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Alison Herman
TV Critic
aherman2006 See All
Courtesy of Paramount+ It’s a shame most fans of the “Avatar” franchise won’t have the chance to see its first animated feature on the big screen. (M. Night Shyamalan’s risible 2010 live-action film will be acknowledged here and here only.) “Avatar Aang: The Last Airbender” is the first official release from Avatar Studios, the shingle set up half a decade ago — animation takes time! — to expand the cult hit animated show and its sequel series “The Legend of Korra” into a broader franchise. “Avatar Aang” does so with gorgeous visuals and thoughtful worldbuilding that would surely benefit from the theatrical distribution the movie was originally slated to receive. Instead, the movie will be available on the big screen only for a limited, awards-qualifying run in New York and L.A. Everyone else will have to settle for streaming it on Paramount+, though even a scaled-down viewing experience still delivers on both excitement and nostalgia.
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