Netflix’s The Last Airbender Season 1 Paid Off A 19-Year-Old Avatar Joke

Warning! This article contains spoilers for Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender.

Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender season 1 hilariously paid off a joke that was 19 years in the making. By The Last Airbender season 1’s ending, it became abundantly clear that the Netflix show fixed many of the fidelity issues with M. Night Shyamalan’s 2010 movie. Many of the characters and storylines of the original show were adapted to live-action properly, something that cannot be said for the aforementioned film adaptation.

While some elements, like The Last Airbender‘s King Bumi, were altered to help the adaptation stand on its own, even those aspects paid homage to the original show. From the statues of the original show’s Flopsy in Bumi’s halls to the iconic melody of “Leaves from the Vine” playing in Zuko and Iroh’s tragic Last Airbender backstory, many aspects familiar to those of the original show were hidden as fun Easter eggs. One such Easter egg was not as subtle, yet paid off a 19-year-old Avatar: The Last Airbender joke that will likely continue into Netflix’s season 2.

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Netflix’s Last Airbender Season 1 Includes The Iconic Cabbage Man

The long-running joke that is honored in Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender season 1 is the franchise’s cabbage man. In The Last Airbender episode 3, Aang, Katara, and Sokka are shown entering Omashu where they almost knock over a cart of cabbages. Later in the episode, Zuko firebends at Aang, burning the cabbages. The cabbage merchant then screams “My cabbages!” which continues a long-running joke from the original show.

The cabbage man appeared multiple times in Nickelodeon’s Avatar: The Last Airbender. Throughout the show, he is highlighted as a man who simply wants to run a successful cabbage stall, yet constantly runs into the Avatar and his friends, with his cabbages becoming an unfortunate victim of their adventures. This hilariously saw the cabbage man become an iconic part of the show for fans of The Last Airbender since his first appearance 19 years ago in 2005, which Netflix’s live-action adaptation pays a perfect homage to.

The Cabbage Man’s Live-Action Legacy Is Likely To Live On

While the joke found in The Last Airbender episode 3 alone is a great way of honoring the original show, the cabbage man’s live-action exploits are sure to continue. The cabbage man was not limited to the original show’s first season, going on to appear in The Last Airbender season 2 and even the show’s sequel, The Legend of Korra. In the sequel, it is revealed that the cabbage man founded a successful, generational business named Cabbage Corp. This sets up the cabbage man’s future appearances in Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender after a perfectly portrayed reference in season 1.

All episodes of Avatar: The Last Airbender season 1 are now streaming on Netflix.

Avatar: The Last Airbender (Live-Action)

Action

Adventure

Fantasy

Based on the acclaimed animated Nickelodeon television series, Avatar: The Last Airbender is an action-adventure fantasy series developed by Albert Kim. The series follows Aang, a young man training to harness the four elements to live up to the title of Avatar – the one who will restore balance to the world.

Cast

Gordon Cormier , Dallas Liu , Kiawentiio , Ian Ousley , Daniel Dae Kim , Paul Sun-Hyung Lee

Release Date

February 22, 2024

Where To Watch

Netflix