Aang is the main character of Avatar: The Last Airbender, and while he might not be everyone’s most favorite character, he’s generally well-liked as he has a lovable personality. Aang is really just a kid when he has to take on the responsibility of defeating the Firelord and restoring balance to the world, and he also goes through a ton of horrible things for his young age.
Because of the Fire Nation, Aang wakes up from the ice to a world where almost everyone he ever knew is dead, and he also endures many trials while on his journey to save the world. But, through all of this, he also has many heroic moments.
Felt Sorry For: When he got hit by Azula’s lightning
At the end of the second season, Aang and the rest of the team are dealt a devastating blow by Azula and her supporters. Aang is hit by Azula's lightning while in the Avatar State, and he nearly dies from this attack.
While Katara is able to heal him using the water from the Spirit Oasis, Aang is badly injured, and it also impedes his ability to go into the Avatar State.
Inspiring: Overcoming his fears to learn fire bending
When Aang first tries to fire, he accidentally burns Katara, and this really traumatizes him. He is then scared to use the element, and he even erroneously believes that he will be able to defeat the Firelord without learning it.
However, he overcomes his fears when he goes with Zuko to learn the truth about fire bending. He faces the fire bending masters, aka the dragons, and learns that fire is life and energy.
Felt Sorry For: His discovery that he’d been in ice for 100 years
When Aang wakes up to Katara’s face over him, he doesn’t exactly realize what has happened. He is excited about going penguin sledding, and he is pretty carefree about everything.
He has no idea that he’s been in ice for a hundred years and doesn’t know the state of the world. So, when he learns that the Fire Nation has been waging war on the world, it’s pretty devastating.
Inspiring: His understanding of how all living things are connected
One of the best things about Aang and one of his greatest strengths is that he appreciates all living things. He’s a vegetarian, and he has a kind heart. He was taught by the monks and other Air Nomads that the world is all connected, and it’s a great lesson that he learned.
His wisdom in this area is definitely inspiring, and it’s a life lesson that can be applicable to all of us in our own lives.
Felt Sorry For: When Appa was taken by sand benders
One of the saddest moments in the series overall is when Appa is stolen by the sand benders and then goes through a rather harrowing ordeal.
While everyone on Team Avatar was upset, Aang was distraught. Appa was like a friend to him, and he was also one of the very few times he had left to the Air Nomads and his life from before, so it was heartbreaking to see him so hurt.
Inspiring: When he committed to saving the world even though he was 12
Since The Last Airbender is technically an animated show for children, even if it has appeal to people of all ages, the characters are much younger than is really realistic.
However, it’s still inspiring that Aang is willing to dedicate his life to saving the world when he’s barely more than a child. Aang takes this responsibility seriously, and he is willing to do whatever it takes.
Felt Sorry For: When we learned what happened to him in "The Storm" episode
Aang knew he was the Avatar when he was just a kid, and this knowledge would be a lot for anyone to handle. When he finds out he’s going to be taken away from his home to train at the Eastern Air Temple, he gets scared and runs away.
This is how he ended up over the ocean when a storm hit, and he had to protect himself and Appa and become frozen in the ice. Aang is full of guilt for all of this, and it was definitely upsetting for fans to watch him struggle.
Inspiring: Takes down Admiral Zhao in a fight
Aang is very powerful in many ways. He has a lot of natural skills as a bender, but he also is able to adapt to many situations.
His ability to know when not to fight and how to use his opponents’ weaknesses against them was also inspiring. He is able to defeat Zhao by dodging and letting Zhao take down his own ships. It was a brilliant strategic move on Aang’s part.
Felt Sorry For: Seeing the destruction of the Southern Air Temple
Of all the sad moments that happen to Aang over the course of the series, one of, if not the, most heartbreaking is when he goes to the Southern Air Temple and sees how it was destroyed by the Fire Nation. He finds Monk Gyatso’s skeleton, and this is obviously really traumatic for him.
It’s really unfair that he had to see that at such a young age, and the grief of this genocide is unimaginable.
Inspiring: Taking down Firelord Ozai
Aang has many inspiring and heroic moments throughout the show, but the most epic and memorable of them all is when he defeats Ozai. He’s able to use all his strength and might as the Avatar to beat him in the fight, but he also ends Ozai in a way that was right.
Aang is quite gentle, and it’s one of his best traits. He stuck to what he thought was best and took Ozai’s bending away instead of killing him.