Also Zuko remained Fire Lord and his daughter is Fire Lord in Korra. So something happens where Zuko keeps the throne. And in regards to what happens with regards to the letter. Ursa does write a letter, she gives it to a servant that she trusts, but the servant gives it to Ozai while Ursa believes it has been sent to Hira’a. He has a bad reaction to the letter. Ozai tells Azula to go to one of his hidden hiding spots in the palace to get this letter, she carries the letter around with her and when she is sleeping Zuko reads it. So it could have been altered, it is not 100% confirmed in the book that the letter Ursa writes is the letter Zuko reads. But that is the way the book presents it. Now I do think that the reveal is likely going to later turn out to be a false reveal in the later books; but even if does turn out to be true it is not really a problem IMO. It does not invalidate Zuko's struggles in the show or Azula's villainy, Zuko's lineages were really only symbolically representative of his internal conflict, the primary causation of them though was how he was nurtured and raised not his genes (having a younger sibling who is adopted, I do feel that society often gives to much weight to the significance of someone's genealogy in the nature vs. nature debate). Likewise, Azula's villainy was primarily caused by her nurture and teachings from Ozai and her inferiority superiority complex in relation to Zuko's and Ursa's relationship.

end of spoilers

*Link:http://airspeedprime.tumblr.com

[Theozilla]

http://mikedimartinostory.com/2013/0...-to-zukos-mom/

Cool article that Michael Dante Dimartino made on his personal blog about storytelling and story theory about The Search and ATLA and expectations etc.
It an interesting read worth checking out.

[Theozilla]

http://avatarthelastairbenderonline....iew-gene-yang/

The Avatar Online Podcast just did an interview with Gene Yang (the writer of the Dark Horse ATLA comics as well as comics like American Born Chinese, The Eternal Smile, etc.). It is an really interesting interview that also goes into the collaborative process that Gene Yang goes through with Mike and Bryan and Gurihiru.