The Chase

Writer: Joshua Hamilton

Director: Giancarlo Volpe

Guest Stars: Olivia Hack (Ty Lee), Cricket Leigh (Mai)

Overview
''Aang and friends are chased by a mysterious machine, which makes it impossible for the group to stop and sleep. The lack of sleep makes everyone irritable, and causes a quarrel between Katara and Toph. Aang acts as a decoy to lure the followers away, but he is cornered by Azula. His friends plus Zuko and his uncle arrive to take Azula down together, but she injures Iroh in the moment of distraction and escapes.''

Synopsis
Aang, Katara, Sokka, and Toph have landed in a clearing where they begin to unpack. Toph comments on their superb campsite finding abilities as she feels the "soft grass." But Sokka corrects her that it's not grass but Appa's shedded fur. This comment is not received well by Katara, who believes it was gross. Katara vocalizes her happiness of having another girl in the group because of the boys' immaturity. But, those hopes are shattered as Toph, like Aang and Sokka, walks up to and is playing in the fur. Aang and Sokka laugh, and Katara has no choice but to giggle too.

Night has fallen as the group sets up camp. Aang pitches a tent, Sokka's unraveling sleeping bags, Katara is filling a pot with water, and Toph lounges lazily against a rock. Katara comes over and begins to explain the group's normal system of setting up camp: they divide up the work; for example, while someone pitches a tent someone else might get food or water, and that even Momo "does his fair share". Toph doesn't take the hint and tells her she's already collected her food and water. Katara gets slightly frustrated and tries re-explaining the system but Toph becomes aggravated and snaps at her. Katara storms off.

Later that night, Aang and Sokka are setting up the last of camp as they de-saddle Appa. Katara comes over to apologize to Toph. Toph again agitates Katara by turning the apology around on her. Now even later that night, Toph is silently sleeping in her earth-made tent when she is awakened by a vibration in the earth. She rushes to tell the others. She tries to see if she can identify it, saying, "It feels like an avalanche, but also not like an avalanche." Sokka congratulates her on her "frightening" powers of perception. They decide leaving the campsite is the best choice.

Off in the distance the get a slight glimpse of what’s following them: a large, tank-like war machine is moving fast across the desert terrain. After hours of flying, the group's exhaustion plays out on their faces as they each have dark circles under their eyes showing from their lack of sleep. Finally they settle on a spot. Toph makes her way to where she plans to sleep, but Katara again asks her to help and Toph declines. Katara is again displeased by this, decides enough is enough, and confronts Toph about her lack of help to them.



Toph argues back before "slamming the door" in Katara's face as she Earthbends a tent and earthbends the door right in front of Katara. Aang decides to play peacemaker and asks them both to calm down. But Katara's emotions due to lack of sleep cause her to snap at Aang. Later, Aang and Sokka are seemingly fast asleep as Katara stares angrily at the night sky. She loudly comments on how beautiful the stars are and how Toph won't be able to see them since she is blind. In response, Toph Earthbends Katara airborne a few feet before she lands on Sokka.

Sokka's emotions cause him to snap from being woken up. But there's little time to argue as Toph informs them the machine is back. They again fly away on Appa. While in the air they debate about the machine and how it continuously finds them. Finally finding a spot that was seemingly away from the machine, the group decides to not even set up camp but to sleep. They again debate for a minute on what the thing is or who is in it. Katara brings up the possibility that it's Zuko, given they haven't seen him since they were up north. Unaware of who Zuko is, Toph inquires about him. Sokka answers that he's "just some angry freak with a ponytail who’s tracked us all over the world."

But their debate is cut short as Momo senses the machine's approach as does Toph. They see the machine moving forward in the distance as it kicks up dirt behind it. Aang believes they should face them and find out who they are. The tank comes to a halt and the door opens. Three large basilisk lizards emerge from it. Their riders and the cause of all the tension between everyone in the gang are revealed to be Ty Lee, Mai, and Azula. Toph believes they can take them as she calculates the odds: three on three. But Sokka corrects her telling her there are actually four of them. After a small argument Toph recalculates: three on three plus Sokka. Sokka is infuriated, but there's no time to argue as Azula's group draws closer. Toph sends the first strike as she Earthbends boulders down at them, but their lizards easily climb over them.

They decide it's safer if they left so Aang, Katara, and Sokka head back for Appa. Toph tries to buy them some time by creating a large rock wall separating Azula from them. It seems to work until Azula sends a bolt of lightning at it, blowing a huge hole into the wall. The gang barely escapes as Azula sends a jet of fire at them.

Meanwhile, Appa too is tired and is rapidly closing and opening his eyes, trying desperately to stay awake. Again they debate on what to do, and Katara reveals her fear of Ty Lee taking her bending away again. To Sokka's horror, the sun rises over a mountain in the distance, signaling they've been up all night. They decide to keep flying for as long as possible, but Aang warns them that they can't keep flying forever.

As the sun rises, Azula's machine is racing to catch up with the gang. But they're not alone; Zuko follows the machine's tracks not far behind. Appa, meanwhile, is having even more difficulty staying awake and finally gives in and falls asleep. This sends Appa and the gang plummeting towards the ground. Aang tries desperately to wake him as they continue to race towards the ground. Finally Appa awakens and stops just above the trees but is unable to keep airborne, and they crash land in the woods. Aang states the obvious: "Appa's exhausted".



More high tension causes another fight to break out between Katara and Toph, but this time Aang joins in when Toph blames Appa for their predicament: his shedding is leaving a perfect trail for Azula and her gang. Toph, out of aggravation, decides to leave, as Azula's machine picks up speed upon seeing the fur flying through the air, proving Toph was right. Aang is furious with himself for yelling at his Earthbending teacher, and Katara too is disgusted with herself because of her actions. Sokka is of little comfort as he agrees that they were jerks.

They decide to find Toph and apologize but first wash Appa. Now clean and shed fur-less, Appa is deemed ready to fly by Aang as long as they leave his saddle and everything else off. Aang decides to give Azula the slip and take what's left of the shed fur and lead the tank of course. Appa flies off in one direction (hitting trees on take-off) and Aang in another.

Toph has now walked for sometime and gained much distance. She stops suddenly upon feeling a vibration. She hits the ground, knocking the unknown person off his feet. But he's revealed to be Iroh. Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee have reached the spot of Appa's bath and found the wet fur deposited into the stream. Ty Lee debates with herself as to whether the "wads" are "bundles" or "bunches" of fur, stating that they have an "uhh" sound. Mai helps her along deeming them "clumps". Ty Lee excitedly hugs Mai before she can block the action. She pushes Ty Lee off and tells Azula the trail heads off in a direction to the right. But Azula notices the broken trees from Appa's shaky take-off and is suspicious of Aang's plan to divert them. She tells Mai and Ty Lee to head in the direction of the broken trees and she'll follow the fur trail.

Aang, exhausted and low on momentum, lands in a small abandoned Earth Kingdom town. He slumps on to the end of the town; there he dumps the remains of what fur is left and sits there, waiting for Azula. Back on Appa, Momo lets out a screech signaling the return of Mai and Ty Lee. Katara desperately tries to get Appa to move faster but to no avail. He shoots like a stone being skipped across the river to where Sokka and Katara believe they're safe. But their hopes are shattered as the basilisks reveal their most astonishing ability: they're able to run on water.

Ty Lee heads for Katara. Once there, she begins darting her hands to pressure points, but Katara's smarter this time and dodges more easily. After a small battle, Katara ends up pinned to a tree by the hem of her sleeves, and Sokka's almost completely paralyzed by Ty Lee's strikes. But Appa proves to be a saving grace as he smacks his tail to the ground, blasting a gust of wind at Mai and Ty Lee, throwing them into the river.

Back in the town, Azula has reached the end of the trail where Aang is waiting for her. She dismounts her lizard. Aang, tired and sleep-deprived, tries to seek diplomacy and asks who Azula is and what she wants. She's surprised he hasn't guessed yet so she gives him a hint: she covers the left side of her face with her hand, deepens her voice to somewhat match Zuko's and says, "I must find the Avatar to restore my honor." Aang doesn't respond.



Toph and Iroh are sharing a cup of tea on cliff over-looking a farming village. Iroh finds similarities between Toph and his nephew. Toph asks where his nephew is and if he's lost. Iroh responds that he's "a little lost;" Iroh tells her his nephew's life has recently changed, and now he's trying to find who he is. Iroh also advises her not to resist when people that love you try to help you. She takes this into consideration and heads off to find the gang.

Azula and Aang stand facing each other at a stand off. She asks Aang if he really wants to fight her; right on cue, Zuko bursts through an old building, lands between the two, and says, "Yes, I really do." It's a three way stand off as Zuko holds his position between Aang and Azula, keeping his battle stance poised at both of them. Azula fires the first shot, hitting Zuko hard and knocking him back.



All three exchange blows until the duel is joined by Katara, Sokka, Iroh, and Toph. The six of them (Katara, Aang, Sokka, Toph, Zuko, and Iroh) create a perfect perimeter in front of Azula and back her in a corner. She surrenders, and for one brief second Iroh lets his guard down and turns to see his new friend, Toph, standing with the Avatar. Azula takes advantage of this and fires a jet of fire at him. Zuko lets out a horrified cry, and all four benders unleash their power against her. After a large explosion, Azula disappears.

Zuko rushes to his uncle's side, releasing an angered cry. He senses the others behind him and orders them to leave. Katara comes forward and offers to help, but before she can explain, Zuko's frustration causes him to let out a violent burst of fire and he orders them to leave again. Later that night, the gang finally finds peace as they are fast asleep.

Trivia

 * When Azula is cornered toward the end of the episode, the gang is lined up in order of the Avatar cycle: Air (Aang) Water (Katara) Earth (Toph) and Fire (Zuko).
 * All four elements are shown attacking together for the first time in the series.
 * The Mongoose Dragon's that Azula, Ty Lee, and Mai ride are similar to the real world Basiliscus (or Jesus Lizard) which also has the ability to run across water.
 * The scene where Azula mysteriously vanishes after being cornered is replicated in The Boy in the Iceberg play by the Ember Island Players. In the play, Azula points into the sky and exclaims "What's that?! I think it's your (Zuko's) honor!" tricking them into looking to the sky. Azula then escapes simply via a door, causing everyone to wonder how she escaped.
 * When Katara first talks to Toph about helping out she is chewing on a piece of wheat, a well known component of Jet's character.
 * Avatar Extras state, that the fight sequence between Aang, Zuko, and Azula, was meant to resemble a "Mexican Standoff", more commonly used to refer to a three way duel, and was modeled after multiple Westerns. It was also noted that the battle was challenging for the shows creators, due to the fact that they had to coordinate each of their movements, and show all three of them fighting each other at the same time.
 * When Iroh is shot by Azula's fire blast, Katara, Toph, Zuko and Aang all shoot their respective element at the same time, being the first time where all four elements are bent at the same time. A second time where this happens is in The Avatar and the Fire Lord, where Roku does it and again in the Finale, where Aang does it.
 * When Sokka is playing with some of Appa's shedded hair and makes a wig out of it, the wig resembles Marge's hairdo from The Simpsons.
 * The mustache Aang makes in similar the one he has on in The King of Omashu.
 * Azula's smile when she finds Aang at the abandoned village mirrors that of Ozai's smile in Zuko Alone, when he is watching Azula Firebending.

Goofs

 * When Toph makes her earth tent, she bends it over her. In the next frame, she is seen sitting in front of it.
 * When everyone gets off of Appa, Toph is noticeably taller being able to see at least eye to eye with Aang. Later in the episode she is returned to her normal height.
 * When Toph is first seen standing in Appa's fur, her shadow is in front of her and the rest of the fur in sunlight. But when the angle changes everything is in shadow because of Appa.
 * When Aang sits down in the ghost town he is in the center of the street with buildings in front and behind him, but in the next frame he is sitting at the end of the street with no buildings behind him.
 * When Zuko is riding following the machine on his ostrich-horse, in the first shot he is in between the two indentations of the wheels. In the next, he is to the left of both of them.
 * When Azula is cornered Aang is on Katara's left, but after Azula disappears Aang is on Katara's right.

Series Continuity

 * Katara and Toph's quarrel is echoed in a later episode, The Runaway.
 * Toph and Iroh's friendship is revealed to the gang in The Crossroads of Destiny, when Iroh approaches them for help.
 * This is the second time Appa used his tail to blow Mai and Ty Lee away from Sokka and Katara. The first was in Return to Omashu.

De Jacht Die Verfolgungsjagd