With the finale of season 1 of The Legend of Korra behind us, it’s a good time for us to look at the top 5 moments of the first season.

From amazing fight scenes to heartbreaking moments, did your favorite moments make it onto the list?

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5. Korra moving like a leaf (“A Lead in the Wind”)

As a conclusion to the one-hour series premiere, Korra was able to make her first progress in airbending by using quick, light movements to win the pro-bending match. This moment really set the stage for the series and for Korra’s character.

Korra was introduced as the tough, head-strong Avatar who could not get in touch with the spirituality-based element of Air, which Tenzin as “Mr. Spiritual” was going to teach her. However, their fight at the end brought up several good points: it was important for Korra to learn airbending, but it was also important for her to learn modern types of fighting.

By Korra using airbending movements to win the pro-bending match for the Fire Ferrets, it showed the integration of a traditional fighting style being mixed in with more modern fighting techniques and environments, which is a major theme in the new series. As the series progresses as a more modern version of its parent series, it was important to find the balance of old and new within every aspect of the series, including the fighting styles.

In the end, it was just a fantastic way to end the series premiere.

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4. Asami fighting off her father (“The Aftermath”)

Nothing is worse than seeing a daughter having to face her father in such an extreme decision. However, Asami rejecting her father’s offer to join the Equalists and saving the rest of the members of Team Avatar was really a testament to her character and how the writers were handling her.

Asami is a non-bender who has led a relatively comfortable life, except for the fact that she lost her mother to benders. Unlike her father, Asami never let herself dwell on the anger and hate she felt towards benders, shown by how she befriended Mako, Bolin and Korra. Even when faced with a choice between joining her father and the Equalists or walking away with Team Avatar, she chose to betray her father and stick to her morals, which shows the great strength she has as a character, especially since she continued to fight against her father to the end.

Also, I think it was very important to have a non-bender with a personal stake in the bender/non-bender conflict as a part of Team Avatar because the revolutionaries make good points and Asami can serve as a good in-between character between the extremism of the Equalists and the good points they make.

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3. Tarrlok and Korra’s battle (“When Extremes Meet”)

This was not only the most intense battle of the series, but I would even say one of the most intense out of the whole franchise.

We had not seen Korra really fight one-on-one with another character with almost equal strength as her. So, fighting with Tarrlok was one of the most beautiful executed fight scenes that really showcased how strong Korra is.

Another impressive part of this particular fight scene is that the advances in animation and portraying fights has really grown in comparison to Avatar: The Last Airbender, which was already known for its fantastic animation and detailed scenes featuring Asian martial arts. However, this fight featured several really incredible moments, from Korra getting injured to her final stance against Tarrlok to her being bloodbended. It was definitely one for the history scrolls.

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2. Lin sacrificing herself (“Turning the Tides”)

Did you hear that loud cracking sound? That was everyone’s heart breaking over this scene. The scene was just one of the most beautifully animated scenes as well as one of most emotionally intense ones.

For one, it was a true indicator of Lin’s constant strength; she knew that when she attacked those airships, there was a large chance that she was going to lose her bending at the hands of the Amon. She knew the consequences and accepted them no matter what because her priority was saving Tenzin and his family.

The scene itself was really beautifully done, animation-wise and writing-wise. For one thing, the way it was set up was different from the rest of the Amon energybending scenes, which were filled with fear and dramatic animation; Lin’s scene was set up more as if an execution or a real sacrifice ritual. It was not quick and meant to entice fear, but rather it was meant to be slow and emotional so that people would really take feel the intensity of the scene.

It is definitely one of the most beautifully done scenes.

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1. Korra losing her bending (“Endgame”)

The final moments of the season finale proved to be one of the most fantastic endings in the series. Despite complaints that it was rushed, I still think that the ending did the characters and the stories justice.

By having Korra lose her bending, it not only allowed her to unlock her airbending, but it also brought up several important questions about the Avatar. While losing their bending could be manageable for normal benders, the Avatar’s power and identity is based on bending. So, losing her bending forced Korra to deal with the idea that she can no longer serve as the Avatar.

When Aang and her previous lives come along, it shows that Korra’s Avatar power is still with her and helps her get in touch with her spiritual energy, which is something she struggled with for the whole series.

In the end, the scene was able to provide significant character development for Korra as well as a good conclusion to the series.

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Runner-Ups:

• Amon and Tarrlok’s past; “Skeletons in the Closet”
• The Aang Gang flashbacks; “Out of the Past”
• Korra confiding to Tenzin about her fear of Amon; “The Voice in the Night”