Heartwarming / The Legend of Korra - Book Two

Some friendships can truly transcend the lifetimes.

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Rebel Spirit

• The fact the bending council was replaced with an elected president. Not only this made Republic City more of a free nation, but that it shows the Equalists' point was still heard and acknowledged.
• Senna telling Tonraq to calm down when he is visibly upset at the arrival of the Northern Water Tribe ship. It's made even more heartwarming after "The Southern Lights", when it's revealed that Tonraq was disowned and banished from the Northern Water Tribe and partly because of this has a very unstable relationship with his brother who became Chief in his place. He must have been very distressed at Unalaq's visiting the South given this (amongst other things). It's so heartwarming to see Senna so in-tune with her husband's emotions— she knows just how upset he is and it shows how close they are to each other.
• The hug Asami gives Bolin after their successful interview with Verrick. How badly damaged Future Industries was after the arrest of Hiroshi was entirely understated until Asami's thank-you hug. It spoke volumes about how much stress she was under and Bolin effortlessly paved the way for Future Industries to survive bankruptcy and get back on top.
• Katara convincing Tenzin to spend time with Bumi and Kya when he's down about Korra leaving to train with Unalaq.
• Katara being reunited with her grandkids, and Jinora and Kya sharing a warm hug.
• Katara holding Rohan at the royal feast.
• Mako telling Korra that, though he's not very good at the Avatar counseling stuff, he knows her heart is in the right place and she'll have to trust it. Korra twining their fingers together and Mako's subsequent smile are very sweet.
• The Southern Water Tribe has become a large city. Pretty awesome when you remember how it looked in Aang's time.

The Southern Lights

• It's revealed that the Southern Air Temple is now cleaned up and inhabited again. It seems probable the others have been refurbished, too.
• Bolin running to give Korra a hug after her trek into the spiritual center of the South Pole.
• Mako once again twirling Korra around in his arms and telling her she "never ceases to amaze" him. She then apologizes for being short with him throughout this episode and the one previous, to which he responds by making a joke about the hardships of being the Avatar's boyfriend. The way he knocks their shoulders together and Korra hugs him afterward is simply adorable.
• Jinora's look of awe and delight when she sees the statue of Aang.
• Tonraq's look of pride and his pleased declaration of "She did it!" when he stops his snowmobile to admire the Southern Lights Korra has just released into the sky.
• Meelo and Ikki curled up in the same bed at the Southern Air Temple.
• Mako's insistence on making sure Korra is well-prepared for their trip to the South Pole. Though she teases him and calls him "Captain Expedition," she also seems pleased by his care and concern.

Civil Wars, Part 1

• Korra's reconciliation with her father, Tonraq. Truly a sweet moment. This is moments after she foils a kidnapping attempt on Unalaq by a group of Southern Water Tribe waterbenders, of whom she thinks Tonraq is part of, but she turns out to be mistaken.
• Tenzin using a baby voice when talking to Rohan is somehow very sweet.
• Kya dropped everything to be with and support Katara after Aang died. Just as it is in real life, individuals who do this for their parents (especially if they seek to satisfy their own wanderlust) sacrifice a lot, and often become embittered about this choice at it robs them of their autonomy and of the many great chances they could have had in life. But Kya is proud of her choice and has even decided to settle down despite what she may have yearned for her own life. She really loves her mother dearly and has a very close connection with her...
  • Arguments on Aang's parenting nonwithstanding, all three kids (and Korra) seem to love and respect Katara, showing that our favorite Team Mom grew up to be a great bender, force for good, and a fantastic mother.
  • It's still noticeable that Kya and Bumi do have some of Aang's best traits (Kya has his kind heart and Bumi has his endless energy), so I think some parts of their father were still passed down onto them and he likely did spend time with them growing up, but likely focused a lot on Tenzin's studies because he felt that it would help their culture. I am guessing that it's unlikely Aang had any favoritism in his kids, it'd just be a situation with Aang being a bit of a too-focused on some sort of thing.

Civil Wars, Part 2

• Tenzin finds Ikki in a cave, having a tea party with baby sky bison. Rather than freak out on her, he asks if he can join in. They end up talking about the good and bad of having siblings, a conversation which leads them to realize how important family really is.
  • And the baby bison themselves. Not only are they adorable, but being around them helps the two of them learn the lesson of the day.
• Bumi dropping by Aang's statue to talk, hoping that Aang is proud of him for trying to protect the world even though he didn't turn out to be an Airbender. Then Kya comes in and gives him a hug to reassure him.
  • The fact that Bumi says that Kya always knew how to cheer him up is pretty sweet. Despite all of the bickering the siblings do this season, they actually do care about each other deep down, and this implies that Bumi and Kya were closer than they let on.
• Asami, Mako and Korra working together. With the tension they all had towards the end of Book One to moving to working together, it's something nice to see.
• Finally, Tenzin brings Ikki back and both sets of siblings make up.
• Aang and Katara's family portrait. In the words of their kids, it's one good-looking and happy family.
• Mako standing by Korra's side with his arm on her shoulder during the trial.
• Despite being willing to just ignore the trial and break her father out, Korra agrees not to interfere because he asks. But then she has to see her mother crying because she feels helpless. She may honor her father's wishes, but she's not about to let her mother suffer for it.
• Mako and Asami immediately and wholeheartedly agreeing to help Korra break her father and the rebels out of prison, despite Mako giving Korra a few words of caution beforehand.
• Korra hugging her father and them exchanging "I love yous" as Korra prepares to depart for Republic City to argue the South's case to President Raiko. Considering all the strife Korra and Tonraq went through in the first few episodes, it's nice to see such a sweet moment between them.
• In addition to the above entry, in the same scene we have the Southern rebels pledging their loyalty to Tonraq, calling him 'Chief', and Korra agreeing with them and telling her father that she'll be proud to fight alongside him against Unalaq. That's straight after Tonraq declares that it's time for him to put Unalaq in his place and stop running from his past.

Peacekeepers

• Lin spent the episode acting like her early season 1 self—that is, curt and abrasive. When she learns Korra broke Mako's office in response to them breaking up, instead of scolding him, she tries to make him feel better.
  Lin: You got off easy. You should've seen Air Temple Island when Tenzin broke up with me.
• Korra seeks out General Iroh II (still voiced by Dante Basco) to ask him and the United Forces ships under his command for help. While this ultimately fails, as President Raiko threatens to court martial Iroh if any of the United Forces ships leave Republic City to aid the Southern Water Tribe, Iroh advises Korra to seek out the Fire Lord, his mother, for help.
  Iroh: My mother and grandfather have always been good friends to the Avatar, and to the Southern Water Tribe. I'm sure they'll be willing to help.
  • While Korra ultimately doesn't get to meet Iroh's mother this season, it's still nice to see just how much Iroh is willing to help, and since Korra immediately sets out to see her, it's also clear just how much she trusts his advice.
• Everyone is leaving the dock to do their own thing, so Bolin asks what he should do. Mako simple tells him to figure something out, essentially brushing him off. Varrick, on the other hand, offers to take Bolin out and show him a new side of Republic City and even finds his true talent and a spot to help in the war. For someone who is supposedly an overtly corrupt businessman that is willing to make money through any means, Varrick cares for Bolin and sees him as a friend.
  • The pro-bending crowd's reaction to Bolin. Despite his team's pitiful performance this season, he's a hero to them all.
• The fact that Tenzin's using his holiday to spend time with his children, quite happy to have tea-parties with Sky Bison, or help train lemurs. While we get some less-heartwarming references to Tenzin's own childhood, seeing him interact with his kids is lovely.
• When Varrick suggests that Asami smuggle weapons to the Southern Water Tribe to help fight against the Northern Water Tribe, Asami agrees without hesitation as this will both help Korra and to save her company from bankruptcy. While this may seem like a minor moment in the episode it does show how far Asami is willing to go to help Korra, by aiding in a war that the United Republic has stated that it wants nothing to do with, and while this will help save her company Asami is smart enough to know that if she is caught she will not only lose her company but will likely be arrested as well. Yet she still goes through with it to help her friend.

The Sting

• Mako and Asami working together. Their relationship last season may have been messed up, but it's great to see them being the very epitome of Amicable Exes; they're still friends who care about and want to help each other.
• The Fire Sages have returned to help their Avatar once again.

Beginnings Part 1 and Part 2

• A small one, but it's so wonderful to see the Bhanti shamaness try to heal Korra with firebending when it was originally thought to only be destructive.
• Wan has a rough time stealing food to eat and when he gets home, he gives most of it to his friends, one of whom is an outcast because an encounter with a spirit left him mutated.
• He also tries to teach his fellow outcasts to gain power so they can be free from their oppressors. Unfortunately, it doesn't end well, but he stands by his friends and defends them, even though it makes things worse for him.
• Wan saving the trapped cat-deer Mula, who would become his animal companion, led spirits to trust him and teach him their ways. One lemur spirit who was particularly nasty to him becomes one of his best friends.
  • Said spirit (an aye-aye) even affectionately calls him "Stinky".
  • The aye-aye bowing and smiling to him before finally leaving for the spirit world.
• In a bittersweet way, Wan's death. He has lived to be an old man and now lays alone in a battle-scarred wasteland. He's failed to accomplish his quest to peace but Raava tells him she will always be with him and that she will never give up. Raava appears in the form of a golden cloud, the scene fades to white, and you hear a baby cry.
• Korra wakes up for her spirit coma with all her memories.
• Raava was disdainful of Wan at first, but as they continued their journey together, they became extremely close.
• The Fire Sages protected a herd of Sky Bison during the Hundred-Year War, ensuring the species would survive to the present day. Now we know how Aang got them.
• How not all the spirits were complete bullies to Wan despite him being human. They even wished him luck on surviving.
• The past Avatars appearing to Korra to help her regain her memories, with Wan appearing to show her his story, so she could remember who she is.
• The Shout-Out and allusions to Hayao Miyazaki's works, such as Spirited Away and Mononoke, ensures that American fans like Bryke will preserve Hayao's legacy. Especially meaningful in the wake of Hayao's retirement in feature films.
• The fact that Wan — a native firebender — was the first Avatar. In the original series, the world was thrown out of balance by the misguided ambition of a firebender to try and make the world a better place. Here, we find out that a firebender created the Avatar Cycle for the same reason. Indeed, the world changed when a firebender attacked, starting from standing up against his less-than-fortunate life to doing the right thing, no many how many lifetimes he will live to undo his wrongdoing, thus establishing the Avatar Cycle.

The Guide

• Jinora's friendship with the rabbit-dragonfly spirits.
  • Heck, Korra and Jinora start to bond a bit more over the episode.
  • Kya being a Cool Aunt to Jinora. Despite Kya's arguments with Tenzin, she's very close to and supportive of Jinora, and it's incredibly sweet.
    • Kya protecting Jinora with her body when the dark spirits start to attack.
• When Korra shows up, the kids are really happy to see her.
• Tenzin and Korra making up after their disagreement earlier in the season.
  • Double when Korra assures him the thing that makes Tenzin a better mentor than Unalaq was that he had her best interests at heart while Unalaq was concerned with himself.
• Even though Tenzin's obviously disappointed Jinora's going to The Spirit World with Korra in his stead he tries his best to brace Jinora for what may await her in the spirit world and tells her he's proud of her while sharing a hug. It's good to see some good parenting after Ozai, Hiroshi, Yakone and Unalaq.
• Despite not being very nice, Eska shows that she loves her brother Desna. While Unalaq decides to just leave him and continue trying to open the portal, Eska defies him and hauls Desna away to get help for him.
  • Pay attention to the voice work in that scene. Eska's voice actress has sounded more emotional in that one scene than any of her past appearances. She drops her Creepy Monotone for the sake of her brother, and when she calls for his name after he had been hurt you hear genuine concern.
• Korra telling Meelo that she thought that he rang the bell perfectly, moments after Tenzin blamed him for not ringing the bell at the proper intervals.
• Just the whole scene when Korra and Jinora enter into the Spirit World. For some reason, just hearing the music and the scenery is just beautiful.

A New Spiritual Age

• Tenzin and his siblings have a nice moment near the beginning, while they're watching over Korra and Jinora's bodies (which is a CMOH in itself). When Tenzin expresses his worry for his daughter's safety, Kya assures him that Jinora is smart and capable and Bumi tells him that he and Kya are here for him if he needs them.
• Jinora's spirit friend comes and helps her when she gets separated from Korra.
  • Unfortunately, this makes his corruption into a dark spirit even worse.
• Iroh I showing up and comforting Korra when she's been turned into a child and separated from Jinora, giving her his usual sagely advice and guidance.
• Korra, when she utters, "I can make the sun shine?"
• Korra returning the baby-dragon bird to its nest, where it does a Fusion Dance with the other three chicks there, and proceeds to take Korra, restored to her normal age along with her confidence, to the spirit portals.
  • She also got help from Asian Lion Dog-like spirits, who quickly agreed to help her out...until they got corrupted, that is.
• How does Korra purify spirits in this world? Not as Korra the Avatar, by using bending, but as Korra the person, simply by letting out the light within herself. It shows that Iroh's advice has led her to realize her worth as herself, not as part of an unbroken line of Avatars.
• Korra's dragon-bird friend pulling a Big Damn Heroes and saving her from Unalaq, even giving the jerk a well-deserved smack.
  • What's even better is that unlike the other spirits, this one doesn't get corrupted.
• In the spirit world, Iroh shows up wearing Earth Kingdom garb and has gone back to his original weight, in addition to not looking much older. If his appearance is a factor of self-identity like Korra, then he must see himself not as a great general or prince, but as the roly-poly old teamaker of Ba Sing Se. Alternatively, assuming he left the material world in that state, then he really must have lived his last years in the Earth Kingdom tending his tea shop, just like he said he would. Either way, Iroh lived his last years happily, and got to go out on his own terms.

Night Of A Thousand Stars

• Although he completely failed at comforting his brother, it was rather nice of Bolin to visit Mako, even promising that he'd hire a lawyer for him.
• Bolin getting a kiss from his co-star after saving the president.
• After being delegated to comic relief and shunted to the sidelines, it was wonderful to see Bolin get to be a hero (in real life and on the big screen)
• Asami cheering Bolin up. They have a really great friendship.
• Korra giving Mako a big kiss when they reunite, having mostly forgotten their fight. It's also great to see her so cheerful.
• Bolin's joy that Team Avatar is back together!

Harmonic Convergence

• Even after the revelation of Unalaq's insidious plan to merge with Vaatu to become the "Dark Avatar" and usher in an era of global darkness, and despite Tonraq's remark in the previous episode that he no longer considers Unalaq to be a brother, Tonraq takes back the latter statement in a vain attempt to appeal to Unalaq's humanity, reminding him not only of their own relationship as siblings but of Unalaq's responsibilities to Desna and Eska as his children, and urges him not to throw all of that away to become "a monster."
• It may be kinda twisted, but Desna's belief in his dad would be kinda touching if Unalaq wasn't trying to free the God of Evil of their world.
• Korra and her dad giving each other a hug before the fight with Unalaq in the spirit world.
• Mako and Bolin following Korra into the spirit world despite the latter's concern about getting trapped in there.

Darkness Falls

• Just as Korra is close to defeat and she is about to black out, Raava speaks to Korra telepathically, motivating Korra not to give up and that she is the Avatar.
• The polite spirit mushroom.
• Iroh the first shows up again to try and help Tenzin, Kya, and Bumi. The siblings, who apparently met Iroh when he was alive, were happy to see him again.
• While Mako and Bolin are left frozen in a block of ice from the neck down thanks to Eska and Desna, Mako tries to convince the twins that their father is evil. Desna does begin to reconsider his allegiance, but Eska tells him that they are just lying to him. Bolin then starts bawling that he will never be with Eska again, and that he always loved her and wanted to be with her and is now downtrodden that he will not get that chance now that world's end is nigh. Eska then retorts that they could have been together, if not for the fact that Bolin had left her at the altar, but Bolin replies that he was scared of his true feelings for her and that she should have never left and is saddened that they can never rekindle their "Big Fire of Love Flames". Eska then kisses Bolin, melting the ice encasing the brothers and Eska tells Bolin that should she survive the ordeal with Unalaq, they will spend an eternal darkness together. As Mako and Bolin leave, Mako commends Bolin on his acting, while Bolin himself is not so sure about that, wiping his tears as they leave.
• While in the Fog of Lost Souls, Tenzin begins to question himself because of the weight of the world on his shoulders and wonders if he will fail. Avatar Aang appears and Tenzin tells his father that he failed him and that he will never be like him. Aang then agrees to Tenzin that he will never be like him, and Aang adds that he shouldn't be. Aang then tells his son that he should be his own man, to which Tenzin agrees. His declaration clears the fog revealing his daughter. Tenzin then takes his family out of the fog.
• It's small, but when Zhao takes a hold of Tenzin ranting about he's going to capture him, and before Tenzin can pull him off, Bumi grabs Zhao off of his brother and Kya waterbends him away. It's a nice small sign that even after all the grief the three of them give each other they are still family who love and protect each other.
• The fact that Aang's last appearance has him helping his son to save his granddaughter and his other two children.

Light in the Dark

• Tenzin reassuring Korra and helping her find herself after losing Raava.
  Tenzin: (Avatar Wan) became a legend for who he was, not what he was.
• Now this might be reaching but, the fact that Unalaq's words were what ultimately helped Korra obtain her giant cosmic energy empowered blue spirit form seems to indicate that he may actually have spoken to her psychically. It may not be to much of a stretch to think he'd seen the error of his ways and was trying to fight Vaatu the only way he could.
  Unalaq: Find the light, in the dark...
• Bolin and Eska. It's amazing what Armageddon can do to some people...
  Bolin: ESKA! I LOVE YOU! [kiss] LET'S FACE THE END OF THE WORLD TOGETHER!!!
  Eska: ... You're so romantic.
• "Look Mommy, it's Jinora. She's... beautiful!"
  • Extra sweet considering how the earlier episodes of the season implied that Ikki was slightly jealous of her siblings.
  • Pema's worrying during this part was both hilarious and adorable.
• Raava willingly fusing back with Korra again before the Harmonic Convergence ended. Clearly, she enjoys her partnership with humans, and specifically with Korra.
• Bumi reuiniting with Bumju.
• Bolin giving his brother a (much needed) hug after he and Korra broke up for real.
  • Also, the small smile on Mako’s face as Bolin hugs him, both touched and amused.
  • The breakup itself oddly becomes one, Mako admits what a jerk he's been, and he and Korra realize what a mess their relationship has become and decide to break up despite redeclaring their love for one another.
• Bolin and Eska's breakup is heartwarming. Even with a rough start and end, they really do care about each other and know that their relationship won't work. Her voice actually catches when she's saying goodbye to Bolin. If ever there was a doubt she felt genuine affection for him, it's gone now.
• After Korra defeats Vaatu and saves the world, everyone runs up to hug and congratulate her. Mako is first and gives her an adorably big kiss on the cheek.
  • Keep in mind, this is after they break up, and, despite Korra not remembering it, Mako does. His act of affection towards Korra seemed less like a boyfriend thing, and more like an "I'm so proud of you", brotherly thing. It becomes even more Heartwarming in Hindsight because, by the end of the series, Mako and Korra are basically brother and sister.