WRITER: SHERRI L. SMITH | ART: JAN DUURSEMA | PUBLISHER: DARK HORSE | FORMAT: TRADE PAPERBACK | RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
Avatar: Tsu’tey’s Path collects the Dark Horse miniseries of that name, as well as the standalone issue entitled Brothers, and has been released just in time to celebrate the tenth anniversary of James Cameron’s hit film.
The story chronicles the character development of Omaticaya clan leader in training Tsu’tey, and is set immediately prior to and during the first Avatar film. It’s definitely not your typical comic book story – the book reads more like an anthropological chronicle or oral history then your usual graphic novel. There is great care and attention paid to cultural traditions of the alien Na’vi who inhabit the moon Pandora in the far-off Alpha Centauri system. They live, they love, they laugh, they play, and they mourn. This book shows the titular secondary character’s point of view and does a great deal to help us understand him better. The Na’vi are a great and proud culture with their own traditions and language, and this book is filled with references to the universe surrounding this film’s mythology. It is, at some points, incredibly moving. What’s more, the art is absolutely out of this world.
Brothers was released for free on Comic Book Day in 2017 and tells the story of how the main character of Jake Sully managed to tame the mighty Toruk, a pivotal plot point in the film. In doing so, Jake reminisces about life with his brother, and draws lessons from Greek mythology which help him master this mighty beast. Tsu’tey’s Path is most definitely recommended for a wide-ranging audience. Fans of the Avatar lore will love it due to how it expands the universe, while fans of comic book art will love the graphic depiction of Pandora. The more academically inclined will be thrilled by the anthropological nature of the depiction of the Na’vi, with its great attention to cultural and linguistic detail.
Avatar may no longer be the highest-grossing film in history, but it still holds the record for most tickets sold, and, unlike some other films, did not have an expanded universe which built up to it. This book is a fitting tribute to the great universe that James Cameron and his team constructed and will raise one’s awareness of cultures and the world around them.
