The Legend of Korra (2012-2014) Season 4 TV Series Review

Title: The Legend of Korra.
Season: 4.

Rated: TV-PG.
Number of episodes: 13.
Release Date: 2014.
ORIGINAL NETWORK: Nick.com.
Genre(s): Animation, Action, Adventure.

Created by: Michael Dante DiMartino & Bryan Konietzko.

Cast: Janet Varney, Jeff Bennett, Dee Bradley Baker, P.J. Byrne, David Faustino, J.K. Simmons, Seychelle Gabriel, Mindy Sterling, and many more!

My Overall Rating:

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Previously in The Legend of Korra:
Season 1.
Season 2.
Season 3.

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Once broken, it takes a will of fire to pick up the pieces, learn from your past, and move forward trying to forge a new shell stronger than anything you had before. However, the journey of self-discovery is not without its own set of obstacles or emotional challenges that push you to look beyond the tangible forces in the world, transcend the pain and suffering witnessed firsthand, and find renewed purpose in life. However, through words of wisdom from those who have survived such ordeals, the acceptance of help from those you love no matter what, and a newly found perception of life, anything becomes possible. You just need to believe. Fully animated by Studio Mir, all thirteen episodes of the final season of The Legend of Korra, created by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, present Avatar Korra’s final journey to overcoming her trauma and embracing her legendary responsibilities.

What is The Legend of Korra (2014) Season 4 about? Three years following the events that led to the end of Zaheer’s reign of anarchy, the world now sees the rise of Kuvira as the “Great Uniter”, with Bolin by her side, marching her army across the nations in hopes of reeling its societies into bending their knees to her ideology, promising unity, cohesion, and peace under her sovereignty. Meanwhile, the wimpy and unassertive Prince Wu is on the verge of being crowned the Earth King with Mako as his bodyguard and the newly-trained airbenders continue their journey around the world, trying to give a helping hand to those in need. Korra, now battling with her own demons, as her past haunts her following the traumatic confrontation she had with Zaheer, is now despondent and throwing her life away in cage matches, putting aside her responsibilities as the Avatar.

Despite some weaker episodes, especially “Remembrances” which was conceived because of budget issues and collects a bunch of past clips together as Mako, Korra, and Bolin remember their past adventures, this final book in Korra’s legacy offers an excellent finale to her journey as the Avatar. Having started off as a hot-headed young adult, overestimating her own abilities, and clearly letting her emotions continuously overtake her decision-making, she now finds herself humbled by her own dark visions as she suffers through post-traumatic stress disorder and must learn from her past to be the person she needs to be, not only for all those who are suffering under the tyrannical dictatorship established by Kuvira with her wicked vision of unity but also for her own sanity. Although she serves as the antithesis of the previous season’s villain and offers an ideal political landscape for conflict and changes for this season, Kuvira’s rise in power does falter at times, either in execution or predictability. The inclusion of a weapon of mass destruction, however, does add interesting discussions on the means to an end for the world of the Avatar.

Alongside Korra’s own adventures, multiple side plots were developed and explored, all equally entertaining in their own fashion, offering an all-around enjoyable season where adversity needed to be overcome in different ways. Of all, Prince Wu, purposefully annoying at first only to learn at his own pace how to become the leader that the Earth kingdom needed, was the least thrilling, often contributing to the pacing issues encountered throughout the season. However, Varrick and Zhu Li ended up having one of the more engaging side plots in the season, giving fans a better insight into their conflictual relationship and leaving us wondering until the end what they were both really plotting deep down in their hearts. Although the original Team Avatar, within the Korra-verse, of course, only really get their time to shine in the final act when all the mayhem begins, there’s no lying that, even if the boss battle was a bit too conventional, it was fun and offered some of the best creative, exciting, and dramatic moments for the series.

The end of the series is bold in its own right in regard to Korra and Asami but offers the transformative conclusion that was inevitable to the Avatar’s journey. Full of exciting and original action sequences where element-bending is creatively thought and utilized, a brilliant score put together, and much-needed guest appearances sneaked into the story to pass down the knowledge of those who conceived the world differently to the next generation, this season was as exciting as the previous three, delivering on all fronts, and staying true to the nature of the franchise. From its in-depth exploration of war, antagonistic political visions, and individual emotional plights, whether it’s in the world of trauma or love, the final season in The Legend of Korra is everything fans could’ve asked for. Similarly to Avatar: The Last Air Bender, Korra’s story does continue but not as a TV series but as graphic novels. However, new animated projects within the Avatar universe have been announced and will soon see daylight for fans awaiting patiently for more element-bending action to check out.

The Legend of Korra (2014) Season 4 is a wonderful finale to Korra’s emotional journey as the Avatar in her latest quest for self-discovery, quandary with trauma, and search for balance.

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All episodes are available for free on select streaming services!

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Have you read any comic book stories from this franchise?

Have you seen The Legend of Korra (2012-2014)? Will you?

Share your thoughts with me!

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