A new Avatar series is in production, and I've already got several items on my wish list for the show.
Titled Avatar: Seven Havens, the new entry into the Avatar universe introduces us to the Earth Avatar who comes after Korra. But the world she lives in will look nothing like the world we last saw in The Legend of Korra. Instead, according to the show's official logline, Seven Havens takes place in a world rocked by a major calamity, where the Avatar is viewed as humanity's destroyer.
Seven Havens' post-apocalyptic setting is ripe for exploration, as is the revelation that the new Avatar has a long-lost twin sister. With these facts in mind, here are six things I'd love to see in Avatar: Seven Havens.
1. Korra as a mentor figure.
Korra may be gone by the time Seven Havens takes place, but I hope she won't be forgotten.
Given that dark spirit Vaatu broke the Avatar cycle in Season 2 of The Legend of Korra, Seven Havens' Avatar will only have Korra's spirit to guide her through her journey. Seeing Korra in mentor mode would be a great way to understand how she's grown beyond the show and the comics. Plus, it will offer up a passing of the torch from one Avatar show to the next.
There's just one substantial wrinkle here: the matter of the apocalypse. If the calamity of Seven Havens took place while Korra was still the Avatar, that means she was unable to stop it. How would her failure to save the world impact her mentorship? Would her successor even want to listen? (Please, I need Korra to catch a break.)
2. More bending subclasses and more gnarly fights.
Avatar: The Last Airbender introduced us to bending subclasses like lightningbending, bloodbending, and metalbending. The Legend of Korra built on those, while also bringing lavabending, spiritbending, and straight-up flight into the fray. What new bending subclasses could we see in Seven Havens?
Whatever they are, I'm excited to see how bending adapts to a post-apocalyptic world — especially when it comes to fight scenes. Neither The Last Airbender nor The Legend of Korra shied away from brutality in their combat, with The Legend of Korra raising the bar in Season 3. Remember the suffocation of the Earth Queen? Or P'Li blowing her own head up? Can Seven Havens top that? Its post-apocalyptic setting certainly primes us for darker, more violent fight scenes.
3. Will we get twin Avatars?
Seven Havens' earthbending Avatar having a twin opens up an intriguing possibility: that of twin Avatars. Yes, the idea may sound like something straight out of fan fiction, but hear me out!
Korra and the light spirit Raava defeated Vaatu in Season 2, but since Raava was reborn within Vaatu, there's still a bit of him left in the Avatar spirit. What if that bit split off when the Avatar and her twin were born, so one sister inherited the Avatar spirit and the other inherited the Dark Avatar spirit? Twins with diametrically opposed power sets could help Seven Havens further explore the Avatar franchise's broader themes of balance. Plus, think of the delicious potential for sibling conflict and their dynamic during fight scenes! The cool factor is off the charts.
4. Big cultural shifts in the Four Nations.
It's highly likely that the Four Nations have dissolved in the wake of calamity, and that the "Seven Havens" refers to new states within the world of Avatar. So, how has culture in these Havens evolved since disaster? Are the Havens divided based on bending? Is there any resemblance to the world we once knew in earlier Avatar series, or are we essentially starting over?
5. A flashback to the apocalypse.
What triggered the calamity that shattered the world of Avatar? A collapse between the spirit and material realms? Some kind of spirit energy nuke? I'm going to need a flashback to find out, even if it hurts.
6. New Avatar critters!
Both Avatar series have given us the gift of sweet new critters, from flying bison and badgermoles to fire ferrets and polar bear dogs. What creatures will Seven Havens bring to the table?
Of course, I'm hoping for a cute animal companion for our Earth Avatar, as is tradition. But given the show's post-apocalyptic setting, I'd also love some gnarly new apocalyptic beasts. Let's take full advantage of the apocalypse, people!
