After 2010's M. Night Shyamalan debacle attempt at a live action ATLA movie, I don't blame fans of the original cartoon series for being skeptical of any further attempts to bring such a cherished series to live action life. I too hoped for the best, but, was prepared for the worst, however, in the end, found myself pleasantly surprised at how the producers were able to walk that razor line of producing a compelling story, while essentially having to provide "fan service" for each episode of the entire season, lest they face the wrath of those who will probably never accept anything less than a revival of the original cartoon albeit with some new storylines. This while also introducing those who weren't around in 2010, or, had never seen the original animated version.

While not perfect, Netflix has indeed done a yeoman's job of bringing the animated cast to life, with IMO the only glaring exception being the casting of Elizabeth Wu as Princess Azula, admittedly, because every time the camera zoomed in on her face, my mind immediately conjured up the image of a slightly Asian Maisie Williams channeling Asildr from Doctor Who, or perhaps Arya Stark from GOT, rather than a ruthless conniving psychopath looking for confirmation that Daddy loves her the best.

The main cast however is very much on point as their cartoon counterparts, with Gordon Cormier giving us a very believable and likable Aang, Kiawentio as Katara, and Ian Ousley (with his fabulous jawline) as the Avatarian three musketeers, as well as Dallas Liu and Paul Sun-Hyung as the sometimes conflicted duo seeking to restore their honor and show Daniel Dae Kim's "Fire Lord Ozai" that they are worthy to be in his presence, and perhaps have their own keys to the men's room.

Yes, as aptly pointed out by @zombiebxxk, some of the "spirit world" sequences were a bit off, and, could have been done differently, as, I agree they could have lightened the mood in places as the cartoons did by adding some scenes of Aang goofing off and just being a kid, rather than "the chosen one" with the weight of the world on his every decision. But then, we would probably have had to have a 10 episode first season rather than the eight we got. Not knowing how it would be received may have caused them to not push it, and that resulted in some storyline compression, which, for those who have followed along from the beginning, or even seen the entire series SEVERAL times wasn't really an issue, as, we were able to fill things in from memory. Yet, there were several happifying callbacks, which while not essential to the story flow, nonetheless brought a smile to my face. (cabbages anyone?)

All in all, for me, the series was a worthy complement to the Avatar The Last Airbender's lineage, and, I look forward to continuing the journey next season, as well as the next upcoming animated series, set to be released in 2025, which will be set 100 years after "The Legend of Korra and will apparently focus on an earthbending avatar. Other planned animated offshoots include an adult Aang and Co. film, a movie about Zuko, and two other unnamed shows. Sadly, the original series creators, Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, who signed on to be executive producers and showrunners for this live-action series, left the project in 2020 citing creative differences with Netflix. Konietzko added that a “negative and un-supporting” environment contributed to their departure. Maybe if the fans throw their weight behind this version and support it, it will give Netflix and the OG creators the impetus to bury the hatchet, and give us more seasons of bending, whichever of the elements they choose to focus on.