Zuko

History
Zuko is the only son and the first-born of Fire Lord Ozai and Fire Lady Ursa. From an early age, Zuko is disdained by his father and is also the object of his sister, Azula's, manipulation, ridicule, and deception. Zuko’s mother, however, favored him.



When Zuko was about eleven years old, his cousin, Lu Ten, died while away at war. Soon after, General Iroh, devastated by the loss of his only child, abandoned his two-year siege of the Earth Kingdom Capital City, Ba Sing Se. During an audience with Fire Lord Azulon, Ozai shows off Azula's prodigious Firebending skill and her knowledge of military strategy, both of which outstrip Zuko's. Azulon is unimpressed by all of these exercises and demands that Ursa and her children leave and Ozai be frank about his reasons for wanting the audience. Azula and Zuko eavesdrop on Ozai and Azulon’s conversation as Ozai voices his desire to be made heir in place of Iroh, justifying this course of action by pointing out that not only has Iroh’s overwhelming grief and subsequent erratic behavior made the date of his return from war uncertain, but that Iroh no longer has any heirs to carry on his line. Azulon, however, is outraged and he declares angrily that Iroh has suffered enough, but Ozai’s suffering has only just begun.



Frightened, Zuko runs away while Azula stays to watch. Later, while Zuko is in his room trying to sleep, Azula comes in and mockingly tells him that Azulon's punishment for Ozai is that Ozai must kill Zuko as the Fire Lord now wants his younger son to know what it feels like to lose a child. Ursa, hearing the commotion comes in and drags Azula away, declaring that it is time that they talked, and Zuko, left behind, chants quietly to himself, "Azula always lies." Much later that night, Zuko is awakened once again, but this time by his mother. She tells a sleepy Zuko that everything that she has done, she did for him, and instructs him not to forget who he is no matter how much things may change. Zuko wakes up the next morning and immediately remembers what transpired the night before and runs frantically through the halls searching for his mother. He finds Azula, who blithely tells him that Azulon died last night and, as she plays with Zuko's pearl dagger (a gift from Iroh), mocks Zuko about the fact that their mother is not there to make her give it back. Eventually, Zuko finds Ozai in the gardens of the palace, and upon doing so demands to know where Ursa is. Ozai does not answer and Zuko hangs his head, defeated. At Azulon’s funeral, the sage conducting the ceremony names Ozai the new Fire Lord, stating that Azulon's dying request was that he be succeeded by his second son.

Years later, Iroh allows a persistent, fourteen year old Zuko into a war counsel with Ozai and a group of his generals. Zuko ignores Iroh's instructions not to speak during the meeting when one general outlines a plan to sacrifice an entire division of new recruits in a diversionary maneuver. Zuko vocally disagrees with this, seeing it as a betrayal of the recruits' patriotism. This insubordination is a grave insult and Ozai demands that Zuko participate in an Agni Kai. Zuko agrees, unaware that he will face his father and not the general whom he insulted. Upon turning to face his opponent, Zuko is immediately penitent and kneels, refusing to fight, and tearfully begs his father’s forgiveness. Ozai declares Zuko’s refusal to fight him a sign of cowardice and yet another display of disrespect, and tells him that "[he] will learn respect, and suffering will be [his] teacher." Ozai then burns Zuko (permanently scarring him), strips him of his birthright, and exiles him from his beloved homeland, declaring that he can only return if he is able to find and capture the Avatar, who disappeared one hundred years before. A fool's errand by all accounts, but one to which Zuko clings desperately as his only hope of regaining everything that he has lost.

Book 1: Water


Iroh accompanies Zuko during his exile, and the pair spend more than two years at sea with a small ship and crew searching for the Avatar. The crew are not royal guards or special forces, and may well have been banished themselves, or foolishly intent on serving under the popular General Iroh. They were often unhappy under Zuko but obey his orders. Iroh considers the search to be more of an extended vacation.

When Zuko finally finds the Avatar at the south pole, in the company of the remnants of the Southern Water Tribe, he is shocked and disappointed to discover that the Avatar is only a twelve-year-old boy. However, when Aang (with the assistance of Sokka and Katara) escapes from Zuko, he vows never to underestimate him again. Soon after this first encounter, Zuko docks in a port controlled by Commander Zhao in order to have the damage to his ship repaired. By interrogating Zuko’s crew, Zhao discovers that the Avatar has returned and wishes to capture him himself. This conflict results in an Agni Kai, during which Zuko defeats Zhao. Zhao remains Zuko's bitter rival in his quest to capture Aang throughout the continuation of Book 1.



After the "The Avatar Returns," Zuko has numerous other encounters with Aang. One of the most significant occurs in "The Blue Spirit," when Zuko takes on the guise of the Blue Spirit, a dual-broadsword-wielding vigilante in an oni mask, in order to kidnap a captured Aang from Zhao. Because Aang assumes that the silent vigilante is a new ally, he and Zuko work well together as they try to escape from the fortress. After Zuko has been knocked unconscious, Aang removes the mask and discovers his true identity. However, Aang does take the unconscious Zuko along with him when he escapes, thus saving him from discovery by Zhao and the charges of treason that would surely follow. When Zuko wakes, Aang makes a vague overture of friendship towards him, to which Zuko's only response is a fireblast.



During "Bato of the Water Tribe," Zuko encountered the bounty hunter June and her Shirshu invading his ship in pursuit of a stowaway. June tells him her Shirshu can detect a scent for miles by just smelling an object. Zuko enlists her help (to compensate for the damage to his ship) and uses Katara's necklace to follow her scent, tracking Aang by proxy. Zuko ends up in a one on one showdown with Aang, but is defeated when Sokka devises a plan to blind the Shirshu by overpowering its sense of smell, its strongest method of perception. The Shirshu loses control and, with its toxin-secreting tongue, paralyzes both Zuko and June. Iroh pretends to be paralyzed so he could hold June close to him. He shushes Zuko when he points this out.

Towards the end of season one, Zhao recruits the soldiers under Zuko’s command so he wouldn't get in the way again. When he sees the broadswords on a mantlepiece, Zhao deduces that Zuko is the Blue Spirit and hires a band of pirates to assassinate Zuko. The pirates blow up Zuko’s ship, but he survives. With Iroh’s help, Zuko infiltrates Zhao’s crew under the guise of a soldier and stows away on a ship as Zhao journeys to the North Pole to lay siege to the Northern Water Tribe.



Once at the North Pole, Zuko sneaks into the city. After battling Katara, Zuko manages to kidnap Aang from her while the Avatar is in a fugue state, his spirit off in the Spirit World in an attempt to find help to defeat Zhao’s forces. Zuko escapes with Aang into a blizzard, but is found by Katara, Sokka, and Princess Yue soon after Aang awakens. Aang saves Zuko’s life for a second time, insisting that Zuko must be brought along instead of being left unconscious in the snow where he would surely die. Upon returning to the Northern Water Tribe’s city, Zuko escapes while Aang and his allies are distracted by Zhao’s attack on the Moon Spirit, Tui. Zuko runs into Zhao, also escaping, and the two battle over Zhao’s attempt to have Zuko assassinated. However, when the vengeful Ocean Spirit, La, attacks Zhao, attempting to drag him into the water, Zuko offers Zhao his hand in aid. Zhao refuses and is drowned by the Ocean Spirit. Zuko and Iroh escape the North Pole on a driftwood raft for three weeks.

Book 2: Earth


The season opens on the three year anniversary of Zuko's banishment, and Zuko is as determined as ever in his desire to capture Aang and "regain what he has lost". Unbeknownst to him, however, his father has officially declared both he and Iroh traitors for their actions against Zhao during the siege of the Northern Water Tribe and sent Zuko's sister, Azula, to bring them back as prisoners. Azula attempts to deceive them into believing that Ozai has ended their exile, and despite Iroh’s doubts, Zuko wishes to believe this, so he agrees to go. Azula’s treachery is revealed when the two are about to board her ship, resulting in a brawl where Iroh fights off her guards while Zuko angrily confronts his sister. Zuko proves to be no match for Azula, who defeats him without Zuko landing a single blow. Azula prepares to finish him with a lightning attack, but Iroh intercedes, redirecting the blast and escaping with Zuko. Afterwards, as a symbol of severance from their family and the Fire Nation, the pair sever their topknots with a dagger Iroh had given Zuko years earlier.

Iroh and Zuko soon have trouble living off the land. Iroh mistakenly ingests a deadly plant, and they are forced to seek aid from a young Earth Kingdom herbalist named Song. Song tries to reach out to Zuko repeatedly, but he rebuffs her. However, when she displays her own burn scars caused by the Fire Nation, he seems taken aback and dismayed. Despite this, as Zuko and Iroh depart, Zuko steals Song’s ostrich horse, over Iroh's protests.



The two grow more desperate and Zuko fumes as Iroh is forced to panhandle for money. After watching Iroh being harassed, Zuko once again dons the guise of the Blue Spirit and turns to stealing from local merchants. Iroh, worried about Zuko, has a talk with him about his suspicious acquisitions and his honor. However when he goes further and points out that capturing the Avatar at this point would likely not improve their situation or return Zuko to his "rightful place" in the Fire Nation, Zuko pulls away from Iroh and walks off. When he returns, he says that, after reflection, he decides that they no longer have anything to gain by traveling together and parts ways with Iroh.

Zuko wanders through the Earth Kingdom, passing through forbidding and uninhabited areas. Despite his worsening hunger and lack of supplies, he decides not to rob a young couple when he notices that the woman is pregnant. Eventually, he stumbles upon a small town that is regularly harassed by a troop of unscrupulous Earth Kingdom soldiers. Zuko stands up to those soldiers, impressing a young boy named Lee, who invites Zuko back to his family's farm for food and shelter. He spends the day helping with chores, and thinking of his own, far less happy childhood. Zuko acts as something of a substitute brother for Lee, whose older brother is off in the war, even giving Lee a quick lesson in how to use dual broadswords when Lee’s curiosity prompts him to take them. Before leaving, Zuko gives Lee the dagger that he received from Iroh as a boy.

After Zuko leaves town, Lee's mother comes to him, telling him how the soldiers came to harass the family and took Lee away when he threatened them with the dagger. Having no one else to turn to, she asks Zuko to save him. Zuko denounces the soldiers as common bullies and defeats most of them easily, but the ringleader is an Earthbender and Zuko is unable to beat him using only his broadswords. After recalling his mother's last words to him before her disappearance, to "Always remember who you are", Zuko Firebends to save himself and announces his identity proudly to the town. Despite what he has done for them, the townspeople, including Lee who even throws away Zukos dagger, reject Zuko because of his identity and he departs with his retrieved dagger.

Zuko picks up Azula's trail, who is in turn relentlessly hunting and harrying Aang and company. He manages to track Azula into a deserted town where she and Aang are about to face off, and warns her to leave Aang's capture to him. She ignores him and they engage in a three-way battle that Azula dominates, by deflecting all of Zuko's attacks and landing a knock-out blow to Zuko. All seemed lost until Aang’s friends arrive to assist him, and Iroh, who has been following Zuko and watching over his nephew from afar, comes to Zuko’s aid. All six corner Azula, who feigns surrender, only to attack and badly wound Iroh in a moment of distraction and escape. Zuko is grief-stricken about Iroh's serious injury and angrily demands that Aang and his companions, who offer to help him, leave them alone.



After Zuko tends to Iroh's wound himself he asks Iroh to resume his training so that he can defeat Azula. Iroh agrees, and attempts to show Zuko the difficult art of creating lightning, but Zuko's inner turmoil prevents him from doing so. Instead, Iroh shows him how to redirect lightning, but refuses to test the skill due to the danger. Zuko is undeterred and climbs a mountain during a storm, intent on accomplishing the task. He rages at the storm and the world in general when no lightning comes close enough until finally, exhausted and emotionally spent, he collapses, a bitter tear in his eye.

Zuko and Iroh travel to a desert oasis where Iroh makes contact with a secret society in which he is a member: The Order of the White Lotus. Zuko and Iroh find out that the Fire Nation has placed a large bounty on their heads, but the White Lotus aids them in dodging bounty hunters and garners documentation so that Iroh and Zuko may pass into the Earth Kingdom's capital city, Ba Sing Se. While traveling there they encounter Jet, who is on his way to Ba Sing Se to make a new life and befriends Zuko before noticing Iroh employing subtle Firebending to heat his tea. Furious, Jet becomes determined to expose them.

Zuko and Iroh find a place to live in Ba Sing Se, which displeases Zuko, who has no desire to make a life in the "prison" that is Ba Sing Se. They both take jobs in a teahouse in Ba Sing Se as servers, and Iroh soon takes it upon himself to greatly improve the quality of the local tea, which garners him a degree of fame. Meanwhile, Jet makes various surreptitious attempts to prove that Zuko and Iroh are Firebenders, but fails. Finally, a frustrated Jet walks into the teashop and challenges them to a fight, hoping to force one of them to Firebend in self-defense. Zuko takes up Jet's challenge and the two begin an extended, even battle until the Dai Li interrupt them. Various witnesses state that Jet's attack on the teashop employees and Zuko was completely unprovoked, leading to Jet’s arrest.



Zuko continues to be reluctant to adapt to living in Ba Sing Se, perhaps best typified by his awkward date with Jin, a young girl who is a regular customer of the teahouse where he works and who has developed a crush on Zuko. Towards the end of their date she hints that she wants to kiss him, something Zuko doesn't seem to get. When she does kiss him, he returns it before breaking off, saying only, "It's complicated", and going back home. When he returns home and Iroh asks him how his date went, Zuko goes straight into his room without answering, but after a few seconds, Zuko cracks open the door and quietly remarks, "It was nice."

Zuko learns that Aang is in the city by seeing a flier that Aang and company have made to look for the missing Appa. Zuko decides to hunt for Appa and use him as bait for Aang. In his Blue Spirit disguise he forces an agent of the Dai Li to tell him the whereabouts of Appa, then sneaks into the Dai Li secret base beneath Lake Laogai and finds Appa in his cell, but is confronted by Iroh. Iroh, in an uncharacteristically sharp manner, berates Zuko's rashness, pointing out that Zuko has not thought of what to do after he has Appa in his possession. He then attempts to persuade Zuko into giving up his search for the Avatar, telling Zuko to give up the destiny set for him by his father, and follow his own path. Zuko cries out in agony and indecision, but does free Appa. When they leave Lake Laogai, he throws his Blue Spirit mask into the lake.



As soon as Zuko and Iroh return to their apartment Zuko collapses with a terrible fever. Iroh informs him that the great struggle going on inside Zuko's mind over his future and his destiny has in effect carried over to this body. Iroh likens this period of time to a metamorphosis, and states that in the end Zuko would emerge as the person he is truly meant to be. Zuko has a series of dreams and hallucinations, and in one of them sees himself as the Fire Lord, without his scar, while a blue dragon with Azula's voice and a red dragon with Iroh's voice give him differing advice. He also sees images of his vanished mother begging him for help. Zuko finally seems to waken. He gets up and splashes water on his face, only to look up into a mirror and see that he has Aang's bald head and tattoo. Zuko then truly wakes with a cry of horror and immediately touches his face where it is scarred. Upon finding the scar still there he closes his eyes and goes back to sleep.

Afterwards, Zuko appears to have developed a more optimistic view of life and living in Ba Sing Se. He is enthusiastic at the opening of Iroh's new teashop, and at the invitation for the two of them to come to the Earth King's palace and serve tea to the king. The invitation, however, is a trap set by Azula, who has struck a deal with the Dai Li to perform a coup on the Earth King. Iroh and Zuko manage to fight their way free, but Zuko chooses to stand and face Azula while Iroh flees. He challenges Azula to an Agni Kai, but Azula laughs off his challenge and has the Dai Li arrest him and imprison him in a cave with Katara. There Katara berates Zuko, who sits silently and absorbs the abuse until Katara mentions how the Fire Nation took her mother away from her, something which Zuko can sympathize with and relate to. This is a bonding point for the two, and Katara apologizes, explaining that for a long time Zuko's face was the face of the enemy in her mind, causing Zuko to acknowledge his scar and how it marks him. Katara offers to attempt to heal Zuko's scar and is about to do so when Iroh and Aang barge in to rescue them.

Despite the statement that he has changed, Zuko still holds a great deal of anger towards Aang, and within moments the two old adversaries nearly come to blows, until Iroh restrains Zuko and encourages Aang and Katara to leave and find their friends. While Katara and Aang exit the cavern, Iroh attempts to dissuade Zuko from continuing his pursuit once again. Azula arrives accompanied by two Dai Li agents who incapacitate Iroh in crystal. Both Iroh and Azula attempt to persuade Zuko- Azula seeking his assistance in capturing the Avatar, and Iroh begging him to seek his own destiny. When Azula leaves to fight Aang and Katara, Zuko later joins and decides to help Azula by attacking Aang, which he does with manic zeal. Surprisingly, Zuko also assists his sister directly several times, including freeing her when Katara had Azula trapped.



At the end of the battle, Iroh arrives on the scene and covers Katara and Aang's escape by holding off the siblings and scores of Dai Li agents until they have safely exited the cavern. Iroh then lets himself get captured, and Azula and Zuko triumphantly return to the Earth King's palace. Zuko is suddenly once again uncertain of himself, though, and expresses regret at having betrayed Iroh. Azula turns this aside, though, telling Zuko that it was Iroh who betrayed him. She then expresses confidence that, Avatar or no Avatar, Zuko has restored his own honor. We leave Zuko with the young man still looking conflicted about the decision he has made.

Book 3: Fire
As displayed in "Going Home Again," a canonical interlude comic featured within the second All-Avatar Nick Mag Presents edition, Zuko is surprisingly reluctant to return to the Fire Nation as a hero. However, after informing his sister of his intention to remain in Ba Sing Se, the princess pulls out a trump card in the form of an old friend--Mai, who had shared a mutual crush with Zuko as a child. After foiling Azula's dinner date set up, Zuko accompanies the governor's daughter on a stroll throughout the city, where--after an incident involving Jin, octofish, and a fountain--the two end up kissing and reminiscing. The following day, as he sees Mai off during the boardings, Zuko severely contemplates returning home with her, watched on by Azula. The princess then turns her attention to Iroh being led aboard a Fire Nation ship in chains and wonders aloud if he will even survive the trip. As she bids her brother farewell, Zuko suddenly makes the resolve to come with them back to the Fire Nation. Azula slyly tells her brother to do whatever he wants, as its his decision.



Several weeks later, though, as the ship approaches Fire Nation waters, Zuko expresses his fear at how much everything has changed, and how much he himself has changed. Despite reassurances from Mai and deafening cheers from the citizens of the Fire Nation, Zuko is still uncertain as to how his father would receive him--and even doubtful as to whether or not the Avatar was truly dead, a feeling he consequentially expresses to his sister. When he finally returns to his father's throne room, however, his father welcomes him back with pride and recognition, claiming that Zuko had fully redeemed himself by slaying the Avatar. Zuko manages to contain his surprise at this, knowing full well that it had been Azula who had delivered the blow, not him.

Although the false claim finally gives him the redemption he has so longed for, Zuko confronts his sister that night about why she had given him the credit. Azula claims that she saw how worried Zuko was about not having the Avatar, she decided to give him the credit for his demise out of a generous gesture to repay his part in the takeover of Ba Sing Se. Zuko refuses to believe her explanation, accusing her of retaining an ulterior motive. Azula nonchalantly points out how letting him have all the glory over slaying the Avatar could do little to benefit her, but goes on to insidiously acknowledge the fact that should it be discovered that the Avatar was alive, all that glory would swiftly turn into shame and foolishness. She assures Zuko that he has nothing to worry about, as he had already said himself, there's no way the Avatar could have survived. With that, the princess bids her brother goodnight, who leaves deeply incensed. Even with his redemption, he is still being manipulated.



Zuko had been secretly seeing his imprisoned uncle, telling the guard to say nothing. However, Iroh would have none of him and refused to listens to Zuko's claims he could have been a hero. While on a picnic with Mai, they were interrupted by Azula who cautions Zuko not to be discovered visiting Uncle or people will think he was conspiring with him. After delivering a box of chicken to his uncle, Zuko says to his uncle that he has everything he has ever wanted, but is tortured knowing that the Avatar is still alive; Iroh refuses to advise his nephew. Zuko then meets with a person who has a tattoo of a third eye who he instructs to kill the Avatar.

Zuko, Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee go on vacation to Ember Island at Lo and Li's beach house, due to the fact Fire Lord Ozai is holding a restricted meeting with his confidants. At the beach, Zuko makes several unsuccessful attempts to impress Mai with pretty shells and ice cream; the former fails to appeal to her, and the latter falls on Mai's leg in the unlucky fashion Zuko is famous for. The group is invited to a party at Chan's house.

During the party, after fetching Mai some food, Zuko finds Ruon-Jian talking to Mai. Zuko loses his temper and violently throws Ruon-Jian into a large pot across the room. Disgusted, Mai angrily tells Zuko that his temper is out of control; he takes his anger out on her, then, saying that she doesn't feel anything and is a 'big blah'. Hurt and confused by this accusation, Mai tells Zuko that their relationship is over. Chan returns and ejects Zuko from the party. Zuko heads off and goes to his family's abandoned vacation house where he reminisces about memories of himself as a child with his Mother, Father, and Uncle. He spots a stone imprinted with his own baby handprint, only for his eyes to be drawn to an old family portrait hanging on the wall. Azula finds Zuko, and they all go down to the beach again. Zuko tries to reconcile with Mai, but she is still cold toward him.

When words start to fly, Zuko pushes into a rant about his own life, where he admits that he's angry but unsure why. The girls all pressure him into giving an answer, and he finally screams that he is angry at himself because he doesn't know the difference between right and wrong anymore. Finally understanding what bothers Zuko so much, Mai returns to his side and says that the one thing she cares about is Zuko and kisses him once again.

In "The Avatar and the Fire Lord," Zuko awakes and finds a message telling him to go to the Fire Temple and learn of his great-grandfather's death. After he goes there, he finds Sozin's last testaments. Zuko reads up on the past friendship of Avatar Roku and Fire Lord Sozin. At the end Sozin says he kept searching for the new Avatar. Zuko confronts Iroh in prison, outaged, and accusing Iroh of sending him messages telling him that the scroll told him little more than what he already knew. Zuko says he had learned nothing more of Sozin's death. Iroh calmly states that he was referring to his mother's great-grandfather, Avatar Roku. Zuko falls to his knees, more confused than ever. Iroh tells Zuko good and evil are always fighing inside Zuko for it is his nature. Iroh says that the bright side is that Zuko alone can restore honor to the Fire Nation and bring about peace. Iroh then hands Zuko a lost royal artifact (meant to be worn by the crowned prince) worn by both of his great-grandfathers and tells him he can choose either of their paths and restore balance to the world or destoy it.