Why Zuko's redemption arc succeeds where others fail

In Avatar: The Last Airbender, Zuko has an iconic redemption arc. This video details why Zuko's redemption arc works so well within the story of The Last Airbender.

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[RileyJayDennis]

below, i've linked to some other videos of mine that you might enjoy if you liked this one!
Let me know your thoughts on Zuko's arc, or if there's another other aspects of ATLA that you'd like me to look at for future analysis videos!

[dumbgayenby]

Zuko: *Does one good thing*


His entire body:

[itscosmicnerd]

I think Zuko’s arc is realistically complicated, it never feels too predictable and I think it really adds to the believability.

[CoffeeSuccubus]

Zuko was never evil.

He was just lost. He was a young man finding who he was. It was a heroes journey in itself.

[SpontaneousCourage]

Meanwhile during Zuko's reintroduction to Suki: "Oh, sorry about that."

[vinigmoura]

Also, he finds out he's Avatar Roku's descendant, what makes everything even more interesting!

[tiyabear]

A lot of redemption arcs lose me because they boil down to “yes, I’ve done horrible things but you should forgive me because my parents suck.” Ozai is unquestionably horrible, but this is never Zuko’s get out of jail free card. He takes responsibility for his behavior and doesn’t act entitled to his forgiveness. The writers of Once Upon a Time should’ve taken notes.

[yuvalne]

One of the best things about this redemption arc is how it ties in together with him overcoming his abusive father's influence on him. Ozai is very true to what real abusers look like, and Zuko is a great example of how to get free from an abuser's control of your life.

[juleskim]

let's be honest, if zukos redemption arch was linear we probably never would've gotten the great, "hello, zuko here" scene😭

[christy]

Bruh the fact that toph didn’t get a life changing experience w zuko is the saddest part 😔✋

[marcuswu]

I think another reason why his arc is so popular is because his story is inspiring. To be able to confront a longterm, violent abuser and realuze they deserved better is just about one of the bravest things a person could do. As someone who was once abused as a child I have to say he's my favorite fictional character

[leftenantthunder]

I feel like Zuko HAD to fail at Ba Sing Se. If he didn't choose to help Azula, we wouldn't have seen him get what he really wanted which would cheapen his redemption in a way. Zuko actually saw what he thought he wanted, respect, his father's love, a loving relationship with Mai and STILL realized that this wasnt what he truly wanted anymore. He realized this on his own, without his uncle. Internalized all of his uncle's lessons and his own experiences into a true desire for justice ON HIS OWN. That's huge for his character

[hudasiam]

His redemption arc was good but his hair change was better 😂

[theswampus]

all good points, but i would like to add that While Zuko did start out as an Antagonist, he was never Hated (by the audience) or Evil, many redemption arcs fail because they are trying to redeem the wrong character.

[katieyt]

Can we talk about the reason that he was banished for standing up for innocent people?? He’s always been a good person.

[shockingheaven]

Sometimes I find myself crying by just remembering how good his redemption arc is.

[fklerw]

i think another wonderful aspect of Zuko's character arc is realistically depicting how difficult it can be to escape and break the cycle of abuse. Zuko's insistence on his father's righteousness despite being treated cruelly his entire life, and still wanting to go back despite the pain inflicted upon him, is very realistic. It's so important to show people that victims of child abuse are not innocent angels who know they're in a horrible situation. Often times, they're people with a warped sense of morality and a lot of mental conflict over the pain they feel and their belief that family should be good. Not all people are able to resolve it, but Zuko certainly did, and serves as a great role model for people in a similar situation.

[RandomCorvid]

I think my reason for loving the Zuko arc (and putting Zuko as one of my fav ATLA characters) is that his redemption is for himself, he isn't helping others because it's what is expected but it is what he wants because he sees it as the right thing to do, I have read and seen stories where the bad guy is dragged along becoming the good guy because they want forgiveness from the main hero/es and it always annoyed me because they are usually bad guys in the 1st place because they were looking for validation from the real antagonist so their core problem was never solved, they just switched their target of validation, Zuko doesn't need Validation, he realizes that only he can give himself honor and he is the one who has to live with his actions, and if the Gaang still hated him after all that? then he will live with it. love a character who gains a solid emotional core and values.

[cooldad]

His redemption arc works because he was an antagonist, but never the villain. He didn’t do anything truly atrocious that couldn’t be forgiven, unlike ozai. His actions could all be fixed and forgiven and that’s why his redemption works.

[mancillamarie]

everything clicked when i realized his grandfather was roku. it made sense why he always had such an internal conflict whether he wanted to be good or bad. he is literally the human personification of the ying and yang, being a descendant of the personification of good (aka the avatar) and the bad (i.e the fire lord)