The Legend of Korra Turns 10
The series “The Legend of Korra” ran from April of 2012 to December 2014 and has a strong importance that has stretched farther than its airtime. Although this series is short, its daring subject matter and rich character development pushed the boundaries of an ordinary animated show.
The creators Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino’s secondary series established a story that tested a children’s audience while inviting adult themes along the way. The series is a continuation of Avatar the Last Airbender (2005) set 70 years later and follows a female protagonist named Korra, whose job is to be a peacemaker for the Four Nations. Korra is fiercely competitive and confident in her abilities, as she has mastered three out of the four elements that are water, fire, earth, and air.
However, the character of Korra, like many others in the show, is not perfect. She can be impulsive and impatient in making vital decisions about the world at the young age of seventeen. The creators of the show never made Korra delicate or soft-spoken because she is a woman. They allowed her to be flawed with imperfections that conjured profound character growth.
In addition to Korra’s personality traits, Konietzko and DiMartino made the characters diverse in many ways. Korra has a very masculine physique that is rare to find in main female characters. Her outfit is not sexualized and does not hide her stark stature.
On top of her muscular look, they drew the character to look racially ambiguous. Korra’s dark brown skin makes it so she can represent an indigenous woman, African, Caribbean etc. She can resemble so many different audiences that it makes for a more inclusive fanbase.
The themes this story told were the most complex and challenging of any series on the television network. Whether it be socialism, terrorism, gender or sexual orientation, the writers never strayed from the difficult topics. Every episode was an opportunity to reflect real world issues onto a fictional one.
Beyond the story, the animation and musical aspects are gifts that keep giving. The music done by Jeremy Zuckerman utilized various instruments from around the world to give the show its own original style. Each musical theme is layered with details that match the characters, tone of the scene and the locations.
The Legend of Korra as a series is not perfect. It had financial issues during the final season and trouble landing a permanent slot on Nickelodeon airtime. Despite all the cracks in the roads, the show stayed on track and produced one of the greatest animated shows of all time. With only 52 episodes, it is a short series that captures a journey of self-discovery and understanding the world around us.