Metalbending
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Metalbending is a special subset of techniques within Earthbending that allows an Earthbender to ferrokinetically bend processed metals much as they would bend regular earth. It was developed by Toph Bei Fong in the episode "The Guru". As of the end of the series, Toph remains the only known individual capable of Metalbending.
In the episode "The Guru", during a lecture on chakras, Guru Pathik explained to Aang that metal is merely earth that has been purified and refined. Using her unique ability to "see" through Earthbending, Toph is able to perceive the trace amount of earth still present in the metal, target it, and utilize it to "bend" the metal itself.
The existence of Metalbending was first hinted at by Aang in the episode "The Drill" when he sarcastically states "What I'd give to be a Metalbender," as he tries to carve a notch in the hull of a giant drill with Waterbending.
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[edit] History
Most Earthbenders are unable to manipulate processed metals with their bending. This inability was first demonstrated in "Imprisoned", in which Earthbender prisoners, taken captive by the Fire Nation, were brought to a completely metal rig in the middle of the ocean to exploit this weakness. The Earthbenders' helplessness due to their situation was stressed several times in the episode.
In the episode "The Earth King", Toph was captured in a metal cage by Xin Fu and her former teacher, Master Yu. During the next episode, "The Guru", she tries desperately to break the cage until one of her captors chided that, even if she was the best Earthbender alive, it was impossible to bend metal. At this point, Toph realized that metal was only purified earth, just as Guru Pathik was explaining this to Aang many miles away at the Eastern Air Temple. Toph started to meditate on her cage until she was able to feel the vibrations of the trace amounts of earth in the metal. By using these remaining fragments, Toph used Metalbending for the first time, tearing a hole in her cage so that she could escape.
[edit] Limits
Toph's Metalbending seems to be restricted to close-range manipulation; in almost all cases she has had to be standing close to or in direct contact with the metal she intends to bend. Toph has "scrunched" and otherwise deformed sheets of metal, but has never caused it to levitate or freely reshape itself the way she has with earth. This was also shown in "The Runaway" when Toph could not escape from a wooden prison cell, despite there being a metal cell directly adjacent to it. In addition, she appeared unable to bend her and Katara's gold jewelery to escape their wooden cage, so it may be that not all metals can be manipulated by metalbending, although it's possible they just didn't think about it at the time. However, in "The Crossroads of Destiny", when she was able to make direct contact with a metal cell door, she was able to blast it off its hinges with such force that it ricocheted four times around the inside of the prison corridor before coming to rest. In "Sokka's Master", Sokka gives Toph a small piece of meteorite, composed of an earth and metal hybrid, which she can easily mold into a myriad of shapes, and subsequently transforms it into an arm bracelet she now wears.
In "The Awakening", she was seen to be able to greatly increase the range of her metalbending, as seen when she knocked Fire Nation guards off the group's ship from several meters away, simply by grabbing a piece of her ship and crunching the metal with her hands to produce the effect. Also in that episode, it seems that she can "see" through metal just the same as on regular earth.
Other moments when Toph was shown using Metalbending include blasting another door in "The Puppetmaster" to free Hama's prisoners, opening a big hole in the Fire Lord's secret underground bunker, granting them passage, and trapping a Dai Li agent in a metal column, the last two in "The Day of Black Sun, Part 2: The Eclipse".
Toph seems to have furthered her ability to control metal in "Sozin's Comet, Part 3: Into The Inferno" now controling it more fluidly. She uses the metal of a destroyed Fire Nation airship door to make a suit of armor in the same manner as the more traditional Earth Armor technique. She also is able to manipulate the metal plating in the command bay of the airship from a short distance (as opposed to direct contact needed previously) to pin her opponents to the walls.
[edit] Conjecture
In "Return to Omashu", Bumi Earthbends while trapped in a metal box. No part of him is in contact with the earth (although several Earthbenders in the series have demonstrated the ability to bend earth from a distance), so it is possible that he bent through the metal (though there's a possibility that Bumi used his face to Earthbend since his limbs are locked inside the metal coffin). This may indicate a sophisticated type of metal/earth bending, but in view of Bumi's extensive experience, and creativity, it is realistic to believe that he could learn such an advanced bending discipline. However, in "The Old Masters" it is revealed Bumi used rocks to tear open the metal coffin, not Metalbending, which remains consistent with Bumi's reply to Aang that he could still Earthbend as his face had not been covered. This seems the most likely explanation, as Bumi seems to throw his head back to Earthbend while in the coffin and it is also to a much lesser extent than his talent had been when he fought Aang, implying he was greatly limited by only having his head to work the earth with.
Because Aang also has working knowledge of Seismic Sense, it is possible that he may be able to learn Metalbending should he hone that skill.
