‘Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender’ review: Truly, this is anime

Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender is an attempt to recreate the success of anime films that really deserves the chance to try.

Here’s the thing about Avatar: The Last Airbender: it’s an anime. It shamelessly lifts from the tropes, design, and cultures behind the best anime one could watch. That’s never been a secret and it is clear the creators took the time to understand what makes anime great. At the same time, that is also why it’s fitting that Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender, the franchise’s big comeback feature film, turns out to be mostly equivalent to a theatrical side quest in the same vein.

Much like films such as One Piece Film: Red, Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender is less a major leap forward in narrative and more a big flashy adventure that ties up cleanly by the time that the credits roll. That’s hardly a bad thing for the first on-screen outing of these characters in a decade. In fact, taking off the weight of the broader franchise narrative makes room for softer character moments and the best production this Avatar has ever been afforded.

Aang finally gets to be the star of his show again.

Despite the comparisons to non-canon films anime like Spy x Family or My Hero Academia get, Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender is still canon the broader franchise. This finally allows the titular character Aang (Eric Nam) to become the center of the story for the first time since – let’s be honest – the end of ATLA season 2. Aang’s an adult, and that’s given him more perspective on what he doesn’t have – his people. It’s a pain that the original series does highlight, but it’s Aang’s growth that puts it in a new perspective.

It’s into this grief that Aang and his friends Katara (Jessica Matten), Sokka (Román Zaragoza), Toph (Dionne Quan), and Zuko (Steven Yeun) learn of a potential way of bringing back the Air Nomads thanks to another hidden away airbender named Tagah (Dave Bautista). This sends them on a chase for the method while trying to outrun a group of nonbenders looking for the same.

Lapsed fans or new viewers won’t have to pick up the comics or do a rewatch to get on the same page either. Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender does an effective if a little expository breakdown of the most important parts of its world. It’s done in such a way that lines up with the original theatrical release plans for the film. Giving potential moviegoers a good introduction makes sense.

No worries about character assassination in this one.

Even with the slightly more mature take and larger budget, Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender maintains both its all-ages tone and a grip on Aang’s character. The screenplay, from longtime series writer Tim Hedrick and adaptation regular Christopher Yost (Thor: Ragnarok, Star Wars: Maul – Shadow Lord) strike a good balance between what fans know and what they don’t. It wisely leverages Tagah as something new and pairs it with something very familiar in Aang.

Fans of the rest of Team Avatar won’t find the full character arc treatment for their faves. Katara’s romantic relationship to Aang draws her closer to the center of things – and her highlights are some of the film’s best moments. The rest of the team are definitely background players for this outing, particularly Zuko. Steven Yeun’s a pretty big get for what is ultimately a handful of lines. It’s a shame, given Avatar’s strength as an ensemble series.

Is there anything Dave Bautista doesn’t improve?

The new cast is quite wonderful anyway, taking the pieces they do get and finding a balance between aligning with the original series and their own performances. It’s not surprising given most of the cast has vast voice over experience already. Bautista also shines playing yet another tough role for his filmography. He’s long past most of his colleagues in the WWE-to-film pipeline but it’s becoming clear just how good he is at this.

Bautista being good at his job helps a lot because Tagah also represents what makes Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender a bit complicated. While this is the first onscreen outing for the original series characters, the franchise somehow never stopped going. The main audience for this film knows what happens next; which limits its ability to build stakes.

Nowhere does the film pretend that isn’t a factor. There’s no tricks here, and because of that Avatar Aang chooses to focus on the how of things: the impact to characters and the methods of the story. That does mean that several of the flashy sequences might not hit as hard as they would in a world without The Legend of Korra. Hardcore fans will get some fun lore bits to chew on, though.

This film deserves the big screen and it’s absurd that it’s not in theatres right now.

Of everything, the animation of Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender is equally the best and most frustrating part. From start to finish, this is the best Avatar will likely ever look. In many ways, it’s as if the studios had a wish list of ideas the series never got a chance to try pouring out as a feast for the eyes. Action scenes are full of the same kind of excitement that series like Jujutsu Kaisen elicit from anime fans. Other moments, especially a stunning moment between Aang and Tagah learning together, are just as beautiful and vibrant.

Which makes it all the more a shame that Paramount and Nickelodeon mishandled the rollout of this film so badly. Putting aside that the film leaked weeks ago, the move from a theatrical run to Paramount+ release is embarrassing. It’s clear that this production was always intended for the big screen, from its wide shots showing the beautiful world to even the score and sound mixing.

Nickelodeon mishandling Avatar is hardly a new thing, it could be argued that they’ve never really known what it is they have here. But did they really form an entire studio just to blow their shot at a big hit? Surely someone has shown David Ellison the box office numbers of the Demon Slayer movies?

The bottom line.

Whatever the reasoning, the choice puts Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender in a less stellar position than it could have been in. There’s the chance that this is the only time Avatar will look this good at this scale. If it is, it’s the one to be. Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender is a bombastic ride that meets the pedigree of not only the original series but the massive anime it’s always chasing.

Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender is available to stream on Paramount+. Watch the trailer here.

Images courtesy of Paramount+.