Avatar: The Last Airbender marked a significant departure for Nickelodeon as its first original animated series that featured an Asian-inspired fantasy world. Besides introducing viewers to some pretty important life lessons, the expansive universe and lore of the original Avatar series led its creators to develop a comprehensive series bible outlining some important details in the lore. This includes the origins of the four nations and their histories, as well as the origins of the Avatar as the wielder of all four elements.
However, the main narrative still has a few minor plot holes and mysteries. Some of those plot points were resolved in the subsequent series, like The Legend of Korra and even the recently-released Netflix live-action series, but many fans still have some burning questions. Here are six unanswered questions from Avatar: The Last Airbender.
What Happened to Zuko’s Mother?
We already mentioned Zuko’s mother in our discussion on Azula’s fate following the 100-year war, but we didn’t really dive deep into what exactly happened to the First Lady of the Fire Nation. Throughout the Avatar series, we see Zuko wondering and asking questions about his mother and what exactly happened to her, and the series actually provides us with brief glimpses of a person whose nature seemed gentle and caring.
However, the circumstances of her disappearance remain shrouded in mystery throughout both the original series and The Legend of Korra. That’s because her disappearance and subsequent appearance in Zuko’s life following Ozai’s fall were actually revealed in a comic book series that was released following the success of Avatar: The Last Airbender, but before Korra officially aired. We won’t spoil it for you.
Where did the Sky Bison come from in The Legend of Korra?
Following the Air Nomad Genocide led by Fire Lord Sozin, it was presumed that both Appa and Momo, the sky bison and the winged lemur, were just like Aang: the last of their kind. So, it’s not really surprising that the fans were taken aback by the appearance of sky bison in The Legend of Korra, ridden by Aang’s son and other members of his family. So, where did the sky bison come if Appa was the last of his kind?
But that’s the thing. It was always presumed that Appa was the last one, but it was never actually confirmed. We have to assume that those majestic creatures did abound in more than one place in nature, so it’s entirely possible that herds in remote, isolated locations survived.
What Happened to Suki?
Out of all the ladies Sokka has encountered during his time with team Avatar, Suki is obviously the fan favorite — nobody seems to be asking what happened to Ty Lee. We already know what happened to his other love interest, Princess Yue. There’s a disappointing lack of information about Suki and what happened to her following the original series.
Sure, she made an appearance in the subsequent comic book series, but nothing conclusive was made known about her fate, and no one knows what exactly happened to her. We would assume that she marries Sokka, but the handsome ladies’ man died before the events of Korra, where he’s only shown in flashbacks, without Suki.
The Origins of the White Lotus
The Order of the White Lotus is first mentioned in the eleventh episode of Book Two: Water, titled “The Desert.” It is an ancient and formerly secret society comprised of some of the wisest and most powerful individuals in the world, whose ideologies transcend the boundaries of the four nations.
Originally formed by scholars from all over the world, the exact origins of the White Lotus and how it evolved from being a small-grouped nerd club to an organization comprised of the wisest and the fiercest remains a mystery to this day. It would be nice to see more of this organization, perhaps in a spin-off series detailing Iroh’s life from being a young boy to becoming the Dragon of the West.
The Origins of Combustion Bending
While we were first introduced to combustion bending in the original Avatar, we also witnessed a few more combustion benders in Korra. This type of bending is a sub-skill of fire bending, and its origins remain a mystery throughout both the original series and its sequel.
What makes it interesting is that the skill is almost exclusively associated with villainous characters. This suggests that the practice might’ve been outlawed, just like blood bending and soul bending (also known as energy bending). Though, it would be interesting to see how the skill developed.
What Happened to Sokka?
Everyone from the original Team Avatar was given a proper story: Aang died relatively young for an Avatar. Katara, and Toph still live their own lives, but there’s no mention of how Sokka met his end. He’s actually referenced in Korra through flashbacks, but there aren’t any other details about the character since the show makers never elaborated on what exactly happened to him, whether or not he married, or even if he had children. All we know is that he became a political figure following the comic books.
Final Thoughts
These are some of the burning questions the fans would like an answer to, and given the rising popularity of the Avatar franchise, we’d like a spin-off or two detailing, or at least mentioning, some of these mysteries. An Iroh spin-off would be really great since he’s also one of the fan-favorite characters. There’s really plenty of exploration potential here, and with the right people behind the pen and paper, the Avatar could continue for several other series as well.