The Day of Black Sun

"The Day of Black Sun" is the tenth and eleventh episodes of the third season of the American animated television series Avatar: The Last Airbender, and the 50th and the 51st episode overall. The show follows Aang (Zach Tyler Eisen), the last airbender and the “Avatar”, on his journey to bring balance to a war-torn world by mastering all four elements: air, water, earth, and fire. On his quest, he is joined by companions Katara (Mae Whitman), Sokka (Jack DeSena), and Toph Beifong (Jessie Flower). The season also follows Zuko (Dante Basco) as he returns to the Fire Nation only to face his conflicting feelings about his part in the war. The episodes have the sub-titles "The Invasion" and "The Eclipse" respectively.

The first part of the episode was directed by Giancarlo Volpe and written by co-creator Michael Dante DiMartino, and follows Aang, Sokka and Hakoda leading an invasion on the Fire Nation, on "The Day of Black Sun" where the firebenders will lose their bending due to a solar eclipse. The second part was directed by Joaquim Dos Santos and written by head writer Aaron Ehasz, following the beginning of the eclipse, and Zuko standing up to his father Fire Lord Ozai (Mark Hamill). The episodes premiered on November 23 and 26, 2007 respectively in the Netherlands and Belgium, before releasing on Nickelodeon in the United States on November 30 of that year. They were watched by 3.77 million viewers, and received critical acclaim.

Plot
On the day of the invasion, Aang prepares and reveals he cannot enter the Avatar State, as his final chakra has been blocked after Azula shot him with lightning. Sokka's father Hakoda arrives with the invasion fleet, who Sokka tries to brief but his nervousness gets the better of him so Hakoda finishes the brief. Sokka feeling disheartened, is encouraged by Aang who tells him that his big moment will be on the battlefield and not in a front of a crowd. Aang shaves his head and begins wearing his traditional Air Nomad clothing again.

Meanwhile in the Fire Nation, Zuko leaves a farewell note for his girlfriend Mai on his bed before visiting a painting of his mother. He confesses his earlier mistakes and promises aloud that he will do what is right and gets ready to leave. Iroh in prison, is helped by a kind guard, Ming, who smuggles in white jade tea for him. Iroh, appreciating Ming's kindness, tells her it would be better if she was not here this afternoon. The invasion force reach the Great Gates of Azulon, which they sneak through in submarine-like ships. Due to the ship's limited oxygen supply, they rise before continuing. Aang, fearing he will not return, kisses Katara and confesses his feelings before flying away.

The invasion fleet reach the beach near the capital city, and a war begins between them and the Fire Nation troops. Upon noticing a threat from towers shooting missiles, Sokka, Katara and Hakoda go to destroy them. However, Hakoda is heavily injured in the battle forcing Sokka to lead the invasion force. Aang enters the palace and is dismayed when he finds it has been evacuated and the Fire Lord is not there. As Katara heals Hakoda, Aang returns and tells Sokka of this, who concludes the Fire Lord must have expected the attack and is most likely hiding in an underground bunker. After some discussion, the invasion force continues under Bato, Hakoda's partner, while Aang, Sokka and Toph Beifong go to look for the Fire Lord.

Toph manages to find the secret bunker inside a nearby volcano, and the three enter while the eclipse starts. They corner a Fire Nation noble who gives him the location of the Fire Lord's chamber. The invasion force enters the capital city and manages to capture a portion of it as the eclipse occurs. Aang, Sokka and Toph reach the chamber to find Azula there instead of the Fire Lord. She reveals she knew about the invasion for months and she is not surprised to see Aang is alive. A fight occurs when Azula sends her Dai Li agents after the trio. Toph eventually incapacitates the agents and they corner Azula, only to discover she has been baiting them and wasting time until the eclipse ends. As they attempt to leave, Azula taunts Sokka by revealing she has captured, imprisoned and potentially tortured Suki. An enraged Sokka lunges towards Azula who prepares to stab him with a concealed dagger, but Toph senses the movement and earthbends Azula to the wall. Sokka grabs Azula forcing her to give up where Suki is, but Azula does not comply.

Meanwhile, Zuko enters his father's chambers and explains he is there to tell the truth, explaining that Azula was the one who "killed" the Avatar, and that he is probably alive. Ozai furiously orders Zuko to leave but Zuko reveals he is not taking orders from his father anymore, drawing his swords to threaten Ozai. He is explains that all he wanted was for Ozai to love him, but now he realizes he was just trying to please a man who did not deserve pleasure. He berates Ozai for challenging a 13-year-old to an Agni Kai, claiming it was wrong and cruel. He reveals his beliefs that the Fire Nation is doing nothing but wrong in the world, and that this era of war is to replaced by an era of peace. Ozai laughs, realizing that Iroh's words have gotten to Zuko, but Zuko proudly admits they have and confesses his uncle Iroh has been more of a father to him than Ozai ever was. He reveals he plans to set Iroh free from his cell and then go help the Avatar learn firebending and defeat Ozai. When Ozai asks why Zuko will not kill him with his swords right here, he claims that it is not the destiny and begins to leave. However, Ozai taunts Zuko to stay and he begins talking about his mother. Ozai reveals his father Fire Lord Azulon ordered him to kill Zuko and that he planned to follow through with his father's request, but Ursa discovered his intentions and swore to protect Zuko at any cost. Ozai implies that Ursa arranged Azulon's death so Zuko would be spared and he himself would become Fire Lord. As a result, instead of death, Ursa was banished for her treason. As Ozai finishes his story, the eclipse ends and Ozai, regaining his power, shoots lightning at Zuko who redirects it back at Ozai using a technique he learned from Iroh.

Azula hears the explosion from the lightning blast and realizes that the sun is back out. She escapes using her firebending and Aang decides that he is not ready to face the Fire Lord now, deciding to evacuate. As the invasion force prepares to get back to the ships, fleets of hot air balloons and zeppelins emerge. Aang and Katara attempt to stop the fleet but they are severely outmatched. Zuko rushes to the prison only to find Iroh has already escaped, leaving behind dazed and unconsciousness guards. Hakoda tells Aang and the other younger fighters to escape on Appa while the rest sacrifice their themselves and go to prison. Aang, sadly vowing to make it up to them and thanking them for their service, leaves the force behind and escapes on Appa with Katara, Sokka, Toph Haru, Teo, and The Duke. As Aang prepares to take them to the Western Air Temple for safety, Zuko follows closely behind.

Credits
Main cast members Zach Tyler Eisen, Mae Whitman, Jack DeSena, Jessie Flower, Dante Basco and Dee Bradley Baker appear as the voices of Aang, Katara, Sokka, Toph Beifong, Zuko, and Appa respectively. Appearing as guests in both parts are André Sogliuzzo as Hakoda, Richard McGonagle as Bato, René Auberjonois as the mechanist, Daniel Samonas as Teo, Wayne Duvall as Warden Poon, Michael Dow as Haru, Kevin Michael Richardson as both Tyro and the Hippo, Carlos Alazraqui as Due and Tho, William H. Bassett as Huu, Sterling Young as Pipsqueak, and Nick Swoboda as The Duke. Appearing as guests in only the first part are Greg Baldwin as Iroh, Serena Williams as Ming, and Mick Foley as the Boulder. Appearing as guests in only the second part are Mark Hamill as Fire Lord Ozai, Grey DeLisle as Azula, and Kristoffer Tabori as a war minister.

The first part of the episode was directed by Giancarlo Volpe and written by co-creator Michael Dante DiMartino, while the second part was directed by Joaquim Dos Santos and written by head writer Aaron Ehasz.

Production
The animation was done by JM Animation for the first part, and MOI Animation for the second part.

When promoting the episode, just as they had done for "The Secret of the Fire Nation", Nickelodeon promoted the episode greatly by creating a website with links to a tournament and wallpaper downloads. The website even included an online game called Black Sun Siege which released on November 29, 2007. The episode also introduces submarines into the world of Avatar, inspired by pre-Cold War and World War II submarines in that they have limited air supply, or the Higgins boat used in World War II. The idea of Ozai hiding in a secret bunker bears similaraties to how Adolf Hitler used his bunker during World War II. When the invasion force soliders march up the volcano towards the Fire Nation, parallels can be drawn in regards to how they hold their shields above their heads in a formation reminiscent of the Roman Testudo formation.

Reception
The episode received critical acclaim from fans and critics, with many considering it one of the best of the show.

Hayden Childs of The A.V. Club praised Zuko's speech in the episode, calling it "the emotional heart of these episodes" and commenting: "He lays out carefully how Ozai wronged him with the banishment and Agni Kai, which shows just how far he has come since the beginning. He points out that Sozin's idea that the Fire Nation's war is for the good of the world is still being taught to the people, but that it is a lie. This is not just a talking point to help out the young people watching, but another sign of how Zuko has outgrown his brainwashing. Ozai is too monstrous to understand any of this, of course, but it is only right that Zuko, who has the most compelling arc of any character on the show, should have a chance to say his piece to his father." Max Nicholson of IGN gave the episodes ratings of 8.5 and 8.8 out of 10 respectively, writing that Part 1 "delivered a great half-hour of invasion antics, as Team Avatar launched their attack on the Fire Nation. Not only did this episode feature tons of returning allies, but it also included great moments for them" and that Part 2 "offered a solid conclusion to the "Day of Black Sun" two-parter and set the final events of the series in motion."

Chris Harkin of Game Rant placed the second part of the episode as the eighth best episode of the show with a score of 9.4 / 10, writing "The heartbreak for fans as the team suffered major losses and defeats paved the way for their underdog victory when Sozin's Comet arrived later in the season. In the meantime, Team Avatar found Azula and fought her agents, while Zuko found his father and learned the truth about his mother's fate." Sam Cheeda of Screen Rant placed the episode as it the fifth-best of the show, stating that "The episode is notable for showcasing the heroes on the backfoot when the invasion starts to slip through their grasp and the advantage goes to the Fire Nation. With Ozai making an appearance, the two-parter was by no means playing around and the conflict came across as a big-time event."

In 2020, Millie Mae Mealy of The Harvard Crimson ranked the first and second parts of the episode as the 15th and 3rd best episodes of the show respectively, praising Sokka's competence and ability to design a submarine, the heroes losing and the repercussions of it, and the climax of Zuko's character arc, writing that "Zuko's confrontation with his father is epic. Lightning represents the abuse of his father and his family — with his Uncle's love and support, Zuko learns to let that lightning pass through him without hurting him and chooses not to take vengeance on his father. Zuko stands up to his father and tells him that he was abusive and wrong. He knows his worth, and now he is going to do the right thing no matter the consequences. Zuko's redemption arc is exceptional and this is a brilliant moment that shows just how far he has come."

For his work directing the second part of the episode, Joaquim Dos Santos was nominated at Annecy in 2008.

The episode has caused topics like the show or 'Fire Nation' to trend whenever there is a solar eclipse, such as during the "Great American Eclipse" on August 21, 2017.