Bosco

"earth"

- Quiet! You don't know what I had to do to get seats this near the bear!

Bosco was Earth King Kuei's pet bear who resembled a real-life grizzly bear. He lived in the forests along the eastern coast of the Earth Kingdom before his capture.

History
Bosco was the only known member of his species, although the Earth King had commanded the top zoologists of Ba Sing Se University to lead a battalion of soldiers in scouring the Earth to find Bosco a mate. Little is known about his habits in the wild; however, Bosco seemed to enjoy roaming the grounds of the Royal Palace with his master, and he developed quite a taste for cakes and pies, hence his weight.

Bosco was the guest of honor at a birthday party the Earth King threw for him. He ate large portions of food and was fascinated when Aang performed waterbending tricks.

He was also frequently seen sitting at Kuei's side and was one of the prime reasons Kuei decided to hear what Aang and his friends had to say about the conspiracy in Ba Sing Se, as Bosco took a liking to Aang.



Bosco was seen once more while Kuei was welcoming the disguised trio of Azula, Mai, and Ty Lee. Apparently, Mai was forced to clean all of Bosco's waste, stating that, "if [she had to] clean another pile of bear poop, [she would] throw up." He was separated from Kuei after Azula ordered the Dai Li to arrest the king, but was soon reunited with the king, however, when Sokka and Toph successfully rescued him from Ty Lee and Mai, the latter of whom actually wanted him gone, by trapping Ty Lee's hands and feet in the ground.



After the Coup of Ba Sing Se, Sokka was seen trying to teach Bosco to survive in the wild. Sokka gave up after many failed attempts of teaching him how to climb, fish, roar, and defend himself. Upon seeing how Bosco did not know how to be a real bear, Kuei decided to travel the world as a humble man, with only Bosco by his side.

After Ba Sing Se's liberation and the end of the Hundred Year War, Bosco returned to a life of luxury when Kuei regained his position as Earth King. During the planning of the Harmony Restoration Movement, Bosco was seen while Momo tried to steal his hat, though he quickly got it back. Bosco present a while later at the richly-filled dinner table the King had prepared for Aang and Katara to occupy them while he was pondering the changed situation in Yu Dao. During this, Momo offered him a small piece of cake on a plate, but Bosco refused this by turning his head away and offering Momo a large fish in return, which the lemur rejected.

Behavior
Bosco was very ill-mannered, loud, slobbery, and could often be seen eating. However, the Earth King apparently was oblivious to this, and treated him like his son. He traveled with the Earth King incognito to see the world outside the walls of Ba Sing Se after the fall of the capital. Despite his less genteel qualities, Bosco was very affectionate toward other people and could sense if danger was near or if someone was a good person.

Appearances
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The Promise Trilogy
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 * The Promise Part 1
 * The Promise Part 2

Trivia

 * Bosco was one of very few non-chimerical (non-hybridized) animals seen in the world of Avatar. Considering how hybrid animals were more frequent in the world of Avatar, Bosco was considered strange. Other examples of non-hybridized animals include Miyuki and wood frogs.
 * When Bosco the bear was first mentioned to Aang and his friends, they were skeptical that there was such a creature as a "just a bear" and suggested that perhaps it was another type of creature, such as a platypus bear, skunk bear, armadillo bear, or gopher bear.
 * He was also one of the few animals not voiced by Dee Bradley Baker.
 * According to DVD commentary, Bosco was named after the pet dog of an Avatar animator.
 * Bosco's claws were manicured twice a month.
 * Bosco was the only animal (apart from Momo) to ride on Appa's back.
 * A comic entitled It's Only Natural was released by Nickelodeon, telling the story of Sokka as he tried to reintroduce Bosco to the wild. This comic revealed several of Bosco's skills, such as his ability to use a fishing rod, to whistle and to play dead.
 * Bosco's voice actor, Clancy Brown, also ironically voiced Long Feng, an ally-turned-enemy of Kuei (and by proxy: Bosco) in the original series, and Yakone in The Legend of Korra.
 * Bosco is an Italian word, usually applied to a wood of evergreen oak.