The ending of Zuko Alone is the only blemish in an otherwise perfect episode. Being hated not for what he's done but for what he is doesn't feel right.
>>152096684Think of it like China vs Japan during WW2 - POST Nanjing. A man saves a chinese village from a warlord and his men. Then revealed to be Japanese, yeah, of course said people are still going to hate said man.
>>152096700Kids are always taught that it's your actions that matter. You don't choose to belong to a race or nationality.
>>152096684Zuko needed to suffer more then. He was supposed to feel the effects of his family's kingdom on the regular people. It's supposed to be unfulfilling.
>>152096684It's his inner conflict in seasons 2 and 3. Learning to do the right thing even when those citizens hate him just for being a Firebender, and when his own country considers him a traitor. Doing what he knows is right even when it's hard and there's no benefit for him.He was an excellent swordsman, but he couldn't beat that Earthbender until he added in his FirebendingHe is proud of being the Prince of the Fire Nation, he loves his country and his people. He can't deny that part of himself, and trying to destroys himThat's why he can't just live a peaceful life in the Earth Kingdom, not as a beggar or a wandering ronin, or even in Ba Sing Se working in a successful teashop in the upper ring. No matter how many big titty Earth Kingdom girls hit on himUnderstanding how regular Earth Kingdom peasants see the Fire Nation is necessary for him. To bond with this kid and his family. To see first hand the human costs of the 100 year war, and who would be killed if Ozai's "burn down the Earth Kingdom during the Comet" plan went through
>>152096782>That's why he can't just live a peaceful life in the Earth Kingdom, not as a beggar or a wandering ronin, or even in Ba Sing Se working in a successful teashop in the upper ring. No matter how many big titty Earth Kingdom girls hit on himHe seemed pretty fulfilled until the opportunity to stab all of them in the back presented itself.
This is also strange since his journey is to learn the value of other nations and people yet he appeals to nationalism still.
>>152096684Um buddy that is literally how life works dude. It also hammers in how Zuko is constantly punished despite doing the right thing.
>>152096684>defends the lives of his nations soldiers>gets banished>defends the lives of other nations civilians >gets banishedActual poetry
>>152096684Wow, if only that's the point. He's instantly hated because he's the prince of the Fire Nation. It's instrumental to him traveling the Earth Kingdom and learning the damage his country has done and how much people hate them. His character arc can't progress without this. See also: Song showing him her burn scar and his shock at that.
>>152096684That's the point. He can't escape who he is.
>>152096969You want your Fire Lord to be a patriot and a diplomat. He takes pride in his civilization while respecting others and this led to the industrial revolution.
>>152096737That’s wrong
>>152097694>He takes pride in his civilizationIt's contradictory because he's as much ashamed in himself as he is at his own country.
>>152096684>Being hated not for what he's done but for what he is doesn't feel right.he is so closeso close he almost has it
>>152097951He matures to realize that pillaging villages is shameful because it is, but he was taught otherwise
>>152097999So the customs and values of his country are shameful. The only thing he valued was the lives of his countrymen, whether it was the soldiers to be sacrificed or the crew of his ship.
>>152098422>customs and valuesYou got it. He learned the Fire Nation’s actions did not match their cultural values and changed his actions to match what he valued about his homeland like a true hero>livesYes he also learned life has value it’s a kids cartoon
>>152096684It's not supposed to feel right, that's the point. Wishing the episode had ended on a happier note is one thing, but saying it's an objective shortcoming that the ending was such a downer when that's what it was going for just makes you sound retarded.
>>152096906>He seemed pretty fulfilled untilNo, he really did not. The entire point of this arc was that Zuko was absolutely miserable trying to eke out a living as a refugee regardless of how manageable it was
>>152099115Look at this misery.
>>152096737>Kids are always taught that it's your actions that matterFirst off, you’re retarded if you think every single kid is raised the same way. Second, this is a world where the fire nation has been waging war and ruining lives for a literal century. You really think parents wouldn’t tell their kids about how evil the people from the fire nation are? >b-but I would love Zuko if he saved me as a 10 year old!! Okay. You’re not that kid. You didn’t live your whole life under threat of attack from the fire nation.
>>152099150He was taking a healthy supply of copium.
>>152096684to quote an episode from the clone wars:>"who we are never changes, who we think we are does"the important part is doing the right thing, even if you're ostracized or hated
