I'm back once again with another look at the lore behind the Avatar: the Last Airbender Magic: The Gathering expansion! Last time we wrapped up Book (or season) 2: Earth. Aang was defeated within the Crystal Catacombs of Ba Sing Se and Zuko betrayed everyone to the Fire Nation. Where will things go from here? You'll just have to read on to find out!

As we come into the final season's worth of episodes, the stories told within become more intricate and in-depth. As a result, I'm not going to waste much time with the lead-up and will instead get right to the action!

If you want to catch up with the first two seasons' worth of lore, no worries! You can check them out in these links:

• 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
• The Lore of Avatar: Book 2, Earth - Part 3

Now then, let's not waste anymore time and get right to the lore!

Episode 41: The Awakening

Aang slowly wakes up, now with a head of hair, and realizes he is on a Fire Nation ship. This causes him to freak out and run away from the perceived Fire Nation soldiers chasing after him. However, it's not long before he learns it's actually his group of friends all disguised as Fire Nation soldiers. Aang collapses, but is eventually brought up to speed on what happened when he finally comes to.

He was knocked out cold for two weeks following the events in the Earth Kingdom. The Earth King opted to hide in plain sight as a wanderer and the rest of them captured a Fire Nation ship, having made it through the Serpent's Pass. Katara tries to help heal Aang's wound on his back, but struggles, causing Aang further pain and visions. It's not long before they're inspected by an actual Fire Nation ship, and are forced to fight back. They struggle for a bit, until the Serpent of the Serpent's Pass appears and attacks the inspecting ship.

Aang, ashamed of what happened, tries to flee in the hopes of going after the Fire Nation himself. However, he is defeated by the storm, which destroys his glider. As the group finds him, he ends up on Crescent Island - where he met with Roku at the Winter Solstice - and slams the broken glider into the lava. They depart as it burns away, with the group consoling Aang together.

As this occurs, Zuko and Azula return to the Fire Nation as heroes. The Earth Kingdom has fallen, with the Dai Li bringing down the infamous Walls of Ba Sing Se. This allows the Fire Nation to go into the city and invade. Zuko returns to a life of luxury and comfort, but somehow struggles with this royal life. This is made worse by the fact that Azula has told Ozai that it was Zuko who took down the Avatar, rather than Azula. This way, if the Avatar had in fact survived, Zuko would take the blame, and the return of Zuko's honor hinges on the fact that he brought down Aang.

Episode 42: The Headband

The group steal some proper Fire Nation attire to blend in so they can better infiltrate the Fire Nation. This includes the titular headband, which Aang uses to cover his head tattoo. He tries to use dated slang and terms like "Flamey-O, hotman!" and "Stay flaming!" His antics draw attention and he soon finds himself treated as a Fire Nation student, where he is forced to attend classes.

His class clownish behavior draws the ire of the school, but Aang manages to make some friends along the way. Aang, frustrated by the way the school clamps down on students' ability to have fun, opts to arrange a fun activity away from the school: a dance. The gang sets up a fancy space in a cavern and manage to get the class to let loose with Aang and Katara ending up stealing the show together. They're ratted out by another student, but the kids protect Aang by pretending to be him with headbands of their own, allowing the group to escape and move on.

Meanwhile Zuko, his return home not satisfying him, seeks out Iroh who has been imprisoned for his actions in Ba Sing Se. Iroh refuses to acknowledge Zuko and keeps his back to his nephew, crying as Zuko leaves furiously. Zuko, continuing to struggle with finding peace and comfort in his renewed life and convinced Aang is still alive, hires an assassin to hunt down and kill the Avatar.

Episode 43: The Painted Lady

The group stumbles upon a town situated upon a heavily polluted river, the pollution caused by a nearby Fire Nation factory. They try and resupply, but the town has very little to offer and the food that they have consists of mutated and sludge-ridden fish. Guided by Dock, they're introduced to the town, though Dock also turns out to go by Xu and Bushi depending on his task. He tells the group of the Painted Lady, the patron river spirit of the town.

The group stays in the area when it appears that Appa may be sick. They return to town to find the townspeople jovial and happy. The Painted Lady came to the town and gave them food, and returns again the next day bringing medicine to aid the town's sick.

It's soon revealed that the Painted Lady is none other than Katara herself, using her waterbending to mask her identity. She continues to aid the village but is discovered by Aang. Having been caught, she convinces Aang to help her blow up the factory. They succeed and end the pollution to the river.

However, the Fire Nation workers of the factory decide to take revenge on the village. The group sticks around just a short while longer to help fight off the firebenders. This leads to the village discovering that Katara is actually the Painted Lady. Despite the initial outcry, Katara manages to get the community to pitch in and clean the river, returning it to its former beauty.

As the group readies to leave at last, Katara looks upon the river and finds the true Painted Lady spirit staring back at her. She thanks Katara and disappears.

Episode 44: Sokka's Master

As the group wanders toward a Fire Nation town, they watch a meteor shower and see a meteor come crashing to Earth nearby. They rush over to try putting out the flames and cool the meteor down at the point of impact. As the situation settles, they make their way into town, where Sokka finds himself bemoaning the fact that he lacks the special abilities that the others possess, nor any serious training.

Sokka then decides he wants to try and learn swordsmanship from a master advertised around town. Master Piandao is hesitant, but agrees to take Sokka on. Sokka displays an unusual set of "talents" that lack the elegance and beauty of Piandao. However, Piandao persists and continues to teach Sokka the ways of the sword. In spite of Sokka's crude ways, he works hard to learn.

Eventually, Piandao tells Sokka he will craft his own sword. He offers up a variety of materials to use, but Sokka uses his creativity to come up with something a bit different: use the fallen meteorite to craft his sword. However, during his graduation ceremony, he exclaims how he isn't worthy to receive the honor and reveals that he is actually of the Water Tribe. Piandao attacks Sokka, who defends himself and fights back against the master.

It's not long before Piandao stops his assault, revealing that he knew Sokka was Water Tribe all along, and that he feels the art of the sword belongs to all. He and Sokka exchange farewells, and the group leaves, but not before being handed a White Lotus Tile. This suggests that Piandao may have ties to the White Lotus.

As Sokka trains with Piandao, Iroh trains his body in prison while eluding the guards' attention. By the end of the episode, he is revealed to be mighty and buff from his efforts.

Episode 45: The Beach

As the Fire Lord begins a secret set of meetings with his advisors, he sends Zuko, Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee away for privacy. Thus they find themselves on vacation to Ember Island. Greeted by the twins Lo and Li, they spend time on the island's lavish beach setting.

They try to fit in and adapt to the relaxed setting, but do a not so great job of it. Zuko and Mai try to bond, but their interactions remain stiff and forced. Azula struggles to leave her cruel, calculated, and intricate methods behind her while Ty Lee is constantly being showered with attention by boys on the beach. The group opts to play volleyball but goes overboard, decimating the opposing team with Azula going off the rails and burning the net in the process.

Soon after, they are invited to a party by some teenagers. The interactions that night continue to be awkward. Azula blows a chance to get with a guy and Zuko loses his cool over others trying to interact with Mai. Zuko leaves the party where he heads to his family's private beach home as he reminisces on his times there as a child.

The others soon find him there and talk among one another where they discuss their faults and strengths. Eventually, the other three confront Zuko over why he feels the way that he does. He rages at everything but soon turns his rage and frustrations inward, confused over his actions and not knowing the difference between right and wrong. Having bonded during their time at the beach, the group returns to the party and trashes the place, ending their time on the island.

Meanwhile, as that bunch enjoys a relaxing time at the beach, Aang and the others are tailed by Zuko's mysterious assassin. Aang gets spotted by some Fire Nation scouts, but their messenger hawk is intercepted by the assassin. He tails the group and attacks them. They're able to get away as Aang distracts the assassin, and managing to reconvene with his friends on the back of Appa.

Episode 46: The Avatar and the Fire Lord

This episode sees Aang and Zuko learn of a shared history via Avatar Roku and Fire Lord Sozin. Roku reaches out to Aang in his dreams to find him on his home island - a volcanic island covered in ash and soot. Zuk is left a cryptic message by an unknown person to seek out how his great-grandfather died and finds that the Fire Sages keep the secret in the Dragonbone Catacombs. Zuko, believing it to be about Sozin, seeks out this history.

Roku reveals to Aang that he and Sozin were best friends as children, at a time when Sozin was merely Prince Sozin. On their 16th birthday - a day they shared together - Roku is revealed to be the next avatar. Sozin's last will and testament tells of how he is to leave to learn the four elements. Sozin gifts him a royal artifact - a piece for his hair - that is meant to be worn by the Fire Nation prince. Roku accepts and wears this special artifact throughout his life, and is seen wearing it throughout the series.

Roku reveals his history of learning the elements and how he was friends with Aang's mentor Monk Gyatso, noting how friendships transcend lifetimes. He then trains with the Northern Water Tribe and eventually the Earth Kingdom. Twelve years later, Roku becomes a fully realized Avatar and Sozin has ascended to the throne as the Fire Lord. Roku married, with Sozin attending his wedding as his best man, but angers Sozin soon after as he rebukes the Fire Lord's ideas of conquest to bring about the Fire Nation Empire.

Roku, having seen the Fire Nation colonies, confronts Sozin over the matter once more several years later. Sozin attacks Roku, who destroys the palace and spares Sozin, promising to end his life if he continues. Years later, Roku's island volcano erupts, threatening his hometown. While he and Sozin slow the volcano and allow the town's inhabitants to escape, Roku succumbs to the volcano's poisonous fumes. Sozin, seeing the opportunity for his envisioned future, allows Roku to die and begins his conquest as Sozin's Comet arrives.

Zuko, confused to find that the testament does not explain how Sozin died, confronts Iroh in his cell, knowing that it was his uncle who sent the message. Iroh explains that the message did not mean his grandfather as in Sozin, but his grandfather on his mother's side - Avatar Roku. Iroh tells Zuko that understanding the battle between his ancestors can help him better understand the battle within himself and restore balance to the Fire Nation and the world. He then hands Zuko the hair decoration that was gifted to Roku, so that he - the crown prince - might wear it.

Episode 47: The Runaway

Tensions flare up between Katara and Toph once again, as the episode begins in media res with Katara turning Toph over to the authorities. Toph yells out at Katara who tells Toph she did this to herself.

The episode then kicks back to three days earlier, with the group doing training against a blindfolded Aang. Katara and Toph both catch each other in the crossfire and begin to fight amongst each another, leading to Katara storming off. Toph decides to go into town, taking Aang and Sokka with her. Sokka sees a building full of messenger hawks and notes how he'd love to own one.

The group figures out how to make more money with the aid of Toph. She notes a gambling scam on the roadside involving a person doing a shell game, moving the pebble within sneakily at the last moment. With her blindness and earthbending, however, she's able to scam the scammer and is able to obtain a significant amount of money as a result of the bet.

This snowballs into more and more scams, bringing in more and more money much to Katara's chagrin. This goes beyond scamming scammers and turns into things like Sokka pretending to be a police officer to coerce bribes from a nobleman who believes (mistakenly) that he ran over Toph with his carriage. Eventually, Toph has wanted posters out for her, calling her "The Runaway." In exchange for his silence, Toph gives Sokka enough money to buy a messenger hawk of his own, though it's not long before Katara discovers the poster and chastises Toph for her actions.

In the end, Katara tries to reconcile with Toph and offers to have her collect the reward in the ultimate scam. This leads to the actions from the start of the episode, though in reality it's a trap set up by Zuko's assassin to bring Aang out of hiding. Katara and Toph are captured and held in a cage of wood, preventing their escape.

Aang and Sokka battle with the assassin, whom Sokka dubs Combustion Man, as Katara manages to free herself and Toph by waterbending her sweat. Toph throws a rock at Combustion Man's third eye, causing him to experience problems with his Combustion Technique, exploding himself and allowing the others to escape. Katara aids Toph in writing a letter to her parents and they use Sokka's messenger hawk to deliver it.

Paige Smith

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/themaverickgirl.bsky.social

Twitch: twitch.tv/themaverickgirl

YouTube: TheMaverickGal