Animated series are a polarizing figure in pop culture — some people find it to be useless drivel that is meant to be nothing more than your run-of-the-mill timesink, and nothing else. However, there's an alternate spectrum of people who absolutely love how animation allows mediums of entertainment to truly go beyond the realm of the possible and provide us with unique, comedic, dark, light-hearted, sad, and jubilant moments — and trust me when I tell you that that's just the icing on the cake when it comes to the whole host of emotions and feelings that animation can make you experience if you truly are invested in it.

Perhaps the best way to illustrate the latter would be to talk about one of the most celebrated and popular animated series of all time that added to the unique flair of Nickelodeon shows — yep, we're talking about none other than Avatar: The Last Airbender. Widely considered to be one of the best shows of all time, the series features a slew of elements that would turn any show into a fan favorite, let alone an animated one.

One such element that is the main focus of this article — well, kinda — are the characters that have stuck with us ever since the show introduced some of the most memorable animated cast members of all time. While we can go on and on about most of these characters, we've decided to stick to Katara. To be more precise, we are going to take a look at 25 wrongful assumptions everyone made about our favorite waterbender.

25 She Was Supposed To End Up With Zuko

Now, isn't this a tease?

While the romance between Aang and Katara was certainly welcomed by the majority of the Avatar fanbase, there's a certain section that noticed the unnatural and hurried pace at which this angle was pursued.

This is because Katara's love interest was changed late into the series.

The showrunners were actually planning to pair her off with Zuko, before making a last-minute change and deciding that Aang was the safer bet.

Of course, the seeds of this potential romance had already been put in place, as can be seen in the fact that...

24 Katara Was The First Person To Touch Zuko's Scar In The Series

Zuko's scar is a harsh memory of the physical and mental pain that he faced at the hands of his father. During a meeting, Zuko made a statement out of turn that his father overreacted to, following, this permanent scar was inflicted on him as a lesson.

Katara was the very first person (aside from Zuko) who directly touched this scar.

This was done to create a lasting bond between both characters that would've translated to something else. However, this wasn't the case, and — as discussed above — Katara ended up with Aang at the end, while Zuko stayed with Mai.

23 She’s Not As Adept In Waterbending As You Might Think

Now, don't get us wrong — it's pretty evident at this point that Katara is one of the best waterbenders of all time. However, she excels in this department simply out of perseverance, and not because she was a gifted individual.

After all, Aang easily showcased a technique Katara took a while to master on his first attempt.

This led to a feeling of animosity and jealousy that Katara soon got over. She realized after a while that, what she lacked in natural talent, she could more than make up for with her dedication to learning the craft itself.

22 She Was More Proficient In Healing Than Combat

As discussed in the previous entry, we've already established Katara to be an individual who had to work hard to achieve her mastery with waterbending. However, there are various facets of this form of bending that need to be taken into account.

Basically, what we're trying to say is that Katara is not completely inept when it comes to sporting natural waterbending talent. Her healing skills are quite excellent, and this is mainly because she had a knack for it from the get-go.

21 Katara Was The First Person To Speak In The Series

The narration that precedes every Avatar: The Last Airbender episode has become the stuff of legends, with the line "but everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked" becoming an iconic phrase that spawned its fair share of memes as well.

Well, this also implied one other thing that most people fail to notice — Katara is also the first person to speak in the series! It's a distinguished accolade that was bestowed upon the waterbender simply because of the vision that the showrunners had in mind for her.

20 The Creators Believe Katara To Be The Person Through Which The Story Is Being Told

Talk about a distinguished honor indeed.

Fans of the Avatar series would definitely remember the fact that Katara's narration plays a key role in setting up the events of the series. It's her voice that guides first-time viewers of the show to familiarize themselves with the background of the series.

Well, this was done on purpose — the creators actually wanted to push forth the notion that Katara is actually the person narrating the events of the series.

This is further compounded by the fact that...

19 Katara Was Seen Or Mentioned In Every Episode Of The Series, Save One

When one talks about the screen time of multiple protagonists in the series, then it must be said that Katara definitely takes the cake in this regard. She is one of the few people who appears or is mentioned in almost every episode.

In fact, there is only one episode where Katara isn't mentioned — the episode "Zuko Alone," where the titular character serves as the sole focus of the episode, trying to redeem himself after realizing that the path he'd taken was flawed.

18 Katara Was The First Person To Bend In The Series

Here's another accolade on top of all the firsts that Katara has already accumulated till now — she's also the first person who bends in front of the viewers for the very first time.

It's a detail that most people tend not to focus on, but the fact of the matter is that it clearly establishes the fact that some form of magic exists in the world. Of course, this is not taking into account the silhouette of Pakku in the intro sequence, since he is technically the first character to bend.

But hey, we'll write this off as a technicality and give the credit to Katara instead.

17 Katara Knows A Fair Bit About Yoga

In a series that's heavily reliant on spiritual themes, it's kinda obvious that the concept of yoga would be present in the world of Avatar. And, when one comes to the topic of spirituality, then it must be said that both airbenders and waterbenders are strongly linked to their spiritual side, as opposed to the other types of benders.

Thus, it can confidently be said that Katara also had a fair bit of knowledge when it came to yoga. This can be seen in episode 9 of Book Three, where she tries out yoga in an artificial hot spring.

16 Aunt Wu’s Prediction About Katara Is Quite Chilling

Don't mistake Avatar: The Last Airbender to be a simple show for kids — if you haven't seen the series, then there are several dark motifs and themes that you're missing out on. Episode 14 of Book One takes one such theme to heart — the concept of mortality.

While interacting with a fortuneteller — which, fittingly enough, is the title of the episode itself — by the name of Aunt Wu, Katara discovers that she will have her third great-grandchild before passing away peacefully in her sleep.

Who says something like that?!

15 Katara Was The First Female Student Under Master Pakku To Master Waterbending

Master Pakku might be one of the most gifted and talented waterbenders of his time, but he's also a man with the obtuse mentality of wanting only men to learn the combat applications of waterbending. This makes his mentoring of Katara all the more special.

After all, she is the first woman to completely master waterbending under Master Pakku, making her the first person to break the gender norms that existed in the water tribe while simultaneously letting Pakku learn the error of his ways.

14 Katara Was The Only Member Of Team Avatar Who Never Met Fire Lord Ozai

Katara has already been the subject of multiple accolades — some of which we've already discussed — but the one thing that she's definitely missed out on is that fact that she never directly interacted with Fire Lord Ozai.

While this might seem like a rather small thing to crib about in hindsight, the fact of the matter is that Ozai is very much responsible for the events that kickstarted the adventures in Avatar, to begin with. So, for Katara to never even have a single face-to-face interaction with this ruthless dictator is definitely somewhat of a disservice to her character.

13 Katara Was The Only Character Ever Shown To Calm Aang Out Of The Avatar State

Anyway, now that we've talked about one of Katara's failings, it's time to roll back and talk about all her accomplishments... again.

The second episode of Avatar: The Last Airbender features a chilling scene where Aang finally witnesses firsthand the destruction that the Fire Nation caused to his beloved airbending temple. Unable to come to terms with the fact that his mentors — including Monk Gyatso — had passed away, he succumbed to his rage and transcended into the Avatar state.

Thankfully, Katara was there to serve as his emotional shoulder, hugging him until his rage ebbed away and he came back to normal.

It's the first — and only — time that someone has been calmed out of the Avatar state through a show of affection.

12 Katara, Along With Sokka, Had The Longest List Of Love Interests In The Show

Now, this is a fact that might perplex the majority of people who've seen the show. After all, while Sokka was well-known to be a shameless ladies man, the same can't be said of Katara, who is seemingly pure-hearted and is portrayed as a one-man-only kind of woman.

However, in the series, both Jet and Aang have fallen to her charms. Along with this — while, admittedly, nothing really happened — Toph also assumed that Katara and Haru had a "thing."

11 Katara Is The Only Person To Have Participated In All The Water Duels During The Hundred Year War

Waterbending is generally considered to be quite a gentle art, mainly used for defensive and healing purposes. However, in the context of Avatar, it must be said that there are certain waterbending duels that definitely proved to be quite a spectacle indeed. The best part is that, in all these waterbending duels, Katara has always been a constant participant.

To put it into context, Katara has engaged in a waterbending duel with the following people — Pakku, Hama, and Aang. Along with this, she has also dueled a number of Pakku's students as well.

10 Katara Is The Only Character To Appear In Both The First And Last Scenes Of The Series

Jeez, just how many firsts is Katara a part of? It sure seems like a whole lot!

Katara is the only character who has appeared in both the first and last scenes of the series. She was with Sokka when she discovered the lost Avatar at the start of the series, and she kissed Aang at the very end of the show.

9 Katara Is The First Known Waterbender To Have Given Birth To An Airbender

Well then, whaddya know — another first.

The Legend Of Korra was a much-needed sequel that satiated the wants of many fans who were aching for more material in the Avatar universe. Focusing on a bunch of new characters with the advent of a new, modern Avatar, the show was a much-needed breath of fresh air in Nickelodeon's fatigue-inducing array of shows.

In this show, we also witness a development that one could never have thought of — Katara, a waterbender, gave birth to Tenzin, an airbender. It's the first known incidence of something like this happening in the Avatar universe.

8 Katara Is The Only Known Bender Capable Of Using All Sub-Skills Of An Element

So, remember when we said that Katara wasn't naturally gifted at waterbending? Well, while that statement still holds true to some extent, the fact of the matter is that Katara really came into her own as a masterful waterbender near the end of the series.

She became quite adept at using waterbending for offensive, defensive, and healing purposes after a while. However, the real test was when — in a fit of desperation — she also managed to learn the art of bloodbending as well.

Speaking of which...

7 Katara Is The First Person To Break Free Of A Bloodbender's Hold

The art of bloodbending is a forbidden one amongst waterbenders, with practitioners utilizing this art in secret. So, trying to break free of a bloodbender's hold is nigh impossible since no one really knows how to do so, in the first place.

Except for Katara, that is.

In episode 8 of Book Three — aptly titled "The Puppetmaster" — a bloodbender named Hama tried to pass on the art of bloodbending to Katara, who wanted nothing to do with it. In a fit of rage, Hama decided to bloodbend Katara to show her the error of her ways.

However, Hama underestimated Katara's power, who promptly broke free of her hold — becoming the first known person to accomplish this feat in the process.

6 Katara Was Originally Envisioned As A Twelve-Year-Old Girl

Originally, the entire cast of Avatar: The Last Airbender was planned to be way younger than what came to be. Sokka and Aang were supposedly just kids... and so was Katara.

To be more precise, she was just twelve years old.

Imagine giving a twelve-year-old the responsibility of saving the world. Isn't it quite harrowing? Well, as it turns out, one of the crew members thought the exact same thing and suggested that the cast members be aged up.

This suggestion definitely didn't fall on deaf ears, and the changes were promptly approved.