Apparently some 'shippers are convinced that this is a post for (or maybe against, I'm not sure) a specific ship. Or several ships. Like I said, I'm not sure, so for the record: the notion of shipping pro/con didn't even enter my head when writing this. If you want to read into the essay as an argument for/against A+B vs B+C, do whatever, but leave me out of it. I'm not even in the blooming fandom, so it's equally possible that fandom-savvy folks wouldn't even find any of this all that new and/or startling. This is me, deconstructing, for my own contemplation and entertainment. That is all.
The patterns and echoes are also clues, I think, for the Ursa storyline. In S2, "Zuko Alone", we get Zuko's backstory. I can see why![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
snarp argues that Ursa is stuffed in a fridge, but I don't think that's entirely right, because that definition would require her body be presented solely for the purpose of the (usually male) character then having a whole lotta angst. No, Ursa -- like Kya -- is simply Missing Mom. Both of them have impact on the story, and are important to the story, only insofar as they don't exist. They're both Most Important Adult Female Not Appearing In This Story.
[Side-note: in most references, Kya is called only "Katara's mother"; she's named just once, when Hakoda calls out her name in the middle of the Fire Nation attack. Hell, some of the fansites don't even have entries for her at all, including the biggest fansite, AvatarSpirit. Now that's some serious Not Existing In This Story.]
So here's the timeline:
2.07: we learn Zuko's backstory, and hints that Ursa (like Kya) died to protect her child
2.18: Zuko dreams of his mother asking for help
2.20: Katara's mention of her mother's death prompts Zuko to mention his own loss
3.11: Zuko confronts his father, then asks about his mother's whereabouts
Note that in between, there's no mention of Ursa at all, by Zuko. She shows up the first time to give him a reason to angst (and to be alienated from the rest of his family, having bonded pretty much only with her). She shows up again as reminder of his loss, and possible foreshadowing for his continued ties to his father (that is, breaking ties with Ozai means losing hope of getting Ozai's knowledge of Ursa's whereabouts). Two episodes later she's referenced as basis for Katara to sympathize with Zuko, and vice versa. Then nothing for a long stretch, until the logical place/time, when Zuko has Ozai in front of him and can ask the question.
Let's presume that Ursa's storyline is going to be resolved. Until S3, episode 11, Zuko hasn't had any information on Ursa's life or death, so her existence has really acted only as evidence for why he's at odds with his father, and what influence might have kept him from truly going down the same road as Azula. There's a small boost in that this also lends him credibility with Katara (and gets the audience's sympathy), but until he has Ozai in front of him, Ursa's story doesn't really have any further impact except in recycling those two notes on the scale: original influence and later sympathy.
Immediately after 3.11 goes down and the comet is over, things get even tighter for the storytelling. First, Zuko has to convince the Gaang that he could be Aang's teacher, which moves us into resolving Zuko's storyline by providing outward proof of his internal change: his fire, once motivated by anger/hatred, must find a new source. Enter the dragons, etc, etc. Now he has Aang's trust, but not the rest of the Gaang.
Next, then, we have resolution of a major part of Sokka's storyline (not that it's not part of Katara's, only that for Sokka it's shown to have particular resonance), and that's rescuing Hakoda. Note that Zuko is there during the Boiling Rock episodes, which means now he's (a) gained Sokka's trust by helping, and (b) seen firsthand what it means to have a positive, healthy relationship with a parent on an adult's terms.
( It's a perfect setup for Zuko to then request help in return, to rescue his mother. All signs point to it. )
The patterns and echoes are also clues, I think, for the Ursa storyline. In S2, "Zuko Alone", we get Zuko's backstory. I can see why
snarp argues that Ursa is stuffed in a fridge, but I don't think that's entirely right, because that definition would require her body be presented solely for the purpose of the (usually male) character then having a whole lotta angst. No, Ursa -- like Kya -- is simply Missing Mom. Both of them have impact on the story, and are important to the story, only insofar as they don't exist. They're both Most Important Adult Female Not Appearing In This Story.[Side-note: in most references, Kya is called only "Katara's mother"; she's named just once, when Hakoda calls out her name in the middle of the Fire Nation attack. Hell, some of the fansites don't even have entries for her at all, including the biggest fansite, AvatarSpirit. Now that's some serious Not Existing In This Story.]
So here's the timeline:
2.07: we learn Zuko's backstory, and hints that Ursa (like Kya) died to protect her child
2.18: Zuko dreams of his mother asking for help
2.20: Katara's mention of her mother's death prompts Zuko to mention his own loss
3.11: Zuko confronts his father, then asks about his mother's whereabouts
Note that in between, there's no mention of Ursa at all, by Zuko. She shows up the first time to give him a reason to angst (and to be alienated from the rest of his family, having bonded pretty much only with her). She shows up again as reminder of his loss, and possible foreshadowing for his continued ties to his father (that is, breaking ties with Ozai means losing hope of getting Ozai's knowledge of Ursa's whereabouts). Two episodes later she's referenced as basis for Katara to sympathize with Zuko, and vice versa. Then nothing for a long stretch, until the logical place/time, when Zuko has Ozai in front of him and can ask the question.
Let's presume that Ursa's storyline is going to be resolved. Until S3, episode 11, Zuko hasn't had any information on Ursa's life or death, so her existence has really acted only as evidence for why he's at odds with his father, and what influence might have kept him from truly going down the same road as Azula. There's a small boost in that this also lends him credibility with Katara (and gets the audience's sympathy), but until he has Ozai in front of him, Ursa's story doesn't really have any further impact except in recycling those two notes on the scale: original influence and later sympathy.
Immediately after 3.11 goes down and the comet is over, things get even tighter for the storytelling. First, Zuko has to convince the Gaang that he could be Aang's teacher, which moves us into resolving Zuko's storyline by providing outward proof of his internal change: his fire, once motivated by anger/hatred, must find a new source. Enter the dragons, etc, etc. Now he has Aang's trust, but not the rest of the Gaang.
Next, then, we have resolution of a major part of Sokka's storyline (not that it's not part of Katara's, only that for Sokka it's shown to have particular resonance), and that's rescuing Hakoda. Note that Zuko is there during the Boiling Rock episodes, which means now he's (a) gained Sokka's trust by helping, and (b) seen firsthand what it means to have a positive, healthy relationship with a parent on an adult's terms.
( It's a perfect setup for Zuko to then request help in return, to rescue his mother. All signs point to it. )
