Avatar: The Last Airbender: Every confirmed change to Netflix's remake
5. The urgency (or lack thereof) of Sozin's comet
In addition to crafting a more serialized narrative, the creators took into account that their actors will age before season 2 begins filming (if Netflix orders a second season at all). The original animated series, which took place over the course of one year, did not have to worry about this. But in a live-action adaptation, it could look foolish to say the events of the story play out over the course of a year while the characters onscreen have gone through puberty. To build in room to add time jumps and other accomodations, the new show will minimize the importance of Sozin's Comet, which is what gave the Fire Nation to power to attack the airbenders back when he was first frozen. Early in the original series, Aang learns that the comet is returning. He must master the use of all four elements before it arrives, or the Fire Nation will use it to take over the rest of the world.
"The comet was their ticking clock, Kim said. "We removed that particular ticking clock from our show for now because we couldn't know exactly how old our actors would be for the subsequent seasons. We definitely thought about that going into season 1 so that we can accommodate for puberty, adolescence, time passing — all of those fun things that happen to real-life human beings that don't happen to animated characters."
I'm sure that Sozin's Comet will come into play at some point, but it's nice to hear that the producers are thinking about ways to avoid a situation where a bunch of 20-somethings are playing teenagers. This will also give Aang and company more time to fine-tune their abilities, possibly leading to more elaborate feats of bending. This could also mean that Aang may be closer to 18 years old when he takes on Ozai at the climax of the series, when he should be a bit more intimidating than the 12-year-old Aang. I'm all for changes like this because it serves a narrative purpose and preserves continuity for the future.
