Mecha tank

<p>This is going under the assumption there will be a series after Korra, and that it will be future, not past. In the jump from AtLA to LoK, we saw a lot of big changes. Lightning bending became standard, as did metalbending. Nations blended. I am just curious about any ideas people have for the next jump. Examples include: </p><p>Lavabending being normalized. Similar to how metalbending was in AtLA vs LoK. Maybe an advanced military force of lavabenders? </p><p>Air nomads become more military-like. Right now they are serving as essentially a world police force. Maybe over the years they go farther away from their roots, and more like a police force nations turn too when there is conflict between them. Similar to how the Dai Li changed over the years since their founding by Kyoshi. </p><p>Bending becoming less mainstream. With the advent of the metal suits Varrick invented that simulate bending, bending itself may become less well known. More people, benders and nonbenders, would flock to these things, because they both protect you with metal and give you bending (essentially). Even Bolin didn't leave his until he had too. </p><p>More technology due to the energy source spirit vines provide. Varrick said the vines could provide clean energy. In the future, maybe technology becomes more prevalent due to the almost unlimited supply of clean energy (vines grow back pretty quickly) </p><p>Spirits more integrated. In the 3 years since Harmonic Convergence, spirits moved in some. In the years to come, spirits might meld a lot more with humans, sharing the land pretty equally. Like walking down the street and interacting with both man and spirit casually. </p><p>Humans moving into the spirit world. Maybe some humans dislike the advance of technology, and physically move into the spirit world. Or maybe humans try and invade the spirit world for resources, or to aid in a war, almost bringing the world into another Hundred Year War. This could affect the Avatar, with Vaatu now growing inside Raava.\ </p><p>Just some ideas. Anyone else have any? </p>

<p>I was cheking out the fist episode and there we got a glympse of the mecha tanks mk II and that raised a few question to me and some friends : </p><p>-The pilot controls the machine or he must be a bender to manipulate it from the inside? </p><p>-We know they can use some kind of flamer from their wrist, its some sort of bending from the inside or just a fuel-propeld flamer? </p><p>-They are a Zao Fu exclusive or other nations might have acess to them? </p><p>-They have legs instead of the old ones tracks but they are just as fast and agile as the old ones? </p><p>-They could go underwater ? </p><p>-They are smaller than the older ones or they come in various sizes? </p><p>What y'all think? </p><p>EDIT: </p> <figure class="article-thumb tright show-info-icon" style="width: 200px"> <figcaption> <p class="caption">The Mecha Tanks as seen in the episode "After All These Years"</p> </figcaption></figure>

<p>In "Harmonic Convergence" we saw team Avatar attempt to take out the battlements surrounding the portal, including what looks like mecha-tanks.  How did Unalaq get these?  </p>

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</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;">                </span>Now, we all know that the ending for Legend of Korra was a bit rushed to say the least, but overall, I liked it. That is, until I came to a bit of a realization. What actually happens in Korra’s final confrontation with Amon? She beats him up with airbending, he happens to get his disguise removed, and everything becomes hunky dory. More importantly, what doesn’t happen? None of the complaints or grievances of the Equalists are ever addressed. Their arguments are never deconstructed, the problems they face in a bending centric world are never resolved, and everything basically goes back to the way it was, meaning more inequality for non-benders.</p> <p>
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</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;">                </span>Or does it? Given all the Equalists left behind after their revolution and the accurate nature of their complaints, I wouldn’t count out their ideals just yet. They may not be the same terrorist powerhouse they were before, but chances are they left a lasting impression on the world of Avatar, possibly to the point of permanently changing it. Their powerful legacies can be grouped in two major catagories: technology and ideology, the former of which we’ll start with.</p> <p>
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</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;">                </span>The technology of the Equalists, for the most part, was meant to even the playing field against benders in a fight. By in large, they did a very good job, though some of the tech did have its share of flaws (<i>platinum</i> tanks and using melee weapons against powerful ranged opponents). Even though chances are good that most equipment associated with the Equalists was either outright destroyed or made illegal (the biplane being a notable exception due to its civilian capabilities), the impact they made was pretty clear. For the first time in history, non-benders had a fighting chance against benders without resorting to archaic and unwieldy weaponry. If properly distributed, equipment like the electric glove could be used for civilian defense, something sorely needed if the frequently used story of “benders killed my loved one” story among Equalists is any indication. Both the electric glove and mecha tanks can be used to give non-bending soldiers and police a fighting chance against bending adversaries, meaning they have less chance of being overlooked in their field due to their lack of bending. In each case, the inventions of the Equalists ensure that non-benders cannot be taken advantage of nearly as often, either on the streets or in the military/police.</p> <p>
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</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;">                </span>Then you have the ideology of the Equalists which, while being extreme in their hatred of benders, brings up some good points, the foremost being that benders enjoy an inborn power boost that gives them an advantage over non-benders. While there are other instances of this happening independently of bending (being born into power and wealth, being a savant in a certain field and so forth), none can really compare with bending. One could probably compare it with the mutant phenomenon from the X-Men comics, where people are granted special, often dangerous powers by chance of birth, and the power often goes to their heads, as power of any kind often does. It is probably worse in the case of benders as there is no question that they could use their powers to either harm others or simply outperform them due to random genetic chance. During their revolution, the Equalists proved that benders are not automatically “special” as they have been so often regarded throughout the history of the world of Avatar, revealing that they are just people with a few bells and whistles. Now, granted, the Equalists took that a step too far by labeling benders “scum”, but now that they don’t have a megalomaniac as a leader, that should probably die down.</p> <p>
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</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;">                </span>Ultimately, these two remnants of the Equalist revolution will likely do their job for them. You don’t need to conquer a city to make people see your point of view, all you need is to show them a better way. Now, of course, the ideologies and inventions of the Equalists will not be enough to stop the exploitation of non-benders by unscrupulous benders. I admit, it is a difficult issue to handle with tact, and I really don’t have a solution that doesn’t make me sound like either a left wing radical or the bending equivalent of a racist. As has been pointed out before, most benders are just normal citizens that just want to make a living in the world. That said, the influence of benders and the apparent corruption it can hold is too big an issue to ignore. The Equalists saw that, and unfortunately had their cause co-opted by a corrupted bloodbender. Now that his influence is gone from the movement, perhaps real progress could be made, and the Equalist name can be free from the violent stigma that has been (rightfully) attached to it.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;">Thoughts? Comments? Concerns?</p>