Korra: Beginnings Part 1/2

[druid91]

So, I'm actually really glad I picked Korra back up again because this explains everything.

Why do some people have bending and others don't? Because their ancestors were gifted the power by the lion turtles while the turtles still protected humanity.

Why do some people have specific bending? Because the turtles granted those elements.

And at the same time, Yuan didn't master the art of bending, even though he had the power, until he went out to live among spirits, so it doesn't contradict the various stories of spirits teaching it. Well, with the exception of the cave of two lovers, but meh.

Still, amazing little mini-series.

[BeerMug Paladin]

In terms for a backstory for that setting, it was a wonderful little aside. It explains a bit of the ancient history of the world, and I think it succeeds in making the world appear to be much older than it is.

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Plus a friend of mine showed it to me after I talked about aye-ayes. Best spirit ever!

[Lateral]

Probably the best thing this season produced.

[Socratov]

ProbablyDefinitely the best thing this season produced.

fixed that for you

But, yes, to illustrate the whole bending origin: it's like learning to write. Sure you can draw lines and wriggles when you get a pen, but you can't write until someone taught you how to make the forms that make up letters. And with great practise you can turn your writing into an art (the part where real mastery comes in), e.g. calligraphy, round hand and penmanship. (maybe even create a whole new script)

[Scowling Dragon]

Well this poops all over the pretty clever reason for why this worked in Last Airbender.

It was vague, and didn't make perfect sense but I thought it was the point.

But I guess everything has too have a bigger scale, and so explaining things that didn't need an explanation is coolio.

[Chromascope3D]

I don't think it overwrote it at all. Like Socratov said, being given the ability to write doesn't mean you've mastered it, or even truly started to learn it. According to the Last Airbender, benders learned their arts from the original masters. But if that were the whole story, then anyone could win favor from the original masters (that is, the Air Bison, the Badgermoles, the Dragons, and the Moon) and learn to bend. But they can't. Why is that? Because those masters didn't give the ability to bend; the Lion Turtles did, as explained in Korra. Both explanations still work (and are canon, as Beginnings goes on further to show Wan learning how to firebend from a dragon, after he gained the ability from the Lion Turtle).

Which is essentially what Socratov said. At least, I assume it is.

[Jyrnn]

I personally really liked the touch that the first avatar was a fire thief, much akin Prometheus.

[Socratov]

I don't think it overwrote it at all. Like Socratov said, being given the ability to write doesn't mean you've mastered it, or even truly started to learn it. According to the Last Airbender, benders learned their arts from the original masters. But if that were the whole story, then anyone could win favor from the original masters (that is, the Air Bison, the Badgermoles, the Dragons, and the Moon) and learn to bend. But they can't. Why is that? Because those masters didn't give the ability to bend; the Lion Turtles did, as explained in Korra. Both explanations still work (and are canon, as Beginnings goes on further to show Wan learning how to firebend from a dragon, after he gained the ability from the Lion Turtle).

Which is essentially what Socratov said. At least, I assume it is.

it is.

white text of fillingness

[Kato]

Hm... while I can accept that explanation for the dissonance about the origin stories it still rubs me a bit the wrong way. Don't get me wrong, Beginnings was great, I still didn't like the story with the lion turtles that much. It's just a bit the old "from a certain point of view" story... Also, the ability of bending just being handed out like a piece of candy feels less satisfactory than working for it. And while the original myth doesn't very well explaining it either, why is Wan the only one to think of acquiring more than one style? Or am I forgetting something?

[Prime32]

And while the original myth doesn't very well explaining it either, why is Wan the only one to think of acquiring more than one style? Or am I forgetting something?

Humans from different lion-turtles rarely came in contact with each other, since it was so dangerous in the wilderness. And IIRC the second turtle took some convincing before it would trust Wan with that much power.

[Kato]

Humans from different lion-turtles rarely came in contact with each other, since it was so dangerous in the wilderness. And IIRC the second turtle took some convincing before it would trust Wan with that much power.

Yeah, but during the great spirit war or whatever you should call it I guess people traveled around and Wan being the only one with a good reason still seems... lacking. Even if he had Raava backing him up.
Ah, it's not a terrible thing, it's no worse than "why does the moon only teach a few people"... Just saying, it was good but it still left me wondering.

[druid91]

As I recall it wasn't a question of giving one person too much power... it was that controlling more than one element at once would kill him.

So basically Raava held on to the ones he wasn't using, and then would swap them back and forth as needed.

It was only when he merged with Raava that he had control of all four at once.

Which, as mentioned, almost killed him.

[Socratov]

Humans from different lion-turtles rarely came in contact with each other, since it was so dangerous in the wilderness. And IIRC the second turtle took some convincing before it would trust Wan with that much power.

As I recall it wasn't a question of giving one person too much power... it was that controlling more than one element at once would kill him.

So basically Raava held on to the ones he wasn't using, and then would swap them back and forth as needed.

It was only when he merged with Raava that he had control of all four at once.

Which, as mentioned, almost killed him.

And there we have it. These are the reasons nobody back then held multiple elements.