Undiscovered fanon & updates Rassilon of Old

This week I'm going to be reviewing Nathan Miranda's new fanon, Those Bored Eyes (Mai's Story). Like Eyes of Katara and Feet of Toph, Those Bored Eyes is a background story, and as some know, I'm not a fan of these types of fanon, but TBE has been written extremely well considering Nathan Miranda is a first time Author.

Quite obviously, the series follows Mai after her introduction to the series and fills in the many gaps inbetween episodes, and even inbetween scenes occasionally. I so far have only read two chapters, but I will no doubt continue to read. The tone of voice Nathan employs is effectively representative of Mai's personality and feelings. I found upon reading, that the syntactical dialogue used seemed almost British, which I found as an odd twist, but strangely enough, works rather well in terms of a narrative voice.

I would reccomend this fanon to anyone who enjoys Eyes of Katara, or any other background story like it. As such, my rating is accorded to the originality, language used, and descriptive language.

6/10

Since my promotion to Fanon Administrator, and I would like to thank the entire Avatar Wiki Community for supporting me, I have been working on all of the possible things that could be possibly done to improve the current state of the Fanon Portal, and instead of having fornightly updates on each issue of the Ba Sing Se Times, I have started a new blog which will house all information on current updates, their progress, and upcoming updates to the portal.

Some of you will have noticed the new Fanon Advertising page I set up with the collaboration of several other users on IRC today, which marks the first improvement to the fanon portal, with many more to come.

So stay tuned to my blog to see the latest news and updates to the Fanon Portal.

Interview: Rassilon of Old Sirius13

1. What, in your opinion, sets you apart from other users to become Fanon administrator?
Well I don't think I am any different from any other users, other than personality wise. But I suppose one asset I have is the ability to remain calm in times of conflict. I check in almost every day, and whenever I am asked, help other users however I can, whether asked or not. I sometimes even find myself responding to questions on other peoples talk pages. :P But I suppose I am dedicated, self-motivated, fairly reliable, and considerate of others.

2. What do you think most urgently needs to be done on the Wiki?
The film and fanon namespaces need URGENT attention. Hopefully by know, you will know that I have nominated Hasdi for adminship, and I plea that he REALLY deserves it. He tirelessly edits the film namespace, without any recognition. Only very recently has he become a rollback, by my nomination. We have an administration staff for the mainspace, and fanonspace, but what about the filmspace? Nada, nothing. Not even administrators edit there much, in fact, I haven't ever seen them edit there. Either we get a set of film admins, or we give Hasdi adminship so he can properly monitor that namespace, because god knows he needs all the help he can get.

3. What do you think of some of the newer users on the Wiki, and what do you do to help them out?
New users are always great to have, and I am quite excited when I meet a promising user who makes good quality edits. I usually just send a hello to their talk page to start with, and a link to my talk page should they have any questions. Sometimes they ask, sometimes they don't, but it is always interesting to see how that user then becomes involved in the community. The first user I really helped a lot was Moon Beam, or the then Toph Lover. I helped her out with templates for her fanon, and various other little coding issues and page moves etc. Just basic stuff, but now, as you can see, Moon Beam is an experienced and well-aquainted member of the Wiki!

4. You give a lot to the Wiki (evidenced by the nature of your contributions). What does the Wiki mean to you?
Well thanks for that little compliment there! Tough question though... To me, Avatar Wiki is somewhere where I can sort of 'do my own thing', and also use as somewhere to share my ideas and written works. I'm not really sure how to answer this. Good question, but tough! :P

5. What will be your first "order of business" as a Fanon administrator?
Well, my first order of business as a member of fanon administration staff if I am successful in my nomination would be cleaning up the fanon portal, by both use of the Fanonbenders user group and by a tagging procedure. In the next week, the Fanonbenders will be a more open user group, and less exclusive and useless as it is at the moment. Also, once all of the nominations for administration and bureaucracy have finished, I would like to talk to the entire active community about changes to un-updated fanon policies which need to be modified in order to fix loop holes in the system, and possible new policies to ensure that the fanon portal remains clean and tidy. The Common Series Project is also underway with my small team of authors, and after the first series is completed and we have a proper grasp on how the series needs to be managed, the project will be open for more users to write for the series. Also, the possibility of introducing more community assignments to clean the Wiki in a fun way would be interesting to try out, and I am constantly on the look out for various ways to modify the fanon portal to have a separate theme, a prospect deemed incredibly hard by a lot of people, but yet the search goes on!

6. Out of curiosity, what is your opinion on shipping, in general?
I never actually knew what it was until months after I first started reading the wiki, which was back in 2007. I think the extent to which it was taken was a bit lot extreme, but hey, people have their opinions, no matter how strongly minded they May be. I never got into the shipping wars, I actually haven't seen anything likely to them on the wiki. But I was always in support of Katara and Aang, though I always thought Sokka and Ty Lee would be a really good couple oddly enough! I do like Suki, but there's a part of me that cringes when ever they share a special moment. I also wanted Toph to have a little crush, or develop 'puppy love' for a minor character, an episode I always thought would be in Book 3: Fire, but alas, there was none. Disappointing really, as it is a dynamic of Toph that was never really explored... (Actually, whilst we are on the topic of shipping, I'd like to share this with everyone. [1] Cracks me up all the time. :.D)

7. What most do you want to see in Korra?
I actually don't care about knowing what happened to Team Avatar, I mean, their story is finished. Some closure about Zuko's mum would be pleasing, but that's it really. What I'd love to see is brand new characters, in new locations, exploring the world or new environments. Learning more about the Spirit World would be really exciting, to compare canon with the speculation of fanon.

Avatar Answers Site Natsu11

Many of the new users will not know about this but there is a site (wiki) for answers of Avatar. Link: Click here. It is like Yahoo Answers but it is only for Avatar. Its link can also be found in the “Interaction” part of the “Drop down navigation box” at the top. The site is in a very bad shape and needs all your help in answering the questions and making it as good as this wiki. Some tips in doing it:

1. Try not to be rude in answering the questions.
2. Categorize the questions. Example: This question will be categorized as “Katara” and “Pakku” as the question is related to them.
3. Report spam questions like “Who am I?” and “What is /?” and report inappropriate language. In addition, also warn the user who did that.
4. Always take a look at the un-answered questions to find questions that you can answer.

I am currently trying to answer as many questions as possible and make that wiki better. I would love to have some more users doing the same.

Review of 1.12: The Storm PSUAvatar14

Having a new-found interest in the relationships and their developments in this show, plus character development in general, I decided to watch The Storm two weeks ago.

As most of you fellow Avatar fans know, the episode began with Aang having a nightmare, abandoning his friends as he went towards a storm. He refuses to talk about it. When the Gaang makes it to a pier, Aang is called out by a fisherman for turning his back on the world. Distraught, Aang runs away.

Zuko, meanwhile, was in yet another bad mood, refusing to change course away from an incoming storm.

This led to some interesting backstory in this episode, all in the middle of a raging storm.

After Katara comes up to the cave where Aang is hiding, we finally get to see where he came from. This was a great backstory, him just unsure of his destiny, and now finding himself deserted among his own people. All he was left with was Gyatso, and soon he lost him as well. He also reveals how upset he is for turning his back on the world. However, he found himself able to pour this all out to Katara, finally leading the two to a deeper connection than in the preceding 11 episodes.

For Zuko, we see what he has gone through, which started with a war meeting three years ago, when he spoke out of turn. We learn of his failed duel with his father, Ozai, that resulted in his scar. All spoken in a magnficent tale by Iroh. All Zuko has left to hope for is the Avatar, to regain his honor (There's that word again....).

Suddenly, all that was told comes into play, when we find out that Sokka and the fisherman are caught in the storm. With Katara, Aang pulls off a magnificent rescue, only for all to be caught in a massive wave. Aang engages his Avatar State, bringing them all up to safety.

Elsewhere, Zuko's ship hits a rought spot in the storm, and the Helmsman is left dangling. After meditation, Zuko realizes how wrong he was to put the crew's safety below finding the Avatar. He works to rescue him. He then passes on a chance to get Aang, instead deferring to find safety. In this sequence, we see the first use of lightning redirection, as performed by Iroh. More importantly though, we see some big Zuko development.

Afterwards, the fisherman forgives Aang, saying if "[Aang] weren't there, he wouldn't be either." Aang realizes how much he is needed now, which leads to Katara assuring him his nightmares are over.

Overall, a magnificent episode. This is key to developments of Aang, Zuko, and Kataang. In my opinion, this is the first real "Kataang" episode, as this is where they establish their first deep connection. Katara sees Aang as well...Aang. Aang finally is able to have someone to trust and open up to, relieving his regrets. Also, he is now able to see he is just as needed now as he was 100 years ago, and that the past can't be changed. As for Zuko, we see that there is some good in this banished Prince, after coming off as simply an honor-and-Avatar-obsessed jerk for the first episodes.

Score: 10/10...well done, Bryke!

Review: Suki Skybender101

Suki... a spectacular Kyoshi Warrior, fighting alongside her friends for victory of the war. She is a determined to risk her life to save the world. Growing up in a small village of Kyoshi, Suki became the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors. The Kyoshi Warriors is a group of brave and confident warrior girls around the ages of thirteen through fifteen (Suki being the oldest at fifteen). The girls train long and hard to become skillful warriors under the leadership of Suki. One day, Suki and her warriors discovered three individuals messing with the Unagi (a giant water beast living in the water around Kyoshi Island) on the island of Kyoshi. The Kyoshi Warriors ambushed these three, and they discovered that they were Avatar, Aang, and his other friends Sokka and Katara. Without knowing, Sokka monitored Suki and her warrior’s training session. Sokka presented himself in front of Suki claiming that there training was a “dance lesson” and that he was the best warrior in his water tribe. Sokka tries to show her some of his moves, but unfortunately, Suki knocks him over with her warrior skills.

Sokka is at first baffled by being beaten by a girl, but then reluctantly decides that she is an excellent warrior. He seeks her out for her to teach him her skills. Suki and Sokka grow closer to each other as Suki teaches him. When Zuko and his followers attack Kyoshi Island, Suki and her warriors (plus Sokka) bravely confront them. Although they try their hardest, the Kyoshi Warriors were failing to get rid of the Fire Nation. The Avatar, Sokka, and Katara planned to quickly escape the island so Zuko would not find them. Before they left, Sokka apologized to Suki for treating her like a girl instead of a warrior. She lightly kisses him on the cheek saying “I am a warrior, but I am also a girl too.”

Suki returns episodes later, bravely assisting the gaang across the treacherous “Serpant’s Pass.” During this dangerous journey, Sokka expresses his strong concern for Suki. She does not know why he is greatly overprotective. Sokka explains that he is is overprotective because he does not want to lose Suki like he lost Yue in the North Pole.

On the end of their journey, the two share a deep kiss. Suki then goes leaves the gaang to go back and help her fellow Kyoshi Warriors. We see more of Suki’s warrior skills in "Appa’s Lost Days" when she discovers a lost Appa, but is captured by Azula. Also, in "The Boiling Rock, Part 2", Suki is rescued by Sokka in the Fire Nation jail she was taken to. During the episode, Suki swiftly captures the warden, and battles with Ty Lee. In the end, Sokka became her jail saving hero.

Suki plays a significant role in the last four episodes of Avatar:The Last Airbender. If it was not for her, the war would probably not have ended. She helped stop the airships from destroying the Earth Kingdom with flames. In Conclusion, Suki is a skillful, bold, and brilliant character. With her astonishing warrior skills, she can kick Fire Nation butt (and Sokka's) any day.

Review: Iroh Natsu11

After reading Vulmen’s and Anr’s character reviews, I felt the need to write a review for my favourite character. So, here I am with an ultimate, super, hyper, mega Iroh review!

So, where do I start? Iroh, one of the greatest generals in the Fire Nation history, the only person who was able to breach the outer wall of Ba Sing Se and the sole person who came very close to capturing it is not just a character, but he is a “ultimate-character”. Even after he withdrew the seige, for which he ‘’cannot’’ be blamed, he never lost his awesomeness.

Iroh is very funny, some of his funniest moments include the part when he threw the tea Zuko gave him in “Bitter Work” and when he flirts with Ticket Lady in “The Drill”. But he can be very serious when he needs to be. Examples of it are in Ba Sing Se’s Liberation and when he was angry at Zhao for killing Tui.

Iroh is also very wise. His quotes are filled with wisdom. My favourite ones are: ‘’"Life is like this dark tunnel. You may not always see the light at the end of the tunnel, but if you keep moving, you will come to a better place"’’ and ’’"You must never give in to despair. Allow yourself to slip down that road, and you surrender to your lowest instincts. In the darkest times, hope is something you give yourself. That is the meaning of inner strength."’’ These show how wise he is.

The best tea-maker in Ba Sing Se’s firebending can never be matched. He is the sole known firebender who knows Lightning generation, Lightning redirection and normal firebending. The man thing is that he was the creator of lightning redirection. Imagine how hard it was to make a technique by himself.

He is also the only person I have even seen, in TV or real life, helping a thief. Can you imagine anyone helping a thief? Iroh never left his nephew to die even though he betrayed him and didn’t treat him properly several times. These points are enough to show how kind and compassionate he is.

As a conclusion, Iroh was a very good character and the main reason I like firebending and A:TLA. As I said before, without him the series would ‘’not’’ be as amazing as it is now as more than half of the funny moments and wisdom come from him. I would not be grading him as you all know I will give him a A+. This was just to tell you guys how much I like Iroh.

Postponed Moon Beam

So this month I was supposed to write about Alone. But... I haven't read it yet. And as a matter of fact, I'm still at the same place I was, about a month ago. The reason for this, is not stupid, it's actually quite interesting. I've been really intrigued with this book. And if you've been on IRC with me in the past weeks; you'd know what one. But if you weren't, I'm talking about The Hunger Games trilogy. I'm obsessed with this series. And to be honest... I haven't been writing much either. So as the title reads, "Postponed", it's mainly everything... my next chapter (which currently stands at one line), the Alone predictions, and even my homework (my teachers aren't too happy about this, as I'm usually the first to hand it in). I'll get back to everything, once my addiction to reading this amazing series finishes (and when the movie comes out... I just don't know).

What I want to know, is am I losing my love of Avatar? I'm not editing that much lately, because I'm on the Hunger Games wiki. I don't want to 'not' like Avatar anymore, because I love the series so much. But do I like The Hunger Games more now? I know that it's hard to really compare the two, because one is a book, and the other is a television series. I found similarities in the two, that would make it more popular. One is the cliffhangers! At the end of every Avatar episode there's something that makes you need to see the next. And in The Hunger Games, there's something again, at the end of every chapter and book where you have to read continuously. Then there's the shipping. In Avatar, there's Kataang, Maiko, Sukka, Yukka, Zutara, and much more, that just keeps the fans motivated. And in The Hunger Games, there's shippings where you're caught between two people, one loves you, yet you're trying to kill them, and the other you may never see again, but you know they're watching you. Then there's the minor ones, but they're all really irrelevant because those people die anyway.

I think I still like Avatar, but I may be starting to like this book more. But I assure you, they'll probably become equal on my 'Absolute Favorites of All Time' once I finish reading the trilogy.

And this concludes my rant for this fortnight. I'll be back next time, with a completed chapter, completed prediction, and... my homework...

New! Tickle Me Sokka! Olórin The White

Buy your new Tickle Me Sokka today! Includes over 100 phrases and actions!

1. "There will be no potty breaks!"
2. "Helloooooooooooo."
3. "I don't trust you."
4. "Go Water Tribe!"
5. "Look at the circle birds!"

Warning: Do not let Tickle Me Sokka plan an Invasion. If unwashed, smell of rotting meat may occur. Tickle Me Sokka may attack if Fire Nation individuals approach. Do not let small children near Tickle Me Sokka, or you may notice they will become well-trained in combat.

Break the cycle. Break the rhythm.
The Avatar Rhythm

Demotivated Theavatardemotivator

Editor's note: Watching this episode through while reading this column is recommended.

Chapter 15: Bato of the Water Tribe
A commentary and review (and some demotivation) of Book 1: Water, Chapter 15: Bato of the Water Tribe.

Previously in Avatar: Unrequited love, which is now a pandemic in some countries. Aang blushing. Flower innuendo. Oh, oh, and Zuko. Lots and lots of Zuko. So much Zuko, in fact . . .

Figure 1

You know, I’m convinced. Aang and the Gaang are so lucky, I bet you that he finds a four-leaf clover every time he takes a step.

No, seriously.

In the entire world, there is only one person like Bato.

And they just manage to find him.

Don’t make me pull out the calculator. That’s ridiculous.

“Did you guys lose something?”

“No, we found something!”

Yep.

Perverse dialogue.

Figure 2

[sigh]

Monkeyfeathers asked for this one, both the poster and the rant.

“You know cabbage what? I’m not going to carrot at you, but seriously? We get so much zucchini fanservice for girls in this show it’s ridiculous. I don’t even turnip know what I like in it. Isn’t the radish demographic like 80-20% in favor of girls or something? Yeah. I wonder why. Mr. Hotty Hotman is shirtless in some of the episodes, and, pumpkin, we have No-Kung-Fu-Action Jesus spend [half of, corrected by TAD] book fire with no shirt.”

But wait, Monkeyfeathers, most people don’t like—

“And you just shut the broccoli up. You don’t think I saw you drooling over some cauliflower Aang [censored].”

Okay, first of all, it was not . . . that . . . because they were official screenshots. And I wasn’t drooling. I was admiring.

Different.

Very.

Different.

“Yeah, okay. Point is, more fanservice for men. Korra’s a potato male anyway. C’mon. We need more Ty Lee!”

Figure 3

So, Bato.

Chris Hansen would like a word with you.

“So . . . you take long walks on the beach alone and walk up to strange campfires. You then invite children into your . . . pad.

“Riiiiiight.

“Come here, Bato. You’ve just been . . . Hansenated.”

[cricket cricket]

“Man, tough crowd.”

Meanwhile, at Arkham Asylum:

Bato: “But I am Bato of the Water Tribe! That’s me!”

Insane Person: “Oh yeah? Who told you that?”

Bato: “Ku Fung Action Jesus!”

From the other room: “I did not!”

Figure 4

Okay, one word.

Taggerung.

One of the best books in existence.

Redwall Abbey . . .

A moment of silence for the end of Redwall.

. . .

. . .

. . .

Okay, back on track. So . . . an abbey? What? What religion do they practice in Avatar anyway, other than shirtless-Zukoism—I’m afraid I’m atheist in that regard—and/or Kung Fu Action Jesusism? I mean . . . hello. Abbey.

Religions.

Especially since they do seem to be “nuns”. Vestiges of the Air Nomads? Or, daangit, just some random piece of crap the writing team decided to toss in?

“So, where can we put the pervert Bato where people will know he’s a good person?”

“Uh . . . an abbey full of good, kind nuns?”

“Yeah! That’s it exactly!”

After some high-fives, they presumably went to poop in some shoes, and if you’ve seen the “Aangst” picture about which I’m talking . . .

The Last Airbender. Sucks.

Figure 5

Okay. Imagine walking into a room filled with dead human corpses plastered all the—

Hey.

Imagine walking into a Yautja’s spaceship just after a hunt.

Oh spirits . . .

Wait, I have to vomit now.

[vomits]

[wipes mouth]

So, yeah. Aang wanders in to oh-my-freaking-spirits-are-there-dead-bodies-everywhere-and-what-the-monkeyfeathers-is-that-dead-cat-smell?!?!

Presumably, when they get married, Aang and Katara . . . well, let’s just say that Aang refuses to live anywhere near the poles.

Figure 6

Ah . . . Roald Dahl. Every single time I see this . . .

Let’s have a moment of respect for the man behind masterpieces like Matilda, Boy, and The Giraffe, the Pelly, and Me.

You know what else we should have a moment of respect for?

Katara.

Poor, poor Katara.

She’s going to have the entire Air Nomad culture under her roof.

And you think modern day’s kid-raising discussions were bad.

Figure 7

Filthy, filthy, filthy. I’m sure that they do not bathe regularly.

Next thing we know, we’re going to have Zuko punching walls and screaming “Vertical filth!” And yes, Ravage, if you get the reference, please stop hitting on Megatron. Thank you.

On an entirely separate note, my mother called Aang Chinese.

[cracks knuckles]

Yeah, that’s what I thought.

Figure 8

So. Tally off!

June ships Zutara, clearly. And Iroh ships Jinko. Oh, oh, and while we’re at it, Sokka ships anything that’ll keep him entertained.

[allows that to sink in]

[waggles eyebrows]

Avatar Pickup Line #3:

Zuko: “So, this crazy lady thinks there’s some attraction between us. [shifty eyes] Want to prove her wrong?”

So many Zutara arguments claim, “See, June said that Katara was his girlfriend, and he didn’t say something to the contrary! It’s shipping!”

So many Sukatara arguments claim, “See, Katara and Suki were in one scene, and no one said anything against them being girlfriends! It’s shipping!”

Figure 9

So Aang, in his monk wisdom—and I wrote that as wiseness twice—and abandonment, decides to

1. Hide the map to Hakoda.

2. Not destroy it.

3. Rat himself him out.

Hey, Aang, want to play poker with me? We can make the game more interesting . . . how about you throw in a date if I win? Then that’s more interesting!

Figure 10

So June and her shirshu run around everywhere. Okay. Sure.

But wait!

Katara . . . never . . . went . . . to . . . the . . . Herbalist!

In fact, they should have gone to that place where Katara and Sokka lay sick.

Unless, of course, they’re tracking Aang’s scent.

Via Katara’s necklace.

[throws hands up in the air]

Incidentally, Monkeyfeathers wanted to do this one so badly. He really, really did, since he loves insulting Bryke. However, he was unavailable at the proper time. <_<’’ Sorry there.

Figure 11

“Hahaha so Tadpole totally had something like written here but I kicked it cause I really rocky road wanted to do that! And moose tracks, if you think I’m gonna let some pipsqueak girl stop me, you so wrong it ain’t not funny.”

[grits teeth]

Wait, you . . . ?

Fine.

Continue on.

“Katara never mint chocolate ship visited the vanilla chocolate herbalist lady! That’s just ridiculous. BRYKE, Y U NO GO BY UR OWN napoleon PLOT?! Y?! Y?! And cookie dough at least make the cookies and cream fortuneteller a little scared, no?”

Figure 12

They tried to undo the innuendo here by switching Aang’s and Katara’s positions, but now it’s even worse. Vulmen brought this to my attention, so I’m just going to milk this.

Okay.

So.

Katara, the female, is . . . rubbing a mast.

Okay . . .

And Aang, the male, has his hands on the side of the boat. But . . . what shape do the sides of the boat make?

That’s right.

Either some animator decided to slip this in, or Bryke’s much, much more innocent than we thought.

Figure 13

Har har har, so that’s what Aang would look like with a unibrow, and for some reason that word isn’t in the Microsoft Word dictionary! Instead, they replaced it with “unicorn” AutoCorrect . . . twice.

So that’s what Aang would look like with a unicorn?

You know what?

I can totally imagine that. Sorry.

Unicorns and ice cream and rainbows and butterflies and flowers.

Aang: “I’m in heaven!”

Insert Katara in her swimwear.

Aang: (>^o^<)’’

Katara: “Uh . . . Aang? Aang?! Guys, help me! Aang fainted!”

Me: “I don’t think he fainted . . .”

[drums]

Psst. Wipe that unicorn off immediately.

So I have a question about the whole ice dodging thing. Okay, I understand the point, but . . . Katara isn’t that good of a Waterbender yet. And I don’t see how the Airbending helped. But whatever. They lived.

[phew]

And Aang is a retard. Sorry. Fact of life.

Figure 14

Bato: It’s a wolf, separated from the pa—

Katara: You mean platypus wolf.

Bato: No, the script just says wolf.

Sokka: Certainly you mean a skunk wolf.

Katara: Or his armadillo bear.

Sokka: Gopher bear?

Bato: Just . . . wolf.

Me:: This place is weird.

“No wonder she ran away. She’s way too pretty for you.”

Ooh, take that, Zutarians! Zuko was just called ugly.

[eyes widen]

[takes cover]

[watches the mad crowds of Zuko fangirls run to Bryke’s houses]

[listens to the Zuko fangirls scream gibberish in Russian]

[sigh]

It’s always Russian.

It’s either Russian or Middle Eastern.

But usually Russian.

I’m looking at you, Golden Compass.

[watches as the world explodes into fire]

Hey, wait, Zutarians! [holds up a picture of Zuko in 317]

[watches as the Zutarians drop their weapons]

Mm-hm, okay.

Figure 15

Ooh the fight in the Abbey!

Hey, Aang’s back.

And now it’s time to get back to your feature presentation: Appara versus Nylara!

Watch as these two monsters battle it out for domination of Tokyo [again]. Can anything stop them [again]?! Or will Japan be reduced to a pile of rubble [again]?!

But wait! There are Gojira and Mothra [again]! Here to save the day [again]!

And I mean Gojira as in the fifty-foot Japanese monster, not as in the pitiful, uh . . . “band”.

Figure 16

Aang’s fight with Zuko.

In a well.

You know, Avatar is the only show, ever, that causes me to yell at the screen. Well, not “yell”. But you know what I mean. Even though I’ve seen it a hundred times . . . Avatar’s just special like that.

Me: “Dude! Look at that! Oh my . . . he’s like running around inside a well!”

Monkeyfeathers: “Well, Zuko just blasted the top off of—”

Me: “Zuko! You idiot! You can’t circle walk against the circle walkin’ mastah!”

Monkeyfeathers: “What?”

Me: “Ba Gua. It’s off of what Airbending is based. Circle. Walking. Right there!”

Monkeyfeathers: “Uh . . . okay.”

Me: “I’d let Aang walk in circles around me any day . . .”

Monkeyfeathers: O.o* [edges away from me]

Me: [glances at Monkeyfeathers] “Didn’t you say the same thing about Ty Lee?”

Monkeyfeathers: “Yeah . . . but . . . for different reasons.”

Me: [pause] [falls off chair laughing] [gets up] [rewinds to beginning of fight] [drools]

Every time I watch this, I keep thinking: “You have something on your mind. Something I need . . .” in regards to the betrothal necklace.

That’s right!

It’s symbolic!

Aang steals marrying Katara rights from Zuko! Flying kick-a-pow!

Figure 17

“Now, kids, you shouldn’t take drugs.”

“Now I know!”

“And knowing is half the battle!”

Oh, G. I. Joe and Transformers, how I wish those commercials would go away . . .

Figure 18

Avatar Pickup Line #4:

Iroh: “Whoops, didn’t mean to put my hand there! But baby, one look at you and I’m paralyzed like I was hit with shirshu spit!”

Figure 19

Oh my spirits! Aang . . . gives . . . Katara . . . a . . . betrothal necklace!

[starts singing]

And said, Marry me, Katara!

You’ll never have to be alone—

I love you and that's all I really know

I talked to your dad; go pick out a blue dress

Baby just say . . . yes!

[waits for it]

[waits for it]

[waits for it]

[stares]

[screams at TV]

Say yes, Katara! Say yes! Say yes! Saaaaaaaay—aw monkeyfeathers!

Fail.

Well, he did get a cheek kiss . . .

[wipes eyes with a tissue]

I hate you, Bryke.

Figure 20

Shortly afterwards, Aang discovered that he was no longer completely a monk.

Fact #1: Last episode, we found out Aang has a crush on Katara.

Fact #2: This episode, Katara kisses Aang’s cheek.

Fact #3: Next episode, Aang hurts her, but she forgives him . . . but nothing happens.

They gave two episodes of Kataang.

And then forgot about it.

Rawr!

Okay . . . I love this episode to death . . . but daangit . . . it’s a 1.

I have a love-hate relationship with this episode.

It’s so . . . sad.

Help guides: IRC Olórin The White

The IRC channel, #wikia-avatar, attracts many members everyday. However, most users do not know about how to register with IRC. IRC is a relatively simple thing to use; however, the instructions for registering sometimes go above some users heads or have not been found by them. Registering with IRC is the first step to learning how to use the network properly and easily.

Steps

1. Enter the chartroom with your preferred nickname (it does not need to be the same as your wiki name).
2. Type the following: /msg NickServ yourdesiredpassword youremail
   1. Replace "Yourdesiredpassword" with the password you want to use, and replace "youremail" with the email you want to register the nickname to.
   2. Remember, freenode is a large network. A lot of nicknames have been registered, so if your nickname is registered, you may need to choose another one. Type /nick to change it inside the IRC chartroom.
3. Once that is done, you will need to check your email. Inside your email inbox should be a memo from Freenode with a code. Follow the instructions inside the email.
4. Your registration is complete!
5. To identify with services, click the "Auth to services" box on the IRC Access page. Type in your registered nickname and password in the appropriate fields.

Freenode rules
Freenode is not Wikia-owned, so it has its own rules and regulations. They can be found here. If you have any questions, ask me (I'm on IRC as LordVoldemort or Canis) or type /join #freenode to ask freenode staff.

Did you know?
You can register multiple nicknames under the same account, without having to go through all these steps again. Just sign into IRC, then, while in it, type /nick and then the nickname you want. Then, type /ns group or /msg NickServ group. Up to 20 nicknames can be registered under the same account; however, please be aware that it is not a race to see who can get the most nicknames.

Upcoming birthday celebrations Rassilon of Old

As most of you will know, Avatar Wiki is approaching its' sixth birthday! To celebrate this event, administrators and various other users will be hosting or coordinating various activities dedicated to the wiki. There will be a tribute page, where each user can say their own personal thanks to the wiki, and what the wiki means to them. There will also be a special edition of the Ba Sing Se Times to celebrate the wiki's day of glory, which will contain content and articles from various regular contributors, telling you all what will be happening throughout the week. There is also an Avatar: The Last Airbender RPG being set up by myself, RageOfFluffy and Theavatardemotivator, whether this starts on July 15 or not is anyone's guess, but no doubt is it going to be massive fun for the community! Even The 888th Avatar says he has something up his sleeve! I can't wait to see what it is!

But The 888th Avatar isn't the only one with a secret project. Natsu11 and myself are working on something of our own making. Something that has never been seen before. Some have tried, one has something similar, but this is a brand new concept, born from the darkest depths of my own imagination...

Avatar Wiki User Awards teaser(00:26)
26 views

The Avatar Wiki User Awards are coming to Avatar Wiki this July 15. However, for the awards to be an official event of Avatar Wiki, community consensus and approval is required to sustain a community-nominated and community-voted award ceremony, run by interested parties nominated and supported by you! Please see this forum thread to express your opinion on the awards, the process, and the awards.

Contest Natsu11

Guess what…? The Avatar "What if" Contest is back! Link: Avatar "What if" Contest 2 I had little time to make the last one grand, but I promise that no one will ever forget the second one. As always, there will be some “what if” questions, 15 to be exact. In addition to being grand, it will also be smooth. I have an assistant, Lady Lostris, who can check the answers when I’m not there. Users just have to write a short paragraph on what would happen if the “what if” was true.

It had a good reception on the first one, with many saying that users ’got the users the chance to go in-depth and bring out their analytical skills, organizing "what if" scenarios’. I hope the reception doesn’t die out. The updates as of 2nd July 2011 are: LL has sent in her questions, I will work on mine.

The recent two months have been very good, with many contests coming up. They are a place to “dump” ideas and get a reward if the ideas are very good. I must say, this time is like a “Golden Age” for the wiki, with many new improvements and the greatest, no major vandalism cases. Good luck for the contest and as always, Happy Editing!!

Why I liked that blog so much Dcasawang1

I don’t know if you have read this blog (blog, essay, discourse, article, or whatever it is, the important thing is just what it says) of TAD (aka Grammar Ozai). If you haven’t, do it now. This is not a review or something like that; it’s more like a “praise” to this awesomeness.

Well, I was checking recent changes as always when I saw TAD had created a blog with this title. Normally, I wouldn’t click and read it in that moment, I didn’t had much time, but I thought the name was too brilliant to not read it immediately. “A special demotivator blog! :D”, I thought when I took a fast look at it and noticed the images. I started reading it and realized it was a July 4 special blog but I didn’t know what it was about yet.

I continued reading and the first lines surprised me. How could that be written that well? It was like I was reading the beginning of a text written by one of those guys who make columns for the cultural section of the newspapers. I finished reading. Of course, as I commented in the blog, I read it more than twice. I really liked it. I understood the reason of the title and thought it was perfect.

What do I mean when I say it’s well written? First, I’m not talking only about the main topic of the blog (though the thought about grammar of the author is obviously the essential thing here); I mean the changeableness, the talent and the inventiveness to use the words in that way. Maybe you don’t find the blog that excellent to make a BSST column to express how much one liked it or to say all the good things I’m saying now about it. Maybe you’re thinking why Dc is so surprised since we have always known that TAD is one of the best writers in the wiki; I just was amazed when I found a blog showing this writing quality.

Makes me think about what I’m doing in the wiki since I have not read DAA or ABCLAF.

Makes me think about this. (haha jk)

Makes me think TAD is my guru now (not Pathik obviously).

Demotivated Theavatardemotivator

Editor's note: Watching this episode through while reading this column is recommended.

Chapter 17: The Northern Air Temple
A commentary and review (and some demotivation) of Book 1: Water, Chapter 17: The Northern Air Temple.

Previously in Avatar: It doesn’t matter, because the only person who ever cared about it was Aang; Katara seemed to totally forget or something. Funny masks. Jeong x2.

Figure 1

Aang. He laughs at gravity all the time. Heh-heh-heh, gravity.

So I have a totally random question. Why are they still walking around in Water Tribe clothing or, in Aang’s case, Air Nomad clothes. Wouldn’t it make far more sense to, I don’t know . . . change clothes or something? Just a thought? You think that no one is going to notice the giant arrow on Aang’s head? It’s kind of hard to miss.

Figure 2

You know, this would make a great movie poster. Just slap Aang’s random floating head somewhere. Yep. I’m sure that’ll work.

But you can’t just have him be looking straight head. He should be looking off to the left of the poster—that’s his right—and maybe wearing the same pair of sunglasses for each poster. Yeah. Oh, oh, and maybe his fist and/or foot can be punching out and be bigger than his head. You know, because he’s Kung Fu Action Jesus. Oh, and can we put in some Jesus controversy there, too? Yeah, that’ll sell it . . .

Figure 3

“Trust me, she doesn’t need protection.”

Woah there, you mean your girlfriend’s barren or something?

[drums]

Okay, okay, in bad taste, in bad taste, I know, I know.

Meanwhile, back at what is being loosely called “the plot”, Aang wants to sulk some more, because he thought that there would be Airbenders, but clearly actually flying around in the air doesn’t count, because they have hair.

Aang: “It’s just not fair! How come they get everything . . . and hair?! It just . . . makes . . . no . . . sense!”

Teo: “It’s okay. Want to borrow my Pimproh audiobook collection?”

Aang: “I’m not taking lessons from a man with hair.”

[approximately a book and a fourth later]

Katara: “I like your hair.”

Aang: “I have hair?”

Me: “Oh yes you do . . . oh yes you do . . .”

Figure 4

Let’s review, kids.

What is Airbending?

Airbending is the ability to jump onto a vertical wall, air scooter along it while keeping your glider right next to your head, and then leap off of the wall and back onto the glider.

That, my friends, is Airbending.

Figure 5

Spirits, is that in-universe fan art? Yes, yes it is. We have officially reached a new low.

Oh, and I’m a hundred percent hundred that Teo is yet another Aang faangirl. You can quote me on that.

Now, feel free to skip this section, because it has nothing to do with Avatar. Just scroll down to the next little weird-color thing. It’s called a hyperlink. Note the position of your hand. It is attached to something called a “dorak”, and if you know Russian, you know exactly what I mean.

I’m writing this at a Russian Squat-Dancing Festival, because my mother insisted that I broaden my cultural horizons or something of the like. Allow me to tell you one thing: In Russia, Aang would die. I’m an on-again, off-again vegetarian, so I ordered a vegetarian patty. Checking the ingredients list on the box labeled vegetarian patty—in Russian—I discovered it to be made of “chicken”. I told the cashier, “Chicken is meat.”

“No it’s not.”

Me: “Uh . . . yes it is. Then what is meat?”

Her: “You know. Cows. Dogs. That sort of thing.”

Me: “You eat dogs?!”

Her: “No, no. We just butcher up old ones for meat.”

Me: [backs away slowly]

Fortunately, I found a way to hijack someone else’s Internet. That’s how I’m writing this. Also, I’m sick. Very sick.

I’m really glad the Internet doesn’t force me to write “I’b shick”.

Figure 6

It’s like there are a certain amount of things that every show needs. A girl power episode, a handicap power episode, a compromise episode, a culture shock episode, etc. Bryke just decided to knock out their power episodes in Book One to avoid them contaminating the other two books. In fact, the only two “power episodes” Avatar doesn’t have are gay power—which, unfortunately, is still feared to cause far lower ratings, which is probably true due to the Church—and African-American pride—because the Avatar world is sort of Asian.

You know, just sort of.

Of course, M. Night Shyamalan begs to differ.

Figure 7

So . . . the other day, I was looking at the picture of the cover of the graphic novel—maanga?—version of The Last Failbender.

You can see it here: click.

First of all, I couldn’t even see Aang’s arrow until I blew up the image several times. Secondly, why the monkeyfeathers does Aang look like a female cancer patient? I mean . . . seriously? WTF?

Katara looks like she’s praying. “Dear God, please get me out of this movie. Please. Thank you. Amen.”

Sokka looks like a harlot. “Hey there . . . want to rave with me?”

Zuko looks like a biker punk. “You want some of this? You want some of this? I had black bean burritos this morning, and my diarrhea is explosive! Literally!”

But my favorite part:

“Inspired by the summer blockbuster by M. Night Shyamalan.”

Summer blockbuster?

There?

Figure 8

Imagine if, while you were on vacation in Antarctica—and who doesn't want to vacation there?—someone broke into your house and vandalized the whole place. S/he tore down walls, hung up portraits of your least favorite person, and turned the bedrooms into kitchens and vice versa. When you return, how would you feel?

Wow. The Russian Squat-Dancers are juggling bottles of vodka. What is wrong with them? Where’s the fire? I want fire! I’m a pyromaniac!

Give me freedom!

Give me fire!

Give me reason!

Take me higher!

Freedom is the right of all sentient beings!

Therefore, Michael Bay doesn’t have the right to freedom.

Help guides: Links Natsu11

This week’s help guide is about links, both normal and advanced ones. As you all know, normal links can be done by putting [[ and ]]. Example: [[Aang]]. For links with other text, put a |. Example: [[Aang|The Avatar]].

For wikipedia links, put “wikipedia:” before the page in wikipedia. Example: [[wikipedia:Avatar: The Last Airbender|Avatar: The Last Airbender]].

For links through URL, use one [ and one ] and leave a space for the text. Example: [http://avatar.wikia.com/wiki/Aang Aang].

Other wikis can be linked through URL links, but there is another way to do so. Add w:c:(the wiki name). Example: [[w:c:Fairy Tail|Fairy Tail Wiki]]. The name can be found in the URL. Example for this wiki: http://avatar.wikia.com.

Links can be specified to certain headings created using # symbol. The first part is same, but a # symbol followed by the name of the heading is added. Example for a link to Aang: [[Aang#Abilities]] shows up as Aang#Abilities.

I have seen many URL links where wikipedia and interwiki would have been enough. I hope that after reading this, everyone starts to use them. The next one will be about wikitext, to educate people in basic wikitext. Wikitext will include templates, text styles, etc.

Undiscovered fanon Rassilon of Old

Jumping in to the deep end, this issue's undiscovered fanon is Mageddon725's fanon, Avatar- Aftermath and Burning Earth. I read through the first five chapters under the reccomendation of fellow Fanon Administrator AvatarRokusGhost, who suggested it for Undiscovered Fanon, and I completely agree!

Aftermath and Burning Earth (also reffered to as AaBE) follows the story of Yun, a young Earthbender with a hunger for knowledge. This hunger, is satisfied by none other than the mad genius himself - King Bumi. Not long into the series, we discover a disability of Yun's - which I'm not going to spoil - which forces him to adapt a different form of Earthbending, a form which I must say is one of my favorites.

The writing ability of Mageddon in AaBE reminds me somewhat of J.K. Rowling's writing style, of which I am a huge fan (there is also a scene in the end of chapter three which strongly reminded me of Harry Potter). The jump in time we take from chapter four to five is an excellent narrative ploy to keep the readers doing what they should be doing - reading. All over, I think Mageddon's writing is absolutely excellent, and I will continue reading as he writes into his second book.

9/10

Fallacies in debating logic H-Man Havoc

I've recently run into some blogs and talk page threads that boggle my mind in terms of the fallacies that people use to attempt to prove their points. This blog's main point is that they are illogical and unfavourably attempt to shift the ways an argument is meant to be debated. Before I talk about the 20 main fallacies commonplace in most arguments (and related examples), I ask you "What is a fallacy?". A Fallacy is a pattern of reasoning or an argument that is fundamentally erroneous; in other words it is a fault in the logical way of thinking. You might then ask me "Is it even possible to have a fallacy-free argument?"; to answer this, I show an example of a classic valid deductive argument that commits no fallacies:

Premise #1: All humans are mortal. P2: Socrates is a human. Conclusion: Therefore, Socrates is mortal.

If I changed the wording slightly, it becomes fallacious and a weak inductive argument:

P1: All humans are mortal. P2: Socrates is mortal. C: Therefore, Socrates is a human.

The one immediately above is not as strong an argument as the first, because even though Socrates is mortal, not all mortal beings are human, and most Greek and Roman gods (for example) are human though immortal. Although I mentioned in another blog that I wouldn't go into deep detail, I may have to give a full analysis to those who don't know the topic (I'll do it on the first one of each class).

Three things before I go further... There are three structures and three classes of arguments that you, the reader, must know before analyzing fallacies in argument. A Structure 1 argument is an argument that has its conclusion after the premises; Structure 2 is flipped, with the conclusion before the premises; and Structure 3 is one where the conclusion is in between two (or more) premises. Regardless of the structure, the arguments are mapped in the same way. The first class is Relevance (R), which tries to prove a point without providing related evidence to support the conclusion (5 fallacies belong to this class). The second and most widespread class is Presumption (P), where something is being presumed that is wrong in the context of the argument. All 14 fallacies in this class have a hidden premise that must be discovered before analyzing an argument featuring any of these. The third and last class is that of Ambiguity (A), where it is unclear what direction the argument goes. Only 1 fallacy belongs to this class. The last thing to know is that there is often more than one fallacy that can be identified in most detailed arguments, for I've analyzed some that featured 4-5 possibilities. So without further ado, we start. This is going to be a long read for those who are interested.

Fallacy #1: Appeal to Force or Threat (R)

P1: After all, my firm does thousands of dollars of advertising business with your paper. C: I don't think it would be wise to run a story on my son's driving escapades.

This argument commits the fallacy of appeal to force or threat, a fallacy of relevance.

P1: This argument tries to prove its conclusion, not by offering relevant evidence for it, but by issuing implied coercion against the paper concerned. P2: Unfortunately, there is a logical problem here. P3: Instead of offering relevant evidence to support its conclusion, such as "My son is a victim of mistaken identity in terms of his driving escapades", this argument instead issues a threat against the paper concerned and so fails to prove its conclusion. C: Therefore this argument commits the fallacy of appeal to force or threat, a fallacy of relevance.

Before I go on, what I just did here is known as a "123" analysis, which is how to analyze fallacies in argument. I'll be doing one for each class of fallacy, so the other examples I'll just list the mapping of the argument and the identification (#1 deals with mapping the argument; #2 deals with identifying the fallacy in question: STANDARD in all analyses of fallacies; #3 is the explanation, split by premises and conclusions to make the explanation more clear). Notice how I italicized "Instead of offering relevant evidence to support its conclusion, such as"; each class of fallacy has its own evidence statement that must be used when identifying a fallacy of that particular class, before listing any evidence supporting your analysis. A similar but more complex way to analyze arguments is to use an "ABC" analysis which is used to analyze conceptual problems as well as fallacious ones, but it is not what I'm trying to do in this blog. Now I'll continue.

Fallacy #2: Appeal to Emotion (Pity or Fear) (R)

Definition for Pity: Feeling of emotion for an organic being or a sentient one, or for oneself. Def'n for Fear: Feeling either for oneself or another sentient being when they find themselves in a situation where their welfare is jeopardized and there's nothing to be done.

P1: She [Mae] has a disability. P2: She hasn't been able to get a job. P3: I know that she is quite depressed. P4: Giving her a job would really boost her self esteem. C: You should hire Mae.

This argument commits the fallacy of appeal to emotion (pity), a fallacy of relevance.

To intercede, lawyers absolutely are guilty of using this fallacy in their arguments because their job is to plead a case and influence the jury to side with their client over the other attorney's client.

Fallacy #3: Ad Hominem [Latin for "to the man"] (Abusive or Circumstantial) (R)

Abusive ad hominem is when one personally attacks the person's characteristics or faith, rather than the arguments being presented by the latter (ex: By founding his environmental charity, the environmentalist David Suzuki is wishing to raise money for his own desires rather than using the funds to save the environment [This is very abusive ad hominem]). The example presented below is another type of ad hominem, circumstantial (assuming a person supports something for instance, based on his/her profession).

P1: You own two apartment buildings. C: You don't support rent controls. (The notion of the government controlling the rent price instead of the landlords.)

This argument commits the fallacy of circumstantial ad hominem, a fallacy of relevance.

Fallacy #4: Poisoning the Well (R)

P1: [Y]ou are a liar. C: I can't trust you.

This argument commits the fallacy of poisoning the well, a fallacy of relevance.

Fallacy #5: Shifting the Burden of Proof (P)

P1: I can't prove that I should be admitted to the Bar. [Hidden Premise (P2): An argument can prove its conclusion by requiring that one's opponent prove the claim instead of oneself.] C: [Y]ou prove it for me.

This argument commits the fallacy of shifting the burden of proof, a fallacy of presumption.

P1: This argument tries to make the audience responsible for proving the speaker's or writer's conclusion. P2: Unfortunately, there is a logical problem here. P3: Using the false, hidden presumption that [P2] in the original argument, which is false because it violates the burden of proof principle in argumentation, in which case the argument fails to prove its conclusion. C: Therefore this argument commits the fallacy of shifting the burden of proof, a fallacy of presumption.

Like with all presumptuous fallacies, they have a hidden premise that must be identified before analysis can begin (highlighted by using [Square Brackets]). The italicized part of the #3 portion of the 123 analysis is the code phrase that must be used when identifying and analyzing a fallacy of this class.

Fallacy #6: Self-Evident Truth (P)

P1: She obviously doesn't want to drive a car. P2: She clearly doesn't want to take public transit either. [P3: An argument can prove its conclusion by stating its claims in such a way that they must be true simply by virtue of the way they are stated.] C: Evidently, she doesn't believe in private or public transit.

This argument commits the fallacy of self-evident truth, a fallacy of presumption.

I italicized the words "obviously" and "clearly" because those are two key words that a reader can use to identify this particular fallacy (also "no one doubts that"). Unless the evidence provided is both necessary and sufficient to prove an argument's conclusion, these words only extenuate and amplify this particular fallacy.

Fallacy #7: Appeal to Ignorance (P)

P1: I can't prove there is life in outer space. [P2: An argument can prove its conclusion by using the lack of evidence for one position as evidence for the contrary (not "opposite") position.] C: There is no life in outer space.

This argument commits the fallacy of appeal to ignorance, a fallacy of presumption.

An "opposite" is a term that has a reverse meaning to another word (e.g. Alive=Dead), while a "contrary" is a term that has the word "not" before it, to let us know that it is "not" such, etc.. (Alive=Not alive). There is another fallacy later on that confuses opposites with contraries.

Fallacy #8: Loaded Presupposition (P)

This is one of two fallacies my class did not elaborate on, since it is a hard fallacy to analyze properly. It involves asking a loaded question, one that forces the respondent to reply in a specific way, and not in others. An example is: "Why is it that children of divorce are less emotionally stable than children raised in unbroken homes?".

Fallacy #9: Begging the Question (P)

P1: Opium is a soporific. [P2: An argument can prove its conclusion by using a premise(s) which mean(s) the same thing as the conclusion but use(s) different words.] C: It must have dormative powers.

This argument commits the fallacy of begging the question, a fallacy of presumption.

Fallacy #10: Common Practice/Popularity (P)

P1: Everyone's doing it. [P2: An argument can prove its conclusion by appealing to what everybody is allegedly doing/thinking/saying, etc. about something.] C: I ought to do it to.

This argument commits the fallacy of common practice/popularity, a fallacy of presumption.

Fallacy #11: Faulty Appeal to Authority (A.K.A. Appeal to Authority) (P)

P1: All credible biologists believe in evolution. [P2: An argument can prove its conclusion by appealing to alleged authorities, not by offering relevant evidence for it.] C: Evolution is a fact.

This argument commits the fallacy of appeal to authority, a fallacy of presumption.

To be called an authority on a subject, one must have explicit and concrete knowledge on the subject concerned. Example: Wayne Gretzky is considered an authority in hockey, but not in medications like Advil. Most commercials featuring athletes or personalities advertising products like Gatorade for instance, commit this particular fallacy.

Fallacy #12: Hasty Generalization (P)

P1: This swan is white. [P2: An argument can prove its conclusion by assuming that what is true of one, or several, events of a class is true of every event of that class.] C: Therefore, all swans are white.

This argument commits the fallacy of hasty generalization, a fallacy of presumption.

Fallacy #13: False Cause (P)

P1: Event 2 happened after event 1. P2: Events 1 and 2 are spatially contiguous. [P3: An argument can prove its conclusion by treating terms which are temporarily successive, spatially contiguous, or constantly conjoined as causally connected.] C: Therefore, event 1 caused event 2.

This argument commits the fallacy of false cause, a fallacy of presumption.

Fallacy #14: Slippery Slope (P)

P1: First the city privatizes garbage collection. P2: Next the city privatizes transit services. P3: Then the city privatizes all city services. [P4: An argument can prove its conclusion by stating that these events, going from bad to worse to worst, are causally connected.] C: Privatization should be resisted on all fronts.

This argument commits the fallacy of slippery slope, a fallacy of presumption.

Fallacy #15: False Dichotomy (P)

P1: You want a car. P2: Cars are either good or cheap. P3: You can't afford a good car. P4: You don't want a cheap car. [P5: An argument can prove its conclusion by treating opposites as contraries.] C: You'll have to do without a car.

This argument commits the fallacy of false dichotomy, a fallacy of presumption.

One way the reader can identify false dichotomy is by observing that only two alternatives are given, when there are clearly more choices available. It is NOT this fallacy if the two alternatives are truly the only two choices that could be made, such as if a person's been shot in the head, is in a coma at the hospital and the doctor asks the next of kin whether he/she wants to terminate life support or maintain it in the hopes of that person recovering and waking up.

Fallacy #16: Equivocation (A)

P1: Men and women aren't equal. P2: They differ in various attributes. P3: Men are stronger. P4: Women are verbal. C: One cannot say that we ought to treat them equally.

This argument commits the fallacy of equivocation, a fallacy of ambiguity.

P1: This argument tries to prove its conclusion by using cognates (similarly-spelled words) with different meanings. P2: Unfortunately, there is a logical problem here. P3: Instead of using these terms univocally, this argument uses them equivocally, i.e. In [P1] of the original argument, "equal" pertains to to descriptive equality whereas in the conclusion of the original argument, "equally" refers to the normative/prescriptive equality, in which case the argument fails to prove its conclusion. C: Therefore, this argument commits the fallacy of equivocation, a fallacy of ambiguity.

I italicized the words "equal" and "equally" to show how this fallacy works, and once again the key phrase for this particular class of fallacy (of which only this type exists) must be used when analyzing this particular fallacy.

Fallacy #17: Faulty Analogy (P)

Definition of an analogy: A comparison between or among two or more terms with respect to the attribute(s) they allegedly have in common. (F.A. same as this def'n, but they don't have anything in common.)

P1: Apples are like oranges in the sense that both are vegetables. [P2: An argument can prove its conclusion by assuming that terms are analogous in the indicated respect(s) when they aren't... (treating terms which aren't comparable, as comparable).] P3: Vegetables are good for you. P4: You ought to eat what is good for you. C: Therefore you ought to eat apples and oranges.

This argument commits the fallacy of faulty analogy, a fallacy of presumption.

The word "like" signifies an analogy. The example above is intentionally wrong because apples and oranges are obviously not vegetables, rather are fruits (this is a valid way of using terms that would regularly signify self-evident truth fallacies, because they are universally accepted). This is because fruits grow from vines or trees while vegetables grow in the ground. An ambiguous case is a pineapple, since it is a fruit yet grows underground.

Fallacy #18: Straw Person (P)

This is the second fallacy we did not elaborate too much on in class. It involves using an argument as a decoy for another argument.

Example: Mary was upset at her mother's funeral (Real claim). Straw person version of this claim: Mary is emotional.

Fallacy #19: Red Herring (P)

P1: The environmentalists are trying to create an Eden on Earth. P2: They want to reduce pollution. [P3: An argument can prove its conclusion which is irrelevant to its premises.] C: Therefore we should not support them.

This argument commits the fallacy of red herring/irrelevant conclusion, a fallacy of presumption.

Anytime the reader views a conclusion which is unrelated to the supporting points, it is a red herring, since it is a different point than what the reader is led to believe from the premises.

The very last fallacy is below, for those who've read along to this point. After this I'm done, but it's the only way to explain all the fallacies.

Fallacy #20: Genetic Fallacy (A.K.A. Fallacy of Genesis) (R)

P1: It's just a pig. C: It's morally permissible to eat it.

This argument commits the genetic fallacy, a fallacy of relevance.

This is fallacious because the claim attacks the origin of the subject concerned.

These are all the fallacies, and this large blog was how I could explain them all. Hope you enjoyed the reading, and I look forward to reading comments afterwards.

Episode review Anr0328

So first we start out with Katara and Sokka in their little boat hunting for some fish. Sokka is unfortunately not catching anything... but Katara decides to use her “magic water” skills as Sokka calls it, that way she might have a better chance at catching some dinner.. So my first question is... where did Katara learn her basic waterbending skills? I mean, she’s the only waterbender. How did she even know that she could bend? These are the situations that puzzle me... but, it is also what makes me love Avatar! The almost endless questions that draw you to the show more and more!

Anyhow, Katara gets angry with Sokka (as usual) and starts bending the water in her anger. So in all this, Sokka is like: KATARA YOU IDIOT! YOU’RE TOTALLY GOING TO TIP THE BOAT OVER WITH YOUR MAGIC WATER!! And... he was right. Luckily, they fall on a nice flat iceberg. But then they discover Aang, floating in a frozen sphere of ice. Katara decides it would be a nice idea to take a wack at it and what do you know! Aang is released from the ice and awakens.... I like how he seems all serious and is like: “commeee closseerrr...”, then it’s: “WILL YOU GO PEINGUIN SLIDING WITH MEH???”.

Sokka is introduced and is ermmm... well... not happy. He apparently thinks that Aang is a “Fire Nation Spy” and is not pleased with meeting him. He threatens to hurt Aang when he starts goofing off. So I’m thinking: Sokka? Why are you so obsessed with the Fire Nation? I know you have to be a lookout for them because they might attack, but not everyone is a “Fire Nation Spy”. After being sneezed on by Appa, they all go back to the village.

That’s all for this issue, look for part 2 in the next BSST for the rest of the review!

Demotivated Theavatardemotivator

Editor's note: Watching this episode through while reading this column is recommended.

Chapter 19: The Siege of the North, Part 1
A commentary and review (and some demotivation) of Book 1: Water, Chapter 19: The Siege of the North, Part 1.

Previously in Avatar: Sexist people dying. Waterbending. Pulling strings. Oh yeah, and semi-adultery.

Figure 1

This is Sangok. He later goes to become Korra’s grandfather.

[waits patiently]

All right . . . all right . . . waiting . . . waiting . . .

Okay!

[hides from the sudden missiles that explode all around her]

So you see how, in the course of several days or weeks—it’s not very clear—Katara becomes a Waterbending Master . . .

But it took Pakku years to learn?

Wait wait wait.

This would be like someone learning to write Korean . . . in two weeks.

Does.

Not.

Happen.

And yes, that is a reference to the Island.

Figure 2

“You know what I hate about this spinach puff show? All right, so let’s use our cabbage head for a second . . . that little annoying weasel [TAD: That’s . . . uh . . . Momo, actually.] is always inside of Aang’s shirt . . . and occasionally even his cereal pants! And you know he is! Well, the coffee creators stopped that kind of oatmeal after season one [TAD: Book One, actually.] because they realized that there was far too much . . . French fries . . . bestiality!

“Except in Lake Laogai. Definitely some in that.”

Figure 3

Yue seriously needs to make up her mind. This is ridiculous. Sorry.

But . . .

Holy monkeyfeathers . . .

First, she likes him.

Then, she runs away.

Then, she asks for him to come with her.

Then, she reveals she’s betrothed.

Then, she kisses him.

Then, she runs away again.

Now, she’s snuggling with him

I mean . . . come on!

What kind of romance is this?!

This is reminding me of that Hot and Cold song—the one I refer to as the Why Zutara Doesn’t Make Any Sense song—

Just please, Yue.

Just . . .

Pick some freaking thing! Just pick something! It’s not exactly that difficult to pick something!

Yue.

She changes her mind like a girl changes clothes.

Oh wait!

She is a girl.

. . .

[slaps on a scarlet letter]

And by the way, that book is terrible.

Figure 4

Okay, okay, okay.

All right, question.

The Laws of Infiltration are pretty simple . . . most of the time.

1. Use a uniform that is exactly the same as all of the others. On no instance should you use one that helpfully reveals your particular difference.

2. Do not remove the uniform under any circumstances . . . especially in the hallway . . . the random open hallway . . . where anyone can see you.

3. Do not whisper quietly to a random official. People will become suspicious. And find you. And kill you.

And did I mention that you can @#$%ing see his @#$%ing scar?!

Also, it would have made more sense for them to make us believe that Zuko was nice and dead or something for just one episode, rather than killing him in the middle and bringing him back in the end.

Figure 5

You know, people make sitcoms about the craziest things. Polygamy . . . wizards . . . pop stars . . . what are they doing to do next? Child abuse?

Tune in for another exciting episode of Chains—based on a true story!

. . .

[cough]

So what in the world is going on here? I’m not understanding. Yue, just pick something. Seriously.

Pick.

Not that hard.

o.o’

Wrong word choice there, heh heh.

Figure 6

What does Sokka hope to accomplish here? Does he really think that, hm, by . . . say . . . oh, I don’t know, killing himself and therefore comittitng involuntary suicide is going to get him any closer to Yue?

Yue: “Well, if he turns into a sparkly vampire . . .”

Harry Potter: “I should have killed him when I had the chance.”

Instead, what’s going to happen? Oh yeah—Sokka would be dead, so think about every other episode without Sokka in it . . .

Did you just get terrified out of your mind?

Because . . .

I . . .

Sure . . .

Was . . .

I mean, he’s the one who comes up with the Day of Black Sun plan—and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

Aang’s iceberg?

Figure 7

And a tumbleweed tumbles past . . . except it’s made out of ice . . .

And then we get a whole bunch of cowboys . . . on ice . . .

And holy monkeyfeathers, when did we walk into the Disney on Ice version of Davy Crockett, and did you seriously just get the Davy Crockett song stuck in my head?

Born on a mountaintop in Tenne—

No! Get out of my head!

Out out out!

Figure 8

Sadistic pacifism, for the win!

I mean, seriously. There are more explosions in this scene than in an entire Rachet and Clank game.

Okay, let’s put that ten percent of your brain that functions properly—ha, ha, ha, did you know that 86.345% of all statistics are made up on the spot?—together and think about this one.

So, okay.

You have Appa, a giant sky bison, with Aang, the Avatar.

All right.

Fine.

Okay.

Then you see Aang make a home run, Avatar style. Come on. Baseball bat anyone? Also, there’s a Zaang metaphor in there if you squint closely enough, but judging from my previous experiences on the Wiki, even I know not to mention—le cough—that.

Wait, so, I have a question. So if a giant flaming fireball is coming towards you . . . you can seriously just whack it out of the way with a short wooden stick? Hey, military, I totally have an anti-missile idea for you! Just hit the missiles out of the way with baseball bats!

Avatar physics! The best physics in the wo-o-orld!

So my point is that why couldn’t the Waterbenders do that ice thing first, before Aang had to run in? And why wouldn’t they just use the ice to, I don’t know, destroy the trebuchets, too?

Figure 9

Hey, I’d like to take advantage of that, too.

This is clearly the bestiality episode, because Appa freaking saves Aang by asploding everything else, and Aang shares a particularly . . . tender . . . moment with the sky bison.

I’m just saying.

Take a look at some of the screenshots, specificially at Aang’s expression

._.

Figure 10

I’m just saying . . . I’m just saying . . . I’m just saying . . .

We never exactly see all of these ships. They just sort of hang out in the harbor . . . and then stuff happens, and they all get asploded.

Where are they?

Where are they all?

. . .

Nowhere, clearly.

Figure 11

Based off of my personality scores—you know, in one of those stupid tests you have to take?—I am a truly sadistic pacifist. I am also extremely anti-sexist—even though I do enjoy a good sexist job.

Sample conversation [before marriage]:

Hahn: “This is the same your dreams come true.”

Yue: “What do you know about my dreams, Hahn?”

Hahn: “Plenty! A frozen hunting lodge, my latest kill roasting on the fire, and my little wife massaging my feet while the little ones play on the floor with the dogs. We'll have six or seven.

Yue: “Polar bear dogs?”

Hahn: “No, Yue! Strapping boys, like me!”

Yue: “Imagine that.”

[Imaginex Adventures commercial starts to play.]

Hahn: “And do you know who that little wife will be?”

Yue: “Let me think . . .”

Hahn: “You, Yue!”

Yue: “Hahn! I’m—I’m speechless! I don’t know what to say!”

Hahn: “Say you’ll marry me!”

Yue: “I’m very sorry, Hahn, but—but—I just don’t deserve you!”

If you get the reference, you may have this strawberry upside-down cake.

“No, the cake is a lie!”

Please, that meme’s oversaturated.

“Like sugar can be in water?”

Was that a science joke?!

“Absolute zero is the coolest!”

Guys, watch out! Monkeyfeathers is making science jokes!

“Gaston and Le Fou are as straight as a pair of parabolas!”

Well . . . that’s actually true . . .

Sample conversation number two:

Hahn: “Want to hear a joke?”

Other Guy: “Sure!”

Hahn: “Women’s rights!”

Yue: “Dear, the little ones need a new bla—”

Hahn: “Where my food at, woman? Go back to the kitchen where you belong. Make me a sandwich.”

Other Guy: “A ham sandwich.”

[bro-fives are exchanged]

Figure 12

Wait, wait, wait . . . can we please use our ostrich horse sense here? Okay, so, Aang got back from playing </s>violent videogames</s>solder and is far too tired to go on, because without the Avatar the many Waterbenders can’t do anything.

Clearly.

Also, a random question. Why does the Fire Nation—whose opposing element is freaking water—have a far more advanced navy than the Water Tribes?

Good grief, Bryke, if you’re going to be illogical, at least be logical about it!

Figure 13

[waggles eyebrows]

Hey, Buttongoo, want a fruit tart?

[bakes some fruit tarts]

In fact, how about fruit tarts for everyone? We can have a massive fruit tart tasting!

It’s massive, sweet, and syrupy.

Mm . . . better start cleaning up then!

Figure 14

[leaps through the television]

“Sword up, Hahn! This is a fight!”

Hahn: “Sword up?” [waggles eyebrow] “Nah . . . you’re too ugly.”

Me: [brandishes sarcasm] “Please! I would engage in a war of wit—but I will never fight one unarmed!”

Grid: “Is that because you’re a Predator?”

Me: “Is that . . . a xenomorph?!”

Hahn: “. . . what am I, chopped liver?”

Ratbert: “This liver has an MBA from Harvard!”

Me: [runs off with Grid] “What can I say? I always liked the mysterious type.”

Hahn: [to Ratbert] “Where did you come from?”

Ratbert: [innocently] “Arthur’s nightmares.”

Figure 15

[waggles eyebrows]

Just look at the expressions and take this screenshot out of context.

We don’t see this kind of thing until one of my favorite episodes—313.

Come on.

Rainbow.

Fire.

But onto to that in the appropriate blog!

In the meantime, Chief Arnook pounces on them, mostly because he’s like Minerva from Harry Potter, if you can recall my reference from And the Philosopher’s Stone.

Hey, I just realized that my spell check is no longer working.

Thank you so much, Microsoft Word! Just . . . thank you so much! You know, if the entire world ran off of Microsoft, then we never would have been able to magically hack into that alien mothership, and the title of that movie wouldn’t have become an accidentally hilarious pun!

Whoops!

[The 7.5 movie’s epilogue sucked, by the way. Just leave before the epilogue—do you some good.]

Figure 16

All right, all right, all right.

So we’ve learned that the Waterbenders totally get a 1up at the full moon.

And how do they spend it?

Doing absolutely nothing.

While the Northern Water Tribe just sits on the collective donkey all day, the Fire Nation is bidding its time to strike when they are super-powered.

Why did you attack them during the freaking day?! Why not the freaking night, when it actually makes more sense to do so?

Because you have no tactical strategy.

Oh, and you suck.

@_@

But what did I mean?

The world may never know!

Figure 17

Well, well, well.

There’s a double innuendo there, if you look closely enough at what I said.

All right! I want each and every single one of you males with girlfriends in the crowd to waltz up to her parents and tell them you want to protect her and be her bodyguard.

No, no, go ahead, I’ll wait.

[waits for the correct demographic to leave, and probably some of the other demographics as well]

Well, actually, there’s no need to wait for them, because they’ll never come back.

I mean, what the monkeyfeathers? Does Chief Arnook want Sokka and Yue to get it on? Stop throwing him bones, you dirty chief!

Oh, there’s another pun in there.

If you squint.

On an unrelated note, Bryke thinks it’s Yuokka, not Yukka. Why can’t HollywoodNick get it right?!

Figure 18

Right . . . right . . . it’s apparently once again to play how much common sense do you have?! Starring our hosts, Mr. Stupidity and Miss Bellum!

[hands out paper hats and Russian saucers]

Why?

Because we don’t have any common sense.

Right, right, right. Okay, question. How long can someone hold his or her breath underwater?

To Google!

[one Google search later]

Okay, here’s the answer:

In regular water, it’s 45-75 seconds.

Looks doable.

In water colder than sixty degrees Fahrenheit—which Arctic water definitely is—it’s shortened to only 15 to 25 seconds.

In water at forty-one degrees, which it may be, the number was as low as 9.5 seconds.

Holy freaking monkeyfeathers!

Especially coupled with the fact that Zuko looks around, sees the hole, and then doesn’t come up for breath again. Just dives in.

._.

Even if we assume he passively Firebend-warmed himself—which is totally a Firebending skill in my opinion; Tibetan monks can do that, fools!—it doesn’t excuse the physics and timing.

Oh, and the fire hands.

The fire hands.

Figure 19

Aang’s on drugs. Sorry. But wait, it gets better! Just you wait for 313, folks.

Then Aang gets some roofies.

Figure 20

A lot of people decided to use this as Zutara support.

[looks]

I can’t see it.

Why don’t I see it?

Because it’s not freaking there.

You want to know the truth about Zutara? You really want to know the truth about Zutara? It’s all because of jealousy. See, most of the female fans of the show identify themselves with Katara. Katara is like the “Avatar-them” . . . and Zuko is the guy that most female fans think is “hot”. So . . . to see the “goth girl” get the “hot guy” and for them to get the “kid brother” is a little jarring . . . so most of Zutara can be written off an jealousy.