Avatar: The Last Airbender (ATLA) is known to be one of the best animated shows of all time. With 61 episodes, it tells one of the finest stories with one of the greatest endings in animation of all time. However, there is much confusion as to whether Avatar is an anime or not. Let us find out if is avatar an anime.

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Why Avatar is Special

The moment you start watching Avatar, you just know it’s something more than most Western cartoons. It’s complex in terms of being full of themes such as war, friendship, personal growth, and so on. The characters here are developed with tremendous emotional journeys that cannot be seen in most cartoons for kids. This type of storytelling and how it makes you feel is the key reason behind people usually comparing it to anime.

Anime, especially Japanese, is similar in emotional depth and long, character-driven storylines. Thus, when people watch Avatar, it feels like anime. 

Is it an anime, though? 

Let’s see why people make that assumption, and why that’s not particularly true.

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What Makes People Think Avatar is an Anime?

To understand why fans believe Avatar is an anime, consider the following: cultural influences, storytelling style, and visual appearance.

1. Cultural Influences: 

Perhaps one of the most significant reasons individuals compare Avatar with anime is its cultural influence. The show grasps much from different Asian cultures to finish the world in which it resides. The four nations include the Earth Kingdom, Water Tribes, Fire Nation, and Air Nomads, focusing on different parts of Asia. For instance, the Earth Kingdom parallels China, and the Fire Nation has a high contact link with South Asia.

This adoption of Asian culture is, too, another characteristic among most anime programs that usually have themes and elements of Japanese culture and myths. However, having cultural influences does not make the show an anime.

2. Storytelling:

Another characteristic by which people might consider Avatar an anime is in its storytelling: many anime series make use of the journey of a young hero within the body of its storytelling, where this hero faces trials and learns throughout the process. This is exactly the type of storyline with which Aang, the main character of Avatar, resumes. Along his journey, he learns to master new skills, gain new friendships, and assume an incredibly huge responsibility: saving the world.

This style of storytelling, epic battles, and the friends helping the hero are very common in anime. Avatar shares even some of the same vibes—action, growth, and friends accompany him. The program features a recap episode and, at one point, a “beach episode,” which is also a very popular element in anime. This makes it all the easier to think of Avatar as an anime.

So, Is Avatar: The Last Airbender an Anime?

Here’s the big question: If Avatar shares so many traits with anime, why isn’t it considered one?

The difference between Avatar and the anime industry, however, brings it to an end. While Avatar has all sorts of qualities of anime, it was not made in Japan. The show is created by two American animators. Thus, though it has anime-like art and storytelling or even cultural influence, it was created in the United States, not Japan.

That is to say, just because it’s created in one particular style does not make the movie some specific industry automatically. For example, Parasite – the film that took home Oscars for South Korea is never a Hollywood film, although it bears some of the traits seen in Western movies. Likewise, Avatar is never an anime film even though it has common features with anime TV shows.

Why Avatar is So Special in Western Animation

Avatar: The Last Airbender is a show that is very unique to the world of animated television. It combines action, rich characters, and a deep world with themes of balance and friendship. The inspiration came from many Asian traditions but was actually made by American animators. That’s what makes it different from anime.

Although Avatar is similar in looks to anime and has some of the same themes and story elements, it is still an American animated series. And that’s what makes it special- it really puts all the best parts of Western animation with the storytelling techniques of anime.

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Conclusion 

So is Avatar: The Last Airbender an anime? Well, the short answer is no. Although it looks, feels, and tells stories much like traditional anime—a realistic art style, complex characters, and deep storytelling—it did not start in Japan. And because it was born in America, it’s an American animated television series, not an anime.

Still, Avatar is a very good series that continues to be in the memories of animators everywhere in the world. Whether you call it an anime-inspired or simply an animated masterpiece, there’s no denying its place in TV history.

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