Book 1, Chapter 15: Bato of the Water Tribe

The opening scene of Bato of the Water Tribe shows Sokka as a good detective and hunter. Akin to that part in Jet where he listens to the earth's vibrations through his knife handle.

June (Pipinpadaloxicopolis? xD) with her shirshu Nyla.

"Wow, I'm impressed. Very impressed," remarks Iroh. I'm inclined to agree.

I love that while Bato, Katara, and Sokka are conversing, Momo is throwing up his sea prunes. It's an example of how the "background" joke is actually in the foreground. Pretty clever.

I love June. "Drinks on me!!"

Oh cool, a map! So I tried to locate this using the wonderful and highly detailed Avatar World Map (SPOILERS ON MAP), but I couldn't find anything. Bato said that Sokka and Katara's father, Hakoda, was probably in the eastern earth kingdom. His path in Book 2 is easily traceable, but I couldn't locate the bay or inlet in this photo. It's most likely in the southern/eastern tip of the earth kingdom, because that's near where his path starts in book 2. Not too much time elapses between now and then.

No, Aang. NO!! NO!!!!!! I UNDERSTAND, BUT THIS ISN'T YOU!!!

It's my favorite cat, Miyuki, and the herbalist from The Blue Spirit!

What a team.

The Fortuneteller: "Would you care to hear your fortune, handsome?"

Iroh: "At my age, there is only one big surprise left, and I would just as soon leave it a mystery."
God, I love Iroh.

This scene really shows Sokka ability to lead a group. He has the brain of a military general.

About the map. Although I thought Aang's decision to hide the map was a little out of character, I thought Katara and Sokka's actions were even more deplorable. They annoyed me more than Aang this time. Here it's episode 15, they've been traveling together for at least a couple months, and they have a set goal of reaching the northern water tribe. Katara needs to get there just as much as Aang.
Yes, I understand how they felt betrayed by the map, but they didn't even talk about it with Aang; after just a short discussion, they would realize Aang's lie was based on a simple misunderstanding. I really don't think either Sokka or Katara would decide to split ways in this scenario.
Perhaps the writing could have been handled better here...

They turn around and leave in about two seconds, no discussion... What??

I do realize that the earlier events lead up to maybe the best part of the episode. With Katara, Sokka, and Bato separated from Aang, a lone wolf cries out in the distance. Bato says, "It's been separated from the pack. I understand that pain. It's how I felt when the water tribe warriors had to leave me behind. They were my family, and being apart from them was more painful than my wounds." This segues directly into this flashback of Sokka's dad leaving him at a young age.

Sokka then says, "We need to go back. I wanna see dad, but helping Aang is where we are needed the most."

If you recall, there's a similar flashback scene earlier in the episode. Hakoda tells him, "Being a man is knowing where you're needed the most." All of these different elements come together, and it's fantastic. Bato and Sokka's stories are mirrored, because they both experienced being left behind from the pack (their family). Sokka finally learned what his father meant all those years ago. This is great character development for Sokka.


I love the following quote from June. She tells Zuko, "So this is your girlfriend. No wonder she left, she's way too pretty for you." *Please apply cold water to burned area.

The fight at the end of Bato of the Water Tribe is possibly the most exciting and well-choreographed fight in all of Book 1. It's definitely one of my favorites.

This happens in the middle of all the action:

OMG THE FOOTWORK.

I lied. THIS is the best part of the episode:

We have a badass over here.

I like how colors were used to demonstrate Nyla's sense of smell.

Runner-up best part of the episode:

My boi Aang finally gets some well deserved action, and the necklace subplot gets resolved (after 9 episodes!). But just wait, it's not even close to being over...

Conclusion: 

Bato of the Water Tribe is, overall, a good episode. While I do have issues with some character choices surrounding the map, it's definitely not terrible like some fans would have you believe. Besides that, there's a lot to like about this one! The introduction of June, several great Iroh moments, and an awesome ending fight. The positives outweigh any negatives I may have... and I can't lie, this was an enjoyable watch for me. 

I give Bato of the Water Tribe 8 out of 10 perfume bottles. Cheeky Iroh....

Thank you so much for reading! Sorry that I haven't been posting very often, I'll try to get back to it. Most of the relatively boring/childish episodes are behind us, so I'm really looking forward to what the future has in store for my blog! I have some exciting plans, so stay tuned.