Transcript:The Aftermath (commentary)

Michael Dante DiMartino	Hello, everybody! This is Mike DiMartino, co-creator, executive producer of Legend of Korra.
Bryan Konietzko	Uh, this is Bryan Konietzko, the other guy who does that stuff. [Janet laughs.]
David Faustino	[In a hushed tone.] Oh, yeah!
Janet Varney	Uh, this is Janet Varney, I play [In a wavering, sing-song voice.] Korra.
Mike	There she is.
David	I am David Faustino, I play the beloved [Mike and Janet laugh.] Mak-Mako.
Bryan	Universally loved by... [Janet laughs.]
David	[Interjects.] Yes, by all.
Bryan	All countries, languages, [Janet and David laugh.] cultures, genders, ages.
Mike	[Refers to the episode's "Previously On" sequence, now depicting Tarrlok giving a press conference, criticizing Lin's failure to stop the Equalists from attacking the pro-bending arena.] So, for-oh, for this season, we can mention here the-the like "Previously On's" that we do, which in the old series we had kind of the traditional like, "show clips from the show, and, [Bryan affirms.] with the-with the dialogue from the show."
Bryan	More like 24, where it was just clips.
Mike	Yeah, [Bryan affirms.] but this one...
Janet	[In the background.] I love this.
Mike	... we only had twenty seconds to like sum up what happened before this episode. So, we uh, kinda came up with this idea to do 'em like...
Janet	[In the background; refers to the sepia tone color palette of the "Previously On" sequence.] It's such a great idea; the sepia. The...
Mike	... like the old, the old news reels. [Janet affirms intermittently.] And then after we heard Jeff Bennett do his radio broadcaster, [Bryan affirms.] we're like, "ah, that's the guy sh-you know, he should just be announcing what-what happened last week, too."
Bryan	But that particular "Previously On" was the only one that Jeff didn't do, [Mike affirms intermittently.] because we-we took some dialogue that was written for the show, and Mike had a good idea, "hey, let's just make that like a newsreel, and you're actually just hearing, um, Tarrlok... you know". [David gives an affirming murmur.] But, this-another uh, another favorite episode. Um, I know a l-a lot of the fans enjoyed this one because... they-a lot of 'em hated Asami, even more than they hate Mako. [Mike laughs.]
David	Yay! [Applauds; Mike laughs.]
Janet	Oh, Asami.
Bryan	Uh, when-when Asami was first introduced, uh, voiced by the very talented Seychelle...
Janet	[Interjects.] We love Seychelle.
Bryan	... Gabriel; so um, at f-when Asami's character was first introduced, they were like, "oh, she's terrible and she's in Korra's way, we hate her". And they...
Janet	[Interjects.] And she's so pretty.
David	Asami's hot.
Janet	Every time I see her, I get mad... [Mike chuckles.]
David	[In the background.] Asami is hot.
Janet	... a little bit still, even though I love Asami.
Mike	Just like Korra. [Bryan laughs.]
Janet	I know! [Mike laughs.] I'm very defensive in that way.
Bryan	Um, so-well, thank you. I did Asami's design...
David	[In the background.] Did you? She's hot, man. [Mike chuckles.]
Bryan	... and I-I have a-I have a really hard time drawing female characters. Most characters I draw just look like variations on me, [Mike and Janet laugh.] and I am-I am not pretty nor hot. [Mike and David chuckle.] Uh, but so I-I worked really hard at Asami's design, trying to make a cool, attractive female character.
David	Worked well.
Janet	Well, now that I know that, I'm going to look for your features in her.
Bryan	[Laughs.] So, um...
David	[Interjects; refers to the posters of Amon uncovered by the metalbending police.] There he is.
Bryan	... what was I talking about? [Bryan and Janet laugh.]
Mike	Asami...
Janet	[Interjects.] Asami, uh...
Bryan	[Interjects.] Oh! So, yeah...
Janet	... this-oh, yeah, people didn't, yeah.
Bryan	... like when-so, this episode changed a lot of fan's minds, uh, and they-they came to really like Asami; [Refers to Asami inviting Korra to the Sato mansion.] and they came to really enjoy the like budding kind of friendship between Korra and Asami, and-and the...
Janet	[Interjects.] Which I love that you guys did, that they-that it isn't this conventional sort of like, [In a mock cheerful tone.] "the two girls hate each other!" sort of, that they-that they [Mike affirms.] connect, and that that they move through that. [David gives an affirming murmur.]
Bryan	And, I don't know, I mean, it's like... sure, you want to have appealing characters, um, you know, you don't wanna like watch a show and be like, "I hate everything this character does ever, I hate when they're on screen". You know, but at the same time, you want to have goo-like dynamics, and-and [David gives an affirming murmur.] we are not interested in perfectly, like, f-you know, characters that have no flaws. Mike and I just find that really boring, and so...
Janet	[Interjects.] Well, and also, you guys are deeply flawed.
Bryan	Deeply.
Mike	[Laughs.] Yeah.
Janet	So... [Laughs.]
Bryan	Scarred. [David chuckles.] Deeply scarred. Um...
Mike	[Interjects.] Yeah, it would be a very boring episode if everyone was like, "naw, I'm good. How're you? No, we're-I got all my issues worked out."
Janet	Yeah. Everybody's high-fiving all the time. [Mike laughs.]
Bryan	Yeah, and they always make good decisions, and they were always perfect to each other. I dunno, I mean...
Janet	[Interjects.] No, [Mike chuckles.] nobody wants that...
Bryan	[In the background.] Maybe...
Janet	... and certainly, as a young person...
David	[Interjects.] Life is not, life is not like that. [Janet affirms.]
Bryan	Maybe people want that in a show, but I say watch a different show [David affirms.] if that's what you want.
Janet	Right, please.
Mike	I don't think there's any shows like that, and if there are, they're probably not for you.
David	[Refers to Lin asking Hiroshi Sato to inform the police about anything he remembers about the Equalist's attack at the pro-bending arena.] Min-Mindy Sterling, yes?
Bryan	Yes!
Janet	Chief-we l...
Mike	[Interjects.] As Chief Beifong, yes.
Janet	Lin Beifong is such a great character.
David	Mindy Sterling, the awesome-hilarious, by the way.
Janet	So good, [Mike affirms.] it's true.
Bryan	[Refers to Hiroshi Sato telling Lin he gives his wholehearted support to the police.] And Daniel Dae Kim, an-probably the nicest human being on the planet. Uh...
Janet	[Interjects.] Guys, we're sitting right here. [Mike laughs.]
Bryan	No. No! [David laughs.] He is nicer than you! I've t-I've...
Janet	[In the background.] That's fair.
Bryan	... scientifically tested this.
Janet	That's fair.
Bryan	No, no, he's a great guy.
	In the background of the commentary, a chair creaks noisily.
Janet	That's my chair.
Bryan	Um, he-he did a voice on-on the original series, and-so we brought him back for Hiroshi.
Janet	[Refers to Tenzin letting Tahno know he and Lin ready to debrief him.] And then uh, J. K. Simmons.
Mike	Yes...
Bryan	[In the background.] Who...
Mike	... is the great Tenzin.
David	J. K.
Bryan	... is uh, just the consummate professional. I remember like Mike wrote this, the-the kinda opening narration for the very first episode...
David	[Interjects; refers to Mako and Bolin's one-piece bathing suits, which leave their arms exposed.] Look at those muscles. Sorry. [Mike and Janet laugh.]
Bryan	[Laughs.] Think your brother's got you beat, though. [David chuckles.]
Janet	Do you wear an old-timey bathing suit like that, David? [Mike and David laugh.]
Bryan	He's wearing one right now. Honestly. [Janet affirms.]
David	Wearing one now. It's under my clothes.
Bryan	Uh, yeah, J. K....
David	[Interjects; refers to Asami's one-piece bathing suit.] Asami-oh, whoa. Hello.
Bryan	J. K. Simmons, uh, I remember he just like nailed like the first session he did. He came in, read like a-the-a page and a half of narration, first take, [Mike affirms.] perfect. That's the one that's in the show...
David	[In the background.] Wow.
Bryan	... where it's like, [Janet sighs.] "wow, that's a-that's a professional voice actor."
Mike	"Well-well, you might as-since you're here...
Janet	[In the background.] He's so great.
Mike	... you might as well do another one, 'cause uh, you know..." [Janet laughs.]
Bryan	[Laughs.] Totally.
	Janet and David laugh as Bolin, having been towel-dried by the Sato's butler after his swim in the family's indoor pool, tells the butler to not neglect "Master" Pabu's wetness either, who receives a quick scrubbing while on Bolin's head.
Bryan	[Refers to the Sato estate.] So, this-this uh, Asami's dad's estate here was inspired by the Hearst Castle [David and Mike affirm.] in uh, Central California.
David	Oh yeah...
Janet	[In the background.] I've never been there.
David	... I can totally see that now, it's awesome.
Bryan	I haven't either. Mike's been there, and he-he had the idea, s-he had the idea.
Mike	Yeah, it was like, when I thought of this Hiroshi guy who has all this money and just would build his own kind of private palace. Uh, yeah, the Hearst place is-is nuts, it's great.
David	[Interjects.] I can totally see that now. Yeah, yeah, that's great.
Janet	Whoa.
David	That's so cool.
Mike	[Refers to the walls of the pool area being decorated with various mosaic images.] And they had this pool, I remember the pool area [David affirms.] was like, it was super mosaic tiles everywhere, and...
David	[Interjects.] Yeah. It's sick.
Mike	... we couldn't-we didn't draw that, but-but it was kind of inspired by that.
Bryan	[Refers to Asami and Korra driving together for a circuit on the Sato's private racetrack.] So, this was, um, this was a good opportunity to like, you know, show this other side to Asami where, you know, she's a very attractive and, you know, well-to-do girl, but she's not just some stereotypical like girly girl who just wants to shop and do her nails all the time. [David gives an affirming murmur.] So, it was kind of fun to show that um, hey guys, don't always judge a book [Janet laughs.] by its cover. [David laughs.]
Mike	Yes.
Bryan	[Refers to after the race where Korra apologizes to Asami for viewing her as prissy.] Korra learns that-that lesson as well. [Refers to the race car versions of the Satomobile Asami and the opposing driver use.] And it was fun to these-these old timey race cars. [David and Janet affirm.] This is totally based-based on, if-if-if people aren't familiar, that, you know, the early race cars actually looked a lot like this.
David	That's cool. Like circa what?
Bryan	Uh, I'm not an expert in this stuff, but yeah, I think in the Twenties, and...
David	[Interjects.] That's cool.
Bryan	... Thirties.
Janet	[Refers to Asami shifting her Satomobile's gear stick from the bottom to the top-left position.] I don't know how that gearshift just worked, [Mike chuckles.] but it was like she was shifting in a maze. There was a little like [Bryan laughs.] maze for their...
Bryan	[Interjects.] It's a fantasy world, that's always our...
Janet	... [Laughs.] for the gearshift, yeah.
Bryan	... our excuse. Like...
Janet	[Interjects.] I love it.
Bryan	... hey, it's not our planet, it's a different one. [Janet affirms; David laughs.]
Mike	Well, that's going on Tumblr somewhere.
Bryan	[In a mock conspiratorial tone.] Oh, a different planet. [Mike and David laugh; elongates "and".] And uh...
Janet	[Interjects.] You've done it, now you've done it.
Bryan	... on December [Mike and Janet laugh.] 5, [David laughs.] of 2012.
Mike	[Brief pause.] So, David, before, you were mentioning uh, the voice director, Andrea Romano. [David affirms.] How-how do you guys like working with her?
David	Andrea Romano is... [Mike chuckles.] uh, amazing. I mean, I've worked with her several times, and just to work with her on this project is so cool. She's... [Snaps fingers.]
Bryan	Yeah, it's hard.
Janet	She's so great.
Bryan	We love Andrea; it's hard, especially like early in the morning, to keep up.
Mike	[Laughs.] Yeah.
Bryan	She's got enough energy...
David	[Interjects.] She really does.
Bryan	... to-to direct about a cast of like, what, like two hundred, [Mike affirms.] you know? She's...
David	[Interjects.] And she's the sweetest, [Bryan and Janet affirm.] coolest woman, but like direct, and like, you know, she's not-she's not a softie at all, [Mike and Bryan affirm.] but-but the nicest person in the world somehow. [Mike and Bryan affirm.]
Janet	Well, she tells you exactly what you're doing wrong...
David	[In the background; laughs.] Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Janet	... which, sometimes you feel like, "oh, I'm s-I, you know, I want to be so sensitive about it," but instead it's so helpful, because she just tells you exactly what you need to correct, [Bryan affirms.] you make the correction, then she tells you did a good job, and you move on. I love her so much that she convinced me... that-she didn't wa-t-have a conversation with me about it, but at-in the experience of working with her, I was like, [Laughs.] "maybe I wanna be a vocal director." [Mike chuckles; David gives an affirming murmur.]
Bryan	Yeah, she...
Janet	[Interjects.] 'Cause she's so good at it, and it just makes everything so fun, [Mike affirms intermittently.] and then I said that to her, and she was like, "oh honey, you don't wanna do what I do, [Mike and Bryan laugh.] I get up at four in the morning just to go over scripts to prepare everything we're doing in the day."
Bryan	She does so much prep work. [David and Mike affirm.] Yeah, she-she really comes in prepared, has all these notes, you know, on her own scripts; and she does tons of shows too. [Mike and Janet affirm.] But um, she-I-my favorite moments, eh, with-between you two [Laughs.] is when she'll be like, "uh, Janet. Uh, perfect acting, we loved exactly what you were doing. Uh, just got a little-little uh, nose noise, like a little, [Makes a coughing noise as though he were coughing up phlegm; Janet laughs.] you know, so uh, just need you to do another take, you know, for technical," [Laughs.] and you're always like so embarrassed, [Mike and Janet laugh.] like, and when you were like so self-conscious afterward, and you were like, [In a self-dejected tone.] "oh, thanks for pointing out [Janet laughs.] the-the like sin-sinus honk." [David laughs.]
Janet	It's so funny, she redoes it, she-she-she mimics it perfectly, whatever embarrassing noise you hoped no one noticed, [Bryan affirms.] she will call out.
Bryan	And it's, like, for people that don't know, we get a lot o'-a lot of uh, fans' messages I desperately try to ignore [Mike laughs intermittently.] in my life, [David laughs intermittently.] where it's like, you know, "cast me, I wanna be a voice," and uh, they're like, you know, a twelve-year old kid somewhere. And like, um, Mike and I, you know, we occasionally get in the booth and do a little side voice or, you know, background character or something.
Mike	We're-we'll-we scratch a lot of lines too... [Bryan affirms.]
Bryan	[Interjects.] Yeah, we...
Mike	... you know, like if we just have to, [David affirms.] you know...
Bryan	[Interjects.] Scratch means just like a temporary track [Mike affirms.] if the actor couldn't make it in, or we-or we haven't cast that role yet. And like, people do not realize how, including us, [Mike laughs.] how hard it is to do voice acting. It is, I feel like it's like acting with a microscope on it because every little nose noise and every little, you know, tiny inflection, I feel like it's under a microscope, and...
David	[Interjects.] I think the key is relaxation.
Bryan	Yeah.
David	Like...
Bryan	[Interjects.] Ah, what? I'm saying "yeah" like I know. [Mike and Janet laugh.] I don't know, I don't know; tell me the key. You guys-you guys are-are the pros.
Janet	Well, David has a masseuse that just comes in, [Bryan and Mike laugh.] and has to rub his shoulders while he's doing a retake.
David	Sits there the whole time.
Bryan	Silently rubbing his shoulders.
David	She's very quiet. [Janet and Bryan affirm.] No, but really, I think the key is relaxation, you know? It's funny, you have a lot of great actors out there who when they do voice work, they don't know-they can't relax, they don't know how to do it, and if they get in front of a camera they're doing fine, [Bryan affirms.] but then behind a mic, they get...
Bryan	[Interjects.] But they're different, right? Don't you think the two disciplines are-are definitely...
David	[Interjects.] Oh yeah.
Bryan	... they're definitely different.
Mike	Well, and especially for our show, you know, it is different than most cartoons on TV now, where it's like we want the more naturalistic ac-like it's basically your guys' voice. You know, you're not like really putting on a voice.
Janet	I know, it's-it's embarrassing 'cause of what like, you know, for-coming from a sketch background and stuff, I think people assume, have-people who hadn't seen the show were like, "give us a little of Korra's voice...
Mike	[In the background.] Right, [Laughs.] like you have a voice where...
Janet	... let's hear what that's like," and I'm like, "well... [David laughs.]
Mike	[In the background; laughs.] "Here it is!"
Janet	... get excited, [Mike laughs.] 'cause you've already been listening to it."
Bryan	Yeah. Actually, when I've listened to your podcast, it's-it's strange to me, I'm like, [Janet chuckles.] "it's so weird that Korra [Mike laughs.] has a podcast."
Janet	Yeah, I get-I-I definitely have had fans get in touch that're like, "I'm trying to get used to Korra [Mike chuckles.] not talking about Korra things." [Mike laughs.]
Bryan	[Laughs.] That's great.
David	I wanna say, I'll do a little uh, I mean, just, you guys make it very easy for us, to be honest with you. [Janet affirms.] I mean, the writing is so, you know, so-so right on the money, that when we get in the booth it's a pleasure and a joy and easy to do, to be honest with you.
Bryan	Aw, thanks.
Mike	Cool, thanks.
Bryan	I-I remem...
David	[Interjects.] That's the truth.
Janet	I totally agree.
Bryan	I...
Janet	[Interjects.] I-you know, I can-I wish I could say it's harder, but eh, [Mike laughs.] I did-I didn't want to disagree with you, but I-but I think with this job it's just not that hard...
David	[In the background.] Yeah. It's not. It's well written.
Janet	... because it's, you make it so easy, it's-that's totally true.
Bryan	I remember on the-the, episode 105, the one, uh, where-the little love triangle one where...
Janet	[Interjects.] The noodle episode!
Bryan	The noodle episode! We, we were having, you know, some-some discussions with the exec, uh, giving us notes on the script, like, "oh, Korra. She's really doin', you know, Bolin wrong, and she just makes her so unlikeable...
Mike	[In the background.] Unlikeable, yeah.
Bryan	... and like this is so harsh, and fans-no one's going to like her," and we were like, "look, this is-this is real life; like, people don't always make good decisions, and you know, you, you always hurt the ones you love," and all that kinda stuff. And uh, and uh, a lot of it was based on like, you know, personal experiences from-from art school, and stuff like that. And uh, and we were making that argument; I remember saying that to you guys when we did the table read about that episode, you know, and I just told, and David's like, I said, "yeah, this is just like, you know, this is like back when I was back in college," he's like, "are you kidding? This is my life right now!" [Mike and Janet laugh.]
David	[Laughs.] Oh yeah. It really is.
Bryan	So uh, so, I mean, a lot of-a lot of the-what gets into the show is based on just firsthand stuff, you know. Or just little, tiny tidbits from life [David gives an affirming murmur.] that-that you, you know, just kinda use what you know. [David affirms.]
Janet	[Brief pause.] I-I always-it's-it gives me such pleasure, and David has heard me say this before, and I always say like, "no offense," as if he is Mako, 'cause he totally isn't, but, [Mike chuckles.] um, but it does please me when...
David	[In the background.] I'm a foot shorter in life. [Mike and Bryan laugh.]
Janet	[Laughs.] Well, when fans are, [David laughs.] when fans say, "Janet," not Korra, but, "Janet, who would you-which character would you pick?" it always makes me feel good to be able to like give over to Bolin, [Mike laughs.] in-in real life at least, [Mike affirms intermittently.] like, to be able to say, "well, I would-I would pick Bolin. I, you know, I love that character, I love his personality."
David	[In a mock sarcastic tone.] Thanks. [Bryan laughs.]
Janet	Again, [Mike laughs.] I love David, David's not Mako. [David laughs.]
Bryan	[Refers to Korra, Lin and Tenzin's investigation of Hiroshi Sato's suspected affiliation with the Equalists.] So, this was a-this was a cool episode to do a little bit more of a-a noir, you know, vibe, which uh, you know, film noir kinda feeling, which [David gives an affirming murmur.] fits in with this kinda Hearst Castle location, and this sort of like...
Mike	[Interjects.] Conspiracy theory, yeah.
Bryan	... conspiracy and investigation, and all that stuff.
Mike	Yeah, and uh...
Bryan	[Refers to the nighttime scene where Korra, Lin and Tenzin meet an Equalist informant under the Silk Road Bridge to learn about Hiroshi's new weapon for the Equalists.] Meeting under a dark bridge at night, you know.
Mike	In our-yeah, our original idea, this episode went through a lot o'...
Bryan	[Interjects.] Oh, that's right.
Mike	... development, [Laughs.] 'cause we originally, we were going to have Asami turn bad.
Bryan	That's true.
David	Oh.
Bryan	That's true.
Mike	Our first idea was like-yeah, she...
Janet	[Interjects.] Oh.
David	I'm glad you didn't.
Bryan	Ah...
Mike	[Interjects.] Well, that's what-then we finally, you know, we started writing for her, and, and everything, we're like, "eh, we like her, she's cool! [Bryan affirms.] We don't want her to turn bad". And then we worked in the-the Hiroshi thing.
David	It...
Mike	[Interjects.] I think it was originally her and her dad before.
David	Oh.
Bryan	Yeah, because we realized, ah-ah, and actually we realized people were just going to assume she was bad; [Mike and Janet affirm.] and they did. [Mike gives an affirming murmur.] I mean, the-the stuff we saw from fans while these were, you know, airing each week, everybody's, "ah, she's going to turn bad". And-and I think again because, uh, she seemed too good to be true, she was so pretty, and nice.
Janet	And she does have sort of a villainous prettiness to her. [Mike and Bryan affirm.] I mean, she has, you know.
Bryan	So actually, we kinda liked it as, like, in the way we were misdirected with our, you know, "oh, we'll-we'll make her bad," like, we-we thought, oh, that's a good idea to just use that. [Refers to Bolin asking Asami if she thinks her dad knows about the secret underground passageway Lin just discovered under their mansion; David chuckles.] That-that... [Laughs.]
Mike	[Interjects.] That line's always made me... [Janet laughs.]
Bryan	[Interjects.] You know, I... yeah. That's some good stuff.
Janet	That's the k-the kind of behind-the-scenes stuff that I as a fan love hearing, [David affirms intermittently.] that you hear about, you know, the-I mean, it's-it's sort of like the-the cliché where you hear that like a writer's working on a book, and they're like, "I don't know, the character sort of did something I didn't expect them to."
Mike	Yeah, yeah. [Laughs.]
Janet	And you're like, oh c'mon, you're the writer, that doesn't happen.
David	Yeah, yeah, yeah; you knew where you were going.
Janet	Like you basically just said, like...
Mike	[In the background.] Yeah, that's...
Janet	... "and then Asami sort of didn't turn bad on us... [Bryan affirms.]
Mike	[In the background.] It was like, [Imitates Asami.] "I don't want to be bad, guys! C'mon."
Janet	... and then we were like, 'oh, okay Asami!'"
Bryan	Believe me, I mean, not that we think of everything, but in a writer's room, most versions of every idea are put out there, you know? [Mike affirms.] And-and observed and talked about, and, and, you know, the pros and cons.
David	You mean you guys have to work this out? [Bryan and Janet laugh.]
Mike	[Laughs.] I wish we didn't, but yeah. [David laughs.]
Bryan	There is a lot of just-well, especially when it was just Mike and I, just like-well, you know, 'cause just the two of us wrote this-these twelve episodes together, and uh, there was a lot of like, "okay, okay, okay, here's like the really bad pitch," which, [Laughs.] you know, you throw out... something just to like try to move [Janet affirms.] the idea along, [David affirms.] and then-and then followed by a lot of silence, [Mike affirms.] and like fingernail [David laughs.] s-clicking, and, you know.
Janet	That's the scariest moment...
David	[In the background; refers to Korra, Lin, Tenzin and the metalbending police entering the storage area for Hiroshi's mecha tanks.] Are they under...
Janet	... right? In a room, when you're like, "okay, here's a terrible thing I have to say; please still inv-keep inviting me [Mike affirms.] back [Laughs.] into your life [Bryan laughs.] after I say this, maybe it'll lead to something good."
Bryan	Luckily, we have a very trusting uh, [Mike affirms.] working relationship, so.
Janet	What were you asking, David? Sorry I interrupted.
David	Oh no, I just wanted-they're-they were still under, um, the house, right?
Bryan	Yeah, they're deep, deep under the, under the estate.
David	Under the estate. [Bryan affirms.]
	A brief pause in commentary until Mako and Bolin start to distract the metalbending police officer assigned to guard the two brothers and Asami, with Bolin lifting up his right foot and rubbing his toes along the ground just before he trips up the guard with his earthbending.
Janet	I love that little Bolin's toe.
Bryan	His little-yeah. [Mike affirms.] He's like...
Janet	[In the background.] So good.
Bryan	... his like, "oh, don't [Janet laughs.] mind me over here."
Janet	So dainty.
Bryan	[Refers to Mako and Bolin dropping the police officer's guard by pretending to sneeze and standing in place respectively before they physically pin him down.] Well, this is a nice little callback to their, their lives as, you know, these street urchins, you know? Like their formative years [David affirms.] growing up, having to like pull little...
Mike	[Interjects.] Little scams.
Bryan	... little scams [Mike affirms.] on people.
David	Conmen. [Mike chuckles.]
Bryan	[Brief pause; refers to Bolin mocking the now bound police officer by telling him, just as the officer told them, to stay out of Hiroshi's factory and wait until Lin comes back.] Yeah, another brilliant read from P. J.
Janet	[Refers to the hidden elevator leading from Hiroshi's workshop on the surface down to his underground factory.] How many levels are there? Down there? [Mike laughs.]
Bryan	It's deep. Uh, and I know that this-this episode was another one where like, people started to like, "oh, that Mako, he really made me mad in the last episode". This one sealed the deal for most people. [Refers to Mako ascribing Korra's suspicion of Hiroshi to jealousy of Mako's relationship with Asami; in a mock angry tone.] "How could he be such a jerk to-to Korra?" and I-I-it's cool that people were siding with Korra, [Refers to Mako supporting Asami and Hiroshi during the police investigation.] but it's like, he was-he was trying to defend his girlfriend, you know? I mean, I think it's like, he was being a good guy, like, trying to give her and her family the benefit of the doubt, and, uh, but people just wanted to hate on him. [Mike chuckles.] That's-that's fine.
Janet	We gotta-I want...
David	[In the background.] So many haters, but hey...
Janet	... [Refers to the Equalist's mecha tanks.] I-we gotta hear about these uh, these machines.
Bryan	Oh!
Janet	They're so cool.
David	Can't be a player without some haters. [Mike laughs.]
Bryan	Thank you. This uh, this-these mecha tanks [Janet affirms.] were inspired by like old diving suits...
Janet	[In the background.] They're so cool.
Bryan	... you know, from the late nineteenth-I think early twentieth century, and...
Janet	[Interjects.] Like Iron Giant-y...
David	[In the background.] I want one.
Janet	... a little bit.
Bryan	Yeah. [Janet affirms.] Um, man, we spent so much time working on the design, and...
Janet	[In the background.] Oh.
Bryan	... I-I actually, uh, it was based on somethin' that was pretty much roughed out by Joaquim Dos Santos, our co-exec, and then I spent a exorbitant amount of time doing the [Janet and Bryan laugh.] desi-like actually finalizing the design, and then we, um...
Janet	[Interjects.] I think this was the episode where I was like, "please let there be toys. [Mike laughs.] Please let there be toys, [Mike affirms.] I want a mecha tank."
David	It's cool like doing this because I-I'm realizing-I mean, I know how much you guys work, but like it really makes me come to the uh, the-the reality of how much work you really put into it, it's-it's amazing.
Mike	Oh yeah. And it's not just us. [Laughs.]
David	As far as-no, I know.
Bryan	Oh, no...
Mike	[Interjects.] We got so many people...
Bryan	... I mean, yeah, the...
Mike	... working on this stuff, it's crazy.
Bryan	... the modelers at Technicolor did a brilliant job interpreting my design, um, really faithfully when they built the-the CG model. And then, uh, the animators at Studio Mir, uh, did a gr-real-this was a really challenging thing, uh, on a TV schedule, but they-they did a great job, uh, animating.
Mike	[Refers to the CG modeled mecha tanks attacking Korra, Lin, Tenzin and the metalbending police.] Yeah, 'cause you have to incorporate like the-all, you know, all the mecha tanks are CG models and animated in CG; and then to incorporate it with the 2D...
Bryan	[Interjects.] Hand drawn stuff.
Janet	Oh.
Mike	... hand drawn characters, it gets kinda ...
Janet	[In the background.] Stunning.
Mike	... tricky sometimes. [Bryan affirms.]
David	Wow.
Mike	But uh, yeah, I love this whole-this whole sequence.
Bryan	Uh...
Mike	[Refers to Tenzin airbending a wheel of wind around himself to propel him forward and push back the mecha tanks' launched fists.] And then we get to see Tenzin do his uh, his air cycle thingy.
Bryan	Yeah, the little gyro... [Mike laughs.]
Janet	[In the background.] Oh, so cool!
Bryan	... gyro cycle. That was, uh... whose idea...
Mike	[Interjects.] I think that was Joaquim's, wasn't it?
Bryan	Joaquim, and maybe S-uh, Sifu Kisu [Mike affirms.] they might ha-I can't remember exactly, but it was sort of a cool update on like, you know, his dad created the air scooter, which was riding around on a ball of wind. And it was like, "hey, let's make like a cooler, adult version [Janet sighs.] so he's not-doesn't look like [Bryan and Mike laugh.] a little kid running around on...
Janet	[Interjects; laughs.] A BMX bike.
Bryan	... on a ball. You know, so, [Refers to the shots of, Lin, Tenzin and Korra lying unconscious and bound after being overpowered by the mecha tanks.] I love these episodes where things go from like bad to worse, and then in the end, everyone's not like, "yay!" they're just kinda like, "well, we survived."
Janet	[Gives off an exhausted moan.] "We're exhausted." [David laughs.]
Bryan	Yeah, I-I love that stuff. [David laughs.] And um, you know, that's what's really cool about, again, people... we hear this a lot, like, [In a mock trepidatious tone.] "oh," or we used to, like, "oh, so what do you have to do to-to like water the show down for Nickelodeon?" but we don't. I mean, we make the show we want to make, and they support us, like, and, you know, give us notes, here and there. But, if this show were on an-an unnamed other network, [David chuckles.] like everything has t-like your hero always has to do right and win and be perfect, [Janet affirms.] and like, everything has to be okay in the end of every episode, and we're not interested [Laughs.] in those kinds of stories.
David	Well, that's-that's cool for Nickelodeon to...
Bryan	[Interjects.] They-yeah, they-they totally support us in this weird kind of...
Mike	[Refers to Bolin, while carrying an unconscious Tenzin and using his prone arms to accentuate his forced geniality, complimenting Hiroshi and his factory as the industrialist blocks off the group's escape.] Yeah, and the fun thing too is like, you can have like Bolin do his wacky little moment there [David laughs.] in the middle of the scene, and it still works. [Janet and David affirm.] Like it doesn't totally-sometimes, you know, we-we'll pitch ones, we'll have some jokes in there, they-they don't work, and we'll take 'em out, and kinda keep the tone a little more consistent. But for the most part, you know, we c-we can kinda mix the tones, [Janet gives an affirming murmur.] and it-and it all works together, [Janet and Bryan affirm.] which I like.
Bryan	[Refers to Asami discovering her father is an Equalist, and Hiroshi begging Asami to join him.] So, here's the-the Lu-the Luke-Darth Vader moment, you know...
Mike	[In the background.] Yeah. [Laughs.]
Bryan	... "come to the dark side!" and [Refers to Asami refusing Hiroshi's request, saving her friends by electrocuting Hiroshi and the Lieutenant.] I think this is where a lot of the people who were-who were hatin' on Asami, uh, came over to the-to the Asami side. Uh, this was a cool chance to, you know, we-we really loved writing and-and uh, storyboarding this moment where... you know, it's like, "oh, the-the fragile girl who's, you know, like, her daddy's telling her what to do," and, you know, then she just kicks their butts. It's-it's a fun, [David affirms.] it was a fun moment to reveal just how, how cool and-and capable she is. [Refers to when Asami told Korra her father enrolled her in self-defence classes at a young age.] And we, you know, we planted the little uh, we planted this earlier where she says like, "oh, I've been in self-defence training since I was a little kid," which her dad did because their family had been, uh, attacked, you know, so he was really worried about... her safety. So, it kind of backfired; maybe he shouldn't have put her...
Mike	[In the background; laughs.] Yeah. [Janet affirms.]
Bryan	... in the [Laughs.] self-defence classes.
	A brief pause in commentary until Asami, after putting on the electrified glove her father gave her, tells her father she loves him, then electrocutes him.
David	Nice. [Mike laughs.]
Janet	Oh...
Bryan	[Interjects; refers to Asami using her close-quarters technique to knock away one of the Lieutenant's kali sticks, and then physically bend the arm holding the other stick onto the Lieutenant.] Takes out the Lieutenant.
Janet	... Asami!
Bryan	Yeah. [Refers to the shot of Mako and Korra's stunned reactions to Asami's actions.] And then this was the fun like, it used to, [Mike, David and Janet laugh.] this shot, this shot used to pan over to Bolin, and he was just like, "whoa!" [Janet and Mike laugh.] you know, like totally freaked out. But that one was a moment where it kinda just ruined, we had to keep things moving along, [Mike chuckles; David gives an affirming murmur.] it kinda ruined the vibe. [Refers to the pensive, distant demeanor of everyone aboard the airship.] But yeah, this is-this kinda wrap-up I love, where it's not like, "yeah!". Everybody's doing high fives, [Janet affirms.] "we beat the bad guys!". It's like, [David affirms.] "oh, that really sucked". [Refers to Lin lying down on the airship's seating, exhausted and demoralized from the battle.] You know, Lin's all hurt.
	In the background of the commentary, a chair creaks noisily.
Janet	That's a chair. [Laughs.]
Bryan	That's-Lin-Lin...
Janet	[In the background.] Our chairs are really low.
Mike	Chairs are very low.
Bryan	Those are Lin's butt broken bo...
Janet	[Interjects.] That's ri... [Laughs.]
Mike	Yeah. [Mike and David laugh.]
Janet	Good save, good save.
Mike	[Purposefully creaks his chair around.] I'm doing your foley, right... [Janet laughs.]
Bryan	[Interjects.] Yeah, yeah. [David laughs.] We're-we're actually [Mike laughs.] in a foley stage, right now.
	A brief pause in commentary until Mako apologizes to Korra for not believing her about Hiroshi's ties to the Equalists.
Bryan	See?
David	See?
Bryan	This is Mako. he's like, "hey, I was just-I was trying to stand up...
Janet	[In the background.] He owned it.
Bryan	... for my girlfriend," and...
David	[Interjects.] He's not so bad, guys! [Mike laughs.]
Bryan	... he is apologizing here.
Mike	Yeah. [Brief pause; refers to Korra reextending her offer for Bolin, Mako, and now Asami to live at Air Temple Island.] Ah, there's a little bit of a somewhat happy ending. You know, everyone's on the same page again.
Bryan	[Refers to Korra telling Mako that Asami will need him after everything that's happened to her.] And Korra-Korra's, she's maturing here too, she's realizing like, she's feeling empathy towards, you know, Asami, and realizing, [Mike affirms.] like she needs to set her feelings aside, and, you know...
David	[Refers to Mako going over to Asami, putting his hand on her shoulder in support, with her returning the gesture with an embrace.] Oh.
Bryan	... Asami really is going to need some support here. [Refers to Korra dejected expression as she turns away from Mako and Asami.] But that little moment of her looking away, it's like...
Janet	[In the background.] Ugh, it still hurts, man.
Bryan	... it's still hard, it's still hard for her, yeah. [Refers to the aerial high-angle shot of downtown Republic City and Yue Bay at night, the groups' airship shrinking into the saturated, illuminated cityscape.] And I love that last shot, [David applauds and whistles as the episode cuts the initial credit slide.] really beautiful [Janet affirms.] painting, and cool angle of the city we don't usually see.
Janet	[Sighs.] That was a great episode, guys.
Bryan	That was a har-man, that one was intense. [Mike affirms.] That took a lot o' work. 'Cause we just came off of 106, which was like kind of our mid-season tentpole, and had tons o' action in it. Normally, on-like on Avatar, after an episode like that, we'd have a goofy, [Janet affirms.] kind of filler episode, [Laughs.] but we were like, "well, we'll just top it," you know? 'Cause this season was so tight, it was so, there were so few episodes to tell the story, we're like-we're just, it's going to get even more intense.
David	[Refers to the credits rapidly going through the cast and crew members.] Could we slow down these credits? [Janet laughs.]
Bryan	[Laughs.] We would love to, [David laughs.] there's no time.

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Article · More transcripts
Episode transcript

• Michael Dante DiMartino
• David Faustino
• Bryan Konietzko
• Janet Varney

See also

• "The Aftermath"