I've read some criticism of that action of hers, basically just people pointing out that she didn't do right because it was right, she just protected Zuko--and that's true.
The fact that she DIDN'T believe in Zuko's cause but nonetheless didn't want to see him dead was what made that work for me, and I actually hope that she stays on the side of the Fire Nation. That scene in the cell, where they were these two people who have this relationship but are unequivocally on opposite sides of a great philosophical divide, was how I'd always seen their relationship, and one of the few places I’ve really enjoyed Mai.
I know a lot of people are predicting that she and Ty Lee will escape and join the Avatar, but I really hope that doesn't happen - after Zuko's seasons long change of heart, with him as such a pivotal character for the story, I don't see a way that Mai could duplicate his journey in a way that wouldn't feel shallow and slapdash in comparison. (And part of me really hopes that Azula threatens and manipulates Ty Lee and Mai into working for her again. Dangerous Ladies FTW!)
I totally understand what you mean about how there wasn't transformation stories in HP - there wasn't change visible in a lot of characters where it should have been, and everybody mainly ends where they started.
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Date: 2008-05-13 09:36 pm (UTC)The fact that she DIDN'T believe in Zuko's cause but nonetheless didn't want to see him dead was what made that work for me, and I actually hope that she stays on the side of the Fire Nation. That scene in the cell, where they were these two people who have this relationship but are unequivocally on opposite sides of a great philosophical divide, was how I'd always seen their relationship, and one of the few places I’ve really enjoyed Mai.
I know a lot of people are predicting that she and Ty Lee will escape and join the Avatar, but I really hope that doesn't happen - after Zuko's seasons long change of heart, with him as such a pivotal character for the story, I don't see a way that Mai could duplicate his journey in a way that wouldn't feel shallow and slapdash in comparison. (And part of me really hopes that Azula threatens and manipulates Ty Lee and Mai into working for her again. Dangerous Ladies FTW!)
I totally understand what you mean about how there wasn't transformation stories in HP - there wasn't change visible in a lot of characters where it should have been, and everybody mainly ends where they started.