Lin Beifong

"earth"

- Come on, show a little more backbone. It's time the benders of this city displayed some strength and unity against these Equalists.

Lin Beifong is the daughter of Toph Beifong, and the former Chief of Police of Republic City. Although her mother taught Avatar Korra's previous incarnation how to earthbend, Lin displayed no affection toward her when they first met. However, Lin's feelings toward the young Avatar changed when Amon and his Equalists made their public appearance and openly challenged the benders of the world. Lin is brave, loyal, and willing to sacrifice herself in order to do what she believes is right.

Background
Born to Toph Beifong two decades after the Hundred Year War, Lin Beifong inherited the earthbending prowess of her mother and eventually mastered the art and two of its sub-skills, metalbending, and seismic sense.

Lin followed in her mother's footsteps and joined the Metalbending Police Force. She eventually became chief, and held this position for quite some time.

Since her mother was friends with Avatar Aang, Lin and Tenzin had known each other since childhood. According to Tenzin, she got along "famously" with his father. Earlier in her life, she dated Tenzin, but the two eventually drifted apart, as they had different goals in life. The relationship was broken completely after Pema confessed her love for the airbender, after which, Lin unsuccessfully tried to throw her in jail.

Meeting Avatar Korra


When Korra arrived in Republic City, she was subsequently arrested and brought before Chief Lin Beifong on charges of destruction of private and city property. The two had a conversation in which Lin explained that she had no favoritism toward the young Avatar despite the fact that her mother and Aang were friends. Tenzin eventually came to exempt Korra of the charges; however, Lin made it clear that she wanted the Avatar out of "her" city. The next day, the Chief attended a press conference during which Korra made her first public appearance as the Avatar in Republic City. At that time, the new Avatar was also asked if she would be working with Chief Beifong, a question to which she did not reply.

Lin later encountered Korra again at a party hosted by Councilman Tarrlok, where she remained unimpressed with the Avatar, stating that Korra had done absolutely nothing to deserve the city's praise.

The Championship Finals


Several nights before the pro-bending championship match, Amon hijacked the radio and threatened that if the game was not canceled, the Equalists would unleash an attack on the arena.

Shortly after this announcement, the United Republic Council was in favor of closing the arena for the sake of public safety, despite Korra, Bolin, and Mako's pleading. Lin, however, entered City Hall and, albeit reluctantly, agreed with Korra and demanded that the Council show some backbone. In exchange for keeping the arena open, the Chief agreed to provide heavy security for the event. This agreement convinced Tarrlok and the rest of the Council to leave the arena open. Tenzin encountered Lin later and offered to provide her protection during the event, but she demanded that she not be babysat, insisting she could take care of herself. Korra approached Lin and expressed her gratitude to Lin for agreeing with her in the Council meeting, however, she ignored the Avatar's thanks.

Lin proceeded to establish tight security for the event, and finally agreed to bury an old hatchet and work together with Tenzin. Her officers continued checking and rechecking the arena for any signs of anything threatening, and eventually decided it was clear.

Lin Beifong later met up with Tenzin and the two watched the match together. As Tenzin became enraged about the Wolfbats' blatant disregard of the rules, Lin became amused, claiming that she did not think he would know the rules of pro-bending. The two exchanged some conversation during the match as the Wolfbats won a controversial victory, mostly after Korra won her tie-breaker match with Tahno. Lin became somewhat impressed, remarking that she could not believe that the sweet-tempered Aang was reincarnated into Korra, whom she described to be "tough as nails". Tenzin commented that Korra reminded him of Lin at that age, and that he believed they would get along if she would give her a chance.

Despite Lin's maximum security, the Equalists formulated a plan and her preparations were rendered useless. Due to the fact that the metalbending cops' armor was impervious to an attack by chi blocking, the Equalists had developed other means of entering and attacking the arena. After the match, the Equalists attacked Tenzin and Lin with electrified gloves, rendering them unconscious.

Amon appeared at the center of arena and made a speech about the Equalist movement; he subsequently attempted to leave through the pro-bending arena's ceiling. Korra attempted to pursue them and used waterbending to give herself a boost to the ceiling. However, she came up short, and Lin used one of her metal cables to successfully boost Korra up to the ceiling.



Lin soon joined the Avatar on the roof and attempted to fight the Lieutenant and other Equalists. The metalbender was stunned again by the Lieutenant, but managed to recover and continued to fight alongside the young Avatar. Lin attached herself onto the Equalist blimp, and was close to capturing Amon, however, at exactly the same moment, Korra fell through the Pro-bending Arena's glass ceiling. The chief was left making the hard decision between possibly capturing Amon, or saving Korra's life, and in a selfless act Lin chose the latter. Korra thanked the metalbender for saving her life. Tenzin, Lin, and the Avatar discussed that Amon had gotten the better of them on that night, and Tenzin declared that this was the beginning of a war.

Investigating the Sato factory
After the Equalist attack, Lin received notoriety from the public for failing to capture Amon. Councilman Tarrlok even proposed in a press conference that she be replaced as the Chief of Police. Lin began conducting numerous investigations with Tenzin, interrogating the witnesses of the incident in the arena. She later received intelligence that Cabbage Corp had manufactured the Equalist weaponry, so the Metalbending Police Force proceeded to shut down the company and arrest the owner.

When Lin and Tenzin were alerted by Korra of a possible connection between Hiroshi Sato and the Equalists, the metalbender at first doubted about its veracity, but agreed with Tenzin that he would have both the means and the motive. The Chief and the airbender went to the Sato estate to question him further. The businessman excused his guilt, claiming it was all a simple misunderstanding; he also welcomed Lin's officers to search his factories. However, Lin and her men were not able to find any substantial evidence to incriminate Sato.

As the investigation came to an end, a worker in the factory slipped Korra a note telling her to meet him underneath the Silk Road Bridge. Korra, Lin, and Tenzin met the worker, who explained that Sato was an Equalist and that he had indeed manufactured the weapons used during the arena attack. The worker also revealed that Sato was preparing to launch a new, more powerful weapon, which he was making in a secret factory underneath his mansion.



Lin, Korra, and Tenzin, escorted by some metalbending officers, conducted a second search of the Sato estate, and discovered a massive factory with Equalist propaganda and several weapons, including new, massive robot-like machines, mecha tanks. However, they soon realized they had been lured into a trap as Hiroshi Sato sealed the factory off, and began to fight Lin, Korra, Tenzin, and the officers with the new machines. While the group was able to fend off Sato, he and the Equalists eventually overpowered the benders and rendered them unconscious. Hiroshi ordered his men to bind everyone and bring them to Amon.

Meanwhile, Mako and Bolin entered the factory and attempted to carry Korra, Tenzin, and Lin to the surface; however, Hiroshi soon discovered them and prepared to attack the brothers. They were saved by the appearance of Asami, who had also made her way to the factory. After a brief conversation with her father, Asami used an electrified glove to knock out Hiroshi and the Lieutenant, giving time for everyone, herself included, to escape via airship. However, they were forced to leave Lin's officers behind as they could not carry them, and the Equalists had already begun to load them into the trucks.

While on the airship heading back to the city, Lin, still in pain from the attack, told Tenzin that she feared for the fate of her men and, since she had failed twice as police chief, was planning to turn in her resignation in the morning. Tenzin told her to not give up the fight, but the metalbender stated she was resigning so that she could find her men and take down Amon her way: outside of the law.

Lin officially presented her resignation as chief the next morning and turned over her position to Saikhan.

Searching for Avatar Korra


While Lin was in the hospital recovering from her injuries, Saikhan had taken over as the chief of police, with Tarrlok developing an increased influence over the new chief. In this time, Tarrlok unjustly arrested a crowd of non-benders, as well as Mako, Bolin, and Asami.

Some days later, Lin awoke to a radio broadcast announcing that Korra had been kidnapped by the Equalists. She went to the prison and quickly freed Asami, Mako, and Bolin. Tenzin soon joined the group, and they went to search for Korra and Lin's captured men. Uncovering a network of tunnels under the city, the four, including Tenzin, discovered and infiltrated the Equalist hideout. Lin also found the officers who she was forced to abandon underneath Hiroshi Sato's mansion; however, once she discovered that Amon had already taken their bending away, she expressed regret and apologized for arriving too late. Several minutes later, a chi blocker they had captured told them under duress that the Equalists had never kidnapped Korra and that Tarrlok had been lying. With the help of Lin's earthbending and metalbending, they escaped from their pursuers via tram, the group making its way out of the underground tunnels to the surface. From there, they traveled toward City Hall to confront Tarrlok.

Once they arrived, the group challenged Tarrlok's story of what had happened the previous night, telling him they knew he was lying and had Korra. His assistant revealed that he was a bloodbender, and he had, in fact, kidnapped the Avatar. Lin and Tenzin readied themselves for combat, but Tarrlok knocked the entire group unconscious by bloodbending them. After they woke up, they resumed their search for Korra.

Later, when Lin and the others heard Naga howl, they traveled to the source of the sound and found the polar bear dog with Korra on her back. Lin attempted to find out from Korra where Tarrlok was, but Mako pushed her aside, demanding that they all gave Korra some space.

Defending Air Temple Island


After Tenzin arrived, Lin stayed with his family and before the airbender had to leave for an important Council meeting, he asked Lin to look after his wife and children, to which she agreed. Shortly after Tenzin left, sounds of explosions made it clear that Republic City was under attack, prompting Lin to order the family to go inside. When the Equalists arrived on the island, she tried to defend herself, but was electrified. Jinora, Ikki, and Meelo came to her rescue and defeated the group of attackers in a small battle with surprising ease. As more airships were heading toward the island, Tenzin decided to take his family to a safer location away from Republic City.

Lin knew the family would need protection and accompanied them, taking it upon herself to protect the last airbenders in existence. As she and Tenzin's family fled, two Equalist airships pursued them. After tearing up the net launched by one of the airships, Lin made the difficult decision to attack the aircraft, telling Tenzin not to turn back, no matter what happened to her. Using the broken net's cable, she jumped off of Oogi and climbed atop the airship using her metal wires. Once on top, she ripped a hole in the metal and tore the top of the airship in two. She jumped to the second one to do the same, but was ambushed by Equalists and knocked out with an electrified bolus.



Following the capture of the metalbender, the lone Equalist airship turned back and stopped pursuing Tenzin and his family. Lin's sacrifice prompted Meelo to declare her his hero, a statement with which Tenzin solemnly agreed.

Lin was brought back to Air Temple Island to face Amon. He inquired about Korra's whereabouts, telling her that if she complied, he would not remove her bending. Lin, tied up and defenseless, chose to remain silent and willingly sacrificed her bending in order to protect the Avatar. Amon removed her bending and she collapsed to the ground.

Earthbending restored


Despite losing her bending, Lin accompanied Team Avatar throughout Amon's conquest. After Amon was outed as a bender, Lin traveled with Team Avatar and Tenzin's family to the Southern Water Tribe compound, where Korra hoped Katara would be able to restore her bending. When Katara said she was unable to restore Korra's bending, Lin grievingly remarked that Katara, the best healer in the world, must be able to do something, as otherwise Amon's damage could never be undone. However, when Korra ran away on Naga, she was visited by Aang's spirit, who restored her bending through energybending. Later, Korra used energybending to restore Lin's earthbending, substantiated when Lin raised a number of boulders surrounding their location. Afterwards, she thanked Korra for restoring her bending.

Personality


During her time as police chief, Lin was tough, uncompromising, and a great leader overall. Tenzin himself described her as "challenging". She makes it clear when she is irritated or dislikes someone, being abrasive especially toward Tenzin and Korra. However, at times she has exhibited a softer facet to her personality. When she was Chief of Police, she apprehended anyone who broke the law, regardless of their intent, as she was quick to condemn the actions of Korra when she destroyed public and private property in an attempt to thwart the actions of the Triple Threat Triad. She believes that the only way to maintain peace and stability in Republic City is through the use of military might. Lin worked hard to enforce the city's laws and felt that Korra could potentially compromise this stability. However, she and the Avatar both worked together with a mutual goal of defeating Amon, proving that she came to trust her to a certain extent. Following the battle at the pro-bending arena, Lin became a trifle less harsh toward not only Korra but to Tenzin as well, to the point that she was willing to rescue the Avatar's friends and help Tenzin and his family escape the Equalists.

Lin is incredibly loyal to her friends, to the point where she would willingly sacrifice herself and her goals to help them. She forfeited her chance to capture Amon to save Avatar Korra's life, and accepted Tenzin's request to help protect his family without pausing to think at all. Additionally, she did not think twice to rescue her men although it was no longer her duty to do so. Her most loyal sacrifice, however, came during the Battle for Republic City, when she sacrificed herself to secure Tenzin and his family's escape. She was eventually brought before Amon, and even when faced with the masked Equalist leader, she was willing let him take her bending instead of telling him where Korra was.

Lin possesses many traits that, at first, appear to be different from those of her mother, Toph. While her mother, at least in her younger years, was freewheeling and laid back where rules were concerned, Lin has a no-nonsense attitude and treats Republic City's laws with great respect. However, Lin also was willing to work outside of the constraints of the law to free her officers, displaying a defiant and courageous attitude similar to her mother's.

Lin also inherited Toph's habit of not giving special treatment to others based on titles, which was exhibited through her treatment of Korra. Despite her indifferent and somewhat cold exterior, Lin also cares deeply for the safety of Republic City and takes responsibility for those who serve under her, as demonstrated when she decided to resign from her job so she could work outside the law and its limitations to save her officers taken captive by the Equalists.

Earthbending
Like her renowned mother, Lin has mastered earthbending, being equally proficient in the traditional Hung Gar earthbending style and her mother's self-taught Chu Gar Praying Mantis style. She is able to easily elevate multiple large boulders simultaneously, as well as launch herself high up into the air.



Lin has also demonstrated a great mastery over the seismic sense technique, which allows her detect the layout of the surrounding area and the people within it with great accuracy and detail. Thus, she is easily able to locate subterranean structures, as well as determine with accuracy who is within the general vicinity. For example, while on the hunt for her captured officers, she was able to pinpoint their presence within an Equalist hideout, but also perceive that Korra was absent. She could also sense the mechanism of a locked door without physically perceiving it in order to open it with her bending. Like Toph, Lin's ability is limited without direct skin contact, requiring her to either use her hands or retract the soles on her boots.

Metalbending


As the former head of the Metalbending Police Force, Lin is especially proficient in the specialized art of metalbending. She is able to rip metal beams or floors from their bearings and single-handedly tear apart an airship's metal hull. For more general use, Lin uses her standard retractable metal cables, which are highly versatile in battle. With them, she is able to perform considerable feats of acrobatics, easily maneuvering around cavernous locations, such as the Pro-bending Arena. She can also fashion them as wrist blades for close-quarters combat. Lin has also performed intricate and otherwise delicate metalbending as well, from unlocking metal handcuffs from a distance to wrapping her armor around herself, and even closing up Bolin's zipper.

Other skills
Despite being middle-aged, Lin is agile and resilient; this is exhibited through her quick recovery from a chi blocker attack and, in the same move, somersaulting upright and taking down two chi blockers. Her reflexes are great enough to subdue multiple chi blockers by herself. Like her mother, Lin is also considerably strong, able to launch Korra onto the roof of the Pro-bending Arena with one cable while using the other to swing in the air. She has also shown considerable skill in aim, as she was able to snap Tarrlok's gavel from across a large room with one of her metal cables without touching him with the cable.

Trivia

 * She was first announced on July 23, 2011 at San Diego Comic-Con, and is the second named child of a member of (the original) Team Avatar to appear, the first being Tenzin.
 * Chief Beifong's appearance bears a greater resemblance to her grandmother Poppy Beifong than to her mother, at least as seen in the Avatar: The Last Airbender series.
 * Lin's voice actress, Mindy Sterling, also voiced the Fire Nation councilwoman.
 * Lin was responsible for updating the metal cables on the police uniform from being in their belts to being in spools on their backs.
 * Lin Beifong's character design, aside from her personality, was partially inspired by Han Young Ja, the general manager at Studio Mir, and longtime friend and colleague of Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino.
 * When Korra was frustrated with her inability to airbend, she tried directing an airbending attack at a newspaper hanging on a line with an image of Lin on the front page. When she failed to blast it away, she set fire to it instead.
 * Lin is the first person in The Legend of Korra to use seismic sense, but the third in both series. The first one to use this was Toph, who later taught it to Aang, and eventually to her daughter as well.
 * Despite being an earthbending master, Lin appears to heavily favor metalbending.
 * Lin's method of equipping herself with armor resembles that of many heroic characters throughout media history, such as Iron Man.
 * Lin is the first known female victim of bending removal, the first person to have their bending restored by Korra, and only the second person to have their bending restored by an Avatar.
 * Lin is a Chinese female name that may be written with the Chinese character,, which means "beautiful jade". It is also a common Chinese surname that is often written as meaning "forest".
 * It was confirmed by the creators that Lin did not want to have children and that this difference of opinion with Tenzin hurt their relationship.
 * Lin Beifong deciding to fight outside the law is ironic, considering how she showed no patience for people who would use vigilante justice against criminals.