Fans of Avatar: The Last Airbender rejoice! Break out the fire flakes and grab some cactus juice because the first teaser trailer for Avatar: Seven Havens is finally here! Days before the official release of Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender on Paramount+, the film’s San Diego Comic-Con panel provided our best look yet at the future of the franchise and announced that the follow-up to The Legend of Korra will premiere in less than three months.
From the franchise’s creators, Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Koneitzko, Avatar: Seven Havens follows the next reincarnation of the Avatar, an Earthbender named Pavi (Saheli Khan), in a world devastated by a supernatural calamity. Alongside her long-lost twin sister, Nisha (Aishu Devan), Pavi must learn the truth behind their origins and contend with the humans and spirts that hunt her and blame the Avatar for the broken state of the world.
Here are some of the highlights and questions raised by the teaser:
Korra-lation vs Causation
The footage gives us what appears to be a brief flashback of Korra (previously portrayed by Janet Varney) in the Avatar State surrounded by flames in what may be the ruins of Republic City. An unknown character explains that “the Avatar let us down,” while another suggests that “humanity is not ready for the Avatar’s return.” Given the otherworldly disasters that now plague the world and these less-than-glowing remarks on the Avatar’s tenure, we are certainly meant to believe that Korra is somehow responsible for the destruction of the four nations. But is Korra truly the villain to blame? Or is there more to the story? Given the conclusion of the previous series, expect secrets to be revealed about the spirit portals that may or may not absolve the former Avatar.
Twinning
While Pavi is not the first Avatar known to have a twin (that honor goes to Aang’s predecessor, Roku, as revealed in The Reckoning of Roku), she and her sister appear to have a mysterious connection. We see the sisters seemingly reunite and learn of one another’s existence for the first time, so what led to their separation? Sibling relationships have always been an important source of drama and pathos in the franchise, but Nisha may be more than simply the Avatar’s sister. Could she also have special abilities beyond her Earthbending? After Korra lost access to her previous lives during her fight with the dark spirit Vaatu in Book 2 of The Legend of Korra, perhaps the Avatar cycle has evolved in unforeseen ways. Speaking of everyone’s favorite evil kite….
Seeing Red
The last image of the trailer is of a ruined courtyard that sparks with an eerie red energy before a pattern of concentric red diamonds ominously floats upwards. While not confirmed, the imagery is immediately reminiscent of Vaatu. The last we saw of the spirit of darkness and chaos, he had fused with Unalaq to become a Dark Avatar only to be defeated by Korra and withdraw into Raava, his counterpart representing peace and light. With Raava passing on to the next life in the Avatar Cycle, could Vaatu have reemerged through reincarnation as well? Perhaps in Nisha to create a new Dark Avatar? While the trailer doesn’t provide additional clues, we likely have not seen the last of Vaatu, and he appears to have a role to play in the new series.
More to Come!
Thankfully we won’t have long to wait before learning more about the mysteries of Avatar: Seven Havens. The first 13-episode season of the series is scheduled for release on October 9th on Paramount+ and will be followed by a second 13-episode season at a later date.
Want more Avatar? Check out last year’s fantasy draft of characters from The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra over on Anime x Pop, the Pop Break’s podcast on all things anime.
 for Avatar: Seven Havens which will air on Paramount+.){kind=link}