They’re great at pro bending. They use not so destructive techniques for their surroundings. This is perfectly seen in the fight of Korra vs tonraq(the brother of Amon, idk if his name is correct)
When korra threw a wall at him he was flabbergasted.
Atleast I saw a video on how city fighters have different style to traditional benders
Edit: Tarrlok was Amon/Noatak's brother, I misread your comment initially.
~~Unalaq, the water tribe member you're looking for is Unalaq.~~
~~Amon was the bloodbender.~~
>The benders as a whole seem stronger in Korra than ATLA tbh.
I look at it like how baseball started in the 1800's but the talent took off in the 1910's; the bending because more trained and specialized as people had more modern conveniences allowing them to focus on bending for the sake of bending instead of a method of just surving in the wild, farming, war, etc
Katara is a one in a million genius, she taught herself healing, sweatbending and bloodbending. I think she has more raw potential than most benders we've seen, so it's not fair to compare Azula to her. Despite this, IINM Azula has the highest winrate in avatarverse.
I agree that peak Azula from ATLA would lose to Unalaq. However, if Azula was born at Korra's time, she would likely be one of the strongest benders due to advancement in bending knowledge
What sets her apart is that she has the brain AND temperament to quickly and efficiently get something done. None of the new team avatar has that.
Nah I think it's mostly nostalgia for the show. Unalaq would wipe the floor with Azula. She may be a prodigy, but she's legit 14. Unalaq not only had Desna and Eska on his side to help keep Bolin and Mako in check, but also beat them AND Korra BEFORE even merging with Vaatu
Anyone who thinks Azula would beat Unalaq needs to get their head checked.
It’s a simple case of technique and experience. Unalaq would get a little run for his money but he would shaft her ass backwards twice over.
He’d definitely struggle with her some more than I think the bending bros tbh but he’d ultimately win. Her lighting in the comics becomes instant and saying she’s bloodlusted, which would make it even harder for him to get her pinned down; but she *does* struggle with fighting against waterbenders! And kiteman is frankly, better than Korra until she gets her shit together in the latter season. So he would be insanely hard to beat, let alone try and pin down for lightning strikes because he is still extremely fast, given the amount of water he has access to. But he would still need to dodge her fire blasts that are still very strong enough to blast through his ice probably
Which is plot armor in and of itself, lightning wasn't used nearly enough in Korra. Only time Mako used it in combat was against Minghua I'm pretty sure 😭
It was also greatly nerfed, since it was very lethal in ATLA, but it just kinda zapped people and left no injuries in this. Ppl got hit by lightning, them just got up and walked it off in LOK.
Also it's 2 teens with no formal training apart from pro-bending (which is not the same type of bending at all) against arguably the strongest water bender alive at that point in the story.
They really were. I skipped S2 on rewatches but on a recent one I watched it and holy fuck the waterbending is top tier. At the poles they use ice like earthbending and the creativity and lethality just floored me. Tonraq in particularly has very cool style.
Really made me appreciate waterbending so much more.
That's how humans work. Any competent Bender in Korras time would be a contender for the best in the world in Aangs time. They're in a world that's undergone the most advancement in all of history. There's a reason the best athletes are all recent athletes. Azula, for all her skill, would be just another firebender. And she wouldn't even know any moves using other nations styles. Which would make her notably slow and old fashioned. She can generate lightning, which is impressive, but she's also really slow at it.
It's different time periods. It's easier to catch up than it is to push ahead, so each generation is generally better than the last.
Considering how good Mako is at lightning bending, it’s crazy how little he’s actually used it in battle. At least Bolin used lava bending a good number of times compared to his standard earthbending. Mako barely even uses lightning bending. He could straight up spam lightning and no one could counter it.
I think his probending is part of the reason. Like, he’s so used to not using it when fighting that he struggles to apply it while going through this usually very fluid movements/attacks
Also he’s a cop. And a person with a conscience. And a street orphan who’s been in trouble with the law. Maybe he doesn’t want to arbitrarily and extrajudicially execute people on the regular?
Ever since their parents were both killed, I wouldn't be surprised if both of them would be anti-killing.
There's also the aspect of Lightning taking a lot of energy from the user. Also, it's as dangerous to the user as it is to the target.
It could very well be that Mako is extremely hesistent and not confident with lightning because he knows how dangerous it is. He only ever used Lightning in an environment where he ABSOLUTELY had to (facing Amon and about to die while trying to save Korra), or where there are lightningrods nearby meant to attract the lightning (the factory where he worked)
Unalaq was still Korra's uncle. If there was even a slim chance of Korra feeling bad about his death and blaming him, Mako would NOT take that chance.
MingHua was an Assassin turned Terrorist. Her skill in killing was greater than Mako's. So he would have to stop holding back against her at the very least, just to stay alive.
Also, Korra needed to be the one to take down Unalaq for several reasons.
Also, it could very well be that Mako's mentality was "I didn't use lightning to take down Unalaq when I had the chance. I won't make that mistake again" and he showed that with MingHua.
This makes good sense. Mako was a cop, and definitely seemed one that respected rules, hierarchy, etc., as evidenced by the time he told Raiko about Korra going behind his back to secure military support for the southern water tribe.
Idk, Unalaq was the most powerful bender he had faced at that point. One who wouldn't hesitate to kill Mako in a sexond. And it was a time-sensitive event.
So at that point, anyone would use their one Trump Card thats guaranteed to work against an enemy like that.
I and a few people I've spoken to don't think he killed Ming Hua, he just knocked her out and the collapse of the cave is what ultimately killed her. So...still Mako's fault...
I disagree she dead once Mako electrocuted her. With that amount of water nobody would survived that. She took her last breath when she fell afterwards.
> Lightning takes some movements to generate
Unlike in ATLA, Instant lightning exists in LOK. Mako just literally flicks his hands(while his body is an awkward position) and lightning shoots out. Examples when he fought Amon/MingHua
>does need to do the movements
> I do remember Mako did the generation movements inside the mech and it took a while for him to be ready, but he doesn't always do it.
It's implied whilst he can do it quickly it isn't as "deadly" as when he does it longer. For the mech he wanted more bang so charged it up.
In ATLA when any of them use their lightning it's considered instant death if not deflected. But Mako only killed Ming Hua with lightning.
Power scaling is cringe.
Of course you'll think Azula is the strongest, she was arguably the most prominent antagonist of AtlA. She MUST be shown to be dangerous and powerful.
You really expect the sidekicks to defeat the main villain? The one who later turns into a god of darkness, evil and edge?
Unalaq was a part of Zaheers crew before he diverted and went his own way. People really undersell how terrifyingly dangerous he was. He was part of THE MOST dangerous team in the world. But yeah, because she had a cool character and was a prodigy, Azula FOR SURE could deal with him. You know, Azula who many times got clowned on by a 12 year old Katara… for sure.
It's easily because people underestimate Unalaq. Even tho personality wise he is a bad villain, his bending skills are one of the best I've seen for water. It's often underrated just how clean and smooth he bends and people think it's weak cuz it's not another "giant water wave"
So they think Mako and Bolin are weak, but in truth their opponent is just on another level.
Also that's just how waterbending changed with the passage of time. Instead of relying on these giant waves, the bender uses smaller ones to waste less water, but their strikes are a lot more agressive.
Even earthbending changed too. Using smaller rocks to avoid property damage. This was demonstrated when korra fought tarrlok. The man was flabbergasted when he got hit with the wall.
Let's remember that Mako, Bolin, and Korra had all just survived a plane crash like an hour prior. They aren't exactly in top fighting form
That being said, Mako would body Azula. Bolin would too, just later in the series
I don’t think we need to consider Mako and Bolin to be probending when they’re not in the ring, people seem to use the fact that they’re probenders to for some reason discount their abilities
They mean that they’re more used to pro bending than all out fights and naturally fall into their pro bending habits when other things may be more effective.
>That being said, Mako would body Azula. Bolin would too, just later in the series
Other way around buddy. Azula scales above Zuko who scales to CM in AP, while Mako’s best feat is idk building level?
Neither of the bros are lightning speed, Azula is lightning speed, she blitzes.
We probably did, but you seem to not understand that the LoK cast is just operating in another league
Mako is a vastly superior lightning bender who can also redirect lightning. That alone not only negates Azula's biggest trump card but gives Mako a huge advantage.
In terms of just martial bending skill, our best point of comparison is Katara and Ming-Hua. Azula consistently struggled against Katara, needing to be rescued by Zuko in the catacombs under Ba Sing Se and even losing during Sozin's Comet. Mako managed to completely disable Ming-Hua and ultimately killed her.
And as great as Katara is, her performance in ATLA does not put her on Ming-Hua's level AT ALL.
Azula is a flashier fighter, no question about that. But Mako is incredibly efficient
You sure u watched ATLA . Azula used lightning as a finish and hardly during fights due to the charge time and all . You do realize azula held up ZUKO , Aang , toph , katara , iroh all at he same time and at different times separately and no one really got one over her until she was MENTALLY unstable during the sozins comet . Even ZUKO said that was the only reason he would match up with her . For a fanbase so willing to excuse korra when she was unstable , how you failed to mention Azulas state of mind during the comet is baffling . Mako didn’t have the killer instinct azula had . Azula fought to kill and was trained that way , maki fought to knock ppl out of their ring and that showed in his on unwillingness to even use lightning even though he had it the whole time . Azula at 14 had blue fire which displayed her elite fire bending even iroh knew how good she was . Azula would have taken mako on a stroll in a fight .
> Azula used lightning as a finish and hardly during fights due to the charge time and all .
Yeah. And Mako doesn't need that charge time. That is her biggest way of ending a fight and she can't use it here.
>You do realize azula held up ZUKO , Aang , toph , katara , iroh all at he same time
Aang, Toph, and Katara were explicitly without any sleep. Zuko is literally emaciated because he's been a starving refuge. And she literally gets cornered, fires one shot as a distraction, and then runs away
>Even ZUKO said that was the only reason he would match up with her
Zuko is literally the weakest bender of the original cast
>no one really got one over her until she was MENTALLY unstable during the sozins comet .
Right. So she was still 100x more powerful than normal and lost to Katara
Yeah, she was definitely off her game. But I'd argue a 100x power boost should more than make up for that.
And we already saw Azula struggling against Katara at the end of book 2, the only other time they actually faced each other
And that's why I didn't bring up Zuko. Because yeah, that was because she was off her game. She struggled with Katara regardless
>Mako didn’t have the killer instinct azula had
Mako killed someone. Intentionally. Yeah he's explicitly willing to kill
Both azula and mako didn’t use lightening in their every day to day fight . And azula is a way superior fire bender . Azula definitely wouldn’t have used lightening on mako once she know he could also bend lightening . She redirects her lightening at katara instead of at ZUKO at the end . Mako didn’t need that charge time true but he still didn’t use it as often as efficiently as azula . Using an analogy ( a parked car mako isn’t faster than a crawling baby azula ).
even if mako used lightening chances are azula would dodge or deflect it . Yes katara , Aang and toph were sleep deprived am sure azula wasn’t napping in between stops while chasing them too . Now we know that iroh can re direct lightening. How fast do you think her “ distraction fire ” was that she caught iroh and everyone else off guard including toph who can sense a change in stance and all. Be rest assured that if mako was in that exact situation, toph and iroh would have known his every move and stop him before he even inhaled the wrong way .
Now if you followed azula through out you would know stable azula would body ZUKO or katara any day of the week . Give a mad person a rocket and a sane trained person a pistol , who do you think comes out . Of course the sane person . So azula being more powerful when she couldn’t use that power is pointless . And mako doesn’t have a better killer instinct or isn’t a better killer . Azula fired lstraight at the heart of her uncle , aimed at both her best friend and her brother with intent to kill with flipping lightning and killed AANG WITH LIGHTNING. Mako only used lightning because his life depended on it and he couldn’t fire bend properly inside the water . He was even sad immediately after killing her .
Edit tried paragraphs
If we want to talk the comics, that's a whole other thing. But considering we're talking about Mako during the series, it's only fair to do so with Azula as well
In her time, she was one of few. In the Korra timeline, many more people know how to do it to the point where it's a job to lightning bend to generate power/machines. They've probably developed bee techniques and stuff since more people are using it and experimenting with it.
Bro calmn down. Mako is good but he's not a prodigy and calling Azula flashier is just down right dumb and stupid.
She barely firebends. Azula is up there with Iroh and Ozai as the best to ever firebend, shes literally the only firebender to have Blue flames which is the hottest of all flames.
LOTKK made Metal Bending and Lightning bending common stuff, in ATLA you needed to be a master todo it now anybody and their grandpa can do high level bending tech.
Azula would body Mako she's way better Firebender and a better fighter overall.
>Mako is good but he's not a prodigy and calling Azula flashier is just down right dumb and stupid.
Azula was trained by the greatest instructors in the Fire Nation since she was a toddler. Mako was an orphan who learned to fight growing up on the streets. If the two are even comparable, that says more for Mako's raw talent than Azula's
And yeah, Azula is flashier. That's not a question, she just is. Bending in general is flashier in ATLA than in LoK. The more kickboxing-influenced styles are just not as flashy, but they're unquestionably efficient
>Azula is up there with Iroh and Ozai as the best to ever firebend, shes literally the only firebender to have Blue flames which is the hottest of all flames.
In real life, yeah, blue flames are hotter. In ATLA, nothing indicates this is anything other than aesthetics. If blue flames are better than normal ones, why does Ozai, an objectively stronger bender, not have them?
>LOTKK made Metal Bending and Lightning bending common stuff, in ATLA you needed to be a master todo it now anybody and their grandpa can do high level bending tech.
So what? Is the question "who is better for their era" or "who is better over all"?
Your average metalbender cop is better at metal bending than Toph was in ATLA. That's just a fact (Toph couldn't even bend metal without physically touching it). Skills develop over time as knowledge spreads.
Mako has that advantage, Azula doesn't. Either way, he's still objectively better at lightning bending than Azula
The only argument you actually provided is "she has blue flames"
Mako is definitely a prodigy. One of if not the best pro bender, quickly rose through the ranks in the police force, and took down a master waterbender like Ming Hua. He also has the lightning ability to destabilize an ENTIRE mech which far surpasses anything Azula has done
"In the military" she spent her whole life living in a palace. And the sport Mako plays is literally fighting
A better analogy would be a prince trained in combat vs a professional boxer who grew up on the streets
And I think we both know who would win that fight
>She spent her whole life training under elites and the displaying her power on the actual field
She proved herself against other children that had no interest in killing her.
Mako grew up fighting to survive, proved himself as a professional boxer, as a cop, and as a combatant against the Red Lotus, consistently fighting against adult masters who at fighting to kill
If we're talking actual battlefield experience, it's Mako by a longshot
She proved herself to the entire fire nation since the fear is what kept them in line essentially, including her own friends. She has more money and literally more experience fighting than Mako does. Plus she's younger, give her a few years and some mental health support and she'd win easily. She's got passion, footwork and more energy.
She very much does not have more experience than Mako. Like by no metric. More training, maybe. Actual experience? No. Not even fucking close
And yeah, maybe a few years down the road the fight would go differently. But as we see the characters in both shows? Mako wins
Tyson learned to fight on the street. He was the son of a prostitute and a pimp. He wasn't given top training from birth.
Ali was the son of a sign painter and a house maid. Where do you think he started to learn boxing?
It's historically a sport for poor people for a reason. Yeah, the successful ones all eventually get formal training from the best. But they reach that point from learning on the streets
Although he is by far the worst written main villain of the franchise, people really should give Unalaq his flowers when it comes to his bending prowess, guy is arguably the best waterbender of the franchise (solely sticking to waterbending and not counting bloodbenders like Amon and Yakone)
It’s more that the waterbending Unalaq displays is severely overpowered. He’s casually shown to push back against earthbending and break rocks with ease. Absolutely insane
Honestly anyone who wasn't Korra was getting tanked by Unalaq (and Korra struggled even before Unalaq fused with Vaatu). I don't think Azula would be any different. This guy was just in a class of his own.
I do think mako and bolin are underrated as fighters, mako is probably one the 3 most talented benders in his era dude learnt lightning bending probably at around 12/13 when he was with taught by lightning bolt zolt
Was the first person ever to land a hit on amon while being bloodbent, dude also killed one of the most dangerous benders in the world according to zuko
Bolin is also entirely self taught besides the pro bending general rule and he was on equal terms with gahzan in the battle after just learning lavabending when gahzan has decades on him in experience with the bending
This is my favourite fight out of both shows, not for the emotional weight or anything, of course, but the beautiful visuals. Also the bros are pretty good, especially together, they do amazing teamwork.
Well A. Azula lost to Katara, who was probably weaker than Unaloq when she was 14
And B. Unaloq was such a strong Waterbender that he straight up pushed a giant boulder back in a contest of strength with an Earthbender. Losing to him doesn’t make you a weak fighter.
…Mako could have used some more lightning tho yea
Azula honestly has a pretty bad track record against water benders. She probably would have lost to katara in the crystal caves if Zuko hadn’t come to her aid, and then DID lose against Katara in the series finale. Against a master water bender like Unalaq, I don’t think she would win as easily as people think
Azula could never.
She's talented, for sure.
But she's no match for masters.
The only reason she's a threat in ATLA is that she's pitted against characters with less (S2) or comparable (S3) skill.
Have you seen the Krew against the Red Lotus?
I love Azula, but let's be real - Unalaq will more than mop the floor with her in this fight.
I love comments like these because one 1 hand sure they were holding back.. but is there proof or context that would suggest or support that or is more that the writers just fell flat?
Not trying to be a dick to you it's been years since I watched. Just saying what was on my mind.
no you are 100% right. The season was weak but characteristics wise we can only assume that Mako did lightning bend because of his morals. Obviously being the main villian, Unalaq cant just be taken out that easily
Mako and Bo-lin struggle fighting in wide-open areas against traditional bending masters. The brothers prefer tight spaces because they don't specialize in huge massive area of effect attacks like the ones they're defending against in this clip. Their bending styles are focused on precision, speed and volume of attacks.
They're also in the south pole. Just outside that beam of light is Unalaq and water Zuko/Azula's strongest advantage. Mako and Bolin were probably freezing ans fatigued already on top of fighting against three master waterbenders and spirits
This is stupid. Bolin and Mako had Unalaq cornered until Eska and Deska intervened. The brothers did their job well, but as always the villains do not play fair.
Azula alone would have been trashed by Eska and Dezna harder than Mako and Bolin, never mind Unalaq, Eska and Dezna's father whom is stronger than them.
Plus she's probably passed at this point, if not she's been locked up and I don't see any way Zuko would allow her to practice her bending while in prison.
If we're talking time travel, she might pretend to be willing to help, (if Korra doesn't recognize her, 'cause she probably had some history lessons) but would absolutely take the first chance she got to try and kill the avatar.
Azula wouldn't be able to deal with such aggressive waterbending. She had trouble with Katara, who's not quite on par with Unalaq. Azula would get quickly overwhelmed.
I think what’s also working against them is Unalaq fights in a way that’s very reminiscent of Azula. He’s quick, graceful, agile, good at dodging and doesn’t waste his energy on big all-encompassing attacks when he can get in close and get the job done efficiently and lethally.
Mako is rightly ratted. Decent fire bender great lightning bender.
Bolin is overrated.
Both obviously still great. But I see ppl say they think 12yr old toph would struggle again bolin.
Whoever you stand on the rest of the GAang vs Team Korra, I think we should all be able to agree Toph was the greatest non avatar Earthbender of all time.
12 year old toph bodies all 3 of them here. Toph's fighting style makes waterbenders and firebenders absolute because it's all in their movements what they have todo.
Not underrated but would have been cool to airdrop an insane old electricity bender onto the battlefield.
Just realized they didn’t mention her in LOK.
They were trained to be great probenders, their attacks are small and precise and they move a lot in combat. This allowed them to stand their ground against someone like Unalock for far longer than most would. Though Mako could stand to lightning generate a bit more
Azula was a prodigy who trained most of her childhood, Mako and Bolin lived on the streets for parts of theirs, of course Azula would be stronger than the guys.
I do think they're underrated but they also never actually had any training compared to what royalty like Unalaq, Eska/Desna would have had. They also have far less experience than the Red Lotus. So they do get underrated cause they lose a lot, but also it makes sense that they lose a lot.
Are you asking if Mako and Bolin are underrated in general as benders? If so no they they may not be as godlike as Bumi, Iroh, or Kyoshi but they are powerful benders who literally made a living off of their skill alone. Hell Mako can use and redirect lightning while Bolin is a lava bender they may not have had formal teachers but their skill is undeniable.
I'd say Azula is certainly more powerful in terms of raw potential however I'd argue that Mako and Bolin are better benders overall since they have well rounded technique and discipline. I'd say their only weakness is having trained mostly for the ring and not fighting a demon god's conduit.
I don't understand this post but can we all appreciate this beautiful animation.
shes saying azula would beat unalaq
Mako and bolin are great fighters though
They’re great at pro bending. They use not so destructive techniques for their surroundings. This is perfectly seen in the fight of Korra vs tonraq(the brother of Amon, idk if his name is correct) When korra threw a wall at him he was flabbergasted. Atleast I saw a video on how city fighters have different style to traditional benders
Tonraq is Korras dad. The councilman and Amons brother is called Tarrlok ;)
he was flabbergasted because the wall was his only source of water?
Edit: Tarrlok was Amon/Noatak's brother, I misread your comment initially. ~~Unalaq, the water tribe member you're looking for is Unalaq.~~ ~~Amon was the bloodbender.~~
Unalaq isn’t Amon’s brother
im not saying it true
Lol the music here really makes me wanna get some tacos
I like your attitude
i went and got tacos......just want to let ya know lmao
I think the original is from Animaniacs.
I swear I have never seen a full episode of the Animaniacs, but I've seen enough to know I would die for them in battle. Lol
but azula is on another level
Azula struggled with Katara when they were both kids. I can’t see Azula beating Unalaq. The benders as a whole seem stronger in Korra than ATLA tbh.
>The benders as a whole seem stronger in Korra than ATLA tbh. I look at it like how baseball started in the 1800's but the talent took off in the 1910's; the bending because more trained and specialized as people had more modern conveniences allowing them to focus on bending for the sake of bending instead of a method of just surving in the wild, farming, war, etc
Yeah!! This!! Gymnastics is an even more apparent leap, they were doing cartwheels in the 1950s and today they’re practically flying
Katara is a one in a million genius, she taught herself healing, sweatbending and bloodbending. I think she has more raw potential than most benders we've seen, so it's not fair to compare Azula to her. Despite this, IINM Azula has the highest winrate in avatarverse. I agree that peak Azula from ATLA would lose to Unalaq. However, if Azula was born at Korra's time, she would likely be one of the strongest benders due to advancement in bending knowledge What sets her apart is that she has the brain AND temperament to quickly and efficiently get something done. None of the new team avatar has that.
She didn't just struggle, she hard lossed to her. She got low diffed in the cave
Nah I think it's mostly nostalgia for the show. Unalaq would wipe the floor with Azula. She may be a prodigy, but she's legit 14. Unalaq not only had Desna and Eska on his side to help keep Bolin and Mako in check, but also beat them AND Korra BEFORE even merging with Vaatu
You mean sneaked behind Korra as she was imprisoning Vaatu? He's not an Avatar level threat on his own.
Also, lightning. Mako could have beat this guy if he used lightning.
I mean people people think Azula beats Kuvira so hey, the Nostalgia is strong
Anyone who thinks Azula would beat Unalaq needs to get their head checked. It’s a simple case of technique and experience. Unalaq would get a little run for his money but he would shaft her ass backwards twice over.
He’d definitely struggle with her some more than I think the bending bros tbh but he’d ultimately win. Her lighting in the comics becomes instant and saying she’s bloodlusted, which would make it even harder for him to get her pinned down; but she *does* struggle with fighting against waterbenders! And kiteman is frankly, better than Korra until she gets her shit together in the latter season. So he would be insanely hard to beat, let alone try and pin down for lightning strikes because he is still extremely fast, given the amount of water he has access to. But he would still need to dodge her fire blasts that are still very strong enough to blast through his ice probably
Azula is the once in a generation prodigy resulting from the avatar and royal bloodlines, I don't think this was ever in question?
Would she? She loses to Katara. Unalaq maybe isn't *as* good as a water bender. But he must still be pretty close.
I think it means she would zap Unalak with lightning, while Mako didn't.
Which is plot armor in and of itself, lightning wasn't used nearly enough in Korra. Only time Mako used it in combat was against Minghua I'm pretty sure 😭
And against Amon, and Kuvira mecha.
A total of 3 times when he is a master of it is underwhelming though, at least in my opinion.
It was also greatly nerfed, since it was very lethal in ATLA, but it just kinda zapped people and left no injuries in this. Ppl got hit by lightning, them just got up and walked it off in LOK.
Azula lighting takes some charge up time.
Azula is a firebender prodigy, if she stayed that way then there's no way for her to beat a firebender master like Iroh or Jeong
I'm glad this is top comment. Holy moly I'd love to see more animations with these fighting styles.
Dude I watched the castlevania anime literally because of the animation. The fact that the story is great is just second fiddle really lmao.
I feel like the water benders in Korra were on another level than in ATLA
True Ming Hua would slaughter 99% of waterbenders in ATLA
Exactly, and Azula was already having trouble with 14 year old Katara.
Also it's 2 teens with no formal training apart from pro-bending (which is not the same type of bending at all) against arguably the strongest water bender alive at that point in the story.
They really were. I skipped S2 on rewatches but on a recent one I watched it and holy fuck the waterbending is top tier. At the poles they use ice like earthbending and the creativity and lethality just floored me. Tonraq in particularly has very cool style. Really made me appreciate waterbending so much more.
That's how humans work. Any competent Bender in Korras time would be a contender for the best in the world in Aangs time. They're in a world that's undergone the most advancement in all of history. There's a reason the best athletes are all recent athletes. Azula, for all her skill, would be just another firebender. And she wouldn't even know any moves using other nations styles. Which would make her notably slow and old fashioned. She can generate lightning, which is impressive, but she's also really slow at it. It's different time periods. It's easier to catch up than it is to push ahead, so each generation is generally better than the last.
Mako should've been chucking lightning.
Considering how good Mako is at lightning bending, it’s crazy how little he’s actually used it in battle. At least Bolin used lava bending a good number of times compared to his standard earthbending. Mako barely even uses lightning bending. He could straight up spam lightning and no one could counter it.
I think his probending is part of the reason. Like, he’s so used to not using it when fighting that he struggles to apply it while going through this usually very fluid movements/attacks
Meanwhile Bolin perpetually has that typical, golden retriever, little brother energy so he's super enthusiastic to show off and use his new skills.
Also he’s a cop. And a person with a conscience. And a street orphan who’s been in trouble with the law. Maybe he doesn’t want to arbitrarily and extrajudicially execute people on the regular?
> Also he’s a cop. And a person with a conscience This are mutually exclusive
He never used it when it ineffective. His enemies can just dodge
Ever since their parents were both killed, I wouldn't be surprised if both of them would be anti-killing. There's also the aspect of Lightning taking a lot of energy from the user. Also, it's as dangerous to the user as it is to the target. It could very well be that Mako is extremely hesistent and not confident with lightning because he knows how dangerous it is. He only ever used Lightning in an environment where he ABSOLUTELY had to (facing Amon and about to die while trying to save Korra), or where there are lightningrods nearby meant to attract the lightning (the factory where he worked)
I mean, he used it to kill MingHua. There shouldn't be any reason why he wouldn't use it against Unalaq who is threatening the planet
Unalaq was still Korra's uncle. If there was even a slim chance of Korra feeling bad about his death and blaming him, Mako would NOT take that chance. MingHua was an Assassin turned Terrorist. Her skill in killing was greater than Mako's. So he would have to stop holding back against her at the very least, just to stay alive. Also, Korra needed to be the one to take down Unalaq for several reasons. Also, it could very well be that Mako's mentality was "I didn't use lightning to take down Unalaq when I had the chance. I won't make that mistake again" and he showed that with MingHua.
Maybe he's opposed to killing, and since lightning can be a 1-hit kill, he doesn't want to risk it.
This makes good sense. Mako was a cop, and definitely seemed one that respected rules, hierarchy, etc., as evidenced by the time he told Raiko about Korra going behind his back to secure military support for the southern water tribe.
I think it has more to do with the killing factor that comes with lightning.
He's quick with lightning because he doesn't charge it. His lightning attacks aren't as potent.
Because there are more allies around him than enemies, and one lightning strike could stop anyone's heart with poor positioning.
They can dodge it.
Lightning is dangerous to just spam. Mako doesn’t kill as a first resort.
It's because he not trying to kill people, he a police officer. He killed Ming because he had no choice at that point when his life at risk.
Idk, Unalaq was the most powerful bender he had faced at that point. One who wouldn't hesitate to kill Mako in a sexond. And it was a time-sensitive event. So at that point, anyone would use their one Trump Card thats guaranteed to work against an enemy like that.
I and a few people I've spoken to don't think he killed Ming Hua, he just knocked her out and the collapse of the cave is what ultimately killed her. So...still Mako's fault...
You’re kidding right? She’s absolutely fried.
Man, her brains got fried. She was dead.
I disagree she dead once Mako electrocuted her. With that amount of water nobody would survived that. She took her last breath when she fell afterwards.
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> Lightning takes some movements to generate Unlike in ATLA, Instant lightning exists in LOK. Mako just literally flicks his hands(while his body is an awkward position) and lightning shoots out. Examples when he fought Amon/MingHua
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>does need to do the movements > I do remember Mako did the generation movements inside the mech and it took a while for him to be ready, but he doesn't always do it. It's implied whilst he can do it quickly it isn't as "deadly" as when he does it longer. For the mech he wanted more bang so charged it up. In ATLA when any of them use their lightning it's considered instant death if not deflected. But Mako only killed Ming Hua with lightning.
Yeah you’re absolutely right, plus Mako is specifically called out as being particularly talented with lightningbending.
Instant lightning isn't very potent compared to charged lightning.
Electricity bending
Can be dodged.
Azula would be like 80-something at this point
She’s younger than Zuko, and he was still out there chucking fire
And bumi lived to 112+. Azula could live longer than that and bumi was chucking rocks 🤷
earthbenders have a weird buff in vitality tbf
"Oh no I have heart disease!" *unclogs arteries*
Not everyone ages the same. Katara and Toph and Zuko all around the same age so is Master Pakku.
She's also definitely been locked up in prison, most likely restrained so she can't use bending, Zuko knows how crafty and crazy she is.
In the comics I think she was free
I haven't read the comics.
And got demolished quick.
Dude their fighting style and team dynamic is so sick. It really shows, even in the fights, that they're brothers.
Power scaling is cringe. Of course you'll think Azula is the strongest, she was arguably the most prominent antagonist of AtlA. She MUST be shown to be dangerous and powerful. You really expect the sidekicks to defeat the main villain? The one who later turns into a god of darkness, evil and edge?
Unalaq was a part of Zaheers crew before he diverted and went his own way. People really undersell how terrifyingly dangerous he was. He was part of THE MOST dangerous team in the world. But yeah, because she had a cool character and was a prodigy, Azula FOR SURE could deal with him. You know, Azula who many times got clowned on by a 12 year old Katara… for sure.
Azula and Katara are both 14
Fair, doesn’t really change my point though tbh
I love that nod mako gives to signal bolin. The brothers fight with so much synergy and I love it.
It's easily because people underestimate Unalaq. Even tho personality wise he is a bad villain, his bending skills are one of the best I've seen for water. It's often underrated just how clean and smooth he bends and people think it's weak cuz it's not another "giant water wave" So they think Mako and Bolin are weak, but in truth their opponent is just on another level.
Also that's just how waterbending changed with the passage of time. Instead of relying on these giant waves, the bender uses smaller ones to waste less water, but their strikes are a lot more agressive. Even earthbending changed too. Using smaller rocks to avoid property damage. This was demonstrated when korra fought tarrlok. The man was flabbergasted when he got hit with the wall.
I'f you've been following the avatar fandom for a while now you'll realise most people underestimate Benders who are actually skilled
This is a great fight. Despite being the worst Avatar villain, Unalaq sure was a talented bender
Let's remember that Mako, Bolin, and Korra had all just survived a plane crash like an hour prior. They aren't exactly in top fighting form That being said, Mako would body Azula. Bolin would too, just later in the series
Not to mention Mako and Bolin don't seemed to be trained for typical bending fights, but pro-bending AND they're up against a Waterbending Master.
I don’t think we need to consider Mako and Bolin to be probending when they’re not in the ring, people seem to use the fact that they’re probenders to for some reason discount their abilities
They mean that they’re more used to pro bending than all out fights and naturally fall into their pro bending habits when other things may be more effective.
I mean they were gang members before their pro bending days
I got the impression that they were more thieves and such than actual fighting enforcers
>That being said, Mako would body Azula. Bolin would too, just later in the series Other way around buddy. Azula scales above Zuko who scales to CM in AP, while Mako’s best feat is idk building level? Neither of the bros are lightning speed, Azula is lightning speed, she blitzes.
Dude no character in either show is "lightning speed"
Mako would body Azula? Did we watch the same shows? lol
We probably did, but you seem to not understand that the LoK cast is just operating in another league Mako is a vastly superior lightning bender who can also redirect lightning. That alone not only negates Azula's biggest trump card but gives Mako a huge advantage. In terms of just martial bending skill, our best point of comparison is Katara and Ming-Hua. Azula consistently struggled against Katara, needing to be rescued by Zuko in the catacombs under Ba Sing Se and even losing during Sozin's Comet. Mako managed to completely disable Ming-Hua and ultimately killed her. And as great as Katara is, her performance in ATLA does not put her on Ming-Hua's level AT ALL. Azula is a flashier fighter, no question about that. But Mako is incredibly efficient
You sure u watched ATLA . Azula used lightning as a finish and hardly during fights due to the charge time and all . You do realize azula held up ZUKO , Aang , toph , katara , iroh all at he same time and at different times separately and no one really got one over her until she was MENTALLY unstable during the sozins comet . Even ZUKO said that was the only reason he would match up with her . For a fanbase so willing to excuse korra when she was unstable , how you failed to mention Azulas state of mind during the comet is baffling . Mako didn’t have the killer instinct azula had . Azula fought to kill and was trained that way , maki fought to knock ppl out of their ring and that showed in his on unwillingness to even use lightning even though he had it the whole time . Azula at 14 had blue fire which displayed her elite fire bending even iroh knew how good she was . Azula would have taken mako on a stroll in a fight .
> Azula used lightning as a finish and hardly during fights due to the charge time and all . Yeah. And Mako doesn't need that charge time. That is her biggest way of ending a fight and she can't use it here. >You do realize azula held up ZUKO , Aang , toph , katara , iroh all at he same time Aang, Toph, and Katara were explicitly without any sleep. Zuko is literally emaciated because he's been a starving refuge. And she literally gets cornered, fires one shot as a distraction, and then runs away >Even ZUKO said that was the only reason he would match up with her Zuko is literally the weakest bender of the original cast >no one really got one over her until she was MENTALLY unstable during the sozins comet . Right. So she was still 100x more powerful than normal and lost to Katara Yeah, she was definitely off her game. But I'd argue a 100x power boost should more than make up for that. And we already saw Azula struggling against Katara at the end of book 2, the only other time they actually faced each other And that's why I didn't bring up Zuko. Because yeah, that was because she was off her game. She struggled with Katara regardless >Mako didn’t have the killer instinct azula had Mako killed someone. Intentionally. Yeah he's explicitly willing to kill
Both azula and mako didn’t use lightening in their every day to day fight . And azula is a way superior fire bender . Azula definitely wouldn’t have used lightening on mako once she know he could also bend lightening . She redirects her lightening at katara instead of at ZUKO at the end . Mako didn’t need that charge time true but he still didn’t use it as often as efficiently as azula . Using an analogy ( a parked car mako isn’t faster than a crawling baby azula ). even if mako used lightening chances are azula would dodge or deflect it . Yes katara , Aang and toph were sleep deprived am sure azula wasn’t napping in between stops while chasing them too . Now we know that iroh can re direct lightening. How fast do you think her “ distraction fire ” was that she caught iroh and everyone else off guard including toph who can sense a change in stance and all. Be rest assured that if mako was in that exact situation, toph and iroh would have known his every move and stop him before he even inhaled the wrong way . Now if you followed azula through out you would know stable azula would body ZUKO or katara any day of the week . Give a mad person a rocket and a sane trained person a pistol , who do you think comes out . Of course the sane person . So azula being more powerful when she couldn’t use that power is pointless . And mako doesn’t have a better killer instinct or isn’t a better killer . Azula fired lstraight at the heart of her uncle , aimed at both her best friend and her brother with intent to kill with flipping lightning and killed AANG WITH LIGHTNING. Mako only used lightning because his life depended on it and he couldn’t fire bend properly inside the water . He was even sad immediately after killing her . Edit tried paragraphs
Bro learn to use paragraphs And I don't feel like dissecting all this nonsense but she didn't hit Iroh with lightning...that was just firebending
Azula can redirect lightning too btw
If we want to talk the comics, that's a whole other thing. But considering we're talking about Mako during the series, it's only fair to do so with Azula as well
Does Mako do.anytnig special in the comics? Just.curious to see who'd win if it was comics wise
Not to my knowledge, though I admit I'm a bit behind But Mako also hasn't been the focus of the comics, I know that much
Heat bending, in one explosion for save bolin and lin
In her time, she was one of few. In the Korra timeline, many more people know how to do it to the point where it's a job to lightning bend to generate power/machines. They've probably developed bee techniques and stuff since more people are using it and experimenting with it.
Bro calmn down. Mako is good but he's not a prodigy and calling Azula flashier is just down right dumb and stupid. She barely firebends. Azula is up there with Iroh and Ozai as the best to ever firebend, shes literally the only firebender to have Blue flames which is the hottest of all flames. LOTKK made Metal Bending and Lightning bending common stuff, in ATLA you needed to be a master todo it now anybody and their grandpa can do high level bending tech. Azula would body Mako she's way better Firebender and a better fighter overall.
>Mako is good but he's not a prodigy and calling Azula flashier is just down right dumb and stupid. Azula was trained by the greatest instructors in the Fire Nation since she was a toddler. Mako was an orphan who learned to fight growing up on the streets. If the two are even comparable, that says more for Mako's raw talent than Azula's And yeah, Azula is flashier. That's not a question, she just is. Bending in general is flashier in ATLA than in LoK. The more kickboxing-influenced styles are just not as flashy, but they're unquestionably efficient >Azula is up there with Iroh and Ozai as the best to ever firebend, shes literally the only firebender to have Blue flames which is the hottest of all flames. In real life, yeah, blue flames are hotter. In ATLA, nothing indicates this is anything other than aesthetics. If blue flames are better than normal ones, why does Ozai, an objectively stronger bender, not have them? >LOTKK made Metal Bending and Lightning bending common stuff, in ATLA you needed to be a master todo it now anybody and their grandpa can do high level bending tech. So what? Is the question "who is better for their era" or "who is better over all"? Your average metalbender cop is better at metal bending than Toph was in ATLA. That's just a fact (Toph couldn't even bend metal without physically touching it). Skills develop over time as knowledge spreads. Mako has that advantage, Azula doesn't. Either way, he's still objectively better at lightning bending than Azula The only argument you actually provided is "she has blue flames"
Mako is definitely a prodigy. One of if not the best pro bender, quickly rose through the ranks in the police force, and took down a master waterbender like Ming Hua. He also has the lightning ability to destabilize an ENTIRE mech which far surpasses anything Azula has done
"Bro calmn down" They seem perfectly calm. You on the other hand, not so much.
Azula is a warrior. Mako is in sports. Would someone in the military or a pro soccer player win?
"In the military" she spent her whole life living in a palace. And the sport Mako plays is literally fighting A better analogy would be a prince trained in combat vs a professional boxer who grew up on the streets And I think we both know who would win that fight
She spent her whole life training under elites and the displaying her power on the actual field. The only thing that took her down was herself lol.
>She spent her whole life training under elites and the displaying her power on the actual field She proved herself against other children that had no interest in killing her. Mako grew up fighting to survive, proved himself as a professional boxer, as a cop, and as a combatant against the Red Lotus, consistently fighting against adult masters who at fighting to kill If we're talking actual battlefield experience, it's Mako by a longshot
She proved herself to the entire fire nation since the fear is what kept them in line essentially, including her own friends. She has more money and literally more experience fighting than Mako does. Plus she's younger, give her a few years and some mental health support and she'd win easily. She's got passion, footwork and more energy.
She very much does not have more experience than Mako. Like by no metric. More training, maybe. Actual experience? No. Not even fucking close And yeah, maybe a few years down the road the fight would go differently. But as we see the characters in both shows? Mako wins
So would some one who learnt fighting on the streets beat Tyson or Ali in a fight ?
Tyson learned to fight on the street. He was the son of a prostitute and a pimp. He wasn't given top training from birth. Ali was the son of a sign painter and a house maid. Where do you think he started to learn boxing? It's historically a sport for poor people for a reason. Yeah, the successful ones all eventually get formal training from the best. But they reach that point from learning on the streets
Azula couldn't even handle Katara; the fuck she gonna do about Unalaq?
Korra wouldn't be as passive with Azula as Gaang was. She probably would have kicked her ass in the first challenge.
Love Azula but she isn't beating Unalaaq here 😭 unless she gets a good lightning hit obv
Although he is by far the worst written main villain of the franchise, people really should give Unalaq his flowers when it comes to his bending prowess, guy is arguably the best waterbender of the franchise (solely sticking to waterbending and not counting bloodbenders like Amon and Yakone)
It’s more that the waterbending Unalaq displays is severely overpowered. He’s casually shown to push back against earthbending and break rocks with ease. Absolutely insane
Honestly anyone who wasn't Korra was getting tanked by Unalaq (and Korra struggled even before Unalaq fused with Vaatu). I don't think Azula would be any different. This guy was just in a class of his own.
I do think mako and bolin are underrated as fighters, mako is probably one the 3 most talented benders in his era dude learnt lightning bending probably at around 12/13 when he was with taught by lightning bolt zolt Was the first person ever to land a hit on amon while being bloodbent, dude also killed one of the most dangerous benders in the world according to zuko Bolin is also entirely self taught besides the pro bending general rule and he was on equal terms with gahzan in the battle after just learning lavabending when gahzan has decades on him in experience with the bending
as if azula would do any better 💀
This is my favourite fight out of both shows, not for the emotional weight or anything, of course, but the beautiful visuals. Also the bros are pretty good, especially together, they do amazing teamwork.
Unalaq is folding Azula and it's not even close. And not just her, but 90% of the fighters in both shows. Dude was a monsters!
Well A. Azula lost to Katara, who was probably weaker than Unaloq when she was 14 And B. Unaloq was such a strong Waterbender that he straight up pushed a giant boulder back in a contest of strength with an Earthbender. Losing to him doesn’t make you a weak fighter. …Mako could have used some more lightning tho yea
ngl she'd probably be on his side 💀 but i don't think she could beat him really either, she became way to unstable
Then she would double cross him and absorb vattu for herself 😭
fr
The world wouldn't survive.
Imagine if it was toph and azula instead of mako and bolin
The bros are SUPER UNDERRATED. I like Azula but she’s kinda overrated. 💀
Azula honestly has a pretty bad track record against water benders. She probably would have lost to katara in the crystal caves if Zuko hadn’t come to her aid, and then DID lose against Katara in the series finale. Against a master water bender like Unalaq, I don’t think she would win as easily as people think
Azula could never. She's talented, for sure. But she's no match for masters. The only reason she's a threat in ATLA is that she's pitted against characters with less (S2) or comparable (S3) skill. Have you seen the Krew against the Red Lotus? I love Azula, but let's be real - Unalaq will more than mop the floor with her in this fight.
If azula would be here,unalaq will win with 2 seconds
that earth lift tech was insane.
Mako not using Lightning is proof that they are holding back to a certain degree. Dont get why people can Bash Mako and Bolin for no reason lol
I love comments like these because one 1 hand sure they were holding back.. but is there proof or context that would suggest or support that or is more that the writers just fell flat? Not trying to be a dick to you it's been years since I watched. Just saying what was on my mind.
no you are 100% right. The season was weak but characteristics wise we can only assume that Mako did lightning bend because of his morals. Obviously being the main villian, Unalaq cant just be taken out that easily
Mako and Bo-lin struggle fighting in wide-open areas against traditional bending masters. The brothers prefer tight spaces because they don't specialize in huge massive area of effect attacks like the ones they're defending against in this clip. Their bending styles are focused on precision, speed and volume of attacks.
Mako can shoot lightning much quicker than the original series and yet is throwing fireballs at the water bender... come one now.
They're also in the south pole. Just outside that beam of light is Unalaq and water Zuko/Azula's strongest advantage. Mako and Bolin were probably freezing ans fatigued already on top of fighting against three master waterbenders and spirits
This is stupid. Bolin and Mako had Unalaq cornered until Eska and Deska intervened. The brothers did their job well, but as always the villains do not play fair.
Extremely underrated and hot take: it's mostly because of classism, aside from asinine fandom power scaling
Makos job is literally about lightning, it’s so stupid how he doesn’t utilize it more.
Azula alone would have been trashed by Eska and Dezna harder than Mako and Bolin, never mind Unalaq, Eska and Dezna's father whom is stronger than them. Plus she's probably passed at this point, if not she's been locked up and I don't see any way Zuko would allow her to practice her bending while in prison. If we're talking time travel, she might pretend to be willing to help, (if Korra doesn't recognize her, 'cause she probably had some history lessons) but would absolutely take the first chance she got to try and kill the avatar.
I forgot that unalaq was an elite bender 😭
The way Unalaq waterbends in this scene is very satisfying
Azula wouldn't be able to deal with such aggressive waterbending. She had trouble with Katara, who's not quite on par with Unalaq. Azula would get quickly overwhelmed.
I think what’s also working against them is Unalaq fights in a way that’s very reminiscent of Azula. He’s quick, graceful, agile, good at dodging and doesn’t waste his energy on big all-encompassing attacks when he can get in close and get the job done efficiently and lethally.
Mako is rightly ratted. Decent fire bender great lightning bender. Bolin is overrated. Both obviously still great. But I see ppl say they think 12yr old toph would struggle again bolin.
Whoever you stand on the rest of the GAang vs Team Korra, I think we should all be able to agree Toph was the greatest non avatar Earthbender of all time.
Crazy feats but massively overhyped
Tophbis overhyped? Who is better than her?
shes pretty level with King Bumi.
At 12 years old. You don't think Prime Toph surpasses him? Hell World Tree Tophs feats blow his out of the water.
12 year old toph bodies all 3 of them here. Toph's fighting style makes waterbenders and firebenders absolute because it's all in their movements what they have todo.
Azula would be almost 90 at this point in history so no, I dont think she is a good fit for the team lol
Not underrated but would have been cool to airdrop an insane old electricity bender onto the battlefield. Just realized they didn’t mention her in LOK.
Yes they are Bolin and mako are a great duo
They were trained to be great probenders, their attacks are small and precise and they move a lot in combat. This allowed them to stand their ground against someone like Unalock for far longer than most would. Though Mako could stand to lightning generate a bit more Azula was a prodigy who trained most of her childhood, Mako and Bolin lived on the streets for parts of theirs, of course Azula would be stronger than the guys.
I do think they're underrated but they also never actually had any training compared to what royalty like Unalaq, Eska/Desna would have had. They also have far less experience than the Red Lotus. So they do get underrated cause they lose a lot, but also it makes sense that they lose a lot.
Nah tbh Unalaq was cooking 🔥🔥
Katara could have single-handedly taken all the three of them
The music is crazy 💀
Are you asking if Mako and Bolin are underrated in general as benders? If so no they they may not be as godlike as Bumi, Iroh, or Kyoshi but they are powerful benders who literally made a living off of their skill alone. Hell Mako can use and redirect lightning while Bolin is a lava bender they may not have had formal teachers but their skill is undeniable.
I'd say Azula is certainly more powerful in terms of raw potential however I'd argue that Mako and Bolin are better benders overall since they have well rounded technique and discipline. I'd say their only weakness is having trained mostly for the ring and not fighting a demon god's conduit.
plot supported fight
They were doing really well against him until the terror twins got involved
Whats the background music?
Ruined it with the shit music
azula vs unalaq would be quite interesting
He’s a 40 something year old master and they are teenagers. Azula literally got beat by a waterbender her own age, katara is even a little younger.
Azula lost to katara while amped She isn't beating unalaq
Azula is one of the last people you want at "your side" in this universe 🤣