It’s been about a year since our last Contrarian Retrospective, and with my current enthusiasm for Legend of Korra at a feverish pitch, I figured now is as good a time as any to dive into this show, season-by-season. Thankfully, Korra is only four seasons long, so it won’t take too long for us to get through this and have some fun along the way.
If you need a refresher on how these types of articles work, I’ll be going through one season per week, breaking down the episodes one-by-one. For each episode, I’ll do a synopsis of what happens, give my own thoughts/mini-review, and then a rating from 1-10. At the end I’ll give an overall rating and review to the season as a whole.
Let’s begin!
Episode One – Welcome to Republic City
After the passing of Avatar Aang, the next Avatar is found in the rambunctious and hotheaded Korra. Raised in a training facility, Korra is eager to explore the world, and also painfully naive. She arrives in Republic City, gets in a kerfuffle with thugs and police, and endears herself just enough to her mentor Tenzin to be allowed to stay in the city from hereon, under the caveat that she begins studying her airbending.
As far as pilots go, this one is pretty great. It manages to cram a lot into a short runtime (Korra’s childhood, feelings of stubbornness and hotheadedness, introducing Republic City, meeting Tenzin and Lin, and teasing the evil Equalist movement), but it also doesn’t feel bloated or overwhelming. It’s not exactly the craziest or most memorable episode in the show, but it’s got a little something for everyone with some well-paced exposition, well-animated fights, and a few funny bits. It does a great job getting you ready for the jam-packed season to come.
Rating: 8.5
Episode Two – A Leaf in the Wind
Struggling with airbending, Korra wanders off and finds herself at the Pro Bending arena, where she befriends battling brothers Mako and Bolin. She ends up joining their team as the third member, and after some struggle, manages to fit in well and start putting airbending practices into use.
First off, let me just say that Pro Bending is one of the coolest concepts ever created in the Avatar universe, and the fact that it has logical and well-explained rules and regulations is super cool and I desperately wish it was real!
Anyway, this is another solid introductory episode that debuts both Mako and Bolin, and also establishes the Pro Bending environment that will feature heavily in the season’s first half. Mako and Bolin make great first impressions (Bolin especially, who I again must stress has an awesome vocal performance), and the fights are as great as ever. Korra coming into her own through the sporting fights is also a great bit of character development as she learns to carve her own unique path, and Tenzin learns that not every student can be taught the same way.
Rating: 8
Episode Three – The Revelation
Bolin ends up kidnapped by the Equalist Movement, necessitating a rescue mission from Korra and Mako. Along the way, our heroes finally see the Equalist leader, Amon, and his terrifying power to strip bending away. Bolin is rescued just in time.
The plot begins to pick up here, as the Equalists and their shadowy leader Amon make their first move towards the protagonists. It isn’t as often as I’d like that a children’s show villain gets to be threatening, but they knock it out of the park with Amon in terms of character design, vocal performance, and plot relevance. The ability to steal bending is terrifying, after all, and we see it first-hand. We also get some stellar action scenes with Korra and Mako, including a thrilling showdown at the end of the episode. It truly only gets crazier from here!
Rating: 9
Episode Four – The Voice in the Night
City Councilman Tarrlok pushes for a task force to hunt down Amon, and ends up peer pressuring Korra into joining. While this is happening, Mako encounters and begins dating Future Industries heir Asami Sato. Eventually, Korra’s drive to take Amon down leads her to challenging him to a one-on-one, but when he cheats and corners her with his men, she realizes just how terrified she is of both him and losing her bending.
Building right off the back of the previous episode, we move into the counterattack against the Equalists led by Councilman Tarrlok (who I just adore as a complex villain in this season). His gradual manipulation of Korra is really engaging to watch, as is Korra herself, who really steals the show in this episode. It’s so clear that she’s terrified and only lashing out in boneheaded anger due to being just awful at letting her true emotions surface, and so when she gets herself into a terrible situation at the episode’s end its a real nail-biting set-up. Then, when she finally breaks down into tears in Tenzin’s arms and admits to being afraid…it’s super impactful stuff. Even more so when Tenzin consoles her by saying that fear is natural, but you can’t let it control you.
Rating: 9
Episode Five – The Spirit of Competition
Teenage hormones run wild as Mako dating Asami makes Korra jealous, and then Korra trying to make a move on Mako later breaks the heart of Bolin, who thought he and Korra had hit it off. This messy situation severely damages the team’s trust in each other. Korra, recognizing how she screwed up, powers through with sheer force of will and carries her team to the finals, apologizing afterwards.
Okay, let’s get it out of the way: the relationship shenanigans are the weakest part of the first season of Korra. At the same time, though, let’s not pretend that they clog up the entire season or something like that. Outside of a few minor dialogue exchanges and meaningful glances, the love-triangle-thingy nonsense is contained entirely within this episode. And, though that does drag it down, we still get some very entertaining funny moments (and a very memeable Bolin gif), and more awesome Pro Bending action. So it’s not a total bust!
Rating: 7.5
Episode Six – And The Winner Is…
Before the finals can truly end (and with Korra’s opponents obviously cheating and bribing the ref), the match is interrupted by an Equalist attack. Amon de-bends the enemy team and makes a grand speech, before attempting to flee the scene. He is pursued by Korra and Lin, who nearly catch him but are ultimately unable to stop his flight.
The episode that is sure to win over anyone who has made it this far into the season and hasn’t fully clicked with Korra yet. It’s got everything you could want, opening up with some more thrilling Pro Bending (and the last major Pro Bending content we’ll see in the show, sadly), and ending with a full-scale Equalist attack. Korra and Lin working in perfect sync to lay the smackdown on the baddies is amazing to witness, and the intensity of the showdown really ramps up. It does wonders for further demonstrating the credible threat that Amon poses, and it ends on a bit of a somber note given that the villains more or less achieved their purpose.
Rating: 10
Episode Seven – The Aftermath
Korra begins to find evidence that implicates Asami’s father in a collusion scheme with the Equalists. Despite the rift this could tear in their fledgling team, Korra persists, eventually discovering a secret Equalist laboratory under the Sato mansion. Mister Sato himself reveals his true colors, and so does Asami by sticking with Team Avatar.
And now we get the episode that finally allows Asami to become more than just a satellite character (and there are an unfortunately low number of those in the entire show). She’s in top form here by trying her hardest to maintain faith in her father, but still dropping his revenge-crazed butt to the curb when the chips are down. Combined with some solid intrigue and more fun fighting (the action scenes in Korra are just great across the board), and we’re left with another very solid episode. The tension is really rising in Republic City, and everyone can feel it.
Rating: 8
Episode Eight – When Extremes Meet
Tarrlok, given emergency powers by the city council, begins cracking down hard on all non-benders, initiating curfews and near-martial law. Korra and her team fight back as best as they can, only for her friends to end up in prison for their efforts. Confronting Tarrlok alone at night, the two duke it out in the council offices, and right before Korra can win, Tarrlok bloodbends her into submission.
Building right off of that mounting tension I alluded to earlier, the crisis in Republic City reaches a boiling point as Tarrlok tries to institute a dystopian authority on the innocent non-bending civilians in the city. It’s a played-out cliched, but I’m a huge sucker for corrupt government versus oppressed citizens storylines, and that’s encapsulated really well here in some shockingly topical scenes. And then we get to cap off the episode with the fantastic Korra versus Tarrlok duel, which is my favorite fight from the first season, and also home to the most jaw-dropping reveal in the entire season too (I did not expect Tarrlok to have so much going on with him in my first watch).
Rating: 10
Episode Nine – Out of the Past
Trapped by Tarrlok, Korra bides her time by meditating, recalling from her past life how a man named Yakone bloodbent the criminal underworld of Republic City. Meanwhile, Lin frees the others from prison and mounts a search-and-rescue of Korra. Tarrlok is also ousted as both a villain and Yakone’s long-lost son, and his machinations come to an end when he is cornered by Amon and stripped of his bending. Korra barely escapes from Amon, and reunites with her friends.
An episode that manages to very smartly balance some much-needed exposition, some personal growth with Korra learning patience and meditation, and some fun actiony shenanigans with Lin and the others coming to Korra’s rescue. This is also one of the few times we get extended looks at the past beloved members of the Avatar world, specifically Aang and Sokka. It’s really cool to see how they played a part in shaping Republic City’s beginnings. And then the episode ends with a tense confrontation between Tarrlok and Amon (making it clear that they are not on the same side of evil), and Korra barely escapes Amon again before being found by her friends. Yet again, Amon’s aura of power and mystique makes him feel almost untouchable.
Rating: 9
Episode Ten – Turning the Tides
The Equalists, backed by Sato’s vast wealth and technology, launch a full-scale attack on Republic City. Korra, Lin, and Tenzin lead an attack, but Tenzin has to run when his wife goes into labor. Lin protects his family as they escape, but after an extremely valiant effort is defeated and de-bended. Korra and crew reconvene in a hidden underground camp, and get in contact with outside forces who can aid them.
And thus the crazy fighting begins! From basically this point on, the entire rest of the season is devoted to our band of heroes attempting to stop the Equalists from taking control of Republic City. In what is essentially a three-part finale, this first episode shines brightest when it focuses on Lin doing what she does best: being awesome. From protecting Tenzin’s children to taking down two Equalist airships all on her own, she’s amazing in action, and also in conviction. The scene near the end where she’s caught and de-bended when she refuses to give up Korra’s location is a really poignant loss (and also, cinematically speaking, it’s shot and animated very well too).
Rating: 8.5
Episode Eleven – Skeletons in the Closet
While half of Team Avatar goes to cripple the Equalist base, Korra and Mako (who have grown progressively closer) try to search for Amon. Instead, the two find an imprisoned Tarrlok, who reveals that Amon is actually his brother, and thus also Yakone’s son. He explains his and his brother’s backstories, and tells Korra that he wants Amon stopped just as much as she does.
This is another expository-heavy episode that, admittedly, stifles the wind from the finale’s sails just a bit. However, along with having a lot of crucial character reveals, the backstory of Tarrlok and Amon is just really good in general. I’ve always liked storylines that focus on showing how the sins of a parent can seep into and negatively affect their children, and it’s sobering to watch Tarrlok realize how far he and his estranged brother have fallen thanks to inheriting their father’s twisted dreams of revenge. Another plus of this episode is that by getting the nitty-gritty out of the way, we’re free to charge headlong into a breakneck finale!
Rating: 8
Episode Twelve – Endgame
Team Avatar’s forces take out the Equalist air squadron, and Asami is able to defeat and apprehend her unrepentant father. Korra and Mako confront Amon at a rally and expose him as a fraud and criminal, shattering his reputation. He attempts to kill them both, and even strips Korra’s bending, but a last second desperate unlocking of her airbending sends Amon flying, defeating him. Later, Korra embraces her spiritual side and finally connects with her past lives fully, restoring her bending and that of all the others Amon stole from.
Even if there are a few misses along the way (here’s looking at you, Lion Turtle), the creators of the Avatar universe know how to do an epic season finale, and this one is no different. Korra and the rest of Team Avatar’s final showdown with the Equalists is amazing to see, and has so many good character beats in it. Asami standing up to and arresting her father, Mako risking his life for Korra, Korra in-turn unlocking her airbending to save Mako, and Amon being exposed as a fraud right in front of all his sycophant followers. The final battle, though brief, is tense, fast-paced, and very well animated too.
And then both ending scenes are amazing! On the one hand we have a severely depressed Korra feeling like she’s lost all sense of self without her bending, only to finally achieve the openness she’s been missing that allows her to connect with her past lives and re-gain her strength (and her healing Lin’s bending is very much appreciated). And then on the other side we have what might be the most infamous scene in the show (and definitely a top-five scene in my opinion), of Tarrlok and Amon dying in a double-suicide out at sea. Their story is really good (article-worthy, perhaps we’ll see), and the tragic conclusion sticks with you a long time after the credits roll.
Rating: 10
SEASON CONCLUSION
It’s not the strongest season of Korra, but the biggest positive about this debut season is how self-contained it all feels. You could genuinely stop watching here and still have a satisfying experience (you shouldn’t, to be clear, but you could). It isn’t hard to see that this season was intended to be a standalone, and it was only continued because people fell so hard in love with these characters and this ever-expanding universe.
Honestly, love-triangle (quadrangle?) shenanigans aside, nothing stands out as egregiously wrong with this season. I think the main conflict gets wrapped up a bit too fast, but that’s probably mostly a result of the mini-series syndrome this season had during development. There’s a lot to love here too, with Lin and Korra being real standouts, and Amon is very entertaining and threatening as the main baddie (even if I’m actually a bit partial to Tarrlok).
A very solid season!
Rating: 8.5
But hey, that’s just my opinion!
The Contrarian Corner 