Talk:Airbending/@comment-110.33.12.96-20111218141713/@comment-110.33.5.88-20120202041533

Okay, now I think we should point out that we can't really know what the boulder is composed of but I think it VERY likely that it is just a giant flaming, solid rock. No mud, just carved stone. If it were mud, would Aang be able to deflect it in the Serpent's Path and Siege of the North Part 1? Which, by the way, are twon great examples of how near-solid the air attacks can be made. Also, we have to clear something up for this wiki page: Aang did NOT slice the buzzard wasp in two. The air attack injured it, and it collapsed to the ground. I sincerely doubt any animal cruelty of Aang's would extend that far. Another thing, it is speculation to say that an airbending slice is easier to perform than a waterbending slice. Nowhere is that mentioned in the series. I mentioned the telekinesis-like power before to just support how inventive and useful airbending moves are. As to why Aang didn't use solid air against Bumi or the Dai Li, well Aang mostly fights to evade or avoid injuring his opponents too greatly. Besides, by Dai Li fighting time, Aang had Earthbending at his disposal too so he didn't rely on airbending all the time. Although, talking about action sequences is different, considering the awesome-factor necessary for the creators to put in. The audience have to be entertained and if Aang just defeated someone straight off the bat with a gut-busting airbending blast of semi-solid air, then that wouldn't be very interesting. Why couldn't Aang catch Azula in the Day of Black Sun Part 2? He has super-speed, right? Yet, he couldn't "pin her down". This is a perfect example of a plot-hole in the show’s consistency that the creators sacrificed for a cool action scene and a way to let Azula escape – so Zuko could take her down later. Now, as for the “weakness” of airbending being a slightly less offensive power … That is also conjectural. Aang blew up a boulder, sliced off the Swamp monster’s arm and possibly nearly killed a buzzard wasp. He also hurt the Serpent monster and Wan Shi Tong with compressed air attacks. The fact that he can even cause those giant projectile rocks to literally bounce off his airbending swipes, is a sign of extremely powerful offensive potential. It doesn’t matter if airbending is only shown to be capable of solid attacks as strong as an earthbender’s only a few times in the series. As long as it happens once, is more than enough. Firebenders can also cut through solid material with their flames, as if they were anything more than super-heated gas. My proof of that? Azula in ‘the Chase’. Aang is holding onto to a building roof-top for dear life and Azula slices through the brick- and wood- work twice to bring him down. So, my conclusion overall is that airbending has just as much offensive capability as any other bending style. There is no true weakness of airbending, other than the fact that it lacks a sub-skill. That is it. Although, as I wrote before, he can fly, create tornadoes and run at super-speed using airbending and that, for me anyway, makes up for the lack of a sub-skill immediately.