Avatar: The Last Airbender (also known as Avatar: The Legend of Aang in several countries) is an award-winning American animated television series that currently airs on the Nickelodeon television network.
Set in an Asian-influenced world of martial arts and elemental manipulation, the series follows the adventures of the latest of a long line of Avatars, Aang, and his friends in a quest to save the world from the ruthless Fire Nation. The series is shown as a book series, with each episode serving as a "chapter" and each individual season as a "book."
Originally slated to begin airing November 2004, Avatar: The Last Airbender debuted on TV on February 21, 2005. The show is also available on DVD or for download at the iTunes Store and Xbox Live Marketplace. Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko are the creators and executive producers of the series along with Aaron Ehasz. The show receives high ratings in the Nicktoons lineup, even outside its intended 6-to-11-year-old demographic. Avatar: The Last Airbender is popular with both audiences and critics, garnering 4.4 million viewers on its best-rated showing.
The series' success prompted Nickelodeon to order second and third seasons. Merchandise based on the series includes eleven DVD sets of episodes, six-inch (15.34 cm) scale action figures, a trading card game, two video games based on the first and second seasons, stuffed animals distributed by Paramount Parks, and two Lego sets.
When the hostile Fire Nation threatens to enslave the Water, Earth, and Air Nations, a reluctant and irresponsible boy must face his destiny as the Avatar, the Chosen One who can restore the world order. This new animated series centers on twelve-year-old Aang, who must forgo his selfish wandering to learn to master his latent powers over the four elements. Only then can he conquer the Firebenders, the evil magi who threaten the world. Written by Sara Stern Levin, Nickelodeon
In a lost age the world is divided into four equal powers: Water Tribe, Earth Kingdom, Fire Nation, and Air Nomads. In each nation there's a group of gifted people known as Benders who have the ability to manipulate there native element using martial arts and elemental magic. For thousands of years the nations lived together peacefully. But then disaster struck. The young ruler of the Fire Nation, Fire Lord Sozin, began a war of world conquest. The only one who could have prevented it was the Avatar. The Avatar is the human incarnation of the Spirit of the World, he alone can master bending all four elements. But, just when he was needed most, he disappeared. Now, 100 years later, a young Waterbender named Katara and her older brother Sokka stumble upon the long lost Avatar, Aang, who was in-cased in an iceberg for 100 years. Now, they must help Aang master all four elements before summers end when Sozin's grandson Fire Lord Ozai will use a comet to deal one last deadly strike against the other nations and claim a Fire Nation victory. But, all that is easier said than done with the Fire Lord's determined and hot-tempered son, Prince Zuko, hot on their trail. Written by Melanie