Avataris ane of the about critically-acclaimed cartoon franchises of all fourth dimension, and decriers calling information technology "an anime" volition accept fans vehement them a new one. Essentially, beingness Western-made,The Terminal AirbenderandThe Legend Of Korraare past all means cartoons. And creative way bated,The Last Airbenderand itsKorrasequel have some of the most compelling narratives for an animated serial geared towards younger audiences.

Of grade, the "is it an anime?" debate can immediately spark a war inside the fandom. Still, people who dearestThe Terminal Airbender andKorracan't deny seeing some show elements that may too brand it an anime from the W.

10 FLCL: Character Design, Animation

FLCL inspired animation and style - Is Avatar An Anime

Anyone who watches an episode ofAvatarwould annotation its distinct "Westernized" character designs. Nonetheless, hawkeye-eyed fans might notice that a few tweaks of Aang and the gang'due south grapheme designs and blitheness styles may have them like to a pop anime:FLCL.

Despite its short six-episode run,FLCL'south slice-of-life narrative mixed with thrilling activity proved to be enough to grab most viewers. In fact, creators Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino confirmed thatFLCLinspiredAvatar's animation and grapheme pattern to some degree. Moreover,Avatarmanaging director Giancarlo Volpe claimed the staff had to watchFLCLduring the show's creation.

nine Princess Mononoke: The Lack Of Villains

Princess Mononoke inspired villains with agenda - Is Avatar An Anime

Granted, any fan asked to recall "a villain" ofAvatarwill proper noun multiple characters and factions beyond the two series. Nevertheless, villains such equallyThe LastAirbender'due south Azuka or Korra'southward Zaheer are far from stereotypical cartoon bad guys. Interestingly enough, creators DiMartino and Konietzko confirmed in a mag interview that this concept is intentional.

Moreover, Konietzko stated that Miyazaki'sPrincess Mononokeplayed a huge office in this narrative direction.

As fans call up, this picture show shows the perspective of both wood gods and humans who want to profit from said forests. Similar toPrincess Mononoke,Avatar'due south villains only become as such due to their conflicting interests with the protagonists. However, some aspects of their viewpoints – fifty-fifty backstories – have a way of resonating with fans and realistic ideologies.

viii Spirited Away: Spirituality, Environmentalism

Spirited Away inspired Avatar - Is Avatar An Anime

DiMartino and Konietzko besides cited another Miyazaki work,Spirited Abroad, equally an influence while conceptualizingThe Last Airbender.

"The stories and emotional depth ofSpirited AwayandPrincess Mononokewere big inspirations for us," they said. InSpirited Away, young Chihiro Ogino ends up working for the witch Yubaba after the latter turned her parents into pigs. She has to work and find a way to contrary the spell and go back to the human world.

Interestingly, fantasy and environmentalism stay as focal points in this Miyazaki film. Chihiro encounters individuals in her risk, which turn out to be environmental spirits. InAvatar, spirits in the Spirit Earth likewise represent concepts and metaphors. Moreover, interacting with these spirits often serve as a way forAvatar's protagonists to discover new aspects of themselves.

7 Shinichiro Watanabe: Fight Scenes

Watanabe works inspired fight scenes - Is Avatar An Anime

Whatsoever otaku who asks for a driving narrative or a compelling story would well-nigh likely have recommendations in the form of Shinichiro Watanabe'sSamurai ChamplooandCowboy Bebop. After all,Cowboy Bebop's take on a neo-noir space western andSamurai Champloo's alternate have on Edo-era Japan are fresh takes on conventional anime setups. All the same, more notable are the iconic and fluid fight scenes of the 2 serial.

In turn, information technology'southward no surprise that fifty-fiftyAvatar's creators found inspiration in the two anime. Aside from their desire for grounded fight scenes,Avatar's way of making fight scenes as a fluid commutation between two characters can exist considered a homage to Watanabe's signature fashion.

half dozen My Neighbor Totoro: Appa And The Vi Legs

Nekobus inspired Appa - Is Avatar An Anime

Appa is easily one of the most recognizable creatures from theAvataruniverse. After all, no 1 could imagine any hero riding a six-legged flying bison-manatee, and somehow there's Appa. And to those saying Appa looks strangely like the Catbus from Miyazaki'sMy Neighbor Totoro, then they're right.

Equally per Konietzko inThe Art Of The Blithe Series, he just found himself a floating hybrid bison-manatee. This concept slowly evolved from Aang shepherding a herd of them to a family and then just trusty Appa.

5 Cowboy Bebop: Cabbage Merchant

Cowboy Bebops Three Old Men and Cabbage Man - Is Avatar An Anime

Fondly called Cabbage Homo, this innocent merchant's cabbage nearly e'er ends up becoming a victim of fights between Aang's coiffure and their enemies. This recurring character comes equally a homage to ane of the creators' favorite series:Cowboy Bebop.

In the neo-noir infinite western, Fasten Spiegel and his crew cease upwardly doing odd jobs to make practise in a futuristic world. Thing is, three quondam men just keep on running into the crew beyond their adventures. Funnily enough, these quondam men don't add together annihilation to the plots of the episodes. However, they're entertaining enough to become memorable side characters.

Thankfully, their influence transformed Cabbage Man into the iconic side graphic symbol he is today.

iv Cowboy Bebop: The Case Of Jet

Spike and Jet have similarities - Is Avatar An Anime

In Flavour 2, Jet and his Liberty Fighters endeavour to fight the ongoing Fire Nation occupation in the Earth Kingdom. Jet's natural roguish charisma fifty-fifty gains the interest of Katara. Unfortunately, Jet meets an ambiguous fate near the end of the season.

Anime fans might compare Jet'southward advent toCowboy Bebopprotagonist Spike Spiegel. While their personalities differ a lot, the cryptic fates of both characters seem too like to be only coincidences. Admitting at that place's no confirmation from the creators, Jet may very well be based on Fasten.

three The Tournament Of Power: Earthbender Fights, Pro-Angle Tournament

Pro Bending Tournament - Is Avatar An Anime

Tournaments are a staple in shonen anime, especially when in that location'due south a ton of characters with a ton of ability to show off. When washed right, a tournament is also a great alibi to assist characters evidence "hidden power" or even evolve. At its core, a straightforward brawl becomes less disruptive than a pure narrative arc. In turn, information technology makes sense forAvatarto accept some cues with this trope.

Granted, it'south Aang'southward journey to notice an Earthbending instructor (before finding Toph) that brings him in a short stint in an Earthbender tournament. Moreover, it'sThe Legend of Korrathat really had a formal tournament arc in the form of Pro-Angle. While creators accept not specifically mentioned post-obit anime for these tournament stories, the medium certainly has a history of following this tendency.

2 The Epitomize Sequence: The Fire Nation Play

Team Avatar watching the Ember Island Players - Is Avatar An Anime

Information technology's a common technique in television shows to have a recap sequence explicate what'south currently going on. However, some older anime accept an episode or ii entirely dedicated to summarizing the events and so far. This normally happens before entering more than serious storylines. For case,Gundam SEEDhad two recap episodes explain the stakes before proceeding to the more climactic portions of its storylines.

However,Avatardidn't fifty-fifty need a strict recap episode per se. Rather, in Season 3, a Fire Nation play explained the way the earth saw events happen across the seasons. In plough, this play demonstrated a hilarious parodied version of the character'southward personalities and their take on the stories, fifty-fifty Uncle Iroh!

1 The Embankment Episode: Calm Earlier The Storm

Zuko and the gals in the beach episode - Is Avatar An Anime

Virtually anime deliver fanservice in the class of a beach episode. Somehow, protagonists – and sometimes, even villains – deserve a interruption from their constant battles. And in this episode, they unwind with a short vacation. Narrative-wise, this helps flesh out their characters and provide much-needed funny moments for the anime.

Granted,Avatardidn't follow the usual purpose of a beach episode. However, the testify certainly delivered an impactful embankment-centric episode for Zuko and his friends. When Zuko accompanies his sis and their friends on a trip, the bear witness reveals the more than human side of their villainous selves. In plow, viewers go more insight into their personalities, with this episode serving as an instrument to demonstrate Zuko's conclusion-making procedure.

Adjacent: Persona 5 & ix Other Games Ready In Tokyo

Rumor: Marvel'due south Spider-Man two Could Characteristic Venom as a Third Playable Graphic symbol

Read Side by side

Almost The Writer