Kuvira

"earth"

- Something you should know about me. I always get what I want.

Kuvira is a master metalbender who was part of the Metal Clan in Zaofu. Prior to her departure in 171 AG, Kuvira served as both the captain of the city's guard and part of Suyin Beifong's dance troupe. Following the outbreak of anarchy in the Earth Kingdom, Kuvira earned the trust of the world leaders by stabilizing Ba Sing Se and was appointed as the nation's provisional leader. She subsequently set out to reunite the rest of the kingdom with her army, which earned her the title of "Great Uniter". In her pursuit of order, Kuvira offered to protect the nation's states from bandits in exchange for their loyalty. During Prince Wu's coronation, Kuvira denounced the authority of the Earth King and dissolved the Earth Kingdom in favor of the "Earth Empire" under her leadership. She is also engaged to Baatar Jr., who left with her to support her ideals.

Early life
At the age of eight, Kuvira was taken in by Suyin Beifong, who nurtured her talents and, over time, came to regard her as a daughter. Growing up, she became heavily influenced by Suyin's progressive ideology concerning modernization and self-fulfillment. A smart and natural leader, Kuvira quickly rose through the ranks of Zaofu's security team, eventually becoming captain of the guard. She also was a part of Suyin's dance troupe.

Defending Zaofu
In 171 AG, Kuvira and the other members of Suyin Beifong's dance troupe rehearsed a routine for an upcoming recital. The rehearsal ended following the arrival of Avatar Korra and her friends.



Several days later, Kuvira accompanied Suyin's family and Team Avatar to a rooftop where they bade farewell to Opal, who left Zaofu to train at the Northern Air Temple. After the airbender's airship left the city, Kuvira used her radio to command the other guards to begin securing Zaofu for the evening. Later that night, Kuvira attacked Zaheer and his group after the four managed to infiltrate the city in an attempt to kidnap Korra. She helped the other members of the Metal Clan trap the criminals in a makeshift metal prison, before ordering them to surrender and return the Avatar. Following the group's escape, Kuvira and the other guards searched the city, albeit to no avail, as they were unable to find any traces of the four benders.

Kuvira was questioned by Aiwei, along with the rest of the city's guards, in an attempt to determine the identity of Zaheer's accomplice. When Aiwei's involvement in the attempted kidnapping of Avatar Korra came to light, Kuvira was ordered by Lin Beifong to search the city for the truth seer and determine where the tunnel underneath his home led, which she eventually traced to a dead end with no signs of Aiwei.

Stopping the Red Lotus
Kuvira traveled with Team Avatar, their allies, and several other members of the Metal Clan to the Northern Air Temple in an attempt to free the airbenders held captive by the Red Lotus. Adhering to Zaheer's demand to meet Korra alone at Laghima's Peak, Kuvira went with Suyin, Lin, Tonraq, and the other metalbenders to the base of the peak and started climbing the mountain with their metal cables in order to be ready to aid Korra if it became necessary. After Mako alerted Lin that they had been double-crossed, the group hurried to the top, though as soon as Kuvira emerged, she was blown off the peak by one of P'Li's combustion beams. Using her cables, she managed to save herself and rejoined the other metalbenders atop the cliff, where they attempted to subdue P'Li. In the midst of the battle that ensued, Kuvira used her cables to save Tonraq after Zaheer used airbending to throw the waterbender off the mountain.



Following the fight, the group reassembled at the base of the peak, where Kuvira tended to Tonraq's wounds. While bandaging the tribal chief's arm, Kuvira introduced herself by name after the waterbender thanked her for her help and addressed her by her rank. She requested to accompany Suyin and the members of Team Avatar to a series of caves near the temple in order to rescue the missing airbenders, but was ordered by Suyin to remain with the injured, much to her disappointment.

Reuniting the Earth Kingdom


A few weeks after the insurrection of the Red Lotus, Kuvira was present during a meeting between President Raiko, Tenzin, and Suyin, as they hoped the the latter would take their offer to reunite the Earth Kingdom. When Suyin declined, Kuvira urged the matriarch to reconsider, believing it to be their opportunity to share Zaofu's progressive ways with the rest of the nation. Even though they would be seen as conquerors and greeted with war, Kuvira reasoned that there were already wars and by becoming involved, they had the opportunity to change things. Despite Suyin's adamant refusal, Kuvira secretly collaborated with Baatar Jr. to device a way to get out of the city and stabilize Ba Sing Se. She persuaded Varrick, a large part of the city's security force, and some of its most wealthiest citizens to accompany her. As they were preparing the airships for departure, Suyin confronted her protégée, who boldly told her that they were leaving Zaofu to restore order in the Earth Kingdom. Threatened to be banished from the city if they were to leave, Kuvira remained unfazed, declaring that when she chose to return, it would be on her own terms. They left for Ba Sing Se and managed to stabilize the capital, an action that earned Kuvira the trust of the world leaders, who appointed her as the nation's provisional leader. During her quest to reunite the kingdom, she assembled a massive army, which included modernized airships, mecha tanks, and other tanks. With a high-speed maglev train, Kuvira traveled to states overrun by bandits and bargained with their leaders, offering protection and supplies in return for their allegiance to her. However, after stabilizing the town, she forced the citizens to slave labor in order to serve her war effort and sent off dissenters to reeducation camps. At some point, she also started a romantic relationship with Baatar Jr., with whom she eventually got engaged.

Annexation of the state of Yi


By 174 AG, Kuvira had united ninety percent of the states of the Earth Kingdom. When Varrick ordered Zhu Li to provide everyone with some celebratory tea, Kuvira declined the beverage, vowing to celebrate only when her mission was completed in entirety, causing Varrick, Zhu Li, Bolin, and Baatar Jr. to hold off on their own drinks. When the train suddenly halted, she demanded to know the reason and was informed that the tracks were blocked by a pile of rocks left by bandits. Although troops had been deployed to handle the situation, Kuvira ordered their retreat as she wanted to handle the situation herself. She exited the train atop its roof from where she watched the bandits descend the cliffs on either side of her vehicle. Kuvira easily evaded or deflected the rocks aimed at her and, as soon as her opponents came within striking distance, she retaliated by launching a series of metal strips which she used to cover her opponents' eyes and restrict their limbs. After subduing all of her attackers and binding them to the train tracks, Kuvira removed the metal strips covering their eyes and addressed the earthbenders, whom she berated for causing chaos where she was attempting to restore order. When a female bandit started to apologize, Kuvira silenced her by covering her mouth momentarily with a metal strip to prevent the woman from interrupting her. When a male bandit begged for mercy, she ordered them to stop groveling over their predicament and offered them the opportunity to rehabilitate themselves and serve as productive members of the Earth Kingdom, vowing to give them a new purpose in life in return for their loyalty to her. If they refused her offer, she threatened to leave them stuck to the tracks, prompting the prisoners to pledge their loyalty and join her army, much to her satisfaction.



After arriving at the capital of the state of Yi, Kuvira was pleased to see Opal and Bolin reunite, remarking that they were her favorite couple. After Opal snapped at Baatar Jr. that he had betrayed their mother, Kuvira urged the airbender to let go of what happened three years ago, remarking that she and her army were there solely to help the state recover. She acknowledged that rumors of her conquering towns may paint her in a negative light, but assured Opal that she was only concerned in providing a better future for the Earth Kingdom people by laying the groundwork for citizens to achieve their own greatness. After revealing that she and Baatar Jr. were engaged, she asked Opal to forgive and forget the troubles that occurred between her and the Beifong family three years prior. Their conversation was cut short, however, when Kuvira was asked by the governor of Yi what she was doing there, upon which she requested a private audience with the man on her train.



Alone inside her train, Kuvira asked the governor if he had time to rethink her offer, which she deemed to be generous. When the governor opposed the generosity of it all, she pointed out that the bandits outnumbered his people and out-supplied his state, making it only a matter of time until Yi would succumb. By signing her deal, she would save the lives of the people of Yi as well as keep the governor in position under her supervision, which was something that she deemed to be generous. She was refused once more, however, and accused of only wanting access to Yi's ore reserves, which prompted Kuvira to reprimand the governor for his pride, which would be ineffective to protect Yi against bandits and to feed the people. Despite her efforts, the governor refused to yield and Kuvira ordered her troops to head out. Upon asked what had happened, Kuvira explained that she was unable to make a deal with the governor. As she moved to retreat into the train, Kai asked if they were not going to stay and help, which prompted Kuvira to hand him the contract, saying that she and her army would remain stationed at the state border for a day and if he could get the governor to sign the document, she would provide all the help Yi needed.



Kuvira returned to the state capital after the governor acquiesced and signed the contract, immediately deploying soldiers and modernized mecha tanks as well as distributing parcels of food. She declared that Yi was under her army's full protection before turning to the governor and forcing him to pledge his allegiance to her if he wished to keep his position.

Establishing the Earth Empire
A day before Prince Wu's coronation as the fifty-fourth earth monarch, Kuvira and her army arrived at Republic City. With a select group of officers, she made her way to the Republic City Four Elements, where she was greeted by some of her fans, asking her for an autograph. As the children retreated with their signed paper, Kuvira was approached by Wu, who complimented her appearance. She remained unfazed by his flirtatious manners and declined his offer to talk to the hotel clerks on her behalf to receive a nicer room, informing the prince that she had already reserved the Presidential Suite. It was only when the prince laughed her comment away, stating that he was staying in that room, that she turned to look at him and amusedly told the royal that she had him moved. As Wu grew disheartened over the prospect of staying in a junior suite, Kuvira commented that she always got what she wanted.



The next day, Kuvira was seated next to the world leaders to attend Wu's coronation as king. She was called forth by the new king and received the Kyoshi Medal of Freedom for her efforts to restabilize the nation. Being allowed to give a speech, she stated that she had learned by growing up in Zaofu with Suyin Beifong that the idea of a hereditary monarchy was archaic and technology and innovation should be the thriving factors of a nation. Blaming the continuous rule of unsuitable monarch for the state of disarray in the Earth Kingdom, she declared that it had taken her three years to get the nation stabilized and would refuse to let it descend into chaos once again. She denounced Wu's authority and dissolved the Earth Kingdom, appointing herself as the leader of what she now called the "Earth Empire", intending to bring about a new era of prosperity for her people. Warning the world leaders not to cross her, she emphasized her words by ripping off and crushing the medal she had been given. She received a standing ovation from a cheering crowd for her words.

Upon returning to the Presidential Suite, Kuvira noticed that Bolin looked worried and approached him. Hearing about him having misgivings about how she ambushed the world leaders, she implored him to stand by her since he believed in the work they had done thus far, adding that she would need him more than ever as the world leaders would try to force them to accept Wu's reign, who would not serve the people. She assured him that her threat to crush her opponents was merely tough rhetoric to make everyone understand that they were not to be fooled with, as conflict was the last thing she wanted. She requested his help to make history, which led him to reaffirm his loyalty to her cause.



When Suyin entered to room, stating she and Kuvira needed to talk, the military leader asked Bolin to leave the room. She criticized the matriarch of Zaofu for her passive attitude toward the consequences of Queen Hou-Ting's death. As Suyin defended herself by saying that she merely did not want to seize power for herself like Kuvira had done and that it was beneficial for the good if she would step down, Kuvira rebuffed her statement, pointing out that she was the one who provided stability and equality and that they would not accepted Wu's reign, whom she referred to as the "world leaders' hand-picked dictator". Upon being told that she was a dictator herself due to what she had done to cities which refused to capitulate to her, Kuvira warned Suyin that the same would be coming for Zaofu.

As Kuvira and her army left Republic City on her train, she watched as Varrick began to experiment on a hunk of spirit vine, telling him the development of this new technology was his number one priority. She mobilized her army and headed toward Zaofu with the intent of conquering the last territory not under her control.

Annexing Zaofu
While her army had already arrived at the gates of Zaofu and set up camp, Kuvira was still underway with her maglev train. En route, she cautioned Baatar Jr. to not get ahead of himself by stating that by the same time the following day, Suyin would have signed the treaty that surrendered Zaofu to their control, as she knew that securing the metal city would not be as easy as he made it seem. When her fiancé declared to be ready to take the city by force, she reeled him in once more, stressing the importance of handling the situation with diplomacy, as the eyes of the world were upon them. She wished to use Bolin for that task, since Suyin trusted him and she hoped that the matriarch would listen to him.



When a shock rattled their train, Kuvira and Baatar Jr. swiftly made their way down to the last cart where Varrick was conducting his experiments on spirit vines and inquired if they were attacked. She was reassured by the inventor that they had merely been "spirit vined" and that she did not need to worry about that as he would terminate the project. She ordered him to continue, asking if he realized what they would be able to achieve with such power, though that was the reason why he wanted to stop the experiment. As he went on about having developed a conscience, Kuvira notified him that she was the other voice in his head that ordered him to continue. When Varrick once again adamantly refused, she metalbent his metal shoulder plates and dangled him out of the back of the train, threatening to drop him on the tracks. After Varrick quickly reconsidered his stance on the project, she hauled him back in and roughly threw him down on the metal floor. Ostentatiously stepping over him, she retreated back to her own cart with her fiancé, while placing the inventor under military supervision.

Back in her own wagon, Kuvira summoned Bolin and told him that they had selected him to be part of their inner circle. She explained that Suyin's resentment toward her and Baatar Jr. would prevent the matriarch from joining their cause and truly reunite the Earth Empire. As such, it was her hope that Bolin would be able to convince Suyin on their behalf. Upon being asked about the army's presence at the gates of Zaofu, Kuvira dismissed it as merely being a projection of strength, whereas Bolin was there to present peace.



Arriving at Zaofu, Kuvira and Bolin were led by Baatar Jr. to the room where the rest of the Beifong family was awaiting them. As Suyin declared that she was not giving up Zaofu, despite of all the military presence, Kuvira tried to reassure the matriarch that the troops were merely there to show what she and Baatar Jr. had accomplished. Tensions rose, however, when Kuvira dryly laughed away Suyin's suggestion that she had brainwashed Baatar Jr., angrily snapping back that she had merely set him free and that he had already accomplished more with her than he could have ever done if he had stayed in Zaofu. Although Bolin tried to defuse the situation, he was ignored and Kuvira was ordered by Suyin to leave, as Zaofu would never accept her as their leader. Unfazed, she gave the matriarch a twenty-four hour ultimatum to join the empire peacefully or they would take it by force.

Back in the army camp, upon being asked if she truly intended to invade Zaofu, Kuvira revealed to Bolin that it was only natural for them to find "other ways" for people to join if they refused to cooperate. She did not elaborate on what those ways were, dismissing them to be not of importance to him, and merely stated that the citizens of the annexed states were her loyal subjects, whom she could order around as she saw fit. As part of their inner circle, she made it clear that there were some hard truths that he just needed to accept without questions. Upon hearing Bolin's suggestion that they should just leave Zaofu, as that would mean that the Earth Empire would already be united, Kuvira grew angry, blaming him to love Opal more than he was loyal to her, and threatened to ship him off to a reeducation camp. Although he affirmed his loyalty to her, Kuvira remained skeptical.



Later, when Kuvira was talking to two of her sergeants, she was approached by her fiancé and Korra. She warmly greeted the Avatar, stating it was an honor to meet her again and that it was wonderful news that she had recovered from her ordeal with Zaheer. However, when Korra made it clear that she was there to ask the army commander to back down, Kuvira stated that they both knew she would not follow through on that request. Upon being told that she could not claim Zaofu without any resistance from the Avatar, she calmly stated that she was tasked to bring unity to the Earth Kingdom and failed to see why she should treat Zaofu, the last holdout, differently from any other state. She understood that Korra was doing Suyin a favor, though opposed the intrusion on her quest of reuniting the nation. She pointed out that the world had been descending into chaos while Korra was gone and that she had been forced to make some tough decisions to get it back on track. Since Korra could sympathize with the feeling of having people mad due to a decision made, Kuvira asked the Avatar to try to convince Suyin into giving up the city. In order to facilitate the talks, she called a temporary truce which would last until Korra got back to her with Suyin's decision.

By dusk, Bolin, Zhu Li, and Varrick were presented to Kuvira in her personal tent after being caught deserting the army. She ordered them all to be shipped out on the first train, sending Bolin and Zhu Li to the reeducation camp for their most stern dissenters, while placing Varrick under military, armed supervision to continue his spirit energy experiments. When Zhu Li begged her to have mercy, pledging her allegiance and her life to the army commander, Kuvira reconsidered the assistant's fate and gave her another change, pointing out to the two men that they could learn a lot from the woman.



That night, Kuvira had the feeling that Suyin would attempt an attack on her and thus ordered Zhu Li to sleep in her bed instead. Her suspicions proved to be correct when the Zaofu matriarch and her twin sons infiltrated her tent and captured Zhu Li. When the walls of her quarters fell back and revealed to the intruders that they had walked into a trap, Kuvira chastised Suyin for being a coward, noting that she believed the Zaofu matriarch had always been afraid; afraid to step up and lead the Earth Kingdom, afraid to join her when she became the leader, and afraid to face her in a fair fight. She ordered her men to arrest the intruders and subsequently used Zaofu's internal communication system to announce for the entire city that Suyin, Wei, and Wing had been arrested. As an act of mercy, she stated that she would not take revenge on the peaceful citizens of Zaofu if the remaining representatives would meet her at dawn and offer her the full and unconditional surrender of the city.



At dawn, Kuvira stood in front of her entire, battle-ready army, where she was approached by Korra, Opal, and Jinora, who served as the representatives of Zaofu. When Opal ordered her to release her family, Kuvira stated that she would make sure no harm befell the Beifong clan if Suyin would bow to her, though the matriarch quickly made it clear that she was not going to do so. Upon being asked if there was a way to resolve the brewing conflict, she reiterated that she had already laid out her terms, which she deemed to be reasonable. As Opal inquired after Bolin's whereabouts, Kuvira let the airbender believe that he completely supported her actions. Having had enough of the talks, she ordered the surrender of Zaofu, though when Korra objected, Kuvira chastised the Avatar for interfering in internal Earth Empire business and letting her personal feelings cloud her judgment. She stated that Zaofu could no longer continue to rule itself and that she planned on distributing the city's resources fairly over the rest of the empire. Upon hearing Opal urge Korra to take her down, Kuvira made it clear to the Avatar that the only way she could be stopped was if Korra physically forced her. Hearing Korra say that she had left her no choice, Kuvira addressed her army, stating that would never ask them to do anything that she was not willing to do herself. As such, she challenged Korra to a one-on-one duel for the fate of Zaofu: if Korra won, she would leave Zaofu to her, though if she won, the Avatar needed to stay out of Earth Empire business.



As Korra accepted the challenge, Kuvira told her that she could use every element at her disposal, as well as the Avatar State, baiting the younger woman by stating that she knew the Avatar was a "little rusty". Although Korra fiercely charged her, barraging her with elemental attacks, Kuvira managed to keep the upper hand with her agility, swift changes between metal and earth attacks, and fast counter strikes. After knocking Korra down a few times and tossing her over the battle field, Kuvira was pushed back when Korra entered the Avatar State, delivering two swift and powerful airbending blows. Dazed, the army commander looked up at as the Avatar rode an airspout and levitated a large boulder with which she intended to crush her. Korra fell out of the Avatar State, however, when she was beset by another hallucination in which Kuvira's face was substituted with her own with the eyes aglow, allowing Kuvira to capture Korra by the wrists with two metal strips and levitate her in the air. Slamming her down on the ground and rendering her unconscious, Kuvira encased Korra in an earth shell and bent six metal strips into sharp razors with which she intended to finish the Avatar. Before she could do so, however, she was blown back by Opal and Jinora. Helped up to her feet again by two soldiers, Kuvira order her army to attack, since the airbenders' intervention had broken their agreement. Her soldiers failed to reach the women due to a powerful whirlwind, though they forced them to flee Zaofu on Pepper, which prompted Kuvira to announce that Zaofu was theirs, officially reuniting the Earth Empire.



Inside Zaofu, Kuvira ordered the citizens to kneel before her. If they did so, she promised to let them have their freedom and deal with them fairly as citizens of the Earth Empire. If they were to refuse to pledge their loyalty to her, she would imprison them as traitors, presenting an imprisoned Suyin, Wei, and Wing to emphasize that she was not idly threatening them. After Baatar and Huan were the only two to refuse to acknowledge her, she retreated to the Beifong family's personal garden, where she played around with a meteorite while Baatar Jr. reported to her that Varrick and Bolin had perished in the explosion that also destroyed the spirit vine technology. She was reassured by her fiancé, however, the he could replicate the technology if he had an assistant, upon which she appointed Zhu Li to help him. She also ordered Baatar Jr. to commence dismantling the domes that protected Zaofu.

Kuvira later took her air fleet toward the Foggy Swamp. Making her way to the banyan-grove tree, she was informed by Baatar Jr. that the roots there contained even more spirit energy than the vines procured in Republic City. As such, she ordered her battalion of mecha tanks to harvest all the roots they could find.

Personality


Kuvira is driven by a fierce desire to protect the citizens of the Earth Kingdom and persistent on achieving national unity through the use of military force. Her willingness to usher in an age of solidarity and collective well-being stems from Suyin Beifong's progressive ideology, to which she was exposed to from early childhood.

During her time in Zaofu, Kuvira was generally a caring person with a warm disposition, loyal and obedient to authority, following orders from her former superiors with no protest. However, during her campaign to restore order, her demeanor changed to one of self-righteousness and she demonstrates a capacity to be aggressive to those who defy her or criticize her motives, having threatened to leave a group of bandits to die on a train rail were they to decline her offer to serve her, as well as having threatened Varrick's life when he refused to continue his spirit vine experiments. In addition, she did not hesitate to leave the capital of Yi without providing aid to its impoverished citizens when she was disrespected by the state's governor, whom she berated for failing to put his citizens' needs ahead of his own pride. Kuvira is persuasive and capable of convincing state leaders into pledging their allegiance to her, but is also proficient in the use of intimidation if individuals refuse to comply with her requests.

Ultimately, Kuvira came to believe that giving control of the Earth Kingdom to someone based on lineage was archaic, believing that she was more suited to govern the nation. Her relentlessness in reuniting the Earth Kingdom has become a goal that justifies all the means that she deems necessary to achieve it, which included forcing citizens into slave labor, removing dissenters and people not from Earth Kingdom descent to reeducation camps, and experimenting with weapons of mass destruction, like the spirit vine technology. Her confidence in her own right and skill stretched to the point where she challenged Korra to a duel in order to prevent an all out battle and possibly risk the lives of her soldiers, displaying both her personal bravery and a certain loyalty toward her army.

Despite all that, Kuvira has also shown a softer side to her personality during her private time, urging Opal to reconcile with her family and gently easing Bolin's fears as to her intentions. She is welcoming to her allies and fans. She has also shown the capacity to forgive those who are loyal to her.

Earthbending
Kuvira is an earthbending master, able to manipulate large amounts of earth and rocks to suit her needs. Her prowess rivaled that of Avatar Korra, whom she was able to engage in a tug-of-war with a rock and win. Her skills were praised by Opal and Suyin.

Metalbending


Kuvira displays mastery in the use of metalbending, capable of traversing several terrains and climbing large mountainsides with relative ease using metal cables. She also demonstrates physical strength, having been able to grip Tonraq with a cable and support his weight. Coupled with incredible accuracy and agility, Kuvira can subdue several dozen opponents simultaneously by covering their eyes and binding their limbs with said strips, which she can then remotely manipulate to toss her opponents around.

Other skills
Kuvira is a smart and natural leader, as evident by her service as captain of the guard in Zaofu and further by her accomplishments as the "Great Uniter". She is capable of engaging in persuasive negotiation, but can also employ intimidation in order to convince state leaders into pledging their allegiance to her and her cause. Using these abilities, Kuvira has managed to bring all Earth Kingdom states into her control, earning her a fierce reputation in the Earth Kingdom.

As a former member of Suyin's dance troupe, she is able to maintain balance and posture while swinging down a metal cable. Kuvira is also agile, a skill that allows her to evade attacks in battle with no movement wasted.

Appearances
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Book Four: Balance (平衡)
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Trivia

 * Kuvira is a Hindi name meaning "courageous woman", befitting her personality.
 * Kuvira's image was on the back of the newspaper Lin Beifong was reading in Zaofu. The text below her picture read, meaning "security team".
 * Kuvira is the first female primary antagonist in The Legend of Korra.
 * Kuvira is also the first primary antagonist of one book in The Legend of Korra to debut in an earlier book.
 * Kuvira's character resembles her voice actress, Zelda Williams. Interestingly, Zelda's mother also has a beauty mark on her cheek similar to Kuvira's.
 * Kuvira is Bryan Konietzko's favorite villain.
 * Kuvira was purposely designed to be similar to Korra in height, build, and personality traits, as to make it so that "Korra has to deal with overcoming a version of her past self".