I love the spamming and am totally not tired of the discussion.:-)
I wonder if the writers were as surprised by their dynamic as we were. As you say, Sokka is a little insecure since the invasion, and was nervous even at the start of it so that Hakoda had to take over the instructions. But there really does seem to be a kind of...freedom that these two give each other because they're the same age yet different enough that they genuinely don't seem to threaten each other. They even start out awkward with each other but once they start to talk become surprisingly confiding and open without being self-conscious immediately. Sokka kind of starts it when he has to confess why he needs to go to the BR, Zuko tells him that he feels like he let his uncle down, Zuko tells Sokka about Mai, Sokka offers his experience with Yue.
It seems so natural when it happens (the episode even starts with Sokka seeking Zuko out and Zuko understanding what he's getting at) but this is a new thing for both of them. Sokka's never had a boy his own age to work with/prove himself against and neither has Zuko. Both have sisters with strong personalities who can be dominating and have failed to really be the leader they want to be. (Sokka isn't the leader of his group despite being the oldest; Zuko never had that kind of control either.) But they also both choose different ways of dealing with their insecurities. Zuko got totally humorless and Sokka was meat and sarcasm guy. But when they're alone it's like they both instinctively give the other one a chance to try out a new personality. Neither of them brings up the other's potentially embarassing past behavior.
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Date: 2008-05-14 07:29 pm (UTC)I wonder if the writers were as surprised by their dynamic as we were. As you say, Sokka is a little insecure since the invasion, and was nervous even at the start of it so that Hakoda had to take over the instructions. But there really does seem to be a kind of...freedom that these two give each other because they're the same age yet different enough that they genuinely don't seem to threaten each other. They even start out awkward with each other but once they start to talk become surprisingly confiding and open without being self-conscious immediately. Sokka kind of starts it when he has to confess why he needs to go to the BR, Zuko tells him that he feels like he let his uncle down, Zuko tells Sokka about Mai, Sokka offers his experience with Yue.
It seems so natural when it happens (the episode even starts with Sokka seeking Zuko out and Zuko understanding what he's getting at) but this is a new thing for both of them. Sokka's never had a boy his own age to work with/prove himself against and neither has Zuko. Both have sisters with strong personalities who can be dominating and have failed to really be the leader they want to be. (Sokka isn't the leader of his group despite being the oldest; Zuko never had that kind of control either.) But they also both choose different ways of dealing with their insecurities. Zuko got totally humorless and Sokka was meat and sarcasm guy. But when they're alone it's like they both instinctively give the other one a chance to try out a new personality. Neither of them brings up the other's potentially embarassing past behavior.