Appa - Reception and Legacy

Reception and Legacy

KidsTelly.com's Dan G. Hughes noted that "the flying six legged bison has a lovingly sketched personality," further commenting how every character (including Appa) changes and grows throughout the series. Kevin Fitzpatrick of UGO Entertainment praised Appa's "love and courage throughout the series" citing how "our cuddly 8-foot tall buddy willing to face any danger, and overcome any hardship to return to his master."

Leading up to the opening of The Last Airbender, reporter Kofi Outlaw of Screen Rant remarked that Appa "is a fan-favorite of the series." Similarly, Edward Douglas noted in Superhero Hype! that "Two of the characters from the cartoon fans are most anxious to see brought to life aren't even human. They are Appa, Aang's six-legged flying bison, and Momo, his flying pet lemur." The film trailer shown during Super Bowl led UGO Entertainment critic Jordan Hoffman to ask, "Where's Appa?" as the sole complaint, noting the character's lack of prominence in the preview. Correspondingly, MTV's Rick Marshall provided instructions online on "how to find the elusive Appa" for the character's brief appearance in the background of a trailer scene.

As with the rest of the film, Appa's appearance in The Last Airbender was met with largely negative reviews. Geekosystem's Susana Polo found the CGI version of Appa "really quite creepy," noting "that prey animals (like bison) have eyes on the sides of their heads, and so moving them to the front without changing rest of the facial structure tips us right into the Uncanny Valley." With regards to the film's scripting, io9 reviewer Meredith Woerner wrote, "The saddest cut by far was watching Appa and Momo's personalities disappear."