No! No way am I apologizing to a sour old man like you!
Katara is my forever girl. She is so fierce and passionate and she fights for what she wants. Katara’s ambition and drive is evident in the very first episode, when she asks Aang to take her to the North Pole to find a waterbending master.
Along the way she is constantly working on improving her bending on her own, going so far as to steal a scroll from pirates to learn some new moves. And when Aang masters not only the moves she has learned so far but others as well with ease she gets so angry and yells at him because she is jealous of his natural talent.
However she apologizes and soon masters a new move herself: the water whip. So throughout the whole first season we see how much Katara wants to master waterbending, how much she practices, how passionate she is about this.
And yet fandom says she is a “Mary Sue”. Why? Because apparently her mastering of waterbending was “too quick”, saying that there is no way Katara could have advanced so quickly after just finding a master. That there is no way her waterbending could be so powerful after a few episodes, despite her having shown before how powerful she can be when angry (like in the very first episode). It wasn’t this sudden rush of new power- she was always very powerful, but only able to harness that power when experiencing strong emotions (mainly anger). Yet it isn’t until she finds a Master to teach her how to use that power at will that she is finally able to tap into that power easily. Which makes sense if you ask me.
And let’s talk about what Katara has to do in order to even have a Master. She travels across the world, leaving her home for the very first time, to study waterbending with the Avatar. The whole journey there she is constantly practicing and improving so that she will be ready when the time comes. But when she finally reaches the North Pole, finally finds an excellent waterbender to teach her she is dismissed. She is dismissed, cast aside without even a second glance by this so-called Master. Pakku does not think Katara is worthy of being taught because she is a girl.
Which holy shit has happened to me so many times in my life that I have to admit I wasn’t even surprised when he said that. Because that is the attitude I have faced my entire life- especially when it comes to sports. The difference in privilege between male and female athletes is astounding. And it’s not just professional women athletes who face this. This dismissal of female athletes begins at a very young age, usually before they are old enough to even enter Kindergarten. Boys are thought to be ~more physically capable~ than girls so the average male athlete is coached much better than the average female athlete.
I bring this up because I this is what comes to my mind when Katara enters the healing hut for her lesson. And let me set this straight- there is nothing wrong with learning about healing. Healing is just as important as fighting, in fact probably more important in a place like the North Polo because there are not as many healers as fighters. Katara’s ability to heal gives her an advantage over other waterbenders and shows just how great a bender she is- she is one of, if not the only, waterbender who can both fight and heal when this series takes place.
No what I’m talking about is the difference in how each area of waterbending is treated. The male waterbenders are treated with much respect- performing at the banquet, Master Pakku seated next to Chief Arnook, the training area being much bigger and a spot obviously chosen with a lot of care in mind for different training scenarios, how they are treated by the tribe. While the women waterbenders are barely acknowledged- their lesson is in a small hut with only one single human figure to learn and practice healing on, the girls are all young which indicates that female waterbenders are only allowed to master the basics of healing, Yugoda is not treated with the same respect as Pakku despite being the other waterbending teacher.
At first Katara tries to go along, but then decides that if Pakku won’t teacher her than she’ll have Aang teach her what Pakku has taught him. But Pakku catches them and proceeds to dismiss Aang as weel, saying he will no longer teach him. But Aang needs to master waterbending as the Avatar, and Katara knows this, which is why she asks Chief Arnook to make Pakku take Aang back as a pupil. Arnook proceeds to be as condescending as Pakku and says that Pakku might reconsider if she “swallows her pride” and apologizes. And she’s is about to do it. She is going to do it not because she is sorry, she has no reason to be sorry, but because she is doing this for Aang. But then Pakku just has to chime in with this- I’m waiting little girl.
That is the last straw for Katara. Which brings me to the line that heads this post- she refuses to apologize. She refuses, and challenges him to a fight. Because she did not come all this way for nothing.
I know what that’s like- to work so hard for something only to be dismissed because I’m a girl. That no matter how strong I am, how dedicated, how passionate, how hard I work I will never be as good as my male counterpart. Which is fucking bullshit.
Katara knows that it’s bullshit as well. And when it becomes apparent that she can’t reason with him, she does what all female athletes have to do at least one point in their lives- she fights for it. She fights for her right not only to learn as a pupil under this Master, but also for the right to be taken seriously as a waterbender. Katara knows she cannot when this fight, she is nowehere near skilled enough, but it isn’t about winning. And it isn’t about Aang.
She is fighting for herself. She is fighting with all her rage and anger and desire- and it is evident in the difference in her style used in this battle compared to Pakku’s. His stance is more calm and reassured, which is due to not only his skill as a Master but also because he has no personal investment in this fight. Katara is giving it her all though- charging in, refusing to be knocked down, popping back up on her feet again and again. It is her persistence and determination, more than her skill, that allows the fight to last so long. Pakku thought that he would be able to end it in one move by intimidating her and throwing her off her balance. But Katara won’t give up- it is not until the she is imprisoned in ice that the fight ends, and even then she is yelling for it to continue.
One of Katara’s most amazing qualities is that she nevers gives up. She won’t give up on herself and she’s won’t give up on others. She fights for what she wants and protects the ones she loves. Her determination and desire allow her to master waterbending, and she uses her emotions to give her strength. Some of her greatest qualities are also some of her greatest flaws- her intense anger that gives her so much strength is also used to hurt others and fuels her hatred.
“Mary-Sue” my ass- which in fact is just a misogynistic term that fandom uses to try to justify their dislike of certain ladies and erase their character development. SO BASICALLY IT NEEDS TO BE DESTROYED.