Every fan of the world of Avatar: The Last Airbender the its series The Legend of Korra knows how carefully Korra's story of 'coming out' was built towards and developed, eventually leading to the monumental Korra finale moment -- monumental for not only the Avatar universe, but children's television as a whole. Korra became one of the first major children's protagonists to express a fluid sexual orientation. And to this day, despite the show being off the air for years, Korra has continued to be a strong representation for the LGBTQ+ community.
Just as the Aang Gang's story continued off the screen through comic books, so too does the life of Korra. Much like the Last Airbender comics, the Korra comics are made in sets of trilogies, with the final part of the second trilogy, Ruins of the Empire, having recently concluded. The comics are produced by Dark Horse Comics, with the entire project being carefully overseen by the original show creators Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino. As the television series ended on the love between Korra and Asami finally blooming, the comics are able to actually explore and feature this relationship together as a couple.
Rather than focusing too much on the relationship as a plot device, the comics treat the bond the same as any other relationship in a comic book, receiving praise for demonstrating the kind of representation the LGBTQ+ community, especially those of color, have been asking for. In a recent interview with Newsarama, artist Rachel Roberts confirms that's no coincidence, but a focused effort to make Korra and Asami's relationship unremarkable, in the healthiest way:
Our two lead characters are bisexual women of color. It’s crucial to acknowledge this. LGBTQ+ people of color face much more hardship than white community members and are underrepresented across all forms of mainstream pop culture. It’s critical for anyone, especially children and teens, to be able to see themselves portrayed and represented positively. There has been a growing trend of inclusion and acceptance in mainstream kids’ media recently, whether it’s comics, books, or TV, and I’m happy that Korra has a place in that.
Coming out stories are important, but so are stories that depict same-sex relationships as an everyday normal - because they are! In Ruins of the Empire, we’ve moved past the coming out phase; Korra and Asami are busy with the ins-and-outs of their daily lives and their Team Avatar duties, but now they just so happen to be in a relationship. Just like any other couple, they have their fair share of self-doubt, nerves, strife… elemental powers and the Avatar state… electrified gloves… trips into the Spirit World… y’know, totally normal relationship stuff.
While it seems that things in the Avatar world are in a constant state of re-balancing, it appears that the amount of action, adventure, and relationship drama are well balanced in this series, providing a deeper look into both the world of Avatar and the relationship between Korra and Asami that fans have been begging for. Ruins of the Empire part 3 is out now at a local comic shop near you.
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Source: Newsarama