The Legend of Korra: Civil Wars, Part 2 (2x04)

And now we have Part 2 of our Civil Wars episode. You know what the best part of this episode is? The fact that it's only the beginning. I'm so relieved that we're taking our time this season and really spreading out the plot here. This civil war is by no means over. Things are just getting started.

There were a lot of things I loved about this episode, and a few things I did not. I definitely don't think it was as strong as last week, but it also didn't drop the momentum, so at the end of the day its flaws weren't a huge detriment to the season's building story arc.

So. Unalaq is putting Tonraq and Senna under arrest for conspiring to assassinate him. Unalaq tells Korra, of course, that he has to follow all leads but that he's sure they won't be found guilty. However, Tonraq is found guilty. He is sentenced to death, but Unalaq pleads mercy for his brother and for the other guilty parties. Instead, they are given life in prison.

Korra is understandably quite upset about all of this. And she's even more upset when she learns from the judge in the trial that Unalaq had set the whole thing up. Not only that, but he had set up the earlier incident in which Tonraq was banished from the Northern Water Tribe. Basically, (surprise, surprise) Korra finally sees how evil Unalaq truly is.

So, Korra enlists the help of her friends to break her father out. Unalaq discovers her in the attempt, and reveals that Tonraq and the other prisoners are on their way to the Northern Water Tribe to serve out their sentences. Korra, Mako, Bolin, Asami, and Varrick (hiding in a bear costume) manage to save the prisoners. They escape the boat on which the prisoners were leaving, doing some fancy bending to get away. This also finally gets Bolin away from the crazy Eska, who had been attempting to force him into marriage.

So, the Varrick-in-a-bear-suit-along-with-his-assistant thing was a bit silly, and I am not impressed with how lightly this Eska/Bolin think has been treated. I wanted to see some more serious consequences of her crazy control over him. I liked Asami's interference, though. She told Bolin he needed to stand up for himself. She hasn't had much of a role lately, but I liked seeing her be her normal strong self.

While there were problems, this main plot thread really sets up great momentum for a continuing conflict. Korra and the gang are now on their way back to Republic City, to get the president's support for the war. Korra can no longer remain neutral as the Avatar. She will side with the South, and fight against her evil uncle. 

In subplot news, Tenzin finds Ikki having a meal with some sky bison. She was tired of her siblings making fun of her, and Tenzin, just having fought with Kya and Bumi, could sympathize. After spending some time talking about family and how they always care about each other, even when things get hard, Tenzin and Ikki return to the Air Temple. There, immediately, Ikki and her siblings make up. Tenzin then goes to Bumi and Kya. Earlier, we had seen a heartbreaking scene where Bumi talked to the statue of his father, saying that he was sorry he wasn't an Air Bender. Kya had comforted him and said that their dad was still proud of him.

Now, the three children of Avatar Aang apologize to one another. They look at a picture of the family - Aang and Katara, all grown up, with their three children. The picture may have made me tear up a bit.

This subplot was good. It was cute, sentimental, and it helped to develop these characters even further. I only had one problem with it: why hasn't anyone told Tenzin about what's going on in the Water Tribes? The guy is a really powerful Air Bender and a world leader! Him and his equally influential siblings are all having a fun family vacation while the Water Tribes fall to pieces. I just find it a bit annoying that nobody has thought to inform him of what's going on. 

So. Like I said before, this episode was not as good as the first part. However, we did get to see some cool Bending, and I'm happy with the continuing momentum.

8/10