A sure sign that an animated series is quality is when it can be enjoyed by many different age groups, with many different levels of interpretations.  Recently our family of 9, watched the series “The Legend of Korra” on Netflix.  We had previously watched “The Avatar; the Last Airbender” and enjoyed it as well.  Korra is the sequel to this series and takes place some 70 years after Avatar Aang’s story.  As much as we enjoyed “The Avatar”, I think Korra was even more poignant with a lot of life lessons for what is happening in the world today.  Children between the ages of 5-16 can enjoy this series, as well as adults.  I would often get upset if my kids watched an episode without me!

There is so much intricate story-telling, action, life lessons and social commentary happening in this series.  Everything from the division between those who have power over the elements, and those who do not, to the divisions and problems between the nations. It covers first loves and relationships, teaching and mentorship, finding the right alliances and opportunities, as well as betrayal and failure. Although the series concentrates a lot on Korra’s personal growth as a person and as the Avatar, it also focuses on several other main characters as well as their growth and their relationships.  In the Last Avatar series the main characters are younger, between the ages of 12-16.  In the case of Korra, we follow her and her friends from about the ages of 17-22 (Korra and Bolin are slightly younger than Asami and Mako).  It is definitely a coming of age series, but also deals with a lot of hard-hitting political, economic and moral dilemmas.  We see the characters shed the innocence and arrogance of their youth and become mature young adults who truly impact the world for the better.

In my opinion, an animated series that can teach children about the hard topics of love and loss, moral responsibility, hard work, selflessness, making bad decisions and the repercussions of those decisions and how to become a person who makes a difference is definitely worth the time!  We had many family discussions about some of the episodes that we watched, including hard topics of tolerance and acceptance, power, greed, and accountability for our actions.

At the beginning of the series I did not like Korra nearly as much as I had previously liked Aang.   However, by the end of the series I feel like her character grows much more than Aang’s did.  Partially because of her age and that more years are covered.  Even though there seem to be endless options for what to watch and stream these days, so much of what is out there is crap.  Honestly.  Especially a far as family shows are concerned.  They are either inappropriate, boring or just poorly executed.  Whenever we are able to find a quality show that appeals to many age groups its alway a win in my book!