Avatar: The Last Airbender. Book Two: Earth

People tell me that at my age, I shouldn't be watching cartoons anymore. That's a real nasty stereotype, associating animation with age. If cartoons are supposed to be for kids only, then it should also be done by kids. Yet everyone knows that animators are adults who get paychecks and social security numbers, but no one's complaining, right?

Moving on. This is now the second book (or the second season) in the Emmy award-winning (yes, it won an Emmy) animated series, and the last airbender Aang continues on his quest to master the four elements. And as the title suggests, this time he masters the element Earth.

There are of course new characters, including Toph, the blind girl who happens to be an earthbending master. And there's also the beautiful Princess Azula (Prince Zuko's sister) and her two sidekicks Mai and Ty Lee. Princess Azula shows off her awesome power, a variation of firebending─she is able to shoot lightning, like the Sith Lords in Star Wars, but Uncle Iroh (who is now my favorite character) shows that he too can bend lightning.

The fight scenes are still a joy to behold, and they're even better than the fights in Book One. Of course, this is due to the limitless possibilities of the animated medium. Now we have anime fight scenes with slow-motion shots straight out of The Matrix. If you're not yet an Avatar fan, it might just be the fight scenes that will win you over.

Anyway, going back to my first argument, if you think that adults shouldn't watch cartoons, then check out this thread, and you'll see how many adults are hooked on this show. So who said cartoons are for kids? Grow up.


Rating: Five stars.