As in many children-centered cartoons, Avatar: The Last Airbender heavily features the power of friendship as one of its many strengths. Team Avatar is a tightly-knit group that, together, stands up against the forces of the evil Fire Lord to save the world. The more prominently featured friendships are important relationships to include in the story; for example, Aang’s friendship with Katara blossoms into a romance, and his friendship with Zuko highlights their duality and strengths as deuteragonists. However, the unsung hero of Team Avatar has to be the camaraderie between Water Tribe non-bender Sokka (voiced by Jack De Sena) and Earth Kingdom bending prodigy Toph (voice by Jessie Flower.
As a stubborn and brash earth-bender, Toph’s addition to the group was rocky at the beginning. Team Avatar had to adjust to the new group dynamic, and Toph is a naturally independent person who takes offense at the notion of offering or accepting help of any kind, due to the way her family treated her because of her blindness. Sokka is the only one who immediately accepts Toph as part of the Gaang, even going so far as to defend her and call out Aang and Katara for their unfriendly behavior. As someone who doesn’t trust easily, Sokka’s acceptance comes as a welcome surprise and signifies a bit of character growth.
He also shows great appreciation for Toph’s abilities, often pausing the action of any given scene to gush about how he’s “so happy we added you to the group!” For her part, Toph initially makes fun of Sokka (admittedly, not a difficult thing to do), but grows to respect and appreciate his silly but smart nature, as shown by her glum reaction to his absence in “Sokka’s Master.”
Soon, Sokka and Toph become comfortable enough with each other to banter, bonding over shared sarcasm and jokes at each other’s expense (while Toph often approaches the subject of her blindness with humor, Sokka often makes similar jokes accidentally, having forgotten that she’s blind at all). This comfort allows them to become vulnerable with each other quickly and easily. When Sokka opens up about being unable to remember his mother’s face, Toph responds in kind and opens up about her strained relationship with her parents. They are able to clearly communicate with each other effortlessly, and they use this ability to improve the relationships within the group – for instance, Sokka and Toph’s discussion about their shared appreciation for Katara leads to a stronger friendship between the girls, and Toph’s quiet discussions with Sokka (and Iroh) allow her to be a supportive friend to Zuko while he deals with crippling guilt and shame.
While Sokka and Toph don’t often get expanded scenes with each other, the scenes that do involve the two of them briefly but clearly show that they are often on the same page and act as pillars of support for Team Avatar. As Sokka grows into a more confident and strategic planner, Toph unlocks new abilities in her earth-bending. The culmination of their independent growth is shown together during the arrival of Sozin’s Comet, when Sokka demonstrates his intelligence by taking down the entire Fire Nation’s airship fleet with only three people and Toph single-handedly bends the metal of the ships to carry out his plan. Their teamwork keeps each other safe as they navigate the dangers of being aboard crashing airships, as Toph protects the group with her metal-bending and Sokka makes sure to stay close to her when she can’t see or sense where she is.
Not only do they keep each other alive, but the display of each one’s individual strengths working well with the other’s deals a massive blow to the Fire Lord’s army, allowing Aang to take on the Fire Lord alone. With Sokka as the logical powerhouse and Toph as the physical one, they become masters in their areas and use this knowledge and the application of their talents to become a supportive duo for the Gaang. It’s a powerful moment when the brains and the brawn work together in tandem.
In addition to their ability to contribute together during fights, Sokka and Toph also share a large portion of the comedic relief, especially when they banter with each other. Not only does this create an engaging dynamic for viewers to watch, but it also helps Team Avatar in-universe; being silly and light-hearted lifts the spirits of the Gaang and allows hope to become stronger in the face of adversity.
Even days before Sozin’s Comet arrives to herald Fire Lord Ozai’s unstoppable reign, Sokka and Toph find ways to enjoy training – though Melon Lord is obviously having a better time throwing flaming boulders at the non-bender, being jovially aggressive is canonically a way that Toph shows affection. When Toph nearly drowns, she rewards Sokka with a kiss on the cheek to play up the dramatics of the situation, only to accidentally smooch Suki instead. Both dire situations are alleviated by Sokka and Toph’s humor and good-natured reactions to bad situations, something that Team Avatar certainly benefits from, if not directly then indirectly.
Sokka and Toph’s friendship is often shown in bits and pieces scattered throughout the series. They don’t get an episode that focuses on just the relationship between the two of them like other characters do (like Aang and Zuko, and even Katara and Toph), but shining such a spotlight on their relationship isn’t necessary, considering their supportive roles within the team. With a friendship that already works well, includes fun banter, and inspires teamwork and hope among the other members of the Gaang, Sokka and Toph’s relationship is a hidden gem in Avatar: The Last Airbender and remains a strong aspect of the story despite its subtleties.
Though neither of the characters is featured as prominently as the main protagonists, Sokka and Toph form a strong and lasting friendship that supports the other characters and keeps Team Avatar functioning as a strong, solid unit, with plenty of laughs along the way.
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