The Legend of Korra/Recap/S3 E2 Rebirth

Asami arrives at Air Temple Island with a fully-equipped Future Industries airship, to assist Team Avatar in their search for airbenders in Ba Sing Se. Kya assures Tenzin that she and Pema will take care of the island while they are gone. Mako arrives and, in a very self-conscious and over-the-top professional manner, reports to Korra that he contacted various Earth Kingdom villages, and has marked the known locations of airbenders on the map. Korra asks Mako to come along, but he refuses.


 * Korra: I know things have been weird between us since we broke up, but you're a part of Team Avatar, and we can't do this without you.
 * Mako: I'm sorry, I can't.

Meanwhile, Tenzin bids Pema farewell and promises to let her know once airbenders have been recruited to train at the Northern Air Temple. Ikki and Meelo confront their father regarding why Jinora was the only one allowed to go to Ba Sing Se, but are promptly assuaged by Kya who insists that they are needed in Air Temple Island to assist any airbenders who may potentially come. Mako prepares to leave the docks, but Bolin stops him, and pleads with him to stick around.


 * Mako: I feel like I've been drifting apart from everyone.
 * Bolin: Well, drift back! We need you! C'mon Mako, we're going to Ba Sing Se, where Dad grew up! What if I meet our grandma for the very first time, and she asks me [imitates grandma] "Where's your sweet brother?" and I have to say "I'm sorry, Grandma, he had some really important police paperwork to file," and she starts to cry those grandma tears and is like [Imitates grandma again and grabs Mako's shoulders] "Mako, why? Why? I can't go on, I ca-" [suddenly deadpan] and then she dies.

Mako finally caves, and prepares to make a very disappointing phone call to Chief Beifong.

As the group sets off to leave for Ba Sing Se, the members discuss a plan to visit every settlement reported to have an airbender prior to landing in Ba Sing Se and excitedly consider the prospects of recreating the Air Nation. Ghazan lavabending

Ghazan tries to get out of prison by means of earthbending.

In an isolated water prison in the middle of the ocean, two White Lotus sentries are relieved to find their shift change, but are alarmed to find Zaheer, who overpowers them with airbending. In the midst of the battle, he manages to throw a couple of rocks into Ghazan's wooden cell, allowing him to superheat them into lava and escape his confines. The two defeat the sentries and reunite, with Ghazan inquiring how Zaheer managed to get airbending. He attributes his newfound bending to Harmonic Convergence, which he interprets as a sign that their mission is righteous.

The Future Industries airship arrives in a small Earth Kingdom village and the team is invited to a special dinner with Kuon, a local farmer who has gained the ability to airbend. Tenzin informs Kuon that he is going to help him rebuild the Air Nation, frustrating Kuon who refuses to leave his family to learn about the Air Nomads. Infuriated, he reaffirms his position and urges Tenzin to leave his village. Tenzin solicits for airbenders

Tenzin attempts to get new airbenders to join their quest of rebuilding the Air Nation, though with little success.

The group visits other Earth Kingdom villages, but is ultimately unsuccessful at recruiting individuals who seem uninterested in learning about the Air Nomads. Realizing that Tenzin's way of recruitment did not work, Korra attempts to force a young airbender named Ryu to join their cause, but is ultimately unable to convince him.

In a barren prison, Ming-Hua hears White Lotus sentries alerting each other that the prison is under attack. Zaheer and Ghazan overpower the guards and are eventually able to provide Ming-Hua with a barrel of water, which she uses to create tentacle-like arms to navigate out of her cell. With her waterbending, Ming-Hua takes out the remaining sentries before reuniting with Zaheer and Ghazan, who inform her that they will be breaking P'Li out of prison next.

Disheartened, the group considers whether heading straight to Ba Sing Se would be the best course of action, but ultimately decides to host an "airbending street performance" as suggested by Bolin and Bumi. With Bolin acting as the host, Tenzin, Korra, Bumi, and Jinora demonstrate their bending in an attempt to entice airbenders to join their group.

Following the show, a young airbender named Kai offers to join Team Avatar's mission to recruit airbenders. Requiring parental consent, Tenzin asks Kai what his parents think of him leaving to become an Air Nomad. Dejectedly, Kai tells Team Avatar that his parents died protecting their village from an outlaw raid. The group decides to admit Kai but before the airship can leave, a group of earthbenders arrive demanding custody of Kai. Identifying them as the outlaws, Kai urges the group to flee, but Korra decides to confront the men instead.

After a short fight, the men reveal that they are officers from the town seeking to arrest Kai for stealing his foster family's life savings. Kai ultimately admits that the sheriff's account is true, but insists that gaining bending changed him and pleads for Korra and Tenzin to take him along. Tenzin ultimately decides to recruit Kai and the group heads off to leave, but Mako stops Kai, warning him that he will be wary of Kai's action knowing very well the kind of person he is due to his past. Kai reiterates that he is planning to change, before turning to board the airship where he meets Jinora, who offers to teach him what she knows about airbending. Zuko mounts a dragon

After finding out about Zaheer's escape and airbending abilities, Lord Zuko sets course for the Northern Water Tribe.

Back at the prison, a sentry informs Lord Zuko regarding Ming Hua's escape and Zaheer's acquirement of airbending, visibly alarming the firebender. Zuko stresses the power of each of the escape convicts and states that they have the power to "take down the entire world" as a unit. Knowing that they will come for P'Li, Zuko informs the sentry to send a message to the Chiefs of the Northern Water Tribe that an attack on their prison is imminent and to Chief Lin Beifong that safeguarding the Avatar should become a primary concern. After relaying his instructions, Zuko mounts his dragon and sets off to stop the convicts from releasing P'Li.


 * A Protagonist Is Ryu: Possibly a Subversion, if the name was deliberately chosen to invoke an Intended Audience Reaction. In Korra and crew's search for airbenders, they visit the household of one 22-year-old Ryu. With a name like that, one would expect him to be a new major secondary character, perhaps even a replacement love interest for Korra. But aside from being a young male, he turns out to fit none of the characteristics. He's introverted, unenthusiastic, selfish, mooches off his mother, is too lazy to take advantage of his new gift, and would rather let the world fall to pieces around him than do any kind of work. They ultimately fail to convince him to join.
 * Basement Dweller: Ryu.
 * Mundane Utility: After baby Rohan vomits on Kya, Kya uses her Waterbending to clean herself off.
 * Vomit Indiscretion Shot
 * Kya: [cooing] Who's excited to spend some time with your Auntie Kya?
 * Rohan: [vomits on Kya]
 * Pema: Aw, he likes you.