Avatar: The Last Airbender (season 2) – Wikipedia

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season Title Directed by Written by Animated by Original air date Prod.
code  Viewers
(millions) 21 1 “The Avatar State” Giancarlo Volpe Aaron Ehasz, Elizabeth Welch, Tim Hedrick and John O’Bryan DR Movie March 17, 2006 ( ) 201 N/A Aang and his friends travel to an Earth Kingdom base from which they are to be escorted to Omashu, where Aang intends for King Bumi to teach him earthbending. At the base, General Fong suggests that Aang can defeat the Fire Lord and end the war immediately by using the Avatar State. After many failed attempts, General Fong finally succeeds in triggering the Avatar State by faking Katara’s death, which leads to Aang nearly destroying the base in rage. The spirit of Avatar Roku warns Aang that the Avatar State is a defense mechanism that empowers Aang with the skills and knowledge of all his past lives, though there is a catch: if he is killed in the Avatar State, the reincarnation cycle will be broken, causing the Avatar to cease to exist. The group decides to travel to Omashu alone. Meanwhile, Zuko and Iroh are visited by Zuko’s younger sister, Azula, who has come bearing a message from the Fire Lord, requesting their return home. A guard accidentally reveals that the summons is a ruse in order to imprison them as traitors. They manage to escape, but are forced to become fugitives and cut off their topknots. 22 2 “The Cave of Two Lovers” Lauren MacMullan Joshua Hamilton JM Animation March 24, 2006 ( ) 202 N/A While on the way to Omashu, Aang and the group meet a group of carefree traveling bards, who take them through a vast tunnel known as the Cave of Two Lovers. Zuko and Iroh are sheltered by kind villagers after Iroh accidentally drinks tea made of a poisonous plant. Song, a young and compassionate healer, shows Zuko the effects of war from a normal citizen’s perspective. The group is separated in the tunnels by a cave-in, with Aang and Katara growing closer as they discover the origins of the cave, which includes the tombs of the first two earthbenders, who are the namesake of Omashu. Their torch burns out, plunging them into darkness and eventually resulting in a kiss. Glowing lights are revealed in the ceiling, allowing the group to escape and make it to Omashu, which they discover has been conquered by the Fire Nation. 23 3 “Return to Omashu” Ethan Spaulding Elizabeth Welch DR Movie April 7, 2006 ( )

203 N/A Aang and his friends sneak into Omashu to find Bumi and are nearly captured, but Sokka fakes a deadly illness to scare off the guards. They meet a resistance movement who tells them that King Bumi surrendered on the day of the invasion. Meanwhile, Princess Azula decides that in order to catch Zuko and Iroh, she needs to stop traveling with the royal procession. Team Avatar help the city’s entire population escape by faking an epidemic of Sokka’s invented sickness. The Fire Nation Governor’s toddler son Tom-Tom accidentally leaves with the citizens, mistaken for a kidnapping. The governor attempts to trade Tom-Tom for King Bumi, but Azula calls off the trade; she is now backed up by her childhood friends Mai, Tom-Tom’s older sister, and Ty Lee, both skilled fighters. Aang manages to rescue Bumi after a fight with Azula, but Bumi refuses to leave, saying that the proper time for his escape has not arrived. He instructs Aang to find an earthbending teacher who “waits and listens before striking”. Azula, Mai and Ty Lee set out on their mission, having now added Aang as their third target. 24 4 “The Swamp” Giancarlo Volpe Tim Hedrick JM Animation April 14, 2006 ( ) 204 N/A While flying, Aang and friends are attracted to a mysterious swamp and are separated from one another. They begin to see unique illusions in the swamp: Sokka sees Princess Yue, Katara sees her dead mother, and Aang sees a mysterious giggling girl and a flying boar. They are reunited and attacked by a swamp monster who turns out to be a wise man from a tribe of swamp waterbenders who use the moisture inside the swamp’s plants to manipulate the plants and hide their identities. He explains that all beings are connected, as the swamp is a single large tree, and the visions are of people they have met or will meet. Meanwhile, Zuko, disgusted with having to live as a beggar, dons the mask of the Blue Spirit once again. 25 5 “Avatar Day” Lauren MacMullan John O’Bryan DR Movie April 28, 2006 ( ) 205 N/A Aang and friends stumble upon a town celebrating an Anti-Avatar Day. The villagers blame Avatar Kyoshi, one of Aang’s previous incarnations, for killing their leader, Chin the Great. Aang reveals his identity and is arrested for Kyoshi’s supposed crimes. Zuko disguises himself as the Blue Spirit to steal food for himself and his uncle. Iroh is not happy with what Zuko is doing, and Zuko decides it is best that they part ways. Katara and Sokka investigate and find evidence that appears to support Kyoshi’s innocence. However, at Aang’s trial, Kyoshi’s spirit appears and recounts the events that led to Chin the Great’s death: a “horrible tyrant”, he was confronted by Kyoshi defending her home, who ultimately split Kyoshi Island from the mainland herself, causing Chin to die from a fall when he refused to back away from the cliff Kyoshi created. Aang is convicted but subsequently pardoned after he defeats a group of Fire Nation soldiers attacking the village, and the town changes the anti-Avatar celebration to a pro-Avatar celebration. 26 6 “The Blind Bandit” Ethan Spaulding Michael Dante DiMartino JM Animation May 5, 2006 ( ) 206 N/A Aang is still searching for an earthbending teacher, but with little success. At Xin Fu’s underground earthbending tournament, Team Avatar witnesses a display of powerful earthbending against a fighter named The Boulder by a young blind girl named “The Blind Bandit”, whom Aang recognizes as the girl from his vision in the swamp. She uses earthbending to sense her environment, perceiving the lay of the land around her; she therefore fits Bumi’s advice that Aang’s earthbending instructor should be someone who “listens and waits before striking”. The girl, Toph Beifong, cannot become Aang’s teacher due to her wealthy and overprotective parents, who attempt to keep her isolated from any danger. Xin Fu kidnaps Aang and Toph, thinking he was cheated out of prize money by them. Toph reveals her power by defeating Xin Fu’s gang singlehandedly, but her parents become even more restrictive. She runs away from home and joins Aang. Toph’s father, believing Aang has kidnapped her, promise Xin Fu and Master Yu a chest of gold if they bring her back. 27 7 “Zuko Alone” Lauren MacMullan Elizabeth Welch JM Animation May 12, 2006 ( ) 207 N/A After leaving his uncle Iroh, Zuko continues his journey through an Earth Kingdom township where a unseasoned boy named Lee befriends him. Zuko remembers his childhood, including Azula ‘s cooling and callous behavior towards the death of Iroh ‘s lone child Lu Ten and his own perseverance. last he recalls his mother ‘s concluding words and the announcement that his grandfather Azulon died and his mother had suddenly disappeared right before his founder Ozai become the fresh Fire Lord after Azulon ’ s death. As Zuko defends Lee ‘s family against abusive earth Kingdom soldiers, he incidentally reveals his identity as the Fire Prince near the end of the struggle. The boy, his family, and the town furiously reject him because of it .

• This was Walker Edmiston’s final voice role before his death in 2007.

28 8 “The Chase” Giancarlo Volpe Joshua Hamilton DR Movie May 26, 2006 ( ) 208 N/A Aang and his friends are relentlessly chased by a mysterious machine, which makes it impossible for the group to stop and sleep. The lack of sleep makes everyone irritable, and fuels a quarrel between Katara and Toph. Toph realizes they are being tracked by means of Appa’s shed fur. Aang lashes out at Toph for criticizing Appa, causing Toph to leave the group. Aang takes some of Appa’s fur to act as a decoy to lure their pursuers away from Katara and Sokka, but he is found by Azula in an abandoned village. Toph meanwhile runs into Iroh, who reminds her that it is not a sign of weakness to accept help from others the way she believes. He also reveals that he is tracking his nephew, trying to let him discover his own path. Aang battles Azula and later Zuko, but is joined by his friends just in time, as well as by Iroh. Azula feigns surrender when she is cornered six-on-one, but wounds Iroh and utilizes the ensuing chaos to escape. Katara and the group offer to help Zuko, but he furiously rebuffs them and lashes out at them to leave. The group can finally get some much-needed sleep as Zuko tends to his severely-wounded uncle. 29 9 “Bitter Work” Ethan Spaulding Aaron Ehasz DR Movie June 2, 2006 ( ) 209 N/A Aang begins his earthbending training with Toph, but grows frustrated when he encounters difficulty with earth, the natural opposite of air. Aang’s inclination towards agility and evasion puts him at a disadvantage with earthbending, which requires a more direct, resolute form of combat. Elsewhere, Zuko struggles with a similar dilemma as Iroh tries to teach him lightning-bending, an advanced form of firebending; Zuko’s anger keeps him from having the cold precision lightning bending requires. When Sokka is endangered by a saber-toothed Moose-Lion, Aang is able to save him by firmly standing his ground as an earthbender would. Zuko claims he’s ready to try and re-direct lightning, which Iroh staunchly refuses. At the end of the episode, Zuko resorts to standing on a mountaintop during a storm while tearfully screaming at the heavens to strike him like they have in the past. 30 10 “The Library” Giancarlo Volpe John O’Bryan JM Animation July 14, 2006 ( ) 210 N/A Sokka decides the group needs some intelligence to defeat the Fire Nation. At an oasis, the group encounters a professor from Ba Sing Se University, who tells them of Wan Shi Tong ‘s library in the Si Wong defect, said to contain a huge solicitation of cognition. The group finally locates the library about buried, but entire inwardly. Toph refuses to descend with the others and stays outside with Appa. Inside, Wan Shi Tong, a big heart owl, tells the group that humans are no long permitted in the library, as they only seek cognition to gain an advantage over early humans. The group convinces him otherwise, and begin searching for information. Sokka discovers a crucial weakness of the Fire Nation that could end the war : an approaching solar eclipse will prevent firebending for its duration. Wan Shi Tong catches them in their lie and refuses to allow them to leave with the cognition. He begins sinking the library before chasing the group. Outside, while Toph is interfering keeping the library adrift, Appa is kidnapped by a crowd of sandbenders. The others escape from the library, but Aang is devastated by the passing of Appa .

• This is part one of two of the 44-minute special The Fury of Aang.

31 11 “The Desert” Lauren MacMullan Tim Hedrick DR Movie July 14, 2006 ( ) 211 N/A team Avatar is stranded in the defect, without sufficient provisions to make the trek out again nowadays that they no longer have Appa. Elsewhere, Iroh reveals a cryptic association with a secret company when he uses a White Lotus tile as an opening in a match of Pai Sho, his favored bet on. The be active functions as a message to his opposition, who then helps protect Iroh and Zuko from Xin Fu and Master Yu, who decide to take a crack from hunting Toph to try and collect the amplitude on Zuko and Iroh. After a long trek and much adversity in the desert, Aang tracks down the sandbenders who stole Appa, and learns that Appa was traded to a merchant and is likely in Ba Sing Se to be sold. Upon hearing that Appa was muzzled, Aang becomes so angry and broken that he enters the Avatar State, destroying about everything around him, but is finally calmed by Katara .

• This is part two of two of the 44-minute special The Fury of Aang.

32 12 “The Serpent’s Pass” Ethan Spaulding Michael Dante DiMartino and Joshua Hamilton JM Animation September 15, 2006 ( ) 212 4.1[7] After leaving the defect, the group fortunately meets Suki and attempts to lead a pregnant woman and her husband through the Serpent ‘s Pass, a dangerous path to the outlands of Ba Sing Se. They are attacked by a Fire Nation embark and narrowly escape. Suki and Sokka attack to rekindle their relationship. interim, Zuko and Iroh, assuming new identities as Earth Kingdom refugees, are besides on their way to start a fresh animation in the Earth Kingdom capital, and meet Jet and some of the Freedom Fighters, with whom Zuko starts to adhere. Aang and the group are attacked again, this meter by the route ‘s namesake serpent. He and Katara defeat the beast and the group arrives on the outskirts of Ba Sing Se. There, Ying goes into undertaking and delivers her daughter. Sokka and Suki share their beginning kiss, while Aang confesses to Katara how the happiness of Ying ‘s family reminds him how he feels about Appa and her. Aang departs with Momo to find Appa in Ba Sing Se, but is shocked to see that a massive Fire Nation drill is approaching the wall of Ba Sing Se .

• This is part one of two of the 44-minute special The Secret of the Fire Nation.

33 13 “The Drill” Giancarlo Volpe Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko DR Movie September 15, 2006 ( )

213 4.1[7] Aang reunites with his friends captive on stopping the exercise. Though their offer to help is initially refused by the Earth Kingdom general at the Outer Wall, Team Avatar begins finding a means to take down the drill. They determine the best manner is to sabotage the drill from the at heart, then deliver a final examination blow to the top of the structure to take it down. Battling Azula, Mai and Ty Lee, Aang successfully stops the exercise with it still plugging the hole in the outer wall. meanwhile, Jet wishes to recruit Zuko for his freedom Fighters, but Zuko bluffly refuses. Jet becomes fishy of the two when he deduces that Iroh heated his own cup of tea using firebending. Jet becomes purpose on exposing Zuko and Iroh, while Team Avatar makes their direction into Ba Sing Se .

• This is part two of two of the 44-minute special The Secret of the Fire Nation.

34 14 “City of Walls and Secrets” Lauren MacMullan Tim Hedrick JM Animation September 22, 2006 ( ) 214 N/A Aang and the respite of the group arrive in Ba Sing Se, determined to find Appa and inform the Earth King about the eclipse. They soon discover that the bureaucracy surrounding the king, enforced by the Dai Li, the “ cultural agency ” of Ba Sing Se, block them from making contact with him. Katara devises a plan to see the Earth King by sneaking into a party at the Royal Palace. The quartet is finally found out and greeted by Long Feng, Grand Secretariat of Ba Sing Se and the head of the Dai Li. Long Feng reveals that the Earth King has no true political ability, entirely serving as a front man while Long Feng and the Dai Li control the city, ensuring Ba Sing Se remains a utopia barren of war. long Feng makes an indirect threat regarding their goal of finding Appa if they speak out, noting that they will now be watched 24/7 by Dai Li agents. elsewhere, Jet becomes obsessed with gathering tell that Zuko and Iroh are firebenders. His final attempt, confronting the pair at the tea workshop they work in, ends in his catch and subsequent brainwashing by the Dai Li .
Note: This was nominated a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Animated Program (For Programming Less Than One Hour).[8] 35 15 “The Tales of Ba Sing Se” Ethan Spaulding The Tale of Toph and Katara
Joann Estoesta and Lisa Wahlander
The Tale of Iroh
Andrew Huebner
The Tale of Aang
Gary Scheppke
The Tale of Sokka
Lauren MacMullan
The Tale of Zuko
Katie Mattila
The Tale of Momo
Justin Ridge and Giancarlo Volpe DR Movie September 29, 2006 ( ) 215 N/A The episode is a set of vignettes about each of the main characters ‘ adventures in Ba Sing Se, providing a glimpse of their personalities and secret lives .

• Katara and Toph have a girls’ day out in the inner city.
• Iroh provides small gestures of kindness to various people in the outer city, before venturing into the country to find a place to mark the birthday of his son, Lu Ten, who was killed in the siege of Ba Sing Se many years previous. Kneeling before a portrait of his son, Iroh tearfully sings “Leaves from the Vine”, a folk song about a young soldier returning home.
• Aang helps a zookeeper build a new zoo outside the wall.
• Sokka accidentally ends up in a girls-only poetry club.
• Zuko goes out on a date, resisting at first but winds up enjoying himself.
• Momo looks through Ba Sing Se for Appa, finding only one of his footprints.

Note: Iroh ‘s narrative was dedicated to his part actor Mako Iwamatsu, who had died just 7 days after Chapters 10 and 11 initially aired . 36 16 “Appa’s Lost Days” Giancarlo Volpe Elizabeth Welch JM Animation October 13, 2006 ( ) 216 N/A After being abducted in the desert, Appa is traded to a Fire Nation circus, where the flight simulator whips, humiliates, and generally mistreats him. He finally escapes with the help of a small male child. He late unwillingly fights a Boarcupine ; he wins but is badly wounded. By luck, Suki and the Kyoshi warriors come across Appa and help him recover from his injuries, but the warriors are attacked by Azula and her team. Appa is forced to flee at Suki ‘s importunity, lest he be hurt in the result struggle while Suki is finally defeated and captured by Azula. Dispirited, confused, and longing for Aang, Appa returns to his childhood home at the Eastern Air Temple, where he discovers a cryptic guru, Pathik, has taken residency in the ruins. The guru gains his trust and imparts to him Aang ‘s location at Ba Sing Se, with a message for Aang attached to his horn. Appa arrives at Ba Sing Se, but merely short of reuniting with Aang he is ambushed and captured by Long Feng, leaving the footprint that Momo found .
Note: This episode won a Humane Society award for its portrayal of the mistreatment of animals. 37 17 “Lake Laogai” Lauren MacMullan Tim Hedrick DR Movie November 3, 2006 ( )

217 N/A As the group searches for Appa, they run into Jet, who falsely claims that he has information on Appa’s whereabouts. A chance encounter with Smellerbee and Longshot reveals to Team Avatar that Jet had been arrested by the Dai Li a few weeks ago. They eventually break Jet’s brainwashing and travel to a facility located underneath Lake Laogai, in the hopes of finding Appa. Instead, they find Long Feng and the Dai Li waiting for them, declaring them enemies of the state. Elsewhere, Zuko discovers that Aang is in the city looking for Appa, and sets out as the Blue Spirit to find him. He finds Appa before Aang under Lake Laogai and plans to capture him, but Iroh arrives to confront him. Iroh asks if Zuko is chasing his own destiny, or a destiny someone else is trying to force on him. Aang, Jet and the group battle Long Feng and the Dai Li; Jet is fatally wounded as a result while Long Feng escapes. The group pursues, which ends in their reuniting with Appa. At the end of the episode, Zuko and Iroh exit the compound, with Zuko tossing his Blue Spirit mask into the lake at Iroh’s suggestion. 38 18 “The Earth King” Ethan Spaulding John O’Bryan JM Animation November 17, 2006 ( ) 218 N/A The group breaks into the Earth King’s palace to warn Earth King Kuei about the war. They eventually convince the King by showing him the destroyed Fire Nation drill, resulting in Long Feng seemingly being arrested for treason. Meanwhile, Zuko fights an illness which Iroh believes is a manifestation of the deep internal conflict within himself after setting Appa free. Team Avatar is presented with information that was intercepted by Long Feng: Toph receives a letter from her mother saying she is in Ba Sing Se and wants to see her. Sokka and Katara are given an intelligence report that confirms the location of their father Hakoda, while Aang receives the letter from Guru Pathik, offering to help him master the Avatar State. The team decides to temporarily part ways to accomplish all their goals. Unbeknownst to them as they leave, Azula, Mai and Ty Lee slip into Ba Sing Se impersonating the Kyoshi Warriors. The letter from Toph’s mother is revealed to be a setup for her capture by Xin Fu and Master Yu, while Long Feng is shown to still be in command of the Dai Li while in prison. 39 19 “The Guru” Giancarlo Volpe Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko DR Movie December 1, 2006 ( ) 219 N/A Aang travels to the Eastern Air Temple and meets Guru Pathik, who trains him to master the Avatar State through the unlocking of his seven chakras, a process which must be completed without interruption. Sokka finally reunites and begins to reconnect with his father Hakoda. Azula plots with Mai and Ty Lee to organize a coup and take down Ba Sing Se from the inside. Toph is captured by Yu and Xin Fu, managing to escape by teaching herself metal bending. Katara discovers Zuko and Iroh are in the city and rushes to warn Suki, only to discover she is actually Azula. Katara is captured, and Azula decides it is time to go after Zuko and Iroh. Just as Aang is about reach enlightenment, he has a vision of Katara in danger and chooses to help her, against Pathik’s warning that he will be cut off from the Avatar State. Iroh and Zuko receive a message inviting them to serve tea to the Earth King. Aang picks up Sokka from Chameleon Bay and flies back to Ba Sing Se. Azula is brought to Long Feng’s cell, who proposes that he can bring Azula the Avatar in exchange for restoring the Earth King’s trust in him. 40 20 “The Crossroads of Destiny” Michael Dante DiMartino Aaron Ehasz JM Animation December 1, 2006 ( ) 220 N/A Aang and Sokka reunite with Toph and set out to find Katara. Azula has been placed in charge of the Dai Li by Long Feng during the coup. Iroh and Zuko are greeted at the palace by Azula and the Dai Li. Iroh evades capture, but Zuko is quickly overwhelmed and thrown in prison with Katara. Iroh finds Toph and Team Avatar joins forces with him. Sokka and Toph rush to the palace to warn the King of the coup, but they arrive at its commencement. Sokka and Toph reach the throne room, only to be defeated by Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee. As they and the King are led away, Long Feng arrives intent on double-crossing Azula, only to find that the Dai Li no longer obey him. Aang and Iroh arrive at Katara and Zuko’s cell to rescue them; Azula then appears and traps Iroh, offering Zuko his honor if he joins her. Aang and Katara try to escape the catacombs, but are attacked by Azula, the Dai Li and Zuko, who has made up his mind. Aang lets go of his attraction to Katara to enter the Avatar State, but as he does he is shot and mortally wounded by Azula’s lightning. Iroh intervenes to help Katara escape with Aang and is captured. Katara uses water from the North Pole spirit oasis to resurrect Aang. At the end of the season, Team Avatar and the King fly over the wall in defeat.