If The Way Of Water took one step forward and two steps back, then Fire And Ash takes two steps forward and two steps back. It concludes most of the arcs set up in the last film, with many of them ending where they started. Relationships are tested, new ones are formed. The conflict is escalated, leading to more action and less spectacle. However, story beats are repeated and visuals are recycled. It’s more deserving of its extensive runtime than its predecessor, but in a typical fashion for this series, its character and storytelling are still skin-deep.

As the Sullys grieve the loss of Neteyam, they prepare for the battle of their lives as Quaritch (Stephen Lang) and the RDA form an alliance with the Ash clan, led by the vicious Varang (Oona Chaplin). Meanwhile, Spider (Jack Champion) undergoes an incredible metamorphosis that might make him and Pandora an even more desirable target for humanity.

The Characters

The arguments between Jake (Sam Worthington) and Neytiri (Zoe Saldana) feel more authentic here than it did in The Way of Water. This time round, we understand Jake when he’s being harsh or overprotective because it’s backed by a trauma we’ve witnessed. Neytiri’s growing hatred of humans is definitely understandable, considering her maternal duties.

Lo’Ak (Britain Dalton) replaces Jake as the narrator of the film. Besides living with the loss of Neteyam, he isn’t that different from when we last saw him. He continues to seek his father’s respect as a soldier and interacts with the Tulkun (those whale-things).

Kiri (Sigourney Weaver), the 14-year-old who sounds eerily like a 50-year-old, exercises her powers and learns how and why she got them, which makes for some interesting drama. In the end though, it’s all just to make her into a deus ex machina for the climax.

Quaritch is the star of the show in my view and, as I had hoped, he gets a lot more screentime here. Circumstances force him to ally with Jake briefly, resulting in some great dialogue between the two. Jake confronts Quaritch with truths and questions we’ve all been asking since The Way of Water; how can he kill Na’vi when he is one? He’s not Quaritch but a copy, why doesn’t he choose for himself?

His catch-up with Spider is even better as he attempts to bond with him, revealing what became of his mother. These scenes answer so many questions I had at the end of the last one.

There really isn’t much to Varang. She’s a sadistic psycho-witch if you didn’t guess from the advertising, but when she gets ‘involved’ with Quaritch, you can’t help but smile.

The Plot

A common complaint from critics is that Fire and Ash is too derivative of The Way of Water. During the first act, I had no idea what they were talking about. With the introduction of the Ash Clan and Varang, I thought Fire and Ash was charting new territory.

Then we get to the second act. We return to the reef with the Metkayina clan. Lo’Ak continues to commune with the Tulkun while struggling to fit in with the Metkayina people. In terms of visuals and story, it is very derivative of The Way of Water, so much so that they could’ve reused scenes from it and I just didn’t notice.

The climax is an atrocious Frankenstein’s monster of the first two. Jake assembles multiple clans to defend a stronghold, only this time he does it in the air and in the sea. It feels like something from a legacy sequel, there are so many similarities.

The second and third acts aren’t nothing but repeats fortunately; Fire and Ash does continue to chart new territory in these regions. Plot points range from being of little consequence in the long run to ridiculously implausible. Almost every member of the Sully family is at one point kidnapped and freed. In one sequence, three separate escape plans convene by chance. Fire and Ash can be a real mess at times.

I can’t say for certain whether this is better or worse than the last one. I think it’s a bit of both at the moment. Like I said, it takes two steps forward and two steps back. All these sequels have done, in my view, is taken the originality crisis the first one was having and made it worse. If Avatar 4 and 5 come to pass, which is very likely, I can only beg that they do something radical because these last two films have invalidated this franchise’s existence.

I give Avatar: Fire And Ash a measly 6 out of 10.