Customer Reviews

Avatar: The Last Airbender - The Complete Book Two Collection

5 star:		(188)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I am in my late 20s, and I have to say this is one of the best cartoons I have ever seen. I happened to watch it one day while flipping channels and was hooked. I have gotten a TON of my friends hooked on it as well, and the dvds for season one have been changing hands all the time.
Regarding the show itself: The animation is well done, often with beautiful scenes and accompanied by simple and beautiful music. The characters have depth and complexity rarely seen in cartoons.
Regarding Season Two: This season is excellent. A great new character is introduced (though actually many great characters are introduced in Season two). The finale, like that of seasons one's, was exciting, fast paced, and EXTREMELY well done. The creators put a lot into the finales and it shows. The season finales have an epic feel to them, and often feature some sort of homage to Hiyao Miyazake, the creator of some of the best animated movies. On a sad note, the talented Mako, who voiced Uncle Iroh in season 1 and 2, passed away. His character is my favorite on this show, and I hope they find someone for season three that can fill his big shoes.
I love this show and I know myself and many others are eagerly waiting for the premiere of season three. You come to care for these chracters and waiting to find out what happens is difficult. Basically, this show can be enjoyed on a lot of different levels, by a variety of people and ages.

Season two finds our heroes after the events of season one, new characters and new plotlines make this season a keeper. I can't believe we are nearing the end of the series ark. Season three is said to be the last season, (which it should be, the story will be done after Aang learns how to fire bend and defeats the Fire Nation, better to have three GOOD seasons than six consecutive ones!)and what a show it has been! Kids and adults alike are flocking to their television screens to watch the adventures of these kids expand further, mysteries and suspenseful twists make this show great even for people older than twelve. The background track music also plays a key part in the show, making every joke, action, and plotline maximized to it's fullest potential.

I recommend this show to anyone with a sense of individuality, not worried about the fact that they're watching an animated feature.

Avatar The Last Airbender - The Complete Book 1 Collection Just bought it and my whole family is enjoying it. My six year old son is watching it every night with us before bedtime. And my nieces got so involved with it that they have to continue seeing the whole series. We are still very much awaiting for the next great Avatar book 2 DVD. We are hoping that it will be released even before September. I would rate it 20 out of 10 because the whole plot of the story was that great and enjoyable for the whole family. Hopefully Nick channel will continue the Avatar story.

Ok, I'd like to preface this by saying I grew up in the glory days of Nick. When quality shows like Pete and Pete, Legends of the Hidden Temple and Are You Afraid of the Dark? were a dime a dozen. Lately I haven't been paying much attention to the programming on Nick. My, times have changed. Sure, I'd watch the occasional Fairly Oddparents or Spongebob but for the most part, it was programming aimed at very young kids(as opposed to the young adult crowd in the early 90's).

Consequently, I didn't think much of Avatar when I had first heard of it. I thought to myself, here was another show jumping the anime bandwagon and made to look like a Naruto clone. I gave the show a chance only through a happy accident and boy was I glad. I was hooked on the spot. Here was the diamond in the rough. Here was a show that actually had a planned storyline with a beginning, middle and end. Not only that, but every episode has a significance to the overall storyline. This is a rarity in American television when most shows have character development over random situations every week but very little overall plot development. They lacked an overall story. This is what makes Avatar appealing to me. It's epic in scope and is not afraid to end a story when it's complete. Many other shows continue to drag and milk a series if it is profitable simply because it is too tough and costly to produce yet another hit.

The characters are lovable, and a new level of depth is reached in season 2 especially when we learn more about Prince Zuko(Zuko Alone) and his uncle Iroh(Tales of Ba Sing Se). A new character is introduced in Season 2, Toph, a blind girl who happens to be a master Earthbender but is confined to her home because of her parent's belief that she is helpless. She is a welcome breath of fresh air as it's always great to see strong female lead roles, especially one with a handicap.

Lastly, I would like to conclude by saying that Season 2 is a wonderful set of episodes. It is the "Empire Strikes Back" of the series and us Avatards cannot wait for the final installment of what has been an amazing ride these past 2 and a half years.

One thing I absolutely love about the Avatar:TLA series is the fact that a 5-year old can watch it, and be entertained, and a 20-year old can also watch it, and be entertained. For us older folk, it's the hidden depth behind the four nations, and all the various characters. The plot is unique and complicated -without- being confusing, which in itself is a huge achievement. I highly recommend this series to anyone willing to give it a chance. I've heard too many complaints from people that won't watch it 'cause it's animated, or even because it's and american anime, and not originally from Japan. If you'll give it a chance, it will definitely hook you.

This is the best Cartoon series out there. I have 3 sons of my own, and even when they don't watch it, I make sure I get to. This cartoon has alot of heart and soul. Very rare in the many cartoons that are out there in today's world. At times I find myself crying from some of the touching episodes. BRAVO to the creators of this fantastic show. It's one of a kind!

This box set contains the four individually released DVDs for Book 2, as well as an exclusive bonus disc. The four episode discs contain five episodes and a "special feature."

Disc one includes episodes 1-5, as well as an original uncut animatic. Disc two contains episodes 6-10, as well as audio commentary by the creators, cast and crew. Disc three contains episodes 11-15, and audio commentary from the creators, cast, and crew. And disc four contains episodes 16-20, as well as audio commentary from the creators, cast, and crew. Overall, I thought the "special features" for the individual discs of Book 2 were rather lacking.

The exclusive bonus disc includes an interview with the creators and M. Night Shyamalan (who is directing a live-action "Avatar: The Last Airbender" film). There is also a feature entitled "The Essence of Bending," which includes interviews with series co-creator Bryan Konietzko and Sifu Kisu. There are also three "Avatar" super deformed shorts ("Bending Battle," "Swamp Skiin' Throwdown," and "School Time Shipping"). All I've got to say is, the super deformed shorts are rather amusing and hilarious if you have any knowledge of Avatar: The Last Airbender. There is also the "Escape From the Spirit World" animated graphic novel, which are basically pieces taken from the "Escape From the Spirit World" game that could be played at Nickelodeon's web site before Book 3 started airing.

All in all, this set is worth it to get the bonus disc. The super deformed shorts should be in the hands of any "Avatar: The Last Airbender" fan.

Avatar is exceptionally written, perhaps the best animated series ever to air in America. It's so good that acclaimed Director, M. NIGHT SHYAMALAN,(The Sixth Sense, Unbreakable, Signs, The Village, The Happening) called it, "The coolest mythology I've ever seen," and put his own screenwriting on hold to spend the next six years producing/directing a BIG-SCREEN LIVE-ACTION TRILOGY of this story.

Adults may find the occasional comic relief a bit cheesy, but will love the character development, psychological depth, mythos, realistic martial arts, "special effects", and the excellent insights into Asian philosophy, sociology, and mythology, and even politics. I've been studying Asian culture and philosophy and teaching in Asia for years and I've gained insights from this series because the writers have found ways to introduce and explain Asian thought so simply that even kids can "get it". Ideas like chakras, Daoism, and Chinese philosophy of the balance and properties of the natural Elements are brought to life and illustrated in the characters lives, situations, and cultural settings. I bought this to watch my nephews (though I often watch it when they're not here too) and I think it's awesome because as they grow up in an increasingly Asian world, I think what they were exposed to in this show will make Asian culture (Chinese, Tibetan, Japanese, Indian, Korean) much more accessible and comprehensible to them than it was to me when I studied it.

Don't the the animation fool you, this series is an epic "reluctant hero quest" myth of exceptional crafting, on par with STAR WARS and LORD OF THE RINGS.

Mesmerizingly ENTERTAINING and uniquely EDUCATIONAL! With or without kids, you'll LOVE it!

I got sick of pre-presidential politics on CNN, MSNBC and FOX. I'd watch Nick to clear my mind of the same old lies and exaggerations I'd hear, when I discovered "AVATAR the LAST AIR BENDER," on Nickolodean That was it, I was hooked on the story line and the extremely complex characters. This without exaggeration is one of the best epic cartoons (I almost shudder to label it a cartoon) it's more of a "HOW TO" for parent who want to teach their children, morals, ethics, and dealing in real life decisions, with all the barriers they'll face as young adults.

I'm a nurse educator in my late 50's and even I enjoy this work almost as much as Shakespeare's works. It's so well written with as many twists, turns and bi-phasic characters as King Lear or the War of the Roses have, (the REAL ONE, not the one in which Danny De Vito played.)

I'd hope Nick or some other very smart producer will pick up these characters and this story line, making it into a 3 or even 4 part epic movie series. I have a feeling its moral values will outweigh anything that the Harry Potter series had!

All I can say is, it's an amazingly executed story, excellently written as a role model for any kid or even young adult in today's very convoluted world of good vs bad and the extreme blurring between the two.
It's outstanding and I for one will recommend it to anyone: kid, teen or even an old geezer, who's tired of the real cartoons we see in Political Arena today..i.e., the ones with the Democrats and Republicians that are supposed to be reality. I loved to see Toph "earthbend" all the politicians and bury them in their lies, far, far under the earth's several layers so we can all sit and watch a real story of life, Avatar, the Last Air Bender."

Refreshingly creative! The merging and mixing of the various philosophies and cultures give it a distinct look and feel. Fantastic show, I wish I had a series like this to watch as a kid or teenager. Good for adults, too. Often fun and funny, it also has a heavier more mature side to the series which approaches topics like a death of a loved one, personal loss, betrayal, growth, and that people (even villains) have several facets of their personality. What I enjoy most is that the show rarely "returns to status quo" and all the events in an episode actually affect the characters and isn't forgotten.