The Day of Black Sun
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Episodes 10/11
- Giancarlo Volpe (Part One)
- Joaquim Dos Santos (Part Two)
- Michael Dante DiMartino (Part One)
- Aaron Ehasz (Part Two)
| "The Day of Black Sun" | |
|---|---|
| Avatar: The Last Airbender episodes | |
 | |
| Episode nos. | Season 3 Episodes 10/11 |
| Directed by |
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| Written by |
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| Featured music | |
| Production code | 310/311 |
| Original air date | November 30, 2007 |
| Guest appearances | |
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"The Day of Black Sun, Part 1: The Invasion" and "The Day of Black Sun, Part 2: The Eclipse" are the tenth and eleventh episodes of the third season of the American animated television series Avatar: The Last Airbender, and the 50th and the 51st episode overall. The show follows Aang (Zach Tyler Eisen), the last airbender and the Avatar, on his journey to bring balance to a war-torn world by mastering all four elements: air, water, earth, and fire. On his quest, he is joined by companions Katara (Mae Whitman), Sokka (Jack DeSena), and Toph Beifong (Jessie Flower). The season also follows Zuko (Dante Basco) as he returns to the Fire Nation only to face his conflicting feelings about his part in the war.
The first part of the episode was directed by Giancarlo Volpe and written by co-creator Michael Dante DiMartino, and follows Aang, Sokka and Hakoda leading an invasion on the Fire Nation, on "The Day of Black Sun" where the firebenders will lose their bending due to a solar eclipse. The second part was directed by Joaquim Dos Santos and written by head writer Aaron Ehasz, following the beginning of the eclipse, and Zuko standing up to his father Fire Lord Ozai (Mark Hamill). The episodes premiered on November 23 and 26, 2007 respectively in the Netherlands and Belgium,[1] before releasing on Nickelodeon in the United States on November 30 of that year. They were watched by 3.77 million viewers,[2] and received critical acclaim.
The day of the invasion arrives, but Aang reveals he cannot enter the Avatar State, as his final chakra was blocked when Azula shot him with lightning.[a] Meanwhile in the Fire Nation, Zuko flees from home, promising to a painting of his mother, Ursa, that he will amend for his mistakes. Shedding their Fire Nation disguises, the fleet sneak into the capital with submarines, but are attacked by enemy troops; Aang kisses Katara and confesses his feelings in case he doesn't survive before flying away. The fleet reach land and battle Fire Nation troops. Hakoda is injured in battle, forcing Sokka to lead the invasion instead. Aang enters Fire Lord Ozai's palace, only to find it empty; Sokka concludes that Ozai expected the attack and is hiding in an underground bunker. Bato takes the reins of the fleet while Aang, Sokka, and Toph Beifong search for Ozai.
Toph finds the bunker inside a nearby volcano, and the three enter as the eclipse starts. The fleet captures much of the capital, while Aang and his friends find Azula in Ozai's place. She reveals she knew about the invasion for months and is unsurprised that Aang survived. Although the heroes corner Azula in a fight, they realize that she was simply stalling until the eclipse ends. Azula taunts Sokka by revealing Suki's imprisonment, and Sokka unsuccessfully attempts to make Azula reveal where she is. Meanwhile, Zuko enters Ozai's chamber, explaining that Azula was the one who "killed" Aang, who is actually still alive. Zuko defies and denounces his father, condemning his abusive treatment of him and vowing to help Aang. Ozai reveals that he nearly killed Zuko on Azulon's orders,[b] only for Ursa to kill Azulon instead to protect her son, for which she was banished. The eclipse ends and a fight breaks out between the pair.
Realizing what is happening, Azula escapes with firebending. Aang evacuates, realizing he isn't ready to face Ozai. The fleet attempt to retreat, but are cornered by airships. Zuko rushes to free his uncle, Iroh, only to find that he already escaped after furtive and intense training.[c] On Hakoda's orders, Aang flees to the Western Air Temple on Appa with Katara, Sokka, Toph, Haru, Teo, and the Duke while the rest surrender. Zuko follows closely behind.
Credits
Main cast members Zach Tyler Eisen, Mae Whitman, Jack DeSena, Jessie Flower, Dante Basco and Dee Bradley Baker appear as the voices of Aang, Katara, Sokka, Toph Beifong, Zuko, and Appa respectively.[3] Appearing as guests in both parts are André Sogliuzzo as Hakoda, Richard McGonagle as Bato, René Auberjonois as the mechanist, Daniel Samonas as Teo, Wayne Duvall as Warden Poon, Michael Dow as Haru, Kevin Michael Richardson as both Tyro and the Hippo, Carlos Alazraqui as Due and Tho, William H. Bassett as Huu, Sterling Young as Pipsqueak, and Nick Swoboda as The Duke. Appearing as guests in only the first part are Greg Baldwin as Iroh, Serena Williams as Ming,[4] and Mick Foley as the Boulder.[5] Appearing as guests in only the second part are Mark Hamill as Fire Lord Ozai, Grey DeLisle as Azula, and Kristoffer Tabori as a war minister.
The first part of the episode was directed by Giancarlo Volpe and written by co-creator Michael Dante DiMartino, while the second part was directed by Joaquim Dos Santos and written by head writer Aaron Ehasz.[3]
Production
The animation was done by JM Animation for the first part, and MOI Animation for the second part.
When promoting the episode, just as they had done for "The Secret of the Fire Nation", Nickelodeon promoted the episode greatly by creating a website with links to a tournament and wallpaper downloads. The website even included an online game called Black Sun Siege which released on November 29, 2007.[6] The episode also introduces submarines into the world of Avatar, inspired by pre-Cold War and World War II submarines in that they have limited air supply, or the Higgins boat used in World War II. The idea of Ozai hiding in a secret bunker bears similarities to how Adolf Hitler used his bunker during World War II.[7] When the invasion force soldiers march up the volcano towards the Fire Nation, parallels can be drawn in regards to how they hold their shields above their heads in a formation reminiscent of the Roman Testudo formation.
