LogFAQs > #937437671

#53: The Awakening (3.01)

Another fodder episode, the main plot has Aang waking up, getting exposition from the stuff that happened so far, seeing characters we haven't seen in a while, yadda yadda. It also has him doubting himself and blaming himself for the fall of Ba Sing Se. It's decent writing, but not very memorable. The whole episode feels like it's just here to check some boxes, and tell us what the season is going to be about.

It has a sequence where they fight against a Fire Nation ship, only to be bailed by a giant monster. Okay, I guess.

The highlight of the episode is the Zuko side. Here, we learn that Azula told her father Zuko killed the Avatar, after realizing Zuko has reasons to think he's alive, just so the whole situation can blow up in ZUko's face later on. It's deliciously evil, and shows what a true psychopath Azula is. It also helps set the last arc of Zuko's development in motion, as he gets the first sign that his new life in the Fire Nation is actually very fragile.