Avatar: Seven Havens, Season 1 Review

The world has ended, everybody hates the Avatar, and this time there are two of them. Season 1 of Avatar: Seven Havens takes place 200 years after Korra, in a world wrecked by an event called the Cataclysm, and somehow it’s still one of the most fun things I’ve watched all year. Over 13 episodes on Paramount+, Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino prove the franchise still has plenty of tricks left.

The show belongs to Pavi and Nisha, twin sisters who are both the Avatar. Nobody in history has ever seen that, and nobody is thrilled about it. Saheli Khan and Aishu Devan have great sibling chemistry. Pavi is gentle and would happily skip training forever, while Nisha would like to punch the problem, thanks. Their bickering is a blast, and their bond hits hard when it counts. Episode 6, where Nisha learns to help Pavi through her phantom limb pain, is the warmest moment of the season. They also each have a pet cat-monkey, which I didn’t know I needed and now can’t live without.

My favorite character, by a mile, is Karthik. He’s a master airbender who goes by “the Human Hurricane” and “Warrior of the Wind,” which is two cool nicknames more than most of us get. He’s Nisha’s guardian, he takes over Ellora’s Bending Brigade, and it turns out he’s secretly in the Order of the White Lotus. In a world that blames the Avatar for everything, Karthik is the one adult who still believes in them. He’s also the one adult who has to watch two kids hear “stay hidden during the giant sandstorm” and go straight into the giant sandstorm. Akshay Khanna gives him just the right mix of calm, wise and visibly tired. Every scene with him is better for it.

The world-building is a treat too. Ellora is full of politics, food shortages, a rampaging camodillo (half camel, half armadillo, all chaos) and Chancellor Kayoko, who makes “find the Avatar” her whole personality. Episodes 7 through 9 raise the stakes and get surprisingly deep about who gets to decide what’s dangerous.

Then the finale arrives and takes your heart with it. In the Memory Void, the twins finally learn the truth about their past and about the Anomaly that has been feeding on Ellora’s fear. The answer pulls them apart. Pavi unlocks her root chakra and saves the city, but the show makes clear she couldn’t have done it without Nisha. Ending with the twins split up is a gutsy cliffhanger, and I’m already counting down to Season 2.