Avatar: Fire and Ash: Back to Pandora, Back to the Same Story

At this point, I’m expecting something new from this franchise, and instead it feels like more of the same. Talking about the visuals alone isn’t enough anymore—they’re great, but that’s the baseline expectation for Avatar now. For a world as massive and fascinating as Pandora, it’s frustrating how much of the story feels like it’s happening in the same places, hitting the same familiar beats.

This movie largely mirrors the first film’s structure, with minimal stakes and a third act that feels like a repetition of what we’ve already seen—drawn out, predictable, and ultimately exhausting. While the first two hours are the strongest, the final stretch falls into the same repetitive trap as the previous installments.

The score also doesn’t hit with the same emotional weight as the original, which is felt even more in James Horner’s absence. There are standout elements: the fire tribe brings some genuinely cool moments, and a few sequences are pure cinematic rides. Varang is easily the most intriguing character introduced here, yet the film barely scratches the surface with her. Jake Sully continues to become less compelling with each entry, and Neytiri is once again underused.

“Tarzan”—sorry, Spider—does add something new to the Avatar lore, which helps inject a bit of freshness into the universe. My theater clearly enjoyed the experience, and I won’t deny there are fun moments throughout. But after three films, I’m ready for this franchise to evolve beyond a generic story and give these characters something truly new to do.