When we needed the Avatar most, he vanished in 2008, after taking down Fire Lord Ozai and uniting the four nations. Four years later, Korra arrived in a world that favored the Avatar. Unfortunately, Korra ran into various situations that changed the legend of the Avatar for good. Just after receiving a sequel film to Avatar: The Last Airbender with Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender, we now get the sequel series to The Legend of Korra, where the world has completely shifted in a direction that feels befitting of where we should be heading next with the Avatar franchise.
Set two centuries after The Legend of Korra, Avatar: Seven Havens follows Pavi (Saheli Khan), who discovers that she’s the Avatar. Trying to stay hidden by people who view her as an enemy, she comes across her long-lost twin, Nisha (Aishu Devan). Together, they work together to put the pieces together and uncover their strange origin that could be the key to saving the world… or destroying it.
Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, returning as showrunners, have decided to take us into the next era of Avatar. While The Legend of Korra had us explore technological advances, Seven Havens sees us explore a post-apocalyptic world that’s trying to survive after Korra brought on the Cataclysm, which brought the four nations into ruin. DiMartino and Konietzko create these mysteries for the show that allow for the weekly experience to be something that’ll have you wanting to come back. Before we touch on our main character(s), the question that’s on everyone’s mind is, what has Korra done to the world for everyone to fear and hate the Avatar? Well, after viewing six episodes, this is a question that’s left unanswered.
Ellora, one of the seven havens that were created after the Cataclysm, celebrates the defeat of Korra, and as the show goes on through these six episodes, it becomes clear that how the Avatar is now viewed is completely different from the previous shows. From a loveable hero to a revolting villain. The show is keeping the truth behind Korra tight to their chest, but when all is revealed, it’ll build on the world-building and the development with our new Avatar(s).
We first learn of Pavi and her cat-monkey, Geet (Dee Bradley Baker). They stay hidden from the rest of the world, as she doesn’t want to be discovered by the Brigade, who take in unregistered benders at a certain age to protect their haven from threats. She talks to animals, makes friends with rocks, struggles to find food, and lives in a cave. While life for her is difficult, she’s happy and welcomes it head on.
At the end of the first episode, we then meet her twin Nisha, who also has her own cat-monkey, Ruhi (Dee Bradley Baker). Nisha has been kept a secret by Captain Karthik (Akshay Khanna), training secretly in all 4 elements. While Pavi and Nisha are twins, they’re very different and can even be compared to previous Avatars. Pavi is reminiscent of Aang with her pacifist outlook on the world and her love for creatures, which she showcases when she’s able to calm down an afflicted creature instead of resorting to violence.
On the other hand, Nisha feels like she could be Korra’s own child. She’s full of energy, eager to learn and fight, brash, and quite violent in nature. She also happens to be my favorite, but you can’t help but love both of the twins equally. They’re hilarious and, in the six episodes, already have iconic moments that feel natural within an Avatar show. They’re the youngest Avatars we’ve gotten yet and an absolute delight.
Avatar: Seven Havens is teasing a greater darkness that’s not only causing the destruction but also slowly revealing the boundaries of their powers and revealing their lost past to them. It’s for sure without a doubt going to affect either both twins or one of them that’ll tip the scales of the show, but it all boils down to whether it’ll land. For fans of Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra, it feels like they’re leading down the natural path of the Spirt World, which was a major factor in Seven Havens’ predecessor. If anything with Korra has changed, it’s likely to do with the Spirit World and the Avatar’s true origin.
While the art direction takes some getting used to, as it feels drastically different from previous Avatar Studio projects and feels more in line with shows such as Voltron: Legendary Defender, it does take some getting used to, but it’ll eventually grow on you like it did with me. The animation for the bending isn’t anything impressive or standout, but there have been a few moments here and there where the animation has stood out compared to the rest of the show, which teases at more exciting, grander moments later on.
The art direction also affects the costuming of the characters. As of now, the hairstyles for Pavi and Nisha and the connection with their parents work extremely well. When it comes to the clothing of the characters, aside from Chancellor Kayoko (Jennifer Sun Bell), it’s not impressive. As we know, over time, fashion changes and things are lost to time.
The four nations no longer exist, and instead, we have the seven havens. It’s not explored within these first six episodes, but the fashion change could have to do with how they’ve united as havens rather than the nations that previously existed. It’ll benefit the world-building, as it’ll feel like since the Cataclysm, they’ve lost touch with the Old World, which is explored as a concept only briefly.
The supporting characters for Seven Havens are also a blast to watch as they pair up with Pavi and Nisha. Jae (Major Curda) is without a doubt the more prominent supporting character that’ll be tagging along with these twins until the ends of the world. Unlike The Legend of Korra, where it took me a while to fall in love with Bolin and Mako, I’ve managed to immediately enjoy Jae’s presence within the show. The most noticeable difference between Avatar: Seven Havens and the previous Avatar shows is the LGBTQ representation.
Within these first six episodes, you’re introduced to Jae being in a relationship with another guy called Datu (Topher Ngo), and it’s beautiful getting to see that DiMartino and Konietzko are able to embrace this love, unlike before, where it was only hinted at with Korra and Asami. For fans of those characters, there will also be easter eggs to their relationship, and Seven Havens continues to show that being on Paramount+ allows for more freedom, as they show even a lesbian couple in the background about to make out before being disrupted. It’ll anger the wrong crowd, but it’s a step in the right direction.
The first six episodes of Avatar: Seven Havens are the best start to a new show that we could’ve gotten for a sequel to The Legend of Korra. With the introduction of our new Avatars and the mystery behind their past and connection with Korra and the mysterious Cataclysm she caused, the show is quickly proving that it could be on par with its predecessor.
Whether it’ll stand the test of time with Avatar: The Last Airbender will still need to be seen. It’s a great start with loveable characters, an engaging story, decent animation, and a fantastic score by Jeremy Zuckerman. If it means anything, it feels different from what we’ve received in the past, and that’s a start. Its only possible downfall is if the major villain reveal of its first season/book ends up not being worth the mystery that’s being laid out through these episodes.
