Christine Horner, copy editor
Sokka’s casual misogyny is being toned down in the live action Netflix adaptation of “Avatar: The Last Airbender” and some fans are… upset about it?
Goofy, sarcastic Sokka — a widely beloved supporting character in “Avatar: The Last Airbender” (ATLA) — has a reputation for providing solid comedic relief and valuable insight into each conflict that Team Avatar encounters throughout the Nickelodeon series. Unfortunately, during some earlier episodes of the show, he was also openly misogynistic toward his sister Katara and other girls in the show. “Girls are better at fixing pants than guys, and guys are better at hunting and fishing and stuff like that,” he said in episode four of Book One: Water. However, the Kyoshi warriors quickly put him in his place in the same episode. They quite literally knocked him on his butt without even using bending. But some fans are angry that live-action Sokka is less sexist than animated Sokka.
Some of these fans cite character development as the driving force behind why they feel that Sokka’s original sexist perspective should be maintained in the live-action series. They feel that overcoming sexism was pivotal to Sokka’s arc and that fictional characters don’t have to be morally black or white. “It’s important for main characters to have flaws in order to create growth and a compelling character arc, and removing Sokka’s sexism eliminates an opportunity for his growth. The Netflix adaptation should embrace the source material’s conflicts and character flaws,” explains Jillian Unrau of gamerant.com. I agree that characters who learn and grow are far more interesting than static, unchanging characters. I also understand the fear that Sokka will become too flat if his character doesn’t face enough adversity.
But these fans forget that Sokka overcame so much more than his casual misogyny. He lost his first love, Princess Yue, when she turned into the moon to save waterbending. He overcame his shame of being a non-bender by learning how to sword fight in the Fire Nation and crafting his own meteorite sword. He then had to quickly recover from losing said sword while taking down a Fire Nation fleet during the series finale. He went through so much more and became so much more than what viewers give him credit for. When I think of Sokka, I don’t think of misogyny — I think of resilience and the voice of reason. I think of my favorite “ATLA” character.
Most of us were children when we first watched the animated “ATLA” series. Now that we’ve grown, it’s time we grow out of sexism too. “The kids who watched the animated version of ‘Avatar’ are now grown-ups, and so they’re ready for more grown-up fare,” said Fire Lord Ozai’s actor, Daniel Dae Kim, when discussing specific modifications to the live action show in an interview with Entertainment Weekly. However, if viewers still want their sexism, they can look forward to seeing Katara’s actress, Kiawentiio, absolutely demolish Pakku’s not-so-subtle sexism in the Northern Water Tribe. Not only did she assert her dominance over a crusty old misogynist, she also inspired him to change his beliefs surrounding women’s rights to combat-focused waterbending.
Sexism aside, I think every fan can agree that Sokka is invaluable to both the animated series and the live-action adaptation. I look forward to seeing what his actor and the adaptation’s creators have in store for us.