When Sokka learns swordsmanship, it's good for his self-esteem and gains him entry into the Awesome Dude Secret Society. He learns from a wise, kind old man.
Second reply (and if I keep thinking of things to reply, I may just have to do a post and we can hold a cross-journal dialogue or something) -- I can't recall now where I was reading someone's reviews/critiques of the series, but the reviewer made the observation that there's an interesting message in Aang's learning path versus Katara's. That is, that Aang is the Avatar, so has the potential to master all four form, while Katara will always be limited to water -- but her ability with water does eventually outstrip his (in the series), even though he's the avatar. That's because, the reviewer noted, Katara is shown working her ass off to gain her skills, while Aang is more likely to goof off. The underlying message there is that when it comes to someone who works hard and practices, that person can surpass even those who supposedly have an 'innate' skill.
(It also makes me wonder if the Aang/Katara skill contrast is in some way a finger-flip at Naruto, where if the story truly had a message of "hard work will get you to the top!" then the hero of the story would actually be Rock Lee, and not any of the supercharged chi-genius kids running around -- because Katara and Rock Lee are cut from very similar cloth, in some ways.)
I bring that up because it wasn't until I rewatched Avatar that I could set aside the "uh, what's happening now?" to actually watch as it happened. So didn't notice this until the second time around, that Sokka goes to find his master, talks himself into the student position... and then we see montage of calligraphy, some sword practice, painting landscapes, more sword practice, blah blah blah.
And then the master says, "that's pretty good for your first day."
Me: first WHAT? Like HELL!
Makes me wonder if any of the kids noticed, since analytical skills not the best for the average kid, especially when the story presents a pressing reason for the time-crunch, that the solar eclipse is in only three days, something like that. So, of course (I can see a kid's brain saying) naturally Sokka has to learn all this in three days, but he's good, he can! I mean it's a subtle thing, and I'm not sure the writers would even have realized, given how they're pretty workmanlike in most parts.
But the message under there is pretty clear: Katara has to practice, practice, practice, even go so far as to steal a text to learn more, has to argue with the Northern water tribe guy to be taught, and then lots more practice. Meanwhile, Sokka walks in, lies about who he is, and the entire education isn't just handed to him on a platter -- he's able to take it in and come damn close to mastering it within a two-day span. Wow, must be awfully nice, to be a boy.
The only place the writers get any credit in that segment is that Sokka still couldn't beat the master, so it's not like they turn him into 100% wonderboy... just 95% wonderboy. Not entirely certain that really makes it any better.
(For that matter, yes, he's given the coin for the Awesome Dude thing, but isn't told about it, and seems to pretty much dismiss the game piece as some kind of weird parting gift. Without Zuko's interaction with the same group, it would've been a major plothole if Sokka had somehow instinctively known to call on the group's help despite no instructions. But he didn't, and when he did meet the group, there wasn't any indication he had any clue of the connection between the game piece, his master, and the group.)
Also, again watching the first time, I registered the lack o' women in the ADSS, but wrote it off to me not catching everything. Only on rewatching did I realize that it wasn't me, there really weren't any women making an appearance... and then, yeah, I was gnashing my teeth, too. Would it really have been that hard to just draw an equal number of women, even if those ended up being NPCs?
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Second reply (and if I keep thinking of things to reply, I may just have to do a post and we can hold a cross-journal dialogue or something) -- I can't recall now where I was reading someone's reviews/critiques of the series, but the reviewer made the observation that there's an interesting message in Aang's learning path versus Katara's. That is, that Aang is the Avatar, so has the potential to master all four form, while Katara will always be limited to water -- but her ability with water does eventually outstrip his (in the series), even though he's the avatar. That's because, the reviewer noted, Katara is shown working her ass off to gain her skills, while Aang is more likely to goof off. The underlying message there is that when it comes to someone who works hard and practices, that person can surpass even those who supposedly have an 'innate' skill.
(It also makes me wonder if the Aang/Katara skill contrast is in some way a finger-flip at Naruto, where if the story truly had a message of "hard work will get you to the top!" then the hero of the story would actually be Rock Lee, and not any of the supercharged chi-genius kids running around -- because Katara and Rock Lee are cut from very similar cloth, in some ways.)
I bring that up because it wasn't until I rewatched Avatar that I could set aside the "uh, what's happening now?" to actually watch as it happened. So didn't notice this until the second time around, that Sokka goes to find his master, talks himself into the student position... and then we see montage of calligraphy, some sword practice, painting landscapes, more sword practice, blah blah blah.
And then the master says, "that's pretty good for your first day."
Me: first WHAT? Like HELL!
Makes me wonder if any of the kids noticed, since analytical skills not the best for the average kid, especially when the story presents a pressing reason for the time-crunch, that the solar eclipse is in only three days, something like that. So, of course (I can see a kid's brain saying) naturally Sokka has to learn all this in three days, but he's good, he can! I mean it's a subtle thing, and I'm not sure the writers would even have realized, given how they're pretty workmanlike in most parts.
But the message under there is pretty clear: Katara has to practice, practice, practice, even go so far as to steal a text to learn more, has to argue with the Northern water tribe guy to be taught, and then lots more practice. Meanwhile, Sokka walks in, lies about who he is, and the entire education isn't just handed to him on a platter -- he's able to take it in and come damn close to mastering it within a two-day span. Wow, must be awfully nice, to be a boy.
The only place the writers get any credit in that segment is that Sokka still couldn't beat the master, so it's not like they turn him into 100% wonderboy... just 95% wonderboy. Not entirely certain that really makes it any better.
(For that matter, yes, he's given the coin for the Awesome Dude thing, but isn't told about it, and seems to pretty much dismiss the game piece as some kind of weird parting gift. Without Zuko's interaction with the same group, it would've been a major plothole if Sokka had somehow instinctively known to call on the group's help despite no instructions. But he didn't, and when he did meet the group, there wasn't any indication he had any clue of the connection between the game piece, his master, and the group.)
Also, again watching the first time, I registered the lack o' women in the ADSS, but wrote it off to me not catching everything. Only on rewatching did I realize that it wasn't me, there really weren't any women making an appearance... and then, yeah, I was gnashing my teeth, too. Would it really have been that hard to just draw an equal number of women, even if those ended up being NPCs?