He thinks there was more to explore with Ozai and Iroh.
Actor Daniel Dae Kim has opened up about a missing storyline in Netflix’s Avatar: The Last Airbender – the succession of the Fire Lord.
Kim plays the villainous Fire Lord Ozai, who will stop at nothing in in his hunt for the Avatar in the live-action adaptation, with Paul Sun-Hyung Lee playing his far more compassionate older brother, Iroh, who joins Prince Zuko (Dallas Liu) in exile.
From the original cartoon, we know that Iroh was originally in line to become the Fire Lord but, following the loss of his son Lu Ten, he stepped back from the spotlight, leaving the way for his younger brother Ozai to rule.
Chatting exclusively to RadioTimes.com, Kim mentioned he would have liked to see that brotherhood explored more – and for there to at least be a scene establishing what happened with the succession.
Speaking alongside co-star Lee, Kim said: “I would really love to see a scene between us where we address the fact that I am the younger brother and actually talk about the succession and how it turned out the way it did.”
Perhaps if the series is renewed for season 2, we’ll get to see that scene, with Kim adding that he’ll “talk to the writers”.
Lee added of relationship between their two characters: “It’s a very interesting relationship that isn’t really mentioned in the animated series as well.
“You know the history – that Iroh was next in line to be the Fire Lord and he suffers a tremendous loss when his son is killed, Iroh completely withdraws, lets his younger brother usurp him and take the crown so to speak, and he goes on a different path.
“He’s labelled a coward by the members of the Fire Nation and he’s really happy to just get out of the spotlight.
“In that moment, there’s a certain amount of introspect where he figures out who he is and what he wants. He sees the errors in the way he used to believe.
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“He was very much the dragon of the West… When he suffers that loss, that gives him a pause and that shift in perspective leads him to his joint exile with the crown prince Zuko as a replacement for the son that he lost.
“He prioritises these relationships, family, compassion, kindness, as things he thinks can only bring balance and peace back to the world.”
The live-action version of Avatar: The Last Airbender, which has received mixed reviews, follows 12-year-old Aang who discovers that he is the Avatar, the one person who can master all four elements.
He had to face an enemy hell-bent on destroying him and save the world from the tyrannous Fire Nation.