Avatar: 5 Reasons Katara Was The Worst Character (& 5 She Was The Best)

While Aang might be the main character from Avatar: The Last Airbender, Katara was one of the most important characters from the series. Along with Sokka, she was the first person to help Aang and to commit to saving the world by defeating Firelord Ozai.

Katara had many wonderful qualities and is overall a very likable character, but there were also things about her that weren’t so great. She could be annoying and overbearing, but she was also compassionate and talented. Here are the reasons why she was the best character from the show as well as why she was the worst.

10 Worst: Her relationship with Toph

Toph and Katara are often at odds, and the reasons for this make total sense. Katara was forced to take on responsibility at a young age while Toph had spent her whole life controlled by her strict parents.

So, Toph didn’t want to be mothered by Katara while Katara was frustrated by Toph’s lack of responsibility. It’s also worth noting that these two characters were both very young, but, nevertheless, it could be obnoxious to see Katara always trying to tell Toph what to do.

9 Best: She wasn’t afraid to be a badass

Katara might have been one of the more serious, kind, and sometimes emotional members of the group, but she was very multifaceted.

She was also strong, passionate, and not afraid to fight for what was right. She had no problem sticking up for herself and others, and she was extremely skilled in a fighting situation. This made her fun to watch because she didn’t just have a one-dimensional personality.

8 Worst: She didn’t have much of a sense of humor

Many of the characters from Avatar: The Last Airbender have a great sense of humor. Sokka is known for being funny, but Toph and Aang can also be hilarious.

Katara, however, is a bit of a stick in the mud. While not every character has to be funny, and this does provide balance in the group, sometimes she was more boring to watch because of her overall serious nature.

7 Best: Because she didn’t let anyone degrade her

Katara is made to do a lot of chores and be cast in the role of homemaker after her mother dies while Sokka gets to play at being a warrior. This gender division isn’t fair to her at all especially given her water bending skills. Then, when she tries to be trained by Master Pakku, he refuses since she is a woman, even though this seems ludicrous given that half of the Avatars themselves are women.

The great thing about Katara, however, is that she doesn’t back down. She doesn’t let Pakku degrade her, and she shows just how powerful she is. She’s not someone to be told what to do because of her gender.

6 Worst: She could be too controlling

Katara was often a little bit too serious, and while this provided a good balance to some of the more silly members of the group, it could be less fun to watch.

She liked to tell everyone what to do, and this often annoyed them. While her heart might have been in the right place, there were times when she needed to relax a little and let others make their own choices.

5 Best: Her compassion was one of her strengths

There’s a misconception in society that being compassionate, kind, and emotional means being weak, but this isn’t true. Katara was exceptionally strong and fierce in many ways, and her compassion was a big part of her strength of character.

The way she became the Painted Lady to help the starving Fire Nation town is just an example of how amazing she was and how she used her compassion to help others.

4 Worst: Because she always wanted to be the mother of the group

Given that Katara lost her mother when she was young, and then her father left for war, she was expected to step up to the plate and mature very quickly. Since the Southern Water Tribe(And the Northern) seem unfortunately sexist, this means she was expected to do many of the stereotypically female chores. So, it makes sense she would try to mother the others in Team Avatar.

While this is understandable and doesn’t make her a bad person or character, it could be obnoxious to watch at times. She was prone to bossing others around and judging them when they didn’t do things right.

3 Best: She was responsible for keeping the group safe

While Katara’s tendency to want to be in charge and parent the others in the group could be annoying, it also makes a lot of sense and could be a good thing. Aang and Toph were very young and immature, and Sokka could also be overly relaxed and not take things seriously enough.

Katara had to be the one to make sure they were taking care of each other and staying safe, and this shouldn’t be mocked all the time just because it’s a more stereotypical mom trait.

2 Worst: Because she acted like she was the only person who had experienced loss

Losing her mother at such a young age was understandably a very traumatic and awful loss for Katara. However, she often acts like she was the only one who lost a mother even though Sokka, her brother, lost her, too.

Also, Aang experienced the loss of almost everyone he had ever met and his entire civilization. So, while it’s alright that she expressed grief and pain, she could be a bit selfish in assuming she had lost more than anyone.

1 Best: Because she was a water bending prodigy

While characters like Aang and Toph understandably get a lot of attention for being amazing benders, Katara is just as good as they are. Just like how Toph was an earth bending prodigy who pushed the limits of the art form, Katara did, too.

She was so powerful that she could blood bend with ease in a way that Hama, who had practiced for years, could not. In her adult years, she became a respected and revered water bending master and teacher.

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