Momo (Avatar: The Last Airbender)

Momo is a fictional character on the Nickelodeon animated television series Avatar: The Last Airbender. In the show, Momo is the only known living Winged Lemur, a race of animals that can naturally fly. After being discovered by Aang he then takes care of Momo as a pet. Like most animals in the show, he is voiced by Dee Bradley Baker.

Creation and concept

Momo is a cross between Bat and a Lemur and is the last of his kind in the show much like Appa (though it is possible based on the descriptions by the Pirate Captain in "The Waterbending Scroll" and by Tho in "The Swamp" that a few more of his kind may exist in captivity and circuses elsewhere in the Four Nations).^[1][2] Avatar co-creator Bryan Konietzko admits that Momo is his favorite character to draw and that his body language comes from the memories of his childhood cat.^[3] Momo was introduced in the episode "The Southern Air Temple". In the episode, Aang finds Momo at the Southern Air Temple and then keeps him as a pet. After Momo eats a dumpling, Aang decides to name him Momo, which is Tibetan for "dumpling".^[4] In the series Momo has been a recurring part of the team. Although Momo has been in many dangerous situations while traveling with the team, he has also been a big help to the team as well. Momo is always mainly a source of comic relief throughout the course of the series. According to the creators, they originally intended Momo to be the reincarnated spirit of Monk Gyatso.^[5]

Plot overview

In season one of the series, episode "The Southern Air Temple," Team Avatar visit the "Southern Air Temple." Avatar Aang took interest in him and wanted to take him as his new pet. When inside the temple they heard a noise from outside the door. When seeing the shadow they assumed it was Firebenders until they noticed it was a lemur. Aang was excited to see him and Sokka wanted him for dinner. They both chased after him but he escaped and then returned to them with food. Aang then invited him into the family and named him Momo after he ate a momo (dumpling in Tibetan).^[4]

Ever since he has been a recurring character of the Team Avatar even having his own theme song from the show. While being part of the Team Avatar he has been used as a comedy relief. In the episode "King of Omashu", after Team Avatar are captured by King Bumi, Aang desperately uses Momo to slip in the air vents, but he cannot fit. In the episode "Imprisoned" when Katara used a plan to be arrested by firebenders by pretending to Earthbend by lifting a rock through ventilation shafts, Momo is mistaken for Earthbending.^[6]

He has also helped the group. For example: In Winter Solstice Part 1: Avatar Roku" he helped trick Fire Sages that the Avatar was inside. In the episode "The Waterbending Scroll" he fought a pirate's reptile bird over the Waterbending Scroll and also helped Katara escape when being tied up.^[7] In the episode "The Blue Spirit" after Katara and Sokka were sick, he accompanied them. When Katara wanted water, he couldn't comprehend it and gave her all sorts of other objects instead.^[8] In the episode "The Siege of the North: Part 2" when the Team Avatar were at the North Pole, Momo was with Aang, Katara and Princess Yue when they entered the Spirit Oasis and stayed there after they left. When Zhao invaded there to try to kill the Moon Spirit, he attacked Zhao until Aang returned. After the Siege was over, Momo and the rest of the team shared a group hug together.^[9]

In season two, Momo once again is presented as a comedy relief character. When Momo split off from the group in Omashu for food. He went in a scuffle with a little boy called Tom Tom who liked to hold on to his tail and follow him.^[10] When the team fell into a swamp, Appa and Momo got separated by the other group and were encountered by a Swamp Tribe who planned to eat them until the rest of the team intervened.^[11] After Appa disappeared in the dessert, Momo then got captured by a buzzard wasp until Aang rescued him refusing to lose another friend again.^[12] Momo was still presented as a help on the team as well. When Aang falls on the side of a drill, Momo grabs him.^[13] Momo's most prominent appearance in season two is in "Tale of Momo" a sub episode of "Tales of Ba Sing Se" In this episode he misses Appa. After going outside he then finds himself being chased by pygmy pumas but he and the pygmy pumas are then captured by humans for food. Momo then escapes and helps the pygmy puma escape. The pygmy puma out of gratitude help trace Appa's footprints. And Momo lays on that footprint. After Ba Sing Se is captured by Azula and the Dai Li. He was captured by them but then escaped along with the rest of the team.^[14]

In season three, Momo must hide himself in Aang's clothes after the team had to disguise them as Fire Nations.^[15] One time after Sokka bought a messenger hawk named Hawky, Momo and the hawk would tussle each other.^[16] When Aang was very nervous about the invasion and facing Fire Lord Ozai. He began to hallucinate that Momo and Appa could talk and were sword fighting each other.^[17] When Aang began to sleepwalk his way to an island that happened to be a Lion Turtle, Momo joined him. He then stayed with Aang until Aang faced the Fire Lord. After Aang battled the Fire Lord, the team reunited including Momo. Momo is last seen playing with Aang Airbending.^[18]

Abilities

In the show, Momo is able to glide with his wings just like any other Winged-Lemur. He can also swim short distances in water.^[19] He doesn't have any fighting skills but he has helped Team Avatar such as helping them escape. Momo seems to have some intelligence but he does have a hard time understanding human speech. For example Katara tries to tell Momo to get water but Momo doesn't comprehend and gives her all sorts of valuable and disgusting things (a dead rat, clothes, jewelry, money, etc.) except water.^[8]

In other appearances

Film

Momo appears in the film The Last Airbender in CGI again voiced by Dee Bradley Baker.^[20]

References