- Imprisoned While looking for food in the forest, the gang come across a mysterious young man, Haru, while he Earthbends. When Katara approaches him, he decides to run, leading our heroes to his village (and food!), where it turns out that the Fire Nation have set up shop for the time being. Earthbending is illegal. The village’s coal mines are being exploited. Bribing the Fire Nation is the only way to get by. It feels like old Western territory, similar to parts of the The Kiyoshi Warriors, but the story soon goes another way. When coerced by Katara into using Earthbending to save an elderly man trapped in a mine, Haru is taken to an offshore prison (think the prison in Face/Off, but less ridiculous). Soon enough, Katara’s youthful idealism clashes against the despondence of the prisoners, exposed in when she attempts a rousing speech that goes nowhere. It’s actually quite crushing. So, it’s a real thrill to see her rescue efforts pull through in the final act. With the help of Aang and Sokka, the ship’s coal (read: earth!) is brought to the Earthbending prisoners and used as a weapon, bringing on a pretty great battle that culminates in the inmates running the asylum (so to speak). Cut to Zuko picking up the necklace, a plan possibly cooking in his head. C-c-c-c-cliffhanger! …And with good timing, too, as next week we look at the first part of a two-parter entitled The Winter Solstice. In the meantime, Imprisoned allowed us more of an insight into Katara’s optimism and hope. It can’t be broken, even in the worst circumstances. And the worst circumstance possible could be where the final seconds of the episode leave us… Some thoughts: Tardy recap. Sorry about that! The Warden’s hatred for the Earthbenders comes close to a type of racism – left me wondering about the different Fire Nation justifications for attacking pretty much the rest of the world Line of the week: Tyro’s “I heard cowards float.” Lots of chat about food this week. The characters are always hungry in some way. Sure, they got a good meal in Omashu, but they were also imprisoned. Can’t these guys get a break when it comes to eating? C-c-c-c-cliffhanger! Read our recap and review of episode 5 here.
