Avatar Conclusion - Major Major Major Spoilers

I've seen a lot of complaints on the internet that Aang should have killed the Firelord, and that the lion turtle providing an alternative way to defeat Ozai was too deux-ex-machina. I would argue that this was partly the point, and that this ending has been foreshadowed since the beginning of the series.

The ethical axis of this world is a combination of Eastern/Medicant and Western/Judo-Christian.Everything in the series has been an examination of reaching outside of expected prejudices and therefore bringing a transformation in the world through a transformation in yourself.

The moment that Aang is facing the Fire Lord in the Avatar State is when we should realize he is not going to kill Ozai. One of the things we've seen is that entrance into the Avatar State is, in part, a way for the avatar to remove any feelings of humanity. And thus to expect Aang to kill the Fire Lord in that state, especially after 2x01 (The Avatar State), is missing the point of what Aang is trying to be - a merger of human and divine.

When Aang is trying to find a way out of killing the Fire Lord, he meditates in desperation. It is, in a sense, a plea with the spiritual world. Thus, he prays. And his prayer is answered by the appearance of the Lion Turtle, a being that has shown up in dialogue or background since the beginning of the series (as pointed out by many people). Most notable the meeting is foreshadowed by an illustration in the Library - where a spirit is angered by the violence of humanity. A violence Aang wishes to transcend.

Upon the turtles back, Aang communes with his past lives who push him to kill the Fire Lord. These are the voices of wisdom, yes, but also the voices of rationalization. The deeper, more ancient wisdom, realized by the lion turtle (a similar ancient turtle has shown up in at least one Hindu Legend), shows Aang the path of non-violence: The root of bending itself - the manipulation of Spirit. Which takes us back to the Guru, another positive but flawed voice. The Guru was right all the way until the last moment, when he counciled Aang to detach himself from the world.

We see the Guru's folly in the very end, with Aang in complete control of the Avatar State but also attached to the world through love of life. It is this attachment that gives him control of the Avatar State as well as retaining humanity. And so, with this enormous power, he douses the massive fires Ozai was using to burn away the Earth Kingdom. His final use of power in the series is one of non-violence and healing, instead of what the viewer expected which was the climax of killing Ozai. Also note that Aang dousing these fires harkens back to Roku calming the volcano, and thus we see Aang has redeemed his past life.

The whole combination of Enlightenment with Love reminded me very much of Teilhard's combination of Eastern and Western spirituality. This was the kind of art children and adults can enjoy, and by making an idealistic call to seek a path outside of the cycle (samsara) of violence it is the best kind of cartoon in a world of animations designed to sell card games.