Many bending masters showed off their skills in Avatar: The Last Airbender and its spinoffs. However, there are some great benders whose feats have only been discussed rather than shown. We hope to see the following five characters demonstrate their power in future Avatar media, be it in comics, novels or another animated series.
Jesa
With a world as rich as Avatar's, even the small details can pack a whole lot of story. F.C. Yee's Kyoshi novels fleshed out an expansive tapestry to the series' background. The origin of Avatar Kyoshi's signature makeup, costume and war fans lies in the story of her mother Jesa.
Jesa is an Airbender who went rogue after falling in love with the criminally inclined Hark. The two formed the Flying Opera Company, a band of thieves who posed as traveling actors while they looted their way across the Earth Kingdom. Under Jesa's guidance, the group developed its signature technique for stepping through the air with the elements. Her abilities began to wane with the "spiritual taint" of her morally compromised work, but she made up for it with the war fans that became Kyoshi's trademark. She converted her arrow tattoos into snakes.
Azulon
The entire Fire Nation royal family is scarily powerful, and if his reputation is anything to go by, Fire Lord Azulon is no exception. Known as a prodigy much like his granddaughter Azula, Azulon became Fire Lord at the young age of 20 after training with his father, the previous Fire Lord Sozin. Given Sozin's own immense talents, such as performing a completely unique ability to drain heat from the volcano that killed Avatar Roku, it's no wonder Azulon became a prodigy.
More is known about Azulon's military accomplishments than the specific of his bending prowess. He led the conquest of the Hu Xin Provinces and the Battle of Garsai, and it was in his honor that the Great Gates of Azulon were erected. He drove the Earth Kingdom eastward during the Hundred Year War and oversaw the near-complete destruction of the Southern Water Tribe. He is perhaps one of the most influential figures in Avatar lore that the audience rarely sees.
Izumi
Of course, not every member of the Fire Nation royal family had such a reputation for cruelty, and with Zuko overtaking the throne and ending the Hundred Year War there was a new era of peace. When Zuko passed on the throne to his daughter Izumi peace continued to prosper, but given how little focus the Fire Nation received throughout The Legend of Korra, the details are pretty hazy. In fact, it has yet to even be confirmed if Izumi is a bender.
While she may not be a gaudy fan favorite or a classic character from the original series, Izumi's role is one of such importance that she simply needs to play a bigger part in a future comic, novel or TV series. Given how ubiquitous Firebenders are in the royal family, it would be astonishing if she could not firebend herself.
Oma & Shu
The original series constantly hinted at the bigger world beyond what was directly seen. Ecen in an otherwise silly episode like "The Cave of Two Lovers," the myth of Omashu's creation stoked fans' imaginations. After becoming lost in the tunnels running through the Kolau Mountains to enter Omashu, Aang and Katara discovered that the tunnels were formed by the two people who gave Omashu its name: Oma and Shu.
The two lovers lived in separate cities which constantly warred with each other, spurring this Romeo and Juliet-style couple to literally move mountains to see each other. Learning the art of earthbending from the badgermoles, Oma and Shu formed the intricate network of tunnels so that they could meet while losing any who tried to follow. Shu's death saw the grief-stricken Oma nearly destroy the warring factions before unifying them into the city of Omashu.
Avatar Salai
Even Oma's mountain-breaking force would be no match for an Avatar's power, and the long line of peacekeepers dates back ever further. So far almost every named Avatar received one story or another about them. Avatars Aang, Korra, and Kyoshi received prolonged arcs, while Roku, Kuruk, Yangchen, Wan and even the Fire Avatar Szeto have had their biographies revealed to one degree or another. There is, however, one named Avatar we know almost nothing about: Avatar Salai.
Salai is namedroped in The Rise of Kyoshi as one of the greatest Avatars in history, but it hasn't even been confirmed what nation Salai hails from. Many fans speculate that this is the name of the Earth Kingdom Avatar directly preceding Szeto, but apart from a brief mention of his legendary status, there are no concrete facts about Salai's life. The Avatars always prove to be uniquely interesting, so if another set of prequels were to delve back into the Avatar's past lives, finding out who Salai is and just what abilities made them such a mythic figure could be an exciting story.
