Something I'm picking up with the first half of Book Three is that a lot of it can feel like filler. Like we're just killing time before the invasion.
The Painted Lady
This one plays out like an episode of Captain Planet.
The party is making their way through the Fire Nation to rendezvous with Hakoda's invasion force, but stop at a fishing village which is suffering due to pollution from a Fire Nation munitions factory. Although Sokka is adamant that they continue their journey, Katara wishes to help the village. But when Appa falls sick, they realise they have to stay in the region. Soon, they learn that a spirit known as "The Painted Lady" is helping the villagers. As Appa continues to recuperate, Aang discovers that the Painted Lady is Katara in disguise and they opt to demolish the factory.
Yeah, if you haven't guessed, this episode conveys a very blatant "save the planet" message. However, that's not necessarily a bad thing (even though it's one those in charge need be heeding more than us). It's not like this is new; respect for nature has been a recurring theme throughout the series, with "The Winter Solstice" and "The Swamp" touching upon this as well.
Whether the message is deemed necessary or not in regards to the subtle version within the show's story, I still think this is a good episode. We see how the industrial side of the Fire Nation's war machine is causing harm to its own people. Not only is the fishing village suffering due to the polluted rivers, but the soldiers at the factory are requisitioning all of their medicine. It makes Aang and Katara's act of sabotage more cathartic.
The schedule subplot makes Sokka a bit of a dick, especially when he discovers that Katara has been posing as the Painted Lady, and she calls him out for wanting her to turn away those in need. But when the soldiers at the factory attempt to carry out a reprisal against the village, Katara opts to save them and Sokka offers to help her. It just goes to show how much he really cares for his sister. He also defends Katara when she's recognised as the Painted Lady after they scare the soldiers away.
I did like the final scene, but I'll keep that one a secret.
Sokka's Master
There's not much concern about the schedule in this one. Kind of contradicts the last episode.
After the party save a village from a meteor, Sokka begins to feel depressed on the grounds that he can't bend. While going on a shopping trip to cheer himself up, he learns that there's a renowned swordmaster named Piando (voiced by the T-1000, Robert Patrick) who lives in the region. Sokka visits his castle, and is taken on as Piando's student when the master is impressed by how humble he is.
Most of the episode is just dedicated to a training montage as Piando puts Sokka through a series of unusual lessons, including calligraphy, rock gardening, and landscape painting, applying the logic to use of the blade. In that regard, Piando is kinda like Mr Miyagi in The Karate Kid. I mean, dancing and fencing both stress the importance of footwork, so why apply the same logic to other activities. I do like the humour of Piando just going with Sokka's approach to his tasks. There's also a funny Terminator 2 reference as Piando - who is voiced by Robert Patrick - claims a sword is "an extra-long really sharp arm".
As impressive as Piando's teachings are, not to mention the cool space sword Sokka forges out of a meteorite, this episode is kind of redundant. A story about Sokka proving his worth to the party without any bending would have made a lot more sense at the beginning of the series. But we've had 43 episodes before this one to solidify Sokka's role as the team's strategist and problem solver. The parts where the rest of the party are pondering what to do while Sokka's training seems rather forced.
Despite that, I love the climax of the episode. Sokka admits to Piando that he's from the Southern Water Tribe (having initially claimed to have been from the Fire Nation colonies in the Earth Kingdom), and Piando attacks him. The swordfight is impressive, with Piando repeatedly complementing Sokka's methods, like making use of the high ground (while not underestimating power). Having written swordfights in my own work, I've actually Piando's teachings into account. One notable moment occurs when Sokka throws dust in Piando's face to blind him, but Piando simply listens for Sokka's footsteps.
It then ends with an interesting reveal: Piando admits that he knew Sokka wasn't Fire Nation from the beginning, but states that his knowledge doesn't belong to one nation or person. He then gives Sokka a white lotus Pai Sho tile, implying that he's part of the same secret society that Iroh sought in "The Desert". Sorry to spoil it, but that's an important message.
Speaking of Iroh, we see that his languishing in prison is actually a facade while he secretly works out.
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