10 Best Villains From The ATLA Universe
10 Best Villains From The ATLA Universe
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With compelling storylines, unrivaled bending abilities, and memorable fights under their belt, these dangerous ATLA villains seriously kick ass.
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Like most of the characters in the Avatar: The Last Airbender (ATLA) universe, the villains are incredibly well written. In fact, many of the villains have left lasting impressions on fans thanks to their compelling storylines, unrivaled bending abilities, and memorable fights.
While not every antagonist introduced in The Last Airbender or The Legend of Korra is likable, they do fit the bill on what it means to be a villain. Namely, the goals they hope to achieve and the means through which they attempt to achieve them presented unique situations for the series’ protagonists to try and thwart. The fact that Aang and Korra struggled to thwart the villains in their series only further proves that ATLA villains are some of the best in the game.
10 Unalaq
Just because The Legend of Korra introduced some of the best villains in the entire ATLA universe does not mean the series didn’t have a few two-dimensional bad guys. Unalaq falls into the latter camp. It’s not so much that fans don’t think he’s a strong villain. It’s more the fact that his thirst for power falls flat in comparison to the series’s other villains.
In general, Unalaq gives off vibes similar to other trope-y evil overlords. However, he still had a couple of particularly villainous moments, including when he raised the stakes by becoming the Dark Avatar and essentially the human embodiment of darkness.
9 Vaatu
While seemingly limitless in its number of unique creatures and spirits, the ATLA universe rarely presents these creatures and spirits as the main antagonists. For many fans, this speaks to the central themes of The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra, both of which explore the various facets of humanity.
Vaatu, however, is one of those rare non-humanoids who rises up as a villain in season 2 of The Legend of Korra. As the spirit of darkness and chaos, Vaatu does not disappoint in his villainy. However, in comparison to the other villains in the ATLA universe, Vaatu lacks the depth fans have come to expect from ATLA antagonists.
8 Admiral Zhao
Admiral Zhao was one of the most powerful men in the Fire Nation. And, unlike some of the other scary and powerful firebenders in The Last Airbender, Admiral Zhao actually succeeds in killing something on-screen, which only adds to the potency of his villainy. During his siege of the Northern Water Tribe, Zhao kills the Moon Spirit at the Spirit Oasis.
In addition, Zhao can be considered a villain on two fronts. Along with terrorizing the Gaang, Zhao rivaled fan-favorite Zuko when he chose to go after the Avatar, too. Not to mention, Zhao is one of the few villains who meets a villain-worthy end: the Ocean Spirit condemns Zhao to spend an eternity in the Fog of Lost Souls. Yikes.
7 Long Feng
The treacherous advisor trope never gets old, especially with characters like Long Feng carrying the mantle of this trope to the next generation of television viewers. As the Earth King’s most trusted advisor and the leader of one of the most formidable teams a.k.a. the Dai Li, Long Feng holds quite a bit of sway in the largest kingdom in the ATLA universe.
If that isn’t enough to convince viewers of his utter villainy, the ATLA writers also threw in the storyline of Long Feng capturing and using Appa as leverage for some extra villainous zugh. The result is an antagonist largely unforgivable by most of the fandom — because no one messes with Appa and gets away with it.
6 Firelord Ozai
For being the primary antagonist on a children’s show, Ozai didn’t need to do much to be incredibly scary. A few backlit scenes here and a few firey scenes there made Ozai a pretty threatening villain despite not appearing in as many episodes as say his daughter, Azula.
However, it’s Ozai’s thirst for power that makes him a compelling villain. This thirst only increases with each season, creating a tension-filled build up to his finale fight with Aang. Ozai’s power-hungry antics coupled with his firebending prowess and leadership of the entire Fire Nation expand his standing as a formidable opponent.
5 The Red Lotus
While Zaheer on his own is terrifying, he becomes an even more powerful villain with some of the strongest benders from The Legend of Korra fighting at his side. These strong benders are none other than the additional members of the Red Lotus. P’Li, Ghazan, and Ming-Hua are each exceptional benders in their own right who show off memorable skills at one point or another in season 3.
In addition, each of the Red Lotus members is very deadly. While some fans don’t consider “henchmen” as main villains, it’s hard not to include P’Li, Ghazan, and Ming-Hua on a best villains list when they are as lethal as this bunch is.
4 Princess Azula
Azula is undoubtedly one of the strongest female characters in The Last Airbender. Coincidentally, she’s also one of the strongest villains to emerge from the original Avatar series. This is because Azula is well thought out as both a character in an ensemble cast and as a main antagonist. She’s incredibly human despite being raised and trained as a weapon by her father. There are also key scenes where she displays her young age despite also being intelligent and cunning beyond her years.
This dichotomy of Azula’s character is why fans continue to dissect her story arc to this day. It’s also why she’s a fascinating villain many fans can’t help but empathize with — to a point.
3 Kuvira
The most rewatchable episodes of The Legend of Korra are those with Kuvira in it — and yes, that includes her short stint on season 3. Much like the other LOK villains, Kuvira was an antagonist with more than a vision. She had a plan for exactly how to achieve her vision, and she wasn’t going to let anyone get in her way. Basically, Kuvira was a girlboss before girlbosses were a thing.
As the “Great Uniter,” Kuvira lived up to her grand title. In addition to equipping herself with the armies she needed to accomplish her goals in the Earth Kingdom, she also showed up to every fight armed with her expert bending abilities. Kuvira might not have been the creator of metalbending, but she showed off skills that proved she shouldn’t be underestimated as a bender or villain.
2 Zaheer
Most fans can’t help but admit that Zaheer made some points. While his methods weren’t always justifiable, his efforts to bring about a new world order in which everyone was on a more equal playing field were enough to make him a compelling villain. After all, the best villains are those whom viewers understand even if they don’t agree with their extremist actions.
What seals the deal on Zaheer being one of the better villains in the ATLA universe are his bending abilities. His commitment to the airbending philosophy and teachings not only transformed him into a formidable opponent for Korra, but also elevated him from falling into a stereotypical anarchist villain with little regard or respect for anything. And, the fact that his goal was to kill Korra made him an absolute menace throughout season 3.
1 Amon
Fans can say what they want about The Legend of Korra, but one thing is for certain: this series’ villains are far more terrifying than those introduced in The Last Airbender. Right out of the gate, Amon gave Korra a run for her money — so much so that fans weren’t sure Korra would be able to stop Amon and the Equalists.
Ultimately, Korra does thwart Amon’s plans. However, the fact that he came off as largely unbeatable for most of the first season is why fans still consider him one of the best villains in the entire ATLA universe. His vast bloodbending abilities and his sway over the people of Republic City posed very real threats, further adding to his power and making him a more frightening villain.
Link Source : https://screenrant.com/best-villains-from-atla-universe/
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