Moon Knight episode one makes a reference to Avatar: The Last Airbender, and interestingly, it might have settled a long-running debate on the show.
Warning: contains spoilers for moon knight episode 1.
avatar the last airbender‘s status as an anime has long been debated, an argument that may have been settled, of all things, by Marvel Studios’ original Disney+ series. moon knight. Since the two shows have nothing to do with each other, nothing moon knight have to say about Avatar is not automatically a conclusive statement. However, the nature of the statement and the nature of moon knight itself still works to add a sense of legitimacy to it.
Since its inception, there has been a heated debate among fans of avatar the last airbender on whether or not it’s okay to call it an anime. The show overlaps a lot with anime thanks to its art style, animation, and its use of Asian cultural themes and aesthetics. The biggest counterpoint to the idea has been that anime is normally seen as a product of Japan, so Avatar, made in the USA, may not count for that. Not only that but other acclaimed cartoons with anime style art like the boondocks and teen titans They aren’t usually lumped in with anime, so there’s this idea that it doesn’t make sense for people to pick and choose what counts and doesn’t count as anime.
This debate has lasted for years and, curiously, moon knight Episode 1 might have solved it. When Arthur Harrow tells Steven Grant how the goddess Ammit was betrayed by her avatar, Steven jokes about the role of James Cameron. Avatarand when Arthur tries to correct him, he asks if he means the anime, which, given the context and general story, could only mean avatar the last airbender. Not only that, but by specifically calling it anime, moon knight apparently brings up the old debate to declare that avatar the last airbender it is, in fact, an anime.
The fact that a Marvel show is saying that Avatar is an anime adds a lot to the discussion. Since Marvel shows are mainstream media, their content naturally gets a lot more attention than other shows. As such, moon knight Saying that Avatar it is an anime that ends up having a lot of weight and gives more credibility to that side of the debate. If nothing else, the reference alone in an MCU property may prove popular enough to sway public conversation, regardless of the legitimacy of the argument.
moon knight claiming that avatar the last airbender is an anime is not yet a definitive statement. The two shows have nothing to do with each other, so in essence the statement is little more than a reference or an Easter egg, one that doesn’t address any of the aforementioned issues that created the debate in the first place. Still, this is one of the first times the topic has been mentioned in offline media, and it does so to specifically call Avatar an anime is certainly something to think about.
moon knight releases new episodes Wednesdays on Disney+.
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