By Ineza Merci
The upcoming second seasons of Netflix’s live-action series Avatar: The Last Airbender has sparked some heated debate among fans of the original animated series, about the reimagining of the iconic earthbender, Toph Beifong. Longtime fans fell in love with the hard-headed, laid-back bender in the original series. To many, Toph’s tomboy ways reflected a break from gender roles. However, in a recent interview with the actress Miya Cech, who will be playing Toph in the live action version, Cech revealed what changes will be made to the character. Cech says:Â
“She’s a little bit older so she’s not a little kid anymore. She is still that same spitfire, spunky character who gets to call a certain character ‘Twinkle Toes.’ I think there are going to be a lot of things that the fans are going to remember from the animated series and a lot of things that are brand new.”Â
Cech also says, “My version of Toph is going to be a little older and slightly more feminine. I feel like I wanted to work into a very humanizing space for her because, you know, she was a cartoon.”Â
After hearing the news, fans took to X to reveal their thoughts. Â
“Literally her whole character surrounds the idea of breaking gender roles..I don’t get why this is necessary,” one user wrote.Â
Another user seemingly came to the defense of the changes. They wrote, “From the actual show, Toph does have a tough personality, but she enjoyed the girls’ day with Katara,” depicted in the animated series. Season 2, Episode 15, “The Tales of Ba Sing Se”. They continue, “When will Hollywood understand that women can be both soft and strong.”
This discourse does pose a question. How can creators balance evolution with staying true to the original? And what does this communicate about expectations of femininity in the media?Â
No matter how Toph is reinvented, producer Jabbar Raisani states, “So, I think you’re gonna see a lot of the dynamics that were true in the animated series come through in live action.”