"Book One: Water" redirects here. Not to be confused with Dream Chronicles: The Book of Water or The Book of Five Rings#The Book of Water.
Avatar: The Last Airbender season 1
Season number1
Book One: Water
Bgcolour
  1. 3A5892
Showrunner
  • Michael Dante DiMartino
  • Bryan Konietzko
Starring
Num episodes20
NetworkNickelodeon
First airedFebruary 21, 2005[1]
Last airedDecember 2, 2005[2]
Next seasonBook Two: Earth

Book One: Water is the first season of Avatar: The Last Airbender, an American animated television series created by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko and produced by Nickelodeon Animation Studio.[3] The first season aired on Nickelodeon from February 21 to December 2, 2005, and consisted of 20 episodes.[1][2] The series stars Zach Tyler Eisen, Mae Whitman, Jack DeSena, Dante Basco, Dee Bradley Baker, Mako Iwamatsu and Jason Isaacs as the main character voices.

The season revolves around the protagonist Aang and his friends Katara and Sokka going on a journey to the North Pole to find a Waterbending master to teach Aang and Katara. The Fire Nation is waging a seemingly endless imperialist war against the Earth Kingdom and the Water Tribes, following the genocide of the Air Nomads one hundred years ago. Aang, the current Avatar, must master the four elements (Air, Water, Earth, and Fire) to end the war. Along the way, Aang and his friends are chased by various pursuers: the banished Fire Nation Prince Zuko, along with his uncle and former general Iroh, and Admiral Zhao of the Fire Navy.

Each episode of the season attracted more than a million viewers on its first airing. Between January 31 and September 19, 2006, five DVD sets were released in the United States, each containing four episodes from the season. On September 12, 2006, Nickelodeon also released the "Complete Book 1 Collection Box Set", which contained all of the episodes in the season as well as a special features disc.[4] The original releases were encoded in Region 1, a DVD type that plays only in North American DVD players. From 2007 to 2009, Nickelodeon released Region 2 DVDs, which can play in Europe.[5]

Episodes

See also: List of Avatar: The Last Airbender episodes

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Production

The show was produced by Nickelodeon Animation Studio and aired on Nickelodeon, both of which are owned by Viacom.[3] The show's executive producers were co-creators Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, who worked alongside head writer and co-producer Aaron Ehasz.[3][6] Eight episodes were directed by Dave Filoni.[6] Animation directors Lauren MacMullan and Giancarlo Volpe directed five episodes each, and Anthony Lioi directed two.[3]

Episodes were written or co-written by a team of writers, which included Nick Malis, John O'Bryan, Matthew Hubbard, James Eagan, Ian Wilcox, Tim Hedrick and Elizabeth Welch.[7] All of the show's music was composed by "The Track Team", which consists of Jeremy Zuckerman and Benjamin Wynn,[3] who were known to the producers because Zuckerman was Konietzko's roommate.[8] Two alternating Korean studios[6] were enlisted to provide animation production support for the series, DR Movie and JM Animation Co.[9]

Cast

Most of the show's main characters made their debut within most, if not all, of the first episodes: Zach Tyler Eisen provided Aang's voice, Mae Whitman as Katara's voice, Jack DeSena as Sokka's voice,[3] Dante Basco as Zuko's voice, Mako as Iroh's voice,[3][10] and Dee Bradley Baker as the voices of both Appa and Momo.[7] Additional supporting characters include Commander (later Admiral) Zhao, voiced by Jason Isaacs.[7][11]

Reception

Film critics appreciated the first season of Avatar: The Last Airbender because it attracted the attention of "an audience beyond the children's market with crisp animation and layered storytelling."[12] On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the season has an approval rating of 100% based on 11 reviews, with an average rating of 8.6/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "A brilliant blend of magic, humor, and adventure, Avatar is an instant classic."[13] As for the video and picture quality, Gord Lacey from TVShowsOnDVD.com claims "the colors are bright, and the picture is nearly flawless." He says later in the review that "the audio is very nice, with lots of directional effects and nice musical cues."[14] Barnes & Noble reviewer Christina Urban praised the season's masterful combination of "elements from Chinese kung fu, Tibetan philosophy, Japanese martial arts forms, and even Hindu spiritual beliefs".[15] According to Aaron Bynum from AnimationInsider.net, "the series posted double digit year-to-year gains in May". He also said that the show has been number one in the boys 9- to 14-year-old demographic, and has attracted many age and gender groups in its pool of 1.1 million viewers who watch each new episode.[16]

In addition, the season has won many awards throughout its runtime. During the 33rd Annual Annie Awards, the show was nominated for the "Best Animated Television Production" award. Because of the episode "The Fortuneteller", the show was nominated for the "Writing for an Animated Television Production" award. For the episode "The Deserter", the season was nominated for and won the "Storyboarding in an Animated Television Production" award.[17] During the 2005 Pulcinella Awards, the season won the "Best Action/Adventure TV Series" award as well and the general "Best TV Series" award.[18]

Home media release

Region 1

Nickelodeon and Paramount Home Entertainment started releasing Season One DVDs in North America on January 31, 2006, with a series of single-disc sets containing four episodes per disc. Later the Complete Book 1 Collection was released on September 12, 2006, containing all twenty episodes plus extras on six discs.

Region 2

PAL versions of the single-disc volume sets started being released on February 19, 2007;.[5] As with the original Region 1 NTSC DVDs, each set contains four episodes per disc.[5][19][20][21][22] The Complete Book One Collection was released on January 26, 2009, containing all twenty episodes on five discs.[23] These Region 2 releases lack the commentary tracks and other DVD extras found on the Region 1 releases.

VolumeDiscsEpisodesRelease date
Region 1Region 2Region 4
114January 31, 2006[24]February 19, 2007[5]March 15, 2007[25][26]
214March 28, 2006[24]June 4, 2007[19]July 5, 2007[27]
314May 30, 2006[24]September 3, 2007[20]March 13, 2008[28]
414July 18, 2006[24]February 18, 2008[21]June 19, 2008[29]
514September 19, 2006[24]May 26, 2008[22]March 5, 2009[30][31]
Box set6[32]20[32]September 12, 2006[24]January 26, 2009[33]June 4, 2009[34][35]

Live-action adaptations

Main articles: The Last Airbender (film) and Avatar: The Last Airbender (2024 TV series)

The Last Airbender is a live-action film based on the first season of the animated television series and had a theatrical release on July 1, 2010. The film, directed by M. Night Shyamalan,[36][37] was universally panned by critics, audiences and fans of the series alike and grossed $319 million on a $150 million budget.

The first season would once again be adapted into an unrelated live-action series and released on Netflix on February 22, 2024.[38][39] The series received mixed reviews from critics and audiences.

References

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  2. ^ Mell, Tory Ireland (May 27, 2008). "The Siege of the North — Part 2 Review". IGN Entertainment. Archived 23 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved February 26, 2009.
  3. ^ Fries, Laura (February 21, 2005). "Avatar: The Last Airbender Review". Variety TV. Reed-Elsevier Inc. Archived April 18, 2008 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 30, 2008.
  4. ^ "Avatar: The Last Airbender — The Complete Book 1 DVD Information". TVShowsOnDvd.com. Archived from the original on 2 October 2008. Retrieved September 6, 2008.
  5. ^ "Avatar — The Legend of Aang — Book 1 - Water Vol.1". Amazon.com, Inc. February 19, 2007. Archived June 29, 2011 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 30, 2008.
  6. ^ DiMartino, Michael Dante & Konietzko, Bryan (August 29, 2005). "Interview with "Avatar" Program Creators — Page 3" (Interview: Transcript). Animation Insider. Archived from the original on September 27, 2011. Retrieved May 29, 2008.
  7. ^ "Avatar: The Last Airbender". Hollywood.com. Hollywood Media Corporation. Archived 15 April 2008 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved May 30, 2008.
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  10. ^ Director: Dave Filoni; Writer: Aaron Ehasz (December 2, 2005). "The Siege of the North, Part II". No. 20. Avatar: The Last Airbender. Episode 20. Nickelodeon.
  11. ^ Director: Lauren MacMullan; Writer: Michael Dante DiMartino (February 25, 2005). "The Southern Air Temple". No. 3. Avatar: The Last Airbender. Episode 3. Nickelodeon.
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  37. ^ Fernandez, Jay A. (March 15, 2009). "Four more land 'Airbender' roles". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived April 5, 2009 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved April 3, 2009.
  38. ^ Tinoco, Armando (June 17, 2023). "'Avatar: The Last Airbender': Netflix Releases First Look Photos & Teaser Of Live-Action Series Ahead Of 2024 Release — Tudum". Deadline Hollywood. Archived July 1, 2023 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved June 24, 2023.
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