Summary

Netflix’s live-action
Avatar: The Last Airbender
series surpassed
One Piece
with a whopping 21.2 million views in just four days of its debut.
The series pleased newcomers, but faced criticism from fans of the original animated series for changing certain characters.
Actor Ian Ousley defended changes made to Sokka’s character, reassuring fans that the essence of the original show remains intact.

Netflix’s live-action adaptation of Avatar: The Last Airbender has spirited away the memory of the terrible 2010 movie version of the much-loved animated series, with significantly improved reviews and a viewership that has surprised everyone by surpassing the mighty debut of the streamer’s One Piece adaptation. Debuting on February 22, the first season of the new series drew in a staggering 21.2 million views in its first four days, smashing the 18.5 million views logged by One Piece last year.

The series not only surpassed Netflix’s previous anime adaptation, but also firmly established itself as the platform’s number one show worldwide. The result is another win for Netflix, who have been tapping into the appeal and expansive fan base of these animated shows, and succeeding in transitioning them to a live-action format that attempts to please both long-time fans and newcomers to the franchises.

Avatar: The Last Airbender topped the Netflix chart in 84 countries on its debut, which is no small feat considering the huge amount of popular content on the platform. However, the series has not landed the same almost unanimous praise that One Piece gained from both critics and audiences. The show managed to retain a “fresh” 60% Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes, while audiences were slightly more impressed and gave it a pleasing 76% approval rating.

Newcomers to the story have been more impressed by the series than those who know the animated series and aren’t quite as happy with some of the changes made to the characters they are already acquainted with. However, even with those complaints taken into account, the series has been a resounding success when compared to the 5% approval rate that the 2010 movie received from critics.

Avatar: The Last Airbender Star Defended Changes
Netlfix/Nickelodeon

When any popular franchise is adapted in a new format, the smallest changes can send fandoms into meltdown. One character from the series that has undergone a few changes in this iteration is Sokka, and that led to online backlash due to alterations made to his character’s sexist attitude. However, actor Ian Ousley recently explained why, despite the changes, the character is still the same as he always was. Speaking to GamesRadar+, Ousley said:

“The animated show really is the heart and soul of what our live-action show is. We were not trying to take out anything. Obviously we took out that element, but he still has that attitude. Not a sexist attitude, but it’s morphed into more of – in Sokka and Katara’s relationship – ‘I’m the leader and you’re the follower’ situation. Stuff like that. He’s still the Sokka we know and love from the cartoon. I don’t even think fans would notice some of those things, honestly, [when] watching our show… He definitely still has his arcs and his lessons in the show.”

Avatar: The Last Airbender has clearly made its mark on Netflix, and that means, just like One Piece, it is surely only a matter of time before Season 2 is officially in the works. With fans already discussing possible plotlines and character arcs that could be seen in future seasons, the countdown to that announcement is on.

Related Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender Made Some Big Changes to the Original Show Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender, while a fine live-action series, deviates significantly from the original. Here are a few instances.