Avatar: Seven Havens’ first episode presented a lot of information, but arguably the most important parts of its world building were in the questions and mysteries it left unanswered: what happened to Korra? Why is humanity relegated to living in seven distinct, specific places? And how are there two Avatars? Unsurprisingly, “Into the Storm” answers none of these questions, focusing its attention on defining the contrasts in personality between Nisha and Pavi – who, over the course of this episode, also realize they are long-lost twins. With so much going on, it’s also not a surprise “Into the Storm” feels a bit rushed – that is, until its mystifying climactic scene, the moment where it feels like Seven Havens is finally done with its preamble, and is ready to dive headfirst into its larger narrative.
“Into the Storm” splits itself into two halves; the first half focuses on Nisha and Pavi’s unexpected reunion in Ellora, teasing out the dynamics of each main character as they both consider their future paths as the Avatar. As one might expect, their differences in personality and purpose are laid bare as they train and consider a life as the hated possible savior of the world (in these times, Chase the Avatar is a legitimate game kids play, which at this point has been passed down for generations). While the dynamic between them is not exactly unpredictable – Nisha, having been trained to be the Avatar, is ready to receive her destiny while Pavi just wants to live a normal kid’s life – Seven Havens finds interesting contrast in their sense of self-worth, and how that defines how they use, and even think about, their abilities and potential to heal the schism formed between the Avatar and the people they’ve spent eons protecting and defending. At one point, Pavi even refers to herself as a “fluke” – not because she is an Avatar with one fewer leg than her twin sister, but because she’s someone who has spent her life being looked past by those around her, left to make friends with bugs and rocks in the world post-whatever happened to separate Nisha and Pavi (which we see a very brief glimpse of, in one of a few instances of the two triggering a shared memory… from what it looked like, the melding of the spirit world and physical world went real poorly).
Even as “Into the Storm” pulls back its lens for a more dramatic, bombastic second half, it retains its focus on the intentionally sidelined sisters – which is important, but certainly gives the episode a bit of tunnel vision, leaving the rest of Jae’s bender brigade as background fodder once a big storm of blue and red lightning descends upon Ellora, a storm that becomes a metaphysical event when it mysteriously triggers what I can only describe as a sentient red diamond shape within the city’s grounds, where it then electrocutes a bunch of people before connecting with the twins, triggering a flash of memory from the presumed day their lives changed. It’s a very Neon Genesis Evangelion-like moment, a 3D shape causing commotion and chaos, a distinctly inhuman thing reaching towards the two young benders in an attempt to connect to something specifically human; and while it is yet another layer of mystery on top of a narrative already compounding its complexities, it’s certainly an arresting sequence that feels like the show finally moving from allusion to action with its main narrative.
The storm sequence itself is a bit of a mixed bag; admittedly, it is fun to see Seven Havens build the stepping stones of courage within Pavi, as she watches young benders embrace their roles as protectors, bravely acting to help people in Ellora get to safety, without hesitation or concern for their own safety. But when it comes to “Into the Storm” giving the storm the weight and scale it is clearly aiming for, the sequence falls a bit short, which makes its subsequent reveals feel a bit more detached and incidental than engaged and satisfying, especially the more the episode leans into some particularly leaden dialogue.
But for all the heavy lifting it has to do, “Into the Storm” keeps itself upright whenever it stays focused on the two major running tracks of story: the sisters’ journey of self-discovery, and the larger sense of discovery as the show begins to peel back the layers of mystery around the Seven Havens, Korra and the cataclysm, and what happened to the world when the spirit and physical worlds collided some 200 years earlier. “Into the Storm” isn’t a big downturn in quality, but it certainly bears the weight of the many allusions and ideas more explicitly than “On the Horizon” did, which make it a bit harder for the episode to stand on its own two feet, stuck between a sweeping reintroduction and the real heart of the season’s story to come.
Other thoughts/observations:
- Pavi: “This isn’t our world, Geet – and it’s never going to be.”
- Is it just me, or do Pavi and Nisha both talk much older than they feel they’re supposed to be? I know Avatar: The Last Airbender did this a bit, but its characters were a couple years older, which made it a little more believable. For nine-year-olds, they have an alarming amount of emotional clarity.
- we learn that both Pavi and Nisha are proficient in the basics of all four forms of bending – which I’m ok with, as it allows for them to develop more dynamic, individual traits over the show’s run (proficiency in certain fields, the ability of one or the other to metal bend, bloodbend, etc.
- Look, I know everyone is feeling like this series is just Korra slander; for those who think the show’s creators hate that character, everyone forgets the nonsense and vitriol Korra faced as a character from the audience through the last three seasons of the series. She’s a wonderfully flawed character, and I’m excited for the series to eventually reveal what happened, and how Korra connects to Pavi and Nisha as they try to repair what’s broken in the Avatar world.
- “Your day in the sun will come, young one… just not today.”