Ty Lee

Ty Lee

Origin

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Ty Lee is a somewhat ditsy and cheerful acrobatics/gymnast from the Fire Nation. While she was growing up she attended an all girls school with her friends Princess Azula and Mai. She joined the circus because she wanted to be noticed and not be a part of a set because she six other sisters that look exactly like her. While in the circus Azula threatens and makes her join her in her quest to capture Prince Zuko and his and Azula’s Uncle Iroh.

During the series it is shown that there might be some love interest with Sokka. In “The Chase” Ty Lee mentions that he’s “kinda cute”. Also in “The Crossroads of Destiny” when she is disguised as a Kyoshi warrior and Sokka comes to them she addresses him as “cutie” but tells her that he is involved with Suki. Later, when the two fight Ty Lee comments that “it’s like we’re dancing together”.

During the episode, “The Beach”, Ty Lee is constantly chased around by boys on Ember Island. Mai later theorizes that she needs all this attention because she had none as a child, as she was one of seven identical siblings. Ty Lee then confirms that was why she joined the circus, to be different.

There is no apparent reason why Ty Lee is constantly happy and chipper, although it could be to forget about being one of seven, and getting no attention. It has been shown that boys are very attracted to Ty Lee and she knows how to get them to like her, telling Azula just to laugh and smile at everything they say.

Ty Lee recently ventured to the Boiling Rock prison with Azula (Mai was already there, so it’s thought that she also came with them). When Sokka and Zuko launch they’re escape plan, Ty Lee displays incredible acrobatic skills by running up the rope of the gondola they’re escaping on, without even the slightest loss of balance. When she and Azula get on top of the gondola, Ty Lee battles Suki, and after a small skirmish, flips down through the gondola and back up and begins fighting again. When the guards are about to cut the rope, she jumps up onto the wire of the gondola and back flips onto the one next to it. When Azula and Ty Lee get back on shore, Azula shouts at Mai who saved Zuko and the others when the line was about to be cut. Just as the two are about to battle, Ty Lee hits Azula in the arms, rendering them useless, and runs to Mai’s side, telling her they should go. But, a squadron of guards show up and restrain them, and Azula tells the guards to throw them somewhere where she’ll never have to see them again, and leave them to rot. After the War, she was released from Prison and She became an Official Member of the Kyoshi Warriors, and went to live in Kyoshi Island. She is only the second outsider to be accepted as a Kyoshi Warrior. The first being Sokka.

The Promise Part One:

Mai is worried about Zuko now that he is Fire Lord and thinks his regular guards are a bunch of incompetent idiots. She says he needs some real security so she asks her friends Suki, Ty Lee and the rest of the Kyoshi Warriors to act as his personal guard. On her first night on watch outside of Zuko’s chambers, Ty Lee reports that everything is clear.

The Search:

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Ty Lee, along with Suki, accompany Fire Lord Zuko to his father’s prison cell, where he has set up a meeting with him and Azula. He is hoping he can help his family mend their relationships. Zuko offers Azula some tea, she rips the tray from him and knocks him back, yelling how can she drink tea in a straight jacket. Azula gets up from her chair, Ty Lee is quick to intervene and chi block Azula immediately. Azula screams at Ty Lee asking how her mother got to her and made her turn against her old friend. Ty Lee is confused and says she is not making any sense. Ty Lee, Suki and Zuko leave and let Azula and Ozai talk in private. Ty Lee mentions how she never lost her fear of Azula. Later that night, Zuko escorts Azula back to her room and says Ty Lee and Suki should go home and get some rest. The two Kyoshi Warriors caution him and Ty Lee mentions that her chi blocking will wear off soon.

Creation

First appearing as a character on the animated television show Avatar the Last Airbender, Ty Lee is created by shows creators, Bryan Konietzko and Michael Dante DiMartino. She is voiced by Olivia Hack in the animated series. She is described as being the Avatar version of a Valley Girl. In the comic book format, she first appears in the The Earth Kingdom Chronicles released in 2007. She first appeared in episode Return to Omashu.

Powers and Abilities

“You’re not prettier than we are!”

Ty Lee is not a bender, however, makes up for that skill with incredible levels of agility, speed, and martial artistry. With her unique ability and use of chi locking also known as the mastery of pressure point striking, she can neutralize benders ability to wield their specific form of bending. Ty Lee has been trained and has knowledge of the martial art of Chin Na/Dian Cue/Kyusho-Jitsu and having knowledge of the human body, allowing her to paralyzing opponents. This training allows her to dispose of her enemies quickly, only hitting them quickly and accurately on their pressure points. Katara once described this as taking her enemies down from the inside. Her knowledge also allows her to block bending abilities, by stopping the way chi flows in a Bender’s body. She had the ability to paralyze a human body just by touching their pressure points.

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Ty Lee is an incredible acrobat, since as a child. She constantly walks on her hands, and displays her prowess all the time, performing flips and somersaults. She has even been shown as nimble enough to run across a thin wire extended high above a dangerous volcanic lake and leap between moving objects completely unphased. Ty Lee is an adept climber as well, capable of scaling normally unscalable surfaces and inclines.