Today, featured on Wikipedia, is an article on Avatar, the Last Airbender. This is an animated children's series based on a fantasy world that is largely Asian in character. My kids began watching this last year and I found it to be good enough for me to watch as well. this is something I appreciate, children's material that is engrossing (and not grossing) enough for me to enjoy sharing it.
In a nutshell, the world is divided between four nations each with a magical prowess in one of the four basic elements, air, earth, fire and water. One who can wield the magic is called a "bender". The Avatar is a master of all four elements, or one who is destined to be so. The story is set in a time when the Fire nation has pretty much taken over the world after the last Avatar died 112 years past. Two adolescents, Sokka and Katara from the water tribe find a boy, Aang, encased in an iceberg and release him. Not long after they discover that he is the latest incarnation of the Avatar. The adventure takes them on a journey to discover his unrealized talents, ultimately to turn back the power of the Fire nation and presumable return balance to the world.
The animation quality is good but not excellent, the story line is good the telling of the story is occasionally childish, but not intolerably so. The story is very coherent and fairly complex for a children's series. Most shows like this are composed of stand-alone episodes, but this one has a long term story arc making missing an episode a problem. I think this is what makes it most appealing to me. My kids seem to like it because they begin to identify with the characters as they develop.
If you can't stand Sponge Bob and want to spend some quality time in front of a show your kid likes to watch, try this one.
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