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| “ | To Your Supreme Eminence, the great flame of the world, I am but a humble servant in the Southern Seas. But I have news for you of a critical nature. I know this information may arrive as a shock, and you might be tempted to dismiss it as rumor or delusion, but rest assured, I have witnessed these events with my very eyes. That is why I can report an astounding development. One that could change the future of the Fire Nation. | „ |
| ~ Zhao informing Ozai about the Avatar's return. |
| “ | Spare me your empty threats. This can still work out for you, Iroh. Once I take my place as the new Fire Lord, you can stand by my side. Your presence will lend legitimacy to my claim. The Dragon of the West can rise again. As long as he bows... before Zhao, THE MOON SLAYER! I AM A LEGEND NOW! They will tell stories about me! For generations, Zhao the Moon Slayer... | „ |
| ~ Zhao revealing his true intentions to Iroh. |
| “ | Who do you think was my ally... through all this? Who convinced the Fire Lord to send me the Yuyan archers? Who identified the Blue Spirit's swords as yours? Azula told me everything I needed to know. You are the fire in which her iron was forged. That's all you were. | „ |
| ~ Zhao to Zuko. |
Zhao, known as Commander Zhao and later Admiral Zhao, is one of two secondary antagonists (alongside Azula) of the 2024 Netflix live-action series Avatar: The Last Airbender, based on the Nickelodeon animated series of the same name.
He is a power hungry and ruthless Fire Nation navy officer who is bent of capturing Avatar Aang in the name of Fire Lord Ozai and would do anything to beat the disgraced Fire Nation Prince Zuko in doing so. Though he initially presents himself as an ally for Zuko and General Iroh, Zhao starts taking over the operation in his quest to rise up through the ranks.
He was portrayed by Ken Leung.
His Evil Ranking[]
What Makes Him Close to Being Pure Evil?[]
- Being the one who's aware that Fire Lord Ozai only sent Zuko away as a motivation for Azula to become a better heir than him, he began to conspire with her by helping her in doing so. Despite this, their alliance is nothing more than just to satisfy their own pursuits instead of a genuine friendship.
- Discovering that Team Avatar was at Kyoshi Island after hearing about the "flying cow" (which happens to be Aang's pet flying bison Appa), he rallied his army to attack the small village led by Mayor Yukari, which almost killed both Sokka and Suki if it weren't for Aang (who is possessed by Kyoshi).
- Despite promising both Zuko and Iroh not to tell anyone about the Avatar and knowing how sensitive the Fire Nation prince's mission was, he wrote a letter about the Avatar's return to Ozai behind their backs.
- After he was promoted to admiral, he began to take control of Zuko's crew and also all of the operations related to capturing the Avatar, all in order to mock Zuko and rub it in his face.
- After finding out that Zuko and Iroh managed to capture Aang through a bounty hunter named June, he threatened to tell Ozai about Zuko's disobedience and order the Yuyan Archers to attack them if they don't surrender the Avatar to him. After they did, he later tells them that he'll be taking Aang to Pohuai Stronghold, which lies inside Fire Nation borders. According to Iroh, going there will violate Zuko's banishment, which is what Zhao expects him to do.
- After capturing Aang, he cruelly mocks Aang and intend to keep him alive in a torturous condition to prevent him from ever being reincarnated again, making this a fate worse than death.
- When Zuko (as the Blue Spirit) snuck inside Pohuai Stronghold to rescue Aang, he orders his Yuyan Soldiers to shoot Zuko with an arrow, injuring him as result.
- Discovered that Zuko is the Blue Spirit who infiltrated Pohuai Stronghold and rescued Aang, he told Fire Lord Ozai about this after which he was ordered to capture him and bring him back to the Fire Nation where he is stand trial for treason. When Zuko escapes with a small boat, he reveals he planted Blasting Jelly on it to blow him up along with the boat. He also gave Iroh his "condolences" in order to mock him over his loss, not knowing that Zuko survived the explosion.
- He led the Fire Nation navy army in attacking the Northern Water Tribe, while also crippling their defenses.
- After he and Iroh infiltrate the Northern Water Tribe's Spirit Oasis, he captured the Moon Spirit Tui and plans to kill him in order to be remembered by history, despite being warned by Iroh how doing so will throw the entire world out of balance. While he's confronted by Aang, Sokka and Princess Yue, he callously refused the Avatar's offer for peace when he tried to reason with him. When Aang and Iroh tried to save the Moon Spirit from being killed, he later succeeds in killing Tui, thus throwing the entire world out of balance and depriving the Waterbenders' abilities which led to many deaths in the Northern Water Tribe.
- However, he's also responsible for Aang willingly being merged with the Ocean Spirit eternally if it weren't for Katara and Yue, and also Yue's sacrifice by giving up her life to revive the Moon Spirit, which later reversed the effects caused by Zhao.
- While he served under Ozai's rule, he only did this all in order to overthrow him and become the Fire Lord to be remembered by history after he killed the Moon Spirit.
- After Zuko brutally wounded and defeated him in rage, he cruelly mocks Zuko over the fact that Ozai doesn't intend to bring him back to the Fire Nation and he only sent him to hunt the Avatar as motivation for his sister Azula into becoming a better heir than him, and reveals the fact that Azula was behind all of his actions, thus calling him "the fire in which her iron was forged" to spite him. Once Zuko turns his back on him, he attempt to kill him again by using a fire whip before Iroh intervened and killed him in order to save him, thus ending his life once and for all.
- Given the lower heinous standard of the series, he does not have to compete with the other villains that outrank him in the original series, making him stand out a lot more in comparison.
What Prevents Him from Being Pure Evil?[]
- Despite how cruel and ruthless he is, Zhao is shown to have been against the idea of killing the Ocean Spirit because it will eradicate all of the Waterbenders around the world, including men, women and children, if he does, and also denied himself as being a "monster", showing he has at least some moral standards. Despite this, he is still responsible for the deaths in the Northern Water Tribe siege once the Fire Nation attacks them after killing the Moon Spirit, making this prevention minor.
External Links[]
- Zhao on the Villains Wiki
- Zhao on the Avatar Wiki
[]
 Near Pure Evils
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Animated Shows The Legend of Korra Live-Action Show Comic Books See Also | ||
