The Last Airbender: Prequel: Zuko's Story [Paperback]

Dave Roman (Author), Alison Wilgus (Author), Nina Matsumoto (Illustrator)

Book Description

Release date: May 18, 2010 | Age Range: 10 and up

THE SON WILL RISE
 
Prince Zuko is banished from the Fire Nation by his own father, Fire Lord Ozai. Horribly scarred and stripped of everything he holds dear, Zuko wanders the earth for almost three years in search of his only chance at redemption: the Avatar, a mystical being who once kept the four nations in balance. All around him, people whisper that this is an impossible task—the Avatar, after all, disappeared a century ago—but Zuko defiantly continues the search. His quest is all he has left.
 

Product Details

• Age Range: 10 and up
  
• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Del Rey (May 18, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345518543
• ISBN-13: 978-0345518545
• Product Dimensions: 5 x 0.5 x 7.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #80,814 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 44 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Small Look into Zuko's Past! May 18, 2010

By T'keyah

Format:Paperback

For those that couldn't tell, this book is really short and is a nice little manga about Zuko's banaishment. I'm guessing this is supposed to be for people who haven't exactly watched the series and want to know why Zuko is hunting for the avatar. But, if you have watched the series then this gives you a lot of new insight as well. A few things have changed though, one being the artists rendition of Iroh who looks more like his actor than are big old fluffy friend from TV. For the characters who have yet to be casted like Mai, Ty Lee, and Azula, they look like their normal TV selves. Anyways, this manga comic maps out the first days of Zuko's banishment where he goes around searching for the avatar in the air temples while also dealing with his emotions (which are really fired up....haha...) Different from the original series, this shows you how Zuko becomes the Blue Spirit. It's different from the tv show because it gives the hint that he's been the blue spirit for a long time. (Remeber Zuko is banished a full 2 years before he finds the avatar) All in all, it was a good read especially for a hard core Avatar fan like me. I expect the movie to be really good and I can't wait. 3D whoo!

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Short and Sweet July 4, 2010

By Ashley Cope

Format:Paperback

Written much better than the film but occupying much less of your time, this short manga is still a better value than a ticket to The Last Airbender.

Zuko's Story centers on the eponymous prince, clarifying parts of his past and answering a few questions. It's cleverly written in a way to make it canonically feasible for both the series and the movie, and you'll even find the character designs mixing between the two. Zuko is written to be just as frustrating and angry as he is for the majority of the series. Azula is an evil little wretch. Iroh is a pleasant combination of his movie and series self - if he had his series design, you probably couldn't tell the difference. If you hate the movie and love the series, don't snub this book.

There are two irritating points though. The artwork is adequate but it's sparse and sketchy, very light on tones, and the artist has some problems rendering fire (or maybe she wasn't paid enough to dedicate time to punching up pages, I don't know). Finally, with a retail price of eleven dollars, the book is entirely too short to cost as much as it does. I would not pay that and recommend buying from Amazon.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Mediocre August 10, 2010

By TexasTeacher

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is a decent book, but nothing exciting. It is more meant for children that adult fans of the Avatar television series. Unfortunately, this is book is heavily tied in to the abysmal movie by M.N. Shyamalan., less to the amazing television series by Mike and Bryan. One big downside is that the characters are drawn in a mixture of styles - Zuko and Iroh are drawn as their movie characters look, but Azula and Patik look as they did in the cartoon series - so it feels a little strange. Overall, it was cute, but did not snap and crackle with the amazing storytelling we all came to expect from the Avatar on television.