Skud's thoughts about Iroh

[BoomerangGuy]

Late to the party but here are some of my thoughts   

I agree that Iroh probably accepted that the Avatar was dead prior to "The Boy in the Iceberg." I believe that Iroh even welcomed Zuko's banishment for two reasons. First, for the reasons you stated above - he was likely not just uncomfortable in the Fire Nation but maybe also feared for his life. Second, in a twist of irony, he may have recognized that Zuko's banishment is exactly what the young prince needed.

We know that Roku traveled the world learning about bending, but also about culture and people. Conversely, Sozin stayed behind in the Fire Nation and likely did not see much of the world. This led him to become power-hungry and to spread the Fire Nation's "influence." It is likely that Azulon and Ozai did not see much of the world either, unless it was via the military. Three generations of Firelords have confined themselves into this isolationist bubble where fear, ignorance, and hatred can take over. Thus, the war rages on for a century.

It could be that Iroh's campaigns in the Earth Kingdom showed him not only the brutality of war, but also the beauty in diversity between cultures. It may also be that he saw the face of Lu Ten in the faces of the Earth Kingdom soldiers, leading him to question the morality of his nation. This is important as it leads Iroh to respect life, diversity, and "balance" amongst the nations. When Zuko is banished, Iroh may have seen an opportunity to stop the cycle and to raise the heir to the Fire Nation through not only his own teachings, but also through the lessons world travel. By experiencing different cultures and speaking to people that have been affected by the war, away from the propaganda of the Fire Nation, Iroh hoped that Zuko would develop a soft heart and eventually end the war when it came to face his father again. Thus, Iroh joins Zuko in his banishment.

However, the sudden realization that the Avatar was alive must have come as a shock, similar to the rest of the world. So one question that I can't seem to answer is this: what would Iroh have done if Zuko caught the Avatar? We know that Aang is pretty good at escaping, but let's assume that at the North Pole, Zuko was successful in capturing the Avatar and somehow commandeered a ship to take him back to the Firelord. Would Iroh have allowed Zuko to take the Avatar to the Firelord, trusting in destiny? Or would he have physically stopped Zuko? If the latter, at what point would he have stepped in? We know he somewhat approved of Zuko going after the Avatar at the North Pole since he allows him to take the lifeboat into the city during the night. At that point, it's likely that Iroh knew he couldn't talk him out of it. But what if the battle was over and Zuko was halfway home with Aang as his prisoner?

A final thought on Iroh:

I think we as fans tend to glorify characters that always seem to do the right thing or say the right words. We tend to think of them as perfect and perhaps even godlike at times. This is especially true when they are a part of a super-secret, super-important society that becomes critical in the later stages of the series. However, while Iroh is quite the tactician and certainly deserves admiration for being one of the most level-headed characters of the series, he is still just a man. Perhaps he never had a plan at certain points and he just trusted what was right, all while being a normal human being. It shows that he is not unlike Ozai, Zuko, you, or me. That each of us have it within us to do what is right - and I believe that is his most important lesson.