The Missteps of 'The Last Airbender': A Drive-In Discourse
In our latest discourse, we meticulously examine the 2010 cinematic endeavor, "The Last Airbender," which has garnered a mere 5% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. This film, directed by M. Night Shyamalan, has elicited profound disappointment among fans and critics alike, particularly for its disjointed narrative and lackluster character portrayals. Elizabeth Clyde and Alex Matthews articulate their sentiments regarding the film's shortcomings, noting the significant disparity between the beloved animated series and its live-action adaptation. The dialogue delves into the myriad factors contributing to its critical failure, including subpar CGI and a narrative that neglects the depth of the source material. Ultimately, we conclude with a cautionary note, advising our audience to reconsider investing their time in this particular cinematic experience.
The discourse undertaken in this podcast episode delves into the realm of cinematic adaptations, with a pronounced focus on the infamous 2010 film adaptation of 'Avatar: The Last Airbender'. As the hosts, Elizabeth Clyde and Alex, engage in a thorough examination of this film, they articulate a collective sentiment of disappointment, primarily stemming from the dissonance between the beloved animated series and its live-action counterpart. They reflect on the profound anticipation that surrounded the film's release, especially for ardent fans of the original series, only to be met with a product that many deemed a betrayal of the source material. The hosts enumerate various elements that contributed to their dissatisfaction, including the mispronunciation of key character names, subpar CGI, and a narrative pacing that failed to capture the essence of the original storyline.
Throughout the episode, the hosts juxtapose their experiences while watching the film, revealing how the expectations set by the original series were not only unmet but egregiously undermined. They discuss the absence of critical character arcs and the simplification of profound themes that were pivotal in the animated version. The conversation further extends to the director's response to the backlash, highlighting a perceived arrogance and denial regarding the film's shortcomings. By the conclusion, they firmly advise listeners to forgo watching this adaptation, emphasizing that even for nostalgia, it does not merit the time or resources.
Takeaways:
- The 2010 film 'The Last Airbender' received significant criticism for its disappointing execution and strayed far from the beloved animated series.
- Despite being anticipated due to its connection to a cherished franchise, the film's narrative and pacing fell short of expectations, leaving viewers confused.
- The creators of the original Avatar series were not involved in the film's production, which likely contributed to its failure to capture the source material's essence.
- Both hosts expressed their disbelief and disappointment, noting that the film's low Rotten Tomatoes score was justified by its lack of coherent storytelling and character development.
- A major point of contention was the film's mispronunciation of character names, which showcased a lack of attention to detail and respect for the original series.
- In summary, the podcast episode concluded by discouraging listeners from watching the film, emphasizing that it was not worth their time or investment.
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Check out the rest of our Rotten Films 2025 Summer Drive-In series:
https://player.captivate.fm/collection/949652f2-fee2-4b3e-acbf-e2bb8dcdcddc
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Check out other episodes with Liz:
https://player.captivate.fm/collection/b4feaf6c-e817-4e86-b6f3-e13c0abc7147
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Check out other episodes with Alex:
https://player.captivate.fm/collection/5d67b27d-d8c2-442e-a859-f10cd87c8503
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Systematic Geekology
Our show focuses around our favorite fandoms that we discuss from a Christian perspective. We do not try to put Jesus into all our favorite stories, but rather we try to ask the questions the IPs are asking, then addressing those questions from our perspective. We are not all ordained, but we are the Priests to the Geeks, in the sense that we try to serve as mediators between the cultures around our favorite fandoms and our faith communities.
Transcript
Some friendships are so strong, they can even transcend lifetimes. Uncle Iroh.
Welcome back to the Systematic Ecology Drive in series, where we are metaphorically parked under the stars, revisiting movies of all kinds. This theme is low scores on Rotten Tomatoes. And so this is our ongoing drive in series.
If you enjoy this, make sure you check out the other shows in this playlist to see what other host has picked. My name is Elizabeth Clyde, and I am here with Alex, who. This is her pick for the Rotten Tomato drive in. We are partners in crime.
we're talking today about the: Alex Matthews:Hello. I am doing good. I chose this one because it was just really, like, I don't even have the words to describe how bad this movie was to me.
Liz Clyde:5%. Yeah.
Alex Matthews:Like, I'm surprised even got 5. You would think it would get 0 because this was the first movie I've ever watched that I left the theater. Like, what the heck did I just watch?
Normally, I love movies. Like, I never have a problem with a movie, but this is probably the first, if not the only movie that I strongly dislike.
I left the theater so confused.
Liz Clyde:So you actually. Man, I feel like you can really get in the character as a drive in leaving because you actually saw this in theaters.
And so I think the worst part about this is the anticipation and the buildup before going to the movie. So I actually just saw this for the first time last week when you referred it, because I heard how bad it was, and so I was like, you know what?
I wasn't. I didn't even give it a chance because I trusted the opinion of my peers. So I didn't even watch it at all until, like, last week.
So you had that buildup, that anticipation, and then you just deflated hard. So about what part into the movie did you realize, oh, no, this is bad?
Alex Matthews:I think when they said ong instead of ang that I was like, wait.
Liz Clyde:Oh, wait a minute.
Alex Matthews:I was like, wait a second. This is not. This isn't right. This is not right.
Liz Clyde:It's a.
Alex Matthews:Who's on who. Who is that?
Liz Clyde:That is wild. Yes, I. I was very confused.
Alex Matthews:Yeah, it was. It was a letdown because, like, the trailers made it look so good. And I'm. And I'm a huge, like, Avatar fan. Like, I grew up watching it.
I was like 10 when this movie came out. So I was like, oh, yeah, Like I'm caught up with all the episodes, saw all the things, blah, blah. This is gonna be great.
Liz Clyde:This is a lot of people's. This is like this and Pokemon I would think are people's cartoon that gateways them into anime a lot of the time.
Just like growing up watching Nickelodeon, I mean I have. This is not on YouTube, this episode, but I. You can see right here I have all the tribe symbol tattoos of the nations.
So literally avatar is tattooed on my body. So I was very excited when, when you recommended this. But then I was also very sad because I had to watch it. And I don't know if it was just.
is last week because this was:Like Qatar was just a little like whenever they were fighting like the fire nations in the earthbending camp, that push to the gourds just took me out. She was like trying to like get them to back off like a little. It's like, what was that, girl? What was that?
Alex Matthews:Yeah, the cgi. I didn't realize how bad it was then. But then I re watched like some scenes of.
Of it like recently just to refresh and looking back, I was like, what in the world was that? Like there's that one scene where the air.
The earthbenders are like doing their thing and like they do this really fierce move and then you just see a pebble just slowly fly across the screen. And I'm like, who?
Liz Clyde:What?
Alex Matthews:What?
Liz Clyde:I know they had this whole like routine. Yeah. And everything. I was like, okay, we're getting some action.
Alex Matthews:And it was so anti climactic.
Liz Clyde:I was like, nothing.
Alex Matthews:I was like, what is this? Who okayed this?
Liz Clyde:And granted, I'm like. Because obviously Aang and them, they are young.
So watching this obviously in like middle and high school when you're like the same age is different when I am in my 30s watching this. But I'm like, they just seemed so extra young watching this last week. And then it just seemed.
But even when they were young, they never seemed like children in the original Nickelodeon, you know what I mean? Did you ever read the comics or the actual whatever they're called?
Alex Matthews:No, I haven't. I've been thinking about reading them.
Liz Clyde:I think you can get the whole set on Amazon. It's a couple hundred, but you can like buy the complete box set. So in case you want to ask for that for Christmas?
In case any listeners want to gift Alex and I the joys of reading Avatar, we would not say no.
Alex Matthews:Absolutely.
Liz Clyde:Can you say anything good about this film? Like, let's try and find the 5% the rotten tomato gave it.
Alex Matthews:Why did it even get a 5%? Let me see. Should I find a good. Try to find a good Momo was fun.
Liz Clyde:We love the Momo still.
Alex Matthews:Yeah, Momo was fun. I did see something on Tick Tock when the Netflix series came out. The live action Netflix series, they compared the hair for the princess.
What's her name?
Liz Clyde:Oh, the moon princess.
Alex Matthews:The moon Princess. They compared. They compared the hair and, like, how the hair was more detailed in the movie than it was in the Netflix show.
Liz Clyde:Okay.
Alex Matthews:Costumes and hair was a little better than the Netflix, I guess. I don't really remember, but I did see that. So there.
Liz Clyde:I did like the flirting because I'm always known as a romance person among of our hosts because I just love love.
So I love, like, you know, the, the Sasha, the Suko and moon princess, like, flirting type deal because that was kind of sweet, like seeing them doing little side glances. But yeah, I mean, it's just the pacing to me, like, I can't give it a good rating because of the pacing.
Alex Matthews:Yeah, it was like we blame a lot.
Liz Clyde:And I was like, there's no like, especially. I mean, thankfully, I don't know if it's good or bad, but like, you know, whenever they go to the.
The other water tribe, Katara was able to, I guess do bending right alongside of them. So they didn't have the whole, only females can heal. You can't go into war.
So there was, you know, they took away those gender norms which, you know, appreciate girl power, but that, you know, that adversary. Adversary added to the storyline of making Qatar a bad booty. And so I'm like, so she hasn't had to overcome that.
You took away a big part of her, like, personality. And we didn't have Toph. So has Top, like the Toph ever making a.
Well, I know Toph never made an appearance in the live action, but I couldn't remember if she came before or after that earthbending camp or if Toph was planned to come.
Alex Matthews:You talk about the movie or the.
Liz Clyde:Well, the live action movie. So. So I'm not. I couldn't remember if Toph was supposed to already be in the live action or not, like with the pacing because they went so quickly.
Alex Matthews:Ye.
Liz Clyde:Or they just. It seemed like they wrote out her character completely.
Alex Matthews:Yeah, I don't remember her being in that.
Liz Clyde:She. She definitely wasn't in it, but I was just. But the way they wrote it like should have been.
Alex Matthews:Yeah.
Liz Clyde:I'm wondering if they wrote out her character because obviously they planned to make more movies with the way they had the cliffhanger. But they did not.
Alex Matthews:And they did not.
Liz Clyde:I wonder what the producers reactions were about how bad it was.
Alex Matthews:You know, did they even include like the original author? I can't remember.
Liz Clyde:I don't remember either.
Alex Matthews:Because if I feel like if they did include the original author then it would go a completely different. It would be better. More than 5%.
Liz Clyde:My best friend ChatGPT I said their letters in the correct order this time. I just asked Chat. I was like, what was the reaction of the producer and director? And so I guess M.
Night Shyamalan, sorry for the bad pronunciation, who were both the writer and director of the Last Airbender was complex, defensive and at times surprisingly dismissive of the fans criticism. So I guess he is in denial.
He emphasized that he made the Last Airbender for a younger audience saying critics just didn't get it and he blamed the critics. So that's always good. Yeah, so I guess, yeah, he says and he pointed because everyone like, so you were one of these, these dollar signs.
So he pointed out like, you know, it was a success because the film grossed over 300 million worldwide in the box office despite the terrible reviews. Well, because they didn't know better. You didn't know better when you went.
Alex Matthews: This was what,: Liz Clyde: , you know, I mean US DVDs in: Alex Matthews:And I think this was like, like a, one of the first like live action adaptations to an animated thing. So of course people are going to be excited to see that. Correct.
Liz Clyde:I mean we grew up on Avatar. Like we were ready and then at this time live actions were still new.
It's not like Disney where they are doing live action everything to make a dollar. So this was kind of like cut, like a new, you know, a new, I guess not a genre. That's not what I'm thinking of.
But we just, we never seen anything like this before that I can remember. And apparently he never apologized for the, the film and the badness of it.
It was originally supposed to be a trilogy, but the sequels were quietly like Just put on the shelf. And yeah, he never acknowledged the depth of the backlash of Avatar the Last Airbender or anything.
Yeah, I mean he did, he did do like more successful projects like Split in Glass. So I'm curious what that was on Rotten Tomatoes, but that might have to be a different episode.
But yeah, I was just, I was shocked watching it last week and then I kind of acknowledged what he. What he kind of like critiqued was since I am an older audience now, it seemed kind of young. But a good movie.
You would want the parents to watch it with the children. Like you would want them to be in like you should ask for a wider audience of not just 9 and 10 year olds. Plus I'm a child who still watches anime.
So like I like. I'm literally watching like Naruto. Re watching it for funsies.
Alex Matthews:I need to finish that. I grew up watching it when it first came out and I dropped off on Shippuden and have him look back. But I need to.
Liz Clyde:You should. It's a rough. Everything's like English dubbed now.
So it's nice because I can have it in the background while I'm cooking and cleaning and being an adult, which is really sad. I hate being an adult. But. But I'm in Boruto now, so you just gotta do what you gotta do.
Alex Matthews:Yeah.
Liz Clyde:So, okay, let's try and find something else good about this film.
Alex Matthews:I'm trying to look up things about it because I really can't find anything good.
Liz Clyde:I mean it's, it's still fresh. I cannot remember the last time. Okay, well, this isn't good. But I remember I'm sitting on my kitchen island. It's on my laptop. I had to get.
Thank goodness I didn't rent it because I couldn't find it for free anywhere. So I signed up for Like a Peacock, the seven day like week subscription for it so I could watch it for free.
And I'm sitting there eating a bowl of cereal, watching it on my laptop and I just couldn't wait for it to be over.
Alex Matthews:Wow.
Liz Clyde:Yeah, I'm just like, I'm just ready. I'm like, I'm. Because I wanted, since we were doing the podcast on it, I wanted to give it my full attention and not double screen it.
So I'm literally just like. So of course if I can't double screen it, I have to eat because I have a short attention span like a child.
So I just kept on thinking, I'm like, when is this going to be over? And then it was over. And I'm like, wait, that was the ending?
Alex Matthews:Yeah, Yeah, I can't. I. I'm literally trying to find something good about this. No, I'm looking at Google and let's see. It actually says the author. It has two authors.
The show has two authors. I didn't know that, but yeah, the two authors. Apparently the movie was greenlit without their approval.
Liz Clyde:Oh, like the original. Yeah, like creators of it. Interesting. That makes sense.
Alex Matthews:And so they had a falling out with the production team.
Liz Clyde:Is this why we never find out what happens to Zuko's mom? Is this the. Is this the fight right now?
Alex Matthews:I don't know. I mean, there's other books and things that. About the lore behind his mom.
Liz Clyde:Yes, but I've never read the books, so I'll never know. And then I've tried to find spoilers, but maybe I just didn't look in the right places. But that's not the live action. But it just shows.
Once again, like, they could have done so much more with the live action. I don't know why they rushed it, especially even being a part of a trilogy like the anime in itself. Well, not the anime, but the cartoon.
It has four books, if I remember correctly. So to try and get like four books of episodes in a trilogy, I just feel like it was doomed to fail.
So the Avatar, the Last airpin, it consists of 61 episodes. So it was not into four books. I'm thinking of probably another thing. So it was into three books.
So it kind of makes sense why they were doing the trilogy. But even then, like, so each book, it's about 20. 21 episodes. So 20 times 20.
Alex Matthews:Let's see.
Liz Clyde:Math is hard. So they're putting 400 minutes worth of content in a 90 minute movie. Just. You can't do that.
You're going to get the crowds mad for all the stuff that you leave out. Like we need to know about blood bending and we need to. We need Toph and we need. We need the haiku battle between Zuko and the Kinochi warrior.
Those are the things I love about the. The cartoon. So they just. I feel like they didn't translate anything I loved about the cartoon into the live action movie.
Alex Matthews:Yeah, they just. They rushed a lot of the things and skipped over the little things that helped with the plot.
So it wasn't as full or rich as it should have been, which is another disappointing thing about it.
Liz Clyde: ause if I was in High School,: Alex Matthews:Either middle school or elementary. I was, I was 10. Yeah, I was in elementary school.
Liz Clyde:So as an elementary school student, your parents probably brought you and you just wasted their time and money. How does that make you feel?
Alex Matthews:I mean we were all pretty excited for it. Like my family, we're into like animes and actions and all of that.
And we all watched Avatar before so like the whole family was excited to see it and we just left that theater so disappointed. Didn't like it at all.
Liz Clyde:The fact that the director did not take responsibility of the fans dissatisfaction of it and that he, he blamed the, the us kind of just does not sit. Sit well with me at all. But you know, it is what it is. It still made Hollywood a lot of money. I'm still curious what that. Where that 5% came from.
Maybe they gave it the 5% for nostalgia on Rotten Tomato, but even that I felt like I didn't even feel nostalgia when watching it.
Alex Matthews:Let me, let me look it up.
Liz Clyde:Look it up. Even Uncle Ira wasn't as lovable in the live action. They should have made him a little rounder.
Alex Matthews:It doesn't really say like why got the rating it did.
Liz Clyde:It just says it probably just got a little bit of a rating because it was nostalgia sake. That's what I'm way. But I mean it did still. I will say it at least kept the concept of the theme of like the nations, the tribes.
So I mean it communicated what it was. But still they just did it bad.
Alex Matthews:Yeah, they try to, they. I don't know what they try to do. I can't even defend them.
Liz Clyde:Well, this is going to be a short episode guys because as you can tell, Alex and I have nothing positive to say about this movie. So before we pull out of the lot of the drive in leaving very disappointed. What was.
What's like a weird or surprising snack that you would have brought to eat at this drive in?
Alex Matthews:A weird, surprising snack?
Liz Clyde:Yes, I would have brought tea for Uncle Iroh. That's my thing. Yeah, I would have just brought tea and like would have sipped it with some like, you know, some crackers or something like that.
Just so I could channel my Uncle Iroh spirit.
Alex Matthews:I would have brought cabbage.
Liz Clyde:Oh, that's a good one. That's very solid. Oh yeah, there was no cabbages. Right.
Alex Matthews:I was like, where's the cabbage man?
Liz Clyde:Why is he to say my cabbages? All the, all the little nuances that we love just did done into the movie. But hopefully you guys enjoy this. I would say go watch this movie.
Usually we end with the drive ins, you know, trying to encourage the listeners to watch the movie. But in this case, please don't.
Alex Matthews:Don't waste your coins.
Liz Clyde:Don't do it. I'm kind of sad. I can honestly say my life is not better after watching this. So do not. But make sure you do.
Rate and review our show on podchasers, Spotify, Apple Podcasts. Wherever you that you listen to your podcast of choice, please give us a rate and review that would really help us out and we would appreciate it.
And also don't forget, if you enjoyed this, you can look at our show notes and look at other episodes similar to this. See what the other hosts have chosen for their rotten tomato pick. Until next time, remember, we are all a chosen people. A geekdom. A priest.
See you guys later. We're driving out.
Alex Matthews:Bye.
