The Avatar: The Last Airbender lore continues today, capping off the events of the second season, better known as Book 2: Earth. This particular batch of episodes is especially dense, so I'm not going to waste much time with the lead-up and simply get to the lore itself.

First, though, I do want to provide the usual reminder that you can read all of my past lore pieces thus far in the links below:

• The Lore of Avatar: Book 1, Water - Part 1
• The Lore of Avatar: Book 1, Water - Part 2
• The Lore of Avatar: Book 2, Earth - Part 1
• The Lore of Avatar: Book 2, Earth - Part 2

With that, let's get right into it with one doozy of an episode!

Episode 35: The Tales of Ba Sing Se

This episode provides a true fan favorite. Rather than weaving a single cohesive narrative, it instead focuses on different characters living their lives around the Earth Kingdom capital of Ba Sing Se. This is done in small chunks in an anthology style.

Here's the list of the segments, as well as brief explanations of what happens in each:

The Tale of Katara and Toph - Katara offers to take Toph for a girl's day out at the spa, where they mess around despite Toph's initial frustrations. Some girls laugh at them over their makeup to which the pair respond by sending them into the water, with Katara complimenting Toph on her looks with sincerity.

The Tale of Iroh - Iroh goes around town to buy some things for a special occasion, helping others along the way, including a crying boy, a group of children who break a window, and a would-be mugger. Once he finishes, he goes atop a hill and sets up a memorial to his deceased son, crying as he sings "Leaves from the Vine." The segment was dedicated to Iroh's original voice actor, Mako, who passed away from cancer around this time.

The Tale of Aang - Aang visits a local zoo. However, it's too small for the animals to thrive, leaving the zoo in a sad state as a result. Aang suggests moving them outside the city where they can have more room. As he tries to herd them, however, they cause chaos and destruction around the city, though Aang is eventually able to use his bison whistle to guide them (and some other animals) out of the city, where he uses earthbending to set up a newer, larger zoo in the process.

The Tale of Sokka - Sokka stumbles onto an Earth Kingdom class of women practicing haikus. Sokka accidentally speaks in a haiku himself, impressing the ladies, and leading him to trade haikus with the teacher. He eventually stumbles, using one too many syllables, which leads to everyone looking at him with disgust as he's thrown from the building.

The Tale of Zuko - Zuko notices a girl, Jin, watching him at the tea shop he and his Uncle are working at. He worries the girl knows they're firebenders, but Iroh realizes she just likes him. They go on a date, where he sneakily lights the lanterns at a fountain to her surprise. They kiss, but Zuko breaks it off, saying that "it's complicated," leaving Jin disappointed. Iroh asks him how the date went and Zuko, initially brash, says it was nice.

The Tale of Momo - Momo finds himself awoken in the night only to discover tufts of Appa's fur. Momo then goes searching to look for his friend, running afoul of animals, street performers, and animal control. He gets away, eventually finding a large paw print created by Appa - proving he was there - and Momo curls up in the center of it, falling asleep as it begins to rain.

Episode 36: Appa's Lost Days

This episode provides a sequence of flashbacks to help explain what happened to Appa while separated from the others. After being captured by sandbenders, he is then sold to a group of Beetle-Headed Merchants. This group, frustrated with Appa's destructive disposition, move to sell him fast, selling him to a Fire Nation circus.

At the circus, Appa is abused by a savage firebending tamer. Appa continually one-ups him, using his airbending to sneak food. He is aided by a young boy who reminds him of Aang. Appa is soon dressed in an ornate outfit to the amusement of the circus' crowd. This frustrates him and he manages to fly away and escape, with the tamer trying to stop him, shedding his costume as he leaves.

Appa tries to eat food in the desert but is stopped at every turn. An egg is snatched from under him, a cactus harms him, and the buzzard wasp nest he tries to eat honey from attacks. He takes shelter at a farm, dreaming of his childhood with Aang, but is awoken by the farmer, causing him to fly off. Following a run-in with a boar-q-pine, Appa is left scared, dirty, and in pain.

He's discovered by the Kyoshi Warriors, who at this time were stationed near the Serpent's Pass where Appa landed. They wash him off before they're set upon by Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee. The Kyoshi Warriors fight them off as Appa escapes. He makes it to Ba Sing Se when he hears a bison whistle. As he goes to check it out, he finds not Aang, but Long Feng waiting for him, and he is captured underground, leaving only a paw print behind.

Episode 37: Lake Laogai

Aang and the others try passing out fliers around the city, but are scolded by Joo Dee, who returns after having been temporarily replaced by another woman claiming to be Joo Dee. She notes that she took a brief vacation to Lake Laogai and is angrily sent away by Aang, who ignores her warnings.

The group, continuing their search, eventually comes across Jet. Given their history, they are wary and concerned by Jet, but Toph notes he isn't lying when he tells them he wants to help them find Appa. His companions, Smellerbee and Longshot come and are concerned because Jet was taken away by Dai Li Agents. Jet rebukes this, saying that didn't happen, which confuses Toph, who notes that neither is lying.

Utilizing her waterbending healer techniques, Katara helps uncover some of Jet's hidden memories. They discover a hidden area at Lake Laogai and move to investigate. There, they find a secret Dai Li headquarters where they train an army of Joo Dees. In their attempt to find Appa, they run afoul of Long Feng, who uses Jet's brainwashing to turn him against the group

At the same time, Iroh has been summoned to the upper ring of Ba Sing Se to run a tea shop for the city's nobles. However, Zuko, restless, continues his pursuit of the Avatar, stalking Dai Li agents as the Blue Spirit to coerce information out of them. When he eventually finds Appa in the secret areas beneath Lake Laogai, he is confronted by Iroh who tries to convince Zuko to let this pursuit go and embrace their new lives. Zuko allows Appa to go, leaving his Blue Spirit persona behind.

Aang and the others manage to get Jet out of his brainwashing as he battles with them. Jet succeeds and attacks Long Feng, but is mortally wounded in response. Long Feng escapes as Appa breaks through to save the group. Smellerbee and Longshot stay with Jet as he lies on the ground, telling the others he'll be okay. As the rest of the group leaves, Toph notes that he is lying.

Episode 38: The Earth King

The group, growing frustrated over their inability to see the Earth King and horrified by the events at Lake Laogai, take matters into their own hands. Using the powerful bending of Aang, Toph, and Katara, the group forcefully charges into the palace.

They confront the Earth King at last, though Long Feng is already there at his side. Long Feng tries to convince the Earth King that they are a group trying to overthrow him and that their words about the ongoing war are false. The Earth King chooses to hear the group out, but most of their efforts do not convince him. Finally, the group gets the Earth King to visit the walls of the city where he witnesses the Fire Nation drill and comes to accept that what the group tells him is true.

Long Feng is arrested, albeit with the Dai Li still pledging their allegiance to him. The king's generals raid Long Feng's office and find several messages intercepted by him. Katara and Sokka learn of where their father, Hakoda, is located. Toph is alerted to a message from her family wishing to see her in Ba Sing Se. Lastly, Aang is told to find a guru who will aid him in unlocking the Avatar State.

Meanwhile, Zuko, struggling with an inner turmoil following his actions at Lake Laogai, collapses as he enters his home with Iroh. He falls ill, with Iroh tending to him as he works through his "unnatural" sickness brought on by this inner conflict. Zuko has dreams involving his memories, of him being the Fire Lord, and eventually with him seeing himself as the Avatar.

The group sets out to go their separate ways for the time being. Toph is captured by Beifong's Bounty Hunters - Master Yu and Xin Fu - having set a trap posing as her parents. The others, unaware, prep for Sokka and Aang to leave as they're told the Kyoshi Warriors have arrived. Sokka tells the Earth King they're allies and they head off. The Kyoshi Warriors arrive, only for it to be revealed that it's Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee in disguise.

Episode 39: The Guru

This episode showcases each major primary character on their own.

Sokka is dropped off at a Southern Water Tribe encampment. There, he finds his father and they embrace. They set out to work on establishing a plan to defeat the Fire Nation on the Day of Black Sun. They run into a Fire Nation scout group and do battle with them.

Aang meanwhile heads to the Eastern Air Temple where he is introduced to Guru Pathik. A friend of Monk Gyatso and spiritual brethren to the Air Nomads, Pathik offers Aang the chance to learn a new way to explore the Avatar State. He teaches Aang about chakras and to open his chakras to allow his energy to flow freely, thereby allowing him to enter the Avatar State. However, he struggles with one key element: letting go of his worldly attachments, particularly Katara.

Toph, meanwhile, remains in the custody of Master Yu and Xin Fu, who lock her in a cage made entirely of metal. They refuse to let her out and note that even she can't break through metal. Utilizing her blindness to sense out the minerals within the metal, Toph realizes that metal is just an incredibly refined form of earth. Knowing this, she discovers that with effort and focus, she can bend metal. In doing so, she escapes her prison and traps her captors instead as she races back to Ba Sing Se.

Azula and her friends infiltrate the Earth Kingdom as the Kyoshi Warriors. They realize they can stage a coup from within and secretly get the attention of the Dai Li with this information. This causes them to bring Azula before Long Feng, who makes a deal with Azula to aid in this coup with the expectation that he'll be able to double-cross Azula later.

Katara works with the Earth Kingdom generals to aid their plans for the war efforts. They task her to pass along a scroll to the Earth King to receive his seal. Before doing so, she decides to stop at the new tea house, only to be shocked to see Iroh and Zuko - now awake with a renewed sense of optimism - tending the shop. She runs to the Earth King to deliver this news, only to realize the Kyoshi Warrior she relays her information to is Azula in disguise. Ty Lee incapacitates her and they capture her.

Aang, sensing the danger Katara is, abandons his efforts with Pathik to go save her. He picks up Sokka along the way and they head out to rescue Katara. As they do, Iroh receives a notice that he is to serve tea to the Earth King.

Episode 40: The Crossroads of Destiny

Aang and Sokka race back to Ba Sing Se and they run into Toph along the way. As they make their way to the city, Iroh and Zuko make their way to their appointment with the Earth King, only to be confronted by Azula and the Dai Li. Iroh demonstrates why he is called "The Dragon of the West" by breathing fire on the encircling would-be captors, allowing them to escape. Zuko, however, opts to fight with Azula, but is captured by Dai Li agents.

Iroh goes to Aang and the group, with Toph welcoming him for the sagely advice he offered her previously. Iroh manages to convince them to team up and he helps them to find Zuko and Katara. They capture a Dai Li agent and interrogate him, learning that they are held in the Crystal Catacombs beneath the palace.

Zuko finds himself trapped in the Catacombs and locked away with Katara. He tries to convince her that he is changing for the better, though she remains reluctant. The two bond over the fact that they both lost their mothers to the Fire Nation, and Katara suggests that she could possibly heal Zuko's scar with her spirit water. Iroh and Aang find them and try to leave.

At the same time, however, Azula is putting her coup plot into motion. The Earth Kingdom generals are all arrested. As Sokka and Toph notice this happening, they try to warn the Earth King, but as they arrive, Ty Lee and Mai - disguised as the Kyoshi Warriors - fight them. Azula puts an end to the squabble by taking the Earth King hostage and they capture Sokka and Toph. When Long Feng tries to double-cross Azula, the Dai Li doesn't take action, waiting to see who prevails between the two. Long Feng concedes and gives up control to Azula.

As Aang, Katara, Iroh, and Zuko flee, they're attacked by Azula. Azula encourages Zuko to fight alongside her and, in a moment of conflict, Zuko does so, much to Iroh and Katara's sorrow. They battle in the Catacombs as Toph, Sokka, and the Earth King join, having been freed by Toph's newfound metalbending. Aang, seeing no other options, lets go of his worldly attachments to enter the Avatar State. When he does, however, he is stuck down by a bolt of lightning from Azula, breaking his connection with the Avatar cycle.

Katara sweeps him away and the group escapes. As they fly off, Katara uses her spirit water on Aang's wound, saving his life, but leaving him in a precarious state. The Earth King states that the Earth Kingdom has fallen as they fly off.

Paige Smith

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