Sokka of the Water Tribe
It is hard to begin a description of Sokka, because it involves making a difficult choice—which side of him to discuss first? He is both a warrior and a comic relief character, but the two mix so well that it can be difficult to determine where one aspect ends and the other begins. Just like the series walks a thin line between serious and humorous, Sokka can vary from deathly serious to down right goofy, depending on the circumstances. Of course there is more to him than just those two sides as well, making Sokka a very round and well developed character.
Because of the war, which cost his mother her life and forced his father to go off to fight the Fire Nation, Sokka had to grow up quickly as a warrior. Surrounded by women, children, and the elderly, it fell to Sokka to be the warrior of the village, so he takes his job very seriously. Unlike most of Team Avatar, Sokka lacks bending powers and must rely on weapons and his own strength to fight. Although he tries to act confident, he occasionally experiences insecurity due to the fact that he had to learn his abilities without the aid of a master and that he lacks bending abilities. In fact, his posturing, especially early in the series, could be a direct result of this type of insecurity. As the story progresses, he learns to take training from others and improves considerably as a fighter. Although he never masters an element, he shows the potential to become a true master of the sword.
Sokka is not all about physical ability, but also his ability as a strategist. Sokka loves to have a plan—he likes schedules, maps, and specific goals. While his skill as a warrior comes in handy, it is often his ability to plan quickly or think on his feet when needed that often saves the day. To some extent, his love of plans can frustrate the others who object to his fastidiousness when it comes to schedules, but usually they rely on him to keep them on task and give them ideas. Generally speaking, he also enjoys the occasional relaxing break, but sometimes Team Avatar needs a kick in the pants to get things done, and Sokka is usually the person wearing the boots.
On one hand, Sokka can be very practical—making sure that the group has food and supplies, urging the group to do what needs to be done, looking at the big picture rather than immediate situation. On the other hand, he can also be rather silly—coming up with absurd theories and doing things that seem to lack all sense (like eating a strange cactus). Sometimes his practical side can be just as funny as his silly side because it can lead him to say or do things that are unexpected. For example, when a village offers to help the group after Aang saves them from a deranged spirit, instead of doing the polite thing and rejecting their offers of payment, Sokka replies that the village could give them money and supplies. It is funny because it is an unexpected response, but it is a practical suggestion.
Another characteristic that makes Sokka so humorous is his sarcasm. While his sense of humor often tends towards the ridiculous, and he is known to make terrible jokes, he also has a very sarcastic wit that makes him one of story's major snarkers. Sometimes he sees himself as being more funny than he actually is, but that too is part of the humor in his character. Sometimes the viewers laugh with him, and sometimes they laugh at him. Near the end of the story, the group finds a theater trope performing (badly) the story of Avatar and Sokka is horrified to find that his actor constantly makes bad jokes about food. In order to improve the performance, he encourages the guy playing him to make bad jokes about other topics as well.
While it may be a stretch to suggest that Sokka only thinks about food, one cannot deny that it often occupies his thoughts. Unlike Aang, who is a vegetarian, Sokka is a meat eater who loves to eat meat. Of course he will eat a variety of other foods as well, but meat tends to be his main object when it comes to dinner time. In fact, when the group first encountered Momo, Sokka was planning on eating him.
What makes Sokka such a fun character is the balance between his serious, warrior side and his fun, sarcastic side. Without both he would either be just another action hero or just another silly sidekick.
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