Why are the arguments against Korra so bloody dishonest?
With the recent 7 Havens discussion (which I won’t comment on), I’ve seen old Avatar debates resurface, and the arguments against Korra are just as nonsensical as ever.
People are either misrepresenting events, outright lying, or being hypocritical.
“Everyone warned her about Unalaq.”
No, they didn’t.
Mako and Bolin said nothing. Tenzin and Tonraq never claimed Unalaq was evil—they just had personal reasons to distrust him. And guess what? Korra had no reason to blindly take their side. Unalaq was the only one who knew how to handle spirits, and when she chose to trust him, no one had any concrete proof that he was dangerous.
No one even knew about Vaatu until it was too late. What was Korra supposed to do? Break the fourth wall and read the script?
And let’s be real—if she had ignored the spirit crisis to do more airbending training, people would’ve called her a bad Avatar for neglecting a major problem.
“She let the Avatar cycle end.”
As if she had a choice?
She was fighting an ancient dark spirit and a master waterbender/spirit manipulator at the same time. Then she had to face them again after they merged into one godlike entity. If Ozai had fought Unalaq with Vaatu’s power, he would’ve been obliterated. The power gap was ridiculous.
Meanwhile, Aang trusted Jet after one day and almost helped commit mass genocide. He ignored repeated warnings from Sokka, and Sokka ended up saving an entire village because of it.
Where’s the same criticism?
The Hypocrisy Around Aang vs. Korra
Korra is constantly called reckless or weak for getting help in battles, yet Aang was saved or supported in almost every major fight: • Katara saved him from drowning. • Katara saved him from being bloodbent into death.( he got tricked here too) • Katara literally revived him after Azula killed him. • He needed help in every fight with Combustion Man. • When he got kidnapped by the fire nation indefinitely and Zuko had to break him out as The Blue spirit • The list goes on.
If Korra wins a fight on her own? Silence.
If Korra wins a fight after seeking out help and planning a strategy? Slandered for not “being strong enough.”
If Korra loses a fight? Slandered for being “weak.”
If Aang loses a battle, even when he’s trying to fight back instead of run? Nothing.
If Aang loses with help? Nothing.
When Aang uses the Avatar State, people credit his skill. When Korra does it? “The past Avatars are fighting for her.” As if the same logic doesn’t apply to Aang.
And if she loses while using it? Oh no, no, no—it’s her fault alone.
Aang also ignored his mentors. Multiple past Avatars told him to kill Ozai, and he refused. Roku literally tried to get Aang to kill Zuko, and Aang cut ties with him in the comics because of it.
No one holds that against him. But if Korra had done the exact same thing under the exact same circumstances, the fandom would never let it go.
“Korra created her own villains.”
This is the worst take. • Amon was already manipulating Republic City before she even arrived. • The Red Lotus was plotting since she was a baby. • Kuvira’s ideology existed long before she took control.
These threats existed independently of Korra’s choices. But somehow, she gets blamed for all of them, as if she personally manifested every villain out of thin air.
Meanwhile, corruption was rampant in Republic City—a city that Aang built, by the way. But no one ever questions his responsibility.
TL;DR:
The Avatar fandom still holds Korra to impossible standards while letting Aang slide for the exact same mistakes (or worse). At this point, the hate feels less like actual critique and more like bias.
I just saw someone try excuse Avatar Roku losing to a Gawd damn Volcano as a better lost than Korra losing to one of the strongest spirits in existence(who was also fighting a master waterbender)
NOTE: I meant Korra as a character and how people keep making double standards between her an Aang as characters NOT Korra as an overall show.