Long Live the Queen

"neutral"

- You think freedom is something that you can give or take on a whim. To your people, freedom is just as essential as air and without it there is no life. There is only ... darkness.

"Long Live the Queen" is the tenth episode of Book Three: Change of The Legend of Korra and the 36th of the overall series. It was released on Nick.com for online viewing on August 8, 2014, and will air on Nicktoons on September 30, 2014.

Overview
''While en route to Ba Sing Se, Korra and Asami manage to escape from their cell, but their attempt to take control of the vessel results in it crashing in the Si Wong Desert. After the airship gets completely destroyed, Asami engineers a sand-sailer out of scrap metal and with Korra propelling the vehicle, the two girls and the four man crew make it out of the Si Wong Desert. Meanwhile, in Ba Sing Se, Mako and Bolin are imprisoned while the Red Lotus strikes a deal with Earth Queen Hou-Ting. However, she eventually ends up being killed by Zaheer, who subsequently has Ghazan take down the city's inner walls. He releases Mako and Bolin under the condition that they deliver a message to Korra.''

Synopsis


Leaving Fort Bosco, the Earth Queen's soldiers bring Asami and a straitjacketed Korra aboard an airship heading toward Ba Sing Se. Korra tries to persuade the soldiers to let her go, warning them that the queen is in danger from the Red Lotus. However, her pleas fall on deaf ears as the captain deems her insane due to her talking about the Spirit World and terrorists. As the airship takes off, Korra, still in her straitjacket and muzzle, is chained to the wall. When Arik wants to chain Asami to the floor, she persuades him to chain her to the wall instead. He agrees to do so, reasoning that as long as she is tied up, there is nothing to worry about. After denying Korra's request for some water, the guard adds that he will not be bringing her any fire or earth either. He muses on how they cannot not give her air, but adds that it cannot be helped, leaving the girls to wonder about the well-being of Mako and Bolin.



Meanwhile, the Red Lotus are driving toward Ba Sing Se with a restrained Mako and Bolin in the back. Mako asserts that he and his brother cannot be used for leverage over Korra. Although Ming-Hua tells him to be quiet, the firebender asks why they want Korra. After Ghazan brushes off the question with a generic answer that all they need to know is that the world will change for the better, Bolin wonders what it was like being in prison for thirteen years, imagining it to have been boring. The lavabender encloses that he occupied himself with renaming the constellations, while Ming-Hua reveals that she killed her time by making up stories about the guards. Intrigued, Bolin gives Ming-Hua's method a go and guesses that Ghazan was raised by an older sister, his mustache grew at the age of ten, and that he and Ming-Hua have "an unspoken attraction". After receiving a dirty look from the waterbender, an amused Ghazan lets him know that he got two out of three correct. Annoyed, Mako reminds Bolin that their captors are the bad guys and implores him to stop being so friendly. Upon their imminent arrival at Ba Sing Se, Zaheer interrupts and tells Ghazan to gag the brothers.

Back on the airship, Asami assures Korra that she has a plan to get them out before they get to the Earth Queen. She points out to the Avatar that the airship has been constructed by Cabbage Corp and is inferior in design compared to the Future Industries airships, emphasizing her statement by pushing herself off the wall, dislodging the railing to which she had been tied. Free to examine Korra's restraints, Asami realizes that she can only undo the Avatar's binds with the keys. After prying open a floor panel with the rail, she instructs Korra to give her five minutes before calling for help.



In the Earth Kingdom Royal Palace, Gun informs the Earth Queen that the Avatar has been captured and is being transported from a fort in the desert, by airship, as they speak. The queen demands that Korra be brought to her as soon as she arrives. Gun also informs her that there are people at the palace who say they have captured the Avatar's friends. After the Hou-Ting reminds Gun that she does not negotiate with bounty hunters, he replies that he told them that, but they have information concerning the location of her airbenders. As Mako and Bolin are brought before her, she tells them they will be thrown in prison. The queen turns her attention to the Red Lotus and asks them if the story about the airbenders is just a ruse. Zaheer counters by telling her that they do not want a bounty, but they instead want the Avatar. Angered, Hou-Ting asks them how they know she has been captured. Zaheer replies that how he knows is not important. What is important, he states, is that if he found out, others will have too, and if word gets out to the other nations, the Earth Queen would be the center of an international conflict. By letting Zaheer take Korra, the queen would avoid this and she would get her airbenders back without any problems. The monarch asks Zaheer what he plans to do with the Avatar, and even though he gives her a vague answer, she agrees with his terms. The queen orders the Dai Li to throw Mako and Bolin in the dungeon and Gun to escort the Red Lotus to the waiting room.



Over the desert, Korra does as Asami told her to and calls the guard for help. He looks through the slot in the door and much to his surprise, he sees that Asami is gone. Before he has time to think about it, Asami knocks him out with a blow to the back of the neck. She quickly removes her own handcuffs and opens the door, after which she frees Korra from her binds. On the bridge, Korra uses her metalbending to break down the door, knocking both the captain and the helmsman out with airbending. But by doing so, she also breaks the controls and the radio, causing the airship to crash into the desert, in spite of Asami's attempts to keep it in the air.

After climbing to the top of the ship, Asami and Korra assess the damage and Korra asks Asami if she can get the ship up and running again. Asami doubts this, seeing how the ship pretty badly damaged and half buried in a dune. As the crew also makes it to top of the ship, Korra asks them if they are all right. Arik explains to the rest of the crew that Korra tricked him and that Asami knocked him out when he was not paying attention. In turn, Korra tells them there are more important things going on than the Earth Queen's airbenders. Meanwhile, the captain comes up to the top and tells everyone not to worry, since there is another ship on the way, but it might take a few hours before it is at their location. Asami says that they can get the ship to fly again if they work together, but the captain tells her that is not going to happen. He tells the pair that they are prisoners and must be transported to the Earth Queen. Korra reminds them that she is the Avatar, and is therefore not a person with whom it is wise to seek out a fight.

The captain does not budge, but Asami sees a sand dune move in the distance. The captain discards it as a mirage, but as it comes closer, they clearly see it is not a mirage, and Kong tells them that since the spirits came back, they have been haunting the desert. Korra sarcastically asks them if that is her fault too. She then asks the crew whether they want to fix the airship, or wait around for whatever is under the moving dune. The crew unanimously decide to fix the ship, and the captain reluctantly agrees. Korra takes the first step by telling everyone to stand back while she starts airbending the ship out of the sand.

Meanwhile in the Earth Queen's jail, Mako tells a passing guard that they have to get out before Zaheer gets to Korra. The man in the cell next to them asks them if he can come along, telling the brothers that he has been in incarcerated for four years and that he has not seen his family for equally as long. The man says it was nice for the first few months since he could finally get some sleep, but now longs to see them again. Mako, ignoring his neighbor, devises an escape method which would require Bolin to metalbend them out. He tells Bolin he has total faith in his metalbending abilities; however, when their neighbor asks if he really can metalbend, Bolin tells him he cannot. Mako starts motivating the other prisoners to cheer for his brother who finds the confidence to try again, but still cannot manage it, much to the prisoners sadness and Bolin himself begins to feel depressed.



Near the Misty Palms Oasis, Lin is in a jeep looking for signs of Korra and her friends when she sees the tracks left behind by their jeep. She decides to follow the tracks and finds their vehicle left behind. As Lin starts to look around the jeep, Naga comes up from behind it and roars at her, but after realizing who it is, the polar bear dog starts licking her instead. An equally excited Pabu jumps on her as well, whom she grabs and puts on Naga. Lin gives them both a snack to keep them occupied while she contacts Tonraq to let him know she found the jeep, but not Team Avatar. She asks him to meet her at the Misty Palms Oasis.

Back by the airship, Korra and Kong return outside after cleaning out the engine room, while Asami is making the last adjustments to the rudder. Korra asks her if she thinks the ship will fly again. Even though Asami still has her doubts, she does reply positively. She asks Kong to start the engines again, and while the engines are firing up, the group feels something move underground. Suddenly a gigantic sandshark jumps up from underground and breaks the ship clean in half. Staring in awe, the crew, Asami, and Korra quickly make up their minds and run away from the ship as fast as they can. As the monster lands, the ship is completely destroyed. Arik is worried, seeing how all their supplies were on the ship. The captain tries to calm him down, because another ship is on the way and it will be there in a few hours. Asami reminds them that they might not have a few hours. Korra asks the captain how far away they are from the edge of the desert, who says it is too far to walk. Asami then suggests that they can build a sand-sailer, just like the native tribes use to get around the desert. Korra thinks it is worth a shot, and the captain agrees.



As the Red Lotus is waiting for the Avatar's arrival in the Earth Queens antechamber, they see a Dai Li agent walking by at a brisk pace. Zaheer notices the agent and decides to follow him. Aided by his airbending, he manages to sneak into the throne room and get into a good vantage point without anyone noticing. After the agent informs the queen about the airship's crash and Korra's escape, Zaheer goes back to the rest of the Red Lotus, where they put together a new plan. Instead of making a futile attempt trying to find her in the desert before the Earth Queen's army, they will instead make Korra seek them out. Armed with this new plan, they barge into the throne room, angering Hou-Ting. As Zaheer informs her that he knows about the Avatar's escape, she gets even more furious and gives them one last chance to tell her where the airbenders are and stay out of jail. Zaheer calmly remarks that was not the deal. This causes the queen to order the Dai Li to throw them in prison until they show respect for the crown. As the Dai Li forms a circle around them, the Red Lotus prepare for battle. P'Li initiates the fight by blasting a combustion beam at the agents in front of her. As the fight rages, Gun runs away, while Hou-Ting seeks shelter behind the throne. With Gun gone, the monarch steps forward, saying that they would not dare attack a queen. Zaheer jumps onto the backboard of the throne and tells her he does not believe in queens. He starts pulling the air out of her lungs and forms a sphere of air around her head, suffocating her, while giving a lecture about how essential freedom is. As he finishes, the Earth Queen reaches up to the air that was pulled out of her lungs before her ultimate death.



As Zaheer, Ming-Hua and P'Li move into a broadcasting tower, the operator asks them what they are doing up there. Zaheer says he wants to make an announcement to the entire city, and when the operator mocks him for this, Ming-Hua lifts him into the air, telling him what Zaheer just did. The airbender stops her before she can harm the operator and calmly repeats his question, and the operator complies. Zaheer takes the seat and announces to Ba Sing Se that he brought down the Earth Queen. He also reassures them that he is not there to take over, but rather to set the city free. While he is making this announcement, Ghazan prepares to take down the wall separating the Lower and Middle Ring. He uses his lavabending to weaken it, and brings it down with one powerful move. As the citizens take over the Middle Ring, Mako tries to burn his way out of the prison cell. He tells Bolin that they have to break out of there, because Korra is probably next now that the Earth Queen is gone. Their neighbor once again sticks his mirror out of his cell, claiming that Zaheer is his hero. Annoyed, Mako tells him to shut up and turns his attention to his brother again. He tries to motivate Bolin into metalbending again, which the latter still doubts he can do. As the earthbender makes a move, all the cells but theirs open up. Bolin thinks he actually did it, but Mako promptly corrects him and Zaheer steps in front of them. Mako blasts fire at him, but he effortlessly deflects and blows the brothers against the back wall. The airbender says he will release them on the condition that they deliver his message to Korra.



Back in the desert, Arik puts the final touches on the improvised sand-sailer while Asami remarks that it should be able to do the job. With the sandshark steadily approaching from behind, Korra tells everyone to board the sand-sailer as she begins to create a gust of wind to propel the sailer forward. The sailer moves as the sandshark prepares its attack. It jumps from the sand and lunges at the sailer but cannot reach them, and descends back underground. As the crew looks back, Arik cheers that they've lost the beast, but suddenly the sandshark attacks again from below, nearly swallowing the sailer and crew whole. Korra quick fires a blast of fire into the shark's mouth, scorching and incapacitating the creature, allowing the crew to calmly ride on to the Misty Palms Oasis. As they arrive at the dock, the sailer falls apart, prompting Asami to sarcastically ask some nearby sandbenders if they want to buy it. As the crew disembarks the sailer and relaxes on the dock, the captain thanks Asami for her engineering work and remarks that she has a good head on her shoulders. Korra apologizes for stranding the crew in the desert and landing them in a frightening situation. The captain accepts her apology and shakes her hand, and assures her that her conflict with the Earth Queen is above his pay grade. As the captain turns his attention to the crew again, Arik points to Druk, who is tied to a nearby tree, and questions if the dragon's presence is real or not. The captain dismisses it and goes with the crew to get drinks. Meanwhile, Naga smothers Korra, clearly excited to see her owner again. Korra laughs and embraces her pet.



Korra and Asami make their way to a tavern and find Tonraq, Lin, and Zuko gathered around a table in the corner. Tonraq is relieved to see Korra and warmly embraces his daughter. He also reintroduces the Avatar to Lord Zuko, who states that he met her when she was very young and that it is nice to see her again, to which Korra smiles and agrees. Lin interrupts and sarcastically thanks Korra for abandoning her back in Zaofu while the Avatar pursued Aiwei. Korra apologizes and wonders how she was able to find them, to which the chief replies that she is a detective. Tonraq queries his daughter about the Earth Queen, but the radio interrupts and informs that queen's reign has been brought to a violent end and that there is chaos in Ba Sing Se as rioters and looters have taken control of the palace. Korra angrily remarks that it was the work of the Red Lotus, and informs her father of the group. She warns him that this is only the beginning.

Credits
Written by:
 * Tim Hedrick

Directed by:
 * Melchior Zwyer

Starring:
 * Janet Varney - Korra
 * David Faustino - Mako
 * Seychelle Gabriel - Asami
 * P. J. Byrne - Bolin
 * Henry Rollins - Zaheer
 * James Remar - Tonraq
 * Mindy Sterling - Beifong
 * Jeff Bennett:
 * Radio broadcaster
 * Prisoner
 * Co-pilot
 * Jayne Taini - Queen Hou-Ting
 * Dee Bradley Baker:
 * Pabu
 * Naga
 * Camels

Also starring:
 * Mitchell Whitfield:
 * Gun
 * Engineer
 * Grey DeLisle-Griffin - Ming-Hua
 * Peter Giles - Ghazan
 * Kristy Wu - P'Li
 * Bruce Davison:
 * Lord Zuko
 * Guard
 * Keythe Farley:
 * Captain
 * Dai Li agent
 * David Kaufman - Arik
 * Gregg Binkley - Kong

Series continuity

 * Cabbage Corp, which was closed in "The Aftermath", later reopened and sold their products to the Earth Kingdom military.
 * This is the second time Ba Sing Se fell, the first time being at the hands of Azula in "The Crossroads of Destiny".
 * Lin Beifong sarcastically thanked Korra for ditching her back in Zaofu in "The Stakeout".
 * Zaheer references the death of the Earth Queen in "Enter the Void" as he prepares to throw Tonraq over the side of a cliff, asking the waterbender to send her his regards.

Goofs

 * Although Asami tells Korra that she cannot free her because she lacks the keys, Korra is only held to the cart by straps, while the keys are only necessary to free the cart itself.
 * When Korra meets up with Tonraq at the end of the episode, his trademark necklace is visible. While introducing Korra to Lord Zuko, the necklace disappears. After the introduction, the necklace reappears.

Trivia

 * This episode was leaked on August 7, 2014, making it the fifth episode to be leaked from Book Three: Change.
 * The person who leaked the episode did this under the name 'Zaheer for the people' on his Tumblr page. His message to the fandom was the same as the message Zaheer makes to the citizens of Ba Sing Se in this episode. He did, however, change some words like, for example 'The Earth Queen' to 'Nickelodeon'.
 * This is the first known instance of an airbender killing someone outside the scope of self-defense.