Korra Alone

"URN"

- For years, people have been saying they can help me get better. Nothing's worked. I need to figure this out on my own.

"Korra Alone" is the second episode of Book Four: Balance of The Legend of Korra and the 41st of the overall series. It was released online on Nick.com and through the Nick app on October 10, 2014, and aired on Nicktoons Network on November 28, 2014.

Overview
''While being haunted by a shadow of herself in the Avatar State, Korra reminisces about the hardships she went through in the course of three years. In 171 AG, she retreated to the Southern Water Tribe in an attempt to heal her body and her mind. After two years and with Katara's help, she was able to recover physically, though continued to have visions about Zaheer and the attempt on her life. In 173 AG, she set out on a journey across the world in an attempt to reconnect with Raava, though to no avail. In 174 AG, while wandering through a small Earth Kingdom town, she decides to confront the vision of herself and loses. However, when a small dog begs her to follow it, she does so and, after passing out in a swamp after a new confrontation with her Avatar self, she wakes up in the home of Toph.''

Synopsis
Avatar Korra is looking at herself in a cracked mirror. There is a bruise under one eye, though she ignores it as she begins to heal a graze on her left elbow. Suddenly, an insistent knock at the door jolts her out of her healing and she turns. There is a man outside, holding his stomach as he begs the occupant to open up. Korra does not attempt to finish healing herself and instead walks toward the street. There is a Satomobile heading toward her, its lights on. She notices it as it begins to beep its horn and barely manages to jump out of the way. Clutching her head, she staggers into an opposite alley before it crashes.



She looks around, only to come face to face with a vision of herself from three years prior, at the moment she was battling Zaheer. This "other Korra" is hunched over, its eyes alight as though in the Avatar State. She makes the first move and throws a chain wrapped around her right wrist at the Avatar. Korra attempts to retaliate with firebending, though the chain wraps around her leg and knocks her off-balance. It moves to her wrist as the Korra in the Avatar State approaches. Korra shouts at it to "leave [her] alone" as she punches out with more fire. It is only when it dissipates that she realizes she is alone. There are several people out on the street, wondering how she is and if they can help, though she just brushes them off.

Korra thinks back to the last time she saw her friends. She is in a wheelchair at the dock on Air Temple Island. As she is preparing to board a ship to the Southern Water Tribe, Bolin attempts to wish her well by stating that he "can't wait for [her] to leave" because he always wanted a pen-pal. Asami asks if she wants some company while in the Southern Water Tribe, though Korra graciously declines. Tenzin encourages her to focus on her recovery and they soon wave goodbye to Korra, Tonraq, Senna, and Kya.



In the Southern Water Tribe, Korra suffers from nightmares of Zaheer that render her unable to sleep. She instead spends her nights watching the southern lights. Senna approaches her and implores that she visit Katara.

Katara begins healing the Avatar, using a pool of water in which Korra submerges herself. Katara notes that the poison did a lot of damage and while she cannot heal Korra directly, she can serve as a guide for the Avatar to heal herself. Katara explains that she knows how it feels to go through a traumatic experience and attempts to encourage Korra that, if she pushes through it, she will come out stronger than ever. Korra responds that she wants to be able to do that, prompting Katara to encourage her to visualize her big toe moving; in essence, to begin to heal herself.

Korra's healing is hindered by the fact that her body still believes itself to be in danger and Katara explains that Korra has to use her mind to overcome the pain. Korra gives up for the day and retires to her room where she reads letters sent to her from her friends. Asami's letter talks about how Future Industries is going well, though Republic City does not feel the same with out her. Mako prefaces his letter by explaining that he is not very good at writing them, moving onto the weather and other happenstances before finally asking how she is doing. Bolin's letter is incredibly formal, though touching, and he explains that he has begun working with Varrick and Kuvira to help stabilize the Earth Kingdom.



It takes almost six months of work before Korra makes any progress, but eventually she is able to walk for longer spells without her wheelchair. It is only after Katara explains that Korra is not alone in suffering as the Avatar – drawing on Aang and the loss of his people – that encourages her to try again. This time, using the same visualizing technique as when she moved her toe, she is able to make it to Naga.

Korra returns from her memories as a dark shadow crosses behind her. She turns and looks, though when she glances back, there is a small, white dog in front of her. Korra's Avatar self appears and the dog barks at it, prompting Korra to speculate that perhaps it is not in her head. The other Korra vanishes at the barking and the Avatar decides to follow the dog when it seems to be expecting her.

Tenzin and Oogi appear in another memory, flying toward the Southern Water Tribe compound. They meet with Korra, who is walking without any aid, and Katara. Desperate to show Tenzin how much better she is doing, she challenges the White Lotus sentries to a firebending match. They do not attack her until she tells them to, though assaulted with a memory of Zaheer, she is unable to keep up and stumbles. Tenzin announces the match to be over, though when he tries to tell her that she needs to recover before throwing herself back into being the Avatar and she has to be patient, she rebuffs him, annoyed that she cannot help.



Later, Korra writes a letter to Asami in which she apologizes for not writing to her sooner, though reveals that previous attempts had failed due to her being uncertain about what to say. She tells Asami that while she can now move around, she still cannot enter the Avatar State. Still suffering from visions of her battle with Zaheer, she confides in the engineer that she fears she might never completely recover from it. She ends her letter with the request to not tell Mako and Bolin that she wrote to her as she did not write to them, as she felt they would not understand and it was easier to tell Asami about her situation.

Soon thereafter, she tells her parents that she wishes to return to Republic City, wanting to be with her friends and among the action of their lives. Tonraq tells her that the Order of the White Lotus can take her back when she is ready, but she disagrees, telling them that she wants to go alone in order to clear her head. She leaves the South in a small, single-person catamaran, sailing out of the dock while waving to her parents and Naga. She stops at a random port and is recognized by a fishmonger who asks for her picture – he already has one of Avatar Aang. Korra agrees, somewhat surprised, though they are interrupted by another vendor, shouting after some thieves who had stolen items from her shop. Korra is completely incapable of stopping them and is questioned as to the veracity of her claim that she is, in fact, the Avatar.



She soon leaves the port and heads toward Republic City. However, when she sails into Yue Bay, she sees herself in the Avatar State and realizes she is not ready to be the Avatar again. Frightened, she turns her boat around and leaves Republic City behind her. She finds a secluded spot somewhere in the Earth Kingdom and with a trace of regret on her face, she sheds her Water Tribe outfit and cuts her hair.

Instead of going to Republic City, she returns to the Tree of Time to meditate, hoping to find some trace of Raava. Several young spirits approach her, wondering who she is. One claims that she is the Avatar, though another argues that, as she looks different and he cannot sense Raava's energy, that it cannot be her. The spirits offer to help, but she declines, stating that though many people have tried, no one has been able to help. She is convinced that she needs to figure it out on her own.

Korra begins sending letters to her parents, pretending that she is in Republic City when in actual fact, she is traveling across the world. When she arrives in the Si Wong Desert, she thinks she sees Raava at one point; it turns out to have just been a mirage, however, and she is incredibly disheartened.

She travels on to a town in which she comes across her other self once again. The Korra in the Avatar State walks away, though Korra vows that she will end it. She follows her other self to an underground fighting ring and enters. Similar to her last earthbending battle with the thieves, Korra again sees herself in the Avatar State and is unable to fight until the end and loses.

She leaves her memories, returning to following the white dog. It leads her to a swamp and, once inside, reveals itself to be one of the young spirits from the Tree of Time that offered to help. It wants to show her someone inside the swamp and runs further in, prompting Korra to follow it.



She loses the spirit and comes face to face with herself in the Avatar State. She is unable to fight and, though she attempts to escape, her adversary uses its chains to grab her and pull her into a substance resembling the mercury the Red Lotus used to poison Korra. When Korra reawakens, she finds herself in a dark cave. There is a strange woman hunched around a pot on a fire, stirring it, who seems to know a lot about Korra. When Korra finally stands up and lights a fire, she is able to recognize the woman as none other than Toph Beifong, who is happy to see her old friend in a manner of speaking, referring to Korra with the same nickname she gave Aang: "Twinkle Toes."

Credits
Written by:
 * Michael Dante DiMartino

Directed by:
 * Ian Graham

Starring:
 * Janet Varney - Korra
 * David Faustino - Mako
 * Seychelle Gabriel - Asami
 * P. J. Byrne - Bolin
 * J. K. Simmons - Tenzin
 * James Remar - Tonraq
 * Jeff Bennett
 * Radio broadcaster
 * Fishmonger
 * Ring announcer

Also starring:
 * Eva Marie Saint - Katara
 * Alex McKenna - Senna
 * Philece Sampler
 * Toph
 * Woman
 * Vendor
 * Morgan Gingerich - Light spirit
 * Max Charles - Skeptical spirit

Series continuity

 * Aang's pose in the picture is similar to the one he assumed for his air marbles trick in "The Warriors of Kyoshi".
 * Toph refers to Korra as "Twinkle Toes", a nickname she gave to Aang when they first met.
 * Korra has a sparring match against firebenders, much like she did in "Welcome to Republic City".

Character revelations

 * Toph has been living in the Foggy Swamp in her search for enlightenment.

Goofs

 * There are several inconsistencies between this episode and the end of "After All These Years".
 * In "After All These Years", Korra was jumping up and down when she said "Is that all you got?", while in this episode, she is standing still.
 * In this episode, the line "We have a winner!" is said before Korra collapses, whereas in "After All These Years", it was heard after she collapsed.
 * The bag Korra carries around is a green backpack instead of the gray duffel bag she had in "After All These Years".
 * At the end of "After All These Years", Korra removes her wristbands, but at the beginning of this episode, which is set directly after Korra made her way out of the arena and into a public bathroom, she is wearing them again.
 * When Korra makes the little flame in her hand to see Toph, the wrapping reaches to the palm of her hand. In the next shot, it only reaches to her wrist.

Trivia

 * "Korra Alone" was named after the Avatar: The Last Airbender episode, "Zuko Alone".
 * Korra cutting off her ponytails is reminiscent of Zuko and Iroh cutting their hair when they became fugitives from the Fire Nation.
 * While there are several animal noises, such as the barking dog and Pabu and Naga making noises, Dee Bradley Baker is not credited.
 * The scene where Katara instructs Korra to move her big toe is a reference to Kill Bill Vol. 1, where the bride attempts to regain the use of her legs in exactly the same way.
 * This episode was one of Michael Dante DiMartino's favorites to write.
 * "Korra Alone" was the People's Choice Winner for "Best Television Episode" in IGN's Best of 2014 for television.