Editor’s note: The below review contains spoilers for Avatar: Seven Havens Episodes 1-3.12 years after the finale of The Legend of Korra, creators Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko have a brand-new Avatar story. Set 225 years after the events of Korra, the world looks very different. Instead of the four separated nations or the bustling metropolis of Republic City, a cataclysmic event has left the world a shadow of its former self. Now, humanity is divided into seven “havens” where people live isolated and behind walls to protect them from the wilds of the Harshlands. This is where Avatar: Seven Havens first picks up, and it’s where we first meet a young earthbender named Pavi (Saheli Khan). With a new visual palette, art style, and a daring concept, Seven Havens is a worthy successor to the Avatar franchise and proves that there’s always more story to tell in this creative and exciting world.
‘Seven Havens’ Flips the Script on the Avatar Story
Premiering with three episodes at once on Paramount+, Seven Havens introduces us to a brand new, more fearful world. In Avatar: The Last Airbender, Aang (Zach Tyler Eisen) was a symbol of hope for a world being oppressed by the vicious Fire Nation in the century since his absence, and in The Legend of Korra, Korra (Janet Varney) was a protector of the flourishing Republic City threatened by non-benders and benders alike. But in Ellora, the haven of wind and sand, the people view the avatar as a threat. We don’t know what has happened, but in the two and a quarter centuries since Korra saved the world from Kuvira, an apocalyptic event occurred that led the avatar to shatter the world.
In the opening episode, “On the Horizon,” we watch as players tell the story of how Korra was defeated before the post-apocalyptic world separated into the seven havens. Ellora is protected by the Brigade, a militia made up completely of benders — forced to conscript due to the lowering number of benders being born every year. Although airbenders now flourish alongside the other benders thanks to Korra opening up the connection to the spirit world, people live in fear and despise the avatar. This is a serious problem because we soon discover at the end of the episode that not only is nine-year-old Pavi the avatar, but she has a twin sister named Nisha (Aishu Devan), who is also the avatar.
Discovered by airbender and Brigade leader Jae (Major Curda), Jae turns to his airbending captain Karthik (Akshay Khanna) with his secret when he sees Pavi bending both earth and air. Karthik then reveals that not only is he a member of the Order of the White Lotus, but that he has been secretly training Nisha this entire time, unaware that she had a twin sister with the same abilities. Despite the prejudice, Karthik believes that the avatar will be needed to save the world and has been preparing for that moment.
‘Avatar: Seven Havens’ Pulls Away From Politics and Leans Into the Mystical
One thing that becomes very obvious when watching the new episodes of Seven Havens (six of which were provided for this review) is that the series has backed away from the political intrigue that Korra developed so well. While we got a bit of it in The Last Airbender, the power games of the nations are nowhere to be found in Seven Havens. This, as a result, simplifies the story a bit for the viewer. It’s clear that there is some kind of imbalance between the spirit world and the physical world, with the new antagonistic threat looking suspiciously like Vaatu, but the only true overall mystery so far is that we just don’t know what happened to Pavi and Nisha. We don’t know why they were separated, we don’t know how Pavi lost her leg, and we don’t know what happened to their parents.
Considering that the previous two shows dealt with serious topics like colonialism and industrialization, Seven Havens takes a softer approach, one that lies more in the mystical realm than the corporeal one. It’s not clear if perhaps DiMartino and Konietzko have decided to do this due to the polarizing response to Korra or if they’re simply playing the long game, but as of now, Book 1 of Seven Havens — subtitled “Survival” — is a rather uncomplicated story.
That doesn’t necessarily mean that the new series is bad. While I miss the complicated dynamics between different nations of people, the series offers enough mysteries to at least keep the viewer interested in knowing what happened in the past and what might happen next. The fact that Pavi and Nisha are the youngest avatars we’ve seen so far (with Aang starting his journey at 12) also speaks to the more simplified look at the world. And although Seven Havens introduces two avatars at once, it’s clear that both Pavi and Nisha emulate the two avatars before them; Pavi’s more childish and innocent nature is a parallel to Aang, and Nisha’s bold and brazen personality is similar to Korra’s.
‘Avatar: Seven Havens’ Offers Brand New Opportunities for Worldbuilding
The most exciting aspect of Seven Havens is undoubtedly the setting. Not only is Ellora like nothing we’ve ever seen before, but the colors and visual palette of the series turn the world into a cotton candy post-apocalyptic landscape. Awash in pastels and soft shades, this show looks nothing like its predecessors. Although the art team is still the same one that worked on The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra, Seven Havens‘ new look is also a strong indicator that we are no longer in a familiar place. While people used to dress distinctly according to the nation they are from, now, benders all wear the Brigade uniform, and the civilians dress simply in robes and headscarves that protect them from the unpredictable weather.
What also works just as well as it did in the previous shows is the avatars’ animal companions. Just like how Aang had Appa and Korra had Naga, Pavi and Nisha have Geet and Ruhi, respectively (all voiced by Dee Bradley Baker). The two cat-monkeys are both the perfect steeds for their young avatars and, unsurprisingly, incredibly adorable. Despite being separated, the presence of Geet and Ruhi is not only a sign that the sisters are destined to be together but also that they share a linked past that is just begging to be explored.
While the story is relatively simple so far, there’s nothing saying that Seven Havens won’t slowly unravel into a tale as intricate and as detailed as its predecessors. The series is laying the groundwork by showing us how fiercely isolationist Ellora is, with the Chancellor Kayoko (Jennifer Sun Bell) standing firmly against calling any of the other havens for help, even when they might need it. We can also see the bones of what seems to be Republic City under the rubble of the sands and brief glimpses of images of characters like Korra, Aang, Kyoshi (Yvonne Chapman), and Iroh (Mako Iwamatsu). Separated enough from the rest of the franchise to establish its own identity, but connected enough to keep fans curious about what broke the world apart, Seven Havens presents a new frontier full of possibilities, one that should excite any fan of the Avatar world.
The first three episodes of Avatar: Seven Havens are now streaming on Paramount+, with new episodes releasing every Friday.
- Release Date
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October 9, 2026
- Network
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Paramount+
- Writers
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Sehaj Sethi, Michael Dante DiMartino, Bryan Konietzko
- The decision to make both Pavi and Nisha the avatar is a stroke of genius and a major deviation from what we’ve always known.
- The worldbuilding of the havens and Ellora is an intriguing change.
- The 225-year time jump helps the series stand apart from the other franchise shows.
- The mystery and conflict of the story feels a bit too simple, lacking the complexity from shows like Legend of Korra and The Last Airbender.
