Avatar S2E2: "The Cave of Two Lovers"
Secret tunnel! Secret tunnel! | Grade: B+
Thanks for tuning in to my twenty-second of 61 daily reviews of Avatar: The Last Airbender! Yesterday, we watched S2E1: The Avatar State.
I don’t have too much analysis for this episode, which is twenty three minutes of prototypical filler. It feels like a successor to The Fortuneteller thanks to its sentimentality and focus on love. But The Cave of Two Lovers generally succeeds where that episode does not, because it doesn’t try to do too much and actually has a bevy of great jokes (some of which I’ve catalogued in the Spare Observations below).
Much of this episode’s charm comes thanks to Chong and the traveling nomads, a lovable band of one-off characters whose ditzy stonerisms give them a strong resemblance to hippies from the Sixties. They’re also musicians, who win over the Gaang and the audience with alluringly campy classics including Don’t Let The Cave-in Get You Down, the tender ballad Even If You’re Lost, You Can’t Lose The Love Because It’s In Your Heart, and of course the eponymous Secret Tunnel!
Like in The Fortuneteller, the woo-woo nomads are a comedic foil for the rational Sokka, who just wants to get to Omashu. “You got to focus less on the ‘where’ and more on the ‘going,’” a nomad tells him.
When Aang and Katara (plus Appa) get separated from the others in the labyrinth, the show gives the duo their most explicitly romantic moment yet. The lovers’ curse says they’ll be trapped forever unless they trust in love. Maybe they should kiss, suggests Katara. It doesn’t seem like they will, but as the light of their last torch fades away, we see the pair lean in and close their eyes just as everything goes black. Did they kiss? Signs point to yes, but it’s unclear, and we get to interpret for ourselves. When the glowing crystals light the way, it looks like Aang wants to say something to Katara, but she runs on ahead.
Meanwhile, Zuko and Iroh begin their journey as refugees, and decide that the Earth Kingdom is the safest place for them.
"If the Earth Kingdom discovers us, they'll have us killed.”
“But if the Fire Nation discovers us, we'll be turned over to Azula.”
“Earth Kingdom it is.”
They receive aid from a girl named Song (a beautiful referencing ) and her mother, who heal and feed the weary travelers. Most notably, Zuko has a moment with Song, who reveals that she has scars from the Fire Nation too. We’re seeing the banished prince in a new context, here. Not only is he not chasing Aang, but he’s talking to a girl. Sometimes it’s easy to forget that Zuko is only a teenager, after all.
It’s also significant that Song and her mother are the first Earth Kingdom citizens to help Zuko, who has only seen them as enemies up to this point. In that way, they serve a similar purpose to Shyu, the Fire Sage who helped Team Avatar. In the end, though, Zuko doesn’t internalize the message, and he steals the family’s ostrich horse. Perhaps he’s angry that their generosity threatens the worldview he clings to so desperately. “These people just showed you great kindness,” Iroh scolds him, but Zuko is stone-faced. “They're about to show us a little more kindness.”
Overall, The Cave of Two Lovers is notable and memorable step up for a show that sometimes struggled to produce fresh and engaging filler in Season 1. It’s the lighthearted scenes like these that make Avatar so familiar and so fun to rewatch.
See you tomorrow for Episode 3: Return to Omashu! Share your own thoughts on this episode in the comments.
Spare observations
“Well then, what kind of people are ya?” “Just… people.” “Aren’t we all, brother!”
Understated but funny gag: Zuko’s big fishing spear with one tiny minnow.
“We have five torches, so that's ten hours!” “It doesn't work like that if they're all lit at the same time!” “Oh, right…”
“I’m Lee, and this is my uncle, uh… Mushi?”
“We don't need a map. We just need love. The little guy knows it.” “Yeah, but I wouldn't mind a map also.”
Aang earthbends for the second time in this episode when he digs this massive hole. "I’m saying I’d rather kiss you than die! That’s a compliment!”
Somehow the voice acting of “No! It’s a wolfbat!” will never not be funny to me.
“Yeah, it's no use. We're separated. But at least you have us!” “Noooo!!!”
Watching Aang do his octopus training with Katara, I figure now’s not a bad time to mention that the fluid movements of waterbending are inspired by the real-life martial art of Tai Chi.
Appa charges at the stone door, but on the other side, it opens slowly and rolls to the side. Hmm.
Omashu has been captured by the Fire Nation. Seems like the kind of thing that will matter in the next episode.
Friends of the White Lotus [SPOILERS]
Sweetie that he is, Iroh actually keeps the alias “Mushi” for their entire journey.
We learn how the badgermoles were the original earthbenders, foreshadowing the introduction of Toph, who learned the technique from them.
The legend of the two lovers is apocryphal. Oma and Shu being the first earthbenders might contradict the story of Avatar Wan and the origin of bending in The Legend of Korra.
Some people say that Katara and Aang’s kiss in this episode is canon, because it was confirmed by Katara’s voice actress (Mae Whitman) in a DVD special for Season 3. For those who don’t want to believe, I wouldn’t exactly call that definitive!
The music when Katara and Aang look into each other’s eyes is also playing when they kiss during The Invasion and in the series finale.