Ranking 'The Legend Of Korra' Seasons: No. 1, 'Air'

By process of elimination, I assume that most people can figure out which Legend of Korra season is the best--Book 1, Air.

This was the first glimpse we got of the Avatar universe after The Last Airbender. It showed us things had changed greatly, but it wasn't completely foreign.

The Fire Nation's imperialistic ways had been long since quelled, but there was still great unrest. This is where Amon comes in; he is the best villain the Avatar universe has to offer--better than Fire Lord Ozai.

Ozai is great, but his evil is more blatant. He's the M. Bison to Amon's Akuma.

Ozai was kept in shadow for most of the series, but there was never a mystery about who he was. Fans may have wanted to see his face, but his children were the more immediate threat until the third season.

Amon, on the other hand, could have been anyone. And there were countless fans trying to determine who he might have been.

While his identity was revealed in the season finale, fan theories circulated.

Some said that he was Tarlokk; others speculated he was some lost relative of Fire Lord Ozai, as Amon had the ability to rob people of bending; and there were even theories stating he was Aang's non- bending son, Bumi.

Amon was everywhere, and given that Season One took place in a relatively small area, I was always on my toes--wondering if Korra was safe even when there was no apparent danger.

His identity, once it was finally revealed, was more tragic than villainous. Like I said, he's the Akuma to Ozai's M. Bison.

He was raised by a brutal father and was hardened by a life in exile. When he ventured into civilization, he thought bending was the source of the world's woes and sought to eliminate it.

When he finally met his demise, it was one of the darkest moments in what was supposed to be a show geared toward kids.

The protagonists, however, were developing. This isn't to say they were poorly written in Book One. They weren't. But they hadn't reached their full potential. There were times when I felt Korra should have saved the day without Mako's assistance.

An example of this is when Korra and Mako were fighting Amon in the season finale. Amon was quick to dispatch Korra, but Mako put up the better fight.

Korra technically dealt the winning blow that knocked him out of a window, but it felt like Mako did most of the legwork. Korra just caught Amon off-guard.

But, where the protagonists shined was Pro Bending. It's a shame the writers swept such a cool idea under the rug in later seasons. This was an example of how the world felt new yet familiar: Pro bending was seen as a schism between the traditional benders and the newer practitioners.

I couldn't help but draw a parallel between the traditional martial artists and mixed martial artists of our world. It gave the world such character.

It would have been cool, for instance, to have seen the addition of Air Benders in Pro Bending in Seasons 3 and 4.

Book One was the best The Legend of Korra had to offer. It was intense, had a gonzo villain, and it advanced the Avatar Universe effectively without making it feel completely foreign for fans of the The Last Airbender.

Do you agree? Which do you think is the best Korra season? Let us know in the comment section below.