As of right now I am rewatching the series. I'm currently in the beginning of Book 3 and as I'm drawing close to end this series still amazes me. I am 23 years old and this series still catches my attention when I turn off my nostalgic goggles.

What I have discovered from rewatching this series is that ATLA is not a kid's show. It's a smart kid's show. It doesn't dumb things down for kids. The creators knew that kids were smart enough to understand the complexity of the characters. The plot is explained in simple terms, but it's still deep. They're not afraid to use words death, die, ect.

Not only is it smart kid's show it's a show that can drawn in the whole family. What's great for adults is that we still get the need for drama and action that we get from adult shows, but with the mix of the light hearted fun.

Does anyone else feel the same way or have discovered something from watching the series?

I discovered that this show is truly the golden nugget show of Nickelodeon. And a bit of that reasoning ties into the reasons you listed. It's not a "dumb little kid show"; it has depth to it. I haven't seen an American cartoon come to the level of genius and depth in a cartoon before. It has actual quality that draws in children, teens, and adults (though of course for different reasons for children).

Funny how the "dumb little kid anime" (hey the art of Avatar is based off anime) is the stories that teach us the best lessons growing up, enables us to think abstractly about the story (i.e. find more depth in the show than may have been intended, think up theories, etc.), and sticks with us as we get older. Avatar is no exception.

I think in the first book it was a lot more childish and not too much in depths, but the second book totally went in a different direction and became a "smart kid's show." It's one of those shows where you have to continuously watch to understand what's happening compared to where you can watch any episode of a kid's show and there's no continuity at all. Most of us here are adults and we joined a forum for a love for a "kid's show." ;]

yeah! i think the demographic for the series is pretty expansive (though i was only 13 when i started watching it ). it's more than just a cute, funny, plot-driven and interesting show. there are a lot of things about it that draw us in, and i think for an american anime, it's awesome!

i totally agree with Hanasakuya that it's like, the golden nugget of nickelodeon.

and chikami, that's so true! i think they made an actual effort after they saw it was pretty popular after book one. i think it's really interesting and accurate to note that most children's shows don't offer a continued, consistent plot that works towards something bigger, and this did.

Yes, I was rewatching book 1 this week actually, it really felt like a normal kid's sow for the most part, and the first couple of episodes had really bad anime eyes (lol). But it does an excellent job of getting awesome at the second season. On a side note, it is really sad that a good show, teen titans, got another show that it is really lacking in depth.

Well off topic here

TT Go is just s cute little show for fun. From what I watch it'squite funny. Plus there's hidden Easter eggs for the fandom.