bluespiritshonour

[bluespiritshonour]

"hold still, smallville"

#shameless self reblog #because sometimes i just love the way a piece turns out #superman #clark kent #lois is taking the picture #ink blot #smallville #not really but whatever

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Sokka: Aang y'know how you took away Ozai’s firebending?

Aang: I recall yes

Sokka: can I have it

Aang: …what?

Sokka: can I have his firebending. just for like ten minutes

Aang: what no

Sokka: why not I wanna prank zuko

Aang:

Aang:

Aang: okay five minutes

#omg not him tearing his hair out!!! #the gaang gaslights zuko indeed #this s tier material #foreign birds #i love how expressive the art is #atla #avatar the last airbender

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Toph helped a little I guess

#why sokka kinda... hehe #gushing: i love this #toph #zuko #sokka #zukka #atla #avatar the last airbender #foreign birds

[bluespiritshonour]

@chocomd reblogging because I get carried away and comments don't have enough characters for me🥹

When I made this post what I was thinking about was women's work. Like, a lot of men who do tons of things and are heralded as heroes... Are only able to do that because there's always someone back home to take care of them.

And that's important!

While I can totally see Mai would ENJOY hunting down assassins and sussing out Ozai's sympathizers I just can't imagine her being involved in court politics. She must be good at it given her upbringing and she doesn't have Zuko's problem of running her mouth without thinking—but I don't think she'd like it.

Zuko would totally go full patriot as well as try to make up for the war and restore peace with other nations. I just can't see Mai caring much for that and personally I don't mind that. Not every character has to be the same. Sometimes one half of the couple wants a greater purpose while the other doesn't and that's okay.

Mai would just roll with whatever makes Zuko happy and she'd keep him from self-sabotaging because you need a right balance between both giving and taking care of yourself and that's okay.

Zuko has the Gaang to give him reality checks if he starts slipping into spoilt brat mode. Or coloniser mode. Or whatever.

There's a lot of valid criticism of Maiko like Zuko's jealousy (I'm still bitter he never properly apologized to Mai for that, and they never confirm if he was acting that way because he really is the shitty jealous type or because he was angry and wanted a reason to get mad and this seemed like a good enough reason)

Him not even thinking of her after Boiling Rock and the entire ending scene that they have together (“They let you out of prison?” what do you mean? Didn't you pardon all prisoners of war mr new firelord?)

And when antimaikos think it's a good bashing point by saying that Zuko didn't care enough for Mai after Boiling Rock, do they realise how badly it reflects on him? Like, even if he didn't like her back—she risked her life for him, him not caring means he's a jerk.

But all that can be chalked up to bad writing. They didn't have enough time so they rushed through all of that.

But The Beach and Nightmares and Daydreams are actually really good Maiko episodes. And Mai not being very political is... I don't know, not every character has to be the same! Toph isn't political either. And I rather think she and Mai are very very alike.

They're teens and they're traumatized and they're messy. And it's very realistic. I guess I'm just trying to say that I don't mind Mai not being passionate about everything (she certainly is about SOME things—it’s Zuko) and I don't mind her trying to make the best out of a one bad situation after the other.

And she learns! She goes from “I asked you if you were cold; not your whole life story” to listening to Zuko rant and vent all the time and patiently listening and comforting him. The first one was her normal reaction to things. She speaks like that with Ty Lee and Azula and her parents don't pay heed to her complains. And she's a teenage girl so throw in limited world experience to it and she tries to do with Zuko what's worked for her—and of course it doesn't work for him because Zuko is very much “greater purpose in life” person. And Mai doesn't give up on him even when it's apparent he's very different from her and she doesn't know how to make him feel better. And that's okay. The girl doesn't always have make all of the boy's problems magically go away. What matters is that she was there for him. And Zuko would do well to appreciate it!!!—she can't fight his battles for him. But she'd be there.

Oof! That was a lot. Thanks for commenting, I love word vomiting. Hehe.

Another thing I've been muling over: a complain I've seen about Maiko is that she keeps him from going on the right path—and... I agree.

For Mai, Zuko's well-being is her sole concern and the rest of the world could crash and burn and that's... Okay?

Realistically speaking, your support system should NOT be one person. One thing I love about ATLA is that (despite romance writing not being one of it's strong points) the lack of ships that follow the tropes.

Kataang is not an archetype. Neither is Sukka or Maiko.

Having your support system be just your romantic partner isn't healthy (for them or for you) or realistic. But most romances do that and until I watched ATLA it didn't occurred to me that that's not a good thing.

ATLA and Maiko are very realistic in that Zuko needs both the Gaang and Mai. He needs the Gaang to hold him accountable for every shitty little thing he did—and he needs Mai there to keep from spiraling and self-destruction.

Zuko and his uncle were de facto conquerors, so they had to do much more to redeem themselves than Mai and Ty Lee (mere soldiers, but NOT innocent) had to.

Zuko had to work hard to earn the Gaang's forgiveness (personal opinion: he should've grovelled more and he should've been called out on his racism against Aang) and Uncle Iroh reconquered Ba Sing Se in the name of it's people.

They both did reparations to the very people they hurt. And their crimes were much more direct and vicious compared to Mai and Ty Lee’s.

As someone not as responsible as them, Mai and Ty Lee's redeeming themselves was at the Boiling Rock.

And well, when Zuko is Firelord right after the war—he would be paying for the crimes of his ancestors. He needs the Gaang there to keep from acting like he did with Katara pre-Southern Raiders (everyone else seems to have forgiven me!) and he needs Mai to keep himself from actually spiralling into self-destruction and undeserved guilt (Sozin's and Ozai's faults aren't his even if he's paying for it and someone needs to remind him that)

So, yeah. He needs them both for different things.

As for Mai, her conflict was that she was never allowed to express herself. And loving Zuko made up for that—she finally stands up for something she believes in (not in the cause, but in Zuko) and Zuko didn't even have to do anything beside exist. He didn't “fix her.”

Although, again I do have the the complain that Mai has to do a lot of emotional labour for him and if you really are gonna shit on Maiko: it's Zuko who needs to step up, not Mai—well, Mai tried to “fix him” and she couldn't!

That's so important to me!—I’m tired of girl fixes boy narrative. And she couldn't fix him because only he could fix himself and Mai herself is used to making the best out of a situation and being selfish/passive/choosing the path of least resistance. She tried to do to Zuko what worked for her (or maybe didn't, considering she was coping)—and well—later when Zuko's Firelord it'll be Mai who keeps him from harming himself.

Zuko needs both to be balanced out.

He needs multiple people to act as support system and that's both healthy and realistic. Mai isn't everything and neither should she be.

I know what the comics did; don't bring them up here. It's not about the comics.

#i just felt like word vomiting #maiko

[bluespiritshonour]

with more and more sites & hosting services banning nsfw content, being some sort of pervert becomes a moral imperative

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Good news is I have two posts lined up for Maiko week. So. I'd be participating!!!

#Maikoweek2024

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Here's kataang art dump. Reprise.

P.S. don't ask me why I handed Katara what looks suspiciously like an electric trimmer.

#honestly please someone give me validation that they look like kids in the first one and early twenties in the second #i have no idea how to draw kids teens and adults and make them look different but also like the same character??? #😭 #avatar the last airbender #atla #artists on tumblr #fanart #aang #katara #kataang #the painted lady x kuzon??? #ink blot

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Do you believe in life after love? I can feel something inside me say I really don't think you're strong enough, no

From Believe by Cher

#i love how the last panel focuses on his loneliness #that's such good visual storytelling #as much as I'd have loved a maiko breakup because of angst reasons as well as the fact that zuko gets his shit together #the way they did it in the comics hurts and not in a good way #im still here for all the fanworks harvesting the angst though #maiko #i really wish for them to get back together in an epic story #but knowing bryke #they don't write romance well #i can only dream #atla #foreign birds #mai #zuko

[bluespiritshonour]

Huehuehuehuehuehuehuehue. 69. I'm very mature; I'm perpetually 12.

Careful! Your bisexuality is showing.

[bluespiritshonour]

Careful! Your bisexuality is showing.

#honestly we all talk about how zuko is a dual wielder #hence a bisexual #but jet's a dual wielder too #jet #zuko #avatar the last airbender #atla #artists on tumblr #fanart #ink blot

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A brief moment of rationality from the bird place.

#i couldn't ration food even if I tried #it's impossible: the future is uncertain and food is now #but everything else #I don't understand why people just keep expensive things like? why'd you pay so much for it if you aren't gonna get the utility #i bought really expensive boots and i've been wearing them every day for the last two years like #i want to feel like that money was well spent #same with clothes #why would you want to keep things in a glass case and admire?

[bluespiritshonour]

Another thing I've been muling over: a complain I've seen about Maiko is that she keeps him from going on the right path—and... I agree.

For Mai, Zuko's well-being is her sole concern and the rest of the world could crash and burn and that's... Okay?

Realistically speaking, your support system should NOT be one person. One thing I love about ATLA is that (despite romance writing not being one of it's strong points) the lack of ships that follow the tropes.

Kataang is not an archetype. Neither is Sukka or Maiko.

Having your support system be just your romantic partner isn't healthy (for them or for you) or realistic. But most romances do that and until I watched ATLA it didn't occurred to me that that's not a good thing.

ATLA and Maiko are very realistic in that Zuko needs both the Gaang and Mai. He needs the Gaang to hold him accountable for every shitty little thing he did—and he needs Mai there to keep from spiraling and self-destruction.

Zuko and his uncle were de facto conquerors, so they had to do much more to redeem themselves than Mai and Ty Lee (mere soldiers, but NOT innocent) had to.

Zuko had to work hard to earn the Gaang's forgiveness (personal opinion: he should've grovelled more and he should've been called out on his racism against Aang) and Uncle Iroh reconquered Ba Sing Se in the name of it's people.

They both did reparations to the very people they hurt. And their crimes were much more direct and vicious compared to Mai and Ty Lee’s.

As someone not as responsible as them, Mai and Ty Lee's redeeming themselves was at the Boiling Rock.

And well, when Zuko is Firelord right after the war—he would be paying for the crimes of his ancestors. He needs the Gaang there to keep from acting like he did with Katara pre-Southern Raiders (everyone else seems to have forgiven me!) and he needs Mai to keep himself from actually spiralling into self-destruction and undeserved guilt (Sozin's and Ozai's faults aren't his even if he's paying for it and someone needs to remind him that)

So, yeah. He needs them both for different things.

As for Mai, her conflict was that she was never allowed to express herself. And loving Zuko made up for that—she finally stands up for something she believes in (not in the cause, but in Zuko) and Zuko didn't even have to do anything beside exist. He didn't “fix her.”

Although, again I do have the the complain that Mai has to do a lot of emotional labour for him and if you really are gonna shit on Maiko: it's Zuko who needs to step up, not Mai—well, Mai tried to “fix him” and she couldn't!

That's so important to me!—I’m tired of girl fixes boy narrative. And she couldn't fix him because only he could fix himself and Mai herself is used to making the best out of a situation and being selfish/passive/choosing the path of least resistance. She tried to do to Zuko what worked for her (or maybe didn't, considering she was coping)—and well—later when Zuko's Firelord it'll be Mai who keeps him from harming himself.

Zuko needs both to be balanced out.

He needs multiple people to act as support system and that's both healthy and realistic. Mai isn't everything and neither should she be.

I know what the comics did; don't bring them up here. It's not about the comics.

#maiko #atla #avatar the last airbender #zuko #mai #atla mai #gaang #zuko and the gaang #atla maiko #honestly i would admit that atla's writing of romance is lacking #but if you don't like maiko it's not mai's fault #if anything it's zuko's #jerk didn't even apologize for his behaviour on the ember island #mai threw her lot in with him whole heartedly no hesitation #he should've made up to her too #say whatever you want but mai loved that boy #in defense of mai #i just felt like word vomiting #pro maiko

[bluespiritshonour]

One last thought before I fuck off:

Baby Zuko had long hair but he didn't wear a topknot. I recently got to know that in olden days China had a coming of age ceremony for boys where they'd earn a topknot.

Maybe, Zuko didn't wear a topknot because he wasn't old enough to. And by the time he did come of age he'd been banished. Which would explain why he starts wearing one when he's back in FN, now as a sixteen-year-old.

#zuko #avatar the last airbender #atla #i just felt like word vomiting #just thinking ya know #it's just kinda sad that he didn't have his coming of age ceremony if this were the case

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here's 18-19 year old aang sketches. been hearing aang is ugly discourse—no he ain't. he was just 12.

#i really wanted to take part in zukaang bingo but the urge to art struck me a little later #i still might make something else later #enough art for now #i'd try to participate in maiko week but i'm not sure #it's smack in the middle of end semester exams #ink blot #avatar fanart #avatar the last airbender #atla #artists on tumblr #fanart #avatar aang #why did i never use the pencil brush before?!?! i seriously have a personality flaw where i just don't explore stuff. #can you believe i've been using the same fucking brush for lineart ever since i started digital art? #anyways! i don't know how the pencil brush would feel like if i go for colours but this is impeccable. #I have more control over stuff and i love the result #so #i have promised myself i'd be fucking off this hellsite because i have a huge backlog of work that needs to be done #and i'm presently suffering from “can't help but art”. so #yeah. y'all would probably see me around maiko week. byeee! #if i deprive myself of drawing for too long it bursts out of me like this where i do nothing but draw #not healthy at all

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Higgs bit it.

#physics #peter higgs

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look what i found in my laptop. these are really old pieces i forgot about

#avatar the last airbender #atla #artists on tumblr #fanart #aang #katara #kataang #ink blot #katara's hair ain't neat 'cause i just love drawing wispy lil strands okay?

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How I imagine a kataang/Maiko double date to go

#zuko is catwoman