Alright let’s go over these 1 by 1.
My commentary is looking at this chart (and many like it) as a list of different bending styles. If was just a chart of different techniques, it’d be fine.
It has been a while since I’ve read the books, and I hasn’t read Roku yet, so my book knowloage and overall memory isn’t 100%
I may be entirely wrong here and there or forgot something that could change/add to my quick analysis of everything from memory.
Also not questioning the existence of any thing (cough spirit bending cough), just deciding if they are a separate form of bending or just a technique/skill within the main form.
Air
(This is the most negative)
flight - to me that’s just an advanced air bender technique. The “unlock” is dubious as best, specifically how Zaher was able to unlock it pretty quick after …events.
Temperature - earth benders are the only ones without an obvious method to do this. Ignoring that, Any air bender seemed to be able to it, putting it under the technique category.
spirit projection - sprit stuff does not equal air. Yes air benders are the most spiritual in culture, but nothing is stopping an earth bender from pulling this off.
sound - as described in the book, Yangchen just used airbending to make loud noise. While it is a specific technique, any bender can do that with their element.
vacuum - a vacuum has no air. You can’t bend nothing. I believe this refers to the technique where the air is removed from a space, but that’s just air bending.
Water
I modified the order to group a few of these together.
Healing and Spirit - no complaints here. These are both unique enough to consider them separate from water bending. (Unlike projection, sprit actually uses water as the medium to accomplish the task, so its still water)
Blood and Plant - technically they are just bending the water inside something else, but if we count metal and blood, then plant should be included too. The control and finese required sperate these from mud.
mud - I though about including it with blood and water, but no. If picking up a fish with water is called water bending, so is picking up a rock. I will accept it is more difficult to bend, perhaps feeling heavier to bend.
Ice and Steam - these are phase changes. While a more advance technique, the questions is do they stay? I think if we consider lava bending as changing the phase of Earth to liquid, then it stands to reason both ice and steam can stay. However, from a bending cultural perspective, these should be lumped into mainstream water bendebendeing.
Earth
Metal and Glass - no complaints.
Sand - technically just tiny rocks, however the bending style is different enough I consider is its own thing
Crystal - I think Aang, a novice earth bender (s2 finale), being able to ustlize it without thinking twice shows its not really different from earth bending.
Seismic - a unique technique for sure, but to count as an entirely separate form of bending is questionable.
Bone - a thought more horrifying than blood. Yes, its own thing.
Lava - to me this is Earth bending, but in a super hot liquid form. I think by nature the technique and bending is different enough to count it. (Which forces ice and steam into their own spot)
Mud - see water
Fire
Lightning - yes
Redirection - I consider lighting redirection to be lighting bending. Who cares if you generated it or not, earth benders don’t make rocks, but its still earth bending.
Combustion - unique enough to count.
Dragon Fire - I’ll equate this to sand bending, and consider it separate a bending style.
Heat Redirection - no. That’s a technique of fire bending.
Plasma - I don’t recall when this was shown, so no comment.
“shaman” chi bending - I equate it to water bender healing.
My understanding was that lightning redirection could have been done by anyone, as long as they knew how to control their chi. The way Iroh describes it sounds more like a water bending technique, redirecting the flow. Instead of trying to stop it head-on like an earthbender, or dissipate it like a firebender. My head-canon was always that Iroh was a master of all four elements, (he pulled inspiration from all four elements, and used aspects of each of them in his bending) and he used his knowledge of waterbending to develop the lightning redirection.
I always understood it as guiding the lightning through your body in a path that doesn’t kill you. It has converted into an energy that doesn’t cook you along the way.
The energy can’t just be absorbed or directly pass through sensitive points such as the heart, so it must sent back out, converting it back to lightning in the process.
I believe the energy conversion step is limited to a fire bender. If anyone tried this, they’d just fry themselves.
Alright let’s go over these 1 by 1. My commentary is looking at this chart (and many like it) as a list of different bending styles. If was just a chart of different techniques, it’d be fine.
It has been a while since I’ve read the books, and I hasn’t read Roku yet, so my book knowloage and overall memory isn’t 100%
I may be entirely wrong here and there or forgot something that could change/add to my quick analysis of everything from memory.
Also not questioning the existence of any thing (cough spirit bending cough), just deciding if they are a separate form of bending or just a technique/skill within the main form.
Air
(This is the most negative)
Water
I modified the order to group a few of these together.
Healing and Spirit - no complaints here. These are both unique enough to consider them separate from water bending. (Unlike projection, sprit actually uses water as the medium to accomplish the task, so its still water)
Blood and Plant - technically they are just bending the water inside something else, but if we count metal and blood, then plant should be included too. The control and finese required sperate these from mud.
mud - I though about including it with blood and water, but no. If picking up a fish with water is called water bending, so is picking up a rock. I will accept it is more difficult to bend, perhaps feeling heavier to bend.
Ice and Steam - these are phase changes. While a more advance technique, the questions is do they stay? I think if we consider lava bending as changing the phase of Earth to liquid, then it stands to reason both ice and steam can stay. However, from a bending cultural perspective, these should be lumped into mainstream water bendebendeing.
Earth
Fire
My understanding was that lightning redirection could have been done by anyone, as long as they knew how to control their chi. The way Iroh describes it sounds more like a water bending technique, redirecting the flow. Instead of trying to stop it head-on like an earthbender, or dissipate it like a firebender. My head-canon was always that Iroh was a master of all four elements, (he pulled inspiration from all four elements, and used aspects of each of them in his bending) and he used his knowledge of waterbending to develop the lightning redirection.
I always understood it as guiding the lightning through your body in a path that doesn’t kill you. It has converted into an energy that doesn’t cook you along the way. The energy can’t just be absorbed or directly pass through sensitive points such as the heart, so it must sent back out, converting it back to lightning in the process.
I believe the energy conversion step is limited to a fire bender. If anyone tried this, they’d just fry themselves.
That’s how I think of it, no idea what cannon is.
Bone bending is only possible on own body not others. It was used to Stop Aging.
True, but still a horrifying thought if someone does figure out how to weaponize it.