Katara and Sokka are reunited with their old family friend.
"Being a man is knowing where you're needed the most, and for you right now that's here, protecting your sister."
— Hakoda, in flashback
While our heroes continue on their journey, they happen by an old friend of Katara and Sokka's: Bato, a Southern Water Tribe Warrior, who has been separated from the rest of the fighters. However, he should be receiving word of Chief Hakoda, the water-tribe siblings' father, any day now, and Bato promises to take them with him when he returns to his fellows. As the reunion continues, Aang finds himself feeling ignored and forgotten, fearing that he's losing his newfound family. Meanwhile, Zuko recruits a bounty hunter named June whose Shirshu can track by smell, and using Katara's necklace he begins to narrow in on his prey.
Tropes in this episode include:
- Actually Pretty Funny: Iroh's reaction to June calling him fat and lazy.
- Bits of Me Keep Passing Out: Just when Sokka is regaining movement after the shirshu stings him, some debris from a building damaged in the fight falls on him.Sokka: I'm starting to get some feeling back. [crash] Ow.
- Big Damn Heroes: Aang, and Appa a few moments later, each fly in ready to kick some major ass.
- Big "NO!": With echo effect. Iroh screams it when the shirshu accidentally paralyzes its master June.
- Blatant Lies: June saying she's short on cash while gathering in winnings, immediately followed by shouting, "Drinks on me!"
- Bystander Syndrome: Iroh does nothing to help Zuko or June fight Aang.
- Call-Back: June, Zuko, and Iroh meet the Herbalist and the Fortuneteller while traveling on Nyla.
- Chekhov's Gun:
- Katara's necklace that Zuko recovered back in episode 6.
- The perfumes made at the abbey become crucial in the climax to confuse the senses of June's shirshu.
- Chivalrous Pervert: Iroh, who pretends to have been paralyzed to have a pretty young woman keep lying on him a little longer.
- Editorial Synaesthesia: Shots from the point of view of the scent-oriented shirshu overlay scent trails, color-coded per person, over a grey and blurred-around-the-edges image of what a human would see.
- Flashback: Sokka recalls when he was a child and wanted to leave with Hakoda and the other warriors. Hakoda told him that he had to stay to watch over the rest of the family.
- Foreshadowing: June immediately recognizes Katara's necklace as a Water Tribe betrothal gift, something that Katara doesn't realize or understand... yet...
- Heroic Resolve: Appa, willing himself to get up after being paralyzed. Ultimately it takes several doses of the shirshu's poison before he finally proves unable to move at all, whereas everyone else drops after the first.
- Hilarious in Hindsight: Discussed In-Universe almost by name when Bato tells Katara and Sokka about his adventures with their dad. As Bato reminiscences, none of their adventures were particularly entertaining while they were having them, but hindsight has a way of adding levity.Sokka: You and dad had so many hilarious adventures.Bato: Not all of which were hilarious at the time, but everything's funny in hindsight.
- Honorary Uncle: Not explicitly titled as such, but Bato is a close friend of Katara and Sokka's father whom they treat like family.
- Impairment Shot: After being doused in perfume, the shirshu's "vision" turns into nothing but solid ribbons of colors.
- Kavorka Man: Iroh, who flirts with two different women in one episode!
- Liar Revealed: Aang is given a map that could lead his only two friends to their father, who has been off to war since they were kids. As a dedicated monk, Aang realizes he can't keep such a secret from his friends, and eventually just admits it after Bato compliments him on his character. Sokka is outraged and decides to go find their father (Katara reluctantly tagging along), even though they previously planned on sticking with Aang no matter what. (Both reconsider their decision after Bato subtly points out they are making a mistake by abandoning him.) Fortunately, the team reunites after they all fight for their lives together against a trio of villains who want Aang dead. It also helps that Aang managed to steal back one of their family heirlooms from one of the villains.
- Logical Weakness: The perfume to the shirshu. After Katara douses it in the various perfumes, it's unable to see clearly, and blindly strikes at people.
- Multipurpose Tongue: The Shishu Nyla can use his tongue as a weapon, swinging it around like a whip, as anyone hit by it gets paralyzed.
- My God, What Have I Done?:
- Sokka doesn't say it out loud, but after recalling when he had been left behind at home as a little kid, he feels bad for leaving Aang behind as well.
- Aang himself feels great shame over hiding the map that leads to Hakoda.
- Noodle Incident: Several of Bato's adventures with Sokka and Katara's father are mentioned but not elaborated on. Also, apparently Miyuki, the herbalist's cat from "The Blue Spirit," once got in trouble with the Fire Nation...
- "Not So Different" Remark: Played with. Sokka is livid when he learns that Aang nearly denied him and Katara the chance to meet their dad. But it takes Bato so aptly mentioning how it felt to be left behind by his "pack" for Sokka to come to the conclusion his missing his father isn't too different from Aang missing him and Katara.
- Not-So-Innocent Whistle: Aang, after removing the footprints of the messenger's ride on the shore.
- Oblivious Guilt Slinging: Aang learns of the location of Sokka and Katara's father, and keeps it secret. This plagues him through most of the episode as he is praised for being honest and true. Their reaction... they did not take it well.
- One-Sided Arm-Wrestling: When Zuko and Iroh find June, she's in a pub arm-wrestling a much bigger, burly man. Guess who wins.
- The Paralyzer: The shirshu. It can immobilize anyone with a strike of its tongue, though they can regain mobility after a while.
- Poor Communication Kills: The plot in the second half of the episode could have been avoided if Sokka and Katara had communicated to Aang their plan to continue to helping him master the other bending arts. Then perhaps Aang wouldn't have been conflicted over whether to hide the map or not. Or else if Aang had just not stormed out of Bato's room and waited five more seconds to hear them both say they can't go with Bato the first time.
- Rite of Passage: Bato gives the three kids a challenge to sail a ship through a field of rocks without his help, as a warm-climate variation on the Water Tribe's traditional "ice-dodging."
- Rooftop Confrontation: Aang is confronted by Zuko on a rooftop.
- Sense-Impaired Monster: The shirshu is blind, and orients itself entirely using its sense of smell. This allows the characters to take it out by dousing it in intense perfume, which sends it into sensory overload and effectively "blinds" it.
- Ship Tease:
- Katara kisses Aang on the cheek for the first time for getting her necklace back.
- And for Zutara fans, June's first reaction seeing Zuko with Katara's necklace is to ask if he's lost his girlfriend. Later, when she first sees Katara, June jokes, "No wonder she left, she's way too pretty for you."
- Shout-Out: The guy June arm-wrestles looks a lot like a certain
◊ street fighter. - Three-Point Landing: Aang, when emerging from the well.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Sokka gives a rather harsh one to Aang after he and Katara discover that Aang had hidden the map from them. However, Sokka overcomes this later and decides that Aang is a part of their family, so he and Katara go back to find Aang and apologize.
- Whip of Dominance: Bounty Hunter June carries a whip with her to keep her ferocious Shishu partner, Nyla, under control and she also has a domineering theme, with her tough and aggressive personality and her Hell-Bent for Leather outfit. She also never actually uses the whip as a weapon, using martial arts for combat instead. She's shown no hesitation to ruthlessly whip Nyla for the duration of the episode, especially when it underperforms.
