| Title | : | Avatar: The Last AirbenderThe Rift, Part 1 (The Rift, #1) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 1616552956 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781616552954 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 76 |
| Publication | : | First published March 5, 2014 |
| Awards | : | Goodreads Choice Award Graphic Novels & Comics (2014) |
Avatar Aang asks his friends to help him honor Yangchen's Festival—one of the highest Air Nomad holidays, which hasn't been celebrated in over one hundred years. But cryptic visits from the spirit of Avatar Yangchen herself lead Aang to discover a jointly owned Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom refinery—operating on land sacred to the Airbenders! Is this simply a case of corporate greed or is something more mysterious happening?
Avatar: The Last AirbenderThe Rift, Part 1 (The Rift, #1) Reviews
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"Don't you think you're trying a little too hard to hold on to the past?"
"Maybe, but don't you think you're trying a little too hard to run away from it?"
"Noy everybody's past is like yours, Aang, some of us have to run away just to... just to live."
I don't really know how I feel about this one.
It made mad at some points, but the end was kinda ok and realistic. I mean it felt very human. Yet, the fact that I was mad most of it doesn't feel good to me.
I suppose I'll have to see how things go and where is this one taking us.
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More Avatar! I can never get enough.
I'm making it my mission to read at least one of them every month, so, here is the one of this month!
Now on to feed my newest obsession XD. -
Another strong start to the next installment in the "Avatar: The Last Airbender" series. Gene Luen Yang, Michael Dante DiMartino, and Bryan Koneitzko team up for the newer series "The Rift." This story starts with Aang taking a journey with the group to honor the memory of one of the former Avatars, Avatar Yangchen. But Aang's surprised to find that not all is as he remembered when the sacred lands are settled by a group of Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom groups working a refinery, which is causing the land to be polluted. Aang worries further with visions he has of Avatar Yangchen, of future events or past he isn't sure, but there are more than a few surprises with the group as they discover the workings of the refinery, and the people behind them.
I continue to be impressed with the level of storytelling and characterizations in these graphic novels. The artwork has stunning clarity and consistency, the balance of humor and tension is engaging, and the story itself has promise as it builds through the volume. I think this is still a series that many who follow the Avatar:TLA universe will enjoy for what it offers. I certainly look forward to see where this particular series goes, even with the reveal at the end. Judging from the scheme of events in this series, Toph is going to get a lot of character focus.
Highly recommended.
Overall score: 5/5 stars
Note: I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, from the publisher Diamond Book Distributors/Dark Horse Comics. -
I'd rate this book higher if I was more familiar with Avatar: The Last Airbender mythology, which I heard was an excellent animated series.
Still, it wasn't a bad book, I'm just not the right target audience for it. Despite it, I still felt the enjoyment of reading it. -
*2.5
I swear, some of these comics are so weird.
The plot of this one isn't bad, but everyone seems so out of character. Aang already saw a place where Air Nomad history was taken over; this is just a sacred meadow. Katara doesn't do much except support Aang, and Sokka is just degraded into an idiot. Toph is the worst here - I get that she's going through stuff with her past, but she's so harshly at everyone's throats that it feels like they just met her. Toph is a Slytherin, for sure, but she cares about her friends too! (Also, it annoys me that this guy who Toph might be crushing on is described as her showing "her soft side." What the heck? Toph has shown her soft side so many more times with her friends; she doesn't need some love interest to do that.
Well, let's see how this goes. 2.5/5 stars. -
Parece que a Toph le gusta alguien.
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❝Don't you think you're trying a little too hard to hold on to the past?❞
I really enjoyed The Rift: Part One! Gurihiru continues to amaze me with their stunning art. Every page I turned, I was greeted with beautiful artwork. The art alone is enough of a reason for me to continue reading the Avatar: The Last Airbender graphic novels.
❝Maybe, but don't you think you're trying a little too hard to run away from it?❞
❝Not everybody's past is like yours, Aang. Some of us have to run away just to... just to live.❞
The Rift: Part One focuses more on Toph than the other Avatar: The Last Airbender graphic novels. And personally I found that to be a very welcome development. Toph is one of my all-time favourite characters: she's strong, powerful, innovative, but also funny, kind, and good. I loved seeing more of her backstory, and I'm eager to read The Rift: Part Two to perhaps find out even more about her.❝Toph Beifong doesn't bow to anybody.❞
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It appears that all Avatar content since the beginning of season two of The Legend of Korra has been going downhill. I don't want to say this because everything about Avatar was unbelievably awesome for the whole of The Last Airbender and most of the first season of The Legend of Korra was quality. But as an avid fan of the franchise, my disappointment grows.
The ending of The Search was fairly ridiculous with them letting Azula go free and Zuko being reunited with his mother was done in a far too convenient way. While those were my complaints for the last part of that series, most of the series was an entertaining read.
When The Rift Part One came out I was hesitant to be excited as my most recent experiences with Avatar content has been disappointing. Sadly this comic book only fulfilled my expectations. While some may argue that it is too early to judge as this is only the first installment of a trilogy for the series, I still feel that there are glaring errors or simply weird, baffling moments that would not exist if this story was done properly.
This story begins reasonably with a feast celebrating the new elected leaders of Yu Dao (the city that will become Republic City). Aang has a vision where he sees what we assume is Avatar Yangchen. This reminds him of Avatar Yangchen day and he takes the gang out to celebrate. This is where things begin to derail.
They come upon a statue Aang believed was Avatar Yangchen, but instead the statue looks different. The obvious thing for them to do now would be to question its existance and search for answers. Instead, they simply accept that its a different person. This makes no sense at all.
Following this we see Aang and Toph being incredibly stubborn for almost no reason. Then there's a random water bender glaring at Katara (at least that's what it looked like). Aang goes chasing Yangchen's spirit while no one seems to think this might be a major issue (ITS A BLOODY PREVIOUS AVATAR APPEARING TO HIM, THEY ONLY COME FOR SERIOUS BUSINESS).
They then find a factory and meet a fanboy who turns out to be running the joint. Toph for some reason develops a crush on this dude which is completely out of character for her (since when would she care about some dude who is being a submissive fanboy of her?). Toph and Aang argue some more because Toph cares more about this fanboy than Aang at the moment. Then it ends with Toph finding her dad is owner of the factory, which makes me wonder why the fanboy didn't mention this to her.
I still have hope that things can improve, but I am expecting more disappointment. Prove me wrong Gene! -
this one was a liiiittle boring for my taste but i appreciate the cliff hanger and the focus on toph’s character.
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I enjoyed the beginning of this story and the fact that we get to see more of Toph than in the last story line! This introduces a couple of new things; a long forgotten Air nomad tradition that Aang wants to complete (after a past Avatar shows him visions) as well as a factory that has taken up residence on sacred land. There is a mystery surrounding the factory and Aang and co. must find out what is really going on. But as Aang tries to preserve his past, Toph comes face to face with hers! I am so excited to see where this goes and how Toph deals with this new development!
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Bastante introducturio con buen planteamiento de la problemática. Amo a bebé Toph y lo bonita que se ve cuando le gusta alguien.
Buscaba algo tranquilo, corto y divertido para empezar el año y esto fue perfecto. Le pongo 3.5 por ese final que me dejó en shock! -
This first part???? That ending? Are you KIDDING?
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Real Rating: 4 1/2
I have to say, I think these books are finally coming into their own. Not that I disliked the first two trilogies, but they had flaw after flaw. Not that this one doesn't have some flaws as well, but I enjoyed it more than the others.
First off, the art. I've always enjoyed the art of these books, but I think the style has grown on me even more. I'm not a huge artist, but there's a few panels that I want to sketch out because I thought they were so beautiful.
I also love the nods to the Korra series. I'll say more about that in my spoilers section, but I did appreciate that the writer is really trying to connect Avatar and Korra together, and it helps the world feel richer because of it.
I loved the character designs for the new characters, and it was great seeing some of the old again. I knew beforehand that this trilogy is going to focus on Toph, but the end of this book was perfect! I really want to get my hands on the second book, as this trilogy is bringing up some stuff with Toph that I've always wanted to see play out. Very vague, I know, but spoilers.
My one complaint is Toph. She's my favorite character and I love this focus on her, but... There were a few moments she seemed a little too harsh. I mean, Toph isn't afraid to say what she really feels and she is really confrontational, but I feel like she would have a little more respect for Aang by this point. The Toph in this book occasionally feels like Book 2 Toph, where she hasn't really bonded with the Gaang. Toph could still be a little mean in Book 3, but... I don't know. I don't know how to explain it, other than saying while Toph was great for the most part in this book, there were a few moments I felt she was downright mean.
SPOILERS BELOW!!!
Satoru. I love his character design and his personality and his bits with Toph were great. However, while I like seeing Toph hit it off with him, I get the feeling he's related to the Sato's of Korra. I mean, the name is fairly close, and he's all about inventing new technology, including the forklift (which can be seen as similar to the satomobile). Maybe I'm just reading too much into it, but that honestly was my first thought when I read his name, and it didn't help that he had said "Fire ferrets" right before that.
But if he really is Asami's grandfather (that's my guess, anyways. I need to refresh myself on Asami's family and her father's business, but I don't think there's anything that contradicts my thoughts.), then there's no way Toph and him get together. Because while Asami's father could have come from another wife, it would still make Lin/Opal and Hiroshi related to one another. Maybe by blood, maybe just by family relationships. And while nobody seems to know about Toph's two husbands, I don't think such a thing as Lin and Asami being related would be overlooked in the three seasons of Korra that have aired.
This has turned from a review of the book to my speculations and thoughts... So, I'll wrap this up.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. There was a moment or two that pulled me out of the book, but I think these graphic novels just keep getting better and better. Katara and Sokka do take the background a little, but they add quite a bit of humor if you really pay attention to the panels. Plus, it's nice to see Toph getting some focus on issues that the Korra series hasn't really touched on, rather just on her metalbending academy. I can't wait to see where this story goes. -
ARC provided by Dark Horse Comics through Netgalley
While out with the Avatar Team and General Iroh in the Earth Kingdom, Aang sees a vision of past Avatar Yangchen who tries to warn him of something which he can't hear.
Convinced Avatar Yangchen is asking him to reinstate a traditional Air Nomad celebration in her honour, Aang sets out with the Avatar Team and his new air acolytes to celebrate Yangchen's Festival. But things do not go as planned, and Aang's need to reconnect with the past clashes with Toph's need to escape it.
It's really delightful to see a comic so faithful to the show's characters!
We get to see Aang dealing with trying to rebuild a heritage robbed by genocide, and Toph dealing with a past that robbed her of a normal childhood.
This seems to be setting Toph as the main character to be developed in the next instalment, and with Toph being one of my favourite characters I, for one, cannot wait! -
I admit that I could have enjoyed this better if I was more familiar with The Last Airbender cartoon on Nickelodeon. I've only seen less than five episodes of it.
The book is well-written and I could get by enough with what I know about the cartoon to enjoy it but just barely. Still, this is a great book for a younger reader. -
I seriously love all these
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I guess what I was just trying to say... Don’t you think you’re trying a little too hard to hold on to the past?
Maybe, but don’t you think you’re trying a little too hard to run away from it?
Me gusta el conflicto entre preservar la cultura y las tradiciones del pasado vs sacrificarlo en el nombre del ‘progreso’ y ‘futuro’.
Personalmente estoy de parte de Aang, no me agrada la visión capitalista con la que algunas personas creen que tienen el derecho de destruir lo que es importante para unos justificado que es en nombre del futuro. -
Omg een nieuw personage is WOW HUH AAAAAAAAHHHH! Dit boek gaat over een geest (denk ik?) waar avatar Yangchen voor waarschuwt en ook de familie van Toph verschijnt weer. Tot nu toe nog niet een graphic novel die net zo goed is als de vorige reeksen, maar ik ga snel door met de rest van deze reeks!
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I love one Toph Beifong so much
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Read on Libby.
I love to follow Toph's journey. 😂 -
YES TOPH 👏
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Review for all three parts under the cut. -
3.5 stars
Toph is the main character here! She is dealing with everything that she tried to run away from - her family, stifling traditions and restrictions, etc. At first this causes conflict between her and Aang as he tried to revive an old Air Nomad festival, but they have made up by the end.
Best line was from Iroh, finishing up his stint as the interim Fire Lord and on his way back to Ba Sing Se:
I had much more fun .. and more tea.. than I had expected!
The National Tea Appreciation Day was a rousing success!
Ursa and her family were visiting Zuko in the capitol city for the first time which is why he is not there.
Meanwhile there is trouble in the spirit world and the last air Avatar Yangchen begins appearing to Aang, showing him a vision of a terrifying dark spirit causing destruction, but Aang does not know if it is a past event or yet to come.
And then there is an Earthen Fire refinery that employs people from all tribes that is built on top of sacred Air Nomad ground. Oh, and the refinery is co-owned by none other than... Toph Beifong's father.
The chief engineer has quite the crush on Toph and she seems pretty friendly toward him.
The river there is polluted, but it is not the refinery's fault. What is causing it?
And why did Nutha glare at Katara? What did she ever do? Esp. since Niyok seemed friendly and glad to see Katara? -
Some scattered thoughts:
1. Toph is awesome. I love her. More Toph.
2. I like how the conflict between Aang and Toph was handled here. It felt authentic, and not manufactured.
3. It might be my imagination, but I think the art is finally aging the characters up?
4. I hope this series goes on for a long time.
5. Only complaint: Isn't it too early for machines to show up in this world? I'd like to see a timeline for industrialization in the Avatar world.
I just realized how nerdy that sounded. -
It weirds me out that Katara calls Aang sweetie so often. But I'm glad we're gonna dig into Toph's past!
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Wait, WHAT? WHOA.
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Okay I will warn you that there are spoilers and this is me having a little rant!
"Not everybody's past is like yours, Aang. Some of us have to run away just to... Just to live." -Toph
That quote I'm not going to deny that Aang had a pretty good life from past scenes, that is until they were going to take him away from Monk Gyatso and he ran away. But come on he woke up and his race, his people were decimated!
Sokka still acts like they're trying a little too hard to make him funny and it needs to stop! Like just leave him humorless if you're going to ruin his character!
Now while I enjoyed getting more from Toph and delving into her past she felt out of character, I wouldn't expect her to crush over someone who's fangirling for her, maybe I'm over exaggerating. Tossing a wild assumption out there could he be Chief Beifong's father, but he was never been established so who knows.
Also Toph at age 12 could feel the floor or wall and tell if a person was lying or badly injured now she has to touch a person, she can just sense it since she is a master bender (I might be nitpicking but had to mention this). Plus Toph way too rude in this book which goes against what we've seen from her in the series!
Aang had his moments but in this book a few things go against the unity between the nations that he wants to create! I do understand him since you know he's the last Airbender and wants to preserve his traditions. But even in the TV series he accepted new beginnings.
Katara is one of my favorite characters and I feel like she's been silenced in this book! There only to comfort Aang, ugh!
Things I did enjoy are that were seeing Avatar Yangchen and I've always wanted more from the past Avatars so this alone makes me content! The art work is wonderful but Iroh looked wrong!
Getting more from Aang's past life and his traditions, the build up to Republic City which we get a lot more of from this book, and also nice seeing past enemies!
Also what to that ending, hopefully the next book will be better! -
This is actually a review for The Rift volumes 1-3, as I felt bad marking them all separately when they're so short.
This was really good! I didn't know what to expect from an Avatar comic, but I really liked it. There were a few things here and there that didn't gel too well with me (Aang and Katara constantly calling each other "sweetie" felt... Weird). But overall I liked it.
I like the whole "air acolytes" as a way to rebuild the Air Nomads' way of life. I do think it's a little weird that Toph has a whole school for metalbending and yet Aang still can't do it? Also, I would have liked it better if Sokka and Katara were more central to the plot, but I guess in a three-part story, only so many things can happen.
I'm a little confused as to how old everyone is supposed to be in this. They all pretty much look the same as they had on the show, but Aang and Katara's relationship felt a lil weird if Aang was still 12/13 years old. -
*** This review might contain spoilers ***
Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟 (4/5 stars).
I will never ever get enough of Avatar and the world of Avatar. I'm sincerely loving where the comics are going and I just love how far I'm already in this series. Yay for not being that behind anymore. But here are my opinions and thoughts while I was reading it:
Damn, avatar Yangchen is hot like really hot.
I love learning more about air nomads customs and traditions. It is just so much fun to see how the comics expand the avatar universe. I also liked how we learned that Katara had friends in her old village.
Satoru is such a fanboy.
Lol could Satoru be Lin's father? Or am I overanalysing the interaction between Toph and Satoru?
Woooaw Toph's dad being the owner of the factory was such a plottwist.
I'm really curious to see where this trilogy is heading. I'm pretty excited to read the rest. Onto the next one. -
As much as I loved the focus on Zuko in The Search, it's great to have Toph back—front and centre, no less—in The Rift. Part 1 is just setting the stage, but certainly still a fun read and it ends on a hell of a twist for Toph. The discussions about tradition and changes to traditions are interesting, too!
