Netflix's Avatar: The Last Airbender Season 2 Makes A Big Change To Zuko's Backstory

Long ago, the four nations lived together in harmony. Then everything changed when spoilers for Season 2 of "Avatar: The Last Airbender" attacked.

The second season of Netflix's live-action "Avatar: The Last Airbender" remake is a vast improvement over its predecessor, which was a collection of greatest hits and little else. The first season felt like it couldn't decide if it was aimed at grown-up fans of the original animated series seeking an edgy, violent version, or new kids who hadn't yet discovered the original and were experiencing the whimsical fantasy adventure for the first time. Season 2 finds a better tonal balance. Sure, we still have some great moments of levity, like Sokka (Ian Ousley) hallucinating after drinking cactus juice or engaging in a haiku battle, but for the most part the show goes all-in on being dark and dramatic.

It's par for the course, considering "Book Two: Earth" of the animated "The Last Airbender" was when that story went darker, with higher and more personal stakes. It was when we got one of the best, and certainly the heaviest and most emotional, episodes in the series, "The Tales of Ba Sing Se." It is also in "Book Two" that we learn Zuko's even more tragic backstory — that of his mother's disappearance. It's a pivotal moment for the character, and one that changes significantly in the live-action remake.

In the live-action show, we get flashbacks showing Zuko (Dallas Liu) and Azula's (Elizabeth Yu) childhoods growing up in the Fire Nation. One night, Zuko is awakened by his mother, Ursa, who decides to run away from the palace and take her children with her. Unfortunately, she is stopped by palace guards and her husband, Ozai (Daniel Dae Kim), who take her away.

This is a rather big change to Zuko's backstory, even if it doesn't feel like one initially. In the animated series, we see Ozai speak out of turn and suggest he should take over his older brother Iroh's claim to the throne. To punish him, the Fire Lord, Azulon, tasks Ozai with killing his own son, Zuko, so he'll know how Iroh feels. We then get a scene of Ursa waking Zuko up in the middle of the night, telling him that she loves him and everything she's done has been to protect him. That's the last time Zuko sees his mother, who disappears into the night. Her fate is a lingering question that "Avatar: The Last Airbender" co-creator Michael Dante DiMartino vetoed from being revealed in the show.

Still, a graphic novel titled "The Search" told the full story. The night she disappeared, Ursa (who had been forced into marrying Ozai and despised his family) decided to save Zuko by conspiring with Ozai. She provided her husband with a poison to murder Azulon, allowing Ozai to take the throne. She was then banished from the Fire Nation (presumably because Ozai didn't want her to try and do the same to him).

Season 2 of Netflix's "Avatar: The Last Airbender" skips the Azulon storyline. Instead, it keeps things focused on Zuko's immediate family and his parents' tumultuous relationship. Here, Ursa's hatred for Ozai is much clearer, and she calls him a monster to his face. Seeing her try and escape the palace life altogether with her children makes for a different, yet still impactful storyline. Since the original creators of "Avatar" aren't involved with the Netflix show, there's no veto against fans potentially learning Ursa's fate in Season 3.