Jae-Myung Yu won a 2007 Annie Award for "Best Character Animation in a Television Production" for this episode. (edit) Toph begins her recurring nickname for Aang in this episode: Twinkletoes (as he battles her for the first time, he seems to be "light on his feet". (edit) Translations:
-The advertisement for Master Yu's Academy means 'Master Yu's Earthbending Academy is the best school in the entire country. Guaranteed everything taught will be learned. Special promotion - first lesson is free. You only need to purchase a high-quality uniform'
-Toph's ransom note means 'if you wish to see your daughter alive, (pay) 500 gold bars. The Boulder & Xin Fu'
(edit) Character Debuts: Master Yu, The Boulder, Lao Bei Fong, Xin Fu (edit) "The Boulder" is voiced by Mick Foley, a real-life professional wrestler. (edit) According to DVD creator commentary, Toph came to develop her unique style of earthbending by observing the movements of the blind earthbending Badgermoles that inhabit the caves around her hometown. Toph's Chu Gar Praying Mantis style was originated when Bryan Konietzko asked Martial Arts consultant Sifu Kisu to come up with some unique movements for a rare earthbending style based on the movement of the previously introduced Badgermoles. Kisu then turned to his friend and martial brother Manny Rodriguez, who introduced him the what he calls "zombie style," because of its strange postures and steppings. (edit) This episode is in the Avatar: The Last Airbender Book 2: Earth, Volume 2 DVD, along with Zuko Alone, The Chase, Bitter Work, and The Library. (edit) Toph was originally designed to be always referred to as the "Blind Bandit" before it was converted into a nickname in favor of a more casual name. (edit) This is the first time Aang wears different clothes other than his airbender outfit. Not counting Avatar Day since he wore Kyoshi's uniform over his regular outfit. (edit) Achievements: Avatar animator Yu Jae Myung was nominated for and won the 2006 Annie Award in the category Character Animation in a Television Production at the 34th Annual Annie Awards for this episode. (edit) This episode aired in the UK on 19/11/06 (19 November 2006). (edit) Toph has been kept so secret, that almost no one outside of the Beifong family estate knows that she even exists, to the point that the locals don't believe that Toph's parents have a daughter. (edit) When having dinner around the table, Sokka, Toph, and Lao can be seen using their chopsticks to eat with their left hand; while Katara, Aang, Poppy, and Master Yu are using their right hand to eat with their chopsticks. (edit) Toph is revealed to be a champion earthbender. Before being bested by Aang, she maintained a 42-0 winning streak in the tournament. (edit) Toph was originally supposed to be a boy, but was changed to being a girl very early in writing the storyline. The male "version" of Toph is the Earthbender in the opening theme. (edit) This episode is the first episode of Season 2 to begin with a Previously on Avatar sequence, and overall the second of the series. (edit) Sokka likes watching the earthbending tournament much more than Aang and Katara. Also, he is (was) a big fan of an earthbender named "The Boulder." (edit) Jessie Flower, who does the voice acting for Toph, was also the voice actress for Meng in another Avatar episode The Fortuneteller. (edit) New characters, Earthbenders no less, begin their own search for the Avatar. (edit) The Earthbending Tournament Arena has a moveable base made to look like the Earth Nation symbol. (edit) We find out who Aang's vision was about: Toph. (edit) Now there are 5 story lines: Aang and the gang, Zuko, Iroh, Azula (along with Ty Lee and Mai), and Toph's hunters (Xin Fu and Master Yu). (edit) Despite speculation and even appearances in the commercial for the episode, Haru, Bumi and the Cabbage Merchant do not return in this episode. (edit) Toph's dad hires two skilled Earthbenders to bring Toph back to them, claiming that Aang kidnapped her (she actually ran away to travel with Aang and Co.). (edit) Toph says her father changed his mind about letting her go. She most likely was lying, and she just snuck out. This likely explains why her father says she was kidnapped and offered a bounty for bringing her back. (edit) This is the second episode in which we see the Earthbending badger-moles; the first being The Cave of Two Lovers. (edit) The first two minutes of this episode were available several days before the episode originally aired on Nick.com's broadband-platform TurboNick. (edit) Bumi's advice in Return To Omashu in regards to true earthbending being about "listening" for the right time to strike is take to an effect. As people who cannot see typically have a hearing advantange. (edit) This episode was not shown after Avatar Day on April 28, 2006, as it was originally planned. (edit) Hero Debut: Toph Beifong
Toph is a 12-year-old blind, female Earthbending master with the nickname "the Blind Bandit." She joins the gang on their quest in this episode. (edit) This is the second time we see a person in the the show with some sort of disability; the first being Teo in The Northern Air Temple. (edit) Apparently, blind are able to earthbend regardless of their disability. Of course, one can say that the Blind Bandit is an unusual case, since it's suggested that she is to be Aang's earthbending master. (edit) The original title of this episode was "The Earthbending Tournament." (edit)

Toph: (Aang has just entered the ring) Do people really want to see two little girls fighting out here?
Crowd: Oooooooooo... (edit) Toph (to Aang): Somebody's little light on his feet, what's your fighting name, "the Fancy Dancer?" (edit) Toph: Even though I was born blind, I've never had a problem seeing. I see with earthbending. It's kind of like seeing with my feet. I feel the vibrations in the ground with my feet, and I can see where everything is: (fades to wide view) you, that tree, (Shows ant hill) even those ants. (Back to Aang and Toph)
Aang: That's amazing!
Toph: My parents don't understand, they've always treated me like I was helpless.
Aang: Is that why you became the Blind Bandit?
Toph: Yeah.
Aang: Then why stay here where you're not happy?
Toph: They're my parents, where else am I supposed to go? (edit) Toph: Dad, I know it’s hard for you to see me this way, but the obedient little helpless blind girl that you think I am just isn’t me. I love fighting. I love being an earthbender. And I’m really, really good at it. I know I’ve kept my life secret from you, but you were keeping me secret from the whole world. You were doing it to protect me. But I’m twelve years old and I’ve never had a real friend. So now that you see who I really am, I hope it doesn’t change the way you feel about me.
Lao: Of course it doesn’t change the way I feel about you, Toph. It’s made me realize something.
Toph (hopeful): It has?
Lao: Yes. I’ve let you have far too much freedom. From now on, you will be cared for and guarded 24 hours a day.
Toph: But dad!
Poppy: We are doing this for your own good, Toph.
Lao: Please escort the avatar and his friends out. They are no longer welcome here.
Aang: I'm sorry Toph.
Toph: I'm sorry too. Goodbye Aang.
(Toph sheds a tear) (edit) Earthbending Pupil #1: I think The Boulder is gonna win the belt on "Earth Rumble 6."
Earthbending Pupil #2: But he has to fight his way through the world's best Earthbenders to even get the shot at the champ.
Aang: Excuse me, but where is this Earthbending tournament, exactly.
Earthbending Pupil #1: It's on the island of Nun'ya... nun'ya business! (both laugh)
(Sokka laughs)
Sokka: Ooohh! I gotta remember that one! (edit) Toph: What are you doing here, Twinkle Toes?
Aang: How'd you know it was me?
Sokka: Don't answer to Twinkle Toes. It's not manly.
Katara: You're the one whose bag matches his belt. (edit) Poppy (Toph's Mother) (after Toph and Aang have been kidnapped): Poor Toph. She must be so scared.
(cut to Toph suspended in a cage by a chain)
Toph: You think you're so tough? Why don't you come up here, so I can smack that grin off your face!
Xin Fu: I'm not smiling. (edit) Aang: You could come with us.
Toph: Yeah, you guys get to go wherever you want. No one telling you what to do. That's the life. It's just not my life. (edit) (Toph and her family are talking; a servant comes in)
Servant: You have a visitor, sir.
Lao: Who thinks they are important enough to show up at my house unannounced?
Servant: The Avatar.
(Pause) (edit) Fire Nation Man: Please rise for Fire Nation national anthem. (starts singing) Fire Lord, my flame burns for thee... (spectators throw stuff at him) (edit) Sokka: I gotta admit now I'm really glad I bought this bag. It matches the belt perfectly.
Katara (sarcastically): That is a big relief. (edit) (Aang enters the ring wanting to talk to Toph.)
Sokka: Go Aang! Avenge the Boulder!
Toph: Do people really wanna see two little girls fighting out here?
Spectators: Ooohhh...
Aang: I don't really want to fight you. I want to talk to you.
Sokka: Boo! No talking!
Katara: Don't boo at him!
(Katara slaps Sokka) (edit) The Boulder: Listen up Hippo, you may be big, but you ain't bad, the Boulder is gonna win this in a landslide.
Hippo: Hippo mad! (edit) Aang: Toph! What are you doing here?
Toph: My dad changed his mind. He said I was free to travel the world.
Sokka: Well, we better get out of here, before your dad changes his mind again.
Toph: Good idea. (edit) Lao: My daughter is blind. She is blind and tiny, and helpless, and fragile. She cannnot help you.
Toph: Yes, I can. (edit) The Boulder: The Boulder feels conflicted about fighting a young, blind girl.
Toph: Sounds to me like you're scared, Boulder.
The Boulder: The Boulder is over his conflicted feelings, and know he is ready to bury you in a rock-alanche!
Toph: Whenever your ready. The Pebble. (laughs)
The Boulder: It's on. (edit) Katara: She can't really be blind, it's just part of her character, right?
Aang: I think she is.
Sokka: I think she is GOING DOWN! (edit) Sokka (grabbing the note The Boulder and Xin Fu signed, demanding ransom for Toph and Aang): I can't believe it - I GOT THE BOULDER'S AUTOGRAPH! (edit) Aang (Sokka is hamering away at the box Aang is enclosed in): Hit it harder!
Sokka: I'm trying! (edit) Aang: Hey, front row seats, I wonder why no one else is sitting here.
(a boulder smashes into the seats next to them)
Sokka: I guess that's why. (edit) Sokka: The Boulder knows how to put the hurt in the dirt! (begins cheering) (edit) Katara: This is just gonna be a bunch of guys chucking rocks at each other, isn't it?
Sokka: That's what I paid for. (edit) Sokka (to Aang): What was I thinking? I don't need a new bag. Why did you let me buy this? (edit) Katara: How about The Boulder? He's got some good moves.
Aang: I don't know. Bumi said I needed a teacher who listens to the Earth. He's just listening to his muscles. What do you think Sokka?
(Sokka cheers for The Boulder) (edit) Katara (to the two Earthbenders Katara beat up earlier): I've got my eye on you.
Sokka (Proudly): Yeah... Water Tribe. (edit) Sokka: It's pricey, but I really do like it.
Katara: Then you should get it. You deserve something nice.
Sokka: I do, don't I? But no, I shouldn't. It's too expensive, I shouldn't.
Katara: All right, then don't.
(They all walk away from bag, then Sokka rushes back)
Sokka: You know what? I'm gonna get it. (edit)

We see that Toph is presented with soup for her meal, but as soon as Lao (her father) talks to Aang, it becomes rice; this change becomes very apparent since Toph is shown eating rice whenever Lao looks at her after something strange has happened. But her meal becomes soup again when Aang sneezes the food towards her. (edit) When Katara returns to Aang and Sokka with the information, the blue beads in her bun are the color of her hair. (edit) "Fire Nation man", "like the Boulder" is based on a real-life professional wrestler "Nikolai Volkoff", evident as they both sing opposing countries national anthems. (edit) "The Boulder" is based on real-life professional wrestler "The Rock", this can be seen in the way he speaks in the third person. (edit) Second Appearance of Toph.

Her first appearance was in Chapter 4, The Swamp where Aang saw her as a vision of one he would meet. (edit) Despite the explicit fact that nobody knew who the Blind Bandit's true identity, or that the Bei Fong family even had a daughter, Xin Fu and the others are able to locate Toph with little to no difficulty. (edit) While Toph is shouting at Xin Fu while in the suspended metal coffin, it has three bars in the screen, but when the view zooms out, the coffin has four bars in the screen. (edit) Beginning after dinner, Toph's nightgown transforms back and forth between a dress and pants. (edit) When Toph is holding up her champion belt before she battles Aang in Earth Rumble 6, the women standing on either side of her look like they are twice as tall as she is. But Toph is said to only be 5'2, 5'3 with her bun. (edit) Xin Fu's note couldn't be seen fully because there was a sword through it and there should've been holes. (edit) The masked wrestler couldn't have swung down at Toph on a vine when the entire ceiling is covered in crystals. (edit) Aang and Toph are locked inside of metal coffins that are attached to the ceiling of the Earth Rumble VI arena. But the ceiling is covered in crystals, and the coffins can even be lowered. Which shouldn't be possible since the ceiling is covered in crystals. (edit) During an up-close shot of Toph's ear while listening for the Earth Rumble VI Wrestlers during the fight at the end, Toph's hairband turns green, like her bandana. (edit) When Toph is shouting at Xin Fu from within the metal coffin thing, her eyes look normal and not blind. (edit) The Big, Bad Hippo, an earthbending tournament competitor, is sometimes shown to have four large hippo-like teeth which he uses to crush rocks, and at other times (when his mouth is shut in a grimace, for example) he is shown to have a whole mouth of basically normal looking teeth. (edit)

Xin is a male Chinese name that means: New
Fu is a male Chinese name that means: wealthy
So Xin Fu's name could be a reference to how he profits off of Toph's abduction and the bounty hunting afterwards. (edit) The closing scene, with Toph resting her head on her arms leaning outward near the back of Appa's saddle while flying into the night sky, parells the ending of The Southern Air Temple. However they at the same time contrast with each other, as Aang indicated a feeling of remorse taking one last gaze of his old home, while Toph's eyes were closed with contentment. (edit) Martial Arts Consultant Sifu Kisu and co-creator Bryan Konietzko have stated that Master Yu and his academy actually serve as a satirical parody of atypical "strip mall" dojos where parents purchase martial arts belts for their children disregarding the symbolism and substance behind them, as well as their own personal disdain for the use of belt systems. (edit) The fighter who pledges allegiance to the Fire Nation and asks for respect as he sings its national anthem is modeled after pro wrestler Nikolai Volkoff, who used to ask for the same as he sang the national anthem of the Soviet Union in the '80s. (edit) The Boulder is voiced by the professional Wrestler Mick Foley (AKA Mankind, Dude Love, Cactus Jack) who once partnered with The Rock as part of The Rock and Sock Connection. The Boulder is a direct parody of the quirky behavior exhibited by The Rock-most notably referring to himself in the third person. (edit) Lei tai
The ring used for Earth Rumble VI is a Lei tai, a traditional raised fighting platform lacking railings, where often bare-knuckle martial arts tournaments were once held. The rules for the Rumble also correlated with that of a typical Lei tai tournament, with a referee on a platform judging from the sidelines, competitors losing if forced from the stage, and the winner remaining on the stage (as its "owner") unless ousted by an even stronger opponent. Eventually becoming champion if they were no more challengers. Lei tai also literally translates to "beat (a drum) platform", which most of the fighters, especially Toph and Big Bad Hippo, alluded to with their bending. (edit) The fact that Toph is the only recurring character as of yet to possess a surname is no coincidence. Traditionally, in East Asian cultures, family names were reserved exclusively for members of high nobility, much like the Beifong family, before common people started adopting family names for themselves. (edit) Daredevil: Toph shows many similarities to Marvel hero Daredevil, both are blind, but this has given them abilities beyond their normal capabilities, and both use sound vibration that works to help them to know the distance and place of the objects. (edit) Xin Fu (心腹) in Mandarin Chinese means "reliable agent" or "henchman." (edit) Other parodies:

One of the wrestlers wears a mask reminiscent of WWE star Mankind.

Another wrestler burrows underground and has unusual eyewear, making him very similar to the Marvel Comics villain the Mole-Man. (edit) Toph's name may also simply be a play on the word "tough", which is a perfect symbol for her rigid attitude as well as one of the most basic fundamentals pertaining to her bending element. (edit) Although never mentioned in the episode, the name of Toph's hometown later on is revealed to be Gaoling. This is a take off the once British word "gaol", which translates to the word "jail." This term is befitting considering the way that Toph's parents limit her freedom by keeping her locked up in their home and guarded constantly. (edit) Big Bad Hippo is a play on "King Hippo" from the NES game "Punch Out." (edit) Toph's family symbol is a winged boar, or in other words a Flying pig. A flying pig, or when pigs fly, usually means that something is impossible. It fits the presumption that a little blind girl can bend earth better than most masters. (edit) The way Toph listens to the vibrations and the sounds of earthbending is similar to beating a drum. Coincidentally, "toph" means "drum" in Hebrew. (edit) Tag
During the earthbending tournament, Sokka cheered and booed like a crazed wrestling fan. (edit) Aang, Katara, and Sokka attend an Earthbending tournament known as "Earth Rumble 6," which is an obvious parody of popular wrestling federation known as World Wrestling Entertainment or WWE, complete with ostentatious championship belt.

Parodies include: popular Earthbender "The Boulder," who is quite popular and speaks in the third person, is much like WWE superstar The Rock; an Earthbender who professes loyalty to the Fire Nation, speaks in a Russian accent, and calls for silence for the Fire Nation National Anthem, much like a certain Russian WWE superstar from long ago; and an Earthbender who wears a mask much like WWE superstar Rey Mysterio. (edit)