| "The accused will now spin the Wheel of Punishment to determine his sentence." |
| — A Chin Village guard.[1] |
Aang was required to spin the Wheel of Punishment after being found guilty for Kyoshi's murder of Chin.
The Wheel of Punishment was an object used in the Chin Village penal system to decide the sentence of prisoners that were found guilty.
History[]
Avatar Aang was subjected to the Wheel of Punishment to determine a sentence for a crime committed by one of his past incarnations, Avatar Kyoshi, based on the claim that she murdered Chin the Conqueror, known to the villagers as "Chin the Great". Despite the appearance of Kyoshi's spirit explaining Chin's tyranny and the evidence acquired by Sokka and Katara to support Aang's innocence, Mayor Tong decided that the accusation still stood because Kyoshi technically did kill Chin, as she herself confessed. Aang spun the wheel and was to be boiled in oil, but it was promptly changed to community service by Mayor Tong following the arrival of the Rough Rhinos, requesting that Aang "serve the community" by stopping them from destroying the village.
During the attack, a komodo rhino thrust its horns into the wheel in an attempt to impale Mayor Tong, who was hiding behind it.[1]
Punishments[]
The crude images painted on the wheel represent the possible sentences.
- Bed of nails
- Whipping post
- Boiled in oil
- Eaten by shark
- Razor pit
- Mauled by platypus bear
- Burned alive
- Community service
Design[]
Approximately six or seven feet high in total, the Wheel of Punishment was an upright free spinning disc most likely made of a light wood. It was set in motion by the accused and only brought to a stop by natural friction. Crude images painted on the face of the disc were used to depict the available forms of punishment, while the fixed pointer at the top showed which one had been selected.[1]
Uses[]
The wheel was used to determine punishment for the guilty while incorporating a form of entertainment and serving as a deterrent to future would-be criminals.
Goofs[]
- When Aang spun the wheel, the villagers were shouting out their hopes for a possible punishment. One of them yelled "eaten by bears", but the picture on the wheel itself depicts a platypus bear instead of a regular bear.
- When the wheel lands on the "boiled in oil" option, a bed of nails is shown as the next option directly following it. However, when the mayor turns the wheel after the Rough Rhinos attack, the "community service" sentence comes directly after "boiled in oil".
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 O'Bryan, John (writer) & MacMullan, Lauren (director). (April 28, 2006). "Avatar Day". Avatar: The Last Airbender. Season 2. Episode 5. Nickelodeon.