Jet


 * This article is about the character. For the episode, see Jet (episode).

"earth"

- My name is Jet, and these are my Freedom Fighters.

Jet was the teenage leader of a band of refugee Earth Kingdom children, known as the Freedom Fighters.

When Jet was only eight years old, he witnessed his parents' deaths at the hands of the Fire Nation soldiers known as the Rough Rhinos. Jet grew up to become a sword-wielding vigilante, possessing a burning hatred for the Fire Nation and going to extreme lengths to enact his revenge, even endangering innocent lives.

Jet disbanded the Freedom Fighters after an encounter with Team Avatar; he and his friends Longshot and Smellerbee then decided to start a new life in Ba Sing Se. When he tried to expose Prince Zuko and Iroh as firebenders, the Dai Li arrested and brainwashed him into submission.

A second encounter with the Avatar's group revealed the truth of the Dai Li to Jet, and he helped them find Appa by leading them to Lake Laogai, the Dai Li headquarters. There, Jet was fatally wounded by Long Feng when he overcame the hypnosis placed upon him.

Background
The young vigilante Jet held a deep-seated grudge against the Fire Nation because of an attack by the Rough Rhinos, who killed his parents when he was eight and watched his village as it was destroyed. From that day on, he would despise the Fire Nation and he dedicated his life to hurting it in any way he could, even at the cost of innocent lives.



Over the years, Jet formed a ragtag group of Freedom Fighters from young Earth Kingdom refugees who had been displaced by the Fire Nation. He and his group spent their days antagonizing Fire Nation soldiers and emigrants on the outskirts of an occupied town, living in forest tree houses. At some point before he met Team Avatar, he formed a plan to eliminate the Fire Nation presence in the forest by destroying a dam, flooding the occupied town.

Encountering the Avatar
One day, while the Freedom Fighters were waiting for a distraction so they could ambush a camp of Fire Nation soldiers, Aang, Katara and Sokka accidentally walked into the camp. Just as the soldiers were about to arrest them, Longshot knocked out the captain with a poisoned arrow, and the Freedom Fighters, led by Jet, began fighting the soldiers. The rest of his group followed suit, as did Team Avatar. At one point in the fight, Jet took out a soldier Sokka was fighting, and told him that he had to be quicker when Sokka protested. When the fight ended, the two groups introduced themselves to each other. Katara became infatuated with the charismatic rogue and Aang was happy to make new friends, but Sokka didn't like him. The Duke found barrels full of blasting jelly and Pipsqueak found crates filled with jelly candy, both of which Jet called great scores and advised his group not to get the two mixed up. He invited Aang, Sokka and Katara to dinner at his tree house. At dinner, Jet gave a humorous account of the battle to his followers. While Aang and Katara quickly grew to like the Freedom Fighters, Sokka's dislike and distrust of Jet worsened.



The following morning, Jet invited Team Avatar to stay with him a while and help liberate the valley. Katara and Aang wanted to accept, but Sokka insisted that they continue to the North Pole. However, Jet invited Sokka to go with him on a scouting mission, to which Sokka reluctantly agreed. Sokka, Jet, Pipsqueak and Longshot waited in trees alongside a road. Eventually, an old Fire Nation civilian came walking towards the village. Jet and the fighters ambushed the man while Sokka watched in shock. Jet cruelly interrogated the old man and was about to hurt him when Sokka stopped him. He objected to the poor treatment of harmless civilians, but Jet said that it must be done. The Freedom Fighters robbed the old man and left, Sokka reluctantly going with them.

Sokka told his friends of the incident and accused Jet of robbery. Jet pointed out to Aang and Katara that the old man was Fire Nation and revealed a poison knife that the old man supposedly had on him. While Sokka remained convinced that Jet was a thug, Katara and Aang were convinced by him and decided to stay.

That night, Jet and the Freedom Fighters went to the dam overlooking the village of Gaipan to discuss their plan to destroy it, ridding the valley of the Fire Nation. When The Duke initially objected to killing the innocent people in the town, Jet told him that it had to be done to get rid of the Fire Nation's forces. Smellerbee discovered Sokka eavesdropping on them. Sokka was horrified by Jet's plan, but Jet tried to convince him that it was the right thing to do. Sokka was adamant, and Jet reluctantly ordered Smellerbee and Pipsqueak to imprison him.



In the morning, Jet met Aang and Katara, who didn't know about his plan to destroy the dam. They apologized for Sokka's behavior, but Jet told them that he already apologized and that he was on a mission to help the Freedom Fighters. Jet convinced the two of them that the Fire Nation was planning to burn the forest and he needed their help. He took Aang and Katara to the river and told them to use their waterbending on underground geysers to flood the river. He left to help the others set up the Blasting jelly on the dam.

Aang and Katara finished their task earlier than expected and went to find Jet. When they got to a cliff, they discovered Jet's plan to destroy the dam. Aang was about to go to stop him, but Jet swooped out of a tree and stole Aang's glider. Jet tried to convince Aang and Katara that he was doing the right thing, but a heartbroken Katara attacked him with water. Aang tried to get his glider back, but Jet defended himself with his hook swords and jumped into the trees. A fight ensued across the treetops between Aang and Jet. Jet eventually got out of the trees and damaged Aang's glider, but Katara caught him off guard and froze him in ice. Unfortunately, Jet whistled a signal to his group, while Aang and Katara watched helplessly as the dam was destroyed and Gaipan was flooded.

Katara angrily accused Jet of mass murder, but Jet defiantly told them that the sacrifices were necessary to ensure the safety of the valley. Just then, Sokka flew in and revealed that he'd gotten away and warned the villagers of Jet's attack, and that they were all safe. Jet angrily called Sokka a traitor, but Sokka calmly replied that Jet was the traitor for not protecting innocent people. Jet made one last plea to Katara, but she coldly said goodbye. The group flew off, leaving Jet frozen and defeated.

A second chance


Jet and two of his Freedom Fighters, Longshot and Smellerbee, were traveling to Ba Sing Se on a ferry. Among the many passengers were Zuko and Iroh. Shortly after the boat took off, he overheard Zuko complaining about the rotten food; he offered Zuko to help steal better food from the Captain, who ate like a king. Zuko and the Freedom Fighters successfully stole the Captain's food supply and gave it out to the passengers. Jet admitted to Zuko and Iroh that he did terrible things in his past that he was not proud of, but that was why he and his Freedom Fighters were going to Ba Sing Se to make amends, and get a second chance. Iroh contemplated his decision, believing that people deserve second chances and can change their lives if they want to.

Jet later talked to Zuko alone, telling him that when he first saw his scar he realized that he was an outcast like himself. Jet stated that they should watch out for each other, because no one else would. Zuko replied that he realized that being alone wasn't the best path. Jet later offered Zuko a place in his team of Freedom Fighters, but Zuko turned him down. Jet then saw Iroh heating a cup of tea in his hand with firebending, and became furious. He became intent on confirming that Zuko and Iroh were from the Fire Nation, forgetting his promise to Longshot and Smellerbee to start over, although he later assured Smellerbee that he only intended to gather enough evidence that Iroh and Zuko were Fire Nation natives to turn them in to the proper authorities.



Later, he made many surreptitious attempts to expose their firebending, such as stealing Iroh's spark rocks, but to no avail, allowing his anger to cloud his judgment once again. He focused his efforts on Iroh, as he had only seen evidence of Iroh's ability to firebend, but believed Zuko was native to the Fire Nation by association. Ignoring Smellerbee and Longshot's concerns, he openly challenged the two fugitives in public. As Jet was an extremely skilled swordsman, he believed that Zuko and Iroh would have no choice but to firebend in order to save themselves. Zuko gladly accepted Jet's challenge and fought Jet on even terms with broadswords he snatched from a nearby soldier, ignoring Jet's attempts to goad him into firebending. The fight dragged out until both fighters lost one of their blades (and Jet's trademark sprig of wheat was cut in half). As the fight went on, the Dai Li arrived to diffuse the situation, and Jet again accused Zuko and Iroh of being Fire Nation, but all the witnesses claimed Zuko and Iroh were assaulted without provocation. A struggling Jet was arrested by the Dai Li and taken to a secret location in Ba Sing Se, later revealed to be their secret headquarters under Lake Laogai. He was then subjected to an Earth Kingdom brainwashing technique designed to make him forget about the War.

Answers and death
Later, he showed up during the group's search for Appa. He found Katara putting up posters looking for information on Appa, and offered to help. Katara didn't believe him and preemptively attacked. He briefly defended himself before throwing down his swords and claiming that he simply wanted to help. He said that he overheard talk of Appa being kept in a city storeroom and led the gang there. His story was seemingly confirmed when the gang found a clump of Appa's fur on the premises, and an old janitor claimed that the bison had been moved just the day before to a distant island. However, when the group went outside, they ran into Longshot and Smellerbee, who were relieved to see Jet. However, when they questioned him about his capture by the Dai Li he claimed that it never happened and was confused when Smellerbee insisted on it. Toph's seismic sense told her that Jet and Smellerbee were telling the truth.

Sokka realized the only explanation was that Jet had been brainwashed and used as a plot by the Dai Li to quietly draw the divisive Avatar and his friends away from Ba Sing Se. With his conditioning broken and true memory returning, Jet was able to lead the group to the secret building in Lake Laogai where he had been brainwashed, and where Appa was being kept. They were discovered and fought against a large group of Dai Li agents and Long Feng, the leader of the Dai Li, who proclaimed that Aang and his friends were now enemies of the state. The group managed to fight off the Dai Li, and Jet and Aang chased a fleeing Long Feng into another room. However, there the cunning Long Feng used a new trap against Aang; he spoke a verbal trigger worked into Jet's brainwashing that made Jet fight and attempt to kill Aang.



After a few minutes of frantically dodging Jet's attacks, Aang managed to remind Jet of his past as a Freedom Fighter and bring him back to his senses. Jet regained his senses and attacked Long Feng, who dodged and retaliated with a fatal blow. When the rest of the gang as well as Smellerbee and Longshot showed up, Katara checked his injuries and said that it didn't look too good. Smellerbee told them to leave to find Appa. They refused to leave them, but Longshot spoke, for the first and only time in the series, saying that they would stay with him, since he was their leader. Jet insisted to Katara that he would be alright, but Toph sensed that he was lying. Smellerbee was last seen by Jet's side, crying while Longshot was notching an arrow. Jet died from his serious internal injuries.

Legacy


Months after his death, in the summer of 100 ASC, Zuko and Katara went on a mission to find the man who killed Katara's mother, with Katara clearly intent on getting revenge. Aang recognized her rage and remarked that she was acting like Jet. Katara vehemently denied this, claiming that it was very different because she was out to get a monster, while Jet was out to kill innocents. She evidently hadn't forgotten his crimes despite his heroic "death", suggesting there may have been a part of her that was still angry with Jet for his past actions.

Jet was later a featured character in a play that Team Avatar attended, entitled "The Boy in the Iceberg." Zuko more than anyone else was shocked when he saw the scene in which Jet died by a prop boulder falling on him, asking if Jet had actually died. Sokka replied that it was "really unclear." This was a humorous allusion to the fact that the show never confirmed on screen whether Jet actually lived or died. However, it has been confirmed that Jet is in fact dead.

Personality
Ever since the Fire Nation destroyed his village and killed his parents, Jet was marked by his almost pathological hatred of the Fire Nation. To him, all citizens of the Fire Nation are guilty, regardless of whether they are involved with the War or not. In some ways he represented what could have happened to Katara and Sokka after the death of their mother, if they had allowed their hatred to consume them.

Jet seemed to possess a high opinion of his Freedom Fighters' effect on the War, convinced that they were a serious threat and the Fire Nation were sending assassins after him. This seemed to blind him to the fact that, when compared to the scope of the War, his group's acts of guerrilla warfare and terrorism were relatively small.

He could be obsessive and paranoid about the Fire Nation. As mentioned before, he was convinced that the Fire Nation was trying to assassinate and silence him. He became obsessed with exposing Zuko and Iroh as firebenders, eventually attacking them when he was unable to come across concrete evidence.

Despite these traits, Jet was recognized for his charisma, and he had a roguishly charming, magnetic and friendly personality. He was sympathetic to people who were desperate, or who'd suffered at the hand of the Fire Nation. This drew many people into his group of fighters, and secured their loyalty to him. In return, he showed his loyalty to them.

Abilities


Though Jet was seen using knives and throwing darts, his primary weapons of choice were a set of twin tiger hook swords. He possessed great skill with his hook swords, able to defeat a master bender, duel evenly with another master swordsman and hold his own against multiple opponents. Jet was just as capable of fighting with a single hook sword as with two. He was also very agile, able to leap from tree to tree as a way to get around and to ambush his foes.

To communicate with his Freedom Fighters without being overt, Jet was able to mimic a variety of bird calls and mere whistles for different meanings. He used this to give Longshot the signal to destroy the dam and prepare the Freedom Fighters for battle.

A skilled strategist and a charismatic leader, Jet was able to draw a somewhat large following and skillfully led the Freedom Fighters.

Trivia

 * Bryan and Mike explained in the commentary for "The Ember Island Players" that Nickelodeon was against showing kids being fatally wounded or outright killed, especially by a violent attack. It also couldn't be revealed during the rest of the story, so Toph sensing that Jet was lying (by saying that he'd be okay) was how they chose to confirm it for the viewers. Also, in the "Avatar Extras" for "The Ember Island Players", a commentary bubble stated, "For the record: Jet is dead."
 * Katara seemed to have a crush on Jet the first time she met him; later, in "Lake Laogai" Toph sensed that Katara was lying when she denied Jet as her boyfriend.
 * According to "Avatar Extras", Jet was the first boy Katara kissed. This, however, was never actually shown on screen.
 * Based on the injuries Jet sustained, and how Katara couldn't heal him, it is possible that those injuries were internal, such as internal bleeding in the heart since he was struck in the chest, explaining why Katara couldn't heal him.
 * In the book "How to Draw Nickelodeon Avatar: The Last Airbender" Jet was depicted with green and orange clothing instead of the blue and red theme of his show counterpart.
 * In the Avatar: Legends of the Arena online game, Jet's torso armor is an equipable item and has been renamed as "ragtag armor."
 * Jet and his enemy Colonel Mongke were both leaders of their respective groups, Jet: Freedom Fighters and Colonel Mongke: Rough Rhinos.
 * Jet may have not been his real name, seeing as the other members of the Freedom Fighters use obvious pseudonyms.
 * Several aspects of Jet's character and the episode he was introduced appear to be tributes to the works of Shinichiro Watanabe, specifically Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo, both of which were influential to the series. Jet's charisma, skill in combat, and physical appearance bear resemblance to Spike Spiegal, the primary protagonist of Cowboy Bebop. Jet's hairstyle particularly reckons to Spike, and he shares the name of Spike's partner, Bebop's secondary protagonist. Additionally, both Jet and Spike have difficulty forgetting the past. Jet also seems to share some of his appearance and mannerisms with Samurai Champloo character Mugen, especially in his habit of chewing a blade of wheat grass, and Jet's fight with Aang in Book 1 mirrors the strongly detailed fight choreography of the Champloo series.
 * Jet's hook swords are nearly identical to those of Kabal, a character from the Mortal Kombat game series.
 * Including Aang's fatal injury sustained in "The Crossroads of Destiny", from which he was resurrected shortly thereafter, Jet was the fourth of eight to have been observed dying or being murdered in the series. In chronological order, the others were Yue, Zhao, Chin, Aang, Roku, Combustion Man, and Kya.
 * Jet goading Zuko to use fire bending, is a reference to "Zuko Alone" where to survive he must reveal his identity. Jet, however, did not know this.