Princess Azula of the Fire Nation has been a favorite among fans of Avatar: The Last Airbender since her introduction. She may not have a fanbase as large as characters like Zuko, Sokka, Toph, or Iroh. But Azula consistently ranks as the most popular villain in the series. It probably has something to do with the fact that she's a compelling character.
While Ozai is, without question, the biggest, baddest evil in Avatar, he never shows much depth besides being a cackling embodiment of evil (voiced to perfection by Mark Hamill). Azula, on the other hand, seethes with a fiery personality and develops into a dynamic character over time. It's not hard to see why Azula is popular.
Her obsession with power and her passion for world domination empower her to steal every scene she's in. She gets some of the series' best lines, most memorable fights, and always seems to be one step ahead of our heroes. Her obvious intelligence and cunning coupled with her sadistic, sociopathic tendencies and descent into madness make her easily one of the most layered and complex characters on Avatar.
Her cleverness, manipulative nature, and complicated relationships make her a powerfully effective antagonist. Even series creators Michael DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko have praised the character with Konietzko calling her "by far the most complex, interesting, and dangerous villain in the series". But there is more to Azula than blue flames, broken mirrors, and deception.
Updated on April 30th, 2021, by Juliet Childers: Azula is one of the most complex characters in the entire history of the Avatar series -- including Legend of Korra. Her descent into madness, as many fans agree, is not fully represented, but is still handled decently in the show. The follow-up graphic novels and comics also help to fill in the blanks. But even die-hard fans might have missed facts like the real-world fighting style she uses in the show. What other facts about Azula did Avatar: The Last Airbender fans miss out on?
21 Her Story Continues After The End Of AtLA
The end of AtLA focuses mostly on Aang stopping Ozai from taking over the known world. And rightfully so! But one of the loose threads is Azula's fate. She has her mental break as Ozai goes off to fight Aang, and is not really seen again. However, some extended comics and graphic novels help provide more stories for her.
She appears in Smoke and Shadow parts 1, 2, and 3. Not only does she reconnect with Zuko in these, but she also talks to Ozai, her mother, and breaks free of her imprisonment, too.
20 She And Zuko Might Not Both Be Ozai's Children
Ozai always pitted Zuko and Azula against each other for his love and affection (if we can call it that). This, undoubtedly, destroyed their relationship and adversely affected both of their self-esteems. But Zuko and Azula might only be half-siblings instead.
In Smoke and Shadow, Azula finds letters from Ursa -- one of which reveals that Zuko's true father may not be Ozai. Before her marriage, she was in love with a man named Ikem and he is who may have fathered Zuko.
19 As A Result Of This, She's The True Fire Lord Heir
Zuko's true parentage would then mean that he was not eligible to become the Fire Lord. After all, one of the key elements of monarchical ruling bodies is ancestry, right? This would make Azula the true heir to the throne of Fire Lord.
This could explain why Ozai was always so cruel to Zuko and why he showed preference to Azula. He was always training her to become Fire Lord because she was the true heir.
18 She Has a Half-Sister Named Kiyi (Whom She Kidnaps)
Ikem and Ursa's story did not stop with Zuko's supposed parentage though. After she was banished, Ursa reconnected with Ikem who had taken on the identity of Noren. He helped Ursa get a new face and she lived as Noriko with Noren. The two went so far as to get married and have another child: a daughter named Kiyi.
Though Kiyi fully accepted Zuko as her family, she became the target of the New Ozai Society -- a fanatical group loyal to Ozai. But it was a group of mythical spirits known as Kemurikage who stole her away. This turned out to be a group operating on behalf of Azula.
17 Breaking All The Records
Azula charted a lot of firsts on Avatar. For one, she's the first character we see with the ability to generate lightning and the only female we've seen able to do so. She's also one of the few characters we've seen able to both generate it and redirect it.
Although she acquired it through"unconventional" means in the form of a Dai Li coup d'etat, Azula was still also technically an Earth Queen at one point. This makes her one of only two Earth Queens to reign in the whole history of the Earth Kingdom. She also would have been the first person who broke the Avatar Cycle if Katara had not been able to revive Aang using spirit water.
16 Azulon: Her Sadistic Namesake
Azula was named after her grandfather Azulon -- the ruler of the Fire Nation before her father Ozai. As it turns out, Ozai couldn't have chosen a better namesake for his power-obsessed daughter. Azulon's reign carried a legacy of brutality and militarism. Though it was his father, Fire Lord Sozin, who started the Hundred Year War, Azulon is famous for escalating it.
In particular, he's remembered for increasing the efficiency of the Fire Nation war machine and leading several successful campaigns against the Earth Kingdom, resulting in massive territorial conquests. Azula continues these trends with her siege on Ba Sing Se. Fortunately, she did not go as far as Azulon did with the destruction of the Southern Water Tribe and the genocide of Waterbenders.
15 An Arranged Marriage
Many viewers of Avatar probably can't imagine Azula being married, but at one point it could have been canon. In an interview given to a fan site in 2007, series creators Michael DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko said Azula was originally going to have an arranged marriage in the third season.
The idea would make sense given Azula's royal status, and likely would have changed a lot about her character arc. The idea was ultimately scrapped. However, what is interesting is that Azula alluded to marriage only one other time in the third season episode, "The Beach". One wonders if Azula was going to be engaged to the original version of Chan, her would-be beau from the beach episode.
14 She Seemed To Be Neglected By Ursa, Her Mother
Without question, Ursa's treatment of Azula irrevocably damaged her. Not only did it affect her relationship with Zuko, but it fractured Azula's psyche in ways that would not become clear to anyone until the events of Sozin's Comet. The question is why did Ursa treat Azula so differently?
Most fans would argue that it relates back to Zuko's supposed heritage. Azula may, in fact, be the daughter of Ozai while Zuko is Ursa's true love's offspring. This could easily cause Ursa to (even unknowingly) treat Zuko with more love and affection than Azula.
13 Shaped By A Jealous Rift In The Family
Believe it or not, Azula and Zuko's childhood was mostly peaceful in the early days. Both of them would fondly recall reenacting the final duel of the play Love Amongst the Dragons during their frequent vacations at Ember Island. As they grew older, the siblings grew apart, but not just in the "normal" way. Ozai clearly favored his daughter, but Azula felt her mother loved Zuko much more than her.
She often attempted to break up their mother/son bonding in the only way she knew how: through intimidation and petty squabbles. After all, she was only a child. Over time, Azula grew increasingly hostile to Zuko and Ursa. This dynamic of sibling rivalry would go on to shape both Azula and Zuko's lives.
12 The Explanation Behind Her Blue Flames
Azula is the only bender we see to use blue fire; most other Firebenders all bend orange flames -- even powerful ones like her Uncle Iroh the "Dragon" and her great-grandfather Fire Lord Sozin. Not even the influence of Sozin's Comet can transform their bending from orange to blue. Another interesting fact: "azul" is blue in Spanish, Filipino, Galician, and Portuguese -- the same color as her trademark fire.
The blue part of fire is also widely believed to be the hottest part of the flame. It's likely that Azula's unique blue color is meant to denote her mastery in Firebending. Azula's fire burns hotter than most, symbolizing the power she so craves. One fan explanation is that her intense blue flame may be a side effect of her volatile personality. Others theorize her ability to summon lightning might have something to do with it.
11 A Lady Never Apologizes (And Ty-Lee Never Forgives)
Literally, the only person Azula has ever apologized to is Ty Lee for hurting her feelings after calling her a tease. This episode "The Beach" is also the only time in the franchise where we see Azula express genuine remorse. Azula doesn't have the most apologetic personality, so it has to be exceedingly rare for someone to be on the receiving end of an apology from her.
Unfortunately, it appears that Ty-Lee never truly forgives Azula for all of the abuse she put her through. Even whilst restrained, the former friend chi-blocks Azula despite the protestations of Zuko.
10 Bending Lightning To Her Will
Azula was highly skilled in Firebending, studying harder than any of her peers. From a young age, she was capable of feats even elite benders could not easily perform. She was even capable of lightning generation, one of the rarest forms of Firebending and a form considered to be unteachable. Even Aang was never able to master lightning-casting. This arguably makes her one of the most powerful Firebenders of her time.
Azula is very difficult to defeat in single combat due to her excellent Firebending and hand-to-hand combat skills, agility, cunning, and intelligence. She was able to hold off the combined attacks of Aang, Katara, Zuko, and Toph simultaneously. She is known for using her bending in previously unseen ways like jets of flames, whirling disks, and powerful shields of fire. She's shown to fight for long periods of time without tiring. Azula is able to propel herself in a manner similar to a rocket using her flames, essentially allowing her to fly for short distances. Best of all, she can breathe fire. And that's just awesome.
9 She And Zuko Both Impersonate Mythical Beings
Though the Fire Nation siblings vary in their abilities, predilections, and personalities, they have a few things in common. One of those is that they both seem to be into mythology and local stories to some degree.
Zuko infamously impersonates the Blue Spirit while Azula dons the disguise as the Kemurikage in the Smoke and Shadow novels. These spirits supposedly haunted warlords of the Fire Islands before the Fire Nation was formed. Over time, the legend morphed into spirits who abduct badly behaved children instead.
Perhaps fans can try to recreate this character as they've done with Katara and the Painted Lady in Skyrim.
8 Despite Her Intelligence, She's Pretty Socially Inept
There is no question: Azula is a tactical genius far beyond her years. Her attempt to breach and take over Ba Sing Se very nearly works. That's something not even her Uncle Iroh could achieve. Unfortunately, her extremely sheltered upbringing cost her some critical social skills.
This is directly displayed in the "beach episode" where she tries and fails spectacularly at flirting. Though she genuinely likes Chan, she just...absolutely cannot be relaxed let alone vulnerable with him (or anyone). This obviously tied into why she was so jealous of Ty-Lee.
7 She Met Ty-Lee And Mai At The Royal Fire Academy For Girls
As fans know, Azula had very few friends, but two confidants stayed with her through most of the show: Mai and Ty-Lee. Both of these characters had incredible abilities of their own, as well. But all of them first became friends at the Royal Fire Academy for Girls.
Fans got a hint as to what school in the Fire Nation was like in season 3 -- strict, scheduled, and usually connected to the military in some way. This academy was specifically for nobility and had a penchant for "accidental" deaths in Agni Kai showdowns.
6 Azula Makes New Friends After Time At A Mental Health Facility
After the events of AtLA, it is revealed that Azula has been sent to a mental health facility. Though she would definitely benefit from some psychotherapy and maybe some anti-anxiety or anti-psychotic meds, it's unclear just what kind of treatment she receives (if any). The one perk is that she makes some new friends while at this facility.
She still seems to be her controlling, brusque, and ruthless self. But she also seems to have really connected to a group of female Firebenders -- some of whom she liberated from similar facilities. Known as the Fire Warriors, the group helps her kidnap her half-sister and impersonate the Kemurikage.
5 She Is One Of The Few People Who Can Lie To Toph
Another fan-favorite character, Toph had a special ability even among Earthbenders. She could tell when someone was lying just by feeling their heartbeat. She could determine when almost anyone was lying and was only bested by two people -- one of whom was Azula.
Though Zuko also had some skills in deception, Azula's far exceeded his. Her depth of control over her emotions and physical body allowed her to circumvent even Toph's prowess. But this was before Toph founded the Metalbending academy and furthered her powers.
4 Azula Uses A Real-World Fighting Style
Many elements in both AtLA and LoK feature themes and inspirations from our real world. The cultures are amalgamations of Native and Asian cultures ranging from the Inuit with Katara's hair loopies to Mongolian culture to Szechuan style Chinese cuisine found in the Fire Nation.
Similarly, Azula incorporates parts of a real-world martial arts style into her fighting. Chāquán originated with the Hui people and is known for some aerial maneuvers and an overall graceful style. It can also make use of many weapons -- all of which fans see Azula do across the series.
3 Something Her Hallucinations Say Is Actually True
Azula's tenuous and unhealthy relationship with her mother contributed to her mental break. The scenes in the mirror where Azula is hallucinating about her mother are some of the best in the entire Avatar series. But her mother says to her at one point that she loves her -- something Azula cannot accept.
In the graphic novels, Azula does not really reconcile with Ursa. But her mother, owning up to her mistakes as Noriko, tells Azula that she does love her. She goes so far as to say that she wishes she had been a better mother to Azula. But, after years of PTSD and gaslighting from Ozai, Azula still cannot accept this.
2 She Hasn't Been Seen Since Smoke And Shadow Part 3
Unfortunately, though she featured prominently in the story, Smoke and Shadow was Azula's last appearance in the franchise. Fans of Legend of Korra know that she doesn't get shown, so there is little to fill in the blanks on the timeline.
She is last seen in a crowd during one of Zuko's speeches with her Kemurikage-disguised group.