Korra


 * This article is about the character. For the series, see The Legend of Korra.

"water"

- Well I got news for you. You need me, but I don't need you. I'm the Avatar.

Avatar Korra was born in the Southern Water Tribe and is the immediate successor of Avatar Aang. A gifted and powerful bender, Korra has fully mastered waterbending, earthbending, and firebending. However, her aversion to the spiritual side of bending hindered her ability to bend air until she unlocked the ability shortly after losing first three elements; she has yet to master the skill. Later, with the assistance of Aang's spirit, Korra regains her lost elements, learns to energybend, and gains the ability to enter the Avatar State.

Background


Korra was born to Tonraq and Senna in the Southern Water Tribe immediately following the death of Avatar Aang. At the age of four, she discovered that she was the Avatar, a fact she proudly announced to the Order of the White Lotus when they came on her family's request. After performing waterbending, earthbending, and firebending before them, her identity as the Avatar was established, and her training to become a fully realized Avatar began in earnest under the Order's watchful eye. Over the next thirteen years, Korra demonstrated a prodigious talent which allowed her to quickly master waterbending and earthbending, and by 170 ASC, her firebending training was almost complete.

Arrival in Republic City
At the age of seventeen, Korra demonstrated her firebending prowess to the Order of the White Lotus and Katara, her waterbending teacher. Although expressing concern over her lack of restraint and ignorance of spiritual matters, the leader of the White Lotus decided that she had successfully mastered fire, her third element, and was ready to commence her airbending training and spiritual enlightenment under Tenzin's tutelage. However, Korra's training was put on hold when Tenzin announced that the unrest in Republic City would prevent him from relocating to the Southern Water Tribe as planned. Unhappy, she decided that if Tenzin could not come to her, she would go to him. With Katara's blessing, she stowed away on a cargo ship heading for the city with Naga, her polar bear dog and animal guide.



Upon their arrival in Republic City, Korra and Naga roamed the city, discovering for themselves just how out of balance it really was, with its unequal division of wealth and rampant street crime. In the park, Korra came across an Equalist protester trying to bring together non-benders to join Amon and the Equalists. After she called bending "the coolest thing in the world" and openly considered waterbending the protester off of his platform, the non-benders rallied against her and benders' "opressing" nature. After successfully thwarting members of the Triple Threat Triad, Korra found herself apprehended by the Metalbending Police Force on charges of destruction of private and city property. After an unsuccessful runaway attempt, she was brought to the police headquarters, where she was interrogated by a displeased Chief Lin Beifong. Although Tenzin managed to persuade her to drop all the charges against Korra, Lin made it very clear that she would keep an eye on the young Avatar.

Even though Tenzin had promised to send Korra back home again, she managed to persuade him to let her stay, as he now realized that Republic City needed its Avatar. She was allowed to stay and commence her airbending training on Air Temple Island under Tenzin's tutelage. Her decision to take up residence at Air Temple Island was publicly announced during a press conference in front of City Hall, during which she stated that "Avatar Aang meant for this city to be the center of peace and balance in the world," and that she would strive to attain that goal.

Pro-bending


Korra found herself struggling with mastering the "element of freedom", eventually destroying a priceless Air Nomad training tool with firebending in a fit of rage, turning her anger on Tenzin. She continually found herself frustrated at her inability to airbend, and by the fact that Tenzin would not allow her to attend a pro-bending match, something she had wanted to watch since childhood. Unwilling to sit idle on the island, she snuck off at night so she could finally attend a match at the arena. Upon arriving, she was caught exploring the arena's gym by Toza, but was bailed out by Bolin, who stated she was "with him". Following her rescuer, she was guided to the playing area where she was introduced to Bolin's brother, Mako. Initially, Mako scarcely acknowledged Korra, assuming she was just another one of Bolin's "fangirls". This caused the two of them to get off on the wrong foot; however, he later impressed Korra when he single-handedly defeated the Golden Temple Tigerdillos in the third round of the pro-bending match. Still, he seemed indifferent to Korra's presence even after he learned that she was the Avatar. She hung around for the match and became enthralled with the sport and the Fire Ferret team. After the match, Bolin taught her some basics, and Korra proved herself to be a natural.

When the Fire Ferrets' waterbender, Hasook, appeared to be a "no-show" for the final match, Korra jumped at the chance to take his spot and compete. Early on, her inexperience showed when she committed two quick fouls, prior to revealing herself as the Avatar by earthbending. The official ruled she could continue to compete but had to stick with waterbending. When Tenzin ordered her to return to the island immediately, she justified her stay by stating that it was important for her as the Avatar to learn modern-style bending, something pro-bending could help her with. Though she initially struggled with the rules and pace of the game, Korra slowly got the feel of it. Korra started applying some of her airbending lessons by moving around in her zone like "a leaf in the wind", proving to Tenzin, who was still watching, that his teachings were not all lost to her. This sudden change of tactics from Korra won the match for the Fire Ferrets. This victory gained the team access to the official pro-bending championship tournament, and Korra was accepted to permanently replace Hasook as the team's waterbender.

Meeting Amon


When Korra was practicing airbending at Air Temple Island with Jinora and Ikki, Mako arrived to ask her about Bolin's whereabouts. After her insistence to help find Bolin, she and Mako decided to go looking for him throughout the city. In Central City Station, they met Skoochy, who told them he had been recruited as extra security by the Triple Threat Triad. When Mako and Korra made it to the gang's headquarters, they learned that Bolin had been captured by the Equalists in a raid, and the pair immediately set out to rescue him. They traveled to Republic City Park to find the protestor, who told them that Bolin was likely taken to the Equalist rally called "The Revelation". At the rally, they discovered that Amon possessed the ability to permanently remove one's bending, a skill thus far believed only to be obtainable by Avatars. During Amon's demonstration on the captured benders, one of whom was Bolin, Korra produced a large cover of steam from some nearby pipes, which created panic and distracted the Equalists long enough to allow Mako to rescue Bolin. When the brothers were overpowered by the Lieutenant, Korra arrived just in time to save them with her earthbending, and they made their escape on Naga. As soon as Korra got back to Air Temple Island, she informed Tenzin and consequently the United Republic Council of Amon's ability.

The encounter with the Equalists and their leader left a profound impression on Korra, as she had nightmares about being immobilized by their chi blocking and subsequently being stripped of her bending by Amon. For the first time in her life, Korra found herself afraid of something, although she refused to admit it. This fear held her back in her daily life, and when Councilman Tarrlok approached her with the offer to lead a special task force with him to take down Amon, she politely refused with the excuse that she needed to focus on her airbending training. However, Tarrlok persisted and threw a gala in her honor. He tricked her into holding a press conference, during which Korra buckled under the accusing questions of the journalists and shouted that she would join Tarrlok's task force to help fight Amon, if that was what the city needed.



Eager to prove to everyone, including herself, that she was not afraid of anyone, Korra successfully apprehended several Equalists, with the help of Tarrlok's special task force, and publicly challenged Amon to a midnight duel at Aang Memorial Island, without any back-up of the task force or chi blockers. However, Amon did not show up alone, and his henchmen quickly overpowered her. When Amon emerged from the shadows, Korra was terrified that he was going to take her bending away. However, he did not, and instead revealed that he had a plan to rid the world of benders and that he was saving her for last in order to prevent her from becoming a martyr. Following Amon's monologue, he knocked her unconscious where she experienced several flashbacks surrounding Avatar Aang, Sokka, Toph, and a mysterious man in what appeared to be a court room. When she regained consciousness, Tenzin was running toward her. After telling him what happened, Korra broke down and finally admitted that she was terrified of Amon and the Equalists and that she did not know what to do.

Romantic issues
When Korra first joined the Fire Ferrets, she had a tough time impressing Mako, but Bolin was always encouraging her, however after Korra helped the fire ferrets win an impressive victory Mako geninuely complimented Korra and started to respect her. When Bolin was kidnapped Korra insisted on helping Mako find his brother. While they were searching for Bolin, Mako told Korra of how he witnessed a firebender murder his parents and that he has been taking care of his brother ever since. When Korra was at a banquet held in her honor she was upset to find out that Mako had come with Asami, and she brought up how Mako never mentioned Asami before. After an encounter with Amon and his chi blockers, Korra settled down, and took a break from Tarrlok's task force to prepare for the upcoming Pro-bending Tournament. However, her feelings for Mako continued to impact her, and she often became jealous of Asami's relationship with him. Korra refused Bolin's advances toward her, declining his requests to spend time together, rather electing to return to Air Temple Island for further training with Tenzin. She later spoke with Jinora and Ikki, hoping for advice on how to approach Mako. Pema overheard the conversation and told Korra to just be honest with Mako.



After Korra and the Fire Ferrets earned a convincing victory in the first round of the tournament, she followed Pema's advice and confessed her true feelings to Mako. However, he turned her down, telling her he was with Asami and did not see her in the same way. Seeing her downbeat, Bolin again invited Korra for a night out, and this time, she accepted, much to Mako's annoyance. The two enjoyed a dinner at Narook's Seaweed Noodlery, but were interrupted by Tahno, who attempted to provoke them into a fight. Bolin urged Korra to ignore Tahno's approach, warning her that harming him outside of the arena would disqualify the Fire Ferrets from the tournament. Heeding the warning, Korra called on Naga instead, who intimidated Tahno with a loud roar. After this little interruption, the two continued their night out together, enjoying drinks in a bar and the panoramic view of Republic City at night from atop a tower.



When Korra returned to the Pro-bending Arena the following night, Mako was waiting for her, inquiring what kind of game she was playing with Bolin to get back at him. Korra immediately saw through his attitude and called his reaction jealousy. However, when she asked Mako to be honest and admit that he liked her, the two got into an argument, which nearly cost them the next match against the Boar-q-pines.

Korra was approached by Mako after the match, who admitted that he had not been honest with her. He explained that he did have feelings for her, but was confused due to his relationship with Asami. Korra impulsively kissed Mako, and was kissed back in return. When she broke it off, she noticed Bolin standing nearby and looked away in shame, and was blamed by Mako for breaking Bolin's heart.

The next day, the semifinals began against the Buzzard Wasps. The romantic struggles presented a serious problem during the match and further divided the team. Frustrated, Korra excessively roughed up the opposing firebender with waterbending and even assaulted an official. At the start of round three, having lost the first two rounds convincingly, Korra tried to motivate her dejected teammates to not give up, albeit to no avail. Stubbornly refusing to give up herself, Korra fought the match of her life by herself, and secured a spot in the final by knocking all the Buzzard Wasps off the field with one powerful attack. Afterwards, the team made amends, putting their romantic problems aside to let friendship prevail. Korra was later complimented by Asami for her hat trick victory, and returned this kind gesture by sincerely thanking her and her father for their financial aid.

The Pro-bending Championship


The day of the final match of the Championship Tournament, Korra, along with Bolin and Mako, was training when they heard a radio broadcast from Amon. After hearing him threaten "severe consequences" if the United Republic Council would not shut down the Pro-bending Arena, the three friends rode to City Hall to convince them not to cancel the final. Korra pointed out that they could not give in to Amon's threats, however, to no avail as the Council had already unanimously agreed to do so. She found an unlikely ally in Chief Lin Beifong, and due to her interference, the Council members changed their minds and let the match be played. Korra wanted to thank Lin for her help, but was completely ignored. When she complained to Tenzin about Lin's hostile attitude, she came to the conclusion that Lin's issues were with Tenzin rather than with her.

In the match for the championship, the Fire Ferrets faced off against the White Falls Wolfbats. With cheating and some help from the bribed referees, the Wolfbats almost won the match in the first round with a knockout, but Korra managed to keep her team in play by holding onto the edge of the field. However, she fell in the water when she threw Mako back in play. The second round was to be decided with a tiebreaker, and Korra immediately took the chance to face off with Tahno, which resulted in an easy victory for the Avatar. However, despite this success, the Wolfbats defeated the Fire Ferrets in the third round with an illegal knockout.



When the match ended, Amon and the Equalists ambushed the Pro-bending Arena, and Korra, who was still in the pool under the ring, was quickly immobilized by the Lieutenant when he touched the water with his electrified kali sticks. Falling unconscious, Korra had another vision of Aang fighting someone in the Avatar State with Toph alongside him. When she came to, she and her teammates were tied to one of the support beams of the arena platform, but they were soon freed by Pabu who saved them by biting through the ropes. Korra immediately created a waterspout to give chase to Amon and the Equalists who were escaping through the roof. With the help of Lin Beifong, she managed to reach the Equalist airship and knocked off the Lieutenant and an Equalist before being knocked off herself. A battle between the four Equalists and Korra, assisted by Lin, soon ensued in which Korra mainly focused on the Lieutenant, whom she managed to overpower and knock off the roof. However, the strain of the fight was too much for the arena's glass dome and Korra fell through, but was saved by Lin. After she thanked the police chief for the rescue, Mako, Bolin, and Tenzin joined them and together they watched the Equalists get away, realizing that they were now officially at war with them.

Equalist ties
During the shutdown of the Pro-bending Arena, Korra visited Mako and Bolin in the attic of the building. She told the brothers that they did not have to worry about living on the streets again, as Tenzin had agreed to let them live on Air Temple Island. They were humbled by the offer, but they told her that Asami had already offered them a place to stay at the Sato estate. Korra, though uncomfortable with this, did not say anything and made up an excuse to leave. Asami stopped her and invited the Avatar to visit the estate the next day, to which Korra at first refused saying she had "Avatar stuff" to do, but was then convinced by Bolin to do so.



When Korra visited the Sato estate the following day, she found Mako, Bolin, Asami, and Pabu having fun in the pool. The hostess then took the group to a racetrack and offered to take Korra "for a spin", to which the Avatar agreed enthusiastically. Korra sat in the backseat of a car with Asami at the wheel as they competed against another driver, finally winning the race.

Back at the mansion, Korra overheard Hiroshi Sato talking on the phone about the recent Cabbage Corp investigation and an upcoming "strike". She immediately left the mansion and contacted Tenzin and Lin Beifong, theorizing that Hiroshi could be working with the Equalists. The three of them went back to the estate and questioned the businessman. After getting permission from Hiroshi to search all of Future Industries' factories, Chief Beifong had her officers search for any evidence that could link Hiroshi to the Equalists. However, no evidence was found. During a search in one the warehouses, Korra received a tip from a worker, who asked to meet underneath Silk Road Bridge. She immediately informed Tenzin and Lin, who accompanied her to the bridge, where the worker informed them that Hiroshi had manufactured the weapons the Equalists had used during the attack on the arena, and was creating more new weapons for them in a hidden factory under his mansion.



Korra, Tenzin, Lin, and a number of police officers went back to Sato's home via airship, eventually finding a tunnel leading to the underground factory. There, the group discovered that the new weapons were large mecha tanks. The tanks suddenly sprang to life as Hiroshi's voice could be heard coming from one of them, and Korra realized that the informant's tip had been a setup. Controlled by Sato and other Equalists, the tanks attacked the intruders, easily overpowering and knocking them unconscious. As the Equalists were loading the captured officers into their trucks, Mako and Bolin found their way into the factory and started carrying Korra, Tenzin, and Lin out, but were stopped by Hiroshi. Asami then arrived at the factory and confronted her father and the Lieutenant, allowing the group to escape safely.

While heading back toward Republic City, Korra told Mako that he, Bolin, and Asami were all welcome to live on Air Temple Island with her and Tenzin's family.

Confronting Councilman Tarrlok
After Mako, Bolin, and Asami moved to Air Temple Island, Tenzin and Korra left for Saikhan's inauguration as the new chief of police. While there, the Avatar and the airbender confronted Tarrlok, questioning his actions, but the Councilman requested that Korra rejoin his task force, to which she refused. Tarrlok then alluded to the Avatar's lack of progress on her airbending, which caused her to worry about her airbending and spiritual block. She later spoke with Tenzin about the matter, mentioning that she was confused about the visions she had had. Tenzin advised her to meditate on these visions, believing Aang's spirit was trying to contact her.



Later, when she was crying while looking out at Aang's statue, her friends found her and cheered her up by assuring her they had her back. As the new Team Avatar, they decided to patrol Republic City in order to protect it from the Equalists. After arresting several escaped Equalist prisoners, Tarrlok confronted the team and warned them to stay out of his way. Later on, at a supposed Equalist rally in the Dragon Flats borough, Korra and her friends spotted a significant power outage in the area, which turned out to be caused by Tarrlok and several metalbending officers in accordance with a new law against non-benders. The non-benders pleaded for Korra's help, who confronted Tarrlok but without success. She decided to intervene and attempt free the innocent non-benders, much to the Councilman's displeasure, who then took all of Korra's friends into custody. Later that night, Korra and Tenzin spoke with Saikhan at the police headquarters, requesting that he release her friends and the non-benders, but the chief refused.



Later that evening, Korra left the island on Naga and went to City Hall, where she confronted Tarrlok regarding his radical actions. He proposed that if she agreed to work for him, her friends would be released, but the Avatar refused and compared him to Amon, which infuriated the Councilman and caused him to attack her. A duel ensued between the two. Korra appeared to have won the duel when she knocked the Councilman out of his office and down to the Council's meeting room with a large earthbending attack, leaving Tarrlok without a source of water. However, just as she prepared two send fire blasts in his direction to end the duel, Tarrlok used bloodbending to control Korra's body and throw her across the room, knocking her unconscious. She had another vision of Aang, Sokka, Toph, and the same unknown man, who bloodbent the entire room while Aang tried to stop him. As Korra awoke, she found herself tied up in the back of a police car, as Tarrlok told her she would never see Republic City again, for he was going to take her where no one could ever find her.

Imprisoned and isolated


Tarrlok took Korra to the mountains and locked her in a metal container in the basement of a small building. In the container, Korra decided to meditate on her previous visions and finally connected with Aang's spirit, as she had additional visions of Aang dealing with a powerful, criminal bloodbender named Yakone. During a trial where he was found guilty, he bloodbent the entire court into submission, knocking Aang unconscious and forcing Toph to release him from his restraints. Yakone escaped, but Aang entered the Avatar State and chased down Yakone, where he fought, cornered, and stripped the bloodbender of his bending abilities. Korra then realized that Aang was trying to warn her about Tarrlok and his relation to Yakone. The Councilman then returned to the "prison", where Korra told him about her visions, pressing him to tell her the truth and admit his wrongdoing. He finally admitted that Yakone was his father and that he would now leave Republic City forever with Korra as his hostage.

Before anything else could happen however, the prison was raided by the Equalists, led by Amon. Korra overheard Tarrlok being stripped of his bending, and Amon ordering his chi blockers to subdue Korra by electrocuting the box in which Korra was trapped. Korra ingeniously took one of her arm bands and wrapped one end around one of the metal bars at the top of the box and held onto the fabric, where she received a very mild electric shock but remained conscious. She escaped the box, eluding the other Equalists and escaping from Amon. She slid down a snowy hill and tripped over a branch, hurtling towards a tree. The blow knocked her unconscious, but Naga, having tracked her from Republic City, discovered her and carried her home.



They wandered through the forest until they reached Republic City, where Naga roamed the streets. Team Avatar – along with Lin and Tenzin – eventually found her, having heard Naga's howls whilst searching for Korra on Oogi. Mako, visibly worried about Korra beforehand, told everyone to, "give her some space" shoving his way past Lin and Tenzin who were crowding around Korra, and picked her up off Naga, cradling the Avatar in his arms. Mako, after retrieving Korra from Naga's back, laid her down on Oogi, brushing hair from her face assuring her, "You're safe now." She smiled in return, happy to be near him again. Team Avatar, Lin, and Tenzin then flew her home on Oogi, relieved that the Avatar was safe and sound.

Republic City falls
After being found unharmed, Korra was taken back to Air Temple Island by the rest of Team Avatar, Lin, and Tenzin. As Korra attempted to recover from the ordeal, Mako remained at her bedside and even held Korra's hand, while Asami watched secretly at the door. Soon after, Team Avatar, Lin, and Tenzin enjoyed a meal with Pema and the Airbender kids. After eating for a bit, Korra admitted that Pema's food was starting to "make [her] feel like [herself] again." Tenzin then encouraged her to tell her harrowing tale. Korra explained that Tarrlok was Yakone's son, surprising both Lin and Tenzin. When asked how she escaped and where Tarrlok was, Korra responded that Amon had shown up out of nowhere, took Tarrlok's bending, and captured him. She also told how she was almost captured as well. Tenzin then expressed his fear of Amon becoming emboldened and that his taking out a councilman and nearly capturing the Avatar was increasingly worrisome. He then told the group that he was afraid that "Amon [was] beginning to execute his endgame."



The next day, the Equalists began their attack on Republic City, starting with the capture of all council members, with the exception of Tenzin, who was able to fend off his attackers. Seeing the devastation from the island, Korra and her friends traveled to the city in hopes of aiding in the battle against the Equalists. Using Asami's Satomobile, they drove to the police headquarters where Tenzin was under attack by the Equalists. The gang, along with Tenzin, defeated the mecha tanks, preventing the airbending master's capture. Upon seeing an Equalist airship close in on Air Temple Island, they traveled on Oogi and arrived at the island. Successfully repelling the attackers, Tenzin ordered the evacuation of the island knowing that more airships would arrive soon. Tenzin told Korra to hide and be patient for the time being, promising her that he would return upon ensuring his family's safety. He assured her that the United Forces would soon arrive and help turn the tide against the Equalist threat. Korra agreed and vacated the island on Naga with Mako, Bolin, and Asami. They then fled to Republic City, where she and the rest of Team Avatar went to a secluded water pipeline. There, Korra sadly gazed at the destroyed Air Temple until Mako told her to keep moving. He then wrapped his arm around Korra as they continued to walk down the pipeline.

Soon after, the wire Tenzin had sent to the United Forces was received, reporting that the city had fallen under the Equalists' control. A large force had been dispatched to aid the city, led by General Iroh. Iroh told his subordinate to respond that his forces would arrive in three days' time, and that together they would take back the city.

Defeating Amon


While hiding under the city, Korra and Mako stole chi-blocker uniforms and infiltrated various Equalist rallies to stay up-to-date on Amon's movements. Korra was growing restless and increasingly more agitated at being branded a coward for "running away", but Mako advised her to be patient. After leaving an Equalist rally, the two rejoined Bolin and Asami and ate dinner with Gommu. Later that night, when neither of them could sleep, Mako told Korra that because of everything that had happened, he could not imagine his life without her. He went on to say Korra was the most loyal, brave, and selfless person he had ever known. While Korra was flattered and reciprocated his feelings, she suggested that they get some rest before the United Forces arrived in the morning.

When General Iroh approached the city, the United Forces fleet was swiftly destroyed by the Equalists using their newly crafted airplanes. Korra and the fleet tried to fend the airplanes off, but to no avail. She managed to rescue Iroh from his fall into the ocean and he graciously thanked her for saving his life. As Korra treated Iroh's burns, the General decided that with the Equalist airplanes around it would be impossible for the reinforcement fleet to take back the city. With the group's help, Iroh deduced the location of the Equalist airfield, and everyone prepared to leave. Korra, however, refused to go, as she believed it was her duty to stay in the city and confront Amon. Mako decided to accompany Korra while Bolin, Asami, and Iroh took down the airplanes. Iroh was reluctant to let Korra stay, but said that his grandfather, Zuko, would trust the Avatar's instincts, therefore he would too. Korra and Bolin hugged each other goodbye, and she left Naga with him.



Korra and Mako returned to Air Temple Island hoping to ambush Amon, but they instead found Tarrlok. The former Councilman told Korra and Mako that he and Amon were brothers. He proceeded to tell them about their childhood, and that Amon was actually a very powerful bloodbender. Korra realized trying to ambush Amon directly would be a horrible idea. Instead she devised a plan to expose him as a bender in front of his supporters, knowing the Revolution would crumble if she did. The two left to attend Amon's rally at the former Pro-bending Arena, and Tarrlok apologized to Korra for his actions, asking them to stop Amon and "put an end to this sad story". Korra opted to free Tarrlok, but he refused, saying it would tip off his brother.

Korra and Mako made it to the arena, and Korra told Amon's supporters that he was really a bloodbender. However, Amon showed his face and the firebending "scars" he was given, making his supporters think Korra was the liar. Korra was dumbfounded and Mako opted for the two of them to escape. Amon told Korra to stay and watch, and revealed that he had captured Tenzin and his family. Korra became distraught, begging Amon to spare the last airbenders. Mako shot a bolt of lightning at Amon, which he barely dodged. Mako and Korra used firebending to propel themselves toward the stage, free Tenzin and his family, and escape out into the corridor.



While Tenzin and his children escaped to save Pema and Rohan, Mako and Korra retreated and hid in one of the fitness rooms. Amon pursued them, bloodbending Korra into submission. Mako attempted to stop him, but was subdued in turn. Korra was subsequently stripped of her bending abilities, while Mako observed the event in horror and anger. Korra tried to stand and fight Amon, but she was too weak and collapsed. The revolution leader then approached Mako, intending to also remove his bending. However, Mako blasted Amon with a bolt of lightning, subsequently breaking out of the latter's bloodbending. Mako picked up a barely conscious Korra, who weakly lamented over her lost bending. Amon quickly recovered and followed Mako, bending his blood once again in preparation to remove his firebending. However, at the last moment, Korra reacted instinctively to defend Mako and knocked Amon away with a blast of air.

Amon was taken aback by Korra's bending, though Korra herself was just as surprised at her newfound abilities. She began to blast air punches at Amon, who was unable to regain his ground. Korra managed to airbend him out a window and into the harbor in front of the Equalists. Amon's mask was knocked off his face and his "scars", which were only make-up, faded away in the water. As Amon was about to drown, he utilized his waterbending to propel himself out of the water in front of the crowd, which became disillusioned after his lies were exposed. Amon fled the battle, having lost the support of his Equalists, while Mako attempted to subdue him without success. Mako embraced Korra, who was still weak from losing her bending.

Avatar Korra
Mako and Korra reunited with Bolin, Tenzin and his family, Lin, Asami, and Iroh on Air Temple Island and watched Commander Bumi arrive with the rest of the fleet. Tenzin praised Korra for saving Republic City, but she was distraught both that Amon had escaped and that her identity as the Avatar was seemingly altered beyond repair.



Everyone escorted Korra to the Southern Water Tribe, where she reunited with her parents and Katara. Despite her best efforts, Katara was unable to mend the spiritual block that was keeping Korra from bending the other three elements. A saddened Korra emerged and, despite reassurances from friends and family that things would be all right, she quietly stepped outside, saying that they would not be.

Recognizing her moment of need, Mako followed her, intent on consoling her. With sad hostility, Korra told him to return to Republic City, saying that, as she was no longer the Avatar, Mako no longer owed her any favors. Mako told her he didn't care if she was the Avatar or not, and he explained how he "went crazy" when she was kidnapped by Tarrlok because he was afraid he would "never see [her] again". He told Korra that he loved her, but she was too caught up in frustration and despair to say the same - so much so that she ran away on Naga, crying.

Korra then ran out onto the edge of the tundra overlooking the ocean and collapsed. She began to sob uncontrollably as she saw a man in Air Nomad attire standing behind her. Assuming that it was Tenzin, she told him to go away, but the man responded, "But you called me here". Upon turning around, Korra discovered the man was Avatar Aang, proclaiming an end to her inability to connect with the spirits of past Avatars.



Korra was surprised to see Aang, who told her that she finally connected with her spiritual self. When Korra asked how, Aang told her, "When we hit our lowest point, we are open to the greatest change". All of the previous incarnations of the Avatar appeared behind Aang and he then used energybending to restore Korra's bending. As her past lives faded away, Korra entered the Avatar State and bent all four elements for the first time. When she came out of the Avatar State, she turned around and saw an awestruck Mako standing near Naga. He smiled at her warmly and approached her. In return, she ran into his arms and kissed him, finally reaffirming her love towards him.

Korra and Mako returned to their friends and family, and using energybending, she restored Lin Beifong's earthbending. Everyone watched in awe and admiration as Lin lifted several massive stones, confirming that her bending had returned. Lin thanked Korra and Tenzin approached her, saying how proud he was and addressing her as "Avatar Korra".

Personality
On the surface Korra is fierce, independent, tomboyish, and pugnacious. One only has to dig a little deeper to realise that, beneath her most prominent character traits, she possesses a strong loyalty towards her comrades and duty as Avatar and an admirable compassion seen in moments when she expresses love, towards things such as pro-bending, Naga, Mako, or family and friends. Her offensive battle style means that she is always quick to initiate or rise to a challenge and she is extremely quick witted and impulsive, especially in heated situations. Unfortunately, as an 'Avatar-in-training', she lacks perception towards the damage her bending is capable of, and her rash decisions often result in her accidentally insulting others.



True to Korra's character, Lin once said to Tenzin, "Hard to believe your sweet tempered father was reincarnated into that girl". Her personality is, in many ways, the opposite of the previous Avatar's; Aang was a peaceful, diffident, nomadic airbender, whereas Korra is tough, impatient, headstrong, sarcastic, and assertive. However, like Aang, she also has a good sense of humor and enthusiasm, and a vulnerable teenage charm.

Korra's lack of a spiritual grasp proved to be a stumbling block in her training; she admitted that her personality is the opposite of the typical airbender's, and as Tenzin noted, Avatars tend to struggle with the bending art most opposite their personality. Because of this lack of a spiritual center in her life, Korra is impulsive and therefore has a hard time hiding her true feelings; this can be seen in her reaction to learning that Asami Sato was Mako's date during the gala Tarrlok threw in her honor, where she immediately expressed her jealousy by being rather hostile toward Asami and short with Mako.

Due to her concentration on the physical side of bending, Korra was initially quite worried when she saw "the revelation" of Amon's true abilities during his demonstration, a fear which expressed itself in Amon's words in the nightmare she had soon afterwards, "Once I take your bending away, you will be nothing." This and her later encounter with Amon revealed this fear. She tried repressing these fears for the good of Republic City when she joined Tarrlok's task force, but had trouble staying her usual upbeat self and became rather reclusive, and eventually made the rash decision to call Amon out in a one-on-one duel. This indicates that she is ruled by her emotions even when she tries to pretend they do not exist, leaving her vulnerable to Amon as shown by the results of that "duel".



Like her immediate predecessor Aang, Korra places a high priority on her position as the Avatar, despite their differing approaches. Although at first Aang was uncomfortable of having to use outright violence to bring balance to the world, he eventually developed an unrelenting determination towards following his age-old destiny. Korra, on the other hand, takes a non-conformist stance over her Avatar training. For instance, after trying out pro-bending, she stated to Tenzin that the reason why she had been unable to airbend was because the Avatar no longer needed it and was instead meant to focus on modern styles of fighting. Tenzin quickly stamped her proposal out as preposterous, reminding her that the Avatar is destined to master all four elements at all costs.

Bending


As the Avatar, Korra has the unique ability to use all four elements, and has the potential to become most powerful bender in the world. Furthermore, since she was young, Korra has always had an affinity for the physical aspect of bending. She also quickly took to the three different styles of pro-bending with simple instructions from her teammates, greatly impressing them after only a week of training to ultimately become a highly capable member of the Fire Ferrets. Despite her innate aptitude for physical arts, she struggled with its spiritual aspects. Despite this initial problem, she has slowly begun to obtain spirituality to see visions of her past life in Aang. Later, after her encounter with Amon, all of her active bending abilities were taken away, but allowed her to finally break free from her airbending block and defeat Amon. Upon sinking into despair after Katara, the greatest healer, was unable to restore her lost bending, Korra's spirit was finally able to subconsciously contact Aang, who restored her full bending, as well as passing on to her the ability to energybend and to enter the Avatar State.

Waterbending


Korra's waterbending abilities manifested at a young age, before she had even been recognized as the Avatar by the Order of the White Lotus. Subsequently trained formally in the art for over a decade by Katara, arguably one of the greatest waterbending masters alive, Korra has obtained complete mastery in this art in addition to its various techniques and skills. She is capable of creating large walls of ice and powerful water whips. She can also launch herself high into the air and maintain the height on a gigantic waterspout easily, fight off several aerial attacks with various water attacks, and propel herself plus another person through the water at high-speeds to avoid attacks. She used her waterbending abilities to procure herself a spot on the Fire Ferrets pro-bending team, referring to herself as a "top-notch waterbender". While she presumably never learned the outlawed skill, Korra has sufficient knowledge of bloodbending to fully understand the nature of its application. She also is one of few people who are able to cancel and break free, even when she lost her waterbending and faced Amon, an unrivaled mastered of the skill (albeit with difficulty). Furthermore, she was able to break out of Amon's hold and attack him with a powerful air punch.

Healing


Korra learned the waterbending technique of healing from Katara, whom Korra considers the best healer alive. She was able to easily heal and soothe both Bolin's shoulder and General Iroh's severely damaged arm.

Earthbending


Korra's earthbending abilities also manifested early, and is her second most used element. Spending over a decade on intense training, Korra has gained complete mastery in this art. She has demonstrated her adept skill and ability in earthbending on several occasions, notably launching a member of the Triple Threat Triad several stories into the air. Korra's earthbending is also able to affect a considerable radius, upturning and demolishing everything in the area.

Firebending


As with earth and water, fire too manifested at a young age, and it became the element Korra most prominently utilizes. Korra uses fire more than any other element, due to the fact that she relies on offensive maneuvers when under pressure. Her firebending training was finished when she passed the test impressively at the age of seventeen, gaining complete mastery in this art, including various advanced techniques such as breath of fire. Against other firebenders, she can easily deflect and disperse the enemies' attack. Her control is so fine, she able to produce a small yet intense flame at her fingers that she can maintain to melt through metal chains. She can propel herself through the air with firebending in short bursts. Contrary to the usual difficulty an Avatar has with learning the opposite of his/her native element, firebending has become second nature to her. Korra tends to utilize firebending before any other element when provoked, frustrated, or attempting to assert dominance, such as when she falls back on firebending a newspaper cut out of Lin after failing to do so with airbending. Tenzin attributed this unusual combination to her innate personality being quite fit for the art thanks to her natural assertiveness and fiery spirit.

Airbending


Unlike the prior three elements, airbending did not come easily to Korra. Tenzin explained that she found difficulty with the bending technique due to the same reasons that his father, Avatar Aang, had difficulties with earthbending, as they are the elements most opposite their respective personalities. Korra herself admitted that she was "as opposite an airbender as you could get".

While initially having found difficulty with airbending's fighting style and battle tactics even after she begun training with Tenzin, during her first pro-bending match after joining the Fire Ferrets, she managed to employ the basic evasive movements of airbending, ultimately tiring out the opposing team to win the match with Mako and Bolin. As her training has progressed, she has shown better understanding of its moveset while practicing at Air Temple Island, able to quickly and gracefully maneuver through the gates and ultimately learned of its physical maneuvers. She later proved able to apply these evasion tactics against the Lieutenant, effectively dodging all his attacks.

After Amon used bloodbending to effectively remove her ability to bend the other three elements, and was forced to watch Amon ready to take Mako's firebending as well, Korra's emotional build up allowed her to fully connect with her spiritual side to finally unlock her ability to airbend. Fittingly, airbending (a defensive art) came to her in a moment of desperation, allowing her to defend the focus of her affections from Amon. Despite only knowing the theory and practicing its moves, she has shown considerable skill and power in utilizing the art. She can create blasts of air with punching movements, and has demonstrated the ability to send a powerful gust of air with a kick, which was strong enough to knock Amon off his feet and send him flying from a window and into the ocean. However, her style of airbending varies dramatically from other airbenders, employing straightforward offensive movements of direct punches and kicks while lacking the more characteristic circular winding movements. These movements more resemble the Northern Xiaolin style of martial arts that inspired Firebending. Later, while in the Avatar State, Korra used an air spout to raise herself into the air and send a gust of wind and air behind her.

Energybending


When lamenting the fact that Amon had removed all but her airbending, Avatar Aang appeared to her alongside previous Avatar incarnations during her lowest moment. At this point, it became clear that she had finally broken the barrier between the spiritual and corporeal world, something that had been beyond her abilities ever since she was born. Aang then used energybending to restore her bending and impart her with the knowledge of energybending. With this new ability, Korra was able to freely remove or restore a person's bending, as she did in restoring Lin Beifong's earthbending.

Other skills


In addition to bending, Korra also has considerable physical prowess. Her impressive raw strength can easily lift Tenzin and his kids at the same time, as well as effectively traverse various terrains and surfaces with great speed to hoist herself easily up and off rooftops. She can easily throw a much larger and heavier opponent against a set of pipes with enough force to break them, and can shatter large chunks of ice launched at her with a single punch each. Korra is also quite fast and agile with sharp reflexes, able to skillfully dodge a much larger opponent's assault in a narrow area or a metalbender's launched cable from close range. Her dexterity and flexibility are also considerably high, allowing her to do impressive acrobatic flips and mid-air twirls to further aid her in battle, and skillfully dodge large barrages of projectiles nearly unscathed.

In addition, she is a capable unarmed fighter, able to knock out opponents with a single kick and once subdued a man using only Mako's scarf. Even against an expert weapons-wielder like the Lieutenant, Korra skillfully parried and countered his close-range assault. Furthermore, with a combination of bending attacks, she was able to create openings and land powerful physical blows, ultimately defeating him. Korra also has keen instincts under pressure, demonstrating capable tactical and escape skills, such as using her armband as an insulator against the Lieutenant's electrical assault, and faking unconsciousness in order to catch the Equalists by surprise.

Appearances
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Book One: Air (气)
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Trivia

 * Her name follows a longstanding tradition in the polar Water Tribes, where often people include one or two "K"s and/or have an "AH" sound in their name (Katara, Hakoda, Sokka, Pakku, Kuruk, Kanna, Arnook, Tarrlok, Noatak, Yakone etc.)
 * Korra is the first female Avatar to be born since Avatar Kyoshi 465 years prior.
 * Korra is the second known Avatar to be bloodbent by an enemy; the first one was her predecessor, Avatar Aang.
 * The creators could not find a name that they agreed on that followed the tradition of the Water Tribe names, but when they were staying in an eco-lodge, the owner introduced them to his dog, Cora. The creators agreed on the name, and with a spelling tweak, it fit into the established culture.
 * Korra's situation appears to be the opposite of that of Aang; Aang had mastered airbending and had to travel the world to learn the other three elements. Korra has mastered waterbending, earthbending, and firebending, and had to learn airbending. In addition, while Aang was very in tune with the spiritual side of bending and had to work to achieve the physical side of it, Korra is talented with the physical side of bending, but had to master the spiritual side.
 * When anglicized, Greek "Kore" reforms as "Cora", with both names meaning "maiden". Kore is also another name for Persephone, Greek goddess of the underworld, who is described by Homer as a "formidable and powerful young queen".
 * Corra means "run" in the imperative mood in Portuguese and Correr means "to run" in Spanish and in Portuguese, possibly relating to her athletic skill.
 * In the Ethiopian language of Amharic to be korra is to be over satisfied.
 * Korra is the name of a village in the Tibetan Autonomous Region of China.
 * Korra's name bears resemblance to Cora Baker's given name. Baker is the voice actress who voiced the young, four year old Korra.
 * Korra is the first Avatar to hail from one of the two Water Tribes since Kuruk, who lived 489 years ago and was from the Northern Water Tribe, unlike Korra, who was from the Southern.
 * Korra is the second known Avatar shown to know of her status as the Avatar before her sixteenth birthday, Aang being the first, though she knew of her status at a significantly younger age.
 * Despite being born a waterbender, meaning firebending is her polar opposite, Avatar Korra had trouble with airbending instead due to her headstrong nature and lack of spirituality.
 * Korra is the only Avatar known to have both biological parents featured in the series, have their bending blocked with chi blocking, and to have used waterbending for healing purposes.
 * Korra is also the first Avatar known to have her bending removed, and likewise restored.
 * Korra is the second known Avatar to utilize energybending.
 * Korra is the second known Avatar to be seen restoring someone's bending that had been previously taken away, and the first to be seen doing so while presently alive
 * Korra favors the "I'm looking for the bathroom" excuse whenever someone confronts her on what she is doing, when she should not be there.
 * Unlike Katara and a waterbender from Triple Threat Triad, Korra does not carry a water skin. Instead, she relies on her firebending skills when there is no water around.
 * The opening animation with her as the waterbender also depicts her headstrong personality, compared to Pakku in the previous series with his graceful control and smooth motion releasing a clean ball of water; Korra's form spills excess water and forms a rough water whip which torrents onto the screen.
 * Whereas Aang relied very heavily on his native element and preferred to use it before making use of any other, Korra does not seem to have any real preference over using her own native element; as noted, she does not bother to carry a water skin. In fact, she relies more on firebending than any of the other elements; most likely due to the fact that it is the most lethal of the bending arts and requires no natural resources.
 * Korra is the first known person to have ever tamed a polar bear dog.
 * Korra is the waterbender shown in the opening sequence of The Legend of Korra.
 * When she first utilized the Avatar State, Korra bent each of the four elements in reverse order of the cycle; air, fire, earth, water. This was the same order Aang bent the elements during the Battle at Wulong Forest when he entered the Avatar State.
 * Korra is the fifth known person to break free of a bloodbender's hold by their own doing; and is the first Avatar known to be able to resist bloodbending without being in the Avatar State.
 * Korra used the phrase "if you're man enough to face me" when trying to goad Amon into fighting her, which was the same phrase Katara used when she goaded Pakku into fighting her.
 * Korra's design was inspired by various female MMA fighters.