They've lived as street rats, trained as pro-benders, fought as cops and soldiers, and taken on elite benders to help the Avatar save the world. These bending brothers are a formidable duo, with a variety of skills that make them valuable allies and dangerous opponents. Azula's an exceptional bender, but the brothers' teamwork, experience, and unique skills will give them the win
For this post, I'm going to focus on one of the brothers: the lava bender Bolin. (I'll cover Mako in my next post).
The younger of the duo, Bolin has grown from a skilled but somewhat naive pro-bender to a battle-hardened powerhouse. Combining the speed and agility of a pro-bender with the strength and power of a lava bender, Bolin would be a challenge for Azula on his own
Earthbending:
Bolin's showcased a wide variety of earthbending skills over the four seasons of Legend of Korra. As a pro-bender, he learned to incorporate his agility into his earthbending (a style of bending often slower and less mobile than the other three), giving him a style of fighting different from the earthbenders Azula is used to facing.
In this battle against a group of skilled waterbenders, we can see Bolin's probending speed and agility in action. Despite the limitations of fighting in the pro-bending arena (where he is restricted to the earth disks), he is more than capable of taking on these waterbenders (who aren't limited in their elemental access) and defeating them
Another advantage Bolin has from his pro-bending experience is accuracy. This skill helped Bolin take down the combustion bender P'li, allowing the Beifongs to save Korra from the Red Lotus
An impressive feat of bending accuracy
However, while pro-bending has it's advantages, there are also advantages to the more traditional earthbending techniques emphasizing terrain control and raw power. Some have criticized Bolin for lacking these techniques in the earlier seasons, as he tended to focus more on projectile based attacks. However, by Season 4, these criticisms no longer apply. Bolin has shown an impressive variety of earthbending skills, proving that he can do far more than simply throw rocks
With the strength of traditional earth bending and the speed of pro-bending, Bolin is a skilled opponent with pure earth alone. However, this is only part of Bolin's skill set
Lavabending:
At the end of Book 3, Bolin unlocked one of the rarest of all bending skills: lava bending. One of two earthbenders in history known to possess this skill, Bolin has developed impressive skill with the sub-element in three years.
Here are a few examples of Bolin's skill in lava-bending:
As we can see, Bolin is capable of quickly generating large amounts of lava, sending large waves at opponents or engulfing significant areas
Bolin may not be a cold killer, but he'll do what it takes to get the job done. As we see in the above gifs, he was willing to send a large wave of lava at a group of soldiers. He was also perfectly willing to use lava attacks in his battle against Ghazan
Even if he doesn't go for the kill immediately (which he probably won't) he can use lava to restrict Azula's movement, force her into certain areas, etc. For a fighter like Azula who depends on movement, this can be detrimental
On his own, Bolin is a fearsome opponent. In my next post I will describe Mako's abilities, and outline why their combined abilities are more than enough to bring down Azula
@justicethorpsylocke your turn
Alright, my turn.
Azula is a serious powerhouse, and one of the strongest Firebenders in the entire lore. From a young age, she was hailed as a Firebending prodigy, and she has excellent acrobatic skill along with impressive tactical awareness. She has one of the most consistent battle track records in all of Avatar, and I see her taking a high-majority over the pro-bending brothers. Here's why.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lWDNFKnab7s
2:00-2:40 -- Shows exemplary combat skill against Zuko.
2:55 -- Uses firejets to save herself from a fatal fall
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqLW7D2P1HE
0:15 -- Uses firejets to boost herself a considerable distance and slide herself along a the cart's metal support wire.
1:22 -- Great acrobatic feat
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3EJNNWsGvM
This video is full of excellent battle feats against Aang himself.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdcdhgn0zHM
2:00-2:40 -- Even while depowered, Azula had no trouble avoiding some of Aang's attack and keeping up with him in their chase despite Aang's greatly enhanced agility and speed.
I might post more later. Your turn.
The elder of the bending bros, Mako's a skilled firebender who's versatility and combat aptitude make him a valuable ally, a dangerous opponent, and the perfect compliment for Bolin's earth and lava bending.
Firebending:
In his career as a pro-bender, cop, and Team Avatar's resident firebender, Mako has displayed a wide variety of firebending skills and techniques.
Like Bolin, Mako was first trained as a pro-bender, emphasizing speed, agility, and accuracy. He was a natural at the sport, as much as if not more than Bolin, capable of taking on 3 opponents and winning
I'm starting the video where Mako really starts to shine, showing evasiveness, strategy, accuracy, and power
However, Mako is not limited to the arena. He has repeatedly proven himself as a capable combatant outside the court, taking on high tier benders such as Unalaq, Ming Hua, or Ghazan. I'm going to post some highlights from his fights showcasing his power and versatility
Power: Mako may not be as powerful as Azula, but when he gets serious he has plenty of respectable feats of raw strength
Speed: as a pro-bender, Mako tends to incorporate speed and agility into his fights. Here's a few demonstrations of this
Defensive Skills: firebending does not generally have the same defensive techniques as, say, earthbending. However, Mako has still displayed various defensive techniques to help with Azula's attacks
Fire Jets: Azula's often praised for her use of fire jets to boost mobility and such, as you mentioned in your post. However, she's not the only one to display this technique
Lightning:
Bolin might have lavabending, but Mako has a sub-element of his own: Lightning. Mako is the most skilled lightning bender we have seen in Avatar, demonstrating full mastery of techniques such as instant lightning generation as well as lightning redirection
Instant LIghtning: Mako has repeatedly shown the ability to generate lightning instantly, without the charging time Azula often needed in A:TLA
He has even been shown generating lightning while being bloodbent by Amon. Yes, this lightning was not enough to ko Amon, but it's a great feat of skill that he was able to project lightning at all with Amon controlling his movements
He used his instant to lightning to great effect by bringing down Ming Hua. This shows not only his skill in lightning, but also that it is strong enough to ko or kill (Ming Hua is confirmed dead, though I admit I'm not sure if it's from this or from Ghazan bringing down the temple later), and his willingness to use force to put her down
In addition to lightning generation, Mako has also shown the valuable ability to redirect lightning. This could allow him to use Azula's lightning against her should she attempt it in this battle
Finally, if you weren't convinced of his skill already, here's one final demonstration from the series finale. He's generating a charged, continuous stream of lightning (something we've never seen from any other lightning bender), while also redirecting the discharge. This is a demonstration of skill unequaled by any other lightning bender in the series
I think that covers about everything for Mako's abilities. So far I've discussed the brother's capabilities individually, in my next post I'll talk about their teamwork and how they compliment each other's abilities. I'll also start to address the points you've raised and detail exactly why Mako and Bolin are more than a match for Azula
@justicethorpsylocke your move
I feel like I might lose this lol. Time to try.
Okay, Bolin is in my opinion, the brothers MVP. His lavabending is quite strong, but it doesn't exactly work like hot waterbending. It has fairly modest limits in its range and can't do quite as much as some would like to think. His pure earthbending is very impressive, but I think Azula has the agility to get around it. Mako is a very powerful and skilled firebender and I just realized (while watching the gifs and videos) that i might have underestimated him. I think the fight, despite teamwork will come down to Mako vs Azula. Now onto your post on teamwork
Bolin's lavabending obviously has limits, but it get's the job done. It's range is sufficient for mid-range bending battles.
Couple more examples of him generating larger amounts of lava
Azula might have the agility to get around Bolin's earth and lava and secure a win if Bolin was by himself, but he's not. He and Mako will be fighting together, and she's not getting around their offense and defense
Mako and Bolin are good alone, but they're even better when working together. With Mako's quick firebending attacks to keep opponents off balance and Bolin's solid defense, with offensive attacks at key moments, they're an excellent combo capable of taking on the highest tier of benders
Even back in book 2, before Bolin learned lavabending and improved his earthbendng, the brother's were an excellent duo, capable of holding off the powerful waterbender Unalaq
This is the same guy who would go on to fight Avatar Korra herself to a stalmate
In Book 3, the Bending Brothers' fast-paced teamwork and combos proved too much for the lavabender Ghazan, quickly taking down the powerful Red Lotus member
And Bolin's improved even more since then. (Mako has improved a good bit since season 1, but he reached his peak sometime in season 2 or 3-not that he got worse or anything)
So, as you can see, being better than the brothers individually isn't enough. They're a dangerous combo, and quite frankly, Azula isn't powerful enough to beat them both
I feel like I might lose this lol. Time to try.
Okay, Bolin is in my opinion, the brothers MVP. His lavabending is quite strong, but it doesn't exactly work like hot waterbending. It has fairly modest limits in its range and can't do quite as much as some would like to think. His pure earthbending is very impressive, but I think Azula has the agility to get around it. Mako is a very powerful and skilled firebender and I just realized (while watching the gifs and videos) that i might have underestimated him. I think the fight, despite teamwork will come down to Mako vs Azula. Now onto your post on teamwork
Bolin's lavabending obviously has limits, but it get's the job done. It's range is sufficient for mid-range bending battles.
Couple more examples of him generating larger amounts of lava
Azula might have the agility to get around Bolin's earth and lava and secure a win if Bolin was by himself, but he's not. He and Mako will be fighting together, and she's not getting around their offense and defense
Mako and Bolin are good alone, but they're even better when working together. With Mako's quick firebending attacks to keep opponents off balance and Bolin's solid defense, with offensive attacks at key moments, they're an excellent combo capable of taking on the highest tier of benders
Even back in book 2, before Bolin learned lavabending and improved his earthbendng, the brother's were an excellent duo, capable of holding off the powerful waterbender Unalaq
This is the same guy who would go on to fight Avatar Korra herself to a stalmate
In Book 3, the Bending Brothers' fast-paced teamwork and combos proved too much for the lavabender Ghazan, quickly taking down the powerful Red Lotus member
And Bolin's improved even more since then. (Mako has improved a good bit since season 1, but he reached his peak sometime in season 2 or 3-not that he got worse or anything)
So, as you can see, being better than the brothers individually isn't enough. They're a dangerous combo, and quite frankly, Azula isn't powerful enough to beat them both
I think the brothers are very impressive, both individually and as a team, however, I think Azula can win this. Her agility, as I've shown in the videos I've posted, is well above what Mako or Bolin can do. She also has better raw power, so I think if it came to either coming face to face with her, she'd take the brother out. Mako I'm not entirely sure on. He has lightning redirection, which she does not, but he isn't on her level in any other regard except lightning. Bolin's a beast, but alas, he would be destroyed if she got too close for comfort due to superior agility, quick draw speed, and the fact that Azula backflipping over him while raining down a stream of fireballs is going to mean a surefire death, which she will obviously do in character.
Well, looks like you and I have thrown our best arguments here. Unless you have any other statements, I think we should leave this up to a vote.
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