Water. Earth. Fire. Air. Long ago, the four nations anxiously waited for news of Netflix' live-action Avatar: The Last Airbender adaptation. Then, everything changed when the trailer arrived.
Avatar: The Last Airbender fans have been wary of Netflix's adaptation since its first announcement. After all, the live-action film from M. Night Shyamalan was a massive flop, and up until One Piece, Netflix didn't have the best track record translating animation to live action. But in a delightful turn of events, the trailer actually shows some promise.
Just like the original series, Avatar: The Last Airbender takes place in a world where certain people can bend (manipulate) the elements. Only the Avatar is able to bend them all, but right before a 100 year-long war with the Fire Nation, he vanished.
Now, the Avatar — an airbender named Aang (Gordon Cormier) — has resurfaced. Joined by Water Tribe siblings Katara (Kiawentiio) and Sokka (Ian Ousley), he sets off on a quest to learn how to bend all four elements and save the world. But his journey will be far from easy: Disgraced Fire Nation Prince Zuko (Dallas James Liu) will stop at nothing to hunt Aang down and regain his honor.
The trailer faithfully recreates several key locations from the cartoon, including the Earth Kingdom city of Omashu and Kyoshi Island. Plus, it gives us a cute glimpse at live-action Momo and Appa. Yip yip, and onward to February!
Avatar: The Last Airbender hits Netflix Feb. 22.