Nickelodeon had its fair share of great shows that have stuck in the minds of everyone lucky enough to witness this channel in its heyday. Rugrats, Drake & Josh, The Fairly OddParents, CatDog, SpongeBob SquarePants — the list of shows is virtually endless and goes to show just how much quality this channel had back in the good ol' days of quality cartoons. However, you might've noticed that we've missed out on one name amongst the many that have been listed previously — a show by the name of Avatar: The Last Airbender that broke the norms of cartoons and stretched way beyond to become one of the most popular animated shows of all time, regardless of whether the audience was kids, teenagers, or adults who preferred well-thought-out fantasy worlds with an engrossing story and highly interesting characters.

There are so many reasons — aside from the ones mentioned above — as to why Avatar: The Last Airbender is touted as one of the greatest animated shows of all time. The demand for this series was so great that Nickelodeon actually greenlit a sequel by the name of The Legend Of Korra, which was also a great watch in its own way.

Anyway, our main focus is on the events between Season 2 and Season 3 of the original show. To be more specific, we're talking about the time skip between Book 2: Earth and Book 3: Fire. There are several major events that occurred during this time period, which deserve a second look.

22 Azula's Lighting Actually Separated Aang's Spirit From His Body

At the end of Book 2, Aang is hit by a powerful bolt of lightning, courtesy of Azula. The attack is so strong that Aang's life almost ebbs away in an instant.

Thankfully, this doesn't come to pass.

However, the effect this attack had on Aang's body was incredibly damaging. In fact, his spirit actually left his body, leaving him... well, technically "not alive." This state would've been permanent, had it not been for the quick thinking of one particular individual.

21 Katara Saved Aang With Spirit Water

Having someone's spirit leave their body is not an ideal situation in the slightest, especially if said person is the freaking Avatar. Thankfully, Aang made a number of friends during his journey, including a person named Katara who ended up becoming his partner.

Katara was the one who saved Aang in this critical state.

Seeing the dire state Aang was in, Katara applied her mind and decided to use the spirit water she had been provided with to heal Aang's wounds and bring him closer to a stable state.

20 Aang Almost Ended The Avatar Cycle

Anyone who has invested even a bit of their time into Avatar: The Last Airbender knows for a fact that the Avatar State is an extremely powerful mode, but should be used with the greatest of caution.

We say this because an Avatar who meets their demise in this state will end the cycle for good.

So, when Aang was struck by Azula's bolt, the fact of the matter is that he could've ended the entire cycle as we know it. Thankfully, kid shows aren't that much of a bummer, and he recovered.

19 Aang Becomes Significantly Weaker

However, recovering from an attack that leaves you critically injured is bound to have some long-term effects that will take a fair share of time to heal. So, when Aang finally opened his eyes after being in a coma, the first thing he noticed was that his body was incredibly weakened.

This is a combination of the lingering effects of Azula's lightning attack and the coma that Aang was in — his body was simply not in a state to even move around, let alone fight.

18 He Grows A Head Of Hair

It's honestly kinda weird to picture Aang with hair, but the creators decided to do it anyway for the last season. Of course, it's not like we have any problems with it — in fact, we're certain that there's a section of the fanbase that actually dug Aang's look.

Of course, a person is bound to grow a head of hair after staying in a coma for so long. The result is a person that might've been completely unfamiliar... had it not been for his iconic head tattoo and familiar mannerisms.

17 Zuko’s Exile From The Fire Nation Was Ended By His Dad, Ozai

After successfully laying waste to the Avatar — or, at least, sticking to the story — Zuko and Azula were given the credit for taking care of the last obstacle that impeded the utter dominance of the Fire Nation.

So, as a reward for his constant vigilance and taking care of such a massive threat, Fire Lord Ozai decided to rescind the order about Zuko's exile and welcomed him back into the Fire Kingdom with open arms.

16 Azula And Zuko Are Being Hailed As Heroes For Defeating Aang

The demise of Avatar Aang brought despair to the rest of the world... save for the inhabitants of the Fire Nation, who were absolutely jubilant about the fact that their dominance had been established for the world to see.

So, it's obvious that the members of the Fire Nation would be more than welcoming when it came to the return of Zuko. In fact, both him and Azula were hailed as heroes in their home country for bringing glory to the Fire Nation and laying waste to the Avatar.

15 Azula Told Fire Lord Ozai That Zuko Landed The Finishing Blow On The Avatar

Azula is a wily and deceptive character in the world of Avatar, and this can be seen in a number of scenes where she uses an equal amount of brains and brawn to tackle any problem she might be facing.

Therefore, she had a gut feeling deep down that her strike simply wasn't enough to take care of someone as imposing and resilient as the Avatar. Thus, in a bid to ensure that her relationship with her father wasn't damaged in the long run, Azula gave the credit of dealing the last blow on Aang to her brother, Zuko.

14 Zuko Had A Change Of Heart

You'd think that after being accepted back into the family and being forgiven by his father, Zuko would finally feel at home and take over as the ruler of the Fire Kingdom — a statement that's honestly up for debate. However, things didn't exactly go according to plan.

During his exile, it seems that the advice and company of Uncle Iroh actually had more of an effect on Zuko than was expected. The boy ended up developing a conscience that would compel him to do the right thing and aid the Avatar in his righteous quest.

13 Sokka Found His Father

After running away from the scene of the final battle in Book 2, Team Avatar found themselves in dire straits. They needed to figure out a way out of Chameleon Way, but it seemed impossible... that is, until Sokka happened to meet up with his father in what can only be described as a moment of pure and utter coincidence.

Hakoda — Sokka's father — aided Team Avatar in their plans to escape the bay and find their footing. Ironically enough, they were able to do so in the middle of the sea, which certainly says something.

12 Team Avatar Had To Disguise Themselves As Members Of The Fire Nation

One of the problems that came up with the supposed "demise" of Aang was that the Revolution needed to figure out how to move around the world without attracting any attention. After all, the Fire Nation would've certainly launched a manhunt for the Avatar's friends.

So, in a bid to avoid any unwanted attention, Team Avatar decided to disguise themselves as members of the Fire Nation. This was done in a successful bid to avoid attention... well, for the most part.

11 They Later Stole A Fire Nation Ship

Of course, disguising themselves as members of the Fire Nation wasn't enough. Team Avatar also needed to figure out a way to move around and not stay in one position, lest they become a target of the very nation they were striving to imitate.

Thus, the best course of action for them to take was to take over a Fire Nation ship so that they would have access to the vast ocean. This would allow them to make a definite plan — something that was definitely needed, especially since...

10 Ba Sing Se Had Been Taken Over By The Fire Nation

The last episode of Book 2 revolved around the siege of Ba Sing Se by the Fire Kingdom. Out of all the disciplines, it was the Earth Kingdom that had stuck around the longest and constantly fought against the Fire Nation to stay free. However, this resolve was shattered following the demise of Avatar Aang.

The Fire Nation forces were simply too much to bear, and Ba Sing Se finally fell after years of meddling and attacks by the Fire Nation's vast and imposing military.

9 Earth King Kuei And His Bear Bosco Started Travelling The World In Disguise

The fall of Ba Sing Se also meant that the ruler of the city, Earth King Quei, had been dethroned. By all accounts, the Fire Nation would've executed him after this capture, so the king didn't waste a single second in trying to save his hide.

With his trusty bear Bosco at his side, the Earth King decided to tuck his tail and run as far away as possible. After doing so, he decided to adopt a disguise and roamed the world, seeking the perfect time to rise from the shadows and strike.

8 The Fire Nation Dropped Their Guard After Aang’s Supposed Demise

Think about it for a second — the Fire Nation was on high alert ever the since the Avatar had been uncovered after an absence of a hundred years. This snapped them out of their lull state and sent them on full alert as they sent their forces on a worldwide manhunt to capture the Avatar.

So, when the news came out that the Avatar had passed away, then it's obvious that the Fire Nation would breathe a sigh of relief and relax. After all, according to them, there was no real threat to the throne anymore.

7 The Plan To Capture The Fire Nation Capital On The Day Of Black Sun Was Still On

You'd think that a plan that hinged on the Avatar's presence would dissipate the moment that the crux of the plan was taken out. However, it seems that the Revolution did not lose all their hope, as they chose to go ahead with the plan to take over the Fire Nation Capital on the day of the Black Sun.

It was a plan originally devised by Sokka that his father took credit for — something that didn't sit well with Katara, who gave Hakoda a piece of his mind.

6 The Group Had Crossed The Serpent Pass

The Serpent's Pass was a pivotal landmark — or, in this case, a watermark — that served as the focus of one of the earlier episodes in Avatar. So, it was quite a shock to see that Team Avatar was able to cross this pass without any worries... while they were on the run!

Some people might be fine with the fact that the creators decided not to revisit a place they'd already explored before, while others were less-than-enthused at the fact that this seemingly intimidating pass was ignored without so much as a second thought.

5 The Forces Of The Revolution Had Dwindled Like How

Morale was at an all-time low amongst the revolution after the events of Ba Sing Se's siege. After all, the centerpiece of their revolution — the Avatar — had apparently fallen at the hands of the very power they were striving to fight against, in the first place.

In fact, the impact of this apparent demise was so severe that a large portion of the Revolution simply up and quit. They simply couldn't deal with the fact that their savior had passed away for good.

4 The World Had Resigned Themselves To Being Under The Fire Nation’s Rule

The Fire Nation's diabolical rule of terror was something that a large portion of the populace was vehemently trying to avoid. The idea of staying under the thumb of a tyrannical ruler didn't really sit well with anyone.

However, after news spread around that the Fire Nation had taken care of the Avatar, this mentality started to shift. Couple this with the fact that Ba Sing Se had fallen, and more and more people had resigned themselves to the fact that the Fire Nation would rule the world for a considerable span of time.

3 People Genuinely Believed That The Avatar Was No More

We need to focus on this point in particular due to the ramifications of this shift in mentality. For eons, the Avatar was looked up to as the person who would ensure that everything in the world would stay balanced at all times.

But with his untimely passing, everything took a turn for the worse.

The hope of the people was no more since the source itself had been fizzled out by a dramatic burst of lighting. The implications of this news were dire.