The de-mystification and industrialization of mysterious elite techniques like lightning or metal bending into sweatshop labor is potentially fascinating, but the show absolutely bungles it. The worldbuilding also suffers from too short a gap between the two shows for it to make sense imo.
I don't think the problem is really the gap. It doesn't seem unreasonable for people to invent cars and radios in the gap between the shows. The real problem is that America popped out of nowhere as a result of a melting pot of a variety of Asian inspired cultures. It's like the creators thought America is just the natural result of any melting pot, rather than the result of a European led melting pot.
It does that classic thing of fucking up the world building so you get engaged trying to fill in the gaps yourself.
Anyways I've got a head canon that lightning bending was restricted to the royal family because they executed anyone else who figured it out (like the color purple back in the day) and Zuko decided he wouldn't or couldn't pursue people who did it in Republic City
The de-mystification and industrialization of mysterious elite techniques like lightning or metal bending into sweatshop labor is potentially fascinating, but the show absolutely bungles it. The worldbuilding also suffers from too short a gap between the two shows for it to make sense imo.
I don't think the problem is really the gap. It doesn't seem unreasonable for people to invent cars and radios in the gap between the shows. The real problem is that America popped out of nowhere as a result of a melting pot of a variety of Asian inspired cultures. It's like the creators thought America is just the natural result of any melting pot, rather than the result of a European led melting pot.
It does that classic thing of fucking up the world building so you get engaged trying to fill in the gaps yourself.
Anyways I've got a head canon that lightning bending was restricted to the royal family because they executed anyone else who figured it out (like the color purple back in the day) and Zuko decided he wouldn't or couldn't pursue people who did it in Republic City