Uncle Iroh is there for Zuko from the beginning ofAvatar: The Last Airbender, supporting him on his journey to hunt down the Avatar, even if he has different ambitions in mind himself. While some of his plans and motivations get revealed over the course of the show, others stay hidden.Iroh’s connection to the spirit worldand his grief over losing Lu Ten are very revealing aspects of his character, showing that he’s unique among firebenders and much more powerful than he appears to Zuko.
When Iroh is doing things like accidentally drinking poisonous tea, it’s easy to forget that he’s the feared Dragon of the West and not just Zuko’s well-meaning bumbling uncle, and it seems like that’s how he prefers it. To this day,many things about Iroh’s character remain a mystery, but perhapsfuture installments in theAvatar: The Last Airbenderfranchisewill someday provide further insight into just how much he’s been planning behind the scenes.
Iroh Might Have Been Tracking Aang Through The Spirit World
Their Shared Spirit World Connection Could Have Helped Iroh Locate Aang In Season 1
According to a fan theory,it’s possible that Uncle Iroh was the mastermind behind Zuko’s season 1 travels. Zuko comments on the completely nonsensical navigation of Aang and his friends, but he and his crew still manage to stay right behind them, even though a lot of their pathing is just them stopping to do whatever interests them at the moment. Zuko definitely deserves credit for his own tracking skills, as shown byZuko’s dedication in cool scenessuch as the Blue Spirit’s rescue of Aang, or Zuko’s mission to sneak into the Northern Water Tribe.
Though it’s unlikely that Zuko would listen to Iroh’s advice if he gave it directly,Iroh might have helped guide him in the right direction to find the Avatar, much as he metaphorically guided Zuko to find himself over the course of the series.
However, Iroh and Aang are two of the only characters with connections to the spirit world, and season 1 shows him noticing things such as Roku’s dragon and knowing that the storm is coming, which Aang knew about because of his dream. Though it’s unlikely that Zuko would listen to Iroh’s advice if he gave it directly,Iroh might have helped guide him in the right direction to find the Avatar, much as he metaphorically guided Zuko to find himself over the course of the series (via bran8165 on Reddit).
Why Iroh Might Be More Powerful Than Anyone Ever Knew
He Was The Dragon Of The West And The Grand Lotus, But He Preferred Being Zuko’s Uncle
Iroh is content to sit back and let Zuko, Aang, and the others handle things most of the time. King Bumi’s refusal of Aang’s offered rescue says something about not only himself but alsoAvatar: The Last Airbender’s other White Lotus members, especially Iroh as the Grand Lotus.The White Lotus mostly works behind the scenes, setting things up in the background so that they can act only when they’re ready, and letting the Avatar do most of the work.
Avatar: Seven Havens’ Earth Avatar Has Big Shoes To Fill, But Not Because Of Aang Or Korra
Avatar: The Last Airbender’s strong earthbenders like Toph and Avatar Kyoshi leave Avatar: Seven Havens’ new earthbending Avatar a lot to live up to.
Iroh doing so much of his work from behind the scenes means thatit’s unclear just how powerful he is. We get hints of his power throughout the series when we learn about things such as his spirit world connection, his lightning redirection invention, or how he learned firebending from the dragons instead of killing him.Iroh’s title of the Dragon of the Westis an intimidating title, and it’s perfectly at odds with the way that Iroh portrays himself most of the time.
The fact that Iroh is so willing to hide his own power is indicative of the fact that he has more power than we see him use inAvatar: The Last Airbender. Perhaps the world should be grateful that most of Iroh’s interest sits in supporting his nephew and making good tea.
