The Last Airbender

In anticipation of the live action movie The Last Airbender, my wife and I have been watching the cartoon series Avatar: The Last Airbender.  It's a pretty neat cartoon.

Avatar: The Last Airbender follows the adventures of Aang, the last Airbender (someone who can manipulate air).  Aang's quest is to master all four elements (Water, Earth, Fire, Air; only the Avatar can master all four) and put an end to a 100 year war started by the Fire Nation.  At any time, there can only be one Avatar.

My wife and I just finished the first part of the series, which details Aang's adventures to the North Pole to learn Waterbending.  He is accompanied by Katara, a Waterbender from the South Pole, and her brother, Sokka.  On their journey, they are hunted by the Fire Nation.

I've really enjoyed watching this series, but I do have to add, this series was influenced by Eastern Philosophy (it is a blending of Indian, Chinese, and Japanese).  Reincarnation is a theme as the Avatar is reincarnated.  Spirits also play a role in the series.  The Water Tribe, for example, worships the Ocean and Moon spirits (Waterbenders are stronger at night).  The Avatar is a bridge between the natural world and the spirit world.  That aside, the series does try to bring in a moral lesson in each episode (don't lie, don't steal, etc.) 

I have been fairly impressed with the series so far.  I'm looking forward to watching the other two parts of the series.  I'm also looking forward to seeing the movie, which opens on July 1st (I'm going on July 5th).