Okay, I’ve seen some people complaining about the lion-turtle at the end of episode 319 (that’d be The Old Masters), saying that it was a deus ex machina plot point. That the whole concept of the lion-turtle was included just so Aang wouldn’t have to finish the job, that is, kill Ozai.

Truth be told, I thought so too, initially. But then, after doing some research, I discovered some random foreshadowing moments throughout the series. Here are some screenshots of the possible lion-turtle sightings throughout the entirety of Avatar: The Last Airbender.

From the unaired pilot episode. This is Aang presumably airbending in front of a lion-turtle statue.

From The Northern Air Temple. While some people have argued that this is a bas relief of a sky bison, it lacks the arrow on top of its head that sky bison are known for. Unless it decided to get a perm, wherein the image of the arrow was lost in the process.

Most obvious hint, taken from the episode The Library. The word lion-turtle is also first spoken here.

In the episode Sokka’s Master. Apparently, Piandao’s garden is literally littered with statues of these noble creatures.

And of course, in the episode The Old Masters.

I don’t have a screenshot of this episode, but apparently, the door knockers in Rion Jian’s house in The Beach was made out of lion-turtle heads as well.

One forumer savant in Avatar Spirit pointed out that an interesting thing to note was that the episodes wherein the lion-turtles would make their appearances always involved learning (save for the pilot episode).

So there you have it. No flimsy plot point, the lion-turtle was. I think it was pretty interesting, even without all the foreshadowing. The concept of another, more integral creature capable of teaching the most sublime - yet the deadliest - of all the bending arts is probably one of the best things about the Avatarverse: you always learn something from somebody.

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