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just a thread about azula
looking at everything through her eyes is just so enlightening to her character like. it’s been instilled in her that the more she destroys in the name of her country the more respect and power she’ll gain. she thought it was the right thing to do she didn’t know Anything else
it’s what ozai taught her! fear is how to gain respect, fear is how to make friends, fear is how to make people stay. that’s what she thought she was supposed to do.
the firelord is so revered in the fire nation; the people treat him like a god, so that’s how she sees him. she believes ozai to be the ultimate authority. so her sole motivation is to stay in ozai’s good graces.
but she’s capable of kindness and empathy; we see it in the show in this scene with ty lee. she felt bad about making her friend cry so she apologized and admitted that she was Jealous like. she’s not an evil person she’s just been taught to act without mercy to keep power.
based on this scene alone it’s clear that she Has A Conscience. there’s a part of her brain that recognizes when she does something that negatively impacts people, and she’s able to feel bad about it.
her mother appearing to her and saying that it’s wrong to use fear to control people is her conscience. it’s her recognizing that the things she’s done have been wrong. she’s Fourteen. all she knew was acting with cruelty to gain her father’s love.
because of mai and ty lee betraying her and zuko joining the fight against the fire nation, she realized that Maybe she’s on the wrong side of this war. but it was the day of sozins comet. she had already lost every person she cares about. she didn’t feel like she had any choice+
in the end. “what choice do i have? trust is for fools; fear is the only reliable way.” fear is the only reliable way to keep ozai’s approval. it’s what he drilled into her. she’s always seen zuko as a fool because he’s been deemed a failure in ozai’s eyes and she’s thought it+
for so long that admitting that maybe she’s been in the wrong this entire time is just too much for her. so she tells herself she doesn’t have a choice. she goes to her coronation.
she goes to her coronation, what was supposed to be the most important day of her life, and says, “just do it.” she wasn’t even trying to revel in it because it didn’t mean anything to her anymore
then zuko shows up. from her perspective he took so much from her, esp mai and ty lee. she wasnt gonna let him take this too, even if it was wrong. what did it matter anyway? her father was already destroying everything. she might as well follow in his footsteps one more time
“i’m sorry it had to end this way, brother.” Had To. there wasn’t a choice for her anymore in her mind. azula always lies but she wasn’t when she said that.
anyways to make a long fuckin story short: AZULA IS NOT A VILLAIN, SHE IS A PRODUCT OF HER ENVIRONMENT. THE ONLY VILLAIN IN THIS STORY IS OZAI. the end
