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'The Legend of Korra': Was Avatar Kyoshi a trans woman? Fans slam theory as 'stupidest take of Avatar yet'

A fan theory posits a personal headcanon that Avatar Kyoshi was a trans woman, and that the Kyoshi warriors are all trans women as well. However, not everyone agrees

A new fan theory has gotten Avatars Kyoshi and Korra trending in the week leading up to the release of 'The Legend of Korra' on Netflix. Using clips from the show and from the comics, a fan has put together a theory that Avatar Kyoshi was a bisexual trans woman, furthering the diversity in sexual orientation that began with the relationship between Korra (Janet Varney) and Asami Sato (Seychelle Gabriel). 

Avatar Kyoshi was an Avatar from the Earth kingdom, the Avatar who immediately preceded Avatar Roku who, in turn, immediately preceded Avatar Aang (Zach Tyler Eisen), who, of course, preceded Avatar Korra. Kyoshi left an important legacy on the world that 'The Last Airbender' and 'The Legend of Korra' is set in. She is the founder of the Kyoshi warriors, an all-female sect dedicated to her teachings and unique fighting style. Kyoshi also created Kyoshi Island, which was once a peninsula attached to the Earth Nation. She used her prodigious earth-bending skills to separate the land and keep it safe from an invading warlord. Her full story has been recounted in the recent novel, 'Avatar: The Last Airbender – The Rise of Kyoshi'.  

While Avatar Kyoshi has been confirmed as a bisexual woman in the canonical comics that continue the stories of both 'Avatar: The Last Airbender' and 'The Legend of Korra', the idea that Kyoshi was a trans woman is not canonical but it hasn't been explicitly denied either. The fan who posted the theory offered compelling arguments as to why Avatar Kyoshi was not only a trans woman, but that the Kyoshi warriors were trans women as well. 

"Avatar Kyoshi was a queer trans woman who realized since she had lived as multiple genders over her past lives and had loved all types of people, her gender assigned at birth was completely arbitrary," wrote a fan, who added, "Also, every Kyoshi warrior was a trans girl. This is canon." 

It is an interesting theory. The Avatar has canonically been both genders across generations. It is not outside the realm of possibility that one of the Avatars would connect with a body that is not their own, and rebel against the gender that was assigned to them at birth. The theory also points out Sokka (Jack de Sena) from 'The Last Airbender'. Though Sokka is a male, he was allowed to join the Kyoshi warriors as an honorary member. He recognizes the strength of femininity and dresses up as one of them with no judgment, only acceptance.

"When Suki convinces Sokka to wear the Kyoshi Warriors garb and makeup, this is customary to honor the memory of Avatar Kyoshi," the fan continued. "Although he's a cis guy, his experience with the Kyoshi warriors teaches Sokka that there's strength in femininity and ALL women deserve respect."

The fan later added that this theory is headcanon, the trans aspect of Avatar Kyoshi is not one that Nickelodeon was ready to explore in 2006 and probably isn't ready to explore today. "I want to be REALLY clear that this is a joke. Nickelodeon would NEVER allow a badass trans character in one of their shows in 2006," wrote the fan. The recent novels contain no indication that Kyoshi was anything but a cis-gendered woman, as well.

However, with the comics continuing to explore Korra's sexuality, however, and carving out a place for LGBTQ+ representation in the 'Avatar' universe, the idea of a trans Kyoshi warrior is not entirely out of the question, and with the near release of 'The Legend of Korra' on Netflix, the demand for more stories set in this universe is higher than ever.

Not all the fans agree with this theory, however. "This is the stupidest take of Avatar yet. Neither Kyoshi nor any of the warriors were trans, THEY WERE FEMALES! Hot take or not this is exactly why this series should've never been on Netflix," says one fan.

"Kyoshi isn't trans, just because she was tall and buff and had bug feat doesn't make her trans. In the comics it never said she was . Bisexual Absolutely, trans no. As for the worrior, I can cann see a few, because their island culture," writes another. 

Though the original poster did later clarify that they were joking, a lot of fans took offense to the words "this is canon." "Can’t just toss around “this is canon” like that and NOT expect my heart to skip a beat because i wouldn’t put that past the comics," writes another fan.

All episodes of 'The Legend of Korra' release on Netflix on August 14, 2020.