Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Search #3

Avatar: The Last Airbender - The Search, Part 3

Rate this book
The Fate of the Fire Lord!

Avatar Aang travels to the spirit world to parlay with an ancient power, bringing Fire Lord Zuko ever closer to discovering the truth about his mother's fate—and his own past. Yet Zuko's sister Azula is becoming increasingly dangerous, threatening to ruin everything that Zuko, Aang, Katara, and Sokka have struggled to achieve on their search!

76 pages, Paperback

First published October 30, 2013

Loading interface...
Loading interface...

About the author

Gene Luen Yang

326 books3,294 followers
Gene Luen Yang writes, and sometimes draws, comic books and graphic novels. As the Library of Congress’ fifth National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, he advocates for the importance of reading, especially reading diversely. American Born Chinese, his first graphic novel from First Second Books, was a National Book Award finalist, as well as the winner of the Printz Award and an Eisner Award. His two-volume graphic novel Boxers & Saints won the L.A. Times Book Prize and was a National Book Award Finalist. His other works include Secret Coders (with Mike Holmes), The Shadow Hero (with Sonny Liew), Superman from DC Comics (with various artists), and the Avatar: The Last Airbender series from Dark Horse Comics (with Gurihiru). In 2016, he was named a MacArthur Foundation Fellow. His most recent books are Dragon Hoops from First Second Books and Superman Smashes the Klan from DC Comics.

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
7,063 (61%)
4 stars
3,222 (28%)
3 stars
992 (8%)
2 stars
109 (<1%)
1 star
39 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 779 reviews
756 reviews2,554 followers
July 13, 2017
I'm kind of disappointed with what happened with Azula's character in this final part. It was the same ol' fun read, but I'm very disappointed with how Azula's character was handled and I have so many unanswered questions about her character. The ending was sort of anticlimactic...but I still enjoyed this a lot.

It was interesting to learn about Zuko's family and I love Zuko. He's my precious son.

I'm just very disappointed with Azula's character and that's pretty much my only complaint with this.

P.S Aang and Katara's endearments towards each other make me laff.

___
I love some mind fuckery and I have so many questions about Azula's character!!!

anyways,

P E R F E C T I O N

rtc someday (I promise)
Profile Image for KalynAbridged.
127 reviews2,226 followers
August 22, 2021
Ahhh loved the ending and how it went full circle from part 1 of The Search, and finding out what happened to Zukos mom. If you love Avatar you will love these graphic novels, they are beautifully written.
Profile Image for Isa.
564 reviews316 followers
December 16, 2013


This series was such a roller-coaster of building expectations, mediocre deliveries, and astonishing bad endings...

For any fan of Avatar: The Last Airbender, there was always that great mystery: where is Ursa, Zuko and Azula's mother? Where was she while her husband maimed their son? Where was she while her daughter spiralled into madness? Where is she now?

In this series Zuko finds some clues to his mother's whereabouts and decides to try to find her with the help of team Avatar and, to my delight, his sister Azula.

I was so excited! Not so much for Ursa, but for Azula. I always thought the original show did her a disservice. She was such a complex and fascinating character - the best firebender, power hungry, ruthless. But she was frail, too. She suffered because she knew her mother hadn't loved her, thought she was a monster. She struggled in her relationship with her brother, she hated him but still cared for him in a weird way. So it felt like a complete cop-out that they simple wrote her off as "crazy" and that was that.

So I was hoping for some closure, some resolution with this series. It has a promising start: we see what Azula and Zuko's childhood was like, how their father pitted them against each other, how Azula was, even then, not quite right. And we see Zuko try to rebuild a relationship with his sister.
Then it started going a bit south: Azula, instead of getting some character development, starts hearing voices - her mother trying to kill her, setting her brother against her.
And in the final one it's all about Zuko. Zuko finally finding his mother, Zuko finally having closure, Zuko, Zuko, Zuko...
But she was Azula's mother as well! And her neglect and cowardice hurt them both - yes, Ursa lost her memories - but she did so willingly. She willingly abandoned her children and forgot about them. Then went and had another kid - a daughter, whom she loved and was devoted to... unlike how she was with her other children. Of course Ozai was a horrible husband and father. But are we supposed to see Ursa as some kind of sympathetic character here? What kind of a mother abandons her children to her psychopath husband who tortures and manipulates them?

So Azula is left off even worse than when the show ended, even crazier, and now with the certainty that her mother really didn't love her enough. Wow.
Profile Image for Abigail.
104 reviews21 followers
January 15, 2016
4.5 stars.
Overall, I feel like this is a great end to the trilogy. There are some parts that I wish were longer and more well explained and some parts I wish weren't just thrown in there but still I enjoyed this books as a finale all the same.
My only real complaint with this book is that we never get a conclusion on Azula. She starts to talk normal and then she runs into the forest, that's the last we see of her.
Great trilogy. I wish this had been added to the original television show as people would probably really enjoy it.
Would definitely recommend this, especially if you have questions about how the television show ended.
Profile Image for Alexandra Elend Wolf.
629 reviews313 followers
January 21, 2019
"Azula, our relationship is so messed up. It's been like that as long as I can remember, and maybe it'll be like that for the rest of our lives. But one fact never changes, no matter what, you're still my sister."

This conclusion was so satisfying, exactly what I wanted.

Ursa's story is so sad, but at the same time beautiful. I felt bad for her. Ozai really was crazy and a bastard, honestly he deserved much worse than what he got. Yet, even though life was hard for her she managed to be a good mother, maybe not the best, but a good mother none the less. I'm so glad she could find her happy ending and have a more peaceful and fulfilling life.

I love that Zuko wasn't just gonna leave the throne, as was hinted in the last issue, but believed that it was his destiny. I'm happy that he's ready to fight for it, not for selfish reasons, but because he knows he can do good for his people if he's the one in it. Love it, just, love it.

The side story though, it was a bit pointless. Really, I wouldn't have cared less if they achieved what they wanted or not. It was a moving story and all, but we really didn't know them, so... yeah.

I feel like these comics focus a lot in Zuko's life since he's in the center of the changes that are happening in the world, and therefore, they are perfect for me.

The art style is as beautiful as always. I couldn't keep my eyes off it.
November 17, 2020
Why does this always happen??

It was the same thing with the Promise comics - the first two I was hesitant about, but the last one was amazing.

I definitely really liked that this volume cleared up all that strange retconning that the first two volumes did. It also had some amazing character moments - Sokka is my favorite forever. And I can't wait to see how Zuko and Azula interact in future comics.

The magic element in these volumes was interesting, but it wasn't something beyond imagination from the TV show. It worked very well.

I also liked that Zuko's mother was given some morally gray choices - she's not the perfect dead mother that you'd think. No one is this series is flat.

I'm looking forward to The Rift. 5/5 stars.
Profile Image for Aleksandra.
1,508 reviews
April 8, 2018
4.5 stars!

Loved it!! I'm so happy with the way things resolved, I liked that we get this extra information about everyone and especially Zuko and his family.
Great conclusion to The Search trilogy!
Profile Image for Sonja.
589 reviews547 followers
February 7, 2017
3.5/5 stars

At last, in The Search: Part Three, it is finally revealed what really happened to Ursa. Zuko's and Azula's mother, Ursa, has always been a cause of fascination in the TV series. There was always mystery surrounding her disappearance and for many years I've wondered what happened to her.

Finally after all the years of waiting, the search has ended. Ursa's whole life story unfolds in snippets throughout The Search. And I've got to say: it's quite satisfying to know at long last what happened to her.

description

As much as I enjoyed reading The Search, I couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed. The ending of The Search: Part Three feels somewhat anticlimactic. It just fell short of my expectations. I was expecting a more shocking ending, and instead it felt a bit cliché. That's why I gave this graphic novel the lowest rating out of all the ATLA graphic novels I've read up to now; I liked it, but I didn't love it.

description
Profile Image for Madeline.
934 reviews114 followers
November 2, 2020
Things get real crazy real fast in the The Search, Part 3. Ultimately, it's a satisfying conclusion to this story arc. I love that Zuko was able to find answers. I hope that Azula continues to be a presence in these graphic novels. Her changing dynamics with Zuko are so interesting and I'm curious to understand more about her mental health.
Profile Image for Jesus Flores.
2,274 reviews55 followers
June 23, 2023
Finalmente descubre que paso con la mamá de Zuko, está bien pero no sé como que esperaba algo distinto,


Oh, y que con Azula..

En fin
Profile Image for Bine.
716 reviews110 followers
March 18, 2020
Ich habe diesen letzten Band der Trilogie einfach nur durchgesuchtet und geliebt und hach. Es war nicht die komplette Auflösung, die ich mir gewünscht habe, denn wtf ist los mit Azula? - aber es war trotzdem ganz wunderbar!
Profile Image for Sophia.
2,278 reviews355 followers
February 13, 2019
I really enjoyed this story line! I loved seeing the many different relationships; the dynamics between different siblings! I loved the journey, how every one was there for each other, that even Azula had her brother there for her. I also really enjoyed the flashbacks (I am a sucker for flashbacks!) In this part especially, there was some amazing full page (or almost full page) artwork that was just stunning! Overall, I really enjoyed this series and I can't wait to see where it goes from here!
Profile Image for Raha Shirley.
61 reviews47 followers
May 30, 2016
این پایان یک تجربه دوست داشتنیه

جست و جو برای من مثل یه خواب شیرین بود، مثل یک رویا... و این جلد، نهایت خوشی بود.
تا حالا شده یه کتاب خیلی خیلی خوب بخونید که وقتی تموم شه احساس آرامش و خوشبختی کنید؟ یه خوشی که از قلب تون برخاسته؟! تا حالا شده بعد از تموم کردن خوندن یک کتاب یه لبخند پهن صورت تون رو بگیره و ته دلتون به نویسنده بگید: " راضیم ازت! " ؟؟ جست و جو از این نوع کتاباست وقتی تموم شد، پر بودم. پر از خوشی و آرامش. اگه بگم صفحات آخر گریه مو در آورد دروغ نگفتم.

جست و جو یه جوابه. یه جواب کامل به همه ی تقلا هامون برای دونستن حقیقت... اگه طرفدار آواتار هستین به هیچ وجه از دستش ندید.
Profile Image for Viola.
133 reviews19 followers
July 22, 2018
I love that we finally got the answers about Zuko‘s mother. I loved how we found out a lot more about Zuko‘s family (and I definitely hate Ozai so freaking much!!!!!!!!!!!) but omg this series was so emotional. I literally cried and laughed out loud about everything.

Ahhh I love Avatar just so much, definitely one of the best story in the world!!!!
Profile Image for MJ.
115 reviews6 followers
October 13, 2022
Read 'The Promise' only so you can read 'The Search'! It was marvelous 💫
Profile Image for qershore.
157 reviews23 followers
January 14, 2021
This is a visual representation of me hugging the avatar universe

description
Profile Image for Eric.
427 reviews87 followers
November 4, 2013
This is killing me. I am really upset at how lost this story got and frankly it feels way too convenient to have the kind of ending... after all these years to just resolve like it did. Also, I can't accept that you have a powerful being who has one talent, who then miraculously have this other super awesome talent. Seriously. If I tried to explain this to someone who wasn't reading it they'd call foul. Looking at others reviews it does appear we were supposed to be so excited to finally find out what happened to Zuko's mother but sadly this isn't enough and I feel like you sucker punched us. You knew after all these years it was going to have to be good and you just threw a bunch of stuff in there and said "here you go, now you know"...

I love this series. I like the books but this one is messy and since they've already confirmed they're releasing more here's to hoping that Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Rift, Part 1 cleans things back up again.
Profile Image for blackmarketfungi.
100 reviews24 followers
December 31, 2017
Here I'm going to be reviewing parts 1, 2 and 3:

Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Search was a highlight of the Avatarverse. It was emotional, funny, had plenty of action ... basically it was Avatar.

The art is amazing. So much thought and energy went into the art for The Search. You could feel the emotions they wanted to convey with each character. With Azula you could easily tell which head space she was in. You could even tell when certain faceless characters where experiencing certain emotions. It was just beautiful.

The characters were as complex as ever. And the dialogue was realistic, funny and really added to the plot. Nothing seemed unnecessary or forced.

Honestly I really don't have anything negative to say, everything was beautiful. The plot, the execution, the reveal, the tone... everything.
Profile Image for Toshita.
510 reviews59 followers
June 25, 2023
This book made my heart happy. I got a little emotional too. I really really liked how the ending of the book is actually the beginning of the series. I love it when authors do that. Zuko got his mom!!!! He did it!! No riots necessary :)

I am once again asking the universe to answers my prayer: please all I need is these books to actually get animated!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 779 reviews

Can't find what you're looking for?

Get help and learn more about the design.