Iroh - a father without his son
Happy Father's Day!
I thought I will chat a bit about my very favourite cartoon father figure - Iroh from The Last Airbender.
What I find really interesting about this character, and honestly fans can probably write novels about him, is that while he plays a major father figure to the cast, his own son is never really seen on screen and not given much development.
Still, he openly and freely offers his wisdom and help to anyone, whether they are seeking or accepting of it or not. This is not to say that he forces his views on anyone, but is usually the opposite, allowing the kids to weigh and process issues on their own with his guidance, which ends up visibly frustrating for him when it comes to Zuko.
There are lots of examples of him being a good "father”, but most notable for me is his quick forgivess of Zuko.
For all who have seen the series, what do you think? And for those who haven't, you really need to.
Iroh is like the animated Mr. Rogers. You should always try to be the person he knows you can be.
Iroh is one of my favourite characters in The Last Airbender. He has an unconditional love for Zuko but is still critical of his actions. One of the things I admire about Iroh is that being the father figure is not his only role in the show. He tries to be there for his nephew through his mistakes, but only to a certain extent. I think in that way, he respects Zuko as an individual capable of making his own decisions but doesn't compromise his own values when those decisions diverge from his own.
Another thing I love about Iroh. He will support Zuko, but is also willing to stand against him.
Oh geez, we just got to the Tales of Ba Sing Se episode the other day during our rewatch. Iroh's tale is so painful and heartfelt.
it's been a while since i've watched it myself, but i seem to remember he isn't set in stone and goes through a sort of transformation himself, near the third season or so? that seems to have stuck with me at least…
My take was that he never was set in stone. He strives to learn from other benders and cultures, and incorporates that into himself (and his bending: lightning redirection).
His role in the show was reduced in the third season after his voice actor died, if my memory serves me right
Just in time for my full rewatch of the series!
It's interesting how much more I appreciate his fatherliness in Season One, knowing how things go down in the rest of the show. His short in Tales of Ba Sing Se will forever be one of those episodes where you need to prepare for a lot of waterworks.
I know. I can't even think of the episode without feeling something.
And rewatching from the beginning, I love the juxtaposition of Zuko's father with Iroh. Zuko was brutally punished for standing up for soldiers by his father, whereas he actually betrayed Iroh and was forgiven. Ah, just love this show so much!
This art is unfortunately being lost as binge watching is so popular. Not that I don't love watching an entire series at once, which is actually what I did with TLA, but there's something about the episodic approach that I prefer to the "might as well be one 8 hour movie".
I think it's interesting to note that he, as a general or whatever, was responsible for some of the Fire Nation's atrocities and territorial expansion. But he seems like a good guy anyway. Does he ever express regret in the series? I don't remember him ever doing that.
I think it would be so interesting to see Iroh back in the days where he was loyal to the fire nation and warring against Ba Sing Se. It's been a while since I've re-watched the series, but I seem to remember that his son's death was a turning point for him and that he changed a lot after that happened. I think he was regretful about his actions and felt a sense of closure when he was able to help the earth nation reclaim Ba Sing Se.