Avatar: The Last Airbender

John's best quip: "We think he might be avatarded, though."

I want to make it clear: Avatar: The Last Airbender the cartoon is really really really really well done. Characters, both good and bad, are richly layered and interesting. Story plots are engaging, and the art is very well done. I had heard horror stories about this movie, and I am not sure why I was so eager to see a bastardized version of something I really enjoyed.

I could forgive the movie being bad, if there had been nothing to build from. But they had a very stable, solid framework that was completely bypassed, and this is the saddest aspect of them all. Comparable to neglecting blueprints for a well made house to use only relative measurements to build a sod house of shit.

The actors were also very poorly cast and directed. All the characters played against any endearing qualities we might have enjoyed, or even any joy.

Why Nickelodeon decided to present such a somber affair is beyond me.

At least it was pretty to look at.