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This page is move protected. This article is a B-class article. It is written to a good standard. Airbender AirNomadsEmblem.png

"Choose well. A sky bison is a companion for life."
Sister Iio to the Air Nomad kids in "Appa's Lost Days".

Appa
阿柏
Appa
Biographical information
Nationality

Air Nomads; Eastern Air Temple

Age

106 (biologically 6, in Avatar: The Last Airbender)
107-108 (biologically 7-8, in The Promise Trilogy)
Unknown, deceased (in The Legend of Korra)

Predecessor

Fang (as previous animal guide of the Avatar)

Successor

Naga (as next animal guide of the Avatar)

Physical description
Gender

Male

Skin color

White and brown

Skin type

Fur

Personal information
Allies

Aang, Katara, Sokka, Toph, Zuko, Suki, Momo, Iroh, Kyoshi Warriors, Pathik, more...

Enemies

Ozai, Azula, Zhao, Long Feng, the Dai Li, Ghashiun, circus trainer, circus master, Combustion Man

Weapon of choice

Air, body bulk

Fighting style(s)

Airbending

Chronological and political information
Position

Aang's sky bison (animal guide)

Affiliation
First appearance

"The Boy in the Iceberg"

Last appearance

The Promise Part 1

Voiced by

Dee Bradley Baker

Appa was Aang's loyal sky bison. Aang and Appa, along with Momo, had a strong family bond with each other because they were each the last of their kinds.[1] Appa was most noted for his ability to fly in spite of his heavy weight, a feat achieved through airbending. This made Appa the primary means of transportation utilized by Team Avatar.[2]

Contents

History Edit

Early life Edit

Appa and Aang meet.
The BosAdded by The Bos

The earliest known stage of Appa's life was when he was a young calf. This was the moment when he first encountered Aang. Once airbenders reached the age of six, they were taken to the Eastern Air Temple where Sister Iio allowed them to meet their future companions, who bond with them for life. Not much was explained about the exact nature of the relationship between the Air Nomads and their flying bison, but it appeared that the mother sky bison would willingly direct her calves down to the young monks. Aang came forward and offered an apple to Appa. Almost immediately, the two became best friends and would be together for most of their lives up until the present day.[3]

Journey to the North Edit

When Aang heard that the monks were going to separate him from Monk Gyatso, he decided to run away and took Appa with him. Appa didn't know where he was going, only that he was leaving the air temples. Aang flew Appa over the ocean, and together, they were caught in a vicious storm. The two were driven underwater by the wind and the waves, and Aang lost consciousness. Sensing that death was near, the young Avatar entered the Avatar State and froze himself and Appa in an iceberg,[4] where Appa was stuck in hibernation along with Aang for one hundred years until they were discovered by Katara and Sokka.[5] Since then, Appa had been the group's main form of transportation in their quest to help Aang master all the elements.[2]

Disappearance Edit

Appa captured by sandbenders.
RenatablsAdded by Renatabls

Appa became lost for a short while when the group was traveling through the Earth Kingdom. He was kidnapped by sandbenders in the middle of the vast Si Wong Desert, while Aang, Katara, Sokka, and Momo were trapped in an intricate underground library.[6] It was later revealed that he was eventually sold to Beetle-headed merchants, who in turn sold him to a Fire Nation circus where a sadistic animal tamer attempted to make him part of the show. Encouraged by a sympathetic boy, Appa later escaped and hurried back to the Si Wong Desert where he last saw Aang. Understanding that his friends weren't there anymore, he journeyed throughout the Earth Kingdom until he encountered the Kyoshi Warriors, who healed the various wounds he had sustained on his travels and wanted to escort him back to Aang. However, they were thwarted in their attempt when Azula and her allies attacked. Appa was forced to leave, ushered away by Suki while the warriors tried to delay the three Fire Nation girls. On his journey he encountered Guru Pathik at the Eastern Air Temple. The Guru was able to tell Appa of Aang's location by reading his energy. Consequently, Appa flew to Ba Sing Se, where he was captured by Long Feng.[3]

Appa was kept in a secret location under Lake Laogai until his rescue by Zuko, who was initially planning on utilizing him to capture the Avatar, but after talking to his Uncle Iroh decided to do the right thing and set the bison free. Appa found the group cornered by Long Feng and the Dai Li and was instrumental in their defeat, biting Long Feng on the leg when confronted by him. Aang welcomed Appa in a tearful display of affection.[7]

Earth Kingdom Edit

Appa took part in forcibly entering the Royal Palace of Ba Sing Se, providing the first piece of evidence to King Kuei of Long Feng's subterfuge since Long Feng's bite mark still lingered. When the Dai Li's cover up efforts left the Earth King skeptical of Team Avatar's claims, Sokka made a last-ditch effort to show the King the ruined Fire Nation drill by enticing him with a ride on Appa. Since Appa's saddle was lost during his capture, the group was forced to ride bareback.[8] After the fall of Ba Sing Se, Appa was seen spiriting Team Avatar (including a grievously wounded Aang), the Earth King, and his pet, Bosco, out of the now captured city.[9]

In the Fire Nation Edit

Appa stayed with the group as they found their way aboard Hakoda's commandeered Fire Navy vessel, and had a new saddle constructed for him. After Aang ran off into a storm, Appa and the rest of Team Avatar split off from Hakoda's crew after Aang, and they regrouped on Crescent Island.[10] As they traveled through the Fire Nation, Appa had to stay hidden. When Appa flew, Aang and Katara created a cloud around him so that he resembled a cloud to Fire Nation civilians.[11] Also, when they left him and Momo alone, the gang had to cover Appa up with some sort of camouflage.

Appa in armor before the invasion.
ThailogAdded by Thailog

After the Invasion of the Fire Nation failed on the Day of Black Sun, Appa took Aang's friends and all of the younger members of the invasion force to the Western Air Temple to seek refuge.[12] When Zuko, who had abandoned the Fire Nation during the invasion, arrived at the temple, Appa immediately welcomed and licked him. This was due to Appa remaining grateful to Zuko for freeing him in Ba Sing Se from his imprisonment in Lake Laogai. Zuko then requested that he join the group so that he could teach Aang firebending. Despite Appa's obvious welcome for Zuko, the group did not accept Zuko until later, when he saved the group from an attack by Combustion Man.[13]

In the last days before Sozin's Comet, Appa helped Team Avatar (without Aang) travel to the Earth Kingdom,[14] where they had June and her shirshu, Nyla, try and track Aang. Unsuccessful, they tracked Iroh to Ba Sing Se.[15] Appa later escorted Zuko and Katara to the Fire Nation Capital for their confrontation with Azula.[15]

After the Hundred Year War Edit

After the Hundred Year War's end, Appa was seen in Ba Sing Se with the gang as they celebrated their victory at the Jasmine Dragon, seemingly enjoying Iroh's tsungi horn music.[16] After this, the team decided to take a ride on Appa before Earth King Kuei's celebration to announce the Harmony Restoration Movement to the kingdom.[17]

A year later, when the movement was being carried out, Appa helped Team Avatar transport Fire Nation colonials back to their nation.[17]

Personality Edit

Appa flying.
RenatablsAdded by Renatabls

There was little said about Appa's personality, as he lacked the ability to speak human language. However, he had displayed an ability to understand human language on several occasions.[18] He was also afraid of going underground[19][20] and, since his experience in the Fire Nation circus, of fire.[3] Appa seemed to have a reasonably trusting attitude, as he did not take long to accept the apple offered to him by Aang[3] and took an immediate liking to Sokka when he first saw him.[5] However, this trait was damaged due to his experience with the ringmaster[3] and the sandbenders.[3][6] In these difficult moments, Appa seemed to have similar feelings to humans when he missed Aang and he tried his best to find the team. In the Eastern Air Temple, he also remembered with sorrow his childhood with his siblings and his mother.[3]

Appa also might have had some degree of intelligence as shown when he yawned after Aang prompted him,[21] and when he apparently "scolded" Hawky and Momo when the two fought due to Sokka's order that Appa was in charge.[22]

Abilities Edit

Appa airbending.
RenatablsAdded by Renatabls

As a sky bison, Appa possessed the ability to fly. He utilized his airbending for this purpose; his tail appeared to be the main driving force behind his bending,[23][24] but he also had shown the ability to accomplish it with his mouth.[3] Due to his size and mass, it took a lot of energy for him to stay aloft. As a result, Appa couldn't fly for an extended time and periodically required stopping and resting.[13][24] However, there were times when he displayed extreme stamina, such as when Katara stated that they flew two days non-stop,[25] as well as when Appa continually had to fly to avoid Azula, Ty Lee and Mai for hours on end with only a few minutes of rest each time he stopped.[24] He was also capable of carrying quite a burden on his back; Appa carried seven medium-weight persons once.[12] He was also shown to be a fairly adept swimmer,[5][25] although he was more frequently seen flying or walking[13][26] rather than swimming. Despite the tranquility related to his personality as well as his species, Appa had shown himself to be very capable of fighting when necessary.[3] With his bending, Appa could create powerful gusts of air with just a flick of his tail and could gain an advantage over his opponents by hovering.[27] He even defeated Long Feng,[8] Ty Lee and Mai.[24] Being a bison, he was also naturally capable of brute strength and endurance. The best demonstrations of this were in the fight against Nyla in the abbey,[27] and against a fully-grown boarcupine in the forest.[3]

Relationships Edit

Main article: Appa's relationships

Relatives Edit

Appearances Edit

Avatar: The Last Airbender

Book One: Water (水)

Book Two: Earth (土)

Book Three: Fire (火)

The Promise Trilogy

Trivia Edit

  • Appa in Korean,[28] Hungarian,[29] Arabic,[30] Hebrew,[31] and several Indian dialects is similar to the word meaning father or dad, and it is also an anagram of the word papa. In Inuit, the word 'Aapa', pronounced the same, means dad. In Urdu, the word Appa is used to refer to a female caretaker or a female elder, alluding to an unused idea to reveal Appa as female in the finale.
  • Appa was a herbivore. His flat teeth were indicative of this, and Appa's diet, from what we've seen, was mainly plants and fruits. Like most farm animals, Appa seemed to prefer hay when possible. Appa also consumed honey and attempted to snatch an egg when he was desperate for food.[3]
  • According to his missing posters[7] and Aang's statement,[32] Appa's weight was 10 tons.
  • Appa's design is similar to that of the Catbus from the anime film My Neighbor Totoro which was made in 1988. The Catbus also has multiple legs and a large tail.
    Appa was originally a dog.
    RenatablsAdded by Renatabls
  • Appa's name is a palindrome, like Kuruk.
  • Co-creator Bryan Konietzko described Appa as a manatee-bison hybrid, although the manatee aspect of Appa is extremely subtle. Early development sketches of Appa show him with much more manatee-like facial features.
  • Appa was originally a dog-like animal and much smaller, albeit still larger than Aang. The design was eventually recycled into Naga, Korra's animal guide.
  • Due to Appa being a male and the implications of Appa being the last sky bison, it was speculated that the species would become extinct upon his death. However, it is mentioned that a flock of sky bison was discovered after the Hundred Year War.
  • Appa is claustrophobic,[19][20] and since the events in the Fire Nation circus,[3] he has become pyrophobic as well.

References Edit

  1. "The Southern Air Temple". Michael Dante DiMartino (writer) & Lauren MacMullan (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. February 25, 2005. No. 3, Book 1: Water
  2. 2.0 2.1 Throughout Avatar: The Last Airbender.
  3. 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 "Appa's Lost Days". Elizabeth Welch Ehasz (writer) & Giancarlo Volpe (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. October 13, 2006. No. 16, Book 2: Earth
  4. "The Storm". Aaron Ehasz (writer) & Lauren MacMullan (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. June 3, 2005. No. 12, Book 1: Water
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 "The Boy in the Iceberg". Michael Dante DiMartino, Bryan Konietzko (writers) & Dave Filoni (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. February 21, 2005. No. 1, Book 1: Water
  6. 6.0 6.1 "The Library". John O'Bryan (writer) & Giancarlo Volpe (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. July 14, 2006. No. 10, Book 2: Earth
  7. 7.0 7.1 "Lake Laogai". Tim Hedrick (writer) & Lauren MacMullan (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. November 6, 2006. No. 17, Book 2: Earth
  8. 8.0 8.1 "The Earth King". John O'Bryan (writer) & Ethan Spaulding (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. November 17, 2006. No. 18, Book 2: Earth
  9. "The Crossroads of Destiny". Aaron Ehasz (writer) & Michael Dante DiMartino (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. December 1, 2006. No. 20, Book 2: Earth
  10. "The Awakening". Aaron Ehasz (writer) & Giancarlo Volpe (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. September 21, 2007. No. 1, Book 3: Fire
  11. "The Headband". John O'Bryan (writer) & Joaquim Dos Santos (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. September 28, 2007. No. 2, Book 3: Fire
  12. 12.0 12.1 "The Day of Black Sun, Part 2: The Eclipse". Aaron Ehasz (writer) & Joaquim Dos Santos (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. November 30, 2007. No. 11, Book 3: Fire
  13. 13.0 13.1 13.2 "The Western Air Temple". Elizabeth Welch Ehasz, Tim Hedrick (writers) & Ethan Spaulding (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. July 14, 2008. No. 12, Book 3: Fire
  14. "Sozin's Comet, Part 1: The Phoenix King". Michael Dante DiMartino (writer) & Ethan Spaulding (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. July 19, 2008. No. 18, Book 3: Fire
  15. 15.0 15.1 "Sozin's Comet, Part 2: The Old Masters". Aaron Ehasz (writer) & Giancarlo Volpe (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. July 19, 2008. No. 19, Book 3: Fire
  16. "Sozin's Comet, Part 4: Avatar Aang". Michael Dante DiMartino, Bryan Konietzko (writers) & Joaquim Dos Santos (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. July 19, 2008. No. 21, Book 3: Fire
  17. 17.0 17.1 Gene Yang (w, a). The Promise Part 1 (Jan 25, 2012), Dark Horse Comics
  18. "Winter Solstice Part 1: The Spirit World". Aaron Ehasz (writer) & Lauren MacMullan (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. April 8, 2005. No. 7, Book 1: Water
  19. 19.0 19.1 "The Cave of Two Lovers". Joshua Hamilton (writer) & Lauren MacMullan (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. March 24, 2006. No. 2, Book 2: Earth
  20. 20.0 20.1 "The Southern Raiders". Elizabeth Welch Ehasz (writer) & Joaquim Dos Santos (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. July 17, 2008. No. 16, Book 3: Fire
  21. "The Warriors of Kyoshi". Nick Malis (writer) & Giancarlo Volpe (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. March 4, 2005. No. 4, Book 1: Water
  22. "The Runaway". Joshua Hamilton (writer) & Giancarlo Volpe (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. November 2, 2007. No. 7, Book 3: Fire
  23. "The Deserter". Tim Hedrick (writer) & Lauren MacMullan (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. October 21, 2005. No. 16, Book 1: Water
  24. 24.0 24.1 24.2 24.3 "The Chase". Joshua Hamilton (writer) & Giancarlo Volpe (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. May 26, 2006. No. 8, Book 2: Earth
  25. 25.0 25.1 "The Waterbending Master". Michael Dante DiMartino (writer) & Giancarlo Volpe (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. November 18, 2005. No. 18, Book 1: Water
  26. "Jet". James Eagan (writer) & Dave Filoni (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. May 6, 2005. No. 10, Book 1: Water
  27. 27.0 27.1 "Bato of the Water Tribe". Ian Wilcox (writer) & Giancarlo Volpe (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. October 7, 2005. No. 15, Book 1: Water
  28. Google Translate
  29. Google Translate
  30. Google Translate
  31. Google Translate
  32. "The King of Omashu". John O'Bryan (writer) & Anthony Lioi (director). Avatar: The Last Airbender. Nickelodeon. March 18, 2005. No. 5, Book 1: Water

See also Edit

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