There were a lot of things that made Avatar The Last Airbender so special when it arrived on Nickelodeon all those years ago. The story, the lore, the characters, the action, and so on. But the thing that many cite as the reason for it being so great is the animation. Both TLA and its sequel in Legend of Korra used 2D animation to its fullest (most of the time…looking at you LOK Season 2…) to bring the show to life and that has helped it stand the test of time.
Now, the team behind those shows are developing multiple projects via Avatar Studios, with the intent of expanding this universe in multiple directions. According to the team, we won’t see a completed project for a while, but, we are getting teases as to what might come from it.
For example, one job listing was posted for the studio and noted that their job would be with developing and maintaining “an outstanding and customized look for the show that will require the integration of traditional 2D and CG elements.”
So that seems to imply that at least one of the Avatar projects won’t be fully 2D, but a mix of 2D and 3D.
Some might consider this a cause for concern, as certain animes and various other animated shows have tried to integrate 2D/3D with mixed success. Some just use it to help make dynamic shots, and that is fine. Others like Spider-Man Into The Spider-Verse used it to create a truly unique style that set it apart from others.
And then there are things like Dragon Ball Super: Super Hero which is trying to make 3D models and worlds feel like the 2D anime…and people aren’t sure if that’ll work out well.
But as in all things, we must be patient and just wait to see how it all turns out.
