The Revelation (episode)

"The Revelation" is the third episode of season one of The Legend of Korra, and the third of the overall series. It debuted on April 21, 2012 on Nickelodeon.

Overview
''Mako and Bolin look for ways to get the thirty thousand yuans needed to stay in the pro-bending tournament. Bolin accepts work from the Triple Threat Triad and goes missing. Korra and Mako go on a search for Bolin and encounter the group of chi blockers who kidnapped him, but the thugs flee. Korra and Mako then find out about an Equalist rally and decide to attend. There, they learn many secrets about the Equalists their leader Amon, and rescue Bolin.''

Synopsis
The Fire Ferrets are seen practicing early in the morning in the arena's gym. Butakha, the owner of the pro-bending arena, comes to pay them their winnings from their last match, but because of debts Mako and Bolin owe him, he takes all the money back. He also tells them that they need to pay 30,000 yuans in order to play in the tournament. Seeing that no one has the money, Bolin suggests having Pabu do circus tricks on the street. Mako dismisses his idea and says he'll take of the problem himself. Bolin takes Pabu to Central City Station anyway and puts on his show, but earns only one coin. Then a man pulls up in front of him in a car. Bolin recognizes him as Shady Shin. Shin offers him a job helping the Triple Threat Triad with "security". Bolin is initially reluctant, but Shin bribes him easily with a wad of money. Meanwhile, Mako has found a job at a power plant that requires him to generate lightning. When he gets home he finds that Bolin is not there, and assumes that he must have gone to visit Korra.

On Air Temple Island, Korra is in the middle of a more successful airbending practice through the training gates. Just then, Jinora and Ikki notice Mako approaching and start prodding Korra with questions about him, especially whether she has a crush on him. Embarrassed, Korra quickly earthbends them away before turning to face Mako. He asks if she has seen Bolin, but Korra hasn't seen him and answers negatively. Korra offers to help Mako find Bolin with Naga's tracking skills. Together, they go to Central City Station, where Bolin usually hangs out. Mako approaches one of the street kids, Skoochy, who only gives information for a price. After Mako gives him some money, Skoochy tells them that he saw Bolin leaving earlier with Shady Shin and mentions that other crime gangs are preparing for a turf war. Fearing that his brother will be caught in the middle, Mako, Korra and Naga race to Triple Threat Triad headquarters. They find Pabu along the way, but upon arriving they notice the building mysteriously deserted. Venturing inside, they spot a group of masked individuals carrying off several Triad members in a truck, with Bolin in tow. Korra and Mako chase them on Naga but are stopped when two thugs block their chi, leaving them motionless on the ground. Luckily, Naga and Pabu scare their attackers off. Mako explains to Korra that the thugs were Equalists, a group that wants to end all bending in order to create equality.

The two continue looking all night until Korra decides to seek out an Equalist protester she saw in the park when she first arrived in Republic City. They wait for him in the park that night, and Mako tells Korra what happened to his parents. They were mugged by a firebender, and now Bolin is the only family he has left. The two fall asleep together. In the morning they are awakened by the protester's usual Equalist shout. Korra interrogates him and learns that Amon, the leader of the Equalists, is holding a rally known as "The Revelation". When a policeman comes by to investigate the commotion, the protestor claims that the Avatar is oppressing him, she and Mako flee with a few leaflets. At a trolley stop, they try figuring out where the Equalists are holding the rally but there is no location listed. Mako realizes that there's a clue on the back of the leaflet matching the map of the city, pinpointing the rally's location.

That night, Korra and Mako go to the rally's location disguised as a couple so as not to draw attention. They show the leaflet to the doorman, who allows them inside the building. The rally begins as Amon and his followers show themselves. Amon begins by telling the audience about his life story. He and his non-bending family lived normal lives until they were harassed by a firebender. His father tried standing up to him and was cut down, and he also burned Amon's face. He then claims that the spirits have granted him the ability to take away a person's bending -- permanently! Amon demonstrates this ability on the leader of the Triple Threat Triad. With this, he declares that the era of bending has come to an end.

Unwilling to let this happen to Bolin, Mako comes up with a plan to save him. He tells Korra to create a distraction using steam in the nearby boilers while he rescues Bolin. Just as Korra works her sabotage, she is spotted by the doorman and weakly tries claiming she was looking for the bathroom. Seeing as her opponent is not buying it, Korra quickly subdues the doorman without bending, incidentally causing a release of steam, which catches the Equalists offguard, before Amon can use his technique on Bolin.

As the two brothers make their escape, they are attacked by Amon's Lieutenant, who subdues them with his electro-rods. As he declares that there's no place in the world for benders anymore, Korra earthbends him into a wall. Naga then runs by to scoop up the trio. The Equalists try giving chase but Amon tells them to to let the Fire Ferrets go, stating that Korra is the the best person to spread word of his power.

Korra returns to Air Temple Island. Tenzin says that he was worried and was about to send the Order of the White Lotus to find her. He also ask if she had found Bolin. Korra says yes, but tells him what she saw. Tenzin finds the thought of Amon possessing the ability of energybending impossible, as only the Avatar had mastered it. Tenzin is clearly concerned and ends the episode on an ominous note, saying "No bender is safe".

Credits

 * Written by:
 * Michael Dante DiMartino
 * Bryan Konietzko


 * Directed by:
 * Joaquim Dos Santos
 * Ki Hyun Ryu


 * Starring:
 * Janet Varney - Korra
 * David Faustino - Mako
 * P.J. Byrne - Bolin
 * J.K. Simmons - Tenzin
 * Steve Blum - Amon


 * Also starring:
 * Kiernan Shipka - Jinora
 * Darcy Rose Byrnes - Ikki
 * Lance Henriksen - Lieutenant
 * Carlos Alazraqui - Protestor
 * Zach Callison - Skoochy
 * Kevin Michael Richardson:
 * Butakha
 * Lightning Bolt Zolt
 * Doorman
 * Fisher Stevens - Shady Shin
 * Dee Bradley Baker:
 * Naga
 * Pabu


 * Additional voices:
 * Maurice LaMarche
 * Jeff Bennett
 * Darcy Rose Byrnes

Series continuity

 * Mako's line about Naga when he first sees her is the same line Sokka said in "The Boy in the Iceberg" about Appa.
 * Lightning Bolt Zolt's line after Amon removes his firebending is the same line Ozai said after Aang removed his firebending.
 * The statue of Fire Lord Zuko standing in Central City Station is similar to the one Ozai has in the previous series episode, "The Runaway".

Character revelations

 * Despite being enemies, Mako, Bolin, and Amon share a past; all three of them have had their family murdered by firebenders.

Goofs

 * While Mako and Bolin were escaping the rally, the Lieutenant struck the ladder they used with an electrical charge. Despite Bolin being closer to the ground, Mako was the one who landed first.

Trivia

 * "The Revelation" bears similarities to the stories told in Book of Revelation, the final book in the New Testament. Christ must defeat the anti-Christ - a charismatic monster who claims he has been blessed by God - before he destroys the world, similar to how Korra must defeat Amon before he wreaks havoc upon the balance of the Earth.