We were mistaken about the re-run. I was basing the 8:30PM Saturday re-broadcast on a previously announced schedule since Nick only puts out it’s broadcast schedule a few days in advance. So – OOPS – no 8:30.

However, the episode is up at the iTunes Store as of this morning (Saturday). Nick.com should make the episodes available to stream HERE (also where you’ll find the Book 2 game “Dark Into Light”).

I also found this video about how to get Nick.com to work internationally, though I haven’t tried it and cannot vouch for it working:

Good luck, Broadcast-Bender.

-Da7e-

Not just “They.” It’s MATT PATCHES! 

That’s right – Republic City Dispatch is everywhere. : )

-Da7e-

Check the Recap at VULTURE.

c-10:

This is amazing.

If this were a live action network show, you would be right: Friday is where series are sent to die. There are exceptions, notably The X-Files on Fox – which is where everyone got the idea a Friday night show could do well – but mostly Friday is a dumping ground.

With Nickelodeon, it’s harder to tell, because since the days of SNICK, they are playing in a different field. So Korra airs at 7PM on Firdays plus a re-airing on Saturdays at 8:30PM. That seems like a bad spot, but on Nickelodeon, it’s just the spot to lure both kids and adults to the network. 

There will be Books 3 & 4 – those are happening – but this Book, Nickelodeon has decided to see if people will come to the channel for Korra, instead of putting Korra somewhere where people could happen upon it. 

It’s a weird decision and one that will only continue if it works, but the plus side is adults who watch TV not-in-the-morning can easily find it and people who are already fans will find it wherever.

Short answer: Yes, it seems a bit weird, but not weird enough to worry about.

-Da7e-

I’m not as concerned about Asami as I was concerned about – say – Kelly MacDonald’s absence from the new season of Boardwalk Empire’s trailer. Because Kelly’s character was in a compromising position at the end of the last season and her absence doesn’t bode well for the character. 

Asami may be absent, but we did get a few clips of her in Book 2 way back at Comic Con 2012 and we know she’s taking over her father’s business, but needs to head down to the Southern Water Tribe, which is where Korra, Bolin and Mako have been spotted in other promotional material. 

There’s a lack of Asami at the expense of a lot more Jinora, which just makes me think that well be spending a lot of this season in meditation before we find our gateway into the Spirit World. We don’t have much evidence yet as to who can pass between worlds, for all we know it’s just the Avatar. And as a non-bender, Asami might have a totally different set of goals (like the Atheist in a movie about religion).

Two things to think about that make me not worried about Asami:

1) Seychelle Gabriel, who plays Asami, was the person who gave the quote that she was having trouble remembering Book 2 because she was already deep into recording Book 3. This implies Asami makes it through Book 2 and is in Book 3. 

2) We know the other theme of Book 2 is “Family,” which is why we’re seeing the Korra Clan in more detail. I can’t imagine Bolin, Mako and Asami not providing the counter-point to our family-oriented Avatar and Airbenders, which means at least a few check-in moments with Team Avatar Generation 2 as a group. In my mind at least.

What I’m really hoping for with Asami is that a greater number of episodes allows for more nuance in whatever her journey is. Re-listening to Book One’s podcasts, the Asami story is all over the place. Sometimes we neglected to interpret it correctly, other times there wasn’t enough on screen for a correct interpretation and Asami’s motives became assumed as the climax approached.

Then the whole Mako thing happened and…I’m sure we’ll be getting a bit more tension there as we also haven’t seen a ton of Policeman Mako in the trailers either. 

Or maybe we have and I’m not paying close enough attention. It’s hard to pay attention when all you’re thinking is: THIS FRIDAY!

-Da7e-

imnotobsessed-justimpolite:

LMFAO.

Happy #SeptBender!

And thanks for pointing that out! ehalcyon and an anonymous tumblr user also caught my blunder:

I am pretty sure that the airbender in the library is Jinora. They have the same hair. The hair is hard to see because it’s black on black, but you can see it clearly over Wan Shi Tong’s face as he lands.

And re-listening to the podcast, I think this scene played into Patches’ reading on Jinora’s elevated role all along.

I screwed up already! Let’s pretend this was a test to see who was back with us so early into the new run, maybe?

-Da7e-

Interesting. 

People being down on the Book 2 preview is something I haven’t personally run across. I think it’s bold and beautiful and amazing. It doesn’t look like anything else on TV right now, especially with the multiple styles in background painting (Current, Spirit World, Flashback).

That said – what you’re saying about the first series is valid. These episodes take so long to animate and mix that the Korra team is probably in the middle of or finishing up the writing on Book Four as we speak, meaning Book Three’s voice-acting sessions are probably winding down. 

What I’m implying is that we still don’t really know how self contained each Korra book will be. TLA was a single quest over three books, and Korra hasn’t revealed how much the four books we’re going to get are going to be connected. 

All this to say that different isn’t worse, especially when we haven’t seen the season.

I can, however, see how someone who was into the steam-punk/dixieland more-realistic Republic City stories would balk at a trailer that has multiple giant spirit creatures in it. However, I don’t see how that initial concern would be negative, as some of my favorite parts of the TLA were the traveling/world-building episodes. 

I, personally, have extreme trust in the Avatar/Korra team at this point. The only way they frustrate me is by not giving it all to me RIGHT NOW. : )

-Da7e-

Yes!

And there’s an airbender there!

And that airbender is bald and doesn’t have tattoos, so maybe this is Milo? 

And there are roots in the library, so it’s not buried in sand anymore?

Do you think this has anything to do with Matt’s theory that the Airbender Kids are going to help Korra connect to the Spirit world? There is that shot in the trailer of a meditating Jinora as the background transitions to Spirt-ness.

Wan Shi Tong, the library, the first Avatar! SO MUCH LOVELY HISTORY!

-Da7e-

Thanks! 

No one has us down, because Korra is coming back and that buoys all emotion to the highest heights! 

Thank you, anonymous commenter, for commenting. We’re back and answering and Book Two: Spirits is upon us.

Flameo, hotman!

-Da7e-

You aren’t on iTunes anymore?!?!?!?!

Nope. Because of two large companies, one hosting and one podcast-listing, we were deleted from a certain store. All subscribers seem to have been deleted as well. HOWEVER, we’re working to get Republic City Dispatch back on iTunes because we realize a lot of you use it to get your podcasts automatically. That being said, all the Book One episodes are still right where they’ve always been at our RSS FEEDS link, in case you’re using a podcast service like Downcast that is not dependent on the iTunes listings.

Please do not get mad. We are mad for you. 

Are you doing a podcast for ____________?

Maybe. We know for sure we’re doing episode-by-episode analysis of Book 2. Surely there will be some BYE-weeks in there where we can fill out with comics, shorts, fan-reaction podcasts, etc.

Will you be back for BOOK TWO?

Yes. Yes we will. Right now we plan to release in the afternoon of Saturday September 14th, a little less than 24 hours after the now-Friday Korra premieres. Hopefully that will stay the same HOWEVER: Devindra gets married this September 14th, so we’re not sure who will make it on the podcast for that first episode at the moment. Probably not Devindra. Some things are more important than cartoons, we’re told.

Will you have special guests?

Probably. But ongoing discussions with the various arms of the publicity machine have indicated that those will likely not be anyone that worked on the series. Which sucks, and we’re working on it.

Will the Tumblr re-activate?

Darn tootin’. After the first episode, the warm embrace of a season-long fandom whirlpool beigns anew here at RepublicCityDispatch.com.

Anything I can do?

How sweet of you to ask. Check back here before the Book Two premiere. We’ll find a way to get on iTunes come hell or high water and we’ll want you to re-subscribe so you can get your Dispatch directly however you want it.

-Da7e-