Leave No Air Bender Behind! - Legend of Korra - Season 3, Episode 7

What's Tenzin been up to?  How is he as a teacher?  Are the newest air benders enjoying the air bending lifestyle?  We need an update. Good thing this episode catches up with Tenzin, his crazy family, and all the new air benders at the Northern Air Temple.

We start with a history lesson.  Tenzin, who can fly, decides to start his new students, not raised by air benders and not used to wearing a uniform and abstaining from meat, with the sad story of a long-deceased Air Bending Guru who fasted.  And fasted.  And fasted some more.  The story is, literally, about every single day that his students begged him to eat, but he didn't need it, because he sustained himself with the energy of the universe.

Is there a special technique to make air bender stories not suck?

No one is really listening.  The class looks and sounds like fifth-graders on a field trip, waiting for the chance to go see the dinosaurs, and getting a boring talk instead.  Only one student, an acolyte who actually gained air bending at Harmonic Convergence, even wants to answer Tenzin's questions.  Bumi is outright eating boogers, which will be theme of this episode.  And when he's done feasting on phlegm, he sticks spirit bunny pal Bumju on his head, jacks his shirt collar up, and pretends to be the Air Guru, with the head of a bunny spirit.  Even Jinora, raised on this stuff, gives out a giggle. Tenzin is less than amused, but his students seem to perk up.

Come on Tenzin, this is funny!

The students practically riot later in the day, after watching Tenzin do crazy loop-de-loops with a sky bison over the Air Temple.  They want to do that!  Tenzin knocks that idea down, telling them it takes years of practice to ride a sky bison.  And besides, they don't have that many.  Kai, ever helpful little urchin, points out a herd floating through the valley the Air Temple towers over.  Tenzin, after getting all grammar nerd on Kai, tells his students that those are wild bison, and would take years to train for riding.  As they look out wistfully on a new generation of Air Bender Rides, they spot two sky bison approaching.

Like a furry, open top mini van

It's the family!  They've brought the vomiting baby, the original new air bender Dan, and the few others who had found Air Temple Island after Harmonic Convergence.  Tenzin is happy with the new students, and even happier to see Pema, though she and Kya have disturbing news for Tenzin.  They play it down, but note that Zaheer's gotten away and stole a pendant from Tenzin's study.  Kya, trying to identify it, butchers the name of the Air Bender Guru it belonged to.  Tenzin notes that it's Air Guru Laghima, which sends Kya into a rehash of the Air Guru story she hated most of all.  Tenzin is horrified to find out it's the one he was just teaching.

This season has shown Tenzin reacting, usually with shock and sadness, at how little is known about his culture and history, and how little anyone even cares about it.  Even other air benders seem bored with stories of gurus who discovered enlightenment.  Like a Renaissance Fair goer in a room of Star Wars fans.  Will he ever learn how to connect with people whose ancestor wasn't the most famous Air Bender ever?

Tenzin has to cut the talk with his wife and sister short- he's got a call on the Temple Radio.  What would Guru Laghima say about a radio at an Air Temple?  I think I know, although Tenzin seems content to communicating over radio waves and not the energy of the universe.  He sits down for an update from Korra.  He's incredulous that Lin willingly took Korra to Zaofu to see Suyin, so Korra kind of has to downplay the recent squabbling so she can give Tenzin the even more interesting news:  Suyin's daughter Opal is an air bender, and soon will be at the Northern Air Temple to train with Tenzin.  Korra's praise of Opal as an air bender isn't enough for Bolin, who was lurking behind.  He forcibly takes the radio mic from Korra to recite an ode of lover's praise for Opal.  After grossing out Korra and Tenzin with TMI, Bolin shrinks away, presumably to go worship Opal up close for as long as he can.

Korra asks Tenzin for an update on training the new air benders, but Tenzin doesn't have good news for her.  His students just don't seem interested in the wisdom of Air Gurus, and aren't used to the hard work that real air bending requires.  Personally, I think the benders see Tenzin's three kids bending and playing like crazy.  When they can't do what they see kids doing, they assume they never will.  They never saw the kids learning all day, every day.

Korra doesn't tell Tenzin this, but does suggest that Jinora and Bumi be given some teaching responsibilities.  Sure, Tenzin could give Bumi extra work- but how to get him to actually do it?  Korra suggests giving Bumi the "opportunity" to give Tenzin some advice on motivating his students, and then "let" Bumi implement his own advice.  Tenzin is thrilled at the thought of tricking his brother into taking more responsibility, and he's excited that he and Korra can problem solve together.  Korra declares conflict resolution her special strength.  Although, I have yet to see her resolve a conflict.  Mostly just defeat bad guys, or let them blow themselves up in motorboats, or escape from a tyrannical queen.

Let's just say I know how to end a fight.

Kai is restless, and wants to infect Jinora with his inability to seriously concentrate.  He's determined to check out the sky bison in the green, peaceful valley dotted with ponds.   Jinora reluctantly goes, and is enjoying herself, flying her little glider next to Kai, who's also gotten himself a glider, and a couple of friendly spirits out with them today.  Note:  Kai, a kid, seems to have developed his air bending faster and more creatively than the adults, even the former acolyte.

Joyride!

Kai is ecstatic when he spots some sky bison calves, about the size of large dogs, playing by the water below.  He asks Jinora why they're not flying with the grown-ups, and Jinora tells him that calves can't fly, so the adult herd will stay close by, ready to defend them.  Kai, totally ignoring the caution in Jinora's voice, immediately flies down to start playing with them.

They're too cute, and I'm too impulsive

Jinora doesn't like this, especially when she sees what Kai does not:  an adult bison has spotted Kai, and decided he's a problem.  Jinora manages to swoop down and rescue Kai from the bison's charge.  Jinora's still spooked at their close call, but all Kai can think of is what a good air bender Jinora is, and how she must be ready to be an Air Bending Master now.  Jinora complains that her dad thinks she's too young.  Kai dismisses her dad's opinion.  Didn't she just save him?  Isn't she just as good as her dad?  And doesn't she have abilities with the spirits that he doesn't?  Jinora can't help thinking he's right.  Maybe she is ready.  Maybe her dad is wrong.

Bumi, just as Korra predicted, is a hit with the other air bending students.  He's killing with a couple of other students, reciting a probably fake pirate story, when Tenzin decides to have brother to brother talk with him.  When Tenzin admits he's having trouble leading, Bumi declares that leadership is about breaking the old people they were down and building back up new air benders.  Bumi tells Tenzin to show them just who the Master around here is.  Does he know what bad advice this is?  To a guy who can't come up with a Plan B, ever, trying to act like a boss is a terrible mistake.  But Tenzin is entranced with the idea.  Why not come up with an air bender boot camp?

It starts at dawn the next morning.  Or rather, before dawn.  Tenzin storms into the air benders' barracks (literally, they're in a barracks), blowing furiously on an oversized horn.  He's yelling for them to wake up, as everyone, even Bumi, who should know a drill sergeant when he sees one, has no idea what's going on.  A ten-mile hike up plateaus surrounding the valley is what's going on.  Tenzin easily completes it, with Jinora only a few seconds behind.  The others stagger up, already tired.  And freezing cold from the winds this high before the sun has risen.  Oh, are you cold?  Well, air benders can warm themselves by meditation!  Tenzin gets right to it, exhorting the students to start right away.  One student makes the mistake of wondering if they could wear some sky bison fur.  Tenzin is outraged!  Tenzin sits facing the Air Temple in the distance ten miles away, as Bumi, already done for the day, crawls up behind him, already regretting his advice yesterday.  Tenzin reminds him that it's quiet time.

There's no getting out of your own bad ideas, Bumi

And that's the easiest thing they do all day.  Instead of letting them rest after hiking back, Tenzin proceeds directly to a new exercise of balancing on narrow poles.  On one foot.  With the other bent into the crotch.  On top of all this (pun intended), an air bender needs to concentrate on spinning a feather over the palm of one of their hands.

Totally easy, people

No one, except the kids, can do it.  Instead of giving them insight on how one achieves this, and encouraging modest successes so students will persevere, Tenzin simply tells them that this is a really easy exercise, and there's no reason they shouldn't be able to do it right away.  He's especially harsh on Bumi's failures.  And he doesn't seem to care about lemurs chewing on his students, as he tells the students to just ignore the lemurs.  Poor acolytes!  At this point, Jinora starts objecting to her father's methods.  Tenzin brushes aside her concern.   He's got breaking down of recruits to do.

The lemurs are just trying to make it interesting

The students get a rest, of sorts, watching Tenzin explain the merits of head shaving while demonstrating on Dan, who looks absolutely miserable at losing his hair just so he can feel every breeze.  The other students look on in pure dread.  When Tenzin informs them brusquely that it's a personal choice anyway, Dan practically grabs his hair to try to re-attach it to his head.  Jinora, once again, asks if maybe they don't just need a break.  No, they don't.  What they need is an obstacle course.

It's mostly fruit and cactus based, with lots of moving parts, and Iki and Meelo shooting watermelons at air bending students.  While the others struggle and plod through it, Kai hops, skips and jumps his way easily through the obstacles.  Just as you think he's going to make it through, while hopping on pole tops through a field of cacti, Kai has an unfortunately collision with another air bender, and both topple into the cactus.

Tenzin is only slowly joined by muddy, cactus poked, watermelon soaked air benders.  Bumi is eventually left, after getting through the maze, clinging to the rock face he has to leap up to join the others.  He's gripped in fear, and only Tenzin's relentless harangue gets him to try to move.  But he fails spectacularly, falling in the mud at the bottom of the rock.  Tenzin is unconcerned, simply yelling at Bumi to start over.  But Bumi's had it.  He abruptly quits the training, stomping his feet as he rants at how much he hates this training regimen.  Tenzin takes Bumi's quitting like any older brother would, simply yelling back that they're better off without him.

Tenzin's not done venting his anger at how little success he's had.  When the students start asking when they can visit their families, or even eat something, Tenzin decides that they need to be yelled at too.  Someone mentions that they at least got rest time and meals when they were drafted by the Earth Queen, and now Tenzin's done with his own training regimen.  He angrily gives the class to Jinora.  Jinora picks the absolutely worst time ever to decide that she must be a Master now.  She tries to wheedle Master's tattoos from her dad, but the idea is so new to him, and he's so wound up with anger at Bumi and the recruits, that he angrily demands to know why she's asking for such a thing.

Jinora makes the mistake of mentioning Kai's praise of her.  Kai smartly disappears when Tenzin reacts angrily to his name, but Tenzin isn't going to take his frustration out on Kai.  He's going to take it out on Jinora.  When Jinora plays the I-can-do-more-spirit-stuff-than-you-ever-will card, Tenzin is aghast.  When Jinora quits too, even though she wasn't really a recruit, and storms out,Tenzin turns to Iki and Meelo to lead the class.  Now, it's Tenzin's turn to storm out.  Once he's gone, Meelo shows he's going to be every bit as tough as Tenzin.  Look amongst yourselves, he tells them.  One of you won't make it out alive.

Future CrossFit Instructor?

Jinora and Kai meet up at a balcony terrace somewhere in the Temple, and Kai says he's sorry for getting Jinora in so much trouble.  Jinora is less concerned about following Kai's advice and more pissy that her dad doesn't realize she's growing up.  She's still mad, so Kai takes this opportunity to suggest going to see the baby bison again.  Jinora's happy to go right away this time, and they happily proceed to the valley.  Which they find deserted.  No spirits have accompanied them.  No bison are anywhere.  They start to wonder at it, when Jinora is pinned by a net flying from nowhere.  Kai is netted too, before he can even find out what's going on.

They find out soon enough.  They've been captured by poachers, who have also put the baby bison calves in cages mounted on trucks.  Their leader is wearing a bison pelt, which is like people who have rugs of endangered animals.  Not only is he completely tacky, but he decides to kidnap Jinora and Kai and take them to Ba Sing Sei.  For who knows what reason.

Meanwhile, Tenzin is ruminating on the many ways Bumi ruins everything, when he's joined by Pema, who kneels down next to him and brings a sympathetic ear with her.  Tenzin is at a stopping point.  Pema reminds Tenzin of her early days at Air Temple Island at Republic City.  Years ago, a naive young woman came to be an acolyte.  She was happy to come, leave her old life behind, and life the new simple life of tending to the air benders and their home, and sharing in the enlightenment formerly reserved for air benders.  But, even she was homesick and culture shocked.  Tenzin tries to get in an aside about hard beds being better for your back, but Pema won't be undermined.  Everyone coming is someone not raised in the lifestyle.  Tenzin should already have known this, from his failure to entice anyone who already had a life to join him.  These people want to learn how to air bend, but the lifestyle takes getting used to.  That is the journey Tenzin must lead them on.

Tenzin, realizing he's just been schooled, gives Pema a tender, kind peck on the forehead, and muses that he feels like Korra when he's trying to tell her something important.  And then he goes out to the terrace, where he finds Bumi and immediately apologizes for his harshness.  Bumi, classic brother that he is, is very snotty as he refuses to forgive, and he saunters off with Bumju following.  Tenzin is momentarily frustrated, but decides instead to ask the others where Jinora is.  They inform her that she left a while ago with her boyfriend.

Boyfriend?  First she wants air bending Master tattoos, and now she has a boyfriend????  What is Tenzin's world coming to?  Tenzin is back in pissy mode as he stalks off to find a sky bison.

Jinora and Kai are having no fun whatsoever locked in the cages mounted on the truck, both locked in with a sky bison calf.  Jinora tries playing the endangered species card on the leader, but he informs them that the endangered part is what makes their meat so valuable to someone like the Earth Queen, who both Jinora and Kai just escaped from.  The poacher figures he can get a bounty on them, too.  When the poacher leaves, Kai advises Jinora to use her spirit projection to summon help, but Jinora's too cramped to properly meditate and separate her body and spirit.  She does get another idea, and summons a spirit to her, asking it to find help.

Oh, and would you bring me some potato chips?

The spirit, a fluff ball with spindly legs, finds Bumju instead.  The blue, winged rabbit is working on Bumi, who still doesn't want to forgive Tenzin, or restart training.  He's just too old to start taking orders again.  He'd much rather just sit around and tell heavily embellished war stories, since he already knows he's good at that.

The spirits have other plans for Bumi.  They play a short game of telephone, with Bumju figuring out that the spirit is a distress call from Jinora, and they'd better find her.  Bumi doesn't wait for Tenzin, but goes right to the air bending students, in a balancing exercise with Meelo.  He quickly explains the situation to the others, who are impressed that he can understand the spirits.  They're not so happy about his message, and would prefer to let Master Tenzin deal with danger.  Bumi dismisses their fears.  Master Tenzin isn't here.  Bumi sends the kids for the sky bison, and insists that they're going to find the kids and save them.  Now.

You can take orders from Meelo, or have a crazy adventure with me!

They find the poachers easily enough, huddled behind large rocks by the camp.  Now the other air benders are even more scared.  Struggling through an obstacle course is bad enough;  but now, Bumi wants them to get their asses kicked by mean-looking criminals.  Bumi digs deep into himself for a speech that will rouse them.  They remind him that he's actually quit the training after failing spectacularly.  Bumi decides that the events of the day don't matter now. What matters is that Jinora and Kai are two of them.  They may not be master air benders, but they are all each other has.  They can't lose anyone, and they can't afford to splinter now from fear.  Meelo seconds this, by deciding they're all really like the Marines.  And Marines never leave their own behind.

Semper Fi!!!

Kai is already starting the party by hauling out some slender piece of metal, which he uses to pick the lock on the cage.  Free, he is about to unlock Jinora's cage when he's caught, and scrambles to his own defense.  Bumi and the others use that moment to strike, leaping out and air bending themselves quickly into position.  The poachers are earth benders, and use bending to lift rock from the earth that acts like a barrier between them.  But Kai is already on their side, and Meelo and Iki already know how to get around and over the barriers.  The others blast air around the barriers as best they can.  When a poacher tries to capture Dan with a flying net, he has a moment when he realizes he's is feeling the wind behind him, just like Master Tenzin said he would.  Knowing from his own scalp where the net is, he turns, lowers himself, and emerges from under the net to whip his attacker off his feet.

There's something behind me, isn't there?

The poachers are defeated quickly, so their leader, he of the messy hair and bison fur, decides to drive away with Jinora and the remaining bison calves.  Kai follows on his glider.  Tenzin is already in the air, high above, when he's jostled by adult sky bison wanting to get somewhere in a hurry.  Tenzin, curious, sees they're headed for the truck speeding away below.  He realizes this is bad right away.  When he sees Kai following the truck, he decides to go down and help.  The sky bison adults play bumper cars with the truck as Kai tries to leap into the truck cab.  He has to make a quick exit, though, and he's saved by Tenzin, leaping onto the bison with the Master.  When the bison finally hit the truck hard enough to stop it, and Tenzin lands in front to block the truck, Kai leaps off the bison.  He furiously attacks the leader, angrily spewing the leader's own selfish, destructive greed right back at him.  The leader surrenders, but Kai isn't listening, and Tenzin has to grab Kai to stop him.  He admonishes Kai against hitting the unarmed who have surrendered.  But Tenzin admits to Kai that he did an excellent job of stopping the bad guys.

The poachers are now locked in the cages while the sky bison, calves and adults, relax.  When Kai doesn't understand why the adults are so nice now, Tenzin tells him that they've earned the bison's trust.   The bison, he tells Kai, were the original air benders.  And the newest Air Nation has shown that they, too, are air benders.  Dan is outright bragging about his shaved head, and how it saved him, and plugging it for the others.

Bumi finally has a brotherly talk with Tenzin.  Bumi never felt a part of his dad's culture, but Tenzin tells him he's immersed in it now.  Maybe there will be a new Air Nation Culture, that makes room for the past of fasting and meditating, but also the fact that these new air benders have to adjust to a completely different way of living.  Tenzin's last make-up is with Jinora, who hugs her dad.  Jinora's not done bringing up getting her Master's tattoos.  This time, Tenzin is a little more accepting that his daughter is growing up.  Maybe not today, but the day is coming when he won't be the only Air Bending Master.

I'll still find a way to put it off, honey

He's not the only one who has to adjust to the kids growing up.  Kai shrieks in delight;  the sky bison calves are finally airborne.  A little confused at first, they take to flying right away, already seeing how high they can go.  The adult bison watch in wonder and a little sadness.  Their kids are growing up too fast too.

Everyone's an air bender now!

The Healing Process - Legend of Korra - Season 3, Episode 6

Warning! Transition episode.  Zaheer and his merry band need a whole episode to escape Republic City.  Lin and Suyin finally have out their issues.  And Korra learns a new skill!

Morning comes to Zaofu.  With the sun well up, the pods of the city open up to blue skies with only puffy white whisps of clouds about.  It's a perfect, summer day for the Metal Clan.  Wei and Wing, Suyin's twin sons, are excited to get out right away and play them some power disc.  They are totally stoked to play with Korra, but she has to turn them down- she can't metal bend.  Suyin is at first shocked that Lin hasn't taught her.  Then she has a chuckle thinking how bad a teacher Lin would have been.  Suyin quickly offers to train Korra in metalbending herself, which Korra happily accepts. Opal, seated next to Bolin as usual, encourages him to try, and Suyin is happy to help.  But Bolin declines, feigning disinterest.  As Suyin is trying to convince Bolin, her metal collar piece floats off her chest.  All the metal in the room starts to move, then zooms out the dining room.  We see a triumphant Varrick, crowing the suit he's wearing, which has attracted all the metal in the dining room.  When Zhu Li powers the suit down, Varrick stomps off, after ordering Zhu Li to pick up his mess.

Phase 3- Zhu Li finally kicks your butt!

Outside, a couple of Zaofu guards are comparing pushup counts, when Lin confronts them, snapping at them for lounging on duty.  The guards are non-plussed;  Lin caught them not guarding, but she technically doesn't have authority to yell at them.  Lin doesn't seem to care about these jurisdictional issues, frantic that Korra isn't safe in Zaofu.  She insists on personally combing the city for threats real and imagined.  Aiwei appears behind her, and he calmly informs Lin that she's losing her cookies from stress.  Maybe she is always high strung, but now she looks ready to collapse.  Aiwei sends her to the local acupuncturist.  While Lin is dealing with her stress levels, the rest of the gang gets the episode to explore a little.

Zaheer and his besties hide out in Republic City after Zaheer nearly got his ass kicked by Kya at Air Temple Island.  They are holed up in an abandoned apartment, one of a whole building with spirit-vines growing throughout.  They are pissy at not knowing where the Avatar is, and one lets slip that they won't be abe to assassinate President Reiko now.  Assassination? Just what are their plans, for Korra and the world?

Zaheer nixes the assassination.  Now the goal is escape the dragnet surrounding them.    A delivery truck is stopped on the street below.  Zaheer and his gang easily take the driver by surprise, and he's petrified.  At first he thinks they're robbers, but Zaheer and Ming Hua's watery knife have other plans for his truck.

She's a people person

Lin lets herself down on a table in a dim room.  The acupuncturist, a fellow metal bender, finely controls a series of needles, aligning them along his desired insertion points, and then gently easing them in.  He explains that this will unblock her Chi.  He also explains that during the session, she may experience long-buried memories, as her body and mind try to remove whatever's blocking her precious Chi.  Lin scoffs at this, until the last needle pierces her forehead, right in the middle of her brow.

But maybe I like my memories repressed!

Lin immediately flashbacks, and we see a young Lin, hair black and a little longer, wearing a gray uniform.  She's home early, apparently, as Suyin wasn't expecting her.  Lin wasn't expecting her younger sister at home, either, and wants to know why she's not at school.  Suyin brushes off the question, daring Lin to tell Mom.  After all, Mom will just ignore it.  We can see Lin seething when she realizes that Suyin is right- Suyin is allowed to get away with whatever she wants.  One of Su's friends hastily closes a bag containing valuable-looking stuff.  Lin demands to know what it is.  He says it fell off a truck. Yeah, because I leave jewels and stuff loosely bound on a truck.  They saunter out, not worried about getting caught at all.

Lin, unfortunately, tries telling Suyin to act up to her potential.  Because rebellious teens love hearing that.  Suyin disses Lin, Su's friends laugh at Lin, and she's left alone to scowl.

Su Yin and Korra get started with meteorites.  As they are a combination of earth and metal, it's easier for Korra to detect and manipulate the grains of earth in the metal.  Korra's trying to concentrate, when they both spot Bolin peeking out from behind a nearby rock (or giant meteorite?).

Don't mind me!

Bolin, at first, won't cop to eavesdropping.  He fabricates a Pabu-related excuse for being around.  One wonders if Pabu really does have a venom.  He then offers to act as a spectator at this game.  Suyin and Korra, not convinced that Bolin isn't really interested for one moment, get back to work.  Within a few seconds of concentrating, Korra is making the meteorite reform into different shapes, like a potter with clay.  Well, a beginning potter.  Bolin is further discouraged from even trying to bend metal.  After all, if Korra is the one in a hundred who can do it, what are the odds Bolin could too?

Back in Lin's head, she's a full-fledged police officer getting a call while out on patrol in her spiffy little police car.  Getting a call on robbers driving in her area, she radios in to her station, whips the car around, and quickly sees the robbers' car careening through the crowded city streets.  The getaway car is fast and maneuverable, but inevitably makes a mistake that crashes it.  Lin parks and quickly captures the robbers with a cable she bends out of her holster.  A familiar voice calls to her to stop- Lin realizes, in horror, that Suyin has emerged from the car too.  The shock in the memory is so real, that Lin wakes up in a fit, convulsing so badly that needles fly from her skin into the walls.  The acupuncturist is horrified, telling Lin to continue the session.  Lin ignores him as she trudges out.

Lin tries to rest in her room, but it's no good.  She's now seeing a young Suyin enter and berate her about her rude treatment of Opal.  Young Suyin eventually morphs into Korra, still wanting Lin to apologize to Opal.  Lin, maybe realizing that young Suyin isn't going to go away this time, sweeps past Korra, and returns to the acupuncturist, who immediately puts her under again.

Back down Memory Lane, Suyin is trying to minimize her participation in a crime.  It's no biggie, and who would even think of arresting her? Lin is now furious.  Typical Suyin.  Doing whatever she wants while Lin plays by the rules. And demanding to get away with it, too.  When Suyin starts to walk away, Lin decides she's had enough.  A cable comes from her holster and shoots across the space between them, wrapping around Suyin's wrist.

Ha ha! 

Suyin doesn't like this at all.  Where does Lin get off? Suyin bends a wrist piece into a knife, and slices the cable with such force, the tense line snaps, and whips the cut end right into Lin's face.  Lin screams in pain, holding her face.  Her own sister has not just tried to commit a crime, but assaulted a police officer.  Specifically, her.

Lin and Suyin end up being chewed out by their mother, the great Toph Beifong, Chief of Republic City's Police.  Lin is incensed when Toph starts yelling at her, as Lin was doing her job, and Suyin was just a brat too many times.  Toph decides that she can't have a scandal; as the Police Chief, her kids can't be getting into trouble.  The coverup starts with Toph telling Suyin she'll have to leave town.  Su is spoiled-brat angry.  Why should she be inconvenienced?  Where will she even go?  Toph tells her she'll go to her grandparents.  Oh, that should be fun.  No wonder Su ran away.  Then Toph further angers Lin by ripping up the arrest report.  Lin thinks that Su is getting off with no punishment.  A frustrated Toph rubs her temples as she tells her warring daughters that this is the only way.

Needs some 'me' time

Lin wakes up.  She ignores the acupuncturist who tells her to rest for a while.  There's someone who needs to pay.

Bolin hasn't given up; he just doesn't want to fail in front of people.  He approaches a resting meteorite like a ninja, and then throws 110% into trying to bend it.  Nothing.  Opal catches him, and Bolin gives his best excuse for loitering yet;  he was pondering future facial hair layouts.  Opal makes him admit that he'd love to metal bend; but he hasn't found the way to do it, and he's afraid he'll never be able to.  Opal says he's staying with the best metal bender in the world, so go and learn from her already.  Bolin decides to bring up Opal staying at Zaofu when she should be at the Northern Air Temple with Tenzin and the other air benders.  Opal looks resigned to having to stay in Zaofu to please her mother.

Zaheer and his gang are huddled in the back of said delivery truck, with the driver up front.  He stops at the checkpoint before the bridge headed out of town.  He's so nervous, he screws up his lines, and the cops catch on to him right away.  The driver is almost grateful when told to exit the truck, and runs away immediately.  The cops are ready for trouble now, and it comes in the form of Zaheer, Ghazan, and P'Li fighting from the back of the truck, while Ming Hua uses her water arms to drive away.  The cops try chasing, but P'Li explodes chunks of highway as they leave, leaving a hot, molten mess along the bridge.

Back in Zaofu, Bolin has just sheepishly asked for Suyin's help in metal bending, when Lin decides that's enough training for everyone for the day.  The metal plates on the ground crinkle and wrinkle as Lin vents her rage on them.  She has shown up to tell Suyin off.  Suyin, who never apologized for scarring her, taunting her, and basically getting away with never doing anything right.  Suyin has done a great job forgiving herself, just not for asking Lin's forgiveness.  Maybe she expected Lin to come to her; but that's not really fair.  You don't wait for the person you've wronged to come to you.

Lin blames Suyin for Mom losing her career.  Suyin tries to brush it off, but Lin tells her Toph was so eaten by guilt for covering for her daughter, she felt she had to retire.  Suyin says she's a different person now.  Their mother has been to see her, and they reconciled.  She blames Lin for not coming when she was invited.  Lin tells Suyin there's no changing.  Suyin agrees, but decides it's Lin who hasn't changed.  Like Korra last night, she accuses Lin of being a bitter loner.  And then, just like her childhood self, she has to get in a dig.  She brings up Lin's old affair with Tenzin, telling Lin that she's not surprised Tenzin broke up with her.

Once again, Suyin puts in one too many smart lines.  Lin is incensed, and their fight begins.  Lin is in full attack mode.  Suyin mostly just has to play defense, but gets in some throws too.  They vary between earth and metal, using whatever is nearby and handy.  Korra, horrified, asks Bolin if she should intervene.  Bolin says siblings gotta do what siblings gotta do.  Wei and Wing are cheering on their mother; Huan cares more about his sculptures than the fight.

Years of repressed anger plus floating rocks.

Lin is tired after being thrown into some steps.  But she's not ready to give up.  She tiredly rips out a chunk of the stone steps.  Suyin does the same with a stone retaining wall.  They are literally about to hurl boulders at each other when they are stopped by a blast of air.  It's Opal.  Shy, sweet, gentle Opal.  Who lays into them both.  Lin probably doesn't hear a bit, as she's so tired she collapses.  Before she can hit the ground, Korra catches her.

The next day, Korra, Mako and Bolin stand timidly outside the door to Lin's quarters.  Lin has yet to emerge, and all three are worried about her.  But not as worried for themselves should Lin not want to be disturbed.  Bolin outright doesn't want to knock on the door.  Korra thinks she could do it, sure she could, and she will as soon as she talks herself into it.  So Mako simply strides to the door, knocks, and asks Lin if she's okay.  The door opens.  Instead of a harangue, it's Lin.  Chipper and dressed as a dweller of Zaofu, she actually smiles and says good morning.  Korra, Bolin and Mako are shocked.

Lin's first stop is the dining room, where the chef serves her his hangover drink- kale, nuts, and coconut water :  The Kale-Nuts Co.  She's hesitant to try it, but decides she likes it.  Opal is lingering outside the dining room, still afraid to talk to her aunt; but Lin asks her to please come in.  She wholeheartedly apologizes to Opal, admitting that she has trouble talking about her feelings.  She then asks Opal what's holding her in Zaofu when Master Tenzin and other air benders are elsewhere.  When Opal repeats that she just wants her mom to be happy, Lin reminds her that she spent her life trying to please Toph.  And look where that got her.  Opal leaves, and immediately finds her parents in their study.  She asks to talk to them as she closes the door behind her.

Your mom left home at your age.  What could go wrong?

It doesn't take long for Suyin to find her sister.  Lin is standing at Zaofu's grand statue of Toph, their mother.  She knows Lin gave Opal the final push to go, but she's not angry.  She admits that she's been keeping Opal close when the girl needs her freedom.  She finally apologizes for hurting Lin, and she and Lin both admit that leaving was best- if she had stayed, Lin would have had to lock her away permanently someday.  Suyin tells Lin what she never actually heard herself- that their mother was proud of her, that she does important work.  Suyin, now that the breached is healed, wants Lin to move in and start directing dance recitals.  Also, she's sure there's work to do with the kids.  Lin tells her to be happy with baby steps.  They're not throwing things at each other today.  Be glad for that.

I'm letting you live today.  But just today.

Outside Republic City, Zaheer and his gang rest at a camp site really super close to the truck.  Which they didn't bother to hide.  They had to abort killing the President, and they have no idea where the Avatar is.  Their goal, whatever it is, is looking unattainable.  Good thing Zaheer, deep in meditation, has some way of learning that Korra is in Zaofu.  Well, good for them.  Not so good for Korra.

All In The Family - Legend of Korra - Season 3, Episode 5

Lin is probably at her personal worst in these next two episodes.  We've always known her as the brusque, no-nonsense Police Chief.  We've seen that though she's tough, she has an honest devotion to law and order, and Korra.  So these two episodes stretch that devotion, as Korra demands that Lin confront her past family life.  The Air Temple outside Republic City has a clash with Zaheer, and Kya almost nails him.  Almost.

The stage is set with a daytime romp in the countryside, as Korra airbends a ball to maximum height and velocity to give Naga a good challenge as she catches each "throw".  No one is especially rushed, except Lin, who doesn't want Korra dawdling outside. Korra reminds Lin that no one except the current crew even knows where she is:  herself, Lin, Asami, Mako, and Bolin.  When Mako and Asami bring news of a new air bender, Korra asks Lin if she's ever heard of the place.  Lin claims to know nothing about their destination, a city named Zaofu.  When everyone has happily re-boarded the airship for Zaofu, Lin is left with Naga, who expects Lin to play catch with her.  Already in a foul mood, Lin simply snaps the ball apart with a metal line from her wrist.  Naga is crushed.

Bad Lin!

Team Korra, all back on the airship and approaching Zaofu, all stare in astonishment at a city literally made of metal, by metal benders.  Bolin, especially, is ecstatic.  Everyone except Lin seems amped up to meet a new air bender, and even Mako has shaken off the malaise he showed when approaching Ba Sing Sei.  Is it because he's finally at peace among the group, or is it because his boss is sitting ten feet behind him?  Lin reclines in the back, and has no desire to even go into the city.  Everyone is perplexed, with Bolin and Asami openly wondering how any metal bender wouldn't want to see the place.  When Lin demands secrecy that she's even waiting behind in the Republic City Police Air Ship that supposedly won't give her away, Korra reluctantly agrees.

Like Disney World, without tourists and giant walking characters

Metal benders gracefully bend metal cables that bring in the airship, and a small group is waiting for Team Korra when they disembark.  Ai Wei introduces himself, basically as an administrator of the city.  He's polite and respectful, and Korra returns his manners, but finds she has to lie when Aiwei wants to know if her friends are the only visitors.  When the lie is immediately accepted, all seems ready for a fantastic trip.

The ride through Zaofu's several massive pods, which are more like neighborhoods that can fold up at night, Bolin is still on his Zaofu-high, and even the rest are impressed with such a nice, orderly, well-designed city. Aiwei is very proud as he informs Team Korra that Zaofu is an environment where all can truly develop their potential. The tram continues past a monumental statue of Toph Beifong, earthbending teacher to Avatar Aang, former Republic City Police Chief, who is Lin's mother.  Bolin geeks out completely, screeching a desire to see Toph, but Aiwei has to inform him that Toph has not visited in years, disappearing on a quest for enlightenment.  The tram is in a tunnel, and darkens momentarily while Aiwei delivers this news.  Foreshadowing?

No hero worship here at all...

Things are looking just as good at Air Temple Island.  Dan, the air bender we met in the premier, is eating in the main cafeteria while Iki and Meelo show the place around to two new air benders, recently arrived from who knows where.  Dan's happy to meet new air benders, and seems like he's happily adjusting to life in the Temple.  Meelo and Iki are even more excited when a stranger approaches them inside the cafeteria, demonstrating that he can now gather a circle of whirling air in his palm.  He's gotten a hair cut, but the voice is familiar....

Team Korra, still thrilled with Zaofu, finally reaches the home of the new air bender, and Aiwei insists that Korra meet the mother first.  Team Korra is escorted into a vast hall, where a circle of metal benders gracefully, in unison, attach themselves to the ceiling via cables and float in a circle suspended in the air.  Korra at first thinks it's combat training.  Aiwei explains it's a dance rehearsal.  When the number ends successfully, with a huge metal flower bud opening to reveal two dancers in perfect pose, the leader of the troupe finally notices Team Korra.

They're fighting... stagnation and ennui

Dismissing the dancers, she approaches, and Aiwei introduces her as Suyin, mother to the air bender.  Also, she's the founder and matriarch (I guess, like a mayor) of Zaofu. Suyin doesn't just know of Korra, but greets each of her friends by name, impressing Korra.  Korra's not so happy to know when Aiwei leans in to whisper to Suyin, and Suyin aks Korra why she lied about not having any other companions.

Thanks for giving me away, Bolin

Bolin is aghast- he's a terrible liar, mostly because he doesn't get the whole concept of secrets in the first place.  Korra is embarassed, but Aiwei calmly explains that he detected Korra's increased heart rate and breathing in her quick lie, and Suyin just wants the truth.  So, Korra has to explain who is left behind on the airship.  Suyin is no longer annoyed at Korra, realizing that Lin Beifong doesn't even want to see her, and sad that Lin hasn't even told Team Korra who she is, and how she and Lin know each other.

Now it's Korra's turn to be annoyed.  While Lin avoids studying the view, out of some unexplained dislike of the place, Korra and Suyin appear behind Lin, demanding to know why Lin had no desire to see her sister.  Korra has what she thinks is even better news:  the new air bender is Suyin's daughter, and Lin's niece!  Isn't Lin happy and proud?  No.  Lin accuses Suyin of tearing the family apart; Suyin accuses Lin of keeping it torn apart.

After their fighting leads nowhere, Suyin gives the whole group a tour of her home, introducing her four younger children (she has five) along the way.  Twins Wei and Wing are playing a life-size pinball game called Power Disc.  It's interesting because neither player can see their goal, and the metal disc is basically metal bent into the goal by bouncing it off thick metal columns in a pattern on the court.  Huan is busy in a garden of abstract metal sculptures, oblivious to the newcomers until Bolin tells him one of his pieces is a really great banana.  This gets an angry outburst from Huan, who insists that it's a representation of the new age brought about by Harmonic Convergence.  Bolin basically does verbal jujitsu to talk Huan down.  The group walks away, with Bolin quietly insisting that it's really a banana.

Don't take Bolin to MOMA

Suyin's only daughter is reading a book in a sunny garden.  Turns out, she's the air bender.  Does this mean that she couldn't bend anything before?  Opal is a gentle, lovable young woman, thrilled to meet Korra, already in love with Bolin, and instantly welcoming of her aunt Lin, who insists on taking Opal and leaving immediately.  Opal is game, but Suyin thinks Opal should be getting private air bending lessons from Korra, instead of learning with other air benders from Master Tenzin.  Korra agrees to stay for now.  When Lin objects, Suyin informs them that her home is totally safe.  Korra's willing to make it work, and is looking forward to staying somewhere nice with a supportive leader;  Lin stalks off.

Back at Air Temple Island, the new recruits are working on the old swinging panel exercise we saw in Season 1.  Remember, it took Korra a whole episode to master?  The new recruits are getting just as beat up as she was.  Meelo is trying the drill sargaent approach, not realizing that screaming at people to be a leaf might not be effective.  When Dan gets tossed out of the maze,  the newest recruit, he of the shaved head, gives it a whirl.  And he nails it on the first try.  Meelo is speechless at first, but Shaved Head simply bows to him with a compliment, and Meelo shows his own respect.  The exercise is broken up by Kya, who arrives to announce that Tenzin has arrived at the Northern Air Temple, and that they'll all by traveling there to meet Tenzin and their fellow students and continue their training.  Shaved Head politely asks if Avatar Korra will be there.  Kya, weirded out by his interest, has to disappoint him.

Back in Zaofu, Korra and Opal begin.  It's a simple circle walking exercise, with the two benders creating two interlocking circles of air, whirring around them.  Korra's has more power, but Opal's is consistent and she can control it, so Korra is impressed.

Hula Hoops!

Night comes to Zaofu, and the pods that make up the city fold up like rose buds.  Inside it's merriment as Suyin hosts Team Korra to dinner.  Lin, despite her bad attitude is given a place of honor at Suyin's side.  Their chef describes tonight's courses, and it looks like everyone will be enjoying themselves.  Except.... Suyin's husband Bataar, and their oldest son, Bataar Jr., who will be up for a while designing and engineering a train station remodeling.  Suyin doesn't bat an eye, telling them to go forth and create.  It seems like everyone had a great talent except Opal, at least until recently when she could air bend.  Wonder if that created any problems?

Opal seems fine, seated next to Bolin.  The two share a relaxed, happy conversation, Bolin cheerily giving her the one-minute version of his life, from the streets of Republic City to mover stardom.  Bolin mentions that they've just sent a bunch of air benders to the Northern Temple, and Korra complains of how they had to be rescued from the Earth Queen.  Suyin can't agree that Hou-Ting sucks enough.  She instantly launches an anti-monarchy tirade, insisting that the Queen needs to get out of the way of progress.

Suyin's not entirely wrong; we saw from last episode that Hou-Ting is a tyrant, a mix of Marie Antoinette and Robespierre.  But Suyin seems more opposed to her in principle, instead of giving specific reasons why she's a terrible ruler.  Does Suyin rule democratically?  Who decides what the next public project will be?  Who decides what the next dance recital will be?  Earlier, Suyin outright bragged that with Aiwei, there are no secrets in Zaofu.  Is she just as controlling as Hou-Ting? Is that okay just because Zaofu is so modern and egalitarian-looking?

Lin tries to mock Suyin for her political opinions, and Suyin's escalating taunt is cut short when the empty chair at the end, next to Asami, is suddenly filled by.... Varrick!!!

HE'S BACK!!!

He's been at Zaofu for a while, after pitching some new tech development ideas to Suyin, who has put him in charge of doing crazy stuff.  Varrick is about to wax poetically about magnets, until Asami asks what he's doing in Zaofu?????  Well, Varrick says, what are any of us doing here?   After using metaphysics to dodge her question, he asks Asami how their company is.  Asami gives us some background I wish we'd gotten before by telling Varrick that Future Industries reverted back to her ownership because he is a criminal.  Varrick retorts by pointing out he was never convicted.  Mako reminds him that that's because Varrick broke out of prison.  Varrick refutes this, saying his escape was the universe wanting him free.  Lin almost wants to arrest him on the spot, but Suyin points out that her chef used to be a pirate, and she's been giving people second chances here at Zaofu.   Lin storms off instead of listening to Suyin tell her anything more. The only one excited to see him is his mover star, Bolin. And all of us watching, of course.

Bolin and Mako are grooming after dinner for some incomprehensible reason.  Mako points out that Bolin an Opal seem to be into each other.  Bolin thinks Opal is nice, but he's still only into women completely not into him.  Mako reminds him that this strategy hasn't gone well for him, and Bolin realizes that a pretty, awesome girl who likes him might be better than an actress who snubs him.  

Korra and Suyin relax together after dinner, and Korra can't help being curious about Lin's anger at Suyin.  Suyin gives Korra what is probably a white-washed version.  She and Lin were Toph Beifong's daughters, by different fathers.  They never knew these fathers, and Toph was busy working, so the girls were pretty much on their own, a stark and intentional contrast with Toph's own childhood, which was behind her over-protective parents' walls.  Lin followed her mother into the police; Suyin took a different turn that involved rebelling in some unspecified way.  She then left home, traveling the world in various ways, including a pirate ship and a traveling circus.  It looks like a fun life, but she eventually became bored with it, and decided it was time to get herself a home.  So, she bought the land that is now Zaofu with money that came from somewhere, who knows, and started building with an architect who became her husband.  She's been a ridiculously busy mother of five, and matriarch of Potential City since.  All she was lacking was her sister.  Notice, she doesn't say she misses her mother.

Rules?  What are those?

Opal is practicing air bending, when Bolin decides to interrupt so he can apply the totally-unsuccessful-non-charm trick.  Opal is instantly repulsed, and tells Bolin he's acting weird from the get go, so Bolin admits to being nervous.  Opal tells him to just be himself, not some weird version trying to be cool.  They're about to take it to a new level when Korra interrupts them.  

It's night at Air Temple Island (wouldn't it be day when it's night in Zaofu?  Aren't there time zones on this world?).  And the newest Shaved Head recruit with the familiar voice is in Tenzin's empty, dark study.  He finds a engraved pendant belong to Air Guru Laghima, who Zaheer quoted in the first episode.  "Let go of the earthly tether/ Enter the void empty/ Become Wind", reads the pendant.  Iki finds Shaved Head, and cheekily informs him that he's breaking the rules.  Aunt Kya appears behind her, gravely informing Iki she's up past her bedtime.  Kya's tone indicates that she's starting to get suspicious of the newest recruit, who hasn't changed into an air bender's uniform, and is now holding one of her brother's antiquities in his study.  

Hey, mind if I keep this?

Kya figures it out two seconds later.  Zaheer!  At Air Temple Island!  She instantly fights him with water bending, and they have a duel of air and water.  Kya calls for help, and when Zaheer briefly stuns her, two White Lotus guards try to detain Zaheer, with the results we've come to expect: he knocks them out completely.  Kya stands up, ready to attack again after summoning overlapping circles of water.  She throws them at Zaheer as a double helix, which he dodges, blasting Kya out with one last blast of air, before taking off.

Like Dodgeball, but with water

Things are quieter in Zaofu, though no less upsetting.  Lin is reading the paper, as angry in solitude as she is in company.  A knock on the door brings Opal, who timidly enters.  Opal's so sorry that Lin doesn't like being in Zaofu.  She has no idea why the two sisters don't get along, but she desperately wishes Lin would like to be closer to the kids, specifically her.  Did Opal get lost in the hustle and bustle of raising five kids?  The two Bataars bonded over building projects, and Suyin's always been so proud of her metal bending sons.  How has Opal fit into this family?  Lin is absolutely horrible the entire time, behaving like a sulking child and then a grumpy old man.  Opal is devastated and runs away in humiliation.  Korra enters as she leaves, angrily telling Lin that Opal's outreach was Korra's idea.  But it seems nothing will disrupt Lin's desire to stay a bitter, lonely woman.  Korra leaves Lin alone, and we see Lin struggling not to cry.

Has Suyin really told all there is?  Lin obviously resents Suyin for something, but what?  How deep does Suyin's dislike of the Earth Queen go?  And will Varrick save the day?

A Few Good Air Benders - Legend of Korra - Season 3, Episode 4

West of the North Pole, Fire Lord Zuko rides his dragon-steed above the ice prison built for P'Li, a combustion fire-bender imprisoned there thirteen years ago.  What's a combustion fire-bender?  Well, we're about to find out.  Zuko reports to the Water Tribes' Chiefs Tonraq, Desna and Eska that he sees only a snowstorm, but Tonraq declares that it means P'Li's companions have come.

Let us pause, before the fighting starts, and ponder that Fire Lord Zuko is son of Ozai, who tried to literally set the world on fire.  Ozai's son, Zuko is now cooperating with Water Tribe Chiefs to secure a prison built by a coalition of the highest-ranking benders on the planet.  So while Fire Lord Zuko can't be said to rule the world, he does get to occasionally kick some ass and remind people not to mess with fire, all for the greater good.

Too bad that's not enough today.  We saw last season that Desna and Eska are two fantastic and creative combat benders, and Tonraq has his own brawling bending style.  But the four of them are not enough.  When Zaheer, Ghazan, and Ming Hua arrive, they do it by leaping and driving a major tractor right out of the snowstorm at the last possible second.  Desna and Eska take on Ming Hua, and her water-arms catapult her through the icy spikes the twins set up before her.  They're encased in solid ice before they even realize she's past their obstacle.  Tonraq tries to take down Zaheer.  But he was a great warrior even before he became an airbender, and his skillful efficiency takes down Tonraq.  Zuko tries to defeat Ghazan, but he too is defeated.

Ming Hua, past the twins, slings herself down the chasm of the ice prison, freeing P'Li from the chains that held her down, and the head-band that blocked her combustion fire-bending.  We see the marking similar to Zuko's hired killer years before, a third eye surrounded by red waves.  Ming Hua literally carries P'Li back up the chasm on her back, with P'Li complaining that her rescue is a little showy.  To be honest, a prison-break should be showy.  P'Li brings her own entertainment to the battle, when Zuko's dragon tries to stop her and Ming Hua.  P'Li, thrilled to see fire again, simply gathers the fire, and blasts the energy back out through her third eye, defeating the dragon long enough that all can escape via the tractor they drove in.  Zaheer and P'Li can't wait to celebrate with nooky.  Ghazan expresses the ickyness we all feel.

Get a room, face-suckers

Back in Ba Sing Se, Bolin and Mako stand among their ridiculously huge family, and Cousin Tu gives them what must have been ridiculously expensive passports back to the Upper Ring.  The boys can only sheepishly thank their family.  Bolin goes all out and wants to say goodbye to each and every one of them, even the ones whose names he can't remember. Now that the boys feel less like orphans, it's time to get back to work.

They better hurry.  Asami is helping Korra work on her fighting moves, and Korra's taking out all her anger at Earth Queen Hou-Ting on the pads Asami holds up in front of herself.  When Bolin and Mako appear, the girls ask where they've been all this time.  So ladies, you noticed they were missing, but you didn't do anything?

I could look for my friends, but that might be too useful

Bolin tries to fill them in on everything, but I guess they ran from the train station, because he collapses in a breathless heap on the ground, leaving Mako to leave out the family stuff and get right to it- they know that the Earth Queen is kidnapping air benders, keeping them hidden, and training them to be a personal army for the Earth Queen.  Korra screams in indignant triumph;  she knew all along the Earth Queen was hiding something, and now she finds out just how badly she was duped.  So I guess it's totally convenient that the Earth Queen appears.  Bolin, sweaty inside his shirt, coaxes a totally unwilling Pabu to hide among Bolin's chest sweat before she gets close.

Hou-Ting, accompanied by Grand Poopeater Gun, pretends to have good news for Team Korra:  air benders have been spotted somewhere.  Somewhere not in Ba Sing Se.  So, Korra can go, as Hou-Ting has technically fulfilled her end of the bargain.  Asami manages to get the team an extra night at the palace, claiming the air ship has some sort of problem that needs fixing.  She's smooth as silk, reminding us all why she's here.  However, it's getting harder to  hide Pabu, as you can only hide in a sweaty shirt so long, and Hou-Ting sneezes herself hoarse.  Hou-Ting stumbles away, told there are definitely no animals around, but refusing to believe it.  Once she's gone, Team Korra proceeds to the guesthouse and immediately tells Tenzin what's up.  

Tenzin and Jinora are shocked; Bumi is the only one who remembers that the Earth Queen does have the legal right to draft her subjects into the army.  No one likes a policy wonk, though.  Korra feels that the Queen is reneging on their agreement- she won't leave the city without those air benders.  Tenzin feels for air benders that will never have proper air training; Jinora immediately connects this news with Kai's disappearance, feeling that he too has been kidnapped and drafted.  Bolin and Mako realize their little guy is in danger.  Korra after trying to comfort Jinora like she's a little girl, then asks Jinora, as the smartest person there, where the drafted air benders could be.  Mako answers for her, as he spent his days not sulking, but reading all of Jinora's books; the best bet is under Lake Laogai, nearby, as it had an old, underground fortress.  Korra turns to Jinora again, suggesting that Jinora project her spirit under Lake Laogai.   Jinora agrees, but how to go looking there without making anyone suspicious?

Kai, meanwhile, has not been adjusting to life in the Earth Queen's new air bender corps.  He enjoys duping fatcats for their money.  But, he has no joy in blasting other air benders around at the command of the bullying Dai Li guards.  He's happy to go easy on his less experienced, less confident sparring partner, giving him easy blasts to help him practice.  But the Dai Li commander interferes, barking at Kai to barrage the other boy.  When Kai does as he's told, he feels awful. 

Off to the Lake Tenzin, Korra and Jinora go, which I guess is near enough that they don't need the airship, but definitely not in the city.  Jinora's spirit comes up empty- the fortress beneath is long deserted and flooded with water and wildlife.  No air benders.  When Tenzin, Korra, and Jinora try to figure out where else the air benders could be hidden, they realize there are more hiding places in Ba Sing Sei than hairs on a sky bison.  Tenzin and Korra are stumped, until Korra asks Jinora how Jinora's spirit found Korra during Harmonic Convergence.  Jinora tells Korra that they share a spiritual connection.  Korra decides that the completely illicit flirting Jinora and Kai have been doing is enough of a connection that Jinora could find Kai with her spirit, instead of searching everywhere.  Tenzin is indignant at the thought of Jinora's spirit already being connected to Kai's, but Jinora calmly decides to give it a try.

Kai's bootcamp training gets worse when they're forced to train with Dai Li bending clay frisbees at them (Who makes these things?  It must be one of the most profitable industries in this world.).  The Dai Li pound Kai's new friend, and when Kai steps in to help, the Dai Li ruthlessly pound him with frisbees instead.  When Kai attacks the guards, they trap him in a rock, mock him, and throw him into solitary.  Good thing that's the moment when Jinora's spirit appears. Jinora coos that she's so relieved Kai is okay, even if he was the idiot who ran away to pick pockets in the first place.  Kai is happy to see a friend, especially one who can get him out.  Unfortunately, Kai has no idea where he is, just that he hates it.  Jinora tells him to sit tight, and floats her spirit up, until she's above the ground and can see that the drafted air benders have been under Korra's nose the whole time, underneath the spiffy new temple the Earth Queen's been building.  What better way to conceal prisoners than under the Queen's pet project?

Korra is angry at being tricked so badly.  Bumi can sense that an elaborate escape is coming and can't contain his excitement. The whole team is literally about to go and kick some ass, when a new air ship comes and lands at the palace.  It's Lin Beifong, who apparently lands her air ship where she wants, and has no time for the Earth Queen.  Instead, she proceeds directly to Korra's guest house, where she tells Korra that the Road Trip is over.  Lin's taking her back to Republic City and putting her under her personal protection.  She quickly updates Tenzin on Zaheer's escape, new air bending, and subsequent prison breaks.  Tenzin becomes more and more horrified, while Korra has no idea what they're talking about.  Korra ends up reminding Tenzin and Lin that the Avatar they're protecting is right there, and wants to know what the heck is going on.

The back story:  when Korra was maybe three or four years old, thirteen years ago, Zaheer and his companions tried to kidnap her.  His team was caught, and separated in prisons tailored to hinder their bending.  None broke under interrogation.  None ever divulged why they attempted to kidnap her.  Beifong says, enough talk, let's take you back to the city you were exiled from.  Korra says she has some air benders to rescue first.  Lin at first doesn't want to bother, but Korra insists she's not leaving Ba Sing Se without them, so Lin tells the Team to get their asses in gear and get this mission done.

Lin and Asami fly around in Lin's Police air ship, with Asami's crew supposedly piloting hers.  I hope.  And let's hope Naga is somewhere.  After dark, Jinora gets "caught" sneaking around the palace grounds by two guards who are inclined to go easy on her.  Which is the perfect cover for the Team to sneak up behind them, surprising the guards and getting them quiet entry into the temple.  Here, they split up: Bumi, Tenzin and Korra proceed to the main room with the other airbenders, while Bolin, Mako and Jinora go to find and free Kai.  Bumi's wildly excited and tries using awesome codes for a message with Lin, who doesn't have time for that nonsense.  Tenzin and Korra waltz right into the air benders' barracks, and the air benders can't believe their luck- here's the chance to escape they've been waiting for!  From prisoner, to traveling with the Avatar and the Master of the Air Nation!  

Wait, you mean we don't have to live in a dungeon?

Jinora and the boys find Kai easily enough, and they waste precious time having a moment with Kai, in which he admits how foolish he was to be up to his old tricks, and ditching his protectors.  He had Bolin at hello, but Mako is still sore about the money Kai stole.  

The Dai Li interrupt the moment, and there's a fight between benders, with the Dai Li momentarily winning by grabbing Jinora as a hostage.  Kai's having none of this, and knocks the Dai Li guard off his feet, noting that he's got the best of his bully as they all flee.  

Never mess with Jinora!  If she doesn't get you, Kai will!

Tenzin, Bumi, and Korra have almost gotten the other air benders out of the temple when they realize they've been trapped by a squad of Dai Li and the Earth Queen herself.  Hou-Ting is in fine form, threatening them with war for making off with subjects she can legally do whatever she likes with.  Korra is unrepentant and insists that they're all leaving.  Two air benders stay with her and Tenzin; Bumi and the rest flee by climbing to the top of the temple's construction scaffolding.  Korra, Tenzin, and the helpful souls stay and blast the Dai Li with air, using the skills the Dai Li made them learn to win their freedom.  The other air benders manage to escape, and Tenzin summons Oogi for a ride out of there.  

But where's Bolin, Mako, Jinora, and Kai?  The team can't leave anyone behind!  There they are, running furiously to stay just ahead of a flurry of rocks streaming towards them as they flee the temple at last.  Tenzin brings Oogi down for one final pass, and Bolin brings them all together, and bends a shaft of rock to propel them into the air towards their ticket out of here.  The Earth Queen's temper tantrum and demands dissolve in a flood of uncontrolled sneezes.  Defeated by her own allergies.

It's dawn on a faraway cliff in the country, as the two airships land together so everyone can decide what's next.  All the new air benders, plus Kai, decide to go with Tenzin in Asami's air ship and Oogi to the Northern Air Temple.  Tenzin is quietly overjoyed at seeing new air benders happy to come with him.  Lin is ready to take Korra back to Republic City, but Korra decides that there's no reason that place is any safer than the countryside of the Earth Kingdom.  Besides, isn't she supposed to not go back to Republic City? Instead, Korra convinces Lin to come with her on her journey to discover new air benders around the Earth Kingdom.  In Korra's defense, it's a good plan.  When hiding from kidnappers, it is always best to stay on the move.  The airship is a controlled environment, instead of a city with a million hiding places.  Korra and Lin will continue in the police air ship, with Bolin, Mako, Naga and Asami.  And let's not forget Pabu, who will be a key player.  The two air ships take off at sunrise, for their own adventures.

Lil' Scamps - Legend of Korra - Season 3, Episode 3

Korra remains blissfully unaware that the Order of the White Lotus is desperately scrambling to contain Zaheer's breakouts.  Bolin and Mako have a rough night that leads to a family reunion.  Kai's sweet new life becomes a nightmare.  And the Earth Queen, Hou-Ting, is a total bitch, who will learn not to mess with Korra.

Jinora supervises a sparring match between Bumi and new recruit Kai, and Bumi thinks this is going to be like a boxing match of his young army days.  Right after he tells Kai not to worry, he'll go easy on the little guy, Kai lays Bumi flat on his back with unorthodox moves and airbending.  Kai's a good sport, though, and offers to help Bumi up.  He also helps himself to Bumi's wallet (this is going to be a thing with Kai).  As Bumi chases Kai for his wallet back, Korra and Tenzin have a parlay on an upper deck, watching the proceedings but totally unconcerned that Kai is still stealing.

Korra and Tenzin are both much more concerned with meeting the Earth Queen, who resides in the Upper Ring of the great Impenetrable City Ba Sing Se.  We last saw Ba Sing Se about 70 years ago, when Aang and his crew traveled there, to unsuccessfully prevent the Fire Nation from taking it.  Korra wants to know what the current Earth Queen is like; Tenzin's only heard that she can be demanding.  He's clearly not looking forward to meeting her, and his tense silence indicates that he expects finding air benders and leaving with them will be made more difficult than it already is.  He ends up being even more right than he knows.

For now, though, Team Korra just concentrates on the great stone wall before them.  It looms in the distance, separating the farms of the Outer Ring from the city itself.  Bolin rushes to the railing, like a kid waiting to see Santa, and he exhorts Mako to join him, who reluctantly does.  Mako continues his trend of barely caring what's going on, for as long as he can.  Together, everyone focuses on what's on the other side of that wall.

The Emerald City it ain't

Ba Sing Se appears, and it's an immense city.  Both ends of the horizon are filled with buildings and gardens.  Well, except the Lower Ring, which they pass through first.  It's basically a slum, with dirt roads, no greenery, and a smell that no one on the airship can ignore, even high over the city.  The next wall shows the Middle Ring, a comfortable array of small, orderly buildings and parks.  The next wall, good and high, leads to the Upper Ring; Ba Sing Se's wealthy and government officials live and work here, and you don't get in without permission.

Just like L.A.

Team Korra proceeds into the Upper Ring, which is mostly open space except for government buildings and residences.  A few airships are already parked where Team Korra lands, and they are met by Grand Secretariat Gun, personal assistant and food taster for Earth Queen Hou-Ting.  After Bolin happily disembarks and praises the smell, Gun launches into a running monologue on how to not anger the Queen.  Naga and Oogi will have to stay hidden, and Pabu will occasionally have to hide in Bolin's shirt, at Hou-Ting hates animals.  The group moves on, with Gun now explaining how meals will go.  Gun tastes everything first, because heaven forbid Hou-Ting eat poisoned food.  Then Hou-Ting eats, then people eating with her get to eat.  If this is too complicated, Gun advises just not eating.  The group is less and less enthused about the place as they get to their guest house, where Naga and Oogi will have to stay in the backyard.

While following Gun around, Kai takes a few looks at the ridiculously wealthy inhabitants literally letting ridiculously valuable jewels and purses just hang everywhere.  Without anyone noticing, Kai disappears.

Gun takes Korra to meet the Earth Queen, Hou-Ting, and she's every bit as awful as we've been led to expect.  Obsessed with building garden projects at her palace, ordering crews around and never liking anything built or grown.  When nothing meets her approval, it all has to be ripped out and started over.  She will eventually complain of how unsatisfactory her servants are to Korra.  When she asks Korra if she has servant trouble, Korra will happily inform her that she doesn't have servants.  Well, unless you count Tenzin's air accolytes on Air Temple Island.  Or the crew maintaining the airship.  Who are technically not her servants.  But still.  When was the last time she did laundry?  Just askin'.

What could be more important than the shape of my ornamental bushes?

Korra may or may not do housework; but she at least knows to be polite to those who do, and she obviously judges Hou-Ting severely for her snobbish and domineering behavior.  Hou-Ting further alienates the Avatar by beginning with everything she dislikes Avatars for;  her father, Earth King Kuei, gave some Earth Kingdom land to Avatar Aang and Fire Lord Zuko, to establish the United Republic.  Hou-Ting is still bitchy about it, as it was probably about 20% of the Earth Kingdom.  She blames the past Avatar for having less tax money to spoil herself with (she sure as heck doesn't spend anything on her people).  Korra, who had nothing to do with this and actually was living in the United Republic until recently, tries to stammer something before she's interrupted.  Hou-Ting also guilts Korra for not visiting before, as if she was owed a diplomatic visit despite the numerous problems Korra had to deal with for the last few months.  She then accuses Korra of only coming because she wants something.

Even though Hou-Ting is right, Korra does need her help, Korra is there as much to help Hou-Ting as get help; Korra wants to train the Earth Kingdom's air benders, and really just needs help finding them.  Korra and Tenzin will do the rest.  While she says she doesn't personally know of any air benders in Ba Sing Se, Hou-Ting appears to consider this request, but then decides that Korra must do her a solid first.  Fair enough, Korra thinks.  Hou-Ting gives Korra the job of collecting some tax money in a nearby town, which her soldiers have been unable to transport to her because of local trouble.  Korra agrees, but she seems pissy at having to solve a monarch's tax troubles so the woman can have her ridiculously expensive landscaping.  Gun, who tries to escort Korra away, gets the brunt of Korra's disgust instead, as Korra simply shoves him to the ground to storm off.  It looks funny when she does it, but poor "Grand Secretariat" Gun.  He must get shit meant for the Queen all the time.

Back at the guest house, the team finally notices that Kai is missing.  So much for Mako watching him. Mako is now of the idea that since Kai doesn't care about them, maybe they should just let him go.  Tenzin decides that Kai must be found, as Kai is their responsibility and the only recruit they've managed to convince to join them.  Bolin and Mako finally do find Kai, but only after he's successfully picked a local's purse off him, using air bending to rustle the man's clothes and blow off his hat before appearing to help him to get back together.

Kai's slightly illegal revenue stream

Mako immediately chases Kai around the Upper Ring, showing that he still has it, and can match Kai move for move.  When Kai tries to escape on a monorail train, Mako manages to catch him by surprise, and for a moment it looks like he's busted.  But Kai slips out of his jacket, blows the brothers back, and escapes off the car right before the doors close, trapping Bolin and Mako on the train.  A non-stop, heading to the Lower Ring.  Bolin thinks that this just illustrates what a great, resourceful lil' troublemaker Kai is.  Mako thinks Kai is too much like Bolin.

Kai is. In. So. Much. Trouble.

After a long train journey, the doors finally open on the Lower Ring station, and Bolin and Mako rush over to the train heading back to the Upper Ring.  One problem; it costs money, and Kai also managed to steal their wallets on the train.  Bolin hates admitting Kai scammed them too. As he and an angrily disappointed Mako leave the station for an extended stay in the Lower Ring, Bolin tries to comfort Mako with the sad fact that they'll be able to go to the bathroom wherever they want.  A life on the streets that the brothers worked so hard to escape is their short-term future.

Totally slumming it for a while

The next morning, Asami and Korra, seeming totally unworried about a missing Kai, Bolin and Mako, head out to do Hou-Ting's bidding, with Korra telling Asami it shouldn't be difficult, or too dangerous, so they don't need the whole team anyway.  Korra seems bored and frustrated that she's just running an errand for the Earth Queen.

Bolin and Mako, still apparently, unmissed, wake up in an alley, amid trash.  Mako, and we know this is wrong, thinks they've been missed already.  Bolin is worried about his lovable lil' scamp, who is waking up to breakfast in bed and enjoying a luxurious morning in the city.

Livin' the dream

Bolin and Mako wander around, at a total loss on how to get back to the Upper Ring, or even where to get some breakfast.  Bolin sees a fruit stand and wants to resurrect one of their old street-days scams.  Mako is indignant at stealing, especially the rotting, insect infested fruit-like matter in front of them.  This insults the fruit-seller, who pops up behind fly-infested bananas to tell them off.  Mako, unplussed, just wants to clarify whether the guy wants them to try to steal the fruit after all;  Bolin demands to know if that's the plan after all; the fruit-seller, decides to jump from behind the stand, and tackle them both.   While struggling over fruit Mako didn't even want to steal, a middle-aged man appears from the alley behind.  The middle-aged guy recognizes Mako and Bolin from one look, and correctly calls them by their names, and even knows their father's name.  The fruit-seller turns out to be named Tu, and turns out to be their first cousin.

Just as we're getting used to Ba Sing Se, we go to the Northern Water Tribe, where the new chiefs live and basically spend their days on twin thrones, bored out of their minds.  It's good ol' Desna and Eska.  Zuko shows up, riding his dragon with Tonraq, father to Korra and uncle to the new chiefs, and Desna and Eska don't get the interruption of their boring day.  Zuko says he's got great news for them: there's a secret ice prison to the west, and everyone's going.

Field Trip!

Just as we get used to the North Pole, we go right back to Ba Sing Se, where uncle Chow and cousin Tu show Bolin and Mako where the extended family lives, which is apparently one really big room in an apartment building.  Tu is convinced that Bolin and Mako have been living it up in Republic City; the boys have to explain they spent years dirt poor and living wherever they could sleep.  Inside, there are numerous cousins, aunts, uncles, and such.  And one grandmother, obviously the center of the family, named Yin.  Yin immediately asks about the boys parents, including their father and her son.  Bolin and Mako have the sad job of informing her that both their parents were killed years ago.

Nice to meet you, Grandma, we have some really bad news for you...

Asami and Korra have about the same mixed day as Bolin and Mako.  Asami brings her electrified shock-glove, but they don't need it when every local on the streets retreats into the buildings framing a town square. Asami and Korra worry a little, but get the local soldiers to start hauling the tax money to the airship.  As the soldiers proceed rolling the tax money along, a signal flare shoots into the sky, and a motorcycle gang literally comes from over the buildings, landing in the massive town square, and telling Korra to hand over the money.  Korra tells their skull-masked leader that the money's going to the Queen; their leader insults Korra and Asami, saying he loves girls with a little spirit.

Did that guy just call us girls?????

Well, now Korra and Asami will kick their asses on general principle.  Which they do.  Korra bends her way through most of the gang, while Asami uses awesome flip moves with her glove to get a couple motorcycles down.  When the gang leader himself goes down, they retreat.  But the gangleader, as they are hauled away in an armored truck that comes from nowhere, yells at Korra that she's on the wrong side, and that that money is the people's.  Korra, though victorious, bitterly admits to Asami that he's right.

Bolin and Mako have a more heartfelt evening, as they have dinner with their new family, and Bolin attempts to count them all.  Uncle Chow fills in some family history.  His brother and the boys' father, San, had dreams of living in Republic City, and left over grandpa's wishes.  They only ever heard from San once, a letter about his new family.  They've heard nothing since, and Grandmother Yin leaves, overcome with the knowledge that that letter was the last they ever will hear from San.  Bolin and Mako follow, and Yin sits them down to look at that last letter together.  It came with a picture, showing Bolin and Mako, already so different.  Bolin recognizes San's scarf, now constantly worn by Mako.  Mako, realizing that Yin needs a connection to her dead son more than he does, takes it off and graciously gives it to her.  Will getting something out of this trip himself make Mako a little more enthusiastic about it?

Handing over the official Mako Family Scarf

When Bolin and Mako return to the family, they thank them for their hospitality, and ask how to get back to the Upper Ring.  They explain that they're here with Avatar Korra, and helping her find and recruit the new air benders in Ba Sing Sei.  The family is aghast.  Uncle Chow tells the boys that another local was air bending openly right after Harmonic Convergence.  He disappeared.  Now no one gets caught air bending.  Yin doesn't want to believe that the Earth Queen had anything to do with disappearing Earth Benders, but word is that she's drafting them for her own army.  Bolin immediately worries about Kai, and even Mako looks like he'll have to show some concern for the little thief.

Back at the North Pole, Zuko leads Tonraq, Desna and Eska into the elaborate, deeply dug Ice Prison of the North.  He explains to them that it was built for one prisoner by Unalaq, who Korra just defeated, father of Desna and Eska.  The twins wish they had known of the place earlier;  both have people they'd love to imprison.  Desna particularly wishes he could punish his tailor for wrinkly cuffs by throwing him in here.  Zuko, despite hearing how a fellow ruler would like to become a despot, continues on and informs them that it was built and kept freezing cold for a combustive, explosive fire bender.  Zuko then decides to give a history lesson, admitting he hired a similar bender once to kill Avatar Aang.  In his defense, it didn't work (because Zuko helped stop him).  It's silent, but then Eska admits to trying to kill Avatar Korra over her fiasco of a failed wedding.  She consoles Zuko that trying to kill Avatars happens, nothing to fret about.

Look, we have to talk about something in this elevator....

Tonraq decides he's had enough of bonding over trying to kill Avatars, and focuses everyone on the prisoner they're about to personally guard:  a woman named P'Li.  P'Li is pleased to have visitors, shivering in an ice-covered cell, and correctly reasoning that Zaheer has escaped.  Zuko and Tonraq remind her they're hear to defeat her would-be rescuers; undaunted, she almost purrs like a cat as she tells her visitors that she feels warmer already.

Back in Ba Sing Se, Korra tells Hou-Ting to take her ill-gotten gains, and help her find air benders.  Hou-Ting looks like she's pondering for a second, then imperiously tells Korra that her Dai Li guards searched, and found none.  So Korra can leave now.  Korra, furious, reminds the Queen that Korra just basically stole money from Hou-Ting's subjects so Hou-Ting can buy more decorative shrubs.  Now, Korra wants her air benders. And she refuses to leave until she's got them, tackling poor Gun again as she busts out of the throne room.

Korra's right to be furious. We know, because we see Kai, one last time, once again using his I'm-just-helping-you-after-that-weird-breeze trick to steal purses again.  We're not the only ones who catch it; a Dai Li soldier does too, and Kai finds himself surrounded by Dai Li, and caught by flying handcuffs, pinned to a gate, and trying to fend the soldiers off.  He loses, and the Dai Li toss him not into a cell, but a room filled with about six other air benders, all dressed in rags.  Kai, now in rags too, is angry and scared. As the Dai Li shut the door, they tell Kai that he belongs to the Earth Queen, and he'll spend the rest of his days fighting for her.  Kai, finally caught, can only look desperate as he realizes his two big brothers won't be able to find him anytime soon.

Probably shouldn't have tricked your guardians, kid!