The Legend Of Korra

[GeneChing]

A fitting nod to the legendary actor Mako.

Nickelodeon “The Last Airbender: Legend Of Korra” Character Mako / Firebender
March 12, 2012 | by Nickutopia Staff

Nickelodeon will soon be premiering a new show on the network called “The Last Airbender: Legend Of Korra.” Below is a description of the “Legend Of Korra” character Mako/Firebender.



“A Firebender with a serious side, the handsome and brooding Mako has always taken care of his little brother, Bolin. Growing up on the streets has given him a hard edge, but Mako loves his brother and will do anything to protect them both. Intensely focused on getting their team through the Pro-bending tournament and winning the jackpot, Mako’s tightly controlled world gets a little more chaotic when Korra enters the picture.”

We’re really excited for this show, and we can’t wait to find out the premiere date!

More to come soon...

[Lokhopkuen]

Network will announce the release date sometime tomorrow

It's tomorrow!

The Legend of Korra takes place 70 years after the events of Avatar: The Last Airbender continuing the evolution of the franchise and its mythology. It follows the adventures of the Avatar after Aang – a passionate, rebellious, and fearless teenage girl from the Southern Water Tribe named Korra. Korra is the opposite of Aang – headstrong, impulsive and has a lot to learn about airbending.

Nickelodeon has ordered 26 half-hour episodes of The Legend of Korra, which will premiere Saturday, April 14, at 11 a.m. (ET/PT) on Nickelodeon.

The series combines 2D and CG effects and takes place in the epicenter of the modern “Avatar” world, Republic City – a metropolis that is fueled by steampunk technology. It is a virtual melting pot where benders and non-benders from all nations live and thrive.

At its core, The Legend of Korra is about self-confidence, self-empowerment, friendship, discipline, and respect.

The Legend of Korra fits right in with the Nickelodeon philosophy for quality animation—funny, original characters; a strong kid voice and POV; and non-traditional animated design.

The Legend of Korra voice cast includes Janet Varney (Dinner and a Movie) as Korra, David Faustino (Married…with Children) as Mako, P.J. Byrne (Horrible Bosses) as Bolin, J.K. Simmons (The Closer) as Tenzin, Steve Blum (Cowboy Bebop) as Amon, Lance Henriksen (Aliens) as The Lieutenant, Mindy Sterling (Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery) as Chief Lin Beifong, Daniel Dae Kim (Hawaii Five-0) as Hiroshi Sato, Seychelle Gabriel (Falling Skies) as Asami Sato and Eva Marie Saint (Superman Returns) as Katara.

The series is co-created and executive produced by Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko (Avatar: The Last Airbender), and co-executive produced by Joaquim Dos Santos (Justice League).

Launched in February 2005, Avatar aired for three seasons on Nickelodeon and was ranked among the top five animated properties on television among boys, 2-11 and 6-11.

Nickelodeon was home to five of the top six animated programs across all television in 2011 with kids 2-11. For the year, SpongeBob was the #1 ranked animated program with kids 2-11. Since its debut in the fall, Kung Fu Panda became an instant hit, ranking as the #2 animated program during 4th Quarter and Dec 2011 behind SpongeBob.

[GeneChing]

Check out the new Korra Nation site.

[David Jamieson]

How does Uncle Iroh feel about this?

[GeneChing]

Courtesy of the Nickelodeon rep (thanks for the intro, Lokhopkuen!)

NICKELODEON’S THE LEGEND OF KORRA TO PREMIERE ON
SATURDAY, APRIL 14, AT 11:00 AM (ET/PT)

New Highly Anticipated Animated Adventure is from
Creators of the Hit Series Avatar: The Last Airbender

BURBANK, Calif. – March 15, 2012 – The mythology of the beloved animated franchise from Avatar: The Last Airbender creators, Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, continues with the Nickelodeon premiere of The Legend of Korra on Saturday, April 14, at 11:00 AM (ET/PT), with a one-hour television event featuring back-to-back episodes. The all-new series centers around a new Avatar named Korra, a 17-year-old headstrong and rebellious girl who continually challenges and bucks tradition on her quest to become a fully realized Avatar in a world where benders are under attack. The Legend of Korra will air regularly on Saturdays at 11:00 a.m. (ET/PT) on Nickelodeon.

“Mike and Bryan created an incredibly layered world with the animated Avatar franchise -- rich with mythology and artistry,” said Brown Johnson, President, Animation, Nickelodeon and MTVN Kids and Family Group. “The Legend of Korra takes their vision even further, into a more modern world led by a new Avatar who is a fearless and spirited teenage girl.”

The Legend of Korra takes place 70 years after the events of Avatar: The Last Airbender and follows the next Avatar after Aang – a girl named Korra (Janet Varney) who is from the Southern Water Tribe. With three of the four elements under her belt (Earth, Water and Fire), Korra seeks to master Air. Her quest leads her to Republic City, the modern “Avatar” world that is a virtual melting pot where benders and non-benders from all nations live and thrive. Korra quickly discovers that the metropolis is plagued by crime as well as a growing anti-bending revolution that threatens to rip the city apart. Under the tutelage of Aang’s son, Tenzin (J.K. Simmons), Korra begins her airbending training while dealing with the dangers at large.

In the premiere episode, “Welcome to Republic City,” Korra leaves the safety of her home and travels to bustling Republic City to begin her airbending training. Once there, she is shocked to find a big city full of dangers, including criminal bending gangs and a vocal anti-bending revolution. In episode two, “A Leaf in the Wind,” Korra is living with her airbending teacher Tenzin on Air Temple Island. Frustrated with her inability to master airbending, she turns her attentions to Republic City's famous Pro-bending Arena. There she befriends two brothers, Mako (David Faustino) and Bolin (P.J. Byrne), who compete in professional bending matches. Korra is immediately drawn to Pro-bending’s dynamic fighting style.

The Legend of Korra cast includes Janet Varney (Dinner and a Movie) as Korra, David Faustino (Married…with Children) as Mako, P.J. Byrne (Horrible Bosses) as Bolin, J.K. Simmons (The Closer) as Tenzin, Steve Blum (Cowboy Bebop) as Amon, Lance Henriksen (Aliens) as The Lieutenant, Mindy Sterling (Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery) as Chief Lin Beifong, Daniel Dae Kim (Hawaii Five-0) as Hiroshi Sato, Seychelle Gabriel (Falling Skies) as Asami Sato and Eva Marie Saint (Superman Returns) as Katara. The series is co-created and executive produced by Michael DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, co-creators of the Emmy Award-winning Avatar: The Last Airbender. Joaquim Dos Santos is co-executive producer.
(more)

Starting today, fans can work to unlock an exclusive sneak peek of The Legend of Korra premiere at korranation.com. Beginning April 1, fans may log on to nick.com for an interactive experience and introduction to Republic City. Show information, fun facts, micro games and additional new content make up this “Welcome to Republic City” online experience. Also leading up to the television series premiere, Xbox users will have the opportunity to download the first episode and trailer for free and purchase episodes from Avatar: The Last Airbender. The first The Legend of Korra episode will be available on VOD. In conjunction with the series premiere, Nick’s mobile channel NIMO, will have a live simulcast of the first two episodes.

Launched in February 2005, Avatar: The Last Airbender aired for three seasons on Nickelodeon and was consistently ranked among the top five animated properties on television among boys 2-11 and 6-11. Avatar: The Last Airbender was the inspiration for the Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies live-action epic adventure, The Last Airbender. In 2007, the series was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category of Outstanding Animated Program and took home the Emmy for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation. In 2008, Avatar: The Last Airbender won a Peabody Award.

An award-winning filmmaker, DiMartino was a director at Film Roman for six years, working on the prime-time animated series King of the Hill, Family Guy and Mission Hill. During his tenure there, DiMartino animated and directed the short animated film Atomic Love, which has gone on to screen at festivals across the country including Sundance and the Los Angeles Film Festival. It also aired as part of the Nicktoons Animation Festival.

Konietzko began his career in animation as a character designer at Film Roman for Fox’s prime-time series, Family Guy. He soon moved to the post of assistant director for two more Film Roman shows, Mission Hill and King of the Hill, working beside animation director DiMartino. Konietzko then became a storyboard artist and later an art director for the Nickelodeon animated series Invader Zim.

The Legend of Korra is being produced at the Nickelodeon Animation Studios in Burbank, Calif.

Nickelodeon, now in its 32nd year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, books and feature films. Nickelodeon’s U.S. television network is seen in 100 million households and has been the number-one-rated basic cable network for 17 consecutive years. For more information or artwork, visit http://www.nickpress.com. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB).

[JamesC]

So excited. Just in time for my birthday. Sweet.

[Lokhopkuen]

Janet Varney as Korra
David Faustino as Mako
P.J. Bryne as Bolin
J.K. Simmons as Tenzin
Steve Blum as Amon
Lance Henriksen as The Lieutenant
Mindy Sterling as Chief Lin Beifong
Daniel Dae Kim as Hiroshi Sato
Seychelle Gabriel as Asami Sato
Eva Marie Saint as Katara

Co-Created and Executive Produced By:

Bryan Konietzko
Michael Dante DiMartino
Co-Executive Producer:
Joaquim Dos Santos
Supervising Producer:
Ki Hyun Ryu
Producer:



Tim Yoon
Directed By:

Joaquim Dos Santos
Ki Hyun Ryu
Written By:
Michael Dante DiMartino
Bryan Konietzko

Traditional Martial Arts Consultation:

Sifu Kisu of the Harmonious Fist School of Traditional Chinese Swordsmanship

[Lokhopkuen]

Executive in Charge for Nickelodeon:

CHARACTER DESCRIPTIONS
Korra (Female, Avatar)
Korra is a Waterbender with a fiery personality. She’s an athletic, confident, headstrong girl who fully accepts and relishes her role as “The Chosen One.” Korra has mastered water, earth and firebending, but has yet to conquer airbending. She believes that being a powerful bender is all that it takes to be a great Avatar. However, Korra has much to learn when it comes to the spiritual side of life. Her lack of spiritual development is one of the reasons Korra has been unable to overcome her airbending block.

Mako (Male, Firebender)
Tall, lean, and handsome, Mako is one of the top players in the Pro-bending Arena and captain of the up-and-coming team, the Fire Ferrets. He is a powerful, focused and technical fighter. Mako was forced to take on adult responsibilities at a young age and often used his firebending to protect himself and his brother, Bolin, while living on the streets of Republic City. One day, Toza, a former Pro-bender, discovered Mako fighting on the streets and invited the two brothers to live in a room in the attic of the arena and work odd jobs to pay rent, which allows them to focus on Pro-bending.

Bolin (Male, Earthbender)
Bolin is expressive, high-spirited, and enthusiastic. Physically, he is stocky and muscular. He has a great sense of humor and is really comfortable in his own skin. Unlike his brother Mako, he’s an easy-going optimist who never seems to be in a bad mood. Bolin plays in the Pro-bending Arena alongside his brother and enjoys all the attention from his girl fans, although he is still a novice in the world of dating. For all their differences, the brothers share an intense bond and are fiercely loyal to each other.

Tenzin (Male, Airbender)
Tenzin is the youngest of Aang and Katara’s three children, and the only Airbender among them. He serves on the United Republic Council as the representative for the Air Nation, and takes his role in the leadership of Republic City very seriously. Tenzin is a traditionalist who works hard to protect and transmit Air Nomad teachings and culture. He embodies the peaceful, calm, spiritual nature of the Air Nomads. As Korra’s airbending teacher and mentor in her spiritual development, Tenzin has difficulty getting through to her because they are complete opposites: whereas she is unorthodox, impatient, and forceful, he is traditional, patient, and gentle.

Amon (Male, non-bender)
Little is known about Amon, the mysterious leader of the anti-bending revolution. He wears a mask to conceal his face. He is a nimble, stealthy fighter who shows no fear even against the highest-level bender. Amon’s ultimate goal is to create equality by ridding the world of bending.

The Lieutenant (Male, non-bender)
Amon's second-in-command, The Lieutenant, is an intense, disciplined fighter who augments his amazing skills with two electrified kali sticks. No Metalbender cop can withstand his attack.

Chief Lin Beifong (Female, Earthbender/Metalbender)
Chief Lin Beifong is the tough, uncompromising daughter of Toph and the head of Republic City’s Metalbender police force. She sees Korra’s arrival as a threat – both to her authority and to the rule of law she’s worked so hard to enforce. She believes the only way to maintain peace and stability in the city is through the use of military might.

Hiroshi Sato (Male, non-bender)
A barrel-chested businessman with a big personality, Hiroshi Sato’s family lineage extends back to the first Fire Nation colonists. He was born to a poor family from the Dragon Flats district. A kid with big dreams, Hiroshi worked from a very young age to help support his family. When he was 18, he convinced a wealthy banker to invest in the idea of automobiles for the common man. Before long, he was churning out Satomobiles in his first Future Industries factory. By the time he was 25, the ingenious industrialist had made his first million yuans.

Asami Sato (Female, non-bender)
As the daughter of Hiroshi Sato, Asami has lived a life of luxury but don’t let her fancy clothes and polite manners fool you -- Asami has a tough side too. She’s an expert driver and isn’t afraid to mix it up on the racetrack. Asami has also had the best self-defense training money can buy. She’s a big fan of Pro-bending and goes to every match.

Katara (Female, Waterbender)
Many years have passed since her adventures in the original series, but the wise and maternal Katara understands the demands put upon the Avatar and does her best to support Korra at all times. Not only is she Korra's waterbending teacher, but her son Tenzin, is Korra's airbending teacher.

[Lokhopkuen]

BIOS


THE CAST

Janet Varney as "Korra"

David Faustino as "Mako"

P.J. Byrne as "Bolin"

J.K. Simmons as "Tenzin"

Steve Blum as "Amon"

Lance Henriksen as "The Lieutenant"

Mindy Sterling as "Chief Lin Beifong"

Daniel Dae Kim as "Hiroshi Sato"

Seychelle Gabriel as "Asami"

Eva Marie Saint as "Katara"



JANET VARNEY as “Korra”
Best known for her stint as co-host of TBS’ Dinner and a Movie, Janet Varney’s television credits include guest appearances on Bones, Psych, Better Off Ted, How I Met Your Mother, Hot in Cleveland and a recurring role on HBO’s Entourage. She also appeared in Fox’s reality competition series On the Lot. In film, Varney has appeared in Nic & Tristan, Drillbit Taylor and Still Waiting.
Varney also starred opposite iCarly’s Jerry Trainor and Jennette McCurdy in the 2010 Nickelodeon Original television movie, Best Player, about twoonline video game rivals who inadvertently learn that the real world can be just as exciting and rewarding as the virtual one.
In addition to her acting career, Varney is co-creator and co-producer of the comedy festival, “San Francisco Sketchfest.”

DAVID FAUSTINO as “Mako”
A Los Angeles native, David Faustino made his television debut at three-months-old as Lily Tomlin’s daughter in the CBS special, Lily. Since then, Faustino has gone on to appear in several television series including Little House on the Prairie, The Love Boat, Fantasy Island, Family Ties, St. Elsewhere, Highway to Heaven, The X-Files and HBO’s Entourage. However, he is best known for his role as the “Bud Bundy” in Fox’s ground-breaking series Married…with Children.
In film, Faustino has starred in the cult classic Killer Bud, Macarthur Park, The Heist and starred opposite Jason Mewes, Danny Trejo and Robert Rodriguez in the comedy High Hopes. In 2009, he created, wrote, produced and starred in Star-ving for Sony Pictures Television through his production company, F.N.B. Entertainment.
Faustino has appeared in over 100 commercials and is currently the voice of T-Mobile and Bud Light’s 2012 NFL campaign. He has appeared in numerous stage productions including A Christmas Carol, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, and the lead role in the American premiere of Ben Elton’s Popcorn. In 2010, he launched Old Scratch, an independent record label and management firm featuring flag ship hip-hop artist Patience Price.

[Lokhopkuen]

P.J. BYRNE as “Bolin”
P.J. Byrne is a graduate of Boston College with a double major in finance and theater and an M.F.A. from the Theatre School at DePaul University. His film credits include lead roles in Final Destination 5 as Isaac Palmer and Horrible Bosses opposite Jennifer Aniston, Jason Bateman and Jamie Foxx. He also starred in Dinner for Schmucks, Extraordinary Measures, Charlie Wilson’s War, Bruce Almighty and Fun with **** and Jane.
Byrne’s on-camera television credits include a series regular role as Irv Smiff, a driven sports agent, on BET’s The Game and guest appearances on The Mentalist, Castle, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Burn Notice, Bones, Desperate Housewives, New Adventures of Old Christine, NCIS, The West Wing and ER.

J.K. SIMMONS as “Tenzin”
J.K. Simmons has appeared in diverse projects spanning motion pictures, television and on and off Broadway. He played J. Jonah Jameson in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy. His motion picture credits include Hidalgo, The Ladykillers, The Mexican, Off the Map, For Love of the Game, The Gift,Thank You for Smoking, Rendition, Burn After Reading and Juno.

Simmons’ latest films include The Music Never Stopped, Jennifer’s Body, Extract, The Vicious Kind, I Love You Man, Beginner’s Guide to Endings and the Academy AwardÒ-nominated film Up in the Air. Most recently, Simmons appeared in the Universal Pictures film Contraband. Simmons will star next in Geezers and The Word.

On the small screen, Simmons credits include The Closer and Law and Order. Simmons has appeared on the Broadway stage in Guys and Dolls,Laughter on the 23rd Floor, A Change in the Heir, Peter Pan and A Few Good Men.


STEVE BLUM as “Amon”

Steve Blum has voiced hundreds of characters in film, television, video games and commercials. He is best known for his roles as “Spike Spiegel” in the anime series Cowboy Bebop and “Wolverine” in several television series and video games.

On television,Blum can be heard voicing characters in such series as Transformers Prime, Transformers: Rescue Bots, Young Justice, The Super Hero Squad Show, Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Regular Show, Wolverine and the X-Men, The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, Ben 10, Stitch!, The Spectacular Spider-Man, Megas XLR and What’s New, Scooby-Doo?
Blum has lent his voice to video games such as “X-Men: Destiny, Legends and Origin,” “Captain America: Super Soldier,” “Green Lantern: Emerald Knights,” “Star Wars: The Force Unleashed I & II,” “Final Fantasy: Dirge of Cerberus,” “Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker,” “Valkyria Chronicles II,” “Dead Island,” “Call of Duty: Black Ops and World at War,” “Mass Effect 2,” “Batman: Arkham Asylum and Arkham City,” “The Bourne Conspiracy,” “Dragon Age: Origins” and “Bulletstorm.”

LANCE HENRICKSEN as “The Lieutenant”

Born in New York City, Lance Henriksen began his acting career in the off-Broadway production of Three Plays of the Sea. Soon after, he landed roles in such films as Unspeakable, Powder, The Quick and the Dead, The Terminator, Close Encounters of the Third Kind and the Aliens franchise as Bishop, for which he is best known. Henriksen earned three Golden Globe nominations for his portrayal of former FBI agent Frank Black on the television seriesMillennium. His on-camera television guest appearances include Memphis Beat, Castle, NCIS, The X-Files, Cagney & Lacey and The A-Team.

Adding to his resume, Henriksen has also voiced characters in many video games including “Aliens: Colonial Marines,” “Mass Effect 3,” “Alien vs. Predator,” “Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2,” “The Chronicles of Rid****: Assault on Dark Athena,” “Transformers Animated: The Game” and “Mass Effect.”

MINDY STERLING as “Chief Lin Beifong”

Mindy Sterling is best known for her role as Frau Farbissina in the Austin Powers movie franchise. In 2000, her memorable portrayal earned the actress a Teen Choice nomination for Choice Film Actress and a Blockbuster Entertainment Award for Favorite Supporting Actress.

Sterling has also brought her comedic talent to several on-camera television roles including A.N.T. Farm, Desperate Housewives and iCarly. She has guest starred in CBS’s 2 Broke Girls, My Name is Earl, HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm, Scrubs, King of Queens and Reno 911!

Sterling’s voice over credits include As Told By Ginger, The Wild Thornberrys, Kick Buttowski, The Looney Tunes Show, Scooby-Do Mystery Incorporated, Chowder, Robot Chicken and Justice League.


DANIEL DAE KIM as “Hiroshi Sato”

Daniel Dae Kim’s film career began with roles in The Jackal, For Love of the Game, The Hulk, Spider-Man 2 and The Cave, as well as the Academy Award-winning Crash.
Kim is best known to audiences for his portrayal of Jin on the critically-acclaimed television series Lost. For his performance, he shared a 2006 Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Ensemble, and was individually honored with an AZN Asian Excellence Award, a Multicultural Prism Award and a Vanguard Award from the Korean American Coalition, all for Outstanding Performance by an Actor. In 2009, he was recognized with the prestigious KoreAm Journal Achievement Award in the field of Arts and Entertainment.
On television, Kim’s credits include Hawaii Five-0, CSI, ER and 24. In 2008, he starred in the Emmy Award-nominated miniseries, The Andromeda Strain. Kim has also lent his voice talents to video games including "Saints Row," "Saints Row 2," "Scarface: The World Is Yours," "Tenchu" and "24," as well as the animated television series Justice League Unlimited and Nickelodeon’s Avatar: The Last Airbender as General Fong.

SEYCHELLE GABRIEL as “Asami”

Born in Burbank, CA, Seychelle Gabriel is a movie and television actress and singer. Her film credits include roles in The Spirit and The Last Airbender. In television,Gabriel stars in the TNT sci-fi series Falling Skies, produced bySteven Spielberg. She has also guest starred in the comedy-drama seriesWeeds and Zoey 101. When she’s not working, Gabriel enjoys playing the guitar and piano.

EVA MARIE SAINT as “Katara”

With a career spanning more than five decades, Eva Marie Saint first starred opposite Marlon Brando in On The Waterfront, for which she was honored with an Academy Award. She went on to star in several other memorable movies including North By Northwest, A Hatful Of Rain, Exodus, All Fall Down, and I Dreamed Of Africa. Her recent filmsinclude Because of Winn-Dixie, Don’t Come Knocking and Superman Returns.
Saint’s television appearances include roles on Frasier, Moonlighting, The Love Boat, Time To Say Goodbye, The Last Days Of Patton and Open House. She has earned four Emmy nominations for her work in Philco TV Playhouse, Our Town, with Frank Sinatra and Paul Newman, Hallmark Hall of Fame’s Taxi!!! with Martin Sheen and How The West Was Won. In 1990, Saint won an Emmy for her performance inthe NBC mini-series People Like Us.
In theater, Saint has starred in the Broadway presentations of Trip to Bountiful, for which she received the Drama Critics Award and Outer-Circle Critics Award, The Lincoln Mask, and Duet for One. Her other theater credits include First Monday in October, in which she co-starred opposite Henry Fonda,Death of a Salesman, and The Country Girl, for which she received the L.A. Dramalogue Award. In 2006, Saint and her husband of 60 years, director Jeffrey Hayden, produced a critically-acclaimed production of August Wilson’s Fences.
Adding to her body of work, Saint and Hayden also produced the PBS television documentaries Primary Colors: The Story of Corita, which she narrated, and Children in America’s Schools, for which they won an Emmy.

[GeneChing]

A lot of buzz on Katniss too.

‘Legend of Korra’: Nickelodeon heroine is Saturday morning Katniss
March 20, 2012 | 4:01 a.m.
Korra bends fire and water in "The Legend of Korra." (Nickelodeon)

It’s doubtful that they have Saturday morning cartoons in the police-state future of “The Hunger Games” (in fact, they probably don’t even have Saturdays in the no-fun nation of Panem), but if they did, Katniss Everdeen would see a kindred spirit in “The Legend of Korra,” the ambitious new Nickelodeon series that premieres April 14.

Flinty, brave, loyal, impatient, impertinent, fierce and dangerous — Katniss and Korra have plenty in common and both live in a world that is close to our own but tilted by desperation and dark miracles of magic or science. If the pair attended the same high school, they could go out for the archery team and commiserate about how their names sound like two new lines of Ikea cabinets.

For “Korra” co-creators Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, it’s heartening to see teen heroines get a major spotlight in any medium. “But you know,” Konietzko said dryly, “there’s room for a lot more than two.” Kim Possible, the Powerpuff Girls and She-Ra are among the animation heroines who beat the gender odds and got their own series, but, really, when it comes to legacy and expectations, the biggest rival for “The Legend of Korra” is the show’s own heritage.

The new series is a sequel saga to one of Nickelodeon’s signature successes, “Avatar: The Last Airbender,” which premiered in 2005 and won over a wide, loyal following (it consistently ranked in television’s top five animated shows among boys ages 6-11) with the tale of a boy named Aang who can manipulate fire, water, air and earth. Those abilities mark him as an “avatar,” and a figure of destiny in his world, which seems like a more supernatural magical and tribal counterpart to 19th century Earth.

“Avatar: the Last Airbender” found its animation aesthetic in anime but to fill out this other world the writing and art team drew on a wide range of influences (Chinese history, Hinduism, Inuit culture and yoga among them) and that gave the three-season series a surprising richness; “SpongeBob SquarePants” may possess a special genius of its own but “Avatar” is the only Nickelodeon show with a Peabody Award on the mantle.

The new show takes the story forward 70 years. Aang is gone but hardly forgotten — there’s a majestic statue of him in the harbor of bustling Republic City, which feels like old San Francisco and Hong Kong mashed-up and dropped into the topography of Vancouver, Canada. This is where the new avatar — a headstrong 17-year-old named Korra (voiced by Janet Varney) — arrives for the training she’ll need to become a worthy heir to Aang and a champion in a troubled time. Her mentor is Aang’s son, Tenzin (J.K. Simmons).

“All the old characters — Aang, Katara, Sokka — as these heroic figures and Aang casts a constant shadow over Korra and Tenzin who are trying constantly to live up to his legend,” DiMartino said. “Tenzin is trying to be the man that his father was and expects him to be and he’s carrying on his culture.”

The show is packed with steam punk touches and a culture that takes on different shapes as magic and technology combine and compete; flying beasts circle the skyline and other people who possess the ability to “bend” fire or water or earth (none of them can bend all three of those plus air, that’s the distinction of the avatar) have professional sports league where they test their skills in a sport as fantastical as Quidditch in the “Harry Potter” stories.

The characters are hand-drawn, a point of pride for the “Korra” team that fills an entire wing at Nickelodeon’s Burbank studios, but the approach might test the traditional assumptions of that term with a stylus and screen replacing the art table approaches of the past. The backgrounds of the series are infused with light, detail and texturing that go far beyond most shows — art director Konietzko set the bar high and he admits that the workload has been grueling.

“We have to live up to what we’ve done in the past and now we have to live up to the goals we’ve set, which are even higher,” Konietzko said. He added that the new series is leaner in its focus — it will stay on the core mythology and not meander as much as the previous series — and meaner as the world it presents. Politics and cultural divides will also push the show’s ambitions up another notch as far the content expectations of a cartoon series.


Korra and her friends Mako and Bolin. (Nickelodeon)

Really, though, the biggest question facing Korra is with her audience. With her powers and fighting ability, she can hold her own against any boy in her world, but will she be able to win over the affections of a young male audience here on Earth? She’ll need that for the show to qualify as a hit. Brown Johnson, president of animation for Nickelodeon, said the avatar will prove herself with any fan who watches, no matter their age or gender.

“There’s a generational shift that encourages girls to feel powerful — and for boys to see them as equals and partners,” Johnson said. “Korra takes the female hero to the next level and we are very proud to showcase her as the passionate teenage girl that she is.”

[GeneChing]

Korra Nation staged a campaign to unlock the premiere early if they could get 100,000 likes & shares. They did it.

Watch the premiere here on March 24th, weeks before it airs on Nickelodeon.

I'm stuck at CMAT all tomorrow. Maybe someone will have a smart tablet I can watch it on.

[GeneChing]

Very enjoyable. I like the pro-bending angle - very MMA - and look forward to see how that develops.

[Zenshiite]

Excellent start to the new series. I really like the aesthetic they've gone with for Republic City. Steampunk, some very early car designs. Overall, just great. The comedy was great too. My personal favorite was the vagabond in the park. Hilarious.

[kuniggety]

I'm very excited to see what this series has to offer. I absolutely loved the original. I'm also looking forward to seeing all of the martial arts choreographed by Sifu Kisu. I hope there's still plenty of Bak Sil Lum