Ozai

"fire"

- You're weak, just like the rest of your people! They did not deserve to exist in this world — in my world! Prepare to join them. Prepare to die!

Fire Lord Ozai was the tyrannical ruler of the Fire Nation, the father of Prince Zuko and Princess Azula, and the primary antagonist of the Avatar series. Like every Fire Lord, Ozai was a Firebending Master, and prior to the ending of the series, is believed to have been the most powerful Firebender in The World of Avatar.

Ozai was the younger son of Fire Lord Azulon and Fire Lady Ilah, after his older brother Iroh. He was the husband of Ursa, and by her had two children, Zuko and Azula. After Iroh's only son, Lu Ten, died, Ozai usurped his brother's birthright to the throne, in a scheme which resulted in his father's death and Ursa's banishment.

Like his father and grandfather, Ozai sought to conquer the other nations and become the supreme ruler of the world. To do this he planned to utilize Sozin's Comet to burn down the Earth Kingdom, renouncing the title of Fire Lord and declaring himself the Phoenix King, ruler of the world. Before his plans could come into full effect, he was defeated by Avatar Aang, who used Energybending to remove his Firebending abilities forever.

Early life
Little is known of Ozai's early history. When he was a baby, a portrait was painted of him while he was playing on a beach. It is possible that he shared a rivalry with his older brother, Iroh, as the two have little love for each other. It is also possible that because Iroh was the firstborn and heir to the throne, Azulon favored Iroh and neglected Ozai. This could partly explain why Ozai favors Azula: since his father favored the firstborn, Ozai would favor his own second born. At some point, like his father and grandfather before him, Ozai attempted to find and capture the Avatar, but failed as they all did. Unlike his father, grandfather, and brother, Ozai was never a general, and so he has not known great military accomplishments aside from being leader of the Fire Nation. Ozai married Ursa, and through her he fathered two children: Zuko and Azula.

Crowning


Around six years before the start of the series, Ozai's older brother Iroh began the 600 Day Siege of Ba Sing Se, the Earth Kingdom capital, which ended when Iroh's son, Lu Ten, died in battle. This led Ozai to request that his father, Fire Lord Azulon, change the birth right, so that he rather than Iroh would inherit the throne. Ozai explained that without a son the line of Fire Lords would end with Iroh, while Ozai still has two children. Azulon became furious, refusing to betray his firstborn son's right to the throne. As punishment, Azulon ordered Ozai to kill his own son, Zuko, so he would understand Iroh's pain. Princess Ursa found this out through her daughter Azula, and pleaded with Ozai to spare Zuko's life. Knowing that Ozai would do anything, even kill his own son to become Fire Lord, she offered him a plan that would ensure his rise to the throne and spare the life of Zuko. The details of this plan were never revealed in full, but Ozai states that Ursa did "vicious, treasonous things that night," resulting in the death of Azulon, her banishment from the Fire Nation, Ozai's rise to power, and ultimately the prevention of Zuko's death.

New plans


Despite familial ties, Zuko bore the brunt of his father's cruelty. Two years before the series began, the then 13 year-old Zuko, his eldest and least favored, spoke out in Ozai's war room against a general's plan to sacrifice novice troops in pursuit of victory. Angered by his impudence, Ozai demanded Zuko duel in an Agni Kai, not with the general who Zuko disrespected, but with Ozai himself. Seeing the Fire Lord in the arena, Zuko fell to his knees, pleading for forgiveness and refusing to duel his own father. For this perceived cowardice and disrespect, Ozai badly burned Zuko's face, permanently scarring him. He then exiled Zuko from the Fire Nation, under orders not to return until he had done the impossible: capture the long-lost Avatar, missing for a hundred years. This was meant to be an easy way of getting rid of Zuko, as all previous Fire Lords failed to find the Avatar. With the Avatar's sudden reappearance as the twelve-year-old Airbender Aang, Ozai became more aggressive in his pursuit of victory. Distrusting his son's competence, he promoted Zuko's rival Zhao from Commander to Admiral to increase his chances of capturing the Avatar. Unfortunately, Admiral Zhao was thwarted in his mission by Ozai's brother Iroh, who committed treason in an effort to stop Zhao from killing the Water Tribe's patron Moon Spirit. Ozai expressed distaste at what he saw as his brother's treachery and son's failure by giving his daughter, Azula, the task of capturing both Zuko and Iroh.

After the successful Coup of Ba Sing Se, Ozai had almost successfully taken control of the world. Eventually, he spoke with his son Zuko, who had regained his honor by supposedly "killing" the Avatar, and helping Azula to conquer Ba Sing Se.

Drastic measures
In a war meeting with his generals, the day before the eclipse, Ozai learned from Zuko that even though the Earth Kingdom had been officially conquered, its citizens would not accept defeat as long as they had hope. Following Azula's recommendation, Ozai concluded that the only way to end Earth Kingdom resistance was to use the power of Sozin's Comet to completely burn it to the ground, as had been done with the Air Nomads one hundred years before.

During the eclipse on the Day of Black Sun, Ozai evacuated the Capital City in preparation for the invasion and hid in a heavily guarded underground bunker. Zuko showed up and demanded permission to speak to his father. Ozai granted his request, amused at his son's daring. Zuko revealed that Azula shot down the Avatar and that she had said that he did it because the Avatar was in fact still alive. Ozai was infuriated and attempted to attack Zuko, but was stopped when Zuko pulled out his dual dao swords against his father's disabled Firebending. Zuko told him that he was done trying to earn his love, knowing that the very man who banished him and scarred him was not worthy of his love. Ozai said that it was to teach him respect, but Zuko denied this. Having had to learn everything on his own, Zuko now realized that the Fire Nation was unfit to rule the world and needed to return to harmony with the other nations. Ozai laughed at this declaration. Zuko went on to say that he would free Uncle Iroh from jail and help the Avatar to defeat him, moving Ozai to declare Zuko a full-blown traitor. After Zuko refused to fight him since fighting his father was the Avatar's destiny, not his, Ozai distracted him by telling Zuko what really happened to his mother.

Ozai revealed to Zuko that his father, Fire Lord Azulon, did indeed command Ozai to kill him, and that he would have done it had Zuko's mother not found out and interfered. She proposed a plan to have Ozai spare Zuko's life by giving the throne over to Ozai through Azulon's downfall. However, Ursa "committed vicious, treasonous things that night" and was not killed, but banished as a result, making Zuko realize that she may still be alive. Ozai decided that "banishment is a far too merciful penalty for treason" and sensing the eclipse outside had ended, tried to kill Zuko with a powerful display of lightning generation. However, he was not aware of Zuko's ability to redirect lightning, which Zuko used to send the bolt right back at Ozai, slamming him against the wall and leaving him to seethe in anger as Zuko fled the Fire Nation to join the Avatar.

Phoenix King (100 ASC)


When Sozin's Comet arrived, Ozai crowned himself Phoenix King, the ruler of the world, and left Azula as his successor as Fire Lord. He then departed with his fleet of Fire Nation airships for the Earth Kingdom to carry out his plans. When he reached the Earth Kingdom, he began his attack but was quickly repelled by Avatar Aang, who destroyed his airship.

Battle at Wulong Forest
Ozai then prepared to battle the Avatar for control of the world. Ozai declared that the universe had delivered Aang to him "as an act of providence", while his father, grandfather, and son had all failed to capture the Avatar. Aang asked Ozai to stop the War, but instead Ozai began his attack. For much of the battle, Ozai had an advantage due to the power of Sozin's Comet enhancing his already powerful Firebending. Aang was at a great disadvantage due to his unwillingness to harm or kill the Fire Lord. Eventually Ozai overwhelmed and cornered Aang, whom he proceeded to mock for having such a peaceful nature and for being the last of his race.

Determined to finish off the Avatar, Ozai accidentally unblocked Aang's seventh and final chakra, prompting him to enter the Avatar State. While in this state, Aang easily gained the upper hand. Using a combination of all four bending arts, Aang went on the offensive. Though he tried to defend himself, Ozai quickly realized he no longer had the upper hand, and was forced into a fighting retreat. Eventually, Aang caught up with him and pinned him down before delivering the final blow. Before it could be delivered, Aang regained control and voluntarily left the Avatar State, still not willing to kill Ozai to win. Instead, Aang used an ancient type of bending power, Energybending, to strip Ozai of his Firebending forever, ending the fight peacefully without any casualties. Sokka, Toph, and Suki later arrived and taunted Ozai, powerless and weary from Aang's new ability, calling him the "Loser Lord", "Phoenix-King-of-Getting-His-Butt-Whooped", and "King of the... Guys... Who Don't Win?.

Imprisoned


With the war over and Zuko crowned the new Fire Lord, Ozai was placed in a small cell within the Capital City Prison (located near the Royal Palace, where Iroh was once held). It is unknown if Ozai had a trial. Zuko later visited him, saying that the banishment his father set him on the right path, and that perhaps during his time in prison, Ozai would have a chance to do the same. Fire Lord Zuko then demanded that Ozai stated Ursa's whereabouts, but Ozai's answer was never revealed.

His throne seized, his ability to bend removed, his freedom denied and his dreams shattered, Ozai was left only with his life, and the opportunity — should he ever choose it — to reflect on his actions, let go of his pride, and allow remorse to show him the path that Zuko spoke of.

Personality

 * "You will learn respect, and suffering will be your teacher."- Ozai to his son before scarring him for life.

Ozai was extremely cruel, easily angered, aggressive, domineering, unforgiving, merciless, and insatiably power-hungry. It was implied that Ozai's deep-seated anger stemmed from a failed relationship with his own father, Fire Lord Azulon, possibly because Iroh, a kind, gentle, and cosmopolitan man, was favored over Ozai. Iroh noted several times that his brother is "not the understanding type", and that he had never known Ozai to regret, forgive or change his mind about anything. Ozai believed in harsh and brutal discipline, and no one was safe from his anger and aggression when he was displeased, not even his own children. When his son, Zuko, was thirteen, Ozai burned his face and banished him from his country simply because Zuko spoke out of turn during a war meeting. Although Ozai seemed to think of this as a lesson in respect, Zuko later condemned the action as simple cruelty. He tortured Zuko with his perceived inferiority, saying that Azula was "born lucky", while he was "lucky to be born". He only acknowledged Zuko when he helped his sister conquer Ba Sing Se, and when he "killed" the Avatar. However, despite his behavior towards his children, Ozai appeared to be remarkably forgiving of failure for certain people, such as War Minister Qin and Zhao, who retained their positions and, in Zhao's case, he was  repeatedly promoted, despite repeated failures and bungles, that on some occasions bordered on incompetence.

Ozai's ultimate aspiration in life was to conquer the entire world, but in fact his desires may have been not for control but wholesale destruction to crush all resistance, as demonstrated in the series finale when he tries to destroy the Earth Kingdom for refusing to submit to his rule. He was willing to sacrifice his own family for the quenching of his thirst for unlimited power. When ordered by his father Azulon to kill Zuko to teach him the pain of losing a son, Ozai admitted to Zuko that he would have gladly carried out the murder had Ursa not interfered. He also attempted to kill Zuko once again when the latter announced his intent to join the Avatar.

Ozai was mentally and sometimes even physically abusive to his children. While he may have tried to be a good husband and father at one point (as implied by Zuko's flashbacks to family vacations on Ember Island), his anger and lust for power degraded his relationship with his family. He believed skill and accomplishment determine worth. This allowed the naturally cunning and talented Azula to rise to the position of his favorite child. He expected nothing less than the best from her, thinking her a Firebending prodigy. This expectation put a great amount of stress over Azula, forcing her to become a perfectionist. Ultimately it was the environment in which Ozai raised Azula, without a mother-figure and where fear, power, and perfection were the only reliable truths, that set the groundwork to her total mental collapse.

Abilities


Fire Lord Ozai was an unbelievably powerful and skilled Firebender, believed by many to be the strongest in the world. His fighting style was extremely liberal and stressed overbearing, infernal force. It was clearly fueled by anger, hatred, and rage. The scope of his Firebending remained unrivaled by any character except possibly Iroh, his older brother.

Despite his immense power, Ozai's Firebending was not seen much during the course of the series. His first real-time act was seen when he ferociously attacked his son with a two-handed lightning strike which he performed with great speed and ease. This was the only seen Firebending of Ozai's which was not enhanced by Sozin's Comet. In his final battle with the Avatar, the Fire Lord revealed the extent of his powers, creating the largest plumes of fire in the series. During this battle he also assaulted Aang with lightning storms and demonstrated mastery over Firebending-induced flight. The only way Aang was able to defeat Ozai (that is, without killing him by redirecting lightning) is through the Avatar State, and, finally, through removing his bending powers forever.

Relatives

 * Sozin (paternal grandfather, deceased)
 * Azulon (father, deceased)
 * Ilah (mother, deceased)
 * Ursa (former wife, banished)
 * Zuko (elder son, now Fire Lord)
 * Azula (younger daughter)
 * Iroh (older brother, now disowned)
 * Lu Ten (nephew, deceased)

Trivia



 * Ozai's face was not clearly shown for most of the series, until it was finally revealed late in the series. However, the Fire Lord's whole face (or a speculative mock-up of it) was shown in puppet-form at the Fire Nation Fire Days cultural festival that the Avatar gang attended. Ozai's face was, however, seen in the movie version, The Last Airbender.
 * Ozai was seen out of his trademark shadow for the very first time during a flashback. Every portion of his body was illuminated except the area around his eyes.
 * Ozai's chop, seen on various documents and wanted posters, is written in Seal Script, an archaic form not readable by many Chinese today. The modern way to write down the official red seal is 烈火國王敖載印寶 (liè huǒ guó wáng áo zǎi yìn bǎo), which translates as "Fire Lord Ozai's official seal". Ozai is written as 敖載 (áo zǎi) which translates as "leisurely year".
 * If, however, Ozai were written as 火災 (hǔo zāi), it would translate to burning disaster or flaming calamity, which would be a much more appropriate moniker.
 * Some fans have speculated that Ozai's name might be a reference to the poem "Ozymandias" by P. Shelley. Appropriately so, since in the poem, a line describes the type of person Ozymandias is: "My name is Ozymandias, king of kings: Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!" Ozai also had a bloated ego and a fiery temper, with his self-image and need of a bigger and golden zeppelin than the others during the Finale.
 * Ozai was voiced by Mark Hamill, who is most famous for portraying Luke Skywalker in the original Star Wars Trilogy, and has, ironically, since made a highly successful career out of voicing villainous characters, such as The Joker in Batman: The Animated Series and various other DC Comics media, Malefor in The Legend of Spyro: Dawn of the Dragon, Colonel Muska in Disney's dub of Laputa: Castle in the Sky, Niju from Balto 2: Wolf Quest, and one of the Haydonites in Robotech: The Shadow Chronicles. Another ironic point in Hamill's voicing of Ozai is that Ozai is renowned for his ability to generate lightning, a trait also present in Emperor Palpatine, the antagonist of the Star Wars films. Dante Basco, who voiced Zuko, has said working next to Hamill was a surreal experience.
 * In Ozai's official portrait, the flames over his hands were black. The cogs and pipes in the portrait also signified the mass buildup of industry and the technological advancements under his rule.
 * Ozai ruled as Fire Lord for the shortest period of time of any of the known Fire Lords; only six years. Technically, he would be the second-shortest, as he named Azula to the position of Fire Lord before promoting himself to the position of Phoenix King. Azula reigned for less than 48 hours, but was never crowned. See discussion at Talk:Azulon on the length of his reign
 * Ozai was the only known Fire Lord to be succeeded by his child while he was still alive.
 * Ozai was almost killed twice by his own lightning but spared. Once was when he fired at Zuko during the invasion and Zuko managed to redirect it and missed on purpose, the second time was when he was fighting Aang and fired lightning at him as well, Aang used the same redirection technique and redirected the lightning but also spared Ozai's life.
 * Ozai usurped Iroh's throne much like Prince John usurped King Richard the Lionhearted's throne, Richard was taking part of the Third Crusade and besieging Jerusalem, as Iroh was besieging Ba Sing Se.
 * Ozai's face was supposed to look like the unscarred face of an evil, older Zuko.
 * Ozai met several members of Team Avatar: Aang, Sokka, Suki, and Toph. But he never met Katara; because of that, she was the only Team Avatar member to never meet the Fire Lord.

Appearances
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Book Three: Fire (火)
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