The Legend of Korra arrived on Netflix on August 14th. The presence of the TV show on Netflix has rekindled a year-old debate that first began when the show premiered on Nickelodeon in 2012. Is Korra more powerful than Aang van Avatar: The Last Airbender?
[Spoiler Alert: This article contains spoilers for Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra.]
Fans are still debating this question
When one does a quick search online, it is clear to see that fans have been debating whether Korra has been stronger than Aang for a while. With both Avatar: The Last Airbender en The Legend of Korra on Netflix now it seems that debate among fans has only intensified.
‘I think Korra is physically stronger than Aang and probably mentally as well. It’s hard to compare them because they’ve both achieved as much as the Avatar and are great at different things. We never see Aang (or Korra) in their prime and it is not that fair to judge them against each other when Aang is younger / less experienced. However, Korra’s handball in battle and defeating more threatening enemies is more impressive to me than what Aang did, “suggested one Reddit user.
Another Reddit user disagreed, writing, “Korra is canonically weaker in Avatar form that Aang, because of her, loses all the power and experience of previous Avatars, vs Aang who has it all for her.”
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Why fans think Aang could be stronger than Korra
In Avatar: The Last Airbender, Aang was already a master of aerial bending by the time he was 12 years old. He was also skilled at fighting and could take over multiple people at once with just air drilling.
Most Avatars do not learn to be the Avatar until they are 16 years old, but Aang was told when he was 12 years old because of the growing power of the Fire Nation. While in Avatar State, he kept himself 100 years alive in ice. When he wakes up, he then goes through learning the other three elements within a very short time frame.
Aang also learned energy bending at a young age. He uses this newly added power during his fight with Fire Lord Ozai to put out Ozai’s fire. Aang learned how to be energetic, so he did not have to kill Ozai, because it went against his morals. He is seen using energy bending in a flashback inside The Legend of Korra if he takes away the power of a bloodbender.
When publicly meets Aang for the first time, he has trouble entering the Avatar State. He could only do this in times of need and he had no control over it. At the end of the series, he learned how to control it. Aang also always had a strong connection with the Spirit World during Avatar: The Last Airbender.
Reason Korra is stronger than Aang
When publicly meeting Korra, she is 16 years old and already has mastery of water bend, earth bend, and fire burning. Aang’s son Tenzin then teaches her airbending in the first season. Unlike Aang, it is shown that Korra can break out of the control of a bloodbender without going into Avatar State.
While Korra constantly wrestled with her spiritual side in The Legend of Korra, she showed remarkable strength with it. At the end of Season 2, she unleashes the ability to become a ghost titan, even after losing her connection to past Avatars.
Korra is skilled in metal bending and curing, both rare forms of earth bending and water bending. Even without bending, Korra possesses a lot of raw strength.
In season 3 of The Legend of Korra, a villain named Zaheer poisons Korra in an attempt to force her into Avatar State to kill her. He befriends Korra, and she is able to go into Avatar State long enough to survive.
Who is more powerful?
With both Avatar: The Last Airbender en The Legend of Korra, fans see Aang or Korra not reaching their full potential. Instead, they see the two characters overcome their weaknesses as they learn to be the Avatar.
In one way or another, Aang and Korra are compliments of each other, and what the one uttered on the other has difficulty with. However, if you compare their ages, skill sets and the villains they face in their seasons, Korra comes across as stronger and more powerful than Aang.
