Sozin's Comet entering the atmosphere.
Sozin's Comet, formerly known as the Great Comet,[1] is a comet that passes close to the world of the Avatar every hundred years (It skims the upper atmosphere in fact). The comet passes close enough that Firebenders are able to draw power from it as they normally do the sun, greatly increasing their powers. Fire Lord Ozai claimed it gave Firebenders "The power of a hundred suns" though it's possible this is simply hyperbole.
History[]
Soon after Aang disappeared a hundred years prior to the series, the comet flew near the planet. Fire Lord Sozin used the comet to drastically raise his nation's power and deliver a crippling first strike in the Fire Nation's war of world conquest. This first strike resulted in the extinction of the Air Nomads, the sole exception being Aang. The comet was renamed "Sozin's Comet" in honor of the Fire Lord's great victory.
One hundred years later, Avatar Roku's spirit warned Aang of the comet's return in the next summer. With its passing, the Fire Nation would easily finish their world conquest. This gave Aang less than a year to learn Waterbending, Earthbending, and Firebending, as the Fire Lord's power at the comet's passing could presumably match a fully realized Avatar, much less the partial knowledge and experience Aang possessed at the time. There is also the fact that with the comet, the Fire Nation could finish the war, and once the war was over the Avatar would have no chance in restoring balance.
Phoenix King Ozai burning the Earth Kingdom with enhanced Firebending.
Sozin's Comet finally arrived at the end of the summer as predicted. It increased the Firebenders' power by a hundred times, giving them the power required to exterminate the Fire Nation's enemies. Fire Lord Ozai planned to use these enhanced powers and his personal army of Airships to burn the Earth Kingdom to the ground. In response to this plan, Avatar Aang and his allies launched their attack, with Aang facing the Fire Lord while his friends attacked Princess Azula and the Fire Nation invaders.
During the battle, the power of Aang and his allied firebenders' powers also increased, giving them an advantage on the battlefield as well. Masters Jeong Jeong and Iroh of the Order of the White Lotus used these powers to liberate Ba Sing Se. Zuko used them to battle with his sister Azula, whose increasing mental instability hindered her battle prowess, but also made her all the more dangerous. Finally, Aang used these powers combined with his skill in the other elements to battle Fire Lord Ozai, whose skills matched or were superior to Aang's. However, it was shown that even with the power boost of the comet, master benders of the other elements, most notably Aang, Bumi, Pakku and Katara, were not completely outclassed. Despite their enhanced strength, Ozai and his allies lost to the Avatar and his group. Azula was finally defeated and Ozai's armies were forced to retreat. Aang used Energybending to strip Ozai of his firebending, rendering him powerless.
By the time Sozin's Comet disappeared into space, the parts of the Earth Kingdom held by the Fire Nation were liberated and the War was finally over. Aang had fulfilled his destiny to save the world from the tyranny of the Fire Nation.
Known Firebenders Who Drew Power From The Comet[]
Trivia[]
- Due to comets being comprised mostly of various frozen gases and dust, many fans wondered how it was possible for the Comet to provide power to Firebenders. However in the vision Avatar Roku's dragon Fang gave Aang in "Winter Solstice Part 1: The Spirit World" the comet appeared to be on fire, and during the events of Sozin's Comet it was revealed that the Comet passes extremely close to the planet. When it arrived it brushed against the upper atmosphere, possibly even entering it, causing nearby clouds to break apart and float away (though if it did enter the atmosphere it would have crashed into the planet; it likely skinned the upper atmosphere, but the heat and force of the comet could be felt in the lower atmosphere causing the clouds to break apart from its force and heat) , and so the comet and its tail do indeed catch fire providing a powerful heat source.
- In Winter Solstice Part 2: Avatar Roku, Avatar Roku warns Aang that the power of the Comet would make the Fire Lord and his forces stronger than he can even imagine, and so he should act before the comet arrives. However, even with the power of the comet Ozai fought Aang on a mostly level footing, until Aang's reluctance to kill Ozai granted the Fire Lord a chance to seize the upper hand. However, even Sozin's Comet was not enough to give Ozai a fighting chance against Aang in a continuous Avatar State. He did, however, last far longer than anyone else who has been faced with the Avatar State before.
- This could mean that Roku thought that Aang would be able to master all four elements by summer's end but not the Avatar State as well, since it required a great deal of spiritual discipline, and so Aang's best chance to beat Ozai would be before the Comet arrived.
- It should be noted, however, that Roku never explicitly stated the Comet would enhance Ozai's powers to the point that Aang would be utterly outmatched, indeed it seems the Avatar (being a Firebender) receives the same power boost from the comet as any other Firebender. Hence Roku's warning, that the comet would grant Ozai and his forces the power to end the war, may have been intended to alert Aang to the danger posed by the comet and to impress upon him how important it was for him to master all the elements and, eventually, the Avatar State.
- This could mean that Roku thought that Aang would be able to master all four elements by summer's end but not the Avatar State as well, since it required a great deal of spiritual discipline, and so Aang's best chance to beat Ozai would be before the Comet arrived.
- In the opening sequence, when Fire Nation soldiers appear Firebending, the sky is red, which might indicate that this scene is from the beginning of the war, when Fire Lord Sozin uses the power of the comet to attack the Air Nomads.
- It should be noted that when Sozin has a flashback of the beginning of the war (Air Nomad Genocide) it shows the Fire Nation Armies in the same position as the opening sequence, including the red sky.
See Also[]
- Astronomy in the World of Avatar
- Firebending
Footnotes[]
- ↑ "The Avatar and the Fire Lord"