It’s the type of delicate, personal drama you can’t find on network television anymore. Ikki’s tea party with the baby sky bisons is the tip of the iceberg, Bumi’s hopeful speech to his father’s spirit, Tenzin coming to terms with his familial woes and hugging it out with his brother and sister and that last moment, a photograph of Aang, Katara, and the three kids taken decades before - tears. No one could be prepared for the amount of cute going on in these scenes. And yet it’s the most emotional material we’ve seen in Book 2. So far, their time at the Southern Airbender temple has had little to do with Korra’s civil war negotiating. Interspersed into “Civil Wars, Part 2” is a lovely tying up of knots for Tenzin, Bumi, and Kya. He forced the judge to convict her father and he was one who had him banished from the Northern Water Tribe years before. Here she gets the answers: Unalaq was pulling strings to keep Torlaq out of Korra’s life - and not just in this instance. With her Avatar State powers, there’s reason to fear that Korra is preparing to make a huge misstep. Korra’s decision to hunt down the presiding judge and interrogate him in the jaws of Naga is a rash move, even for the hot-tempered hero. It’s an open and closed case: The judge lets Senna walk free, Torlaq earns a death sentence, and Unalaq conveniently steps in to save the day and win back a little respect from his troubled student.
#Avatar the legend of korra season 4 e09 trial
We see her parents’ trial and every question signals conviction. “Civil Wars, Part 2” makes this message clear, then repeatedly pummels Korra under its weight. Then she met Unalaq and the rug was bended from under her feet. Trust in herself, trust in her mentors, and trust in Team Avatar were her greatest weapons. It might be shrouding an ulterior, nefarious motive, but Korra can’t know for sure. Even when Unalaq explains that he pulled strings to ensure that Tonraq, Korra’s own father, never again sees the light of day himself, he explains himself with disciplined rhetoric that makes logical sense. Without a right or wrong, Korra can’t figure out what side she’s supposed to be on or if she’s supposed to choose at all. But Book 2’s growing threats are even more terrifying for Korra because they’re morally murky. People were having their souls removed! Scary stuff. Last season, Korra’s adversary had a face - a masked face, sure, but we knew him - and each leg of the mystery had a clear cut solution. He’s doing exactly what Korra told him to do. But she resists, stunned into silence as Unalaq explains his actions. In any other circumstance, Tonraq and Senna being chained up and hauled away would snap Korra into action. With the clouds of frustration and confusion finally dissipating from above a brewing political war, life was looking a wee bit easier for Korra at the end of “Civil Wars, Part 1.” That is, until Unalaq showed up to arrest her parents for orchestrating an attempt on his life. You’ll never see your father again.” Well, that’s one way to end a mentorship.