When I watched the show for the the first time, Katara was my least favorite of the mains. I didn't dislike her, but I didn't LOVE her like I did pretty much all the rest, and at times/certain traits annoyed me.
But as the show went on, I grew to love her, and then on the second watching, I loved her all the way through. And see, I think the thing was, as you mentioned when you were first watching, first season is kinda lacking in female characters. Katara was pretty much the only one, and she embodied a quite a few of the stereotypical "FEMALE character traits" that bother me. Ie she's the responsible, much more serious one. She's learning the healing, she's involved in the romance, etc.
But then as the show goes along, we get Toph and Azula and Mei and Tai li and this whole span of female characters with a huge range of personalities and traits and roles. And so on the second watching, my knee-jerk reaction of "great, another stereotypical, token female" was gone and I could enjoy Katara for KATARA, and the development she goes through as the series goes along, as you outlined above.
But even more than that, those traits that sometimes bother me all made sense for her. Yes, she's the more serious, responsible one, because her mother died young and she had to take on the role at a young age and be mother to Sokka. Yes, she heals, but she'd much rather fight. She's part of a romance, but she's soooooo much more than just the hero's love interest. She becomes his master, she trains him, she is one of the team's major fighters. The romance is just one small aspect of her role in the story...and all that added together makes me LOVE HER! They gave her those traits not because she was female but because that's who she IS!
And they had this all thought out! I love that the characters, male and female, all make SENSE! What they do, how they act, there's so much continuity and logic and development. Oh show, I love you so sososo much!
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But as the show went on, I grew to love her, and then on the second watching, I loved her all the way through. And see, I think the thing was, as you mentioned when you were first watching, first season is kinda lacking in female characters. Katara was pretty much the only one, and she embodied a quite a few of the stereotypical "FEMALE character traits" that bother me. Ie she's the responsible, much more serious one. She's learning the healing, she's involved in the romance, etc.
But then as the show goes along, we get Toph and Azula and Mei and Tai li and this whole span of female characters with a huge range of personalities and traits and roles. And so on the second watching, my knee-jerk reaction of "great, another stereotypical, token female" was gone and I could enjoy Katara for KATARA, and the development she goes through as the series goes along, as you outlined above.
But even more than that, those traits that sometimes bother me all made sense for her. Yes, she's the more serious, responsible one, because her mother died young and she had to take on the role at a young age and be mother to Sokka. Yes, she heals, but she'd much rather fight. She's part of a romance, but she's soooooo much more than just the hero's love interest. She becomes his master, she trains him, she is one of the team's major fighters. The romance is just one small aspect of her role in the story...and all that added together makes me LOVE HER! They gave her those traits not because she was female but because that's who she IS!
And they had this all thought out! I love that the characters, male and female, all make SENSE! What they do, how they act, there's so much continuity and logic and development. Oh show, I love you so sososo much!
...Can not WAIT for Legend of Korra!