This screenshot motivational poster is dedicated to all of my Zutara, Sukka, and Taang-loving friends, fellow artists, fans, and brethren. So, sit back, relax, and soak in that Zutara genuineness and brilliance, that Sukka gorgeousness and splendor, and that Taang lovability and sweetness.
I will say this once and I will say this again. I am a proud, loyal, devout, and dedicated Zutarian, Sukkan, and Taanger and I am very ecstatic to be a shipper of these three couple from my most favorite Nicktoon of all time, Avatar: The Last Airbender. There is no way I am ever going to abandon my three precious ships because they have meant the world to me ever since I first tuned to Avatar: The Last Airbender as a thirteen-year-old boy in the seventh grade and when it ended when I was a sixteen-year-old sophomore high school student. In a way, these three couples have played such a significant role during my time as a loyal viewer to the show.
My shipping history commenced at age thirteen with Zutara thanks to me believing that I thought they looked quite nice together. It was not until I was fourteen and became a bit internet-savvy that I started to be immersed in a lot of Zuko x Katara fan art, thus increasing my fascination with this couple all while my nascent sentiments for Sukka were going to be fully realized.
At fifteen, I was still quite invested not only with this show but still with Zutara as well as Sukka, and I also had my first few experiences shipping Aang with Toph, though I was a bit unsure because I first saw them as just friends. Nevertheless, the seeds were about to sown for me to hold Taang as a nice OTP.
At sixteen, I may have been really happy that Sokka x Suki was fully realized, but I was quite disappointed that Zuko x Katara and Aang x Toph did not end up as the endgame couples, even though how the show ended was quite satisfying, despite some ends that need to be met with Ursa, Zuko’s and Azula’s mother, Zuko ending up with Mai, Aang ending up with Katara, and Toph still a singleton. Shipping-wise, Kataang did not really appeal to me, despite me appreciating how much they were there for each other, and Maiko was charming and likable but lacked that extra bite that I wanted in Zutara. Nevertheless, I still kept on shipping Zutara, Sukka, and Taang to my heart’s content.
Throughout my late-teens and early twenties to mid-twenties, I found myself continuing to love all three of my OTPs for life, even though my love for Zutara and Taang was wavering much later in my life.
Nowadays, thanks to the research I have done centering these ships, the videos I have been watching from Joshua Fagan, and realizing that there is a whole throng of fellow Zutarians, Sukkans, and Taangers not only here on DeviantArt, but also on FanFiction.net, Archive of Our Own, and many other sites I can barely name off the top of my head, I have become more proud than ever to relish in my three most beloved Avatar: The Last Airbender OTPs for life and have sufficient reasons in doing so.
Each of these pairings bear certain concepts of romantic love that have not only become tropes found in certain works, but also what defines each of them as a couple, and how each of them can work from there. Will there be conflicts in their relationships? Yes. However, I believe Zutara, Sukka, and Taang are more than able to use conflicts and trials to overcome whatever weaknesses they have to not only become stronger people, but also stronger couples and have well-established families.
With that said, I shall go in-depth to what Zutara, Sukka, and Taang signify to me in terms of those said romantic concepts.
Zuko and Katara: Profound Love that was born from Pain, Sorrow, Grief, and Strife but has Blossomed into Triumph, Strength, and Truth
Zutara represents love that is full of challenges, trials, and pain but they carry through and can acknowledge each others’ strengths, weaknesses, good sides, bad sides, ugly sides, and can grow together like a couple of phoenixes willing to heal even the most dour of wounds.
Superficially, they may bear opposite personalities, but it could not be further from the truth, as both of them have far more in common than they think. Both Zuko and Katara lost a significant member from their families, used grief and strife as a coping mechanism to overcome their trials, and summon the strength and passion to thrive through all the pain thanks to their compassionate hearts. Nevertheless, both of them have superb father figures to show them that they are more capable than they already are with Zuko having his uncle/surrogate father Iroh in his life and with Katara having her father Hakoda in her life.
Zuko does not see Katara as a prize he can gain nor does he idealize her. He sees her as a young woman who has the world on her shoulders, a whole lot of strength to survive, and who does not flinch at exposing her dark side. Katara may have had her doubts about Zuko to the point of being bitter at him, but after understanding why he was carrying so much emotional baggage, she displayed how much empathy she had for him. Ergo, both of them have no trepidation of going deep into the dark side to discover that there is a light at the other end of the tunnel, and escape alive, well, and a whole lot stronger than they already are. Despite all of the trials they would have together, they would learn to accept that they have a lot more in common than they initially think.
In terms of family life, Zuko and Katara would rule as the Fire Lord and the Fire Lady who will ensure peace throughout the land, ensure a growing economy, and balance to be pervasive most notably between the Fire Nation and the Water Tribe. Zuko and Katara would be the stern yet compassionate parents who ensure responsibility, respect, honor, honesty, and compassion within their family to ensure that their children take full responsibility of their actions, words, and character with Zuko being the strict yet caring and honorable father and Katara being the courageous, determined, and fierce mother who ensures that no harm comes to herself, her husband, and her children. Together, they will protect their family from all pernicious harm and ensure a secure and brilliant future for their family and for the world.
Sokka and Suki: Stable Love that was born from Mutuality, Determination, Perseverance, and Valor, thus leading Two Warriors on the Road to Glory and Honor
Sukka represents love that is loyal, dutiful, unwavering, faithful, and strong because of how much they are willing to fight by each others’ side and have nothing encroach the nest they have built and established together, thus ensuring that no invader is brazen to destroy their abode.
It seemed that destiny brought this aspiring warrior of undisclosed cleverness and this experienced young woman warrior of lethal grace together to complete each others’ lives. Sometimes Sokka would tend to be full of pride and Suki would display her sass. However, what would effectively bring these two together is their love of wit, undying loyalty, and super strong will to bow down to no man and ensure that destiny is in their hands and their hands alone. One can only tell how proud father dearest Hakoda would be at his son for having a woman in his life who is unafraid to speak her mind and challenge his beliefs about being a true warrior.
There are so many facets Sokka could learn from Suki because of how much she can stir oodles of inspiration within Sokka to be a much better fighter than he is. In turn, Suki could also learn to appreciate the simpler things in life thanks to Sokka’s dry and witty remarks and love for life as a whole. It is through this dynamic that both of them make it their primary endeavor to not only grow as warriors but also as people who will always be there for each other through thick and thin.
As a family, Sokka and Suki would open their own school for aspiring warriors who fight for peace, justice, love, honor, strength, and courage. They would take turns in wearing the pants in this relationship but Sokka would not mind if Suki ended up doing so because of how much he is so willing to give her respect and allegiance. In fact, respect and allegiance is what they would be teaching their children, as muscles, methods, and might can bring one so far, but without respect, allegiance, honor, and character, one would do himself or herself such serious dishonor and shame. Sokka would be the charismatic, witty, charming father who ensures their children to be on the straight and narrow while Suki would be just as charismatic but also firm, relentless, and strong-minded as a mother. Essentially, they would build their humble abode as a strong fortress which will keep invaders away.
Aang and Toph: Young Love that was born from Acceptance, Understanding, Hope, and Honesty in order to tackle Any Obstacle Head On
Taang represents love that commences as mere friendship and camaraderie but blossoms into admiration, depth, and the full realization that they are made for each other thanks to their similarities and differences.
One might just think that Aang and Toph are really adorable together, but that is only scratching the surface of what these two young souls are all about. Aang’s idealism and Toph’s bluntness can challenge each other to make them realize that there can be a middle ground set no matter how small or how huge the problem is. Their strong beliefs are what give them the ability to show anyone that they are not to be messed with in the slightest iota. Moreover, this is the classic case of Toph wearing the pants in this relationship, which Aang would never mind at all, as this also creates an interesting dynamic in their relationship. However, Aang is no pushover and he will have moments where he will remind Toph that a little bit of humility, compassion, and grace never killed anybody.
What would make their relationship have weight is that both of them understand what it feels like being completely in love with someone, only to fully realize that their crushes were just idealized versions of what their love life could have been, while realizing that someone can be able to truly understand them. Aang may have gotten kisses on the cheek by Katara in the first two seasons and in the first few episodes of the third season, but as soon as he puts the moves on her in the later parts of the third season especially on “The Ember Island Players”, Katara told Aang that she was really confused. Meanwhile, Toph did have a huge crush on Sokka from Seasons 2 to 3, but he is constantly fixated on Suki. Should Toph tell Sokka that she really likes him, he might end up telling her that he likes her too, but as a friend because Suki had that extra special something which made her stronger than she actually was. This experience of having a first crush would show Aang and Toph that being in a relationship is not as easy as it seems, and they cannot rely on their idealized, preconceived notions to think that love is tied to seeing someone as the perfect partner. There is more to love than meets the eye, as Aang would learn to let go of his schoolboy crush on Katara by understanding that she is not a prize to attain and that she has her own flaws and her own personality, and Toph would realize that her whole perception on Sokka as her perfect man was just a fleeting vision and he was someone with his own dreams and desires. Therefore, this common experience of first love through crushes was what these two young benders had in common and it was what brought them together.
Aang and Toph would take time in establishing a family, not only because they are the youngest couple in the group, but also because both of them would have their respective duties of being the Avatar in Aang’s case and an instructor to young Earthbenders as well as being active with the Earthbender army in Toph’s case. By the time they come of age, Aang and Toph would profess their fidelity and love for each other. Once they tie the knot, they would raise a family that is based on togetherness, a firm sense of respect for all living beings, responsibility to their duties to ensure balance in the world, and never giving up when life gets them down. As mentioned before, Toph would wear the pants in this relationship, thus being the breadwinner and the one to bring home the bacon and ensure discipline to their children as the independent-minded mother of the family. Meanwhile, Aang would be the nurturing, kind, caring father who will ensure that their children have a roof on their heads and healthy family home they can be proud of. It is through these principles of positivity and respect that their family will never ever waver.
So, there you have it, folks, my three most beloved couples from Avatar: The Last Airbender that I am so proud to be a hardcore shipper of. Whether it is Zutara’s raw genuineness, Sukka’s tight allegiance, and Taang’s dynamic fidelity, I can never get enough of how phenomenal they continue to be in my eyes. Therefore, I am so happy to say that they have stood the test of time despite all of the obstacles coming along the way.
In conclusion, if I were to rank these Avatar couples, it would be this. The bronze medal would go to Taang or Aang x Toph for displaying how well young love can spring moving on from first crushes and finding someone who can be that genuine forever person, thus accepting each other for who they really are. The silver medal would go to Sukka or Sokka x Suki for demonstrating how a tight, well-knit relationship can overcome all obstacles and build their home based on that sense of allegiance and spousal duty. Finally, the gold medal would go to Zutara for demonstrating how perseverance, resilience, and determination can overcome anything especially their own dark sides and find that silver light at the end of the tunnel.
I hope you all enjoyed this and I will see you in the next submission. Take care and stay safe, everybody.
Zuko, Katara, Sokka, Suki, Aang, and Toph from Avatar: The Last Airbender belong to Bryan Konietzko, Michael DiMartino, and Nickelodeon.
