The Legend of Korra, Book 5: It's canon. Deal with it.

[Morty]

It's one thing to talk about what it looks like in the world of Avatar. We only get it delivered to us in bite-sized chunks, and things are made up as needed. However, narratively speaking, benders take centre stage. All but one of the heroes - before Suki joins up right at the end - are benders. The major villains - Zhao, Zuko (before his change of heart), Azula, Long Feng, Ozai - are benders. Non-benders are sidekicks, henchmen or mooks. All the implicit societal effects caused by some people's ability to control the elements are largely glossed over.

It's not a problem, really, given that people watch the show in large part for the elemental martial arts fights, and that's what it delivers. However, Book One of Korra apparently had the purpose of putting the spotlight on the non-benders for a change, which many people welcomed before its premiere. But basically everything in the previous paragraph applies to it just like it does to ATLA.

But that would require re-watching season one in the first place.

I've been doing some rewatching myself, and until the finale it's certainly not ideal, but honestly not bad either. The biggest flaws are the love triangle and the fact that everything happens too quickly. Until Episode Six I have few complaints, and Episode Six itself is great - Amon's speech, especially. It's afterwards that things become progressively more rushed, and the finale is just... well.

That's true enough I suppose. It just still isn't enough to make up for having to sit through the initial love triangle in the first place, as we've both already agreed.

Obviously, but I respect turning a screw-up into something valuable.

[Zevox]

I've been doing some rewatching myself, and until the finale it's certainly not ideal, but honestly not bad either. The biggest flaws are the love triangle and the fact that everything happens too quickly. Until Episode Six I have few complaints, and Episode Six itself is great - Amon's speech, especially. It's afterwards that things become progressively more rushed, and the finale is just... well.

I guess I can see that. I do remember not disliking it while it was still in the middle of airing, the love triangle aside, it's just that the end result left me pretty disappointed, which leaves me with no real desire to ever re-watch it. I suppose the extremely rushed, unsatisfying ending has a lot to do with that, though.

Nonetheless, I'm pretty sure the only seasons I'll ever re-watch, barring the off chance that I decide to do a full re-watch of the whole series one day, are the third and fourth.

Obviously, but I respect turning a screw-up into something valuable.

Fair enough. It is probably the best that could be done with it, once the initial mistake was made.

[BeerMug Paladin]

The love triangle in season 1 was more interesting to me than most of the pro-bending stuff. The rushed feel of the later episodes seemed kind of weird, but it didn't hurt it that badly.

I agree that the show doesn't really focus on the non-benders much, but that makes sense, because benders are the powerful and potentially interesting characters to see. It's like how normal citizens in superhero settings are never the focus of the story. (They may be in a story, but the story is not about them and they don't really do anything important in the setting. Normal people just don't matter in universes like that.)

Because of the above, the equalist movement made enough intuitive sense to me that I felt it didn't need to be expanded upon greatly. There's a seed of discontent that can be used by a villain. Explaining how Amon built the movement in more detail would have been nice, but it didn't really matter. (Besides, he did fight a bender-exclusive gang and stopped it, so there's more than enough hints given for how he built his influence.) Anyway, he made non-bending citizens important enough for a major setting event through political organization.

Also, I like characters who are ridiculously out of their element. It's part of what I thought was charming about Sokka. He wasn't really treated very well by the writers most of the time, which was unfortunate. But there were a few times now and then he wasn't just there to get a pie in the face. But Korra didn't really have a main character who was out of their element. Asami seemed like a slightly toned down Batman.

Overall, I thought the first season was probably the best, but I liked each of the successive seasons well enough. I thought 3 was a little bleh, but it had a good final couple of episodes. And every scene with Varrick in it was just awesome. He should get his own spinoff series.

[Morty]

I guess I can see that. I do remember not disliking it while it was still in the middle of airing, the love triangle aside, it's just that the end result left me pretty disappointed, which leaves me with no real desire to ever re-watch it. I suppose the extremely rushed, unsatisfying ending has a lot to do with that, though.

The finale does tarnish everything prior to it retroactively. The scene where Amon shrugs off Tarrlok's bloodbending like it's a head cold and proclaims himself as "the solution" is somewhat less impressive when you know he did it because his own bloodbending was even more overpowered. Likewise, Korra's struggle to figure out airbending loses something once you know she unlock it because of True Love.

[Zevox]

Overall, I thought the first season was probably the best, but I liked each of the successive seasons well enough. I thought 3 was a little bleh, but it had a good final couple of episodes.

That is very much the opposite of my assessment, personally. I think there's a pretty significant quality gap between the first two and latter two seasons, and would call season 3 the best overall. I feel that it was that one where everything just worked out the best - the plot, pacing, characters, action, comedy, pretty much everything. It was just the most fun to watch. Season 1 meanwhile barely escapes being the worst because season 2 had a similarly bad ending and still had love triangle nonsense going on, but also just wasn't particularly entertaining during the middle portions, save only when we see the story of Avatar Wan.

The finale does tarnish everything prior to it retroactively. The scene where Amon shrugs off Tarrlok's bloodbending like it's a head cold and proclaims himself as "the solution" is somewhat less impressive when you know he did it because his own bloodbending was even more overpowered. Likewise, Korra's struggle to figure out airbending loses something once you know she unlock it because of True Love.

That last becomes even weaker when it turns out it's not exactly True Love, either, since their relationship doesn't actually last very long. Though I guess that's not saying much, since her getting airbending there when the problem keeping her from doing so was supposedly her total lack of a spiritual side never made any sense to begin with.

[Reddish Mage]

That last becomes even weaker when it turns out it's not exactly True Love, either, since their relationship doesn't actually last very long. Though I guess that's not saying much, since her getting airbending there when the problem keeping her from doing so was supposedly her total lack of a spiritual side never made any sense to begin with.

Did I miss something about that being true love? I thought what gave Korra Airbending was told to us explicitly by Aang during the denouement with about as much subtlety as the blizzard all around them.*


*or whatever pronoun is appropriate for the Avatar and her past life which I maintain is technically one...something.

"When we hit our lowest point, we are open to the greatest change."

Korra gained Airbending precisely because she lost her other bending.

[Zevox]

Did I miss something about that being true love? I thought what gave Korra Airbending was told to us explicitly by Aang during the denouement with about as much subtlety as the blizzard all around them.*


*or whatever pronoun is appropriate for the Avatar and her past life which I maintain is technically one...something.

"When we hit our lowest point, we are open to the greatest change."

Korra gained Airbending precisely because she lost her other bending.

She didn't gain it until she needed it to save Mako, though, which is clearly the sort of setup meant to imply that her feelings for him were the driving force behind it. I suppose we're supposed to believe that losing her other bending was part of it as well, but it's not like that helps make the whole scenario work any better.

[Lord Raziere]

Did I miss something about that being true love? I thought what gave Korra Airbending was told to us explicitly by Aang during the denouement with about as much subtlety as the blizzard all around them.*


*or whatever pronoun is appropriate for the Avatar and her past life which I maintain is technically one...something.

"When we hit our lowest point, we are open to the greatest change."

Korra gained Airbending precisely because she lost her other bending.

yeah its more like she gained Airbending through the power of True Loss.

Amon basically took things from her episode by episode. and Airbender culture is all about being an ascetic monk getting rid of all attachments to the world, with the capstone bending ability being FLIGHT, which takes not even being bound by true love anymore.

so yeah, Korra probably didn't gain Airbending through the power of any emotional attachment, but by losing an attachment.

[Zevox]

yeah its more like she gained Airbending through the power of True Loss.

Amon basically took things from her episode by episode. and Airbender culture is all about being an ascetic monk getting rid of all attachments to the world, with the capstone bending ability being FLIGHT, which takes not even being bound by true love anymore.

so yeah, Korra probably didn't gain Airbending through the power of any emotional attachment, but by losing an attachment.

That's neither the way it's portrayed in the scene where it happens nor anything like what Aang said in the quote Reddish Mage gave.

[Lord Raziere]

That's neither the way it's portrayed in the scene where it happens nor anything like what Aang said in the quote Reddish Mage gave.

well you don't get to your lowest point by gaining now do you? you get to your lowest point by losing things. Amon took a lot from Korra, thus a lot of loss, thus getting to the lowest point.

think about it, what is more open to change- something that doesn't have a lot of connections to other things, or something that does? if you have more things and attachments you value, you tend to not change for fear of losing such things, because you want to keep them. the wind is not bound by anything and changes a lot, but many things are attached to the earth and change relatively little.

its easier to change when you have no fear of losing things because of said change. and if you have already lost things- well, whats the harm in changing? you can only gain from doing so. the best way to deal with a loss of anything is to find a way to move on and sever the attachment you had to it, and such times are often considered low points.

so it all makes sense to me, and hopefully it now does to you.

[SuperPanda]

This show has a wonderful habit of containing the seeds for ideas that are far more deep than what it actually shows, and I think this is a perfect example.

Gaining Airbending through "true-loss" is a wonderfully poetic reading of season 1 in the light of season 3 that would thematically tie them together. It is hard to escape the context we have where season 3 wasn't dreamed of when season 1 was written, and as such it is more beholden for season 3 to match what was shown in season 1 than for season 1 to match what was said in season 3.

This doesn't change what Zevox said though. What we see in Season 1 is:

Korra cannot airbend and nothing she tries works. She is told repeatedly that her lack of spirituality is preventing her from making it work.
Amon takes away her bending leaving her feeling powerless.
Korra cannot bend anything to protect herself.
Mako is in danger and this prompts Korra to airbend. Her connection to Mako is what allows her to airbend, not "letting go."

The Quote from Aang that "At our lowest point we are most receptive to change" applies more directly to the ending sequence where she's obviously depressed and standing dangerous close to a cliff-face with a look on her face that makes it clear she's thinking about jumping. That is a much lower point than "My boyfriend might loose his bending" and its a bigger change too (Non-bender to airbender [discovering a hidden talent] vs Airbender to Avatar [rediscovering her destiny/self]).

In Season 3 Zaheer gains power by "letting go of" (or giving up on) earthly connections. By not caring he gains power and enlightenment. Aang was the reverse of Zaheer - he had to learn to care for all equally. That was Aang's path to "letting go." Korra moves towards Aangs path in Season 4 with her treatment of Kuvira (notably after Zaheer admits his way was wrong) but in Season 1 her airbending clearly comes from caring for Mako rather than letting go.

If she "let go" of anything it was her belief that she couldn't airbend and her self doubt (again, something Toph and Zaheer talks to her about in Season 4). That fits well with Aang's statements and your theory of "True-Loss" but does so without changing the fact that what was shown in Season 1 still shows her gaining airbending because of "true love" with her love for Mako being the force that pushed her past her self-doubt.

The others are just saying the arc would have been stronger without the "true-love" part.

[Lord Raziere]

I disagree.

it matters not what a show actually says, but what you hear from it. if a show says something, and I hear something far more valuable than something it actually said, then did I not have a valuable experience regardless? its matters not what a show tries to give you, but what you take away from it, and I did not take away any hint of Korra getting her powers through love or whatever.

she was confronted with the loss of her powers and potential loss of all her friends and family if Amon won, Mako is just one example. don't try to spin this into some true love thing just because the stupid love triangle was in the same season.

[dehro]

I disagree.

it matters not what a show actually says, but what you hear from it. if a show says something, and I hear something far more valuable than something it actually said, then did I not have a valuable experience regardless? its matters not what a show tries to give you, but what you take away from it, and I did not take away any hint of Korra getting her powers through love or whatever.

she was confronted with the loss of her powers and potential loss of all her friends and family if Amon won, Mako is just one example. don't try to spin this into some true love thing just because the stupid love triangle was in the same season.

what you say is true about introspective spiritual revelations... you read a passage from inserttextofchoice* and you reflect on how it applies to your personal circumstances, experience or viewpoints.. same goes for movies.
when Yoda says "do, or do not, there is no try", you can take this for what it is and apply the same attitude say, to your job... what you can't do is to read a whole bunch of information in the sentence that isn't there..
Yoda isn't saying "listen, give it a go, if it doesn't work, I can always have the neighbour Hank come give you a hand with his hydraulic crane" because that's just not there and there is no reason to distort the situation, the meaning of the words or the circumstances...
you can take something more valuable from what a show says, but if what you take from it directly contraddicts what the show is saying, then you're just having a random thought that doesn't have a correlation to the show

[SuperPanda]

Yeah, I don't think I said what I was saying well enough.

Lord Raziere:

I was basically saying that you and Zevox were arguing apples and oranges. Your interpretation was wonderful (and I think I tried to say that). It is a deep and insightful reading of the sub-themes of the text. I whole-heartedly agree that any text which allows for that sort of reading is good and the text is better for having those readings in it.

As you said, it is different from what the text said (you agreed with this by default by saying you preference subjective analysis over objective analysis - and as a High School Lit. Teacher I can hardly disagree with that preference).

Zevox made it clear his dislike of the scene is rooted in the more objective analysis. I was trying to say that I think everyone would have been much happier if "what the show said" more close matched your reading of "what the show meant."

The two can exist without cancelling each-other out. In discussing the stylistic elements of the show it is impossible to move away from objective analysis because that is what stylistics is attempting to do but one can make a good argument that this is to the detriment of enjoyment as often, if not more often, than it adds to it.

[Morty]

Just what exactly gave Korra airbending was not spelled out or explained. I call it "True Love-induced airbending" because the scene is an extremely typical "heroine sees her love interest in danger, unlocks a new power" situation. We can only guess why it was unaffected by Amon's bending removal, as well. Aang appears and restores her three other bending powers later, when she's in despair and after the non-benders have accepted the supremacy of benders and returned home. The implication, to me, is that her despair unlocked her connection to her past selves, and thus the Avatar State, which fixed things. Not that it's any better.

In the end, though, it doesn't actually matter. One way or the other, her airbending has nothing to do with anything Tenzin taught her, the philosophy of airbending, the character development she actually managed to get, the supposed central conflict of the season (which, as proven, isn't actually there anyway) or basically any challenges the season seemed to put in front of her but ultimately ignored. It's disconnected from her earlier efforts to figure it out. It's hollow.

[Zevox]

well you don't get to your lowest point by gaining now do you? you get to your lowest point by losing things. Amon took a lot from Korra, thus a lot of loss, thus getting to the lowest point.

But it's that "being at the lowest point" thing that Aang spoke of, not letting go of worldly attachments (indeed, Aang himself rejected that whole notion back in the first show, you might recall). Losing her bending left Korra feeling vulnerable and depressed, and it's that which made her situation her "lowest point," not lack of attachment to anything. And again, that as a catalyst for her gaining her airbending makes no more sense than the more immediately implied catalyst of her feelings for Mako.

Just what exactly gave Korra airbending was not spelled out or explained. I call it "True Love-induced airbending" because the scene is an extremely typical "heroine sees her love interest in danger, unlocks a new power" situation. We can only guess why it was unaffected by Amon's bending removal, as well. Aang appears and restores her three other bending powers later, when she's in despair and after the non-benders have accepted the supremacy of benders and returned home. The implication, to me, is that her despair unlocked her connection to her past selves, and thus the Avatar State, which fixed things. Not that it's any better.

In the end, though, it doesn't actually matter. One way or the other, her airbending has nothing to do with anything Tenzin taught her, the philosophy of airbending, the character development she actually managed to get, the supposed central conflict of the season (which, as proven, isn't actually there anyway) or basically any challenges the season seemed to put in front of her but ultimately ignored. It's disconnected from her earlier efforts to figure it out. It's hollow.

Indeed, that is exactly the problem. However you try to spin how Korra actually gained her airbending, it does not match up with everything the show previously tells us about her struggle to do so. It's instead something that the writers pulled completely out of nowhere to quickly resolve the issue at the last minute. That makes for a pretty darn weak resolution, and consequently a weaker narrative.

[Ramza00]

Two things happen when Korra airbend for the first time

1) She lost her connection to her other elements. She was no longer trying to do "airbending" the same way you would bend another elements. Her crutch of her other skills were not influencing her, just like Aang could not earthbend when he tackled the problem like an airbender.

Like Spirit Aang said later when you ""When we hit our lowest point, we are open to the greatest change"

2) Korra and Mako were in danger, and Mako was about to lose his firebending (Korra's love for him). Thus Korra tried airbending on an instinctual/emotional level and did not "try to think it." Korra has always been a bender who focuses on technique and not the spirituality of the elements, when she taught opal she focused on comments on her technique when starting to get advice. When Korra was commenting to Tenzin that she just does not get airbending she was comment that she knows all the airbending practice moves but she still just does not get it. Korra may understand airbending technique but she does not emotionally/spiritually/instinctively get airbending. It is only when Korra had nothing to lose, and thought she had no bending that she was able to bend. Korra's first time she airbend was when she was getting up from the ground and it was more of a lunge, trying to do something, trying to get from a to b, that suddenly air came out, she was not thinking it just happened and she emotionally connected to airbending the first time.

It was the combination of both 1 and 2 that occurred that allowed Korra to airbend for the first time, she had to both let go of the other elements and rely just on airbending, and she had to be mentally empty enough to fill the "void" that is necessary to airbend. There is a reason why things like "be the leaf" and "enter the void and become wind" are sayings you hear applied to airbending, with airbending it is the application of nothing, with you channeling nothing all around you until the nothing is applied to something and creates movement. Airbending takes a different style of thinking and mental "center" than does the other elements. Korra a very concrete reality at hand type of thinker, could not connect to something she could not see, and thus it was harder for her to understand how to bend something she could not see. How can you bend "freedom" if anything air seems the least possible element to bend and thus Korra had a mental block for a while (air is freedom, water is change, earth is substance, fire is the element of power/intensity/passion)

Uncle Iroh: [Drawing the Fire Nation symbol in the dirt] Fire is the element of power. The people of the Fire Nation have desire and will, and the energy and drive to achieve what they want.

Uncle Iroh: [Drawing the Earth Kingdom symbol] Earth is the element of substance. The people of the Earth Kingdom are diverse and strong. They are persistent and enduring.

Uncle Iroh: [Drawing the Air Nomad symbol] Air is the element of freedom. The Air Nomads detached themselves from worldly concerns, and they found peace and freedom. [pause] And they apparently had great senses of humor.

Uncle Iroh: [Drawing the Water Tribe symbol] Water is the element of change. The people of the Water Tribes are capable of adapting to many things. They have a sense of community and love that holds them together through anything.

Prince Zuko: Why are you teaching me these things?

Uncle Iroh: [he draws straight lines separating the four symbols] It is important to draw wisdom from different places. If you take it from only one place it become rigid and stale. Understanding others, the other elements, the other nations, will help you become whole. [he draws a circle around the whole, uniting the four symbols into one]

Prince Zuko: All this four elements talk, is sounding like Avatar stuff.
Uncle Iroh: It is the combination of the four elements in one person that makes the Avatar so powerful. But it can make you more powerful too.

.

[Morty]

It would have been awesome if the writers had put as much thought into it as you guys do.

[Flickerdart]

Now that I think about it, Iroh's speech really makes the various elemental nations sound like Hogwarts houses. The ambitious and designated bad guy Fire Nation is a perfect match for Slytherin, Earth is Hufflepuff (if you need any more evidence, just look at Bolin), Air is detached and pensive just like Ravenclaw, and Water's whole "community and love" thing seems like a good fit for Gryffindor.

[Zevox]

1) She lost her connection to her other elements. She was no longer trying to do "airbending" the same way you would bend another elements. Her crutch of her other skills were not influencing her, just like Aang could not earthbend when he tackled the problem like an airbender.

With Aang that required a change in his mentality and how he approached his problems, though - learning to face them head on rather than rely the more non-confrontational airbender mentality. And it's reflected in the show, when he's forced to directly confront the animal attacking Sokka, and then when he demands Toph return his glider. We don't see anything like that with Korra, though - she doesn't become any more spiritual or less confrontational when she loses her bending, she just becomes depressed and desperate, and then suddenly gets her airbending when it was the only way she could save Mako at that moment.

Korra's first time she airbend was when she was getting up from the ground and it was more of a lunge, trying to do something, trying to get from a to b, that suddenly air came out, she was not thinking it just happened and she emotionally connected to airbending the first time.

Case in point. Korra was even trying to airbend there - she had no idea she could suddenly do that, certainly wasn't in a position where she believed she had to rely on it - it just happened accidentally. She had gained no insight into anything, had nothing change about her in any way that connects to what was supposedly preventing her from learning airbending. She just needed a way to protect Mako, and suddenly got it.

[-D-]

It would have been awesome if the writers had put as much thought into it as you guys do.

Quoted for the truth!

[Flickerdart]

in point. Korra was even trying to airbend there - she had no idea she could suddenly do that, certainly wasn't in a position where she believed she had to rely on it - it just happened accidentally. She had gained no insight into anything, had nothing change about her in any way that connects to what was supposedly preventing her from learning airbending. She just needed a way to protect Mako, and suddenly got it.

Would've worked pretty well for Earthbending though, eh? I mean, if Korra needed help with it.

I wonder - why is it that no benders learn chi-blocking? It seems like hitting chakra points would be much easier when you have "shoot pebbles super-fast" as a power.

[Zevox]

Would've worked pretty well for Earthbending though, eh? I mean, if Korra needed help with it.

It would've worked much better than it does for airbending, at the very least.

[Morty]

Would've worked pretty well for Earthbending though, eh? I mean, if Korra needed help with it.

I wonder - why is it that no benders learn chi-blocking? It seems like hitting chakra points would be much easier when you have "shoot pebbles super-fast" as a power.

Some people interpret Amon's power as combining bloodbending with chi-blocking to make the latter permanent. It might make sense, and be an interesting combination of the two, but as usual, the show doesn't tell us anything one way or the other.

In ATLA, chi-blocking was an obscure art that few people knew, so most benders would have never heard of it - no one in Team Avatar had until Katara found herself on the receiving end, certainly. Following Ty Lee's enlistment with the Kyoshi Warriors, it evidently spread widely enough for Amon to form an entire army that used it. Again, though, it's glossed over.

[Metahuman1]

That's a though actually. What if the reason she unlocked Airbending is that it turns out trying to use spiritual powers combined with Advanced Bending Combined with heave-knows-what-else on the Avatar is always gonna be a sticky situation, and Amon actually did it by accident?

[Reddish Mage]

Just what exactly gave Korra airbending was not spelled out or explained. I call it "True Love-induced airbending" because the scene is an extremely typical "heroine sees her love interest in danger, unlocks a new power" situation.

I noticed the heroine angle appears a bit unusual. Can I get some non-ATLA examples of female characters unlocking great new powers when love-interest is in danger. Bonus points if she doesn't get incredibly angry or emotional (cause you know, woman...).

well you don't get to your lowest point by gaining now do you? you get to your lowest point by losing things. Amon took a lot from Korra, thus a lot of loss, thus getting to the lowest point.

think about it, what is more open to change- ...

so it all makes sense to me, and hopefully it now does to you.

This shows a great deal of knowledge about the philosophical underpinnings of Avatar and the religious inspiration for the Airbenders...maybe too much. I'm thinking its more...

That's neither the way it's portrayed in the scene where it happens nor anything like what Aang said in the quote Reddish Mage gave.

However...

It would have been awesome if the writers had put as much thought into it as you guys do.

Incidentally, this is incredibly sig-able. May I?

[Zevox]

In ATLA, chi-blocking was an obscure art that few people knew, so most benders would have never heard of it - no one in Team Avatar had until Katara found herself on the receiving end, certainly.

Do we even know that much about it? As you say, the gang hadn't heard of it, but they're not the most worldly people around, being 12-15 year-olds who are only then traveling for the first time in their lives. They'd hopped around a bit in season 1 certainly, but chi-blocking wouldn't necessarily have to be extremely rare for them to have missed it in those travels. And the show never really addresses the topic at all - it's just something Ty Lee can do, and never expanded upon beyond that.

[Morty]

I noticed the heroine angle appears a bit unusual. Can I get some non-ATLA examples of female characters unlocking great new powers when love-interest is in danger. Bonus points if she doesn't get incredibly angry or emotional (cause you know, woman...).

Can't say I remember any, not off the top of my head. Of course, women being under-represented in media is hardly news, is it? LoK was notable for going in the face of it even at its worst. I get this sneaky feeling that if it had been pitched as the story of a hot-headed young male Avatar who wins the heart of the beautiful Asami Sato - or the brooding firebender girl Makonia or some such - while fighting the Equalists, it might not have been yanked around by the network so much.

Mind you, a hero unlocking a new power because their love interest is in danger isn't really something I want to see more of, regardless of the gender of the people involved.

Incidentally, this is incredibly sig-able. May I?

Sure.

Do we even know that much about it? As you say, the gang hadn't heard of it, but they're not the most worldly people around, being 12-15 year-olds who are only then traveling for the first time in their lives. They'd hopped around a bit in season 1 certainly, but chi-blocking wouldn't necessarily have to be extremely rare for them to have missed it in those travels. And the show never really addresses the topic at all - it's just something Ty Lee can do, and never expanded upon beyond that.

According to the Avatar wiki, the writers explained it during a convention panel - that it was an ancient technique practised in secret. For the purposes of Last Airbender, it was trivia. But you'd think a season supposedly putting non-benders in the spotlight would spend at least a minute on the proliferation of a secret anti-bender technique for non-benders...

[Kd7sov]

Do we even know that much about it? As you say, the gang hadn't heard of it, but they're not the most worldly people around, being 12-15 year-olds who are only then traveling for the first time in their lives. They'd hopped around a bit in season 1 certainly, but chi-blocking wouldn't necessarily have to be extremely rare for them to have missed it in those travels. And the show never really addresses the topic at all - it's just something Ty Lee can do, and never expanded upon beyond that.

There's also Ba Sing Se - I don't remember the exact wording, but Ty Lee takes out one of the defenders, Katara tries to heal him, and nobody else (outside the Gaang) seems to recognize what her description of the symptoms signifies.

[Zevox]

According to the Avatar wiki, the writers explained it during a convention panel - that it was an ancient technique practised in secret.

Fair enough I guess.

For the purposes of Last Airbender, it was trivia. But you'd think a season supposedly putting non-benders in the spotlight would spend at least a minute on the proliferation of a secret anti-bender technique for non-benders...

Yeah, you would. The first season of Korra really was just a grab bag of missed opportunities, wasn't it?