Well... I liked the episode. First though, the animation. What the hell is going on? It's so stiff and lifeless (see, scene where Asami kisses Mako... which I also dislike). The characters have a bad tendancy to just stare at some random, awkward point when they aren't speaking. There was also some pretty terrible dialogue in this one ("Ah, my instrument!").
I actually wanted to see some Korra (don't ask why; maybe I like to torture myself). And I got some. I liked it because it hopefully means we'll get to see the Fire Sages performing their actual role, which should be a nice contrast to their reception of Aang.
No Vacation Tenzin! Lame.
Mako performed well as the star of the episode, which was great. It's so nice to see him expand his role from Korra's (ex)boyfriend. Bolin was a bit of a disappointment for the first time. Just a bit, but... well, it wasn't necessarily out of character, I just don't really want to see him obsess over Ginger and get an inflated ego over being a "star." Lin? What the hell?! I get that this is probably a really stressful time, but sheesh. The boat chase was a lot of fun. Asami... poor girl. But shame on her for kissing Mako. Writers, I hate you so much for this love triangle bullshit. Stop it.
Mako's epiphany at the end was awesome; maybe I missed something, but I didn't see it coming at all. It makes me hate the writers a little less with how Varrick is turning out to be more than just comic relief #2.
Unalaq... I look forward to learning what he's up to.
So why do I like this episode more than others? Because despite the flaws, there was some serious story development in here. The love/angst crap largely took a backseat, there was no Korra bitchiness, and the story took full control.
