Korra's Suicide - Legend of Korra Season 1

I rewatched Korra before I wrote that essay thing on Amon and as I watched I remembered that the last episode had some controversy surrounding it and a scene supposedly showing Korra's suicide attempt. What I am talking about (if you are unfamiliar) is Korra's reaction to being told that when Amon took her bending away (except air) it was permenant. Katara, the best healer in the world was unable to heal Korra's affliction. Outside Mako, the man Korra has been chasing for some time, then declares his love for Korra but she still feels shattered without her bending. She rides off on Naga to the precipice of a huge ice cliff at the Southern Water Tribe. Next we see the most visually convincing shot where a solitary tear falls down to the ocean below as if we are looking through Korra's eyes. Then, a figure arrives that Korra believes to be Tenzin at first. Then he reveals himself to be Aang in spirit form. He says something profound. "When we are at our lowest point, we are open to the greatest change." Aang then granted Korra the power of all her past lives by allowing her to go into the Avatar state and use energy-bending. The Deus Ex Machina is complete and everything is rather swiftly return to normal. It should also be noted that the previous scene was the (for me anyway) emotional climax of the first season where Amon/Noatok and his brother Tarlok are running away in a boat and Tarlok decides to blow up the fuel tank and commit murder-suicide. Surely suicide is not out of the question then, right? Now the writers and directors have been questioned on it but have refused to comment so it seems to be down to speculation.

This shot is for me the most powerful image in realtion to this topic

What reasons could Korra have for this though? Depression obviously is the first thing that comes to mind. She has just lost her bending and herself in the process. Korra is the Avatar, seemingly the personification of bending (being able to bend other people's bending is very meta) and she has lost this. Well not all of this but the only thing that remains is her air-bending, the element she is most opposite to. She is literally not herself anymore. It is not the fact she has lost her powers this has happened, it is the realisation that she will not get them back, that she is not who she was is what seems to cripple her. Her reaction to Mako shows how much importance she puts on and how much pride she has in being the Avatar, which is now effectively gone). Now people have said Korra has a strong personality and I would agree, she doesn't run away or give up easily, so they put the suicide idea out of her mind, but throughout the series she is very emotional and these emotions can get the better of her. When she sees Aang, and although this ultimately saves her, we learn she is at her lowest point. If that isn't depression I don't know what is. 

A nice piece of fanart of Korra and Aang http://serena-kenobi.deviantart.com/art/Aang-and-Korra-298962420

Secondly, and more importantly, being the Avatar means she should have all the elements under the control. Seeing she is not longer has this and can seeming not get this back is motivation for suicide.  This is the most compelling reason for me because the Avatar must have all four elements, and she no longer does. Korra knows the Avatar will be reborn with this potential she no longer has. She must commit suicide to allow a new Avatar to be born, one who can control all the elements and keep the world in balance. We are also reminded in this scene of the very fact the Avatar is reborn with the various reincarnations of the Avatar appearing behind Aang when he appears (it could even eb suggested they are there to welcome her to the Spirit World). In other words self-sacrifice for the greater good seems like both an admirable and justifiable reason for suicide. Likewise, Tarlok seemingly killed himself and his brother as a sort of self-sacrefice to the world as he realises that he and his brother became what their father wanted and they could not bring good to the world, only bad. 

The other Avatars, previous to Korra. 

All this makes it certainly seem possible and even very plausible that Korra could have been on the cliff to commit suicide. This actually makes for a very compelling ending and it is actually quite interesting to ask what would happen had she thrown herself into the water? Would the Avatar State have kicked in anyway? Would it have saved her and would she have had to be a sort of walking shell of what she once was? Would she actually have to relearn the elements again? This has all become a subject of criticism. It would surely have been very emotional to have Korra commit suicide or at least try to. The storyline where she has to relearn the other elements surely opens itself up and makes a nice second and third series possible. Why then do the writers not take this route for the next few seasons? Why too do they take a very quick Deus Ex Machinima approach to sorting things out and returning them to normal? Well to me it is simple. This may be the Legend of Korra but it is not her story exclusively. The writers realised the most compelling part of Korra's struggle was in fact the struggle of the Equalists, not her fixing the world after Amon's exit. That is not exciting and I believe the attention of the series is rightly focussed on the feud in Republic City, not within Korra's mind. Likewise, I believe the storytelling overall has stepped up from the original Avatar series. They do not want to do the same thing they did with Aang. The Korra series was very plot driven and every episode led into the next. In the original series this was not the case. Many episodes could be taken out (The Southern Raiders for example) and the overall story would not be hindered at all. I believe, and it seems to be the case so far with Season 2 (with a civil war), that the Korra series has more important and interesting ideas that learning the elements. 

A wicked picture of Korra as the Avatar http://darkkenjie.deviantart.com/art/Korra-208688798

Lastly, I just want to mention that there are a number of Korra fanfics out there that deal with this subject. The most remarkable and best read I have found is Korra's suicide letters. It is basically in two parts: the first is a series of letters to Korra's friends, family and trainers and the second part is their reactions to the event and the letters. It reasons the suicide very well and captures emotions very well, giving messages thanking people like Pema for their eveyday help, giving Korra a more real life feel to her. You can read this at: http://www.fanfiction.net/s/8248583/1/Korras_Suicide_Letters

This has been a depressing write so I thought I would end with my favourtie Korra fanart. http://heracrossed.tumblr.com/post/24142091672