Animatiereeks Avatar – niet te verwarren met de gelijknamige sciencefictionhit uit 2009 – groeide sinds 2005 uit tot een van de geliefdste series ooit . Het verhaal speelt zich af in een wereld met mensen die elementen kunnen besturen. Water, aarde, vuur en lucht hebben ieder hun eigen natie, en leven in balans dankzij de ‘avatar’: een persoon die alle elementen kan controleren.
Nadat de vuurnatie genocide pleegt, is er van de luchtnatie niets meer over. Maar ruim honderd jaar later wordt er een jongetje in het ijs gevonden. Aang blijkt de verdwenen avatar te zijn en is al een bedreven airbender (luchtstuurder in het Nederlands). Hij moet alleen de andere drie elementen nog onder de knie krijgen.
The Last Airbender sneed, zeker voor een kinderserie, opmerkelijk volwassen thema’s aan. Het was niet alleen een vrolijk avontuur waarin vriendschap centraal stond, maar ook een waarschuwing voor machtsmisbruikers en een oproep tegen discriminatie. De fantasiewereld kreeg daarnaast een gedetailleerd uiterlijk. Inspiratie daarvoor kwam uit Aziatische filosofieën en vechtkunsten.
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Disappointment and frustration among the original creators
You can't just film a series like this, as it turned out in 2010. The film version of The last air had become Turned into rubble . Creators Michael Dante DiMartino and Brian Konietzko He said later They didn't have much to say. It should have been very different when Netflix announced its own series in 2018. But things went wrong there, too. Konietzko and DiMartino resigned in 2020.
According to Konietzko, the atmosphere at Netflix is negative and unwelcoming. “It's not about whether we get what we want,” he wrote. Instagram . “We can work well together and all the ideas don't have to come from us. As long as we feel those ideas are in line with the spirit and integrity of symbol picture . In the end, we realized that we couldn't direct the series in a meaningful way.”
DiMartino was also disappointed and frustrated. he books How difficult it was for him to resign, but he also dared to remain optimistic. “Editing symbol picture He has the potential to be good. It could be a series you love. But whatever was on screen, it wasn't going to be what Brian and I wanted to do.”
Gordon Cormier als Aang in Avatar: The Last Airbender.
Foto: Netflix
Obvious differences in the new series
There are clear differences in the final result, which will be released on Netflix on Thursday. They start with the structure. The total running time (425 minutes) is not much different from the original first season (466 minutes). But the story is no longer told in twenty short chapters. The new series consists of eight episodes, each offering a new adventure.
The differences become clear from the third episode. Events have been grouped together, so they no longer happen in the same order everywhere. For example, some characters appear earlier or later. In the fifth episode, part of it is borrowed The legend of korra the subsequent spin-off series of symbol picture. The fact that Aang has to learn waterbending in this season is clearly omitted.
However, the protagonist leaves a slightly different impression than his animated version. Aang is less cheerful and conflicted. The happier note now lies almost exclusively with his bumbling companion Sokka. Furthermore it The last air A bit more somber than the old series, especially in the violent scenes.
Aang (Gordon Cormier), Katara (Kiawentiio) en Sokka (Ian Ousley) trekken samen ten strijde.
Foto: Netflix
The illusion creates a detailed fantasy world
A lot of differences, because there are a lot of similarities. The original story, with all its nuances and messages, remains largely intact. High-quality computer animation is also difficult to distinguish from real animation. Lots of detail is given to digital cities, temples and fantasy creatures. The final battle in the final episode in particular provides stunning visuals.
The new Netflix series was filmed in a private studio, with a huge circular LED wall. Thus the actors can roam and live in imaginary worlds. These virtual groups were also used The Mandalorian . However, the result in this case seems less realistic.
The last air The film takes place mainly outdoors, but the unnatural light reveals that everything was filmed indoors. Live action film adaptation one piece – Netflix's adaptation of a beloved series also looked more compelling. Therefore, a larger budget was allocated for this purpose. one piece It was made for $144 million, while symbol picture The cost is 120 million.
The exact choices made for this purpose are usually not made public. Both DiMartino and Konietzko stick to their Instagram comments. one piece Creator Eiichiro Oda was certainly satisfied last year. Fans may notice some differences, but he's never had to make any compromises.
Some scenes of his series were reshot because Oda did not think they were good enough. The director said: “Fortunately, Netflix agreed not to release the series until I was satisfied.” Hollywood Reporter The last air It was a completely different experience with the streaming service.
