Avatar: The Last Airbender generally did a great job of making the kids the star of the show while still keeping the adults in their own lofty positions. Some of the youngest, yet most capable, fighters met by Aang and his friends were the Kyoshi Warriors, and it wasn't long before their leader, Suki, joined the band of teens to help save the world.
Along the way, the series skated past one important question about Kyoshi Island: Where are all of the adults?
The Kyoshi Warriors debut in the fourth episode, when they apprehend the Gaang during a stop at Kyoshi Island. The elite group of female fighters was originally trained by Avatar Kyoshi herself following the island's separation from the mainland. In training the women to defend the island, Kyoshi started a proud tradition notable for the dress, makeup and war fans implemented by each member. The Kyoshi Warriors were led during Aang's era by Suki, who was the eldest of the fighters.
Although Suki's age remains unknown, the combined facts prove curious in the absence of any adult Kyoshi Warriors throughout the series. The makeup and costuming make it difficult to discern ages, but glimpses of past Kyoshi Warriors, like those Suki observed as a child, or those originally trained by Kyoshi, seem to indicate there are no restrictions against adult membership. The only limitations seem primarily against men and outsiders joining, and even those rules are broken during the course of the series, when Sokka undergoes training alongside Suki, and when Ty Lee later joins following her imprisonment alongside the group.
One explanation could be that the older Kyoshi Warriors left the island in order to fight in the war, except it was a major plot point that Kyoshi Island remained uninvolved until Aang's arrival and Zuko's attack on Suki's village spurred them to break their isolationist policies. In looking for the possible answer to where the adult Kyoshi Warriors are, there are two options that offer reasonable solutions.
The first is to remember that the Gaang's time on Kyoshi Island exclusively concerned a single village on a larger landmass. Suki is only the leader of her village's chapter of the Kyoshi Warriors; there could be other villages with other Kyoshi Warriors whose ranks include adults. The other factor to consider is that, because Kyoshi Island was isolated from the war, there was minimal need for membership. Suki and her colleagues could have been keeping the tradition alive while the older members went into early retirement, perhaps even picking up their fans once more when Suki left.
Either way, the absence of adults among the elite warriors seems like an oversight. Virtually every other military force the Gaang came across during the original series was made up of adults, with the sole exception of the Freedom Fighters, whose younger members were part of the point behind their revolutionary movement.
The recently released graphic novel Suki Alone shed further light on the mythology behind one of the Avatar world's more fascinating locations, yet fans still have so much more they can learn. As Avatar Studios expands upon the lore of the fantasy world, that may be one area worth addressing. There are certainly few who would complain because, when it comes to the Kyoshi Warriors, almost everyone considers themselves a fan.
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