Usually when I give movies or shows a 10/10 it's because I have next to no issues with it. Like you have a series such as Breaking Bad where almost every episode is borderline perfect (obviously in my opinion) until you have that one Fly episode. Whilst it's not exactly as good as others, it's still a very well thought out piece of writing. Well ATLA is slightly different where many episodes aren't really that close to being as good as the best of the best and there are even a few that really aren't that great e.g. The Great Divide, Avatar Day etc. If that's the case then how could I possibly give this entire series a 10/10? Well...
The payoff is just that good. That final season is without a doubt one of the greatest seasons of television I've ever seen. Almost every character is given an opportunity to shine and round off their character arcs. Even more minor characters such as Ty Lee and Mei have more depth than you would initially expect. Characters are consistent and through to the end and make decisions clearly based on previous experiences. They make mistakes and are forced change to counter them. Even sometimes the opposite where they achieve at something and cause issues later on.
Besides just the writing, how can I talk about this series without acknowledging the action because it's insane. The writers and animators used the bending power system in so many unique ways (especially in episodes such as the S2 finale). And even in some basic villain confrontations the movements of the characters are so fluid and never downgrade in quality. They also did an amazing job showing off the progression of how powerful and skilled the characters become across each season.
What's also so charming about this series is that it's an animated show aimed at kids yet it takes itself so seriously and never really dumbs down to fit the younger audience. Instead it chooses to teach kids about real world conflicts and lets them make a decision on how they feel about certain situations. On a surface level, Zuko's entire character is the basic never judge a book by its cover trope and gives children an insight that people really can change if you give them a chance.
So, whilst every single episode or every scene is definitely not perfect, the conclusion to different storylines and character arcs is just so damn good that I can't rate it any lower. This is basically the perfect example of how a "kids show" should be written.
The payoff is just that good. That final season is without a doubt one of the greatest seasons of television I've ever seen. Almost every character is given an opportunity to shine and round off their character arcs. Even more minor characters such as Ty Lee and Mei have more depth than you would initially expect. Characters are consistent and through to the end and make decisions clearly based on previous experiences. They make mistakes and are forced change to counter them. Even sometimes the opposite where they achieve at something and cause issues later on.
Besides just the writing, how can I talk about this series without acknowledging the action because it's insane. The writers and animators used the bending power system in so many unique ways (especially in episodes such as the S2 finale). And even in some basic villain confrontations the movements of the characters are so fluid and never downgrade in quality. They also did an amazing job showing off the progression of how powerful and skilled the characters become across each season.
What's also so charming about this series is that it's an animated show aimed at kids yet it takes itself so seriously and never really dumbs down to fit the younger audience. Instead it chooses to teach kids about real world conflicts and lets them make a decision on how they feel about certain situations. On a surface level, Zuko's entire character is the basic never judge a book by its cover trope and gives children an insight that people really can change if you give them a chance.
So, whilst every single episode or every scene is definitely not perfect, the conclusion to different storylines and character arcs is just so damn good that I can't rate it any lower. This is basically the perfect example of how a "kids show" should be written.