Avatar: The Last Airbender (2003–2008): Season 2, Episode 4 - The Swamp - full transcript

KATARA: Water.

Earth.

Fire.

Air.

Long ago, the four nations lived
together in harmony.

Then everything changed
when the Fire Nation attacked.

Only the Avatar, master of all
four elements, could stop them.

But when the world
needed him most, he vanished.

100 years passed, and my brother
and I discovered the new Avatar,

an airbender named Aang.

And although his airbending
skills are great,



he has a lot to learn
before he's ready to save anyone.

AANG: Oof!

But I believe Aang can save the world.

Spare coins for weary travelers?

[COINS CLINKING]

This is humiliating. We're royalty.

These people should be
giving us whatever we want.

They will, if you ask nicely.

Spare change for a hungry old man?

Aw, here you go.

The coin is appreciated,
but not as much as your smile.

[GIGGLES]

How about some entertainment
in exchange for...

A gold piece?



We're not performers.

Not professional, anyway.

♪ It's a long, long way to Ba Sing Se

♪ But the girls in the city
They look so pretty ♪

Come on, we're talking a gold piece here.

Let's see some action.

Dance.

♪ They kiss so sweet
That you really have to meet

♪ The girls from Ba Sing Se ♪

[LAUGHING]

Nothing like a fat man
dancing for his dinner.

Here you go.

Such a kind man.

[CHATTERS]

Hey, you taking us down for a reason?

Aang, why are we going down?

What?

I didn't even notice.

SOKKA: Are you noticing now?

Is something wrong?

I know this is gonna sound weird,

but I think the swamp is... calling to me.

Is it telling you where we
can get something to eat?

AANG: No, I, I think it wants us
to land there.

No offense to the swamp,

but I don't see any land there to land on.

I don't know.

Bumi said to learn earthbending,
I would have to wait and listen.

And now, I'm actually hearing the earth.

Do you want me to ignore it?

[CHATTERS]

-Yes.
-I don't know.

There's something ominous
about that place.

[CHATTERS]

[GRUMBLES]

See? Even Appa and Momo
don't like it here.

Okay, since everyone feels so
strongly about this, bye, swamp.

Yip yip!

[RUMBLING]

SOKKA: You better throw in an extra yip.
We gotta move.

Ahh!

[YELLING]

ALL: [SCREAMING]

[GROANS]

Where's Appa and Momo?

Appa!

Momo!

Sokka, you've got an elbow leech.

Where, where?

Where do you think?

Why do things keep attaching to me?

You couldn't find them?

No...

And the tornado, it just disappeared.

-[GRUMBLING]
-[CHATTERS]

[ROARS]

[ROARS]

We better speed things up.

Maybe we should be a little
nicer to the swamp.

Aang, these are just plants.

Do you want me to say please and thank you

as I swing my machete back and forth?

Maybe you should listen to Aang.

Something about this place feels... alive.

I'm sure there are lots of things
that are alive here.

And if we don't want to wind
up getting eaten by them,

we need to find Appa as fast as we can.

[BLOWS WHISTLE]

[ROARS]

[BLOWS WHISTLE]

[GURGLES]

KATARA: Appa!

Momo?

There's no way they can hear us
and no way we can see them.

We'll have to make camp for the night.

-[INSECTS BUZZING]
-Ah, ugh!

What was that?

Nothing, just swamp gas.

Look, there's nothing
supernatural going on here.

ALL: Ugh...

[HUMAN-LIKE SCREAMS]

[SCREAMS]

I think we should build a fire.

Sokka, the longer we're here,

the more I think you
shouldn't be doing that.

No, I asked the swamp.

It said this was fine. Right, swamp?

[SQUEAKILY] No problem, Sokka.

Does anyone else get the feeling
that we're being watched?

Please, we're all alone out here.

[GRUNTING]

Except for them.

Right, except for them.

[FROGS CROAKING]

[INDISTINCT ANIMAL NOISES]

[ROARS]

[ANIMAL NOISES STOP]

ALL: [YELLING]

Hagh!

Ahh!

Ahh!

[GRUNTING]

Ugh.

Ahh!

Ugh...

Guys?

What'd you reckon
make a track like that, Tho?

Don't know, Due.

Something with six legs,
pretty big 'uns, too.

DUE: Leaves a nice, wide trail to follow.

You know what's at the end of that trail?

Dinner.

[ROARS]

[GROWLS]

[HISSING]

[GRUMBLES]

KATARA: Aang?

Sokka?

Hello?

Hello.

Can you help me?

Mom?

Mom!

I can't believe...

[GASPS]

[SOBBING]

Aang!

Stupid swamp. Dumb, ugly vines.

Katara!

You think you're so tough, huh?

[GRUNTING]

Ah!

Hello?

Yue?

This is just a trick of the light...

Swamp gas.

I hit my head running away last night.

I'm going crazy.

[ECHOING] You didn't protect me.
You didn't protect me.

[SIGHS]

Ah!

Katara!

Appa!

Hello?

Who are you?

[LAUGHING]

AANG: Hey!

Come back.

[LAUGHING]

[GIGGLES]

[LAUGHS]

Lookee there, Tho.

Is that a little hairy
fella riding that thing?

No, that's what they call a "lemu."

Saw one at a traveling show once.
Real smart, they say.

Bet he tastes a lot like possum-chicken.

You think everything tastes
like possum-chicken.

Come on, now, fellas,
just a little closer.

Nice and easy.

Nothin' to worry about.

We just fixin' to eat ya.

[GROWLS]

What'd ya say that fer?

Well, we are.

But you don't have to tell them that.

How'd I know they'd understand me?

Come on.

[LAUGHING]

Who are you?

BOTH: Ahh!

Ugh.

ALL: [GROANING]

What do you guys think you're doing?

I've been looking all over for you.

Well, I've been wandering
around looking for you.

I was chasing some girl.

-What girl?
-I don't know.

I heard laughing, and I saw
some girl in a fancy dress.

Well, there must be a tea party here,

and we just didn't get our invitations.

I thought I saw Mom.

Look, we were all just scared and hungry,

and our minds were playing tricks on us.

That's why we all saw things out here.

You saw something, too?

I thought I saw Yue.

But that doesn't prove anything.

Look, I think about her all the time.

And you saw Mom, someone you miss a lot.

What about me?

I didn't know the girl I saw.

And all our visions led us right here.

Okay, so where's here,
the middle of the swamp?

Yeah...

The center.

It's the heart of the swamp.

It's been calling us here.

I knew it.

It's just a tree. It can't call anyone.

For the last time,
there's nothing after us,

and there's nothing
magical happening here.

ALL: [SCREAMING]

Ahh!

[GRUNTING]

[GRUNTS]

Ah!

Ugh!

KATARA: [GROANS]

-Ahh!
-Unh!

[GROWLING]

Ah!

[GRUNTING]

Now, what would a "lemu" need a shirt fer?

Ahh!

Ugh!

[GROWLING]

[GRUNTING]

BOTH: Ugh!

Ah!

Ugh.

[SCREAMING]

Ugh!

There's someone in there!
He's bending the vines.

[GRUNTS]

Ah!

Why did you call me here
if you just wanted to kill us?

Wait!

I didn't call you here.

We were flying over, and I heard
something calling to me,

telling me to land.

He's the Avatar.

Stuff like that happens to us a lot.

The Avatar?

Come with me.

KATARA: So who are you, then?

I protect the swamp from
folks that want to hurt it,

like this fellow with his big knife.

See?

Completely reasonable. Not a monster,

just a regular guy defending his home.

Nothing mystical about it.

MAN: Oh, the swamp is a mystical place,
all right.

It's sacred.

I reached enlightenment right here,
under the banyan grove tree.

I heard it calling me, just like you did.

Sure you did. It seems real chatty.

See, this whole swamp
is actually just one tree

spread out over miles.

Branches spread and sink and take root

and then spread some more...

One big, living organism,

just like the entire world.

I get how the tree is one big thing,
but the whole world?

Sure.

You think you're any different

from me or your friends or this tree?

If you listen hard enough,

you can hear every living thing
breathing together.

You can feel everything growing.

We are all living together,
even if most folks don't act like it.

We all have the same roots,

and we are all branches of the same tree.

KATARA: But what did our visions mean?

In the swamp, we see visions
of people we've lost,

people we loved, folks we think are gone.

But the swamp tells us they're not.
We're still connected to 'em.

Time is an illusion, and so is death.

But what about my vision?

It was someone I had never met.

You're the Avatar. You tell me.

Time is an illusion...

So, it's someone I will meet.

Sorry to interrupt the lesson,
but we still need to find Appa and Momo.

I think I know how to find them.

Everything is connected.

Come on, we've gotta hurry!

♪ Set my lines by the riverbed

♪ Caught ten fish, and I killed 'em dead

♪ Cut 'em and gut 'em
And I toss the heads

♪ In the water
To keep them cat-gators fed ♪

[SCREAMING]

Appa!

Oh!

We're under attack!

Hey, you guys are waterbenders.

You, too?

That means we're kin.

Hey, Huu. How you been?

You know, scared some folks,
swung some vines... The usual.

Huu?

[TWANGY MUSIC PLAYING]

How you like that possum-chicken?

Tastes just like arctic hen.

So why were you guys
so interested in eating Appa?

You've got plenty of those
big things wandering around.

You want me to eat ol' Slim?

He's like a member of the family.

Nice Slim.

-[GROWLS]
-Ah!

[LAUGHING] Oh, he don't eat no bugs.

That's people food.

Where'd you say you was from?

The South Pole.

Didn't know there was
waterbenders anywhere but here.

They got a nice swamp there, do they?

No, it's all ice and snow.

Hmm, no wonder you left.

Well, I hope you realize now

that nothing strange was going on here.

Just a bunch of greasy people
living in a swamp.

What about the visions?

I told you, we were hungry.

I'm eating a giant bug.

Mmm-ugh.

But what about when the tree showed me
where Appa and Momo were?

That's Avatar stuff, that doesn't count.

The only thing I can't figure out

is how you made the tornado
that sucked us down.

I can't do anything like that.

I just bend the water in the plants.

Well, no accounting for weather.

Still, there's absolutely
nothing mysterious about the swamp.

[SCREAMS]

[THWACKS]

Who's there?

Whoa!

Ugh...

[CLOSING THEME PLAYING]